Dear Parents/Guardians,
What a wonderful start to the school year! Now that all of our Mustangs are in the building and routines and safety protocols have been established, I’m happy to report that everyone is demonstrating great cooperation and adaptability. Thank you, parents for adhering to our drop off and pick up routines and for remembering to wear a mask when on school property. And a very special thank you to our staff and students for demonstrating resilience as they follow the expectation of wearing a mask, maintaining physical distancing and practicing daily hand hygiene. We are working as a team to help keep our entire St. Mary community safe! That’s the Mustang Spirit!
Safety Awareness Week – Fire Drills Directive From the Office of the Fire Marshall
On September 4, 2020, the Office of the Fire Marshal issued Fire Marshal Directive 2020-001, “Total Evacuation Fire Drills in Schools During COVID-19 Pandemic” to Assistants to the Fire Marshal. The Ministry of Education encouraged school boards to review and make amendments, as required, to fire drill procedures to allow for compliance with public health measures related to COVID-19, such as physical distancing and masking requirements. The YCDSB Re-Entry Plan outlines the procedures we will follow at St. Mary School.
As part of our safety protocols, this week we will be practicing fire drill procedures to acquaint students and staff with the precautionary steps to take in the event the fire alarm sounds.
Sounding of Alarm:
• A “one-time” sounding of the fire alarm will be conducted in the morning, so that students become familiar with the sound of the alarm:
• On the fire drill day, a school announcement will be made on the PA system that outlines how the total evacuation fire drill will be occurring. This will include instructions related to:
o Staff and student roles
o Physical distancing
o Masking
o Staggered or scheduled evacuation process
Evacuation Procedure
• The total evacuation of the school will take place per procedures outlined in the approved school Fire Safety Plan. As only a few classrooms may be able to evacuate simultaneously, the scheduling of individual classroom evacuations is required.
• Individual classrooms will evacuate in a manner that ensures physical distancing and the wearing of masks (as required) is maintained in accordance with public health guidance.
• Individual classes or cohorts practice evacuation procedures by walking to the primary or secondary exit routes, while maintaining physical distancing. Our building has more than one exit, therefore multiple classes will be able to participate simultaneously while adhering to public health advice in common areas, such as hallways.
• Once the class has safely evacuated from the building, students walk to assigned meeting areas before returning to the classroom, all while physically distancing and wearing masks (as required).
• Once the students and teachers have returned to the classroom, they will sanitize/wash their hands.
• By the end of this week, we will complete all three of the required fall fire drills.
Please Return Textbooks, Library Books, Guided Reading Books and School Materials
Your help is needed to have your children return all of the textbooks, library books, guided reading books and school devices/materials they borrowed during Distance Learning last year. Thanks for your help with this.
Sacraments at St. Mary
Please see the attached letter from Fr. Ignacio regarding the dates for First Holy Communion and Confirmation at St. Mary Parish.
Civvies Day
Friday, September 25 is a Civvies Day for all Mustangs.
Wishing you a wonderful week.
L. D’Andrea, Principal
Sacraments Letter for First Comm. and Conf. Candidates 1509.pdf