Mill Valley Connects 

News From the School & the School Advisory Council

October 2022

Message from the Principal, Ms. Tumangday

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Thank you, parents, students and staff, for another beautiful month at Mill Valley!  October was filled with wonderful events and great weather too!  We started October with a big event for the school: 50 students participated in the west cross country races at Centennial Park.  It was a lot of fun with 15 parent volunteers and loads of school spirit.  15 runners made it to the West Conference Finals on October 18th, and then our very own grade 4 student Marlee made it to the city finals on October 26th.  All in all, it was a successful cross country season for Mill Valley.  

On October 11th, we had some special visitors come to the kindergarten programme: our local fire department brought their truck and the kindergarten students were fascinated with both the truck and the firefighters.  

October brought in a lot of professional learning as well at Mill Valley.  We worked on our school improvement plan and set goals in equity, achievement, well-being and Indigenous learning.  We had Scholastic come in and do PD with the teachers on new phonics resources, and we began to book Scientists in the Schools.  As well, our students were engaged in many interesting learning opportunities as well in October.  Continuing with the fall theme, the grade 1s and 2s made applesauce while the grade ⅔ class learned how to make an Apple Wrecking Ball for science.  The grade 5 class had a fun afternoon making ice cream, with help from our school council chair Stephanie.  

Community engagement continued to grow this month with a wonderful event for students on October 24th, 2022.  Parent council set up a wonderful fall display and a pumpkin patch, and every student got to choose their own pumpkin to decorate.  As well, the Mill Valley community pitched in to help new Ukrainian families in Toronto by donating money and household items.  The month ended with a successful Halloween parade and pumpkin display at Mill Valley, and a great parent turnout!

Thank you again for your support this month, Mill Valley!

Message from the School Advisory Council

Happy October!  The start up of the year is always a busy one as we plan out the year with Fundraising Goals, survey families about direction for the school council, meet with parents about the School Statement of Needs and start up with coffee dates get-to-know-yous.  

We met with the new Kindergarten families and had coffee in the school yard one Monday.  It was a great way to connect with families, have them meet each other and get to know one another.  We also had a stop in from Ms. Tumangday who came out to join us for a short bit.  We look forward to working together on projects and events together and bringing them into the amazing group of parents we have at Mill Valley including events like the recently held Mill Valley pumpkin patch, Halloween parade and upcoming Winter Fest!

Don’t forget to follow us for updates at:  Mill Valley Connects Facebook Group and Instagram.

Meet Your Council Executive Members

Stephanie Potter-Davey Chair (Acclaimed) - Stephanie has been chair, co-chair or secretary on the School Council for four years, working on fundraising, event planning and parent engagement.  Her children are Gabriel in Grade 5 and Maggie in Grade 3.

Heather Roy  Secretary (Acclaimed) - Heather has worked behind the scenes on events hosted by the school council, has organized and coordinated volunteers as well as proof-reading school council documents.   Her children are Everly and Finn in Grade 1.

Melanie Yuen  Treasurer (Acclaimed) - Melanie has also worked behind the scenes proofreading, organizing events, keeping spreadsheets and consulting for us.  This year, she is stepping into the role as treasurer. Her daughter is Naomi in grade 2 and Milo in SK.

Looking forward to serving you and working together on projects, events and student achievement!

Ontario’s Plan to Catch Up: Math, Reading & Writing

Standardized testing across Ontario demonstrated that Ontario students need to catch up in reading, writing and math.  Each child is eligible for $200-250 to go towards tutoring.  You can apply here:

https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/1002410/province-takes-action-to-ensure-students-catch-up

Parking Lot Safety:

Please use the two designated drop off zones:  One for kindergarten and one for school aged children or park on the side streets and walk your children to the gate.   Please do not let your children run or walk across the parking lot unaccompanied.  

Using the DROP OFF LOOP in the mornings is safer and easier for you!  To make it easier and safer, there are three-four volunteers/staff working in the mornings.  Instruction on how to use the parking lot loop are here:

Coffee Date for SK Parents/Caregivers

We will be hosting our second virtual coffee date for parents/caregivers of students in Junior Kindergarten.  Please join us online on zoom, meet other parents and chat with us.  It’s a great informal way to connect and let us know how the beginning of school is going.  Please bring concerns/questions/ideas you might have.  A zoom link will be sent to parents/caregivers for this event.

SK Coffee date: Nov 10th  (time to be determined - pending survey)

Dates for other grades to follow!

Mill Valley School Spiritwear

Coyote Spirit Wear - The Mill Valley clothing shop is now open!  If you would like Mill Valley spirit wear - hoodies, tshirts, pants, or toques - please go to this link: Mill Valley Shop. Everything is done online. Please direct all questions to Ms Scott at adrienne.scott@tdsb.on.ca.  Sizes are standard Canadian sizes similar to what you buy for your children already. Since all clothing is made to order there are no refunds or exchanges. The delivery date will be appropriate 4 weeks after the store closes on November 11th. Happy shopping!

DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 11th!

Playground Renewal Project

Mill Valley has been chosen for a TDSB Playground Renewal Project!  This means that the asphalt and all the equipment on the asphalt in the main playground will be replaced in the Summer of 2023.  There is a design team who would like parents/caregivers to be part of a public meeting to discuss the plans.  Therefore, you are invited to come to a design meeting on Zoom, on November 8th at 10 am, to learn more about this project.  

https://tdsb-ca.zoom.us/j/96677018805?pwd=ZmdDUmFtZ2dwL2RiUlFpUGd6dGlZQT09 Meeting ID: 966 7701 8805  

Passcode: 320311

School Statement of Needs 2022-2023

Every year, the school council is asked to consult with families of the school to create and/or revise the School Statement of Needs (SSON).  This document is one of the most important documents since it is used when and if there is a change of principal.  As a matter of fact, it was used just this past year when determining the best fit for Mill Valley

Here is a copy of the final copy School Statement of Needs for 2022.

School Statement of Needs 22/23

Mill Valley Family Survey Results

Thank you so much to each family who took the time to fill in the survey in September!  This provided important information on where you want money to go, who we can use as volunteers and whether or not to do pizza lunches and toonie treats.  If you are curious, the results of the surveys are here: Mill Valley Family Survey Results

Safe & Caring Schools Parent Rep

Parents and families always want to make sure every student is safe at school. Did you know that the school has a Caring & Safe School Committee?? Yes, we do! And we need a parent rep. Caring and Safe Schools tackle the following issues:

• Prevention
• Bullying
• Discipline
• Gender-Based Violence Prevention
• Equitable and Inclusive Schools

"Each TDSB school has a Caring and Safe Schools Committee that works together to ensure a positive and peaceful school. All schools have a Safe Schools Plan that includes prevention strategies and peaceful problem solving. Schools work with community partners to attract students into positive activities. We support police outreach through Crime Stoppers and other police-community involvement. We encourage students to help each other through programs like peer mediation, counselling, theatre performances and classroom discussions."

https://www.tdsb.on.ca/.../Caring-Safe-School-Committee

Please let us know if you'd like to be the Parent Rep for Caring and Safe schools at Mill Valley!

mvparentcouncil@gmail.com

Ordering Pizza Lunches

Pizza lunch is every Friday.  If you wish to order pizza, you must do so by Sunday at noon, through School Cash Online.  https://tdsb.schoolcashonline.com/

You can also purchase in advance for the entire month or school year.  

Cross Country Meet 2022 Centennial Park

Fifty-Five students from Mill Valley made the Cross Country team and went to the qualifiers at Centennial Park on Oct 4th.  It was an exhilarating day as all of our students did an amazing job.  This year, 15 students qualified for the Western Conference which took place on Oct 18th.  In Grade 3, Maggie, Gavin, Joshua, and Bennett.  From Grade 4, Marlee, Maisie, Frankie, Ian  and Nolan. And in Grade 5  Grace, Billy, Gabriel, Asif and Benjamin.  William in grade 3 also competed in the Barrier Free race and was cheered on by all his schoolmates at Mill Valley. All of our students did their best and there was a lot of team spirit!!  Thank you to the parents who showed up to support the students and Ms. Evan’s by helping kids get to their starts and collecting them at the finish line.  Marlee from Grade 4 moved on to race in the cities and came in at 52!   Congratulations Marlee!!

If you would like to see pictures of the students getting ready and running the QUALIFIERS race on Oct 4th, or the  Western Conference race on Oct 18th, you can email us at mvparentcouncil@gmail.com and Stephanie can provide you with a link and password.

Halloween and Mill Valley Pumpkin Patch

On October 24th, the School Council brought the farm to Mill Valley! It took some team work and a lot of collaboration between a number of parents to get the pumpkins and farm all ready. Students enjoyed their trip to the farm to get their very own pumpkin to decorate.

Oct 31st was the pumpkin parade complete with warm apple cider for parents/caregivers as they came into the school to watch their children parade through the library on the way to the gym to do the Monster Mash.  We also collected a mountain of household donations for Ukrainian refugees through the Ukrainian Canadian Congress as a way of giving back to the community, something we hope to continue to do moving forward.  So many families showed up to watch and participate.  It was a special day for everyone to be together and have fun!

Thank you for your Support!!!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, parents, caregivers and families for showing up today at Mill Valley to make it a special day! Many of you took time out of your day or time off work to be there.

We managed to take three truck loads of donated items to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress and they were so deeply grateful for our donations. There was also another $215 raised in cash. With that we purchased:

• 2x 12 piece dinnerware,
• 2x set of 4 mugs,
• 2x rectangular serving platters,
• 2x 20 piece cutlery sets,
• 2x copper frying pans,
• 16 piece glassware set,
• 3x cookie/baking sheets,
• 2x 5 piece wooden cooking utensil sets

Thank you to our families for your generosity! Thank you to the staff at Mill Valley and to Ms. Tumangday for all the work collaborating to make it happen.  Families loved being welcomed into the school where the children spend most of their days.

And to the team of volunteers (of which there were many!!) who spoke to the media so eloquently, supplied materials to make things beautiful, got pumpkins to the school, moved donations into vehicles and dropped them off, collected and counted money, and generally lent a helping hand,  you are superb!!!  We could not do the work we do without you!

You can see a few different videos of the parade from various news sources:

City News

Global News

Twitter

We have a Winner!  Connect with us on social media and WIN!

Our aim is to engage with all Mill Valley families socially. If you haven’t already, follow us and we’ll enter you into our monthly draw to win a coffee gift card. This month’s winner is:

Tripti Mittal Jain

 Come find Stephanie at the drop off loop!

Please contact the School Council to pick-up your coffee card: mvparentcouncil@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.conm/groups/472090363276608/

https://www.instagram.com/millvalleyconnects

Upcoming Virtual School Advisory Council Meeting

A Virtual School Advisory Council meeting will be Thursday, November 24th at  7:00 pm via Zoom Meeting.  The agenda will be shared closer to the date.  All parents/caregivers are welcome to attend and listen in.  This requires no other commitment from you!

On the agenda:

1. Principals Report:

1. School Improvement Plan
2. Student Achievement
3. Safe and Caring Schools Report

2. Chair Report:        

1. School Needs Assessment/School Generated Funds/Fundraising Plan
2. Vote on Spiritwear Funds

3. TDSB Grounds Renewal Update
4. Event Committee Update - Winterfest

Zoom Link: https://tdsb-ca.zoom.us/j/99453691645

Meeting ID: 994 5369 1645

Minutes from October’s Meeting:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vT2j1boHb4KyNRFELIrRVnQrPUqqc3P0UHCKZTFD8ifk6U0sNEmhLFaZVR5Ou_DNY1fJsDbHX-iBPp6/pub

Calendar Dates:

November 8th - TDSB Playground Renewal Meeting 10 am

November 8th - Event Planning Committee - Winterfest

November 11th - Remembrance Day

November 11th - Deadline for Spiritwear

School Advisory Council Contact

Principal Email: Leslie.Tumangday@tdsb.on.ca

        Office Administrator: Taryn.Gardiner@tdsb.on.ca

School Council Email: mvparentcouncil@gmail.com