A Message from the Head of the Junior School – Friday, September 2, 2022

On By havergaljuniorschool

Dear Junior School Families,

A very warm welcome to all of our new and returning families! Our team has been working hard this week to ensure that everything is ready for a smooth transition back to school. 

I encourage all of you to carefully review the Back to School Website, which contains all of the “need to know information” for a successful start to the school year, including schedules for the opening two weeks of school. 

A reminder that “The Weekly” (formerly, “The Blog”) is published each Friday. It provides alerts for activities and events that are upcoming, as well as highlights from the week that may generate conversation with your daughter about her school life. 

Please note:

Regular information about your child’s classes or the school calendar can be accessed through Veracross. Please be sure to visit the parent portal: Veracross Login.  To learn how to subscribe to HC calendars, so that they appear on your digital calendar, see below:

Wishing you all the very best this weekend! We are very much looking forward to seeing everyone next week.

Sincerely,

Kate

Today’s edition of “The Weekly” contains information on the following:

LATEST NEWS

COVID-19 Update

We are looking forward to a full return to school and programs. A couple of key highlights as we head into the 2022-2023 school year.

  •  Vaccination Policy – All students (age 5 and older as of July 1, 2022) and employees are required to meet the Ontario Health definition of fully vaccinated for COVID-19. Please note, booster shots are not included in the government’s definition of full vaccination.
  • Mask Friendly – Havergal continues to be a mask friendly environment. Unless directed by Ministry of Health guidelines, students or employees are not required to wear masks.
  • As you may be aware the Chief Medical Officer of Health made changes to the isolation requirements for COVID-19. The focus has shifted from just COVID-19 symptoms to address considerations for other respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses that are likely to circulate over the coming months.
  • Anyone who is feeling sick or has any new or worsening symptoms of illness, including those not listed in this screening tool, should stay home until their symptoms are improving for at least 24 hours (or 48 hours for nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea) and they do not have a fever, and seek assessment from their health care provider if needed. The presence of symptoms, particularly respiratory symptoms, increases the risk of transmitting to others.

Reporting Student Attendance – Change in Procedure

We introduced SchoolPass last year as an all-in-one solution including attendance reporting. Unfortunately, this integration did not work effectively. Instead, we will be using Veracross for reporting student attendance for all students in JK to 12. This system provides an easy way for parents to directly report student absences, lates or early dismissals with no need for phone calls or emails.

  • A link for reporting attendance is available directly on the Parent Portal homepage. We recommend you bookmark the link.
  • If a student will be arriving late, leaving early or absent for the day, parents must notify the school in advance using the link above in Veracross. If a student is absent from school and there is no record in Veracross, the Junior School Office or Day School Office will be in touch with parents by email and/or phone.
  • Instructions for using Veracross can be found here. It is important to review these instructions and be familiar with how to report a student absence through Veracross.

Independent Dismissal (Grades 4 – 6)

  • Parents of students in Grades 4 – 6 who wish to arrange for their children to leave school independently are asked to register as soon as possible, using the following link: Registration for Independent Dismissal
  • This registration cannot be provided via SchoolPass; you can change your arrangements at any point during the school year

Truth and Reconciliation Week – Orange Shirt Day

  • Havergal is recognizing Orange Shirt Day on Thursday, September 30th.
  • Orange Shirt Day is designed to promote the message that every child matters and to commemorate the residential school experience, honour the journey of survivors and their families, and commit to the ongoing process of reconciliation. We will be sharing the purpose of the day, in developmentally appropriate ways, both in class throughout the week, as well as a JS community on Friday, September 30 in prayers
  • Students are invited to wear an orange shirt on this day, on top of their regular HC uniform on this day. 
  • The following are Orange Shirt Day Retailers. When purchasing a shirt from one of these, the proceeds directly support Indigenous organizations and communities.

REMINDERS

Before and After Care – GatorCare

Food Services and Pizza Lunch Information and Registration

  • Junior School Food Services Program
  • Pizza Lunch:
    • If you would like to register for Pizza Lunch on the first Monday of each month,  please complete a SEPARATE form for each individual child.
    • Pizza Lunch Registration Link 
    • Please note:
      • If your child(ren) already participate)s) in the JS Food Services Program:
        • There is no additional charge for participation in Pizza Lunch.
        • You will, however, STILL NEED TO FILL OUT THE FORM to indicate the kind of pizza your child would like
        • Food Services will not be available on Pizza Lunch Days. If your child does not like Pizza, they will need to bring their own lunch from home.
      • If your child(ren) DO(ES) NOT already participate in the JS Food Services Program:
        • Your account will be charged accordingly (1 Slice – one time charge of $50.50; 2 Slice – one time charge of $62.50).
    • Pizza Lunch Registration

Registration for Fall Co-Curriculars (Clubs, Performing Arts, Athletics)

  • Registration Opens—Wednesday, September 7 @ 8:00 am
  • Registration Closes—Monday, September 12 @ 4:00 pm
  • How to Register— click the links below to register:
  1. Registration: Regular Clubs
  2. Registration: Chess and Choir 2022-23
  3. Registraion: Athletics 
  • Start Dates:
    • Clubs programming begins the week of September 19.
    • Performing Arts programming begins the week of September 19
    • Athletic programming begins the week of September 12
  • Squads: Squads are available to students in Grades 1 to 3. This non-competitive athletics program is focused on developing the FUNdamentals of sport.
  • Squad Teams: Squad Teams are available to students in Grades 2 to 4. Students in this program begin training according to more formalized methods with an emphasis on sports skills. Squad Teams focus on the sports that the Junior School participates as a member of the Conference of Independent Schools’ Athletic Association (CISAA), while providing additional development and preparation for Havergal Teams.
  • Havergal Teams: Havergal Teams are available to students in Grades 4 to 12. Our teams compete in the Canadian Independent Schools Athletic Association.

Student Photos:

  • We will be having student photographs taken on two different dates:
    • Wednesday, September 14, 2022  (JK – Grade 3)
    • Thursday, September 15, 2022 (Grades 4 – 6)
  • Students are asked to wear their #1 Dress on the day that their photo is taken.

Celebrating Birthdays in the Junior School

  • We realize that it is not generally possible to send seasonal greetings and birthday invitations to every child in a class. Children are, however, very sensitive; feelings can be easily hurt in these early years. Invitations and cards should not be brought to school for delivery unless the whole class is included. 
  • Treats (e.g., cupcakes, cookies, donuts) and/or loot bags MAY NOT be brought in to celebrate birthdays or holidays. Instead, students are invited to wear grub clothes on their birthday. Students with a summer birthday are invited to wear their grub clothes on an alternate day that is to be arranged with their core teacher.

Celebration Saturday, September 24, 2022

  • We are looking forward to seeing everyone at Celebration Saturday – a fundraiser for our wonderful community partners.  Join us on Saturday, September 24 from 9:00am – 1:00pm for House and Grade games, House Stalls, a Junior School midway, BBQ, Marketplace, a Silent Auction and more.  Watch for a communication with more details the week of September 12.  We hope to see you there!

Wellbeing – Supporting your children with back to school transitions 

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of going back to school. It’s a time of excitement and transition – a new grade, new friendships, new concepts, maybe even a new milestone. As parents, getting the new school year off to a good start is something we all want: It impacts our kids’ attitude, confidence, and performance both socially and academically. There are lots of reasons to look forward to the upcoming school year and we have a few suggestions below to help promote a happy and successful school experience for all. 

Plan ahead – It’s important to ensure that your child has a balance between school, study, extracurricular activities, family time, and their other interests. Decide with your child what their priorities are, dedicate time to them, and then map out time for them to spend how they like. 

Provide structure and predictability – Develop and stick to healthy weekday routines. Having a specific morning, evening and sleep routine during the school year can help ease worries and uncertainties. If possible, provide consistent after-school activities that they can look forward to. Practicing and role modelling these routines yourself will also help reinforce consistency and what is expected of your child.

Talk with your kids – Asking kids about what they are looking forward to about the upcoming school year, or what they think might be different than previous years, can offer clues about how they’re feeling. Should your child identify things they are anxious about, talk about ways to address the issue and practice coping strategies to manage their anxiety, such as taking pauses, deep breathing, or finding opportunities to take a break. Try to remember to keep your own anxieties or opinions about the school year out of the conversation.

Take care of your physical and mental health – Promote healthy eating habits, fun physical activities, family time, and relaxation. Consider journaling as it’s been found to positively impact our mental health and wellbeing. 

We are looking forward to an exciting new year.

Dr Yarmey, Director of Wellbeing

Dates on the Horizon

Tuesday September 6

  • Professional Development Day for Employees
  • No school for students

Wednesday, September 7

Thursday, September 8 – Friday, September 16

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