Principal Mr. B. Taha

Vice Principal

Ms A. Livi

School Council Chair Ms T. Schvalb

Superintendent

of Schools Ms R. Russo

(905) 884-4477

Trustee Ms C. McBain

(416) 219-7426

A message from the Office...

February marks the start of our second term and officially marks the half way point of the school year! On February 2nd, we hope that the groundhog isn't spooked by his shadow in order to signal the early arrival of spring!

The month of February brings with it many events. At Trillium Woods PS we have many celebrations taking place. We look forward to celebrating the 100th day of school on February 15th! Also, we are recognizing National Flag Day and Canada’s 150th anniversary on the 15th with a spirit day.

Your child’s term one report card will be sent home on Wednesday, February 15th. Please review your child’s report card and set goals with your child. As always, please contact your child’s teacher should you require any further information or to set up an interview.

It was exciting to see the many families come out to register for Kindergarten! Please remember it is not too late to register. Planning is well under way for the 2017-18 school year. If you or one of your neighbours has a child born in 2013, they are eligible to register for Junior Kindergarten for the 2017-18 school year. Please contact the office for more information. Also, if you are moving, or planning on mov-ing, for the upcoming school year, it is very important that you notify our school office. You can either call the office or complete the ‘tear-off’ on page 3 of this newsletter.

Your partners in education,

Mr. B. Taha Ms A. Livi Principal Vice Principal

February 2017

PA DAY

There will be NO SCHOOL on

Friday, February 3,

2017

Family

Day

There will be NO SCHOOL on

Monday, February 20,

2017

February is Black History Month

February is African Heritage Month and this is the time of year when we focus on activities, events and celebrations which remind us of the role African history plays in our communities. The history of Afri-can Canadians dates back to the early 1600’s, how-ever, this presence is not well-known.

It was in January 1993, when Lieutenant Governor Hal Jackman proclaimed February as Black History Month in Ontario by describing it as ”a time to cele-brate the uniqueness, vitality and continuing contri-bution of the Black community in Ontario”. Since then, people of Ontario of all backgrounds have joined in honouring the historical and present day contributions made by persons of African Heritage, to the advancement of our society.

Throughout the month of February, students will par-ticipate in a school-wide Black History Trivia Contest.

The Honourable Lincoln Alexander was the first Black Member of Parliament when he was elected in 1968.

Follow us on Twitter!

@Trillium_Woods

Parent Ambassador Program

The York Region District School Board endeavours to engage families and communities as supportive educa-tional partners who enrich our schools as places of learning and growing for their children. As such, School Council is pleased to launch a ‘Parent Ambassador Program’ to connect with families new to Trillium Woods. We have 30 different languages spoken at home and many of our families are new to Canada. The Parent Ambassador program will link families who speak the same language to ease the transition. As an ambassador, you will receive the contact information of our new families and offer to support them with communication. Examples would be: How to sign up for pizza lunch?

What is a PA Day? How can I contact my child’s teacher? This program is completely voluntary. If you are interested, please complete the quick Google Survey:

https://goo.gl/forms/mNOCxV0EqfTDaQSc2 All interested Ambassadors will be contacted for a brief overview of the program.

Order Deadline

Pizza, Pasta and Cookie Orders will be due on

Friday, February 17, 2017 No late orders will be accepted.

School Wide Dance Program

Dance is part of the Ontario Arts Curriculum and is evaluated and reported on during the school year. This year, we are inviting Justin Barkie, a professional choreographer, to teach and engage students in the Dance curriculum. This program will run for 2 weeks. Starting on February 10, each class will have 4 sessions during their scheduled physical education time to work with Justin. Justin will create a dance for the students in each class and teach the class the choreogra-phy. The cost of the program is $10.00 per student. School Council will be covering the entire cost of the pro-gram with funds raised through hot lunch programs.

S P I R I T D A Y Canada Flag Day

Wednesday, February 15

February 15 is National Flag of Canada Day as it marks the day in 1965 when our red and white maple leaf flag was first raised over Parliament Hill in Ottawa. In recognition of Canada’s 150th Anniver-sary , students are encouraged to wear anything representing Canada’s Flag in-cluding the colours Red and White.

Character Corner: Initiative

The Character Matters trait for the month of February is Initiative. In the Term One Report Card, Initiative is one of the Learning Skills that is assessed as it is an important skill that students need to understand. The Provincial Report Card describes Initiative as:

Looking for and acting on new ideas and opportunities for learning

Demonstrating the capacity for innovation and willingness to take risks

Demonstrating curiosity and interest in learning

Approaching new tasks with a positive attitude

Recognizing and advocating appropriately for the rights of self and others

Initiative should be praised at home. If a child cleans their room without being told, praise them by saying, “I like the way you cleaned your room! You demonstrated initiative because no one asked you to do it, you did it all by yourself. I am proud of you!”

“The time is always right to do what is right.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Student Illnesses

If your child is ill, they put the rest of the school at risk of falling ill. Please keep your child at home until they are feeling better.

As you know, all students must be supervised at all times. Unfortunately, we do not have the staffing to supervise students who wish to remain indoors during recess. Students may not be sent to the office during these times.

Too sick for recess means too sick for school!

Are You Planning on Moving?

In planning for next year’s classes, it is most helpful to know if your child or children will be attending another school in September 2017 (high school not included). If your child(ren) will not be returning, please complete and return to the school office. If your child currently attends Trillium Woods P.S. and you have moved out of the school’s attend-ance area, please contact Ms. Khan at the school office. Ms. Khan will advise you on how to make arrangements for your child’s September placement at their new school.

Student Name(s): ____________________________will not be returning to Trillium Woods PS in September 2017.

Next School: __________________________________________

Triple P Tip of the Month ~ FEBRUARY ~ Coping with Stress

Being a parent is busy and demanding and it’s normal to feel stressed at times. However, if parents have a high level of stress, it can be hard for them to deal with their children’s behavior calmly and they may be less likely to spend time with them. Children are likely to grow up happy and learn what’s expected of them when parents are consistently calm. KEY STEPS:

Think about helpful changes you can make to your lifestyle Try to notice tension early Find a relaxation technique that suits you and use it when you feel tense Think of coping statements to say to yourself when stressful situations arise Make sure you believe what you are saying to yourself Catch and challenge any unhelpful thoughts that increase your stress and replace

them with more realistic or helpful ways of thinking about the situation

A Message from our Trustee: Corrie McBain

We are now halfway through the school year. This is a good time to reflect on all that your child has learned and to look at setting goals for the rest of the school year. Our Board believes that student well-being and achievement go hand-in-hand. One of our goals set out in the Board of Trustees’ Multi-Year Plan is to “continuously increase student achievement and well-being through a culture of caring and learning.” The Ministry of Education has recently identified four priorities for well-being: positive mental health, safe and accepting schools, healthy schools, and equity and inclusive education. As a Board of Trustees, we will continue to further work in all of these areas to support student well-being in line with these priorities. There are many resources on the Board website to help support student well-being, including tips for talking about mental health, managing stress, packing healthy lunches and addressing incidents of bullying.

Creating a healthy, safe and welcoming learning environment is key to helping our students reach their full potential. All of us have an important role to play in creating an environment that enables our students to thrive. I wish you all the best for a healthy, happy and successful 2017.

Water Bottle Filling Stations

We have just installed our first water bottle filling station on the main floor! This is the first of two water bottle filling stations that will be installed—one on each floor. The station replaces the existing water fountains. Our hope is to reduce the number of plastic water bottles in our landfills. Students and staff are en-couraged to bring a labeled water bottle for their use. Thank you to our School Council for their financial support of this initiative!

Supervision

begins daily at

8:20 am.

——————————

Students are not to be dropped off prior to

8:20 AM

To report your child’s absence, please call our

attendance line

(905)

Leave a message 24 hours a day!

February 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 Day 2

Vasant Panchami

2 Day 3 3 PA Day—No School

4

5 6 Day 4 7 Day 5 8 Day 1 9 Day 2 10 Day 3 11

12 13 Day 4 14 Day 5 15 Day 1

Flag Day 100th Day Report Cards Sent home

16 Day 2 17 Day 3

Pizza, Pasta, Cookie Order Deadline

18

19 20 Family Day—No School

21 Day 4 22 Day 5 23 Day 1 24 Day 2 25 Mahashivaratri

26 Intercalary Days

27 Day 3

First Day of Lent (Eastern)

28 Day 4 March School Resumes

13-17 March Break

23 School Council Meeting, 6:30 pm