April 2015 - Knoxdale Public School - Ottawa

Knoxdale Public School
170 Greenbank Road
Nepean, Ontario, K2H 5V2
Tel: (613) 828-0010 FAX: (613) 828-2973
APRIL 2015
Principal:
Vice Principal:
Office Administrator:
Office Assistant:
Andrea Williams
Caretta Williams DeAveiro
Susan Read
Colette Dewey
Superintendent:
Trustee:
Chief Custodian:
School Council Chair:
Frank Wiley
Donna Blackburn
Michael Martin
Heather Gordon
http://www.knoxdaleps.ocdsb.ca
Mission Statement
Educating for success – inspiring learning and building citizenship
Principal/Vice-Principal Corner
Happy Spring!! Bon
Printemps!!
I cannot recall a
spring in recent
history that has been
met with such
anticipation. What a
winter! With the
arrival of spring, a variety of temptations have
emerged for our students – large puddles, perfect
for creating exciting streams and lots of mud
inviting kids to get creative! Experiential learning
is alive and well at Knoxdale☺. Your help in
sending an extra pair of socks and pants is most
appreciated during this messy time of year.
We are in the second phase of our School Learning
Plan. Our grade level teams continue to work
collaboratively to plan and implement units which
have an overarching inquiry question and an
embedded critical challenge. Even our littlest
Eagles are engaging in critical thinking challenges!
Critical thinking is not something that we can only
do once a mastery of other skills is acquired, it is
infused throughout the curriculum including in
kindergarten. One of the critical thinking challenges
that the kindergarten students will be engaging in is
a decode the puzzle challenge. This type of
challenge involves either uncovering piece by piece
a section of a photo or adding piece by piece (think
of puzzle pieces). As pieces are added or uncovered,
students are asked to make predictions and
inferences based on the picture clues that they have
available. In a fairy tale unit, kinders will have
pieces added to a puzzle where they will respond to
such questions as: Do you think it is inside or
outside?, What hints can you see?, and Can you
make connections with stories or settings you
already know?. The focus will be on the setting and
students will be asked to give plausible answers
based on the evidence (the portions of the picture
that are available to them).
What is critical thinking?
* A complex activity, not a set of generic skills.
* Judging or assessing what is reasonable or
sensible in a situation.
* Focuses on the quality of relevant information.
* Can be done in endless contexts and is required
whenever a situation is problematic.
* Critical thinking is criterial thinking- thinking in
the face of criteria.
When is someone critical thinking?
* A person is thinking critically only if they are
attempting to assess or judge the merits of possible
options in the light of relevant criteria. It does not
mean to critique, it means to come up with a
judgment based on criteria.
In a traditional approach to teaching, we teach the
answer and students try to remember it. In a critical
thinking approach, students try to figure out a
reasonable answer (i.e., there could be several
plausible answers as opposed to one "right"
answer), we help them develop the tools to do this
with success.
As a result of using inquiry and critical thinking
challenges, students are able to collaborate, share
their thinking and have a voice in their learning.
When we think about the skills that we want our
students to have when they leave Knoxdale, we
want them to be able to evaluate information that is
presented to them, as their reality is that information
is abundant and available at the click of a button. As
Roland Case states, "Students who passively receive
information are far less likely to understand what
they have heard or read aloud than are students who
have critically scrutinized, interpreted, applied or
tested this information".
On February 9th we welcomed a team of principals
to conduct a District Review of our school. The
approach is one of appreciative inquiry wherein the
team looks for evidence of effectiveness as outlined
in the School Effectiveness Framework. Some of
the strengths that the team highlighted were as
follows:
* The School Learning Plan is evident in the
classrooms and the public spaces.
* There is strong evidence of a collaborative and
cohesive team approach to planning and learning.
* Respectful interactions between students and
between staff and students.
* Welcoming environment where it is safe for
students to take risks and make mistakes.
* Students have learned how to communicate
effectively and respectfully with peers in small and
larger groups.
* Plenty of evidence that students are thinking!
We were thrilled to receive this valuable affirmation
of what we work towards every day as a staff and a
community of learners. The team also leaves the
school with questions to continue our discussion in
terms of teaching and learning. The questions the
team left with us are as follows: 1. How can
technology further assist students in extending and
deepening their critical thinking skills and making
their thinking more visible? and 2. How can you
and your students use success criteria and
descriptive feedback in combination with your
already rich critical thinking tasks and collaborative
professional culture to assess and extend student
learning? We will use these questions to form the
basis of our discussions as we reflect on our School
Learning Plan and plan for our next steps looking to
the 2015-2016 school year.
“Children must be taught how to think, not what
to think.” ― Margaret Mead
Looking ahead, Education Week is scheduled for
the week of May 4th – May 8th; our Volunteer Tea
will be held on Tuesday May 5th ; Artscape on
Wednesday, May 6th and EQAO testing for our
grades 3 and 6 students will take place Tuesday,
May 26th to Thursday, May 28th. The coming
months are filled with many exciting learning
opportunities for your child(ren) both within and
outside of the classroom. We look forward to
continuing to support your child(ren)’s learning and
are grateful for your partnership. As always, please
do not hesitate to contact us if you have any
questions or concerns.
Class Placements for 2015/2016
As a school team we put a great deal of thought and
time into organizing classes. We consider a variety
of criteria, putting the academic and social needs of
each student as the highest priority. We also aim
for a balance in classes – this includes gender,
learning style, and ability. As in previous years,
combined grades classes will be included in our
organization next year. Combined grades offer
many
positive
experiences
for
children.
Information on combined classes is included in this
newsletter.
Appreciating that the development of classes is a
thoughtful process, if you feel you have a very
special need to be considered or feel that we need to
have additional information to best place your child,
please put it in writing and address it to the
principal by Friday, April 24th, 2015. All requests
will be reviewed and considered.
Also, please let the office know if your child will
not be attending Knoxdale in September 2015 as
this will facilitate our projections for staffing
purposes.
Combined Grades
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board follows
the philosophy of the Ministry of Education in
recognizing the unique and special characteristics of
every student. Our programs are designed to meet
individual needs of students in a variety of
organizational structures within schools.
As outlined in the Ministry of Education’s resource
document, Combined Grades: Strategies to Reach a
Range of Learners in Kindergarten to Grade 6
(2007), a class of combined grades is composed of
students from two or more adjacent grades who are
grouped with one teacher for instruction.
Combined classes are often created when the
number of students does not allow for the
establishment of appropriately sized, single-grade
classes. In other circumstances combined classes
are created to most effectively meet the learning
needs, stages of development, and/or learning styles
of students.
In all classrooms, whether single-grade or multigrade, there is a range of students and the teacher’s
goal to meet the needs of all learners remains the
same regardless of the classroom organization.
Within a class of combined grades each student
works towards the achievement of their gradespecific curriculum expectations. When there are
common concepts and/or skills across grades,
students in the class often work together. When
there are differences between the grades, students
work on the concepts and/or skills specific to their
grade. Assessment, evaluation, and reporting are
grade specific.
Current research indicates that multi-grade classes
foster social growth and independence, practice in
cooperation, respect for others, and increased
motivation to learn. Older children act as models
and guides for the younger children which gives the
older children an increased sense of self-esteem and
responsibility. Younger children adjust to school
and routines more quickly by observing and
imitating the older children. Both groups can learn
from each other.
The information above can be found on the OCDSB
Website:
http://www.ocdsb.ca/med/pub/Publications%20%20
Updated/combined%20Grades.pdf
Additional information on Combined Grades can be
found on Ontario Ministry of Education Website:
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/combinedCla
ssrooms/combinedClassrooms.pdf
Should you have further questions about combined
grades or require additional information, please do
not hesitate to contact the school.
Tell Them From Me Survey (TTFM) – A school
climate survey
All Ontario schools are required to complete a
school climate survey at least once every two years.
The survey is called the Tell Them from Me Survey
(TTFM) and was developed by The Learning Bar.
All OCDSB schools will be completing the survey
between February and May 2015.
Students in grades 4 – 6 will complete the survey
on-line at school. It is completely anonymous,
voluntary, confidential, and will take approximately
thirty minutes to complete. Letters with details
about the survey will be coming home two weeks
prior to the survey. Parents who do not want their
child to complete the survey will be provided a
notice of non-consent to be signed and return to
school. The survey will be conducted during the
week of May 11th. More information about the
survey is available on the OCDSB website.
EQAO
As you know, grade 3 and 6 students in Ontario
take the EQAO (Education Quality and
Accountability Office) assessment of Reading,
Writing and Mathematics in the spring of each year.
This year, our grade 3 and 6 students will be writing
the EQAO assessment May 26th, 27th, and 28th. If
you have a child in grade 3 or 6 we ask that you
avoid scheduling any appointments during these
dates. The EQAO website - www.eqao.com has a
comprehensive section of parent resources for your
information.
Helping Kids Campaign, Popcorn Fundraiser
This year the Grade
2EFI classes of Mme
St. Amant and Mme
Zarecki collaborated on
the Kids Helping Kids
Campaign, to raise
money for a school in
need. Mme St. Amant's
class opened a fancy Popcorn Gourmet "store" and
10 classes dropped by to buy multi-flavor popcorn.
Everyone had a great time admiring the lovely
decorations, stations, and cashier at the exit just like
in a real store! Mme Zarecki's class performed
French songs, dances, skits, and a comedy show for
10 classes who signed up and were not disappointed
by the hard work and talent our kids displayed.
Using creative thinking strategies and collaboration
this year we raised $700 way over our last year's
record!!! Bravo Knoxdale!
Dental Screening
Lucy Charbonneau, a registered dental hygienist
with Ottawa Public Health, will provide a dental
screening on April 21, 2015, for grades JK, SK, 2,
and other children as necessary. If your child’s
grade is not selected, but you wish for the dental
hygienist to see him/her, please advise the school.
Only children identified as having dental needs will
bring home a form. Follow-up school visits by the
dental hygienist for individual children may be
done. This does not replace regular dental visits
with your family dentist.
If you have any questions regarding this, please
contact the Supervisor or Dental Health Promotion,
Ottawa Public Health on Tel: 613 580 6744 ext.
26376.
Math League Press Math Contest
The grade 6 students in Mrs. Ziade's math class
took part in the "Math League Press Math Contest",
we are excited to announce that Knoxdale placed
7th out of 206 participating schools. A special
mention is awarded to Neil R. who scored 6th place
in the competing region. Stay tuned for the results
from the grade 5's. Way to go, Knoxdale!
Grade 6 School Leaving Ceremony
For your planning…
our grade 6 School
Leaving Ceremony will
be held in the
Greenbank Middle
School gymnasium on
Wednesday, June 24th.
The official ceremony
will take place from
8:30am to approximately 10:00am. Students are
asked to arrive at school at the regular time and they
will proceed to the ceremony with their classroom
teachers following attendance. Students and their
guests will then be invited to a small reception in
the school foyer following the ceremony. After the
reception, students will return to their classes with
their homeroom teachers and enjoy the rest of the
day with their Grade 6 peers. This includes a pizza
lunch! We look forward to seeing you at this year's
School Leaving Ceremony. Dress for our students
should be appropriate for a school leaving
ceremony, such as golf shirts and khakis for boys
and a simple dress, blouse/skirt/pants for girls.
Knoxdale Artscape
Once again this year Knoxdale is celebrating the
Arts during Education Week on
Wednesday evening, May 6th from 6pm to 8pm.
We would like to invite the Knoxdale community to
our very own Knoxdale Artscape. Knoxdale's
Artscape will be hosting a special dance and
song performance, which will take place in the
Greenbank gymnasium. We will also be holding an
Art exhibit displaying the various master pieces
from all of our students in our very own gymnasium
at Knoxdale. The soirée will begin at 6 pm and end
at 8 pm; families are welcome to walk through the
exhibit between those times. The Artscape dance
and song performance will begin at 6:30 pm and at
the intermission, audience members will be
encouraged to visit the Art exhibit as well. We will
be raising money that evening to help support our
school's playground initiative. In addition, in order
to represent the Culinary Arts, our very own Free
the Children Committee will be hosting a bake sale
in the school's foyer and all proceeds will be
donated to a First Nations' Charity. We hope to see
many of our families and community members
attend this exciting evening that our Glee Club,
Dance Club, Free the Children Committee
and Teacher Arts Committee have been preparing
throughout this school year. We look forward to
seeing you at our Knoxdale Artscape! Mme
Desjardins, Mme Glenn, Mme Lightbown, Mme
St.-Amant, Mme MacIntyre, and Mme Trudel.
Skate Donations
Has your child outgrown their skates? Knoxdale
would love to receive skate donations to help all of
our kids be able to skate next season. Please drop
off your donations to the Knoxdale office.
Girls Volleyball Report 2015
Congratulations to the Grade 6 girls’ volleyball
team who represented Knoxdale at the Tier 1 Girls
Volleyball tournament held at Confederation Centre
on Wednesday, February 25, 2015.
The girls won the Gold Medal, playing very well as
a team, and showing great Knoxdale character.
Congratulations to Lindsay, Emily, Claire, Holly,
Holly, Sophie, Taylor, Diana, Ada, Heather,
Danielle, Kyra, and Alexandra. Volez les Aigles!
Lunar New Year Parade
On Thursday, February 19th the students of
Knoxdale Public School participated in a school
wide parade to celebrate the beginning of the Lunar
New Year. This procession began with an array of
beautifully designed posters, followed by
musicians, a teaser and a dragon. The rest of the
parade was made up of our junior and senior classes
beginning with our Kindergarten students.
A big thank you goes out to M. Guay-Montserrat
and M. Corbett and the grade 6 students in their
respective classes who made this parade such an
amazing and successful one!
D. Reade and M. Thompson.
Eagles Boys' Volleyball 2015
Knoxdale wants to salute the junior boys' Tripleball
team for their performance in the Southwest
Regional tournament at Confederation H.S.
on February 14. (Tripleball is a new variation of
volleyball.) The boys demonstrated consistent
application of the skills they had worked on in
practices - thanks to M. Cameron for his help.
In five games, the Eagles were awarded four
victories and came very close in a loss to
Meadowlands P.S.
This was enough for the boys to win the
tournament. We are proud of our gold medalists,
who played every game with determination and
superior teamwork.
Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast
Our
fabulous
volunteers are an
integral part of our
Knoxdale community.
Field trips, volunteers
in our classrooms,
sports tournaments, fundraisers, School Council,
Pizza and Subway days, special activity days…
could not happen without the support of our parents
and special volunteers. We invite all volunteers to
come join us for a special celebration on Tuesday,
May 5th from 7:30am to 8:30am in our school
library. This is our chance to thank you for all that
you do for our students and our school.
Our Eagles are: Samie S., Jasper C., Robert D.,
Kyan M., Owen B., John R., Jad A., Jibreel R.,
Timur G., and Abdul Aziz A.
Special thanks go to parents, who drove team
members to and from the tournament, took pictures
and added to the enthusiasm of our fan base.
Congratulations to our junior boys for the effort,
athleticism and team spirit displayed throughout the
season!
Volez les Aigles!
Lost and Found
Are you missing a sweater, coat or lunch bag? Our
lost and found bin continues to grow. It is always
available to hunt for that missing treasure, however,
after Friday April 24th, all items will be donated to
a local charity. Students always have the
opportunity to look for that lonely mitten or missing
scarf. We encourage parents to drop by and have a
look as well.
Attendance line
If your child is going to be absent or late arriving,
please call our Safe Arrival Line
at: 613-828-0010, Ext. 500 before
8:15am.
You may also e-mail
the
school
at
[email protected]. Please remember
if the busses are cancelled and the school is open
please call and advise us that your child will be
staying home.
Extended Day Program Registrations
Registration forms are still available in our office or
online
at
www.ocdsb.ca
under
the
Programs/Extended Day menu if you wish to
register your child. You may contact the Extended
Day Program directly with any queries at 613 596
8760 or by email at [email protected] –
Please ensure that the Extended Day team are kept
up to date with contact information including
emails/telephone numbers so they can be registered
contacts with important information.
Thank you for signing in!
All visitors and parents are required to report to the
office upon entering the building. You will be
asked to sign our Visitor’s Register and receive an
identification tag to wear while you are in the
school building. When staff and students see your
Visitor Tag they know you have signed in at the
office. Parents are requested not to go to their
child(ren)’s classroom or portable or to wait for
them in the hall during the school day or at
dismissal time. Parents who wish to meet their
children at dismissal time are asked to do so at their
child’s normal exit door or make arrangements to
meet them at the front of the school. In addition,
parents should not approach children on the yard at
recess time without first checking in at the office
and then notifying the teacher on yard duty.
Busing for 2015-2016
As we head towards the final
months of the school year,
we would like to remind all
parents to ensure we have
complete and up to date information including
addresses, telephone numbers and daycare
arrangements. The details that we have on our
systems here are used by the Ottawa Student
Transportation Authority to determine eligibility for
busing together with setting up of stop information
for September.
By ensuring that we have accurate information, we
can be as organized as possible for transportation
set up in September 2015. If you wish to check on
stop information, please visit the OSTA website
during
the
last
week
of
August
at
https://tracs.ottawaschoolbus.ca/public/stopfinder.as
p - this link will advise of stop information if your
child is eligible. If you have any queries, you can
contact OSTA directly on 613 224 8800 ext. 2382.
Moving…School Organization for 2015-2016
We are in the planning stages
for next year. If your child is
not returning to Knoxdale in
September because you are
moving out of our attendance
area, please let us know as soon
as possible. This information
will help us plan for September. Please also
encourage any new neighbours in your area to come
in to register as soon as possible or to give us a call
and we will be pleased to guide them in this
process.
KCSC Updates
The Knoxdale 2015 Family Fun Picnic
Friday, June 12th at 5:00 p.m. Brought to you by
the Knoxdale Community School Council (KCSC).
Please mark your calendars and invite your friends
and extended family to a fun-filled, family picnic at
the school!
Planning is already underway for a great
community event with the support of parent
volunteers. This year, you can look forward
to many fun activities and games including the
much anticipated tug-of-war, the Lion’s Club train,
and the musical talents of the SRB Jazz Band to
name a few. Food and beverages will be available
for purchase; stay tuned for details!
We already have some volunteers signed up to help
at the picnic but more are welcome and needed. If
you are able to volunteer a little time to help at this
event or in any other way, please contact the
coordinator [email protected].
Fundraising efforts are particularly important this
year as the KCSC is supporting the primary
playground renewal project so please come, enjoy
the fun, and support your community school!
Parents Reaching Out (PRO) Grants 2015-2016
Deadline for submission: Tuesday, May 19th, 2015
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/reaching.HT
ML
"The Ontario Ministry of Education has announced
the 2015-16 PRO grants program for school
councils and regional/provincial projects. The PRO
grants encourage parent engagement at the local,
regional and provincial levels. They are designed to
support parents in identifying barriers to parent
engagement in their own community and to find
local solutions to involve more parents in support of
student achievement and well-being. Grants are
available to school councils for a maximum of
$1,000 for school-based initiatives."
The KCSC was successful with a PRO grant
submission this school year, and organized an
evening presentation by Dr. Tina Daniels on antibullying this past fall. If you have an idea or a
suggestion for a PRO grant submission and are able
to volunteer to organize an event, activity or project,
please contact the KCSC
[email protected]. The criteria for
submissions, grant details, and a list of 2014-2015
approved projects can be found on the Ministry
website noted above.
KCSC May & June Meetings
First Tuesday of the month
Tuesday, May 5th and June 2nd, 2015
7:00 p.m. Knoxdale library
Please join us for the last two meetings of this
school year! We will be discussing what is
happening in your school including upcoming year
end events, the Family Fun Picnic, KCSC budget,
PRO Grant, and the primary playground renewal
project. We will also have reports from Principal
Williams and Vice-Principal Williams DeAveiro. If
you haven't attended a meeting yet this year, now is
the time! All are welcome.
You can view the Minutes from the KCSC March
meeting at the following link:
http://www.knoxdaleps.ocdsb.ca/resources/SchoolCouncil-Minutes/KCSC-minutes---March-3,2015.pdf
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
1 Day 1
3
4 Day 2
Subway
Education Week
10
11 Day 2
Pizza
TTFM
17
18
Victoria Day
5
Day 3
Mommy’s
Yummies
Volunteer Tea
7:30am to 8:30am
Library
Education Week
School Council
Meeting -7pm
12 Day 3
Mommy’s
Yummies
6
Day 4
Hot Dog
Community of
Artscape Night
6pm-8pm
Education Week
13
TTFM
19 Day 2
Mommy’s
Yummies
20
26
27
Day 4
Hot Dog
7 Day 5
8
Mommy’s Yummies
Education Week
Day 1
Lunch Lady
2
9
Education Week
TTFM
Day 3
Hot Dog
14 Day 5
15 Day 1
Mommy’s Yummies
Lunch Lady
Kindergarten
Information Night
6:30pm in Library
TTFM
TTFM
21 Day 4
22 Day 5
Mommy’s Yummies
Lunch Lady
Day 3
Hot Dog
28 Day 4
29 Day 5
Mommy’s Yummies
Lunch Lady
16
23
Students do not attend
school
24
31
25 Day 1
Pizza
Day 2
Mommy’s
Yummies
Grades 3 & 6
EQAO
Grades 3 & 6
EQAO
Grades 3 & 6
EQAO
Grades 3 & 6
EQAO
30
Monday
Sunday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
1
Day 1
Subway
2 Day 2
Mommy’s Yummies
School Council
Meeting -7pm
3 Day 3
Day 5
Pizza
9 Day 1
Mommy’s Yummies
10 Day 2
Hot Dog
11 Day 3
Mommy’s
Yummies
12
Day 4
Lunch Lady
Family Fun Picnic
5pm – 7pm
13
19 Day 4
Lunch Lady
20
26
27
4
Day 4
Mommy’s
Yummies
Hot Dog
7
8
14
15 Day 5
Subway
16 Day 1
Mommy’s Yummies
17 Day 2
Hot Dog
18
21
22 Day 5
Pizza
23 Day 1
Mommy’s Yummies
24
25
29
30
28
Day 2
Hot Dog
Grade 6 Leaving
Ceremony 8:30am
10:00am Greenbank
Gym
Day 3
Mommy’s
Yummies
Day 3
Last day of classes for
students
5
6
PA Day
Report Card Writing
Day
(Students do not attend
school)
Day 4
PA Day
(Students do not attend
school)