Week of September 18th, 2023

Yom Kippur

For those in our community who are observing Yom Kippur this weekend, we wish you a meaningful holy day and a blessed new year.

Identity Affirming Space

At Davisville JPS and Spectrum Alternative, it is important for us to ensure that students have an opportunity to share their identities and learn about others’ identities in positive and affirming ways. In their classroom instruction, our staff are looking for ways to consider and incorporate multiple identities within their approaches to teaching, curriculum material, and assessment styles. We aim to create an environment in our school where students are able to recognize their identities within the material posted around the school and classrooms, the themes and big ideas pulled from the curriculum, and the differentiated approaches used by educators.

 

Spectrum Trip to Island Natural Science School

On Monday September 18th, our Spectrum Alternative students and staff traveled to the Island Natural Science School for a 3-day overnight trip, where they engaged in an outdoor program focused on sustainability and environmental stewardship. Students interacted with their environment through photography, gardening, and storytelling, all while building community with their peers. What a great way to kickstart the new school year! 

Newcomer Settlement Services at Davisville JPS  

Settlement Workers in Schools (SWIS), also known as SEPT, offers settlement services to newly arrived families. Settlement Workers deliver individual/family services or group programs that help participants to understand and to successfully transition into the education system and to accelerate the settlement process. Settlement Workers are placed in different schools and library sites across the city to connect newcomers to resources and services in their community. 

Please read the newsletter embedded below to learn more about settlement workers and the services and supports they provide. The contact information for the settlement worker at Davisville JPS can also be found in the newsletter: 

Newcomer Services-Newsletter

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day September 30, 2023

September 30 is National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Together we recognize the legacy of Canada’s residential school system and continue to learn the many truths of these institutions.

Orange Shirt Day, established in 2013 by Phyllis Webstad, recognizes the legacy of the Residential Schools System for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit families and communities. By wearing orange, we acknowledge the truths of Residential Schools in Canada, we honour Survivors, and we remember the thousands of children who died, many of them buried in unmarked graves.

This year, TDSB will honour Orange Shirt Day on Friday, September 29th.

Curriculum Night

Our Curriculum Night for Davisville will take place on Thursday, October 12th, 2023. For our Spectrum Alternative families, our curriculum night has been scheduled for Tuesday, October 3rd, 2023. More information about these nights will be forthcoming soon. We look forward to seeing our families that evening. 

Week of September 11th, 2023

Wishing our Jewish students, staff and school community a very happy new year! May your year be full of love, health and happiness. Shana Tova to all those celebrating! 

Drop Off and Pick-Up Routines

Morning drop off and dismissal is a busy time at our school. Here are some key points to be aware of when planning pick up and drop off of students: 

• Supervision starts at 8:40 am every morning for students in Grades 1-6. At this time, staff will be on duty. Therefore, we encourage families not to drop students off before 8:40am, as there is no guaranteed supervision available.
• Our playground area will not be supervised by staff before the start of school (i.e., 8:40-8:55am). Therefore, please ensure that you supervise your child(ren) should they wish to use the playscape area during this time. 
• At dismissal time, we ask for your cooperation and support by ensuring that you pick up your child(ren) as promptly as possible. Our school yard needs to be cleared by 4:00 pm to allow for our after care program to use our yard and access our playscape. Therefore, we kindly ask that families vacate the premises by 4:00pm. 
• Please note (as per the image above) that families can regain access to our playground at 6:00pm.

Upcoming Dates and Events

Here are some upcoming dates and information about school wide events and sports activities/try-outs:

• Our Davisville School-Wide Terry Fox Run/Walk/Wheel is on Thursday September 21st!! You are welcome to watch and cheer on your child from outside of the school yard. We are hoping to raise over $3500.00, so if you would like to donate, you can send cash with your child or donate online: https://schools.terryfox.ca/DavisvillePSToronto. We will continue to collect donations until the end of September.

• The Cross Country Season is upon us! Davisville has already started tryouts and practices for students in Grades 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.  We realize there were some technical difficulties last week, but we encourage you to keep trying to complete the online permission through the EMA system.  Below are some important practice dates and times: 

Primary Gr 2 & 3 Cross Country Practices this week:

• Tuesday Sept. 19th @ 8am - Km Club running
• Wednesday Sept 20th @ 8am - Running Games
• Friday Sept 22nd @ 8am - Km Club running

Junior (Grades 4-6) Cross Country Practices this week:

• Monday Sept. 18th at lunch
• Wednesday Sept 20th at 3:25 - 4:30pm

Girls and Boys Soccer Sign Ups and Tryouts This Week!

We are starting a new Soccer Season this year. Students in Grades 4-6 are eligible to sign-up and tryout. The first tryout for Girls Soccer will be on Thursday Sept. 21st. A sign up sheet will go up in the gym on Monday and more information will be shared next week. The Boys' sign up sheet will also go up next week and the 1st tryout will be during the following week.

Curriculum Night

Our Curriculum Night for Davisville will take place on Thursday, October 12th, 2023. For our Spectrum Alternative families, our curriculum night has been scheduled for Tuesday, October 3rd, 2023. More information about these nights will be forthcoming soon. We look forward to seeing our families that evening. 

First Week of School News

Welcome 

Dear Davisville JPS/Spectrum Alternative Families,

Welcome to the new school year! If you are returning, welcome back. If you are new to our school, we are glad to have you join our school community. We know that you are going to enjoy being part of this vibrant school community! Parent/caregiver voice is always welcomed at Davisville JPS and Spectrum Alternative. Building strong partnerships between schools, educators and families is key to ensuring the success and well-being of all students. 

To help keep you all abreast of school and board wide events, we will be releasing a weekly school blog every Sunday. The blog will allow our families to stay informed on school happenings and helps keep our community connected.  In addition to the school blog, Twitter is another platform that will be used to engage and communicate with our families.  

Please follow us on Twitter at @davisville_jps & @SpectrumAltern2

Morning Drop Off

Adult supervision starts at 8:40am every morning for students in Grades 1-6. You will see a staff member walking around in a safety vest if there are issues or concerns that need to be addressed. We encourage families not to drop students off before 8:40am, as there is no guaranteed supervision available.

Punctuality/Late Arrivals

Students are expected to arrive at school on time and line up with their classes. Students arriving late in the morning must enter through the front doors and sign in at the office for a late slip that they will take to their classes. This allows us to maintain adequate attendance of who is in our building.

Visitors/Volunteers

If you are a visitor or volunteer to our school, please make sure you sign in at the office and take a visitor badge. It is also important to sign out upon your departure and return the visitor badge to the office. 

Early Student Pick-Up Form

Please note that if you are picking up your child(ren) early from school for an appointment or any other reason, you will need to complete the Student Pick Up Form embedded below. To help minimize class interruptions, it is important that the teachers and staff working with your child(ren) are aware of the arrangement ahead of time. Completing this form also helps us ensure that students are picked up by someone with proper authorization. Once this form is completed, we will do our best to ensure that your child is down in the office ready for pick up at the requested time.

Davisville/Spectrum Student Pick Up Form

Allergies

Some of our staff and students have severe allergic reactions to certain foods and food products. A very common allergy in our school is a severe reaction to peanuts and nut products. Please remember that Davisville JPS/Spectrum Alternative are allergen aware and allergen-safe schools. For the well-being and safety of students and staff with allergies, please do not send any food items to school which may contain nut products and remind your child(ren) not to exchange/share food with others at school. Please read food labels carefully. 
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Non-Food Items & Special Occasions

Should you wish to celebrate special occasions in the classroom, please only send non-edible treats/non-food items to school to share with other students. There are many alternatives to bringing in food for birthdays and special occasions. Some suggestions for families include stickers, pencils or erasers, donating a book or board game in honour of your child’s birthday to the class.

Davisville and Spectrum School Wide Terry Fox Run (Thursday Sept. 21, 2023

“I’ve said to people before that I’m going to do my very best to make it, I’m not going to give up. But I might not make it… if I don’t, the Marathon of Hope better continue.”

-Terry Fox

The students at Davisville and Spectrum will be participating in the Terry Fox Run,Walk or Wheel on Thursday September 21st. Our Kindergarten students will run/walk/wheel around the school track from 9:35 am - 10:00 am. Junior classes (Grade 4-6) and Spectrum students(Grade 7/8) will be participating from 10:35 am- 11:25am. Primary classes (Grade 1-3) will be participating after lunch from 12:50 - 1:30pm. All participants will be supervised by their teachers and other staff members.

Parents/guardians who would like to cheer on the students are please asked to watch from behind the fence so that we can maintain the safety of our students.

To commemorate the Terry Fox Run, our students and staff are invited to wear RED and WHITE for Canada! Terry is a Canadian Icon and this is a way to honour him. 

This run is an annual event to raise funds in the fight to find a cure for cancer. Last year, we raised $2874.00 and our goal this year is to raise over $3500.00! We are asking that each student make an online voluntary contribution of at least $2, “A Toonie for Terry”. If you and your family would like to make a larger contribution we appreciate your generosity to this worthy cause. Donations can be made online at https://schools.terryfox.ca/DavisvillePSToronto.

Toonies will also be collected at school during the week of our run for anyone who cannot make a contribution online. We will continue to collect donations until the last day in September.

As a little incentive, for every $1000 we raise, the Davisville students will be awarded an extra 15 minute recess!!! Let’s go Davisville, together we can make a difference!

If you have any questions, please contact our Terry Fox Committee Members:

Ms. Harnick at gillian.harnick@tdsb.on.ca or Ms. Francesca at francesca.piccione@tdsb.on.ca.

Let’s keep Terry’s dream to find a cure for cancer alive.

Snack Program

We are hoping to launch our snack program on the week of September 18th. Please stay tuned for further information on this in our next weekly blog. 

Week of June 26th, 2023

 Grade 6 and Grade 8 Graduation Ceremonies

This past week, we honoured our Grade 6 graduating students at Davisville JPS as well as our Grade 8 graduating class at Spectrum Alternative. Our Grade 6 and Grade 8 graduation ceremonies were a momentous occasion for students and an opportunity to reflect back on their successes, achievements and overall journey at Davisville JPS and Spectrum Alternative. Congratulations to you all on reaching an important milestone in your lives!

As our students prepare to transition to the next phase of their education, we would like to wish them a fond farewell and much success as they move on. Also, we would like to extend our sincere thanks and best wishes to all of our families who will also be leaving our school community. We thank you all for leaving a lasting impact on our school community.

Again, congratulations to our graduating students and best of luck in this next phase of your education. You will be missed greatly, and will always be a part of our Davisville JPS/Spectrum Alternative family.

Pride Parade

On Friday, we had our annual Davisville/Spectrum PRIDE parade. What a great opportunity to celebrate our 2SLGBTQIA+ community.  The love, support, allyship and sense of community was truly beautiful. Our sincere appreciation to the Spectrum and Davisville staff who helped organized this event as well as the Davisville Parent Council who purchased and distributed Jumbo Freezies to everyone to mark the end of the event. 

The TDSB Mental Health and Well Being Department has curated mental-health centred resources, which provide learnings and awareness about the 2SLGBTQ+ communities and the impact of homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia on TDSB students, staff, and community members.  Our shared goal is to strive each day for equity by interrupting, disrupting, and addressing stereotyping, biases, and discrimination to promote positive mental health and well-being for all. Please take a moment to peruse through the link below:

PRIDE (TDSB Mental Health & Well-Being)

Butterfly Inquiry in our FDK Classrooms

Our FDK classes received butterfly kits this year. For the past two weeks, our Kindergarten students have been learning about butterflies through inquiry-based learning. The butterfly kits served as a great opportunity to engage students in conversations about the life cycle of butterflies and observe their metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly. The caterpillars were rotating between classes as students observed and discussed the changes they saw. From measuring the growth of caterpillars through a data sheet, students were able to use units of measurements to document how much the caterpillars have grown. Through open inquiry conversations beginning with, “I wonder”, our kindergarten students used their communication skills to talk about what they know about butterflies. On June 20, our Kindergarten classes witnessed the release of the butterflies! 

Happy Summer

It has been an exciting school year! We would like to take this opportunity to thank our School Council for their ongoing support to enhance school life for our students, staff and families at both Davisville & Spectrum. As we come to the end of another school year, we recognize and reflect upon the successes and achievement that our staff, students & families have accomplished together. As a cohesive team, we also value the importance of building strong relationships with home and school and we appreciate the support that we have received from our families. Have a wonderful & safe summer holiday! 

Week of June 5th, 2023

Graduation Trip to Niagara Falls

On Friday June 9th, our Grade 5 and Grade 6 graduating classes went on an excursion to Niagara Falls where they engaged in various activities and visited the Butterfly Conservatory. What a great way to end off their year at Davisville JPS and enjoy this treasured time with their peers before embarking on their new journey in September. We would like to thank all the parent volunteers who dedicated their day to volunteering on the trip. We would also like to acknowledge the staff and teachers who helped with preparing this trip. We appreciate all the time, energy, organization and planning you put forth into making this trip so special for our graduates. Our graduates have created special memories at Davisville JPS and will take these memories with them as they move forward and transition to the next stage of their education.

Learn4Life – Summer Registration Now Open! 

Learn4Life provides a wide variety of general interest courses for adults 18+ and seniors. Courses, offered remotely and in-person, allow learners to take up new hobbies, learn new skills, and meet new friends. Summer courses include: Introduction to Community Interpreting, Bollywood Dance Fitness, and Tennis for True Beginners. For more information and to register, visit www.learn4life.ca.

Summer Language Classes for Newcomer Adults 

The following Community Services Unit programs will be offering in-class instruction for newcomer adults this summer.Language Instruction for Newcomers (LINC) classes will operate on a summer schedule from July 10 to July 28.


Student Census 

All TDSB Student Census Surveys have now been sent to students or families! To ensure meaningful data for school improvement, it is important to have as many students complete the Census as possible. For more information, visit www.tdsb.on.ca/census.

Multi-Year Strategic Plan (MYSP) Renewal

We want to hear from you! Please complete the MYSP online survey and share your thoughts about what the TDSB’s priorities should be for 2023-2027. Learn more about how to contribute at www.tdsb.on.ca/MYSPrenewal.

TDSB Backpacks & School Supplies Drive 

Backpacks and school supplies can be expensive and represent a difficult purchase for some students and families. Our Backpack & School Supplies Drive is BACK ON and will run until the end of September. We are accepting donations of new products, including backpacks (gender neutral coloured with no commercial logos preferred), lunch bags, crayons, calculators, notebooks and basic school supplies. If interested in supporting, please complete an online donation form. For more information contact BusinessDevelopment@tdsb.on.ca.

Week of May 29th, 2023

 Matilda The Musical 

On Thursday June 1st, our Spectrum students performed Matilda the Musical. What a spectacular show and great opportunity for students to practice their public speaking, collaborate with peers, develop their confidence and express their creativity and talent. We are all blown away by the performance and the great investment of time, effort and dedication put forth into this production. What an exciting platform for students to stretch themselves creatively and celebrate their various talents. Our sincere appreciation to our staff who went above and beyond to put this performance together. We acknowledge and appreciate your steadfast commitment to student well-being, equity and achievement. 

Celebrate Pride We are kicking off Pride Month at the Toronto District School Board. It is a time to celebrate 2SLGBTQ+ communities and reflect on the important work that must continue to make our schools and workplaces more inclusive, welcoming and affirming for all. Please join the TDSB contingent as we march in the Pride Parade on Sunday, June 25th. Stay tuned for more details! Celebrating National Indigenous History Month June is National Indigenous History Month and June 21st is National Indigenous Peoples Day, a time to celebrate and learn from First Nations, Métis and Inuit people about the diverse cultures, histories, experiences, creations, perspectives, and achievements. Italian Heritage Month Italian Heritage Month has been proudly recognized during the month of June at the Toronto District School Board since a motion was passed by the Board of Trustees on May 16, 2012. The Province of Ontario has also marked Italian Heritage Month as a result of Italian Heritage Month Act in 2010.  The Italian Heritage Month planning committee has planned several virtual opportunities to celebrate the Italian heritage. One is honouring our Italian seniors. Maintaining Italian traditions and customs from generation to generation are very important and our elderly members within our families and communities are the key to preserving the vibrant culture of the Italian heritage. As part of Italian Heritage month, we also celebrate Seniors Month and have launched an activity for students from various Toronto District School Boards, to draw and write a message on a postcard that features a white lily, the national flower of Italy. These postcards will be distributed to the residents of Villa Colombo Home for the Aged during the month of June. Please follow Italian Heritage Month @ItalianHer1. Portuguese-Speaking Heritage Month Portuguese-Speaking Heritage Month is proudly recognized during the month of June at the Toronto District School Board since 2011. The Province of Ontario passed the Celebration of Portuguese Heritage Act in 2001. More on Portuguese-Speaking Month activities next week. National AccessAbility Week National AccessAbility Week is an opportunity to celebrate Canadians with disabilities & raise awareness of the critical need for accessibility & inclusion in our communities & workplaces.  Join us from May 28 to June 3, 2023 to celebrate: the valuable contributions and leadership of persons with disabilities in Canada; the work of allies, organizations and communities that are removing barriers and the ongoing efforts to become a more accessible and inclusive Canada. This year the theme for National AccessAbility Week is “Disability Inclusion: From Possibilities to Practice”. The Toronto District School Board is committed to maintaining a learning and working environment which actively promotes and supports human rights and accessibility for persons with disabilities. Read more here.

Week of May 22nd, 2023

School Fun Fair

Our School Fun Fair was a great success and brought the community together in a spirit of fun. A big thank you to our school council and all the volunteers and staff who volunteered their time to help out. The weather was perfect, the students had a blast and all the games, activities and bouncy castles provided hours of fun and engagement for our students and families. The cotton candy was definitely a hit and made the perfect fun fair treat as many lined up for its sweet and fluffy taste.

 

Upcycling Club

Since April, several of our Grade 4, 5 and 6 students, along with our students from Spectrum Alternative, have been learning to make new, usable items from old clothing. Every Wednesday, students have Upcycling Club where they gather and make new and exciting projects! So far, students have made no-sew bags and yarn from old t-shirts, braided bracelets from the t-shirt yarn and drawstring bags and hair scrunchies from donated fabric. The students have also learned how to use a sewing machine and once they practiced a few times, they imparted their newfound skills to other students by teaching them how to use the sewing machines. Our Upcycling Club project has been funded through a Youth Climate Action Grant from the City of Toronto. What a great way to repurpose materials through crafts and projects and teach our students to be mindful stewards of the Earth!

The Gardening Club

Our Gardening club has been busy throughout the year with various gardening initiatives. Our main initiative continues to be our pollinator garden on the side of Davisville. For this initiative, we received a grant from the World Wildlife Fund to help with the garden. This year, students were able to plant various seeds or bulbs and have had the opportunity to watch them grow. In the next few weeks, we will be putting in our native perennials into the ground and will have to maintain them over the summer by watering them.

Besides gardening, students have also made lavender sachets from our harvested lavender on the rooftop as well as plant kits to sell for fundraising. This initiative has been such a success and provides students with an opportunity to learn about vermicomposting and different kinds of plants. 


African Heritage Club

Our African Heritage Club has been an incredible place to build community, celebrate Black excellence and honour our Black students' experiences and voices, while cultivating Black joy. During this weekly club, students learn about the African diaspora around the world and are able to connect to their own heritage or family. Students have developed an understanding of why it is important to learn about African heritage and have been learning about Black Canadian trailblazers of African descent. This club has provided our students with a welcoming and affirming space where they can learn and share about their identities. 

Davisville Food Drive: A Message From Student Council

Our student council has organized and put together a food drive to bring students together and give back to our community. We will be donating all the food to the Thorncliffe Food Bank. If possible, please send your children to school with any canned or individually packaged non perishable food items. There will be big boxes on every floor by door 5 to place all the food items in. We will start collecting donations this Monday, May 29th and will continue to do so for the duration of the week. The cut off day will be June 5th.

Thanking you in advance for your support,
Davisville Student Council

Ultimate Frisbee News!

Davisville ultimate frisbee teams are participating in tournaments at Dovercourt Public School on Monday, May 29th. Our students will be competing against schools from across the TDSB. Go Davisville Dragons Go! Thank you to our coaches for their ongoing efforts!

Film Screening: Wanda Robson

Film Screening : Wanda Robson You’re invited! Join the Centre of Excellence for Black Student Achievement for a screening of Wanda Robson and a Q & A with co-producers Donna Harrow & Aaron Weiss.
When: May 31; 6 – 7:30 p.m.
Register here: https://bit.ly/3AXDoYT