Principal’s Message
The month of December has arrived and with it comes the excitement and anticipation of winter and the holiday season. The staff and students of Downie Central have been busy in the classrooms the past three months and are looking forward to carrying that momentum up to the well-deserved Christmas Break. December is traditionally a busy time of year in schools, and this year is no different. The character attribute for the month is Compassion and it is especially fitting for this time of year that we make that extra effort to make others feel welcome and supported in our school community. Our staff and students continue to work on building and sustaining a positive and inclusive environment where everyone can feel a strong sense of belonging. The staff and students in the primary classes have been busily preparing for our Christmas concert and we are all looking forward to the show.
Finally, I wish you all a wonderful holiday season.
Christmas Concert
Well Downie, it’s that wonderful time of year again, when families and friends gather to celebrate the holidays and pass down heartfelt traditions that may involve delicious foods, fun decorations, special services, and of course … a Christmas Concert!
We invite you to come and listen to our Primary Dolphins sing and dance as we celebrate countries from around the world on Wednesday, December 19th (snowdate December 20th) . Performances start at 12:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., please arrive 15 – 20 minutes prior to the evening show to drop off your child at his/her classroom in red/green/white colours with 1 of the following: santa/elf hat or reindeer antlers.
Bring your loved ones, invite someone special, wear your ugliest Christmas sweater or your best Christmas outfit, and be ready to smile form ear to ear as we explore countries from around the world and celebrate this special time of year!
School Council
The next meeting will be Wednesday, January 9th at 6:30 p.m. in the library. Everyone is welcome to attend.
No-Work Fundraiser Program
There is still time to make a donation and receive a tax receipt for 2018. There are 2 ways to make a donation. You can write a cheque to the Foundation for Education or do an on-line donation. Thank you for your support.
iAM me: Student Identification Survey
At Avon Maitland District School Board we are committed to creating positive inclusive learning environments, and maximizing outcomes for our students. In order to continue with this work, we need to better understand the needs of our students and their families. To help us with this, we have launched our first board-wide student identification survey.
Grades 7-12: Over the period of December 3-7, students across the Board will complete the online survey during class time.
Grades K-6: Parents/guardians will be requested to complete the survey online between December 3-7. A link to the survey is posted below. Parents/guardians are requested to log into the survey using their child’s Active Directory login which includes the first four letters of their child’s given name, first four letters of their surname and first three numbers of their Ontario Education Number (OEN) which is printed at the top of their progress report.
Terry Fox Run/Walk
On Friday, October 5, 2018, Downie Central participated in our 13th annual Terry Fox Run/Walk in support of The Terry Fox Foundation, which raises money for cancer research. This was the first time we have ever needed to hold our event in October (thanks to Mother Nature), but the students were still enthusiastic about helping Terry and we had a great day.
There are some thank you’s I want to make:
- To our Grade 7 warm up team (Cole H., Kristina, Jaymee, Chloe, Isabelle, Cameron, Sydney, Allie, Miranda, Ryan, Carter, and Kyle)
- To Julie Brown and the Snack Program for providing a nutritious and well deserved snack for our enthusiastic participants
- To the relatives who showed up to join us
- To the Township of Perth South for lending us some of their road pylons to help keep traffic off the road and our students safe,
- And last, but definitely not least, to the students and staff who continue to amaze me at your enthusiasm and dedication for this event.
This year, we raised $3,002.15, which is the third year in a row where we have raised over $3000. This amount has pushed our total to an unbelievable $30,770.38. Downie Dolphins, we passed our goal of raising a 13 year total of $30,000.
Thank you all so much for your continued support.
Miss Hildenbrand
Inclement Weather
If buses are delayed or cancelled due to inclement weather, cancellations will be announced on the radio, and posted to the Cancellations and Delays website as early in the morning as possible. You can also follow us on Twitter @downieps. The school will remain open for those who can arrive safely, unless posted otherwise.
Me to We Update
Me to We would like to thank all those who took part in our We Are Silent Day. Our students had a chance to stop and think about how the basic rights of some people are not met.
Thank you to Mme Gervais for her happy face collection donation and congrats to the Grade 8 class who won Mrs. Tweddle’s giant happy face cake for 100% participation. A shout out to Mrs. Klassen & Ms. Carter, Mrs. Richardson, Mrs. Pearce, Mrs. Brickman and Mrs. Fletcher’s classes who also had 100% participation, and to all classes for beating their own class goals. Together we raised $1064.00 to go towards our We Villages Education Fund.
Watch for our Christmas new and nearly new toy and warm clothing drive flyer.
Library Update
Students have begun reading this years celebrated authors and illustrators in the Forest of Reading Program. These fantastic books are geared to students from JK to Grade 8. Students are encouraged to read each of the 10 books nominated in their chosen category and then vote on their favourite title in the spring. The Red Maple, Silver Birch and Blue Spruce books are available both here in our school library and at the public library.
Great Picks
- “Tracker’s Canyon” by Pam Withers is great reading for Grade 7 and 8 students.
- “Elephant Secret” by Eric Walters is great reading for Grade 4, 5, and 6 students.