MAURICE CODY PUBLIC SCHOOL

364 Belsize Drive

Toronto, Ontario M4S 1N2

OCTOBER 30, 2015

NEWSLETTER

School Trustee – Shelley Laskin

Superintendent – Sandra Tondat

Principal – Andrew Howard

Vice-Principal – Adelia Vala

Office Admin. – Frida Anthony

– Joanna Matsigaris (am)

-Gail Everett (pm)

WHAT CAN WE LOOK FORWARD TO IN THIS EDITION?

  • Message from the Principal
  • Lunch Room News
  • Weather Watch
  • Volunteer Drivers
  • Games
  • Fire Drills
  • Upcoming Events
  • Thou Shall Not
  • Threats to School Safety
  • School Absences
  • Medication
  • Important Reminders
  • Kids in Traffic
  • Walking to School
  • Halloween Reminders

A Message from the Principal…

I hope the start of the new school year has been positive for both returning students and those new to our community. From the perspective of the administration, it has been a tremendous start.

“My friends, love is better than anger.

Hope is better than fear.

Optimism is better than despair.

So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic.

And we’ll change the world.”

Jack Layton

I couldn’t have said it any better. Ms. Vala and I, along with the amazing Maurice Cody teachers and support stafflook forward to working together with you and your child to make this year the best year yet!

Lunchroom News

As we arrive at the end of our second month of the school year, it is the hope and expectation that students who stay for the lunch program have adjusted to the lunch hour rules and routines. For the most part, the lunchroom has been running very smoothly as students are beginning to understand the need to be safe and clean when eating at school. If your child stays for lunch, please spend some time going over the expectations outlined below to make it a pleasant experiencefor all those involved.

  • all food should be eaten in the lunch room (plenty of time is provided)
  • we have a split lunch, so all students (primary first and then juniors second) will eat in the lunch room for the first 30-35 minutes and will be outside the rest of the time for fresh air
  • all students must remain seated while in the lunch room unless asking to go to the washroom or for a drink in which case they must travel in partners with a hall pass…a sign out procedure is in place
  • all students will ask the appropriate lunch room supervisor for permission to go to the bathroom
  • all students will demonstrate the appropriate level of respect to lunchroom supervisors

In addition, our students have been very diligent in following our “BOOMERANG” lunch program. All items, non-recyclable go home in student lunch bags. This is a great opportunity to teach our children about the environment as well as an opportunity for you to see what your child is or isn’t eating. Please consider sending Tupperware instead of saran wrap or tin foil where possible. Thank you for helping Maurice Cody in its effort to be a platinum eco school.

Finally, just like in your own homes, we simply ask that the students remain seated at the table and clean up after themselves when they are done. There are rags to wipe down tables or spills prior to leaving the lunch room area. Thank you for your support!

Weather Watch


The cold weather is fast approaching. Please ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for school and for the weather as they will be going outside during the morning and afternoon for recess as well as at lunch recess unless the weather is deemed too cold or too wet. Possibilities may include: a warm coat, hat, gloves, proper outdoor footwear, and/or scarf.PLEASE, PLEASE LABEL EVERYTHING WHERE POSSIBLE!

In the hope of minimizing colds and illnesses, we will be diligent as a staff in monitoring what students wear outdoors.

We often receive requests from parents asking us to keep their children indoors during recess times because they are not feeling well. Unfortunately, we do not have the staff or facilities to supervise students who are sick or still recovering from an illness. Students with heavy colds, etc., which are serious enough to prevent them from participating in physical education, recesses or other outdoor activities, should remain at home until their condition improves. This will likely benefit the students concerned and prevent the spread of their illness to others.

VOLUNTEER DRIVERS


In the next month and beyond, we will be having many staff and students attend a variety offield trips, sporting events, etc. Many of our students will not be taking the school bus, but instead, will receive rides from their own parent or a friend’s parent. As per board policy, all volunteer drivers must complete a form (available in the main office) for liability and insurance purposes. On the form, only student names that are listed are allowed to ride in the vehicle. Therefore, if going to or coming from an event, parent volunteer drivers may only drive the same children – no switches may be made. Otherwise, students will go to the event or return to the school on the board-supplied bus. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact the main office.

GAMES, GAMES, GAMES…

During inclement weather, it is always a challenge to find things for students to do while in the lunch room. An indoor lunch can be a very long stretch for students to sit inside causing them to, sometimes, make inappropriate choices. As a result, we have gone out and purchased a number of board games, decks of cards, etc. to provide to students during these inclement weather days. If you are looking to clean out the closets or games room, we are still looking for additional games to keep our students interested and active during those inclement weather days. Please bring any donations into the main school office (age appropriate only please). Your support is greatly appreciated.

FIRE DRILLS & VOLUNTEERS


The TDSB mandates that schools have six fire drills during the school calendar year. Therefore, it is imperative that all volunteers remember to sign in at the main office and wear a volunteer badge. In addition, in the case of an emergency (drill or real), all volunteers are asked to gather in the back of the school in one group. This will enable us to take the volunteer binder from the main office and ensure that all adults are safely out of the building. To date, we have completed three fire drills and one hold and secure. In the New Year (Spring time), we will have three more fire drills and a lockdown. Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation.

UPCOMING EVENTS…

Oct. 29Picture Re-take Day

Pizza Lunch #2

Oct. 30Halloween Parade

9:20 Kindergarten

1:15 Gr. 1-6

Nov. 2School Council/Administration

PART meeting for Cody families

Only (7:00pm in the library)

Nov. 5School Council Meeting

9:00am in the staff room

Nov. 11Remembrance Day Assemblies

Nov. 13PA Day for students – no school

Only 34 more school days until the Winter Holidays…but who’s counting!

THOU SHALL NOT…

  1. Drop by the classroom unannounced

Parents, please make every effort to pre-arrange a visit to the classroom as teachers’ primary focus during the day must be the students. Teachers are happy to speak with parents via phone or in person, but find it very difficult during the actual school day.

  1. Phone/Email/Text

Similar to comments made above, parents are asked not to attempt to contact their child during the school day via the child’s cell phone, blackberry etc. Students must power all electronic devices off while on school property. Please discourage your child from bringing expensive electronic devices to school as they can get damaged, lost or stolen if not properly cared for at all times. All correspondence with your child should be handled through the main school office. The cell phone ringing, vibrating or beeping during instructional time is prohibited and obviouslyvery disruptive to the teacher and the students. Items will be confiscated if misused and parents will be asked to come in to the school to retrieve the item and to discuss a future action plan.

  1. Parent-Teacher Email

Many Maurice Cody teachers have provided parents their personal email account as a means of correspondence – a wonderful opportunity to communicate electronically in this new world of technology. We are asking parents to please respect this method of communication by not taking advantage of the ease with which one can send an email (computer, blackberry etc.). Teachers, unfortunately, do not have the time during the day to check their emails on a regular basis. Sending emails for important items that go beyond placing a note in the student’s agenda is completely understandable. Thank you for taking this into consideration prior to sending your next email to your child’s teacher.

  1. Student drop-off

Maurice Codyis very fortunate to have so many parents/caregivers who are able to drive their children to school in the morning. As a result, it is extremely busy outside of the school. Please ensure that you are following proper drop-off procedures, preferably using our Kiss-N-Ride program onCheston Road where there are parent and community volunteers there to ensure safe drop off in the morning.

Threats to School Safety -- Change in Terminology
The TDSB has been spreading the word about the importance of learning environments where all staff and students feel safe and secure during Safe and Caring Schools Weeks in September. The TDSB works very hard throughout the year to raise awareness among students, staff and parents about the factors that make a school community safe and affirming.
The Board’s Safe and Caring Schools Team recently undertook the task of updating the Board’s Threats to School Safety Procedure to provide a better framework to help prepare schools to effectively manage emergencies and to reflect a significant change in the terminology associated with lockdown procedures.

The change in lockdown terminology was done a couple of years ago to provide some clarity on the meaning of common terms associated with the procedure and reduce the panic that parents/guardians often feel when they hear their child’s school is in lockdown.
The revised terminology is now permanent language in the TDSB and will be used by all schools in conjunction with the Toronto Police Service. The revised terms are as follows:
• Hold and Secure - The term Partial Lockdown has been replaced with the term Hold and Secure. Hold and secure means that all movement in and out of the school is restricted, however movement within the school is not restricted and the external danger near the school poses no immediate threat to the students or staff unless they leave the building.
• Lockdown - A lockdown is the most serious response to a threat to school safety and should be used only when the danger is inside the school or on school property and poses an immediate and serious threat to staff and students.
The updated Threats to School Safety Procedure (PR.695) is available on the Safe and Caring Schools webpage on the Board’s website at
The TDSB is committed to making each and every one of our schools caring places that are safe for learning and a part of that commitment is keeping our parents/guardians informed.

Maurice Cody will hold one “Hold and Secure” and one “Lockdown” drill over the course of the school year. The first took place in September. All students had an opportunity to discuss expectations for this drill with their classroom teacher prior to the drill taking place.

School Absences and Routines

Regular attendance and being punctual are skills that we want to reinforce and nurture with all students. Please review the School Daily Time Schedule (in the student agenda) with your child in order to make this a successful year. Any student arriving after 8:45 is late (bell rings at 8:40 but period one begins at 8:45). Students who arrive late miss instructions and disrupt the learning of other students.

The Toronto District School Board values the safety and security of its students. To assist parents/guardians in ensuring their children’s safety each elementary school is required to develop a Safe Arrival program.

A Safe Arrival program is a system of procedures performed together with daily attendance-taking. Parents/guardians are responsible for their child’s safety. Safe Arrival programs are a mechanism that parents/guardians and schools can use to account for any pupil’s unexplained failure to arrive at school.

  • Parents/guardians are expected to notify the school when their child is absent or late. A message may be left on the school’s answering service before school opens (416-393-9335).
  • As soon as a child is identified as “unaccounted for”, the principal or designate will attempt to contact the parent/guardian of each child. Please ensure that the school has all current telephone, cell and emergency contact numbers. Synervoice, the new TDSB safe arrival automated program, will start calling out to all parent guardian phone numbers if a message for the absence has not been left by the parent at the number above. In this case, parents receiving the automated message must follow the prompts indicating the known whereabouts of the child, which will then cause the automated system to stop dialing out.
  • If the parent/guardian cannot be reached and the child cannot be traced, or if foul play is suspected, the decision to take further action, including calling the police, rests with the principal.

Medication Must Be Sent To School

This is a reminder to all families who have not dropped off medications or Epi-Pens to the office to do so as soon as possible. TDSB consent forms to administer the medication MUST be completed as well. Please check the expiry date of any medication you are submitting to the school.

Students are not allowed to carry medication at school (unless specific arrangements have been made with the school office/administration). Epi-Pens and puffers are the only exception to this rule. All medication must be in a bottle from the pharmacy, stating the child’s name and dosage.

IMPORTANT REMINDERS…

The end of the school day is a very busy time with over 700 students leaving and an additional 300 parents/caregivers waiting in the school yard. As you can well imagine, this is a safety concern for the school in that we want to ensure that each child is picked up safely.

One of the most common situations that we find ourselves dealing with at the school is miscommunication around play dates. It is essential that each parent send a note into the teacher or talk directly to the teacher (especially those students in the primary grades) to notify him/her of any changes to the regular pick-up procedures for the child. Teachers will always do their very best to ensure a safe hand off of child to adult, but it is extremely difficult if changes to the regular routine are made without their knowledge.

Safety is always paramount in our minds at school, so anything and everything you can do to assist us in ensuring the safety of our staff and students is greatly appreciated.

KIDS AND TRAFFIC


Children under the age of nine need to be with an adult or older child when crossing the street. To keep your child safe it’s important that you are a good role model. Here are some helpful tips that you can practice with your child:

STOP, LOOK and LISTEN for traffic

Only cross at corners and crosswalks

Make eye contact with drivers

Walk on the right side of the crosswalk

Wear light coloured clothing on dark or cloudy days

Never run into the street

Obey crossing signals

Cross only if clear

Walk on sidewalks. Where there are no sidewalks, walk as far away from traffic as possible facing traffic.

Walking To School Safely…

This is a good time for parents to remind their children about pedestrian safety. Here are some important safety tips to help keep students safe on their way to and from school:

Walk on available sidewalks

Always cross at intersections

Obey crossing guards

Stop before stepping into roadway

Be visible and indicate crossing intentions