Whitby Shores P.S.
Call of the Wild
MISSION
STATEMENT
At Whitby Shores
Public School, our
mission is to inspire
all children to
achieve their full
potential academically, emotionally,
physically and socially. We will work
cooperatively to
promote responsibility for self, caring
for other people
and the natural environment, and service to the local
community and beyond.
Number 8
March 6, 2014
MESSAGE FROM THE OFFICE
This past month has been
busy and productive at Whitby Shores P.S.!
Report Cards went home in
February and we are proud
of the progress that our students are making both academically and socially. Our
students have had many
wonderful opportunities for
learning recently such as:
Abilities Centre Simulated
Activities, Swim to Survive,
Mathematics Parent/Student
Sessions, ongoing Eco Club
Initiatives, Kindergarten
Olympics Day, Destination
Imagination and a Grade 8
trip to Fort York, to name
just a few. Throughout the
month of February teachers
and students have been discussing Black History Month.
Pink Shirt Day was celebrated last week and a wonderful
assembly was led by our
Grade 8 students.
We would also like to thank
our School Community
Council for all of their efforts in planning and coordinating our Dance-a-thon
that took place just prior to
the break. At this time we
would like to wish all of our
families a safe and happy
March Break!
As we move into March, we
welcome author Sigmund
Brouwer to Whitby Shores.
J. Cook, Vice-Principal
J. Barclay, Principal
CONTACT US
Mr. J. Barclay
Principal
Mr. J. Cook
Vice-Principal
Mrs. C. Sullivan
Office
Administrator
Telephone:
905-666-6667
Fax:
905-666-6673
SAFE SCHOOLS UPDATE—”SAFE WELCOME PROGRAM”
Recent information on our
website and in letters sent
home outline the Safe Welcome Program. The full implementation has been delayed due to adjustments to
the front doors to allow the
system to function properly.
Once these adjustments
have been completed communication to the school
community via our School
Website/Twitter will indicate
launch of the program.
When activated, all exterior school doors, including the front door, will be
locked during the instructional time each
day. When visiting the
school, parents, as well as
other visitors will be required to notify the office by
using a ‘push to talk’ intercom system, located inside
the front vestibule. Once the
visitor is positively identified
by the office personnel, the
door lock will be released
allowing the visitor to enter
the school and report to the
office. All visitors remaining inside the school and
travelling from the office
area will be required to
sign in and wear a Visitor’s Identification Tag
for the duration of their
visit to the school. Doors
will be unlocked for lunch
time and at dismissal time,
but visitors will be required
to sign in at the office as per
our usual practice.
Our top priorities remain
the commitment to put safety first in our schools and to
communicate clearly with
our community. We appreciate that this is a change for
our school community and
we thank you for your support in keeping our school
safe.
Page 2
Whitby Shores P.S.
PINK SHIRT DAY AT WHITBY SHORES P.S.
On February 26th we celebrated Pink Shirt Day. Our
grade 8 students led an inspiring assembly which included the story of Pink
Shirt Day, video messages,
class pledges, a school chant
and a Pink Shirt Day group
photo taken from the stage.
Our pledges are proudly
displayed in the front foyer!
Thank you to Mrs.
Geuzebroek and the grade 8
students for your leadership
and inspiration.
“No one can
make you
feel inferior
without your
consent.”
Eleanor
Roosevelt
PUNCTUALITY+REGULAR ATTENDANCE
=STUDENT SUCCESS
There is a strong correlation between school success
and attendance. We encourage our parents/guardians to
ensure their child arrives on
time at school and attends
as regularly as possible. If
you are having difficulty in
these areas, please feel free
to consult with the school
administration. There are
many resources both board
and community based, that
may be able to assist you in
this area.
It is parents’/guardians’ responsibility to call the
school (24-hour answering
machine) if their child is
going to be away due to
illness or lateness. This will
avoid the office making unnecessary calls for our Safe
Arrival Program. We thank
you for your cooperation.
Page 3
Number 8
GRADUATION NEWS
Our Grade 8’s are beginning
Term 2 but we are preparing for Graduation. Here
are some dates:
st
Friday, March 21
Grad Photos beginning
9:00 a.m.
Monday, June 23rd
Graduation
6:00 p.m.
Friday, June 27th
Drum Out
3:00 p.m.
Tuesday, June 24th
Grad Trip to Toronto
all day
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
SNOW CLUB
We had a great time at Lakeridge skiing and snowboarding. We went for five
weeks and had a wonderful
time. The students took
lessons and learned some
new skills on the slopes. We
would like to give a special
thank you to Mr.
Whitmarsh and the parent
volunteers who helped us
with doing up boots, handing out tickets, helping with
lessons and keeping an eye
on Whitby Shores students
on the hill. Thanks for a
wonderful time at Lakeridge.
Ms. Pitt, Mrs. Nutt and Ms.
Hartwell
KINDERGARTEN OLYMPICS
The kindergarten division
had an Olympic Day on
Thursday, February 20,
2014. Each class was a different country. We had
Sweden, Norway, Greece,
Netherlands, Italy and Germany competing against
each other in six different
events. The students enjoyed (modified events)
bobsledding, hockey, curling,
speed skating, creating the
Olympic rings and making a
team banner. At the end all
the students did such a
great job that they all
achieved a gold medal. We
would like to thank the
grade 8s for being team
leaders and Mrs.
Geuzebroek as this event
would not have been possible without them.
Your Wild Kindergarten
Team
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
Page 4
Whitby Shores P.S.
INTERMEDIATE GIRLS’ BASKETBALL NEWS
The Intermediate Girls’ Basketball Team wrapped up another successful season!
They had a strong regular
season, with a 7-1 record
heading into our Area
Playdowns. They overcame
injuries and finished 3rd in
our Areas. They advanced
to the Round of 24 for the
Durham Region and fell to
Brooklin Village in a hard
fought battle. The girls
played with a lot of heart
and courage all season long.
Congratulations on a wonderful season of great play
and sportsmanship. Team
members include: Aleks B.,
Carlie, Clesha, Julia, Alex S.,
Mackenzie, Paige, Deanna,
Jade, Meaghan, Emily, and
Ava. Thank you to Mr. Seko
and Ms. Grant for your
work and time with the
team this season.
CANADIAN AUTHOR SIGMUND BROUWER VISITS
WHITBY SHORES P.S.
Rock and Roll Literacy
arrived at Whitby Shores!
Canadian author Sigmund
Brouwer was here on
Wednesday, March 5th to
share his experiences as a
writer and storyteller with
all of our students. He used
music and story to give fun
and practical advice on how
to make sure that reading
and writing become the
foundation for future success.
With over three million
books in print, he is a best
selling author of both children and adult books. His
recent novel, Devil's Pass,
received a nomination for
one of Canada's major literacy awards for children, the
John Spray Mystery Award.
This work is also on the
Red Maple reading list for
our intermediate students.
A book order flyer was sent
home in February if anyone
is interested in ordering his
books.
We very much enjoyed his
visit! Thanks, Mrs. Latimer,
for arranging this special
event.
SPRING CLEANING TIME IS COMING!
Spring is almost here which
means spring cleaning time.
Please think about the kindergarten classes when you
do your spring cleaning. We
would love to have any toys,
books or art supplies you
are not using anymore.
Please drop off donations to
your kindergarten teacher
or to room 106 (Ms. Pitt’s
room) if you do not have a
student in kindergarten. All
donated items will be distributed throughout the
kindergarten division.
Thanks, Your WILD Kindergarten Team
Page 5
Number 8
WILD IMAGINATIONS
On Saturday March 1st,
Marissa M., Alex B., Josh M.,
Brenden W., Taylor L., and
Sebi R. participated in Destination Imagination 2014 at
Dunbarton High school.
This amazing program combines many areas of both
science and the arts and
challenges students to think
outside the box in order to
complete a variety of tasks.
At school, the group had to
build a wood structure that
could endure both compression and tension forces.
When tested our creation
was subjected to an
astounding 120 lbs. before it
exploded in a mass of shattered Popsicle sticks. During the structure testing our
group presented a dramatic
story telling to show how
tension and other forces
affected the lives of a
“School of Fish”…don’t
worry, it had a very happy
ending. Mrs. Drover-Smith
and Mr. Albrecht are very
proud of our “Soaring Ospreys”, you did a fantastic
job and represented Whitby
Shores wonderfully with
your positive attitude and
politeness.
be open until the end of
March so let your voice be
heard.
Thanks to the many people
who came out to the Special
Needs Committee Open
House in February to make
it a very special event.
Thank you to Durham Behaviour Management, Kinark
Family Services and
Grandview Treatment Centre for sharing their information and knowledge with
our families. Thanks to Mr.
Barclay and Mrs. Dart for
taking time to participate in
the event as well.
SCC NEWS
Your SCC Parent Engagement Committee has put
together the 2013/2014
Parent Survey. We want to
hear your opinions so
please go to http://goo.gl/
qqAi4V. A link to the survey is also listed on the
main page of the school
website and the SCC page.
This is a valuable tool for
our SCC to use when making decisions in the future.
Please take five minutes to
complete the survey. It will
Our Dance-a-thon takes
place on Thursday, March
6th! We thank everyone for
contributing to our Dance-a
-thon fundraiser! All money
raised will go towards a
score clock for the gym. As
soon as our totals are in we
shall update the school website with details.
Page 6
Whitby Shores P.S.
PARENT/STUDENT ENGAGEMENT IN MATHEMATICS
Over the past two weeks
we have had a great turnout
for our parent/student
mathematics session. During
these sessions parents and
students have been working
through two or three math
problems that are similar to
questions encountered in
class. The sessions are for
any grade 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6
student and their parents
and sessions alternate each
week. The focus is to connect parents to their child’s
learning, reducing stress
while learning Mathematics.
The sessions will take place
on Wednesdays from 3:40
to 4:40 in the library. Each
student must be accompanied by an adult. Families
are not expected to attend
every session. Come to as
many sessions as your
schedule will accommodate.
Grade 2 and 3 Families
Grade 4, 5, and 6 Families
Wednesday, March 5th
Wednesday, March 19th
Wednesday, March 26th
Wednesday, April 2nd
Wednesday, April 9th
Wednesday, April 16th
Wednesday, April 23rd
Wednesday, April 30th
INCLEMENT WEATHER
During inclement weather,
the Durham District School
Board attempts to keep
schools open. It is the parents’ responsibility to decide
if conditions are safe for
their children to walk to
and from school. Be sure to
call ‘Safe Arrival’ if your
child will not be attending.
In the case of extreme
weather, please listen to
one of the local radio/tv
news stations listed below
for notices of transportation
cancellations and school
closures: CP NEWS 24,
KX96-FM 95.9, CFRBAM 1010, 680-AM News,
CBC/CBL 99.1, Q107FM 107.1, CHFI-FM
98.1, CHUM –FM 104.5,
Y92-FM 91.9, EZ ROCK
97.3, CICX 105.9. Please
refer to the article entitled
Winter Weather on our website.
Number 8
Page 7
CLEAR COMMUNICATION
We encourage parents to
get in touch with school
staff regarding school related concerns. Please do not
hesitate to telephone or
make an appointment to
visit the school. The following is a list of school personnel who will assist you:
Principal and VicePrincipal: Mr. Barclay and
Mr. Cook can assist you
with any questions which
relate to the school.
Please speak to the classroom teacher first if your
question is subject or
classroom related.
Classroom Teacher: Anything related to a subject or
classroom question can be
resolved by contacting the
particular teacher.
Administrative Officer:
Mrs. Taylor can be contacted to clarify/answer
any regional questions or
questions that were not
answered at the school,
905-666-5500.
Office Administrator: Mrs.
Sullivan will answer general
school questions or direct
you to the appropriate person. Telephone 905-6666667.
905-666-5500.
Trustees: Your elected
trustees are:
Christine Winters 905-430
-6050 [email protected]
u.on.ca
Kim Zeppieri 905-6687782 [email protected]
.on.ca
They both welcome your
input on educational matters.
Superintendent of Schools:
Mr. Bowyer can be contacted to clarify/answer
any regional questions at
DATES OF SIGNIFICANCE
March 8
March 17
March 20
March 21
-
International Women’s Day
St. Patrick’s Day
Spring Equinox
United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racisim
Page 8
Whitby Shores P.S.
PARENT INFORMATION NIGHT
OUR WHITBY TRUSTEES
Christine Winters 905-430-6050
Whitby Shores P.S.
485 Whitby Shores
Greenway
Whitby, Ontario
L1N 0G8
[email protected]
Kim Zeppieri 905-668-7782
[email protected]
Phone: 905-666-6667
Fax: 905-666-6673
E-mail:
http://whitbyshores.ddsbschools.ca/
[email protected]
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
March 6
March 7
March 8 to 16
March 17
ON THE
TRAIL
TO
LEARNING ,
CARING
AND
ACTION
Dance-a-thon
PA Day (no classes for students)
March Break
Return to School
Make it Sew Fundraising Project Begins
March 18
Regional SCC 7:00 p.m. @ Ed Centre
March 21
Pizza Lunch
Kindergarten Popcorn Orders Due
Grad Photos for Grade 8 students
March 25
Popcorn Day
March 26
Hydro Safety Presentations K to 8
March 27
Junior Science Olympics
March 28
Make it Sew Seed Order Forms Due
Celebration Assemblies Gr 4 to 8 @ 9:05 a.m./K to 3 @10:25 a.m.
March 28 to 31 Grade 7s to Durham Forest
March 31
Scientists in the Classroom - Kindergarten