Fern Ave. Public School Blog

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