Welcome back and welcome to another school year! We hope that you and your loved ones have had a safe and restful summer. We are excited to welcome our students to Fisher Park/Summit Alternative on Tuesday, September 2nd. We look forward to welcoming all of our Grade 7 & 8 students during our Orientation week next week in order to help prepare ALL students at FPSA with their new routines. 

A great deal of information will come home in the first few days (lunch and break routines, many online forms, lockers, Breakfast club, Pizza days etc...). What you need to know now: 

• Classes: Class placements will be released on Tuesday morning. Students can arrive in the school yard anytime after 8:30 a.m. All FPSA staff will be outside helping students find their classes and their homeroom teachers. We recognize the worry of the unknown for many of our students and we do everything we can to ease this transition. Students will receive their timetables on Tuesday and we have a week of events for students to meet their peers and acclimatize to the intermediate setting. 

• Breaks: Students will have two 45 minute nutrition breaks and are encouraged to bring a refillable water bottle. Students are not to leave school property during these times. Energy drinks are not welcome at FPSA. 

• School supplies: We recommend that you send your child with basic supplies (binder, dividers, paper, pencil case with pencils, erasor, scissors, pencil crayons etc..), however you may want to wait until your child has met their teachers to hear specific suggestions that may be encouraged for different subjects. (Here is the voluntary supply list: (suggested by the OCDSB) French/English dictionary, pencil case, 12 pencils, 2 erasers, 2 highlighters, scissors, 2 glue sticks, ruler, calculator, 3 ballpoint pens, coloured pencils, 2 packages of 3-hole lined refill paper, duotangs, coloured markers, geometry set, 3 binders, and binder dividers. Please note, we discourage the use of zippered larger binders as they are challenging for many to keep organized. Your child will need a lock for their locker and a water bottle. 

• Lockers: Students will have lockers and are asked to supply their own combination lock (keyed locks routinely get lost or forgotten), please come to the office if you are unable to provide a lock.

• Devices: Personal phones and devices are not permitted during school hours. We ask that devices are secured in lockers or remain at home. The exception to this would be the use of a personal computer or chromebook during class time with teacher permission. 

• Physical Education & Indoor/Outdoor Shoes: more information to come from your teachers next week. Intermediate students are always encouraged to dress appropriately for the weather - rain, sleet or snow!

• Student Transportation: Students who live further than 1.6 km from the school will receive a Presto pass from OC Transpo. These students will be provided with their Presto pass on the first day of school and students will need to manage their own transportation on the first day of school.  

  As we shared during our orientation presentation in the Spring, we do not have any yellow school bus transportation. All students who live closer than 1.6 km will need to be transported by parents, or walk/bike to school.

  More information regarding student transportation is available here - 
  http://www.ottawaschoolbus.ca/school-bus-routes/oc-transpo-public-transit-information/

• Bike and Scooter Locks: As the number of scooters and bicycles increase at FPSA, students are being asked to bring a lock to secure their scooters and bicycles as there is no indoor storage for these micro mobility vehicles. 

• School Hours: Start time of 8:45; first break at 10:45 - 11:30; second break 1:30 - 2:15; final bell at 3:15 

• Pick up & Drop off: For safety and supervision, there is extremely limited space and visibility in the Holland parking lot, parents are asked to pick up and drop off on Harmer Avenue

We hope this gives everyone a little insight into our first week at Fisher Park/Summit Alternative School. We are all very much looking forward to our year together!