

Roger Neilson P.S. Review
Family Edition - Feb. 3rd - Feb. 7th, 2025
Weekly Principal's Message!
Dear Parents/Guardians,
We recognize that last week was certainly not ideal with 2 days of bus cancellations and a PA day on Friday. January is now behind us and we hope to start off February by getting back into some consistent routines. There was a lot of snow last week and the return of some cold days and indoor recesses. The forecast looks slightly warmer this week, but please ensure students still dress appropriately with boots and snow pants to help them have fun learning and playing outdoors on our schoolyard! We continue to go outside up to -20 C. There were a few groundhogs today that predicted an early spring, let's cross our fingers for this!
February is Black History Month, a time for celebration and recognition of the achievements, contributions and lived experiences of Black Canadians and their communities. In our learning this month and beyond, we recognize the value of celebrating Black history every day. During Black History Month, and every month, we continue the important work of being culturally relevant and responsive in our schools and classrooms.
School Council would like to thank all families for their support by coming to the Family Movie Night last Thursday evening. We had a great turnout and we were happy that the weather cooperated as well. Stay tuned for future events!
Please see the message below about RNPS recognizing "National Sweater Day" on Thursday. Many schools in KPR are asking staff and students to wear their favourite or tacky sweater to school on Thursday in support of climate action!
A reminder to all Jr. basketball players of their tournaments this week that were postponed from last week. There is information in the newsletter below. Best of luck to all players and a big thank you to all our coaches this year!
Finally, our "Lost and Found" is full again with articles collected over the month of January. Please see the pictures of the items on the table below.
I hope you have a good week,
~Mr. Coulter
Looking Ahead!
Feb. 4th - Regional School Council Meeting @ 6:30pm (Check Board Website)
Feb. 6th - "National Sweater Day"
Feb. 6th - Jr. Girl's Basketball Tournament @ Kenner
Feb. 7th - Jr. Boy's Basketball Tournament @ Crestwood
Feb. 14th - Valentine's Day Dances for all students - More info coming
Feb. 17th - Family Day Holiday - No School
Feb. 19th - Jimmy Chapman Breakdancing Day
Feb. 20th - Term 1 Report Cards Go Home
Feb. 20th - School Council Meeting
Feb. 26th - Pink Shirt Day - Anti-Bullying Awareness Day
UPCOMING DAYS OF SIGNIFICANCE THIS WEEK For February
February is recognized as Black History Month
Feb. 2nd - Imbolc (Pagan)
Feb. 2nd - Vasant Panchami (Hinduism)
Feb. 4th - World Cancer Day
Lost and Found Table this Week!
Jr. Sports Updates
BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS ON THIS WEEK!
On Thursday students were given updated basketball schedules with new dates and times. The Jr. Girls tournament will be on Thursday, Feb. 6th @ Kenner, and the Jr. Boys tournament will be on Friday, Feb. 7th @ Crestwood. If your child is going to have difficulties getting a ride to the tournament, please have them speak to their coaches so we can help them arrange a carpool.
Thank you for your support,
Jr. Basketball Team
National Sweater Day - Feb. 6, 2025
Each year on the first Thursday of February, Canadians are invited to turn down their heat where they live, work and learn and turn up in a sweater to raise awareness about climate change and energy conservation. Founded by WWF-Canada in 2010, more than a million Canadians have participated in National Sweater Day where they live, work and learn.
This year, Roger Neilson PS will join many KPR schools in recognizing this day as we continue our learning and awareness of combatting climate change! All staff and students are encouraged to wear your Warm, Favourite or even Tacky sweater on Thursday, Feb. 6th, 2025!
School Council Update
Our next school council meeting will be Thursday, Feb. 20th at 5:00pm in our school Library. Any parent interested in being part of school council is welcome to attend this meeting. We are always looking for new members. We meet once a month and there are a variety of roles and tasks that we need support with. Some don’t require much commitment at all. We will also offer a virtual drop in if you can meet the first meeting via "Microsoft Teams" as the platform. If you do not have the use of a computer, a free app can be downloaded to most Smart Phones. To access the meeting, please use this link: RNPS Virtual Council Option at 5pm on the 20th.
If you have any questions please contact Mr. Coulter. We hope to see you!
Little Caesars School Council Fundraiser
Last week a flyer went home regarding our Little Caesars Pizza Kit Fundraiser. If you are interested in ordering a pizza kit, please see the flyer (picture) below. Ordering has begun and the last day to place an order is Mar. 2, 2025. All kits will be delivered to RNPS for pick-up on March 20th (After March Break). Thanks for your continued support!
School Wide Valentine's Day Dance
Our school, with the support of school council, has decided to run a full day Valentines Day Dance on Friday, Feb 14th for all students in all grades. We figured this would be a fun opportunity for all students. Each class will come down to the gym at an assigned time throughout the day to enjoy some music and dance opportunities. The Jr. students will be together for the whole last block. There will be refreshments and treats available for purchase by our school council. Stay tuned for a flyer soon!
JK (Y1) Kindergartens interested in French Immersion!
JK (Y1) students have the option of going to French Immersion in SK (Y2). The French Immersion opportunity for Roger Neilson PS students is at Prince of Wales PS and transportation will be provided to qualifying students. If you are interested in registering your child for this program, please fill out this link. An information session about this program will be coming soon.
Hot Lunch Opportunities:
This year we will offer, through Lunchbox on School Cash Online a different “hot lunch” every Wednesday. All money raised from our hot lunch program will go to our school nutrition program. LINK TO SCHOOL CASH ONLINE
We Love Volunteers!
If you are interested in volunteering at Roger Neilson PS, this is great news! However, you do need to have a police check on file with us. These last for one year from when they were issued. We have a letter that you will need from us in the school office. The link to get a police check can be found here: Link for Police Check
Please connect with our office to provide you with the letter that is needed to complete the check.
The Children's Breakfast Club! - PLEASE consider a $5 donation!
We would like to thank the "Children's Breakfast Clubs" for their support with our morning nutrition program. This started last week! Each day ALL students are offered something to eat in the morning when they come into the school. Not all students choose to take something to eat, but many do. We recognize the importance nutrition has on learning. However, running a school wide program comes with a cost. We are hoping that families can donate to our program if their child is accessing it in the mornings. Look for this opportunity on school cash online this week. $5 per month, which is roughly 25 cents a day would really help us out. Thanks for considering!
If your child is going to be Absent...
A reminder, if your child is going to be absent, you can use the "very user-friendly" School Messenger app (a free download), to let us know. You can also call the student absence reporting system at 1-844-434-8119. This number is available 24 hours a day. Complete attendance information can be found at this link: https://www.kprschools.ca/en/our-schools/attendance-and-absences.aspx
Our Parking Lot Before and After School
We recognize that our parking lot is a concern. We sometimes do not have enough spots for our staff. The bus company has also asked that we continue to have room for them to safely enter our parking lot. We kindly ask families to not enter our parking lot with your car as it becomes crowed and unsafe for our school buses. We know this is not ideal, especially in inclement weather, but we thank-you for your support with this!
Before and after school can be very busy with picking up and dropping off students with many little ones around. We have also been asked to remind everyone to watch the language we use during this time around our students. Thank-you!
ARRIVING AT SCHOOL...
Arriving by car? Cars will not be permitted in the school parking lot BEFORE OR AFTER SCHOOL. Students are to be dropped off on one of the side streets and can use the sidewalks to walk to a designated entrance.
Arriving by bus? A staff member will be at the bus drop-off location to assist students getting off of the bus and to greet students. Students will go directly to their designated entrance.
Arriving by foot? Students are to use the marked crosswalks when arriving at the school. A staff member will be monitoring the entrances.
Arriving by bike or scooter? Please park your bike/scooter at the racks on the left side of the front of the school and then proceed to the sidewalks to enter the yard. For safety reasons, students are NOT ALLOWED to ride bikes or scooters in our parking lot. Please make sure to walk them to the rack when on school property.
Late to school? If you arrive after the gates have been locked, please go directly to front of the school, press the buzzer and wait for further instructions.
Busing Information
Visitor Protocol at RNPS
Please ring the buzzer when arriving at the front door of the school and sign-in at the main office. We kindly ask that parents and caregivers not be in the hallways or going to classrooms during school hours unless they are volunteering.
Should you wish to speak with a teacher regarding your child’s progress, an appointment can be made by contacting the office or the teacher directly by email. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation. Your child’s safety and education is our number one priority.
Information about School Cash Online
Communication from Roger Neilson P.S.
Most communication from Roger Neilson and our KPR board office is delivered via text messaging or email. If you have not opted into these services and would like to, please do so. For text messaging, your cell number must be in our system. You can opt into text messages by simply texting the word “yes” to the number 978338. If your phone number or email is not registered in the school system, or you have changed your number, please call the school to update: 705-745-6456.
This Weekly Newsletter will be sent via email every Sunday evening, please check it for weekly updates!
NEWS FROM OUR KPR BOARD OFFICE!
Webinar: EQAO Math Night for Parents and Guardians
Join EQAO for a free live webinar where EQAO staff will discuss math questions that Ontario students encounter when they participate in Ontario’s large-scale assessments. These assessments are taken by all Ontario students in Grades 3, 6 and 9. During the webinar, EQAO staff will show how these math questions help assess the skills students are learning in their math classes. Staff will also share valuable insights from the past three years of assessment results, which can help parents and guardians support their children’s math learning.
Next available date is: February 18, 2025, at 6:30p.m.
Register here; https://eqao.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5puRqI8uQJypIaHgBYoBMw#/registration
2025-26 School Year Calendar Survey
2025-26 School Year Calendar Survey
KPR students, staff, families and community members are invited to provide feedback on the proposed 2025-2026 school year calendar through a survey, which is available until February 2, 2025. Please visit the KPR website to learn more and provide feedback.
Code of Conduct:
Here is a link to our: School Code of Conduct
From The Community!
Kenner Movie Night!
Community After School Science Club Opportunity:
The 2nd Session of the after School Science Club for Roger Neilson Public School is January 16th to March 6th (8 Week period), every Thursday from 3:30-4:30pm on the school stage.
Session 2 Science experiments will consists of; Take a deep breath, elephant toothpaste, Engineering Bridges, DNA: Banana split, Digestive system: Plate to poop, pumping heats, Dr. Bones, purple power pH, Vicious volcanoes, Pigments of imagination & lots of fun, hands on science experiments.
Children are supplied with lab coats, goggles & all science equipment. They make & take home their own experiments from science club.
If you have any questions please contact us by Email: junioreinsteinsseontario@gmail.com
Bookings can be made through the below link:
Warmest Regards & Explosive Bubbling Potions,
Laura Duffy
Owner Operator, Junior Einsteins Ontario
Durham Region & Peterborough
School Bell Times this Year!
9:10am - Morning Bell - Students Enter School
10:50 - 11:30 - Nutrition Break #1
1:10-1:50pm - Nutrition Break #2
3:30pm - Leaving Bell (Gates Open for Parents to Pick Students up on Yard)
Key Contacts:
Kevin Coulter
Email: kevin_coulter@kprdsb.ca
Website: rogerneilson.kprdsb.ca/
Location: 550 Erskine Avenue, Peterborough, ON, Canada
Phone: 705-745-6456 Twitter: @rogerneilson_ps
RNPS School Council Chairs 2024 - 2025:
Amanda Bush
Superintendent of Student Achievement:
Jodi Sepkowski
(705) 742-9773 ext. 2061
Trustees:
Rose Kitney
Steve Russell