Spring is just around the corner,

and with this, the last few months

of school. It is going to be a very

busy time for us at Connaught, as

we prepare to celebrate our 100th

Anniversary on April 24th and

25th.

Events on Friday, April 24th are

meant to appeal to current

students and their families, and we

hope that you will join us.

If your family members or friends

are former students of Connaught,

then they might be interested in

the more formal Saturday, April

25th events.

Please check out the advertisement

in this newsletter for more

information! Learning time is precious!

Principal: Mrs. K. Diiorio

Vice-Principal: Mr. M. McLean

DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD OF NIAGARA

April 2015

The Connaught Chronicle

28 Prince Street

St. Catharines, Ontario

L2R 3X7

(P) 905-682-6609

100 YEARS OF LEARNING AND GROWING TOGETHER!

Connaught’s 100th

Anniversary

Celebration Plans

Important times to remember!

8:30 am - Breakfast Club

8:45 am - Supervision on the yard begins

9:00 am - Classes begin

3:25 pm - Dismissal

3:40 pm - Supervision on the yard ends

Please feel free to clip this handy list of bell times for your fridge

or bulletin board at home.

It is important to remember that prior to 8:30 am (with the excep-

tion of scheduled athletics practices, etc.) there is no staff

supervision of our students. Please do not send your children to

school earlier in the morning as their safety cannot be ensured

without adults available to watch them. Our staff members are

using this earlier time to prepare their lessons and classrooms for

a busy day of learning!

Our Connaught staff work hard to ensure that our students are

provided with as much uninterrupted learning time as possible.

Research has repeatedly shown that students experience the most

success when they are consistently in attendance at school., in a

focused environment

We would appreciate your support in ensuring that classroom

interruptions are kept to a minimum. This would include ensuring

that our children are in class at 9 am, and that they spend an entire

day with us until dismissal at 3:25 pm. Thank you for your

cooperation with this!

During the month of April, we

will be encouraging

„Independence and Self-

Regulation‟ at Connaught. From

around 12 months, children start

to be able to control their urges.

They might even start doing

what you ask them to do – some

of the time, at least! This is called

self-regulation. You can

encourage it by catching your

child being good, creating safe

and stimulating environments,

and making chores fun. Helping

children to start taking

responsibility for themselves,

helps them to grow

independence.

Helpful parenting tips

Expect it to take a

while. Developing the

ability to control urges

is difficult and can

take years.

Children are more

likely to misbehave in

certain types of

situations. Be aware

of tempting settings –

like the supermarket –

and be prepared to help

your child through them.

Create situations where

your child can explore

without hearing lots of

„don‟ts‟. For example, you

could let your child into the

pots and pans cupboard.

Catch your child doing lots

of things right, and praise

them for it!

Be gentle and patient when

teaching children how to

control urges – temptations

can be strong.

Help your child as she

learns to do chores, making

tasks as much fun as

possible.

By age 2-3, children can pick up

toys, wipe spills and put dirty

laundry in a pile.

By age 4-5, children can make

their bed, help unload a

dishwasher and clear the table.

By age 6-7, children can make

their lunch, help with groceries,

P A G E 2

Congratulations to our March winners of

the YOU ARE AWESOME! awards for the

character trait of Perseverance:

T H E C O N N A U G H T C H R O N I C L E

March Celebration

AssembLy

Independence and Self -Regulation I S April ’ S THEME

vacuum and clean their

room.

Children over the age of 8

can start to take on even

more responsibilities, with

less supervision. Ask your

child to help you make

dinner, organize the

grocery shopping, or watch

siblings (with an adult in

the home.)

Give your child a chance to

prove how much they can

do, you will be happily

surprised!

From:

http://raisingchildren.net.au/articl

es/self-regulation.html

“We are the ones who have to teach our children.” -Elder Agnes Alphonse, Black Lake First Nation

“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.” - Laozi, Ancient Chinese philosopher, founder of Taoism

Gr. 1: Ainsleigh, Brent

Gr. 1/2: Owen, Sadik

Gr. 2/3: Joy, Pedro

Gr. 3/4: Linda, Alaira,

Michael

Gr. 4/5: Ramz, Lina

Gr. 6: Sidney, Brianna

Gr. 7/8A: Joe, Jacob

Gr. 7/8D: Maria,

Anjulie

Club which is one of the best

track facilities in Southern

Ontario and the site of both our

Regional and DSBN Track

Championships. Our track and

field meet will be held

Wednesday May 6th

, and will be

an all day event. Look for more

Although the weather outside

may not seem like it, it's track

and field season. Over the next

few weeks students in Grades

3- 8 will begin preparing for

our annual school track meet.

As in the past our school meet

will be held at Niagara Olympic

details coming home in a

permission form in the middle

of April.

P A G E 3 T H E C O N N A U G H T C H R O N I C L E

School Council News

Connaught School‟s Annual Track Meet

In addition, a chocolate bar fundraiser is now under way. Families who are selling choco-late bars have received their boxes and the campaign will continue until Friday, May 2, 2014.. Thank you to Mrs. Mitchell for organizing this fundraiser and to Ms. Smith for her assistance as well!

We are looking for additional volunteers to assist on the day of the Connaught 100th Anniversary event. We need people who would be will-ing to work at the bake sale table as well as other volunteers to help with directing visitors to the school. Please contact the office if you might be interested in volunteering your time.

The next School Council meeting will take place on Tuesday, April 22 at 2 pm. In the Teacher Resource Room. PLEASE NOTE THE TIME CHANGE! Come out and join our hard-working School Council members!

One of the greatest

gifts adults can give -

to their offspring and

to society - is to read

to children.

~ Carl Sagan

Breakfast Club @ Connaught!

Our Breakfast Club

remains open for all

students and serves

nutritious breakfasts

Monday to Friday from

8:15 – 8:45. A huge

thank you to our

Breakfast Ladies, Miss

Nugent, Mrs. Schwenker, and Miss Beaudoin

who prepare and serve meals every morning!

Gr. 6 & 7 Girls‟ Technology Camp There is a FREE one day

technology camp for girls in

grades 6 and 7 at the Scotia-

bank Centre in Niagara Falls

on Saturday April 25th

. For

more information and to reg-

ister,

visit the website:

http://www.dsbn.org/girlste

chcamp

EASTER CRAFTER‟S WORKSHOP

P A G E 4 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1

Thank You SPEAK UP! You Brought Brendan and Dez to Connaught!

Speak Up granted funds to Connaught in order to hold

workshops for students around the theme, “Speak Your Mind!” In February, we were thrilled to

welcome musician and slam poet, Brendan McLeod to present a slam poetry workshop for the junior and intermediate grades. Students did a great job writing and

presenting their poems.

In March, artist and storyteller Dez Sargeant dazzled Connaught students with her lively and engaging performance and workshops for the primary grades. Students participated with Dez in creating stories, and also wrote their own stories to tell. Thank you to Speak Up for providing the funds to

make this happen!

EASTER HOLIDAY DATES

Thank you to Mrs. Michel and her helpers for organizing a terrific

Easter Crafters‟ Workshop. The students enjoyed making really

great crafts that they can take home and share with their families!

We will be closed for the Easter long weekend

on both Friday, April 3 and Monday, April 6.

We look forward to seeing you back again on

Tuesday, April 7th!

Junior Girls‟ Basketball

The season is just beginning for our

junior girls‟ basketball team. Mrs.

Bowman and Mrs. Diiorio are ex-

cited already to see the growth in

skills and the perseverence of our

team members.

Congratulations to the

following team

members:

Melora, Starr, Sarah, Tani-

esha, Savanna, Angelia,

Emma, Jubilee, Riley,

Summer, Shaelyn, Linda,

Ashley, Rylee

P A G E 5 T H E C O N N A U G H T C H R O N I C L E

Our children are precious to all

of us! It is important that we

take the time to ensure that our

children are safe and secure .

Here are some important tips:

Use a booster seat with the vehicle lap AND shoulder safety belts until your child is

old enough

Children are usually between 8 and 12 years old when the seat belt fits them properly.

Until this time, a booster seat is

necessary to ensure safety.

Teach your children the impor-tance of using seat belts on every ride, whether they‟re with you or not. This is a habit

you can instill at an early age.

Kids are VIPs – just ask them. VIPs ride in the back seat, so keep all kids in the back seat

until they are 13.

When adults wear seat belts,

kids wear seat belts. So be a good example and buckle up for every ride. Be sure every-one in the vehicle buckles up,

too.

We know kids like to slouch or lean against the windows dur-ing the drive, but it makes a difference in terms of safety. Have your children sit upright

when using seat belts.

On Monday, April 7th, our intermediate students

will be receiving immunizations from the Niagara

Regional Health System. Grade 7s will be receiv-

ing their Hepatitis B and Menactra vaccines while

the grade 8s will be immunized against HPV.

Grade 7 and 8 Immunizations Seat Belt Safety

Did You Know? Baby Teeth Are Very Important! Tooth decay is the number one chronic disease of children. Tooth decay can lead to pain, infection, difficulties eating, speech problems, self-esteem issues, decrease school attendance and poor overall health. Niagara Region Public Health (NRPH) screens approximately 25,000 students each year in elementary schools. 38% of these students have tooth decay, which is unacceptably high.

Baby teeth are important! Early preventive care is critical in reducing the likelihood of your child developing painful and serious health prob-lems later in life.

Fluoride is not added into our water supply. Therefore, it is recom-mended that all residents brush their teeth twice daily with fluori-dated toothpaste as soon as the first baby tooth erupts (birth to three years – rice grain size portion, three years and older – pea-size portion of fluoride toothpaste) Floss your child‟s teeth daily until age eight Ensure your child eats a healthy diet and limits sugary drinks and

snacks (ex. fruit roll-ups, gummies and juice boxes) Children should visit at dentist every year starting at their first birth-

day to prevent problems from starting Fluoride varnish and sealant applications are very effective in pre-

venting tooth decay NRPH has free programs and preventive services to assist children and youth in getting the dental health care they need. For more informa-tion please call the Dental Line at 905-688-8248 or 888-505-6074, ext. 7399.

Junior Boys‟ Basketball Team

Congratulations to the members of the Junior Boys Basketball Team. Close to 20

boys tried out for the team. League play begins at the end of March and will continue

throughout April, hopefully leading to a strong playoff run. Coaches Nugent , Masterson, and

French look forward to a fun and exciting season. Team members are Daniel F., Daniel C.,

Liam A., Chris C., Lucas S., William V., Tristan C., Kegan H., Suhayb A, Salman A., Isaac A.

P A G E 6 V O L U M E 1 , I S S U E 1

Our Centennial celebration is quickly approaching. Our committee is in the final

stages of planning events, and we are seeking your help! If you have any photo-

graphs, posters, newspaper clippings or items of interest that you would be willing to

lend us for displays, please contact Mrs. Michel at the school. We would love to show

off your links to our proud Connaught past.

Events begin on Friday, April 24th , when current students and their families are

invited to attend a ceremony and tour of decade rooms. There will be a musical per-

formance, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, opening of the time capsule, memorabilia sale

and a special treat.

Alumni are invited to tour the school and attend a short ceremony (12:00 pm)

from 11:00-2:00 on Saturday, April 25th. Parking will be limited, so please consider

carpooling or walking if you or someone in your family is Connaught School Alumni.

A N UP DAT E O N T H E 100T H A N N I V E R S A RY C E L E B R AT I O N S !