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Principal and Vice-Principal’s Message

Spring is here!! I think it is finally safe to say out

loud—Winter is gone!! The weather has been warmer the past few days. Our playground climber has been inspected and approved and our students have started using it (providing they have safe footwear—no open-toed shoes or flip flops). JK Orientation Day For parents of our newest learners, our JK’s start-ing in Sept 2016, information was given out to you when you registered about our JK Orienta-tion. The FDK staff are busy making the final plans for the morning of June 3 from 9:00-10:30am. See you there! Schlockey Sticks and Pucks If anyone has old, broken hockey sticks or pucks, please drop them off to the office for our Schlockey Tourney coming up at the end of May. Have a wonderful May! Mr. Sean Singh (x223) Mrs. Janice Dampier (x 224) Principal Vice-Principal

50 Oak Ridge Drive, Orangeville ON, L9W 5J6 519 941-3292

Fairness, Honesty, Respect, Compassion and Responsibility

http://www.ugdsb.on.ca/islandlake/

Island Lake Public School

May 2016

Dates at ILPS All Grade 3 and Grade 6 students will be writing the EQAO test between May 30 and June 2.Please ensure that

students get plenty of rest and a healthy break-fast during this time. Please also avoid appoint-ments that may interfere with testing dates.

What is STEM and why is it important?

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineer-ing, and Mathematics. The idea is to offer stu-dents tasks that integrate more than one subject area such as thinking about all the angles, meas-urements and calculations involved in building a structure that could stand up to the elements of our Canadian winters. STEM provides opportuni-ty to focus on one assignment while applying knowledge gained in a number of subjects so knowledge gained in one area can be applied in another. Check out this link for more information ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlPJ48simtE )

Think of it like driving a car. We can’t just focus on braking or steering by themselves. We need to simultaneously think of acceleration, steering, signaling, braking and road signs all at the same time and ideally we’d like our students to have the same flexibility with their thinking across different subject areas.

Try this activity to promote mathematics, sci-ence, engineering and language. Using popsicle sticks, glue, tape, and elastics, de-sign and build a device that will launch 3 marsh-mallows as far as possible using elastic bands. The elastic energy may be “loaded” by hand but the device must get all of its launching power from the stored energy in the elastic bands. Have fun and enjoy!

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From the Island Lake PS School Council

MAY

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ILPS School Organization 2016/17 We are in the process of planning for September 2016. Please note that all schools in our Board will be

organized according to the provincial guidelines that provide “hard caps” on primary and junior class sizes.

This means that schools are likely to face reorganization well into September. Staff have

been tentatively assigned to specific grades at this point but they may change as our enrolment changes up

to and including September. The Staffing Process in Upper Grand is still in process through the month of

June.

The following are our tentative teacher placements for September 2016

Question for the Principal Question: How does staff decide which class to place my child in? Answer: When school staff draft class lists, a variety of factors are taken into consideration. Some of them are as follows:

Total number of students (must meet Ministry and contractual guidelines)

Balance of female/male students

Balance of abilities

Number of students identified with special needs

Combinations of students (positive and challenging)

Formation of interactive learning groups

Teacher experience

Parent requests If parents/guardians wish to make a request for a particular class, it must be supported by specific and detailed rea-sons.

Our deadline for requests to be emailed to the Principal is Wednesday, June 1, 2016. email address: sean.singh@ugdsb.on.ca

The request must specify the reason for the request. We will make every effort to honour parent requests,

but please realize that we cannot guarantee that requests will be met, due to the number of variables in-

volved in student placement.

Tentative ILPS School Organization 2016/2017

4 Full Day Kindergarten – A.Brown, J. Vickery, J. Birken, P.Palmer/S. Laughton

Grade 4 – L. May

Grade 1 – T. White Grade 5- N. Hughson

Grade 1/2 - M. Chaubal Grade 5 – J. Broderick

Grade 1/2 – K. Lindsey Grade 6 – B. Martin

Grade 2 – A. Sanders Grade 6 – A. Pesic

Grade 2 – T. Gear Grade 7 – J. Bailey

Grade 2/3 – L. Gillis Grade 7 – D. Beazley

Grade 3 - Open Grade 8 – M. Miller

Grade 3/4 – K. Andrews Grade 8 – L. Cornish

Library- S. Fraser DD – Rebecca Teo

French – T. Maggio, R. Jamieson

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Talking about Mental Health - May 2016

May 2-6 is Child and Youth Mental Health Week!

Have a SUPER Week! Let’s increase everyone’s

mental health and well being! Let’s focus on in-

creasing these positive skills!

Social Connections

Uplifting Emotions

Personal Health

Emotional Calming

Resilient Thinking

Now that you have started building all those won-

derful skills, keep it going throughout the month

and the year!

Our community partners have some excellent ac-

tivities planned:

Norfolk Psychological Services is presenting a

series of free seminars, hosted at the Guelph Pub-

lic Library on Child, Youth and Family Mental

Health.

For more information and to register, please visit

www.guelphpl.ca or 519-824-6220.

DCAFS and Shed the Light will be presenting in schools and a display and information will be avail-

able at DCAFS. Shed the Light is hosting 'Artistry in Mind' at ODSS on Friday May 8th in the even-

ing.

For more information go to dcafs.ca.

Enjoy and participate and keep talking about mental health!

Dr. Lynn Woodford is the Mental Health and Addiction Lead for Upper Grand District School Board

Follow me on twitter: @drlynnwoodford

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Student Success $ + Tech Room = Schlockey at ILPS As part of our Student Success Plan and in conjunction with our Grade 8 staff and students, ILPS

will be bringing Schlockey to our school!!

Schlockey is a fast, fun game that is played on a board like this:

Our grade 8 Tech teacher, Ms. Cornish has been working hard with

the Board personnel to get our Tech Room renovated. We will be using

some of our Student Success funds to purchase materials for our Grade 8’s

to build 26 Schlockey boards for our school to use at recess. The Grade 8’s

have used their Math skills to design and prepare a cost proposal for the

building of the boards. The Grade 8’s will also be given the opportunity to take a plank home to decorate

before the boards are assembled. We can’t wait to see the final products!!

HELP! - we need old hockey sticks and pucks!! The game is played with the blade of the stick removed, if

you have any sticks or pucks you would like to donate, please drop them off to the office. THANKS!!

Stay tuned for more updates on our Schlockey Project!!

Climate Change refers to any changes in long-term weather patterns (temperature,

precipitation, wind, storms) that have been caused by humans polluting the at-

mosphere with too many greenhouse gases like methane and carbon dioxide. We

need to act now, because who can argue with reducing pollution? Pollution can't

possibly be good for us!

The world is tracking climate change. Weather and temperature has been changing too quickly over

the past few decades, which seems to be caused by the industrial revolution here on Earth. We are

sending too much pollution (from cars, trucks, factories, and power plants using coal) into our at-

mosphere. Over the past hundred years the temperature of the Earth has risen and this has caused

many changes in nature. For example, species of plants and animals are either migrating or becoming

extinct. Some seaside cities may soon be underwater from rising sea levels. We are having more se-

vere weather patterns like tornadoes and hurricanes and ice storms. Drinkable water sources are dry-

ing up.

What can you do to help be part of the solution? Well, all of the things we have been talking about

this year can help. It you buy less and reduce, then less energy will be used and less pollution will be

sent into our atmosphere. If you don't waste electricity you help out too. If you walk or bike to school

or carpool you are doing your part. If you buy locally you reduce the greenhouse gases emitted

through shipping and this helps planet Earth too.

You can Google: "Top 10 ways you can stop Climate Change" to get more ideas on how you can help.

And finally, eat a fresh, local apple - Not only is it good for you, but greenhouse gases were not cre-

ated in the processing, canning, freezing, packaging or long distance transportation, so

local apples are good for the planet too!

Slogan of the month: Climate Change is not cool!

May Environmental Theme: CLIMATE CHANGE

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Testing Dates

May 30- June 2, 2016

“Show What YOU know on EQAO”

Tips For Your Child’s Success!

What is EQAO:

EQAO undertakes research for two main purposes:

to maintain best-of-class practices and student improvement

ensure high standards of education quality

Standardized tests provide different information. A standardized test is essentially a snapshot in time using one method

of assessment. Teachers assess their students using a broad range of tools. A more holistic and complete picture of a

student's performance can be seen from various types of assessment that the teacher does throughout the year.

(tvoparents.tvo.org)

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

There is no need to study. The EQAO assessment does not count towards a child's marks in grades 3 and 6, so

there is no need to increase anxiety by cramming. If you are curious about the questions your child will be

asked, check out the EQAO site and run through some practice tests yourself so you have some understanding

of the structure of the assessment and can better reassure your child.

Remember this is practice. Let your child know that this is a way to show off what he or she knows and to practice

test-writing skills so your child can be prepared for tests in later grades.

Be supportive. It is normal and natural to get nervous and this is a big deal for your child. Do not downplay fears or

dismiss them as silly. Instead, encourage your child to talk about these fears

Talk to the Teacher. If your child is experiencing severe anxiety, there are things the teacher or school can do to

help.

Set the alarm. The best thing you can do for your child the day of the assessments is to make sure your child is

well rested, fed and gets to school on time.

Read more. For more on EQAO assessments and what they mean for your child, check out our Parent's Guide to

EQAO Assessments.

Understand the Test. Don't use your child's EQAO test scores to measure overall achievement. You're better off

relying on regular contact with the teacher who can show you your child's portfolio, which is being updated all

year long. You'll have a more clear and accurate picture of your child's progress.

EQAO resources

http://tvoparents.tvo.org/article/understanding-standardized-testing

www.eqao.com

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LOOKING FOR LUNCH SUPERVISORS We are also always on the lookout for Back-Up Lunch Supervisors as well as Emergency Oc-casional Teachers and Educational Assistants. Please check in the office if you are interested in these paid positions. Currently, we have a few openings for lunch supervisors. If you would like to supervise stu-dents during eating time and outside on the playground, please contact the office at 519 941 3292.

ILPS Community Garden Plots – 2016 Grow some veggies this summer!! Come and be a part of our community garden!!! Please contact Charles McCabe, cmccabe.bcomm@gmail.com, if you would like to use one of the community garden plots located against the east wall of the Eco-Pac. Plots will be allocated on a

first come, first serve basis.

PARENTS - PLEASE REGISTER FOR SCHOOL CASH

ONLINE!

We are excited to announce the addition of credit cards as a method of payment on School

Cash Online. Now when parents/guardians are paying for items online, they have the option

to pay with Visa or MasterCard. Any registered users who authorized email notifications

will receive an email announcement directly from Kev Group.

For safety and efficiency reasons, we are reducing the amount of cash and cheques coming

into our school. School related expenses such as pizza days, field trips, spirit wear, year-

books, etc. will now be paid for through the “school cash online” program .

Here’s how to register:

Step 1: Go to this website: https://schoolcashonline.com/ Step 2: Register by selecting “Get Started Now” and following the steps. Step 3: After you receive the confirmation email, select the ‘click here’ option,

sign in and add each of your children to your household account. Please note: If you have any questions during the registration process or while

shopping online, please select the GET HELP option in the top right hand area of the screen or contact the school office .

Thank you—from Island Lake Public School