Kennedy Public School's Mission Statement
Learning for Life, striving for excellence! Kennedy Public School, which officially opened in 1988, is named for the James Kennedy family who immigrated to Canada from Scotland and settled in this northeast area of Metropolitan Toronto. The school serves approximately 570 students, many of whom speak Mandarin and Cantonese with English as a second language. Kennedy Public School is committed to promoting learning as a lifelong experience, striving for excellence in all students, and within a safe and caring environment, teaching our children to be socially responsible citizens.
Kennedy P.S. is now a 'Cash On Line' School!!! Please sign up if you have not done so already! Kennedy P.S. offers many enrichment opportunities for our students. A vibrant Music program, Extra Curricular such as Athletics and Dance. A variety of student leadership opportunities including: Student Council, Student Leadership Group,Young Women on the Move, Daily Physical Activities, Mental Health and Well Being initiatives, and various school wide Student Helper programs, are provided.
School Focus for the Year
We will continue the implementation of Literacy strategies to promote reading with meaning, critical thinking, and oral language. Our Numeracy initiative will centre on problem solving and inquiry based learning with a focus on STEM. We will continue with our Character Education/Social Justice learning by making connections on a personal, community, and global scale. Due to our outstanding achievement in our EcoSchool program, we are maintaining our platinum certification.
More Information About Kennedy Public School
Building a Respectful School Climate
Our goal is to foster respect for each other through team building and cooperation, not only in classrooms but also through extra curricular activities. We celebrate student success and achievement in our recognition assemblies.
Participate with Pride
To foster pride in themselves and their school, students are encouraged to take ownership of their learning by striving for academic excellence, participating in athletics and The Arts. We encourage our students to take advantage of leadership opportunities in the classroom, throughout the school and in their community.
The Arts at Kennedy
To enrich our students' lives, we encourage involvement in The Arts. We provide our students with opportunities to express themselves through choirs (Primary and Junior/Intermediate), bands (Concert and Jazz), folk dance and a dance club. Students and their teachers have painted murals to beautify our school (e.g., Legacy Tree) and the community (e.g., Sanwood Park).
Community Connections
Our goal is to continue to support our local Heathwood Ratepayer's Association in its effort to improve the beauty of our community and to keep it clean. We have worked together to paint murals, plant trees, clean up garbage in our parks, and create an outdoor classroom to honour our former student. Our students will continue to support our local food bank.
Additional Features
- Dedicated Staff
- Settlement Worker
- Learning Commons
- Rich Music Program
- Assistive Technology
- Kindergarten Playground
- Partnership with Bethune C.I.
- Naturalized School Yard
Student Life - Where You Belong
GO TEAM
Kennedy prides itself on providing many opportunities for students to grow in all areas of life. We offer many extra curricular experiences including athletics, the Arts, Eco club, folk dance and many other opportunities for our students to develop their leadership skills. Our Student Leadership group provides opportunities for students to learn leadership skills on many levels including the community, through food and clothing drives. Our Student Council encourages students to develop a voice through school wide planned events and initiatives.
WHAT SETS US APART
As a yearly Weston Award winner for excellence in academics, we have a strong curriculum and excellent teachers. The number of championship banners that hang in the gym attest to our athletic ability. Our artistic creativity is shown by the artwork in the classrooms and the halls, as well as, the murals that we have painted in our local park, at Bridlewood Mall and our 25th Anniversary Murals in the school hallway. A highlight of the year is the school Science Fair culminating in an open house evening for parents to see all the displays and interact with many students and to see classroom projects.
PARENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
We have a solid relationship with our community association, where we help in keeping the community clean. Our school maintains a great rapport and partnership with local businesses who support us in our fundraising activities (e.g., Michael's No Frills). We have a long history of involvement with university teacher education programs (OISE/UT, Tyndale, Nipissing, UOIT, Medaille and Canisius College) and involvement in student mentoring and co-op education programs (Bethune C.I.). We are also working in conjuction with early childhood education programs (Ryerson University). We encourage parent volunteers to assist in classroom programs as well as for special events and excursions. We continue to use our school website and parent email distribution list to better communicate to our students, parents and community at large.