PMPS Weekly Update September 22nd, 2023
Dear Mustang Families,
Thank you. What a wonderful feeling it was to have our families visit on Meet the Teacher night. I sensed how excited families are to start another school year. Thanks for coming and supporting your student(s). Didn’t the student work look great?
We’ve had a busy week here at PMPS. sports teams are back up and running, the 6/7 and two ⅞ classes visited island Lake for a team building day, and our grade ⅔ and 3 classes are visiting the International Ploughing match in Laurel today. Thank you to all of our parent/guardian volunteers who made this possible. Our soccer teams attend their county tournaments next week and we wish them the best of luck.
You can follow our school Twitter feed: @margaret_ps . We update our website regularly as well: www.ugdsb.ca/PrincessMargaret/ . Staying connected during the school year is key.
Important Upcoming Dates:
-Friday, September 22nd: Terry Fox Run. Please donate online or bring in a toonie if possible. Top fundraisers get to silly string their teacher and me! Kids and staff will be outside during the last block of the day: remember water bottles, sunscreen, comfortable shoes as we will be walking in honour of Terry and cancer research.
-Wednesday, September 27th: -Rowan’s Law-Concussion Awareness Day- Wear purple if you are able..
-Friday, September 29th: We are recognizing National Truth & Reconciliation Day a day early since the day is on the weekend this year. Please wear orange if you are able.
-Tuesday, October 3, 2023– School Picture Day (cross country runners, will have their pictures taken before leaving for the race)
-Thursday, October 5th, 2023- World Teacher Appreciation Day! We are thankful for our teaching staff and appreciate all that they do.
-Thursday, October 5th, 2023: School Council meeting, in person at PMPS Library. New members are always welcome. Please check out our minutes from September’s meeting:
https://www.ugdsb.ca/princessmargaret/september-school-council-minutes/
-Monday, October 9th, 2023: Thanksgiving for those who celebrate. No School.
*** Please note, our flag will be lowered from Friday the 22nd to Monday morning to recognize Police and Peace Officers National Memorial Day on Sunday, September 24th.
Illness Prevention in the UGDSB:
Key Protective Measures:
As a school board, we want to remind everyone of the importance of many standard protective strategies to help keep staff and students safe and healthy. Strategies such as frequent hand washing, respiratory etiquette and making the most of our outdoor spaces for learning continue to contribute to the health and well-being of students and staff. Classes in the UGDSB will continue to have a standalone HEPA filter unit with more than 2500 of these units deployed across the system. In addition to these measures, the UGDSB will continue to support students, staff and visitors to our schools and respect their individual choices about masking
Management of Illness in Schools:
The UGDSB will continue to follow the direction of WDGPH for appropriate responses to illnesses in our community. Please visit their website for the most current information about COVID-19: https://wdgpublichealth.ca/covid-19/covid-19-information-public/status-cases-wdg
Cases of respiratory illness generally increase throughout the fall and winter months. Please review the most current guidance from the Ministry of Health throughout the season: https://www.ontario.ca/page/protection-covid-19-and-other-respiratory-illnesses
Equity Update:
I want to remind everyone of the Identity Based Harm button found on every school’s website and on the main UGDSB webpage. The Report Identity-Based Harm and/or Bullying tool gives students and parents 24/7 access for reporting.
Safety Reminders (We’re still having trouble with the following):
-When dropping off and picking up kids, please remember that dogs must be leashed and kept on the sidewalk of our property. This is the expectation for all dogs (no matter the size or age). Some students have allergies, a fear, and there is the potential that someone could be scratched or bitten. Please do not argue with staff who ask you to follow this expectation as we are trying to reinforce board direction and keep everyone safe. Thank you for your support and cooperation.
-Please do not park in our front bus loop. Although we have limited bus students, we still have a couple of buses that carry students on them.
Starting today, the front parking lot will be closed to all traffic as we still have people parking in the fire routes, no parking zones, and the bus loops. Orangeville ByLaw and Dufferin OPP will try to be more visible to address concerns as well.
Milk & Pizza Sales:
Milk is currently on sale 1st lunch break. Each milk (plain or chocolate) is $1.00 and students require cash to purchase.Pizza days start next week! Please make sure to get your orders in through School Cash by September 25th, 2023.
Delivered Lunches to the School:
Please note that Skip The Dishes/ UberEats etc deliveries are discouraged. Often drivers drop food, not indicating who the delivery is for. We often have student office helpers at lunch time, as our hardworking Mrs. Mckenzie needs a break. As you can imagine, having multiple meals delivered without indicating who they are for and without a label can confuse everyone. If you are dropping off a lunch or having it delivered, please make sure your child knows it is coming, what it is, what time (1040am or 1250pm) it is being delivered, and to come and get it after coming in from recess. We do our best, but mistakes can happen. Rest assured, we will never let a child go hungry, as we have our food program here. Thanks for your support and understanding.
Have a wonderful weekend. We’ll see everyone back on Monday for another great week of learning.
Andrea Papavasiliou, Principal
Categories: News