Dear Families,
Congrats to our Hawks' athletes for a great week of sports. The Intermediate Girls and Boys' soccer teams were undefeated in their tournaments! The cross-country team participated in the Northern Classic Run this week and another run is scheduled at Fort Henry in a few weeks. All students participated in the Terry Fox walk/roll/run this Friday! Many thanks to the families who were able to join us and for your donations to the Terry Fox Foundation online. Go Hawks go!
Wishing everyone a great week ahead/bonne semaine,
Ms. Jurkowski and Ms. Neale on behalf of the HPS Team
Coming up/dates for awareness -
October 6 - Gino's lunches
October 9 - Subway lunches
October 10 - PA Day (no school for students)
October 13 - Thanksgiving (no school)
October 14 - Cross Country Team to Fort Henry
October 15 - Junior Soccer Game 4pm at HPS (details to follow)
October 16 - Term 1 IEPs go home/Subway lunches
October 17 - Milkshake Day
October 20 - Picture Retake Day
October 23 - November Hot Lunch Orders Due
October 27 - Gino's lunches
October 30 - Subway lunches
October 31 - Milkshake Day
Poinsettia Fundraiser
Harrowsmith Public School is pleased to be able to offer the Poinsettia Fundraiser again this Holiday Season. Rekker Greenhouses from Bowmanville, ON have been providing wonderful poinsettia plants for many years in this area. All plants will be delivered to the school individually wrapped in a protective sleeve. We encourage you to share this beautiful fundraiser with your family and friends. Thank you in advance for your continued support!
Funds raised through this event will be used towards school improvements, classroom manipulatives, playground 
All orders are to be place through the School Day program at https://www.school-day.com
The last day to submit orders is Thursday, November 13th - NO EXCEPTIONS.
PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Orders will be available for PICK-UP on Thursday, November 27th from 2:30 pm to 5:00 p.m.
Students are not to go door-to-door to sell these plants.
Pick-up Location
A gentle reminder that the pick-up location is on the east side of the school for students in Grade 1-8. Kindergarten students can be picked up in the fenced area near the Kinder doors. The gate on the west side of the school is kept closed to ensure safety and have students and families avoid the busy bus area at the beginning and end of day.
Early Pick-Up/Late Drop Off Procedure
Families are asked to check in at the office if they are picking up a student early. The office will buzz the classroom to ask the student to come to the office. We will also buzz the classroom for students to come to the office to receive any items being dropped off by families during the school day.
Students arriving late, need to be signed in through the office and and say goodbye to their family at the front office.
A reminder to all visitors who are staying in the building that a sign-in and sign-out are required. The clipboard for visitor sign-ins is on the table in the front foyer.
Update to Kindergarten Dismissal
Starting on Monday, September 8th, all Kinder students (McCullough/Embury, Hackett/Crocker, Downing SKs) will be dismissed from the fenced Kindergarten yard at the back of the school.
All other students on pick-up will meet in the paved area on the east side of the school.
Inclement Dismissal Plan for all Students
We had an opportunity to try this on Thursday when it rained and have made a few tweaks for future heavy rain or snow days.
Students on pick up will gather in Ms. Kelly and Mme Alikhan's classroom. Families are asked to come to the front door for pick up on these days.
Medical
A reminder that if your child has medical needs or requires medication during school (ie inhaler) to complete the appropriate forms and return them to the school. The following link will take you to the required forms: Medical Forms
School Messenger
All of our new electronic communications tools can be accessed anytime, anywhere online and/or via Smartphones through the SchoolMessenger App. We encourage parents and guardians to create a School Messenger account on your desktop, laptop, tablet and/or download the SchoolMessenger app. While an account is not required to use these new tools, it will allow you to review your contact information and communication preferences, and it stores all of your alerts and messages sent to them by the district, their student’s school and/or teachers/coaches. The School Messenger App (Blue version) app is available at go.schoolmessenger.ca or it can be downloaded from iTunes or Google Play. The app is free to download and use. The Board will place the School Messenger App within the Board’s new custom App soon. This App is compatible with the School Messenger Communicate broadcast system and Safe Arrival attendance system.
The following link will provide you with further instrucions including vidoes: SchoolMessenger Communication Tools
Calendar
The following is a link to our school's calendar: Harrowsmith PS Calendar
Head Lice
Head lice infestations are common in school-aged children. Having head lice is not a health hazard, nor will it transmit disease, but it does require that treatment be given immediately to stop the spread to other children or adults.
It is recommended that you check your child’s head regularly (every day is ideal) for signs of head lice and/or nits. Please see the information from the Canadian Paediatrics Society: https://caringforkids.cps.ca/handouts/health-conditions-and-treatments/head_lice
Should your child become infested with head lice and/or nits, it is extremely important that you administer treatment immediately, and that you check all family members and to treat anyone who is found to have head lice. It is also important to notify the school and others (family members, neighbours, friends etc.) who may have come into contact with the child who has head lice. Close head-to-head contact should be discouraged pending treatment.
As long as children are in treatment, they are welcome at school. Current research supported by the KFL&A Public Health and the Canadian Pediatric Society shows that exclusion from school and daycare due to the detection of the presence of nits does not have sound medical rationale. Exclusion, early dismissal and no-nit policies do not prevent or control head lice infestations and are discouraged by public health authorities and the Canadian Pediatric Society.
Although head lice is not associated with serious disease, repeated episodes can be costly, time consuming and frustrating. We must work together so that we can stop the spread.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the school.
