In this edition:
- Dates to Remember
- Principal’s Message
- School Organization for September
- School Council Update
- Are You Moving?
- Playground/Green Committee
- From the Library
- Les nouvelles du gymnase
- Passionknitters
- Cut Off Cancer
- June Fair News
- After 4 Program for the Fall
- Community News
- Back to School Green Lunch Essentials Fundraiser
Dates to Remember
| June 29 | Last day of classes |
| September 7 | First day of classes |
| September 22 | Welcome Back Barbecue & Curriculum Night |
| September 30 | Terry Fox Run |
| October 5 | Photo Day |
| October 11 | Thanksgiving Day – No classes |
| November 10 | Photo Retake Day |
| November 11 | Remembrance Day |
| November 17 | First term reports go home |
| November 19 | Professional activity day |
| December 14 | Holiday Concert |
| December 20 – 31 | Christmas Break |
| January 3 | First day of classes after break |
| January 21 | Professional activity day |
| January 27 | French Immersion Information Night |
| February 4 | Carnaval |
| February 15 | Second term reports go home |
| February 18 | Professional activity day |
| February 21 | Family day – no classes |
| March 14 – 18 | Winter Break |
| March 21-23 | Grade 5 students go to Island School |
| April 15 | Jump Rope for Heart |
| April 22 | Good Friday – no classes |
| April 25 | Easter Monday – no classes |
| May 10 | Spring Concert |
| May 17 | Folk Fest |
| May 20 | Professional activity day |
| May 23 | Victoria Day |
| May 30 – June 10 | EQAO testing period |
| June 4 | June Fair |
| June 17 | Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast |
| June 20-22 | Grade 6 Montreal Trip |
| June 27 | Grade 6 Graduation (tentative) |
| June 28 | Reports go home |
| June 29 | Last day of classes |
| June 30 | Professional activity day |
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Principal’s Message
I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the students, staff and parents for all your encouragement and support during these last three months. This is a wonderful school community and I have enjoyed getting to know you. The students are polite, respectful and eager to learn and that is a testament to the effort and commitment of their parents and teachers.
A very special thank you to M. Pelletier, Mme Telfer and Mme Keith who were of great assistance to me in the many tasks that take place at the end of the school year. We’ve been busy organizing end-of-year events and planning for next year. There were some challenges along the way, but we also made sure to smile and share some laughs.
It has been a pleasure working here and I wish you every success next year.
Mary Ann Landry
Principal
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School Organization for September
Classes for September have been created based on the projected number of students as determined by the planning department of the Toronto District School Board and according to the Ministry of Education guidelines that have mandated primary caps of 20. At this point in time our real numbers in grades one to three are above the projections by approximately fifteen students. The board has made a decision not to allocate any extra teachers until they have firm numbers in September. As a result, this may necessitate a reorganization of classes in grades one to three mid-September. We understand that this may cause some uncertainty, but assure you that any changes will be made in careful consultation with the teachers the students had this year.
Class size numbers are high in Grades 5 and 6. The board has allocated an extra half time teacher to help alleviate this situation. Students in grade 6 will spend half the day in French instruction and half the day in English instruction, alternating teachers.
Tentative School Organization based on projected numbers
- Junior Kindergarten – Joanne Fagan
- Senior Kindergarten –Alanna Payette
- Senior Kindergarten – Melissa Miller
- Grade 1 – Lom Schelew
- Grade 1 – Megan McDonald
- Grade 1 – Suzanne Paterson
- Grade 1/2 – Emilie Elkerbout
- Grade 1/2 – Maria Martinez
- Grade 2 Hamid Mahmoudi
- Grade 2 Naaz Jetha
- Grade 2 – Christiane Turgeon
- Grade 3 – Salette Silva
- Grade 3 – Catherine Blackburn
- Grade 3 – Patricia Raymond
- Grade 3 – Philip Roy
- Grade 4 – Lynne Tyrie
- Grade 4 – Stephen Latimer
- Grade 4 – Esther Rosenwald
- Grade 5 – Paul Balsamo
- Grade 5 – Marlene Hanna
- Grade 6 – Vanessa Gagné (French)
- Grade 6 – Carolyn Bromley (English)
Support Staff
- Grade 5/6 – Sue Thomson (Science and Social Studies)
- Special Education – Sarah Pryor (Junior)
- Primary Resource – Jacinthe Marchand
- Library – Denise Drago
- Music – Xandi Neville
- Gym – Jean-Aimé Lalonde
- Gym – Jacinthe Marchand
- Drama – Sue Thomson
- Drama – to be determined
As was the case last year in this Family of Schools, parents will receive a grade and room number for their child’s September placement. There will be no teacher’s name on the report card. We are trying to eliminate any possibility of disappointing or causing undue stress to children if classes need to be restructured prior to the first day of school.
Staff Changes for September
- We say a temporary good-bye to Mme Kozlov, Mme Gélineau and Mme Advani who are each taking a leave of absence next year. We hope they enjoy the new challenges they have planned.
- Mme Carrier is extending her leave of absence and will return in January. Mme Miller will continue to cover her class in her absence.
- Mme Saad will be off on parental leave until next May. A teacher will be hired in the summer to cover her drama class while she is away.
- Mme Ranxi and M. Kerwood are moving on to new schools in September. We thank them for their service and wish them luck in their new assignments.
- Mme Issa, our half time educational assistant, will be off on parental leave next year. We have lost this staff allocation and unfortunately we will not be able to replace her.
- Philip Roy, who has been on leave this year will be returning in September.
- We are also excited to welcome some new staff members to our school.
- Jacinthe Marchand will be teaching Primary Resource and gym prep.
- Denise Drago joins us and will be our teacher librarian.
- Xandi Neville will teach music.
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School Council Update
Hello all,
We have come (at last!) to the end of another school year. What a year it has been!
Thank you to all the Chairs and fantastic volunteers who have been instrumental in running events, overseeing Kiss n’ Ride, helping with sports, Scientist in the Classroom, hours in the library, and greening the grounds, just to name a few. So many schools do not have the great parent involvement that we take for granted.
Thank you to the teachers of John Fisher. You have been so wonderful with our children all year – every morning we drop them off knowing that they get the best educational experience possible.
Thank you to the staff. You keep the children in line, answer their (and the parents!) questions, keep the school clean, watch the students at lunch, and help keep them safe.
Thank you to our Principal(s). We had lots of change this year, and MaryAnn Landry and Terry MacIssac stepped in and kept everything moving smoothly. And thanks to Robert Pelletier for that as well!
Thanks to the great students! From the JK/SK pen to the Grade 6 graduation, the students are caring and fun, and making the most of their time at John Fisher. Speaking of the Grade 6 students, congratulations to all of you for your graduation. It was an amazing ceremony, and you were all impressive.
If I have forgotten anyone, I apologize! The trouble with making a list is that I invariably leave someone important off of it.
We have filled several positions, but are still looking for new Chairs or Co-Chairs for many of our committees for next year. If you are interested in any of the following, please contact me: June Fair, Grano, Health and Safety and Building.
I look forward to 2010-2011, and seeing you all at John Fisher once again! Have a fun and safe summer, and see in you in the schoolyard in September.
Merci, et bon été!
Stefanie Cepuch
Chair, JF School Council
scepuch@rogers.com
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Playground/Green Committee
Platinum Eco-school status!
We are proud to announce that John Fisher received the Platinum Eco-School designation for the current school year. The auditors admired the environmental effort of students, parents, teachers, daycare, caretaker and administration and commended us in our teamwork. Stay tune for more information in September. Merci a tous.
Growing up green school program
Please remember to keep your 2010 Sheridan Nurseries receipts (or photocopies of) and bring them to the office in September.
Summer Watering Program
Now in our fifth year, the John Fisher Garden Watering program is aimed to keep our plants happy during very hot summer weeks. Each family is in charged, for one week, to water the garden if the weather is very hot and there has not been a lot of natural precipitation. Many families have already signed in but there are still few spots available. Please contact Alessandra Tattersall for more information.
Toyota/Evergreen
We received a very generous grant of $2,000 from Brimell Toyota to assist in the creation of our Outdoor Circle of Friendship to be installed this fall. Many thanks to Evergreen Learning Grounds and Bravo to Toyota for supporting our greening initiatives.
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Are You Moving?
If you are planning on moving out of the John Fisher Public School attendance area and will not be attending the school for the 2010/2011 school year, please contact the school office as soon as possible. This information is critical to assist us in classroom organization.
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From The Library
1. Author visit- Shane Peacock, storyteller- Marylyn Peringer
2.Statistics: approximately 4000 checkouts per month, Since 2001, 20,00 new books added to the collection, $40,000 raised for the MS Read a -thon. A recently completed inventory allowed us to do further deletions, so the collection is up to date.
3. Thanks to the parent volunteers who put in more than 20 hours of work per week: Ingrid, Margaret, Vesna, Lesley, Valentina, Valerie, Joanne, and Kathy .
4. Thanks to the Library Helpers, most of whom have put in at least 2 hours of work per week: Corrine, Emilie, Leah, Josie, Camille, Olivia, Gillian , Jennifer, Nicola, Tristan , Alexandra, Giovanna, Simone, Katarina, Jessica, Holli, Katrena, Isabelle, Lindsay, Nia and Catherine.
5. The library has doubled as a theatre this term and numerous plays were presented.
6. Northern District library will be closed for renovations during the summer, but you can visit www.torontopubliclibrary.ca and check out KidsSpace.
Happy Summer Reading,
Jacqueline Gelineau
Teacher-Librarian
Ecole John Fisher
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Les nouvelles du gymnase
Grade 5 Girls Soccer
Bravo to the Grade 5 girls who brought home another banner to John Fisher. They played hard and lost in the finals to Palmerston 0-1! We came so close to tying the game!
As many of you know, I’m on a 4 over 5, and will be taking next year off to build a log house in the Charlevoix. This was a great finale to the four years I spent coaching various Penguins teams, particularly this group. They began in Grade 2 winning the cross country running and track meets. I knew then that I would be sad to take my sabbatical when they are in Grade 6! I will miss coaching all the boys and girls who will be entering Grade 6 next year! I wish you all the best in your last year at John Fisher!
Mme Kozlov
Track and Field
Our John Fisher Track and Field athletes were amazing at the City Championships on Monday June 21st. See the results posted near the gym. I will share with you that many of our athletes placed in the top 5 of their events. And of special mention was our boys grade 6 relay team who finished first with a new city record time of 55.67 seconds! Congratulations to all who competed strongly and with great sportsmanship. Special thanks to all the parents who helped coach our team. What a great way to finish our year. Bravo!
M. Lalonde
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John Fisher Passionknitters
On Tuesday, over sixty knitters received certificates at the recognition assembly. We had an amazing group of enthusiastic knitters this year. This would not have been possible without the help of a few grandparents: Diane Vitalis, Frances Bucavec, and Barbara Larrue. Mme Larrue, in particular, has volunteered faithfully twice a week since November. She has reorganized knitting supplies, untangled yarn, designed patterns and taken home “mistakes” to fix. Barbara will be offering specialized courses next year for both beginners and experienced knitters who wish to continue in my absence. Happy knitting this summer!
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Cut Off Cancer
Be sure to grow your hair this summer! John Fisher will be hosting a “Cut Off Cancer” event during the Terry Fox Assembly on September 23. Children will be able to donate their hair to make wigs for children with cancer related hair loss. Last year’s event was a great success. Children will need 10 inches of untreated hair in order to make a donation (put hair in a pony tail and measure from the elastic). If you think your child might be interested in participating, please talk to a member of the Cut Off Cancer committee: Stefanie Cepuch, Susan Shinkoda and Benita Wassenaar. Alternatively, you can e-mail Benita at benita_w@yahoo.com. Thanks – and have a productive summer!
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June Fair News
This year’s June Fair was a great success! We had a beautiful and sunny day, there were plenty of John Fisher families in attendance and we raised over $13,000 for our School Council! Please click here for more details: http://jfps.ca/main/?p=1840
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John Fisher After 4 – Fall 2010
Don’t forget John Fisher After 4 will be offering lots of great programs for kids starting in the fall. At this time, we anticipate classes taking place on Monday and Thursday. We will have lots to offer including sports, dance, Children’s Technology Workshop, art, chess, Mad Science and much more.
Stay tuned for more details in September!
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Community News
Back to School Green Lunch Essentials Fundraiser
It’s not too late to submit your order! Fill out your order form and send to school asap. You can check out www.theduckstopshere.ca for product. Delivery will be made by the first day of school. All cheques should be made out to “John Fisher School Council”. Please contact sabrina@northto.ca for more info. Thank you!
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