April 2015 - EI McCulley Public School

JAGUAR JOURNAL
APRIL 2015 NEWSLETTER
JAGUAR PRIDE!!
16 Berkley Dr., St. Catharines,
Principal: D.Harley
L2M 6B8
Secretary: D. McLachlan
905-934-7344
(FAX) 905-934-3723
www.dsbn.org/Schools/EIMcCulley
EI McCulley School Goals:
A:To improve student achievement in Math in all grades by selecting the
appropriate evidence based instructional strategies.
B:To Improve Literacy Acquisition in the Primary Grades. THIS MONTH'S Character Trait: INTEGRITY
Message from Mr. Harley
Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody's going to know
whether you did it or not.
Oprah Winfrey
Dear Parents:
From the day children are born until they graduate from high school going on to
Post-Secondary Education, they spend 15% of their waking hours in school. The
other 85% is spent outside school—most of it at home. That supports the belief that
parents are their children’s most influential teachers. The following are three
strategies for parents to help capitalize on children’s natural curiosity and love of
learning:
1) Encourage reading—Experts say that encouraging children to read may be the
single most important thing parents can do to insure children’s success in school.
Please replace the video game controller with a great book! Reading is infectious!
2) Play Learning Games—Family fun time is a great time for learning. Try activities
such as sending children on a scavenger hunt around the house; looking at a
picture together (one with lots of objects in it); or cutting out newspaper stories
and matching the headlines to it. Let’s not forget about board game favourites such
as Monopoly and Scrabble. Family time with you will bond your relationship and set
up time for learning together!
3) Show Children That You Care—Children need to know that they are loved, that
you are proud of them, and pleased by their accomplishments. Parents can find
ways to say “I love you” everyday; make time to talk with your children; ensure
that their attendance is impeccable and monitor your children’s agenda and
schoolwork.
It is an honour working with your students every day!!
JAGUAR PRIDE! PAIN IS TEMPORARY PRIDE IS FOREVER
Yours in Education,
Mr.D. Harley
Heritage Fair The students in grades 3/4, 4/5, 5/6, and 7/8 classes have been working very hard on their Heritage Fair Projects. Students have selected a topic that could be a person, place or an event that relates to our Canadian Heritage. The students travelled to the city library for a tour and received their first Personal Library Card where they checked out resources that would help them prepare for their project. On April 17th, the students will be involved with activities that engage their learning about the country they live in which has so much rich history. Come and see our students as they present their finished product! We welcome all visitors anytime throughout the day! come to your child's class and see all the PRIDE displayed throughout the school! School Council Pre‐Heritage Fair Feast Our School Council will be having our students enjoy food from around the world (Peanut Free). The Lunch Lady is a local business who will prepare food samples from around the world! Canada is a country with such a diverse group of cultures! It is important for our students to experience all that it can offer! Easter Weekend There will be no school on Friday April 3rd and Monday April 6th. Enjoy your friends and family!! Spirit Days Please check the calendar for exciting spirit days on Fridays! MS Dance and Family Dance Exciting news! On Friday April 10th, we will be having a dance from 6 to 8 pm for students grades 4 to 8. All money raised will go toward MS! Thanks to the great ideas created at school council there will be a family dance for all ages on Friday May 1st! Parents and their children can come and have a great night dancing together!! For any size of family it is $10 for the whole family or $2 per person. All money raised will go toward the E.I. McCulley Yearbook which will bring down the cost total per student. Pizza, treats and refreshments will also be available. School Council Meeting Our next meeting is Tuesday April 28th at 6:00 pm. Babysitting is provided!! Come on out!! PARKING LOT As the principal of E.I. McCulley, you won't find someone who loves his job more than me! However, being a traffic cop is not something I enjoy or was trained for! I ask all parents please obey the signs in the parking lot. Cars not be parked illegally. Safety is always first! MARCH CHARACTER (PERSERVERANCE) & ACADEMIC WINNERS
Name
Grade
Award
Diana C.
ELP1
Academic
Estela A.
ELP1
Perseverance
Nora S.
ELP2
Academic
Leah W.
ELP2
Perseverance
Jayden C.
Gr. 1/2
Academic
Alex B.
Gr. 1/2
Perseverance
Addison M.
Gr. 1-1
Academic
Erik N.
Gr. 1-1
Perseverance
Tyler M.
Gr. 2/3
Academic
Brooklin L.
Gr. 2/3
Perseverance
Riley M.
Gr. 3/4
Academic
Ahra K.
Gr. 3/4
Perseverance
Alyah P.
Gr. 4/5
Academic
Cael S.
Gr. 4/5
Perseverance
Allan S.
Gr. 5/6
Academic
Elijah S.
Gr. 5/6
Perseverance
Aydon R.
Gr. 7/8
Academic
Lucas D.
Gr. 7/8
Perseverance
Dayne C.
Principal
Perseverance
Dryden S.
FSL
Perseverance
Growth Mindset in Math
In general, a growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and „smartness‟ can also be
learned and that the brain grows from ex-perience and effort. The opposite, a fixed
mindset, is the idea that you are smart, or you are not. In math, that translates into “some
people are good at math, and some are not.” Did you know that praising efforts rather than
intelligence or results can im-pact your child‟s ability to persevere in challenges?! The goal
is to have children thrive on challenges and see failures, not as a sign of low intelligence,
but as a learning opportunity. Brain research tells us that making mistakes actually wires
more connec-tions into the brain! When a person has a growth mindset, they accept
challenges, see their efforts as worthwhile, and are open to learning from mistakes.
Students with a growth mindset achieve at higher levels than those with fixed mindsets.
How can you help? Some simple ways:
Adding “yet” when they claim they are “not good at this” (Respond: “You are not good at
this yet.”)
Ask questions that focus on their effort and choices and get them to reflect on satisfaction
of that effort (e.g. What did you learn today? What mistake did you make that taught you
something? What did you try hard at today?)
Model this yourself as you share about your day
Jaguar Sports Page
Junior Basketball
The junior boys basketball team is in full swing! The boys started their season at Pine Grove
last week. Despite losing, the boys demonstrated perseverance and played awesome
defence. The team travels to Connaught on Thursday for an exhibition game. Team
members include: Sahil, Saqib, Xander, Aidan. Elijah, Cameron, Jason, Allan, Alexander,
Jaden and Dale. The boys practice at 3:20 on days they don't have games.
The junior girls started their season with a convincing 28-16 win over Pine Grove. They also
have an exhibition game on Thursday at Connaught. Team members include: Abbey,
Ashlyn, Ashley U. Ashley K., Layla, Hanna, Alexis, Kali, Sarah, Madison, Zaria. The girls
typically practice at 8 a.m. on days they don't have games.
The teams have 3 remaining regular season games. Next Tuesday at home against Prince of
Wales, next Thursday at Parnall, and Tuesday the 14th at home to William Hamilton Merritt.
Badminton
After the Easter Break, the intermediates will begin preparing for a regional badminton
tournament to be held in late April. 4 boys and 4 girls will be selected to play singles,
doubles, and mixed doubles.. This is a new sport for both Mr. Taylor and E.I. McCulley!! If
you have any badminton equipment that you would like to donate to our sports cupboard it
would be appreciated.
Basketball Clinic
There will be no basketball clinic on the holiday weekend. (Sat. April 4th) We will then have
two more sessions. April 11th and April 18th