January 2016 Newsletter

PONSONBY PUBLIC SCHOOL
#5923 Wellington Road 7, R.R. # 5, Guelph, ON N1H 6J2
Phone: (519) 824-9447 FAX: (519) 824-9041
Paul Tribe, Acting Principal
Anita Way, Office Co-Ordinator
SCHOOL WEBSITE: www.ugdsb.on.ca/Ponsonby
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Principal’s Message
JANUARY 2016
Welcome back to another calendar year. I hope everyone had a most rewarding time away. I cannot imagine that it was
necessarily relaxing. However, I do hope that you had an opportunity to connect with family and friends, and enjoy
what we have been given.
You may be aware that I have the pleasure of remaining at Ponsonby Public School for the balance of the school year.
I could not be happier.
As we begin 2016, please remember that the Ponsonby Staff put the safety of your children first and foremost. Please
do remember to sign in when you visit the school. If a family member or friend is coming in your place to pick up your
child, please let Mrs. Way know first.
I usually also like to remind children to dress for the weather. That has been a challenge this year, given the warmer
than usual temperatures. Nevertheless, let me reiterate that we do chat with children about the fact that there are two
forty-minute recesses. The best way for all of us to enjoy those times outside is to wear clothing that protects us from
the elements.
Thank you for your giving spirit. The “Build a Backpack” program was a huge success due to you. We had items arrive in
December even before the drive officially began. We know there are families new to Canada who are very appreciative
of your generosities.
I look forward to seeing you at the school as we move into this next stage of the school year.
School Hours
As we return to Ponsonby in a new year, it is time to remind everyone about school hours. They are as follows:
• The first bell sounds at 8:40 AM. Students come inside and go to their classes.
• The second bell sounds at 8:50 AM at which time announcements are made.
• Students arriving after this will be marked late.
• First nutrition break begins at 10:40 AM.
• First recess begins at 11:00 AM and finishes at 11:40 AM
• Second nutrition break begins at 1:40 PM
• Second recess begins at 2:00 PM and ends at 2:40 PM
• Dismissal bell sounds at 3:40 PM. At this point students proceed either outside or to the gym, depending upon
the weather, to line up for their buses.
• If your intention is to pick up your child prior to dismissal time, it is appreciated if you could notify the school
early; either by note in your child’s agenda or by telephone message. Please realize that the office is very busy
as we approach the end of the day.
• The last bus is usually gone by around 4:00 PM
All the best, Paul Tribe, Acting Principal
Family Day – Monday, February 15th
The Upper Grand district School board will be observing Family Day on Monday, February 15th –
Ponsonby will be closed. Enjoy the day with your family!
Thank you so much for your continued effort to send snacks to school with your
children that DO NOT contain nuts.
Since the colder weather is upon us our students are wearing hats to keep warm.
We all know that kids like to share things, including hats. With this, of course,
comes the potential for little critters to appear, in the form of head lice. They can
be a real nuisance! Please check you child’s head weekly to help eliminate these
critters.
If you would be willing to volunteer to help with monthly head checks please
contact Mrs. Way in the office 519-824-9447. Thank you 
Helping Syrian refugee students in our community through the Free to Achieve Fund
GUELPH, Ontario – As the Upper Grand District School Board prepares to welcome Syrian refugee families,
members of our community have been working together to raise funds to help support the families when they
arrive.
As numerous community groups work to ensure families receive a warm welcome and are set up for success,
many have been asking what they can do to help. And with the holidays approaching, many are looking to buy
gifts that give back.
If you would like to donate to the Syrian refugees settling in our communities, you can do so through the
Upper Grand Learning Foundation (UGLF), through the Free to Achieve Fund.
UGLF is a non-profit, registered charity dedicated to improving educational opportunities for students and
families in the communities the Upper Grand District School Board serves.
UGLF’s Free to Achieve Fund strives to help students identified as in-need, whether the need is for basic
necessities like clothes and food, eye glasses or opportunities outside the classroom that they wouldn’t
normally have, like involvement in sports or swimming lessons.
To donate to Syrian refugee children, visit the UGLF’s Free to Achieve Fund
website (http://www.uppergrandlearningfoundation.com/funds/free-to-achieve.aspx) and when making your
donation indicate it is in honour of “Syrian families.”
Charitable tax receipts are provided for donations of $20 or more.
SEPTEMBER 2016 KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION
If you have a child or know of a child who will be attending kindergarten in the 2016-2017 school year, please contact
the school at 519-824-9447. Kindergarten registration will take place early February 2016. Please be sure to bring proof
of your child’s birth (original birth certificate), immunization card and proof of address. Included is a Kindergarten
Pre-Registration Notice to be completed and sent to the school prior to Kindergarten Registration.
Thank you.
Pizza/Milk/Cookie Order Forms - Term 2
Pizza/cookie/milk order forms will be sent home during the first week back in January.
Orders can be placed for Term 2 student pizza and cookie lunch on Thursdays, as well as milk
st
th
(daily) beginning February 1 until June 24 .
th
Orders with payment will be due back to the school by WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13 .
PLEASE WRITE SEPARATE CHEQUES FOR EACH CHILD
Notice from the Office re: Student Safety
For safe arrival and attendance purposes, it is very important to check in and out with the office whenever a student is
coming in late or is leaving early. To ease congestion and encourage student independence we ask that parents
please wait near the office when picking up your child. If bringing your child into school please allow them to
proceed to their classroom independently. Thank you.
If you are picking up your child during the day or at the end of the day for any reason, you must send a note to the
teacher, notify the office as well, and sign the sign-out book in the front hallway before leaving.
If for any reason, you are having anyone other than yourself as parent (i.e. grandparents, aunts/uncles, friends,
babysitters) pick up your child(ren), it is imperative that you send a note to both the teacher and the office. We cannot
allow a child to leave with anyone without a note from the parent giving authorization. Please help us to be diligent with
regard to the safety and security of your children! If you have any concerns please contact the principal.
WINNERS - Remembrance Day Poster / Poem / Essay Contest
Colour (Primary) - 1st – Alannah G.
-3rd – Anna M.
Black & White (Junior) - 2nd – Willow C.
Essay (Junior) - 2nd – Julie A.
- 3rd – Kate W.
Awards were presented at our Annual Turkey Dinner on Dec. 9th by Elora Legion member Lynn & Darlene McClellan.
Photos will be in our yearbook. CONGRATULATIONS!
INCLEMENT WEATHER
The decision to cancel transportation is made by 6:30 am.
School bus cancellation information is posted daily on the foloiwng web sites:
-Upper Grand District School Board: www.ugdsb.on.ca
-Wellington Dufferin Student Transportation: www.stwdsts.ca
Media
School bus cancellation and school closure information is also available by listening to the following radio
stations and watching the following news programs:
AM 570 News
AM 680 CFTR
AM 820 CHAM
AM 900 CHML
AM 920 CKNX
AM 1090 OLDIES
AM 1150 CKOC
AM 1460 CJOY
89.1 CBC KW
94.5 THE BULL
96.7 FM CHYM
98.1 FM CHFI
99.1 FM CBC
101.7 FM CKNX
102.9 FM CKLH
105.3 KOOL FM
106.1 MAGIC FM
107.9 FM CJXY
CKCO-TV
A Channel News
CTV News, Barrie
The announcement on the radio will be one of the following:
1. All school taxis and buses in Division 2 – Blue – Centre Wellington will not be operating today.
2. All schools, both Public and Catholic, are closed today.
“NO BUS” Days for Ponsonby PS !
When there is a “No Bus” day, our school will be OPEN for students. We certainly hope that as many students
as possible are able to come to school, but it is up to parents/guardians to decide whether or not it is safe to
get them here. When the buses don’t run in the morning, they won’t run in the afternoon either. Parents will
need to make arrangements for both directions: getting their children to school and making sure they get home
at the end of the day. As has happened in the past, announcements will be made early in the morning on the
radio and on the Transportation website (http://www.stwdsts.ca/) about any transportation cancellations.
Inclement Weather Policy
It is a parent/guardian’s responsibility to determine whether or not it is safe for their child(ren) to leave for
school in inclement or severe weather.
Parents/Guardians must be aware of the following:
a.
When a bus does not travel a route in the morning due to fog, ice or snow conditions, it will not
travel that route in the afternoon.
b.
If a parent/guardian elects to drive their child(ren) to school on a day when buses do not run, they
are responsible for pick-up of the children at dismissal time.
c.
Walkers are expected at school on Inclement Weather Days. If your child is a walker and you elect to
keep them home please call the school and leave a message on ext. 100.
JANUARY LIBRARY LINK
BOOK FAIR
Thank you to everyone who supported the Book Fair! It was a success!! The best part was seeing the students
so excited about reading new books. From the credits earned from our sales we will have new books for the
Library in the new year, and all students will have the chance to sign out a new book during their Library class.
A special thanks goes to the grade 5 and 6 Library helpers who worked and helped out at the Book Fair.
FOREST OF READING PROGRAM
When we come back to school in the New Year we will begin our Forest of Reading Book Clubs! The Forest of
Reading Program introduces books written by Canadian authors to the students. The program is divided into
Blue Spruce (K-2), Silver Birch Express, Silver Birch Fiction and Silver Birch Non-Fiction. For the primary
students I will be reading the Blue Spruce books to them during their Library class. Junior students who would
like to join the Silver Birch Reading Program will have the opportunity to choose which books they want to
read. We will be reading from January to April and then we will be voting for our favourite book. The program
is a great way to foster and celebrate reading. At the end of the program all the Forest of Reading books will
be available for all students to sign out from the Library. If you have any questions about the program please
contact me at the school.
All the best wishes for a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Enjoy the holidays by reading a good book or two!!!
Mrs. Cruikshank
SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS
Welcome back to school everyone! We hope you all had a nice holiday season spent with the ones you love.
Since the last update council has purchased a fridge for use at school. This will be used for hot dog lunches, grilled
cheese lunches, year-end barbecue as well as other functions. Our Xmas bazaar and the fundscrips were a success again
this year. Thank you to everyone who helped support these!
Council would like to send out a huge thank you to Tina & Leah for another outstanding job with the “Ponsonby 40th
annual Turkey Dinner” They have worked so hard over the years with all their volunteers to make this such a fabulous
event for our school and we will miss their presence in the years to come.
Our next council meeting is January 18th @ 6:30. Items on the agenda will be discussions on the next phase of the
outdoor classroom, get creative Ponsonby day ideas, and 2016 meeting dates. We are hoping to see some new faces to
go along with the New Year. You do not need to be a member to attend a meeting and bring us your ideas. Everyone is
welcome to attend! Please remember to check the bulletin board for agendas and council minutes as they become
available.
Laurie Kaczmarczyk, council chair
Reminder to parents: Friday hot lunches (grilled cheese/hot dogs) are cancelled when buses are cancelled.
Hot lunches that are cancelled will be rescheduled.
Ponsonby’s 40th Annual Turkey Dinner - Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!
Another Turkey Dinner has been gobbled up. Thank you to every person who helped make this meal a success – there
were over 40 volunteers helping with cooking, baking, set-up, carving, serving and clean-up. What an awesome
reflection of the community at Ponsonby!
We have had the pleasure of organizing this special celebration for 6 years and we are excited to pass the turkey baster
onto the next team who will carry on this tradition. Please contact us if you think you would like to take the reins…
The Turkey Team – Tina Meissner (tinam@gto.net) & Leah Graff (lgraff71@yahoo.ca)
“Greatness starts within a community”
ALL THE BEST WISHES FOR A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!!!
PONSONBY PUBLIC SCHOOL
KINDERGARTEN PRE-REGISTRATION NOTICE
CHILDREN MUST BE 5 YEARS OF AGE BY DECEMBER 31, 2016 FOR KINDERGARTEN
AND 4 YEARS OF AGE BY DECEMBER 31, 2016 FOR JUNIOR KINDERGARTEN.
PLEASE PRINT !
Child’s Name:
Date of Birth:
Month
Day
Year
Father’s Name:
Mother’s Name:
Address: ______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
Postal Code:
Sibling: ___________________________________________
Telephone Number: Home - ___________________
________________________
Work -
Please return to the main office
January 2016
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
1
3
4
(D2)
Happy New Year &
Welcome Back !
5
(D3)
6
(D4)
Sub Day
10
11
(D2)
12
(D3)
18
(D2)
6:30 pm School
Council Meeting
25
(D1)
Sub Day
31
8
19
(D3)
26
(D2)
(D1)
Hot Dog Day
14
(D5)
12:45 pm—Gr. 5,6
River Run Trip
15
22
Volleyball Team
- Elora P.S.
21 (D5) Pizza Day
12:45 pm—Gr. 3,4
River Run Trip
Volleyball-Weather
27
28
29
13
(D4)
Pizza Day
Sub Day
24
(D5)
2
Pizza Day
Sub Day
17
7
20
(D4)
(D3)
Waste Audit
Pizza Day
(D1)
9
16
Litterless Lunch
Day
23
P.A.
Day
Date
(D4)
Saturday
(D5)
9:00 Gr.3-4 Scientists in Classroom
Grilled Cheese Day
30
February 2016
Sunday
Monday
1
(D1)
Tuesday
2 (D2)
Sub Day
Wednesday
3
(D3)
DRAFT
7
8
(D1)
15
9
16
FAMILY
DAY
21
(D2)
22
(D5)
(D1)
10
(D3)
29
(D5)
17
(D2)
Sub Day
23
(D1)
Sub Day
28
4
(D4)
Friday
5
(D5)
Saturday
6
Pizza Day
Sub Day
14
Thursday
11
(D4)
12
(D5)
13
Pizza Day
Hot Dog Day
18
19
(D4)
20
26
(D4)
27
(D3)
Pizza Day
24
(D2)
25
(D3)
Pizza Day
Grilled Cheese Day
INQUIRY
HOW TO SUPPORT INQUIRY AT HOME
Now-a-days ?knowing st uf f ? is no l onger
enough. Any resourcef ul st udent wit h an iPad
coul d sit in f ront of t he TV and Googl e al l t he
quest ions t o Al ex Trebek's responses on
Jeopardy, and get t hem correct . We are
moving away f rom simpl y "knowing cont ent ,"
t o being abl e t o appl y knowl edge in
int erest ing, creat ive, and crit ical ways. To
accompl ish t his, st udent s and t eachers need
t o ask t he right quest ions. Asking t he right
quest ions is what inquiry is al l about .
Chil dren are great at asking quest ions. They
are nat ural l y curious, and are const ant l y
asking quest ions t o make sense of t heir
worl d.
Inst ead of just t el l ing your chil d t he
answer, t ry one of t hese st rat egies.
First , you can get t hem t o l ook up t he
answer. This wil l hel p t hem devel op
t he abil it y t o sol ve t heir own
probl ems. Or, you can ask t hem "What
do you t hink?" This wil l give you
insight int o what t hey al ready know,
and t hen you can ask t hem more
quest ions t o guide t hem t o an answer.
An inquiry-based approach is seen
t hroughout t he Ont ario Curricul um.
St udent s l earn best when t hey are
f ormul at ing t heir own quest ions and
working t owards sol ut ions t hrough
discussion wit h t heir peers.
A closed-quest ion:
These are questions with a specific
answer. Here are two examples:
TIPS FOR INQUIRY AT HOME
Why do some stars twinkle?
What colours mix to make purple?
Closed-questions are great questions for
your child to look-up in a book, or google.
An open-quest ion:
These are questions that could be
answered in many ways. Here is an
example:
- Resist providing the answer
- Resist giving a procedure (math)
- Ask questions to clarify their
thinking
- Ask your child to explain the
reasons behind their answer
How can we best support the Syrian
refugees?
Open-questions are great questions for
you to explore with your child. Discuss
with them what they already know, and
help them form their own answer.
All images are used, with permission, from the
creative commons.