Prayer

O God, bless and unite all your people and guide us on our journey.  Give us the grace to see your face in one another and to recognize Jesus, our companion on the road.  Give us the courage to respectfully tell our stories.  Give us ears to listen humbly to each other and a discerning heart to hear what you are saying.

Amen

Parent Teacher Interviews

As was shared last week, Parent-Teacher Interviews will be this Thursday, November 21st from 4 to 5:30 and 6 to 8pm. 

Morning Arrival

Please note that there is NO SUPERVISION for students before 9:00 am.  Please do not drop your children at the office or in the yard before this time.  The students in the yard before 9:00 am are part of our EDP program, and are paying for the service of arriving early.

Communication with your child during the school day

To ensure the safety and security of all students, please contact the school office directly if you need to reach your child during the school day. Avoid interacting with students through the fence during recess.

Lost and Found

The Lost and Found bin is overflowing again! Please take a moment to check it during Parent-Teacher Interviews on Thursday.

Lunchbox

Don't forget! You can still order lunch for your child from FB Burrito (Tuesdays) and Subway (Wednesdays). Place your order by 12pm each Sunday, either weekly or for multiple weeks in advance.

Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week

This week, we're focusing on Bullying Awareness and Prevention. Students will learn to distinguish between unkindness and bullying, and how to respond to both effectively.

Dressing for the Weather

As the weather gets colder, please ensure your child is dressed appropriately for spending time outdoors, as a significant portion of the day is spent outside. To help reduce lost items, please clearly label all of your child's outerwear, including coats, hats, and mittens, with their name or initials. 

A Reminder from the Eco Club

The St. Dominic Eco Club has been hard at work reminding their fellow students that we are a litterless lunch school. That means that we try to minimize single use plastics in our lunch kits. 

Reporting your child’s absence

A friendly reminder to please inform the office of your child’s absence, either by calling the school at 613-424-3760 or by email at dominic@ocsb.ca.  

A Message from Ottawa Public Health

Please see the following message from Ottawa Public Health regarding Reducing the Spread of Respiratory Illness.  

School Council News

Coming up in December is our Annual Cookies & Carols Christmas Event where we invite children and their families to the school gym for some caroling, milk & cookies and celebrating the Christmas season together. The event will take place Friday December 6th 6:30pm – 7:30pm and as in the past, we will be accepting new (or gently used) waterproof mittens or cash donations for our sister-school, St. Brigid’s.

Our next school council meeting is Thursday November 28th at 6:30pm (note: this is a change as it was previously scheduled to be Thursday November 21st and has moved due to parent-teacher interviews).

Good Shepherd Parish  News

Good Shepherd Parish will be having their annual Christmas Concert, Sunday, November 24th at 3pm.  All are welcome!  Donations for Christmas Hampers, Coats for Kids and local charities will be accepted.  

Important Upcoming Dates

Parent-Teacher Interviews: November 21st, 4pm to 5:30 pm and 6pm to 8pm

School Council Meeting: November 28th, 6:30 pm

PD Day (no school for students): Monday, December 2nd

Cookies & Carols Christmas Event hosted by School Council: December 6th, 6:30 - 7:30 

Dear Parent or Guardian:

I am pleased to inform you that your child’s Progress Report will be available later this evening via the Parent Portal.  The Progress Report contains information about your child’s achievement thus far in a variety of areas. My signature on the Progress Report verifies that this is a recognized provincial report card that will be placed in your child’s Ontario Student Record.

The Progress Report includes information on academic progress to date and also progress on a variety of learning skills.  Learning skills are an important measure of skills that will help your child throughout life, so I would ask that you please review these areas in addition to the academic assessment.

Attendance has been shown to be linked to academic success.  Each day away from school results in a loss of opportunity to engage with the curriculum and places a challenge on your child to try and catch up when they return. Repeated late arrivals and early departures also impact students’ learning.  Certainly if your child is ill, you should be keeping him or her home; however, wherever possible you are encouraged to schedule other appointments at a time that will minimize loss of classroom instruction. 

Thank you for being involved in your child’s education.  You can continue to support your child in a number of ways including:

• Encouraging your child’s learning at home including time spent reading

• Attending parent-teacher meetings and school events

• Reviewing with your child their use of social media

• Encouraging your child to get an appropriate amount of sleep and if they have a smartphone consider keeping the smartphone out of their bedroom when they go to sleep

Teachers are responsible for the specific comments and assessments on your child’s report card.  If you have any questions related to the comments or assessments please contact the classroom teacher directly, or book an interview with your child's teacher using this link.

Sincerely,

Carrie-Anne Gravel

Principal

Prayer

Dear God,

As the leaves change and the days grow shorter, fill our hearts with gratitude and understanding. Help us to honour the past, share our gifts, and cherish time spent with loved ones. Guide us in learning and growing together with respect and love.

Amen.

Remembrance Day and Poppy Sale

Parents are welcome to attend our Remembrance Day ceremony on November 11th. The ceremony will begin at 10:45 am, so please arrive by 10:40 am. Regular poppies are available at the main office, with proceeds supporting veterans.  Furthermore, all students will be given a sticker poppy to wear to the ceremony.  Donations can be made via School Cash Online. 

Progress Reports and Parent Teacher Interviews

Progress Reports will be available on November 14th via the Parent Portal.  Parent-Teacher Interviews will be the following Thursday, November 21st from 4 to 5:30 and 6 to 8pm.  Information on how to book your interview time will be shared on the 14th as well. 

Lost and Found

We have a large number of lost clothing items at the school. Items are displayed by the main office. Please take a look at the pictures below and see if you recognize any of your child's belongings. If so, please remind your child to collect their item or let your child's teacher know so they can collect the item(s). All unclaimed items will be donated to a local charity on Wednesday afternoon. 

St. Dominic Clothing 

It is not too late to save on the shipping cost of your St. Dominic Clothing.  All orders received by November 8th are eligible for free shipping to the school.  Visit our web store at https://st-dominic.secure-decoration.com/ to order your clothing.  There are items in children’s sizes as well as adult sizes.  A portion of the sales will come back to the school to buy some new gym equipment.

Clothing can also be shipped to your house all year for a small shipping fee.  Also, note there is a spot you can click so the school will call you instead of giving it to your child, if you want the clothing to be a gift or a surprise.

Lunchbox

As was shared with the community earlier, we are happy to provide families an opportunity to order lunch from FB Burrito (Tuesdays) and Subway (Wednesdays).  Please see the attached instruction sheet for more details on how to order.

Halloween

We had a fantastic time celebrating Halloween.  Thank you to our grade 6 ambassadors for organizing and leading this fun afternoon.  

Dressing for the Weather

As the weather gets colder, please ensure your child is dressed appropriately for spending time outdoors, as a significant portion of the day is spent outside. To help reduce lost items, please clearly label all of your child's outerwear, including coats, hats, and mittens, with their name or initials. 

A Reminder from the Eco Club

The St. Dominic Eco Club has been hard at work reminding their fellow students that we are a litterless lunch school.  That means that we try to minimize single use plastics in our lunch kits. Our yard has been filled with discarded candy and snack wrappers lately and members have also been generously volunteering their recess time to pick up this waste. It is so wonderful to see such dedicated young environmentalists working hard for our school community.

Friday is a PD Day

There will be no school for students this coming Friday, November 8th as it is a PD day.  

Reporting your child’s absence

A friendly reminder to please inform the office of your child’s absence, either by calling the school at 613-424-3760 or by email at dominic@ocsb.ca.  

School Council News

We can hardly believe it is November and what a great start to the year! We held our annual pumpkin carving/decorating contest (random draw winners to be announced soon!) and started Pizza Thursdays.

Coming up in December is our Annual Cookies & Carols Christmas Event where we invite children and their families to the school gym for some caroling, milk & cookies and celebrating the Christmas season together. The event will take place Friday December 6th 6:30pm – 7:30pm and as in the past, we will be accepting new (or gently used) waterproof mittens or cash donations for our sister-school, St. Brigid’s.

Our next school council meeting is Thursday November 28th at 6:30pm (note: this is a change as it was previously scheduled to be Thursday November 21st and has moved due to parent-teacher interviews).

Parish News

CONFIRMATION NEWS 

Registration forms for the sacrament of Confirmation at The Good Shepherd Parish are due by October 27, 2024. 

The Rite of Enrolment is the first formal stage in the preparation of children for Confirmation.  Parents bring their children to the Church and present them to the community. The faith community to which the child belongs has the duty and privilege of witnessing and supporting them through the journey of sacramental preparation. Parents are asked to present their children at a regular Sunday mass. The children express their desire to prepare for the sacrament that they will celebrate in the Easter season. Parents accept the responsibility of supporting their children and the parish community promises to support the children and their families through their love, prayers and example. This experience is an essential step in the preparation for the sacraments.  This year, the enrollment for children wishing to celebrate the sacrament of Confirmation will be on November 9th and 10th.  Choose ONE of the following mass times to participate in the Enrolment Ceremony:

Saturday, November 9th, 2024 at the 5:00 p.m. mass

Sunday, November 10th, 2024 at the 9:00 a.m. mass or 11:15 a.m. mass

We ask that you arrive early to sign your name and the Enrolment ceremony will be after the Homily.

Please sign in when you arrive.  Late arrivals cannot be enrolled at that mass.

Important Upcoming Dates

PD Day: November 8th - no school for students

Remembrance Day Ceremony: November 11th,10:45am

Progress Reports: November 14th via the Parent Portal

Parent-Teacher Interviews: November 21st, 4pm to 5:30 pm and 6pm to 8pm

School Council Meeting: November 28th, 6:30 pm

The East Ottawa Girls Hockey Association (EOGH) is delighted to announce the return of our Learn

to Play Program for the 2024-25 hockey season!

This program is perfect for girls aged 7-18 who are new to hockey or want to get back into it. Join us

for an exciting opportunity to learn the game in a fun and supportive environment! We are thrilled to

bring this initiative to our community, aimed at ensuring a welcoming and enjoyable experience for

families beginning or returning to their hockey journey.

Why Join the Learn to Play Program?

● Accessible & Affordable: We strive to make hockey easy to enter for everyone.

● Safe & Fun: No prior skating or playing experience is needed! Our focus is on creating a

positive environment for all participants.

Program Overview:

● Duration: 12 weekly sessions of 1 hour each from Fall 2024 to January 2025.

Registration Details:

● Open Now: Spots are limited, so be sure to register soon!

● Registration Link: https://www.rampregistrations.com/login?v3=3fe4601850

○ Select "FUNdamental-Senior" package for Learn to Play.

● Cost: $150, which includes twelve weeks of on-ice instruction from Hockey Canada.

● Financial Assistance: Families can apply for EOGH Financial assistance, if needed.

○ Financial Assistance Link: https://www.gcgh.ca/content/financial-assistance

Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity to introduce your daughter to the world of hockey or help

get them back on the ice! Join us for a season of fun, teamwork, and skill-building.

For more information on the Learn to Play program, please visit:

https://www.gcgh.ca/content/learn-to-play

If you have any questions about the Learn to Play program program, please contact Misha Celentano

at gcghprograms@gmail.com.

We hope to see you and your family soon!