Northern Secondary School

February 19th, 2021

Monday, February 22, 2021 10:18 AM

Good Evening Northern Families,

It has been an amazing week having everyone back in the building. As you heard me say in the fall- thank you to our students for being so fantastic with all the COVID protocols/ screening/ physical distancing etc. I am going to try and keep the bulletin short this week after last week’s lengthy read- the historical section can be skipped unless you need previous highlights.

Thank you to the School Council and our school psychologist Dayna Morris and Social Worker Aimee Gomez for a fantastic presentation on Mental Health during a pandemic last night. Please see these three attachments for some great resources: Hearts and Minds, Office Hours, MH Toolkit.

A course verification message should have been received yesterday. Please check your email and be sure to respond/ reply.

The virtual Club Fair put on by the Buddies and SAC this week was great. In case you missed it, there is a recording here: https://youtu.be/2c_6w_L9EsE?t=42

 

The next Caring and Safe School committee meeting is Tuesday February 23rd at 4pm. If you would like to attend please email dani.kert@tdsb.on.ca and put Caring and Safe Schools in the subject line by 3pm Tuesday.

 

Course Selection To-Do:

 

  1. Course Verification Form:
    1. these forms are separate from MyBlueprint and MUST be completed by a parent/guardian so we know students choices are correct and no changes are required
    2. DUE FEBRUARY 23 by 4 pm
    3. Complete the Course Verification form: https://forms.gle/qSvMwjSXwUzty1tx6
  2. COOP Application:
    1. For those student who have applied to the COOP program for 2021-2022, please complete the coop application asap. For more info: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18QEgnia_E3MSxXx9YOU1ydHemPka1qkX/view?usp=sharing

 

The Guidance team wants to thank students and parents for their patience during this process and for the thoughtful conversations and great work around goal setting that has been happening during this time.

 

OSAP Information Session - Save the date: Wed. Feb 24 @ 3:30 pm

 

On Wednesday, February 24, Robyn Papoff of George Brown College will be hosting a live virtual information session for students and parents about OSAP. Please use the link below to join us on the 24th for this informative event!

Join Zoom Meeting

https://tdsb-ca.zoom.us/j/96410526718?pwd=djJQNG8zZUc4Q3hwMGZnRkc5b1k0Zz09

 

Meeting ID: 964 1052 6718

Passcode: 489014

 

 

Pay it Forward:

Hey Northern! Pay it Forward will be holding a rare disease themed week next week between February 22-26. This will include a guest speaker at our general members meeting on February 25th at 1:15pm! New members are always welcome to come and hear about her experience with having a rare disease. More information can be found on our Instagram page @nss.payitforward! Thank you and we hope to see you all there!

 

School Council:

1) School Council Meeting - Thursday, February 25, 6:30-7:30 pm - All parents are invited to our next School Council meeting. It will include reports from our co-chairs and committees, future plans, and a principal update, where Adam will respond to recent questions from Northern parents. If you would like to attend, send an email to Chandra.Ramdhani@tdsb.on.ca and put “Council Meeting” in the subject line. You will receive a Zoom meeting link by 4 pm on Feb 25. And please send us any questions you would like to be asked!

2) "News for parents, by parents" - sign up for our email list for updates and news written for parents by the parents at School Council. Send an email to nss.school.council@gmail.com with "Count me in" in the subject line. And check out our website for notes from meetings and presentations, resources, and upcoming events!

ARC (Academic Resource Committee)

Our meeting scheduled for February 22 has been cancelled. Our next event will be hosting a speaker on the Teenage Brain on Thursday, March 25. Details will follow.

 

Virtual Learners and School Materials:

Students who have opted for Virtual Learning Quadmester 3 and require a textbook or other course materials will be contacted by their teachers. These materials will be available for pick up in the front lobby between 12:45am and 3:30pm up until March 5th . Wait to hear from your teacher that they are available for pick-up before coming to the school.

 

 

 

Update from Student Success:

 

Peer tutoring is available for all Northern students. Please fill in the peer tutoring form if your child would like to access these supports.

 

Peer Tutee Registration Form

 

Peer tutoring will take place during asynchronous days for the subject being tutored.

 

We have a long list of tutors, who have almost all been through the L2L Tutor Training program this year. I truly mean it when I say we have a lovely group of caring and compassionate students who are offering their time to support those who may need a little extra help or who would benefit from a peer mentor.

 

If you have any questions about the program, please email april.vibert@tdsb.on.ca (Student Success)

 

 

From the Gifted Advisory Council:

 

GAC presents: “ADHD Highlights: What You Need to Know About ADHD” - Tuesday March 2 at 7:00 p.m.

GAC is excited to invite all parents, students, and educators to hear a presentation by Heidi Bernhardt, founder of CADDAC, the Center for ADHD Awareness, Canada.

Her presentation will start by debunking the myths of ADHD and explaining what ADHD actually is. She’ll look at how ADHD impacts an adolescent’s functioning in the home and school environment and the increased risks to kids with ADHD as they move into adolescence.

She’ll also look at what a comprehensive assessment of ADHD looks like and how ADHD is diagnosed and treated. She’ll discuss ways to support adolescents with ADHD at home, and ways to advocate for resources in Ontario schools. Additional links to resources will be provided during the presentation and access given to the Power Point following the presentation. We encourage you to try to attend the live virtual presentation in person, to hear the additional detail and Q & A of Heidi’s very considerable knowledge and experience. Please send an email to northerngifted@gmail.com to obtain the meeting link. We hope that you can join us!

 

Mental Health Counselling Support at Northern Secondary; FLYER

  1. Community Services provides a registered psychotherapist , Dale Callender, on-site, full time at Northern, to work in partnership with the existing school support services. The service uses an early intervention model and supports students by allowing them easy and immediate access to mental health and counselling services provided through the In-School service. Dale Callender works in collaboration with TDSB staff in order to customize a program to enhance the mental health services and supports that are available to students on-site at the school. This program allows Northern priority access to Lumenus’ mental health service program, and offers students a seamless referral process to other community programs as dictated by their individual needs. Dale Callender is available currently via virtual sessions and/or phone calls to provide psychotherapy counselling support to students, parents/caregivers. If you would like to consult and /or set up a time to talk with Dale, you can contact him via his email at dalecallender@lumenus.ca

 

Historical:

 

Essential Reading: There have been changes that are designed to minimize the risk of COVID transmission in our daily screening process. The Updated Screening tool and the Back to School Confirmation Form are very helpful in determining if a student is required to stay home from school or if they have met the requirements for return. Your Vice Principal can also assist with this decision. There are several significant changes to the daily screening tool which are reflected in the Now Mobile app that most students use before arriving at school for face to face classes.

Summary of Screening Updates:

Question 1: If your child has any of the listed symptoms (see screening tool link above)

  • If your child has any of the listed symptoms, they must stay home from school, self-isolate and get tested. They can return to school once they have a negative test result and after it has been 24 hours since their symptoms started improving.
  • Now, any siblings must also stay home from school until the symptomatic sibling receives a negative test result.
  • If your child does NOT get tested, your child (and any siblings) must stay home and self-isolate for 10 days. The symptomatic child can return to school after 10 days if their symptoms have/are improved.
  • If your child has symptoms and also had close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, your child must self-isolate for 14 days from the last exposure to the person who was positive. All siblings must also self-isolate for the same period of time, regardless of a negative test result.
  • At the onset of symptoms please notify the school at (Northern@tdsb.on.ca and your child's Vice Principal:
  • Eric Halling - Vice Principal (alpha A-G) --> eric.halling@tdsb.on.ca
  • Jessica Pearson - Vice Principal (alpha H-O) --> jessica.pearson@tdsb.on.ca
  • Rani Vohra - Vice Principal (alpha P-Z) --> rani-vohra@tdsb.on.ca

Both the symptomatic student and the siblings must return to school with a completed Back to School Confirmation Form

Still want to read more about COVID management at schools? Click here for the TPH webpage that helps guide our practice: TPH COVID Guidance for Schools

Have a great weekend!

Adam

Follow Me @PrincipalNSS