Today is Administrative Professionals' Day! Thank you to all UGDSB Administrative Professionals, your dedication, skill, and hard work are appreciated across the Upper Grand DSB!
This May, more than 10 local community partners are coming together to host an unforgettable event for parents and caregivers. On May 6, 2026, parents and caregivers are invited to attend the Understanding Youth Today: Substance and Screen Use event. For more information and to register visit: https://shorturl.at/Yplml
Good evening Mustang Families,
Spring flowers, bring May flowers! We should have plenty of flowers after this week! Things are starting to really green up!
Thank you to all of our families who contributed to our cracker drive! Thanks to your generosity there were over 170 boxes of crackers collected. The cascading cracker event did not go as planned, as all the boxes were many different sizes and did not cascade. Lesson learned.
On April 22nd, we are proud to celebrate Office Coordinator Appreciation Day, and we have someone incredibly special to recognize!Our amazing Office Coordinator, Mrs. McKenzie, is truly the heart of our school. She is the friendly face that welcomes everyone through our doors, the calm and caring presence on busy days, and the person who somehow manages to help everyone—often all at the same time!Mrs. McKenzie goes above and beyond every single day for our students, staff, and families. She supports all students and staff with kindness, patience, and a wonderful sense of humour that brings smiles to our faces. She is truly the face of our school, and she makes everyone feel heard, valued, and welcomed.Our school would not run the way it does without her—and quite honestly, we couldn’t survive without Mrs. McKenzie! From all of us—students, staff, and families—thank you, Mrs. McKenzie, for everything you do and for being such an incredible part of our school community. Please join us in giving Mrs. McKenzie a big round of applause on April 22nd.
Rock Climbing at Princess Margaret: Please watch for a rock‑climbing permission form coming home for every student from Kindergarten to Grade 8. Thanks to the generosity of our School Council, a rock‑climbing walls and an obstacle course will be coming to Princess Margaret and will be set up in our gym from May 19 to May 22, as previously announced. There is no charge to families. To participate, each student must return a signed permission form, and clean indoor runners are required. Teachers will be sending the permission forms home this week. Please return the forms as soon as possible. Thank you—we are very excited to offer this fun and engaging experience for our students! More details are on the permission form.
Vision Screening From Public Health: Reminder of the Sight for Success initiative promoting awareness of vision health and supporting access to comprehensive eye assessments by licensed optometrists.
Important Dates:
April:
-21st: Badminton at PMPS 4-7pm
-21st: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-22nd: OC appreciation day: Thank you to Mrs. Mckenzie for ensuring everyone is safe, for keeping our school running, and for all of the work that she does for our school nutrition program. She is kind, caring, funny, and dedicated.
22nd: Staff & Student Badminton Game
23rd:Shannon Paul, Indigenous Speaker (Szabo, Westlake, Patel) info to come home.
-24th: PD day (mental health & curriculum): No school for students
-27th: IPRCs full day
-28th: Island Lake Rowing Program Grades 6-8 (see email sent out April 14th)
-28th: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-30th: Scientists in the School: Szabo 9am
Upcoming Spirit Days:
-Wednesday, April 22nd: Earth Day (Dress like the world! Wear brown, blue, and green!)
-Friday, May 1st: Attitude of Gratitude day! Classes can create a sticky note door - writing things you are grateful for in your life. Stick the notes on your classroom door.
Milk Sales: Our wonderful Student Council continues to sell milk. The milk costs $1.25
Thanks for taking the time to read through my weekly emails and your continued support. We’ll see everyone on Friday for another day of great learning before the weekend.
Andrea Papavasiliou, Principal
We are excited to share that the Island Lake Rowing Club will be visiting Princess Margaret Public School on April 28th, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. to introduce students to the sport of rowing.
During the presentation, students will learn what rowing is, how the boat works, and some fun facts about the sport. There will also be an erg (rowing machine) race, which will be projected on a screen. Pre‑selected student volunteers will have the opportunity to see how far they can erg in 45 seconds—and there may even be a friendly teacher race!
Flyers with information about the Island Lake Rowing Club will be distributed at the presentation, including details about their Try‑a‑Row Day in June. The club coach will be present, along with university students who work for the club and continue to row while attending post‑secondary school.
The goal of this experience is to provide students with another opportunity to be active and learn about a new sport, learn about the importance of healthy living, and become aware of a local community club that is close to our school and easily accessible.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.
Warm regards,
Andrea Papavasiliou
Principal, Princess Margaret Public School
There are just seven days left to shop our exciting, new seeds fundraiser from the Canadian company Make it Sow! These seed kits are a fun, affordable way to help support our school while engaging your child in growing their own food and flowers! The seed kits come in a variety of fun themes, including a Kid's Garden Plot, Flower Bouquet, Pollinator Garden, Chef's Herb Garden, Strange and Fun Garden, Salsa Garden, and even Pet Grass!
Visit the online fundraising order page here: https://makeitsow.com/shop/#code-submission and remember to use our unique ordering code, exclusively for PMPS: PMPS_2026 Please ensure you include the student’s name when you place your order. You will see that there is a section for this on the order screen. This will help to facilitate a smooth distribution process at the school.
Seed packets will be coming home with your child the week after the fundraiser closes, so there is no need to arrange pick-up! Thank you for supporting our school!
DPA Equipment Update – A Big Thank You!
Staff and students at Princess Margaret Elementary School are excited to share that our DPA (Daily Physical Activity) bags have been refreshed with new sports equipment for each classroom! Primary classes also recieved chalk.
We would like to extend a huge thank you to Ms. MacKenzie and Mr. McKenzie, who took the time to visit multiple stores to purchase all of the new equipment. Your dedication ensured our students have quality materials to stay active—thank you for going above and beyond!
A very special thank you to our incredible School Council for generously funding this initiative and making the purchase of this equipment possible. We truly appreciate your continued support of our students’ well-being.
We would also like to recognize our intermediate students, who independently organized the equipment, pumped and labelled the balls, and added everything to each DPA bag they collected. S and M were standout intermediate leaders who led the charge and did an excellent job—thank you for your initiative and teamwork!
On an unrelated note, thank you as well to our sign crew for updating our school signs. We are so fortunate to have such amazing helpers and responsible older students who contribute so positively to our school community.
Teachers, will take a few moments to review with students how they would like the DPA bags to be used and the importance of taking care of this new equipment. Students who take equipment out are responsible for returning it. Once equipment is lost or broken, we will not be able to replace it for the remainder of the school year. Let’s all work together to take care of what we have.
Thank you, everyone—and enjoy the new equipment!
Good evening Mustang Families,
I trust that everyone who celebrated had a great Easter and a nice long weekend. I am hopeful the chilly temperatures and snow will soon be behind us and instead replaced with warmer weather and spring flowers.
In the next couple of weeks, we will start with our spring safety drills that are mandatory. This spring, we have to complete three fire drills, one lockdown drill, one evacuation drill and a tornado drill. Officer Amy will be invited to participate in the lockdown drill at our school. This helps the officer learn the layout of our school.
Congratulations to our first ever junior Robotics Team that represented PMPS at the Elementary Skills Canada competition this past Tuesday. Thank you to Mrs. Patel, our coach for acquiring the new robotics and working very hard with the club and team over the last few months. Our team worked well together, had amazing problem solving and communication skills, and just simply made us proud. Our badminton team played their first games on Wednesday after school and played well with great sportsmanship. They are looking forward to their tournament later in the month.
Climber & Playground Safety: Our Princess Margaret climbers will remain closed until the frost has fully left the ground. The pea gravel and wood chips will be rotated to ensure a loose and safe surface. When the climbers do open, students are reminded that running shoes must be worn. Crocs and sandals are not permitted on the climbers. Thank you so much for your cooperation and for reinforcing this message with your children.
Dogs on School Property: As the weather slowly starts to improve, please remember that dogs or other pets are not allowed on school property. Some of our students have a fear of dogs and other animals. Please wait with your dog or other pets off school property for your child(ren). Thank you for your support.
Professional Activity Day Description:
Information for Elementary and Secondary Parents/Guardians:
Date: April 24, 2026
Length: Full Day
Elementary/Secondary Topics AM: Tackling Racism (Upholding Human Rights, Anti-Black Racism , and Indigenous Racism)
Elementary/Secondary Topics PM: School Resource Officer Program, Literacy & Mathematics, AI Learning Modules
Entity osting: Upper Grand DSB
Description:
Elementary / Secondary Morning (150 mins):
Tackling Racism (Upholding Human Rights) (75 mins
Tackling Indigenous Racism (75 mins)
Elementary / Secondary Afternoon (150 mins)
School Resource Officer Program (10 mins)
Laser Focus Literacy & Mathematics (70 mins)
AI Learning Module (70 mins)
Presenter(s)/Facilitator(s):
Independent/Individual
Important Dates:
April:
-14th: Mayor Post to Hickey’s grade ⅚ class 9am (info sent home)
-24th: PD day-no school for all students
-21st: Badminton at PMPS 4-7pm
-21st: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-22nd: OC appreciation day: Thank you to Mrs. Mckenzie for ensuring everyone is safe, for keeping our school running, and for all of the work that she does for our school nutrition program. She is kind, caring, funny, and dedicated.
22nd: Staff & Student Badminton Game
23rd:Shannon Paul, Indigenous Speaker (Szabo, Westlake, Patel) info to come home.
-24th: PD day (mental health & curriculum): No school for students
-27th: IPRCs full day
-28th: Island Lake Rowing Program Grades 6-8 (more info to come)
-28th: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-30th: Scientists in the School: Szabo 9am
Upcoming Spirit Days:
-Friday, April 10th: Cascading Crackers!! Which classroom can bring in the most boxes of crackers to overflow Snacker the Cracker? Can you help your class cause a cascade of crackers???
-Wednesday, April 15th: Wordsearch Wednesday! Student council members will bring a wordsearch to each class with spring words to find.
-Wednesday, April 22nd: Earth Day (Dress like the world! Wear brown, blue, and green!)
-Friday, May 1st: Attitude of Gratitude day! Classes can create a sticky note door - writing things you are grateful for in your life. Stick the notes on your classroom door.
Thanks for taking the time to read through my weekly emails and your continued support. We’ll see everyone on Friday for another day of great learning before the weekend. If you celebrate Orthodox Easter, I wish you a joyous celebration this weekend.
Andrea Papavasiliou, Principal
Good evening Mustang Families,
I am sending this week’s email out a little earlier, so that I can remind everyone of Easter Weekend. This means no school for students on Friday and Monday.
News from Our Inclusion Crew (student group) : On International Day of Pink, April 8th join us in showing solidarity and standing up against bullying and discrimination! We invite anybody and everybody to speak out against gender stereotypes, 2SLGBTQ+ discrimination and bullying. Show your support by wearing pink!
Winter or Spring? One day it is warm, the next frigid. A reminder that it is a good idea to keep a close eye on the weather, so students know what to wear in the morning. Another good idea is to pack an extra pair of pants and socks in children' s backpacks as the snow melts and we have a return to mud. This avoids us having to call home for a pant or sock request during the day.
I cannot believe that it is April today. This school year has moved along quickly. The next three months will fly by too. Below are some important dates to note.
Important Dates:
April:
-2nd: World Autism Day
-2nd: Custodian and Maintenance worker Appreciation Day! Thank you to our incredible custodian team: Sheila, Helena, and Maria for always taking care of us and our building.
-3rd-6th: Good Friday & Easter (no school) Happy Easter to those who celebrate!
-7th: Elementary Skills Canada: Junior Robotics Club (Go PMPS go!)
-8th: International Day of Pink: Anti Bullying & Anti-Homophobia: Wear Pink!
-14th: Mayor Post to Hickey’s grade ⅚ class 9am (info sent home)
-24th: PD day-no school for all students
-21st: Badminton at PMPS 4-7pm
-21st: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-22nd: OC appreciation day: Thank you to Mrs. Mckenzie for ensuring everyone is safe, for keeping our school running, and for all of the work that she does for our school nutrition program. She is kind, caring, funny, and dedicated.
-24th: PD day (mental health & curriculum): No school for students
-27th: IPRCs full day
-28th: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-30th: Scientists in the School: Szabo 9am
May:
-1st: Patel & Christie: Nature Journaling workshop am
-4th to 8th: Education & Mental Health Week
-5th: Empowerment Day-am Grade 7-8s
-5th: Grade 3 & 7 Swim to Survive
-5th: Primary Trip to Orangeville Theatre K-¾
-8th: Accessibility Presentation (Lauren Pires) K-3s: 120-150pm & 4-8s 2-230pm ( info already sent home)
-11th: Optimist Bike Roadeo
-12th: ODSS visit for grade 8s 9am
-14th: Special Olympics (rain date May 15th)
-15th: Bee Ambassador K-¾ (letter to go home)
-15th: EA & CYC appreciation day!
-19th: Victoria Day- No school for students and staff
-19th to 22nd: Rock Climbing at PMPS/ gym in use all week (permission forms will be sent out at the end of April)
-26th: Spring ⅞ Vaccination Clinic at PMPS
-28th & 29th: EQAO grades 3 & 6
June:
-1st & 2nd: EQAO continued grades 3& 6 ( EQAO make up 3rd & 4th)
-2nd: Family Fun Night 530-7pm
-5th: PD Day: am curriculum & pm report card writing: no school for students
-9th & 10th: Intermediate Trip
-13th: Finale for Bike Roadeo: Alder Street
-17th: Grades ¾ (pm) & ⅘ (am) at Island Lake for Indigenous Learning
-22nd: PMPS Grade 8 Grad
-25th: Last day of School with students
-26th: PD day for staff (school improvement plans and transitions)
Upcoming Spirit Days:
-Thursday, April 2nd: Raise awareness and show support! Wear red and blue, celebrate neurodiversity.
-Friday, April 10th: Cascading Crackers!! Which classroom can bring in the most boxes of crackers to overflow Snacker the Cracker? Can you help your class cause a cascade of crackers???
-Wednesday, April 15th: Wordsearch Wednesday! Student council members will bring a wordsearch to each class with spring words to find.
-Wednesday, April 22nd: Earth Day (Dress like the world! Wear brown, blue, and green!)
-Friday, May 1st: Attitude of Gratitude day! Classes can create a sticky note door - writing things you are grateful for in your life. Stick the notes on your classroom door.
We have another great day of learning on Thursday ! Happy Easter for those who celebrate. A reminder that it is Easter weekend for those who celebrate this weekend. There is no school on Friday April 3rd and April 6th.
Thanks for your ongoing support.
Andrea Papavasiliou, Principal
Our latest fundraiser, with “Make it Sow” seeds of Canada, has launched!
This fundraiser offers a unique way to support our school, with a variety of high-quality, fun-themed seed packets, perfect for growing beautiful flowers, delicious herbs, or fresh vegetables, all while promoting the mission of our School Council: To support the mental health of our students through outdoor learning.
Colour product brochures went home with students last week. You can order through the on-line fundraiser page here: https://makeitsow.com/shop/#code-submission Be sure to use our unique ordering code, exclusively for PMPS: PMPS_2026
There are many mental health benefits for children from gardening, including reducing stress through contact with nature outdoors, teaching responsibility by caring for living things, and boosting self-esteem through tangible accomplishments.
This fundraiser runs until Friday, April 17th. Every sale helps to support important programs for our students. We are proud to offer seeds that are locally sourced with care, ensuring a successful growing experience for our supporters!
Please ensure you include the student’s name when you place your order! There is a section for this on the order screen. This will help to facilitate a smooth distribution process at the school, when you pick up your seeds. Thank you for your support!
Good evening Mustang Families,
Spring, it’s around the corner, Right?
I hope everyone had a great March break and to those who celebrate, a blessed Eid. It is certainly nice to have everyone back learning.
A reminder that it is a good idea to keep a close eye on the weather, so students know what to wear in the morning. Another good idea is to pack an extra pair of pants and socks in childrens’ backpacks as the snow melts and we have a return to mud. This avoids us having to call home for a pant or sock request during the day.
Parking lot reminders: Our parking lot is closed from 815am- 310pm everyday- all vehicles except for school buses and those with special needs parking permits, may not enter during this time . Please no parking in special needs parking without a permit, no stopping, no parking in the bus loop or no parking zones, do not block the exit from our parking lot by parking across the exit to the street and please be kind to staff who are helping to enforce these rules, including By Law who come out consistently but randomly. They have issued several tickets this year and they are expensive ($125 in some cases).
Please be a cautious driver while on the street: Making three point turns, stopping in the middle of the street, double parking, turning around in our exit, driving too close or too fast past parked cars that might have children exiting them, and having verbal disagreements with other drivers is unsafe. Please remember we all have the same goal; to have our students and families attend school safely, and this includes before and after school pick up and drop off. As the nice weather begins to become more consistent, please consider walking or parking on a side street or the Go Bus parking lot (old train station). Thank you for your support. The OPP, school and board staff, members of the Town, and County have plans to meet to discuss PMPS road safety and parking in the coming weeks.
Accessibility Week Assembly – May 8: As part of our commitment to fostering an inclusive and respectful school community, we will be recognizing Accessibility Week with a special presentation for our students on May 8th. We are pleased to welcome a guest speaker, Lauren Pires, who will be sharing her personal experiences living with an invisible disability. Lauren was born with Central Core Disease, a rare neuromuscular condition, and is an inspiring speaker who focuses on themes of resilience, belonging, and celebrating what makes each of us unique. Students will attend one of two assemblies:
Kindergarten–Grade 3
Grades 4–8
This presentation will provide students with an opportunity to learn about accessibility, build empathy, and develop a deeper understanding of the diverse experiences of others. Through hearing a real-life perspective, students will be encouraged to reflect on how we can create a more inclusive and supportive community for everyone. If you have any questions or would like more information, please feel free to let me know.
Important Dates:
-April 1st: Elementary Skills Canada: Junior Robotics Club (Go PMPS go!)
-2nd: World Autism Day
-2nd: Custodian and Maintenance worker Appreciation Day! Thank you to our incredible custodian team: Sheila, Helena, and Marie for always taking care of us and our building.
-3rd-6th: Good Friday & Easter (no school) Happy Easter to those who celebrate!
-8th: International Day of Pink: Anti Bullying & Anti-Homophobia: Wear Pink!
-24th: PD day-no school for all students
Upcoming Spirit Days:
-Friday, March 27th: World Water Day, Wear blue in honour of water
-Wednesday, April 1st: Easter Colours (Wear pastel colours and accessories!)
-Thursday, April 2nd: Raise awareness and show support! Wear red and blue, celebrate neurodiversity.
-Friday, April 10th: Cascading Crackers!! Which classroom can bring in the most boxes of crackers to overflow Snacker the Cracker? Can you help your class cause a cascade of crackers???
-Wednesday, April 15th: Wordsearch Wednesday! Student council members will bring a wordsearch to each class with spring words to find.
-Wednesday, April 22nd: Earth Day (Dress like the world! Wear brown, blue, and green!)
-Friday, May 1st: Attitude of Gratitude day! Classes can create a sticky note door - writing things you are grateful for in your life. Stick the notes on your classroom door.
Milk Sales: Our wonderful Student Council continues to sell milk. The milk costs $1.25 each.
We have another great day of learning on Friday ! A reminder that it is Easter weekend for those who celebrate is next weekend. There is no school on Friday April 3rd and April 6th.
Thanks for your ongoing support.
Andrea Papavasiliou, Principal
Good evening Mustang Families,
Another fantastic week at Princess Margaret! We were honoured to welcome back Andrew Healey, decorated Paralympian, world champion, and Commonwealth champion. He spoke to our students about the Paralympics and held an engaging Q&A session, where our students asked thoughtful and insightful questions.
To learn more about all the incredible Olympic and Paralympic events we've enjoyed over the last month, please check out the article published on the Board website today: https://www.ugdsb.ca/article/14811
Our intermediate curlers also attended their bonspiel this week and represented Princess Margaret with pride. Congratulations to all of them! I would like to also congratulate our junior PMPS speech winner, who represented us at the Orangeville Lions Club and won first place! She is now onto the next competition. Well done! We’d also thank a young kindergarten student who wanted to clean up our school yard and a local trail this past weekend. He collected several bags of garbage with his parents. What an incredible act of generosity.
Most importantly, everyone is now ready for a well‑earned March Break. A reminder that there is no school from March 16th to March 20th. We look forward to welcoming everyone back on March 23rd at 8:30 AM. We hope all of our families enjoy a safe, restful, and enjoyable break! Happy Eid to all of our families who are celebrating over the break as well. We hope you have a blessed Eid with family and friends.
Ice & Water Safety: It's that time of year again. With the more mild and wet weather we have been experiencing it is time to remind students and families to stay off the ice on ponds and bodies of water near schools. The ice on local bodies of water is not safe, and we are encouraging everyone to stay off the ice. The Grand River Conservation Authority has shared water safety messaging on their website: GRCA Flood Warning and Flood Watch as well as GRCA Water Safety
Extra Pants & Socks: It’s a great idea this time of year to pack extra socks and pants. Mud and puddles are everywhere and this avoids a call home during the middle of the day.
Important Dates:
13th: Dairy Farmer Presentation kindergartens 9am-940am and 940am-1020am
16th to 20th: March break
-25th: Superintendent Visit to PMPS, Mr. Viverios
-26th: Grade 7 Metis Virtual Presentations
-April 1st: Elementary Skills Canada: Junior Robotics Club, chosen team.
-2nd: World Autism Day
-3rd: Custodian and Maintenance worker Appreciation Day! Thank you to our incredible custodian team: Sheila, Dino, Helena, and Marie for always taking care of us and our building.
-3rd-6th: Good Friday & Easter
-8th: International Day of Pink: Anti Bullying & Anti-Homophobia: Wear Pink!
-24th: PD day
Upcoming Spirit Days:
-Friday, March 13th: Wear gold and green and other accessories for St. Patrick’s Day
-Monday, March 23rd: Crossing Guard Day! Make a thank you card to show your appreciation.
-Friday, March 27th: World Water Day, Wear blue in honour of water
-Thursday, April 2nd: Raise awareness and show support! Wear red and blue, celebrate neurodiversity.
Reminders:
Ministry Approved School Year Calendars 2026-2027: The Ministry has approved the UGDSB elementary and secondary calendars for the 2026-2027 school year. They are now posted on our board website, and can also be accessed here:
Elementary - Cycle Day Calendar
Elementary - Calendar
Secondary - Calendar
EQAO Writing Dates for Grade 3 & 6 Students: Students in Grades 3 and 6 will be writing EQAO on:
• May 28
• May 29
• June 1
• June 2
We have very limited flexibility for makeup sessions this year, and we want to ensure that students and teachers have the full amount of time to work through the curriculum and not write too early in May. Please avoid scheduling family trips or appointments during these dates . More detailed information about EQAO will be shared with families closer to, but for now, please save these dates.
Ramadan: As we continue to celebrate the holy month of Ramadan, we want to extend our best wishes to all students and families observing this important time. Ramadan is a special period of reflection, prayer, and fasting for many in our school community, and we recognize its significance. To support our students who are fasting and engaging in daily prayer, we want to remind everyone that we do have a prayer space in our school, in room 105. This space is available for students who wish to participate in prayer in a quiet and respectful environment. If your child will be utilizing the prayer space and/or needs other accommodations due to feasting etc., please let your child’s teacher know so we can ensure they know where the prayer space is located and provide the needed accommodations. Happy Ramadan or Ramadan Mubarak.
Have a terrific break everyone. Be safe and have fun!
Andrea Papavasiliou, Principal