Latest News

Ongoing Student Support During Remote Learning

As we continue with remote learning, please be reminded that your child’s Form Teacher/Cohort Advisor, subject teachers and Guidance Counsellors are available to continue to support them. If needed, please encourage your child to reach out via email to the appropriate adult. Additionally, you are always welcome to reach out to those adults if you have any questions or concerns that you feel should be brought to the attention of the school. 

Semester 2 Timetables

Semester 2 begins on February 2 and while we are remote, we will be following the schedule that is below: 

Students will be able to see their class schedule on Veracross on Monday, February 1st.  This will include their Form/Cohort group for Semester 2. Students will be in classes no larger than 20. For most students in Grades 9-12, and all students in Grades 7-8, their Form/Cohort is composed of students in one of their classes. 

When students return to campus, they will find that the school has been zoned by grade to reduce grade cross-over as much as possible.  Maps showing the grade zones will be posted on the Guidance webpages on February 1st.

People & Program Night – Thursday, February 4, 2021

The Semester 2 People and Program Evening is your opportunity to meet your child’s Form/Cohort Advisor, Grade Lead/Guidance Counselor, and Teachers on February 4, 2021 at 6:30 PM.  Below is the agenda for the evening.  The Zoom links you need will be sent to you via email on Tuesday, February 2.

The Havergal College IT Service Desk Team is here for you!

As you and your child use digital tools in the course of their schoolwork, you may encounter difficulties and require assistance. The first step is for you or your child to notify their teacher, who may be able to provide support for websites or applications that are specific to that course/class/grade. It is important for them to be aware when their students are experiencing technical difficulties.

If their teacher is unable to resolve your issue or if the problem is with a laptop or tablet issued by the school to your child, your next step is to contact the Havergal College IT Service Desk Team. They are available to help with systems and equipment provided by the school.
The IT Service Desk Team is available Monday to Friday, 8:00am-4:00pm, and can be reached by email at servicedesk@havergal.on.ca or by calling 416-483-3843 x6663.

Grade 7 Math Contest Achievement

Amazing performances! Our Grade 7 students’ most recent Caribou math contest scores were very impressive. In particular, we want to congratulate our top two students: Sophie Zhang and Alice Song who TIED for 1^st.

Sophie and Alice not only tied for 1^st in our school and region but were in fact tied for:

• 1^st in Ontario
• 1^st in Canada
• 1^st worldwide

This particular contest was written by over 7600 students worldwide. Congratulations!

Reminders

Toronto Public Health – Grade 7 Immunization Program Suspended

Over the past week, we have received some inquiries from Grade 7 parents about the Toronto Public Health (TPH) Grade 7 Immunization program and we thought it best to send a reminder to parents on this topic. In previous years, Havergal has provided the location for Toronto Public Health to run their Grade 7 Immunization Program whereby our Grade 7 students could receive their immunizations during the school day for HPV, Hep B, and Meningococcal. In the October 9th Upper School Blog, parents were informed that Toronto Public Health had suspended all of their in-school immunization for this school year. At that time, according to TPH, families could book an appointment to have their child vaccinated at a Toronto Public Health clinic. However, after exploring their website again this week, it appears that TPH will not have any clinics operating until further notice. Please click HERE for this bulletin from Toronto Public Health. 

Knowing this, students who are currently in Grade 7, or those in Grade 8 who missed their final doses last spring, should obtain these immunizations through their family doctor or primary care provider. Alternatively, a family can choose to wait until TPH begins their student immunization clinics but there is no indication as to when this will take place.

Latest News

Academic Program & Course Selection Evening January 13, 2021, 6:30 – 7:30 PM

All parents with children in Grades 7-11 are invited to attend this Parent Webinar to learn about the Academic Program for the 2021-2022 school year followed by grade-specific course selection information. If you are unable to attend, the materials from the presentation will be shared. Zoom Update – Please ensure your Zoom app is updated prior to joining this event.

Zoom link for Academic Program and Course Selection Evening

Meeting ID: 975 8357 5681 Passcode: 624352

Upcoming Math Contests for Grades 9-11 February 23, 2021

Each year, Havergal hosts several University of Waterloo math contests. The upcoming Pascal (grade 9), Cayley (10), Fermat (11) are currently scheduled for February 23^rd. Our tentative plan is:

• All students in Grade 9  would write the Pascal contest during math class in Semester 2 on Feb 23 – no action is required on your part or from the student.
• Students in Grades 10 and 11 who are interested would write the Cayley (grade 10) or Fermat (grade 11). They would receive information about registration so that they can indicate their interest to us later this month. Our plan is to have them write midday on Feb 23. No action is required on your part.

As we have seen, the situation and policies in the province, ministry and city remains fluid. Our hope is to continue to host as many of these contests as possible. We are also looking into other options with the University of Waterloo including the possibility of writing online, if needed. We will continue to share updates as well as provide information about subsequent contests which take place later in the spring such as the Fryer (9), Hypatia (10), Galois (11), Euclid (12), and Gauss (7-8) as more details are confirmed.

Thank you for your understanding, enthusiasm and support.

Middle School Interschool Gender Sexuality Alliance (GSA)

What is the Middle School GSA? 

The Middle School Interschool GSA is created with the goal to offer a space to engage in dialogue around shared interests and experiences about identity. This is a wonderful opportunity to grow diversity and inclusion programming for Middle School students. Havergal Middle School students will be invited to join this optional program and meet once a month virtually along with other Middle School students from nearby COSSOT schools (Coalition of Single-sex Schools of Toronto). This initiative has been created as a direct response to student inquiries and requests and is aligned with the Interschool GSA that is already offered to students in Grades 9-12. This group provides a safe and welcoming co-educational environment for students in Toronto Independent Schools. In this space, a variety of issues affecting middle school students can be addressed. Some topics may include friendships, relationships, mental health, parent expectation, sexuality, etc. 

What supervision and support will be provided? 

All discussions are monitored in this virtual environment as one faculty/staff/adult representative from each participating school is required to attend. The meeting is guided by these staff representatives who are responsible for identifying themes and discussion questions based on the needs and interests of the group. Staff and Faculty members also assist with defining and setting boundaries and guidelines for the virtual space, redirecting conversations that may need some guidance, answering questions, keeping the flow of the conversation going, stepping in to support when needed and follow-up with their respective students at school, if needed. 

Who is invited to attend? 

At Havergal, this is an optional program that any Middle School student will have the choice to sign-up for. After learning about this opportunity on Thursday, January 7, Havergal’s Middle School students are first invited to attend an informational meeting on January 11 with Caitlin Parsons, Havergal’s School Social Worker. Then, they may sign up in advance of attending the first interschool meeting which is scheduled for January 21. As a pilot, the schools involved will be Crescent, RSGC, Branksome Hall and St. Clements, and Havergal.