Dear Parents and Guardians, As we begin the Advent Season, let us cherish the gift of hope that Je-sus’ birth brings to our community and the world. On behalf of the staff at St. Margaret school, we would like to wish you all a blessed and joyful Christmas with family and friends, and a new year filled with hap-piness and good health.

Christmas Holidays The last day of school before the Christmas Holidays will be Friday, December 22nd. Friday is a regular school day. School end time will be 3:00 p.m. School will resume on Monday, January 8, 2018.

Kindergarten Registration Starts January 17, 2018 Kindergarten Registration will begin for all Elementary Schools on January 17, 2018 10:00am EST. Parents/guardians with children born in 2014 or earlier and who will be enrolling in Kindergarten, have the opportunity to apply on-line using the “Student On-line Admission and Registration” platform known as S.O.A.R. and found at the following link: http://soar.tcdsb.org . We also have our evening registration scheduled for Tuesday, January 23 from 4:30—7:30 pm. Parents will be able to complete an application for registration from the conven-ience of their own home, a public library, or anywhere there is internet access, 24 hours a day. The on-line application also offers access to translations in dif-ferent languages with built-in help functions and features. As part of the regis-tration process, school staff will meet with parents. These meetings may be scheduled on the electronic application or in person at the school. During the meeting, school staff will verify the original documentation required for regis-tration. This consists of a Baptismal Certificate, Birth Certificate and/or Pass-port, Immunization record, proof of residence and Application for Direction of School support. Applications to register children in grades other than Kin-dergarten can also be done on the online S.O.A.R. applica-tion. Please share this information with any parents/guardians with school aged children in the community. For further information, please contact our school office at 416-393-5249. For general inquires or further information you may contact 416-222-8282 extension 5314 or 5314 or visit our website at www.tcdsb.org/kindergartenregistration

M. Leitao (Principal) S. Ranalli (Vice Principal)

St. Margaret Catholic School News

December 2017/January 2018

St. Margaret Catholic School

85 Carmichael Avenue Toronto, On M5M 2X1

416-393-5249 x 0 50 Ameer Avenue

Toronto, On M6A 2L3 416-393-5249 x 3

Principal: M. Leitao Vice Principal: S. Ranalli

Secretary: V. Picillo Secretary: M. Barbara

Superintendant: P. Aguiar

416-222-8282

Trustee: M. Rizzo

416-512-3405

Parish: St. Margaret of Scotland Catholic Church 416-485-7781

Pastor: Fr. Andy

TORONTO CATHOLIC DISTRICT SCHOOLBOARD

TRUSTEES 2016-2017 Wards 1. Joseph Martino 416-512-3401

2. Ann Andrachuk 416-512-3402

3. Sal Piccininni, 416-512-3403

4. Patrizia Bottoni 416-512-3404

5. Maria Rizzo, Vice Chair 416-512-3405 6. Frank D’Amico, 416-512-3406 7. Michael Del Grande 416-512-3407 8. Gary Tanuan 416-512-3408

9. Jo-Ann Davis 416-512-3409

10. Barbara Poplawski 416-512-3410

Chair

11. Angela Kennedy, 416-512-3411

12. Nancy Crawford, 416-512-3412 13. Joel Ndongmi, 416-512-3417 Student Trustee 14. Rhea Carlisle, 416-512-3413 Student Trustee

December 2017/January 2018 St. Margaret Catholic School News Page 2

Winter Weather Cold temperatures are monitored very carefully. The students will be going out during recess and lunchtime unless the weather conditions are very severe or if the schoolyard is too icy. Children need to come to school properly dressed from head to toe: hats, gloves, boots and waterproof clothing are a must! Indoor shoes are also a must! Cold, wet floors do not allow for students to be in socks. Please ask the children not to lay valuable clothing aside. Check the lost and found if something is missing, and remember to label all items of clothing. Bus Safety We continue to reinforce bus safety with our students and continually review our bussing procedures. During the winter months, the predictability of traffic patterns is more difficult to determine. Students riding on the buses are asked to be at the designated bus stops at least five minutes before the assigned time. This will help ensure that students do not miss the bus. A reminder to speak to your children about our bus safety rules. Thank you for your continued assistance. Settlement Worker for St. Margaret Settlement and Education Partnerships in Toronto (SEPT) is a school-based program that helps newcomer students and their families get settled in their school and community. A School Settlement Worker provides infor-mation to newcomers and makes referrals to community organizations that provide in-depth support for various settlement issues such as employment, childcare, social assistance, health services, housing, and of course, pro-vide settlement assistance to the schools. Services are free and confidential. Please contact the school settlement worker Ariel Lopez alopezcicswis@gmail.com School Learning Improvement Plan Our school focus continues to be Mathematics: Develop strong numeracy, reasoning, communication skills

using 4 step problem solving model. Assessments are to be used to inform instruction (setting learning goals

and using success criteria and descriptive feedback to improve student learning), creating a safe and welcoming learning environment and differentiating instruction and assessment to target students preferred learning styles.

Curriculum Corner Helping Your Child Learn & Love Mathematics It is common knowledge that a parent’s and or guardian’s attitudes toward mathematics has an impact on children’s attitudes toward mathematics. In fact students whose par-ents show an interest in mathematics around the home will be more likely to develop enthusiasm themselves and persevere to learn and succeed in math. Simple ways to participate include: - play board and card games - involve your child in household activities that involve math—measuring in the kitchen, pairing socks - show a positive attitude towards learning math - support homework completion by being a co-learner

Inclement weather With the approach of winter, please note that should it become necessary to cancel school bus transportation or close schools due to inclement weather, the Communications Department and Toronto Student Transportation Group will endeavour to provide updates through the following: TV, Radio and Board website – www.tcdsb.org. OSLAT (Ottis Lennon School Ability Test 8th Edition) The Grade 4 Gifted Screening process will take place in February this year, and will include a one-tier universal group screening including all Grade 4 students in our Board. The group screening will be conducted by Assessment and Pro-gramming Teachers and Teacher Testers of the Gifted Pro-gram on Friday February 23rd, 2018. More information to follow. CSPC News The Halloween Dance-a-thon was a great success. Thank you for all your support. The children had a blast showing off their latest moves to the music programmed by our student leaders . Through the generous support of our community we were able to raise $12,043.80 before expenses, that will be used to support educational initiatives for our student. Finally, a reminder that our next CSAC Meeting will be held on De-cember 5th at 6:30pm in the Carmichael library. CSPC Christmas Party The parent community is also reminded about the upcoming annual CSPC Christmas Party from 1:00-3:00pm on Saturday December 9th in the Carmichael gym. There will be treats, entertainment and lots of prizes. Thanks Ms. Teles and Ms. Arnone for all your help. Come on out to have a good time and help raise funds for the school. Little Red Theatre Our grade 1-4 students will have the opportunity to view two theatre productions in the upcoming months. On January 24, our students will be captivated by the performance of “Peter Rabbit.” The Production Company will return on April 11th to showcase the performance of “Story of My Life.” All stu-dents are required to pay two dollars ($2.00) for each perfor-mance. Thanks to Ms. Galluzzo-Ribeiro for coordinating these enrichment opportunities for our students. St. Margaret’s Annual Book Fair This year our Book Fair was a great success! We made a grand total of $3940.14 with $2198.60 going back to the school to purchase books. We would like to thank everyone – parents, students and staff for all their support in helping to raise funds for our school. We can now purchase many needed books and educational resources that will benefit both students and staff. Many thanks to Ms Sadaka for organizing!

Page 3 St. Margaret School Catholic School News December 2017 /January 2018

Monthly Update from the Board

December 2017

Parents Urged to Check Their Liability Insurance Coverage

At the October 19, 2017 Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees, the Board re-

solved that all parents of the Board should be advised to consider contacting their

home insurance providers to determine the adequacy of their home insurance cover-

age to cover claims arising out of injuries caused by their child at school.

The reason for the Board of Trustee direction is that there have been a few instances

recently where legal action has been initiated for personal injury or other harm to a

student allegedly caused by another child.

A brief consultation by parents with their insurance provider is advised so parents can

assess the adequacy of their insurance coverage if they are sued for personal injury or

other harm allegedly caused by their child at school.

Inclement Weather Protocol

With the approach of winter and the associated ice and snow, there is always a possi-

bility of school bus cancellations or delays, as well as cancellation of programs and

services such as evening classes or permits. Your best source of information is via

Twitter @TCDSB. For those who are not on Twitter, please tune in to local television

and radio networks for updates. Other good sources of information are:

TCDSB’s website www.tcdsb.org

Toronto Student Transportation Group website https://

www.torontoschoolbus.org

TCDSB 24-hour Telephone Information Line: 416-222-8282 ext. 2873

Or if you wish to receive updates right to your email, subscribe to enews:

https://web1.tcdsb.org/InterestSubscription/subscription.aspx

Angel Foundation for Learning

Through the Loretto Fund and the Social Work Emergency Fund the Angel Founda-

tion supports TCDSB students who are new comers to Canada by helping to offset the

costs for items such as school supplies, uniforms, field trips, groceries or other neces-

sities to help them settle into school and life in Canada. You can help support families

who have come to Canada in search of peace donations to The Angel Foundation for

Learning. To learn more about the work of the Foundation, visit http://

www.angelfoundationforlearning.org/

Christmas Holidays

The last day of classes before the Chr istmas break will be Fr iday, December 22,

2017. Schools will reopen on Monday, January 8th, 2018.

Administrative offices will be closed from Saturday December 23rd through to

Monday, January 1, 2018.

SAVE THE DATE!

Kindergarten Registration Begins January 17th at 10 a.m.

Visit www.tcdsb.org for details.

New French Immersion Programs

Coming September 2018

We are pleased to share that following the successful community consultation, the

Toronto Catholic District School Board is moving forward with the implementation of

French Immersion Programming for September 2018 at the following schools:

St. Mary Catholic School

St. Alphonsus Catholic School

Registration will begin in January 2018.

The introduction of enhanced programming at TCDSB schools is one aspect of our

Long Term Program Plan (LTPP). Increasing the number of French Immersion pro-

grams available in our schools is a part of the LTPP and the Board’s ongoing responsi-

bility to offer dynamic educational opportunities to its students across the City of

Toronto.

Visit www.tcdsb.org for information about further expansions of the French Immer-

sion program.

TCDSB 2017-2018 Awards Season has begun!

Nominations are welcome for the annual TCDSB Alumni Award, Award of Merit and

Friends of Catholic Education Award which will be presented at Awards Night on

May 7, 2018.

Deadline: third Friday in January (January 20).

TCDSB Alumni Award: Open to TCDSB alumni who are still active in the

Catholic community and who have distinguished themselves in their career

or accomplishments.

TCDSB Award of Merit: Open to former staff, parents and trustees who

have made outstanding contributions to the TCDSB and to Catholic educa-

tion (can only be considered for award after a three-year period has passed

since departure from the TCDSB)

Friends of Catholic Education Award: Open to members of the general

public (individuals or organizations) who have accomplished extraordinary

service to Catholic Education but who may not be Catholic.

For nomination forms and information, visit: www.tcdsb.org/awardsnight

December’s Virtue is Charity

Find all the resources related to the monthly virtue, as well as other resources to sup-

port faith development and Religion and Family Life on our website here: https://

www.tcdsb.org/Board/NurturingOurCatholicCommunity/Pages/Default.aspx

TCDSB Celebrates Advent and Christmas

Visit the board’s website for the latest news and information from TCDSB schools

including food and clothing drives, Christmas baskets for needy families, Christmas

concerts and other special events.

https://www.tcdsb.org/news/othernews/2018/pages/Advent-and-Christmas.aspx

REMINDER: Spotlight On Your School

Submissions of short videos and original songs to celebrate your local school are due

February 23rd. Details for this Year of the School activity can be found online

https://www.tcdsb.org/Board/NurturingOurCatholicCommunity/Year-of-the-School/

Spotlight-on-your-school/Pages/default.aspx