Dear JS Parents,

It has been another wonderful week at the Junior School, as we participated in Mental Health Awareness Week. This has been an opportunity to further shed a spotlight on the importance of understanding our Mental Health, and how it affects all parts of our lives. The overarching theme was:

BE healthy, BE optimistic, BE grateful. 

As part of this week’s programming, we were pleased to virtually welcome Sacha Bryce to the Junior School, from the Youth Wellness Network. She ran three separate assemblies for the students, that were age and stage appropriate. These were the areas of focus:

• JK – 1: Understanding The Range of Our Emotions and Knowing They are “O.K.”
• 2 – 4:  Developing our Sense of Self-Esteem and Self-Worth
• 5 & 6: Bringing Awareness To Our Choices Both “On and Off line”

Some of the affirmations and other activities throughout the week can be found by visiting Havergal’s Social Media pages. Be sure to ask your child(ren) about some of their learnings from the week!  Finally, I encourage you to read our next edition of “The Torch,” to learn more about Havergal’s ongoing commitment to the development of our students’ Wellbeing from JK to Grade 12.

Sincerely,

Kate White

Latest News

Christmas Break

Christmas Break

Havergal College will close on Tuesday, December 15 at 4 pm for the Christmas holidays and reopen on Monday, January 4 at 8 am for in-person learning. Havergal will continue to follow directions from the Ministry of Education and will make adjustments to our plans if required. Students who are required to quarantine are able to learn remotely on a temporary basis. Families should notify the DSO of the student’s absence and the student should let their teachers know to expect them on Zoom.

Havergal continues to support the public health requirements as directed by the Ontario Government to limit indoor public social gatherings to members of your household and outdoor gatherings to 10 people while maintaining physical distancing. Students who have not followed the requirements are asked to learn from home for 14 days.

3 Ply Masks

A three-layered mask is now recommended by the Public Health Agency of Canada to improve protection from COVID-19. 

With increased time indoors as the weather gets colder, we are updating the Havergal mask policy to align with the latest Public Health Agency of Canada recommendations. Please see specific directions for mask use here.
The Return to Campus Handbook has been updated to align with changes to health recommendations. The Daily Screening letter is provided here as well for your reference.

New Circles Holiday “Angels Initiative” Holiday Giving (JK to 12)

This November, Havergal College has the opportunity to deepen our Community Partnership with New Circles by participating in the Holiday Angels Program. New Circles is a not-for-profit agency that builds strong and caring communities by providing basic necessities, employment training, and settlement support to government-assisted refugees and to those living with lower-incomes. All services provided by New Circles operate to promote equity and dignity through their programming. 

This year, to prioritize safety, we are asking our community to purchase gift cards for our New Circles families.  There is no set limit for the gift card amounts, however, a tax receipt is available for all donations above $20 and with an original purchase receipt.

Suggested retailers:

• Walmart
• Best Buy/Source
• Shoppers Drug Mart
• President’s Choice
• Toys R’ US

There will be a box in each class for students to drop off cards until from Monday, November 23 to Thursday, December 3rd.

Latest News

Pick-up Safety

A reminder that your support is appreciated in keeping our campus safe. Your cooperation sets a good example for our students and further curbs the possibility of the spread of COVID-19 or other viruses. Please be reminded of the following:

Masks:

• As stated in the Return to Campus Handbook, when parents/caregivers/siblings are on school property, everyone must wear a masks.

Physical Distancing:

• When waiting for your child be sure that you do not block the walkway onto Rosewell. In addition it causing people to gather too closely, it impedes the pedestrian traffic flow and slows down the pick-up process.
• If you are bringing dogs and puppies to the school yard, we ask that you move quickly off property as to not create a crowd of children gathering. 

Please know that these requests and restrictions are all in the interest of keeping our children and our families safe.

Dear JS Parents,

Thank you so much for attending our first ever virtual “JS Parent-Teacher Conferences.”

These important conversations provide an opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, to see the areas in which she is thriving, and to discuss targeted plans for continued growth. Moreover, they allow us to further strengthen the relationship between home and school.  It is important to remember, however, that while the conferences provide an overview of your child’s academic and social-emotional development, ongoing feedback throughout the year is paramount.  Should you ever have questions or concerns, we invite you to contact us and be assured that we will do the same.

Sincerely,

Kate White

Latest News:

Invitation to Join ‘Parenting In Place 8-Week Masterclass Series (beginning November 17, 2020)

We’ve received an invitation from one of our parent speakers, author of “Middle School Matters”, Phyllis Fagell, to join the Masterclass Parent Speaker Series that she is helping to organize and will be participating in. This series could be attended to any family from JK to Grade 12. Please see below for the details and the link to register.

• Are you burned out, concerned about your child’s well-being and wondering how your family will manage during the holiday and flu seasons? There’s a SPECIAL LIVE MASTERCLASS SERIES designed to help you this fall: Parenting in Place: Helping Families Thrive in Challenging Times, featuring 8 live, interactive, weekly masterclasses with parenting experts including Tina Payne Bryson, Mona Delahooke, Tiffany Dufu, Devorah Heitner, Rosetta Lee, Cornelius Minor, Laura Vanderkam, Katie Hurley, Phyllis Fagell and more. Registration for the entire series— including access to replays, a bundle of more than two dozen bonus downloadable resources from our speakers, and a closed moderated Facebook group for the event — is only $39 US. See the whole line up and register here: https://parentinginplacemasterclass.com/

Reminders:

Student Safety during Drop off and Pick up 

We are asking for your help to ensure a smooth and safe traffic flow by adhering to the following:

• Slow down!  We have observed a number of cars both on the JS Driveway and along Rosewell Ave. driving too quickly in a school zone. This puts all members of our community at risk.
• Drivers are asked to remain patient and wait in the queue to drop off.
• Always signal your intentions when merging to pulling over during drop off. 
• Havergal Security is outside to help with the process and facilitate a smooth and efficient drop-off — please follow their directions. 
• After dropping off your child, promptly move along and exit the driveway. 
• Drivers need to remain in the car and refrain from unloading items from the trunk. Please have your child do this. Exiting your car slows down the process for all.

Remembrance Day Prayers & Poppies

We will be commemorating Remembrance Day on Monday, November 9th from 8:30 am – 9:00 am. Should you wish to attend, please use the link below

• Remembrance Day Zoom Link
  • Meeting ID: 940 5838 1423
  • Passcode: 960526

We will be distributing poppies to all students upon their arrival to their homeroom. Students are not required to, but are invited to donate money to the Canadian Legion at the time of poppy distribution.

Mental Health Awareness Week: Nov. 17-20

The week of November 17 the whole school (JK to Grade 12) will be shedding a spotlight on Mental Health Awareness. Students will continue to build a tool kit of strategies to better understand and manage their mental health. Specifically, each division in the JS will focus on one of the following:

• JK-Gr. 1: “Emotions are OK: Noticing and Naming Our Feelings” 
• Gr. 2-4:  How Self Esteem and Self Worth Affect Mental Health
• Gr. 5-6:  The Role Social Media Can Play in Our Mental Health

Please note that on Friday, November 20th, all students, JK to Gr. 12, are invited to participate in a “Comfy Cozy Grub Day,” and do not have to wear their uniform.