Hi Parents and Caregivers,

This Friday, September 30 is Orange Shirt Day at Essex PS. We ask that students wear orange in honour of Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in Canada. Read how this movement began:

• Phyllis Webstad, a member of the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation in British Columbia, was forced to attend St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School, as her relatives before her. She entered the school in 1973 wearing a brand new orange shirt which was immediately confiscated by the staff and replaced with a uniform.  She never saw the shirt again, and began to associate the colour with the traumatic experiences in the school and the loss of language and cultural identity she suffered.
• In 2013, Webstad transformed her negative experiences into something positive by creating a Nationally recognized Orange Shirt Day.  Celebrated annually on September 30th, this day acknowledges the residential school system in Canada, honours those who survived, and remembers those who did not.  It is a day to demonstrate, by wearing orange, that all students matter.
• Orange Shirt Day has been marked in schools across Canada in a variety of ways, including Orange Ribbon campaigns, commemorative walks, and wearing orange shirts. Over 6,500 survivor statements have been collected by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, which concluded in 2016 after six years of research and testimonies.  Senator Murray Sinclair has stated that “reconciliation must fall in the hands of Canadians, not solely with Indigenous peoples.”

Please help us to honour Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples by wearing an orange shirts on Friday, September 30 as a visual reminder of our shared past, and to provide an opportunity for dialogue between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in shaping our shared future.

Thank you!

The Essex PS Parent Council is thrilled to announce an amazing new fundraiser called FRESH FROM FARM FUNDRAISER (FFFF)!

It will replace QSP.  It is a quick, easy fundraiser that would happen every November.

FFFF offers farm fresh Ontario grown produce for a great price. Our school community values healthy living, sustainability, and outdoor education, making FFFF a great fit for us!

Families will order fall harvest produce fresh from Ontario farms via order forms/brochures distributed by teachers beginning this week. Please look out for forms in your children’s backpacks.

The forms are extremely simple and user friendly. This year we are focusing on sales within our school community/family (including relatives) in order to keep the pick-up day low key and manageable.

Families are responsible for picking up their own produce on harvest day, which will be a super fun experience for the whole family to take part in!

Please return forms ASAP as we have volunteers ready to start inputting the orders NO LATER than Thursday Oct 13th: 

• Please make cheques payable to: Essex PS Parent Council 
• Harvest pick up day will take place in the main foyer in mid- November (date TBD)
• The harvest pick up is a one-time yearly event.
• This is a school wide event. We will share the harvest pick up day and location with Hawthorne school

We are hopeful that this will be a fun way for our community to raise funds while investing in something they actually need and want; healthy fresh food!!

We will be looking for volunteers to help manage and input orders, separate and bag orders, and distribute orders on harvest day

Please contact Nicole by email nebelcourt@gmail.com if you are interested in volunteering your time or with any questions or concerns you may have

Read all about FRESH from FARM FUNDRAISER below:

http://www.freshfromfarm.ca/About.aspx

Thanks and Happy Fall Harvest!

Hi Parents,

Both The Essex and Hawthorne Schools will be participating in The Terry Fox Run this year on Thursday, October 6 at 1:30.

The Run is a non-competitive event where people can come together to raise money for cancer research in Terry Fox‘s name. It is a day of celebrating Terry’s legacy and helping to keep alive his dream of finding a cure for cancer.

• When: Thursday October 6th
• What time: 1:30-3:20pm
• Where: Grades K-3 on the school track Grades 4-6 at Christie Pits
• Letters and Pledge sheets will go home this week

Kids can choose to run or walk (or both!), most of all, they’ll have fun while raising awareness and funds for cancer research.

• We are seeking volunteers to help with the walk/run, others to help cut and serve oranges slices – and cheer our kids on!!
• Please contact ana.neves@tdsb.on.ca if you can help us out

Thank you!

Hi Parents,

Please join us on Thursday September 29. Meet your children’s teachers, hear from the Essex School Council, and find out more about the school programs available at Essex Public School.

The agenda for the evening:

• Introductions and Welcome in East Gym at 5:45 pm
• Visits to classrooms from 6:00-6:45 pm.

We hope to see you there.

Hi Parents!

This is just a friendly reminder about the valuable and worthwhile supplementary language programs we have available at our school:

• American Sign Language
• Cantonese
• Portuguese
• Spanish

Classes for the kids run every Wednesday from 3:30 pm – 6:00 pm

We need a minimum of 23 registered students are required to open a language (new or existing) class.

The first day of class will be held on September 21, 2016. 

Should you have any questions or comments, please contact: 416-788-2180

How to register:

1)    Online: Visit at www.ileprograms.ca.  Note: $20 materials fee paid by credit card (Visa or MasterCard only)

OR

2)    Manual registration every Wednesday, from 3:30 pm – 6:00 pm at the school.

Please bring child’s OEN number (on student’s report card), health card number, emergency contact name and phone number.  The $20 materials fee may be paid by cheque (payable to ‘TDSB-Int’l Languages’) or Credit Card (VISA or MasterCard only)

Thank you!

Hello new and returning families!

Last year the Essex and Hawthorne Communities worked together to sponsor a Syrian family.  The Breim/Khouja’s, a family of 6, arrived in Toronto on June 20.  Over the summer, they have been busy settling in.  They have moved into their apartment, and the three eldest children started school in September.  The youngest is in daycare while his parents attend ESL.  They have made a number of friends and are quite social.  The children are looking forward to experiencing winter and trying out skating and tobogganing.

We are looking for a few donated items.  With such a large family and the cost of Laundromats, they would really benefit from a full sized  washing machine.  They also need a couch.  The apartment has stairs and a narrow hallway, so it can’t be too big or bulky.  Finally, if someone has a working laptop, it would be a great help to the eldest son and his school work.  Please email  hawthorne2sponsorship@gmail.com if you have anything to donate.

Thank you!