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.
CONTACT US
Mr. J. Barclay
Principal
Number 8
April 7, 2017
MESSAGE FROM THE OFFICE
April is here upon us and
bringing with it some warmer weather!
March has been a busy and
productive month for us
with many activities on the
go. We wish to extend a
thank you to our School
Community Council for all of
their work around another
successful Dance-a-thon.
Students have also been involved in Earth Hour Activities, Celebration Assemblies,
the Kiwanis Festival, Musical
practices and Junior and Intermediate Basketball.
This year, Earth Day is Satur-
day, April 22nd and on the
Friday prior to this date we
shall once again host our
Osprey Walk. We are also
very excited about monitoring our Nest Boxes this
month while waiting for the
swallows to return. More
information can be found
about each of these special
events later in the newsletter under our Eco School
News.
In staffing news, we wish
Mrs. White all the best on
her maternity leave. We also
welcome back Mr. Azzarello
to the Whitby Shores team
to finish the year in Mrs.
White’s time away. Whitby
Shores continues to be a
fantastic community of learning, caring and action. We
are very proud of our students and their accomplishments. Together, we are
raising hard working, responsible citizens of the future!
Thank you to all of our families for your ongoing support
and co-operation.
J. Barclay
Principal
S. Christopher
Vice-Principal
Mrs. S. Christopher
Vice-Principal
Mrs. C. Sullivan
Administrative
Assistant
Telephone:
905-666-6667
Fax:
905-666-6673
GRADES 3 AND 6 EQAO ASSESSMENTS ARE ON THE
WAY!
This year’s Grade 3 EQAO
assessment dates will be on
May 24th, 25th and
26th. Grade 6 EQAO assessment dates are May
29th, 30th and 31st. It is
very important that all our
students attend school on
these dates. For those families who wish to see what
the assessments will look
like, resources and sample
questions are available at the
EQAO website under parent
resources: http://
www.eqao.com
YEARBOOK UPDATE
Thank you to all families
who ordered yearbooks
this year. It is a great way to
capture memories of Whitby Shores! All yearbook
orders should be in at this
point as they were due
March 31st. Any grade 6, 7,
8 students designing a yearbook cover should have
already handed it in as well.
Mrs. Hefford, Mrs. Boucher,
Mrs. Gallardo and Mrs.
Leclerc
WELCOME TO KINDERGARTEN
“Knowing
what’s right
does not
Plans are in place for our
annual Welcome to Kindergarten sessions on Thursday, May 11th from 1:30 to
3:00pm and 6:00 to 7:30pm.
This is a wonderful opportunity for parents and chil-
dren to build relationships
with their future teachers,
other families and community members. We will also
provide you with some tips,
tricks and helpful information to help your child
have a positive and successful early school experience.
We look forward to meeting our new students and
parents!
mean much
unless you
do what’s
right.”
Franklin
LOST AND FOUND
Our Lost and Found continues to grow even after being cleaned, sorted, viewed
and donated prior to March
Break. There are many
items in nearly new condi-
tion that have remained
unclaimed. Soon, we shall
begin to bag items and donate them to charitable organizations. Students are
reminded to look through
the items in the coming
days to claim items that
belong to them.
Roosevelt
INSTRUCTIONAL TIME INTERRUPTIONS
We understand that sometimes you may forget to
remind your child of a
change in his/her afterschool routine, or to pack
his/her lunch. Unfortunately,
when we are asked to get a
message to your child, this
interrupts instructional time
and the flow of learning.
Unless it is a medical or
family emergency we cannot
interrupt the classroom.
Instead, please try to do the
following:
* write any changes to your
child’s afterschool routine in
the agenda, or send a note
* instruct your child to pick
to lunch time from the drop
off cart in the foyer/office
area
Thank you for working with
us to maintain the best
learning environment for
your child.
PERSONAL ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Personal electronic devices
that are used inappropriately inside school during the
normal school day are disruptive to the teaching and
learning environment. The
privacy and personal dignity
of others could be violated
by the inappropriate use of
personal electronic devices to
text message, social network,
and/or share digital media. In
addition, communication
through personal electronic
devices during class time interferes with teaching and
learning. An exception to
this occurs when the teacher
has approved the use of specific technology for purposeful instruction. The Durham
District School Board cannot
assume the liability for stolen
personal electronic devices.
SUMMER FUN AT DURHAM FOREST
For many years now the
Durham Forest Environmental Education Centre
has been operating a Summer Day Camp program for
children from 7 through to
12 years of age. Once again
this coming summer, there
will be lots of fun and learning at the Forest as six, one-
week sessions of Camp will be
offered in July and August. Located just south of
Uxbridge, the Durham Forest
E.E.C. provides a wonderful
facility and enthusiastic staff
for this unique summer experience.
Information brochures and
registration forms are available through the school, by
calling the Forest or by
accessing our web site:
www.ddsb.durham.edu.on.c
a - choose Programs then
Outdoor Education. For
questions or further info
call us at the Forest: 905852-3030.
ANISHINABEMOWIN LAND BASED LANGUAGE
PROGRAM
In an effort to support the
Truth and Reconciliation
Commissions Calls to Actions 13 and 14, highlighting
the need to preserve, revitalize, and strengthen Aboriginal languages, the First
Nation, Métis and Inuit Education Department will be
hosting a 7 week Anishinabemowin (Ojibwe) Land
Based Language Program for
Indigenous families and community members. This program will be offered at Nonquon Outdoor Education
Centre from 4-6 pm beginning on April 13.
If you are interested in participating, please contact
Erin Elmhurst, First Nations,
Metis and Inuit Education
Officer, @
[email protected] or
(905) 666 6301.
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
ECO SCHOOL TEAM NEWS
Our Whitby Shores
EcoSchool team has been
very busy planning many
environmental initiatives
within the school throughout the year. Earth Hour
was celebrated on Friday,
March 24th from 10:00am
until the end of the school
day. Congratulations for
going beyond the
hour! During this time our
school along with all the
other schools in the
Durham District School
Board turned off the lights
and unused computer monitors to save energy. We
are planning on continuing
our traditional Earth Day
Osprey walk on Friday,
April 21st throughout the
day. Earth Day follows on
Saturday, April 22nd.
OSPREY WALK: THE TRADITION CONTINUES
To show our commitment
to environmental stewardship, Whitby Shores P.S. will
hold its sixth annual Osprey Walk: a Walk to
Support Bird Protection
and Research. The Osprey Walk will take place
on Friday, April 21st.
Each class will walk a distance appropriate to their
grade. This walk coincides
with the early stages of the
return of migratory birds.
Students will be asked to
keep an eye out for as many
different types of birds as
they can during their walk.
Classes can compile a list
when they return to their
classroom. Perhaps one class
will be lucky enough to spot
an osprey. They have been
seen soaring over our school
each year. Our school is
unique in many ways. Our
proximity to Lynde Shores
Conservation Area, an im-
portant feeding area for the
Osprey, inspired our school
mascot. Our Osprey Walks
continue to be a great success.
PROJECT NEST BOX
Spring is an exciting time of
year and soon the Tree
Swallows will return to our
schoolyard. Watch for the
Tree Swallows to arrive
any time on or about April
20th. When observing the
birds please stay well back
from the boxes to allow
the birds a feeling of safety
nest. Consider using binoculars to view them in order to
enjoy them at a comfortable
distance. Data from our nest
boxes was submitted to Bird
Studies Canada as part of
their Project Nest Box initiative. If you have birds nesting
on your property, consider
inputting your data as well.
Bird Studies Canada web
site is located at: http://
www.birdscanada.org
WHITBY SHORES MUSICAL PRODUCTIONS
PRESENTS WICKEDLY MISUNDERSTOOD
Whitby Shores Productions
is proud to present the
original musical, Wickedly
Misunderstood, on
Wednesday, May 3rd and
Thursday, May 4th! The cast
of 46 students has been
rehearsing daily since late
January in preparation of
putting on this great show,
which features selections
from a number of Broadway
musicals, including Wicked,
Matilda, The Book of Mormon, and The Little Mermaid. Performances dates
and times are: Wednesday,
May 3rd @ 7pm and Thursday, May 4th @ 1pm and
7pm
An additional show may be
offered on Wednesday, May
3rd at 1pm depending on
ticket sales.
Cast members can purchase
up to 8 pre-sale tickets on
April 18th and 19th, with
the remainder of tickets
being available to the general public starting on
Thursday. April 20th (cast
members can also purchase
additional tickets at this
time). All tickets will be
sold for the low cost of $5.
Mrs. Behm and Mr. Brown
would like to thank the SCC
for their generous support
of this endeavour, as well as
the hard work of the
cast! Additional thanks to
the numerous students who
auditioned for the show;
there is definitely a lot of
talent at Whitby Shores!
We hope to see you at one
of the performances!
CLEAR COMMUNICATION
We always 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:
Classroom Teacher:
Anything related to a subject or classroom question
can be resolved by contacting the particular teacher.
Administrative Assistant: Mrs. Sullivan will answer general school questions or direct you to the
appropriate person. Tele-
phone 905-666-6667.
Principal and VicePrincipal: Mr. Barclay and
Mrs. Christopher 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.
Administrative Officer:
Mr. Island can be contacted
to clarify/answer any regional questions or questions that were not answered at the school 905666-5500.
Superintendent of
Schools: Mr. Hamid can be
contacted to clarify/answer
any regional questions at
905-666-5500.
Trustees: Your elected
trustees are:
Christine Winters-Feret
905-430-6050
[email protected]
a
Kim Zeppieri
905-668-7782
[email protected]
They both welcome your
input on educational matters.
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
WALK OR WHEEL TO SCHOOL
Wherever possible we
would like to encourage our
students to walk or wheel
to and from school. Walking to school has health,
social and environmental
benefits. Walking to and
from school helps reduce
the before and after school
traffic in our Kiss and Ride
area, making our parking lot
safer. At Whitby Shores
students are encouraged to
walk, roller blade, skateboard, scooter or cycle to
school. From Active & Safe
Routes to
School: “Children know
that using active transportation to and from school is
part of a healthy lifestyle,
it’s good for the environment and it makes them feel
happier.” Let's get in motion, Whitby Shores Public
School!
SCC NEWS—A MESSAGE FROM YOUR PARENT
ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE
It is time for our annual
READ-A-THON! Calendars
were sent home the week
of March 27th. Our local
Eggsmart has offered to
reward all students who
complete and return their
calendar with a FREE KIDS
MEAL! Our goal is to have
students read for 20
minutes a day during the
month of April. Please keep
track of your reading
minutes on your calendar
and return it by Monday,
May 1st to redeem your
certificate.
Want something new to
read? Head over to
Eggsmart where you will
find a used book sales table.
All books are only $1 and
proceeds from the sale go
back to our school! The
sale will run for the month
of April. Eggsmart will continue to collect used books
during open hours if you
would like to donate to this
event. Happy Reading!
UNDERSTANDING NUMBERS WITH YOUR CHILD
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
DATES OF SIGNIFICANCE—APRIL
April 16th – Easter Sunday (All Christianity)
This day commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ which occurred 3 days after his
crucifixion. It is the most important day in the Christian calendar celebrating the most important event in the Christian faith. Christians believe that through the resurrection, Jesus
conquered death on behalf of all humankind and made a way for all those who believe in
him to experience eternal life after death with him. The faithful will often declare “He is
risen,” to which the response is “He is risen indeed.” This day also begins the fifty day period culminating at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given.
April 20th – First Day of Ridvan (Bahá'í)
Ridvan commemorates the 12 days that Baha’u’llah spent in the garden of Ridvan when he
first declared himself to be the one announced by the Bab. On the first (April 20th), ninth
(April 28th) and twelfth (May 1st) days of Ridvan, work should not be done. These days
are usually observed with community gatherings for prayer and celebration
April 22nd – International Earth Day
Since its inception, Earth Day has been a rallying call for environmental stewards around the
world to actively promote and educate their fellow citizens on the environment, all the
while impacting their communities and contributing to global sustainability. Looking back on
40 successful years, we see how its various phases developed into the hugely international
commemoration that we know today as Earth Day.
April 28th – International Day of Mourning for Workers Killed or Injured on the
Job
The Annual Day of Mourning is an international event observed in more than 100 countries
that raises awareness of the tragic consequences of workplace accidents. This day of remembrance was founded in 1984 by the Canadian Labour Congress. The aim of the day is
to publicly renew commitment and political solidarity to avoid these deaths that are usually
preventable through appropriate attention to safe working conditions.
WHITBY’S VIMY RIDGE CONCERT
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
THE CANDY DASH
LAND BASED LANGUAGE
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
HAPPY RIDVÁN
CELEBRATE VAISAKHI
DURHAM
DISTRICT
SCHOOL
BOARD
Success in
learning to
meet the
challenges
of the
future.
OUR WHITBY TRUSTEES
Christine Winters-Feret 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:
www.ddsb.ca/school/whitbyshores
[email protected]
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Apr 7
Apr 14
Apr 17
Apr 19
Apr 21
ON THE
TRAIL
TO
LEARNING ,
CARING
AND
ACTION
Apr 25
Apr 26-28
Apr 28
Pizza Lunch
Good Friday (schools closed)
Easter Monday (schools closed)
Grade 2s to Toronto Zoo
Osprey Walk and Jump Rope Kickoff Assembly (AM)
Pizza Lunch
Celebration Assemblies (4 to 8, then K to 3)
Sub Lunch
Curling – Rocks for Rings in Gymnasium
Popcorn Day