ETOBICOKE TDSB EQUITY WARD FORUM

We would like to draw your attention to the Etobicoke TDSB Equity Ward Forum, which is happening tomorrow night at Kipling CI. Ms. Oketch, Ms. Ocampo and a Parent Council Representative will be present and we would like to invite any interested parents in our community to attend as well.

This is a public consultation to give input into the new version of TDSB’s Enhanced Equity Framework. We are pointing this out to you since the admission procedures for the TDSB arts schools have been much in the news lately and a report has just been released from an OISE researcher that is claiming that data shows that the arts schools have a disproportionate number of students from affluent families due to admission processes that are inequitable.

This may be a topic that you would like to have your voices heard on. Several parents from ESA are planning to attend and we hope to have representation from KKSA as well.

Ward Forum Poster 

Screenagers Movie Screening Monday May 29 at the ESA Auditorium

Thanks to the hard work of our parent community we have received a Parents Reaching Out Grant which has allowed us to host the film Screenagers on Monday, May 29 at 6:00 PM in the ESA auditorium.  Please see flyer below for more information.

Thank you to those families that offered their input regarding our grant focus for the upcoming 2017/2018 school year.

Leadership Academy – Summer School at KKSA

We continue to promote our Summer Program. Spaces are available for KKSA students. In the past we have had Grade 8 students attend to support the learning of students, while working to support teachers. Theses students have worked to earn volunteer hours. Many of the students had such a positive experience, that they are returning to our program this year. If you have a child that may be interested in volunteering please have them contact Mrs. Oketch.

Please share and help promote this excellent and free learning experience.

VIEW THE FLYER

REGISTRATION FORM

Q & A ABOUT THE PROGRAM

WARD FORUM @ KKSA APRIL 25TH, 2017

DO NOT MISS OUT – Trustee Pamela Gough to host Ward Forum at KKSA
On Tuesday April 25, Trustee Gough will host at KKSA:   School Communities as Agents of Change for a Vibrant City.

The guest speaker, Gil Penaloza, is interested in working with students to inspire them to take action for a better, healthier city. Mr. Penaloza’s vision aligns so well with the philosophy of KKSA and how our students are encouraged to take a leadership role in ECO activities.  We will have student presentations at this event.

Please make time to attend if you can.

Please see the Forum Flyer.

KKSA SUMMER SCHOOL

 

KKSA will be hosting Summer School this year. Please find the attached forms for more details and please feel free to forward to anyone who you think may be interested. You do not have to be a student of KKSA to attend. Program Flyer, Registration Form, Snack Registration Form.

Get Cyber Savvy – Presentation for Students

Thanks to those families that made the time to join us at our parent presentation.  It was extremely informative and provided parents with an opportunity to become more aware of some of the looming challenges that exist with social media.

Allison Dellandrea is a KKSA parent and active litigator.  As a parent of adolescent children she recognizes that for many children of this age, their greatest currency is to be needed and to feel accepted.  The challenge of technology, primarily social media, is that it presents a false sense of acceptance and a world of artificial friends – people that our children have never met. Statistics show that children spend 6 – 10 hours a day using technology!

How do we counter these challenges?  We must talk to our children.  We cannot keep our children off of social media.  Therefore, your number one defence is your relationship with your child.  Having physical access to their  devices allows you to track what they are doing, and ensures that you can recognize the individuals that they are communicating with.
(Adopted from Allison’s presentation.)

A huge thanks to Allison who has also agreed to offer a session to our students.  We are very grateful to her for making the time to sharing her expertise.  Thanks also to Ms. Patterson-Gaspar for helping to arrange our presentation.  Finally thanks to our Parent Council co-chair, Anna Stephens,  for arranging refreshments for this event.

IMPORTANT LABOUR UPDATE: PROGRESS REPORTS

Dear Elementary and Junior High School Parents/Guardians,
We are pleased to let you know that both the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents school support staff, have reached tentative agreements with the Government of Ontario and the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA), which represents the province’s public school boards.
ETFO and CUPE have agreed to bring province-wide job actions to a close, effective immediately, while these agreements are finalized. Both unions are also in ongoing local negotiations with the TDSB. We will send you updates as our talks continue.
This means that elementary students will receive their fall progress reports, which will be issued on December 10, 2015, pending ratification of the tentative agreement with ETFO. As part of the tentative agreement, teachers will conduct parent interviews at their discretion if the teacher has a concern about a child’s progress. If you have concerns about your child’s progress after receiving the progress report, please contact the teacher directly.
The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF) Professional Student Services Personnel Unit, which represents education workers (not teachers) including Attendance Counsellors, Child and Youth Counsellors/Workers, Social Workers, Speech-Language Pathologists and others, has not reached an agreement and negotiations are ongoing.
We thank all school-based staff and central teams who remained dedicated to student learning during this exceptional time.
As we move forward to finalize provincial and local collective agreements, we thank you, the parent/guardian community, for your continued patience and understanding.
We are committed to keeping you informed. Please continue to check http://www.tdsb.on.ca/labour for more information.

Robin Pilkey
Chair
Donna Quan
Director of Education

KIDS’ FREE CHOICE

Kid’s Free Choice (KFC)

This Friday students will participate in an elective afternoon where they select from various activities that will be hosted by staff members. The purpose of this event is to allow students to work with different people that have a common interest. Ultimately, we continue to work on ensuring that our grade 6’s are comfortable in their new environment and the grade 7’s and 8’s continue to explore new friendship groupings.

Activities will vary from stop-motion animation and yoga, to music mashup and improv, just to name a few. Each student will identify their top two choices and staff will create balanced groupings.

These events replace our gender based activities that have been held in past years. We feel that an emphasis on areas of interest is a more inclusive way to divide students. We feel that it is important to listen and respond to the feedback of our students.

TDSB ELEMENTARY SECOND TERM REPORT CARDS

Important News re TDSB Elementary Report Cards

Today, the Toronto District School Board announced that due to the ongoing strike action, this month’s elementary report cards will not be issued. Instead, letters confirming student’s placement for the upcoming school year will be provided.

The production of report cards for more than 170,000 TDSB students requires the electronic inputting of data by teachers. As elementary teachers are currently taking part in a province-wide strike action which includes not recording student marks electronically for the purpose of producing report cards, it is not possible to issue these reports while maintaining the privacy and accuracy of student’s marks.

During the week of June 22, principals will provide a letter confirming student’s placement for the upcoming school year. This letter will take the place of the regular report card and will be kept in their Ontario Student Record.

For more information, please visit www.tdsb.on.ca.

Quick Facts

• A letter that explains these important changes will be going home to parents today.
• The TDSB has over 170,000 elementary students with over 20 entries that are included in each report card. This means that at least 3.4 million entries would have to be inputted.

TDSB Parent Engagement Conference – Nov.17/12

The TDSB`s 6th Annual Parent Involvement Makes a Difference Conference: Parent Engagement and the Achievement Gap will be held on Sat.Nov.17/12 from 8:30am to 2:30pm at Earl Haig Secondary School.

We are seeking assistance in recommending 2 parents/guardians to attend the conference.  Our goal is to have a representative from each school across our system, including adult and alternative schools.

Parents/guardians may register at www.tdsb.on.ca/parentconference or call 416-394-2070.

Thank you.