GORDON PUBLIC SCHOOL, 468 Thorold Road West, Welland ON, L3C 3W6 May 2014

Tony D’Alessandro Principal

905-734-3730

Greg Watson Vice-Principal 905-734-3730

Wes Hahn Superintendent 905-641-1550

Sue Barnett Trustee

905-734-7110

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

GRADE 3 & 6 EQAO TESTING

It is that time of year for our grade 3 and 6 students. Monday, May 26—Friday, June 6th the testing will be occurring during the first part of the school day. Parents please do your best to ensure that your children are present for both weeks. If it is absolutely necessary to book an appointment please schedule them in the afternoon.

W hat a great month of learning April has been for our students. A truly focused group of instructors and students. I am thrilled with our students as they take on new challenges whether it be Literacy, Mathematics, Music or Athletics. They are developing confidence and perseverance. Those types of skills are not just school skills …but life skills. As we make our final push in May and June I continue to encourage our students to be punctual, give their very best at all times and be a model of exemplary behaviour, wherever they are. We are all “Walking Billboards” representing Gordon Public School. Let’s make our school, Welland and the world a better place by our actions! Sincerely Tony D’Alessandro, Proud Principal of Gordon School

WE NEED YOU!

Would you be interested in being part of our School Council? We need your involvement to continue to make the Gordon Public School community an even better place. We meet 4 – 5 times a year. The mandate is to work as an advisory group to the school. We also need parents to volunteer for specific events as part of sub committees. We understand your time is valuable, but kindly consider joining us next year as we work to enrich the Gordon family. If you are interested or have any questions, kindly contact Mr. D’Alessandro personally.

IF YOUR CHILD IS SICK Illness seems like it is unavoidable, but there are ways to try and fight it. We ask parents to please keep their child(ren) home for 24 hours after they stop showing symptoms of illness. This helps us keep the healthy children well and hopefully stop the spread of illness though a classroom.

Students in Junior Kindergarten through grade 3, please remember that Jiggi Jump was re-scheduled for Wednesday, May 7th.

HAT DAY Friday, May 23rd Wear your coolest, most colourful, funkiest, wildest, funniest hat on Friday, May 23rd.

LAST PIZZA ORDER FOR THE YEAR

Pizza order forms will be available on-line and out-side of the office on Tuesday, May 20th. All orders must be returned by Frid ay, May 23r d.

NEW AT GORDON A reminder to our students and parents when leaving (or returning to) the school for lunch or appointments. Parents, kindly check in at the office first whenever you visit the school. We will then page your son/daughter to the office. We are asking that all students sign out or in ( a sign in/out sheet is inside the office ) when leaving or returning to the school, so we can ensure that all of our students are accounted for at all times. As always, written permission notes are expected in order to leave the school grounds if a parent is not present for pick-up (i.e. lunch) . Thank you in advance for helping to keep our students safe.

LOCKERS We are asking all students to either pur-chase a lock or carabineer to keep their locker doors closed by May 6th . We realize that many of our students share a locker space. We are encouraging students to develop organizational skills along with taking pride in their personal space along with our school. With this effort it allows Mrs. Cook (our custodian) to keep our hallways clean and also keep our special needs students safe as they travel from class to class. Thank you in advance !

VICTORIA DAY WEEKEND

There will be no school on

Monday, May 19th.

WEBSITE Please check out our website at http://gordon.dsbn.org/ Our newsletters, calendars and more information is always just a click away!

RECOGNITION ASSEMBLY Thursday, May 9th at 2:15pm

Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Our volunteer reading helpers

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER! ♦ May 1 - Track and Field ♦ May 11 - Mothers Day ♦ May 14 - Jump Rope for Heart ♦ May 19 - Victoria Day (No School) ♦ May 23 - Hat Day ♦ May 23 - Pizza Orders Due ♦ May 26 - June 6th EQAO ♦ June 13 - PA Day (No School) ♦ June 24 - Grade 8 Graduation ♦ June 25 - Report Cards Sent Home ♦ June 27 - Last Day of School

The NSO’s acclaimed Summer Music Camp offers children a chance to explore music making - and have fun! SMC has classes for ages 18 months to 15 years, welcoming all skill levels, in choral, instrumental and orchestral pro-grams. June 30 – July 11 (session 1) | July 14 – 25 (session 2) Register at www.thenso.ca or call 905-687-4993 x 223 Join us at Summer Music Camp 2014

Only One Mother Hundreds of stars in the pretty sky, Hundreds of shells on the shore together, Hundreds of birds that go singing by, Hundreds of Lambs in the sunny weather, Hundreds of dewdrops to greet the dawn, Hundreds of bees in the purple clover, Hundreds of butterflies on the lawn, But only one mother in the wide world over. - George Cooper-

On Friday, May 2nd we will be sending envelopes home for the Jump Rope for Heart campaign. This is a great opportunity to support the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Please try to get as many sponsors as you can, however, we do not encourage that you allow students to go door to door to solicit. The Jump Rope for Heart assembly is on May 9th @ 2:00pm and the The Jump Rope for Heart event day is Wednesday, May 14th.

Movie Night

Movember

INTERMEDIATE BADMINTON Badminton Team 2014 May 1st for the DSBN Tournament at Brock U ♦ Ilyab N. ♦ Kennedy S. ♦ Kristie M. ♦ Mackenzie J. ♦ Catherine W. ♦ Hannah T. ♦ Sydney L. ♦ Anson W. ♦ Connor C. ♦ Keegan M.

CHESS CLUB Congratulations to everyone who participated in our Chess tournament. You all did an amazing job!

Grade 3 winners Grade 6 winners

Grade 4 winners

Grade 7 winners

Grade 5 winners

GYMNASTICS TEAM Gordon’s Gymnastics team did a tremendous job at competition! All the girls worked hard and represented Gordon well. Thank you all for your hard work and dedication! ♦ Mya C. - 3rd Mat ♦ Olivia D. - 2nd Mat, 6th Bench ♦ Makayla D. - 3rd Mat ♦ Renee J. -1st Mat ♦ Emily S. - 2nd Mat , 4th Bench ♦ Brooke E.. - 6th Mat, 2nd Bench ♦ Zoe P. - 5th Mat ♦ Emma B. ♦ Charolotte L. - 5th Mat ♦ Alyssa B. ♦ Keana B. - 4th Mat ♦ Tawny C. - 5th Mat ♦ Eden A. ♦ Mackenzie C. - 3rd Floor ♦ Colleen N. - 2nd Mat ♦ Kaileah G. ♦ Kennedy S. - 5th Mat, 3rd Floor ♦ Kirstyn A. - 2nd Floor ♦ Olivia H. - 4th Floor ♦ Trina V.- 3rd Floor ♦ Catharine W. ♦ Samantha C.- 1st Mat ♦ Emily D. - 3rd Mat

Achilles P.

-Achilles P. -Isaac W. -Mikael R.

1st 2nd 3rd

-Audrey B. -Quinn B. -Cameron S. -Johnny M. -Peyton S.

1st (tied) 2nd 3rd (tied)

-Brendan G. -Leo P. -Ayden C.

1st (tied) 2nd

-Lily C. -Andrew M. -Owen W.

1st 2nd 3rd

-Dylan C. -Sommer N. -Beverly W.

1st 2nd 3rd

JR. INTRAMURAL BASKETBALL

Cheerleading

Intramural Fun

Over the last few months, over 100 grade 4,5 and 6 Gordon Grizzlies have participated in our 3 on 3 intramural basketball league. Teams, using N BA names like the Bulls, Pacers and Raptors, played each other every Thursday and Friday during 1st recreation break with 8 teams playing 4 games simultaneously. As you can imagine, the gym transformed into a lively and competitive place to be full of great sportsmanship and camaraderie. As April comes to an end, Eastern and Western Division champions have been declared (76ers in the East and Knicks in the West) and now a semi-final game against the undefeated Bulls and Pac-ers will decide which teams go to the League Championship. This intramural league has been a fun, active and exciting part of our junior division.

TEACHER DODGEBALL

A friendly teacher game of dodgeball resulted in the girls beating the guys and winning the dodgeball champion trophy

Groups in Ms Slaght’s Grade 5/6 class prsented L’Arbre Ungali for their play. In this group, Han-nah T. as le lion/l’arbre ungali, Emma B. as le zèbra, Brooke E. as le narrateur/ la narratrice, Kylie M. as l’antilope and Karli S. as la tortue. Une excellente interprètation! Bravo les filles!

MATH BUDDIES

Teacher Character– Cooperation Academic

Mrs. Filion Charolotte M Ayden D

Mrs. Gaspich Hannah S Kristen K

Miss Sauve Zaelynn S Samuel V

Mrs. Sodtke Sarah T Aaron P

Mrs. McLean Kourney M Vaiden F

Mrs. Knockaret Norman P Evynn B

Mrs. Clarke Tyson M Noah G

Mrs. Stickles Davin L Ryan E

Ms. Aboukors Isabelle B Ben S

Ms. Benson Lily C Ryan B

Mrs. Slaght Eric S Dylan C

Mrs. Smythe-Janese Robert H Christopher C

Ms. Bonisteel Arianna E Sommer N

Mr. Charles Noah H Sydney D

Mrs. Timlock Noah B Colin I

Mrs. Rush Ilyab N Samantha C

Mrs. Colonna-Spagnolo

Quentin B Jayden F

AWARDS

SILVER BIRCH CLUB

ELKP FUN

Green Club Cleanup

SEF4 Geoboards

Important Information for Parents and Guardians

Measles in Ontario

Between January and April 1, 2014, Ontario has had 11 cases of measles. Recent measles outbreaks have been reported in

Hamilton and Ottawa areas. In 2014, to date, there have been no laboratory confirmed cases in Niagara.

Niagara Region Public Health strongly encourages parents to fully vaccinate their children against measles.

About measles

Measles is an infection of the lungs (respiratory system) that is caused by a virus

It is easily spread from person to person

Nine out of 10 unimmunized people who come in close contact with an infected person with measles will get the disease

Measles is a serious disease, 1 in 10 will develop complications, 1 in 1000 will die

Who is at risk?

Anyone born in 1970 or after who has not had two doses of measles vaccine is considered susceptible to measles

Infants under one year of age, pregnant women, and persons with weakened immune systems can get very ill with measles

Symptoms of Measles

Fever of 38.3° C (101° F) or greater

Cough

Runny nose and red/watery eyes

Small red spots with a white speck in centre (Koplik spots) also develop inside the mouth

A red blotchy rash on the face begins on the third to seventh day and spreads downward to the rest of the body

The rash will last between four to seven days

Measles usually last for two weeks

How it is spread?

Measles is spread easily through the air or through contact with droplets from the nose and throat of infected persons

Particles from an infected person can stay in the air for long periods of time and infect others in the same room or in

neighbouring rooms. People infected with measles can spread the disease to others four days before the rash appears

and up to four days after the rash appears

How to prevent measles?

Measles is preventable through immunization with two doses of measles vaccine

The first dose is given at 12 months of age and the second dose is given between the ages of four to six years

If you are unsure about the vaccinations you or your children have received, contact your health care provider or Public

Health

If you think you may have signs and symptoms of measles:

Remain in your own home and do not attend any social and group gatherings. If you think you have measles, it is important that the infection is not passed to others at the doctor’s office

Call ahead and tell the doctor’s office about your symptoms and that you may have been exposed to the disease

You may be given the last appointment of the day, and when you arrive, you will be given a mask to wear and may be

placed into an examination room right away

To receive the measles vaccination, please contact your health care provider, visit a walk-in clinic or contact the Vaccine

Preventable Disease program at 1-888-505-6074 or 905-688-8248 ext. 7425 to set up an appointment.

Summer HEAT 2014 We are pleased to be able to offer SUMMER HEAT, a primary Summer Learning Program again this year.

The program will run from Monday July 14 to Friday August 1 for students from JK to grade 4 in the fall of 2014.

Kindergarten Kick Start is for students entering junior and senior kindergarten in the fall. Funshine Kids is for stu-

dents who are entering grades 1, 2, 3 and 4. This three week program is entirely FREE, but space is limited so

please be sure to register early. Registration can be done online starting Monday, May 5, 2014. The program will

begin at 8:30 am with breakfast being provided. Students will then be involved in a variety of learning opportuni-

ties with a focus on literacy, numeracy and active living. We are excited about being able to offer this awesome

program to our families. Check it out on the DSBN website at www.dsbn.org/summerheat

A NEW Magazine Sale is Coming Fall 2014!

MAGAZINES AND MEMORIES!

Coming Fall 2014, we will

have our annual Magazine

Subscription Program

(including more digital

magazines!) and also an

opportunity to purchase

Personalized Photo

Memory Products

including; Photo Books,

Labels, Cards, Calendars,

Posters, Notepads and

more! Please help us by saving your Magazine orders and y our personalized Photo purchases for our QSP Magazines and Memories Fundraising Pro-gram.

QSP offers us great prices and product selection.

Our School earns a profit, and the money raised goes towards programs and events that help to enrich our children’s lives at our school.

Our Children - Magazines - Help improve literacy skills; any reading material, including magazines, encourages children to read, or they model your reading behavior. Photo Products - Capture memorable moments of your children with the personalized photo products available.

Thank you in advance for your support of our children and our school!

If you have an inquiry please contact QSP Customer Service, 1-800-667-2536