2014 40 New Westminster Drive, Thornhill (905) 738-1724 Attendance Line: 905-907-7884 www.louishonorefrechette.ps.yrdsb.edu.on.ca Louis-Honoré Fréchette P.S. FRÉCHETTE GAZETTE Priorities: Literacy: Assessment for Learning Parental & Community Engagement: Supporting Student Learning at Home in our Changing Community Effective Schools: Creating a Safe and Supportive School Principal: Angie Furlin Vice Principal: Rosalie Selick Trustees: Joel Hertz (905) 882-4179 Superintendent of Schools: Clayton LaTouche - (905) 764-6830 Message from Administration Our students had their best year yet at the Area and Regional Cross Country meets. Many students returned with ribbons and we won three new pennants! All students demonstrated great spirit and sportsman- ship. Bravo à tous! Many thanks to the coaches for their enthusiasm and their time! Our EQAO results are in and once again the results reflect the collec- tive efforts of staff, students and parents. It is worth noting that EQAO results represent only one method of evaluating our stu- dents’ math and literacy skills. For more detailed results, please visit the EQAO section of our website. Progress Report Cards will go home November12th. The pur- pose of this report card is to com- municate the progress your child has been making since the begin- ning of the school year in each subject. The progress report also indicates how well your child is demonstrating the various learning skills and work habits and identi- fies areas where you may be able to support your child in achieving success this year. We look forward to meeting with you to discuss your children’s progress as well as areas of growth at the upcoming Parent/Teacher conferences on the evening of November 13 th and the morning of November 14th. Finally, on October 29th and 30 th , staff, students and families of LHF danced the day and night away at our very successful school and family dances. It was wonderful to see the great turnout on the evening and how much fun everyone was having. We thank all of our families for coming out and contributing to a very successful event. We would like to extend a very special thank you to our School Council for put- ting this all together. We truly appreciate their dedication to school ini- tiatives and their fund-raising efforts as well as their great school spirit and community engagement. Mme Furlin and Mme Selick TURN BACK THE CLOCKS on, Sunday, November 2, 2014. 2:00 AM back to 1:00 AM
Joel Hertz (905) 882-4179 Superintendent of Schools:
Clayton LaTouche - (905) 764-6830
Message from Administration Our students had their best year yet at the Area and Regional Cross
Country meets. Many students returned with ribbons and we won three
new pennants! All students demonstrated great spirit and sportsman-
ship. Bravo à tous! Many thanks to the coaches for their enthusiasm
and their time! Our EQAO results are in and once
again the results reflect the collec-
tive efforts of staff, students and
parents. It is worth noting that
EQAO results represent only one
method of evaluating our stu-
dents’ math and literacy skills. For
more detailed results, please visit
the EQAO section of our website. Progress Report Cards will go
home November12th. The pur-
pose of this report card is to com-
municate the progress your child
has been making since the begin-
ning of the school year in each
subject. The progress report also
indicates how well your child is
demonstrating the various learning
skills and work habits and identi-
fies areas where you may be able to support your child in achieving
success this year. We look forward to meeting with you to discuss
your children’s progress as well as areas of growth at the upcoming
Parent/Teacher conferences on the evening of November 13th and the
morning of November 14th. Finally, on October 29th and 30th, staff, students and families of LHF
danced the day and night away at our very successful school and family
dances. It was wonderful to see the great turnout on the evening and
how much fun everyone was having. We thank all of our families for
coming out and contributing to a very successful event. We would
like to extend a very special thank you to our School Council for put-
ting this all together. We truly appreciate their dedication to school ini-
tiatives and their fund-raising efforts as well as their great school spirit
and community engagement.
Mme Furlin and Mme Selick
TURN BACK THE CLOCKS on, Sunday, November 2,
2014.
2:00 AM back to 1:00 AM
Fréchette Gazette
Page 2
Parent/Guardian - Teacher Conferences A letter will be going home so that parents/guardians
can schedule a time for their parent/guardian - teacher
conference. The conferences will be scheduled with
your child/children’s teacher after school on Thursday,
November 13 and/or the morning of Friday,
November 14, 2014.
——————————————
Progress Reports will be going home
on Wednesday, November 12, 2014.
School Council
On October 30th, our School Council, once
again put on a wonderful Halloween Dance. Many
families attended, had great fun and danced the
night away. Thank you for organizing this great
event! The next School Council Meeting is on
Wednesday, November 19 at 7:00 p.m. All
parents are welcome. Child care is available.
Photo Re-take Day -
Thursday, November 20, 2014 Please be aware that Picture Re-take Day is limited to those
students who were absent on picture day or for those students whose picture is flawed (eg. eyes closed.) Students must present their original photo for review before any photos will be taken (if proofs are in). Proofs will be sent home for you to preview before you buy. For tips on preparing for photo day visit
http://www.lifetouch.ca Questions call Lifetouch at 1-866-457-8212 or email: [email protected]
Holocaust Presentation
Please join us for our Holocaust presentation on Thursday, November 6th at 2:15pm in the
gym where our presenter will be Claire Baum. Claire Baum was born in Rotterdam, Holland in 1936. She survived in hiding with her
sister from 1942-1945. Separated from their parents, they were raised as Christians for three years by a
courageous 26 year old woman. At the end of the war, the sisters were reunited with their parents and
immigrated to Canada. All are welcome to come to this presentation. We look forward to seeing you there!
Immunization Update The 2nd dose of HPV immuniza-
tion for Grade 8 Females will
take place on Friday, November
28th, 2014. The Meningitis immunization for
grade 7 students will take place
on Friday, November 28th, 2014.
LOST & FOUND Lost and Found will be on display the evening of November 13, and on November 14 in the foyer of the school. Please come by and retrieve your children's lost articles. All lost and found will be donated by the end of November. Thank you!
STUDENT PICK-UP If you wish to pick up your child during the lunch time, please pick up your child by 1:10pm. If
you wish to pick up your child after lunch, please pick up your child after 2:20 pm. We are not
able to go out on the yard to look for your child when he/she is outside for the recess portion of the
lunch. Thank you in advance for your co-operation.
During September and October, 110 Fréchette students came out to early morning runs,
and ran some incredible distances: from 1.2km in grade 4, to 2.6km in grade 8! Every
one of these runners participated, competed and achieved great success at the Area Cross Country meet.
We are so proud of all of you for your true sportsmanship and determination and for cheering on your
fellow classmates! We won THREE new pennants for our gym at the Area event!!! And had our BEST YEAR EVER with
41 students qualifying for Regionals. Fréchette was also awarded two overall TEAM RIBBONS at the Regional Meet (Gr. 7 Girls and Gr.
6 Boys)! Well Done and FÉLICITATIONS to all our runners! Thank you to our volunteers and to our dedicated parents for driving their kids to school early for these
morning runs. From (the very proud) Cross Country coaches
M. Deschênes, M. Durand, M. Wayling, Mme Kotliarova and Mme Williamson
Keeping Terry Fox's Dream Alive
This year at Louis Honoré Fréchette, we set new challenges for our school and our
students in order to raise awareness and funds for The Terry Fox Foundation. We
surpassed our school goal of $3,500.00. We are so proud of our students, staff and
community for their generosity as we were able to raise a total of $3,788.00. Due to the combined efforts of everyone involved, the students were able to achieve and
obtain the school challenges during a school wide assembly; one of which included all staff
members dancing to the Macarena.
Merci à tout le monde!
Wet & Muddy Fall and Winter Weather Yes, wet and muddy weather is here again and when we have rain or snow, the field and park have puddles and mud. In order to avoid calls home in the middle of the day, please make sure that you send your child with indoor and outdoor shoes, as well as a change of clothes, including a top, pants, socks and underthings. Please put the items in a bag with your child/children’s name(s) clearly marked. We appreciate your support in this matter.
Fréchette Gazette
Page 4
INTERMEDIATE VOLLEYBALL This year, we kicked off our Intermediate Volleyball season with three weeks of intramural play. Over 75
grade 7s and 8s have showed up to have some fun and spend some time competing against friends. A big thanks goes out to every student who took some time to come out and give it their best! Also, our
competitive teams have been chosen, and we are looking forward to a busy season. 12 boys and 11 girls
will represent LH Fréchette at several volleyball tournaments against other schools. The teams will be training separately, three times a week in preparation for the Area Tournament in
November. Good luck to both teams!
Coaches - Josh Durand and Nicole Crouchman
Gr. 8 Parent Information Evening for Secondary School
All parents/guardians of grade 8 students are invited to an information evening at the following high schools:
Vaughan Secondary School - January 15, 2015 at 7:00pm
Westmount Collegiate Institute - January 15, 2015 at 6:30pm
Thornhill Secondary School - December 14, 2014 at 6:30pm
Members of the Guidance and Administration departments of the high schools will share information about the
school and discuss the transition to secondary school.
If your child is currently in grade 8, we encourage you to attend one or all of these meetings.
For further information contact Vaughan S.S. at 905-660-1397. Westmount C.I. at 905-882-0277. Thornhill S.S. at
905-889-5453.
This year we kicked off our Intermediate Leadership Team
with a food drive that is part of the We Scare Hunger initia-
tive to support Covenant House. We Scare Hunger is a cam-
paign organized by Marc and Craig Kielburger as part of the
Free the Children organization. We Scare Hunger's goal is to
educate people about world hunger and poverty. It encour-
ages us to donate food to our local charity, which in our
school's case is Covenant House. Covenant House is a local
charity that helps youth that are in need of assistance. Please
help us in supporting our quest to put an end to world hunger
by bringing in food donations. Food donation bins are lo-
cated on each floor in our school. We appreciate all of your
support in helping those in need.
Fréchette Gazette
Page 5
Scholastic Great Canadian Book Fair/Le Festival du Livre It is time for our Scholastic Great Canadian Book Fair and this year again, we will be
holding a French fair. Le Festival du Livre will feature French picture books, novels,
non-fiction books, activity books and many other quality titles on display for all
reading levels and ages. The students will be bringing home a flyer that highlights a few of the quality books available at Le
Festival du Livre. Le Festival du Livre allows children and parents to select and buy quality reading
materials in French at reasonable prices. If you are looking for holiday gifts for a special person, le
Festival du Livre may provide the answer. Le Festival du Livre will run from Monday, November 10th, until the morning of Friday,
November 14th. Primary and Junior students will be scheduled for classroom visits on Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Intermediate students will get to visit during a scheduled morn-
ing Nutrition Break. We will make wish lists available for the Primary students to write down book
titles and prices for discussion with their parents. Proceeds from Le Festival du Livre will be used to purchase more resources for our school library so
we encourage your participation. Go over the book list flyer with your child and help him/her make
selections. Better still, come to the Festival du Livre and have a look at the books. Please note Le
Festival du Livre will be open in the evening during parent-teacher interviews on Thursday,
November 13th from 5 PM-9 PM and Friday, November 14th from 8:30 AM-11:30 AM. Thank you for your support— Mme Judy McNeill, Teacher-Librarian
MATH CLUB is up and running! Math Club is for any students who would like extra time or support for their math learning. M. Keen runs Math Club for the younger grades (4,5,6). Mme Williamson runs Math Club for the older grades (7,8). We will make daily announcements when Math Club is offered - come down to the library at second recess with all your ma-terials. Be prepared to work.
HOMEWORK HELP
INDEPENDENT LEARNING TOOL
Homework Help is a Ministry of Education initiative which supports intermediate math learners in grades 7 - 10. In the intermediate years, many parents become unable to help their children with homework. Homework Help is designed to support students, families and teachers as students work towards an understanding of mathematics. Click here for more information.
CHESS CLUB will only run on Rain Days at Fréchette this year. We have enough chess sets and pieces for everyone who wants to participate. Chess Club is open to all students in Grades 3 to 8. Listen for announcements on Rain Days and come to the library at second recess to play chess.
Please Help Us! We continue to strive to improve our daily routines to make each day a positive and smooth experience for everyone attending Fréchette. Protecting instructional time by avoiding unnecessary interruptions throughout the day is of utmost importance to us, as educators. Parents are asked to help us in the following ways: Punctuality Counts! Punctuality is an important life skill valued by school, teachers in the work force, and society. We are concerned that some of students continue to arrive late for school. The morning bell rings at 9:05 am to indicate that teachers are on duty outside and then again at 9:20 am to indicate that classes begin. Students who walk to school or who are driven to school must be in class no later than 9:20 am, otherwise, they are marked as late, and this is recorded on their report card. Parents may be notified of repeated lates. Please ensure that your child arrives on time and ready to learn. Safe Arrival When your child is going to be away from school, we ask that you notify the school. A message can be left on our attendance line at 905-907-7884 anytime of the day or night. The law requires us to contact you when a child is marked absent in the daily attendance roster, and we have not received a call from home explaining the absence. We also ask that you specify the nature of your child’s absence. If we cannot determine the reason for the absence, we must notify the Police. We rely on you to help us account for all children quickly and efficiently each school day. Parking This is a reminder that there is absolutely NO PARKING in front of our dumpster. This area must be free of all vehicles at all times.
LHF is a Scent Free School
We are raising awareness of the issue of fragrance sensitivity. When we talk about “fragrance”, we usually mean the
smells or odours from cosmetics (perfume, make-up, shampoo, deodorant, etc) or from other products such as air
fresheners, cleaners, etc. When a product is listed as Fragrance Free or Unscented, this means that there have been
no fragrances added to the cosmetic product, or that a masking agent has been added in order to hide the scents from
the other ingredients in the cosmetic.
Allergic and asthmatic patients, as well as those with other conditions, report that certain odours, even in the smallest
amounts, can trigger an attack. The severity of these symptoms can vary. Some people report mild irritation
while others are incapacitated and/or must give up many ‘normal’ activities in order to avoid exposure
(such as going to public places).
It is important to remember some products which claim to be ‘fragrance free’ may have only masked the
scent by use of an additional chemical. Be sure to research the product carefully if using scented products
around those who are sensitive.
Thank you for your co-operation!
Fréchette Gazette
Page 7
Healthy School Committee Update
The milk program is now up and running. Your child can enjoy a healthy drink of white or chocolate milk twice a
week. Thanks to the dependable team of students who deliver the milk each week. You're the Chef--- Fourteen students in grades 5 and 6 had fun learning about how to cook with fruits and vegeta-
bles during 3 sessions in October. This program, created by York Region Public Health,
encourages students to learn to cook healthy breakfasts, lunches and snacks. Students cooked in the staff room.
Thanks to Mme Plourde, Mme Trevisan, Mme Dutil and Mme Cohen for organizing this program for our Fréchette
students. Another session will be offered in the winter of 2015. Healthier Options - Happy Halloween
We all love Halloween goodies, but why not try healthier options. Healthy well-
nourished students are better learners! Students who consume healthier foods and
beverages are more likely to get the nutrients they need to learn, play and grow. By
providing your children with healthier options, you can limit the amount of sugary
treats your children will consume after their big night of trick or treating.
If you have any interesting ideas for healthy snacks, please send them to
[email protected] and we can put them in our school newsletter. Let’s all try a new
veggie this fall.
Any questions or to volunteer please contact: Judy at [email protected]
Eco Schools
The mascot challenge starts this month. Each class has chosen an endangered species.
Points will be awarded to class mascots for bringing litterless/boomerang lunches, properly
sorting recycling, green bin and garbage, bringing reusable water bottles, etc. Students from
the Eco Club will visit classes and award points. The classes which collect the most points will have
their class mascot adopted. The animal mascots were chosen from the World Wild Life Fund's list of
endangered species. If you have any up to date but unwanted cell phones please donate them to the school to help raise fund for the
Environment Club to help with projects in the school. Please send in chargers too. Please pack your child a litterless lunch. Use re-usable, washable containers to hold food. Encourage your child
to recycle containers at school and to take uneaten food home to put in your green bin for composting. Any parent volunteers interested in helping with the Eco Schools Committee are welcome. Contact Mme Cohen
To ensure the safety of students, school bus service may be cancelled from time to time due to inclement weather, extreme temperatures and/or poor road conditions. In these cases, parents and students should develop alternate care/transportation arrangements. Since some bussing schedules begin by 7:00 a.m., cancellation decisions must be made by 6:00 a.m. to allow time to communicate this message to bus drivers. Cancellation decisions will only be made after thor-ough consultation with the Safety Officers of school bus companies servicing York Region and are based on several factors including precipitation, air temperature, road conditions and weather forecast. Please note the following;
A decision to cancel school bus service will be region-wide meaning all school buses, vans and taxis
will not operate.
School bus routes may be cancelled when severe weather may not be affecting all municipalities in York Region. Both the YRDSB and YCDSB operate many regional educational programs. Students attending these programs are transported over large attendance areas encompassing several municipal boundaries. This limits the ability to cancel bus service using a municipality or zone methodology. Unless otherwise stated, schools will remain open and parents can make arrangements to transport their children to and from school even if school bus service is cancelled. If buses are cancelled in the morn-ing, they will not operate in the afternoon. Therefore students transported to school by parents will require the same transportation home. Parents, students and school staff are asked to access the following radio and television stations after 6:00 a.m. to receive bus cancellation information: RADIO 590 AM 640 AM 680 AM 860 AM 1010 AM 1050 AM 1540 AM 1580 AM 88.5 FM 89.9 FM 92.5 FM 93.1 FM 94.9 FM 95.9 FM 97.3 FM 98.1 FM 99.1 FM 99.9 FM 101.1 FM 102.1 FM 104.5 FM 100.7 FM 107.1 FM TELEVISION CITY TV CTV Barrie CFTO TV CP24 GLOBAL NEWS A bus cancellation message will also be available at www.schoolbuscity.com and by calling 1-877-330-3001, or by following the YRDSB on twitter. Please note that school bus charters will not operate when home to school bus service is cancelled.
Many children have special events throughout the year such as birthday parties, Confirmations and Bar/Bat
Mitzvahs. If you would like to know about certain dates to support the planning of your own event, a par-
ent volunteer has offered to assist families by keeping an electronic calendar. Please feel free to email Guy
Peer at [email protected] if you need to know about certain dates, or would like to share the date of
your event for others’ planning purposes. Please note that this calendar is entirely organized by parent volunteers. L.H. Fréchette assumes no re-
sponsibility in the coordination or maintenance of this calendar.
YRDSB Safe, Caring and Supportive Schools - Policy #668.0 A principal shall suspend a pupil if he or she believes that the pupil has engaged in any of the following
activities while at school, at a school-related activity or in other circumstances where engaging in the
activity will have an impact on the school climate:
Possessing a weapon or replica weapon, including possessing a firearm;
Using a weapon to cause or to threaten bodily harm to another person;
Committing physical assault on another person that causes bodily harm requiring treatment by a
practitioner.
For a detailed description of the Safe, Caring and Supportive Schools Policy, please follow the link:
Link.
VOLUNTEERS IN THE SCHOOL All volunteers who have direct contact with students MUST have a valid Police Vulnerable Sector check. If
you are planning to help on a field trip, drive students to athletic events, volunteer in the school, etc., the Board
now requires us to have volunteers submit a Police Vulnerable Sector report (even if you have volunteered pre-
viously). Please get your police check as soon as possible as it sometimes takes several weeks to proc-
ess. Forms are available from the office.
It is vital to have up to date information, if you have made any changes to your home, business or cell numbers or have a new address or emergency contacts please make sure that the office is informed. You may email the changes to either Mme Apa at [email protected] or Mme Pupo at [email protected]. Thank you.
Anaphylaxis-What is it?
Anaphylaxis is a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction. Within seconds, symptoms such as itching, hives, tingling
of the mouth and even death (due to breathing difficulty and low blood pressure) could occur. Immediate recogni-
tion and treatment is essential. Under the legislation, Sabrina’s Law, 2005, parents are obligated to: 1. Supply information on life-threatening allergies for your child;
2. Keep school informed with up-to-date information for your child’s file; and
3. Provide consent for the school administration and employees to administer an Epi-Pen® in response to an ana-
phylactic reaction. Provide up-to-date Epi-Pens® to your school. We remind parents to follow school board policy, and avoid sending foods which include peanuts or other
