Administrator Update

Northlea is Proud to be an OPAL School

Newsletter Updates

The Administrator Update and Dates to Remember sections have been updated with new information. 

Stay Connected with Northlea

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @NorthleaTDSB.  You can also check out our website at www.northleaschool.ca.  

Topics Covered in This Newsletter

Northlea School Improvement Plan

Healthy Relationships Week

Book Fair

Indigenous Peoples' Atlas of Canada

PIzza Lunch

Cookie Dough Fundraiser

Home and School Meetings

Me to We Food Drive

High School Open House Evenings @ Secondary Schools

Winter Concerts - Save the Dates!

Exemption Procdure from Human Development and Sexual Health Instruction, Grades 1-8

Trustee Corner

Northlea School Improvement Plan

Each year, we review our data and identify areas for improvement.  This year, we continued our co-planning with staff and parents and we are working to infuse more student voice into both our improvement planning and the general school experience.  

Please follow the following link for this year's School Improvement Plan.  It is a 'living document' which means we will make adjustments throughout the year.  The summary version is below and the link takes you to a more detailed version.  Our core priorities are infused across the 3 areas of focus:  Achievement, Well-Being and Equity.  We welcome your input and continued participation in helping to make Northlea the best it can be.  

Healthy Relationships Week @ Northlea

We had numerous special events planned for Healthy Relationships Week.  Below are some photos and a video from the events during the week:

Book Fair

Last year, the success of our fair allowed us to purchase $200 worth of books for each homeroom, as well as adding new titles and resources to our school library.  We hope that our fair is successful again this year, as we continue to promote the love of reading in our school!

Indigenous Peoples' Atlas of Canada

We have been enjoying learing together using the giant land map.  We can't wait to welcome families on Thursday, December 5th between 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm.  

Pizza Lunch

Friendly reminder that Pizza Lunch is this Thursday, December 19th, 2019.   

Cookie Dough Fundraiser

Cookie Dough will be available for pick up on Tuesday, December 3rd between 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm in the Staff Room.  If you have any questions please contact Allison Maselli or Alison Dixon Thank you for your support.  Happy Baking!

Home and School Meetings

Below please find our list of Home and School meetings for this school year:

1. November 6th - 6:30 PM @ Northlea in the School Library
2. November 8th - 9:00 AM @ Northlea in the School Library - ISP Program Parent Roundtable
3. November 13th - 8:45 AM - post bus departure  - Discussion with French Immersion parents who bus their children to Northlea hosted @ Thorncliffe Park School
4. November 25th - 6:30 PM @Northlea in the School Library
5. February 6th - 2:30 PM  @ Northlea in the School Library
6. April 6th - 8:35 AM  @ Northlea in the School Library
7. May - Date TBD - 6:30 PM  @ Northlea in the School Library
8. Annual General Meeting - Time TBD - Post or pre volunteer breakfast perhaps.

We are working to ensure that there are many parents able to participate in these discussions.  You will notice that we are introducing a few new meeting times (8:35 am and 2:30 pm) and even certain thematic meetings.  We hope this approach will open up new opportunities for parent perspectives to be shared.

A special thank you to the Home and School for their diligent efforts with the funding proposals.  Thank you as well to everyone who shared proposals and joined the proposal meeting.   The generous contributions directly relate to our school improvement plan priorities.  

Me to We Food Drive

Thank you for contributing to the Food Drive.  We were able to share a signifiant contribution with the Daily Bread Food Bank.  Bravo to our Me to We team for leading this important initiative.  

High School Open House Evenings @ Secondary Schools

Please follow the TDSB website and our 8-9 Transition-specific section in this newsletter for detailed information and timelines.

To help you make an informed decision when choosing a school, TDSB schools host open houses and information nights for parents and students each year between October and January. Learn everything you need to know about our incredible variety of schools, programs and courses. Please click here for the schedule https://www.tdsb.on.ca/OpenHouse. If you have questions about a specific school or open house, please contact the school directly for more information.

Please note that not all programs/schools are open to Optional Attendance if you do not live in the school's catchment area. Acceptance at these schools is subject to space availability and program suitability. The procedures, conditions and timelines relating to optional attendance are described in the Optional Attendance Policy and the Optional Attendance Operational Procedure.

Each year in December, schools are classified as limited or closed to optional attendance based on the space they have available for the upcoming school year.

In particular, we draw your attention to Leaside High School's Information Evening:

Winter Concerts - Save the Dates!

Grade 4, the Grade 5/6 Choir and the Grade 8 Honour Band will be performing at the two Winter Concerts on Tuesday, December 10th in the afternoon at 1:30 pm and the evening at 7:00 pm. Both concerts will be at Northlea United Church. Please note that we have changed the date from December 11th to December 10th.  

Grade 3 classes will perform in the Spring Concert in celebration of Music Monday.  We are delighted that they will also be able to share some of their learnings with the Ghanian Drumming instrument set.   Grades 1 & 2 perform in the springtime and the Grade 7 Band will perform later in the year as well. 

Our Kindergarten students will perform at the their Winter Concert on site in our South Gym on Wednesday, December 18th between 1:45 pm -3:00 pm. 

Exemption Procedure from Human Development and Sexual Health Instruction, Grades 1 to 8 

The TDSB has developed an Exemption Procedure from Human Development and Sexual Health Instruction, Grades 1 to 8 to comply with the direction set out in the Ministry of Education’s Policy/Program Memorandum (PPM) No. 162. This PPM requires school boards to develop a policy or procedure that allows for students to be exempted, at the request of their parents/guardians, from instruction related to the Human Development and Sexual Health expectations found in Strand D of the Ontario Curriculum: Health and Physical Education, Grades 1-8, 2019. The report can be found here.

That said, the TDSB continues to acknowledge the importance of a student’s understanding of human development and sexual health and remains committed to building positive school cultures that support the mental health and overall well-being (physical, cognitive, social, emotional and spiritual) of all students. Staff will continue to create inclusive environments where all students’ identities and lived experiences are respected.

Optional Attendance

Students who reside within the City of Toronto have the right to attend a school which is designated to serve their residential address. The "Find Your School" section of the website identifies the designated schools for each residential address.

Students also have the opportunity to access schools outside of the school that is designated to serve their residential address by applying on optional attendance. Acceptance at these schools is subject to space availability and program suitability. The procedures, conditions and timelines relating to optional attendance are described in the Optional Attendance Policy and the Optional Attendance Operational Procedure 

Each year in December, schools are classified as limited or closed to optional attendance based on the space they have available for the upcoming school year. A school classified as limited can accept students on optional attendance. A limited school is not obliged to accept all students who apply on optional attendance. Acceptance is conditional upon space being available in the appropriate grade and program. A school classified as closed cannot accept any students on optional attendance. Only students residing within the school's attendance area will be accepted. If a school is classified as limited, and you are interested in applying to that school, please contact the school's principal. 

Please note that the optional attendance status is updated every December for admission in September of the coming school year. Many schools that are limited have their available spaces filled in the spring. Please confirm if a limited school has space available by calling the school directly.

Please Note the Following:

1. Priority of placement in the requested school will be based on a lottery if applications exceed the space available at the requested school.

2. If admitted, a student is expected to continue at the requested school until graduation.

IMPORTANT DATES FOR SCHOOL ADMISSION BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 2020

ELEMENTARY Form

Applications must be received by Friday, 14 February 2020.

A lottery, if necessary, will be held to determine the successful applicants.

Parents/guardians will be informed of acceptance or non-acceptance no later than March 6, 2020.

Parents/guardians must inform the requested school of their acceptance of the offer by Friday, 20 March 2019.

SECONDARY Form

Applications must be received by Friday, 31 January 2020.

A lottery, if necessary, will be held to determine the successful applicants.

Parents/guardians or students 18 years of age or older will be informed of acceptance or non-acceptance prior to Friday, 14 February 2020.

Parents/guardians or students 18 years of age or older must confirm the offer of admission by completing a course selection sheet by Friday, 28 February 2020.

No student will be admitted into all secondary grade levels through optional attendance after Friday, 28 February 2020 unless the student does not have a timetable at another school.

Note:  It is the parent/guardian’s responsibility to deliver the application to the school or schools of choice.

Trustee Corner

Please visit Trustee Chernos Lin's website for updates about Ward 11:  https://www.tdsb.on.ca/ward11/

Thank you to Trustee Chernos Lin for hosting an excellent Ward Forum on the topic of Mental Health and Well-Being

You can also find the latest newsletter here:  

Community Coffee Meetings . . . A Message from Trustee Chernos-Lin

"Community Coffee" meetings are informal gatherings where parents and constituents are invited for a round table-style discussion of information sharing, best practices and interesting conversation related to education in our ward. We often have superintendents and sometimes even principals who drop by, so these are fun and engaging events. These meetings are usually held at Longo's Leaside (93 Laird Drive), unless stated otherwise. I hope you can join us at one of upcoming dates below!

• January 15, 2020 at 9:15am