Principal's Message
The holidays are a wonderful time of year, but sometimes there are families that are in need of assistance to help them through this time of year. Please help out some Greater Gatineau families by donating some food items or by requesting an angel tag from our angel tree to buy a gift for a child. We still have 15 angel tags left, and more food items are welcomed.
We will be delivering food baskets and gifts to 18 families from our school. We are working with St. Aloysius Church on this holiday project.
We have been experiencing a high number of student absences; and extra cleaning protocols and hand washing/sanitizing are in place. Please remember to keep your child at home if they have a fever, or are feeling too sick to participate in a regular school day.
In order to be able to have successful Home and School events, we need more volunteers to join. Please consider joining the committee to help have some great school events. Please email: gghomeandschool@gmail.com .
Reminder that the last day of school before the holiday is Friday, December 23rd. We return to school on Tuesday, January 10th after the winter break.
I’d like to wish everyone a wonderful holiday season!
PROPER DRESS
With the weather turning colder, we want to remind you that children must be dressed appropriately for the weather. Hats, mittens/gloves, warm coats, snow pants and boots are needed so they can play outside comfortably.
Events at School
NEW TO YULE – December 9
The Home & School will host the New to Yule which is like a garage sale with no money involved. All students have the opportunity to pick an item for a family member or friend. We wrap it and they take it home.
This is a great way to give during the Holiday Season to those we love!
This event is completely FREE!
See New to Yule 2022 flyer for details.
SCHOOL PLAYS – December 15
This year the Drama Club will be performing two separate plays. Grades 2 and 3 will be performing “The Night Before Christmas” and Grades 4, 5 and 6 will be performing “The Reindeer Rebellion”. Students have been working very hard since September to memorize their lines and perfect their acting skills! Parents are welcome to come and watch at either of these times on December 15, 2022.
Performance 1 at 10:55 for Kindergarten to Grade 2
Performance 2 at 12:35 for Grade 3 to 6
SPECIAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON
HOLIDAY BINGO
Some classes will participate in a Holiday Bingo during the last week of school.
FESTIVE HAT DAY -Wednesday, December 21
Break out the Santa hat or reindeer antlers or create your own special hat for festive hat day.
HOLIDAY SWEATER DAY -Thursday, December 22
Put on a holiday sweater or something red and green to show-off your holiday spirit – holiday of your choice.
HOLIDAY SING-ALONG – Friday, December 23
The Holiday Sing-Along will take place on December 23rd in the gym. Students will sing various holiday songs. Unfortunately, due to space limitations parents are not able to attend.
PAJAMA DAY – Friday, December 23
Please wear your favourite pajamas to celebrate the last day of school for 2022.
MAZZOLA HOT LUNCH
We offer hot meals on Mondays and Fridays here at Greater Gatineau. The company we use is Mazzola.
Place your orders online at order.mazzola.ca
SUBWAY LUNCH
Our Subway lunch program runs right until Wednesday, December 21, 2022. New program to start in the new year.
MONTHLY ASSEMBLY
Our next assembly will be on Tuesday, December 20th, where we will celebrate the students who have shown the chosen virtue throughout the month.
Please remember to wear your purple Greater Gatineau shirt to all of our monthly assemblies. This creates a sense of community at school.
- Grade 5+6 at 10:05
- Kindergarten, Grade 1+2 at 10:55
- Grade 3+4 at 12:35
December is COOPERATION month. We hope to see students making an effort to work together as a team.
PEACE LEARNING CIRCLES AT HOME
Here is a quick and fun energizer you can do at home with your whole family.
It’s called “Do After Me” Sit in a large circle. One person begins by entering the circle and making a gesture, sound, or movement (the more ridiculous, the more fun), and then points to someone else in the circle to succeed them. This person makes the same gesture, sound, or movement as the proceeding person made, and then adds their own performance. They then choose the next person, and this person need only repeat the preceding action and add one before choosing someone new.
The game is over when everyone has had a chance in the circle.
Home & School
Thank you to all families who supported our Greater Gatineau Home and School Association Cookie Dough, Muffins and Cinnamon Bun Fundraiser!
Reminder, order pick-up is on Thursday, December 15 from 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm in the gym (please enter through the back gym door). This will be your only opportunity to pick up your order.
We are very excited for the return of New to Yule, we are currently accepting donations of gently used toys, mugs, costume jewelry, books etc. We also are looking for donations of wrapping paper and gift bags. Please send all items to the school by December 8th.
In the spring we are planning our online auction. We are looking for donations for our auction. If you know of any companies who would like to donate or maybe even your own company, please send us an email.
We are also always looking for new members to join us or ideas for upcoming events, please contact us via email gghomeandschool@gmail.com or through our Facebook page.
We will continue to post on our Facebook page, if you haven’t done so already, please follow us to stay up to date on upcoming events facebook.com/GreaterGatineau. We will have some new activities coming in the new year.
The next Home & School meeting will be on Monday, December 12 at 6:30pm. We hold our meetings virtually, please reach out to us via email if you would like to attend.
The Home & School would like to wish all Greater Gatineau families a very happy holiday season!
Daycare
Our daycare is divided into underwater animal groups this year. You may know already, but you can ask your child if they are a sea turtle, starfish, seahorse, shark, or dolphin. All the sea creatures are watched over by the octopus aka Jennifer.
Daycare Remind messages are sent to @ggdaycare and @ggdaycare2 regarding PD days and other daycare updates. New families please sign up for @ggdaycare2 on the Remind App.
Should you have any questions about our program or to register for the PD days please do not hesitate to contact Jennifer by phone at (819) 663-4842 ext. 3 or e-mail jplaxton@wqsb.qc.ca
Next PD day is January 9th and will have a deadline of December 16th for registration.
Special Notes
FOOD DRIVE FOR CHRISTMAS
We will be collecting canned food, pickles, pasta, rice, toothpaste, laundry detergent, and any other non-perishable items until Wednesday, December 14th, 2022.
Please give generously so we will have enough items to help out some families in our school.
Please make sure that you check the expiration dates on the items.
If your family is in need of a food basket, please email Mrs. Link at vlink@wqsb.qc.ca.
ANGEL TREE
This program helps our less fortunate families make the Christmas season a little brighter.
You can receive an angel tag which would have “boy” or “girl” marked on it with their age. You would purchase an age appropriate gift valued at approximately $25.00. You wrap the gift and send it back to the school with the angel tag taped onto the gift so we can make sure it gets to the right person.
If you are interested in an Angel Tag, you can email Julie at jcaron@wqsb.qc.ca and we will be happy to send one home with your child.
We will record your name to help us keep track of who has the Angel Tags and ensure that all children receive a gift.
Please make sure that all gifts are returned to school no later than Wednesday, December 14th, so they can be organized for distribution.
Christmas is for children and we hope you can help us put as many smiles as we can on the faces of Greater Gatineau students.
REMEMBERING REMEMBRANCE DAY
Free Online Tutoring – Learn Quebec
Students are eligible for free online tutoring. You simply need to register and use your child’s WQSB email and password to log in. Please take advantage of this great opportunity if your child is in need of some extra assistance. For more information; please visit: learnquebec.ca/en/home
UPCOMING PARENT WORKSHOP
On January 19th, 2023 Michael Ungar (Ph.D.) will show us how to help families stop being overprotective and provide kids with what they need to grow up well. For more information and to register see the flyer below.
Anti-Racism Committee (ARC)
Land acknowledgement
The land on which we gather is traditional unceded Omamiwininiwag (Algonquin) and Anishinabewaki territory .
Featured version of O’Canada for the month of December
This version of O’Canada is sung by Kalolin Johnson who is 23 year old, from the Eskasoni Mi’kmaq community of Cape Breton. This is her version of O’Canada in Mikmaq and English.
International Day of Persons with Disabilities – December 3rd
International Day of Person with Disabilities was created by the United Nations in 1992 to promote an understanding of disability issues and show support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities.
International Volunteer Day – December 5th
International Volunteer Day is a global celebration of volunteers. It takes place every year on December 5 to shine a light on the impact of volunteer efforts everywhere. Thank you to all the volunteers who support our school!
Human Rights Day – December 10th
Human Rights Day is a commemoration of the day the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations. It provides all adults and children with equality and the right to education.
Hanukkah – begins December 18th
Hanukkah, the festival of lights, is celebrated by the Jewish community for eight days with nightly menorah lighting, special prayers and cultural dishes.
Winter Solstice – December 21st
Winter solstice marks the first day of winter. It is the shortest day and longest night of the year. It is December 21st or 22nd in the Northern Hemisphere but actually in July in the Southern Hemisphere. Cultures across the world celebrate the shortest day of the year in different ways.
Christmas – December 25th
Christmas is celebrated on December 25th . It is both a Christian holiday to celebrate the birth of Jesus and cultural phenomenon that includes the legendary Santa Claus.
Kwanzaa Begins – December 26th
Kwanzaa, modeled after traditional African harvest festivals, is a cultural holiday that celebrates seven principles. It emphasizes unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.