DATE: December 2013

Website:

https://schools.peelschools.org/1357

e-mail: clifton.ps@peelsb.com

telephone: 905-277-2611

Principal: Mr. J.B. Watson

Vice Principal: Ms T Noble

Office manager: Mrs. S. Piotrowski

Office assistant: Ms. A. Alfonso

We are officially half

way through Term 1!

Many of you met with

teachers to discuss

your child’s progress.

This was a wonderful

opportunity for you to

hear about the many

exciting things that

your child has been

working on and for you

to set goals for the

remainder of the term.

We encourage you to

continue these

conversations with your

child and his/her

teacher. Working

together as partners in

the learning process has

a significant impact on

achievement.

There is a chill in the

air!!! It won’t be long

now before the cold

weather sets in and the

snow flies. Time to pull

out the winter jackets,

snow pants, mitts and

hats. Please ensure

that your child comes to

school prepared for the

cold weather. We

continue to go outside

for all recesses during

the winter. Only on

the coldest days when

the temperature falls

below -25 degrees

Celsius, do the

students stay indoors.

Be sure to spend some

quality time with your

family this holiday. It

is a wonderful time to

rest, relax and have

fun with family and

friends!

SAFETY Teachers who are providing school yard supervision start at

8:15 a.m. Children should NOT be arriving at school before that

time. Recesses are supervised by teachers. School yard

supervision ends at 3:15 p.m. Students should be picked up

from school by this time.

Superintendent of Education:

Mr. Anthony Edwards

School Trustee:

Mrs. Janet McDougald

The Final Weeks of 2013

Important Dates:

Dec. 2: Food Drive begins

Dec. 13: ACE Assembly (am)

Dec. 18: Winter Concert

Dec. 19: Last day of School for

2013

Dec. 20: P.A. Day—no school for

students

Jan. 6: First day back for

students

Jan. 20: P.A. Day

Kiss and Ride/Parking at Clifton

Teacher supervision of the Kiss and Ride area begins at 8:15am. Please avoid parking your car in this area so

that kids can be dropped off efficiently in the morning or picked up in the afternoon.

Many cars are being parked in the Fire Lane or in the Kiss and Ride lanes. Please obey the No Parking signs

and if there aren’t any parking spots available, please park in an appropriate parking spot on the street.

Pizza Days

Every Wednesday is Pizza Day at

Clifton. Students from

Kindergarten to Grade 5 can

purchase a slice of Cheese or

Pepperoni pizza for $2.

Money is collected each Friday and

pizza is delivered on Wednesday.

Mission Statement: At Clifton Public School all members of our Learning Community (students, staff and parents) will

work together in a safe and caring environment to achieve their personal best (academically, socially, and emotionally).

Author Karen Patkau Visits Clifton

Clifton had a visit from author/illustrator Karen Patkau on Nov. 21. Grades 3, 4, and 5 students learned about ecosystems and climate change through her

new award-winning environmental series "Who Needs a Swamp?" , "Who

Needs a Jungle?" and "Who Needs an Iceberg?" . These books and other

Karen Patkau resources are available for students to borrow from the

library.

Cooksville Library

The grade 4 students visited the

Cooksville library on November 6 to learn

about the Read to Succeed program.

Students got to browse in the library and

borrow a book. Two of our students have

already visited the library 3 times since

then and have their name on the Clifton

Read to Succeed Wall of Fame - well

done!

From the Library

Bookflix is a new on-line literacy resource for students from Kindergarten to grade 3. Students can read/listen

to fiction and non-fiction books on many different topics. Clifton students have been exploring this resource at

school during computer periods. It is also available to students at home:

www.peelshools.org Click on Students + More. Click on Library eResources. Click on Bookflix. Username is

peeldsb, password is peel8567

Take a few minutes to check out this fun on-line resource with your child!

United Way

During November, all schools in the Peel board participate in a United Way fundraiser. Here at Clifton, one of

the ways we are raising money is by selling cookies at lunch recess. So far we have raised more than $700 for

the United Way and we will be selling cookies in early December too. Clifton staff and students, give yourself a

pat on the back for doing your part to help the United Way!

Spirit Days

We are showing our school spirit and raising money for United Way! Our Princi-

pal’s Council asked the question to students at Clifton, “What spirit days would

you like to see?” Students are still responding on our Principal’s Council Wall

but some of the suggestions have been hat day, PJ day, backwards day. Our

first spirit day was LOONEY day! Everyone dressed up as crazy and “looney” as

could be. We had so much fun showing our school spirit!

When your child is

absent

Please Call Us!

At

905-277-2611

Students working hard in many areas at Clifton

Classrooms are a busy place at Clifton. Our school celebrates amazing work

that our students do every day. On December 13, 2013 we will be having our

first ACE awards are for students who excel academically, how excellent citi-

zenship in class and around the school, and show great effort and determination

in all that they do. These students receive a certificate for their efforts. We

are very proud of all the recipients and encourage each and every student at

Clifton to strive to receive one of these awards.

Students have also been setting rigorous reading goals for the STAR Reading

Program. Each month, students set a goal around the number of books they will

read. They track their progress and celebrate their efforts by becoming STAR

Readers if they achieve their goal. Please set some time to review these goals

with your child and encourage them to read daily.

Star Readers

Grade 1: Sally, Jewels, Maharosh, Michael, Mahima, Mikaeel, Dhruv, Ishan, Swarit,

Israel, Diya, Nayanika, Lucy, Adrian, Agan, Jimmy, Aigboje, Hamdan, Gustavo, Kaydin,

Marjan, Ana, Jashwanth, Aastha, Numair, Sajenie

Grade 2: Oltion, Alaa, Abdullah, Sharabi, Istikhar, Noor, Achita, Valeria, Thomas,

Kamal, Hafsa, Rafeh, Sara, Stefan, Hana, Urmi, Ioannis, Hannan, Zainab, Agneya,

Mahin, Jason, Carter, Rayyan, Sahil, Imad, Rudra, Parsa, Eshaan, Adam, Aryan,

Jayden, Michael, Ahmed B., Krishh

Grade 3: Elyas, Soliman, Sulaiman, Mic, Ali, Fatima F., Krirushan, Drilon, Krrish,

Khadija, Anas, Kelly, Hadia, Naeemah, Dharav, Abdelrahman, Linda, Javeria, Amina,

Ginny, Albi, Minire, Samuel, Muhammad, Jaerra, Libby, Meerjan, Ustat, Alisa, Essa,

Omar, Bilal, Eric, Ahmed, Josh, Dylan

Grade 4: Aleena, Abdelrahman, Ioanna, Maham, Ryan, Amna, Selena, Dijana, Kain,

Aaran, Harsh, Zahin, Suha, Stathi, Konstantina, Edris, Ahmed, Ryan, Logan, Brooke,

Rebecca, Pravan, Marge, Mustafa, Teena, Suvedha, Harsh, Shaheer, Gheath, Vivien,

Zaina

Grade 5: Rina, Jay, Saleema, Zanyah, Noorjan, Julie, Kinjal, Christina, Mujda, Huda,

Maha, Anas, Abeeha, Melina, Hania, Nadar, Maria, Basmah, Faisal, Fatima

Grade 1 students who reach their monthly goal receive a small prize each month.

Grades 2-5 students who reach their monthly goal are working towards STAR year

end rewards!

PLAN

AHEAD

School year ends: June

27, 2014

# Instructional days: 188

# Professional Activity

days: 6

SCHOOL HOLIDAYS

Labour Day: Sept 2, 2013

Thanksgiving Day: Oct 14,

2013

Winter Break (inclusive):

Dec 23, 2013—Jan 3, 2014

Family Day: Feb 17, 2014

Spring Break (inclusive):

Mar 10-14, 2014

Good Friday: Apr. 18, 2014

Easter Monday: Apr 21,

2014

Victoria Day: May 19,

2014

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY DAYS

Professional Learning:

Oct. 11, 2013

Reporting to Parents: Nov

8, 2013

Ministry Designated Day:

Dec. 20, 2013

Report Card

Writing/Assessment: Jan

20, 2014

Principal’s Council

Our Principal’s Council is hard at work helping to

make Clifton a fun and exciting place for every-

one. This council is for students in grade 4 and 5.

The council meets monthly to plan out a variety

of exciting activities for our students.

Clifton Public School

2389 Cliff Road

Mississauga ON

L5A 2P1

Phone: 905-277-2611

Fax: 905-277-4965

Email: clifton.ps@peelsb.com

Website: https://

schools.peelschools.org/1357

Is having a great time

at Clifton Public School!

The Students at Clifton Public School continue to amaze Mrs. Hope with their

choices. Students choose the veggies each week and we just can’t seem to make

enough celery. We tried broccoli and it was also chosen by students. Way to go

Clifton.

We introduced a pre-order system for the Grade one students in November and

were excited about the response. Grade One students can choose to pre-order or

continue to come down to Mrs. Hope’s Healthy Snacks and make their own choices.

The pre-order system is working wonderfully for the Kindergarten students who

love Mrs. Hope’s Healthy Snack Day.

Parents making pre-orders can choose snacks for Mrs. Hope’s Healthy Snack Day,

but they can also choose to order snacks that can last the week as well.

See you on Tuesdays at Mrs. Hope’s Healthy Snacks Clifton students.

This document is important. Please have it translated.

Professional Activity Day on Dec. 20, 2013

As you know from our school year calendar, Dec. 20, 2013, is a Professional Activity Day. Students will not be at

school on this day.

Traditionally, school staff participate in professional learning activities on these days. However, the Ministry of

Education has designated Dec. 20 as unpaid day for some staff and a professional development day for others.

Based on new provincial legislation, permanent teachers, both elementary and secondary, will take Dec. 20 as an

unpaid day and are not required to be at work on that day. In some cases, principals and vice-principals will choose

to take this day as an unpaid day and will also not be present in their schools. In other cases, administrators will

choose to take an unpaid day at another time and will be at school on Dec. 20.

Dec. 20 is a regular, paid work day for all other Peel board staff members and many will participate in

professional learning offered through the board on this day.

Register for French Immersion by Jan. 31, 2014

Are you thinking of registering your child for French Immersion (FI)? For the 2014-15 school year, parents must

register children for entry into grade 1 FI by 4 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 31, 2014.

Registration for FI will be done through an online registration form that will be available on Nov. 22 at

www.peelschools.org/parents/programs/French/registration.

The FI school for our area is Corsair PS. The phone number is 905-279-1511

Registration process

A grade 1 FI enrolment cap is in place. This means that a specific number of spots are available for students

entering grade 1 FI. If the number of students registered by the deadline exceeds the number of spots in grade

1 FI, a random selection process system will be used to identify students gaining entrance into the grade 1 FI

program.

All students who make the registration deadline will be placed in a random selection process and assigned a rank

using a computerized random selection process. Spots are not assigned on a first come, first served basis.

Once students have been assigned to all available spots, remaining students will be placed, again in rank order, on

the school's waitlist.

Some students will be automatically placed in grade 1 FI. To find out if your child does not need to participate in

the random selection process, and for more information about the random selection and waitlist processes, visit

www.peelschools.org/parents/programs/French/registration.

How to get more information

Visit the Peel board website—www.peelschools.org/parents/programs/French/registration.

Call Corsair PS at 905-279-1511.

Visit the Canadian Parents for French website at www.cpfont.on.ca.

Closing schools because of bad weather

During the winter months, we may need to cancel buses or close schools because of bad weather.

The board decides by 6:30 a.m. whether to cancel buses or close schools. To find out if busing is can-

celled or schools closed, visit www.peelschools.org or call 905-890-1010 or

1-800-668-1146. You will receive one of the following messages:

Peel District School Board buses are cancelled. Schools remain open for students and staff, but

buses are cancelled. Buses will remain cancelled all day. All activities that require busing will also be

cancelled. Permits, night school classes, daycare and other activities in schools will operate as usual.

All Peel District School Board schools and board offices are closed. Due to weather

conditions, schools and board offices are closed to students and staff. All activities in schools and

board offices are also cancelled, including daycare, night school and permits.

All evening programs and permits at the Peel District School Board are cancelled. Due to weather

conditions, all activities in schools and board offices are cancelled, including continuing education

courses and events. The buildings will be closed.

All weekend programs and permits at the Peel District School Board are cancelled. Due to weather

conditions, all activities in schools and board offices are cancelled, including continuing education

courses and events. The buildings will be closed.

You can also follow @Peelschools on Twitter or become a fan of the Peel board on Facebook,

www.facebook.com/peelschools, for updates.

It’s almost time to register for kindergarten

Join us for a Kindergarten Live! open house in December to learn more

Do you have a young children that will start school in the next year or two? If so, join us for a Kindergarten Live! information session to learn more about the Peel board’s full-day kindergarten program and how to register your

children for school. Four elementary schools in Peel will host Kindergarten Live! information sessions in December

where Explore Guides will takes families on a small group tour to see a kindergarten class in action, find out about

play-based learning and have the opportunity to ask questions about special education.

Kindergarten Live! information sessions will take place at the following Peel elementary schools in December:

Queen Street Public School in Brampton

Caledon East Public School in Caledon

Clarkson Public School in Mississauga

Marvin Heights Public School in Mississauga

For more information or to register for an information session, visit http://www.peelschools.org/parents/

kindergarten.

If your child was born in 2010, he or she can start kindergarten in September 2014. All Peel elementary schools

will be open for kindergarten registration from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Feb. 4, 5, 6 and 7 and from 5 to 8 p.m. on Feb.

6.

Traffic safety in our community

Safety is a top priority at our school. Here is a list of traffic tips to keep students, staff and parents safe while

commuting to and from school.

Respect traffic signs and road markers around the school.

Drive slowly and with caution on and near school property. Adhere to the posted speed limits on any

surrounding streets used by students on their way to and from school.

Always yield to pedestrian traffic. Wait for students, staff members and parents to cross before driving past

them.

When dropping your child off at the school, use the Kiss'n'Ride area. This is a supervised area that is

designed to keep students safe.

Do not double park or do anything else to block traffic or draw your child off the curb and into traffic. Do not

take shortcuts over curbs.

Have your child ready to exit the car when you reach the curb. Say goodbye to your child before you park at

the curb to let your child out of your car.

During regular drop-off times, students are to remain in the car until it is safe for them to exit the car onto

the curb.

Follow the directions of staff or volunteers on duty in the school parking lot and treat staff, students,

volunteers, passengers and other drivers with respect.

Consider parking off site and walking a short distance to school. This will give you time to talk to your children

about their day, review new vocabulary words, math concepts, etc.

Remind your child to only cross the street at an intersection or crosswalk. They should never “jaywalk” by

crossing in the middle of the street.

Celebrating Faith and Culture—December 2013