Nicole's Notes: Volume 14 (Dec.3)

Happy Monday TOSH Parents and Guardians!

And Happy 50th Birthday to Mr. Mike Trainor (pictured above with his class last week)! Who knew Santa was only 50 years young?! :-)

We are well under way in Term 2 of the first semester and we ask that you encourage your son/daughter to keep their focus as we motor toward the Christmas holidays. We are trying to keep distractions limited, but it is an exciting time of year and homework can sometimes slip on people's priority lists! Believe it or not, we will be looking toward final exams when we return in January. Time sure flies when you're having fun!

PARENT SUPPORT REQUESTED!
It takes the school, parents, and student working together for a student to be successful in school. From now on, this "three legged stool" icon on my blog means we need parent support in a particular area.

I will be visiting classes this month to check in, say hello, and review some of our safe schools policies and academic expectations with our students. Kids tend to live up or down to our expectations, and I need all students in our care to know and understand that our expectations are high! We have worked hard to develop a positive school climate and commitment to learning at Three Oaks, and everyone will play a part for that to continue in a positive direction.

Please remind your son/daughter that "Liking" something negative or degrading to others (pictures or video) on Facebook, or encouraging/attending a physical confrontation between students on or off campus, makes him/her an accomplice to the larger problem. It is important to note that there are school discipline measures that could be associated with that role. We also need students to complete their assigned work in order to assess them properly. It is difficult for teachers to assign a passing grade to students who haven't given them much to work with! I saw many teacher comments on report cards inviting students to come for extra help, meet to discuss a plan for catching up, etc. I am confident that the school is doing everything it can to set students up for success. Term 2 has begun, and there should be a sense of urgency on everyone's part to get those assignments in and those marks up! Anything you could do on your end to help with that would be appreciated. If your son/daughter is currently on track, give them a pat on the back from us!

NOVEMBER 30 PD DAY UPDATE 
Our instructional staff spent the day on Friday doing work around our school's Literacy goals. The morning was spent developing specific strategies that each department will focus on this year to improve critical literacy in our students. The afternoon was divided between the Grade 10 PLC teachers learning about moderated marking and the remaining staff reviewing formative and summative assessment practice and considering a best practice way to report home on the behaviours and attitudes that make students successful in school and work. I presented on the topic of Literacy to the UPEI student teachers, as well, and our WRT 421 teachers met to create a common assessment approach for final exams. Our support staff participated in a morning session about student mental health and then worked on student portfolio creation for the afternoon. It was a day chock-filled with learning and professional reflection, and we are excited to see what we discussed in our day to day practice.

TOSH TO RECEIVE AWARD!
TOSH is the winner of the Tami Martell Verbal Abuse Prevention Awareness Award! This has traditionally been awarded to one school in each of the province’s school boards each year. The honour is named after a mother from Montague who continues to speak out to create awareness and action on verbal abuse and its consequences. Her work led to the establishment of P.E.I.’s Annual Verbal Awareness Prevention Week. We are being recognized for the climate intervention work we began last year with Phil Boyte's "Breaking Down the Walls" program and the "It All Starts Here!" workshops at the Loyalist. We continue to try to raise awareness about, and address, bullying issues as well as promote positive connections within our school community. Funding for these climate intervention activities were made possible by the CSLC 2008 Legacy Fund.


Upcoming Dates to Note:

December:
3         Parent Council Meeting- 6:30 p.m.
11       Band Concert- 7 p.m. in the cafeteria
15       Christmas Dance
20-22  Annual TOSH Christmas Classic Basketball Tournament
21       Last Day of Classes

January:
3         First School Day for 2013
28       Final Exam- Block A  (AM Only)
29       Final Exam- Block B  (AM Only)
30       Final Exam- Block C  (AM Only)
31       Final Exam- Block D  (AM Only)

PARENT COUNCIL MEETING HAS GUEST SPEAKER THIS MONDAY !! 

All are welcome to attend the Parent Council meeting on Monday, Dec. 3/12 beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the Library. The meeting will begin with thoughts shared by Superintendent Jane McMillan on the topic of Literacy and student achievement. This will be one of Superintendent McMillan's last public addresses before she leaves her post as Superintendent in January. She is an excellent presenter and her message applies to every one of us. Hope to see you there!

CBC TURKEY DRIVE  

Our Music Council members will be providing entertainment at the annual CBC Turkey Drive broadcasting from the Salvation Army Thrift Store on Tuesday, December 4 from 6-8:30 a.m. Our students plan to arrive around 7 AM. and anyone out and about that early is welcome to come out and enjoy some great music while you support this important cause! Donations from December Charity Jars will be in support of the Salvation Army.

CHRISTMAS DANCE DECEMBER 15

Tickets will be going on sale this week for the Christmas dance scheduled for December 15. Please note that this is NOT a "prom"! It is a semi-formal dance and the usual school dance policy applies. Students do not need a "date" to attend the dance and sign ins must be students currently attending an Island high school in good standing (grade 10-12), or must be graduates in good standing from the TOSH Class of 2012. The school policy around dances and proms (rules are a bit different for signs ins for the Grad prom in May) are located in the Student Handbook.

WATER FOR CHANGE 

We need your spare change!! Every $25 raised will provide clean drinking water for someone for LIFE! Our student leaders have petitioned our feeder schools for help with this project and have put collection jars in the place of participating businesses around the city. Please give generously to this important charity initiative. The campaign ends December 18 and all donations can be brought to homeroom with your son/daughter or dropped off in the Main Office at TOSH.

KUDOS TO OUR KIDS!

To our TOSH students who showed The Mural Project so much respect and contributed in a positive way to the banner paper provided for its two week stay with us!

To the students who participated in the focus study group on The Mural Project last Thursday:
Kendra Poirier, Ashley Moore, Carolyn Crossman, Quentin Wedge, Alan Gallant, Milad Haidar, Saralyn Williams, Elijah Henderson, and Jaime MacLean. Thank you!

To Maria Dalton who is attending the Jervision conference in Ottawa (on Hepatitis C prevention) this week!

To the students in Mr. Harvey's Automotive class for winning "Third Place Overall" in the Downtown Summerside Santa Claus Parade!

To the students in Automotive, Carpentry, Welding, Aviation, and those with the Activities and Community Works Councils who participated in the Santa Claus Parade last week! TOSH spirit was well represented!!

To Taran Price for qualifying for the Skate Canada Challenge this week in Regina, SK! Good luck, Taran!

To the TOSH students who are involved in Fandago's community production of "Beauty and the Beast"!:

Cast Members:

Quinton Gallant- Le Fou

Rachel Mundy- Wardrobe, Silly Girl, Wolf

Charlotte Thompson- Babette, Silly Girl, Wolf

Katarina Oram- Silly Girl, Wolf, Serviette

Ensemble Members:

James Brown, Justin Campbell, Morgan Dehmel, Michaella Donovan, David McNeill, Taylor Poirier, Jillian Russell, Devan Surkan,

Gargoyles:

Alex Gallant, Caitlin Gallant, Nicole Gallant, Sarah Hilvers, Umara Muhammad, and Charlie Steele.

Production Team:

Dakota Pardy- Assistant to Stage Manager

Prop Construction- TOSH Drama Students

Set Construction- TOSH Carpentry Students

Sloane Rioux- Set Painting

Congratulations to TOSH staff members: Ms. Cameron (Artistic Director), Mrs. Callbeck (Stage Manager), Mme. Vialle (Actor), Mr. Harvey (Stage Crew), and Mr. Corkum (Set Construction and Assembly), as well as the many TOSH parents who were involved in this production. A job well done by all!  The musical production continues to run this Thursday-Saturday at the Jubilee Theatre.

Challenge:  Take some time this week to discuss the role that the silent observer plays in negative social situations. When people who witness wrongdoing stay silent, they are actually saying they agree with what is happening.  Help your son/daughter come up with a positive plan re: what to do if he/she finds himself in this situation.

Quote of the Week:  "It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are."~ e.e. cummings

Have a wonderful week and let us know if your son/daughter needs any support at all. We're here to help!

Nicole