Dear Northern Families,

What a week! Last weekend nearly 100 Northern students got up early Saturday to climb 1776 steps up the CN Tower. All participants raised funds for the United Way of Greater Toronto. Amazing job by our students and staff sponsors to give back to our community!

Speaking of giving back to the community, Ms. Barbara Smith has given in the harvest totals from our gardens. This year Ms. Smith and her team of helpers donated 376 POUNDS of fresh produce to the North York Second Harvest. Thank You!

It was United Way week at Northern and the lobby was jammed with great activities/ fundraisers at lunch. Thank You to Mr. Chan and Ms. Hamilton, all participating class teachers and of course students. Tons of fun for a great cause.

Yesterday Northern’s staff entertained with our annual Faculty Follies….incredible talent on display. I understand science has already started rehearsing for next year.

Finally, today we dismissed school at 2:30. Students had the option of coming to watch the Seniors play Richview CI. The majority of our students packed the house to watch the Red Knights win handily over our rivals. Totals aren’t in yet, but we also raised over $1000 for the Toronto Council Fire at the gate. Thank you to everyone that contributed. Not to be outdone by the seniors, the juniors also beat Richview in commanding fashion earlier in the day. Go Red Knights!

Next Friday is SAC’s Red, Blue and Gold Day. Wear your favourite Northern apparel or anything in school colours to show your spirit! The class in each Grade with the highest spirit rating will be given a prize!

 

Upcoming Week:

1. Tuesday- Halloween (dress up but please see below!)
2. Wednesday – Grade 9 Take our Kids to Work Day
3. Thursday: POSTPONED! PALs Cultural Fair-details to follow
4. Friday: Red, Blue, and Gold Day

Cross Country Team - City Champions!

Congratulations to Northern's Cross Country Team for winning the City Championships on Monday!! Your coaches are so proud of each and every one of you for the hard work you put in all season and for running your best at Monday's race. Winning the title of City Champs was a whole team effort! We also celebrated many Personal Bests and several individual top 10 finishes, including Rebecca Pribaz (1st Novice Girls), Kieva Birmingham (3rd Junior Girls), Jacob Pozin (10th Junior Boys), Ena Smailbegovic (6th Senior Girls), and Will Greenfield (6th Senior Boys). In total, we have 22 racers advancing to OFSAA, including the Novice Girls Team, the Novice Boys Team, the Junior Boys Team, and the Senior Girls Team, as well as Kieva Birmingham as an individual Junior Girl and Will Greenfield as an individual Senior Boy. We wish you all the best at OFSAA!!

 

Take Our Kids to Work Day

Parents and Guardians of Grade 9 students should have received a school messenger email yesterday for Take Our Kids to Work Day (TOKTWD). Please take a moment to fill in the form included in that email. The event is taking place on Wednesday, November 1, 2023. Take Our Kids to Work Day is an experiential learning opportunity for Grade 9 students across Canada offering them the chance to see the world of work firsthand, explore a variety of careers and sectors, and look at what skills are important to thrive in the world of work.

Grade 9 students will have the opportunity to shadow a parent/guardian or another adult approved by their parent/guardian on November 1st. Parents will need to submit an excused absence for students who will be participating in TOKTWD with them.

For students who choose to stay at school on TOKTWD, Grade 9 teachers are encouraged to use this day to explore the Education and Career/Life Planning (or Career Education, Cooperative Education and Other Forms of Experiential Learning) sections of their curriculum to guide lessons that day.

 

Halloween 2023: Cultures Are Not Costumes

Each year, Halloween is marked in a variety of ways in school communities across the TDSB. Students can choose whether or not to participate in Halloween related activities.

As TDSB schools prepare for this day, there are often questions and concerns about Halloween costumes. To support safe, welcoming, and dynamic learning spaces, educators are encouraged to engage students in critical conversations about cultural appropriation, stereotypes, and caricature. This includes reminding students and staff that certain costumes are viewed as offensive, inappropriate and/or discriminatory to many different cultures/peoples, and as a result can cause harm to members of that community and the TDSB community.

Additionally, school communities are reminded that it is important to be aware of the potential negative and triggering impact violent images and/or scenarios can have on students and families with varying lived experiences and backgrounds.

 

Music:

Next week is Music Week! Come join us for our second ever week of music and fun! Events will be running at lunch every day next week starting with jeopardy on Monday and a bake sale on Tuesday! Check out our Instagram @nssmusic for all the details

 

Student Success:

Peer Tutoring is now available! We are able to offer tutoring support in all compulsory subjects for Grades 9 and 10. Students, please complete the Tutee Registration Form in order to be matched with a Peer Tutor this semester.

 

School Council News (for parents, by parents!):

1. We need your help! In lieu of ongoing fundraising, we request voluntary contributions once in the fall for all our initiatives to support students throughout the year (clubs, athletics, wellness, conferences, workshops, advocacy, subsidies and much more). Click HERE for more details and the link to make your contribution through School Cash Online by Friday, November 10. Every gift makes a difference!

2. Walking Buddies - Saturday October 28 9:30-10:30 am - Come join other Northern parents for some fresh air, exercise, and conversation about school, kids, and life! Email nss.school.council@gmail.com for more details.

3. Games Night - Friday, November 3rd - 6:30-9:30 pm -Join other Northern parents for a night of good food and good fun. It's a great time to relax and make some new friends! Email nss.school.council@gmail.com for more details.

4. Social Networking Safety with Paul Davis, Thursday, November 16th - 6:30 pm - Join Northern families for an engaging presentation by internet safety expert Paul Davis in the auditorium at Northern Secondary School.

5. Ask Adam The Principal's update is an important part of every school council meeting. If you have a question about something that is happening at Northern, please submit your question to nss.school.council@gmail.com with "Ask Adam" in the subject line.

6. Are you satisfied with your student’s education? What’s working and what could be done better? The TDSB is seeking parent feedback to help define education priorities and goals in TDSB’s Multi-Year Strategic Plan (“MYSP”). All comments are invited and needed. You can make a difference! Please share your priorities and write your specific comments in the MYSP Survey here. Deadline is this Tuesday, Oct. 31.

For more information, feel free to contact Northern's parents' School Council at nss.school.council@gmail.com

 

Guidance Updates:

1. Guidance Week-in-Review:
   1. OUF: Ontario Universities Fair @ the Metro Convention Centre - October 22-23, 2023.
   2. One-on-one grade 12 post-secondary meetings looking more closely at our “I’m in Grade 12, Now What?” Graduation Requirements check & Post-Secondary home form presentations

2. Looking Ahead:
   1. NSS Post-Secondary Fair is Wednesday, November 8, 2023 - 6:00pm - 8:00pm @ Northern SS
   2. Career & SHSM Week: Nov 20 – 24^th – workshops topics include: career speakers, resume writing, financial literacy, City of Toronto student employment info, and more!

3. IMPORTANT Volunteering Information:

PLEASE NOTE: Events and activities supporting a not-for-profit initiative are approved. If you are unsure if your activities supports a not-for-profit program, please see your Guidance counsellor for approval of the volunteering initiative.

For more information about the TDSB’s policy on Volunteering, click here.

• for volunteering information and opportunities, please visit your Guidance Google classroom or www.volunteertoronto.ca.

4. Post Secondary Updates:
   1. TDSB Black Student Post-Secondary Engagement Symposium November 15, 2023 - 7 to 9 PM.

The Centre of Excellence for Black Student Achievement in collaboration with TDSB Guidance invites Black students, educators and their families to the TDSB Black Student Post-Secondary Engagement Symposium. REGISTER at bit.ly/TDSB_ENGAGE

The TDSB Black Student Post-Secondary Engagement Symposium is an opportunity for institutions to connect with Black students in the TDSB to share programs, interest groups, clubs, communities, and services that affirm Black students’ lived and historic experiences, support their sense of belonging in post-secondary spaces, and connect them to culturally relevant programs and resources.

2. NSS Post-Secondary Individual School Lunch Visits 2023/24

3. NSS Post-Secondary Guide is here!

5. TDSB eLearning Semester 2: Registration OPENS December 5, 2023 at 10 am.

For more information and course offerings click here.

6. Scholarship Information:
   1. NSS Scholarship Information Chart 2023/2024 where Northern-specific scholarship information and deadlines can be found (along with other common awards).

2. Seeking Scholarships has released their September Scholarship Report which has upcoming scholarship dates listed for students applying to post-secondary programs.

Northern students, teachers, and families can access from this link using the password, scholar58: https://seekingscholarships.com/the-scholarship-report-2/

Please note: This resource is copyrighted and only available to Northern families - please do not share outside of the Northern community.

3. Scholarship Workshop given Oct 17, 2023 – click here for slideshow

 

Have a great weekend!

Adam Marshall

Principal

Follow me @PrincipalNSS