Pizza Lunch 14th

CRAZY HAIR DAY 15

th

School Council Meeting 18th

Popcorn Day 21

st

OOZAKAZOO 21st

PA Day (no school for students) 22

nd

Sub Lunch 27th

Social Media/Internet Safety 1st

JK Reg’n Packages available 1

st

Report Cards go home 8th

JK Registration 8

th , 9

th

Pizza Lunch 11th

Grade 5 BONANZA Sale 11

th

Interview Evening 11th

Interview Day (no school) 12

th

Family Day (no school) 15th

Sub Lunch 24

th

“Take care of yourself, take care of each other, and take care of this place.”

This is the closing message of our daily morning announcements, and over the holidays I was considering just how important this adage is in our busy, technologically-focused world. As educators and parents, what could be more important that instilling in children the importance of taking care of themselves, each other, and our environment, and of demonstrating empathy in their daily lives? Research is showing that use of our devices and reliance on social media can affect children’s relationships and personal levels of empathy. We all need to understand how technology can fuel traits in our children – the good and the bad. To that end – I encourage you all to circle Monday, February 1

st on your calendars, when our School Council will be

presenting a parent workshop on Social Media and Internet Safety. Technology guru Paul Davis will be the guest speaker, and we’re hoping for a great turnout! Please watch for a flyer giving you all the details, and make it a point to come if at all possible. I wish you all a safe and happy 2016! It will be an exciting one around Norman Ingram, without a doubt!

Norman Ingram Principal Office Administrator Norman Ingram School Co-Chairs Megan Cooper Beverly Castellano Ruth Kenny/Robert Hashimoto

IMPORTANT DATES

February 2016

IMPORTANT DATES

JANuary 2016

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

FROM THE PRINCIPAL

January 2016

Speaking of instilling positive character traits in our children, the work here at school continues! During December we focused on Kindness and Caring, and in each class students voted on award winners; fellow students who exemplified these positive character traits. We’d like to congratulate the December winners: Ms. Lussier – Simona Kitanova Ms. Reyes – Samantha Andrews Ms. Mirebrahimi – DeAnna Danu Ms. Panela – Kai Shaw Ms. Gulian – Thomas Pitt-Smith Ms. Lam – Vanessa Stefan Mr. Whittington – Michelle Yip

During January we will focus on TEAMWORK. You can help by encouraging teamwork in your child. Here are some suggestions:

Play games as a family to develop teamwork and good sportsmanship.

Stress the importance of teamwork and the aspects of being a team player that make being on a team worthwhile.

Stress the importance of being willing to work and play with others at school, in the home, and in the community.

Share a story about a time when you worked together with friends, family members or teammates to accomplish a goal.

Believe it or not, we want your castoffs! Because LEGO is a product that really never wears out, our teachers would like to put yours to good use in a wide variety of ways. Building math structures, making 3-dimensional constructions related to community and neighbourhood, and creating models of student designs are all ways we might use your contributions. So – if you have any LEGO you are no longer using, we would be happy to accept it in the office, and we’ll make sure it gets to the right place to be well used! Thanks so much!

Happy New Year Everyone! I am delighted to see everyone back (a little taller I'd say!) I am so ready for more adventures and excitement in the gym and music room. Hope you're ready boys and girls! Let's make sure . . . with a few reminders!

1. Please bring a pair of clean indoor shoes for music and gym, so you can participate fully and not miss out on the fun! When you take off your boots and leave them in the hallway, it's just not safe to walk around in socks! 2. Remember to come prepared to music class with your music folder! You'll always be organized and have the lyrics or worksheets you need, if you do! 3. Our recorder unit is coming soon for grades 3-5! Look around your home for yours, and be sure it is clean and in its case. Have it ready to go for February. YAY! 4. Choir Friends are enjoying their well-deserved break this month. Hope you're having fun playing with your friends outside! Choir will re-start the first week of February. (This gives me a whole month to search for more beautiful music to sing!) Can't wait, Choir Friends!

Have you stopped by the music room and seen the showcase? Ms. Isbister, Christina's mom, (a.k.a. our Stage Manager) was multi-tasking at our Holiday Concert and Dress Rehearsal back in December, and took some amazing shots with her camera that are really up close and personal! If you haven't seen them yet, please stop by to have a look and enjoy!

I'd like to congratulate all the boys and girls who participated in our concerts, for truly giving outstanding performances! Your hard work, commitment, and perseverance in learning the lyrics and choreography is something you should be proud of. BRAVO!

We are so fortunate to have live accompaniment for our concerts here at Norman Ingram. Thanks again to our incredible accompanists, Sanya Eng, and Thomas Castaldo, for their support in this artistic endeavour. We are very grateful for their flexibility, patience, and musical guidance through this journey.

Looking forward to another great term of music and games!

Sincerely,

CHARACTER EDUCATION

Thank you from Project Winter Survival

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

The Pasqua post

Looking for lego!

Thank-you so much to Sarah Sherman for orchestrating the very successful Gingerbread House raffle in December. We were able to sell tickets on 6 creations, skillfully made

and decorated by Susannah Findlay, Ruth Kenny, MaryAnn Isbister, and Sarah Sherman herself (all with kid help, of course!) We held the raffle draws at the end of our sing-along the last day of school, and all of the winners were thrilled with their prizes! The event raised $500, half of which has been forwarded to PROJECT SNOWMAN.

Each year during the Christmas Season we like to give back to our community in one way or another. For example, we have sponsored refugee families, donated hats, mitts and scarves to families in our area, and filled backpacks for those on the street. This year we responded to a suggestion by Ms. Woods, and asked for donations to PROJECT SNOWMAN, an initiative of Ripple Clothes for Kids. On December 14th, representatives were thrilled to pick up five large bags of snowpants, winter jackets and snowsuits for children of all ages. Many thanks to all of those from Norman Ingram and BlueWave who were able to contribute – somebody is warmer today due to your donation!

Thank you for your generous support!

Monday, February 15th, 2016 is a Statutory Holiday. There will be no classes on Monday, February 15th to reflect the province-wide holiday called Family

Day. The holiday occurs on the third Monday in February of each year for the purpose of emphasizing and celebrating the importance of families taking time to be together. Enjoy the time with your children!

Wait a minute – who’s that woman in the middle holding the clock? Could it be . . . it IS Premier Kathleen Wynne! She arrived just in time for our sing-along concert on Friday, December 18th, so we put her to work performing in Ms. Innocente’s rollicking version of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” The words went as follows: On the 12

th day of Christmas a student said to me:

12th

When is it lunchtime? (Mrs. Campbell & Ms. Striewe) 11

th He butted in! (Ms. Mirebrahimi & Ms. Runighan)

10th

I need some ice! (Ms. Lam & Ms. Patterson) 9

th He took my Dino Dollars! (Ms. Panela)

8th

I lost my music! (Mrs. Pasqua) 7

th Where do I put it? (Ms. Lussier & Ms. Woods)

6th

I lost my form! (Mr. Whittington) 5

th Is it recess yet? (Ms. Coemtzis & Premier Wynne)

4th

I’m feeling sick – blech! (Ms. Gulian & Ms. Reyes) 3

rd I lost my book! (Ms. Innocente)

2nd

I need a bandaid! (Ms. Castellano) 1

st When does my vacation begin? (Mrs. Cooper in a

different outfit each time!)

Gingerbread House Raffle

Our surprise visitor!

Giving back!

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Family Day

It’s hard to believe that we are already halfway through this school year! As usual the library has been a hub of activity. Aside from the usual book talks and book borrowing routines, all of our students have engaged in various character education, media literacy, research and computer technology activities.

Our kindergarten friends are learning valuable skills as they visit the library lab every week to interact with literacy/mathematics websites and our interactive “magic shelves”. They recently enjoyed a visit from the children’s librarian of the Toronto Public Library who shared with them all the exciting things happening at the public library.

The students in Ms Lussier’s and Ms Reyes’s classes are learning about various media forms and recently learned to use an online database called PebbleGo to research science topics that they are discussing in class (e.g. Seasons). They are also using Bookflix to learn about the features of non-fiction texts.

Ms Lussier’s class used Shutterfly to create a digital class book which illustrated important school safety rules. They are currently working on creating beautiful plasticine art for their iMovie about seasons.

Ms Reyes’ class learned to use special features of Microsoft Word to produce digital posters and wrote book reviews which we submitted to an online review site called Just Read It. We are proud to announce that one of the reviews was chosen for publication on the site and the student was awarded a prize for her efforts!

Ms Mirebrahimi’s class also continued to explore advanced features of Microsoft and submitted book reviews to Just Read It. As an extension, they created beautiful bookmarks based on their book reviews which we will be exchanging with a grade two class in Texas, USA later this month. Soon they will begin using Pixie to create slides for their digital fables.

Ms Panela’s class learned to use an online posting wall called Padlet to create a digital retell poster. They completed an online webquest focusing on early Canadian settlers and they are currently using an online comic strip program called Bitstrips to create comic strips about personal safety.

Ms. Gulian’s class continued to explore advanced features of Microsoft Word to create digital posters, completed the early settler webquest and explored Razkids and Mathletics. They will begin using Bitstrips to create curriculum related comic strips in January.

Ms Lam’s students learned to use a web-based word cloud creator called Tagxedo to create a biography shape poem. They also continued to explore the uses of Padlet, using it to create a visual learning map as a culminating activity for their Light and Sound unit. They are currently working on dioramas as an advertising tool for a picture book of their choice.

Mr. Whittington’s class kicked off the year with a cross-curricular adventure. They explored science, technology, engineering and math (S.T.E.M) concepts as they worked collaboratively to create cardboard arcades for an audience ranging from grade one to grade 4. They created posters, advertised the event and raised $117 which will go towards the purchase of LittleBits (an easy-to-use platform of electronic building blocks) for

our MakerSpace. They continued their media studies by engaging in an interactive newspaper unit, exploring the features of the Toronto Star’s

Classroom Connection digital platform. Once again this year, all students from grade one to grade five took part in the international Hour of Code during Computer Science Education Week, December 7-13, 2015. The event gives young students the opportunity to explore computer programming. We are hoping that this experience will spark an interest in our students to be innovative and create the technology of the future. Please be sure to ask your child about the experience. Students can continue to practice coding by visiting www.hourofcode.com. Sincerely,

Teacher-Librarian

Library news From Ms. Innocente

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Elementary school students are kept indoors for recess and lunch times for a number of weather conditions such as rain, lightning in the area, extreme winds and extreme cold. When temperature and wind chill measure -28C or lower, students are kept indoors. Recesses and lunch hour may be shortened if the temperature and wind chill reading is between -28C and -20C.

If a student's medical condition requires further con-sideration due to weather conditions, or if you have other questions or concerns about how and when weather conditions affect your child's school day, please contact the school office.

Many of our families have registered to purchase gift cards through this School Council fundraising initiative. We’d like to remind everybody that Fundscrip can be used on an ongoing basis for items such as groceries and gas. If you have regular monthly expenses, why not register with Fundscrip and let Norman Ingram reap the benefits? Your weekly shopping can generate money for your child’s school with hardly any cost to you!

NORMAN INGRAM INVITATION CODE IS LN4XK5 For more information, please contact parent Susannah Findlay through the school office. Add your leaf to our Fundraising Tree outside of the school office!

Our grade 5 students will once again be hosting this exciting event to raise money for the Graduation Fund.

Thursday, February 11th all morning

Prices range from 50₵ to $3

Baked treats, candy, toys, plushies, crafts and much more

Grade 1 – 4 classes will be called to the sale with their teachers to purchase items

Students from our JK/SK classes are invited to bring $2 to school and our grade 5’s will bring treats to their classrooms for them to enjoy

Come one, come all and support our grade 5’s

Severe weather conditions may require the TDSB to cancel transportation or, in extreme conditions, close

schools. The decision to close schools is made by the Director of Education. In the event transportation is cancelled or schools are closed, the local media will be informed before the beginning of the school day. Tune in to your radio and television news stations for the latest information or visit www.tdsb.on.ca.

FUNDSCRIP Canada’s Most Successful Gift Card Fundraiser!

Look Out! It’s the annual valentine’s day Bonanza sale!

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Recess during cold weather

Bus & School Cancellations

At the TDSB, we know early learners learn best through doing; so our four and five year olds are

introduced to math and science through play as part of K-12 STEM programming. To inspire a love for learning, kindergarten classrooms are bustling with inquiry and exploration through science activities, math games, art projects and more. If you live in our catchment area and your child will turn 4 years of age by December 31

st, 2016, we encourage you to

visit the school on or after February 1st

to pick up a Junior Kindergarten registration package. We also welcome Senior Kindergarten students who have not yet registered in another local TDSB school. To attend Senior Kindergarten, your child must turn 5 years of age by December 31, 2016. We will be offering Full Day Kindergarten in September 2016, as well as Before & After School care. To register your child for JK or SK, a parent or guardian must visit the school during one of the following registration times:

Monday, February 8

th

9:15 – 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 – 4:00 p.m.

Tuesday, February 9th

8:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 – 4:00 p.m.

The following documents must be provided for registration:

All paperwork provided in registration package Proof of address; 2 copies of identification with your

address and name eg. purchase/lease agreement, tax bill, utility bill (not telephone bill or driver’s license)

Immunization record booklet Proof of citizenship Health card Family Doctor’s full name, address and telephone # Proof of sole custody (if applicable)

We will hold a Kindergarten Orientation on Wednesday, June 1

st at 4:15 p.m. for students and their parents.

Note: If your child was not born in Canada, verification of date of arrival is required. Families who are permanent residents and refugee claimants may register directly at the school. All other families should visit the International Program and Admissions Office, Toronto District School Board (TDSB), 5050 Yonge Street, for a TDSB School Admission Letter. Children without immigration status are welcome in our schools and information about them or their families shall not be shared with immigration authorities, as per TDSB Policy P.061SCH. Please visit www.tdsb.on.ca/kindergarten for further information.

Our girls’ basketball team had quite a season! An eager group jumped into the gym in early October and began practicing like crazy 4-7 times a week in preparation for their December tournaments. The girls improved their skills rapidly and Mr. W. pushed them up

to Division 1 to take on the best and biggest schools in the city.

Despite being the smallest school in the North Conference, the girls roared through their first tournament going undefeated and taking first in their pool. Then the great flu bug of 2015 struck the portable! Just about every Grade 5 player was down and out for days at a time and worst of all we had a conference championship to play! We were not sure if we would even have a full team, but everyone made it. Sick kids had to miss shifts and there were a lot of pale faces, but somehow the girls did it. They toppled the best in the North and won the Conference Championship!

That set the girls up for a trip to the TDESAA City Championships against crosstown rivals JD Parker. The girls played really well against some strong (and big) competition, leading all the way until the 6th shift. However, in the end JD Parker handed the Falcons their only defeat of the year and the girls had to settle for 2nd in the City. Not bad for a wee team from Norman Ingram! Congrats girls . . . you deserve it! Currently Mr. W. is still running lunchtime 3-on-3 basketball, our boys’ basketball team is practicing for February tournaments, and they are alternating gym space with Mrs. Campbell as she prepares our girls’ volleyball team for the big leagues! You will hear news of Ultimate as we approach March Break. Sports are alive and well at Norman Ingram!

Many thanks to parents for encouraging their kids to participate, for chauffeuring them to and from school for practices, and for driving to and from tournaments. We couldn’t field teams without parental support!

February is Kindergarten registration Month

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Sports news

Happy New Year and greetings from School Council co-chairs Ruth Kenny and Robert Hashimoto. Your School Council and Fundraising Committee have been very busy, with the help of some fantastic parents, keeping activities and events afloat.

Popcorn, pizza and sub-lunch days have all been very successful and we are grateful for continued support from parents.

We hope you are all aware of FundScrip. Yes, we had a bit of a rocky start but we hope you will take part in the offer, as it’s a great ongoing fundraiser for the school. www.fundscrip.com

Robert is always willing to hear from anyone regarding Spirit Wear so if you have any creative direction or fabulous ideas for him please feel free to bring them forward!

The holiday season brought us a very social and much enjoyed wreath-decorating workshop, a gingerbread house raffle the kids were ecstatic about, and treats for the school movie day afternoon. All events were very successful and there has been talk about adding to and improving them in the future.

There was a fantastic response to Jason Walker and Jason Szekely’s fundraising efforts for the ice rink! They are anticipating the boards to go up in the next two weeks and then all that’s needed is four days of -4C weather! Mr. Walker has informed us that the best-case scenario for an opening would be the 3rd or 4th week of January. The rink will be located under the light standard, beside the footpath, adjacent to the back soccer field. For the latest please visit www.gofundme.com/jrbcyzec.

Kiddie folk group Oozakazoo will be at Norman Ingram again on Thursday, January 21. Last year’s concert turned into a dancing frenzy and was a lot of fun for both kids and parents. The event will include an optional pizza dinner in the gym beforehand. Remember to bring a picnic blanket to sit on. www.oozakazoo.net

On Monday, February 1st we are fortunate to have Paul Davis joining us to give a talk on social networking safety for children. Mr. Davis has over 26 years of IT knowledge and has spoken to more than 250,000 children in grades 4-12. He brings knowledge and empowerment to children and parents and we encourage all parents to take part. This free seminar is intended to further support parenting skills, and is made possible by a $1,000.00 grant secured by Danielle Conway. www.socialnetworkingsafety.net

Earlier in the school year teachers compiled an extensive wish list for classroom items. Parent volunteer Alison Anderson came forward and created a Sign Up Genius page in hopes that we can acquire some of the smaller items through donations from the parent population. Expect to hear more on that in the near future. A long-term fundraising focus is the new Kindergarten Outdoor Learning Area. A team of staff members have sought the advice of a TDSB Design Team to decide on the details of a plan and the costs which will be incurred. More news to come!

The Barbeque Fun Fair on Friday, June 17th is in the works and it’s going to be big! We are planning a silent auction for the event and are looking to parents for suggestions, ideas, skills and expertise to include and be auctioned off. It is going to be a lot of work and we are asking for anyone to come forward and offer any amount of time or skill they might be able to offer.

At our last fundraising meeting a variety of ideas were discussed. We are always willing to hear any new thoughts so please join the next fundraising meeting January 12th. No experience is necessary! And please join us in the library January 18th at 7:00 p.m. for the next Parent Council meeting.

The next pizza day is January 14th and the next popcorn day is January 21st. These events are a great opportunity to get involved with the school and see how your child’s day is spent. The time commitment is minimal and it’s fun! (Pizza: Christina Tolciu, christinatolciu@gmail.com) (Popcorn: Ruth Kenny, ruthkenny@rogers.com)

Last but certainly not least, we would like to give a big thank you to those parents who work so hard to improve Norman Ingram and give our kids a chance to have fun! If we name names we’re sure to leave somebody out, so thanks to you all, whether you brought forward a great idea, helped to serve pizza or planned an event – we’re growing stronger together! Thank you!

Feel free to contact either ruthkenny@rogers.com or rhashimoto@duplium.com with questions or concerns.

School council news From co-chairs ruth Kenny & Robert hashimoto

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Our Norman Ingram Eco Squad continues to work hard this school year. We have so many eager students at our school that we opened up our squad to grade 2 students for the first time ever! These students show true dedication to helping our Earth become a better place. Every month students meet to sign up for a variety of eco jobs around the school, such as helping with our waste-free lunches. We couldn’t be a platinum school without the work of our wonderful students!

This year, we applied for a water bottle refilling station. As part of this application, eco members went around the whole school every morning recess in November to look for plastic water bottles. To our surprise, we had 87 bottles at the end of the month! We were shocked at the number of water bottles that were used in just one month. We are hoping we can reduce this number in the coming months, and we will do another tally in February. During our December meeting, students were asked what we should do with all these water bottles we collected. Members came up with some great ideas, and in the end we loved the idea of turning them into magical lights to hang outside of the gym for our winter concert. What a wonderful way to re-use plastic water bottles!

Here is a list of some of our current eco initiatives: We continue to sell Norman Ingram branded water bottles for $10.00. If you would like to purchase one please send in the money to your classroom teacher.

Two years ago we started to collect bottle caps in hopes of creating a wonderful piece of art. We continue to encourage families to save any types of bottle caps and bring them to school. Our collection box is just outside of the office. By collecting these bottle caps we are also preventing them from ending up in our

landfills. As a new initiative this year we have partnered with Staples and are recycling printer ink cartridges. If

you have any at home please send them with your child to school and they can drop them off in the green bin outside of the office. You no longer need to go to Staples to drop them off. We will do it for you! Thanks to everybody for being eco aware and supporting our various eco initiatives at Norman Ingram. Remember to

Go Green, Stay Green!

Just a reminder to parents about the TDSB Homework Policy, as we have had several questions recently.

For absences due to extended illness, parents may contact the school principal or leave a message for the teacher to discuss a homework package. This is entirely appropriate. (One or two days of illness are not considered extended.)

Teachers are not obliged to provide detailed classroom work or homework assignments for students who are away for extended periods of time as a result of parent-initiated absences (eg. vacations while school is in session).

If you choose to remove your child from school for a family vacation, we suggest activities such as journal entries, photo descriptions, math games, and if appropriate, use of interactive websites such as RazKids and Mathletics. Several of our teachers maintain classroom websites with recommended activities to enhance the daily program, as well as to practise learned concepts. Please feel free to contact the principal with further questions.

ECO NEWS From Ms. Lussier

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Homework Reminder

Diagnostic Kindergarten Top Five Goals for 2016!

Before we look ahead to 2016, I must give a nod to the tail end of 2015. These fabulous seven students, Jordan, Qasem, Nathan, Timothy, Aryan, Xavier and Mackenzie all performed “I’m a Little Snowman” at the holiday concert. This was a huge accomplishment for them, as it not only required learning the words and actions, but they had to tolerate a lot of sensory changes – costumes, crowds, noise, lights, not to mention big changes in their daily schedule. Michelle Striewe (Educational Assistant) and I were so proud of all of them. Way to wrap up 2015!

We look forward to setting new goals, having more fun and reaching new heights in 2016. Here are the top five overall goals or plans that we have for our classroom for the year.

Embrace Winter I don’t know about the rest of you but we can’t wait for all the snow. Winter is a sensory wonderland for the DK students! The sight of it falling from the sky, sound of it crunching under their feet, the texture, even the cold temperature – they love it all! It awakens the senses. We can’t wait to make our first snowman and take our first run on the sledding hill. Our students are true Canadians!

Cook More Speaking of awakening the senses, we plan to do a lot more of it in 2016 in the kitchen! Touching, smelling, mixing and of course tasting helps our students become willing to try new foods and tastes.

Make New Friends. Our students start out every day in the playground interacting with the students in Ms. Woods’ and Ms. Striewe’s classes (Yes, Ms. Striewe #2 is daughter of Ms. Striewe #1). I’m amazed at how quickly the DK students and the other kindies build friendships. The students in the other classes are so open and patient - they amazingly see past any language barriers. It is a beautiful thing to witness. I often see them waiting for

turns on the coveted “Red Bike” together, racing down the slide one after the other, or just enjoying a quiet moment in the sand. I often see Mackenzie getting some much needed “girl attention” from the girls in the other classes for a few rounds of Ring-around-the rosie. Qasem and Jordan also enjoy some classroom integration with Ms. Striewe’s class on a daily basis. They feel so welcomed by the entire group and they can’t wait to head over there (no offence taken). So our goal for 2016 is to do more integration and make more friends! Our students really benefit socially from opportunities for integration, and the other kindergarten students learn invaluable lessons on empathy, patience and acceptance. It’s a win-win!

Develop Independent Work Skills In the fall students were gradually introduced to a new work bin system. Every day there are a series of activities (literacy, numeracy, fine motor and sensory) that each student is expected to work on. Each activity is placed in a labelled bin. The goal is that students learn the routine well enough so that they can more-or-less help themselves to their bins and

complete their tasks. We of course circulate among them to assist, but completing their work as independently as possible gives them an amazing feeling of accomplishment.

Do More Outdoor Learning No matter what the season we plan to do as much instruction as we can outdoors. Along with the other kindergarten teachers, we hope to get some centres and activities up and running in the springtime. At Norman Ingram we are blessed with such beautiful outdoor space. We plan to take full advantage!

We are excited to be back to school to see our friends and move full steam ahead! Happy New Year to everyone at Norman Ingram.

From the staff and students in Room 101,

Laurie Patterson,

Michelle Striewe,

Jordan, Qasem,

Nathan, Timothy,

Aryan, Xavier and

Mackenzie

Meet the DK Class!

Norman Ingram Public School 50 Duncairn Road, Toronto On M3B 1C8 416-395-2720 School Superintendent: Tracy Hayhurst 416-396-9174 School Trustee: Gerri Gershon 416-395-3408

Scenes from a busy fall