The Hawk Talk

Contact us at:

Phone: 905-945-8022

Fax: 905-945-4277

E-mail: nel@dsbn.org

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

A big thank you to our Dance-a-thon

Committee, Trish Backman, Margaret

McIntosh and Jenn Roberts who

worked hard to get prize donations,

organize the prize draw and hire the

DJ. Students had a great day, got lots

of exercise and Council raised

$4400. Thanks to all who supported

this event and the many parent volun-

teers who gave their time that day.

There are still some Dance-a-thon

prizes waiting to be picked up at the

office.

During the holiday season, many stu-

dents like to give gifts to their teach-

ers. This year, please consider donat-

ing to the Grimsby Benevolent Fund,

or a charity of your choice on behalf

of your child’s teacher or purchasing

a book for your teacher’s classroom

library in place of a traditional gift.

The Nelles Holiday Concert will take

place on Dec. 21 at 7:00 pm. There

will be a day time performance on

Wed. Dec. 21 at 2 pm for those family

members who are able to come dur-

ing the day.

Thank you to Mrs. D Lozecki who is

coordinating Christmas Craft sessions

for the students. Student crafts can

be picked up at the Holiday Concert

and there will be no charge for the

crafts again this year.

Please remember that we are encour-

aging Nelles students to enter and

exit the school independently, even in

JK. Thank you for your support! If

you are coming in to the school,

please remember to sign in at the of-

fice so we know you are here.

In case of rain or extreme cold, par-

ents are invited to wait in the front

foyer until their children are dis-

missed and then meet them outside

at their exit door or arrange for the

children to walk around the outside of

the building and meet parents outside

the front of the school.

If you wish to contact your child’s

teacher for any reason you can call,

email or make an appointment at the

office.

Please remember to leave the BUS

ZONE parking directly in front of the

school clear for our JK/SK buses. It

would also be greatly appreciated if

you could leave the parking spaces at

the front of the school for our JK/SK

parents who need to pick up and drop

off in person.

Wishing you and your family all the

best this holiday season,

Mrs. J. Slade

The virtue for the month of December is

generosity. Generosity is giving and sharing.

It is giving freely because you want to, not

with the idea of receiving a reward or a gift

in return. It is seeing a chance to give of

what you have and then just giving for the

joy of giving. You practice generosity when

you think of ways to share what you have.

Think about what other people need and do

things to give them happiness.

Mrs. Nawrocki’s grade 3 class will be leading

this month’s assembly on December 23 at 9

am.

N E L L E S P U B L I C S C H O O L

December 1, 2011

118 Main St. Grimsby, Ontario L3M 1N8

IMPORTANT DATES TO

REMEMBER:

Mid Year Assessment Gr. 3,

5 & 6 Dec. 5

Mid Year Assessment Gr. 5 &

6 Dec. 7

Mid Year Assessment Gr. 3

Dec. 9

Vocal Ensemble to Maple-

crest Dec. 13

Vocal Ensemble sing ing at

Fairview Mall 11:15 Dec.

15

Niagara Elementary Instru-

mental Music Concert Dec.

16 2:30 pm

Nutcracker Production 1:30-

3:00 p.m. Gr. 1—6 in Smith-

ville Dec. 20

Holiday Concert Dec. 21 at

2pm and 7pm

Caroling Dec. 22 at 2:30

pm

Sharing Assembly Dec. 23

9:00 a.m.

Red & Green Day Dec. 23

Staff & Student Volleyball

Game 12 pm

Last Day of School Dec. 23

Classes resume Jan. 9, 2012

Check out our website at: Website: http://www.dsbn.org/Schools/Nelles

J. Slade, Principal

Newsletter

The Nelles Book Fair was a huge success.

Thank you to all the families who purchased

books and materials at our Fair. Thank you also

to the many parents who volunteered their time

so that the Book Fair could be available to students and fami-

lies. We netted a profit of just over $1200 which will be used

to purchase new books for our Nelles Library. Congratula-

tions to Mrs. Orosz and Nicky R. who won $25.00 in books.

Thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Nethery for setting up and taking

down the Book Fair.

INDOOR SHOES

It is important that our students wear indoor shoes at school for safety reasons. Children who walk around in socked feet could get their feet and socks wet or injure themselves.

Should there be a fire emergency, students need to vacate the school immediately. They will be going outside in bare socked feet. There is no time during an emergency to put shoes on. Please remind your child to bring a pair of indoor shoes to be worn in the school.

6 +1 Traits of Writing

Thank you to our 6 + 1 Writing Traits volunteers who

are coming faithfully to work one-on-one with our stu-

dents. Mrs. Razzaque, Mrs. Backman, Mr.

Bell, Mrs. Colyer , Mrs. Roberts, Mrs. An-

dress and Mrs. D. Lozecki

Did you know that Canadian children/youth ages six to 19 spend an aver-

age of 8.6 hours per day, or 62 per cent of their waking hours, being

sedentary?

Here are some ways to help your children meet the recommended 60

minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each day:

- Limit recreational screen time to no more than two hours per day

- Encourage children and youth to play outdoors

- Play outside with your children:

- Go for walks, hikes, build snowmen, go tobogganing

- Introduce your child to skates or skis so they can learn to slide

- Play catching games using a wide range of soft objects

For more information go to www.activehealthykids.ca or

www.participaction.com

Volleyball Teams

Congratulations to the Nelles Volleyball teams

who came out every game and worked hard

throughout the season. Great team effort and

team spirit! Thank you to our coaches Mrs.

Neufeld, Mrs. Nawrocki, Miss Schroeder and Mrs. Inneo.

Our Volleyball Team Members:

Boys Team

Liam B. Landon H. Brenden K.

Jacob P. Daan S. Anthony S.

Evan V. Jakson W. Colin A.

Craig C. Andrew C. Daniel M.

Louis M. Aaron S. Pierce R.

Girls Team

Karli G. Eden S. Sydney-Jewel G.

Taylor S. Maddie W. Alyssa A.

Logan R. Bailey G. Juliet B.

Paige S. Clare S. Abbey S.

Ava C. Maddy J. Megan M.

Page 2

NELLES PUBLIC SCHOOL - December Newsletter

We are once again supporting our

local Grimsby Benevolent Fund

and their Christmas Hamper

Drive. Our donation drive will run from Thursday

December 1 until the end of the day on Tuesday

December 13. There will be a table set up outside

of the office with boxes to collect new unwrapped

toys or non-perishable items. Please help us to

support those in our community this holiday sea-

son. Remember that donations are voluntary.

HEAD LICE PREVENTION TIPS

Head lice can be found in all types and lengths of hair. There are steps you can take to prevent infestation.

Encourage your child not to share combs, brushes, ponytail holders or other hair accessories.

Keep long hair in a ponytail or braids.

Avoid sharing hats, coats and scarves or other per-sonal items.

Routinely check your child’s hair.

If lice is found, please contact the office.

Page 3

NELLES PUBLIC SCHOOL - December Newsletter

WINTER WEATHER IS HERE (or will be soon!)

Please make sure your child comes to school dressed appropriately for colder winter weather. He/

she should have a scarf, hat, mittens, boots and a warm winter coat. Please label all clothing.

INCLEMENT WEATHER

Please listen to the radio for information about schools and bus transportation during inclement weather. If travel to and

from school become dangerous for the school buses the Board will make an announcement on local radio stations on the

7:00 a.m. news. Here is a list of radio stations that will broadcast school closures:

CKTB (610 AM) St. Catharines CKOC (1150 AM) Hamilton

CHRE (105.7 FM) St. Catharines K-LITE-FM (102.9 FM) Hamilton

CHSC (1220 AM) St. Catharines CHML (900 AM) Hamilton

WAVE (94.7 FM) Hamilton Y-108(107.9) Hamilton

The DSBN website (dsbn.org) and the Nelles School website (http://dsbn.org/Schools/Nelles) will also post school clo-sures and transportation cancellations.

Wanted: In School Mentor volunteers.

37 kids are waiting to spend time with a volunteer one hour a week during school hours. The program is about motivating kids through playing board games, reading, making crafts and shooting hoops. 1 hour a week, 1 child, 1 big reason to go back to school! Please contact Brenda @ 905-945-9353 or brendabbbs@aol.com

Students wishing to toboggan on the

Nelles hill during both breaks this win-

ter are required to wear a bike, hockey

or ski helmet . This is to ensure student

safety while on the hill. An adult supervisor will be

present while students are tobogganing. Students

should supply their own sled, snow pants, gloves and

helmet. Thank you for your support.

Free Holiday Skate

The town of Grimsby is offering FREE Holiday Skating, sponsored by Tim Horton's at the Peach King Centre Arena on the following dates:

December 27th to 30th from 2:30 — 4:00 pm

December 31st from 7:00 - 10:00 pm

January 1st (Mayor’s skate) from 12:00—2:00 pm

Page 4

TOP 10 TIPS TO HELP YOUR CHILD WITH MATH

1. Connect math to daily life - Let them know the impor-

tance of math! Talk about how you use math in your day-to

-day life (at the store, in your job, around the house).

2. Counting can be fun and entertaining - Show them

math can be fun! Sing songs (One, Two, Buckle my

Shoe) and play games (card games, hopscotch, board

games, Dominoes, chess).

3. Start Easy and Work Up - For example, after they've got

counting by 1s, talk about skip counting and count by 2s,

then 5s and 10s. Don't jump ahead too fast.

4. Use household items for practice - Practice adding

and subtracting with objects from the house like spoons

or pots and pans.

5. Tap Into your child's curiosity - Go on a number hunt

in your house.

6. Talk about time - Talk about seconds, minutes and

hours, then count days and weeks. Ask them questions:

How long until bedtime? How many "sleeps" until the

weekend?

7. Practice mental math using coins - Count money or

have them show you how much an item costs and practice

making change for when they're at the store.

8. Play the estimating game - Estimate measure-

ments, distances, time and grocery bills and then

compare to the actual.

9. Sports and math - There is a lot of math in sports

such as batting averages, points per game and save

percentages (discuss these as you watch the games

or read the newspaper).

10. Computers + Math = Fun (there are lots of great

computer games available to explore math).

NELLES PUBLIC SCHOOL - December Newsletter

November has been another busy month at Nelles. We had the Remem-brance Day Assembly as well as a fun and successful Dance-A-Thon. We have also had the addition of 13 new books for our Library. Thank-you again to all the Nelles Families and Staff who support the Birthday Book Club. Thank-You from Anne and John Nethery, Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Naylor. November Birthday Book Wishes Go Out To:

Rebekah A. - Gr. 2 - Snow White

Emma Jane V. - SK - Fancy Nancy & The Posh Puppy & Rainbow Magic Collection

Sean N. - JK - Scooby-Doo: The Shamrock Scare

Madison W. - Gr.6 - Canadian Disasters

Natalia V. - Gr.1 - Biscuit & The Little Pup

Fernando D. - Gr.1 - Blackbeard's Treasure

Ella M. - Gr.1 - Five Little Monkey's Reading

Zaidan V. - Gr.1 - Dinosaurs

Olivia F. - SK - The Bear With Sticky Paws Won't Go To Bed

Jeremy V.Y. - Gr.3 - Big Nate On A Roll

Kalista G. - JK - The Bear With Sticky Paws Goes To School

Eden S. - Gr.6 - Dear Dumb Diary: Pretend This Never Hap-

pened

The last day of school before the holidays is Friday, De-

cember 23rd and classes will resume on Monday Janu-

ary 9, 2012. We wish everyone a safe and happy holi-

day!

Please join us for Caroling

Thursday December 22 at 2:30 pm

Friday December 23 at 9:00 am

The West Lincoln Memorial Auxiliary presents “Breakfast with Santa” on December 10

from 8:30—noon at the PK Centre. $5/ticket or $20/family. All proceeds go toward

WLM Hospital equipment purchases. Please help support a worthy cause.

School Council Update

Council met Monday night to set the budget based on the response to the survey. 108 families responded to the survey which gave us great feedback with which to make our decisions. We were able to support all initiatives included in the survey with the most support going toward

classroom and learning enhancements.

Next council meeting is scheduled for January 30, 2012.

Sincerely; Daniel Schultz, Council Chair.