Centennial Connection June 25, 2023

Dear Centennial Families -

It is hard to believe that we only have 1 week of school remaining for this year. We have packed so much into the final few weeks of June and have maximized our school location within the city to access so many opportunities for families. Classes have been engaged in trips to City Park, to the Indigenous People's Day celebrations, to Lake Ontario Park, Miller Museum, Queen's University, and Market Square. We have also had various guests in the school including various artists and the Calvin Park student leaders who led games and activities for Grade 6 students this week. WOW! There is so much happening and we are loving every minute of it!

Centennial Public School is so fortunate to have such an active School Council. Although we might be small in numbers, we are mighty in enthusiasm and creativity. A huge shout out to all of the volunteers who organized and executed a fantastic Family Fun Night and Barbecue on Tuesday. There were lots of games and prizes! Many many thanks to the community partners who supported the event including the Boys & Girls Club, Lakeshore West Lions Club, Kingston Public Library, Kingston Frontenacs and KFL&A Public Health. Thanks also to the many businesses who have supported the School Council this year as well! The Barbecue event was a wonderful way for the community to connect! Thank you to all parents/guardians and families who donated items, volunteered to collect prizes, who organized games, and who attended! All Centennial parents/guardians are encouraged to participate in the School Council. The next meeting will take place in September. We would love to have you join us!

The School Council also provided delicious Staff Appreciation Coffee & Treats earlier in the month. Thank you! It was a great way for staff to start out the day and it was really kind of the Council to gather donations and organize the event.

As we are going into the final week of school there are a few reminders to share with families. Please continue to send a water bottle, sun hat, athletic type shoes and sunscreen each day. We spend time outside and with the warm and sunny weather we want students to be comfortable outdoors. We will be sending home report cards on Wednesday June 28th. Please sign and return the final page on Thursday June 29th. Staff will be working on Friday June 30th although the school will not be open to students. As well, this is a friendly reminder that hot lunch has now concluded for the year and there are no pizza or sub deliveries this week.

Over the summer there will be construction crews working on the property as the student washrooms are renovated to become all single stall, individual washrooms. There will be construction materials and vehicles on the property. Many families enjoy the school yard during the summer and you are welcome to continue to use it. Please be mindful of the vehicles and fenced off construction areas.

EarlyON will be running summer programming at Centennial during the summer. They will be using the Kindergarten room at the front of the school and will post their hours and activities on their website. A reminder that EarlyON is a parent/child program, it is not a drop off program.

This past week the school hosted a Kindergarten Celebration to honour those SK students moving on from the 2 year Kindergarten program and who will be entering grade 1 in September. What a milestone! We will also recognize the milestone that the Grade 6 students have achieved this year with the Grade 6 Celebration on Wednesday at 4pm. Grade 6 students and their families are invited to attend. We will celebrate student success and accomplishments as students will start in Grade 7 at Calvin Park PS in September.

We will send out information to families at the end of August with back to school information. Class lists will be finalized before school starts and that information will be shared on the first day of school.

On a personal note, this has been a wonderful 1st year for me as Principal at Centennial PS. I have really enjoyed getting to know the students and families, and feel so honoured to be part of this incredible community. The staff at Centennial are second to none and it has been a pleasure working with such a dedicated group of educators.

We wish all Centennial families a very happy weekend and we are looking forward to a great last week together. Happy Summer when it arrives! We are working on making 2023-2024 another fantastic year!

-Deborah Thompson, Principal & Centennial PS Staff

Upcoming Dates:

Monday, June 26th - Beardall, Boutilier, & Hetherington classes to City Park

Monday June 26th - Caldwell, Cahill, Graham & Girard classes to Lake Ontario Park

Tuesday June 27th - Turner/Byers class to Lake Ontario Park

Wednesday June 28th - Reports Go Home

Wednesday June 28th - Grade 6 Celebration 4-5pm in the gym for Grade 6 students & families

Thursday June 29th - Last Day of School

Friday June 30th - PA Day

Sometimes students want to bring items to school to show friends, or have things stored in backpacks that need to remain at home. This is just a reminder that students should not be bringing the following items to school:

- items of value (sentimental or monetary)

- any kind of weapon (for example, a Swiss Army knife)

- any kind of toy that could be a replica weapon (for example, a toy gun)

- electronics of any kind

- jewelry

- make-up

- anything scented

- anything with nuts (please ensure all lunches and snacks are nut-free)

- toys and stuffies

Thank you for keeping these items at home. Sometimes a quick check of a backpack can ensure that treasures do not come to school. Thank you for understanding that we are not responsible for lost, broken or stolen personal items.

Many families are signed up for School Day! If you haven't yet, please sign up as soon as possible as moving forward all permissions and payments will be done using this online system.

Each student has received a notice that has a code specific to them, for sign up. Just a reminder that an O with a line through it is actually the number and not the letter.

If you need any help signing up for School Day just let the office know!

Please note that School Day is the only way that permissions and payments will be possible moving forward. We can no longer accept cash payments or paper permission forms.

Please see the link below for more information and to self identify, if you wish.

https://ldsb.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9U2iaUl9GIFILb0

Do you need a way to label your things that stay labelled? Do you need a way to show what's yours? Need a way to label your child's things so they don't get lost or mixed up? Support Centennial Public School Council by purchasing through the link. The school receives 20% of your purchase! All funds raised go to support School Council initiatives including student activities. Thank you!

http://www.oliverslabels.com/Centennial

Want to look spiffy and show off your pride in being a Centennial PS Comet? Check out all of the clothing and accessories available at the Centennial Public School e-store at: https://specialtytrophies.ca/centennialps/

Please use the Safe Arrival system to report your child's absence; do not call the school to report an absence. If you child is going to be absent from learning, please ensure you use the Safe Arrival system to report the absence. If your child will be late, please report a full day absence and then we will sign them in when they arrive. You cannot indicate a half day absence.

How to report your absence:

1. Toll-free telephone

• Call 1-855-257-9349 toll-free to report an absence using the automated phone system.

2. School Messenger App

• Use your mobile device to download and install the free SchoolMessenger blue app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store, the SchoolMessenger website portal, or from within the LDSB mobile app.
• The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
• Select Attendance, then select Report an Absence and follow the prompts.

3. SchoolMessenger SafeArrival Website Portal

• Visit the SchoolMessenger website portal.
• The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
• Select Attendance, then Report an Absence and follow the prompts.

Stay Up To Date! Please check the following regularly...

Centennial PS Twitter https://twitter.com/centennial_ldsb?lang=en

Centennial PS Website https://centennial.limestone.on.ca/

LDSB Website https://www.limestone.on.ca/

LDSB Twitter https://twitter.com/LimestoneDSB

LDSB Facebook https://tinyurl.com/wbhjtku

LDSB Instagram https://instagram.com/limestonedsb?igshid=1epyma6c0g5qd

"Show Up! Stand Up! Never Give Up!"

Email: cente@limestone.on.ca
Website: https://centennial.limestone.on.ca
Location: 120 Norman Rogers Dr, Kingston, ON K7M 2R2
Phone: 613.546.5517
Twitter: @Centennial_LDSB