Principal: J. Greco Vice Principal: S. Sommer Secretary: K. McParland Parish: St. Brigid Catholic Church Pastor: Father Carlos 416-696-8660 Superintendent J. Shanahan 416-222-8282 Trustee: Angela Kennedy 416-512-3411 CSAC: 416- 222-8282 #88235

stbrigidcsac@gmail.com www.tcdsb.org/schools/stbrigid.asp

TORONTO CATHOLIC

DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD TRUSTEES 2012-2013

Wards

1. Peter Jakovcic 416 512-3401

2. Ann Andrachuk, Chair 416 512-3402

3. Sal Piccininni, Vice-Chair 416 512-3403

4. Patrizia Bottoni 416 512-3404

5. Maria Rizzo 416 512-3405

6. Frank D’Amico 416 512-3406

7. John Del Grande 416 512-3407

8. Gary Tanuan 416 512-3408

9. Jo-Ann Davis, 416 512-3409

10. Barbara Poplawski 416 512-3410

11. Angela Kennedy 416 512-3411

12. Nancy Crawford 416 512-3412

Andrew Walker

Student Trustee 416 512-3413

St. Brigid Catholic School

MAY 2013

St. Brigid Catholic School

50 Woodmount Avenue

Toronto, Ontario

M4C 3X9

Tel:416-393-5235

FAREWELL/WELCOME

We ask you to join us in wishing Ms. Jordan well, as she assumes a per-

manent position at her new school. In her place we welcome Ms. Lov-

gren, who will be working with our 5th Block students, and Ms. Barreca,

who will be working with other reading groups. I know that you will join

us in making them both feel at home at St. Brigid.

VIRTUE OF THE MONTH

Our virtue this month is Compassion. Students will be focusing on the

meaning of compassion and how we show compassion to one another.

Quote of the Month: Jesus saw her weeping…his heart was touched, and he was deeply

moved.

John 11:33

MUSIC CONCERT

Our Spring Music Concert this year will not only include our Instrumen-

tal students, but our Choir as well. Come out and be musically enter-

tained on Thursday, May 9th, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.

NEWSLETTERS

Our School Newsletter is now available on two websites:

The St. Brigid Catholic School site

http://www.tcdsb.org/schools/stbrigid/Pages/default.aspx

The St. Brigid CSAC site

http://www.stbrigidcsac.ca/home

In our continued drive to be responsible to our environment and respon-

sive to our parent’s needs, we will be offering parents the option of ac-

cessing the newsletter electronically, rather than in paper form. Many

families have already registered their email with CSAC and receive news

blasts on a regular basis. If you are interested in receiving the newslet-

ter in addition to other valuable information, electronically, please visit

http://www.stbrigidcsac.ca/contact-us

to register your email address.

J. Greco S. Sommer

Principal V. Principal

CSAC CORNER…

St. Brigid’s Annual Fun Fair – May 31st,

2013

Join us for St. Brigid’s Fun Fair! The whole com-munity is invited Friday, May 31st from 5-8pm, with a rain date of Friday, June 7th (5-8pm). There will be a bouncy castle, a giant inflatable slide, games, popcorn, ice cream, raffles, ambu-lance, police and fire trucks present, blue and white clothing sale, a ladies purse sale, a live performance, and food!! Oh, and FUN! Let's show our St. Brigid spirit! All Fun Fair profits will go directly to St. Brigid School. If you can help out in any way, please contact Janet Kerr, Committee Chairperson, at jan-glen@rogers.com.

St. Brigid Recipes Do you have delicious favourite recipe that you would like to share with the St. Brigid commu-nity? Send it in and we will publish it in our St. Brigid Cookbook! These books will be on sale at the Fun Fair and will help raise money for our school!

Kids Have Stress Too CSAC would like to thank our presenters and all the parents that came out to this seminar. We are looking to offer more sessions like this in the future and welcome any feedback you may have. Please send feedback to stbri-gidcsac@gmail.com.

Pizza Lunch Pizza lunch continues to be ongoing every Tues-day. Forms for May and June are being sent home now. Pizza lunch forms are due back to the office May 6th.

2013-2014 Fundraising Planning CSAC will be determining its fundraising plan for the 2013-2014 school year, at the May 13th CSAC meeting. We invite all parents/care-givers of St. Brigid stu-dents to contribute to the process by attending meeting to voice your opinions and vote. Parental/care-giver input is very important to the fundraising planning process. CSAC, with the help of parents and care-givers, needs to ensure St. Brigid School has successful fundrais-ers. Your input enables CSAC to continue to support the many things that enhance our children’s school experience.

Your input enables CSAC to con-tinue to support the many things that enhance our children’s school experience.

Volunteering We are very grateful for the donation of your time. Whether counting money, serving pizza, coming to the CSAC meetings, or helping in another area of the school, all types of donations are valued and CSAC is extremely appreciative of the generosity of our St. Brigid families. Please email us if you are able to help, stbrigidcsac@gmail.com.

ST. BRIGID HELPS FIGHT LYME

DISEASE

On Friday, May 3rd St. Brigid will be having a

Dress Down Day Fundraiser to help support indi-

viduals with Lyme Disease. Mr. Sherriff, a

St. Brigid teacher has been battling this disease

for the past two years. He has established a non-

profit organization, LymeSavers, to help Canadi-

ans diagnosed with Lyme disease. The proceeds

from our dress down day will be going to help sup-

port this cause. We are asking for a minimum do-

nation of $2 to participate.

In addition a number of staff and students will be

participating in the first annual LymeSavers 5K

Run/Walk on Saturday, May 10th in Whitby. If you

would like to participate in the run, donate to

the cause or learn more about Lyme Disease,

please check out www.LymeSavers.ca.

Please be aware:

From time to time, the school will send home in-formation from non-profit and for-profit organi-zations. We remind parents and guardians to exercise caution any time they participate in or enrol their child in an outside organization’s event after school hours. The school and the TCDSB are not liable for the quality of service these organizations provide or for the safety of the participants. We forward this information to keep our parent community informed of the wide variety of opportunities available within our local community.

The Cool Trip

On Monday April 22, 2013, we went on a field trip. We

sang and danced in the aisles. We did lots of amazing,

awesome, cool, exciting stuff! By: Quinn

Our Trip to a Concert

On Monday, we went to a concert and it was amazing,

exciting, cool and had a lot of music. By: Damon

The Pretty Trip

We went to see Sharon and Bram. They sang and we danced in the aisles. There were a lot of schools at the

concert. By Lynette

The Fun Trip to Sharon and Bram

We listened to Sharon and Bram sing songs and we danced

and sang songs. We had so much fun listening to them.

By: Robert

On Monday April 22, 2013 we went to see Sharon and

Bram . There was singing and dancing and we were the

fans. By: Giancarlo

Sharon and Bram

The grade one‟s and two‟s went to a show. The first thing

they did was play some awesome music and we

danced. By: Samira

Grade 2 Trip to See Sharon and Bram

When the show started we wondered where Sharon and

Bram were. Then they ran up on the stage. It was

funny. When we were going back to school everybody

was talking about how cool and awesome the show

was. By: Jacob

The Super Exciting Trip

On April 22, 2013, we went on a super exciting trip. When

we got in the theatre Sharon and Bram introduced them-

selves. Then they played awesome music. The trip was

awesome. By: Caroline

On Monday April 22nd,

2013 we went to see a

concert. It was a 30

minute bus ride. We went there for music

education. There were

many songs. We had to

dance in some of the

songs and do action in

others songs. Then the

concert ended and we

went back to

school. By: Isabel G.

The Concert

The Grade 2's went to a concert. It was super fun. There was lots

of dancing. My Mom went. By: Emmett

On Monday April22, 2013 we went to a concert called Sharon,

Bram and Friends. We sang songs and danced. The concert went

on for one hour. I had so much fun.

By: Saariyah

Sharon and Bram Concert

We went on a field trip. Grades 1‟s and 2‟s went by bus to the Ca-thedral theatre. We listened to music and songs from Sharon and

Bram. My Mom, Mary, came to the theatre as a helper to watch all

the kids and to watch the show. My Mom was dancing in her

seat. After the concert we came back to school on the bus. Then

my Mom went home.

By:. Emelius

My Trip to the Theatre

On Monday April 22nd, my class and I went on a trip! First we ate a

snack then we got on the bus and left. It took half an hour. We got

there and we all found seats. We answered riddles and jokes! We also sang songs. After we got on the bus and left on the bus. I saw

a beach and a lake. By Eyob

Sharon and Bram

On Tuesday April 22nd 2013, the Grade one‟s, Grade two‟s, adults

and teachers went on a trip. We wet to a Cathedral. We saw

Sharon ad Bram. We did lots of singing, dancing and we did some

actions while we sang. It was the best rip ever! By Chloe

Sharon and Bram

On Monday April 22, 2013, the grades1‟s and 2‟s went on a trip to

a Cathedral theatre. Everybody danced and sang when Sharon and Bram sang songs. By Kayla

Sharon and Bram

My favourite part was when we were dancing to the songs. By

Sophia

Sharon and Bram

We sang songs and danced and we watched and listened and we

followed actions. By Isabel R.

Sharon and Bram I learned a lot of new songs. One song was called Peanut Butter

and Jelly. Sophia and I danced. We went to enjoy music, have

fun and learn new songs. By Sarah

Sharon and Bram

The grade ones and twos went on a trip to see a show called

„Sharon and Bram‟. While we were there we sang songs, danced

and told jokes. We had a lot of fun. It was the coolest live show

ever! By: Naythan

The Grades 1 and 2 students attended a performance by Sharon, Bram and Friends on

Monday April 22, 2013 at the Queensway Cathedral.

Monthly Update From The Board

Invitation to Participate in the TCDSB Budget Consultation

Watch for more information regarding the consultation process for the 2013-2014 TCDSB

Budget. All stakeholders (parents, students, staff and Catholic school supporters) are invited to

attend a special board meeting to hear delegations regarding the budget. This will take place on

May 7th at 6:30 p.m. at the Catholic Education Centre, 80 Sheppard Avenue East. In addition,

everyone will be able to access a video presentation on the board‟s budget, and to provide input

via an online survey which is available on the board‟s website. Visit the board‟s website at

www.tcdsb.org for information and the survey.

Meet Your Trustee

TCDSB is pleased to announce the launch of Trustee websites. Meet your Trustee and stay in

touch with what your local representative is doing in your community. Check them out at: http://

www.tcdsb.org/Board/TrusteesoftheBoard/Pages/default.aspx

Catholic Education Week information and events published on the board‟s website at http://

www.tcdsb.org/news/othernews/pages/catholic-education-week-2013.aspx.

TCDSB Welcomes New Partnership with CCAC:

Mental Health and Addiction Nurses Dedicated to Schools

Toronto Catholic District School Board and the Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre

are pleased to announce a new partnership which will bring Mental Health and Addiction Nurses

into schools.

Building on many years of experience and expertise in providing school health support ser-

vices to students, the CCAC has designed effective services to help staff, students and their fami-

lies with mental health and addiction issues. The Mental Health and Addiction Nurses specifi-

cally dedicated to the schools in this board, will have the responsibilities of:

Assisting students transitioning to and from psychiatric treatment facilities and hospitals

Assisting and supporting school board staff and families in understanding medication effects and

how they may impact behaviours and needs in the classroom

Assisting and supporting schools and students in seeking appropriate treatment for drug use,

abuse and dependence

Assisting and supporting school board in mental health promotion and education on an ongoing

basis addressing mutually agreed upon areas

Funding for this initiative is provided by the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care. These

services compliment the programs offered through Toronto Public Health‟s Healthy Schools Ap-

proach which can be accessed through their school‟s Liaison Public Health Nurse.

Check out the Board’s website (www.tcdsb.org) for other May events

May 6th Awards Night: celebrate our students, staff and alumni - join us live on-line at:

www.tcdsb.org/liveattcdsb

SPIRIT WEEK 2013 During the week of March 4th-9th St. Bri-gid hosted Spirit Week! It was an enjoy-able week filled with excitement! We asked for a donation of $2 to cover the whole week and collected a remarkable $445! All proceeds will go towards St.Brigid’s church for a Lenten gift! Thank you so much for taking part in Spirit Week!!!

SWIM TEAM NEWS The St. Brigid Swim Team would like to acknowledge their wonderful 2011 sponsors. We could not have done it without you!! Thank you to

Columbo’s Pizza, Teroni’s Restau-rant, H & E Enter-prise and the St. Brigid CSAC. Go Barracuda’s

The Silver Birch readers and Red Maple Readers have chosen their winners and we soon will be off to

Harbourfront for the Awards Ceremony (May 15th

and 16th). Some of the readers are still reading books

to have read as many as possible before meeting the authors at Harbourfront! Please encourage your chil-

dren to keep on reading as many selections as they

can. The more books in their category they have com-pleted, the more fun it is on the day of the Awards

Ceremony!

St. Brigid Silver Birch and Red Maple voters will also be entitled to free pizza at our annual “Fun in

the Sun Book Sale and Pizza Party” which will run

from June 11th-13th this year. (More info about this

great sale coming soon…) Children in JK-grade 2 will be voting for their fa-

vourite Blue Spruce title next week. The tenth title is

called You Are Stardust by Elin Kelsey. As she de-scribes, “I wrote this book as a celebration- one to

honor the extraordinary ways in which all of us sim-

ply are nature.” I feel this book is a lovely and fitting way for us to finish our Forest of Reading

“celebration of Canadian literature” for 2013. Check

out this book at owlkidsbooks/stardust, and explore

all the other tding.

Month dedicated to Mary

May is traditionally the Month of Mary,

where we recall the role of Mary in sal-

vation. She is the Virgin Mother of God,

whose faith allowed Our Lord to take

human form. Because of her completely

trust in God, she lived her life sinlessly.

And, after her life, she was assumed

into Heaven by the power of God and

crowned as Queen of Heaven and Earth.

She is, of course, not divine. We wor-

ship only Jesus Christ, but we honor

Mary as a saint. We honor God by re-

membering the role of

Mary in the beginning of

our salvation. And, remem-

ber, Devotion to Mary al-

ways leads to Jesus Christ! She leads us in a relation-ship to Christ. Please say the Rosary each day, if pos-sible, this month.

Words from the

Library Award winning author and illustrator BRAN-

DON MULL visited St. Brigid‟s school on April

4th. He is the author of the Fablehaven and Be-

yonders series. It was a wonderful event, and

many students purchased and had dedicated his

books. We also

have several

copies for the

library if your

child would like

to borrow them.

A special

thanks to Ma-

bles‟ Fables

who arranged

this visit for us.

WE ARE SO PROUD! Dear Mrs. Greco Today I was down on the subway to take a couple of my students to Maple Leaf Gardens to watch the hockey game. While on the sub-way students from your school got on the sub-way and I was just so amazed at how excep-tionally well behaved they were. I have taught intermediate for many years, I have done many TTC trips with intermediates and never have I seen such a well behaved group. They stood quietly, whispered amongst themselves, were-n't jumping or jostling around. I did mention to the teacher how well behaved the class was, which is when I found out we were going to the same place. Please share with your students how incredibly impressive they were! Thanks Sincerely Debby

TCDSB MUSIC FESTIVAL

On April 17th , 2013, St. Brigid Catholic

School Choir , lead by Ms. Stewart,

went to St. Patrick Catholic Secondary

School for the TCDSB Music Festival.

St. Patrick had a big auditorium with a

huge stage. We were very excited but a

bit nervous. We had an adjudicator name

Brenda Uchimaru. There were three

other choirs participating . We were the

last ones to go on. Brenda Uchimaru

loved our singing. Our report card was

excellent. We got a lot of level fours.

Thank you to Ms. Stewart, the staff and

all the parent volunteers. We had a fun

and exciting time.

2013-2014 CLASS LISTS

A great deal of time and effort goes into the formation of class lists. Each staff

member in the school is involved in

some way. This is our attempt at

ensuring that every consideration is

given to structuring classes which

maximize the learning opportunities

for each and every student in the

school.

The following are factors that we

consider:

Male and female distribution;

Peer group dynamics;

Student work habits;

Distribution of special needs/

program students;

Previous class placements

(combined vs. single grade;)

Academic achievement (strengths

and needs.)

These factors, along with the general information that the sending teacher

brings, are utilized to create classes that we hope will permit each student to

work well during the next academic year.

Given the total number of students in our school, the number of students in each

grade and the contractual teacher obligations, we are bound to have combined

grades. This is a reality in our school and in hundreds of classes across the prov-

ince of Ontario. There are going to be students who will be in a combined class.

Careful consideration is given to the placement of all students. Unfortunately, we

cannot entertain requests for class changes.

Also, please be informed that teacher assignments for 2013-2014 are not final-

ized, and may not be known until days before school begins, given teacher trans-

fers, maternity leaves, etc. Consequently, we are unable to share teacher assign-

ments with you at this time.