It’s Monday morning and the Grade 1/2 students in Ms. Kindrachuk’s class and the Grade 4 students in Ms. Giusti’s class eagerly await the arrival of artist Val MacMenemey. The children know her as “Ms. V,” a dynamic artist who visits students and teachers at St. Andrew’s school on a regular basis to work with the school community.

The Learning Through the Arts Program was initiated by the Sudbury Catholic District School Board in order to create a partnership between the artist and the teacher so that new and exciting art ideas could be explored and implemented in the school’s art program. “The Learning Through the Arts initiative was an excellent opportunity in that it gave the students and teachers a chance to develop an appreciation of art through a variety of forms and venues,” stated Sherry Bortolotti, St. Andrew Catholic School principal. “More importantly, the program helped our children understand that art is therapeutic and given the right tools and skills it empowers children to express themselves,” concluded Bortolotti.

Students from the Sudbury Catholic District School Board participated in the Victory Team celebration held at Cambrian College recently. The Victory Team Program was created to develop and nurture positive behaviour in the youth of the community by implementing a peer initiative program throughout local elementary schools.

The Victory Team Program gives all students the opportunity of participating on a team which does not demand any exceptional type of scholastic or athletic excellence but rather looks for students who display a positive attitude. Elementary schools from all four school boards are involved in the Victory Program and are divided into three team categories: Sophomore, (JK to Grade 2); Junior Varsity, (Grades 3 to 5); Varsity, (Grades 6 to 8).

The students on the Victory Teams are selected from
staff nominations in each school with one student being chosen each
week. Team members receive Victory Team T-shirts with the opportunity to participate in three major events, and will be awarded gold medals at the end of the year.

Special congratulations goes out to St. Anne School, whose students took home top prize in the Victory Team Puzzle Championship!

Teachers, principals, curriculum coordinators, members of Special
Education Advisory Groups, superintendents, directors, and almost anyone related to the field of education were treated to a highly informative seminar on “Adult Learners” and “How They Learn” at a breakfast seminar hosted by the Learning Disabilities Association of Sudbury and SMTAB recently. Pat Hatt, a world renowned educator with a Masters in Language and Learning Problems and a Canadian Specialist in the areas of adult literacy had a room packed with educators captivated with her high energy and dynamic presentation style.

According to Hatt, almost 10 percent of the Canadian population has a
learning disability, with the same percentage translated into schools
and students. “A child sitting in a classroom may not know what is
wrong with them when it comes to processing information,” stated Hatt.
“They do know, however, that for one reason or another they are
different from the other students.” Individuals with Learning
Disabilities, both as children and as adults experience problems with
processing information. A Learning Disability can also affect the way
in which a person takes in, remembers, understands and expresses
information. What is surprising to many people is that people with
learning disabilities are intelligent and have the ability to learn in
spite of difficulties in processing information. However, given the
appropriate coping strategies and accommodations these individuals can
be extremely successful.

The Learning Disabilities Association of Sudbury (LDAS) in conjunction
with the Sudbury Manitoulin Training and Adjustment Board (SMTAB)
invited Mrs. Hatt to share her knowledge on literacy and support groups for individuals with learning disabilities in number of public
presentations. Session one took place at Cambrian College on November 23 with students, parents and teachers involved with “Breaking Down the Barriers.” This informative and educational session included the topics of balancing accommodations while maintaining skills, integrity, the need for acceptance and disclosure by students with LD and their parents, and the critical value of schools, teachers, parents and student partnerships. Session two: “Our Community, Breaking Down Barriers” was held on November 24 for employment service deliverers, teachers and counsellors of adults and focused on the various types of learning disabilities.

For more information on Learning Disabilities, please contact the
Learning Disabilities Association of Sudbury at ph. 522-0100 or by
e-mail at info@ldasudbury.ca or website at www.ldasudbury.ca