École J.R. Henderson Weekly Update
Friday, October 8th, 2021
Weekly Update
Dear Families,
It is hard to believe that the Thanksgiving Weekend is here! We are so excited to share some photos of the incredible learning that has been happening. Staff and students have been having lots of conversations about how we are thankful to live and learn in this beautiful part of the world. During National Truth and Reconciliation Week, students explored what it means to acknowledge the traditional territories of the Haudenosaunee and the Anishnaabe. For younger students, this meant simple ways of expressing gratitude (for example, going on a community walk and appreciating all of the nature around us); older students are working on developing a deeper understanding of how they can support and honour Truth and Reconciliation, and some classes are working on writing their own, personalized Acknowledgement of Territory.
We are excited to begin using "The Umbrella Project" with our students. This is a mental health resource that teaches students the skills that they need to navigate difficult moments and challenges, and support their well being. Examples of "rain" might be when a friend is unkind, taking a test or feeling embarrassed. Things we can control, to keep the rain away, are our umbrellas (e.g., a positive attitude, the type of food we eat, whether or not we ask for help). There are many Umbrella Skills: we will be focusing on "Empathy" for the fall term. Please check out this short video for an introduction to The Umbrella Project...we are very excited to begin to use this resource as a whole school!
Staff have been taking advantage of our big, beautiful school yard for lots of outdoor learning: literacy, math, science, art, health, social studies and physical education are all taking place in outdoor spaces. This also allows teachers to provide students with supervised mask breaks throughout the day.
Thank you for your generosity in supporting the Terry Fox Foundation: the Henderson Hawks raised over $1100.00 for this important charity!
We were so excited to be able to send a Co-Ed Intermediate Soccer Team to the regional tournament in September: and we won a bronze in an exciting shoot out! Students in Grades 3-8 were able to try out for our Cross Country Running Team, and those who made the team will compete at the Regional Cross Country Meet next Thursday. We are so proud of all of our students who made an effort to get active and show their Hawks spirit! And an enormous thank you to the dedicated Staff and Coaches who worked extremely hard to provide these opportunities.
Please see below for some information regarding our first Parent Council meeting of the year, the "Clothes for Kids" program, as well as important upcoming dates and events.
Have a joyful Thanksgiving weekend,
Mme Peart & Ms. Reid
Upcoming Events and Important Dates:
October is Islamic Heritage Month and Hispanic Heritage Month
- Monday, October 11th: Thanksgiving Holiday
- Thursday, October 14th: Regional Cross Country Meet (students and coaches only)
- Wednesday, October 20th: Photo Day (retake day will be November 18th)
- Wednesday, October 20th: IEP Distribution
- Thursday, October 28th: Grade 7&8 Immunizations
- Friday, October 29th: Orange and Black Day
Henderson Hawks Spirit Wear!
Want to look spiffy, stay warm and show off your Henderson Hawks Pride? Check out all of the amazing clothing and accessories available at our École James R. Henderson School E-Store:
Parent Council Updates:
A big thank you to everyone who attended our first Parent Council Meeting of the year. It was so nice to meet some new faces, and to have the opportunity to showcase the amazing school community we have here are Henderson.
It is our pleasure to introduce the Elected Officials, as well as committee leads of our Parent Council:
Co-Chairs-Erica Benn, Jillian Wilson
Treasurer-Mark Foster
Secretaries-Angela Haibach, Laura Howell
Committee Leads:
Finance-Mark Foster
Hot Lunch-Tina Rose
Eco Initiatives-Natalie Kolomeitz-Douglas, Renee Lowery
Fundraising-Jillian Wilson
Consumables-Natasha Muller, Sara Lagace
MayFair/Movie Night-Erica Benn, Jillian Wilson
Staff Appreciation- Erica Benn
Indigenous Initiatives-Vacant
Committees very much welcome any new members!
we are also seeking an individual who would like to take on the very important role of Indigenous Representative. If you are interested in this, or any other committees, please contact us at jrhparentcouncil@gmail.com
Sincerely,
Parent Council
Clothes For Kids and Operation Warm Feet
We are also working with "Operation Warm Feet" to provide boots to children. Available sizes are 6T-men's 13/women's 11.
If your child/ren are in need, please let their teacher know by October 22nd.
Safe Arrival at School
Please note that supervision begins at 8:55 in the morning. For the safety of your child, please do not allow them to arrive at school before that time unless accompanied by an adult or guardian.
Safe Arrival: Reporting a Student Absence
There are three options to use to report a student absence:
- call the automated attendance phone line at 1-855-257-9349 **Always enter "lates" as a full day even if the child will only be absent for half a day. It will adjust automatically once the student arrives.
- use the SchoolMessenger App on your phone.
- use the SchoolMessenger website portal.
For more information on how to report an absence please click on the link below.
https://www.limestone.on.ca/cms/one.aspx?portalId=352782&pageId=15815305
Staying Up to Date with School News and Communication
Our school will use both email and a broadcasting tool called SchoolMessenger to communicate need-to-know information to families in a timely and efficient way. The SchoolMessenger system allows us to share important school information with families via text, email or phone message, and we do recommend that all families sign up.
Registered parents/guardians will receive communication from SchoolMessenger through contact information collected in our student information system. Parents/guardians may choose how to receive these alerts; by text message, email or phone call with the exception of emergency events which will always be communicated via all contact methods on file with the school. If parents/guardians choose to receive text messages, they must opt-in due to potential charges from their cell phone carrier.
It is important that parents/guardians ensure schools have the most up-to-date contact information at the beginning of the school year. If your contact information changes during the school year, parents/guardians are asked to contact the school with the updated information.
In addition, teachers will also be able to take advantage of an instant message option to keep students and families up to date. Parents/guardians will be invited to join a group and receive messages related specifically to their group. Information on how to join groups will be shared directly with students and families by the teacher: if you are unclear about how to communicate with your child's teacher, please email the main office jrhen@limestone.on.ca and we will ensure that they make contact with you to clarify.
School Messenger App
All of our electronic communications tools can be accessed anytime, anywhere online and/or via Smartphones. To take advantage of this convenience and functionality, we encourage you to create a School Messenger account on your desktop, laptop, tablet and/or download the SchoolMessenger app. While an account is not required to use these new tools, it will allow you to review your contact information and communication preferences, and it stores all of your messages in one place.
For more information about SchoolMessenger and to access User Guides please click on the link below.
https://www.limestone.on.ca/cms/one.aspx?portalId=352782&pageId=15422693
James R Henderson Parking Guide
École James R. Henderson P.S.
Email: jrhen@limestone.on.ca
Website: http://jrhenderson.limestone.on.ca/
Location: 361 Roosevelt Drive, Kingston
Phone: 613-389-2330
Twitter: @JRHenPS_LDSB