THORNDALE PUBLIC SCHOOL

Principal: Heather Little

Vice Principal: Trudy Maharaj

Superintendent: Patrika Daws

Trustee: Balbir Sohi

Email: thorndale.ps@peelsb.com
Website: http://schools.peelschools.org/1440/Pages/default.aspx
Location: 133 Thorndale Road, Brampton, ON, Canada
Phone: 905-913-0397
Twitter: @ThorndalePS

Thorndale P.S. Daily Schedule

School Begins: 9:05

Homeroom: 9:05-9:25

Period 1: 9:25-10:05

Period 2: 10:05-10:45

Nutrition Break: 10:45-11:25

Period 3: 11:25-12:05

Period 4: 12:05-12:45

Period 5:12:45-1:25

Nutrition Break 1:25-2:05

Period 6: 2:05-2:45

Period 7: 2:45-3:25

Dismissal: 3:25

School Security

All parents and visitors entering the school during school hours must be buzzed in through the front doors and sign in and out at the office.

You are also reminded to wear a visitor’s badge while you are in the school. For safety reasons, it is important that we know who is in the school at all times.

Student Absences

Your child’s safety is very important to us, for this reason please make sure to call the automated attendance line at 1-855-209-6155, online at pdsb.schoolmessenger.com or by using the School Messenger App. for each day that your child is going to be absent from school or will be coming in late.

ALL ABSENCES 5 days or more require a signed note by the parent or guardian on the day returning to school.

Safe Arrivals: If a child does not arrive at school, School Messenger will contact you at home.

Please remember to sign your child in or out in the office.

School Phone

All classrooms have a phone and students may use these phones with teacher permission. The phone in the office is available for emergency use only and may be used only with staff permission.

Medication

If your child will require to take or have any medication (e.g., Epi-pens, inhalers) while at school due to asthma, allergies or other medical conditions please inform the office. You will be given a medical form that will need to be completed by your family doctor and returned to school with the medication. No medication can be administered at the school without having a current medical form completed and on file at the school.

Kiss and Ride

Parents are reminded to please use the "Kiss and Ride" driveway to drop off students. Please do not park in the "Kiss and Ride", fire routes or the bus lanes.

Thank you for helping us in making Thorndale P.S. a safe school for all of our students.

Supervision

Regular supervision within the school and on school property occurs between 8:50 AM and 3:40 PM. Students should not arrive before 8:50 AM. Parents/Guardians should insist on prompt arrival home at the end of the day unless involved in a supervised extracurricular activity. Please be sure to reinforce the need for your child to keep you informed of their activities. The school will encourage students to leave the property by 3:25 PM to go home.

School Lunches

In order to supervise students safely, students will remain in their classrooms while eating their lunches. Any student leaving school property must have written parental permission and check into the office before leaving.

Please make sure that your child comes to school with an appropriate healthy school lunch. This helps us to maintain an organized school day, and helps your child remain alert and ready to learn.

If you deliver a lunch:

• make sure your child knows its coming

• have it at school by 10:40 am or 1:20 pm

• put your child's name on the bag

• leave it on the table provided in front of the office

Birthday Celebrations

Birthdays are a special occasion for all children. We are asking that you keep the celebrating of birthdays at home with family and friends. Food treats and loot bags will not be distributed at school.

Help protect students with severe allergies by keeping lunches, snacks

peanut-free

Anaphylaxis is a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that affects some children. We ask that you help us take care of these students by sending lunches and snacks for your child that are free from peanuts or nuts, because these foods are the leading cause of anaphylaxis.

Please read the label of any food you plan to send to school with your child. If the label says, "May contain nuts or peanuts," please do not send it to school.

You can get a complete copy of the Peel board's anaphylaxis guideline from the school office.

Volunteers

Parents play an important role in the development and education of their children and in the success of the school community. At Thorndale P.S., we welcome and encourage the participation of parents and community members, and are grateful for the countless hours our volunteers contribute throughout the school year.

To volunteer at our school, you must complete a short interview and a criminal record check. This Criminal Record Check must have been completed within the last 6 months, must include a Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS) and must be an original copy. A police background check is required for all school volunteers in Ontario. Even if you want to accompany your child on a field trip, you need this background check.

Once you have completed the process, you are on file with the Peel District School Board as being a school volunteer. All returning volunteers will be mailed an Offence Declaration Form that must be filled out and returned to the board office each year. You will not be able to volunteer with the Peel board until you have returned this form.

If you have any questions about criminal record checks or the offence declaration form, please call the board office at 905-890-1010 ext. 2832.

Code of Conduct:

Speak and act with respect

Respect personal and school property

Maintain a safe, welcoming, and violence-free environment

Attend school regularly and be on time

Arrive prepared for class

Complete all assignments with your best effort and on time

BYOD:

At Thorndale P.S., we support incorporating more digital resources into the learning process. Students are invited to Bring Your Own Device to actively participate in modern learning. As not every child has access to their own device, Thorndale P.S. will continue to provide access to devices to support equity of access so that all children can participate. Use of devices for other than academic purposes is not permitted.

All personal electronic devices, must not be worn or played in the school, classrooms, or school without permission of a staff member.

K1 - S. Chan/ L.Tran

K2 - B. Sharma/ A. Robertshaw/ O. Tucic

K3 - W. Mitchell-Caldwell/ S. Bembridge

K4 - S. Reti/ E. Compagnoni

K5 - M. Asmani/ L. Spagnuolo

1A - N. Demko

1B - B. Bening

1C - P. Joshi

2A - S. Gold

2B - J. Kaur

2C - R. Rajah

3A - J. Yarkhani

3B - I. Wisniewski

3C - S. Jaswal

3D - A. Bhalla

4A - P. Aulakh

4B - S. Gupta

4C - E. Vella

5A - M. Gill

5B - M. Pitt

5C - A. Thom

6A - K. Saunders

6B - R. Kaur

6C - R. Nijjar

7A - K. Mackenzie

7B - A Bhatti

7C - J. Triffo

Gym - M. Kosteski

Gym/French - S. Crum

French - K. Potter

Teacher Librarian - A. Presta

Guidance/ESL/ISSP - S. Logue

ESL/ISSP - S. Purba

ESL/ISSP - S. Bains

ESL/ISSP - B. Poon

Music - L. Henderson

Music - A. Robertshaw

BTA - M. Rudiy

ERF - R. Persad

ERF - F. Imtiaz

ERF - W. Akowuah

ERF - R. Renna

Welcome to the 2019-20 school year—opportunities to learn, grow and succeed await you and your child!

At the Peel District School Board, our mission is to inspire success, confidence and hope in each student. There is no doubt that families play a vital role in helping us achieve this goal.

We value your involvement and want you to know it's appreciated. As our partner in education, we hope you'll stay connected to your child's learning throughout their entire school experience! Reach out to your child’s teacher to find out how you can get involved or visit www.peelschools.org/parents. Together, we have the incredible opportunity to inspire a smile in each student.

On behalf of the Peel board, I wish you an amazing school year.

Peter Joshua,

Director of Education

Peel District School Board

School news

http://schools.peelschools.org/1440/Pages/default.aspx

Visit our school website to learn what’s happening at your school, including:

• the latest school news

• contact information for school administration, superintendent and trustee

• the school calendar

• enrolment data

• school hours

• registration information

• online library catalogue

You can subscribe online to receive email notifications for news, calendar events and volunteer job opportunities related to your school. You can also choose to receive email and/or text message notifications for critical news, such as school closures due to bad weather. Click on the “Subscribe” link on the left side of the main page of the school website.

Peel District School Board news

Subscribe to automatically receive a list of activities by email that are sent the last week of each month, plus bonuses throughout the year. Visit our website at www.peelschools.org and click on the subscription link under "Quick Links."

You can also subscribe to:

• Learn more about board news and school events.

• View Peel board meetings with Board agendas. Meetings are open to the public and are held on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month.

• Read highlights of decisions made by trustees at board meetings.

• Receive job postings for non-teaching staff

Our school offers ParentConnect, a safe and secure website, as a convenient method for parents/legal guardians to stay informed and have easy access to important student information. By registering, you will have access to:

• view school-based alerts and information

• access real time absence reporting

• view current and historic elementary report card information

• get up-to-date busing information

• review secondary school credit history and diploma status

To register and begin using ParentConnect, visit http://parent.peelschools.org or click the ParentConnect button on your child’s school website.

For those parents/guardians that have used ParentConnect in the past, you will receive a new token/passcode to re-register your child(ren) with ParentConnect via email. This important step ensures that only you, as legal guardian, have access to your child’s information.

If you have any questions, please contact the school.

At the Peel District School Board, we are committed to helping each child achieve to the best of his or her ability. Using Modern Learning tools is an essential component of teaching and learning in today’s world. Modern Learning tools can include Internet sites where users interact and collaborate in online environments, websites where users log in, and/or applications for tablets. The Peel board believes that these online services are key tools in aiding students and teachers in the development of 21st Century skills.

Please note: In order to support student privacy, Peel board students are encouraged to be mindful of how and when they use their school email (studentnumber@pdsb.net) to create accounts on any third party, non-protected domain, apps/web services.

The terms and conditions of these app/web-services may not align with the Peel board’s Registering and Use of Software, Web-Based Services and Apps guidelines as their services may collect and display the student’s private information, including the full name, publicly.

If your child uses their own personal accounts to access these apps/web services, please encourage them to use privacy settings to ensure that their account information, including full name, is not shared publicly.

Please visit www.bit.ly/byodparentresources for more information.

The Peel District School Board does not provide accident insurance coverage for student injuries that occur on school property or during school activities including extracurricular sports. Each year, families could spend thousands of dollars when their children are injured at school, on field trips, while participating in non-school activities, or at home. If a student is injured, parent(s)/guardian(s) are responsible for any medical costs not covered by provincial health care or their employer's health care plan.

The provincial health care system does not cover costs which are commonly related to accidents including dental work, ambulance fees, casts and crutches, and physiotherapy. All of these are covered by Insuremykids student accident insurance plan and as a convenience to parents, the Board has arranged to offer a plan to parents through Old Republic Insurance Company of Canada. To help protect your family, it is strongly recommended that you consider obtaining Insuremykids Protection Plan, which offers a variety of benefits at affordable prices, which provide 24 hours a day, 365 days a year coverage, range from $13 to $33 per year.

The insurance agreement is between You and Reliable Life Insurance Company.

You can apply for coverage online at www.insuremykids.com for answers to frequently asked questions. For more information, call Old Republic Insurance Company of Canada toll free at

1-800-463-KIDS (5437).

If you have any questions, concerns or suggestions about your child's education, or about education in general, anyone with the Peel board is happy to help. Here are some of the people who can help you:

· If you have specific questions or concerns about the education of your son or daughter, the first person to talk to is your child's teacher. If possible, arrange a personal interview with the teacher to discuss your concerns and attempt to resolve the matter. Your child's teacher or principal can also give you more information about specific strategies being used to monitor your child's progress.

· If you need extra help, or have more general questions, your school principal is there to assist. Your school principal can help if you have been unable to resolve the issue with your child's teacher. All curriculum material is available in your child's school.

· If you still have unanswered questions or concerns, talk to your superintendent of education.

· If you have general questions about curriculum, call Curriculum and Instruction Support Services at 905-890-1010 ext. 2559.

· If you have questions about special education programs or services, contact Special Education Support Services at 905-890-1010 ext. 2345.

· Of course, your local school trustee is elected to represent your interests and is always ready to hear and discuss your suggestions or concerns. If you don't know the name of your trustee, check the 'Meet your Trustee' section of the board's website at www.peelschools.org.

If you still have questions, please email communications@peelsb.com or call Communication & Community Relations Support Services at 905-890-1010 or 1-800-668-1149 ext. 2809.

Peel schools provide a safe environment for students and staff to learn and work. The board has many procedures to ensure safety ¾ including regular fire drills, evacuation plans, criminal record checks for new staff and volunteers, and lockdown, hold and secure and shelter in place drills. Together with Peel Police, OPP and the Dufferin-Peel Catholic School Board, the board developed procedures for critical situations.

Every school will review the key points of the lockdown process with students. We rehearse the drill twice per year to make sure staff and students know what to do if we have to initiate a lockdown.

During the rehearsal, the principal will make an announcement to "initiate lockdown procedure." The school bell will ring continuously for a period of time and our goal is to make the school appear vacated.

Students and staff inside the school will:

1. go to the closest room, close the door and lock it, if possible

2. turn off the lights and lie down on the floor away from doors and windows

3. remain on the floor quietly until further directions are given

   Students and staff outside the school will:

4. move as far away from the building as possible

5. remain outside until further directions are given

   Depending on the situation, students and staff outside the building may be directed to an evacuation site. When the rehearsal is over, the principal will make another announcement.

   Important things to note when an emergency occurs

1. Students and staff must not use cell phones

In these critical situations, safety is our number one priority. During rehearsals or in real critical situations, Peel Police have advised that cell phone usage can cause more safety risks and the following consequences:

• Cause signal delays for emergency services to attend to the situation.

• Prevents police from being able to communicate with each other and other important personnel in a timely manner.

• Public posts and messages may identify where individuals are in the building and a pose a safety risk.

• Can attract attention to the area of the school where the phone is being used.

Parents are requested to NOT call the school or your child’s cell phone during emergency procedures.

1. Parents can get updates during emergency procedures on their school website

1. Parents are requested NOT to go to the school

In the unlikely event of an actual lockdown, hold and secure, shelter in place or bomb threat, police ask that parents do not go to the school. For safety reasons, you will not be allowed to enter a school that is in lockdown, hold and secure or shelter in place and students and staff cannot leave the school. In rare cases, police will designate a Parent Information Site for you to attend and get up-to-date, accurate information. Please monitor your child’s school website and do not come to the school unless requested to do so.

If you have any questions about our lockdown drill, or any of the procedures we have in place to keep students and staff safe, please call the school.

All parents/guardians of elementary students need to report their children's absences or late arrivals from school via our automated School Messenger SafeArrival system.

Use one of the following methods to set-up your new SafeArrival account. Please ensure the number and email address that you are using to report your child’s absences are those that we have on file at the school.

SchoolMessenger app (free from Apple or Google Play)

1. Download the SchoolMessenger app

2. Tap Sign Up to create your account

Web and Mobile Web: go.schoolmessenger.ca

1. Go to the above website

2. Click Sign Up to create your account

Interactive Toll-free Phone

1. Call the toll-free number: 1-855-209-6155

2. Listen to and follow the instructions to report an absence

As always, please report your child’s absences before the start of the school day. Late arrivals and/or early departures should be reported as soon as possible. If your child’s absence is not reported in advance, the automated notification system will contact you and will provide an opportunity to verify the absence. By reporting your child absent in advance on the SafeArrival toll-free number, website or SchoolMessenger mobile app, you will not receive a call.

As always, if you have any questions or require any assistance, please contact the school.

Many elementary schools offer a Kiss N’ Ride program, where parents/guardians can drop off and pick up their children at a designated area on school property. The program was established to provide a convenient and safe option for our students and parents driving to school. To ensure the safety of staff and students, we ask all parents/guardians be mindful of the following guidelines:

• There is no parking and no waiting in the Kiss and Ride lane. Pay attention to the traffic in front of you and pull forward as cars move forward. If you choose to park in the parking lot, please escort your child to or from the nearest foot patroller and use the main crosswalk.

• Vehicles entering the Kiss N’ Ride lane must stay in the designated lane, unless otherwise directed by a staff member or volunteer.

• The Kiss N’ Ride program is only available to students who are able to disembark independently.

• Have your child ready to exit the car when you reach the curb. Students may only exit from the passenger (right) side of the vehicle.

• After picking up or dropping off your child, leave promptly so that others can get in behind you.

• If your child is not waiting for you at the main crosswalk at the end of the day, please circle the parking lot if permitted and rejoin the line or park in a designated parking space to wait.

• Always respect traffic flow and abide all traffic laws and signs.

Ask your child’s teacher or principal to learn more about our school’s specific Kiss N’ Ride procedures.

Every Peel school has a school council—a group focused on helping students succeed. School councils provide a voice for parents and the community and offer advice to the school principal on a number of topics.

We are a holding school council meeting on October 3rd from 5:00pm - 6:00pm at which time, we will have elections for the executive positions (e.g., Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, etc.).

If you would like to know more or are interested in running for an Executive position, please contact Heather Little, Principal of Thorndale P.S. @ 905-913-1490.

September

Corn Moon

Indigenous Worldview (First Nations)

September 1 or 2 ●

Ganesh Chaturthi/Vinayak Chauth

Hinduism

September 1

Installation of Holy Scriptures of Guru Granth Sahib

Sikhism

September 2

Labour Day

Canada

September 3 ●

Samvatsari

Jainism

September 4 (SC)

Farvardegan

Zoroastrianism

September 8 to 26

the month of `Izzat in Bahá'í

Bahá'í

September 10 or 11 ●

Ashura

Islam

September 11 (J)

Nayrouz

Christianity

September 12 to 16

Ghambar Paitishahem

Zoroastrianism

September 12 or 13

Anant Chaturdashi

Hinduism (12) and Jainism (13)

September 12 ●

Kshamavani and Daslakshan Parva ends

Jainism

September 19

Powley Day

Indigenous Worldview (Métis)

September 22

Shuki-Sorei-Sai

Shinto

September 23 ●

Mabon/Harvestide

Wicca

September 27 to October 15

the month of Mashi'yyat

Bahá'í

September 29

Sharad Navratri

Hinduism

Sunset of September 29 to October 1 ●

Rosh Hashanah

Judaism