Kicking Off A Great Year!
We’re so excited to have our students back and filling the school with laughter, curiosity, and energy! The first few days have been a wonderful start—classrooms are buzzing with new friendships, fresh routines, and lots of learning already underway. As we head into our first full week, we’re looking forward to building on this strong beginning and continuing to create a warm, supportive environment where every child can thrive. Thank you, families, for helping make this transition smooth and joyful—we’re off to a great start!
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at welba@limestone.on.ca
Ms. Fraser, Mrs. Swan-Pressnell, and Ms. Hart
Upcoming Events
Thursday, September 25
- Welborne Terry Fox Run
- Grade 7 Immunizations
- School Open House
- Le jour des Le Jour des Franco-Ontariens
Tuesday, September 30
- National Day of Truth and Reconciliation
In 1980, Terry had a dream of a world without cancer. Forty-five years later, Terry's Marathon of Hope lives on. If we work together, we can make such a difference in the lives of so many. Please help fund critical cancer research in Canada by supporting our participation in the 2025 Terry Fox School Run. https://schools.terryfox.ca/108172
Crossing the finish line means hope for everyone with cancer. Together, we can Finish It
Help us build the Welborne Coin Road in Support of Cancer Research
As part of our Terry Fox fundraising for cancer research, students are welcome to bring along any coins to build a Welborne "coin road" or "rue de sous". Pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, toonies and loonies are all welcome! Each class has a "coin road bucket". Students will measure the distance of the coin road we build (one meter stick at a time) and also count the amount of money raised.
Message from the Director of LDSB
🚗 Drop-Off & Pick-Up Reminders: Parking Lot Safety First
As we settle into our school routines, we want to thank families for helping make mornings and afternoons run smoothly. A key part of this is ensuring our parking lot remains a safe space for students and staff.
🚫 Parking Lot Access
To protect our students during high-traffic times, the school parking lot is closed to parent and guardian vehicles during drop-off and pick-up. Only school buses, vehicles with accessible parking permits, and staff vehicles are permitted entry. This helps reduce congestion and keeps pedestrian pathways clear and safe. We truly appreciate your cooperation in keeping our school community safe.
🚶 Morning Drop-Off
Parents/guardians may walk students to the yard, where supervision begins at 8:50 a.m. We kindly ask that families drop children off at the foot of the path, allowing students to walk independently to their designated zones. Staff will be flexible during the first few days, especially for students new to Welborne who are still learning the routines.
👋 Afternoon Pick-Up
Please arrange to meet your child in the same location each day. If your child is walking home with siblings or older students, help them plan a consistent meeting spot. Older students will exit through their designated doors and walk around the outside of the building to meet younger siblings.
📞 Connecting with Teachers
Teachers are focused on student safety during drop-off and pick-up, so we ask that families please respect that the educators are responsible for the safe dismissal of all children in their care and cannot engage in a conversation with you about your child during this busy time. If you need to speak with your child’s teacher, please email welba@limestone.on.ca or call the office—we’ll be happy to help coordinate a time.
🚲 Active Transportation Encouraged
Whenever possible, we encourage families to walk or bike to school. Bike racks are available at the front of the building.
🚌 Bus Transportation
Families eligible for bussing should have received details from Tri-Board. You can log in to the Tri-Board portal to view stop locations and times. If you haven’t yet applied, please note that late submissions may be processed after the second week of school.
🚗 Vehicle Drop-Off Options
If you’re driving your child to school, please observe city parking signs and consider using one of our nearby walking paths located on Bicknell Crescent, Glen Castle Road, or Nordic Avenue.
Daily Schedule
Regular attendance is essential for academic success and personal development. It helps build knowledge, responsibility, and routine, while enabling teachers to better support individual learning needs and foster a connected classroom environment.
Families can support attendance by encouraging daily participation, reserving absences for illness, and scheduling appointments outside school hours when possible.
We recognize that some students may face challenges that affect regular attendance. By working together with schools, we can ensure students receive the support they need. Every school day matters and together we can make a difference by making attendance a shared priority.
Visitors to Welborne Avenue Public School
We welcome visitors to our school. We do ask that all visitors, parents/guardians included, sign in with the main office and remain in the front lobby until directed/escorted by a staff member.
All LDSB elementary schools are equipped with a Safe Welcome system which requires all external doors be locked during the school day. All visitors are required to report to the school’s main entrance and request access using an intercom and buzzer system.
When it is necessary for a student to leave school during the day, a note is required from a parent or guardian. The note must be given to the homeroom teacher or the office. If parents/guardians of students are coming to pick up/drop off your child, you are asked to wait at the main office. If necessary, office staff will alert your child’s classroom. These measures are in place to help keep all students safe and minimize disruptions to learning.
Important School Advisory Information
Parents, guardians and caregivers play an important role in the educations system. One way for you to be involved and share your ideas is to join the School Advisory Council, also referred to as "School Council". School Council Elections will be held on Monday, September 29th. The first meeting will take place directly after the elections.
Recent feedback indicates that the preference is for these meetings to remain virtual, but this will be an agenda item for the first meeting. Stay tuned for more information
Join us for our Open House!
Thursday, September 25th
5:30 - 6:30 PM
Families are invited to the Welborne Avenue PS Open House.
This is a chance for caregivers to meet the teacher and see the classrooms their child(children) learn in.
Report a Student Absence
One of our greatest priorities is ensuring that all students arrive safely to school every day. To improve our safe arrival process, Limestone District School Board has made some changes to our SafeArrival absence reporting management system. All parents/guardians are asked to report their student’s absence regardless of the reason.
How to report an absence
In some instances, students may need to be away from school for illness, appointments or other events. Parents/caregivers can use the SafeArrival system to report a full day absence, an extended student absence and also a late arrival to school. When reporting an absence for a secondary student parents/caregivers will also be able to select an early departure. To report an absence, use one the following methods:
School Messenger application
- Use the email address you provided to the school.
- 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.
- Tap 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 from the menu, then select Report an Absence and follow the prompts.
SchoolMessenger SafeArrival website portal
- Use the e-mail address you provided to the school.
- Go to the website SchoolMessenger website portal.
- Click 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 from the menu, then select Report an Absence.
Interactive toll-free telephone
- Call 1-855-257-9349 toll-free to report an absence using the automated phone system.
- Follow the instructions to report an absence.
These options are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For any school day in the school term up to the cut-off time on the day of the absence. Future absences can be reported at any time using any one of these methods.
Please do not call the school directly to report your student's absence.
Reporting late arrivals
Parents/caregivers are instructed to report late arrivals using the new Late Arrival option, including the expected arrival time to school. When a student arrives, they are expected to sign in at office and staff make the amendment in our student information system. When a student leaves early, again they are expected to sign out (with parental permission) and again the amendment is made in our system. This method allows us to best track student attendance to ensure safety.
The SafeArrival system makes it easier for you to report your student’s absence, reduces the time it takes for our school staff to verify student attendance, and responds to unexpected or unplanned student absences. This time savings makes it faster and more efficient to account for all students and their safety.
Additional resources
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Using the SchoolMessenger App for Safe Arrival
- Setting Preferences in SchoolMessenger/SafeArrival
- Watch the video tutorial on how to create a SchoolMessenger account
- Watch the video tutorial on how to report absences in SchoolMessenger
2025-2026 LDSB School Year Calendar
A PDF version of the 2025-2026 School Year Calendar is available online.
Allergen Awareness - Nut-Free & Scent Free School
Grade 7 and Grade 8 Lunch Privileges
Historically, the students in grades 7 and 8 have the opportunity to get parent permission to leave the school property during recess/eating break on designated days. For the first few weeks of school, all students will remain at school during recess time as routines and relationships are established. Additional information and a permission form has been sent home to families of students in grade 7 and 8. Students must return these forms to their homeroom teacher.
Hot Lunch
We will resume hot lunch in October. You will be able to order selections through your school-day account.