Welcome Back! Skate Swap, JICS Fall Newsletter, Upcoming Parent Education Opportunity, Parent of BIPOC Children Meeting Updates, Re-enrolment Reminders, & More!
- JICS Office
- 23 hours ago
- 6 min read
Updated: 5 hours ago
JICS at a Glance
We've condensed the important highlights for your convenience:
Re-enrolment information 2026/2027
Join Natural Curiosity in their #52WeeksOfReconciliAction initiative!
JICS Skate Swap - starting now!
Be sure to read the JICS Fall Edition Newsletter!
Upcoming Parent Education with Trina Epstein
Parents of BIPOC Children - Playdate Social!
More exciting JICS news from this week!
Topics covered in this post:
(Click to navigate straight to a section)
1. Happy New Year!
We are thrilled to have our students back this week! The energy they have brought in, buzzing with excitement and happiness, eager to reconnect with friends and teachers, has been truly heartwarming.
2. Re-enrolment for 2026-2027
To secure your child's place, please submit the electronic form in your Parent Portal (https://jics.msm.io/login) and return the non-refundable $5,000 deposit to the school office by January 14, 2026. Before deciding to re-enrol, we encourage you to review the JICS values, philosophy, and mission.
Please note that beginning January 15, 2026, the Admissions Team will offer any unclaimed spots to new applicants.
3. JICS at the Movies
Join us for an unforgettable evening of cinema, conversation, and community as we continue to celebrate the JICS Centennial with an exclusive screening of Steal Away, which recently captivated audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Monday, January 12, 2026
🕡 6:30 – 9:45 p.m.📍 Innis College Theatre
2 Sussex Avenue, Toronto, ON M5S 1J5
General Admission – $50
Includes the film screening, wine reception, Q&A, and light refreshments.
A $25 tax receipt will be issued per ticket.
About the Film
Director Clement Virgo returns with a bold, mesmerizing, and erotically charged new film — a sociopolitical and psychosexual fairytale-like adventure that takes viewers on a shadowy, treacherous, and thrilling ride.
Written by Tamara Faith Berger and produced by JICS’s very own Damon D’Oliveira, Steal Away is a daring exploration of desire, power, and survival that captivates the senses and challenges perception.
Content advisory: coarse language, horror, mature themes, nudity, sexually suggestive scenes, violence
Pre-Screening Reception 6:30 – 7:15 p.m.
The magic begins before the movie! Our exclusive Centennial Wine Reception, generously sponsored by Halpern Enterprises, is the perfect way to start the evening. Sip, savor, and socialize with delicious bites and fellow supporters as we raise a toast to 100 extraordinary years!
Screening + Exclusive Q&A 7:15 – 9:45 p.m.
The film experience doesn't end with the credits! Stay for a rare opportunity to hear directly from the powerhouse trio who brought Steal Away to life—director Clement Virgo, screenwriter Tamara Faith Berger, and producer Damon D'Oliveira as they reveal insights into their creative process and bold storytelling vision!
All proceeds from this special Centennial event support the JICS Endowment Fund, ensuring that future generations of students continue to benefit from the innovative, inclusive education and research that defines the JICS Lab School.
Your ticket purchase will have a profound impact on supporting economic diversity, which ensures that students from all financial backgrounds have equal access to JICS — Canada's #1 independent Lab School with a public purpose.
We are excited for you all to experience this evening of memorable cinema while greatly contributing to the Lab School’s mission to create a diverse and rich learning environment for the next 100 years!
Save the date, spread the word, and let’s make this event a resounding success!
4. JICS Skate Swap
As the 2026 Winter Skating Season approaches, the JICS Skate Swap is now accepting donations. Our Phys Ed teacher, Luke Van Ryn has organized skating sessions at Bill Bolton Arena for students in SK and Grades 1 to 6 (specific dates to be announced by classroom teachers). To participate safely, students will need properly fitted skates and a CSA-approved helmet. There are no rental options available at the arena.
In the spirit of supporting families, we have set up a skate swap at the school. If you have skates or helmets to donate, please drop them off at the reception area. Additionally, parents seeking to borrow equipment can bring their children to try on donated items in the same area.
5. Parents of BIPOC Children Group Meetings
Created by JICS parents for JICS parents, the BIPOC Group welcomes all parents of a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous or Person of Colour) student at JICS.
Meetings are an opportunity for parents of BIPOC children to socialize, share community, identify issues, and support the needs of our community. We also work with the Teacher’s Equity and Inclusion Committee and help with the school's cultural celebrations. We always aim to be responsive to the evolving needs of our existing parent members.
Please reach out to Adrienne.chan@sunnybrook.ca, our Group WhatsApp and Technical Administrator, or Carissa Wong (647-882-7017) our Group Chair, if you would like to be added to the Parents of JICS BIPOC Kids WhatsApp Group. We aim to be a resource for you, year-round.
We are hosting a playdate social on Thursday, January 22, 4:00-6:00pm (or later) in the school gym. This is an opportunity for parents and their children to connect with one another and to foster a sense of belonging within the JICS BIPOC families. We will also be informally discussing the plan for meetings over the rest of the school year - including creating a mission statement, identifying goals and actions, and defining roles. This meeting will be a potluck for the parents – favourite snacks and ethnic foods welcome. Please message Carissa Wong directly if you have any food allergies and/or dietary restrictions and she will inform the group.
Please stay tuned for information about future meetings.
6. Natural Curiosity's #52WeeksOfReconciliAction
Parents: Are you ready to learn, connect, and act for reconciliation in 2026?
JICS’ Natural Curiosity's #52WeeksOfReconciliAction offers a structured path for your journey. Each week features practical steps you can take to promote respect, understanding, and healing. Explore our Linktree for weekly inspiration, reading materials, discussion prompts, and more! Also, please like and share our introductory post on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn to help spread the word.
Join us as we learn and grow together!
7. Parent Education: Understanding Anxiety in Children: The Value of Leaning into Discomfort
Anxiety continues to be the most common mental health challenge in children. Even when anxiety does not reach clinically concerning levels, we can all agree that it is something everyone experiences from time to time. Witnessing anxiety and distress in our children can be hard to bear and, as such, there are some common traps that we might fall into, including trying to remove obstacles and supporting avoidance. Even though it’s normal and natural to want to avoid the things that cause us stress, the remedy is to “lean in” and expose ourselves to the very things that cause us anxiety. This makes the goal for supporting our anxious children, helping them to “lean in” by fostering resilience and capacity. Come hear about the various presentations of anxiety in children and the most adaptive ways for you, as parents, to think about it and respond to it. This talk will cover developmental considerations so it is worth attending whether you have young children, youngsters on the brink of graduating elementary school, or anywhere in between.
TRINA EPSTEIN, Psy.D., C.Psych. is a psychologist who was thrilled to join JICS in September 2025 where she supports students, parents, and teachers. She also maintains a private practice where she treats children and teens with a wide array of mental health challenges and offers consultation to parents and schools. She worked for many years at the Toronto Western Hospital where she provided assessment and treatment to children and adolescents with Tourette Syndrome and its associated problems (e.g., ADHD, OCD, ASD, anxiety, etc.), conducted research, and supervised students. She is the co-author of The Adventures of Stretch More, a children’s book about a collaborative parenting approach.
8. Teacher-Candidates in JK to Grade 6
We are excited to welcome two new teacher-candidates in each class from JK to Grade 6! These candidates collaborate with classroom teachers, enriching our students' learning experiences. This program serves as a stepping stone for them to pursue careers as educators in the public school system after their time here.
9. JICS Fall Edition Newsletter
Our JICS Newsletter serves as a window into the wider school experiences, offering insights you might not have come across otherwise. A special thanks to Teacher Librarian, Krista for her dedicated work in publishing it! Crafted to be enjoyed by both parents and children, we highly recommend taking a peek at the captivating Fall Newsletter together.
To access the Fall Newsletter, use the password provided in the December Parent Information Post email. It's a fantastic opportunity to share and explore together!
10. Festival of Lights - JICS Holiday Sing-along
Thank you to the parents, family members and friends who were able to join us for Holiday Sing-along on December 19. From Diwali and Hanukkah to Christmas, Yaldā Night, Winter Solstice, and Kwanzaa, we united in song to honour the diverse festivities that brighten this season.
Upcoming January Events
Mon 12 – 6:30PM JICS at the Movies “Steal Away”, Innis College, UofT
Wed 14 – Re-enrolment form and deposit due date
Thur 22 – Parents of BIPOC Children meeting (RSVP Here!)
Tues 27 – International Holocaust Remembrance Day