Centennial Connection Dec. 18, 2022

Dear Centennial Families -

We have had another terrific week at Centennial! There has been lots of hands-on learning and exciting activities in classrooms. Ask your child about what the best part of their week was at school! You might hear things like "cooking, coding, baking, microscopes, buddies, soundboards, or pastel art". The staff have been working so hard to continue to provide engaging activities for students.

The School Council hosted over 100 people on Wednesday for Family Movie Night. It was a fun way for families to be in the school, enjoy some delicious baking and snacks, and support the school. Thank you to all of the volunteers and attendees! Just over $400 was raised. Some of this money will be used to help pay off the kindergarten yard. Thank you for your support!

We have received many donations of food that will be distributed to families in the community this coming week. We are so grateful for the generosity of the Centennial families, especially at this time of year.

Friday was a "snow day" where bus transportation was cancelled due to road conditions. Just a friendly reminder that when a student is absent from school for any reason - including when buses are cancelled - that parents/guardians need to report the student's absence. This is a safety measure as some students who normally take a bus do come to school on days where transportation is cancelled. Please use the School Messenger App or call the toll free number. Information about how to use the App is included below. Students who do not have their absences submitted by a parent/guardian, will receive calls from the automated attendance system until a reason for the absence is submitted.

Wednesday is "Cozy Day" at Centennial where staff and students are encouraged to wear whatever they feel is cozy: a warm sweater, a toque, pajamas, etc. We are looking forward to some cozy reading time and cozy activities on Wednesday!

The recent weather has caused roads to be slippery and sidewalks to be treacherous. We hope everyone is having a safe weekend! We wish all families who celebrate a very Happy Hannukah, which starts today. Hanukkah Sameach!

We are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow for another (short) week of excitement and learning at Centennial.

-Deborah Thompson & Centennial PS Staff

PS - The next Centennial Connection will be sent out on Sunday January 8, 2023

Upcoming Dates

Sunday December 18

Hanukkah Starts

Tuesday December 20 - Day 2

Grade 1 classes to library

Wednesday December 21 - Day 3

Cozy Day - Spirit Day!

Winter Solstice/Yule

Friday December 22, 2022 - Sunday January 8, 2023 - School Holiday Break

DECEMBER

Sunday, December 18th - Monday, December 26th: Hanukkah
Sunday December 25th - Christmas Day
Monday December 26th - Kwanzaa
Friday, December 23rd-Sunday, January 8th: Winter Break

Safety Precautions

When the ground is frozen and there are icy conditions, there are a number of safety precautions we take at Centennial PS to help keep students safe. The forest is closed due to icy/slippery rocks and the uneven pavement. The climbers are also closed. We will open the forest and/or climbers depending on the weather and will communicate this to students through the daily announcements.

Parking Lot

We are continuing to experience some challenges with the parking lot. We have increased staff at the school who need to have a space, and there have been some "near misses" with students and families using the parking lot. As such, in the new year, the parking lot at Centennial will be for staff only from 8am-4pm. This will ensure that part time staff who arrive part way through the day will be able to find parking. Thank you for your help with this. Families who need to drive will need to park on Normal Rogers Drive as the parking lot and bus loop will not be available for parking.

Choices at Seven

The LDSB provides various opportunities for students going into Grade 7. All grade 6 students at Centennial will go to Calvin Park PS unless students apply for a different option such as ATLAS, LEAP, Challenge or Late French Immersion.

Some information is provided below and more information is available on the LDSB Choices at Seven website: https://www.limestone.on.ca/programming/choices_at_7

December 19, 2022 - January 13, 2023

All online applications for Challenge, LEAP, and ATLAS are due by Friday, January 13, 2023, by 4 p.m. Applications will not be accepted after the deadline.

January 18-27, 2023

All applicants will receive an email on January 18, 2023, outlining, in detail, the next steps of the application process (i.e., task requirements, how to submit tasks, etc.). This step if the application process must be completed by 4:00 p.m. on Friday, January 27, 2023.

Notification on Friday, March 3, 2023

All applicants who have completed the application requirements are notified by email if they are accepted, placed on the waiting list, or if they have been declined. Notifications will be sent out on Friday, March 3, after 3:30 p.m.

Acceptance by Friday, March 10, 2023

The deadline for students to accept or decline the offer to a Choices at 7 program is Friday, March 10, 2023, at 4:00 p.m.


Gingerbread play in Kindergarten	Cookie decorating in primary	Winter fun outside!

Gingerbread play in Kindergarten

Cookie decorating in primary

Winter fun outside!

School Council

The School Council meeting dates for the new year are:

* January 23rd

* February 27th - this will possibly be virtual to see if it would make it possible for more parents/guardians to attend. Decision on this will be made at the January meeting.

* April 17th

* May 15th

* June 12th

School Day

Many families are signed up for School Day! If you haven't yet, please sign up as soon as possible as moving forward all permissions and payments will be done using this online system.

Each student has received a notice that has a code specific to them, for sign up. Just a reminder that an O with a line through it is actually the number and not the letter.

If you need any help signing up for School Day just let the office know!

Please note that School Day is the only way that permissions and payments will be possible moving forward. We can no longer accept cash payments or paper permission forms.

Sign up for Triboard notices

This week one of the Centennial PS buses was cancelled by TriBoard Student Transportation. Families can sign up to receive notifications about delays and cancellations by going to the TriBoard website at: https://triboard.ca/

Indigenous Self Identification

Please see the link below for more information and to self identify, if you wish.

https://ldsb.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9U2iaUl9GIFILb0

Virtual Tutoring Opportunities

The links for the afterschool virtual tutoring have been updated.

UPDATED Links for MS Teams Virtual Tutoring (beginning November 14)

Virtual tutoring for LDSB students in Grade 1-10 is available through MS Teams from 4:00 to 6:00 pm on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from October 11 until December 15, 2022.

Tutoring will not be available on PA Days or holidays.

**Students must be logged in their Limestone Microsoft account to participate**

Grade 1-3 Literacy

Grade 4-6

Grade 7-10 Homework Help

Gr. 1 to 3 Link 1

Gr. 4 to 6 HW Link 1

Gr. 7 to 10 Link 1

Gr. 1 to 3 Link 2

Gr. 4 to 6 HW Link 2

Gr. 7 to 10 Link 2

Gr. 1 to 3 Link 3

Gr. 4 to 6 Literacy Link 1

Gr. 7 to 10 Link 3

Gr. 1 to 3 Link 4

Gr. 4 to 6 Literacy Link 2

Gr. 7 to 10 Link 4

Tutoring Supports Available

LDSB will be offering virtual learning support for students in Grades 1-10 this Fall. Virtual literacy support will be available to students in Grades 1-3 and virtual Homework Help will be offered to Grade 4-10 students. After-school drop-in sessions will be offered through MS Teams to students in specific grades from Monday to Thursday each week until December 2022. Please continue to check your school website and the LDSB website for more details and information about this program.

In addition, TVO continues to provide curriculum-based, free digital learning resources for all Ontarians this year. This brochure provides an overview of TVO’s Digital Learning Resources (2022). Included in the resources available are:

Mathify Online Math Tutoring for Grades 4-12 https://www.tvomathify.com/students

Free 1:1 online math tutoring support with Ontario Certified Teachers. Available Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 9:00 pm, and Saturdays and Sundays, 3:00 to 9:00 pm. Students/families can sign up, select a tutor and start immediately

TVO Learn https://tvolearn.com/

Over 2,100 curriculum-aligned, grade and subject-specific learning activities from Kindergarten to Grade 8 (including for the new Science and Technology curriculum
Grade 9 to 12 searchable high school content for over 140 secondary school courses

Students, Illness & Masking

A reminder for staff, students, and visitors in our schools to continue to self-screen every day before attending school using the COVID-19 school and childcare screening tool. Staff and students should stay home when sick. In addition, for a total of 10-days after the start of any illness symptom or positive Rapid Antigen Test (RAT), students and staff are expected to wear a well-fitted mask in all public settings (including schools and childcare, unless under two years old) and avoid non-essential activities where mask removal is necessary. Public Health continues to encourage people to mask in indoor, congregate settings like schools. We continue to work very closely with KFL&A Public Health as it relates to health and safety, and absences due to illness. KFL&A Public Health has created a helpful resource for school and childcare screening for families to use. If COVID-19 protocols change, they will be communicated directly with families and updated on Limestone’s COVID-19 Protocol Update webpage.

Olivers Labels

Do you need a way to label your things that stay labelled? Do you need a way to show what's yours? Need a way to label your child's things so they don't get lost or mixed up? Support Centennial Public School Council by purchasing through the link. The school receives 20% of your purchase! All funds raised go to support School Council initiatives including student activities. Thank you!

http://www.oliverslabels.com/Centennial

E-Store

Want to look spiffy and show off your pride in being a Centennial PS Comet? Check out all of the clothing and accessories available at the Centennial Public School e-store at: https://specialtytrophies.ca/centennialps/

Safe Arrival - How Do I Report An Absence?

Please use the Safe Arrival system to report your child's absence; do not call the school to report an absence. If you child is going to be absent from learning, please ensure you use the Safe Arrival system to report the absence. If your child will be late, please report a full day absence and then we will sign them in when they arrive. You cannot indicate a half day absence.

How to report your absence:

1. Toll-free telephone

Call 1-855-257-9349 toll-free to report an absence using the automated phone system.

2. School Messenger App

Use your mobile device to download and install the free SchoolMessenger blue app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store, the SchoolMessenger website portal, or from within the LDSB mobile app.
The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
Select Attendance, then select Report an Absence and follow the prompts.

3. SchoolMessenger SafeArrival Website Portal

Visit the SchoolMessenger website portal.
The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
Select Attendance, then Report an Absence and follow the prompts.