District School Board of Niagara



|[pic][pic]The Cougar Chronicle |

|Martha Cullimore Public School |

|Achieving Success Together |

|M. Zeoli - Principal | December 2012 |

|B. Mayhew – Vice Principal | |

From the Vice Principal’s Desk

November certainly was a month to remember. A special thank you to Mrs. Stewart and Mr. Van Wely for organizing our Remembrance Day assembly and to all of the staff for their efforts during our “Streets Through Time” celebration.

Our students continue to work hard to achieve to their fullest potential. I have been most impressed with the exemplary behaviour that all of our students have exhibited during the first three months. Let’s continue on this path in order to attain even more successes.

As the calendar year comes to a close, I’d like to thank the Martha Cullimore community for their continued support of the staff and students of our school. I hope you take time to relax and enjoy time spent with family and friends. On behalf of Mr. Zeoli and myself, we wish you and your family all the best this Christmas season and health and happiness for the upcoming year.

Mr. Mayhew

Labour Relations Update

On Monday, December 3rd, members of the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario began job action at the DSBN.

At this time, we would like to assure you that teachers will continue to work with your children in the classroom and student learning will not be affected. Our school will continue to be a safe place as teachers will also perform all normally scheduled supervision duties.

We are committed to open and ongoing communication with you during this time. The DSBN has established a website for you to find more information about the status of labour relations at the Board. You can find updates and a list of frequently asked questions by visiting and clicking on the “Negotiations Update” link.

We thank you for your support and understanding.

Poinsettia Pick-up Reminder

Thank you to all of our families that ordered Christmas plants in support of our school. Please mark on your calendar the pick-up date of December 11th, from 1pm until 5:30pm. All proceeds will offset the cost of Dreambox and Raz-Kids, two programs that all students can access to enhance their understanding in the areas of Literacy and Math.

Hot Lunch Fridays

The Lunch Lady is serving us hot lunches on Fridays! A menu came home during the first week of school. Parents can order hot, healthy, and tasty lunches for their children. The lunches meet our nutrition guidelines and have been popular in past years. This company also supplies us with our Turkey Dog fundraisers. Please go to thelunchlady.ca for ordering information. If paying by cash, the school will collect any lunch orders and give them to The Lunch Lady every Friday when they deliver our food. Parents can order online too! There is a 48 hour notice for cancellations. Your account will be credited as the Lunch Lady does not give refunds. For more information about this, please contact Mr. Mayhew. Thank you to Mrs. Bellinger for organizing all of this!

Water Bottles for Sale

Martha Cullimore Water Bottles Make GREAT Stocking Stuffers! Only $7.00! Great for school!

Lost and Found

The Lost and Found is located outside the library near the gym. If your child has lost an item of clothing, they are encouraged to look there first. At the end of each month, all items are donated to charity.

When Your Child is Absent…

Please call the school if your child will be absent or late for classes. Our answering machine is operational 24 hours a day. We thank you in advance for your cooperation with this safe arrival program.

M&M Meat Shops School Day

Please mark down Thursday, December 6th as the M&M Meat Shops School Day. Simply shop any time during that day at your local M&M store, say that you are a parent of a child at Martha Cullimore School, and 10% of all purchases will be donated back to our school. What an easy way to offer your support!

Winter Reminders

Winter is fast approaching! Parents are kindly reminded to ensure that your child has a pair of indoor shoes that should remain at school in his/her locker. Wet, slippery floors pose possible safety issues for our children.

Please make sure that students are dressed for the weather. If December’s weather is anything like the first three months of the year, the temperature can change on a dime. Thank you for your cooperation!

An Important Message Regarding Inclement Weather Procedures

There may be times during the school year where inclement weather or other situations could cause transportation cancellations or school closures.

At times when student transportation has been cancelled and schools remain open, the decision of whether or not to have children in school on that day rests with the parent or guardian.

Should you decide not to send your child to school in the event that transportation is cancelled but schools remain open, or if your child is ill or late, please ensure that you call your child’s school to inform them of your child’s absence.

A key resource in any emergency is the DSBN Emergency Information form that you filled out at the beginning of the school year. Please let the school know of any changes in contact information or procedures you wish to be followed throughout the school year.

Information about transportation cancellations and school closures will be available as soon as it is available through the following channels:

Websites:



nsts.ca

Subscription Features:

DSBN Facebook or Twitter

NSTS Transportation Delay or Cancellation Alerts

Phone:

Niagara Student Transportation Services 905-346-0290 Voice Auto Attendant

Radio Stations:

|CKTB (610 AM) St. Catharines |CHRE (105.7 FM) St. Catharines |

|WAVE (94.7 FM) Hamilton |CHTZ-FM (97.7 FM) St. Catharines |

|CKOC (1150 AM) Hamilton |CKEY (105.1 FM) Niagara Falls/Fort Erie |

|CHML (900 AM) Hamilton |K-LITE-FM (102.9 FM) Hamilton |

| | |

| | |

Television Stations:

|CHCH – Hamilton CITY TV – Breakfast Television | |

| | |

Word Q

Word Q is a simple, yet effective writing tool for students of all ages. Some of the program features include built in word prediction, text to speech reading as well as internet reading. The text reading feature is a valuable tool for not only assisting students with their writing and reading comprehension but also with editing and proofreading as documents can be highlighted and read aloud.

This software is licensed by the Ministry of Education for DSBN staff and students to have for free at home. The Word Q product code must not be posted online or distributed to anyone that is not staff or immediate family of a DSBN student. This would be a violation of our software agreement. Word Q is available in both Windows and Mac versions.

How to Download At Home

Download directly from the Word Q website:

1. Go to m

2. On the homepage, click on “Free 30 day trial” button at top of screen.

3. On the next screen please select the “Windows” or “Mac” version you want to download. Also, at the bottom of this screen, please select the “North American English” voices. (Heather & Ryan) Once the voice package is selected, click on “Next.”

4. This last screen is your download page – Please click on the “Download” button to begin the install process.

After the download is complete, you can at any time add other voice packages – (i.e. French Canadian Louise – for those students requiring French dictionaries) These voice packages by following the link at the bottom of the website.

This is the only way to add the french voices. They are not available on the installation discs in the schools.

Important Note:

The trial that is downloaded is both the Word Q and Speak Q programs. When the 30 day trial is finished, you will be prompted to enter a serial registration code.

How to Install from a Word Q CD

1. Please request a copy of the Word Q CD from the school.

2. Insert the CD into your computer CD drive and follow the download prompts.

3. You will be prompted for a Word Q product code. The code is 152-562809-224

4. Complete the install prompts. Please return the Word Q CD to the school.

Helpful Links

Word Q Homepage -

30 Day Trial - trial

Tutorials - resources/videos

Additional Language Pack - product-details/voice-download

Helping Your Child With Math

Keep your eyes open for the many opportunities to discuss the math you encounter every day!

In our classrooms, we are exploring concepts, solving problems, talking about the math and practising the skills we use. To follow up from our classroom lessons, please have discussions with your child about what they learned in math class. Have them show you a problem they did in school and share their solution with you. Listen to their explanations and ask them questions about what they did and why it worked. This will be beneficial for all students in the class!

It is important for you to support your child at their level of understanding. Don’t show them more than what they’re ready for. Exploring the mathematics that they are doing in class more deeply is usually more beneficial than pushing ahead to get to bigger numbers or to the next concept. For example, if your child is practising adding 2 digit numbers at home (32 + 44), it is better to explore a variety of 2 digit numbers(74 + 19), rather than worrying about going ahead to 3 digit numbers. Spend time solving the 2 digit numbers in many different ways, so that your child becomes flexible in their thinking about numbers.

When helping them practise their math facts, be sure to discuss and explore the concepts behind the math they are doing. Memorizing that 4 x 6 = 24 isn’t meaningful without knowing that 4 x 6 represents 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 or 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 or that it is 4 groups of 6 or 6 groups of 4. However, finding real world situations to explore the math your child is doing in school is still the best way to help them develop a better understanding of their school math. Ask them how much will it cost them to buy that new video game for $49 and the batteries they’ll need for $15? Ask them to explain how they got their answer to you.

What are the Benefits of Learning a Second Language?

In addition to developing a lifelong ability to communicate with many people, students may enjoy other benefits of learning a second language including a “strengthening of their first language skills, enhancement of problem-solving and reasoning skills, the capacity for creative thinking, and the ability to respect and understand other cultures.” (The Ontario Curriculum, French as a Second Language: Core French, Grades 4 to 8.)

In addition, it can provide a competitive advantage in the workforce by opening up additional job opportunities. According to The Impact of Second Language Education study, there is an urgent requirement for qualified speakers of languages other than English in areas of science, technology, medicine and global commerce.

Students of foreign languages develop a deeper understanding of their own and other cultures. It will open the door to the world of art, cuisine, cinema, travel and literature. Some evidence also suggests that children who receive second language instruction are more creative and better at solving complex problems. Students who are fluent in two languages score higher in both verbal and non-verbal intelligence. They also have higher test scores in reading, language and mathematics. (College Bound Seniors: The 1992 Profile of SAT and Achievement Test Takers)

By encouraging your children to continue studying a second language, you will be equipping them with the tools they need to succeed in today’s growing world.

Comprehension Strategy:

Retell the Story

When parents ask their children what happened in school that day, the response is usually one of two things. Either they are given a play by play synopsis or they are given the single word answer “nothing”. The strategy of retelling is similar.

Retelling a story helps readers recall what is happening in the story they are reading. It allows a reader to stop and monitor their understanding. A retelling usually includes characters, setting problems, and the solution or the main ideas of the text. It involves telling what is important without telling too much. Many times children struggle with the concept of weeding out what is important. Often they either provide every single detail or they give a vague description that is hard to follow. Use the following strategies to help your child be successful in retelling.

How can you help your child with this strategy at home?

1. When reading with your child, stop to think about what you are reading. Model this process aloud. Stop and reread if you can’t remember.

2. When reading with your child, stop and have your child tell you what is happening in the story using the words: first, next, then, last and finally.

3. Use the following questions to prompt your child to think about the story being read:

• Who were the main characters?

• What problem did the main characters experience?

• How was the problem solved?

• How did the story end?

• What happened first, next, and last?

4. Allow your child to become comfortable with the strategy of retelling by retelling events they are familiar with. This is where you can help your child focus on weeding out minor details by centering their attention on what’s important. Use some of the following prompts or come up with some of your own:

• Tell me about the last time our family went out to dinner.

• Tell me about what you did at school this week.

• Tell me about a time when you went to a birthday party.

• Tell me about the first time you lost a tooth.

Thank you for your continued support at home!

Ideas and strategies are taken from: The CAFÉ book, written

by Gail Boushey & Joan Moser

Happy

Holidays

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download