Centennial Connection April 6 2025

Dear Centennial PS Families,

What a great week although it was filled with all kinds of weather! Welcome to Canada where we have snow, rain, ice, hail, sun and +10 degree temperatures all in the same week! Our yard is very muddy and students need to come prepared to be outside with a change of footwear so that they can play outside and inside. We cannot have outdoor shoes in the gym. If you need help with footwear please let us know and we can help.

Staff gathered on Monday for the PA Day in the morning for a collaborative Family of Schools morning at Winston Churchill. Educator-led workshops were offered on topics such as Multi Language Learners, Literacy, Numeracy, Progress Monitoring, Special Education and more! In the afternoon, we worked as a staff to learn more about the Math Achievement Action Plan with a focus on fluency, as well as learning more about Artificial Intelligence and Limestone's response to it. There will be a family information night on Wednesday April 30th at 6pm at LCVI Cafeteria for all families who may be interested in knowing more.

On Monday April 7th the School Council will be meeting at 6:30pm. All parents and guardians are welcome to attend - even if this will be your first meeting! Come out to learn more about the school, the school council, and how educators and families can work together. Hope to see you there!

We are asking all families to please ensure that they do NOT park on the south side of Norman Rogers Drive from the west entrance all the way to the parking lot. This is a no stopping zone as well as a bus loading zone. The City of Kingston crossing guard does a great job of helping people cross safely but cannot do so when parents/guardians are parking in front of the school. Parents/guardians can park on the north side of the school across from the school (not across from the parking lot at buses can't get through). Not sure where to park? Just ask or check out the signs. We know that everyone wants to ensure students and families are safe coming to and from school. A reminder that there is no parking on the school yard at any time, this include the back tarmac area and the area around the dumpsters.

This week we also received a very generous donation from the Kinsmen Club o Gananoque who donated $1500 to Centennial PS. This money will support the Centennial nutrition program and compensatory fund. Huge thanks to all of the volunteers at the Kinsmen Club and for providing these funds to Centennial - we really appreciate it!

We hope all families are having a wonderful weekend! We love learning with your children - thank you for sharing them with us!

-Deborah Thompson, Principal & the Centennial PS Staff

Monday, April 7th - Vangelatos/Hodgson Kinders to Calvin Park Public Library Visit

Monday April 7th - Let's Talk Science visiting Funnell-Kononuk Grade 1/2

Monday, April 7th - School Council Meeting 6:30-8:00 pm

Wednesday, April 9th - Farndon/Aylesworth inders to Boys and Girls Club

Wednesday April 9th - YMCA Financial Literacy Workshops for Natalizio and Girard classes

Thursday April 10th - Queen’s Brain Reach visits Grade 5 - Cahill

Thursday April 10th - Hawkes’ grade 6 and Travers’ grade 3 go to Gould Lake

Friday April 11th - Girard - Let’s Talk Science: Bridges Workshop

Monday April 14th - Lets Talk Science - Farndon/Aylesworth Kinder

Tuesday, April 15th - Beardall Gr 2s to Loyalist Gymnastics Club

Tuesday April 15th - Knowledge Keepers visiting Byers and Girard classes

Wednesday April 16th - Vangelatos/Hodgson Kinders and Girard 5/6 Learning on the Land workshop

Friday April 18th - Good Friday (no school)

Monday April 21 - Easter Monday (no school)

Thu Apr 24th - Vangelatos/Hodgson Kinders to Loyalist Gymnastics Club

April 26 - School Council Bottle Drive Fundraiser (time TBD)

May 8 - Family Creativity Night (time TBD)

May 12 - School Council Meeting 6:30-8:00 pm

Thursday, June 5th - RKY Camp Grade 4/5, 5, 5/6, 6 (Natalizio, Cahill, Girard, Hawkes)

June 10 - Funfair and BBQ (time TBD)

The school crossing along Johnson St. (between Mowat Ave. and Yonge St.) will be upgraded to an intersection pedestrian signal (IPS) located at Johnson St. and Yonge St. Upgrading a school crossing to an IPS will improve connectivity and safety for families travelling to school and better serve the broader community. At IPS crossings, pedestrians press a button to activate the walk signal, which stops traffic and indicates when pedestrians can cross the road.

The planned construction for the IPS is set to begin sometime next week. As a result, the existing school crossing will be temporarily moved to Johnson St. at Mowat Ave. for the remainder of the school year to accommodate the planned work. The temporary crossing will include all of the same crossing signage and markings. To help ensure families are aware of the changes, the City will have additional staff on location to communicate and redirect people toward the new temporary school crossing. An accompanying graphic for families will also be sent out in the coming days.

The IPS will be fully operational by the summer, and will be staffed with a crossing guard and ready to use when students arrive back in September.

If you want to learn more about pedestrian safety in Kingston, you can visit the City of Kingston Pedestrian Infrastructure webpage for more information, or reach out to the City any time at contactus@cityofkingston.ca.

Thank you to the parents/guardians who were able to attend the Brave Education workshop on Thursday evening at Lord Strathcona Public School. There are lots of great resources and information available.

Post-workshop resources: printable resource.

Parents also have access to Brave’s online parent portal for the remainder of the school year.

Link: https://braveeducation.com/parents/
Login: ParentAccessEN
Password: ParentAccessEN

Kingston Community Health Centres is looking for community feedback on a new Community Garden application currently under review: Rodden Park Community Food Forest and Little Forest.

View the proposed site plan and submit your feedback by April 17

Since March Break, many grade three to six students have been participating in road race training in the school gym at recess time. Practice will be moving outdoors and after school starting Tuesday April 8, 2025. The training is only open to students in grades three to six who have been coming to practice regularly and demonstrated the ability to run the required distances.

Those students who have made the road race team will be bring home an information form this week with a QR code so families can register their child(ren) for after school practices.

The runners will practice three times a week: Tuesdays, Wednesday, and Thursday until Tuesday May 6, 2025.

Families interested in following the hard work of our School Council, please follow the link to their Facebook Page.

Also, any questions or ideas please contact the School Council using their updated email address:

ldsbcentennialpscouncil@gmail.com

8:50-9:05am - Supervision on yard

9:05-10:45am – 100 minute block of learning

10:45-11:25am – Recess & Nutrition Break

11:25-1:05pm – 100 minute block of learning

1:05-1:45pm – Recess & Nutrition Break

1:45-3:25pm – 100 minute block of learning

3:25pm - Dismissal

Families are reminded that items of value (monetary and sentimental) are to be left at home. As well, toys, costumes, masks, anything that could be used as a weapon, make up and anything scented should not be coming to school. Thank you for your help with this!

Click Here for a list of KFL&A exclusions. As a reminder, children should stay home until they have no fever and their symptoms are improving for at least 24 hours (or 48 hours if they have gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting and/or diarrhea). Once symptoms start improving, they are encouraged to return to school, if they are well enough to do so.

Hot Lunch - Orders Due by Sunday Noon

Once again this year we are using LunchBox to provide families with some options for hot lunch, should they wish to participate. Orders are due by NOON on Sunday for orders being delivered the following week.

Just a reminder that should buses be cancelled, hot lunches are also cancelled and credit will be provided to account.

To create an account and order hot lunches, use the guide below and linked here: Get The Guide

Just a reminder that if you are bringing your child to school or picking up, that there is no parking on the north side of Norman Rogers Drive. Last week we were out reminding parents and guardians of this. Cars that are parked on the north side are subject to a ticket and we don't want you to get one! Please park on the south side of Norman Rogers to the east or west of the school. There is no parking in front of the school as that is a bus loading zone.

The parking lot is for staff only. Please do not drive into or through the parking lot. Walkers are encouraged not to walk through the parking lot, for safety reasons.

There are many places to park on neighbouring streets that only take a few moments to walk to the school from. Thank you for your help with this important safety matter.

We will be working hard to promote regular attendance, at Centennial and all across the Limestone District School Board. We will be sharing information about how to set up healthy habits and we will be reaching out to families as attendance concerns arise. We want to work with you to promote regular attendance at school. If there is a way we can help you, please let us know!

We have experienced significant growth in our school population, including staff. As such, we are kindly requesting that parents and guardians do not park in the school parking lot at any time during the hours of 8am and 4pm.. We have some part time staff who arrive at various times throughout the day and they need to be able to park and get into the school to begin teaching on time. Please note that there is one entrance and one exit to the parking lot to ensure safety and flow of traffic.

Please also do not park directly in front of the school as that is a bus loading zone. There are parking spaces available along Norman Rogers drive to the east and west of the school, and along a number of side streets close to the school.

Thank you for helping to ensure that students can arrive safely to school. There are crossing guards on both Johnson Street and Norman Rogers Drive to help families cross these busy road ways. We appreciate their hard work!

Students go outside for 2 recess breaks, and sometimes are outside with their class for various learning activities. Students are encouraged to wear sunscreen during the warmer months, and have a sun hat outdoors.

We go outside for recess rain or shine and as such, students should come to school prepared to go outside even if it is lightly raining. In the event of heavy rain we will remain indoors, but we try to be outside for recess whenever possible.

Students have the opportunity to eat twice during the day at school. Lunches and snacks must be nut free please. This includes no peanut butter or nutella, or any kind of granola bar with nuts in it.

A reminder that Centennial participates in "Boomerang Lunch" which means that everything a child brings to school in their lunch bag, is returned home at the end of the day. In this way, parents/guardians can easily see what a child has or hasn't eaten in a day. Wrappers, containers, etc., will be sent home.

School Board Policy states that participation on school sports teams (both elementary and secondary) is conditional on obtaining at least the basic student accident insurance coverage for the student or proof of external private coverage through your family plan. The cost of basic coverage is approximately $17.00 per year. This covers the student while attending school during the school day. The time spent by students participating in school-sponsored teams is considered part of the school day, even if the games and/or practices are held outside of the regular school hours. It is recommended that all parents consider this program. Visit www.insuremykids.com to get this inexpensive and highly recommended insurance.

Throughout the year, we may ask for parent/guardian volunteers on school trips or for various classroom and school activities. The wait time for obtaining a CPIC (background check with vulnerable sector screening) can be lengthy. As such, if you think you would be willing to assist with a trip or school event in the future, please consider obtaining a CPIC with vulnerable sector screening completed, beforehand.

To get a Vulnerable Sector Check you may be required to provide a letter from the school indicating that you will be volunteering. We can send this to you! Just email us at cente@limestone.on.ca and we are happy to provide you with the letter.

Link to City of Kingston Police Check Request Here

Students will have 2 recesses and 2 nutrition breaks. Recess is outside on a particular yard (we will flip/flop the space each day so students in Grades 1-6 have the opportunity to play on both parts of the yard each day). All staff will be wearing safety vests so they are easily recognizable. Nutrition breaks happen in classrooms.

We have several students with life-threatening allergies. A reminder that our school is nut aware: please ensure that your child's snacks and lunch do not contain any nut products. Classroom teachers will communicate any additional food allergies that families will need to be aware of. Thank you for your support in keeping all of our students safe!

All school supplies that students need for their learning and work will be provided by Centennial Public School. Sometimes students prefer to have their own pencil case with pencils/markers, but it is not a requirement.

Students do need to come to school with:

- Indoor, non-marking athletic type of shoes

- Water bottle with child's name clearly marked (we have bottle filling stations, not fountains)

- Nut-free snacks and lunch

Please label all items!

Sometimes students want to bring items to school to show friends, or have things stored in backpacks that need to remain at home. This is just a reminder that students should not bring the following items to school:

- items of value (sentimental or monetary)

- any kind of weapon (for example, a Swiss Army knife)

- any kind of toy that could be a replica weapon (for example, a toy gun)

- electronics of any kind

- jewelry

- make-up

- anything scented

- anything with nuts (please ensure all lunches and snacks are nut-free)

- toys and stuffies

Thank you for keeping these items at home. Sometimes a quick check of a backpack can ensure that treasures do not come to school. Thank you for understanding that we are not responsible for lost, broken or stolen personal items.

Students are to come onto the school yard between 8:50am and 9:05am each morning. Families are reminded that they are not to arrive earlier than 8:50am as there is no supervision on the yard before that time. Parents/guardians who drive students must park on the street as there is no/limited parking in the school parking lot. Please note that there is no entrance on the west side of the school. That is for pedestrians only.

Student pick up happens at the exterior doors of the school at 3:25pm.

Please see the link below for more information and to self identify, if you wish.

https://ldsb.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9U2iaUl9GIFILb0

Do you need a way to label your things that stay labelled? Do you need a way to show what's yours? Need a way to label your child's things so they don't get lost or mixed up? Support Centennial Public School Council by purchasing through the link. The school receives 20% of your purchase! All funds raised go to support School Council initiatives including student activities. Thank you!

http://www.oliverslabels.com/Centennial

Want to look spiffy and show off your pride in being a Centennial PS Comet? Check out all of the clothing and accessories available at the Centennial Public School e-store at: https://specialtytrophies.ca/centennialps/

Please use the Safe Arrival system to report your child's absence; do not call the school to report an absence. If you child is going to be absent from learning, please ensure you use the Safe Arrival system to report the absence. If your child will be late, please report a full day absence and then we will sign them in when they arrive. You cannot indicate a half day absence.

How to report your absence:

1. Toll-free telephone

• Call 1-855-257-9349 toll-free to report an absence using the automated phone system.

2. School Messenger App

• Use your mobile device to download and install the free SchoolMessenger blue app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store, the SchoolMessenger website portal, or from within the LDSB mobile app.
• The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
• Select Attendance, then select Report an Absence and follow the prompts.

3. SchoolMessenger SafeArrival Website Portal

• Visit the SchoolMessenger website portal.
• The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
• Select Attendance, then Report an Absence and follow the prompts.

Stay Up To Date! Please check the following regularly...

Centennial PS Twitter https://twitter.com/centennial_ldsb?lang=en

Centennial PS Website https://centennial.limestone.on.ca/

LDSB Website https://www.limestone.on.ca/

LDSB Twitter https://twitter.com/LimestoneDSB

LDSB Facebook https://tinyurl.com/wbhjtku

LDSB Instagram https://instagram.com/limestonedsb?igshid=1epyma6c0g5qd

"We treat others the way we want to be treated"

"Show Up! Stand Up! Never Give Up!"

Email: cente@limestone.on.ca
Website: https://centennial.limestone.on.ca
Location: 120 Norman Rogers Dr, Kingston, ON K7M 2R2
Phone: 613.546.5517
Twitter: @Centennial_LDSB