Welcome to the 2011– 2012 school year!
The staff of General Lake Public School trust that you had a relaxing summer and look forward to a year full of wonderful learning experiences.
We would like to welcome and introduce the newest members of our team: Ms. Graham is teaching Core English, Ms. Ferguson is teaching in the grade 4/5 class, Mrs. Williams will be the SERT teacher, Mrs. De Abreu- grade 4/5 Immersion, Mrs. Yakabuskie- grade 5/6 Immersion and Ms. Haddad in the grade 7/8 Immersion and Mrs. Angela Green is our new School Support Counselor. Also joining our team in the capacity of Student Success coach is Mrs. Richards. We would also like to wish a warm welcome to Ms. Deborah Legault who is our new Vice Principal this year.
A very special thank you to Ms. Cobus and her custodial staff who expertly prepared our school over the summer!!!
We look forward to meeting everyone on Wednesday September 21 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. during our Open House (details on page 2)
Safe, Responsible and Caring Environment
Safe Arrival - The Ministry of Education has instituted a Safe Arrival Policy for students at school. This means that when a student is absent, we require notification of the absence. If the school does not receive notification when a student is absent, a telephone call will be made to the student’s home to determine the reason for the absence. You can greatly assist us by telephoning the school or informing the teacher of the absence. If the child’s absence is planned due to an appointment or other commitment, please record it in the agenda. Thank you for your support.
ANAPHYLAXIS ALERT
General Lake Public School is a peanut and nut reduced facility. Please take this into account when planning your child’s lunches. Parents are encouraged to become familiar with reading food labels as you shop (a snack-idea list with some “safe” products and “not safe” products will be available to help you in selecting food items). We ask parents to avoid sending foods containing traces of peanuts/nuts/oils when making lunches. We thank you in advance for your cooperation in ensuring a safe environment for all students in our school.
Daily Schedule
9:00 Yard supervision begins
Please do not arrive at school before 9:00
9:20 Bell Rings (Student entry)
9:20 – 11:20 Instructional Time
11:20 – 12:00 Nutritional Break
12:00 2:00 Instructional Time
2:00 – 2:40 Nutritional Break
2:40 – 3:40 Instructional Time
3:40 Dismissal Bell
Staff Directory
Principal Ms. Lacelle
Vice Principal Ms. Legault
Secretary Ms. Gaudette
Assistant Ms. Lee
Kindergarten Ms. Mahon Rm 10
Grade 1/2 Ms. Robillard Rm 07
Grade 2/3 Ms. Norman Rm 06
Grade 4/5 Ms. Ferguson Rm 20
Grade 5/6 Mrs. Langille Rm 18
Grade 7/8 Ms. Marquardt Rm 16
French Immersion
Kindergarten Mme Ouellette Rm 22
Mme Spencer Rm 27
Grade 1 Mme Gibson Rm 23
Grade 1 Mme Malette Rm 09
Grade 2 Mme Kossatz Rm 24
Grade 2/3 Mme Turgeon Rm 25
Grade 3 /4 Mme Bernardin Rm 26
Grade 4/5 Mme De Abreu Rm 11
Grade 5/6 Mme Yakabuskie Rm 12
Grade 7/8 Mme Haddad Rm 14
Special Education Ms. O’Donnell Rm 08
Ms. Williams Rm 19
Ms. Hiltz Rm 19
Core French Mme Grant Rm 05
Core English Ms. Graham Rm 03
Student Success Coach Mrs. Richards
Educational Assistants Ms. Blaedow
Ms. Priebe
Ms. Kinney
Ms. Russelle
Ms. Van Hoof
Mrs. Abbott
Support Counsellor Mrs. Green
Custodians Ms. Cobus
Mr. McCulloch
Ms. Popkie
PLANNERS
All our grade 1 – 8 students receive planners. Organizational skills will be major focus at General Lake once again this year and the planner is our main tool. Teachers will enable students to use the planner to learn to schedule and set priorities. The planner is also our main communication tool between school and home. Please send notes in the planner and check daily for communications from your child’s teacher and notes of homework that should be completed. This valuable tool is available at a cost of $8.00 each (Family rate $16.00). You may send your money as soon as possible to the classroom teacher.
Important Information re: Bussing
Transportation inquiries regarding school attendance boundaries, bus routes, or bus pick up locations and/or times should now be directed to the address and telephone number below:
Renfrew County
Joint Transportation Consortium
999 Cecelia St.
Pembroke, ON K8B 1A4
Telephone Number: 613-732-8419
Fax Number: 613-732-2874
Web Site: www.rcjtc.on.ca
Email: trans@rcjtc.on.ca (inquiry to include as many pertinent details as possible, i.e. student name, route #, school, contact information, etc.)
MEDICATION
Medication of any kind cannot be administered at the school unless a parent fills out a Consent Form for the Administration of Health Service and/or Prescribed Medication. This form is available at the office. Parents must fill out a new form every school year, so if your child was receiving medication last year and you have not filled out a form you should do so a.s.a.p. NO medication will be given to a child without this form.
NUTRITION BREAK
There are two opportunities for students to eat during the school day: morning and afternoon. Students are to bring healthy food each day. Milk (white or chocolate) is sold each day at nutrition breaks for 50 cents. Please avoid nut products as some of our classrooms are nut free zones.
All food is to be eaten in the classroom. No food is to be eaten outside. “Garbage-less” lunches are encouraged. Students are expected to remain seated while eating and leave their spots tidy at the end of lunch. Carbonated soft drinks are strongly discouraged.
General Lake School Council – Parent Association
Education is a partnership involving parents, students, and staff. When parents are involved in their children’s education, the level of student achievement increases. The role of the General Lake School Council – Parent Association is to work together with the school staff to improve the school community and learning opportunities. Some activities from previous years include fundraising for special events, drama and music presentations, hot lunches, and parent information nights. All parents are welcome to attend meetings.
The first meeting will be on :
Wednesday, September 21st at 6:00 p.m.
(after the Open House) in the school library. Elections will be held at this time. All parents are encouraged to attend.
ELECTRONIC DEVICES
We strongly recommend that all electronic devices (such as, but not limited to, cell phones, cameras, mp3 and video players, and e-games) remain at home. Should a child choose, at his/her own risk, to bring such a device to school, it should be powered off and remain unused and placed in the student’s backpack upon entering the school. When the school day is complete, the device should remain powered off until off school property. Any improper use will result in confiscation by the office. It will be returned to the student at the end of the day. Repeated offence will result in confiscation and will be returned to the parent/guardian ONLY. Due to Safe Schools, privacy and anti-bullying legislation, taking pictures, videos or text messaging with any device is strictly prohibited on school property.
SIGN-IN POLICY
As a safety precaution, and to avoid the disruption and interruption of the learning environment, we will continue to follow the protocol below for all visitors to the school, including parents.
· All visitors/parents must report to the office. Visitors who need to go beyond the office into the school population will be given identification badges to wear and will be required to sign the visitor’s log and indicate the reason for the visit.
· Parents picking up children at the school will be asked to wait at the office in the parent waiting area.
· Appointments to visit a classroom or meet a teacher should be made ahead of time at a mutually agreeable time.
· Entrances, except the main entrance will be locked at all times. Please note that we are anticipating the installation of a door bell system at the front door, so please stay tuned for further information.
