More October 2023 Updates!

Upcoming Events

Please click on the following link to view our school events calendar: Events for October 2023Helen Detwiler Elementary School (hwdsb.on.ca)

Meet the Educator Event

Our Meet the Educator Night will be on Thursday October 12, 2023 from 4-6:30pm. This will be an outdoor event on our paved area behind the school on the side of our main staff parking lot. In the event that it rains, we will move indoors to our gymnasium.

Small (6 slice) Pizza’s will be for sale for $8, with the option of cheese, peperoni or Halal peperoni.   Pizza is for sale through School Cash Online until 11:59 p.m. tonight.  If you are not set up for School Cash Online, instructions to do so can be found at SchoolCashOnline.com: Welcome

If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact the office.

School Council Elections/Meeting – Tuesday October 17, 2023 at 6:30 pm

Every school in Ontario is required to have a School Council to work collaboratively with the principal/vice-principal to improve student achievement and to enhance accountability of the school with parents. We welcome all parents/guardians/caregivers who are willing to volunteer their time to participate on our School Council for the 2023-2024 school year.

School Councils must hold annual elections to identify voting members and various positions such as School Council Chair. Elected members vote on School Council matters and represent the group’s ideas and advisory suggestions for the Principal. Please note that you do not have to be an elected member of School Council to attend meetings. All meetings are open to all parents/guardians who wish to attend.

To declare your interest to become an elected member of School Council, please click on and complete the following online nomination form. You may also nominate another parent/guardian of a student at our school to become an elected School Council member. All nomination forms must be submitted by Monday October 16th, 4:00 pm  in order to be elected to Council.

Our school council elections/meeting will take place in-person on Tuesday October 17th, 2002 at 6:30 p.m. in our school library/learning commons.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Staffing Update

The board is continuing the staffing process for permanent staff following school reorganization. We would like to welcome the following new education staff at Helen Detwiler.

• A. Gaetani – Teacher (class 7A)
• A. Parau – Teacher (class 45B & junior core French)
• B. McGregor – Educational Assistant

Halloween at Helen Detwiler

October 31st will be designated as one of our “Special Event Days” at Helen Detwiler. Students are permitted to bring treats to share. They must be store bought with ingredients on the packaging. All treats must be nut free. There will be Halloween related activities taking place during the school day for students that wish to participate. Wearing orange and black or fall colours is also an option. Students planning to wear costumes to school should review the following reminders: 

• Students should arrive to school wearing costumes as per prior year’s practice and be prepared to wear the costume for the duration of the day to avoid congestion in washroom due to students changing into costumes.  
• No weapons, no costume masks that might impede vision, no inappropriate images
• No offensive or insensitive costumes.

Cultural appropriation means taking or borrowing a look or trait from a culture that is not your own. Costumes that are based on people’s culture are offensive, harmful and insensitive. Here are some questions to reflect on when choosing a costume.

• • Is my costume making fun of a group of people, their culture, religion and/or belief systems? 
  • Does my costume reinforce jokes and stereotypes about certain groups, cultures, religions and/or belief systems? 
  • Am I altering my skin colour, facial/body features to make it like a particular race, ethnicity, or cultural group? 
  • Am I dressing up as a culture or borrowing from a religion that is not my own or is not part of my background? 

EarlyON Child Family Centre at Helen Detwiler

EarlyON Child Family Centres offer free, high-quality programs for families and children from birth to 6 years old. You can learn to play with your child, meet other parents and caregivers, and get advice and support from early childhood professionals.

Coffee, tea and snacks are available daily and a community lunch Friday mornings at 11am and dinner Wednesday nights at 4pm

Program Hours:

Monday 9:30am-12:00pm and 1:00pm-4:00pm

Tuesday 9:30am-12:00pm and 1:00pm-4:00pm

Wednesday 9:30am-12:00pm and 1:00pm-6:00pm

Thursday 9:30am-12:00pm and 1:00pm-4:00pm

Friday 9:30am-12:00pm

Please visit www.keyon.ca for more information.