Brookside Connect! April 2025!
Principal's Message
Hello Parents and Caregivers,
April has arrived and we are into the spring of things! Thank you to all of our families who attended our Family Love of Learning Night on Wednesday, March 26th. It was great to see so many smiling faces in our school during this lovely evening!
This week (March 31- April 4) is Brookside Student Council's Spirit Week! Get ready for a whole week of Spirit Fun!
Polka dots with stripes? Sure! Hot pink with Neon Green? Why not!
- Monday is Mismatch Monday - Put together a creative outfit that you wouldn't usually wear!
- Twinsies, Twinsies! Tuesday is Twinning Tuesday, choose a friend or two or three and put together matching outfits!
- Wednesday is World Autism Day. This day aims to highlight the need to improve the quality of life for people with autism, enabling them to lead full and meaningful lives. Let's show our support by wearing everything BLUE!
- Raptors, TFC or Toronto Maple Leafs? Thursday is Jersey Jeudi! Put together your best sporty outfit!
- Last but not least - Fabulous You Friday! Put together your favourite outfit that makes you feel happy and confident!
Let's go, Bulldogs!
Brookside Student Council (BSC)
Eckleton Richards Jr. Sarah Sirbos
Principal Vice-Principal
Email: brooksidepublicschool@tdsb.on.ca
Follow us on X: @BrooksidePSTDSB
Website: schoolweb.tdsb.on.ca/brookside
EID MUBARAK TO ALL THOSE CELEBRATING!
2 - APPLY TO THE TDSB! We have many jobs available! Please visit www.tdsb.on.ca/careers to explore options and to apply online.
Table of Contents:
- School Parking Lot Safety
- Brookside's Family Love of Learning Night!
- Eco Team:
- Eco Week April 14 -April 17, 2025
- ECO Team Assembly Thursday, April 17, 2025
- Eco Team The Great Gulp
- Eco Team Battery Drive
- Brookside Student Council (BSC) Update!
- Art Club
- Brookside Global Citizens
- School Community Council
- Volleyball
- BAA House League
- BAA Co-ed Volleyball Tourneys Grade 6 & Grade 7/8
- Summer School 2025
- Google Calendar
- TDSB Days of Significance
- Sikh Heritage Month at the TDSB
- World Autism Awareness Day (April 2nd)
- Puthandu (Tamil New Year)
- World Autism Awareness Day (April 2nd)
- International Day of Pink (April 9th)
- Puthandu (Tamil New Year) (April 14th)
- Deaf History Month (March 13 April 15)
- Earth Day April 22nd
- Repeats and Reminders
- Public Health Reminder: Reducing the spread of Respiratory Illnesses
- Kindergarten Registration
School Parking Lot Safety
PLEASE KEEP OUR STUDENTS SAFE! Our staff parking lot is an extremely busy zone during morning entry, lunch and dismissal times and unfortunately we cannot accommodate student drop-off and pick-ups through our parking lot. When driving your children to and from school, please park your car on one of our nearby side streets and walk to Brookside to greet them. We do our very best to maintain student safety by having a staff member stationed in the driveway between the two large orange drum pylons. Thus, we can only allow staff vehicles and school buses into our driveway. Thank you very much for your cooperation.
Brookside's Family Love of Learning Night!
Our Family Love of Learning Night was awesome!!
We went to many stations and saw people playing games, coding, making bookmarks, dice games, bingo and so much more. Lots of fun with math and language. At the end of Love of Learning Night everyone was gathered in the gym and there were a whole heap of prizes to be won. If your passport for the day was drawn you could take home an amazing prize. It was still fun even though we didn’t win a prize. We hope there is another Love of Learning Night next year. It was a nice time to be around family and friends and learn at the same time.
Erin and Aathiksa - Grade 4
Eco-Team
Eco Team: Eco Week - April 14 - April 17, 2025
Hey Bulldogs! The Eco Team is proud to announce that we will be hosting an Eco Week from April 14th to April 17th. Each day will focus on something unique that is related to the environment and will lead up to our Eco Assembly on Thursday, April 17th. Classes will be encouraged to participate in activities such as going outside, having a community clean up, learning about recycling and more! Stay tuned for announcements for more details!
Sabbresh & Athieban
Eco Team - The Great Gulp
The Great Gulp is an Eco Schools initiative to raise awareness about drinking water and to reduce single use plastic water bottles. We will participate in The Great Gulp on Tuesday, April 1st. The entire school is asked to participate by taking a sip from a reusable water bottle ALL AT THE SAME TIME! We are recognizing the importance of our drinking water and how we need to reduce our use of single use plastics. Let’s help the environment and build our awareness of drinking water. Let’s appreciate this precious resource that we have!!!
ECO Team Assembly - Thursday, April 17, 2025
Happy Spring, Bulldogs! As we near the end of the school year, the ECO Team is planning an Assembly!! It will take place on Thursday, April 17, after lunch, and will be hosted by the executive members. Throughout the assembly, we will be showcasing our initiatives and goals, as well as what we’ve accomplished so far and some photos and slides to represent our work . The ECO Team is looking forward to seeing everyone at the assembly!
Battery Drive
Hey Brookside! Throughout February to April, it is Battery Drive time. The Eco Team will be doing a Battery Drive because batteries can cause landfills to become toxic to our earth! So that is why we will be taking used batteries 🔋! So Brookside, bring us your used/unwanted batteries, so Brookside can recycle them by going to stores like staples, etc. Also, a special thank you to everyone for making our environment more eco-friendly and our earth a better place! 🔋
By Kavinash & Sharmi
Brookside Student Council (BSC) Update!
The BSC has a few things planned for April, including a school assembly (Recognition for sports/teams/clubs, welcome for Principal Wadden, etc.), a Spirit Week, and much more. Keep an ear out for information that will be shared in upcoming announcements!
By: Poomiha
Art Club
Hey Brookside!! The Brookside Art Council is back with another workshop! I challenge you to guess what it is. It is… Drumroll please!! Magnet workshop! For the magnet workshop, Brookside Art Council has prepared wooden magnets for you to draw silhouettes of animals on. After you draw on your piece of wood, you get to glue a magnet on the back, and there you have it; your very own do-it-yourself magnet! You can hang it on your fridge, anything that has a metal surface. May CREATIVITY continue to GROW in Brookside!
Hashini & Prithikaa
Brookside Global Citizens
The Brookside Global Citizens has sadly come to an end this month. We would like to thank you all for your support through the school year. See you next year!
Nihashini
School Community Council
PIZZA LUNCH--TUESDAY, MAY 6, 2025
We are planning our second Pizza Lunch for this year on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. We do require parent/caregiver volunteers at lunchtime to help organize and distribute pizza to classes. If you are available and interested in lending a helping hand, please contact us via this Google from at: Pizza Lunch Volunteer Form. We urge you to consider joining us on this day as we are really relying on our parent volunteers to make this happen for our children.
Pizza lunch orders will soon be available through School Cash Online. Orders are due no later than Monday, April 28. NO CASH or LATE ORDERS will be accepted.
Please join us for our next School Council Meeting on Monday, May 26 @ 6:30 p.m. in the Library.
Regards,
School Council Co-Chairs
Neerajah Ponnampalam and Andrew Ariyaratnam
Email: 4073SC01@tdsb.on.ca
Volleyball and Badminton
Our Junior and Intermediate Volleyball and Badminton Teams have been busy practicing for our upcoming tournaments!
Please note the following dates:
Grade 5/6 Volleyball (w/Mr. Park and Ms. Steward) hosting at Brookside: Tuesday, April 1, 2025
Grade 7/8 Volleyball (w/Mr. Park) @ Henry Kelsey: Wednesday, April 2, 2025
Grade 5 Badminton (w/Mr. Lyn) @ Samuel Hearne: Thursday, April 10, 2025
Grade 7/8 Badminton (w/Mr. Lyn) @ Military Trail: Wednesday, April 26, 2025
BAA House League:
Hey Juniors! Just a reminder that we will be starting our Junior House League soon!
~ Arushi
BAA Co-ed Volleyball Tourneys Grade 6 & Grade 7/8:
The Grade 6 Co-ed Volleyball team will be playing here at Brookside on Tuesday, April 1st. Good luck Grade 6s!
The Grade 7/8 Co-ed Volleyball Team will be playing on April 2nd. Good luck Intermediate Bulldogs! Woof!
~ Arushi
TDSB Summer School Programs
Elementary School (Registration is open): Elementary Summer School
Secondary School: Continuing Education Secondary Credit (Registration opens Tuesday, April 22nd)
e-Summer School Program (Registration tentatively opens on Monday, April 15th for TDSB students and Tuesday, April 29th for NON-TDSB students)
TDSB Global Leadership and Communication Camp 2025
Special Education: Special Education and Inclusion Summer Program
Calendar
TDSB Days of Significance
TDSB Days of Significance
April is Sikh Heritage Month!
Since 2016, the TDSB has proudly recognized Sikh Heritage Month every April, becoming the first school board in Canada to do so. This aligns with the Province of Ontario's Sikh Heritage Month Act in December 2013 and the Government of Canada's recognition on April 30, 2019.
The theme for Sikh Heritage Month 2025 is Ekta (Oneness), Solidarity, and Resilience.
Educational offerings for students, staff, and the community are inspired by Guru Nanak's teachings on justice, equality, and community. These principles challenge discrimination, combat bullying, and promote inclusivity.
By celebrating Sikh diversity and shared humanity, we foster dialogue, learning, and collective action. Through storytelling, workshops, and school-wide initiatives, we highlight how Sikh teachings inspire unity and empower students to stand against injustice with courage, compassion, and Chardi Kala (relentless optimism).
Sikh Heritage Month - Celebrations and Educational Offerings
All students, staff, and community members are invited to attend the TDSB Sikh Heritage Month Virtual Celebration. The event features Navjot Kaur, author of We Are Cheesemakers, as the keynote speaker, along with several student entertainment pieces.
TDSB Sikh Heritage Month Virtual Celebration
Thursday, April 3, 2025
10 to 11 a.m.
Click here to access the live stream!
We are thrilled to share a Q&A with television director and producer Harbinder Singh as he details his professional journey to success.
The Sikh Heritage Committee is continuing with its podcast series! This year, listeners can enjoy new episodes that reflect our current theme of Ekta (Oneness), Solidarity, and Resilience. The complete podcast series can be found at the bottom of this post.
The results of the Sikh Heritage Month Poster Challenge will be added to this post shortly. Kudos to all students for their outstanding submissions!
We are excited to showcase this TDSB Sikh Heritage Month Committee video that teaches about Sikh identity, the power of unity, community, and cross-racial solidarity. May we continue to celebrate humanity and the oneness of all.
Sikh Heritage Month at the TDSB – April 2024
Sikh Heritage Month is celebrated in April because Vaisakhi is celebrated, which marks the birth of Khalsa (community of Sikh people who have showcased their commitment to follow Sikhism.)
- month gives us an opportunity to remember, celebrate and educate future generations about Sikh Canadians and their contributions to society. During April, there are many events and activities organized in our communities to celebrate and recognize Sikh culture.
Akshara and Poomiha
World Autism Awareness Day (April 2nd)
World Autism Awareness Day is on April 2nd. On this day, people spread awareness about autism and learn how to create inclusive spaces for EVERYONE! We honour this day by learning how to support and advocate for the differences and strengths of people with autism. During this day people wear blue to “Shine a light on Autism”. Let’s celebrate and recognize World Autism Awareness Day! On Wednesday April 2nd, let’s wear BLUE and “Shine a Light on Autism!” - Raghavi and Lakshara
International Day of Pink - April 9th
Hey Bulldogs!
Don’t forget to wear pink on Wednesday, April 9th! Why? It’s the International Day of Pink, of course!
Now how did this all start?
The International Day of Pink started in 2007 when a Nova Scotian teenage boy was bullied for wearing a pink t-shirt. The students in his school organized the school to wear a pink shirt as a way to stand up against bullying. This spread and quickly became an international day of action against ALL forms of bullying! International Day of Pink focuses on standing up against all forms of hate towards the 2SLGBTQIA + communities. This day of action takes place on the second Wednesday of April annually.
We should never bully or treat people differently based on their looks or what they wear.
BE KIND. DON’T JUDGE. Everyone deserves to be loved, respected and treated with dignity. On Wednesday, April 9th, 2025, wear PINK and support this day of action and STAND UP against all forms of bullying!
~ Arushi
Puthandu (Tamil New Year)
Tamil New Year, also known as Puthandu or Chithirai Thirunaal, marks the first day of the Tamil calendar and is celebrated by Tamils worldwide. This vibrant festival is not just the beginning of the new year. It is a reflection of the rich cultural heritage, traditions, and customs that have been passed down through generations. It usually falls on April 14th, aligning with the solar month of Chithirai, which is the first month of the Tamil calendar. Happy Tamil New Year!!!
Nihashini
Deaf History Month (March 13 -April 15)
History Month is celebrated every year from March 13 to April 15, honouring the achievements, culture, and history of the Deaf community. This time was chosen to honor important events in Deaf history, like the founding of the first school for the Deaf in America. Deaf History Month is recognized to raise awareness about the Deaf community's contributions and promote understanding of Deaf culture. It also highlights the importance and significance of sign language as a means of communication and education. Celebrating Deaf History Month encourages people to learn more about the challenges and triumphs that have shaped the Deaf experience, as well as to acknowledge the ongoing fight for equal rights, accessibility, and inclusion for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities.
Jagesh and Vihaan
Earth Day - April 22nd
Earth Day, celebrated on April 22nd each year, is a day to raise awareness about environmental issues and encourage people to take action to protect the planet. Earth Day is celebrated in over 190 countries and focuses on problems like climate change, pollution, and deforestation. On this day, people plant trees, reduce waste, use renewable energy, and support businesses that care about the environment. Earth Day reminds us that we all need to care for the planet to make sure it stays healthy for future generations.
Nihashini
Repeats and Reminders...
Public Health Reminder: Reducing the spread of Respiratory Illnesses
Registration for all TDSB English Kindergarten programs begins in January. Families have the option of registering their child online at www.tdsb.on.ca/kindergarten or in-person at the school. With both options, families will be invited to come to the school to validate registration information and participate in a Welcome to Kindergarten event hosted by the school.