Dear St.Clare Families,

Happy Victoria Day! 

How will you celebrate? We are blessed with lovely weather which inspires us to move outdoors to walk, bike and garden, respecting social distancing rules and Ottawa Public Health guidelines, of course. 

Thank you to all parents and educators who have been working so hard to ensure that St. Clare students have the opportunity to continue their learning while at home. In this unprecedented time, our community has come together creating a vision of distance learning not considered possible before March. It has been a learning curve for all.  An expected announcement on Tuesday, May 19, 2020, should bring further information, specifically the government’s decision on whether students will head back to the classroom in June.  

Behind the scenes, school operations continue. Planning for leavetaking for our grade six students is progressing. Milk refunds have been distributed. Teachers have submitted orders needed for rich learning tasks (e.g. technology, school supplies) for next year and deliveries are being received. Staffing, school-wide scheduling and class assignments are all underway for the 2020-2021 school year. Whatever form school takes upon return, St. Clare School will be ready.

Please join me in wishing Mrs. Bogaert all the best  in her new adventure. She will be retiring in June after 32 years of teaching.  Mrs. Bogaert has been a much-loved staff member at St. Clare.  We  will miss you! Thank you, Mrs Bogaert.

Online Registration is Open for New Students

Do you still need to register your little one for Kindergarten? Unsure how since schools are closed? You can now register online! Submit your application and once OCSB schools reopen you can complete the process! Visit https://www.ocsb.ca/register/ to get started!

Stay in Touch

We hope you’re doing well and free from worries and the health concerns brought on by Covid-19. Do stay in touch with the school. Messaging from St. Clare School and the Ottawa Catholic School Board will be shared directly to your email address through School Messenger or you may check announcements on the St. Clare website. You may also follow the school on Twitter. Should you wish to communicate with staff, including myself, email is the best method. Please send emails to staff through the school account Clare@ocsb.ca. I can be reached at Martine.Mitton@ocsb.ca.

Take care, 

Martine Mitton

Principal

Dear St.Clare Families,

Fifty-nine days, or 8 weeks and 3 days. It has been a long time since we gathered as a community of learners and families and colleagues. We are feeling the loss and separation. We have also found time to celebrate small joys - rediscovered time with our immediate family members, smiling connections with classmates on a Google hangout, and all “the feels” that come with an opportunity to do small things with great love. A term has been coined for the ups and downs of our moods during quarantine; most of us have felt we are on a “coronacoaster” of emotion.

Should you or your family need support during this time, there are some available resources. On the front line, are classroom teachers, educators and specialized support staff. They are available to support distance learning, suggest routines and strategies for work completion and answer any questions you may have around learning and technology. 

The Ottawa Catholic School Board has additional supports should you require them, including support with devices such as Chromebooks, and support to students and their families through mental health professionals such as social workers and psychologists. Should you require access to board staff supports, or find yourself in need of anything, please send me an email at Martine.Mitton@ocsb.ca 

The Catholic School Parent Association has some online events that may be of interest to parents. Registration and topics are released weekly and will be held on May 14, May 21 and May 28 at noon each week. See CSPA to register. These are online events and a LINK will be sent to all those who register. Questions can be sent to ottawacspa@gmail.com.

Online Registration is Open for New Students

Do you still need to register your little one for Kindergarten? Unsure how since schools are closed? You can now register online! Submit your application and once OCSB schools reopen you can complete the process! Visit https://www.ocsb.ca/register/ to get started!

Stay in Touch

We hope you’re doing well and free from worries and the health concerns brought on by Covid-19. Do stay in touch with the school. Messaging from St. Clare School and the Ottawa Catholic School Board will be shared directly to your email address through School Messenger or you may check announcements on the St. Clare Website. You may also follow the school on Twitter. Should you wish to communicate with staff, including myself, email is the best method. Please send emails to staff through the school account Clare@ocsb.ca. I can be reached at Martine.Mitton@ocsb.ca.

Take care, 

Martine Mitton

Principal

Dear St.Clare Families,

It’s hard to believe that we’re now in the month of May! Thanks to everyone for your work during a very unusual and unprecedented month of April. 

This week the Ministry of Education announced a new return to school date of Monday, June 1st for students. Please know that this date may be extended if it is still determined that it is not safe for staff and students to return to school environments. There are provincial groups working on the logistics of what a return to school would look like; no doubt you have heard of some proposals in the news. At this time, no details have been shared, other than the requirement for the plan to be approved by Public Health to ensure the safety of staff and students. 

We know that everyone continues to do their best with learning at home.  Please continue to adapt the suggestions from staff to suit your family needs and schedule.  Thank you for continuing to maintain contact with your child’s classroom teacher.  Your feedback, questions and/or concerns are valuable and assist with planning so please don’t hesitate to contact us at the email addresses at the end of this newsletter.

Emma Paxton, Creator emma@imagistic.co.uk   

Used with permission

Catholic Education Week Activities  

I am so very thankful as a proud Catholic educator that we have a choice to support learning in a faith-filled environment.  The OCSB celebrates Catholic Education Week with a twist this year as we go virtual. The theme this year is Igniting Hope.   Each day has been identified with a different focus which you can choose to explore with your family in a number of ways…  draw a picture, perform and act of kindness, write and/or send a message of hope, or perhaps find something in nature.  If ever there was a time when the world needed a little hope, we are certainly living it now.  

• Monday - For the ones we love - send a message of hope to someone in your family

• Tuesday - For the ones who teach us - send a message of hope to your teacher(s)

• Wednesday - For leaders - send a message of hope to a leader in your community/world (government leaders, school board leaders, your parish priest, Archbishop Prendergast, Pope Francis) 

• Thursday - For those in need and those who care for them - send a message of hope to a nursing home, hospital, The Mission, Shepherds of Good Hope, frontline and healthcare workers

• Friday - For yourself - send yourself a message of hope - for today and the future 

Link to Virtual  CEW mass at 10 am on May 5th, from the Basilica in Ottawa

Online Registration is Open for New Students

Do you still need to register your little one for Kindergarten? Unsure how since schools are closed? You can now register online! Submit your application and once OCSB schools reopen you can complete the process! Visit https://www.ocsb.ca/register/ to get started!

Stay in Touch

We hope you’re doing well and free from worries and the health concerns brought on by Covid-19. Do stay in touch with the school. Messaging from St. Clare School and the Ottawa Catholic School Board will be shared directly to your email address through School Messenger or you may check announcements on the St. Clare Website. You may also follow the school on Twitter. Should you wish to communicate with staff, including myself, email is the best method. Please send emails to staff through the school account clare@ocsb.ca. 

Happy Mother’s Day - Sunday, May 10th

To all the moms, On behalf of the staff, you are wished you a lovely day and some time to pamper yourself with your favorite activity.  You are in our prayers for an awesome day with your family.  

Take care, 

Martine Mitton

Principal

Dear St. Clare Families,

Today, Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced that all publicly-funded schools, including all Ottawa Catholic Schools, would remain closed until at least May 31, 2020. The extension is based on expert advice from the Chief Medical Officer of Health and health officials on the COVID-19 Command Table. While this is appropriate to ensure the safety of all, it is sad that we cannot gather as a school community. When I speak with staff, parents and students, everyone remarks on how we miss one another. We will continue to do our part to flatten the curve.

Ideas for Extending Deep Learning at Home

Education within the OCSB focusses not only on the mastery of literacy and numeracy skills. Deep Learning seeks to develop the “Six Cs”: character, citizenship, collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking, within a faith-filled context. Here are some ideas that you may wish to use at home.

Citizenship is the skill that allows your child to connect with people with diverse world views and perspectives diplomatically. 

Challenge your child to think about others in their neighbourhood and how they might be feeling, things that they might be experiencing that are different from their experience.  

How can we help them?  A prayer, a message in the window, a picture on the driveway...

Character is one of the more apparent skills that your child will need throughout their whole life. 

How is your child interacting with others at home?

Have some discussions about the importance of traits like perseverance, resilience, humility and kindness.

Communication is an essential skill that will help your child interact with others, express their thoughts, feelings and ideas. 

How can your child express their thoughts, perspectives and opinions in a productive way?  

Schedule some time to work specifically on listening skills.  Make it a game.

Critical thinking is the ability to thoughtfully evaluate information and arguments by seeing patterns and making connections. 

Provide opportunities for your child to ‘figure it out’.  Do not be quick to give them a solution.

Ask them to explain their thinking.  Why might that work?  What else could you try?

Collaboration is a skill that allows your child to work well with others. 

Living in times of physical distancing creates a wonderful opportunity to practice collaboration within the family.

A family game or project can help your child to recognize their own unique talents and abilities while accepting, valuing and building upon the strengths that others bring to the table.

Creativity is a valuable skill that God has placed in each of us. It allows your child to take an dea and turn it into a reality. 

“think outside the box,” be resourceful, and take risks to come up with innovative ideas and solutions to problems.

Ask your child to design a machine that would clean their room, a way to save water, a city that doesn’t need electricity

Online Registration is Open for New Students

Do you still need to register your little one for Kindergarten? Unsure how since schools are closed? You can now register online! Submit your application and once OCSB schools reopen you can complete the process! Visit https://www.ocsb.ca/register/ to get started!

Stay in Touch

We hope you’re doing well and free from worries and the health concerns brought on by Covid-19. Do stay in touch with the school. Messaging from St. Clare School and the Ottawa Catholic School Board will be shared directly to your email address through School Messenger or you may check announcements on the St. Clare Website. You may also follow the school on Twitter. Should you wish to communicate with staff, including myself, email is the best method. Please send emails to staff through the school account Clare@ocsb.ca

Take care, 

Martine Mitton

Principal

Good morning, St. Clare Families, 

Amidst the concerns of our world, in this unprecedented time, we have been blessed with some sunshine, the onset of April and spring. This week, we celebrate Holy Week, a special time of preparation and celebration of the great mysteries of our faith: Christ’s Passion, Death, and Resurrection. This year, St. Clare staff are saddened by the missed traditional opportunities to gather in community to share Holy Week activities with you and your child(ren).  May God bless you and your family as you focus on preparing your hearts for the joy of Easter.

Given the extension of school closures to May 4, your child(ren) are invited to continue learning through five hours of distance learning per week provided by your child’s teacher. Do look at the suggestions the teacher has made and tailor your child’s participation in the activities to suit your family needs. Distance learning is flexible; it can be done at any point in the day. We encourage students to read, communicate and engage in Deep Learning experiences while continuing to be physically active and mentally well.

We continue to work with Ottawa Public Health to have an approved distribution system for families in greatest need of a device. At this time the emergency measures do not permit students or parents to enter our schools. Working with Ottawa Public Health, we hope to have a protocol in place soon to safely distribute devices to those families in greatest need of a device. Should this protocol be approved, an email will be sent to each family with a pick-up time.

Do remain in contact with the school. Messaging from St. Clare School and the Ottawa Catholic School Board will be shared to your email address through School Messenger or you may check announcements on the St. Clare Website. You may also follow the school on Twitter.  Should you wish to communicate with staff, including myself, email is the best method. Please send  emails to staff through the school account clare@ocsb.ca

This week’s theme for our Flipgrid is Easter Fun! Show us your Easter creativity with a craft, dance, meal or baking. Be as creative as you like! Share your video or picture through flipgrid.com/cla7054. We are looking forward to seeing your Easter Fun!

Have a blessed Holy Week and joyous Easter. 

May God Bless You and Keep You Safe.

Mme Martine Mitton

Hello

I hope this email continues to find you and your family well.  We are all missing your children and hoping that everyone is adjusting to this new routine as best they can.  If you or your family need support, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or your child’s educator. There are links to helpful resources at the bottom of this email as well.

Our Focus This Week:

Public Health data is informing the decision of when schools will be reopened. As of yet, this has not been determined. When it is, you will be informed through the media as well as communication from the Board which will then be linked on the OCSB website and our school website.  We are all looking forward to the day when we are back together at school! 

In the meantime, the Ontario government will be continuing to add to their learn at home resources and on Monday our Board will also have well-being and learn from home resources on each school’s website

Educators will continue to remain connected with their students and provide opportunities for distance learning. The learning this week and last week will not be assessed so do the amount that works for your child and your family as you continue with your primary focus of well-being. 

This week our staff will have an additional focus.  We will be meeting virtually to discuss how to overcome barriers that some students may have as we continue to move forward with distance learning. Please take a moment to fill out this Google form if you would like an opportunity to provide insight.  Please note, for those families that do not have access to the internet, you are welcome to sign in to our internet from our school parking lot.  Your educator will be able to provide you with the password.

Additionally, Public Health has closed all playgrounds which includes our school’s as well.  They have also asked the public to not have any car parades.

Thanks to our essential workers: Hey St Clare! Show us your signs that you are using to send messages of thanks to our essentials workers (medical workers, first responders, pharmacy workers, grocery workers, bank workers, journalists, mail carriers).  As well, feel free to video you and your family making some noise (voice, hands or instrument) outside your house on Wednesday between 6:30- 6:45 p.m. in support of our essential workers.

You can also post a picture or short video on twitter, and tag @StClareOCSB so that we can all enjoy it! You can also post it on our Flipgrid using your ocsbstudent account and this link:  https://flipgrid.com/clare0127 We are looking forward to seeing your messages of thanks!

 Until our next communication, I will continue to pray for the health and well-being for everyone in our community.

Take care and stay well,

Martine Mitton

Ottawa Food Bank

Ottawa & Region 24/7 Distress Center Helpline 

Ottawa Public Health 

211 Ontario 

City of Ottawa

Applying for COVID-19 Emergency Assistance

Hello

I hope and pray this email finds all of you safe, healthy, and navigating these unique times in an upbeat spirit. As for me I am doing well and like everyone, working hard to keep myself and our community healthy. What a unique situation we all find ourselves in; potentially balancing working, caring for sick family members and supporting children that are out of routine and in “indoor recess mode” all day long without playdates. The staff at St Clare is here to support you and are looking forward to the day that our great school is back open.

Until that time, we will continue to choose ways to keep in contact.

This week, educators will be in touch with each student/ family; to reconnect and to answer any questions you may have about learning (ie. how to read with your child, access to your child’s Google account, Hapara, and/or any of the great apps on the student portal, etc..). We will continue to share learning opportunities and have compiled an ever growing list of educational sites in this document. These supports are to provide learning choices and are not meant to overwhelm families. We understand that being well is top priority and that learning takes many forms. Please keep in mind that we are just beginning this journey of distance learning and will be making modifications and communicating along the way.

Lastly, please don’t hesitate to reach out to myself or your educators if you have any questions or concerns or are struggling. We are blessed to have such a wonderful school community and we are here to support you.

Take care, stay healthy and I look forward to the day where we gather together in our school.

Sincerely,

Martine Mitton