Tuesday, August 23, 2022
NEWS FROM THE LAB SCHOOL
Parent Handbook and Start of School Year 2022-2023
Dear JICS Families
We hope you are well and that you are enjoying your summer. We are looking forward to welcoming students back to school!
Today we are proud to share with you the JICS Parent Handbook which outlines our plans for the 2022-2023 school year and includes new important information. This is a living document, and it needs to be responsive to the evolving nature of COVID-19, the Ministry of Education mandates, and requirements from Public Health. As a school and a community, we must be flexible and adaptable but at the same time we have a proven track record of successfully working together to keep our community safe and the school open. We require that all JICS parents read, understand, and agree to the information in the Parent Handbook.
We believe vaccination is our best defense against COVID-19. All eligible children must have proof of vaccination uploaded in the SFO by September 1, 2022 (for families with children under the age of 5 years, the deadline is December 20, 2022).
Our commitment to providing exemplary education to the students of JICS remains constant. We will continue to provide a nurturing environment that promotes child security for every student, based in relationships of trust, caring, and compassion between teachers and students, learning opportunities anchored in inquiry, developmental readiness, and emerging research. In short, a school where children love learning!
Tuition Balance Payment Schedule
The tuition balance for the upcoming school year should be delivered to Shama Joshi, School Office Administrator, any weekday 9:00am to 4:00pm beginning today and until Thursday, September 1, at 45 Walmer Road.
Nursery 2022-2023 Tuition $17,311 • Deposit of $5,000 and enrolment fee was paid at the time of acceptance • 50% balance paid April 20: $6,155.50 • Tuition balance: $6,155.50
Full Day (JK to Grade 6) 2022-2023 Tuition $26,897 • Deposit of $5,000 was paid in January 2022 • 50% balance paid April 20: $10,948.50 • Tuition balance: $10,948.50
The First Days of School – Tuesday, Sept 6 (full day) and Wednesday, Sept 7 (morning only)
The first day of school and daycare is Tuesday, September 6, 2022 (8:45am-3:30pm). This is our first year with such an early start date. The following day, Wednesday, September 7, will be a half day (noon dismissal) as the Wednesday Afternoon Program will commence on September 14. Registered daycare users can contact Anne Marie regarding the afternoon of September 7. Thursday and Friday will be full days. Please refer to the Parent Handbook for arrival and dismissal locations for each grade.
The Nursery children’s entry will be staggered over a few days, beginning on September 6.
New Form in SFO
Please log into your account on SFO (click here) prior to the start of the school year and complete the new mandatory form: Parent Handbook Agreement. Please read the Parent Handbook first. Your signature on this form is required for your child/ren to attend school. Thank you to all the families who have completed all the other SFO forms. Outstanding School Forms Online (SFO forms) must be completed ASAP. It is extremely important that we have the information in the SFO forms as we prepare the emergency binders for every classroom with this important information. SFO provide us with necessary information to ensure a safe learning environment for your child/ren.
Return of Wednesday Afternoon Program
We are delighted that the Wednesday Afternoon Program will resume this year. Offering a variety of intentionally non-academic arts and sports-based classes, this program is for Grade 1 to 6 children following noon dismissal each Wednesday, beginning Wednesday, September 14 (not Wednesday, September 7). The Fall Program information is now ready for you to view: https://www.jicsfamily.com/wednesdayprogram
Registration this year will take place online beginning Monday, August 29 at 10:00am.
Note that spots are limited, and classes are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Payment is by cheque payable to The University of Toronto (cheque memo: Wed Afternoon Program). Please deliver the cheque to the Shama, the School Office Administrator, before Friday, September 9 to ensure registration.
Parents of Kindergarten students who are interested in Wednesday afternoon care can register with the ICS Daycare’s “Creative Play Program”. The Daycare Supervisor, Anne Marie Bartoli, can be reached at 416-934-4522. https://www.jicsfamily.com/icsafterschooldaycare
New Staffing Information
Earlier in the summer, we announced that Susan Scott, Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE), was hired to be the JK classroom assistant. More recently we have also hired Alexa Hawkes-Sackman to be the classroom assistant in Nursery. Welcome, Alexa and Susan!
Hot Lunch Program
The Lunch Mom (TLM) is the provider of the optional hot lunch program at JICS. These lunches are offered Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Here is a letter from TLM:
Dear JICS Parents,
We are thrilled to announce that we will be returning to JICS in the Fall with our signature BUFFET STYLE hot lunch service! The buffet style lunch service allows children to modify their meals to their taste (ie - no sauce, more meatballs, plain pasta etc.) and they can even come for seconds. Kindergarten children will be served individual containers in their classrooms.
Families can sign up for one to four days per week, and lunch days are sorted by food types to make it easy for parents of fussy eaters. Each meal will be served with a daily raw fruit and vegetable in addition to the hot portion of the lunch. Our morning snack program is also available again this year.
Lunch ordering is completely online and done four times a year. Fall Term 1 is September 12 - October 28.
Here is the link to the Fall Term 1 menu and the order entry page: JICS HOT LUNCH SIGN UP
Our kitchen is completely pork, nut, and seed free. Other allergies can be accommodated, as can vegetarian meals (or just a beef free option). Just make a note in the comments section of the order if your child has special requirements. Questions? Just email me at tricia@thelunchmom.com.
Order deadline is Friday, September 9 at noon and lunch starts MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 12th.
We look forward to feeding your kids again this Fall!
Regards,
The Lunch Mom Catering
Tricia Tait (aka "The Lunch Mom")
416-859-5236
Ordering is online at www.thelunchmom.com, and you can find menus and other information on the site!
Summer Renovations
• We are proud to have the PRIDE flag colours painted on the risers of the main stairwell of the school. This was a wonderful suggestion by last year’s student GSA Club, and we are glad that it is yet another way for us celebrate diversity and demonstrate our commitment to creating a safe and welcoming space for our 2SLGBTQIAA+ family members. • The reception has been renovated and refurnished to create a warm and fresh welcome to everyone who enters the building. • The school was thoroughly professionally cleaned and disinfected.
Daycare
Registration information for our licensed Day Care will be communicated soon.
Richard in Germany
I have been invited to present at the LabSchoolsEurope Conference in Bielefeld University, Germany. Entitled “Researching Schools: Building research and practice at laboratory and university schools”, this conference is an opportunity to showcase the exemplary and award-winning work of the JICS Lab School and make connections with European Lab Schools from 15 countries. While I am deeply excited about the experience and honoured to be invited, the timing of the conference is quite unfortunate as I will be absent for the first week of school (Sept 5 to 11). Chriss Bogert will be the acting Principal during my absence. I look forward to sharing what I have learned with you when I return!
Connecting
Please do not hesitate to be in touch if you have questions, need clarification, or would like to share a suggestion. Classroom teachers will be in touch with you in the days ahead. The Admin Team is back in the building full-time, and the teachers will engage in our PD Week beginning August 29.
On behalf of the staff and faculty, I want to share that we are all incredibly excited to see you on you Tuesday, September 6 and we want to offer a very warm welcome to the new students and families joining us this year. We hope your final weeks of summer are filled with joyful moments and lots and lots of fun.
All the best,
Richard
Richard Messina | Principal
Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study Laboratory School
Ontario Institute for Studies in Education | University of Toronto
416-934-4509 | richard.messina@utoronto.ca
