The expectations for your child in Grade 7 or Grade 8 this year will not differ much from the expectations they had last year as Grade 7s, or 6s. In my classroom I want to see the following things from my students: 1) A positive attitude, 2) A willingness to try new things, 3) A willingness to persevere past specific challenges, 4) A willingness to ask for and accept assistance/critiques, 5) A willingness to be supportive and empathetic to their classmates/teachers, 6) A willingness to work hard.
If it is possible, please ensure that your child is not bringing into the classroom hand sanitizer that has a strong scent to it as some students (and myself as well) have sensitivities to strongly scented perfumes, deodorants and sanitizer products. If this is unavoidable I will understand, but I will ask that the product be used sparingly.
FOOD ALLERIGIES AND ILLNESSES
As with previous school years, all classrooms in at Arthur Stringers P.S. are nut-free zones. This is particularly important this year, as a number of students within our classroom have severe allergies to tree nuts, and even indirect contact with these ingredients can lead to a life-threatening reaction. Please be vigilant in monitoring the ingredients in the snacks and foods that are sent with your child to school. If there are any foods brought to school that contain these allergens, or possibly contain traces of these allergens, those foods will be confiscated and disposed of.
In order to ensure the health of my students, I would ask that everyone remain vigilant in monitoring their own health and respond immediately and appropriately to any symptoms (related to colds, flu, COVID-19, or other) as soon as they manifest. It is vital for the health of your child as well as the health of their classmates, and myself, that they not come to school if they are experiencing a runny nose, a sore throat, a cough, high temperature, headache or upset stomach. I would also like to strongly encourage the wearing of a personal N-95 rated face mask that covers the nose and mouth of the wearer, however, this is not a mandatory requirement for students or staff in TVDSB schools.
USE of TECHNOLOGY AND GOOGLE CLASSROOM
During the learning day, it will be expected and enforced that all personal technology (i.e. cell phones) be stored in the Cell Hotel located on my desk. Each student who chooses to bring their cell phone to school must keep it in the Cell Hotel, which will then be kept in my desk until the snack breaks at 11:00 am and 1:20 pm respectively. Once dismissed to go outside, the students will once again be expected to return their devices to the Cell Hotel, as these personal devices will not be permitted on the school yard.Â
If your child goes home during Break #2 at 1:20 pm until 2:10 pm, they will be allowed to bring their cell phone with them. When they return to school, they will have two options: 1) receive permission to come into the school to turn in their phone either at the office or in the classroom if someone is there, or 2) keep their phone on their person, secure in a pocket or backpack if they have that with them. If they are found to be using their phone on the school yard, they will be instructed by a Yard Supervisor to turn in their phone to the appropriate location inside the school. If this request is refused, appropriate actions will be taken involving the Office to ensure that the student is following the expectations.
Any loss of personal material due to theft, or any damages that a personal device like a cell phone sustains while at school will be the responsibility of the owner of the device and not the fault of Arthur Stringer P.S. itself. In order to avoid possible damage or theft of personal items, it is highly encouraged to keep such items at home. The classroom doors will be locked during recess breaks, and students will not be permitted inside of any classroom without teacher supervision.
Throughout the course of this school year, I am going to be making use of this website in order to upload the notes and assignments that we cover during the day to the appropriate subject pages. The reason for this is to ensure that even if your child is absent from school, they will be able to have access to the information covered during the school day(s) that they missed. I will also be making use of my Google Classroom website in the event that we need to switch to the online learning model during the course of the school year. The online learning Google Classroom website will not be updated as regularly as this classroom website. If there is a reason this year for us to switch to the online model, I will be teaching and posting on the Google Classroom website that I have linked above.
Click here for information regarding my homework policy.