November 21, 2022
Winter is here! With winter comes the potential for school bus cancellations. If buses are canceled you can tune in to our local radio station or check their website for cancellations. I also send out a notification through School Messenger to let you know if buses are running. The last option is to go on the Bruce Grey Catholic Transportation website to subscribe to cancellation notices.
On "no bus days" students who are not attending school but are "walkers", need to have a parent call the school to let us know that they will not be in attendance that day. Thank you for helping us to follow our Safe Arrival procedure.
Book Fair is on all of this week! Parent/Teacher Interviews will run on Thursday, Nov. 24 from 3:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m. and Friday, Nov. 25th from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Please call the school to book your appointment.
This Friday, Nov. 25 is a PD DAY which means there is NO SCHOOL for students.
Each school is required to post their Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan on their school website. You can find ours under LETTERS and look for the Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan file. We are fortunate to have a wonderful community partner, parents, students and staff involved on our Safe Schools Team. We had our first meeting last week and have a plan for working within our school and community on different initiatives.
We will end November with a Character Trait Assembly to celebrate students who show EMPATHY. Next month we will focus on GRATITUDE.
Stay safe and healthy everyone.
Sincerely,
Krista Bell - Principal
Oct. 17, 2022
Fall is here and the weather is following suit. We continue to learn and grow together here at PCS.
Congratulations to our Glee Club for a beautiful job singing the National Anthem on Oct. 15th at the Bayshore in Owen Sound at the Owen Sound Attack game. $1000.00 was raised for the school through this event! Pictures are now posted in our Photo Gallery. Check them out!
Today we launch our Huron Ridge Poinsettia Fundraiser to support school initiatives. The fundraiser will run until Nov. 7th. We have some exciting Spirt days on the horizon - Oct. 25 - Crazy Halloween Hair day, Oct. 27 - Halloween Colors (purple, black and orange) day and Oct. 31 - Costume day!
On October 27th we will host our character trait assembly and award students with awards for Perseverance. Next month, we will focus on EMPATHY.
Wishing you a wonderful October.
SIncerely,
Mrs. Bell - Principal
Thursday, September 1, 2022
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over and that we will be back to school in one week! I hope that you were able to enjoy the beautiful weather and had a chance to do some of the things you enjoy.
As we move in to a new school year, I am pleased to share that many of the COVID protocols that we have needed to follow are relaxing and allowing for more “normal” operations. For example, masking is no longer required but students are welcome to mask if they wish. It is recommended that families continue to use the Covid-19 screener before school each day. If your child is ill, please keep them home. I am waiting for further direction from the board and Public Health regarding how long a child will stay home if they are symptomatic. The link for the school screener is:
COVID-19 school and child care screening (ontario.ca).
Phase 1 of our school renovations are complete! Everyone worked together to have the renovations completed on time. Thank you so much to our custodian Mrs. T. and staff for working so hard to get the school ready for kids to return.
Below you will find the information you may be wondering about related to the first days and weeks of school. More information will be coming home to you as they are relevant through email and/or paper copies.
I know that many of you will be wondering who your child’s teacher is. Teachers and classes aren’t shared until late this week because class lists change often during this week. Your child’s teacher will reach out before Tuesday by email so that you know what class your child will be in.
If you need to get in touch with the school, please call us at 519-353-5691. You can also send inquiries to [email protected]. You can find updates and newsletters on our school website at: https://pai.bwdsb.on.ca/. Our Facebook feed is under Paisley Principal. You can send a request to join and I will accept your request.
We are looking forward to a great 2022-23 school year.
SCHOOL DAY
8:45 a.m. – Student drop off
8:50 a.m. – Entry Bell -students will line up in their class lines
9:00 a.m. – Announcements
9:00 a.m.-10:50 a.m. – Instructional Block
10:50 a.m. – 11:10 a.m. – Nutrition Break #1 – All students eat
11:10 a.m.-11:30 p.m. – Nutrition Break #1 – All students outdoors
11:30 a.m. – 1:20 p.m. – Instructional Block
1:20 p.m.- 1:40 p.m. – Nutrition Break #2 – All students eat
1:40 p.m.-2:00 p.m. – Nutrition Break #2 – All students outdoors
2:00 p.m. – 3:10 p.m. – Instructional Block
3:10 p.m. – Dismissal
SCHOOL STAFF
Principal – Krista Bell
Office Professional – Nancy Anderson
Head Custodian – Anne Trushinski
Night Custodian – Tyler Sweiger
Educational Assistants: Dan Kerr, Jaclyn Parker, Elizabeth Newman
Early Childhood Educator – Susan Denouden
JK/SK – Courtney Alexander
SK/1 – Emily Welsh
Grade 1/2– Marilyn Wilkinson
Grade 2/3 – Rebecca Cunningham
Grade 3/4 – Allison McLeod
Grade 5/6 – Emily Berry and Sheena Middleton
Grade 7/8 Homeroom and 7/8 Guidance Teacher – Matthew Muma
Primary/Junior/Intermediate Coverage – Marnie Snoek
Learning Resource Teacher – Sheena Middleton
Core French – Emily Berry
Junior/Intermediate Music and 7/8 Art – Allison McLeod
FIRST DAY
Teachers will be on the yard with a name tag and their class name. They will be greeting their students and will help them get to their class line ups. There will be additional staff to help parents and students find their teacher especially if your child is in SK, Grade 1,2 or 3 since there are multiple teachers for these grades.
We will have a whole school assembly at 9:30 a.m. to celebrate being back together.
ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL
Supervision on the yard begins at 8:40 a.m. There is no adult supervision before this time.
Please use the sidewalks provided. All drop off’s for students in the SK/1 class up to Grade 8 are to take place on the EAST SIDE of the school. NO DROP OFF’S ARE PERMITTED IN THE BUS LOOP before and after school for safety reasons. Please drive slowly in the bus loop. Parents are asked to walk across to the school to pick up their child rather than having their child cross the bus loop and parking lot. Look both ways when crossing the bus loop from the parking lot. It is a very busy place.
JK/SK students in Mrs. Alexander’s class will access the Kindergarten entrance on the west side of the building by the Kids and Us Daycare Center.
Walkers – need to arrive NO EARLIER THAN 8:40 a.m. There is no adult supervision before this time.
Bus Students – will arrive at 8:45 a.m. Students will follow the direction of the bus driver in order to exit the bus in a staggered fashion. Bus students will walk along the bus loop in front of the school moving East and will go directly to school yard. Kindergarten students in Mrs. Alexander’s class will be met by Mrs. Denouden who will walk them to the Kindergarten doors.
BIKES
Students may ride their bike to school. Students are responsible for wearing a helmet when riding and for locking their bike on the bike rack upon arrival. Scooters are to be kept at the main office and not by coat racks for safe keeping.
LATE ARRIVALS – All students are encouraged to arrive ON TIME. Students are considered late after 9:00 a.m. ALL EXTERIOR DOORS WILL BE LOCKED. Those who arrive late will need to have their parent call the school and/or sign their child in by ringing the doorbell at the front of the school. Mrs. Anderson will sign students in upon arrival.
EARLY DEPARTURE
If you are picking your child up during the daytime, please inform your child’s teacher by writing a note and/or please call the main office. Older students may not make arrangements with a parent for early departure by using a cell phone. It is critical that the main office is the point of communication for any early departures by students.
DEPARTURE
Dismissal is at 3:10 p.m. Younger children will be supervised by an adult to ensure that students are picked up by their parent or caregiver. Bus students will exit from the front doors. All other classes will depart from their assigned exits once the 3:10 p.m. dismissal bell has gone.
The JK/SK class will be dismissed from the back of the building by the Kindergarten door.
DAYCARE
If your child attends the before or after school program at Kids and Us, it is critical that you inform the school AND the daycare of any changes in after school care arrangements. Open and clear communication helps us to make sure that your child gets to their after school care safely and without confusion. If the daycare plan changes, please call our main office or send an email to Mrs. Anderson at: [email protected]. Thanks for your help with this.
BUS CHANGES
Bus changes need to be indicated in the student planner, written note that is signed and dated by the parent or a phone call to the office is fine as well.
ABSENCES
All student absences MUST BE CALLED IN to the safe arrival mailbox no later than 9:15 a.m. each day. You are welcome to leave a voice mail. Please be sure to leave your child’s name, grade, teacher and reason for the absence. If your child is exhibiting COVID 19 symptoms, please indicate this on your message. All students need to be accounted for each day. If for some reason we did not receive a call regarding your child’s absence, Mrs. Anderson will make a safe arrival call to ensure your child’s safety.
UPDATED MEDICAL INFORMATION
If there have been any changes in your child’s medical needs, please call the school to let us know. There is paper work that needs to be completed in cases where there is a diagnosed medical need by a physician. If your child uses an epi pen or takes medication (e.g. Benadryl, Claritin), the school requires that a form be signed to allow an adult at the school to administer medication. Students who need Tylenol or Advil on a regular basis would also need a form to be signed and medication to be stored at the office. Students should not be keeping medication in their back pack for safety reasons.
PHOTO CONSENT
During the school year, we like to take pictures of students having fun and learning. A photo consent form is included in the school year paper work that will be sent home. If you do not want your student having their picture taken or shared in any way, please indicate this on the form. We certainly do not want to post pictures to our group email or on our Face Book feed if you prefer that we don’t.
SCHOOL CASH ON-LINE
Any item that is available for purchase through the school goes through a system called school cash on-line. In order to use this service, you will need to sign up. Programs like milk, pizza and fundraising items that are run through the school are paid for through school cash on-line. Please see the page that is attached to this letter for instructions on how to sign up.
COMMUNICATION HOME
Communication between home and school is very important. There are many times when the Principal sends messages home to parents. These messages are sent in two ways: ASPEN email and School Messenger. If you notice that you aren’t receiving any emails from the Principal, please reach out to the school and inquire. If your email has changed, please let us know so we can update our contact information to make sure that you are getting all of the information that is sent home.
You can reach your child’s teacher by calling the school or by using their board email using the following format:
[email protected] (e.g. [email protected]).
ELECTRONIC DEVICES (e.g., cell phones)
We understand that many students have electronic devices such as cell phones. Cell phones should be turned off and stored in their backpack during school hours. For added security, classrooms have a cabinet that locks and is secure for cell phone storage. Cell phones are not to be used for phone calls, texting, videoing or photography. These devices can have a negative impact on learning and jeopardize the safety and privacy of other students. The staff are not responsible for missing or damaged cell phones. Parents/Guardians can contact their children through the main office. Personal devices may be used during agreed up times with their teacher (e.g. 20 minutes during a break). If there is a learning reason and specific purpose for the use of a device, this will be at the discretion of the teacher.
WATER BOTTLES
Students are encouraged to bring a refillable water with them to school. We now have 3 water bottle filling stations!
RECESS AND BREAKS
Both the morning and afternoon nutrition breaks are 40 minutes in length. Students will eat for 20 minutes and then go outdoors for 20 minutes. We encourage students to bring lunches with minimal litter as much as possible. During the breaks we have 2 zones. Zone 1 is for students in JK-4. Zone 2 is for students in Grades 5-8.
BREAKFAST PROGRAM
Breakfast program is considered an essential activity. In order to run breakfast club, we need your help! WE ARE ACCEPTING VOLUNTEERS NOW! Thanks to the generous support of our Ontario Student Nutrition Program, we are ready to get breakfast club up and running. We will begin our breakfast club on the first day of school.
VOLUNTEERS
Now that field trips are back and we can have volunteers back in our school! ALL VOLUNTEERS ARE REQUIRED TO FILL IN A PACKAGE that includes a current police check. If you would like to volunteer in some capacity and/or expect that you will want to go on a field trip with a class, please call the school to ask for a volunteer package. Once it is completed the first time, it is easy to maintain and keep up to date.
Food Contracts
Pizza days and milk orders will be available again this year! All orders need to be placed through School Cash On-Line. We will be sending information about these special days soon!
Important September Events
- Tuesday, Sept. 6 – First Day of School
- Wednesday, Sept. 14 – PICTURE DAY
- Thursday, Sept. 22 – Welcome Back BBQ for parents and students
- Friday, Sept. 23 – PD DAY – No school for students
- Wednesday, Sept. 28 – Parent Council Meeting – School Library – 6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.
- Friday, Sept. 30 – Orange Shirt Day/Every Child Matters Day
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this information. As always, please reach out via phone or email if you have any questions or concerns. We are happy to help😊
Sincerely,
Krista Bell – Principal
Paisley Panther Cheer
We are the panthers, yes we are!
When we work together we can get so far.
We love to laugh and we love to play,
We will try our best, every day.
When things get tough, when things go wrong,
We remember that we are panther strong.
So see our smiles and hear our roar,
Then get ready to watch us soar!
OOH OOH AH AH
(stomp, stomp, clap, clap)
OOG OOH AH Ah
(stomp, stomp, clap, clap)
GOOOOOOO Panthers!