Greetings Parents and Guardians,

Ash Wednesday, February 22, 2023, marked the beginning of Lent. This year, Pope Francis is calling upon us to listen to Jesus’ teachings and the stories of our brothers and sisters in need. According to him we must focus on truth and love. Lent is a time to repent, ask for God’s forgiveness and serve others.

Thank you to parents that were able to support supervision of students at the Raptor's 905 game. Thank you also to the parents that volunteered to make pancakes on Shrove Tuesday for all students. Pancakes were served to classes as they gathered in the foyer at various times in the morning. Everyone enjoyed the fluffy pancakes and hot chocolate. We are grateful to the Catholic School Council for organizing and funding this event.

Thank you to our Youth Faith Ambassadors. They promoted the virtue of Respect throughout the month of February, using morning announcements as a time to share examples of what respect looks like.

We are also grateful for our Eco Team. They continue to promote initiatives that will hopefully allow us to maintain our Platinum level for Eco Schools. Currently we are collecting batteries. Please use a piece of masking tape to cover the positive terminal of batteries to prevent

them from coming into contact with other terminals, metal objects or batteries. This could cause a short circuit or even a fire in some cases.

The Virtue for the month of March is "Kindness". To inspire doing acts of kindness we are having a 40 Days of Kindness challenge (see image below). Note, the challenge includes acts of kindness at home. If each one of us does a random act of kindness, maybe we can help bring about change in our community. We will be having our Easter food drive at the end of March. More information will be sent out after the break. The choir will be singing at a Lenten mass at the school Board office (40 Matheson Blvd. W.) on March 29th. The Mass begins at 11:00 a.m. Parents are welcome to attend the mass. Our Virtues assembly will be held on March 29th in the afternoon. Our school Lenten mass will be celebrated by Fr. Mark at 9:30 a.m. on March 31st. All are welcome to attend both of these celebrations.

We continue to pray for the victims and families of the war in Ukraine and the earthquakes in Syria and Turkey. We also pray for those who work tirelessly to support refugees, those who are displaced and those who get trapped in the rubble of continued earthquakes. May the Spirit of God continue to provide all with the strength and hope to carry on their mission of mercy.

God bless,

K. Ferrao

Principal

Below you will find the names of the students that best demonstrated the virtue of self control and the OCSGE "I have ideas; I make good choices". May their actions inspire others to demonstrate virtues and OCSGEs in action.

Please report absences using the School Messenger. This system was implemented last year and can be accessed through their Toll-Free phone number: 1-844-435-3440.

If you are new to the school or have not set up School Messenger, please click on the following link: https://www3.dpcdsb.org/parents/absence-reporting

This will take you to the school board website to find the information and videos you may need to set up the absence reporting system. Note please report absences by 9:00 a.m. After 9:00 am., please call the school at 905-824-5777.

Students need to arrive at school before the bell rings at 9:00 am. We have been having a number of students who are arriving late. Please help your child to be on time to school as lost minutes leads to lost learning .

Click below to download Trustee Brea Corbet's newsletter.

During March Break Riverwood Conservancy has some upcoming events which you may view using the following link: https://theriverwoodconservancy.org/bblinkid=266971335&bbemailid=45950466&bbejrid=-1669930734

- offer free in-person and virtual programs for all ages like book clubs, storytimes, social activities, crafts and more. https://www.mississauga.ca/library/programs/

Below you will find a pdf version of the above image. Download so that links are active.

With the extreme cold weather, we ask that students dress appropriately i.e. hats, gloves, snowpants, boots, etc. When students are dressed warmly, they are better prepared to participate in outdoor activities during recess. In the colder weather, we receive requests to allow children to remain indoors when students have a cold, flu, etc. Please note that we cannot comply, as we neither have the facilities or the staff to supervise the students. On extremely cold days, when the wind chill factor lowers temperature considerably we will limit the amount of time that students spend outdoors. Dufferin-Peel C.D.S.B. Policy uses a wind chill factor of -25 C as the determining temperature for having students remain inside. We will monitor the weather conditions daily and make decisions based on weather conditions. Also please review with your child the importance of not throwing and kicking snow or ice as this can cause serious injures. As a school we continue to review winter safety such as the importance of leaving snow on the ground and not sliding on the ice. These rules are in place to keep everyone safe.

We have a collection of mittens, snowpants, coats, hats, etc. in our lost and found box in the front foyer. If your child is missing anything, please encourage him/her to visit the lost and found and claim their belongings. You may also look through these items on February 16 (p.m.) and February 17 (during the day) when you come for interviews with your child's parent. We are hoping that items will be claimed by March 10th. Those that are not claimed will be donated to needy families.

Kids Help Phone

• For children and youth between the ages of 5 and 20

• Provides professional counselling and information and referrals for mental health, addictions and well-being

• Phone and online via web post or live chat

• Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

• Free, anonymous and confidential

Call: 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868

Good2Talk

• For people between the ages of 17-25

• For post-secondary students in Ontario

• Provides professional counselling and information and referrals for mental health, addictions and well-being

• Free, confidential and anonymous helpline

• Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

Call: 1-866-925-5454

Mental Health Helpline

• All ages

• Provides information about counselling services and supports in your community

• Listens, offers support and provide strategies to help you meet your goals

• Provides basic education about mental illness

Call: 1-866-531-2600

School Mental Health Ontario also has resources available for students, parents and families on their website at https://smho-smso.ca/

March

7- Rosary Apostolate

8- International Day of Women

9- In-school chess tournament

12- Daylight savings begins (clocks move ahead one hour)

13-17 - March Break

20 - Solemnity of St. Joseph

20- International Day of Happiness

20 - First day of Spring

21- World Down Syndrome Day & International Day for the Elimination of Discrimination

22 - World Water Day; Great Gulp; Big Crunch

24- In-school Earth Hour

25- Earth Hour (8:30-9:30 p.m.)

25- Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

29 - Choir @ Board office (a.m.); Virtues Assembly (p.m.)

30 - Mississauga North Family of Schools Chess Tournament

31 - School Lenten Mass @ 9:30 a.m. in the gym

April

2- Palm Sunday

6 - Holy Thursday; School Dental Screening (JK, SK, 2, 4, 6, 8)

7- Good Friday

10- Easter Monday

11- Rosary Apostolate

14 - Eastern rite Good Friday; Gr 3 @ Swim to Survive Session 1 (a.m.)

16 - Eastern rite Easter Sunday

17 & 18 - School Dental Screening (JK, SK, 2, 4, 6, 8)

21 - Virtues Assembly (p.m.); Gr 3 @ Swim to Survive session 2 (a.m.)

24 - Catholic School Council Meeting @ 7:00 p.m. in the library

28- Gr 3 @ Swim to Survive session 3 (a.m.)

30-May 5 - Catholic Education Week

May:

1-5 - Catholic Education Week

4 - Staff meeting; CEW Liturgy

6 - Sacrament of First Communion @ 12 noon @ St. Josephine Bakhita Church

9 - Sacrament of Confirmation @ 6 p.m. @ St. Josephine Bakhita Church

22 - Victoria Day

26- Virtues Assembly

June

1 - Intermediate trip

8 - Year End Mass

12 - PA Day

21 - Virtues Assembly

22 - Grade 8 Graduation 6:30 p.m. in the gym

23 - Kindergarten Celebration of Learning (a.m.);

27 - reports go home

30 - last day of classes

Don't Forget to Get yourself set up on School CashOnline as we are no longer able accept cash payment.

Please follow the link below to register online - it takes less than two minutes!

https://dpcdsb.schoolcashonline.com

You will need your child’s name and date of birth. Use of student number is optional.

Should you encounter any difficulties, you can use the parent help desk at 1 (866) 961-1803 or the support link on the school cash online website.

PAY WITH: Credit Card or Debit Card

1. Create Your Profile:

Go to https://dpcdsb.schoolcashonline.com/ and click on "Get Started Today".

2. Confirm Your Email:

Check your inbox for the email confirmation and click on the link inside. Sign in with your new login details.

3. Add a Student

Click "Add Student" and fill in the required fields with your child’s details:

1. School Board name

2. Select a school

3. Legal First Name

4. Legal Last Name

5. Birth Date (Month/Day/Year)