Welcome Back from the Administration Team at Stoney Creek

From The Administrative Team….

Welcome back to the 2016/2017 school year! We hope everyone had a restful and fun filled summer holiday with family and friends. It is nice to see our students and staff returning refreshed and ready to begin the new school year, which promises to be a busy one. We are all very excited to begin this new chapter in education with you.  We hope to make this an engaging and successful school year for everyone. 

At Stoney Creek Public School, our School Goal is “To improve students’ ability to understand, explain and demonstrate their learning”. We will be focusing our Professional Development this year around our School Goal.  Stoney Creek has an exceptional teaching and support staff that works tirelessly for the benefit of each and every student.  We pride ourselves on being a place where our mission is to ensure that “we build each student’s tomorrow, every day”. We believe that our parent community is an equally important part of the success of our students and school.  We encourage parents to participate in the daily learning activities of their child by talking to him/her about their learning and by using planners to openly communicate with their child's teacher.  There are many opportunities for families to get involved in the Stoney Creek Community. Our Parent Council welcomes new members at any time and will meet monthly at 6:30 p.m. in our school library for approximately 1 hour. Our first School Council Meeting is on Wednesday, September 14^th at 6:30 p.m.

Each day, the parents, staff, and students of Stoney Creek Public School work together to create a supportive, cooperative, and positive environment that establishes a safe and caring place for teaching and learning. At Stoney Creek we encourage students to be responsible for their learning and behaviour and we teach that excellence only comes through hard work and determination. Our intention and hope is that our work and focus will enable students to develop the skills, attitudes, knowledge, and values that will allow them to participate and contribute positively in an ever-changing world.

Please welcome our new staff members!  Joining our teaching staff this fall are Ms. Dyana Squire, our new Vice-Principal working with the Administration team. Also, welcome, Ms. Leashan McCallum-VanPraet teaching grade 7, Ms. Kim Brown is teaching grade 4, Ms. Chelsey Reid, new to grade 1 this year, Kaleigh Chelmak is teaching our new 8^th FDK classroom and Ms. May Chechak is the ECE working within this FDK.  New to our Music Department is Ms. Seritha Rowsell and new to our ESL is Ms. Jan Jeffrey.  We would like to welcome back Mr. Jim Benincasa our ESL teacher. In the office we have a new administrative assistant, Ms. Chelsea Heene and we also welcome Tanis Breen and Amanda Gelinas, Educational Assistants joining our team this year.  We have a number of Occasional teachers filling in for staff who are off on a leave. Please welcome, Mr. Jason Burns our new Grade 8 teacher (Davis),  Ms. Dapne Lambrinos our new grade 2 teacher (Richer) and Ms. Jamie Cain (Lunick) our grade 3 teacher. We wish everyone a warm welcome to Stoney Creek. Wow! A huge number of new staff this year!

While most of us were enjoying the summer sunshine, a crew of hard workers were here at the school making everything look shiny and new for September. An enormous thank you goes out to our custodial team Mr. Goran Brkic, Mr. Justin Kemp, Mr. Jamie Lloyd, Ms. Nancy Krause and Mr. Dan Rovers. The school looks fantastic!

Construction is well underway at Stoney Creek.  The new extended parking lot has been paved making our lot now large enough to hold 100 cars, finally big enough for all the staff!  We now have a portapak of 6 portables with an addition of 8 individual portables in the back of our school, making this a total of 14 portables at Stoney Creek.  Yes, we are now at 1,000 students and counting!  The construction workers have been hard at work fixing up the front foyer, building an additional FDK classroom and adding 7 classrooms to the back of the school.  This construction has an expected completion date of March break 2017. You will notice that the back of our school has been fenced off to ensure student safety and a new ‘temporary’ staircase has been built for entry and exit to the school by our students using this back entrance. We will continue to keep you updated on safety precautions during the construction at Stoney Creek.

Teachers will be sending home a package that includes a number of items that require your attention.  Please read and review with your child where needed, then sign and return the following forms (please note some are double sided):

1.    Lunch Information, School Policies, Emergency Closure Procedures

2.    Elementary Interschool Athletic Form - grades 3 – 8 only

3.    Student Planner $5.00

4.    Internet agreement – for proper use of technology at the school.

5.    Spirit wear order form

6.    Insurance forms – These are optional.  Please send directly to the company.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank our students, staff and supportive parent community for working so hard to make Stoney Creek a great place to work and learn. We encourage you to keep in touch with your child's teachers and to contact us if you have concerns or questions. By working together we will ensure that Stoney Creek is a safe, positive and productive learning environment for all of our students. Please visit us at the school, or on our website. We're happy to have you with us and we wish you all a terrific school year!

 

Cindy Kissau  Principal        Dyana Squire Vice-Principal       Peter Dawson Vice-Principal

Welcome Back! Community First Day of School Information

September 2016
Dear Parents/Guardians
Welcome to the new school year!  A special welcome to all JK students and parents, and those families that are new to Stoney Creek.  A big welcome back to all students that are returning to Stoney Creek.  We have an opportunity to make 2016 – 2017 the best year ever for our school!
We are welcoming a number of new staff this year at Stoney Creek. You can check out all of the names of our staff listed at the end of this message.
Please take a moment to review the information below.  If you have questions or concerns, please consult our website or contact the school at 519-850-8698.  The school office will be open all week until Friday, September 2^nd  at 3:30 p.m.  New registrations will take place all week. If you are registering a new student, please do so before the first day of school. You will need proof of address (a bill statement with your name and address on it).  The first day of school is always a busy day and we want all of our students to get off to a good start, so please register your child(ren) the week before school begins.
When will we find out what class my child is in?
Students in grades 1 to 8 will find out what class they are in on the first day of school. In late July, all FDK students received a letter in the mail to let them know their child’s teacher/ECE and classroom.  All Senior Kindergarten students begin on the first day of school, Tuesday, September 6, 2016, at 9:00 a.m.  Junior Kindergarten students will begin either September 7, 8, or 9. This date will be given to you via email, or phone if we do not have your home address.  If your child is in JK or SK and you have not heard what class your child is in by now, please contact the school office at 519-850-8698.
First Day of School
The first day is always an exciting time, filled with energy and anticipation.  If you have a question on the morning of the first day, look for a staff member who will be wearing a red Stoney Creek t-shirt.  Please try to walk to school the first day.  Should you need to drive please remember that there is no parking in the Kiss ‘n Ride at the front of the school or in the school parking lot.
Please note that parents/caregivers will say their goodbyes to their child outside of the school.  Unfortunately, we don’t have enough room for everyone in the building at the same time and it makes it more difficult and scary for the children to have so many people around. Thank you for your understanding.
Our procedures for the first day of school are as follows:
First Day Procedures:
The bell rings at 8:57 a.m. for line up and again at 9:00 a.m. for entry.
Please look for your child’s name on their class list on chart paper outside of their entrance.
FDK Student Notes
Ms. Dobransky & Ms. Hurdis, Ms. Chelmak & Ms. Chechak pick up in fenced area in the front of the school,
walk through front doors and down to classroom.
Ms. Mace & Ms. Young, Ms. Stephens & Ms. Guay: pick up from fenced area in front of the school.
Ms. Shin & Ms. Berrisford; Ms. Harris & Ms. Thomas; Ms. Bird & Ms.Helwig; Ms. Mills & Ms. Abu-Hassira pick up from the back fenced area behind the school.
For safety and traffic control, parents are asked to say goodbye outside of the fenced area.  (Junior Kindergarten students will be starting school either Sept. 7, 8 or 9th).
Grade SK/1, Grade 1 & Grade 1/2 students will line up in their classes behind the yellow line, outside the new south outdoor staircase.  Please look for your child’s name on the list on chart paper on the wall.  Teachers will meet classes and take them to their classroom once the class is together after the entry bell. Please note – Ms. McKenzie’s grade 2 class will also line up at the south staircase.
Grade 2 and 3 students will line up behind the yellow line outside the northwest doors. Please look for your child’s name on the list on chart paper on the wall.  Teachers will meet their classes at the following numbers (painted on the asphalt) and guide them inside.
1 – Ms. Cordy                                                 5 – Ms. Ryan and Ms. Cain (Lunick)
2 – Ms. Nadeau                                               6 – Mr. Pocrnic and Ms. Moore
3 – Ms. Brown (Gr. 4)                                    7 – Ms. Lambrinos (Richer)
4 – Ms. Lachaine                                            8 -  Ms. Alward
IN CASE OF RAIN: All students in grades 1, 2 and 3 should go to the gym to sit and wait for their teacher.
Junior classes, and Intermediate classes
All students will go to the porta pack or portables and look for their name on the chart paper on the wall.
Teachers will meet classes and take them to the classroom after the entry bell
All students in grade 4 McArthur/Player, 4/5 Williams and grade 5 will line up outside the portapac.
Grade 4 students in Ms. Raupp’s and Grade 6 students in Mr. William’s class should line up against the wall at the east side of the south staircase. 
All remaining students in grade 6-8 classes will line up outside of their assigned portables.
IN CASE OF RAIN: All students will enter their assigned rooms in the portapac or the portables
Dismissal time is at 3:30 p.m. Parents are asked to please meet their children outside after the bell. For safety reasons, we need to minimize the number of people in the building who are picking up their children. Thank you for your cooperation with this.
Teachers of FDK, grade 1 and 2 students will ensure students are connected with their caregivers before they are dismissed.
All Kindergarten students are dismissed at their classroom exit doors except for the students in Ms. Dobransky/Ms. Hurdis’ and Ms. Chelmak/Chechak classes – they are dismissed at the parking lot doors.
All students will be dismissed from their classrooms and exit from the door they entered.
Parents should arrange to meet their child at a certain spot if they are meeting them at school in grades 3 to 6.
Organization of the School
Each year on the first day of school, students are excited as they anticipate what teacher they have, who is in their class, etc.  A new class is a great opportunity to get to know more people.   Preparing your child for this day is important. Please help them understand that nutrition break time is a great time to socialize and visit.
Our school continues to grow. We are expecting over 1,000 students this September.  As a result, we now have 8 portables and a porta pack of 6 classrooms consisting of grades 4 to 8 students. Our FDK classrooms are located on the main level and grades 1 to 3 are located on the second floor.
Please note that reorganization of classes is always a possibility in the fall.  What does this mean?  It means that if we have more students than we expected in a certain grade, we may have to move some students/classes to a different classroom.  This is based on Ministry guidelines for class sizes.
Combined Grades
All students will be in a combined grade (sometimes called a split) classroom at some point in their school career.  If your child is in a combined grade (example 1/2 or a 4/5), they will receive the curriculum according to the level they are at based on the Ministry of Education guidelines.  Grade assignments do not determine a student’s ability level.  There is a wide range of ability levels in each classroom.  Your assistance in helping your child understand this information is important.
Entry and Dismissal Times
School begins at 9:00 a.m. and ends at 3:30 p.m. The schoolyard is supervised by staff at 8:45 a.m. and then after school from 3:30 to 3:45 p.m.  We ask that primary students be dropped off on their yard before 9:00 a.m. They will be escorted into the building by their teachers.  Parents are asked to remain outside. FDK parents will be asked to say goodbye at the gate of the FDK playground so the yard does not get too crowded.  At the end of the day, teachers take their students to the exit doors in grades FDK to 3.  Parents/caregivers are asked to meet their children outside, rather than in the hallways.  Students should not be on the playground prior to 8:45 a.m. or after 3:45 p.m. unsupervised by a caregiver.  Thanks for your understanding.
Home can be a busy place in the morning.  Please establish the routines necessary to ensure your child is on time for school each morning.  If your child is not at school in time to enter with their classmates from the school yard, they are considered late and need to go to the office for a late slip.
Daily Schedule
9:00-9:40 - Period 1
9:40-10:20 - Period 2
10:20-11:00 - Period 3
11:00-11:50 Nutrition Break 1
11:50-12:30 - Period 4
12:30-1:10 - Period 5
1:10-1:50 - Period 6
1:50-2:30 Nutrition Break 2
2:30-3:10 - Period 7
3:10-3:30 - Period 8
Students in FDK and students in grade 7 & 8 have their outdoor recess at 11-11:25 a.m. while grades 1 to 6 eat lunch in their classrooms. FDK students and grade 7 & 8 students will eat lunch from 11:25 to11:50 a.m. in their classrooms while grades 1 to 6 are outside for recess. Our grade 7 & 8 students will become role models and leaders for our FDK students during outdoor recess time.  This reduces the congestion of students that are outside together during their recess time.  FDK students will also be given the option of having a snack from their lunch around 10 am.
During second break, FDK and grade 7 & 8 students will go outside from 1:50 to 2:10 p.m. and then eat their snack from 2:10 to 2:30 p.m, while grades 1 to 6 students eat from 1:50 to 2:10 p.m. and are outdoors for recess from 2:10 until 2:30 p.m. This allows FDK students to enjoy the full playground safely with the grade 7 & 8 students acting as role models.
Home and School Communication
Stoney Creek P.S. is a certified Eco School.  To help save trees and cost, we will be communicating with our website at http://www.tvdsb.ca/StoneyCreek.cfm Please check this site regularly for updates.  We will be updating the Principal’s Blog and school website regularly throughout the school year to give you important information about our school.   We also have a Facebook account where information is posted frequently.
To know when these updates have been posted, please sign up for e-news. See our website for sign-up details.  We promise not to send out information too often.  Using e-news is helpful when we need to communicate when the Principal’s Blog has been updated, or we have posted an item of importance, e.g. students will be late returning from a field trip, etc.
We will be publishing monthly newsletters via our school website to help keep you informed of extra curricular and special events occurring at Stoney Creek.  If you do not have access to the Internet, we will have additional paper copies of the newsletter in the office.
Student Safety
Due to the number of young children we have at Stoney Creek, a number of people drive to school.  Please note that the area in front of the school is a Kiss ‘N Ride between 8:45 and 9:00 a.m. Please do not leave your vehicle to walk your child to the school from the Kiss ‘N Ride area.  Dropping your child off while double-parked is very unsafe.  Please do not make 3-point-turns in front of the school.  The front of the school is a No Parking Zone as per City of London by-laws and tickets are regularly given out.
Our parking lot is reserved for staff, and for school vans and school buses at entry and dismissal times.  There are a couple of visitor spots available during the school day, but these are not accessible during entry and dismissal times. Students should not be in the parking lot without an adult, please.
Your cooperation is very much appreciated.
Health Concerns
If your child has a special health concern, (eg. Asthma, bee or nut allergy requiring an epi-pen, medical condition) please alert school staff.  Any medication that needs to be administered must have an Administration of Medication form signed by your family doctor.  Health forms are available on our website, or at the office.
Parent Involvement
Research shows that parent involvement in education yields significantly improved academic success.  We welcome parent involvement. If you are interested in volunteering (including field trips or in the classroom) you are required to complete a police check.  These are available at the office.
Please be aware that there is a cost for the check and it takes a number of weeks to complete. The police check is only required once, and thereafter only an Annual Offence Declaration is necessary. For more information on parent involvement, please consult the Thames Valley Parent Involvement Committee’s web page:  http://www.tvdsb.ca/parents.cfm
Stoney Creek School Council
The purpose of having a School Council is for parents and the school community to have meaningful input and an ability to influence decisions that affect their children and local schools.  Council members act in an advisory role to principals. All parents and community members are welcome to attend meetings.
The first meeting of the school year is on Wednesday, September 14th, at 6:30 p.m. in our library. We hope you will join us.  If you are interested in holding a position on the council we will explain this process on Sept. 14th.  Should more than one person want to stand for a particular position, it may require an election.
The Stoney Creek School Council has been responsible for advising the principal about the Code of Conduct, the Dress Code, hot lunches, fundraising and installation of the climbers to the tune of $31 000, Spring Flings, donating iPads for all 3 divisions, chrome books and a myriad of other things to date at our school.  Kudos to our volunteers!!!For more information on School Councils, please see the following information:
http://www.tvdsb.ca/files/121620/school%20council%20handbook%20ont%2002.pdf
Cell Phones, Cameras, iPods
Please remember that hand held audio and visual devices (cell phones, IPODs, cameras) shall not be used at school or at school events.  Should these items be seen or heard they will be taken away and returned to your child at the end of the day.  If you need to contact your child during the school day in an emergency situation, please call the office.  Please do not text your child while they are at school.
Photographs will not be taken at school without staff permission.
As we adjust our practices to the reality of cell phone use, we may have students using these devices in the classroom from time to time, under teacher supervision. This does not mean that all students have to have a cell phone.
Bad Weather? Bus Information?
Please refer to www.tvdsb.on.ca for more information should the weather be questionable.
Bus information can be found at:  mybigyellowbus.ca
Parental Permission
Lunchtime - Should students have parental permission to leave the property at lunchtime, it will be at the first nutrition break only.  Students must have parental permission to leave school property at lunchtime.
Should parents/caregivers desire to sign out their child during second nutrition break, please go to the office.
Forms Sent Home the First Week:
During the first week of school we are sending home information about:

1. Lunch Information, School Policies, Emergency Closure Procedures
2. Elementary Interschool Athletic Form - grades 3 – 8 only
3. Internet agreement – for proper use of technology at the school.
4. Spirit Wear order form
5. Insurance forms – These are optional.  Please send directly to the company.

Stoney Creek Staff

We have a number of new staff again this year and we look forward to working together to maintain our strength as a learning community.

Administration		Admin Support
Kissau, Cindy	Principal	Elliot, Yvonne	Admin Assistant
Dawson, Peter	Vice-Principal	Heene, Chelsea	Admin Assistant
Squire, Dyana	Vice-Principal	Jarrett, Jennifer	Admin Assistant
Learning Support		Teaching Staff
Hulbert, Alison	FDK/1/6 LST	Enneper, Robin	Grade 6
Lefteris, Jen	2/3/4 LST	Williams, Chris	Grade 6
Scott, Laura	5/7/8 LST	Ruberto, Julie	Grade 6
		McHardie, Amy	Grade 7
Teaching Staff		Carlyle, Kevyn	Grade 7
Stephens, Lara	FDK	McCallum-VanPraet,Leashan	Grade 7
Mace, Lisa	FDK	Burns, Jason (Davis-LTO)	Grade 8
Dobransky, Joyce	FDK	Annis, Dave	Grade 8
Bird, Valerie	FDK	Sheppard, Terry	Grade 8
Harris, Andrea	FDK	Ducharme, Ann	French
Mills, Laura	FDK	Metcalf, Diane	French
Shin, Anita	FDK	Gracey, Lynn	Music (gr. 4-8)
Chelmak, Kaleigh	FDK	Rowsell, Sarah	Music (gr. FDK-3)
Cadieux, Danielle	SK/1	Eisenbach, Peter	Library
Aris, Chris	Grade 1	Spence, Anita	Technology prep
McMichael, Amanda	Grade 1	Jackson, Jen	Phys. Ed
Reid, Chelsey	Grade 1/2	Constantine, Matt	Phys. Ed
Dagmar, Tymlova	Grade 1	Anderson, MaryBeth	FDK/primary prep
Alward, Dawn	Grade 2	Horton, Rebecca(Riley-LTO)	Primary/DC prep
Moore, Laurie	Grade 2	Cohoon, Maria	Intermediate DEC
Lachaine, Daphne	Grade 2	Noordhof, Jason	Junior DEC
McKenzie, Leslie	Grade 2	Suda, Matt	Junior DEC
Lambrinos, Dapne (Richer-LTO)	Grade 2	Benincasa, Jim	ESL
Nadeau, Sara	Grade 3	Jeffrey, Jan	ESL
Ryan, Rachel	Grade 3		Educational Assist.
Cordy, Michelle	Grade 3	Early Childhood Staff	Orchard, Jen
Pocrnic, Kasia	Grade 3	Berrisford, Peggy	Burke, Jessica
Cain, Jamie (Lunick-LTO)	Grade 3	Guay, Jennifer	Downing, Greta
McArthur, Kathy	Grade 4	Helwig, Janice	Miller, Josh
Raupp, Randee	Grade 4	Thomas, Lisa	Barendregt, Katie
Brown, Kim	Grade 4	Young, Maralyn	Korakianitis, Teresa
Player, Tanya	Grade 4	Abu-Hassira, Bassima	Plain, Kristi
Williams, Krista	Grade 4/5	Hurdis, Lauron	Beaton, Marianne
Austin, Jerry	Grade 5	Chechak, May	Breen, Tanis
Arnold, Sarah	Grade 5	Custodial Staff	Gelinas, Amanda
Scott, Kari  (.5)	Grade 5	Rovers, Dan (charge)	Custodial Staff
Dzongowski, Anna (.5)	Grade 5	Brkic, Goran (11-7)	Krause, Nancy (3-11)
		Kemp, Justin (3-11)	Lloyd, Jamie (3-11)