Wednesday, December 07, 2016
Friday, November 04, 2016
Friday, October 28, 2016
Sunday, October 16, 2016
TEACHING CHILDREN TO BE SAFE IN OUR COMMUNITY
It’s time
to remind children about being safe in our community.
It’s
a good time for parents to remind children about personal safety.
Here's
what children need to know:
- Their name, age,
telephone number, address, city and province. This can be done through rhyme or song.
- How to contact
their parents at any time, by memorizing cell or work numbers.
- How and under what
circumstances to call 911.
- To never approach
or enter a stranger's vehicle. A
responsible adult would never ask a child for directions or any other
question for that matter.
- Make sure they
know they have a right to say "no" to an adult, especially when
the adult is asking them to do something they have been taught is wrong or
feels uncomfortable. Reminding
children of this right is important because children are taught from a
young age to respect adults.
- To always tell
parents where they will be and to never enter someone's home without their
parent's permission.
- If home alone,
never admit it when answering the phone. Never answer a knock at the door
or speak through it. Adults can be
very persuasive. Teach your child
to call you if there is a knock at the door and if they fear for their
safety, teach them to call 911.
Make sure they know that police officers are there to help them and
would not get mad if it were a false alarm.
- If they think they
are being followed or are in danger they should run home or to a public
place. If someone grabs them, they
should try to get away, yelling and screaming while doing so.
- It is important to
play in safe areas, never take shortcuts and stick with a buddy whenever
possible.
It
is never too early or too late to teach children the importance of personal
safety. Common sense, communication and
consistency are the keys. Remind children to alert a responsible adult if
something strange happens that makes them feel uncomfortable. Remember, crime
prevention is everyone's responsibility.
For
more information on this subject, visit www.yrp.ca.
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Monday, September 19, 2016
Saturday, September 10, 2016
September Newsletter
Welcome back and Bienvenue to another great year at Joseph A. Gibson!
The Joseph A. Gibson Blog is a means of electronic communication that the school uses to keep our parent community informed. Monthly newsletters and important school information will be posted here throughout the year. When items have been posted, they will automatically be sent to your email between 5 and 7 pm that same day. We look forward to staying connected with you!
Please click on the following link for the September Newsletter.
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
Wednesday, June 01, 2016
Saturday, May 21, 2016
FRENCH IMMERSION ORIENTATION EVENING HIGHLIGHTS - MAY 19, 2016
French Immersion Orientation Evening Highlights
Program Overview:
•
Designed for students whose first language is not
French
•
In French
Immersion, students learn French and also learn IN French.
•
All subjects are
taught in French as it is important that they acquire strong French oral skills in order to learn to read,
write and learn science, math, etc. in French.
•
For the first few
months of Grade 1, the children do not acquire skills identical to those
learned by children in an English program as the focus is on building French
literacy skills to support their learning in French.
•
A blend of
English and French is part of regular instruction from September to January
•
In January, all
instruction; teacher/student conversation and learning is only in French and
students are expected to be able to express themselves in French
•
Classes taught by teachers trained in second language
instruction
•
Grade 1-3: program is taught entirely in French
•
Grade
4-8: 50% English instruction begins; Math taught in English
First Few Months in French Immersion:
•
The first month may be challenging and your
child will experience some frustration.
•
Monitor how your child is feeling about class
and learning French. Is he/she happy,
sad, finding the program difficult?
•
Speak regularly with the homeroom teacher to
discuss your child’s progress
•
Contact the teacher if you have any concerns.
Accommodation/Organization:
•
Joseph
A. Gibson is a dual track French Immersion school housing only Grade 1 French
Immersion students
•
All
Gr. 1 FI students will go to Julliard PS for Grade 2 to 8 French Immersion
•
There
are currently 4 Grade 1 French Immersion classes for September, 2016.
Attendance:
•
Ensure that your child attends daily and
punctually
•
Avoid extended absences as this will greatly
impact French language acquisition
•
PLEASE CALL the school
before 8:30 am to report that your child’s late or absence
•
YRDSB
Safe Arrival Program Procedure instructs that we must contact the POLICE
if we are unable to confirm a child’s absence.
•
To
assist parents, there is an answering machine to record messages of lates and absences
any time.
Schedule of the Day:
•
8:30 am – 3:00 pm
•
Recess: 10:10 am – 10:40 am
•
Lunch:
12:20 pm – 1:20 pm
•
Supervision of students in the morning starts at
8:15 am and finishes at the end of the day at 3:15 pm
Communication:
•
French agendas will be on sale for all students
in September
•
Class communication from teachers may
come in the form of Classroom Blogs, newsletters, phone calls or notes in the
agenda
•
School communication is through email
blasts, monthly newsletters, letters, Welcome screen in the front hall, school
website.
Transportation:
•
Buses and stops are assigned by the Board’s
central office
•
Make sure that you provide accurate and
up-to-date information.
•
Check web site www.schoolbuscity.com in August to see
where your child’s bus stop will be.
•
Be at the stop 5-10 minutes before pick-up time
•
Plan to attend the Bus Rider Safety Program in
August
•
Do not drive your child to school if at all
possible. This creates an unsafe situation in front of the school and the
safety of all our students is of the utmost importance.
Final Reminders:
•
Ensure your child attends school punctually and
every day.
•
Monitor your child’s daily homework activities.
•
Be involved by showing interest in your child’s
new vocabulary, structures, songs and learn with your child.
•
Review your child’s daily communication book and
check your child’s bag nightly
for handouts, notes and/or homework.
•
Communicate regularly with your child’s teacher,
regarding your child’s progress, especially in the first couple of months.
•
Read to your child in your first language and in
English; and talk about it together.
•
Give your child age-appropriate
responsibilities.
•
Teach your child to accept responsibility for
his/her actions.
•
Ensure
your child has indoor and outdoor shoes (Velcro shoes are best if your child is
unable to tie their own shoes).
•
Include
a change of clothes in their backpack.
•
Participate in school events and/or join our
School Council.
•
Volunteer
at the school OR become a School Lunch Assistant
French Links:
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
Painting at Joseph A. Gibson P.S.
May 10, 2016
Dear Parents/Guardians:
Please be advised that our school is scheduled to have painting take place in the
near future. The painting of selected areas within the school has been tentatively scheduled to start on Monday, May 16, 2016 and will take a few weeks to complete.
The areas which will be painted are as follows:
The paint used by the York Region District School Board is a water based (latex)
product. Individuals that are not hypersensitive to latex paint should suffer no ill
effects. Manufacturer Safety Data Sheets (M.S.D.S.) will be on site for your
convenience.
Please contact the school if you require further information at (905) 832-1291.
Sincerely,
Claudia Fischer
Principal
Dear Parents/Guardians:
Re: Scheduled Painting
Please be advised that our school is scheduled to have painting take place in the
near future. The painting of selected areas within the school has been tentatively scheduled to start on Monday, May 16, 2016 and will take a few weeks to complete.
The areas which will be painted are as follows:
- Second floor hallway
- First floor hallway
- Front entrance
The paint used by the York Region District School Board is a water based (latex)
product. Individuals that are not hypersensitive to latex paint should suffer no ill
effects. Manufacturer Safety Data Sheets (M.S.D.S.) will be on site for your
convenience.
Please contact the school if you require further information at (905) 832-1291.
Sincerely,
Claudia Fischer
Principal
Friday, May 06, 2016
Monday, April 04, 2016
EQAO Sessions for Grade 3 and 6 Students
April 4, 2016
Dear Parents and Guardians:
Re:
Upcoming EQAO Assessments
Between May 25
and June 8, your
child will be taking part in the provincial Assessment of Reading, Writing and
Mathematics, Primary Division (Grades 1–3) or Junior Division (Grades 4-6).
This assessment is administered to all Grade 3 and 6 students in Ontario’s
publicly funded school system by the Education Quality and Accountability
Office (EQAO), an independent agency of the Government of Ontario.
This assessment consists of two booklets
assessing language and a third booklet assessing mathematics. Each booklet is
made up of two sections, for a total of six sections. Each section will take
about one hour to complete. The administration of the six sections will be
spread out across the two-week window.
EQAO assessment questions are directly
based on the expectations set out in The
Ontario Curriculum, which is what teachers teach in the classroom every
day. Therefore, your child does not need to prepare in any special way. Students
will write the test in their regular
classrooms with their regular teachers and are simply encouraged to do their
best and show what they know.
In September, EQAO will send our
school a report on your child’s achievement on the assessment, and we will send
it home at that time. Your child’s results are private and will give you an
indication of his or her achievement in relation to Ontario’s high provincial
standard. The standard, or Level 3, represents the range from B– to
B+. Meeting the standard means your child has a solid grasp of the required
knowledge and skills, which is a good indication that he or she will be ready
for the next grade. The results of the assessment do
not affect your child’s grades or report card in any way. They do, however, give
you information about your child’s progress to add to the overall picture.
You can use the information that EQAO assessment
results provide about your child’s strengths and areas needing improvement to
celebrate his or her progress. It can help you in discussions with teachers. We
can use it as a school community, along with other information, to guide our
school improvement initiatives for reading, writing and mathematics. This
benefits not only your child but all the students in our school. The results
are also used by our school board and the Ministry of Education to direct
attention and resources where they are needed.
For more information about EQAO and to view a sample
of its assessments, you are encouraged to visit www.eqao.com.
Sincerely,
Claudia Fischer
Principal
Gr. 1 French Immersion Orientation Session - May 19 th
April 1, 2016
Dear Parents/Guardians,
I would like to invite you and your child to come to Joseph
A Gibson PS on May 19 from 7 – 8 p.m. for
a French Immersion orientation session. We will explain the procedures for the
first day of school and give a short tour of the first floor of the
school. The children will be shown where
the bus lets them off and where to line up.
We will make a brief presentation to parents in the gym and will also be
available if you have any questions. Please
RSVP to the school at (905)832-1291 to let us know whether or not you will be
attending this session.
We have
developed some learning resources
for the incoming grade one students that we will hand out at the orientation. Also
available is learning package which includes a CD and materials by Jacquot, a
francophone entertainer whose songs are very popular with young French
Immersion students (and their teachers). The cost of the learning package is $10.00 (a real bargain!) and I trust
all of you will take advantage of this learning opportunity for your
child. The learning package will be available at the orientation session. ($10.00 payable by cash or please make
cheque payable to JA Gibson PS). If
you cannot attend the orientation session and would like the learning resources and/or the learning package – please contact the
office. We would like all students to be familiar with the vocabulary
and the songs presented in the learning package.
For your information, the school’s hours are 8:30 a.m. to
3:00 p.m. Most of our students are
bussed and you will be able to access information about transportation toward
the end of the summer on the web site www.schoolbuscity.com. Please
ensure that you have provided the correct information regarding daycare or
after school arrangements: This is especially important for the first week of
school, as the safety of your children is our primary concern. Please do
not call the school about bussing issues as we do not have the information.
Finally, if your child is a first time bus rider, I strongly encourage you to
attend the training program offered by Student Transportation Services of York
Region at the end of August (please check www.schoolbuscity.com for information
about date and location).
Feel free to contact the school if you have any questions.
I look forward to a productive partnership throughout your
child’s grade 1 school year.
Bien à vous,
Claudia Fischer
Principal
Thursday, March 24, 2016
DON'T FORGET....
Our BEACH DAY Spirit Day has been changed to Friday, April 1, 2016.
SPRING PHOTO Day is on Tuesday, March 29, 2016.
Also, there is no school this Friday,
March 25th and Monday, March 28th due to
Easter Weekend.
Enjoy the long weekend with friends and family!
Enjoy the long weekend with friends and family!
Wednesday, March 02, 2016
Friday, January 29, 2016
Gibson Spirit Wear on Sale now!
Gibson Spirit wear on sale now. Deadline for orders is February 13, 2016. Sizes samples are available in the office.
Click on the following link for an order form Gibson Spirit Wear on Sale Now!
Click on the following link for an order form Gibson Spirit Wear on Sale Now!
GRADE 8 GRADUATION - SAVE THE DATE
The Gibson graduation
committee met recently; and with input from our Grade 8 students, we have
finalized the following date for this year’s Grade 8 Graduation:
SAVE THE DATE!
GRADE 8 GRADUATION
is on
Thursday, June 23, 2016
More detailed information will
follow closer to that date. In preparation for this occasion, attached
you will find some information about Maple’s Closet event dates held at Maple
High School.
Thank you and if you have any
questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me or your child’s teacher.
ADDITIONAL ELEMENTARY and SECONDARY PA DAYS
Additional
Elementary and Secondary P.A. Days
As a result of provincial labour negotiations, a P.A. Day has been added for all York
Region District School Board elementary schools on Friday, May 6, 2016 and
secondary schools on Friday, June 3, 2016. You can see the full updated
school year calendars on YRDSB’s website.
These additional P.A. Days are mandated by the Ministry of
Education. On these dates, teachers will be taking part in professional
development on provincial education priorities identified by the Ministry of
Education.
Friday, January 22, 2016
Family Potluck - Thurs. Feb. 11, 2016
Family Potluck - February 11, 2016
6-8 p.m.
at
Joseph A. Gibson
We invite students and their immediate families to celebrate our diverse cultural community and to share in the positive spirit with a Family Potluck on Thursday February 11, 2016, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in the Joseph A. Gibson gym.
Bring in your favourite cultural dish to share, indicating all the ingredients (to inform those with food allergies). Please remember, no nuts or nut products are to be used in preparing the dish.
Paper plates, plastic utensils, napkins and assorted beverages will be provided. All children must be accompanied by their parent.
Come out for a fun event for all!
Grade 8 Graduation Photos
Grade 8 Graduation photos will be taken on the morning of Tuesday, January 26, 2016.
Dress your best and don't be late!
Information packages were sent home with all grade 8 students earlier this week. Please check with your child.
Monday, January 04, 2016
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)