Absence Reporting Phone Number: 1-888-885-8065
Email Address: [email protected]
Please call or e-mail when your student(s) will be absent. We thank you for your cooperation.
Hello Orchard Park Families!
It’s quite hard to believe that we are sitting down to write the final newsletter update for the calendar year. Time sure does fly when you are having fun and learning a great deal!
Thank you to families for joining us in our Student-Led Conferences. Teachers and students were excited to share all of their learning and celebrate successes with families. Teachers have been engaging in learning regarding new literacy strategies to support our young learners, and math activities that promote descriptive feedback and small group instruction.
Students have been busy participating in a variety of activities in the school such as Intermediate Boys Volleyball, Leadership and Media Teams, Lunch Monitors, Tech Ed Club. EcoTeam, Battle of the Books, Chess Club. Thank you to the staff and volunteers who give up their time to support our students in these activities.
Looking ahead to the next few weeks, the fun and learning doesn’t stop there. We are excited to welcome back families to our “Around the World” winter concert. Mr. Gibbs has created a wonderful event to showcase so many talents of our students.
The cold weather has arrived, and we ask that you please send your students with appropriate warm clothing. Labeling these items is definitely helpful as the Lost and Found tends to grow in excess over the winter months.
The winter break is fast approaching, and on behalf of the staff at Orchard Park, we want to wish each of you a wonderful time spent with family, relaxing and resting up for the New Year. All the warmest wishes!
Mrs. Viherjoki
Important Dates
Dec 2: Orchard Park Holiday Bazaar
Dec 19: Winter Concert (Snow day date Dec 21)
Dec 20: Character Assembly & Spirit Days
Dec 23 to Jan 7: Winter Break
Celebrations Week at Orchard Park Dec 18th-22nd
Mon. Dec 18: Christmas - Red & Green day
Tue. Dec 19: Hanukkah - Blue, White & Silver day
Wed. Dec 20: Kwanzaa - Black, Red & Green day
Thurs. Dec 21: Winter Solstice - Red & White day
Fri. Dec 22: Holiday Attire
Inclement Weather Safe Arrival Procedure
On Inclement Weather days (when busses are cancelled) ALL absences will be assumed due to weather unless you notify the office otherwise. If your student(s) will be away due to weather, you DO NOT need to call in or email. A general Inclement Weather Safe Arrival call will be made to ALL families of absent students. This message is different than the regular Safe Arrival message (for non-inclement weather days) and can be disregarded UNLESS your child is supposed to be at the school – in which case you should call us to confirm their attendance.
Lunchbox orders are automatically cancelled on inclement weather days and refunds will be issued by Lunchbox directly. If you send your child(ren) to school on inclement weather days, please ensure you send them with their packed lunch as the Lunchbox orders will not be delivered.
The School Bus Cancellation website is https://simcoecountyschoolbus.ca/. Please ensure you follow the ** NORTH ZONE ** for updates on our school bus zone.
Bus Delays Reminder
Please read the information below on how to stay up to date and informed regarding bus delays. Orchard Park Public School is located in the NORTH zone.
Download the Bus Planner App- Select Simcoe County STC then Orchard Park P.S. (North Zone) and your child's bus # to receive notifications on any delays.
Visit https://simcoecountyschoolbus.ca click on the yellow button labeled 'View Bus Delays' to view a list of current delays or scroll down to the bottom of the page and hit the ‘Subscribe Now’ yellow button to be notified via e-mail when your student’s bus is running late.
We will do our best to send out an email when your child’s bus is going to be late by 20 minutes or more, however we recommend using the tools listed above. The school does not send out messages about busses cancelled due to weather.
End of Day Pick Up Procedure
In order to minimize confusion and increase safety at the end of day, we are asking that you please pick up your children at regular dismissal time which is 3:30pm. You can pick them up at their regular dismissal doors. Your child’s teacher should have sent communication home as to where their dismissal door is. If you are not sure where your child’s door is, please contact the school. If you need to pick up your children early, please pick them up from the front door before 3:00pm. After 3:15pm, it is difficult to locate students as most of them are in the hallways getting ready for dismissal and going to their bus lines.
We appreciate your cooperation in keeping our end of day as calm and safe as possible.
OP Clothing Den
This is a ‘closet’ of clothing that has been generously donated and cleaned, that students have access to in case they need a change of clothing, or perhaps a few more items. Families are encouraged to contact their child’s teacher or the office to arrange a time to check it out and shop. We currently have a TON of winter clothing (hats, boots, snow jackets and pants). Thank you for your contributions to the Den!!
Popcorn Fundraiser
The grade 8 students are selling popcorn to raise money for their Grade 8 Grad Trip. Popcorn will be sold at nutrition break every Friday for $2 a bag. (Should there be a P.A. day on Friday, popcorn will be sold on the Thursday instead).
Popcorn flavours: Sweet & Salty, Butter & Salt, White Cheddar and Dill Pickle.
The Grade 8s thank you for your support!
View the full December 2023 Newsletter here: December Newsletter 2023.pdf