Fern Ave. Public School Blog

This year Fern Avenue Public School will be hosting two Spring Concerts. This is in an effort to accommodate our growing school community. The first concert will be on Wednesday May 4, 2011. All Kindergarten to Grade 3 students will participate in a variety of presentations commencing at 6:30pm in the auditorium. On Thursday May 5, 2011 our Grade 4 to Grade 8 classes will be welcoming families in the auditorium for their spring presentations. Prior to the junior concert, the Grade 4 Extended French classes will host a FRENCH CAFE in the school cafeteria from 5:00pm to 6:00pm. We look forward to this upcoming event.

Crêpes? Did anyone mention crêpes? Mais, oui! The Grade 4 Extended French Classes will be hosting a French Café in the cafeteria from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on May 5th. Enjoy delicious food and atmosphere before our Junior Spring Concert.

Tuesday May 31 to Friday June 3, 2011: Grade 3 EQAO Testing Tuesday June 7 to Friday June 10: Grade 6 EQAO Testing

Think We Speaking Tour On March 1st, Corrine and Larissa from “Think We” speaking tour visited Fern. They gave a multimedia presentation to the Junior Division, focusing on local issues and the world’s biggest challenges. They shared ideas for actions to create positive social change. Tejas summed up it up well when she said “I learned that in the world things aren’t always even or equal or easy”. After the presentation, the members of Free The Children participated in an all day workshop. As Athanasia explained “the inservice was really amazing. We got to learn how we could help with our talents and raise money (and awareness) for people who are less fortunate than us”. Youth in Action Summit On Saturday, March 5, five members of Free The Children went to the Youth in Action Summit. They were Claudia, Tony, Tejas, Daniela and Lena.  The theme of this year’s Summit was "Free From…”   They participated in four workshops with the theme "Free from: Disease, Exploitation, Thi

Click here to download the May 2011 newsletter.

FERN AVENUE PUBLIC SCHOOL STAFF APPRECIATION LUNCHEON FRIDAY, JUNE 10/11 If you are able to contribute your favourite dish and/or HELP with Set-Up or Clean-Up Please Contact Evangeline Adams (416) 532-2000 or Evangeline.adams@hotmail.com Please drop off your dish (labelled with your name) in the staff room before 11:00a.m. on Friday morning. If possible, please provide serving utensils. Dishes may be picked up from the staff room any time after lunch. Thank you in advance for your support!

Yes, it’s that time of the year where the big buzz around Fern Ave. P.S. , and for athletics in particular, revolves around track and field. The weather might not necessarily agree, however, this year’s early track dates have us already preparing for making our school’s track team. Our goal is to also challenge each of our students trying for their personal best and enjoying participating in athletic events such as track and field. For these reasons we have planned track and field days at our school for our primary and junior students. Our primaries already had their track and field day on Thursday April 14th, a day filled with fun and excitement. Our junior students have their track day on Tuesday April 19th during the afternoon part of our school day with Thursday April 21st being the rain date (we still might have to re-schedule for the following week if weather conditions make it unfeasible). Finally our seniors will have track and field try-outs afterschool during the week of Apri

As part of a Memorandum of Agreement the TDSB has signed with Qiaoban (Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council), Continuing Education is offering a homeland tour to China. This year’s heritage summer camp is a 12 day tour of China which includes trips to Beijing, Jinghong and Kunming. The year 2011 marks a special year since it is the 20th year that China has opened its doors to foreign adoption. To honour this special year, Qiaoban has organized a national camp in Beijing where Canadian adoptive families will have the opportunity to meet with adoptive families from other parts of the world to participate in special activities together. Due to the generous support of Qiaoban, we are able to provide a trip that is less costly than other homeland tours. Additional information, including an itinerary and information/application package, is available at http://www.chinaheritagecamp.ca/ . Please share this with other adoptive families who may be interested in this trip. Th

Soccer season is about to start at Fern. Students from grade 4 to grade 6 are invited to come out and try-out for the junior girls and boys soccer teams. Fern coaches this year are Mr. Cline and Mr. Nikolajevic. We will hold try-outs at Fern (Tuesday morning and Thursday afternoon). Our first practice will be on Tuesday, April 19. If it rains, we might practice outside. If the rain is heavy, and if there are thunderstorms, please meet us at the school by the office for an indoor practice. The teams will be made at the end of April. We will select students based on attendance, fair play, effort and skill. Tournament dates will be posted as soon as they become available. Regards, Mr. Nikolajevic and Mr. Cline

Well, the final numbers are in and the Spring Fling Auction raised $8,000.00! It was so great to see so many folks come out to this fundraiser. A good time was had by all and most folks went home with some great merchandise. This truly was a community event..... with so many donations by local merchants and parents. I was amazed at how the entire school came together to create the baskets. This was a huge undertaking by not just the volunteers, but the teachers and administrators as well. I would like to extend a very special thank-you to two very amazing parent volunteer - Liz and Nick. Liz Leeson has sat on the Executive of the Parent Council for a numbers of years. Liz is also an active member on the daycare council, and helps run the Sorauren Soccer Club. Despite her busy schedule, she took the time to help organize this year's event. Nick Szymanis is one of the newer parents on the scene at Fern and I was thrilled this year when he came on board as our Co-Chair. Nick was i

Several students at Swansea P.S. reported that about 12:20pm   a man in a white van approached them in Rennie Park and asked them if they would like some candy or cake.   The boys said no, the van drove off and the boys returned to school. The police have been notified about this and will patrol the area over the next few days. The safety of our students remains our top priority. Our staff regularly speak to students about how to stay safe. I again want to emphasize to students, staff and parents the importance of awareness and the need for extra care in even the most ordinary and everyday routines.   The following streetproofing strategies should be communicated to students on a regular basis.   Always walk with a buddy to and from school;  Always tell your parents where you are;  Never accept gifts from strangers;  When help is needed, go to the nearest store or school, the home of a friend or run towards a group of people or a parent with children;  Never approach or enter

Tonight is the Fern Spring Fling.  Come out to this fun event to socialize with friends, bid on over 100 gift baskets and support Fern Avenue Public School. Tickets are $25 at the door.   Vist http://www.supportfern.org/  for more information.   See you there.

Holland Bloorview Nursery School- High Park site is a child centered play based program following an Emergent Curriculum approach led by Registered Early Childhood Educators. We provide a creative setting which challenges all children with rich spontaneous activities. Through experiential play based multi-sensory opportunities each child has the freedom to make each experience their own in an environment that is fun and interesting. We are located in Indian Road Crescent Public School and accept all children between the ages of 2 and a half to 5 years old with and without special needs. We offer a program Monday to Friday mornings from September – June and are closed for all statutory holidays. We presently have spaces available for September, 2011. If interested, please call Lynda or Vicky at (416)767-2192.

Dear TDSB Community, One of the situations that can confront students at any age is that of being bullied or observing someone else being bullied. The TDSB already has a strong mandate against bullying and intolerance in schools and in the workplace. To further recognize and to stand up against bullying, April 13 has been designated as Pink Day. This day is based on the actions in 2007 of two Nova Scotia Grade 12 students who marshalled their friends to wear pink in support of a younger student who had been bullied for wearing a pink shirt on the first day of school. The e-mail campaign mounted by the older students resulted in not just 50 of their friends but in hundreds of students turning up the next day wearing pink in support of the bullied student. The Pink Day that started in a Nova Scotia high school has now spread across Canada. TDSB schools have participated in Pink Day celebrations for several years, but this is the second year we are supporting anti-bullying through a Board

The father of Ms. Vera Ciric, our school secretary, passed away Saturday night, April 2, 2011. If members of the community wish to pay their respects in person, they are welcome to attend the burial ceremony on Wednesday, April 6, 2011, at 12:30 pm. The location is Beechwood Cemeteries, at Jane and Steeles. The family will be holding a private mass prior to the burial. Information with regards to donations will be posted at a later time. I am sure you join us in holding the family close in your heart during this time of sorrow and loss.

The Fern Ave Student Ecotoeam would like to remind everyone that EARTH DAY is fast approaching. It is on Friday April 22 (Good Friday).  As there will be no school that day we will be CELEBRATING with students and staff on Thursday April 21. We would like to invite VOLUNTEERS to come to the school to help us plant seeds with the Kindergarten and grade 1 -3 students. This will take place during the morning and is usually in the classrooms; we teach the students about the 3 SISTERS - BEANS, CORN (or SUNFLOWERS) AND SQUASH and how they interact with each other to grow. The corn or sunflowers provide the support for the beans to climb, the squash circles around the others to protect them from bugs and the beans provide nutrients for the other plants. It is a well known growing technique used in Canada for many centuries, which we have been using successfully at Fern for a number of years now.  Once the seeds have matured to seedlings we start to put them outside to harden and then we pla

Michael Curry’s obituary was in the Toronto Star on April 3 and 4. Please refer to following link for more information. http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thestar/obituary.aspx?n=michael-james-curry&pid=149880135

The Spring Auction takes place this THURSDAY. So if you have not had a chance to purchase your tickets, here is your chance: Where: In the schoolyard (look for our table) When: Tuesday, April 5th from 3:30pm to 6:00pm Please be sure to stop by and purchase your tickets for this fun and exciting fundraiser benefiting Fern Avenue Public School. Tickets are only $20 and include one complementary beverage (beer or wine). Click here for more information. Your support is greatly appreciated. Liz Leason Fern Parent Council

Dear Parents/Guardians: It is with deep regret and sadness that we inform you of the sudden death of Fern Avenue JS PS itinerant (Strings) music teacher Mr. Michael Curry on March 31, 2011. We know that you will join with all of us in expressing our deepest condolences to grieving family and friends. Mr. Curry has been a caring and valued member of our team for many years and will be missed greatly by staff and students alike. He will be remembered as a dedicated staff member who, over the years, made so many strong connections with those he encountered. His passion for music education was evident from the first. He taught his students with high expectations and great flourish. Today has been a somber one for all of us. Toronto District School Board staff will come to the school to offer support and counselling and will be available for as long as they are needed. I know that you will also want to help your children in any way possible. We encourage families to talk about wh