Sikh Heritage Month

April is Sikh Heritage Month.

Students have been enjoying reading the book My Name is Saajin Singh on our bulletin board outside the library. Saajin loves his name—he loves it so much that he sees it spelled out in the world around him in his snacks, in the sky and sometimes he even sings it aloud. On his first day of school, Saajin is excited to meet his new classmates, but things take a turn when the teacher mispronounces his name as Say-jin and he is not sure how—or if he should—correct her. After trying to live with the different version of his name for a while and some thoughtful conversations with his family about the meaning behind it, Saajin realizes the importance of reclaiming his name and embracing his identity. 

Everyone's name tells a story and everyone's story deserves to be heard. 

Jr. Girls Basketball - Area Champions!

On Wednesday, April 24th, the Junior Girls Basketball Team represented Aurora Grove at the Area Tournament. The girls played extremely well and demonstrated great skill and sportsmanship. 

They took 1st place!! We are so proud of them!

Shout out to Ms. Currie and Mr. Cuello for all their hard work coaching the team. Go Grove!

Spotlight: Mr. O'Reilly's Class

Mr. O'Reilly's class is learning about Black History by reading about transformative figures and the ways they helped others. With each lesson, they added to their poster, aiming to spread the values of kindness and respect for all.

 

Happy Passover!

This week, our Jewish community is celebrating Passover (Pesach). It commemorates the emancipation of the Israelites from ancient Egypt. To help deepen our understanding of this holiday, please view the Pesach/Passover video produced by the YRDSB.

Over the last couple of weeks, students have been invited to stop and read a beautiful bulletin board display showcasing a Seder dinner table. The display includes explanations of the different foods, songs, and traditions that take place during a Seder.  

To all those who begin celebrating Passover this evening, we wish you a very happy celebration. Chag Pesach Sameach!

 

Spotlight: Ms. Meyers & Ms. Walkley's Kindergarten Class

In honour of Earth Day, Ms. Meyers' & Ms. Walkley's Kindergarten class made paper mache Earths. 

They promised to take care of our home, the Earth!

Aurora Grove Talent Show!

On Thursday, April 25^th we will be hosting the 2024 Aurora Grove Talent Show. 

The show will take place in our gymnasium and begin promptly at 6pm (doors open at 5:30pm).

Our students have been practicing for weeks and are excited to share to share their talents with the community! There will also be performances from the AGPS Band and Choir. 

Refreshments will be sold including water, popcorn, and cookies for $2. 

Admission is free. 

Sikh Trails In Canadian Landscapes

 

2 Events for Parents/Caregivers

Parent/caregiver series supporting learning about mental health

The YRDSB Central Mental Health Team is proud to be offering the Learning about Mental Health Presentation Series (LAMPS). The objective of the series is to promote and enhance mental health literacy. The second session is “Technology Use and Mental Health, a Presentation for Parents and Caregivers” and will occur virtually on May 29th from 6 - 7 p.m. The presentation will focus on the characteristics of anxiety, and some general strategies that may be beneficial in supporting your children and their anxiety. 

These sessions are offered to any parent/guardian. Translation will be provided in a limited number of  languages.  If your preferred language is not offered, we recommend watching with a friend or family member who is able to translate.

To register please visit this link. 

Please Register by May 28th, 2024

Understanding the Ontario Education Systems

Warm Weather Reminders

We are very excited to see the sun appearing more often and the warm weather returning!

Due to allergies, spray sunscreen should not be sent to school and teachers are not permitted to apply sunscreen to students.

When sending your children to school, please remember to:

• apply sunscreen before they leave in the morning.
• consider sending them with sunscreen in a ziplock bag to keep in their bag in case they need to reapply themselves.
• keep a spare set of clothes (pants,socks, underwear, t-shirt) at school.
• We have many kids visiting the office with muddy clothes as the field still has wet areas.
• When the spare is used, please send a replacement.
• bring a reusable filled water bottle to school.
• label all clothing, especially hats and jackets!
• Optional: For a fun way to label your child’s belongings (as well as to support our school’s ongoing fundraising efforts), please visit:  https://mabelslabels.ca/en-CA/fundraising/support and search for Aurora Grove P.S. 

April is Sikh Heritage Month

April was specifically chosen given its importance for Sikhs, as it is in April that Sikh Canadians celebrate Vaisakhi (April 13th), which marks the formalization of the Khalsa and the Sikh articles of faith. Sikh Heritage Month is an opportunity to remember, celebrate and educate our future generations and society at large about Sikh Canadians and the important role that they play in communities across Ontario.
Source

To all those who celebrated Vaisakhi this past weekend, we hope you and your families had a very happy celebration.

Boomerang Lunches Starting April 15

Aurora Grove P.S. is committed to doing our part in helping our environment! In the past few months, we have been focusing on recycling responsibly in the classrooms. Our next step will be to take on a waste-free lunch challenge with BOOMERANG LUNCHES! This will begin on Monday, April 15, 2024. 

HOW IT WORKS: All waste from your child’s snacks/lunches will be returned home in their lunch bags. This includes all packaging, uneaten food and leftovers. 

WHY WE NEED THIS PROGRAM: Most lunch trash comes from disposable packaging of single use food items, plastic bags and foil. It’s estimated that the average school age child using a disposable lunch produces 67 pounds of lunch waste per school year! Using reusable containers, thermos bottles and bringing the right amount of food will let children know they can be part of the solution to our waste problems. 

BOOMERANG LUNCH GOALS:

• Enable parents to see what their children are actually eating during the day

• Reduce the amount of wasted food

• Reduce the amount of overall waste produced

• Encourage healthy eating

• Promote the use of reusable containers

WASTE FREE SNACK/ LUNCH TIPS:

1. Use reusable lunch carriers and containers. Try to avoid plastic bags.

2. If you use single-use containers, provide a resealable bag for the empty containers (yogurt, apple sauce, juice boxes) to be returned home. 

3. Use reusable drinks, bottles, or thermoses.

4. Use a cloth napkin to wash and reuse.

5. Use reusable utensils.

6. Get your children to help pack their snacks/lunches with healthy foods.

7. Pack only as much food as your child will eat.

8. Label* all containers with your child’s name, initial, or a special symbol. 

Thank you for your cooperation!

*Optional: For a fun way to label your child’s belongings (as well as to support our school’s ongoing fundraising efforts), please visit:  https://mabelslabels.ca/en-CA/fundraising/support and search for Aurora Grove P.S. 

NOTE: Students who have ordered lunch through SchoolCash Online will be able to discard their lunch waste at school.

Autism Acceptance Month

April is no longer Autism Awareness month. 

Now it is Autism Acceptance Month! 

What's the difference?

"Autism Awareness" centers the experiences of non autistic people and how they feel about autism and disability. "Awareness" is based on fear, pity, and furthers stigma against autistic people. "Awareness" hurts autistic people.

"Autism Acceptance" centers the voices of autistic people. It celebrates autistic culture, and tells others that autistic people are valuable to their families, their communities, and to the world exactly as they are. Acceptance is creating a better, fairer, and more inclusive world for all of autistic people.

- taken from neurodiversitylibrary.org

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