Fern Ave. Public School Blog

The Broadway Arts Centre will be offering exciting new dance and theatre classes at Fern starting in the New Year. They have extended the registration to January 11, 2013 . FERN 10 WEEK PROGRAMS - starting Jan. 14, 2013 Musical Theatre - Monday 3:30-5:00pm - Grade 1-6 - $165 Hip Hop Dance 1 - Tuesday 3:30-5:00pm - Grade 1-4 - $150 Hip Hop Dance 2 - Wednesday 3:30-5:00pm - Grade 5-8 - $150 Creative Movement - Wednesday 11:45-12:30pm - JK & SK - $130 (Please note the time for Creative Movement has changed to 11:45-12:30pm.) To register please fill out the registration form and return to the school office or email: info@broadwayartscentre.com For any questions please contact Meaghan 647-294-3211.

AY CARAMBA! MAGNIFICA FELIZ NAVIDAD FIESTA! Thanks to everyone who came out to make the Maderaz Feliz Navidad Party a grand success! The band was amazing and everyone was moving to the beat. As someone mentioned, it was the youngest mosh pit they had ever seen! The Latin treats were delicious and were all gobbled up with great delight. The decorations were bright, cheerful and festive. Thank you to the kindergarten kids for the lovely tree ornaments. The pinatas, birds and kites were beautiful - thank you to the grade 1-4 classes who participated in these projects and very kindly loaned their beautiful artwork for the occasion. Thank you to Sweetpea for the beautiful Christmas tree! It not only looked beautiful, you got a wave of that lovely Christmas scent when you walked through the front doors. Thank you to all of the Arts Collective members who orchestrated the whole event and also provided beautiful decorations and lights. The foyer and stage have never looked so fabulou

Dear Parents/Guardians, Our school HPV vaccination clinic for grade 8 female students will be held on Thursday, January 31, 2013 sometime in the morning. Please note that the 3rd clinic for HEPATITS B-dose 2, and HPV-dose 3 will be scheduled between April and June 2013 and the scheduling dates will be provided in March 2013. Please feel free to contact me should you have any further questions. Thank you, Vera

      Please consider making a voluntary donation to help support enhanced programming for our children at Fern. If you did not receive a copy of the letter that was sent home, a PDF version of the Direct Donation letter and Parent Appeal Donation form is available  here . This is the most efficient, cost effective and practical ways to raise funds. If you would like a tax receipt for 2012, please return to the Main Office by Thursday, December 20th. The Parent Council, the teachers and especially the students appreciate your support!

The minutes for the meeting of the School Council that took place on November 22 are now available for download from the School Council Minutes folder on Google Drive. The School Council will next meet on Tuesday, January 15, 2013 , from 6:30 to 8:30 P.M. in the school auditorium.

Most of the Grade 8 students were introduced to myBlueprint today. Students now have an account with myBlueprint. We went through the website and practised setting goals, looking at high school choices and planning their futures. Here is the website: http://www.myblueprint.ca/tdsb Please ask your child about it and have fun with it. More news about myBlueprint coming in the New Year! Dara Schwartz Elementary Itinerant Counsellor Fern Avenue PS Swansea PS

FTC is now launching its next campaign "We Create Change." This is Canada’s largest penny drive for clean water. We are asking the Fern families to please collect those pennies and send them to school. Each class will receive a penny bag or container for collection, plus a poster. The drive runs from December 3rd to the 19th . All proceeds go to Free the Children’s Adopt a Village communities.

Once again, the Fern Community is having a food drive for the Daily Bread Food Bank. Unfortunately, the use of such food banks is on the rise with over 1,100,000 people in the GTA last year, compared to 950,000 4 years ago. The reasons for Food Bank Use can vary widely from person to person, family to family, with needs stemming from reasons such as lost income, disability, newly immigrated, being a single parent, or being caught in a cycle of constant poverty. Donations of non-perishable foods, such as canned goods, pasta, dried grains (ie. rice, beans, lentils) and baby food will be collected from Friday, Dec.14 to Friday, Dec.21 each morning. Please do not donate peanut/nut products (ie. peanut butter) to help keep all students with allergies at Fern safe. Thank you very much for sharing on behalf of the many in our community who use Food Banks.

Information regarding the teacher walkout can be found on the main TDSB website ( http://www.tdsb.on.ca ) and will be reported in the general media.

The Early Years Sing-along has been moved to Monday, December 17th, at 10:45am in the auditorium.  Kindergarten children, Parenting Centre drop-in children and Jr/Sr Preschool children from Ferncliff daycare are invited to join-in for a morning of singing and fun! Afternoon Kindergarten children who wish to attend must be accompanied by an adult. Thank you!

Dear Parents, There appears to be some inadvertent confusion around Thursday night’s Feliz Navidad School Council event and the letter I sent home yesterday referring to our historical concert in December involving classes and teachers. I apologize for creating this confusion. The Feliz Navidad event is going to occur tomorrow night, in the auditorium, exactly as the advertising has indicated with hired musicians, beginning with food treats at 5:30 pm. There is no change with this. There will not be any other concert involving classes and teachers this month. Again, I am sorry for accidentally causing confusion. Thank you. Mr. A. Moy Principal

FELIZ NAVIDAD HOLIDAY PARTY! - featuring MADERAZ Bring the entire family for an energetic, action-packed performance by Maderaz, an amazing Latin American band. Feliz Navidad highlights the varied musical traditions that take place around December in Latin America and Caribbean cultures. Don't miss the party! Thursday, December 13 in the Fern Auditorium 5:30pm - Pre-show Party with Latin Treats - Mexican hot chocolate and churros! 6:30-7:30pm - Amazing Latin Music Show! Tickets: $6 or 4 for $20 Available at: Fern Ave. P.S. Office Scooter Girl For info and/or tickets contact: Katrina.Fern.Arts@gmail.com MADERAZ LINK: http://www.maderaz.com Come and see all the brightly coloured decorations the students made - pinatas, birds, kites and Christmas tree ornaments! AWESOME FLASHMOB! Congratulations to all the students of Fern Ave. P.S. for doing an amazing job in the surprise after school FLASHMOB on Thursday, Dec. 6! The whole school united as a team to crea

Dear Parents and Caregivers, Please note that on Thursday and Friday last week, a revised TDSB Media Consent form was sent home with the children. It was on a yellow coloured paper. If you have not already sent it back to your child’s teacher completed, could you please do so as soon as possible? Thank you very much. Mr. A. Moy Principal Fern Avenue Junior and Senior Public School Toronto District School Board

Get your holiday shopping done and help support our community! Our friends at Scooter Girl Toys have offered to donate 15% of your total purchase on Saturday, December 8 (only) to the Fern Parent Council Fundraising team. Remember to mention that you are a Fern Parent. See you there! Scooter Girl Toys 187 Roncesvalles Avenue Toronto

We have extended the due date for the QSP Magazine drive to Wednesday, December 5th as some classes received their packages late. Please hand in your order forms to the main office or support us online at www.qsp.ca. Magazines make great gifts, promote literacy and are fun to receive every month! Remember a portion of your purchase will help support enhanced programming for our young people at Fern. All students that participate in the QSP Fundraising Campaign will be eligible to win one of our customized Grand Prizes. The top three sales people will have a chance to win a $50.00 Gift Certificate from Scooter Girl Toys, Sweet Thrills, or a $50.00 iTunes Gift Card. The classroom that sells the most subscriptions will qualify for a special, catered lunch celebration! Who want to win? Please send in your orders. Thank you again for your support!

This month we have a surprise for you…. This invitation is for every parent, caregiver or friend of our students. Please join us at pick-up on Thursday December 6th @ 3:30pm in the junior yard! November was an amazing month for Art at Fern. We had everything from drummers to polar bear costumes to clay animation. We had artists in 17 classrooms this month alone! The senior students who took part in our Rodrigo Chavez drumming workshop put on a fabulous show for the primary students. With only one week of instruction the students did an amazing job. Trash Theatre and 3 senior classes put on a performance for over 250 students and parents. Trash Theatre also did a one day workshop with our grade 1 students and the seniors combined. The seniors helped each grade 1 make their own animal mask to wear to the show. This interactive show about what we can do to stop pollution, global warming and endangered species was well received by all. The students costumes, masks and acting was very i

FTC is now launching its next campaign "We Create Change." This is Canada’s largest penny drive for clean water. We are asking the Fern families to please collect those pennies and send them to school. Each class will receive a penny bag or container for collection, plus a poster. The drive runs from December 3rd to the 19th . All proceeds go to Free the Children’s Adopt a Village communities. Thank you. Karen Ashforth Staff Advisor, FTC

Have a look at the December newsletter for the latest information from the office.

We were informed by a Fern parent that, while they were picking up their child on Thursday November 22nd at 5:55pm, their car was broken into on Wright Avenue in the school pickup and drop off zone. The car was locked and the window was smashed. Please be on alert when leaving valuables in your car, even if you are only gone for ten minutes. Thank you.

Holiday season is here and after the winter break is over, the chaos of having to get back into the school routine begins. (Where is that lunch bag?!) If you haven’t done so already, why don’t you sign up your child(ren) for the hot lunch program and save yourself the stress of packing a lunch while still providing your child with a delicious and nutritious lunch. To save more time, sign up for the rest of the year right now! Plus, as a platinum EcoSchool, Fern’s lunch program is a good example of a litterless lunch: re-usable dishes and cutlery with no packaging to deal with. Download the order form and submit it with your payment in the secure mailbox beside the Ferncliff Daycare office (Room 103). Due to the winter break in December, we are asking parents to please hand in their January lunch forms by Monday, December 10 to allow time for Maggie to place her food orders during the holidays. Check out the January menu on the School Calendar on the right-hand side of Fern’s

We have been notified that there is an error in our newsletter regarding the Western Tech Open House for their Cyber Arts, Robotics, and Enriched Gifted programs. We wrote that it will be the 29th, but in fact it is tonight , Wednesday the 28th, at 7:00pm in their auditorium.

The Fern Arts Collective would like to invite the community to join us at our Feliz Navidad Holiday Party on Dec 13th, 2012!!! Families are invited to experience the contagious energy created by Maderaz, a amazing Latin American band. They will be performing their Feliz Navidad, Holiday Show! Feliz Navidad highlights the varied musical traditions that take place around December in Latin America and Caribbean cultures. Native traditional music and African based rhythms set the beat to celebrate the winter solstice. The music will start at 6:30 P.M. in the auditorium. Please come early for our Pre-show Party at 5:30 with Latin treats for the kids, savoury bites for the adults, and Mexican hot chocolate for everyone! We will also be showcasing Pinatas, from our Grade One's workshop running next week. Tickets will be on sale in the yard and main office next week. Please help us by selling tickets to your friends and family, everyone is welcome! We hope you will come out a

Is it time to renew your favourite Magazine?   Need a gift idea for Christmas?   Looking for French titles for you and your child?   Check out the QSP Magazine Catalogue and place your order today! There are over 600 magazine to choose from with savings of up to 80% off newsstand prices.   Shop online at www.qsp.ca or return the paper order form in the catalogue to the drop box in the office by December 3 to receive your orders before Christmas. Our Group Number is 9160 . Please include the name of your child and their room number on the order. A portion of your purchase will help benefit our Parent Council Fundraising efforts and bring additional programming to Fern.      All students that participate in the QSP Fundraising Campaign will be eligible to win one of our customized Grand Prizes .   The top three sales people will have a chance to win a $50.00 Gift Certificate from Scooter Girl Toys, Sweet Thrills, or a $50.00 iTunes Gift Card .   The classroom that sells the

On Friday, November 23rd, 2012, Untitled films will be shooting a Public Service Announcement for Covenant House at 197 Wright Avenue from approximately 7 am to 9pm. All production vehicles will be parked on the south side of Wright Ave, from Roncesvalles to Sorauren. The vehicles will be permitted to park there until 11pm. Any questions call John Dranski 416- 887- 5418, location manager. City of Toronto F.O. 416- 338- 3456 Mr. A. Moy Principal Fern Avenue Junior and Senior Public School

1. Trustee Atkinson reported that the TDSB would likely have another $50 million shortfall this year. Program and service cuts are likely on the way. At last night’s board meeting, the capital plan was defeated. For Ward 7 this means that the additions as Keele and Swansea will not proceed. And the K-12 Strategy cannot move ahead with any recommendations that will cost money. 2. The main agenda item was a discussion of the TDSB K - 12 Strategy Consultation. You can learn more about and participate in the consultation by visiting the TDSB web site . We were asked to discuss 4 questions to shape a vision for our schools moving forward. I will share the 4 questions via email. The results of the Ward 7 meeting discussion on these questions is 6 pages long, and we will make them available on line. 3. The meeting concluded with a lively discussion of the TDSB’s plans for special education inclusion. The board is seeking input for a vision of special education inclusion. A major p

Dear Parent(s)Guardian(s): We are in full swing of the transition process for our Grade 8 students. Over the next few months, we will be taking the students to our local high schools in the Fern Avenue catchment area. Many of the specialized programs have program requirements and deadlines so please make note of these. For detailed information please click here . Interested students have been invited to attend an information session at Rosedale Heights on November 22 from 1:00 pm to 2:45 pm . Please send a permission note to Fern Avenue if your child will be attending this event. Fern Avenue will not be providing supervision or transportation. If you have any questions, please email Ms. Schwartz at dara.schwartz@tdsb.on.ca and/or call the school to leave a message. Dara Schwartz Elementary Itinerant Counsellor Fern Avenue PS

The Grade 8 trip is planned for June 19th to the 21st. Please come to an information meeting for parents this upcoming Monday November 19th at 6:30 in the auditorium. Information on the cost of the trip, payment deadlines, as well as contingency planning will be discussed. Ashwin Parvatam Intermediate Chairperson Fern Avenue JSPS

I would like to inform parents and remind our possibly interested students that every Tuesday at lunch, barring unforeseen duties, Officer Eric, our Community Liaison officer hosts his “Push Pawns Not Each Other” chess experience in Room 308. Children can join right away and eat lunch in the classroom or join us right after they finish eating in the cafeteria. Rookies and experienced players are both welcome to join in. Thank you. Mr. A. Moy Principal Fern Avenue Junior and Senior Public School

Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week is Monday November 19 to Friday November 23, 2012. Fern Avenue Public School will proudly acknowledge this week by involving students and staff in the following activities: Monday November 19, 2012 Wear the colour RED to show your support against bullying Tuesday November 20, 2012 Students will be creating POSTERS; they will be displayed throughout the school Wednesday November 21, 2012 Guided discussions about Bullying will take place within classrooms Students will journal their reflections Thursday November 22, 2012 Students are encouraged to do random acts of kindness throughout the school day They will be asked to reflect on how this made a difference to their day or to someone else’s day Friday November 23, 2012 Wear the colour RED again Students will participate in a united WALK AGAINST BULLYING at 9:45am The walk will start on Wright Ave (by the bussing zone), left on Roncesvalles, left on Fern back to the school,

Dear Parents/Guardians, We would like to announce Mr. Robert Cowan as the new Long Term Occasional teacher for the grade 8 class, in room 309. Mr. Cowan’s assignment will be until the end of the school year. Mr. Cowan is an experienced Long Term Occasional Teacher who has worked within diverse learning environments, academic programmes and various schools. Mr. Cowan has many interests including playing guitar, involvement with drama and the arts, Eco-Club and coaching girls/boys soccer. Mr. Cowan will begin his teaching assignment with the Grade 8, Room 309 class on Monday November 19, 2012. Mr. Cowan looks forward to working with his homeroom group as well as all other students he will see during the afternoons on rotary. Mr. Cowan looks forward to meeting with each of his families and will make himself available for formal introductions over the course of his transition. Mr. Cowan is a welcome addition to our Fern family and we look forward to a wonderful year wit

Thank you to all the children and families who have donated to the UNICEF program. Jonah S-F won the Principal for a Day auction for Mr. Morra’s students fundraising effort on behalf of UNICEF. He will be Principal tomorrow. He has just asked me if we could have a Pyjama day at Fern in recognition of his tenure. Given the cold weather, please make sure that your children are dressed appropriately. Many thanks, again. Mr. A. Moy Principal

Please click here for information on the upcoming Parent | Guardian Special Education Information Sessions.

If you are planning on attending the information session on French Programming at 7:00 pm, why not pop in to the Auditorium and see what happens at our monthly SAC meeting !   We are starting at 6:00 pm and welcome all parents and child care providers with children at Fern. We will be reviewing:   ·          Ongoing Arts programs ·          QSP Magazine Drive ·          Bylaws ·          New Learning Skills Initiative ·          Orientation Committee Proposal  

There is an Extended French program at Fern that begins in Grade Four. Students spend half their subjects speaking French and half speaking English. Click here for more information or come to the school for an information night on November 22 at 7:00 PM in the staff room. There will be posted signs for directions. The application deadline for the Extended French program is December 12, 2012 .

HALLOWE'EN FOR HUNGER Thank you to the Fern community for your support with the Food Drive for the Good Shepherd Food Bank. We collected 1202 pounds of food, 200 pounds over our goal and 300 pounds more than last year!! WE Create Change Fern is participating in Canada’s largest penny drive to support clean water in FTC’s Adopt A Village communities. Save those pennies, and shortly you will be asked to bring them to your child’s class at Fern!! Thank you, Ms. Ashforth, Staff advisor, Fern’s FTC

We are having a Littlerless Lunch Day on Wednesday November 14 where parent volunteers will supervise Lunch in the cafeteria. We will have the bins turned upside down so the students have to take home any scraps or landfill and think about what they have left over. We will take photos of students who want to pledge having a Litterless Lunch for the month and display these, much the same way as the Reading Hall of Fame is set up. As many of you will be aware we have ran a very successful Green Bin Program at the school for three years but have it on hold at the moment, hence the need to take food scraps home. If you would like to volunteer for this short project or have any questions please email Jo Somers at: joanneginosomers@gmail.com. Click here for more information on how to create a Litterless Lunch. EcoTeam

After school on Monday, Ms. Eyre was struck by a car at the intersection of Roncesvalles and High Park Blvd. She is all right. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital. Thankfully, nothing was broken. She was crossing correctly in the crosswalk at the time. She is now convalescing at home. We wish her a speedy recovery. She expects to be back at work on Monday, November 12, 2012. Just a reminder for those families travelling to and from school on foot to remain alert and vigilant at all times, especially in the crosswalks. Thank you. Mr. A. Moy Principal Fern Avenue Junior and Senior Public School

Dear Parents, The Fern Ave P.S Arts Collective would like to invite you to come to Rodriguez Chavez’s Drumming workshops class performance: Friday Nov. 9th at 10:35 am School Auditorium The students in Mr. Sy’s two Ext Fr. classes, our grade 8 Eng class and Ms. Basu’s 7/8’s will be performing traditional Latin American drumming and percussion pieces. Including Salsa, Rumba, Cha Cha’ and Conga to name a few. The students have been learning to play the bongos, congas, maracas, cowbells, claves and so many more amazing instruments. Come watch your kids grow!!

Dear Parent(s)Guardian(s): We are in full swing of the transition process for our Grade 8 students. Over the next few months, we will be taking the students to our local high schools in the Fern Avenue catchment area. Many of the specialized programs have program requirements and deadlines so please make note of these. For detailed information please click here . Interested students have been invited to attend an information session at Rosedale Heights on November 22 from 1:00 pm to 2:45 pm . Please send a permission note to Fern Avenue if your child will be attending this event. Fern Avenue will not be providing supervision or transportation. If you have any questions, please email Ms. Schwartz at dara.schwartz@tdsb.on.ca and/or call the school to leave a message. Dara Schwartz Elementary Itinerant Counsellor Fern Avenue PS

New winter menu starts in December featuring vegetarian lasagna, Sloppy Joes, fish cakes and more! Fern’s hot-lunch program is running smoothly with a record number of participants. If your family has not signed up for the program and your child is not enrolled in Ferncliff Daycare’s before and after program, you still have the opportunity to register for Maggie’s delicious and nutritious December lunches. Download the order form and submit it with your payment in the secure mailbox beside the Ferncliff Daycare office (Room 103). The deadline for December orders is Thursday, November 15 . Check out the December menu on the School Calendar on the right-hand side of Fern’s website pages or click here . Special offer to seniors! We can pack up hot lunches to go!!! Are your children skipping lunch so they can hang out with their friends outside the school? Why not sign up for Maggie’s “take-out” lunches? You can be reassured that they’re eating yummy and healthy food and they can st

For parents who are interested or who are considering involvement, the attached specifies bus pick up points for parents. Thank you, Linda Tasevski Vice Principal Fern Avenue PS 416.393.9130

November is drumming up (literally!) to be an exciting month in the arts for Fern! We have a long line up of talented visiting artists conducting workshops in various areas from mask making, constructing bugs, birds and kites to claymation and drumming. Click here for more details! Fern Arts Collective

POLICE REFERENCE CHECKS FOR VOLUNTEERS We value the tremendous contributions of our parent and community volunteers who give so much of their time and effort to make our schools better places. While the legislation does not speak specifically to volunteers, it has been our past practice to require police reference checks on volunteers who have contact with students (including community-based coaches working with school teams)- a practice consistent with other community groups such as Girl Guides, Boy Scouts and Hockey Coaches. The Toronto District School Board has arranged with Toronto Police Services for a special rate for volunteer police refernece checks of $16.95. At the present time, the cost of the police reference check is at the volunteer's expense. Please note cheques must be certified or money orders made payable to Toronto Police Services, no personal checks will be accepted. Forms can be picked up in the main office, filled out and brought back to Vera Ciric for pr

Interested in learning more about the Individual Education Plan (IEP) & t he Identification, Placement and Review Commitee (IPRC)?     Attend an upcoming Special Education Information Session on November 20th.  

Dear Parent/Guardians, Just a reminder that phographers from Bright Pics will be at Fern Avenue on Tuesday, November 6th shortly after 9am to take photo retakes. If your child is in an afternoon kindergarden class, please bring them to school in the morning to ensure their photo will be retaken. Should you have any questions please feel free to call me in the main office. Thank you, Vera

Dear Parents/Guardians, Given the continued rain the Halloween Parade through the neighbourhood is CANCELLED. Students will parade in the school instead. Thank you.

Dear Parents/Guardians, The storm has not effected Fern Avenue PS therefore we are OPEN . Please feel free to contact us should you have any further questions. Thank you, Vera

As Hurricane Sandy approaches it is expected that Eastern and Southern Ontario will experience high winds, heavy rainfall and possible flooding, which could result in road closures and power failures. Please be advised that the  Toronto Conservation Authority   has issued a flood warning for the Greater Toronto Area. The forecasted rainfall will result in higher flows and water levels in rivers and streams, creating dangerous conditions. Please keep your children away from these areas over the next few days and exercise caution on roadways. Parents and students are encouraged to listen to their local media on bad weather days for transportation and school updates. Click here for more information on the TDSB's Severe Weather Policy .   Please visit   Emergency Management Ontario   for further instructions and advisories.

Fern Avenue Public School is holding a Scholastic Book Fair during the week of November 12th to 15th in the Music Room, across from the Main Office.  Funds raised during this event will help to support the literacy initiatives the school library, including the Boys’, Girls’ and Intermediate Book Clubs, the Silver Birch and Red Maple Reading Programs, and the Get Caught Reading Program.  It will also make it possible to put the most up-to-date resources urgently needed by teachers and their students. The Scholastic Book Fair will be open  - 12:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. Wednesday 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Thursday evening  We are looking for adult volunteers who might be able to give us a couple of hours to help out with manning the desk during this fund-raiser.  No experience necessary. If you would like to help with the Book Fair, please speak to Ellen Douglas, in the library, or call  (416) 393-9130   or e-m

The senior teachers have organized a Halloween dance at the school auditorium from 1-3 pm on Wednesday, October 31st . There will be a prize for best costume . While admission to the dance is free, the teachers are asking for donations of a non-perishable food item at the entry, but it will not be a requirement. There will be a supervised room for non-participating students. Classes have also been encouraged to decorate their doors, and there will be a prize awarded for the best door.

Take a look at the November Newsletter for the latest information from the office, including details on upcoming Halloween events.

Several town hall meetings are being held to discuss special education inclusion. Click here if you are interested in additional information on these events.

Our “Strings” program is going to start up again starting this Thursday, Oct. 18, in the afternoon. Unless otherwise indicated, it will occur on Days 2 and 4, between 2 and 3:30 pm. Students in grades 6 and 8 will be eligible to participate, at this time, especially those who played in strings last year. Classes are 45 minutes in duration. Please welcome Mr. D. Spek as the new itinerant Strings teacher.

Dear Parents/Guardians, On Wednesday, October the 17th at 1:00pm TTC will be at Fern to photograph students who are currently 13 and older or about to turn 13 during this 2012-2013 school year. The price of the TTC Student ID card is $5.25 per student. ( exact change please ) The Student cards are processed off-site and will be sent by courier to our school office within 10 business days. A central facility at Sherbourne Station will be operated to process students who miss the school visit. Please note the student is required to take with them a application form which we will gladly provide for them. Should you require any further information please feel free to contact me in the main office at 416-393-9130 or call TTC directly at 416-393-3812. Thank you, Vera Ciric

Come join us on Tuesday, October 16 th for our monthly School Advisory Council Meeting.  The meeting starts at 6:30 pm in the Auditorium and there will be snacks! The following items are currently on our agenda: ·          QSP Magazine Drive and finalizing Fundraising initiatives for this year ·          updates from each of our Committees   ·          reviewing plans and changes to our programming in light of the current labour dispute ·          establishing new bylaws and long term projects The benefits are many for a only a few hours of your time.        

Free the Children is sponsoring its first event of the year, our third annual food drive called Hallowe’en for Hunger. The food drive will run from October 18-31. Last year the community donated nearly 900 pounds of canned goods. This year, we are hoping to collect 1000 pounds for the Good Shepherd food bank. Thanks in advance for your support! Be the Change, FTC

The minutes of our School Council meetings, dating back to 2009, have all been moved to Google Drive. Click here to access the folder. You can always find the minutes from our most recent meeting at the bottom of the list. The minutes from September’s meeting have been revised with some minor corrections.

We are sending home permission forms and a letter today indicating that the TDSB is going to offer a non-TDESSA cross country run opportunity this Friday October 12, for students from grades 1 to 8. These events will not be considered as qualifiers for City Championships. Our event location will be at Earl Bales Park, off Bathurst. Our only start time information right now is that the first race should begin at 9:45. If children are participating, their parents are going to be required to provide transportation to and from the event, as well as remain for supervision purposes while their child is at the park. Ms. Tasevski will be at the park for the day to help with organization, and Mr. Moy will be there for the morning.

On October 25th, Fern Avenue Grade 8 parents are invited to attend an information evening regarding the transition from Grade 8 to 9. Additional information on the evening can be found here . For a summary of Secondary School information nights, click here . Interested in optional attendance? Information regarding the policy and important dates can be found here . Last but not least, click here for detailed information on the application process for the Etobicoke School of the Arts.

Please find attached a flyer to the 6th Annual Parents Makes a Difference Conference – Saturday, November 17, 2012. Registration is now live www.tdsb.on.ca/parentconference

Interested in learning how to motivate your teen? Please see attached flyer for an upcoming event with Dr. Karyn Gordon at Humberside CI – October 18, 2012.

Has your family finally settled into a routine? School, homework, hockey, gymnastics, music lessons …. Have you had to skip some meals or eaten fast food to fit everything in? Now’s your chance to ensure that your child eats one healthy – and delicious – meal each school day. Sign up your child for Fern’s hot-lunch program today for lunches starting in November ( Click here for the menu or check out the School Calendar on the right-hand side of this web page). To save more time, sign up for the rest of the year right now! Parents are constantly amazed that their children are now eating food that they wouldn’t eat at home and how the lunches help keep them fuelled for afterschool activities. Parents also like that they don’t have to scramble to pack a lunch that their children may or may not eat at school. So, if you haven’t already signed up for the lunch program and your child in not enrolled in Ferncliff Daycare, fill out and submit the form with your payment. A secure deposit

PHOTO RE-TAKES by our Bright-Pics Photographers will take place on Tuesday, November 6, 2012 beginning at 9:00am.   Should you require additional information please contact Vera Ciric in the main office. Thank you.

The minutes for the meeting of the School Council that took place on September 20 are now available for download from the School Council page.

Last year turned out to be a monumental year for our new committee. We had amazing support from the school administration, parent council, teachers, parents and our students. We can proudly say that Fern wants to support bringing art into the classrooms and the lives of our students. This year we hope to again, bring artists into the class, beautify our halls and bring the parents and community together on in-house projects and school performances. We spent the last month of June booking OAC artists and are now working on placing those artists in classes. This year we have a fabulous line up of OAC artists which includes: Creative movement workshops for the primaries Yoga for the Kindergartens Bernice Hune - Asia heritage, bird and dragon kites - grade 1-4 Pat Lewis - Pupperty workshops - grade 1’s Chavez Rodriguez - Latin American drumming - grade 2-8 Neil Warren - Clay Boy animation workshop - grade 4-5 Ruben Esquuerra - Afro-colombian drumming - grade 3-5 Melissa Altro - c

An exciting online resource is now available to all students and families in the TDSB. Offered by the Ministry of Education in conjunction with TVO and the Independent Learning Centre, Homework Help provides Grade 7-10 students with free, live online tutoring Sunday-Thursday from 5:30 pm-9:30 pm. In addition, all students and guests can access over 300 interactive tutorials and math lessons, quizzes and notes. Students in Grades 7-10 can log in using their Ontario Education Number (OEN), which appears at the top of their report card. Parents, teachers and other students can log in as Guests. Click here to access Homework Help and discover this amazing resource.

Dear Parents and families, As a follow-up to the communication that was shared with families regarding the October 2 Cross Country meet, our TDSB executive met with the Toronto District Elementary Schools’ Athletic Association (TDSEAA) this afternoon. It is clear for safety reasons and with the need to honour the integrity of competitive meets, that we must respect the TDSEAA constitution. Therefore, only students from registered schools will be permitted to participate in the area cross-country meets that have already been scheduled. This is a reversal of information that was previously shared this weekend. This means that Fern students are not eligible to run tomorrow. Please do not go to Centennial Park. As a Principal of a school who has not registered, I have been asked to inform parents of this decision. In addition, The TDSB will be communicating this message to parents through the public web and social media. Senior Staff continues to explore alternative dates and

Curriculum night at Fern was scheduled for Thursday October 4, 2012 from 6:30-7:30pm.   At this time, this event has been postponed until further notice.

2012/2013..REGISTERED..SCHOOLS..FOR..TDESAA..Cross..Country..Meets.. .. TDESAA..West..Cross..Country..@..Centennial..Park..on..Oct..2nd..and..9th..(Qualified..teams..and.. individuals..only)...First..race..begins..@..9:45..am.. #..of..Schools.. Name..of..School.. #..of..Schools.. Name..of..School.. 1.. Annette..PS.. 24.. James..S..Bell..PS.. 2.. Bala..Avenue..PS.. 25.. John..D..Parker.. 3.. Bloordale..MS.. 26.. John..G...Althouse..PS.. 4.. Briarcrest.. 27.. Joyce..PS.. 5.. Broadacres..PS.. 28.. Karen..Kain..PS.. 6.. Charles..Webster..PS.. 29.. Keele/Mountview..PS.. 7.. Claireville..PS.. 30.. King..George..PS.. 8.. Cordella..PS.. 31.. Lambton..Kingsway..PS.. 9.. David..Hornell..PS.. 32.. Melody..Village..PS.. 10.. Daystrom..PS.. 33.. Millwood..PS.. 11.. Elmbank..PS.. 34.. Parkdale..PS.. 12.. Etienne..Brule.... 35.. Pauline..PS.. 13.. Fairbank..PS.. 36.. Rawlinson..PS.. 14.. FH..Miller..PS.. 37.. Rockcliffe..MS.. 15.. George..Syme..PS.. 38.. Rosethorn..PS.. 16.. Gle

Dear Parents and Guardians, As you likely know, the Ontario Legislature recently passed Bill 115, the Putting Students First Act which sets out requirements that must be included in collective agreements and includes a two year wage restraint.   Now that the province has established these financial parameters, as a Board we will continue with local bargaining and work towards new collective agreements with our staff. In response to the legislation, some individuals have decided not to volunteer for extra-curricular activities. While there are a number of schools where extra-curricular activities have not been impacted, over the last few days questions have arisen regarding the upcoming elementary cross-country meets at schools where parent volunteers may have been working with non- sanctioned run clubs. I want to reassure you that our staff is working hard to keep the focus in our school on student learning.   Board staff and I understand that the upcoming cross-country meets

Check out this month's Fern newsletter for important information about our school community. As we continue to maintain our eco-initiatives, we endeavour to send out as few paper copies of the newsletter as possible. The newsletter will be accessible toward the end of each month on the Fern Blog . Please return the bottom portion of the newsletter to your child's classroom teacher only if you wish to receive a paper copy of the Fern Newsletter each month.

Click here to check out Fern's coverage in the Globe and Mail earlier this week.

The Terry Fox assembly, quick video and presentation and run around the track outside in the senior yard takes place this Friday, September 28, 2012. The schedule is as follows: Primary assembly (Gr.1-3) Students will be called down to the auditorium after morning recess, at around 10:30 a.m. Classes will be called lowest grade to highest grade , to allow for seating in the auditorium. The assembly will take place at 10:35 a.m. There will be a short video presentation (6-7 minutes) and talk regarding Terry Fox's accomplishments, his cause and what we can do/ learn from it. Some Q and A will / may follow. The talk will end at around 10:45 a.m Teachers will lead their students from the auditorium to the track outside, via JUNIOR EXIT. Students and teachers will jog/walk for approximately 10 minutes. Upon notification of the end of the walk/jog around the Senior track, teachers will lead their respective classes back to their rooms, via the PRIMARY EXIT . It is hoped t