Administrators’ Message..

“Achievement, Equity & Innovation”

DONALD COUSENS P.S.

By Phone: (905) 202-8120 Principal: Tracey Cox Vice Principal: Robin Cockburn

By E-mail: donald.cousens@yrdsb.ca Administrative Team: Anne Beare/Louisa Lee/Daisy Shen

By Fax: (905)202-8121 Superintendent: Dan Wu (905) 940-7800

On the Web: www.donaldcousens.ps.yrdsb.ca Trustee: Allan Tam

December 2014

315 Mingay Ave. Markham, Ontario. L6E 1T5

Thank you for joining us at Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews. We had a fantastic turnout,

and our students benefit from the partnership we have together. As part of our learning

focus, we are working on using open-ended tasks and questions, as well as promoting ac-

countable talk in the math classroom to assist us on improving how our students communi-

cate their thinking with enough clarity, depth and evidence for others to understand. You

can help by asking your children about what they are learning in math each day.

We are super proud of our Boys and Girls Intermediate Volleyball teams again this year, as

they represented our school very well at our recent area tournaments.

We continue to grow and change at DCPS. A few recent changes include saying goodbye to

three of our amazing caretakers who are either taking some time to further their own edu-

cation, or have secured permanent placements in neighbouring schools. They have been

assets to our team and we wish them well in their new roles. We also welcome our new

Kindergarten teacher, Ms. Jeyanagum. Ms. Jeyanagum has taken over for Ms. Darragh,

who is awaiting a new baby.

As the holidays draw near, on behalf of the DCPS staff, we would like to wish you and your

family a happy holiday season. We’ll see everyone back to school on January 5, 2015!

Your partner in education ,

Tracey Cox Robin Cockburn

Principal Vice-Principal

Dec. 11 - Primary Concert

starting at 6:30 - children are

to arrive at 6:15

Dec. 12 - Spirit Day wear your

“Holiday Sweater”

Dec. 15 - Get Outside Club -

Skating at the Markham Civic

Centre 7:00 - 8:00

Dec. 15 - Grade 6-8 Poetry

Slam

Dec. 18 - Junior Intermediate

Concert starting at 6:30 - chil-

dren are to arrive at 6:15

Dec. 19 - Character Assembly

in the morning

Dec. 19 - Last day of school

before the Holiday Break

Jan. 5 - First day back to

school

Jan. 13 - Info Night for Par-

ents on Internet Safety by

YRP - School Library at 6:30

Jan. 15 - Grade 8 Night at Bur

Oak S.S.

Jan. 16 - PA Day

Jan. 16 - Kindergarten Regis-

tration Begins

Upcoming Events

For December

Grade 1 - 3 Holiday Concert - Thursday December 11 at 6:30

Grade 4 - 8 Holiday Concert - Thursday December 18 at 6:30

Gift Cards will be handed out on December 18th at the Grade 4 - 8

Holiday Concert.

Parent Council will make sure that Gift Card Orders for JK - 3 are

delivered to the families if your child is not in the Concert on

December 18th.

Kindergarten Registration to Commence January 16, 2015

Kindergarten registration will commence on January 16, 2015 for the 2015-16 school year. Registration forms are available on YRDSB’s website: www.yrdsb.ca. Children who turn four or five years old during 2015, live within the school bound-ary and whose parents are public school tax supporters will be eligible to register for kindergarten. A kindergarten information session for parents is being planned for this spring. For more information please visit the YRDSB website or contact your local school.

French Immersion Information Sessions and Registrations

Information sessions for the French Immersion (FI) program will take place at Sam Chapman P.S. on January 15, 2015 at 7 p.m. FI registration will begin January 16, 2015. In order to streamline the registration process, parents or guardians of Senior Kindergarten students entering Grade 1 in 2015, and wishing to enrol in the FI Program, can visit or call the school office and request an Office Index Card - short version. The Office Index Card must be signed by the principal of the home school. Parents or guardians then take this form, along with one piece of identification showing their address to Donald Cousens P.S. to register between January 16 and February 13, 2015. This eliminates the need to provide du-plicate enrollment information or to pre-register. YRDSB’s FI Accommodation Plan provides long-term consistency and equity of access to all students in York Region and will enable YRDSB to continue to offer the FI program to all who wish to enrol. The FI program will be offered in Dual Track or Single Track settings, in a variety of configurations. In order to meet community needs and optimize available space in our schools, a community's Grade 1-8 FI program may be provided over more than one school during the course of a student's FI education. This will allow flexibility in addressing community needs and the opportunity to use existing space in schools. More information is available on the Board’s website: www.yrdsb.ca. Please note: Some of the FI accommodation plans will require facility modifications or the development of new schools and will require short-term transition plans that might include overflow while we work toward the long-term vision. Overflow refers to situa-tions in which the Board directs students to attend a school other than their community school or optional program for a specific period of time, as defined in Policy #108.

Congratulations Donald Cousens P.S.

This year, the Education Quality and Accountability Office

(EQAO) presented Donald Cousens PS with the Dr. Bette

M. Stephenson Recognition of Achievement Award. Donald

Cousens Public School was recognized for making effective

use of EQAO data and evidence from other sources to en-

hance and support student achievement. DCPS was noted

for their demonstration of leadership, proactive initiatives

and sincere effort to help every child succeed. The team at

the school has adopted an action plan based on their

unique circumstances and are working toward improved

student outcomes. This is recognition for the work of the

entire school team, both present and past. The school story

and accomplishments of the staff at DCPS can be found in an article featured on the EQAO

website. DCPS proudly celebrates their accomplishments and would like to thank the staff and

parent community for their support of our school, our programs, and their contributions for as-

sisting us in making a positive difference in the lives of the students!

Thank you for supporting our Holiday Gift Card Fundraiser

Thank you to all the parents who supported our Holiday Gift Card fundraiser! We’re pleased to report that we made $535 profit which will directly benefit DCPS students. A special thank you to members of our fundraising committee for coordinating details and for tallying orders totalling $9,761. Gift cards will be available for pick up at the holiday concerts. Math night

Our School Council Vice Chair, Kelly Rhyness and a few members of our council attended a “Math Night for Parents” at William Armstrong Public School in November. Keynote speaker, Trevor Brown, Associate Professor, Tyndale University shared how parents can help their children do their math homework. Please join us at our next school council meeting as our council attendees share what they learned. The EQAO wants to hear from you Ontario's Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) is seeking input from stakeholders and the general public on a new Strategic Plan that will guide its work for the next five years. You can participate in an online survey at: http://eqao.fluidsurveys.com/s/EQAOStrategicPlan/

Coming soon – Math workshops for parents

Early in the New Year we’ll begin coordinating interactive family math workshops to help parents better support their children with their math homework. Ms. Saxton and Ms. Woo along with school council members Kelly Rhyness and Sana Khan will be on the organizing committee to provide these evenings of learning for parents. The math workshops are made possible through a Parents Reaching Out grant. The workshops will introduce parents to the math curriculum and provide tools, strategies and resources to support learning at home. Look out for dates and times in the New Year. Resources for parents

You may find the following resources helpful… Measuring What Matters, What does real success look like in our schools, and how do we measure it? People for Education Special Education Support (video) Helping your kids succeed in school (video)

School Council Message

Updates to the Health and Physical Education curriculum Representatives from each parent council were recently invited to complete a survey as part of the Ministry of Education’s consultation regarding an updated Health and Physical Education curriculum. School Council Chair, Julie McFayden completed the survey on behalf of DCPS. The insights shared by parents will be considered alongside academic literature, expert advice and the extensive consultations already completed to finalize the curriculum, develop parent or educator resources and to plan for the curriculum’s successful implementation in partnership with educators, parents and the community.

Information on the curriculum review process and survey questions are as follows: Background Information for Parents A reference copy of the survey Ms. Cox will share the updated curriculum with parents as soon as it’s available. The updated curriculum will come into effect in September 2015.

May your homes be filled with the joy of family and friends this holiday season. Have a safe and Happy New Year!

See you in 2015! Your School Council

Next School Council Meeting:

January 15, 2015, 6:30 - 7:30 pm, Learning Resource Centre

Babysitting provided

Want to stay informed about School Council activities? Join our mailing list at:

donald.cousens.ps@sc.yrdsb.edu.on.ca.

View the November meeting minutes here:

Message From Our Trustee

As we near the end of 2014, I hope everyone has had a great school year so far and found opportunities to get involved with the

life of the school. Partnerships with families are essential to student achievement and well-being, and to creating a caring and

supportive learning environment in which students can thrive.

There are many ways for families to get involved – from volunteering with the school and getting involved with the school council

to attending school events, communicating with your child’s teacher and supporting learning at home. However you choose to

get involved, know that you are making a difference.

Earlier this year, the Board of Trustees reviewed and revised our Multi-Year Plan, the plan which guides system direction. The plan

continues to have a sharp focus on student achievement and well-being, the delivery of effective and sustainable educational pro-

grams and the stewardship of Board resources.

Thanks to your support and the hard work and commitment of our staff, students, families and community partners, we continue

to move forward in achieving our goals. As an elected trustee and an advocate for high quality public education, I am committed

to ensuring the highest quality public education possible for our students and their families.

Best wishes to everyone for a safe and happy holiday season and a wonderful start to the new year. I hope you are able to enjoy

time with family and friends.

December Library News

Winter and the holiday season have arrived! The library is a festive place and we are pleased to be featuring seasonal selections this month to celebrate the Winter Season, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza and the New Year! Students and parents are reminded to have books back to the library before leaving for the break. This helps us reign in some of our overdue books and helps prevent loss and damage of resources. We will let students know if they have any outstanding books before leaving for the break.

A Gift That Keeps on Giving

With the holiday season fast approaching, the library is pleased to be bringing back book dedications for the whole month of December! Dedicating a library book to a staff member is a great way to support the school and help us continue to build our library collection. This is how it works…

From now until Wednesday, December 17th, students are invited to come to the library to select a brand new book to dedicate to a staff member. Once a book has been selected, we will help the student write a message (pasted into the front cover of the book), and wrap it up for the staff member to open. On the day before the holiday break, our library “elves” deliver the dedicated books to their recipients, who open the books and enjoy them over the holiday. After the holiday, the books will be returned to the library for others to enjoy, and the wonderful dedication will remain on the inside!

It costs $5 to dedicate a soft cover book, and $10 to dedicate a hardcover book. All proceeds go toward purchasing new books and library resources.

Ask your youngest child for the form and send it back in the agenda if you are interested.

Starting this month…

Our grade 4, 5 and 6 have the opportunity to participate in the Forest of Reading®. We will

be running book clubs for the Silver Birch® Award (Fiction and Express categories)

beginning December 1st. This voluntary reading club provides students an opportunity to

read several Canadian titles and then cast a vote for their favourite book to help select the

2015 Forest of Reading winners.

Students who choose to be part of the club read the ten titles on the list, and then vote for

their favourite (they must read a minimum of 5 fiction title or all of the Express titles to be

eligible to vote). Voting happens throughout the month of April, when our grade 4-6

students will participate in selecting the winner of the Silver Birch® Fiction and Silver Birch®

Express Awards. In addition to reading all of the selected text, students in this club must

commit to attending regular meetings and check-ins.

We are happy to “open” our student gallery of artwork in the library! Each month or so we will be selecting different pieces of student artwork from around the school to frame and display for our students and school community to enjoy. This month’s featured artists are:

Featured Artists Featured Artists

Sophie SK Baig Class Gr. 3 Currie

John SK Baig Jayden Gr. 4 Patmanathan

Mikayla SK Mendoza Saumya Gr. 5 Forrest

Sam SK Vardakas Jerry M. Gr. 5 Burbidge

Ivy Gr. 1 Briggs Aaron Gr. 5 Mpindu

Lucas Gr. 1 Briggs Kelly Gr. 5 Mpindu

Rachsel Gr. 2 Arjun Various 7 Vejin

Harry Gr. 2 Arjun Ivy 8 Bouroukis

Tony Gr. 2 Ahmad Jason L. 8 Russell

gallery

Pyjama Day!!!

On Friday November 21, the Student Council Team hosted our annual Pyjama Day! We had an amazing response by the students in our school, as classes were lit-tered with stuffed animals and hundreds of pyjamas. What an amazing sight to see!

The class winner for this Spirit Day was Ms. Cian-ferro's grade 2 class! We would like to congratulate them for being full of spirit, and for supporting the school! They earned the Dragon Trophy! If your class did not win this time, it's ok! There will be many other spirit filled opportunities for your class to participate in and shine! Keep up the great spirit, DCPS!

By Kogul

Night Hike with the “Get Outside Club” By Jevir (Grade 4) and Jasnoor (Grade 3)

On Tuesday November 25 my cousin and I joined a club called “Get

Outside". Our first activity was hiking in a forest with a guide.

There were our moms, us, Mrs. Ducheck and her kids. During our

hike we learned about trees like red pine, white pine, beech and ma-

ple trees. We found out how to tell the difference between white

pine and red pine. A white pine has five needles and a red pine has

two long needles. A beech tree doesn’t lose its leaves, the leaves

change colour and get crispy but they do not fall off in the winter.

When the wind blows it makes a nice musical

sound. We also learned about the animals that live in the forest like

owls and coyotes. We made owl sounds like “Whooooo Cooooks Foooor

Youuuu” and “Woooo Hooo Wooo Hooo” for coyotes. We made the

sounds for a long time but didn’t see them. We

learned a lot of things in the forest because we

went to a forest in real life which was better than

reading about it in a book. Seeing it made it more

fun! I think everyone should take the time to come

to the next “Get Outside” with your parents. I know

we can’t wait to see what we will do next time!

INTERMEDIATE GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

The Intermediate Girls Volleyball Team concluded a very successful season this past month. We fielded

a highly skilled team who worked very well to support each other, both on and off the court. In our

friendly match-ups against teams from John McCrae, Mount Joy, Unionville, and Wismer, our group ex-

perienced a variety of valuable game situations that included one-sided victories and very close come-

from-behind wins. In a tournament at David Suzuki PS, we dominated round-robin play and missed cap-

turing the championship by a few points.

At the recent Area tournament, our girls worked very hard to in our round-robin pool against teams

from Castlemore, Parkview, Unionville, and Beckett Farms to advance into the playoffs. However, we

met our match against a tough squad from Stonebridge PS in the quarter-

finals who ended our season in a best-of-three series.

Our girls made very significant strides this season and showed tremendous

courage, character, and good old fashioned DCPS spirit! We are very proud of

you all!

A special thanks to Aggie, Christina W (Gr. 8), Priya, Rylee, Thanuka, Chris-

tina W. (Gr. 7), Janus, Krisshny, Kristine, Piramitha, Sanjana, and Yasmeen.

Congratulations on a great season!

THE DONALD

COUSENS

PUBLIC SCHOOL

CODE OF BEHAVIOUR

Our goal is to develop students who are responsible, well man-

nered, sensitive to the needs of others, self disci-plined, and proud of their accomplishments. Through demonstrations of these behaviours and attitudes, students will experience rewarding inter-personal relationships and positive learning.

Students are expected to:

Always be courteous, respectful and respon-

sible.

Treat others as they would like to be treated.

Be punctual and prepared. Have all their

work completed and submitted on time and bring everything they will need to each class.

Conduct themselves in such a way as to

bring respect and honour to them, their fam-ily and the school at all times.

Dress in a manner which reflects their per-

sonal taste but does not take away from the moral tone of the school.

Enjoy their free time. Play only games and

activities which DO NOT involve rough play or endanger the safety of others.

Finish their work. Plan ahead. Do their

genuine best.

Participate in extra-curricular activities.

Develop a sense of fair play. Learn to coop-erate with students and staff.

Help others and seek help when needed.

Demonstrate their concern for the environ-

ment. Use the garbage and recycling con-tainers provided to keep our environment neat and clean.

Inappropriate behaviour will result in a logical conse-quence. Consequences will be based upon the frequency and the severity of the infraction.

The following consequences may be used:

• Discussion/written assignment

• Temporary withdrawal of privileges

• Parental involvement

• Replacement of damaged/lost materials

• Temporary removal from class

• Suspension

• Expulsion

Equity and Inclusivity Message for this Month:

DCPS values and respects diversity and inclusivity.

To support all students in becoming healthy and con-

tributing members of society, strengths, needs and

barriers to learning are identified and responded to as

part of a whole-school approach. We expect empathy,

mutual respect and understanding to be demonstrated

in our words and actions.

Parents/guardians play a critical role in the education

of their children and in supporting their social, emo-

tional and academic growth Parent(s)/Guardian(s)

and Community Partners are responsible for:

supporting school staff and students in promot-

ing a caring and safe school climate, in accor-

dance with Board priorities, policies and proce-

dures and the school code of conduct

modeling and supporting the development of

healthy attitudes, behaviours and relationships in

support of positive behavioural expectations

understanding that students are accountable for

inappropriate student behaviour that has a nega-

tive impact on the school climate, whether occur-

ring on or off school property and/or during a

school related activity or event

We have attached a mini-version of our School Code

of Conduct for your reference.

Have a safe, caring, and happy holiday!