Monthly Archives: November 2022

Good Afternoon St. Gabriel Families,

It’s that time of year again, the cold weather is back! With the change in weather we want to remind students to come each day dressed for the unpredictable weather. Hats, mitts, boots,  coats, and snow pants are all great to have at school each day as students can be outside for up to 40 mins at one time.

It is important to note that prior to the start of the school day, outdoor supervision begins at 8:55 am. Therefore on inclement weather days, students will not be coming inside prior to 8:55 am.

Thank you for your continued support.

Good Afternoon Wings,

A quick reminder that Parent-Teacher Conferences are scheduled to take place today beginning at 3:50 pm.  Conferences will be here at Saint Gabriel.  

If you are unable to attend this evening during your appointed time, please reach out to your classroom teacher to let them know, and we will do our best to reschedule for another date/time.

If your child’s classroom is a portable, be sure to check the sign in the front foyer that will let you know the location of these classroom teachers.

Thank you for your continued support.

Good morning,

School Council met on Monday and discussed our upcoming Christmas Dinner. Unfortunately, we have had an extremely low participation in the Christmas dinner and have had to make the decision to cancel the event. Parents that purchased tickets for the event will receive a full refund on School Cashonline.

Thank you for your understanding.

Good evening Wings!

Earlier this evening, the Ontario government and education workers represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees – Ontario – (CUPE) reached a tentative contract agreement.  As a result, all WCDSB sites and programs will be operating tomorrow on their regular schedules.

Please return ALL Chromebooks to the school tomorrow morning.  We will work to get them back into circulation so that all students can benefit from them.

Your child will be receiving their Progress Report Card tomorrow. Please note that a Parent/Teacher Interview time will also be with their report card. Please contact the classroom teacher if you have not received a time to discuss your child’s progress.

See you all tomorrow!

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Due to the anticipated CUPE strike, our school has decided to cancel the Lunchbox program on November 22.  Orders you already placed for this timeframe will be cancelled automatically and stored as a credit in Lunchbox for future use.

It may take a few days for the credit to take effect.  You can always cancel your order yourself by following the steps outlined here.

Thank you for your understanding.

Dear Families of Saint Gabriel,

You are cordially invited to a return of the Annual St. Gabriel Christmas Dinner.  We are happy to announce that Remember Me Family Inc. will once again be catering a turkey dinner including turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and corn.  We will also have crafts on hand for you to create with your children.  This is the perfect opportunity to have someone else cook a meal just before the hectic holidays begin.  Come join us for dinner and some community spirit.

Please click on flyer invitation for date and price per person. 2022 Christmas Dinner Invitation

Thank you to Mark Heinemann and School Council for bringing back this tradition to Saint Gabriel!

Happy Wings Wednesday!

Thank you for your patience and understanding over the past two weeks. Your support for our school community is much appreciated and recognized. Here are some updates to help with the transition back to school.

Chromebooks

If you have a Chromebook at home, please have your child bring it back to school to their classroom teacher. The classroom teacher will work with our librarian to remove your child’s name associated with the Chromebook.

Remembrance Day

Thank you to Ms. Sammut and Ms. Gallo’s classes who have been preparing for our Remembrance Day Liturgy for this Friday morning. “They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them.”

Photo Retake Day 

The date has been rescheduled for this Friday afternoon. This is for students and staff who missed our original photo day and/or need a new photo due to photo misstep in October.

Report Card Day

Progress Reports are scheduled to go home Monday, November 21st. Parent/Teacher Conference times have been set and scheduled. Appointment times will be sent home in the Progress Report envelopes.

Covid Rapid Antigen Tests

We just received new rapid antigen tests. Each box contains 5 tests. Students will receive one box each by the end of the school week. If you do not want a test kit, please let the classroom teacher know or send it back with your child to school.

Seven Grandfather Teachings

This month students are reflecting on Humility. “Humility is the individual’s ability to know himself or herself as a sacred being. Humility means knowing what one’s strengths and challenges are and having the ability to ask for help when it is needed. Humility also refers to behaving in a way that is gentle and insightful. People with humility walk the talk at all times.”

Today and every day, thank you for your continued support.

P. Bruni (Principal)                        E. Stevens (Vice Principal)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

As a result of this morning’s announcement by the Premier that the Ontario government will rescind Bill 28 and will return to collective bargaining with the Canadian Public Sector Employees Union – Ontario — (CUPE), education workers represented by CUPE have agreed to pause their job action and return to schools effective tomorrow – Tuesday, November 8, 2022.

This means Saint Gabriel will be open on November 8 for a regular day of classes.

All school transportation will be running as regularly scheduled.

All WCDSB extended day programs will be running on their regular schedules.

We thank you for your patience and understanding as we transitioned into remote learning.

We pray that both sides will quickly reach a fair and just collective agreement that serves the interests of all.

Chromebooks – If your child has an assigned School Chromebook – please keep it at home until further direction is given.

Dear Parents and Guardians of Saint Gabriel:

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board will continue with independent/remote learning activities on Monday, November 7 and until further notice.

Saint Gabriel will NOT be open to students and transportation will NOT be running. Before/after school programs will NOT be operating.

Teachers will begin synchronous learning activities on Monday, November 7, until further notice.

Here are pointers to help with the transition to online learning.

• We will be following the same schedule and learning platform as we did during online learning last school year.
• School starts at 9:10 am.
• Students are expected to join their class online (Google Classroom) and follow the class schedule. A link will be provided on their Google Classroom.
• Students and teachers will be following the regular school day schedule with normal planning time/French time and recess and lunch breaks.
• The day is a combination of synchronous and asynchronous learning.
• School ends at 3:40 pm.

Due to the absence of ECEs in the classroom, Kindergarten classrooms will be divided into morning and afternoon groups as class sizes must be reduced to 15 students. Kindergarten students will be attending online sessions for a half day only. Kindergarten teachers will be informing parents of the schedule and what group (i.e., morning or afternoon) their child is in.

Attendance

Attendance at school is a requirement for students registered at school in Ontario whether it is remote or in person. Teachers will be taking attendance and the school administration will be following up with families.

• If your child is going to be absent, please notify the classroom teacher.
• If you are planning to exempt your child from online learning during the closure, please also let the teacher know.

Photo Retake Day

Please note that our scheduled photo retake day for Monday will be rescheduled for a later date.

Thank you for your understanding.

Domino’s Pizza (Holiday Inn Drive location) is offering a fundraiser in support of Saint Gabriel on Tuesday, Nov. 8th.

Order a 3-topping pizza for $15, and $5 per pizza will be donated to Saint Gabriel.

Order online between 10:30 am and 9:00 pm using the code SGIVE.

See attachment Dominos Fundraiser Nov. 8th