November & December 2017

Birchbank Public School 3C's – Care, Courtesy and

Cooperation

52 Birchbank Rd. Brampton, L6T 1L7

Phone: (905) 793-7984 Fax: (905) 793-0100

Principal: A. Khan

Office Manager Susan Doyle Superintendent Liz Cook

Trustees Carrie Andrews Kathy McDonald

School Council Sakeena Kaley: Chair Tanzeela Asalaam: Vice-Chair

Charles Thuku: Treasurer

School website: http://schools.peelschools.org/1407

Board information on line: www.peel.edu.on.ca --------------————-----------

SAFE ARRIVAL SYSTEM Call 1-855-209-6155

Please call when your child will be absent from school.

What’s

Inside ...

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

CLIMATE for LEARNING & WORKING

The Fall has been very busy and productive at Birchbank. We started our school year with our

Mindfulness activities which continues at the start of each day. Our goal is to achieve a sense of

calm, as students remain focused on the moment, listen to their breathing, relax and think of

positive thoughts. This school wide activity allows students to listen and watch

a series of video clips right in their classrooms, as everyone follows the actions

in unison. It’s a joy to walk through the school and watch the Mindfulness

Ambassadors, students , and staff participating together and building

community.

Our first Responsibility Assembly on November 3 was a great success. Parents filled the

gymnasium to watch our Grade 1 and Grade 1/2 students sing their hearts out to a rap called

“Responsibility.” Our Librarian, Ms. Nanuan captured a video of the Grade 1’s demonstrating

Responsibility. Students were excited by our special guest Sensei Chris who spoke briefly about

how honoured he was to be working at Birchbank. We feel privileged to have Sensei Chris and

Senpai Vivian impact the building of character at Birchbank. Many of our students earned

Responsibility awards which were presented by their teachers. Our thanks to Ms. Rigato for

organizing the assembly and ensuring that the Birchbank standards remained high.

The Birchbank Pals leaders have been working hard under the direction

of Mrs. Hodgson, Mrs. Arneja, Mrs. Gilbert and Stephanie Grayson

from Peel Health to bring many games to our playground during

nutrition breaks.

We would like to thank all our parents for the tremendous support

during our recent Book Fair. Our Learning Commons came alive during

interview night as it was filled with many students and parents excited by

a variety of print. Thanks to Ms Nanuan for organizing this event, we raised almost $4000.00.

One of the most popular Birchbank tradition is our Pizza days. Our first pizza fiesta

was held on November 16. A great big thank you to the School Council and

especially Joanne Pozniak and her team of parent volunteers- Mrs. Reesor and Mrs.

Saini for making the job seamless. We know that our Birchbank students will

continue to look forward to many pizza Fridays!

This year as we continue to promote Healthy living and lifestyles in our community; we will be

participating in a variety of tournaments and sporting events with our family of schools. We

know that our Birchbank staff and students will be enriched with the Bramalea Family of schools

partnership.

Thank you to Ms Bakhsh for taking the Gr. 3s to the cross Country meet at Chinguacousy Park

hosted by Bramalea secondary. As well, it was another privilege to have Pakman Volleyball in

our gymnasium for the Gr. 4s and 5s. In addition, a Grade 5 class had a chance to participate in

European Handball led by Ms. Nanuan and Mr. Ho. Only this week Ms. Smaddar and

Birchbank Public School website

Message from Martial Arts student

News Birchbank School Council

Is French Immersion right for my child?

Bus cancellation and closing schools due to bad weather

Parent resources help you support your child’s learning

Jump start your future

Subscribe to receive news

Winter bus safety

Prevent the flu

Birchbank Primary/Junior playground

Birchbank Bulletin Calendar

Message from Phys Ed department

Principal’s Message continued…

Ms. Javed accompanied a Grade 5 class to Bramalea Secondary to participate in an Atomic Volleyball tournament.

Wow that’s a great line up of sporting activities for our students!! We look forward to many more of these skill-building

events for our students.

On December 4-7, X- Movement is returning to Birchbank to engage our students through Movement, Mindfulness and

Mateship. This event is called X-Power. X-Power explores conflict resolution through an experience inspired by martial

arts. “Students explore their inner power using Karate, Tai chi, and Taekwondo. Through games and reflection, students are em-

powered with tools for effective conflict resolution and to stand up for themselves, others and the world around them.”

Parents, we continue to focus on improving a growth mindset for our students and staff. We encourage you to discuss the Number

sense and skills we are building with our students so that they develop a solid understanding of the meaning of mathematics and

how it relates to the real world. Students are now engaging in Number Talks to build their understanding and confidence in Math.

We were pleased to see that many parents attended the parent/ teacher interviews. The progress report is a roadmap of how your

child is performing and will continue to progress for the rest of the school year. The Learning skills are an indicator of performance

and achievement. This is a perfect time to support your child with taking full responsibility for his/ her learning. Our students

should be able to come to school each day ready for learning, with all the tools needed for learning, to listen to instructions, follow

instructions and ask for help if needed. Please stay in touch with your child’s teachers and discuss some of the areas your child

needs extra support. Parents you can help by providing the guidance and support at home so it could be transferred to school. Set-

ting realistic goals at this time , monitoring and assessing how your child is doing, is a good way to help your child.

We would like to thank all the parents who have come out to our School Council meetings so far. Congratulations to

Sakeena Kaley our elected Council Chair, Tanzeela Asalaam-Vice Chair and Charles Thuku-Treasurer. We look forward

to our parent advisory group as they work together to support the success of Birchbank P.S.

A Special heartfelt thanks to all families who share your beautiful children with us each day. We would like to wish you all a

wonderful holiday season. We hope you have time to enjoy each precious moment with your children, bringing them laughter and

sense of joy and fulfillment.

Parents we would like to invite you to drop by the office if you have any questions or concerns. We would be happy to provide you

with support.

Sincerely,

Annesia Khan

Principal

Birchbank School Council 2017-2018

On behalf of the school council, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome all

the members and express my hopes to make this year a productive year.

We have had two meetings till date and I am sure all the children are extremely happy

with the Pizza day that has started and a big shout out to Joanne who has been heading

this initiative for the last three years!!

As members of the school council, we had a wonderful opportunity to attend Great Start; an orientation and

training evening for the school council members which was held on November 16th 2017. Three members at-

tended – Sakeena Kaley, Tanzeela Aslam and Jyoti Yadav and we all had a chance to meet members from oth-

er school councils as well as attend workshops designed to enable the council to work and support the school

administration.

It would be wonderful to have more parents getting involved with the school council in any way that you

would like to – be it a member or a volunteer.

The minutes of the last meeting will be available on the school website, I would like to encourage all of you to

please read it.

The school council would like to wish all the families of Birchbank School happy holidays and a very Happy

New Year!!!!

Sakeena Kaley.

Chair- Birchbank School council

BIRCHBANK PRIMARY/ JUNIOR PLAYGROUND DIVISION

Dear Birchbank families, we are pleased to announce that we now have separate Primary and Junior play-

grounds. We are very fortunate that Birchbank has a humongous playground area which allows us to divide

our playground by age groups. Grades 1-3 is Primary and Grades 4-5 is the Junior section.

During both nutrition breaks, we want all our students to be safe, to have physical activity, and to have fun

all at the same time. We are continuously teaching our students to demonstrate sportsmanship, FairPlay and

teamwork during all sporting activities. We remind students to be always respectful, responsible, caring,

cooperative, honest and inclusive in all types of play. In addition, if students encounter a problem they need

to be honest in admitting what went wrong so we could help them to make better choices the next time.

Birchbank uses a Progressive Discipline approach when teaching students to develop good character. For

minor incidents we give oral reminders, warnings and explicitly teach students to solve problems. For se-

vere incidents, students may loose recesses, serve 1/2 day in the office (working), and if the behaviours con-

tinue it could be a full day in the office ( working). If behaviours persist students could be suspended.

In addition, we use restorative practices to help students to continue to be accepted by their peers and to

have a fresh start.

Over the years we have had safety concerns and injuries. Our younger students have been walking in to the

middle of soccer or basketball games played by the older students and getting hurt.

Now with the playground division we can have primary and junior soccer games happening at the same

time and less chances of accidents.

Our junior students for soccer, have pre- arranged teams, they wear pinnies to identify teams and use tips

shared by their teachers to play safely.

Similarly, for the primary students, staff are discussing games and the rules for playing specific games.

Some classes are posting the rules and having ongoing discussions about FairPlay.

There is no need for older siblings to feel responsible for taking care of younger siblings. Students will be

supervised by assigned staff on each side of the playground. We do not need to have older siblings solving

problems by getting into conflicts with others. We encourage all children to use their words to solve prob-

lems, walk away and report issues to teachers on duty. Our goal is to train all our students to be independent

at solving problems in a respectful manner.

Martial Arts Program

The martial arts program is a new program at Birchbank public school and

a fun one. This is the first time it has come to Birchbank and hopefully will

be back again. There are 2-3 senpai’s (teacher in Japanese), who are all en-

couraging, fun and teach you well at the same time. We play lots of games

which are a lot of fun, but at the same time keep you on your toes. They

also show us easy ways to block and defend ourselves, and we even prac-

tice defending ourselves with the senpai. One thing that we do every class

and is very important is, we make a promise not to use our martial arts any-

where except in an absolute total emergency.

Now it’s time to talk about our wonderful senpai’s. As I have already told you we have 2-3

senpai’s every class and some of their wonderful quality’s. Firstly I will tell you how they are encour-

aging, the way they are encouraging is that they will tell you, you can do it, and then you will actually

believe that you can do it. That boost’s our confidence and we try harder, and that is what will help us

succeed in this class. The way they are fun, is that they make the learning fun by, doing fun exercises

that don’t get boring in 2 minutes. How they teach well is that they take real life experiences, and they

tell you how this move, or that move will help you in real life. Another way they teach you well is they

practice it with us so we get a feeling, of how this will give us in real life. These are only some of the

great qualities that our senpai’s have, they have so many other great qualities, but these are the top 3

qualities that make them the great senpai’s that they are.

It must sounds like only fun, but this helps the students very much in their normal lives. For in-

stance this will help kids very much who may get bullied. For example, a boy in our karate class used a

move we learned in class, to help him not get hurt by another student. The move was a slide. What this

move is, is that you are basically moving from one side to another. This is a simple yet good move. It’s

simple because, it is just one move, and that is very easy to learn especially for younger children, who

might have a harder time comprehending what you mean. The reason why that boy used that move was

because, another child was coming at him so to make sure that he didn’t get hurt or that other child

didn’t get hurt, he used that move, and in the end nobody got hurt. Our senpai was very proud of him,

she told the whole class that this is a very good move to use if somebody comes at you, or tries to harm

you.

This martial arts program is not just about physical learning, this martial arts program is also

about mental learning and teamwork. When I say mental learning I mean that we are taught about body

language, and our respect towards, not just people who are our friends, but also showing respect to

people who are not our friends. Many times in our lesson we are asked to sit, so that we can listen for

further instructions, and that is when we display our respect for our senpai’s, by listening like a black

belt listener. Now I will move on to how they teach us about teamwork. In one of our lessons they

asked us to link arms with some other people, then they asked us to sit down, and then get up without

breaking our link with the other person. At the end of that lesson they told us that we were all success-

ful at that activity, they also told us that the point of that lesson was, teamwork, and the reason that we

were successful was because we were working together to get up.

This is the Birchbank martial arts program, and what I have told you here is all true and all real

things that have actually happened in the class. Due to this martial arts program, we have become

stronger mentally and physically. We are responsible, we respect one another, whether you are our

friend or not. So the next time this martial arts program rolls around to Birchbank, enroll your child, or

he or she will be missing out on something great.

Sincerely

A student from the martial arts program.

Yasmin – Class 5A.

Visit Birchbank Public School’s website Website: http://schools.peelschools.org/1407

Twitter: Follow us: @BirchbankBees to see what our little bees are up to.

Want to keep up to date with what’s happening at Birchbank Public School? Check out our school website where you'll find:

the latest school news

contact information for school administration, superintendent and trustee

calendar enrolment data

school hours

mission, vision and values

registration information

printable forms

frequently asked questions

volunteer information

EQAO reports

Dear parents,

This is a friendly reminder that with the winter weather quickly

approaching, please send your child with indoor running shoes the

days he/she has physical education. It is a must that all students have

appropriate footwear in order to engage in physical activities during

gym class.

Cordially,

Ms Bakhsh

Apply for French Immersion by Jan. 26, 2018

If your child will be starting grade 1 in September 2018, one of the important choices you will make is whether you want to consider grade 1 French Immersion (FI). To find out more about the program, visit www.peelschools.org/French The application form for grade 1 FI for the 2018-19 school year will be available online at www.peelschools.org/French as of Friday, Nov. 24, 2017 at 1 p.m. The deadline to apply is Friday, Jan. 26, 2018 at 4 p.m. Applications received after the deadline will not be included in the random selection process and will be placed on the school’s waitlist. The FI school for our area is Dorset Drive PS. The phone number is 905-793-5210. Enrolment cap and random selection process The Peel board has a limited number of spaces available for students interested in grade 1 French Immersion. At this time, the grade 1 FI enrolment cap is set at 25 per cent of all Peel students enrolled in grade 1. A random se-lection process is used to determine which students will be offered spaces in the grade 1 FI program. It is important to note that applicants are not offered space in grade 1 FI on a first come, first serve basis. A computerized random selection process will randomly assign a rank to each application that is received by the deadline. Once students have been assigned to all available spaces, remaining students will be placed, again in rank order, on the school's waitlist. Each school has its own waitlist. How to get more information Visit the Peel board website—www.peelschools.org/French. Call Dorset Drive at 905-793-5210. Visit the Canadian Parents for French website at http://on.cpf.ca/.

FOR BRAMPTON & MISSISSAUGA SCHOOLS ONLY

Volunteer Criminal Record Checks to cost $33 as of January 1, 2018 Peel Regional Police have advised us that, as of January 1, 2018, Criminal Record Checks – Vulnerable Sector Check for adults, includ-ing those for volunteers, will cost $33; students and seniors will remain at the current cost of $25. Processing of CRCs for volunteers is free until the end of December 2017, with Form A provided by the school.

CRC application forms are available in the lobby of Peel Regional Police Headquarters, and at the Square One Community Station, or online by accessing the link on the Peel Regional Police website: https://www.peelpolice.ca/en/services/vulnerablesectorcheck.asp.

Bus cancellation and closing schools due to bad weather

During the winter months, we may need to cancel buses or close schools because of inclement weather.

Information regarding details of cancellations or closures will be announced on radio and television stations listed below and will also be available on Twitter @Peelschools, Facebook at www.facebook.com/peelschools, www.peelschools.org and www.stopr.ca or by calling 905-890-1010 or 1-800-668-1146.

VIRGIN RADIOFM99.9 BREAKFAST TELEVISION NEWS AM680 GLOBAL NEWS CFNY FM102.1/AM640 CJCL AM590 CHFI FM98.1 CITY NEWS NEWSTALK1010 AM EZ ROCK FM97.3 CJBC (FR) AM860 CTV FM Z103.5 FM93.1 FM Q107 CITYPULSE CHIN FM100.7/AM1540 CBC99.1 CFRB – (Bell Media)

One of the following messages will be announced (highlighted text only):

Peel District School Board buses are cancelled This means that schools remain open for students and staff, but buses are cancelled. Bus cancellations could occur in all or parts of mu-nicipalities. Buses will remain cancelled all day. All activities that require busing will also be cancelled. Permits, night school classes, child care and other activities in schools will operate as usual.

All Peel District School Board schools and board offices are closed This means that all schools and Peel board offices are closed to students and staff. All activities in schools and board offices are also cancelled, including child care, night school and permits.

All evening programs and permits at the Peel District School Board are cancelled This means that all activities in schools and Peel board offices are cancelled, including continuing education courses and events. The buildings will be closed.

All weekend programs and permits at the Peel District School Board are cancelled This means that all activities in schools and Peel board offices are cancelled, including continuing education courses and events. The buildings will be closed.

Prevent the flu. It's in your hands. Hand washing is the most important way to prevent the spread of infection. Always wash your hands with soap and water when they are dirty.

Clean your hands before:

i. touching your eyes, nose or mouth

ii. touching/preparing food or drinks

iii. eating or drinking

iv. caring for someone in your home who can easily get sick (baby, elderly or someone who has an unhealthy immune system) first aid

Clean your hands after:

i. touching pets or other animals

ii. touching raw meat, particularly chicken

iii. touching surfaces such as a railing or grocery cart

iv. touching money

v. touching objects sick people have touched

vi. touching blood or body fluids such as urine, vomit or feces

vii. contact with those who have a cold, the flu, diarrhea or virus of any kind

viii. changing diapers

ix. wiping your own or a child's nose

x. sneezing or coughing

xi. using a facial tissue

xii. using the washroom

xiii. removing gloves

xiv.Cleaning gardening

What to do when you cough or sneeze:

i. cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve

ii. put used tissues in the wastebasket clean your hands with soap and water or a hand sanitizer

It's time to register children born in 2014 for kindergarten

We inspire success, confidence and hope in each student…and it all starts in kindergarten! If your child was born in 2014, he or she can start kindergarten in September 2018. You can regis-ter your child at any time during regular school hours—just visit the school he/she will be attending to register.

Peel schools will also hold a Kindergarten Registration Week with special registration activities during Jan. 29 to Feb. 2, 2018. Visit Birchbank PS from:

Jan. 29 to 31, 2018 – from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 1, 2018 – from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 to 8 p.m. Feb. 2, 2018 – from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

What you will need to bring to registration

Proof of child's age (one of the following) Canadian birth certificate Canadian passport citizenship card/certificate Permanent Resident Card confirmation of permanent residence work permit refugee permit

Proof of address (one of the following) Ontario driver's license utility bill bank statement/client slip (directly from financial institution) credit card statement federal government forms (e.g. Social Insurance Number, Service Canada documents) purchase agreement

Proof of custody – children must live with their parent(s) unless provided documentation sup-ports an alternate living arrangement

Proof of immunization – proof that your child has been immunized/vaccinated

Time for school - A parent’s guide to reporting school absences

All parents/guardians of elementary students need to report their children's absences or late arrivals from school via our automated SafeArrival system. Whether it is an illness or another absence and you decide to keep your child home, please re-port your child’s absence via the SafeArrival system quickly and conveniently in one of the three ways:

Call an automated, interactive toll free number – 1-855-209-6155 (Please note – You must wait for confirmation)

Report absences online by accessing the SafeArrival parent portal on pdsb.schoolconnects.com

Download the SafeArrival mobile application for Apple and Android devices

Train More. Rehearse More. Learn More. Peel District School Board program offers flexible school options for student athletes, artists Does your child/teen have an intense sports or arts training and competition schedule that makes it difficult to attend school regularly? The Peel District School Board’s Peel Region High Performers Program will offer flexible timetabling to accommodate student athletes and artists with demanding practice, competition, rehearsal and/or performance schedules. The Peel Region High Performers Program is available to students in grades 4 to 12 at Britan-nia Public School, Dolphin Senior Public School and Mississauga Secondary School.

Applications close Jan. 12, 2018

For more information and applications, visit www.peelschools.org/HighPerformers.

Parent resources help you support your child’s learning

At the Peel board, our mission is to inspire success, confidence and hope in each child. There is no doubt that families play a vital role in helping us achieve this goal. As our partner in edu-cation, we hope you'll stay connected to your child's learning throughout his or her entire school experience. Visit www.peelschools.org/parents/helpyourchild to explore all resources availa-ble to parents. There you will find easy-to-navigate buttons that connect families to tip sheets and web pages on a number of differ-ent topics, including math, homework, special education, EQAO and mental health.

Subscribe to receive news from the Peel board

Take advantage of our electronic subscription service to automatically receive updates from the Peel District School Board. Subscribing is easy ¾ just visit our website at www.peelschools.org and click on the subscription link under "Quick Links."

During the winter months, we may need to cancel buses or close schools because of inclement weather. Information regarding details of cancellations or closures will be posted on our Twitter (@Peelschools) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/peelschools) accounts, as well as, on www.peelschools.org and www.stopr.ca.

You can also subscribe to receive:

News releases Keep up with the news at the Peel board. Subscribe to receive Peel board news releases to learn more about board news and school events.

Board agendas Learn more about Peel board meetings by subscribing to receive agendas. Meetings of the board are open to the public and are held on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month.

Board highlights Briefing is a newsletter with highlights of decisions made by trustees at board meetings. It is sent out on the second and fourth Thursday of every month and immediately following any special board meetings.

Job postings for non-teaching staff Learn about each new non-teaching job that is posted on the Peel board's Job Board.

Winter bus safety The following winter school bus safety tips will help to keep your child safe throughout the winter months.

Allow extra time to get to your bus stop. Wear bright clothing so the bus can see you in the early morning and late evening. Stand away from where the bus stops. Buses need extra room to stop when there is snow and ice. Use the handrail when boarding or exiting the bus to prevent slipping on wet or icy steps or road surfaces. Dress properly—winter clothing, hats, and boots will keep you warm. Don't throw snowballs at the bus or other children waiting for the bus. Don't slide on the snow or ice patches in driveways or on the street. Don't push or shove around the bus. Someone could fall down on the ice and get hurt. On very rare occasions, buses are late because of weather conditions or mechanical problems. Talk to your child about what to do if the bus is late. Here are some suggestions:

When possible, wait with your child for the bus. Make sure your child knows a phone number where he can reach you or another trusted adult. Teach your child how and where to get help. Talk to your child about what a "safe" stranger is. Help your child set up a bus stop buddy system so your child has someone to wait with for the bus.

Birchbank Bulletin Calendar CHARACTER TRAITS FOR THIS MONTH ARE

RESPECT

NOV & DEC 2017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Nov 27 28 29 30 LAST DAY KEIKO MARTIAL ARTS

Dec 1 Day 10 Pizza Day Grade 2’s Dr. B

2

3 4 Day 1

X-POWER

First Day of

The Giving Tree

(mittens)

5 Day 2

X-POWER The Giving Tree

(mittens)

6 Day 3

X-POWER The Giving Tree

(mittens)

7 Day 4

X-POWER

The Giving Tree (mittens)

8 Day 5

Pizza Day

The Giving Tree (mittens)

9

10

11 Day 6

The Giving Tree

(mittens)

12 Day 7

The Giving Tree

(mittens)

13 Day 8

Winter Concert Grade 1-3 6:00 PM

(Food Drive)

The Giving Tree

(mittens)

14 Day 9

Grade 3’s Bradley House

The Giving Tree (mittens)

15 Day 10 Pizza Day

The Giving Tree (mittens)

16

17 18 Day 1

Last Day of

The Giving Tree

(mittens)

19 Day 2

20 Day 3 Winter Concert Grade 4-5 6:00 PM

(Food Drive)

21 Day 4

22 Day 5 Pizza Day Spirit Day Red/Green

23

24

31

25

26

27

28 29 30

CHRISTMAS BREAK

School starts back on January 5th, 2018