News

On May 2nd, we were treated to an extraordinary night of talent at our 2018 Talent Show. Many thanks go out to all the students who participated and worked hard in getting performance ready. Special thanks to Jonathan Spence and all the parents who helped put this year’s show together and making it such a big success. Thanks also to the Garden staff & teachers for supporting the show.

On May 3rd, students in Gr. 1 -6 took part in the OTESHA presentation. OTESHA is a Swahili word meaning ‘A reason to dream’. Thank you to Cheryl McConnell, Garden parent and secondary school teacher, and her students, for their amazing presentation and workshops. This year’s theme was about making positive choices in our everyday lives for the environment and social justice. Students in our grade 3/4, 4/5 and 5/6 classes also participated in workshops following the presentation led by Secondary School students.

On May 17, Garden Avenue students in grades 1-6 will participate in a STEM – Adventure Play Day. This event encourages students to naturally engage with inquiry-based learning through play. Throughout the course of the day, classes will rotate for a period of creative, outdoor play with recycled and upcycled loose parts. This STEM-focused adventure play program offers students the experience to lead their own play, engineer their own creations and create the playground of their dreams!

On May 17, we recommend your child comes prepared with:

• Comfortable clothing plus running shoes for outdoor play that can get dirty
• Sunscreen and water bottle
• Hat
• A change of clothes (water play will be available – weather permitting)

If you have any questions, please email Ms Cox at carrie.cox@tdsb.on.ca

Mental Health Awareness Week at Garden Avenue is coming up on May 7-May 11, 2018. Our grade six organizing team is planning an incredible event for our entire school, including dancing, yoga, and mindfulness activities during the lunch hour. All students, from kindergarten through to grade six, will be able to join in at different times throughout the week. A big thank you to our group of grade six organizers who have done a wonderful job of planning this event for our entire school!

Get ready to celebrate your favourite book characters, Garden Avenue! On Monday May 7 we will have our very first Book Character Day at our school. Students and staff who come to school dressed up as their favourite character will have their name entered into a draw for a gift certificate from Another Story Bookshop. Students will also be asked to write up a mini review about your favourite character to win another chance at a gift certificate from Another Story Bookshop.

Ms. Hardy

“If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.”
 ― Mark Twain

With over 90,000 students in Core French and another 28,000 students in French Immersion/Extended French programs come system successes and challenges. TDSB is proud of the Board’s successes in retention rate, inclusion of students with special education needs as well as accessibility and transportation. At the same time, challenges include multiple entry points, equity of access, and transportation.

As part of the Director’s Response to the Enhanced Equity Task Force Report, a review of all French Programs will begin in Spring 2018. In collaboration with the TDSB Research Department, this review will focus on the current status of all French Programs, including the structure, content of the teaching and learning, and policies and procedures related to French. We look forward to receiving feedback about the successes and challenges of the various French Programs through face-to-face consultation with parents/guardians, Trustees, staff, students and community members and an online survey (available soon!).

To find out more, including upcoming dates for the remaining consultation meetings, please follow the link: http://www.tdsb.on.ca/Community/Public-Consultations/French-Review

Garden Grown Seedlings are back! On Tuesday, May 8 we will be selling seedlings, grown from seed by Garden families, after school.

Please support this school fundraiser and come buy our beautiful, GMO-free, pesticide free seedlings to populate your summer gardens with yummie veggies and flowers! Rare varieties include the much-in-demand Black Zebra tomatoes, Kentucky Wonder Pole Beans, Detroit Beets, and Tithonia, which are stupendous monarch-magnet Mexican sunflowers!

It’s here again!  The one, the only, Garden School Variety Talent Show!!! This is the 9th year in a row and it just keeps getting better.  You want piano performance?  We got that.  You want comedians?  We got that.  You want puppets?  We got that.  You want karate demos?  We got that too with loads of singing and dancing in between.  There will be popcorn, drinks and DVD’s from last year’s show.  Performers should arrive at 6:00 PM.

For future planning:  Our Kindergarten Concert, We Can Sing a Rainbow, will be on Tuesday May 8th.  The gym doors will open at 5:40 PM with the concert beginning at 6:00 PM.  Please be sure that your child has arrived to school by 5:45 and meets their teacher in their classroom.  The children are invited to wear colourful clothing for the evening.  Please note that all students will be dismissed from the Galley Avenue doors.

Mental Health Awareness Week at Garden Avenue is coming up on May 7-May 11, 2018.  Our grade six organizing team is planning an incredible event for our entire school, including dancing, yoga, and mindfulness activities during the lunch hour.  All students, from kindergarten through to grade six, will be able to join in at different times throughout the week. A big thank you to our group of grade six organizers who have done a wonderful job of planning this event for our entire school!

Get ready to celebrate your favourite book characters, Garden Avenue!  On Monday May 7 we will have our very first Book Character Day at our school.  Come to school dressed up as your favourite character and you can have your name entered into our draw for a gift certificate from Another Story Bookshop.  You can also write up a mini review about your favourite character to win another chance at a gift certificate from Another Story Bookshop.

Ms. Hardy

“If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.”
― Mark Twain

The 9th annual Garden Avenue Talent Show is on Wedneday, May 2 in the auditorium at Fern P.S., from 6:30-8pm.

Performers are asked to arrive at Fern at 6pm.

There will be popcorn and drinks for sale and a show that is sure to have something for everyone: singing, dancing, comedy, piano, karate, puppets and more! 

You are cordially invited to Garden’s Annual Junior Arts Showcase on Wednesday April 25th.  Students are to arrive and meet in their classrooms at 6:15 PM.  There will be a Dance performance from each class and the Strings will be performing in the gym at 6:30 PM.  Then from 7:00 to 7:30 PM Parents will be invited to visit room 204, 205 and 207 to marvel at the Visual Art pieces created by our junior students.  Please join us for a wonderful night of Junior Art.

On Monday you will be receiving a letter about September placements.  Please take the time to let us know your intentions for your child for the 2018/2019 school year.  Please understand that a great deal of time and consideration will be devoted to student placement decisions at Garden.  If there is additional information that you feel should be considered regarding your child’s placement please submit it in writing to the office by Wednesday April 25th.  You are welcome to email me at alana.hardy@tdsb.on.ca . Your information/requests should indicate your child’s need and program preferences and not names of teachers. If you have any questions please ask in the office.

On Wednesday it is Administrative Assistant Day.  To that end I would like to personally thank Ms. Dutton for all her hard work in the office, supporting everyone; students, teachers and parents.  Her strong presence in the office everyday keeps our school right on track.  So if you see her on Wednesday please be sure to give her a great big thank you for all her care.

We are so pleased to announce that $4667.85 was raised by our dance-a-thon.  We are thrilled to be donating $2333.93 to the Gord Downie Chanie Wenjack foundation.  The rest will go towards supporting initiatives at Garden.  Thank you to all of the parents/guardians for their support it is truly appreciated.

Ms. Hardy

True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.”
― Rick Warren

Garden will be celebrating the joy of reading on Monday, May 7 by asking students and staff to dress as their favourite Book Character! 

Come to school dressed up as your favourite character and students can have their name entered into our draw for a gift certificate from Another Story Bookshop. Students can also write up a mini review about their favourite character to win another chance at a gift certificate from Another Story Bookshop. I wonder who will be able to guess who Ms. Cox is when she is dressed up as her favourite character!

Our Spring Book Fair is the very next night, Tuesday May 8, from 3:30-7:30pm, brought to us by Another Story Bookshop - a perfect time to pick up a new spring book to read, or even to use your gift certificate if you win the book character draw!

We are so pleased to announce that $4,667.85 was raised by our Dance-a-thon. We are thrilled to be donating $2,333.93 to the Gord Downie Chanie Wenjack foundation. The rest of the money will go towards supporting initiatives at Garden. Thank you to all of the parents/guardians for their support - it is truly appreciated.

CANCELLED: The Bike Rodeo has been cancelled due to weather warnings.

The Bike Rodeo is on Tuesday, April 17, rain or shine, for all students in the Primary division (Mrs. Bell, Ms.Cochrane, Ms. Lawson, Mrs. Schultz, Mrs. Baigent and Mr. McClure).

Students will have the opportunity to learn about and practice safe bicycling skills. If your child has a bicycle, please support them to ride the bike to school or help them to get their bike to school. Your child may be asked to share their bike so that others can also participate.

When you arrive at school please lock the bikes along the East fence, by the baseball diamond. Don’t forget your helmets!

Silent Auction 2018 is fast approaching. The Garden community is always extremely generous in donating goods, plus their time and talent to this fundraiser.

This year, we're looking for even more great items to sell to the highest bidder on the day. Some things to think about:

1. Big-ticket items. Do you have a family cottage that you could donate a weekend at? Sporting events and concert tickets? Trip vouchers or services to donate?
2. Any small giftable item that could be bundled together with others to make a basket. Gift certificates, movie vouchers, jewellery, household items (new and unused) etc.
3. NEW THIS YEAR - WINE RAFFLE! This year the raffle-basket action is no longer kids-only, we'll be collecting bottles of wine to raffle off on the day. Winner, winner!

If you have something you're considering donating, let Erica Spencer, Sarb Nagra or Sara Clark know, or send an email to info@gardenschoolcouncil.com.

Help us to make this year's silent auction the best yet!

The Toronto District School Board is working on a Multi-Year Strategic Plan and wants to hear from you!

The Multi-Year Strategic Plan will act as a high level statement of intent for the TDSB for the next three or more school years, set direction and identify system goals to support its 246,000 students and 583 schools. We value input from parents/guardians, families, students and staff and invite you to provide feedback on the draft Multi-Year Strategic Plan documents. To learn more and provide input online, please visit: www.tdsb.on.ca/MYSP.

On April 11 it is The International Day of Pink.  This is a day of action, born when a youth in a high school in Cambridge, Nova Scotia was bullied because he wore a pink shirt to school. His fellow students decided to stand up to bullying; and hundreds of students came to school wearing pink to show support for diversity and stopping discrimination, gender-based bullying, homophobia and transphobia.

Students and staff are encouraged to wear pink in support of diversity.  The International Day of Pink is more than just a symbol of a shared belief in celebrating diversity - it's also a commitment to being open minded, to being understanding of differences and to learning to respect each other.

Don’t forget that Friday is our Dance-a-thon.  We are raising money for our school and for the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund in support of First Nations reconciliation.  Let’s keep that support coming and let’s dance, dance, and dance!!

Ms. Hardy

Friday's Dance-a-Thon promises to be a lot of fun! Please send your donation to school with your child (cash or cheque made out to "Garden Avenue Public School"). The school is raising money for technology needs and half of the money raised will go to the Downie Wenjack Fund (https://www.downiewenjack.ca/). The goal of the fund is to continue the conversation that began with Chanie Wenjack’s residential school story, and to support the reconciliation process through awareness, education, and action.