Council Meeting Summary
2018/2019 school year
· 10-October-2018
2017/2018 school year
· 18-January-2018
· 22-November-2017
· 25-October-2017
Brian PS Parent Council met on 10-October-2018 with Principal Freckelton.
1) Introductions of parents, staff and the Principal. Overview of Parent Council's responsibilities, co-operation, description (social time, workshops, fundraising). About 28 parents participated, light refreshments were provided.
2) Principal's Report:
- strict dates and enrollment for Early French Immersion Applications are coming up
- size of the school is quite large (~390 students)
- review of EQAO results, better than last year, English in low 80's, French and English Math in mid 70's, above province average and above TDSB average
- monthly assemblies at school - Character Education
- school planning - guided reading, making sure all grade 1s know how to read, assistive technology, self-regulation strategies like mindfulness, open-ended math responses
- fundraising goals: fundraising to be used at the school for (recommendation by the Principal): outdoor learning centre, updated Library Commons; fundraising to consist of (recommendations by the parents): pizza days, book fair, chocolate sales, popcorn sales, Spring fair, dance and bake sale, movie night. We need parent volunteers to make fundraising successful - both helping out and donating.
- Progress Reports going home November 12th - keep in touch with your teacher about your child's progress, book time with the teacher either in person or by phone
- kids clubs and teams: sports, music
- grade 5s are participating in helping at lunch break, helping in the office, being very helpful at the school
- school events will be posted on the calendar in the Buzz
- concern: safety around drop-off in the mornings in the parking lot, many aggressive drivers, stopping in the drive-though area, speeding in the parking lot, looking for suggestions from parents how to deal with this; offenders are repeatedly disobeying rules, distribute information to parents, both front of school and back of school, consequences: stricter enforcement by Police, ticketing, closing off the parking lot to parents, only allow staff to enter, closing off the parking lot when all spots get full, children's safety is at stake
- Parent Council elections: nominations for Treasurer, Secretary and Chair of Fundraising; still open Chair and Vice-Chair.
- Grade 5 end of year graduation: the school provides a special day for all the students, a field trip away or lunch out at a restaurant, Gr5 ceremony at the gym. Any other party, dance or activity for Gr5 is not sponsored or managed by the school, it must be managed and funded by parents.
- At the end of the meeting parents were able to sign up for involvement: Safety committee to deal with parking lot issues and offences, Fundraising committee to organize events, suggestions for fundraising activities, sign up for WhatsApp group for all Brian PS parents.
Brian PS Parent Council met on 18-January-2018 with Principal Freckelton.
Parent Council discussed:
- stay connected with WhatsApp, with Parent Council website
- Tackling Anxiety workshop offered on January-25 had 31 adults signed-up, 10 children for child-minding.
- Lunar New Year celebration organized by group of Chinese parents at Brian P.S., second annual event
- Robotics partnership with outside firms (IRIS Canada, Logics Academy) there may not be enough time or resources this year to set-up a Robotics club at Brian P.S.
- movie night for kids on Friday March 23
- end-of-the-school-year dance party / fundraiser would be a great event, we need volunteers to help organize this
- Budget update and re-assigning budget amounts and priorities based on parents' input. Click here for the Budget page. Budget was voted on and approved.
- what are our fundraising options (eg: PlantBest sales)
- February to June pizza days
- consideration for RAZ kids online reading
- offer of $500 grant for French performance by the Canadian Parents for French
- design and prices of Brian P.S. T-shirts and possibility of subsidizing 1 T-shirt per student
- Grade 5 graduation: how to go about contacting Grade 5 parents and discuss as a group.
Principal's Report contained the following:
- T-shirt design, prices and subsidy for those that can't afford it
- considering mandatory school T-shirt for gym, ability to offer one T-shirt per each child at the start of next school year
- report on Robotics at Brian P.S.: looking for partners, but this year we may be too late to start something new
- Grade 5 celebration: limitations of school's involvement in private parties
Brian PS Parent Council met on 22-November-2017 with Principal Freckelton.
Principal's Report contained the following:
- school improvement planning focuses on improving achievement, equity and wellness. There are several initiatives planned around this, namely: library improvements, and anxiety workshops.
- Principal would like to improve communication protocol between parents and the school. Parents that have something to communicate should not by-pass the teacher and/or principal when reporting these items. Please properly escalate items.
- new Grade 3/4 FI teacher hired
- Parents please use proper access procedures for entry, student drop off and pick up. Any late students arrivals or early pick-ups need the signed in/out at the office, and adult visiting the school during school hours needs to sign-in. Access to Petit Amis daycare and YMCA programs through proper doors, do not disrupt classes or use alternate doors
- Parking Lot etiquette needs to improve, there are some rude drivers/parents, parking or stopping in the laneway, not obeying the volunteers instructions.
Parent Council discussed:
- Principal's Report issues, specifically IT long range plans for the library, weeding/purging the library in December 2017, replacement of current dated computers with iPads or Chrome books, possibility of Bring your Own Device plans for the library so students can bring their own phone/tablet, more comfortable seating in the library, dedicated spaces, more modern face-lift.
- helping fund some of these initiatives
- helping fund some self-regulatory workshops, movement workshops
- need for more parent volunteers to help organize reading buddies, guided reading, connecting with local libraries
Brian PS Parent Council met on 10-October-2017 with Principal Freckelton. He outlined some of his goals for the school year ahead. Parents included last year council members, as well as new parents to the school. Some of the topics discussed were:
- size of the school (356 students) is about 50 smaller than last year, fewer staff and fewer
resources, split classes
- there is a standard process for teacher hiring, we are in final steps, there is one 3/4F class
that is awaiting a new teacher. hopefully by next week.
- Brian standardized scores for Gr.3 and Gr.6 tests. Reading (English) and writing (English) is
below historical values for Brian and below Ontario average. Math (both English and French
students) is above average.
- children need to be encouraged to improve reading, also how to use their mind, not just
memorization and repeating (test shows difficulties with open ended questions, inference)
- school library needs major upgrade: new books collection, new computers, tablets, iPads or
Chrome books
- pizza lunch is a success, but having difficulty running it more than once a month. need parent
volunteers. it is also a good source of funds. but parents need to start paying online to make it
easier to organize. no cash.
- principal wants to enlarge the outdoor space for kindergarten area. surveying already took
place
- principal wants to encourage students to self regulate: mindfulness, active breaks, quiet study
areas, beanbag chairs, mini trampolines... were some ideas discussed
- council discussed various fundraising options, such as donations, sales, pizza, fair... etc
- council discussed whether graduation party should be school sponsored or a private event
(liability and source of funds)
- council needs to fill in seats for active members, please consider helping out. we need more
parents involved.
- discussed the possibility of school fair. need to decide soon and start planning, organize
parents, meet and discuss what events to have (climbing wall, petting zoo, pony rides, face
painting...) please consider helping out, we need more parents involved.