Principal: Clelia Della Rovere, EdD Vice-Principal: Josie O’Hara

Superintendent: Tod Dungey Trustee: Linda Aversa

Le Bulletin de Roméo Dallaire Public School 550 Peter Rupert Avenue, Maple, ON L6A 0S1 Phone (905) 585-0001 Fax (289) 553-0599 E-mail: romeo.dallaire.ps@yrdsb.ca Website: http://romeodallaire.ps.yrdsb.ca

Message from the Principal and Vice Principal What a great first month of school! We would like to thank all of our staff, our students’ families and our many volunteers for their strong commitment to our students at RDPS. We would like to thank parents/guardians for their patience as they sifted through large amounts of information from school and class newsletters, start up packages, cash on line notices for trips, sub lunch orders, milk orders, pizza orders and other items, in addition to learning new routines and procedures associated with our school. A big thank you for coming out to our Open House to meet our staff and visit the classrooms and for supporting our Terry Fox and Hurricane relief donation drives.

We at RDPS have been busy learning the new routines and ensuring that our grade 1 students have adjusted well to their new school and have mastered routines and busing procedures. We are very proud of our grade 1 students who have adapted to a new school community, are learning a new language and have experienced full recesses for the first time. Bravo to our grade 1’s!

We had many exciting opportunities for our students during the month of September: Tryouts for our Cross Country Team (gr. 4 to 8), Volleyball Teams (gr.7 & 8). In addition to these teams, we have a number of students who have joined the choir, ensembles and bands. Auditions for our major school production, Fiddler on the Roof, are taking place now for interested grade 2 to 8 students. Our Social Justice committee, comprised of junior students, was busy collecting donations for our Hurricane Relief Drive. We are still collecting Terry Fox donations this week. Thank you very much to the many staff members who volunteer outside of the instructional day to make these wonderful extra-curricular opportunities available for our students. Your efforts are greatly appreciated by our students and their families.

During the week of September 25th—29th, our students and staff participated in Safety Week activities such as how to safely evacuate the building during a Fire Drill. We also held our first Lock Down Drill and our Hold-and Secure Drill. These emergency procedures will be reviewed throughout the year.

In order to strengthen our communication and to support our school’s quest to once again become eco-certified, we will continue to use our School Blog as one of the primary methods of communication to announce important information pertaining to the school as needed. Please ensure that you have signed up to get the school blog messages. We are committed to keeping you informed via our newsletters, twitter, synervoice and e-mail. Our newsletters will also be posted on our school website. Many thanks again for your ongoing support.

October 2017

Inside this Issue

*School Council Update *EQAO results *From the Music Room *Footwear and Clothing *Halloween *Before & Afterschool Prog. *Police Checks for Volunteers *Safe Arrival Program *Pick up & Drop Off Routines *Lunches & Allergy Awareness *Cross Country *Calendar and upcoming events *High School Information Nights *Other community events

All Visitors and Volunteers, please

sign in at the

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SCHOOL INFORMATION

School Council Update:

School Council Chair Shirley Haber It is with a heavy heart that we share the sad news about the passing of Shirley Haber, School Council Chair, volunteer and mother of 4 children. Shirley was instrumental in supporting our school on various committees and she was an outstanding School Council Chair who leaves behind a legacy of amazing con-tributions to our school. Shirley ran our Pizza Lunch program as well as volunteered on the School Opening Committee, Fundraising Committee, Graduation Committee and was the Co- Chair of our School Council for the past 2 years. Throughout our school, we can see the many valuable contributions she left behind as a result of her unwavering commitment to our school community. Please keep her family in your thoughts and prayers during these very challenging times.

Council Meeting Our first School Council meeting took place on Monday, September 26th during which the School Coun-cil members were acclaimed. We value the involvement of our parents/guardians and appreciate all con-tributions being made to support our school. Our next School Council meeting is on Monday, October 23rd at 7:00 pm in the Learning Commons. Everyone is welcome! We also have a number of parents in-terested in volunteering and will we certainly need your assistance throughout the year for various events and activities. Please take a moment to read our School Council Newsletter. It provides information about our Council membership, upcoming presentations, our fundraising goals, etc… Parents are always welcome to our Council meetings.

One Time Donation Fundraiser

Soon information will be coming home regarding our Tax Free Donation Fundraiser that we will launch to support our fundraising goals. Money raised will be used towards purchasing resources, subsidizing activities and special presentations. Our school has seen tremendous growth since opening two years ago. With such growth is the need to enhance our resources for all grades. This year’s Tax Free Donation Fundraiser will be available through Cash on line. Parents will be able to instantly get a tax receipt. During the two week campaign, students will have opportunities to win some wonderful prizes. Once again we thank our Fundraising Committee for coordinating this. All money raised will be used to support programming and activities for our students.

The Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) is pleased to release EQAO’s provincial elementary school results for grade 3 and 6. With this release, EQAO is proud once again to publish vital information on how students across the province are meeting the expectations outlined in The Ontario Curriculum relative to the provincial standard. These results are among the key pieces of data that help Ontario educators improve every student’s opportunity for success at school and be-yond.

Our school EQAO results are now available. Please visit www.eqao.com for more information. Over the next few months, we will be unpacking the data more closely to look at areas for improvement that will guide our professional learning and next steps.

Students in Grades 3 and 6 who wrote the test last spring received their individual results. Please note that the 2018 EQAO testing for grades 3 and 6 will be taking place in May and June of 2018. More information about specific dates will be forthcoming.

EQAO Results

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Our musical ensembles are already in full swing. The choir is learning music for Remembrance Day. The Concert Band is learning some challenging music, including a commission for Canada's 150th Birthday. The Recorder Ensemble is learning Bach and Disney, a fun contrast of music. Our new Woodwind Ensemble is working on an arrangement of Respighi's Bergamasca from the Ancient Ayres and Dances. And the Jazz Band is learning old big band music, Latin jazz and jazz/rock fusion.

About 150 students have indicated an interest in becoming involved in our production of Fiddler on the Roof. So far we have had a learning session to learn the song Tradition, which will be the audition piece for those who want to audition for lead roles. The remaining learning sessions are October 5th, October 11th and October 12th. Auditions will be held October 16th, 19th, 23rd and 25th. Students may sign up for times outside the music room. Rehearsals will commence Monday, November 13th and continue on Monday and Thursday afternoons until the performances, May 2nd and 3rd. Grade 2 and 3 students will have their re-hearsals on Monday and Thursday morning recesses, until the beginning of April.

For information about all these endeavours and about assessment in music, please check my blogs, sil-verrdps.blogspot.ca. This is the easiest way for me to communicate with everyone in the school community and hopefully it will answer all your questions.

RDPS EQAO Results

Our grade 3’s only wrote the EQAO Math assessment in French.

Gr 3 Math- 89% at or above the provincial standard.

Our grade 6 students participated in the reading, writing and math EQAO testing which was in English.

Reading—94% at or above the provincial standard.

Writing– 100% at or above the provincial standard.

Math– 78% at or above the pro-vincial standard.

NOTES FROM THE MUSIC ROOM

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Footwear and Clothing

Please make sure your child has a pair of indoor shoes for school. Outdoor shoes track in mud and dirt and it can be very uncomfortable for the children to wear wet shoes and socks all day. Every student must have a clean pair of running shoes, with non-marking soles, for the physical education classes, which they can also wear as indoor shoes. Primary teachers may also ask students to bring in a change of clothing in the event they need clean/dry clothes during the day.

Hallowe’en

This is a time of great excitement for all of our students. We will be holding a Hallowe’en costume parade after lunch on October 31st. Parents are welcome. We ask that students do not arrive at school in costume, but rather change in the afternoon. We would like to remind all our parents that Halloween treats are NOT to be brought to school as the risk of allergies is too great. Also, it is important to remember that no weapons or masks are to be part of costumes, even plastic ones.

Before and Afterschool Program Macklin House Daycare- www.mhdc.ca

If your child is part of our B and A program at Maclin House, please ensure you inform them of your child’s absence. Please call their number directly at (905) 472-6201.

SCHOOL PROCEDURES

Police Checks Vulnerable Sector Screening

If you are interested in volunteering in the school, in any capacity, you must provide a Police Vulnerable Sector Check prior to commencing a volunteer position. A Police Vulnerable Sector Check is used to ensure the safety of students, staff and community members. York Region is requesting that all volunteers provide a letter from the agency where they are intending to volunteer. The YRDSB has created such a letter, so please feel free to stop by the office to pick up a copy before you head to the York Regional Police.

Safe Arrival Program & Late Arrival and Early Pick Up

If your child is going to be absent from school for any reason, please call our Safe Arrival Line at

1-855-203-2994 or online https://parent.schoolconnectsweb.com.

You must report the absence before 9:00 am.

Any student arriving late for any reason must report to the office for an admit slip into class. We appreciate your support in trying not to pick up students just before the dismissal bell at the end of the day, unless your child has an appointment. This is very disruptive to our classroom routines and students miss important information when they leave just before the dismissal bell.

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Pick Up And Drop Off Routines

We ask all parents to support us in ensuring the safe arrival and departure of all our children. We encourage all students who qualify for busing to use busing in order to eliminate unnecessary congestion and traffic around the school. We would like to point out that the loop at the front of the school is a fire route. Only buses and those requiring wheel chair access parking spots have priority to enter the school. For the safety of all our students, if you are driving your child to school, please park on a side street and walk your child to school. You can also use the Kiss ‘N Ride in the staff parking lot. The Kiss ‘N Ride loop is a convenient and efficient procedure for dropping off children at school in the morning, and for picking up children from school in the afternoon. Once your car has come to a complete stop in a designated area, your child can exit or enter the car. Please do not let your child walk alone in the parking lot. Please do not park in the Kiss ‘N Ride loop Parent Pick Up is at 3:35 pm sharp. For parents picking up walkers, please come to the front of the school to the designated pick up area under the awning. Please remember that we have a large staff and therefore we need most of the parking spots on the school lot for our teachers, office staff, before and after school staff, and caretakers. You are welcome to park in the parking lot after 9:05 am. We appreciate your support as we establish our safety routines at our school. Also, if you plan to pick up your child early from school, you must send your child’s teacher a note and come to the office to sign out your child as well. If you call the office, we may not get this message until much later so a note to the teacher is preferable. Please ensure your child is aware of special pick up arrangements. Reminder- bus switches are not issued at our school due to safety reasons***

Student Pick Up

Please make arrangements with your child(ren) before the start of the school day regarding appointments and early dismissals. A note should be sent to the teacher and parents need to sign out children being picked up at the office. If you have a last minute arrangement, please notify the office before 3:00 pm. We try to limit disruptions into classrooms as much as possible at the end of the day.

Lunches and Allergy Awareness

Nutrition is very important. Please help your children make good food choices for their lunches. We discourage sharing of lunches because of food allergies. We continue to need your cooperation in keeping the school a nut-safe area.

As we have explained in the past, we are doing all we can to protect the lives of some of our students who have life threatening allergies to peanut and nut products.

We need your help and vigilance in assisting us in providing a safe and healthy environment for all. In keeping with this policy, please do not send food to school with your child to celebrate his or her birthday. We will acknowledge birthdays by announcing them on the morning announcements and providing each student with a birthday pencil.

SCHOOL PROCEDURES

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Upcoming Events For October

Sub lunches-Tuesdays—Oct 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 Pizza lunches– Thursdays - Oct 5, 12, 19, 26

October 3 Picture Day

October 4- Paid lunch time programs (Art, Lego and Karate) visit classes to distribute registration forms-registration first come first serve October 4- Toronto Zoo-Great Lakes Outreach Presentation for grade 2s

October 9 Thanksgiving October 12 Cross Country October 13 Junior Achievement (Economics for Success program, Grade 8) (free)

October 16 & 17 Deron Douglas presentation on First Nations for grade 4 students

October 17 Skills Work! What’s Out There? Presentation for gr 7 & 8 (free)

October 18 Significant Faith Day- Diwali

October 20 PA day—No School October 23 School Council Meeting 7p.m

October 24 Hansel and Gretel Play for gr. 1, 2, 3 in French (free)

October 25 Intermediate Trip (gr. 7 & 8) to Theatre

October 30 Dental Screening for gr. 2, 6, 8 Gr7 HepB & HPV (boys and girls)

October 31 Hallowe’en parade 2:15 pm

Thanksgiving

Monday, October 9, is Thanksgiving. The school will be closed. We hope you all have great long weekend !

PA Day– October 20

A reminder that October 20 is a PA Day. There will be no school for students on this day. School staff will be

participating in school improvement and professional learning activities.

Picture Day

All students and classes will be photographed on October 3.

Save the date

Primary Holiday Concerts-

December 20 and 21

More information will be forthcoming.

UPCOMING EVENTS AND OTHER REMINDERS

Cross Country

Over the past few weeks grade 4 to 8 students have been getting a lot of exercise during our cross country try outs. From this dedicated group of runners, we will be selecting our cross-country team which will then represent Roméo Dallaire at the area cross country meet to be held on Wednesday October 12.

Popcorn and Cookie Sales

Please note that during certain weeks each month, we will be selling nut free individually wrapped cookies and popcorn on Tuesdays and Wednesdays while quantities last. Food items are $1.00. Proceeds will go to enhance school activities and events .

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Please visit yrdsb.ca for additional information about upcoming Secondary

School information evenings for parents of grade 8 students.

Information Nights at: Bill Crothers Secondary School, 44 Main Street, Unionville, Ontario.

Tuesday October 3rd

, 2017 – Students in the East and North area of York Region

Thursday October 12th

, 2017 – Students in the West and Central area of Region

Information sessions will be from 7:00 – 8:30 pm in the school cafeteria and/or Gym A

Applications will be available from the Bill Crothers school website: Friday, October 13th

, 2017

Applications are due: Friday, November 3rd

, 2017

Information Nights for Arts Mackenzie

Arts Mackenzie is hosting its annual Arts Information Night on October 25, 2017 at 7p.m. at the Rich-

mond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts. This evening will feature student performances and art

exhibitions from the Arts Mackenzie program. Prospective students will have a chance to meet cur-

rent students and faculty, and find out more information about the application process. Grade 7, 8

and 9 students interested in the Arts Mackenzie program are encouraged to attend with their par-

ents/guardians.

In addition to Arts Information Night, every fall Alexander Mackenzie High School hosts an open

house where students can tour the Arts Mackenzie facilities. Join us on November 9th at 7 p.m.

at Alexander Mackenzie High School.

Secondary School Information Evenings for our Grade 8 Students

German Mills Public School Invites all parents and caregivers to join us for a free parent presentation

Parenting Traps and Strategies

For parents of children birth to 12 years of age

This session explains how parents may get “trapped” in escalations and power struggles. It explains why parents experience “defiance and non-compliance” when they ask or request their children to do something. Understanding various traps and help parents learn ways to avoid these traps and develop age appropriate and do-able strategies.

Location: German Mills Public School 61 Simonston Blvd. Thornhill 41 Porterfield Crescent Thornhill, L3T 4R5 Date: Wednesday, October 11, 2017 Time: 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Free child minding will be available

To register please contact: Oksana Majaski, Community & Partnership Development Facilitator Oksana.majaski@yrdsb.ca or 416-568-2252

This presentation is brought to you by German Mills P.S. in partnership with Blue Hills Child and Family Centre and York Region District School Board