May Information 2022

Posted May 1, 2022

 

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CalendarPlease see information below for our Board/School Calendar.  Check out our upcoming Spirit Days.

School Calendar : https://www.ugdsb.ca/jmc/calendar/monthly/

Board Calendars :https://www.ugdsb.ca/schools/school-year-calendars/

 

 

Mental Health and Education Week: May 2nd to 6th

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Class Building for 2022-2023 School Year

The planning process for 2022-2023 school has started. Over the next couple of months the staff at the school will spend many hours developing class lists based on a detailed set of criteria, focused on student learning and success for the following year. We take this process very seriously and do our best to plan for the success of all of our students at JMC.

As in the past we wanted to remind families that we do not take requests for class placements. In this complex process we take the following into account.

  • learning partners
  • ability groups – learning groups
  • needs of students
  • separating some students due to relationship issues depending on the number of classrooms.
  • balance of gender/ non binary
  • behavioural needs/ dynamics between students
  • combined classrooms are not streamed (for example, a ⅔ split is not high achieving grade 2’s and low achieving grade 3’s) – combined class resource

Thank you for your understanding and trusting the JMC staff as we build classes for the next school year.

 

Math Website for Families

1 May Math 2

The elementary curriculum department invites families to come and explore a new math website for Parents and Guardians called, Games and Activities that Support Mathematical Thinking at Home. The site is full of parent/guardian resources and activities you may use at home to strengthen foundational numeracy skills with your children. The purpose of this site is to share hands on and interactive math games you can play in a home setting while also exploring how we can nurture a love of mathematics with our children. The site includes low prep activities meaning games require little to no materials and are suitable for children grades K-8. The games highlighted here are hands on and not digital. As technology continues to develop and provide wonderful learning opportunities, these games allow for a break from the screen and promote face to face interaction. There is also a form linked to the site inviting families to share their own math games as well. We hope this site is helpful to families looking to explore math together.

 

Equity in the Upper Grand District School Board

Student Gender Affirming Support Process

As an educational community we have a responsibility to identify and describe racism and oppression and then work to dismantle it. The Upper Grand District School Board is committed to disrupting systemic racism and oppression in all of its forms. We will implement ongoing mandatory anti-racism and anti-oppression training for all staff, review our protocols and policies, including our hiring practices, and be fully transparent and accountable to all Upper Grand students, staff, families, and stakeholders in an ongoing manner.

As such, UGDSB is working to affirm the gender identities of students and staff and work towards creating safe environments for gender variant and transgender people.

UGDSB Gender Affirming Support Process, which is informed by the Ontario Human Right Code, has been created for students as part of Policy 504 Equity and Inclusive Education, Appendix A Guildelines for Accommodating Gender Expansive and Transgender Students.  This process and accompanying resources are a student-centered approach to creating inclusive and safe spaces for all students who identify as gender variant, gender diverse and transgender. There are no specific age restrictions for a student to complete this process.

This process will be initiated and reviewed/revised when:

  • A student and/or their family have shared with any staff of the UGDSB that they would like a change to their name (due to gender), pronouns, and/or gender accommodations
  • A student who has already completed a gender affirming support plan wishes to make changes
  • In preparation for a significant transition taking place such as a change of schools or transition from grade 8 to grade 9. In this instance, this is the responsibility of the Administrator.

Celebrating Pride Month

For the month of June, JMC along with other schools in the UGDSB will be flying the Pride Flag.

Learn more about why we fly the Pride Flag.

 

 

Monthly Environmental Activities to help celebrate our planet

Celebrate Biological Diversity Day on May 22nd!

https://www.cbd.int/

The United Nations has proclaimed May 22 The International Day for Biological Diversity to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. https://www.un.org/en/events/biodiversityday/

Biodiversity simply means: ‘A wide range of life’” Some of the things we do are harmful, so we need to learn more about how to protect all the different types of life on our planet.

Ideas for your family to celebrate Biodiversity Day!

  • Visit farmers markets in your local area to try new types of produce. Whether you incorporate heirloom tomatoes into your cooking, or try one of the rainbow of colors of carrots, biodiversity can bring a great new experience to your table.
  • View photos of endangered species on the Internet with your child and discuss the reasons why these animals are threatened and why they should be protected.
  • Join a community group and help to remove invasive plants from your local environment. 
  • Get out into the world and enjoy all the different types of life your local area offers. Even your street or a local park can have an amazing variety of life you’ve never noticed, from insects, birds, chipmunks, to trees and flowers.
  • Consider planting a pollinator garden in your yard (or in a flowerpot) to help save the bees and butterflies from declining.

Celebrate the diversity of our natural world every day!

 

Talking About Mental Health: May 2022

Let’s Talk About INTEGRITY!

Integrity is:

  • When we have a set of positive values and our actions in life match those values.
  • If you look up integrity in the dictionary, it also means ‘wholeness’.
  • What allows us to feel whole and take responsibility for our actions.
  • The number one quality people look for in a leader and will help our children feel proud of who they are.

Integrity also increases the release of oxytocin in our brain which is our bonding hormone and it makes us more trustworthy to others.

Please see the UGDSB Wellness Works Site for more information on how we are focussing on INTEGRITY this Month.

Community Wellness Supports

Here24/7: 1 844 437 32477 (HERE247)  TTY: 1-877-688-5501 (Guelph and Wellington)

Dufferin Child and Family Services: 519.941.1530 (Dufferin)

KidsHelpPhone: Text CONNECT to 686868 or call 1-800-668-6868

 

 

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