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Dear Prep Families,

Our thoughts remain very much with the family and friends impacted by the news this week of a tragic death in our student community. I am deeply grateful for how our community comes together in the most loving and supportive ways during times of grief and loss. Thank you for your care and sensitivity during this time.      

Prep faculty returned to campus on Monday and have been engaged in a productive and energizing week of planning and professional development. We use this dedicated time to collaborate, prepare classroom communities and continue to develop transformational learning experiences which will impact each Prep students’ experience throughout the school year.

We have a number of strategic areas of focus for teaching and learning for the 2023-24 school year. In response to the Right to Read Report, new Ontario Ministry of Education Language Curriculum and shifts in literacy research, we will be spending this year refining our approaches to the teaching of reading. Students will still be immersed deeply in developing a love for literacy, while also receiving direct instruction — particularly in the early years. Throughout the academic year, we will be offering parent education so that families have clear strategies for how to support your child at home. 

The Primary division will be iterating its approaches to design thinking and innovation as we explore the potential of creating a making and innovation space. In order to further many of these goals — as well as ongoing curriculum work and regular professional development — teachers will continue to be engaged outside of the classroom in collaborative time in service of enhancing student learning.  

I’m also delighted to share with our Prep community that I’m pregnant and due to welcome a baby in November. To support my parental leave, Principal McKinney has appointed Dr. Julia Kinnear as Interim Head of the Prep School. Julia will be familiar to many at the Prep as a member of the College’s senior leadership team and her role as the College’s academic dean. Her deep knowledge and understanding of the Prep curriculum including the implementation of the IB Middle Years Programme, the development of our approach to design thinking and digital innovation and the implementation of the College-wide pluralism strategy will serve us well as she becomes more involved in daily life at the Prep. While continuing to serve key aspects of her academic dean role, Dr. Kinnear will join David Girard and Gareth Evans to form the Prep leadership team. 

We have designed an intentional transition plan where Dr. Kinnear will be joining me at certain events throughout the fall, so you will have opportunities to get to know her. I’m confident that it will be a seamless transition for students and families and that exceptional learning and wellbeing will continue in the Prep during my absence.   

As always, David Girard and Gareth Evans will continue to lead the Primary and Middle divisions respectively, and will be your key contacts for day to day questions that are not able to be answered by home form teachers.  

I will see you all out at drop off next week! I can’t wait to welcome new students, and see how much our returning students have changed over the summer.  

Your partner in learning,

Sarah Fleming

Head, Preparatory School

Prep family 2023–24 calendar is now live!

The Prep family calendar is now live on Bluenet (login required). Click here for instructions on how to access and subscribe to calendars. 

SIGN UP | ASP Clubs

We are once again partnering with ExtraEd to provide a wide variety of programs so that students can explore new interests or follow up on existing passions. 

Clubs will begin on September 17 and run for two terms of 7 weeks each to allow you some flexibility in registering for programs. The sessions are progressive but flexible. Students signing up for both terms will not repeat activities, and students attending only one term will get a complete experience.

All registration and billing for clubs will be handled on the ExtraEd website. This allows us to support their environmental commitment to plant a tree for every student who registers in one of their programs. They have planted over 10,000 trees since their inception!

Please click here to view descriptions of the programs and see below for the planned schedule of clubs. 

* Term 1: Week of September 18 to week of October 30

* Term 2: Week of November 6 to week of December 18

REMINDER | Student and class photo day

Student and class photos will take place for all Prep students throughout the day on Tuesday, September 12 in Weston Hall. Students in SK to Year 4 are expected to be in Primary regular dress, while students in Year 5 to Year 7 should be in First Dress which includes wearing dress shoes. Please see our Family Handbook for more details on the uniform.

Year 6 and 7 | Parent information evening

The Year 6 and 7 welcome back information evening for parents will take place on Thursday, September 14 from 7 to approximately 8:40 p.m. The evening will begin in Weston Hall. Parents and/or guardians will then move to their child’s classroom to hear from their child’s form adviser. After the form adviser presentation, families will be invited to join our specialist faculty in our dining hall to learn about programming while enjoying some refreshments. Information evenings provide families with an overview of the Prep’s academic program, general expectations and student supports.

In addition, an optional mix and mingle event from 6:15 to 6:55 p.m. will be available for parents and/or guardians who are interested in connecting with each other and the PLT .

Please see the table below for a snapshot of how the Middle Division welcome back information evening will unfold.

SIGN UP | Year 4 and 5 fall Garden Clubs 

The Prep Learning Garden is lush and overflowing with beautiful produce, flowers and greens! There is no better time than the fall harvest season to fully enjoy the delicious and nutritious fruits of our labour. The garden is regularly used by many classes for inquiry-based lessons and activities. In addition, interested students can join an after-school garden club. 

Two faculty-run gardening clubs will take place this fall. Students will spend time in the Learning Garden exploring where food comes from and discovering what it means to live sustainably. Activities will be inquiry-based and include harvesting, tasting, ecological garden maintenance and crafts. 

Interested families should fill out this Google form by Wednesday, Sept. 6.

Year 4 families should note that students must choose between participation in either the fall play or garden club, as both clubs meet on Tuesdays. 

These clubs are free of charge and not part of the fee-for-service After School Program (ASP). When planning your child’s activities, please consult the ASP timetable to avoid scheduling conflicts.

Year 4 Garden club permission form 

Year 5 Garden club permission form

Participation will be confirmed through a welcome letter sent home by Friday, Sept. 15.

Year 4 Garden Club

Location: Prep Learning Garden

Time: Tuesdays from dismissal to 4:30 p.m.

Dates:  

September 12

September 19

September 26 

October 3

October 10 

October 17 

October 24

Year 5 Garden Club

Location: Prep Learning Garden

Time: Mondays from dismissal to 4:45 p.m. 

Dates:             

September 11 

September 18 

September 25 

October 2 

October 16 

October 23 

October 30

We look forward to working with your child in the garden this Fall!

Sincerely, 

Monika Kastelic and Dianne Jojic

Garden Club leaders

Helpful reminders for September

Tuesday, Sept. 5: New Student Orientation Day

Only NEW Prep students (excluding SKs) will participate in the orientation. 

• Please arrive between 8:30 and 9 a.m.

• Year 1 to Year 7 students should arrive in uniform

  •  Year 1 to Year 4 students wear primary regular dress

  •  Year 5 to Year 7 students wear warm weather dress (see Family Handbook for description)

• Dismissal on this day is 11:30 a.m. for new students in Years 1–6

• Dismissal on this day is 11:45 a.m. for new students in Year 7

Wednesday, Sept. 6: First full day of classes for all students in Year 1 to Year 7 

• Please arrive between 8 and 8:30 a.m.

• Year 1 to Year 7 students should arrive in uniform 

  • Year 1 to Year 4 students wear primary regular dress

  • Year 5 to Year 7 students wear warm weather dress

  •  See Handbook for description) 

• SK students: Family interviews will be conducted on Wednesday, Sept. 6 and Thursday, Sept. 7 with a half day of school for SK students on Friday, Sept. 8.  The Admissions office will be reaching out to schedule family interviews!  

Dismissal

• The Prep Dismissal times for the 2023-24 school year are as follows:

  • SK–Year 2: 3:10 p.m.

  • Year 3–4: 3:25 p.m.

  • Year 5: 3:40 p.m.

  • Year 6–7: 3:50 p.m.

REGISTER | Hot Lunch Program

SK–Year 3 (lunch begins at 11:40 a.m.)

• All SK students eat lunch in their classroom. 

• Year 1–3 students will eat in Weston Hall.  

• Parents may elect to send a lunch from home or sign up for the hot lunch program. 

• Home lunches must be nut/peanut free.  

• There is an optional milk program for students who bring their own lunch.  

• There is a snack program, which is available to SK students.

Year 4–5 (lunch begins at 11:40 a.m.)

• Students will eat in the Dining Hall. 

• Parents may elect to send a lunch from home or sign up for the hot lunch program. 

• Home lunches must be nut/peanut free.  

• There is an optional milk program for students who bring their own lunch. 

Year 6–7 (lunch begins at 12:10 p.m.) 

• Students will eat in the Dining Hall or Weston Hall.

• Parents may elect to send a lunch from home or sign up for the hot lunch program. 

• Home lunches must be nut/peanut free.  

• There is an optional milk program for students who bring their own lunch. 

Lunch Options

With the cooperation of Aramark, our food services provider, we offer all students the following three options at lunch:

1. The hot lunch program (includes beverages)

• The menu, which operates on a three-week cycle, offers soup, one main entrée, one vegetarian entrée, a sandwich/salad bar and dessert every day. Milk and water (and chocolate milk as an occasional treat) are available. Students are permitted to line up for seconds.

2. The milk program (for those who bring their lunch from home)

• Students may bring their lunch and enroll in the milk program, which offers milk and chocolate milk on occasion.

3. Lunch from home

• Parents may opt to send lunch with their child. Thanks to the Prep Parent Organization, microwave ovens are available for all students. Students are expected to take home uneaten food in order to help parents gauge what is being eaten.

Expectations

Prior to registering for the hot lunch program, we would ask you to review a sample menu below and consider whether a lunch brought from home or the hot lunch program best meets your child’s needs. Students will be encouraged to make sound nutritional choices and will be expected to finish with little or no food waste. They are always welcome to try an item and return for more. As students try different menu items over the course of the first menu cycle, there may be some waste. After this time, students will be expected to make good decisions about what and how much they take.

To ensure the safety of all students, parents are expected to ensure that any food items sent from home do not contain traces of any kind of nut or shellfish. Please discuss the importance of this strict requirement with your child. Your co-operation is essential and most sincerely appreciated.

PLEASE NOTE:

If you subscribe to one of the programs, the charges listed below are added to your child’s account on a term-by-term basis. Once registered at the beginning of the year students remain registered unless the parents advise the Prep Office by email.

There will be no credit for days remaining in a term if a parent withdraws from the program during the term, or days missed because of any absence.

Parents who sign up for the hot lunch program do not sign up for the milk program.

Bag lunches will be prepared for field trips as required for hot lunch registrants.

It is also important to note students cannot sign up part way through a term.

If you decide to register for the hot lunch program, you must sign up via your child's student profile page. 

Here is the link to instructions on how to access your child’s student profile page.

Weekly menus can be viewed here.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

ORDER TODAY | Prep T-shirt bundle: Purple, Orange and Pink Shirt Days

The PPO has put together a coloured T-shirt bundle to mark three important days we observe as a school. The bundle includes a purple shirt (Rowan’s Law, Sept. 27), orange shirt (National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Sept. 30) and pink shirt (anti-bullying, Feb. 22).  

These classic fit shirts are 100% cotton and come in youth sizing from XS (2-4) – XL (18-20) and adult sizes from S–6XL. The shirts are bundled in a three pack for $34.  

Place your order here by Wednesday, Sept. 13. The shirts will be available for pick-up on the UCC campus no later than Sept. 26 so that students can wear their purple shirts on Sept. 27 for Rowan's Law Day. NOTE: As each item is a special order, we will not be able to provide refunds or exchanges. All sales are final. 

SIGN UP | PPO request for help

As we prepare for another exciting year at the Prep, we invite you to be a part of our vibrant school community by joining the team of parent volunteers. 

This is a great way to build new connections, directly impact your child's educational experience and contribute to the overall growth of our school. No matter what amount of time you have available to help out, we can find a volunteer opportunity that will suit your schedule. To explore current opportunities and sign up, please click here.