last week before the holidays!

What a week we had and a week it will be coming up.  By now you have all read the news that our fabulous Mr. McGilvray is leaving us on December 20th.  Staff is really sad to see him go but excited for this great opportunity for him and his move closer to home.  In class this week, we will be preparing a little gift to present to Mr. McGilvray on Friday. 

Field trip
Words can't express what an amazing experience our downtown trip was last week.  Witnessing the students' faces light up as they gave out kindness kits to the homeless, was incredible.  Thank you to our amazing volunteers who trekked through downtown and fought the cold rink-side at Nathan Phillips Square.  Toronto EMS tweeted the day after our visit that they had received cards of gratitude and these cards warmed their hearts in their ambulances and dispatch centre; bravo!

Winter Concert Dec 18/19
Ms Purvis, Ms Wright and the students have been working hard on their pieces for this week's concert!  Our class will perform on Thursday evening.  Students are asked to wear black bottoms & a red top; they must arrive at school for 6:45 and head up to our classroom where I'll supervise them until the show starts at 7:00PM.

Last day Dec 20
To celebrate making it through the first part of the school year, we'll have some holiday festivities on Friday.  Students are welcome to dress in pjs, holiday sweaters, anything they'd like, and bring in board games from home (no electronics please).  In the afternoon we'll wind down with hot chocolate, popcorn and a movie before we head home for the break.

Have a great week!

week of Dec 9th

We have two weeks left until the winter break.  Over that time, we'll have lots on the calendar!

Downtown Field Trip - Dec 10th
Over the past few weeks we've been talking about homelessness in Toronto in an effort to build empathy.  I feel privileged to have such an open-minded group of students who consistently show compassion and a desire to help throughout our talks about poverty.  I'm very excited to head downtown with this fabulous group to spread some compassion and kindness.  Thank you for lending us your time and sending in wool socks!
We'll leave school at 9AM and head downtown via subway.  We're planning to hand out bagged lunches, wool socks and kindness cards at Allan Gardens, Covenant House & Sojourn House.  Feel free to follow us on Twitter (@ChrisTrott7), where I'll be posting messages throughout the day and inviting First Responders to meet us (EMS, Toronto Police & Toronto Fire).
Take a peak at the photos below showing students budgeting and planning ingredients for our bagged lunches!

Holiday Market - Dec 15th & 16th
Flyers were sent home on Thursday sharing news about our SLT's initiative; the Clairlea Holiday Market!  Students are asked to bring in gently used toys, books or anything "gift-worthy" over the coming week.  On the 15th and 16th, students will be able to shop for the holidays, purchasing gently used items for cheap!  All proceeds will go towards the SLT's eco initiative of getting a 2nd water filtration station on the 2nd floor.

French Book Fair - Dec 16th - 19th
We're really excited for our French book fair and invite students to come shop at recesses and lunch the last week of school. 

Winter Concert - Dec 18th & 19th
Last but not least, Ms Purvis and her crew are putting together the final details of our winter concert.  Our class will perform on the evening of the 19th.   We're looking forward to seeing you there!

Have a great week!

week of November 25th

We have many exciting things on our calendar as we head toward the holidays!

DOWNTOWN FIELD TRIP - Dec. 10th
Permission forms will be sent home on December 2nd for our downtown field trip.  We will travel downtown by subway and wander through the downtown, making our way to City Hall.  Parent volunteers are welcome! 
There are 2 components to our trip;
- hand out bagged lunches and new socks to the homeless
- skating at Nathan Phillip's Square

We are asking for donations of new wool socks to hand out to the homeless.  If you would like to help us out, please send them in by December 9th.

Students are encouraged to rent skates and helmets (mandatory) at Nathan Phillips Square to avoid lugging skating gear as we walk around the downtown on the morning of the 10th.  Skate rentals are $5 and helmets are $3.  The fee will be outlined on the permission form and paid via Cash Online. 

WINTER CONCERTS - Dec. 17/18
Ms Purvis and the students are working hard to finalize their performances for the concerts.  My class will be performing in the school gym on Thursday, December 19th.  Take a peak at our invitation for detailed info;

JUNIOR GIRLS' CLUB - Dec 3rd
I'm really excited to be starting up a Junior Girls' Club for students in Grades 4 to 6.  Permission forms were sent home last Tuesday.  Our first meeting is Tuesday, Dec 3rd over lunch, and every 2nd Day 3 on our school calendar.  Students cannot join without returning their permission forms.

CLAIRLEA READS - Dec 18th
Our next meeting of Clairlea Reads is on December 18th over lunch.  Our goal is to reach page 193 at that time.  Mark your calendars for our student & families celebration on the evening of January 30th!

Have a great week!