September 25th, 2022

Dear Franklin Families.
Here are your reminders and updates for this week.

Reminders:

1. If not already submitted, please have your child bring back their student verification form as we need accurate and updated contact information.

2. Please ensure your child’s updated Plan of Care (if relevant to your child/children) is returned early this week. We need accurate information for how to care for your child if they experience a concern or emergency with their life threatening condition(s).

3. Please remember that there is still time to donate towards cancer research. As Franklin will not be collecting Toonies for Terry (the run was this past Friday) please consider donating by following the steps provided to donate online. Following the steps below will allow you to donate and still contribute towards our school donation goal. We will be accepting donations until Friday, October 14th.

Step 1: Go to https://terryfox.org/ and click “Give Today” and then “To a student or a school”

Step 2: You will be brought to a donation page. Start typing Franklin Public School in the search bar.

Step 3: Click on Franklin Public School

Step 4: Donate whichever amount you choose.

Updates:

1. There is free online math tutoring for Grades 4-12

New: TVO Mathify has expanded to support Grade 12 students. Now all Ontario students in Grades 4 through 12 can benefit from personalized math coaches—and it’s all completely free!

Visit TVOMathify.com to login or create an account.

Tutoring starts at 9 am ET, tutors will be available online seven days a week. All tutors are Ontario Certified Teachers. Students can either share a math question from school or choose an example from the Question Bank.

2. Our SEA (Specialized Equipment Allocation) Assistive Technology will be offering drop-in office hours and virtual presentations again this year for parents.

The topic for October’s presentations is how to adjust the features of Chromebooks and Read&Write to meet your child’s needs (e.g., adjust voice, mouse speed, prediction, language, etc.). Stay tuned for more information on this.

3. Please see the attachment from Carizon. Some great information on it including the following on friendships… information taken directly from their flyer.

3 Ways to Help Children Navigate Friendship Challenges

Teach What it Means to be a Good Friend

-With good friends, they can be themselves

-Good friends greet each other, take turns, say please, and thank you.

-Good friends have empathy.

3 Common Friendship Challenges

1. Bossiness. If your child is being bossy….

-Remind them to ask for what they want respectfully rather than demanding it.

-Give them the words to say instead.

-Provide your child with choices.

-Recognize and encourage the improvement.

2. Exclusion. If your child is being excluded…

-When your child talks to you about being excluded by others, listen.

-Use analogies (a comparison of two things to show their similarities).

-Instill a confidence and the understanding that what others think about them does not define them or change who they are.

-Encourage your child to celebrate who they are.

3. Arguments. It’s important to teach children how to handle disagreements in a healthy manner. Use the following steps:

-Model peaceful conflict resolution.

-Set clear rules against unhealthy behaviours like door slamming, sarcasm, ridicule, and physical harm.

– Explain to your child that in a friendship, they shouldn’t be trying to “win” arguments.

4. Thank you to those who attended the School Council meeting. We had a few new faces and hope to see them and more in upcoming meetings.

5. There is a board meeting this Monday evening. Here is the link for your convenience. https://www.youtube.com/c/WRDSBVideo/live

or visit wrdsb.ca

6. Orange shirt day on Friday!!

Quote of the Week:

In friendships, disagreements and conflicts occur and it is seen regularly in a school yard. One skill children continually work on is resolving conflict and as R. Reagan states,

“Peace is not the absence of conflict; it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.”