Parkland Post – June 2017

Parkland Public School 18 Coxworth

Ave. Markham, ON

L3S 3B8 Phone

905-472-8536 Fax

905-472-8538

Principal Sharon Moss

Vice Principal Pamela Miller

Secretaries

Premila Patel Jhoan Tinio

Superintendent

Erik Khilji

Trustee Juanita Nathan

WEBSITE: http://www.parkland.ps.yrdsb.edu.on.ca EMAIL: parkland.ps.@yrdsb.edu.on.ca

Principals’ Message

Parkland is ready for an exciting month of June. We are happy to see the warmer weather and to complete a very suc-cessful year. June brings with it lots of reasons to celebrate. Each student can congratulate themselves on a job well done and the completion of the grade that they are in. Our Kindergar-tens are excited to enter Grade 1 and of course our Grade 8’s are celebrating finishing their time here at Parkland PS and beginning their high school journey. Congratulations to all of the participants in our school Track and Field meet and to those students who are repre-senting PPS in the Area meet and perhaps the Regional meet. We look forward to welcoming you into the school for many of the upcoming events in June to celebrate your role in a successful 2016-2017 school year. Great memories are made of what we have experi-enced in a positive way, and what has changed our lives for the better. As we head off into summer and say farewell for this school year, we share with you the pleasure we have had in serving your children. We look forward to seeing all of our returning students in September. Once again, students are to arrive at school on Tuesday, September 5 beginning at 8:15. It has been a very gratifying and wonderful year for all of us at Parkland P.S.

We would like to wish everyone a safe, happy and healthy summer.

Sharon Moss (outgoing Principal) & Pamela Miller (Principal September 2017)

Looking Forward to…. 2—PD Day 6—Area Track and Field (Raindate June 7) 13—Grade 5 ROM Trip 19/20—Kindergarten Trip to Safety Village 21—Talent Show 23—Primary Play Day 27—Grade 8 Graduation 28—Reports Go Home 29—Last Day of School—Early Dismissal at 11:30am

Good Byes at Parkland PS

In the month of June we begin to think about our next school year and changes that will be made in our staffing. We would like to say goodbyes and good luck to the following staff mem-bers: Madame Ruivo (good luck on your retirement!) Ms. Sahrawat (good luck at Barbara Reid PS) Ms. Forrest (good luck at David Suzuki PS) Ms. Adarna-Chung (thank you for a wonderful year covering for Ms.

Chung) Ms. Vujanovic (enjoy the next year—see you September 2018) Ms. Itsou (thank you for a wonderful year covering for Ms. MacDonald) Ms. Zollo (thank you for covering our Primary SSC since February) Ms. Liu (thank you for work with our EA team) Ms. Kauser (thank you for your work with

our Community Class)

A special good bye to Ms. Moss. Ms. Moss will be leaving Park-land to enjoy retirement as of June 30th. We will miss you all very much!!

Congratulations and Welcome

Congratulations to Mrs. Miller who will be the Principal at Parkland PS starting in September. Welcome to Ms. Tisha Nelson who will be joining the Parkland PS staff as Vice Principal. Ms. Nelson brings with her vast knowledge of equity and inclusivity as a Performance Plus Teacher most re-

cently from Aldergrove Public School. We are excited to welcome her to our community.

Farewell/adieu Madame Ruivo! The Parkland community would like to wish Madame Ruivo best

wishes on her retirement and congratulate her on over 30 years of ser-vice as a French Teacher! We would also like to take a moment to acknowledge the deep gratitude we have for her many kindnesses and unwavering support to our colleagues and students over the years. Your creativity has brought life and color to Parkland and to the French program. Thank you for the countless contributions you have made to our school, decorating graduations and events. Have a happy retire-ment and enjoy your next adventure.

You will be missed, The Parkland Staff and Students “to know a second language is to possess a second soul,” Charlemagne

Please Help to Keep our Children Safe!

We continue to have traffic concerns in the morning and after school. We encourage your child to walk to school if able. If you drive your child to school, please respect the pylons and use the loop, do not block Cox-worth Avenue (or turn around in front of the school).

It is extremely important that all drivers remain vigilanta and watch for all pedestrians, stop at the stop sign and give them the right of way. We continue to reminder our students to cross Coxworth Ave where there are crossing guards—not directly in front of the school.

Thursday, June 29th, 2016 Early Dismissal in Elementary Schools All schools in the York Region District School Board are committed to improving student achievement and well-being. On Thursday, June 29th, 2017 an early release day will take place to allow elementary teachers and support staff to take part in meetings during the afternoon of that day. These meetings will allow for school staff to engage in culminating activities regarding the review and revision of the School’s Improvement Plan as well as year-end and transition activities that support student success. As has been our practice in the past, students will attend school during the morning of Thursday, June 29th, 2017 only. Students will be dis-missed early that day at 11:30 am. Arrangements will be made to en-sure that students who are normally bused to and from school will receive transportation at this time. Parents/guardians whose children attend after school child care should make appropriate arrangements to address this change in schedule.

Congratulations! Congratulations to Caroline C. from Ms. Lovatsis’ class. After a very challenging selection process, including three rounds of competitions held by Spirit of Math

School, Caroline are invited to be part of grade 5 and 6 team- representing Canada- To the World Mathmetical Olympiads in August. Her team include six members of grade 5 or 6 selected nationally by the Spirit of Math. She is very thrilled about the life time experience and looking forward to work with other bright children for the competition. the math school will provide additional training for the team in the coming months.

Math Contest Participants

Congratulations to the following students who performed above the Canadian aver-age in the Mathmatica Centrum Contest. Grade 4: Grade 6: Shivanni R. Jasmine Z. Matthew M. Vincent C. Keshanaa M. Athieesdha S. Tanvi B. Tiven L. Bryan L. Anuj N. Rishana S. Grade 7: Daniel L. Bernie W. Prisha H. Bill G. Niti P. Andrew C. Rebecca N. Grade 5: Alysha W. Caroline C. Joannie L. Cameron L. Uddav P. Swetha K. Haarini S. Brian L. Pragith P. Thenuja V. Pratik T. Eugenia Z. Grade 8: Gariijan S. Emily D. Elakian E. Katie L. Jason D. Shahithya S. Ella L. Freeman H. Celina C. Kaviya B. Usaid S. Rohit K. Jennifer N. Taymoor A. Nicole Law. Sanmi O.

Kindergarten Regis-

tration

Do you have a child that will be entering junior kindergarten in September 2017? Do you have a friend or neighbor who has a child that will be entering junior kindergar-ten in September 2017? Please share this information. Parents are to go to their home school to register their child for kindergarten. Required Documents: Proof of child’s age (Birth Certificate/Passport) Any legal documents related to custo-dy arrangements if applicable Proof of Residency of the student - two documents, one from each of the categories below showing the home address; Category A - notice of tax assessment, current rental/lease agreement, agreement to purchase including proof of purchase provided before the pupil attends the school, or property tax bill, and Category B - utility bill, bank statement or other of-ficial document.

Message from our Trustee As we near the end of the school year, I want to thank you for all that you do to strengthen our schools and com-munities. This is a good time to celebrate your child’s achievements over the past year. One of our goals in the Trustees’ Multi-Year Plan is to “continuously increase student achievement and well-being through a culture and caring and learning.” That includes a culture that emphasizes engagement and posi-tive relationships among all the members of the school community – students, staff members, families and com-munity members. You, as parents/guardians, are our most important part-ners when it comes to education. The support you have provided to your child throughout this past school year will help to strengthen our schools and make a difference to your child’s learning. I encourage you to continue engaging your child in learn-ing throughout the summer, and to help them to see the connections between what they are learning in school and the world around them. There are so many opportu-nities to do this over the summer, whether that’s planning a budget with your child, enjoying the natural beauty in York Region, reading a book or visiting local sites. What-ever your plans are this summer, I wish you all a suc-cessful end to the school year, and a safe and enjoyable summer. Juanita Nathan

Grade 8 Graduation!

Tuesday, June 27th, 2017

Middlefield Collegiate Institute

Ceremony 6:30 pm

Dinner and Dance for our Graduates

following the Ceremony

(Pick up at 10:15 pm)

This Month in the

Learning Commons  

 

Getting ready for the break! The Learning Commons has been a chaotic place over the past few weeks! In addition to organizing math learning materials for all of our Primary classrooms and rebuilding our Math room for junior and Intermediate classes, we have also hosted a successful book fair. Many thanks to the staff, students and family members who have supported our Learning Commons over these last few weeks and throughout this year! We have lots of great resources and activities to look forward to in September, and wish everyone a safe and happy summer, filled with lots of opportunities for reading!

Help Your Child Read This Summer! Summer reading—it’s important! Research shows that kids who read four or more books over the summer are better prepared for the coming school year and do not go down the ‘summer slide’—the loss of reading and learning skills during the summer break. Reading over the summer months really does make a difference to your child’s learning. FIVE EASY WAYS YOU CAN HELP YOUR CHILD REDUCE SUMMER READING LOSS: • Make reading important. Be a role-model for reading. Let your child see you reading throughout

the day and use daily routines as reading opportunities. Cooking, reading TV listings, looking for information on-line, reading directions, or following a map all provide authentic reading experiences.

• Give your child the power of choice. Having reading materials available is key to helping kids

love to read, and the reading materials kids choose themselves are best. In fact, 92% of children and teens say they are more motivated to read and are more likely to finish a book they have picked out. Help your child find texts that appeal to his or her interests, yet are age appropriate and ‘just right’ in difficulty.

• Set aside time to read every day. We know that the more kids read, the better they become at

reading and the more they will enjoy reading. During the summer, encourage your child to read for at least 20 minutes per day. Make reading ‘down-time’—an opportunity for family members to read together, either aloud or quietly to themselves. Keep track of progress by recording book titles, pages read, and minutes spent.

• Talk it up. Talking about books during and after reading helps improve comprehension. Encourage

kids to share their ideas and opinions by asking open-ended questions. Talk about what you read to let them know that reading is an important part of your life. Tell them why you liked a book, what you learned from it, or how it helped you— soon they might start doing the same.

• Be part of a reading challenge. Most local libraries have summer reading programs that help engage and motivate readers. Kids set a goal, track books they read, and receive incentives for achieving goals. Summer programs also promote reading club opportunities where children can discuss and share books with others, either on-line or in- person. You can even create your own family reading challenge.

Have a great summer, and happy reading! Find out more at: http://www.scholastic.ca/readingreport/summer-reading.php

All books are due back by Monday, June 19th

Oh, Canada! Celebrating 150 years

As the school year comes to a close, it is important that we collect all borrowed materials before the final weeks of school, so that we can go through our organizing process, and provide students (and their families) ample notice about outstanding items. We ask that all books be returned to the library by Monday, June 19th. Students who have lost or misplaced books will need to pay the replacement fee for outstanding titles. We would much rather have library books returned then have to charge a replacement fee, and would ask for your assistance in helping your child to check bags, shelves, etc. at home to try to locate any outstanding books. If the book cannot be found, we will indicate what the fee for the book is. As always, the replacement fee will be returned if students are able to find the book after they have paid for it. Clearing accounts is especially important for students moving onto other schools, as all of the YRDSB libraries are connected, and students with outstanding items are blocked from taking out books when there are items outstanding at another library. In other words, they cannot take out books from the high schools (or other elementary schools) until they have cleared their account. Our students (and parents) have been very good about being responsible with book borrowing this year, and we would like to thank everyone for helping to make our Learning Commons a great place to learn! We have lots of new books in our collection, many new maker resources and even more new titles coming in the new school year! Thanks for your support and patronage throughout this year and many thanks to our wonderful student volunteers for their help and dedication!

We are fortunate to live a country where we have many rights and privileges, and this year Canada celebrates 150 years as a country. We have been featuring many resources about Canada’s history over the several weeks, and encourage families to learn a little more about our country over the next few months! • What a great opportunity we have to learn and

talk about different experiences, perspectives and opinions about the idea of what a nation is. What are we celebrating on July 1st this year, and whose experiences might be missing from this celebration? …These kinds of questions make for great family discussions…

• Games like naming Canadian cities or symbols using a letter of the alphabet help make long car rides more entertaining…

• Why not go for a walk in one of our local nature areas to see what kinds of plants and animals live in the community? …these experiences (and your own) help build experiences and understanding.

There are lots of great family-time opportunities to help make the summer more interesting for kids who love learning. Check out some of the events being hosted in Markham this summer!