May 2nd JK Orientation 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
May 3rd Parent Speaker Series - Mindfulness and Parenting 7:00 - 8:30 pm
May 5th Junior Concert
May 13th Dance Share - Grades 4-6
May 18th Parent Speaker Series - Talk to Your Kids About Money
May 26th to June 8th EQAO - please avoid booking appointments during these mornings Grades 3 and 6 only
May 28th GARDEN FETE 11:00 am - 3:00 pm
June 7th Script Club Performance
June 10th PD Day
June 16th Grade 6 Graduation - Ceremony in the afternoon and party in the late afternoon/
evening
June 24th School Dance
2016-2017 SCHOOL YEAR
The teachers at Brown, along with the school administration will be meeting in the Spring to place students into their classes for next year. We spend a lot of time together aiming to place groups of children together who will work well together. We want every child to be successful.
While we do not take teacher requests, we know that you know your child best and are happy to hear from you. If you would like to share your child's learning profile with us please e-mail Jessica, Christine and the classroom teacher. We will do our best to work with this information and the information from the teachers to place your child in an environment that fosters their success.
MUSIC PROGRAM
Spring has sprung, and it's time again for our spring concert.
Our dress rehearsal is May 4th starting at 12:30pm
The Concert for the community is May 5th at 9:00 am. Both are happening in the gym.
This concert features only for junior students (Grades 4-6). On the programme are all of the junior classrooms with two songs each, strings, band, Ukulele Ensemble, Recorder Ensemble and the Junior Choir are also performing.
AVENUE ROAD DROP-OFF
There is NO safe drop-off zone on Avenue Road.
1. Stopping on Avenue Road to let a child out of the car is extremely unsafe.
2. The North Driveway of the school is NOT ACCESSIBLE to parents. This area needs to be reserved for AUTHORIZED users only.
Please think twice before using either of these areas to drop off your children. WE HAVE CONTACTED POLICE SERVICES TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE AND THEY WILL BE MONITORING THE DRIVEWAY AND AVENUE ROAD.
Driving around the block is a pain, but is it worth a life?
FUN WAS HAD
Our latest fund raising campaign to support Food Security in Haiti through Free the Children, raised over $300 in two lunch periods! Thank you for your support!
We had such a blast celebrating the close of "Character" Month. The power of creativity and imagination is certainly incredible!
FROM THE LIBRARY
The Bilingual Scholastic Book Fair is coming up on May 10th, 11th and 12th.
Please note as well that the authors from the Forest of Reading Finalists are coming Monday May 16th (Kathleen Cook Waldron) and May 17th (Andree Poulin).
TRASHY TUESDAYS
Trashy Tuesdays are starting again! Please meet us in the primary playground on Tuesday May 3rd, where we'll be handing out garbage bags and your child can participate in picking up the trash in our school yard. It's a great way to contribute to our Brown Community AND it only takes 10-15 minutes! If you're interested in volunteering as a parent, please contact Jen Lockwood jealockwood@gmail.com
BROWN CLOTHING POP UP SHOP - WE'RE BACK!
Get your Panther pride on with a new selection of Brown branded items, including new colours and styles for spring. We've got hoodies, sweatpants, baseball T's, as well as some brand new items including foldable sunglasses and wristbands! We will be setting up shop in the lower playground on Thursday, May 12th from 2:45-3:45pm. And we'll also be on site during Garden Fete!
MENTAL HEALTH WEEK
Next week is Mental Health Week. We will be practising our Mindful Minutes after O'Canada and announcements each morning.
Please see the newsletter attachment as well.
FREE SPEAKER SERIES
Brown Public School Speakers Series for Parents (Event is FREE)
Tuesday, May 3rd, 2016
7:00- 8:30 p.m.
MINDFUL PARENTING
Felicity Bannister MSW, RSW Mindfulness Facilitator | Psychotherapist Founder of MindSana.com
Felicity has worked in mindfulness for over 6 years with both adults and youth and has extensive experience running groups. She has completed the Applied Mindfulness Program at the University of Toronto and attended Vipassana silent retreats. Her experience includes running Mindfulness Meditation Programs in Corporate, Community, Social Agency and Volunteer settings. Felicity has experienced the transformative benefits of fostering her own mindfulness practice. It is her desire to bring these benefits to others that led her to establish MindSana.com
In Felicity's presentation she will:
- Define mindfulness
- Discuss the benefits and how they apply to parenting
- Outline the science behind the practice
- Run two short meditations
- Offer mindfulness tips in everyday life
- Provide a list of resources
Participants will receive a handout.
Please note: This speaker series is generously supported by a Parents Reaching Out Grant for School Councils, Ministry of Education, Province of Ontario
Please contact Unicorn Daycare by May 1st if you require childcare.
ECO COMMITTEE UPDATE
Our ECO Club revved up in full force this past January. They spent the first month sharing ideas and finalizing their ECO GOALS for the year. Here are their 2015-2016 goals:
Everyone brings a litterless lunch
Always pick up after yourself
Recycle better
Try to start a compost program
Help nature in our school
The Club decided to focus on one goal per month to reach their ultimate goal of helping the inside and outside environment at our school.
February: We focused on improving our recycling habits at Brown. Members labeled each classroom blue bin and spoke with each class about what can and cannot go in the recycling bins.
March: Our students focused on introducing a Green Bin Program at Brown. The students organized the order of individual bins for each classroom and one large curbside bin for the caretakers from the city. They labeled and delivered bins to each classroom. We are proud to announce that Brown PS is now diverting paper towel and Kleenex from the landfill into a city composting program.
April: We took the lead from our parent council and extended their monthly "Trashy Tuesdays" to weekly. Every Tuesday morning recess the entire school body is encouraged to pick up litter from our schoolyard. In addition, we are very proud to announce that Brown took part in the "Toronto Annual Clean Toronto Together, Spring Clean-Up" on April 22! On April 22, at 2pm everyone from Kindergarten to Grade 6 collectively left the school altogether to clean up a pre-assigned area of the playground or neighbourhood. Because we love April (Earth Day month) so much, the ECO club also hosted 2 lunchtime Worm Workshops for students to learn more about these wonderful little composters.
May: With the help of a wonderful group of parents, Brown PS has received funding to build our first ever "Edible Garden"! On May 18 students will work alongside gardening experts to build a line of milk crates along the inside fence of the primary yard. A contest will be held soon within the school to come up with a perfect name for our pizza themed garden.
June: We will end the year encouraging students to bring a litterless lunch to school. Brown PS currently has a 'Boomerang' lunch philosophy where everything that a student brings to school (wrappers, peels, etc.) goes back home in their bag. The ECO team would like to challenge Brown students to think of how they can create less waste while packing their lunches (Tupperware, reusable water bottles vs. juice boxes, etc.).
We could not be prouder of our ECO Club and Brown PS as a whole. Their little hands and big hearts have created major change at Brown PS this year.
"Let's Go Brown, Let's Go Green"
KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION
If you or anyone you know in our catchment area is ready to register for Junior Kindergarten (born in 2012) for September, please have them call the school at 416-393-1560 to set up an appointment.
