Halloween, Diwali, Dismissal

Topics covered in this post:

Happy Halloween
Diwali Celebrations - November 4
Nursery Class 2022-2023
Dismissal Procedures
Parent Education Event - November 23
UNICEF Fundraiser
More Photos!
Upcoming November Events

1. Happy Halloween

We look forward to the children arriving to school in costume tomorrow if they wish. The JICS faculty and staff are determined to create an extra special Halloween experience this year.

Please review this update from Toronto Public Health regarding Guidance for Halloween and COVID-19 Testing, including friendly reminders and suggestions for your consideration to keep everyone as safe as possible.

Since students are required to wear face coverings in school, they should not:

wear a costume mask on top of their face covering.
remove their face covering and wear only a costume mask. A costume mask does not replace a face covering.
wear make-up from below the eyes to ensure their face coverings are not dirtied. Students can consider wearing colourful face coverings as part of their costume.

As always, please contact Richard and/or Chriss with any questions. Please continue to visit the Toronto COVID-19 website to learn about the current health situation, affected City services and economic supports available. Please visit: www.toronto.ca/COVID19SchoolInfo for more information about schools.

2. Diwali Celebrations - November 4

We are looking forward to decorating the school and celebrating Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights on Thursday, November 4. Children will be decorating diyas that were kindly provided to the school. We welcome children to wear saris and kurtas! Thank you to parents who have reached out to the classroom teachers offering resources and stories about how you celebrate this major festival with your family – you enrich our learning and appreciation. The JICS Parents’ Association generously dedicates funding to reimburse parents for costs connected with cultural celebrations. Please contact the PA Exec for next steps or if you have questions.

3. Nursery Class 2022-2023

Shama will soon be in touch with current JICS families who have children (born in 2019) who are eligible for Nursery beginning September 2022. To ensure that your child’s information is in our applicant database, please email Shama ASAP. We will host a Nursery Information Open House in the new year.

4. Dismissal Procedures

We thank you for your help with creating a safe and orderly child pick-up at the end of day. Here are some reminders:

Please notify Shama if someone new (not registered in SFO) will be picking up your child, including grandparents, other JICS parents, etc. This information is shared with the staff on dismissal duty to ensure the safety of each child.
If you are picking up your child/ren from our Walmer Road (school yard) exit, we ask that adults come to the gate to pick up their child. All adults must wear PPE.
Once you have connected with your child at dismissal, please exit to make room for other families to connect safely.
Please NEVER park, stop, or block the private driveways to the north or south of the school on Walmer Road. We work hard to maintain good relations with our neighbours and unfortunately, we have recently received multiple complaints.
Please share this information with any adult who is picking up your child.

Thank you again, for your help and understanding.

5. Parent Education Event

November 23 | 7:00-8:30pm (Zoom)

Join teacher, Education and Equity Consultant and PhD student, Rabia Khokar for an interactive presentation entitled Building Inclusive and Equitable ‘Bookshelves’.

Books and stories play an important role in helping children become kind, empathetic, equitable and critically conscious members of their communities. Families can expose and share books with their children that help them affirm and expand their identities and lived experiences. In this interactive workshop, we will explore how books and stories are cornerstones of our communities and the important role they play in the lives of our children. We will critically consider through the process of content analysis how to select books that show authentic representation of intersectional identities and lived experiences. We will also learn easy, accessible, and daily activities we can do with books to help our children become critical thinkers.

RSVP here

6. UNICEF Fundraiser

A message from the Grade Six Class

Dear JICS community,

The Grade 6s are continuing to raise money for UNICEF! Our goal is $2600, and we are almost there! Could you please contribute if you haven't yet to help us reach our goal!

What is UNICEF?

UNICEF stands for the United Nations Children Fund. It is a worldwide organization that has been helping children in need across the world for 75 years. UNICEF has provided supplies such as medical care and food, but they also provide humanitarian support to children in countries in need like Haiti. UNICEF also works to protect the rights of children everywhere. Now through the COVID 19 pandemic, UNICEF is the world's largest vaccine provider delivering to the communities most in need.

How to donate

You can donate in many ways and support UNICEF.

Donate online by visiting the JICS UNICEF fundraising page
Donate cash in the donation boxes available in each classroom
Scan the QR Code on posters around the school or on the paper airplanes sent home with each child