Dear Families,
Newburgh students and staff have truly embodied the spirit of kindness this week. We began with over half the school attending the Frontenacs Hockey Game at the Slush Puppy Place, where students showcased their positive attitudes by cheering on the teams and taking part in this wonderful community event. They did an incredible job representing our school and community.❤️
Throughout the week, our kindness theme continued and was evident in every classroom. Students and staff decorated our halls with Kindness Hearts that shared kind and caring messages. It was heartwarming to see and hear students praising each other for the positive things they observed and celebrated. We will continue to infuse more pink into our school as a symbol of kindness. Let's see just how pink we can make our halls! Remember, if you're visiting Newburgh, please add an act of kindness to our hearts and display it on our walls.
Kindness comes in many forms, and we would like to extend our gratitude to the staff who volunteer their time beyond the instructional day to support our students. Special thanks to Madame Moore and Ms. Ziehl for coaching our Volleyball teams, Ms. Cotman for starting a math club, Ms. Ziehl for continuing the Dance Club every Friday, and Ms. Morrow for organizing the school trip to the Frontenacs Game. Hats off to all of you!
We are thrilled to announce that our school has been chosen to participate in the Words Matter Campaign this year! This year-long initiative is designed to reduce the incidence and impact of harmful and discriminatory language in our school community. Our goal is to create a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment for everyone and gain tools to support your children in using words that uplift and empower.
The Words Matter Project seeks to address the nuances of language that can perpetuate harm, bias, and discrimination. By fostering open dialogue and education about the power of words, we aim to create a culture of mindful communication. This campaign will involve not just students and staff but also parents and caregivers, emphasizing the crucial role that families play in promoting respectful interactions. Look for information to be sent in our newsletters bi-weekly.
Thank you to all the families who have supported our school's fundraisers so far. We extend a special thanks to our SAC members for volunteering their time to manage and organize every aspect of these events. Your dedication and effort are truly appreciated. Our next SAC fundraiser is a wreath raffle, and we look forward to seeing how many Newburgh students will participate in Newburgh's Santa Claus Parade! More details can be found in the flyer below.
This week, students in grades 4-8 will complete the Student Census in their classrooms. More information is below. If you have any questions, please reach out to the school or your child's teacher. As well, we enthusiastically cheer on the Junior and Senior Volleyball teams as they travel to their tournaments this week.
Finally, thank you for monitoring personal toys, such as stuffed animals, mini cars, and Pokémon cards, coming into the school as these items cause disruption to our learning. While we understand how comforting or exciting these items can be, they are easily lost or misplaced or damaged during the busy school day. We want to avoid upset students, missing belongings and disruption to our learning; we ask that these items continue to stay at home.
Yours in Education,
Jennifer Osborne, Principal, and Tanyelle VanderSchoor, Vice-Principal
Upcoming Guest Presenters at Newburgh
This Friday, November 28, our students will be immersed in an interactive concert featuring Taiko-Japanese Drummers, showcasing a high-energy style of drumming that is sure to leave a lasting impression. The Napanee High School (NDSS) band will visit our school on December 3.
Yard Supervisor Still Needed
In the coming months, Newburgh School will be looking for a Yard Supervisor to supervise our students while eating lunch and while playing on the yard daily between 11:45 and 12:45. If you are interested in this paid position, please contact the school.
Important Reminders
When dropping your child(ren) off in the morning, we kindly ask you to drop your child(ren) at the gate with Ms. VanderSchoor and not in the yard area or the front of the school where the buses are unloading. This will ensure a speedy drop-off and allow supervising staff to supervise students in the yard. If you have a message for the teaching staff, please use your child's agenda or contact the school directly. Thank you for your help with this.
Bus Delays and Cancellations
As the weather gets colder, please be aware that buses may be delayed or cancelled. Families should ensure they are signed up to receive direct notifications, either by email, or Tri-Board’s app. Delays and cancellations are also posted to Tri-Board’s Website. Please have a back-up plan and transportation home if your child's bus is cancelled! A reminder that supervision of students is not available until 8:45 am. Please do not drop off your child at school before that time.
· Subscribe by email to specific bus routes
· Instructions on how to download the BusPlanner Delays App
Light Up the Season Holiday Concert
Save the date for Tuesday, December 9, at 6:00 for our Holiday Concert. Join us in the gym for a cozy evening of seasonal celebrations. The Dress Rehearsal will be on Monday, December 8, at 1:30 for anyone unable to make the evening performance. We can’t wait to share a wonderful evening with all of you!
Public Notice
Please be informed that the Civil-Military Cooperation (CIMIC) Operator course will run a small one-day exercise within South Frontenac, Perth, Loyalist, and Greater Napanee on 03 December 2025. No weapons will be carried, but military members will be in uniform and wearing military equipment.
To provide some additional context, the course overall is designed to enable participants to conduct a civil assessment of a local community requires and meet with local municipal leaders to coordinate civilian and military resources in support of a large population of civilians evacuating a disaster.
The purpose of the exercise is to train military students on the type of planning and assessments that need to occur if a disaster in a nearby community requires mass evacuation. Specifically, their goal is to assess the degree of support that these communities could provide to temporarily house and care for people fleeing the disaster. This exercise is for simulated training purposes only, and information gathered will not be used for any actual emergency planning purposes.
Important Dates
Monday, November 24 - 28 Student Census Survey Grade 4-12 and Co-ed Volleyball Tournament
Wednesday, November 26 - Senior Volleyball Tournament
Thursday, November 27 - Grade 7/8 Immunizations and Picture Re-take Day
Friday, November 28 - Interactive Concert: Taiko-Japanese Drumming
Wednesday, December 3 - NDSS Band @ Newburgh
Friday, December 5 - Jingle Bell Run, Walk, or Wheel @ 2 pm
Monday, December 8 - Light Up The Season Holiday Concert Dress Rehearsal. Families are welcome to attend.
Tuesday, December 9 - Light Up The Season Holiday Concert @ 6 pm.
Monday, December 22 - Winter Holidays Begin
Monday, January 5 - Back to School 2026!
Wednesday, January 21 - SAC Meeting @ 6:15
Friday, January 30 - PA Day - No school for students
Newburgh Hot Lunch Days
Newburgh School will be offering pizza lunches and now hamburger lunches! Monies raised will go back to the school to support students. If you would like your child to participate in pizza or hamburger days, each can be ordered through School Day.
When there is a tri-board announcement that all buses are cancelled in the Limestone District School Board and it falls on a hot lunch day, the hot lunch day will be rescheduled. If your child attends school on that day, please prepare them a lunch.
November 5 - Pizza Day
November 19 - Pizza Day
November 21 - Hamburger Day
December 2 - Pizza Day
December 17 - Pizza Day
Curriculum Connection
Ministry and Board Resources for Math and Literacy
There are many resources available designed to support your students’ learning in math and literacy, offering engaging activities that can make learning fun and effective for students and families. Visit Limestone’s Online Learning Resources and Tutoring webpage to learn more.
School Advisory Council Fundraisers
Our first School Advisory Council meeting and election for Executive Positions was held on September 17th. Here are your 2025-26 SAC executive members:
Chair: Stephanie Cornish
Secretary: Patty MacDermaid
Treasurer: Maria Evans
We warmly welcome all parents to be a part of any and every council meeting, whether you are an elected member or a parent who would just like to listen in and hear more about what is going on at Newburgh PS. Meetings usually include an administrator's sharing component, reports from members in particular positions (treasurer, chairs etc) and some discussion items. Babysitting for school age children will be available.
Your SAC is fundraising with Mabel’s Labels! If you’re not familiar with Mabel’s Labels, they are personalized, durable, waterproof labels. They are great for everything from shoes, clothing tags, water bottles and backpacks. To support our fundraiser, visit campaigns.mabelslabels.com and select Newburgh Public School (ON). You can pick out whatever labels or product you want, and it will ship directly to your house! The fundraiser doesn’t expire, so just keep it in mind whenever you need labels next.
Important Information to Share
Student Census - See Yourself in Limestone
Limestone is committed to creating safe, inclusive, and supportive learning environments for all students. To help us better understand how students’ identities and experiences relate to their achievement and well-being, we are launching our second See Yourself in Limestone Student Census Survey this fall.
The census is a voluntary and confidential survey for students in Grades 4 to 12, running from November 24 to 28, 2025. It gathers information about students’ identities and their experiences at school. This data is then paired with academic information to help us understand what school is like for different groups of students.
Important information for families:
- The survey is optional.
- Responses are confidential and students can skip any questions they do not wish to answer.
- Students will complete the survey during class time.
- Students who do not participate will be provided with an alternative activity.
Families who do not want their student(s) to complete the survey must contact their school principal by Friday, November 14, 2025. Opting out means the student will not receive the survey in their e-mail inbox.
By better understanding students’ identities and experiences, we can remove barriers and better support students in accessing what they need to succeed.
Learn more about the Student Census and how it supports equity in Limestone: limestone.on.ca/student_census
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Help Shape Our Accessibility Plan
The Limestone District School Board is committed to fostering accessibility and inclusion for all. We are currently developing our next Multi-Year Accessibility Plan and invite feedback from students, staff, families, and community members.
Your input will help ensure our goals reflect the diverse needs and lived experiences across our school communities. Please visit bit.ly/LDSB2025-2029AccessibilityPlan to provide input. The survey is open until November 10, 2025
Newburgh continues to offer our families a new secure portal to complete permissions and payments online. With School-Day: Permissions & Payments, you will be able to complete permission forms and payments from any web browser using your SmartPhone, tablet, laptop or desktop.
Through this online portal, you will be able to pay for items such as:
· Field trips
· Sporting events
· Student cards/athletic fees
· Hot lunch (where applicable)
The new easy-to-use portal will remove the risks associated with sending money to school with students, the frustration of lost or missing permission forms, and significantly reduce the amount of paper our school consumes.
If you have not yet signed up for School day, please call the main office and a secure code information sheet will be sent home with your child. Use the instructions in it to sign up for a School-Day account at www.school-day.com and connect to your child’s events and activities.
How Do I Report An Absence
Please use the Safe Arrival system to report your child's absence; do not call the school to report an absence. If your child is going to be absent from learning, please ensure you use the Safe Arrival system to report the absence. If your child will be late, please report a full day absence and then we will sign them in when they arrive. You cannot indicate a half day absence.
How to report your absence:
1. Toll-free telephone
- Call 1-855-257-9349 toll-free to report an absence using the automated phone system.
2. School Messenger App
- Use your mobile device to download and install the free SchoolMessenger blue app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store, the SchoolMessenger website portal, or from within the LDSB mobile app.
- The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
- Select Attendance, then select Report an Absence and follow the prompts.
3. SchoolMessenger SafeArrival Website Portal
- Visit the SchoolMessenger website portal.
- The first time you use the app, you must select Sign Up to create your account. Please ensure you use the same email address your student’s school has on file. If you do not use that same email address, you will not be able to create an account, or may not be able to see the "Attendance" option. You may have already created an account when we introduced the Communicate broadcast system.
- Select Attendance, then Report an Absence and follow the prompts.
Important School Information
Time | Activity/learning block |
|---|---|
8:45 a.m. | Supervision begins on the yard |
9:00 a.m. | Entry to school |
9:00 a.m. to 10:40 a.m. | 100-minute learning block |
10:40 a.m. to 10:55 a.m. | Recess |
10:55 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. | 50-minute learning block |
11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. | Lunch (20 minutes) and recess (40 minutes) |
12:45 p.m. to 2:25 p.m. | 100-minute learning block |
2:25 p.m. to 2:40 p.m. | Recess |
2:40 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. | 50-minute learning block |
3:30 p.m. | Dismissal |
Newburgh PS Staff 2025-26
Principal: Jennifer Osborne
Vice-Principal: Tanyelle VanderSchoor
Office Manager: Vicki Clement
(JK/SK) Leah Birk & Chantelle Shook (ECE)
(1/2) Hannah Sutherland
(2/3) Brianna Ziehl (Stephanie McEwen on leave)
(4/5) Ashley Morrow
(5/6) Cathleen Caza
(6/7/8) Olivia Cotman
French: Faith Moore
Student Support Teacher: Tanyelle VanderSchoor
Student Support Counsellor: Jamie Lopes
Special Education Coordinator: Matt Aylsworth
Planning Time Teacher: Karla Tynski
Educational Assistant: Crystal Blanchard
STEA (Short Term Educational Assistant): Jessica Crouse
Head Custodian: Erin Hickey
Night Custodian: Sonja Wood
STUDENT MEDICAL PLANS
We ask families to notify the school about their child's emergency medical conditions and complete the Plans of Care linked below. Updated Plans of Care for students with existing medical conditions will be sent home with your child on the first day of school.
https://www.limestone.on.ca/medical-procedures
PHYSICAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION CURRICULUM
The Limestone District School Board (LDSB) is committed to delivering health and physical education to all elementary students, using the Ontario Curriculum: Health and Physical Education, Grades 1-8, 2019. LDSB is committed to building positive school cultures that support student achievement and wellness. The Exemption from Human Development and Sexual Health Instruction, Grades 1 to 8 Procedure (the “Procedure”) was developed in response to the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Policy/Program Memorandum (PPM) No. 162 which requires school boards to develop a procedure that allows for students to be exempted, at the request of their parents/guardians, from instruction related to the Human Development and Sexual Health expectations found in Strand D of the Ontario Curriculum: Health and Physical Education, Grades 1-8, 2019 (the “Curriculum”). Classroom teachers will inform families of the timeline for delivering Strand D Human Development and Sexual Health Instruction, and an exemption letter will be provided. Below is a link to the expectations by grade.
2025-2026 LDSB School Year Calendar
A PDF version of the 2025-2026 School Year Calendar is available online.
Check out the School Mental Health Family Resources following the link below
DON'T FORGET YOU CAN ORDER NEWBURGH WEAR ALL YEAR LONG WITH THIS LINK
https://newburghpublicschool.entripyshops.com/
