Precious Blood Catholic School

Volume 6 Issue 1

P.B.S. Express!December 2015

Virtue for December - Charity

Celebration of the Advent Mass

On Friday, 11th December, Precious Blood joined the students and

staff from St. Kevin’s and St. Cath-erine’s to celebrate the Advent Mass. Fr. Stephen in his homily challenged the students and staff to prepare for Christmas with a time of prayer and reconciliation, similar to the season of Lent. A special thanks is extended to the Inter-mediate teachers for their contribu-tion to the organization and prepa-ration of the Eucha-rist, for the altar servers from Precious Blood and Mr and Mrs. Soraine for leading the congregation in the singing.

Prepare ye the Way of the Lord

Grade 8 Confirmation

Congratulations to the Grade 8 students who were confirmed at the 5:00 pm Mass at Precious Blood Church on Saturday, 12th December.

Remembrance Day Celebration and Virtue of the Month Assembly

Precious Blood celebrated Remembrance Day in the junior yard of the school. The staff and students were privileged by the visit of

Captain El-Rassi from the Ca-nadian Armed Forces; he has a son attending the school in grade eight. Three students played the Last Post on their instruments and white helium filled balloons with peace postcards attached, were

released by one student from each of the classes to mark the closing of the ceremony.A special word of thanks needs to be mentioned to the Grade Eight classes and their teachers Ms. McGregor and Ms. Tamburro for organizing the school’s first outdoor Remembrance Day and Virtue of the Month assembly.The Precious Blood School Community would like to thank Captain El-Rassi who generously gave his time for the ceremony and for visit-ing some of the classrooms to speak to the students about his role and work in the Canadian Military Forces.

An Advent Reflection

Advent, the beginning of the liturgical year in the Catholic Church, is a time

of preparation for the coming of Christ at Christmas. It was historically known as “little Lent,” because, like Lent, it is a time of repentance, with prayer, fasting, and Confession. Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas, and therefore varies in length between 22 days and 28 days.In Advent, we are challenged to open our hearts to the poor and vulnerable by embracing them as unique gifts of God’s creation. One of the ways that Precious Blood has been meeting this challenge is through the annual food drive.

The Virtue of the Month for November: Peace.

We instinctively recognize the importance of this virtue for

ourselves, our families, our societ-ies, and the future of our planet. We know how quick and easy it is for peace to be lost, and how hard and difficult it is to regain. We know that peace can be uneasy. We know that peace can be fragile. We

know that peace can hide oppres-sion. We know we can experience peace in the midst of conflict. We know that in the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus praised peace-makers as children of God. When we launch peace initiatives we mirror God’s mind and will.

Visit by the Grade 7s to Cana-dian Martyrs Shrine at Midland

On Wednesday,October 14th, the grade seven students made a visit to the Canadian Martyrs Shrine at Midland, Ontario with Ms. Monaco, Father Steve Dick-son and Ms. Rossi.

The Jubilee of Mercy was an-nounced by Pope Francis as a

year to be lived intensely in each local Church throughout the world, allowing every person to encounter the mercy of God. The most evi-dent sign of this pastoral care is the chance to open a Door of Mercy in every diocese. These doors, analo-gous to the Holy Doors of the Papal Basilicas in Rome, will allow people who cannot travel to Rome to make a Jubilee pilgrimage.

After the solemn inauguration of the Holy Year – marked by the opening of the Holy Door of Saint Peter’s Basilica on December 8, 2015 – all locally-designated

Churches throughout the world will open their own Doors of Mercy in communion with the Church of Rome as part of the Eucharistic celebration of the Third Sunday of

Advent or Gaudete Sunday. The Holy Father has asked that special indulgences be available for the Faithful throughout the Year of Mercy (December 8, 2015 – No-vember 20, 2016).

The Holy Doors of Mercy in the Archdiocese of Toronto open on Sunday, December 13, 2015.For further details about the names of Churches that are offering the Holy Doors of Mercy, and indul-gences, see the following link:https://www.archtoronto.org/me-dia-centre/news-archive/chancery-news/jubilee-mercy-archtoronto

Celebration of the Virtue of PeaceIn November, we celebrated the virtue of peace. Mr. Marchetta’s class spent time discussing what peace looks like at home and at school. Stu-dents were excited to collaborate with one another and work towards describing what peace looks like in a positive way. Our peace ambassadors for the month were Ayden G. and Hanna.

Class ReflectionsThe first Student Led Learning Walk of the new school year was held during the week of Novem-ber 9 to 13. The theme of the SLLW was Data Management, which allowed all classes to ex-plore graphing in many different forms such as bar graphs, line graphs, and pie graphs. In sev-eral of the graphs, it was clearly evident that they were based on primary data from student sur-vey findings.Grade One:Our grade 1 Student Led Learn-ing Walk incorporated math glyphs (a type of pictograph) using a Jack-O-Lantern cross-curricular math and art activ-ity. The students enjoyed organizing, analyzing and de-scribing data using comparative language (e.g., more students chose chocolate candy than sour candy as their favourite Hal-loween treat). Our students were able to display concrete glyphs which not only gave an insight into themselves but their Grade One community as a whole. Mrs. Lawrence and Mr. Mates

Grade Four-Five:With data management as our central theme, Mr. Bird’s class decided to organize important Blue Jays statistics using a variety of charts and graphs. Students voted on which stats they would be graphing, and in groups decided on the most ef-fective graphing method for that particular statistic. Examples include the use of a pictograph to display player batting average, a bar graph with intervals to dis-play runs scored per game, and a broken line graph for wins per month. Coming off of a very suc-cessful season, students showed enthusiasm in celebrating the Blue Jays achievements through data management and graphing.

Grade Two-Three:For the Student Led Learning Walk our class decided to do a survey on “Grandparents Love Us So Much”. We learned a lot going around to all the grades, asking our survey questions to find out the different names, used in different languages for ‘grandmother’ and ‘grandfather’; the countries from where they came; how often each child got to meet their grandpar-ents; and if they were babysat by them. The process of this survey made us aware of how lucky most of the children in our school were to have met

their grandpar-ents. They have so much tradition and knowledge to share with us and we will always be respectful and appreciative of older people. Mrs. Soraine’s Grade 2 & 3 students.

student and staff member in the school. After the students collected their data, they did more research about the topic that they had. After they collected their information, they created info graphs to show what the answers of the survey that they did were. The students worked very hard and put their time and effort into this project. By: Shaelynn T, Avetis A

Student Led Learning WalkMs. McGregor’s Grade 8 Class For the Student Led Learning Walk, Ms. McGregor’s class did research on different types of food (eg. Farmed and Wild Fish, Sustain-able Communities, Imported and Exported Food etc.). They wanted to know more about food and what kind is healthier. Students got into groups of 3 and 4, and each group had their own topic to talk about. Each group came up with their own survey questions to ask each

International Visitors at the Student Led Learning WalkOn Wednesday, November 18th Precious Blood was honoured to re-ceive four elementary educators from The Netherlands. During their

visit to the school, they were granted a Student Led Learn-ing Walk by a small group of Grade Eight students in the school’s gym and as well visited some of the classes to discuss students’ work with students and their teachers.

taking notes about the building pro-cess. “Talk Bots” work as recording devices so that students can record and play back different sounds.

Once the robots had been com-pleted, the next step was to

create a set of instructions so that another class could build the robots using only the student generated instructions as a guide. Students focused on providing appropriate de-tail, easy to understand vocabulary, and chronological order organized

using transition words.

Students also identi-

fied diagrams as a potentially helpful addition to effective pro-cedural writing. Mr Bird

childhood educators, adminis-trators, student teachers and community partners). As well, educators were introduced to a new 3D printer, which will al-low students to explore their creativity. We will be hosting a parents’ hands-on engage-

ment session this fall. Stay tuned!

Mr. Bird’s class began their exploration of the innovation

station with an activity linked to procedural writing. In groups, students were asked to build a Functional “Talk Bot” robot while

Innovation Stations & Robotics’ Labs K-8

Over the summer break a classroom was converted

into a Robotics’ Centre.Teach-ers are able to book their classes into the centre to work with their students on building robotic projects. Stu-dents will learn about coding and how circuits work. Super-intendent Shain and Trustee Del Grande officiated at our ribbon-cutting ceremony.

At the first staff meeting on September 14th, the teach-ing staff were given robotic kits that represented their grade level,and built models in collaboration with their col-leagues (including educational assistants, designated early

Welcome to Best Buddies Club!This is our second year running a Best Buddies Club. The goal of this club is to help instill the values of inclusion in all stu-dents at a young age by creating opportunities for friendships between students from various grades. As part of our activities, we are planning a field trip to see a

play called Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang at Young Children Theatre on December 10th of this year. This excursion will be a great opportunity for students to get to know their buddies and to begin their year long friendship filled with fun and games.

Ms. Magony, Ms. Greco and Ms. Irving

Cold Alerts andWeather-Related Cancella-tions/Closures

With the approach of win-ter weather, Twitter and the board website are the best sources of the latest information relating to cold weather alerts, cancellations and closures.

Get all the information here: https://www.tcdsb.org/FORSTUDENTS/Healthand-Safety/Pages/Weather-Re-lated-Safety-Concerns.aspx

And remember to check the Toronto Student Transporta-tion Group website for any school bus delays throughout the year. http://www.torontoschoolbus.org/

Box Fit“Congratulations to all the Grade 1 to 7 students who are participating and helping with our Thursdays “BOX Fit” DPA program. “Box Fit” is a non-contact fitness program that uses Olympic style boxing training techniques as means of achieving and promoting a healthy and active lifestyle. I.e. Teachers have the following five circuit stations set up in their classrooms: ”Push ups, Squats, Sit ups, Shadow Boxing and Skipping”. They

alternate between stations every 2 minutes. Meanwhile, I walk around with a box-ing bag filled with gloves, so children get to experience what it’s like to move and punch wearing two 10 ounce gloves. It is a fun an inter-

active way to get fit without getting hit! Huge thanks to Mr. Cosgrove’s students, Ms. Rossi, Mr. Vigliatore, Boxing Ontario and all those who contributed in making Box Fit a reality at Precious Blood C.S!!Mr. Mates

Kindergarten Registration Starts January 13, 2016

Registration options: Online: Parents will be able to complete their application online begin-ning 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 re-quired documents. The online application is available 24 hours. 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. Details: https://www.tcdsb.org/Pro-gramsServices/EarlyYears/Kindergar-tenRegistration/Pages/default.aspx

Teen Ranch

Teen Ranch was a trip of a lifetime! We will never forget the memories we shared together, or the bond we created. Teen Ranch made us stop thinking about ourselves, but about each other. From the empowering feeling of the Giant Swing, to the breath taking sights when horseback riding. There were so many activities at Teen Ranch that will never be forgotten. For example, the bonfire where we roasted marshmallows and hotdogs. When we sang songs, while looking at the stars that brightened the night sky. Also, the feeling of our skates swiftly gliding across the ice. Teen Ranch was such an amazing experience, which shaped our maturity into being responsible grade seven students. Thank you to Ms. Rossi, Ms. Sommer, Ms. Magony, Mr. Viglia-tore, Mr. Sedef, Ms. Tamburro and Ms. Monaco for making this trip happen!!

By Jadyn Nichols

National Ballet of CanadaOn Tuesday, October 6, 2015, Mr. Sedef, Mr. Bird, Mr. Grant and Mr. Cosgrove’s classes attended the ballet performance in Downtown, To-ronto at the Betty Oliphant Hall. The performance was by the dancers of the National Ballet of Canada. Their performance was absolutely outstanding. The choreography expressed so many emotions and told many different stories. Overall, the performance was excellent in the way it connected to real life. The performers put their hearts and souls in the dance.

On Tuesday, December 1st, Ms. Lisa Robinson from the National Ballet of Canada visited our school and instructed a ballet workshop for each of the four classes that attended. During the workshop, she instructed the students in the basics of ballet such as first position and second position. We also practised a leap while running across the floor of the gym, which we all enjoyed.

Finally, we wish to express a very special thanks to Ms. Robinson and the National Ballet of Canada for providing such a wonderful learning experience about ballet. by Aubrey B. and Rochelle A.

Christmas ConcertOn November 25th, the Primary Classes of grades one, two and three celebrated Christ-mas with a evening concert for their parents, and also provided an opportunity for the older classes to attend their concert during the day.

A special thanks needs to be extended Ms. Soraine and her team of supporters for a very memorable occasion that allowed the students to express their creativity through song and colourful costumes.

TCDSB Adult English and French Language ProgramsNew App Helps to Link Adults with the English and French Lan-guage Programs They NeedThe Toronto Catholic District School Board is pleased to an-nounce the launch of a new app which allows adults to easily access the courses they need to succeed. The app can be ac-cessed through the board’s web-site at https://adultedcourse-finder.tcdsb.org/. (Please note the app is optimized for current versions of Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Android and iPhones, and Internet Explorer 10 and above with compatibility turned off.The new app allows the user to quickly pinpoint programs based on their preferred location, day and time of day they are avail-able to study, and the type of program they are seeking.

Kindergarten Craft DayIt was enjoyed by all ELP classes. Thank you to parents and grandparents for your partici-pation during this festive time.

Wishing you all th e bless-ings of Christmas and a very happy and prosperous New Year

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