Topics covered in this post:
1. Arrivals and Pick Up - WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Arrivals:
Parents driving to school are asked to treat Walmer Road as a one-way north street.
At “Kiss and Drive” (8:30-8:45) parents are asked drive to the northernmost end of our property and to remain in their vehicles while an adult on duty will help with your child/ren.
JK to Grade 6 students are required to wear a properly-fitting mask to enter school property.
Dismissal:
We received numerous complaints from neighbours regarding vehicles that were blocking their driveway at noon dismissal on Wednesday. At JICS we try very hard to maintain respectful relations with our neighbours and while the snowbanks make parking and pick-up more challenging, we ask that drivers be considerate and mindful of the driveways south and north of our building. If you are queuing to wait for a spot, please ensure that you are not blocking a driveway (even for a minute!). If you are driving, we suggest arriving early, finding legal parking in the vicinity, picking up your child/ren, and leaving as soon as possible to free up the parking for other JICS families.
2. International Holocaust Remembrance Day
The United Nations General Assembly designated January 27—the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau—as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. On this annual day of commemoration, we are urged to honor the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and millions of other victims of Nazism and to develop educational programs to help prevent future genocides. The JICS Lab School is committed to diversity and inclusion, and we acknowledge the importance of addressing all forms of hate and oppression in developmentally appropriate ways with the children throughout the year. As we continue to serve our students, these designated days serve as reminders of the importance to remain focused and committed to the work that needs to happen for our students and families. We strive to continuously examine our commitment on how we make our school a safe place for all students, staff, parents, and community members.
3. Lice Check
Thank you to the Parents’ Association for providing our second of three annual lice checks today. Here is a 2016 Toronto Star article with JICS principal, Richard Messina addressing the importance of speaking openly about lice with children in order to reduce stigma.
4. Lunar New Year - Wear Red!
Join us on Tuesday, February 1 to celebrate Lunar New Year by wearing red! Lunar New Year is the joyous festival celebrated in many Asian countries that begins with the first new moon of the lunar calendar and ends on the first full moon of the lunar calendar, 15 days later. This is the year of the Tiger. People born in the Year of the Tiger (our Grade 6 students!) are said to be brave, competitive, unpredictable, charming, and confident. Lucky colours: blue, grey, orange.
5. Parent Education Events
TODAY | 12:30-1:30pm
Lunch and Learn with Ellie Lathrop
Riding the Waves - A review of recent literature on predictors of parental resilience and burnout during the pandemic
From Ellie: Happy New Year, or should I say Happy Groundhog Year? The stress and exhaustion of parenting during this pandemic is not going away. Let's gather together for a talk about what some recent literature shows about how parents are doing and what can be helpful and what to pay attention to. We will have a 30 min talk that is recorded and then 30 minutes of time for discussion and questions (not recorded). Sending you all warm thoughts.
February 3, 2022 | 7:00-8:00pm
Book-Ticket Event with Jesse Wente
Save the date! We are thrilled to invite all JICS families and friends to a book/ticket fireside with Inclusion Speaker Jesse Wente. Jesse has appeared on CBC Radio's Metro Morning as a film and pop culture critic for 20 years. He is currently the Chair of the Canada Council for the Arts. He previously served as Director Film Programmes at TIFF Bell Lightbox, where he oversaw theatrical, Cinematheque and Film Circuit programming. A self-described "Ojibwe dude" with a national and international lens, he encourages audiences to consider diversity and inclusion into their future view of their organization, industry and country. Jesse is an outspoken advocate for Indigenous rights, and First Nations, Inuit and Métis art; the first nationally syndicated Indigenous columnist for the CBC; and the first Executive Director of the Indigenous Screen Office. For Jesse’s full bio, please visit: Jesse Wente Full Bio
Tickets in the form of Jesse's book are now available for purchase. See full details on our
February 24, 2022 | 7:00-8:00pm
The Importance of Recognizing, Treating, and Preventing Concussions in our Children with Dr. Charles Tator
Concussions are important because there are so many of them, and they all don’t get better. We are fortunate in Ontario that the Ministries of Education, Health and Sports have come together to create PPM158 in 2014 and then Rowan’s Law in 2018 to reinforce to all Ontarians that they should know something about concussions to protect themselves and their children from the ravages of concussion. In schools, this means If we are informed about concussion we can recognize when a concussion has occurred, and we can institute early, informed treatment and we can prevent some concussions from happening and prevent others from progressing to long term suffering. You probably get the picture that concussion requires a multidisciplinary team and a coming together of people from schools, homes, and physicians’ offices to deal with this problem. I will be stressing teamwork in my discussion with parents and teachers at the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study Laboratory School, at OISE, U of T.
Dr. Charles Tator, Neurosurgeon
Dr. Charles Tator trained in Neurosurgery and Neuropathology and was Chair of Neurosurgery, at the University of Toronto. He was chief of Neurosurgery at the Toronto Western Hospital, and was a founder of ThinkFirst, Canada, a national brain and spinal cord injury prevention foundation, and Parachute Canada, a national injury prevention agency. He held two research chairs at the University of Toronto, and is an Officer of the Order of Canada, and an inductee of the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. Currently, he is a Scientist in the Krembil Brain Institute and Director of the Canadian Concussion Centre at Toronto Western Hospital. His book on Catastrophic Injuries in Sports and Recreation was published by the University of Toronto Press, and his Practice Primer on Concussions appeared in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. He is the author of 437 publications in peer review journals. He is a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Neurotrauma and the Neuroscientist and is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Concussion.
6. African Heritage/Black History Month
Each year in February, Canadians are invited to participate in Black History Month festivities and events that honour the legacy and achievements of Black Canadians, past and present. At JICS, we learn about and celebrate Black History Month developmentally through the grades and at whole-school events such as assemblies with members of the community. We also integrate the learning and celebrations into our Library, Music, and Visual Arts specialty classes. We invite parents to suggest ways to help our students gain insight into the experience of Black Canadians and their vital role in the community. Please be in touch with your child’s teachers with ideas.
7. Supporting the Arts at JICS
The JICS Patrick Harvie Arts Fund (PHA) was established to enhance arts education and experiences by purchasing items such as our school piano, drum sets, and a pottery kiln along with subsidizing our unique "Artist-in-Residence Program”, which we are looking forward to re-instating this Spring. The fund is operated by the JICS Parents’ Association, a registered charity. Tax receipts are issued for all donations. If you are interested in making a donation, please submit a cheque payable to the JICS Parents’ Association (subject line: PHA) and deliver to the Lab School receptionist.
Other opportunities to donate to the JICS Lab School can be found on the JICSfamily Donate Page. Thank you for your consideration. Please do not hesitate to be in touch if you would like more information.
8. Upcoming February Events
African Heritage Month
Tues 1 – Lunar New Year (Year of the Tiger)
Thurs 3 – Parent Ed Event: Fireside Q&A with Jesse Wente (a book-ticket event). 7:00-8:00pm. RSVP
Fri 18 – Midterm Holiday (School closed. Daycare open)
Mon 21 – Family Day Holiday (School & Daycare closed)
Wed 23 – Anti-bullying Day
Thurs 24 – Parent Ed Event: Concussions with Dr. Charles Tator. 7:00-8:00pm. RSVP
