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September 10 Notre Dame Weekly
Published on Sep 10, 2018 12:26

The Notre Dame Weekly Eblast

September 10, 2018


Upcoming Events


Catholic School Community Council Open House Planning Meeting will take place Tuesday, September 11, at 6:30 p.m. in the school library. New members welcome.


Robotics club meeting will take place Thursday, September 13 at 4:30 p.m. in room 124 at Patrick Fogarty CSS. Open to grade 6, 7, and 8 students.


School Mass will take place in the school gym at 9:30 a.m. Parents and caregivers are welcome.


Registration for Confirmation Preparation sessions will take place Sunday, September 16th after the 11:00 am mass or Monday September 17th at 7 pm in the Guardian Angels church hall.



Immunizations

Did you know that parents and guardians must keep their child’s immunizations up to date in order for their child to stay in school? For your reference, here is a link to a list of mandatory immunizations for students to enter and stay in school. For your convenience we are also sharing the link to the Bishops letter (dated June 2016 and still in effect). The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit website www.simcoemuskokahealth.org has a wealth of health related information available as well.





“Called to Be Our Story”


SMCDSB’s spiritual theme for 2018-19 is “Called to Be Our Story”, with particular emphasis on the verb “be”!. We know that our school board’s story is part of a larger story—the story of God’s love for our world, and the story of Jesus’ life, teaching, death and resurrection. Through baptism, each one of us becomes an important part of that story, and we make it our own, each living it out in our own unique ways.


More than simply talking about God’s love, mercy and care, we must increasingly try to be that story: we must “act it out” so that it is more than just a story ... until it becomes a way of life, and a message that our (often skeptical) world can hear. Our Christian story becomes more convincing when we ourselves show that we are trying to be that story ... to be loving, generous, forgiving, prayerful and honest—the same values and virtues that are at the core of our Board’s educational vision.


Seven hundred years ago, St. Francis of Assisi famously told his first followers: “Go and preach the Gospel—and use words only if necessary”. Clearly, St. Francis saw the lived witness of the first Franciscans as their principal mode of “preaching”; they were to “incarnate” their message, so that their example would communicate the Gospel, even if they themselves spoke very little. As we let Jesus’ example transform us, our lives become the message we proclaim; this is the great witness we see in the saints. Being that story is what we are called to as baptized Christians, each and every day. It is about authenticity and genuineness, and about allowing God to shine through in us.


In the board’s theme logo, the book represents both the Scriptures and our written Board history as the foundation and the springboard for the three figures of different colours and sizes, emphasizing the range of different people who make up our Board. They are “springing out of ” the book’s pages and reaching up toward the cross—both holding up the cross for everyone to see, symbolizing our pride in our Christian faith, and also reaching toward it as something we are aspiring to, and constantly trying to become.


Robotics Club  

If you are interested in participating in a NEW after-school competitive robotics program at Patrick Fogarty CSS, then make sure that both you and your parent/legal guardian attend our information night?


Who can participate?

Students in grades 6 - 8. Fifteen students will be selected to form 5 teams consisting of 3 students per team. In order for the program to satisfy the requirements of the Michael Monk Award, and Girl Powered team grant, there will need to be a minimum ratio of 10 girls to 5 boys, and at least 6 of the 15 students must be from the combination of grades 7 and 8. GIRLS, this is a great opportunity for you!

When?

An application for the program will be distributed at the information night on Thursday Sept 13, 2018 at 4:30 pm. The after-school program will begin Oct 2, 2018. The program will conclude at the end of the competition season in March of 2019.


Where?

The information night is at Patrick Fogarty CSS room 124.


Why?

Students will learn to design, build, and program a robot based on the VEX IQ platform.  Be sure to attend the information night and discover all the benefits of participating in a program like this!

 

Revised Health and Physical Education Curriculum

There has been a lot of media response lately to the the revised Health and Physical Education Curriculum.  On Wednesday, August 22, 2018, The? Ontario? Curriculum,? Grades? 1-8:? Health? and? Physical? Education, Interim? Edition,? 2010?, was provided to school boards. During the provincial review process, Catholic schools will deliver all of the curriculum expectations as established by the Ministry of Education in this Interim? Edition in a way that conveys, respects and models Catholic principles to our students.


In Catholic elementary schools, the topic of Human Development and Sexual Health has always been addressed as part of family life education, rather than as part of the health and physical education program. We will continue to address these topics through the Fully? Alive? program that was sponsored and developed at the request of the Association of Catholic Bishops of Ontario, in collaboration with Catholic educators and families. The Family Life Curriculum, which is an integral component of the Religious Education program, and Fully? Alive?, the student and teacher resource for the family life education, have both been reviewed and approved for use in Catholic schools by the Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario. Through the Fully? Alive program, Catholic schools will continue to present the issue of human sexuality within the fullness of our faith-based family life curriculum that teaches the content of our faith, the value of all persons, human relationships, commitment, and social responsibility. The knowledge, skills, attitudes and values acquired in the family life program complement those instilled by families, and reflect a distinctively Catholic view of human life, sexuality, marriage and family.