Parliament Oak News for June 2011 - Parliament Oak Public School

Parliament Oak News for June 2011
From the Principal’s Desk:
One of the most exciting things about summer is all the time children have to pursue their interests, such as sports,
summer camps and time with friends. Even though they’re on break, the summer offers many opportunities for students
to practice their reading skills and work on math concepts. For instance, have the whole family read together each day.
Take turns reading out loud, and talk about what you read. Ask children questions about the characters, why might they
be acting in a certain manner, or how might they solve a problem or a dilemma they are facing. Questions like “why” and
“how” encourage children to think about what they are reading and help them to answer questions about the text, and
provide their rationale and evidence for those answers.
You could also find ways to make hobbies educational. A child who loves to collect baseball cards, for instance, could
practice penmanship and literacy skills by writing fan letters to players. He/she could also work on math skills by
tracking players' statistics or by visiting educational websites such as coolmath.com.
Students of the Month
JK/SK1Nicholas Kononyuk, Penelope McClure
JK/SK2Sophie Hawthorne, Ava Randall
1. . ... . Rachel Aitken, Alison Kocsis
2/3. . . Lucas Michlik, Molly Woods
3/4. . . Nick Simmonds, Marlow Davis, Zack Green,
Max Schiff-Malins
5 .... Carrie Robinson, Bailey Nevestuk, Hannah
Schaaf
6 .... Nicole Aitken, Ben Batson-Feuer,
7/8 .. . Lavinia Chu, Tait Robinson
Staff Changes
We would like to say farewell to Mrs. Hamdani who has
accepted a position as an Area Resource Teacher with
School Support Services. Good luck also goes out to Mr.
Mead, who is ending his long term placement at
Parliament Oak School. We wish you every success in
your teaching career.
Construction Zone
th
As of June 30 Parliament Oak School will be deemed a
construction zone. This means that no one will be
permitted on school property without a hard had and steel
toe shoes. With construction comes packing up. Every
room in the school will be impacted by the construction
and will need to be packed up by the last day of school. If
you are able to volunteer to help pack classrooms and
resource rooms please let any staff member know and we
will put you to work. Our hope is to be permitted back
into the school by the end of August but we will not know
this until close to that date. The school website will be
updated throughout the summer with construction
updates.
Are You Moving?
If you are planning to move over the summer, and will it
mean a change of school for your child? Please let the
school office know immediately.
Kindergarten Registration
Students may still be registered for September JK and SK
classes. PLEASE DO IT NOW!!
It makes starting up in September
much easier to have students
registered now!
School Materials
Please return any school owned textbooks and
materials as soon as possible. We need to
inventory these to ensure that our supply is
adequate for next year and that necessary
materials are ordered. If your child has
misplaced a library book or textbook, they will be
asked to help cover the cost of a replacement. Bills for lost
materials will be sent home in mid-June. Your cooperation
is very much appreciated.
Report Cards
Final Report Cards for students in JK to grade 8 will go
home on Tuesday, June 28th. We encourage all parents to
help your child recognize their accomplishments and to set
goals for next year. We ask that parents return the third
page for term three to the school no later than Wednesday,
th
June 29 or mail it to the school.
School Opening
School begins on Tuesday, September 6th at 8:45
AM. The school office is open from August 30thto
September 2nd for new registrations.
Grade 8 Graduation
Graduation will be held on Tuesday, June 28th at
6:00 p.m. in our gymnasium. A dinner following
the ceremony will be catered by Savoia.
Final Assembly
Parents are invited to attend the final assembly of this
school year at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 29th in the
gym.
Declining Enrolment and Split Grades
In recent years the number of elementary students in the
District School Board of Niagara (DSBN) has been
declining. In fact, a declining enrolment is the projection
for the future as well. Fewer students in the schools will
lead to fewer classes and that will create situations where
two grades will be combined into a split grade. Many
parents have concerns about their child being placed into
a split grade but research shows that there is no
detrimental effects for students who are placed in these
classes. In a split grade students have leadership,
friendship, and curriculum opportunities that are the
same as in a straight grade. The staff and administration
of Parliament Oak Public School are aware there are
perceptions in the community regarding split grades. As a

staff, we consider the needs of all of the students before we
create the class lists that are utilized in September. Some
of the concerns that we take into consideration are: male
/female ratio, work habits, social issues, academic
groupings, emotional maturity, and personality types.
There will be split grades at Parliament Oak in the
upcoming 2011-2012 school year. The staffing process is
dynamic and may not be finalized until the week before
school starts. Because of this, we can not publish class
lists until we are certain there will be no more changes. As
we complete the staffing process every consideration will
be given to creating classes that will allow all of the
Parliament Oak students to achieve success in a positive
learning environment.
We are still accepting applications for the NEW
French Immersion Programs at Parliament Oak
P.S. for September 2011!
Students presently in Grade 4 and in Grade 6 in Niagaraon
-the-Lake have the opportunity to apply for the new
Grade 5 and Grade 7 French Immersion programs at
Parliament Oak P.S. for September 2011. The French
Immersion programs are designed to provide English
speaking children with opportunities to become highly
proficient in French as well as in English. For more
information please contact Kelly McDonnell at 905-227-
5551 ext. 52402, Lorraine Gower, FSL Consultant, ext.
52220 or Nicole Morin at 905-227-5551 ext. 52316.
Student Placements 2011-2012
If a parent has any concerns for their child’s
placement in the upcoming 2011-2012 school
year, please submit your concerns, in writing, to
Mrs. Hadfield by Monday, June 6, 2011. Please be
as specific as possible regarding your concerns.
Every effort will be made to address a parent’s
concern, but please be reminded that not all concerns can
be honoured.
Porter’s Garden
There will be a dedication of Porter’s Garden on June 16
for Parliament Oak students and parents. A note will be
sent home closer to the date with the exact time.
Parliament Oak Staff and students along with the Parent
Council would like to thank Penner’s Lumber, Michelle
Hawthorne and Seaway Gardens for their material
donations towards Porter's Garden. The following families
also made financial or material contributions: Gibson,
Perron/Cochrane, Towndrow/Rider, Eadie, Voth,
Ciazynski, Michlik, Wilson, Lapointe, Moncion,
Bannerman and Dubois. Also, the School Council from
Princess Margaret School made a donation.We hope the
garden will provide a place of quiet reflection for parents
and students at Parliament Oak.
From Your School Council
It is hard to believe the school year is almost at an end. We
have had a productive year on Parent Council. At our last
meeting, we voted to split our remaining fundraising
funds on new soccer posts, Young Authors Day, new
sports shorts for teams, and Grade 8 Graduation trophies.
Funds raised at the Pasta Dinner will go towards the
Learning Commons. Our Parent Council Executive for next
year will be Mary Towndrow (Chair), Sharon Michlik
(Treasurer) and Heather Davis (Secretary).
News from the Library!
All library books are due on Friday June 4.
Counting all 5610 library books takes a lot of time so
search your bookshelves, closets, night tables, lockers and
even under your beds and start returning those library
books to school.
Our library collection has over 5600 books and during the
spring and summer many more new books will be added
to the Parliament Oak library to promote literacy and
numeracy for all students. One of the main goals of the
library is to promote reading for pleasure and I’m sure that
the Parliament Oak library has something for everyone.
In order to encourage students to continue reading during
the summer, I am again offering the “Summer Reading
Club”. During the last 2 weeks of June students currently
in Grades 1-7 will have the opportunity to join the
Summer Reading Club and sign out 10 books for their
summer reading. That’s one book for each week of the
summer. In September students who completed their
reading will have the chance to win some great prizes and
enjoy and an Ice Cream Sundae Celebration. Permission
forms for the Summer Reading Club will be available from
Mrs. Hamdani early in June. To help kick off the Summer
Reading Club, Parliament Oak will be hosting a Scholastic
Book Fair the week of June 20-24th. A flyer will be
distributed next week to get a sneak peek at the “Hot
Picks”.
Track and Field
On Wednesday, May 26th, Parliament Oak had over 40
athletes travel to Pride Field in Ridgeway to compete in our
area Track and Field Meet. It was a beautiful and sunny
day filled with great results for the Parliament Oak team.
This year we will have 6 students traveling to the D.S.B.N.
Track and Field Meet to compete against the top track and
field athletes in the board. Congratulations to Beth deBoer,
Rosie Tait, Justice Ball, Cort Day, Ben Batson Feuer and
Will Cowling. Good Luck at D.S.B.N.
Variety Show
Parliament Oak students will display their talents at our
variety show on Tuesday, June 21 at 1:45 pm. Donations
of canned goods for Newark Neighbours will be accepted at
the door.
Congratulations to Naoise McCarthy, who placed first in
two divisions and second in two divisions at the Grade 9
and 10 levels at the Kiwanis Festival. Naoise also played
for us at the Student of the Month Assembly and will be a
feature in our Variety Show.
International Luncheon
Students will be participating in a Multicultural Festival
and experience the traditions of cultures from around the
world. Brock University’s International Students will be
conducting workshops in the morning. Students will then
be treated to an international buffet at 12:30 in the gym,
followed by cultural performances at 2:00pm.
We are asking families to contribute a cultural dish, if they
th
can, and bring it to the school on Wednesday June 15 by
11:00 a.m. Food items should not contain nuts and be
able to feed up to 10 people. Drinks and ice cream will be
provided. Please complete the buffet form and let the
school know what your family will be contributing.
Students are welcome to act as ambassadors of their
culture by dressing in their traditional clothing.

ECO Team News
Our ECO School Ontario inspection was May 18th. We
have not yet been notified about the results, so
fingers crossed that we achieved another GOLD status for
the important goal to decrease our personal footprints on
the environment.
Thank you to the parents, Ingrid Engeli and Ina
Kononyuk, the ECO Team, students and Lauren Inglis for
helping with the beautification of the school gardens. An
EXCELLENT effort was made by all and the gardens look
great! The Inukshuk and plaque will be added to the
Outdoor Garden this month. We have also received a
$1000 grant from Green Apple to purchase a water bottle
refilling station. It will be installed with the construction
this summer.
Safety Reminders
Please be reminded of a few safety rules:
bicycles are to be walked on and off of school
property.
students must wear helmets if they are riding their
bikes to school.
skateboards and rollerblades are to be carried on
school property.
students with ‘heelie’ type shoes must have the
wheels removed while on school property.
students are to walk on the pathways in front of
the school or on the south end of the school.
Students should not walk through the parking lot.
Dress Code Reminder
With the warmer summer weather finally here, please
review our dress code printed in the student organizer.
Students may be provided with a large cover up t-shirt or
sent home to change when necessary. Parents will be
contacted. Also, flip flops are not the best footwear choice
in which to run and play. To avoid stubbed toes, wear
running shoes.
The majority of school boards throughout Ontario are
facing the challenge of declining enrolment because of
changing demographics. Parents are having fewer children
later in life, which reduces the number of students starting
Kindergarten each year.
One way school boards can address the issues of declining
enrolment and aging facilities is through accommodation
reviews. Through this process, education can be
rejuvenated by building some new schools, consolidating
some schools, renovating some schools and closing some
schools. At their most recent meeting, Trustees passed a
Facilities Planning report which examines how to provide
optimal learning spaces for students by initiating three
phases of accommodation reviews beginning in September,
2011. Phase one accommodation reviews will undertake
an in-depth study of central and south St. Catharines and
Thorold secondary schools as well as elementary schools
in Fort Erie.
Over the coming months, Board staff will begin to
assemble an Accommodation Review Committee (ARC) for
the two reviews. Each committee will undertake an indepth
study of the school planning areas and provide
recommendations that will help guide Trustees in their
decision making. Each ARC will include a business
community member and/or a municipal representative,
parents, a trustee, and DSBN staff. All ARC meetings will
be open to the public, and the public will also have an
opportunity to provide feedback during specially scheduled
public meetings.
Moving forward, our goal is to continue serving students
with excellent programs. The accommodation review
process will ensure that funding is spent on enriching the
educational opportunities for students
The full report, along with information about
accommodation reviews is available at www.dsbn.org/arc.
Lost and Found
Our lost and found is full of valuable, useful clothing.
Please ask your child to check the bin and have a look
yourself if your child is missing some items before June
16th. Anything left in our lost and found after this date
will be sent to a community agency that accepts clothing.
QSP Fundraising
This coming fall our school will be providing the opportunity
to renew and/or purchase new magazine subscriptions
through the QSP Family Reading Fundraising Program.
Please ignore any notices from the publishers asking you to
renew now and instead, support our school’s fundraising
efforts in the fall. Please share this message with other family
and friends who order through our program. As always, you
will receive the best price while our school retains a
substantial portion as profit (approx. 40%).
Thank you for your continued support!
Planning Today to Energize Education Tomorrow
During the 2009/10 school year, the DSBN engaged in a
system-wide review of our school buildings which enabled
trustees to gain an overview of how our facilities are being
used, and to identify potential areas for growth and
revitalization in the future.