In the spirit of supporting others, our Cookies for a Cure Club raised monies for Movember through a bake sale on Friday in the foyer. Way to go! Over the next two weeks, our Friends for Food Club will host a food drive in support of the Daily Bread Food Bank. If you are able, please consider donating canned fish, fruit, tomatoes, vegetables, oatmeal and/or peanut butter. More information about our food drive can be found below.
There will be lots happening over the coming weeks as we wrap before the Winter holidays. Listen up to the morning announcements to hear about how to purchase Mistletoe Mysteries, find out about our Celebration of Music and more!
Sincerely,
Yvette Duffy, Principal Maharukh Kootar, Vice Principal Nancy Martins, Vice Principal
In this issue:
- The Next Two Weeks at a Glance
- Academic Awards Breakfast Celebration – Tuesday, November 29 – NEW Date
- School Calendar & Vacation Planning 2022/2023 Reminder
- Late Start – Wednesday, November 30 – Classes Begin at 9:55 a.m.
- Food Drive – Monday, November 27 to Friday, December 7
- Grad Photos – November 28 through December 9
- Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test – Tuesday, December 6 & Wednesday, December 7
- Grade 8 Open House & Out-of-Area Admissions – New Procedures
- Celebration of Music Night – Thursday, December 15 – Save the Date!
- Call Out: Planning for Know Your Worth Conference
- National Society of Black Engineers – Annual High School Conference Planning – Seeking Students
- Tamil Heritage Month - Poster Challenge: Invitation to ALL TDSB Students
- Messages from Special Education & Student Success – TDSB Virtual Community Fairs
- Messages from Guidance
- Messages from School Council Chair Tracy Kowal – Wish List 2022 & December Meeting
- Trustee Laskin’s Weekly Updates
The Next Two Weeks at a Glance
Keep apprised of what is happening by linking to our school year calendar which is live on our school website landing page.
Academic Awards Breakfast Celebration – Tuesday, November 29 – NEW Date
Owing to recent CUPE work action, our Academic Awards Celebration to honour our 2021/2022 students who received the top mark in a course was rescheduled to Tuesday, November 29 from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. in the cafeteria. A lovely breakfast will be served. All award winners were sent a personal email invitation to their TDSB email account. If students have not already done so, they are requested to RSVP. There will be no special schedule for the celebration; award winners will be excused for part of their first period classes. Congratulations to our award winners!
School Calendar & Vacation Planning 2022/2023 Reminder
As mentioned in our first two September newsletters, the 2022-23 School Calendar is available on the TDSB website. Please link to TDSB Secondary School Calendar 2022/2023 for important exam and holiday dates. Please note that we will be scheduling final Exams and culminating activities for the 2022-23 school year in both January and June. A reminder that vacations are not considered a legitimate absence from instructional or exam days. Every effort should be made to avoid scheduling family vacations during school time. In the event of a missed evaluation due to a family vacation, teachers are not required to provide an alternative form of evaluation or exam and a mark of zero may be assigned.
Late Start – Wednesday, November 30 – Classes Begin at 9:55 a.m.
Each month our staff will participate in our monthly Professional Learning. This will result in a late start for students as classes will begin at 9:55 a.m. Link to Daily & Late Schedule for more information.
Food drive: Monday, November 27 to Wednesday, December 7
Over the past twelve months in Toronto, there have been 1.99 million visits to food banks, and demand is projected to push that number to over two million for the 2022 calendar year. See Who’s Hungry 2022 Report for more information.
Forest Hill's Friends for Food Club is organizing a food drive for the Daily Break Food Bank. Please bring items to the front foyer or room G25 from Monday, November 27 to Friday, December 7. Not sure what to donate? Please see a list of most needed items here. No donation is too small! Thank you for your support in helping needy Toronto families. A special shout out to our Friends for Food Club and Ms. Kukar who are organizing this!
Grad Photos – Monday, November 28 through Wednesday, December 7 – Appointment Necessary
An email was sent to all potential graduates, parents and guardians last week to indicate that Grad Photos will begin on Monday, November 28 by appointment and run until Wednesday, December 7. Note the change in the final date. There are 240 spots available for our 192 grads. Book now to save a spot!
Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test – Tuesday, December 6 & Wednesday, December 7
All grade 10 students are required to write the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) as part of their graduation requirement. The Semester 1 OSSLT is scheduled for Tuesday, December 6, and Wednesday, December 7. Semester 1 grade 10 English students who are registered in ENG2D1 and previously eligible students are required to write on these dates. These students received a hardcopy OSSLT letter at the end of last week indicating the room in which they will be writing.
To access practice tests and more information, link to: EQAO – OSSLT Practice Test page. Please keep in mind that this test assesses grade 9 curriculum. Note: Semester 2 grade 10 English students will write in April. Thank you to our Literacy Committee and Ms. Martins who are working to support the delivery of this mandatory test.
Grade 8 Open House & Out-of-Area Admissions – New Procedures
Forest Hill will host our Grade 8 Open house for students and families on Tuesday, December 13. Grade 8 students accompanied by their teachers from Forest Hill Junior Public & Senior School and Cedarvale Community School will join us during the afternoon of the 13th to learn about our school.
We will open our doors to parents, guardians and students from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Link to our flyer to learn more. All are welcome in the evening!
Beginning this year, the TDSB has new procedures for Out-of-Area Admissions (formerly called Optional Attendance). Forest Hill Collegiate will have Limited status for 2023/2024. There will be a limited number of grade 9 seats available at Forest Hill and these will be open to all students from all priority groups. Electronic applications will be available on Monday, January 9 and will be submitted electronically to a central application centre. To learn more about the new application process, link to How do I apply for Out-of-Area Admission? Students interested in attending Forest Hill that are outside our catchment area are encouraged to speak to their grade 8 teacher or school administrator.
Celebration of Music Night – Thursday, December 15 – Save the Date!
Our Music Directorate, under the sponsorship of Ms. Simas, is organizing the Celebration of Music Night on Thursday, December 15. Please mark your calendars and consider joining us to celebrate our music students who will be showcasing their musical talents in the auditorium at 7:00 p.m. More details will be shared in upcoming newsletters.
Call Out: Planning for Know Your Worth Conference
Calling all Black Students! The TDSB is looking for interested TDSB Black identifying students to join a student committee to organize this year's Black History Month/African Heritage Month student conference! TDSB will hold the annual Know Your Worth Conference for Youth in February 2023. This is a conference focuses on the empowerment for Black youth and is created by youth. The first virtual meeting will be on Monday, November 28, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. To show your interest and commitment to being a part of this much anticipated day, please complete this form: KYW Student Committee Registration. If you have any questions, reach out via email to Lena Hall, lena.hall@tdsb.on.ca or Randy Samuel, randy.samuel@tdsb.on.ca.
National Society of Black Engineers – Annual High School Conference Planning – Seeking Students
The National Society of Black Engineers - University of Toronto Chapter is looking for six students from grades 9 through 12 who identify as Black to lead in the planning of their Annual High School Conference in February. This is a great opportunity to work and collaborate with current undergraduates on the NSBE Executive board to create an event that best engages high school students in stem related activities. Students may count this towards their volunteer experience hours. Apply using this form by November 29: NSBE UofT High School Conference.
Tamil Heritage Month - Poster Challenge: Invitation to ALL TDSB Students
Tamil Heritage Month is proudly recognized in January by the TDSB. This coincides with one of the most important festivals celebrated by Tamils in South Asia and all over the world - Thai Pongal, a harvest festival that offers prayers of thanks to the sun and nature for giving bountiful crops. The theme for this year is: Community. Belonging. Joy. All TDSB students are encouraged to participate in a Poster Challenge to support Tamil Heritage Month. The selected images will be shared across the system and posted to our TDSB websites. Deadline: Thursday, December 8, 2022 by 3:00 p.m.
To enter, please send posters to tdsbtamilheritagemonth@gmail.com in a .pdf or .jpeg format with the student’s name, grade, email and contact phone number. Full details with the contest guidelines are available on the attached document. For more information contact Tamil Heritage Month Volunteer Planning Committee Members: Abhi Arulanantham, abhi.arulanantham@tdsb.on.ca or Sharlene Mathivathanan, sharlene.mathivathanan@tdsb.on.ca.
Messages from Special Education & Student Success – TDSB Virtual Community Fairs
TDSB social workers are hosting Virtual Community Fairs for Families/Caregivers of children, youth and adults with special needs, i.e. students integrated in regular classrooms, Intensive Support Programs (ISP), and Congregated Schools. The Fair will showcase Community Parenting Partners who provide social skills, life skills, and respite support, including Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Woodgreen Community Services, Extend-A-Family, Respite Services, and P4P Planning Network. Please refer to this flyer for details.
Two sessions will be held as follows:
- Mnday December 5, 2022 from 9:30 a.m. to non
- Mnday December 12, 2022 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Zoom Meeting Link: Virtual Community Fair - Meeting ID: 983 6737 8226, Passcode: 969515.
Messages from Guidance
UofT Virtual Hubs for Black and Indigenous Students
University of Toronto has set up central hubs to support prospective Black and Indigenous students and their families to navigate the tri-campus network of UT. These hubs offer a glimpse into student life, scholarships, programs and community on campus. Link to Future Black Undergraduate Students or Future Indigenous Undergraduate Students to learn more.
Virtual Ontario Universities’ Fair
The Ontario Universities’ Fair Virtual Information Session will be held on Thursday, December 1 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Further details can be found at Virtual Ontario Universities Information Session.
Grade 12 Post-Secondary Liaison Visits Upcoming
Forest Hill is excited to host various post-secondary institutions at lunch. Since October, our Guidance department has been hosting FHCI Post-Secondary Sessions 2022/2023. Our last scheduled session is as follows:
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Date
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Time
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School
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Location
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Monday, December 5
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11:40 a.m.
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Seneca College
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Room 245
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OUAC Applications
All students are encouraged to watch this video: How To Create Your OUAC Account & Complete the 101 Application. Equal Consideration Deadline for Ontario universities is January 12, 2023.
Students Taking External Credits Outside of the TDSB
Students taking external credits outside of TDSB are reminded that Forest Hill does not share mid-term reports from external institutions with OUAC. Forest Hill only enters the final mark upon receiving the final report card from the external institution and will be uploaded to OUAC during scheduled TDSB transmissions.
Students are encouraged to have the external credit provider upload the course and mid-term mark directly to OUAC. Please review the 5:25 mark of this video, to learn how to add an external institution to your OUAC application. Students must provide their OUAC Reference Number, generated AFTER submission of their OUAC application, to enable the external institution uploads.
OCAS Applications
Students who are planning to apply to Ontario colleges are encouraged to link to and review this instruction video: How To Apply to Ontario Colleges. Equal Consideration Deadline for Ontario Colleges is February 1, 2023
Messages from School Council – Chair Tracy Kowal
Wish List 2022 – Raising Funds to Replace the Stage – Please Donate!
On behalf of FHCI's School Council, we are excited to launch our 2022 Wish List Campaign!
This annual fundraiser provides all families the opportunity to enrich our children's classrooms with materials and equipment to enhance their education. Through provincial funding, the TDSB covers the day-to-day expenses of basic school operations. Through the Wish List Campaign, we provide the extras the school board doesn't cover.
This year, we are raising funds to help with the installation of a new stage for the school auditorium. We are reaching out for your support as we cannot do this without you. No donation is too small! Find out how to donate by linking to this flyer: FHCI Wish List 2022.
School Council Meeting – Wednesday, December 14 @ 7:30 p.m.
Please join us in-person in the school library for our next School Council meeting on Wednesday, December 14 @7:30 p.m. Please send agenda items and RSVP to our Chair Tracy Kowal at tracy.kowal@yahoo.ca.
Trustee Laskin’s Weekly Updates
Learn more about upcoming events and keep informed by linking to Trustee Laskin's Weekly Newsletter.
Land Acknowledgement: We, the students and staff of Forest Hill Collegiate Institute, acknowledge that we are hosted on the lands of the Mississaugas of the Anishinaabe, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and the Wendat. We also recognize the enduring presence of all First Nations, Métis, and the Inuit peoples.