Sacred Heart Catholic School

75 Hupfield Trail Toronto, Ontario M1B 4S3

416-393-5415

Principal: C. Nazar

Administrative Support Staff:

D. Fernandes Office Hours: 8:15 AM – 4:15 PM

Superintendent:

K. Malcolm 416 222-8282 ext. 2263

Community Parish:

St Barnabas Catholic Church Fr. Hansoo Park

CSPC Chair:

C. Walker

Trustee: Gary Tanuan (Ward 8)

School Hours:

9:00 AM -3:30 PM

Dear Families,

Advent is a Latin word meaning “coming.” Jesus is coming, and so Advent is a

season of preparation for His birth and arrival. Advent is a happy season of

anticipation and is a period of preparation sort of like Lent. We wish you much

joy and preparing as we await Jesus’ birth.

We hope that your preparation includes quiet reflective time to pray and

consider the hope and joy that the Christmas season brings. With the birth

of Jesus we have hope because with His arrival we know that we will have God

in human form to follow and model for us. He became one of us in perfect

form but still very much human. So this is where our hope lies – that a human

can have perfect faith, hope and charity.

In this our TCDSB Year of the Family we wish you perfect faith, hope and

charity with each other.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Yours in Christ,

C. Nazar

Principal

“The LORD gives strength to his people; the LORD blesses his people with peace.”

PSALM 29.11

The mission of our school community is to develop students that are: discerning believers, effective communicators, reflective, creative and holistic thinkers, life-long learners, collaborative contributors, caring family members, and responsible citizens. Through the partnership of our homes, our school and our church we will strive to ensure that our children reach these lofty but attainable goals.

HALLOWEEN DANCE-A-THON FUNDRAISER

Congratulations

Sacred Heart on

raising

$7143.80! We

beat our last year’s

total by a few

hundred

dollars. We had a

great day dancing and listening to fun and scary

music and visiting the haunted house. The

costumes were amazing! Many daily prizes were

handed out as well as our top prizes. Prizes

awarded were as follows:

Grand Prizes

Student Prize

Calysta C. (Primary) Toronto Raptors tickets

Adriana W (Junior) Toronto Rock tickets

Alana L (Intermediate) Toronto Raptors tickets

Top Overall Student

Michael P Framed P.K. Subban

autograph jersey

Top Class Mr. McLean - Pizza Lunch

Best costume Melia M. - civvies day of her choice for her class

We thank all our parents and students for their

support of our community. The funds raised will

go towards supporting numerous school functions

and events.

LEGO CLUB

Sacred Heart Builds….

Sacred Heart is

building ---

friendships, social

skills, team work

……..and houses, cars,

trucks, and castles.

Three times a week students meet during the

lunch hour to construct the item of their choice

and in the process develop their team building

skills, co-operative skills, and social skills. It’s a

great inspiration especially during Bullying

Awareness and Prevention Week. It will

continue all year long. Way to go Sacred Heart!

BULLYING AWARENESS AND

PREVENTION WEEK

During the week of Nov 16 -23 we participated

in Bullying Awareness and Prevention. Students

read announcements and Mr. Nazar visited

classes to discuss and distinguish between

conflict and bullying. He also talked about how

we can prevent bullying and how adults are

present to help us. He also talked about what

we can do to make Sacred Heart a happy and

safe place.

In the week after some students were asked to

share their thoughts on what they learned

during the week.

I learned that bullying is not nice. It hurts

people and you don't make friends that way. I

will always be nice to others because I want to

be treated that way. It's the golden rule. It's

hard sometimes when I get into fights

with people from my class but I still try to be

nice even though I don't understand what we

fight about or why we can't get along.

-Matthew Grade 8

Bullying is mean. I learned that it can make

people really sad. I remember that I was bullied

in Kindergarten in my old school before and I

don't want to see that on someone else. I know

to tell a grown up right away when I see it. I like

coming to school now because I have many

friends and kids from other classes who are

always nice to me.

-Ken Grade 4

I learned bullying is bad for you and for others.

My mom taught me to talk things out, be nice,

and forgive because that's what I’m supposed to

do. I also know helping others is important even

if it's something small.

-Joseph Grade 2

PARENT COUNCIL (CSPC)

Our next Parent Council Meeting will take place

in the school staff room at 6:30 on December

10. Last meeting’s attendees committed to

bringing a partner with them. See you there.

THE BEAUTIFICATION OF SACRED HEART

Sacred Heart students took to brushes and

paint as we work towards the continued

beautification of the school. Staff planted

bulbs around our school sign in anticipation of

spring. And numerous trees are being planted

around the school property. Thanks to staff and

students we’re looking better all the time.

SACRED HEART SAFETY PATROL PROGRAM

In November our community

police officers, the School

Safety Patrol and our crossing

guard were here to provide

some of our grade 7s with

safety training. We worked on

providing support for our

crossing guard, for guiding

students on and off the bus and

providing an extra pair of eyes

and ears for the bus driver. Our patrol will be

active before and after school and from time to

time during the school day on special events. We

are fortunate to have the program and have

dedicated student leadership. Thanks to our

team: Reese, Benjamin, Braiden, Jayson, Reuben,

Edric, Jaylin, Rafael and Ethan.

SACRED HEART CHRISTMAS PLAY

We are excited to

announce “THE NEW

STAR” performance by

Sacred Heart

students. It is our

Christmas play for the

Sacred Heart community. Thursday December

17 at 7:00PM. It is a school-wide production

involving many of our students. Save the date!

LE COIN DU FRANÇAIS

Mme Stephan’s students are excited about the

Christmas season and have written Christmas

wishes en Français. Not sure what they are

wishing in French? Ask your child to help

translate their Christmas wishes. Bonne Chance

and Joyeux Noël.

‘Bonjour parents et étudiants. La naissance de

Jésus Christ, notre Seigneur, approche. Avec

l’arrivée de Jésus on doit continuer de partager

l’Amour de Dieu entre nous et avec tout le monde

ici à Sacré Coeur. Je vous souhaite un Joyeux

Noël. J’espère que le Père Noël va vous laisser

un cadeau au bas de la cheminée.’

-Alana Grade 8

‘Je souhaite à toute la communauté de Sacré

Cœur (Sacred Heart) un Joyeux Noël 2015.

Réjouissez-vous avec la naissance de

Jésus Christ. Allez à l`église

avec votre famille le

jour de Noël et priez

ensemble pour votre

sécurité. Le Seigneur

sera présent en cette

belle occasion.’

-Ysabelle Grade 8

‘On est proche

de Noël! Êtes-

vous excités?

Tous les

enfants

attendent les cadeaux sous l'arbre de Noël. Mais

rappelez-vous, Noël n'est pas seulement à propos

de cadeaux, mais c’est l'anniversaire du bébé

Jésus. Passez du temps avec votre famille

pendant ces vacances. Joyeux Noël et Bonne

Année.’

-Jessica Grade 7

‘Ce « Merci » est pour vous un cadeau de Noël.

Il est chaleureux et très sincère.

Ça vient avec un souhait spécial :

Joyeux Noël et Bonne Année à tous. ‘

-Sashawna Grade 7

THE SACRED HEART WHAT?......

What are we

anyway?!?! This

month we begin a

competition to re-

name

ourselves. Students

will be encouraged to

come up with a new school logo and mascot – a

new name for ourselves. Blue Jays, Maple Leafs

and Raptors are already taken. Students will be

asked to draw a new mascot and come up with a

new nick name for Sacred Heart. With staff

and parent council with we pick a winner. The

student with the winning entry will receive

prizes!!!! From the new logo we will have a

graphic designer re-create the logo so that we

can put on our new upcoming spirit wear. We

also hope to have it painted on our gym wall. We

hope to have the winning entry picked before

Christmas and spirit wear in the spring.

EQAO 2014/2015

EQAO scores were

released in

November. While

our grade 6s

maintained or

slightly improved

since their grade 3

test, our test scores

for grade 3 last year

took a drop. We

have been working on strategies to improve our

scores. We have a School Improvement Team

which digs into our data to determine what our

needs are and how to address them. We will

continue to look at the data and determine

strategies for staff to implement with

students. Grade 3 and 6 parents will receive a

copy of their child’s achievement soon. We look

forward to the challenges ahead. Please go to

www.eqao.com and look up Sacred Heart to see

how we did.

SCHOOL-WIDE MATH PROBLEM

Last year we engaged in

week-long math problems

that the whole school

engaged in. Classes would

be divided into groups and

collaboratively address the

math problem using prior

knowledge and group

skills. At the end of the

week the responses would be displayed in the

gym and all classes would have the opportunity

view how other grades and groups answered the

question. We will have our first math problem in

December.

MATH AT HOME:

When children

are learning to

count, they

like to touch,

point to and

move objects

as they say the number aloud – so encourage

them to!

• Have your child count toys, kitchen utensils,

items of clothing as they come out of the dryer,

collections (such as stickers, buttons or rocks)

and any other items your child shows interest in

counting.

• Mix it up! Have your child count a set of

objects but start at different places in the set

(for example, start counting in the middle of the

set rather than at the beginning). This helps to

develop the idea that the counting of objects

can begin with any object in a set and the total

will still be the same.

• Sing counting songs and use counting in

meaningful ways in games, such as Hide-and-

Seek. Counting games, rhymes and songs exist in

every culture. Some counting songs and rhymes

help children to count forward and backward as

well.

• Have your child skip count (counting by twos,

fives or tens) to count larger groups of items

quickly. Use such objects as blocks, pasta pieces,

toothpicks or buttons.

PROGRESS REPORTS/PARENT-TEACHER

CONFERENCES

Our Parent-Teacher Conferences were well

attended. Parents and teachers had the

opportunity to discuss student progress and

areas of strength and need. Students have the

opportunity to consider their areas of need and

strive to improve for the first term report

card. First Term parent-teacher conferences

will be held on February 11 and 12, 2016.

DAILY PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

Sacred Heart

students have

healthy

hearts. Every day

just before lunch

and just after lunch

we have school-wide Daily Physical Activity

(DPA). Heart pumping music is played over the

school speaker system and in classrooms our

student dance leaders lead classes in our pre-

and post- lunch dances. It’s a great way to keep

us fit and active throughout the school day.

FAMILY LITERACY

Ms. Sottile’s and Ms. Cameron’s Grade One

students are participating in the Toronto

Catholic District School Boards (TCDSB) highly

successful Literacy Program. 'The Family

Literacy' Collection is a resource used to

support early literacy skills. The collection

contains 6 SETS. Each SET includes a student

book for each of the sounds contained in the set

and a CD. The collection supports phonemic

awareness and assists students in learning the

letter/sound relationships taught in the

classroom. By working in partnership, parents

and teachers are able to provide opportunities

for practice with this 'key' early reading skill.

The students are able to enjoy each SET for 2

weeks and then return and receive the next

SET.

The Grade One friends are excited and eager to

practice their skills using the 'Family Literacy'

Collection with their families who play a vital

role in their child’s literacy development.

Enjoy and READ ON!!!

ADVENT FOOD DRIVE (NOV 23rd - DEC 4th)

Sacred Heart's Me to

WE leaders have been

organizing an Advent

Food Drive in support of

the St. Vincent de Paul

Society at St. Barnabas

Church. All contributions

will be distributed in time

for Christmas to families who are in need in our

community. Please donate generously your non-

perishable food items. See attached flyer.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

The girls’ intermediate volleyball team hosted

their divisional tournament on November

9th. They won their first two matches against

St Bede and St Ignatius of Loyola but lost to St

Bartholomew. The team then crossed over to St

Gabriel Lalemant where the girls lost in a tie

breaker. The coaches, Mr. Farquharson and Mrs.

Sottile, would like to congratulate the girls on

the enormous effort they put forth this season.

Special thanks to Jessica, Brianna, Isabella,

Mary, Katherine, Keziah, Diana, Sashawna and

Melia for representing

the Sacred Heart team.

You certainly made us

proud!

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

The Intermediate Boys'

Volleyball team competed at St. Richard's

Catholic school on Tuesday, November 10th. We

were placed at a very competitive site and there

were some very close games. Our team defeated

St. Martin de Porres for our very first game by

a score of 25-17. We really showed our ability to

pass and set the ball, and our serving was

excellent! Despite having very close games with

St. Edmund Campion we weren't able to take the

lead. St. Richard's ended up winning the

tournament, and St. Richard's also won the

Regional Scarborough tournament which shows

the level of talent displayed at our tournament

site. Congratulations to all of our team members:

Kristopher, Daniel, David, Carl, Joven, Edric,

Jaylin, Javier, Braiden, Robert and Elijah.

LOST AND FOUND

Many articles of clothing, gloves and other items

are lost or misplaced by the pupils

especially in winter. Please mark

all clothing, overshoes, lunch

boxes and bags, etc. with an

indelible marker with the

child's name. A "Lost and

Found" area is maintained at

the entrance of the school

where all children and parents can

look for missing items.

YEAR BOOK 2015-2016

The Sacred Heart

Yearbook will be

available again in June

2016. Last year, our

year book was a

tremendous success.

What a great

memento of the school

year! Students can

cherish their Sacred Heart memories forever.

Year-round activities, events and pictures will be

published. Please place your order as soon as

possible to avoid disappointment. The cost is

$20 and it must be pre-ordered. No extra

copies will be available. Please fill out the order

form with your $20 cash only and send to your

child’s teacher.

DRESS FOR THE WEATHER

With less sun, more rain, and

snow coming it is

important that we

dress our children for

the changing

conditions. Ensure that

your child has

mitts/gloves, a hat, a

scarf, a warm coat and

boots. Expect that your child will go outside

every day. (From time to time we will stay inside

based on the weather conditions.)

VIRTUE ASSEMBLY

Sacred

Heart

recognized

students for

the virtue

of the

month at a

special assembly held in the gym. Students

were recognized in September for the Virtue of

Hospitality:

Chelsea B, Liam W, Yanet F, Alka C, Ajesh S,

Angelo B, Tiana-Mackenzie M, Carl F, Dannyelle

D, Ken C, and Jenay M.

Students were recognized in October for the

Virtue of Gratitude:

Christopher U, Adrian M, Tyson C, Kristofer M,

RC C, Alyssa C, Isabella W, Allison M, Via Clarize

M, Reuben A, Ysabelle M, Jerome N, Angelo A,

Congratulations to all!!

BUS CANCELLATIONS DUE TO INCLEMENT

WEATHER

Cancellation of school

bus transportation or

school closures due to

inclement weather will

be reported through

News releases, TCDSB

on twitter, Updates on

the Board’s 24-hour

information line, 416-

222-8282, ext.2873.

WE’RE GOING SKATING AGAIN

Last year we had so

much fun on our

community skate

dates at Malvern

Community Centre.

We’re going again on

Friday, December

18th. Since we’ll be

going a few times

this winter, skates

would make a great Christmas gift!!!

CHRISTMAS PICS WITH SANTA @ SACRED

HEART

The festive sprit at Sacred

Heart is in full swing. On

Friday December 11 during

the school day students can get

pictures with Santa next to our

Sacred Heart Family Christmas tree. The cost

is only $2.00 per picture. Students can have

pics with Santa individually or with siblings

($2.00 per pic.) This is also a civvies day for

students as they are encouraged to wear red and

green and Christmas attire. Pictures will be

sent home the following week. We’re looking

forward to creating life long memories.

KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATIONS BEGIN

Kindergarten registrations for 2015-2016 begin

on Thursday, January 8, 2015 10:00 a.m. EST. If

your child is born in the year 2011, please fill in

the online application at http://soar.tcdsb.org

Child's Birth Certificate (Certificate of

Citizenship or Landed Immigrant Status)

Child's Catholic Baptismal Certificate (or other

proof of Catholicity)

Proof of residency in Toronto – e.g. a utility bill

with your name and address

General information is available by telephone at

416-222-8282, ext. 5314 or via the board’s

website at www.tcdsb.org

GUIDANCE CORNER

G. Vincent

Elementary Guidance Counsellor-Area 7 & 8

During the season of Advent, encourage your

child to be charitable towards one another.

Forgiving past hurts, extending the hand of

friendship and including those who are

marginalized, is a wonderful way to put our

virtue of Charity into action.

A few excellent websites to help your child

develop self-regulation skills are:

http://www.gonoodle.com,

https://www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/Shanker.p

df, http://www.todaysparent.com/family/educat

ion/self-regulation-techniques-for-children/

Grade 8 students have been working with

the AFTER8 guide to gather information about

different aspects of high school such as: The

Credit System, Course Types, Timetables and

Special Programs. The more information

students have before going to high school, the

easier the transition becomes. Talk to your Gr. 8

child about their fears and anxieties that they

are having about going to high school, and help

them gather as much information as possible.

Your Parent Transition Guide is filled with

helpful information to answer many of your

questions.

STUDENT SAFETY AND THE PARKING LOT

Parents, this a reminder that the parking lot is

strictly for staff parking. It is not for student

drop off or pick up nor is it a

thoroughfare. Too often people are driving

through our parking to do U-turns or

park. Often those driving through our lot do it

in haste and without regard for safety. This

puts students, parents and staff at

risk. Consequently we have blocked off the main

entrance to the parking lot. Please do not use

the parking lot for drop offs or pick-ups. It is

unsafe.

SOME REMINDERS

Christmas Holidays: Saturday, December 19th

2015 until Sunday, January 3rd, 2016. Schools

re-open on Monday, January 4th, 2016.

Please make your payments to the Nutrition

Program as soon as possible in order to

ensure the smooth running of the program

UPDATE FROM OUR BOARD

Kindergarten Registrations begin Jan 13/2016

The Toronto Catholic District School Board

invites families with children born in 2012 to

register for Junior Kindergarten beginning

Wednesday, January 13, 2016 at 10 a.m. EST.

Registration options:

Online: Parents will be able to complete their

application online beginning at 10 a.m. EST on

January 13, 2016, at SOAR.tcdsb.org, and follow

up with a visit to the school to present the

required documents. The online application is

available at: https://soar.tcdsb.org/Login.aspx

In Person: Parents can register at their local

school with the required documents beginning

January 13, 2016 at 10 a.m. EST. To

accommodate the busy schedules of parents, all

elementary schools will host an evening

registration session during the month of

January. Parents are asked to contact their local

Catholic school for specific dates and times.

Registration documents:

• Child’s Birth Certificate or

Passport/Immigration documents if child

was not born in Canada

• Child's Catholic baptismal certificate (or

proof of Catholicity of parent)

• Proof of residency in Toronto (some

examples: a lease agreement, utility bill)

• Immunization Record

Information is available by telephone at 416-

222-8282 ext. 5314, or by visiting

https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/Early

Years/KindergartenRegistration/Pages/default.a

spx

Resources for Students Heading to High

School

Helping students prepare for high school

https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/Schoo

lProgramsK12/GuidanceCoopEd/Transition%20to

%20High%20School/Documents/AFTER%208%2

0TRANSITION%20GUIDE%202015.pdf

Transition Guide for Parents is available in

several languages

https://www.tcdsb.org/ProgramsServices/Schoo

lProgramsK12/GuidanceCoopEd/Transition%20to

%20High%20School/Pages/default.aspx

Archdiocese of Toronto’s Project Hope

A reminder to all that the Archdiocese of

Toronto has passed the midway point of its 100-

day “Project Hope” $3 Million Emergency

Refugee Resettlement Campaign. The goal is

supporting the settlement of 100 refugee

families within the Greater Toronto Area as

soon as possible. Schools are encouraged to

partner with their local parish to raise funds for

this worthwhile effort. Get more information

online: https://www.tcdsb.org/pages/project-

hope.aspx

Upcoming Events

International Day of Persons with

Disabilities, December 3rd

International Human Rights Day,

December 10th

Eastern Rite Christmas January 7th

Visit the website for resources

Celebrating The Year of the Family

https://www.tcdsb.org/Board/NurturingOurCat

holicCommunity/Year-of-

Family/Pages/default.aspx

WE WISH YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES A BLESSED CHRISTMAS

AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!