The reading buddies program has begun at Pius XII! This literacy program generates a strong sense of community at the school. In the program, big and little buddies read to eachother. The Reading Buddies program works to proactively prevent bullying in the school by building strong relationships across all grades.
Month: October 2011
St. Charles Elementary Kicks Off Dearness Conservation
Students at St. Charles Elementary Catholic School gathered in the gymnasium on October 14, 2011 in a traditional way for their Dearness Conservation kickoff. Students and staff support, promote and practice programs that foster stewardship of the earth which are integrated with the Medicine Wheel teachings, Catholic Graduate Expectations and Virtues of the month.
St. Charles teachers and students were assigned a Direction and asked to dress in the colour corresponding in the Medicine Wheel (East-yellow, South-red, West-black and North-white). They were called down to the gym by Direction starting with the East and ending in the North. Students wrapped around the gym forming a human Medicine Wheel as they sat attentively and listened to the teachings of Elder, Vince Pawis. Following the teachings, Gr. 5 teacher, Ms. Cormier explained the importance of the Dearness Conservation Program and how each student is responsible for making a commitment to a healtheir Mother Earth.
The students are excited to learn about their role as stewards of the earth and how they can make a difference.
Sudbury Catholic Teacher Honoured for her Commitment to Students with Learning Disabilities
Community partners gathered together at the Caruso Club on Friday, October 14, 2001 to share breakfast while learning more about the faces of learning disabilities in the community. The breakfast was organized by the Learning Disabilities Association of Sudbury (L.D.A.S.) which is comprised of a team of parents, educators and professionals all working together for individuals with learning disabilities. The morning’s agenda included the honouring of teachers in the community that support students in reaching their full potential. St. Benedict teacher Kelly Orasi-Leach was one of these teachers. Receiving one of two Educators of the Year awards, presented by Liz Brett-Dickie, Orasi-Leach was overwhelmed as she was presented with her award. “I feel undeserving,” Kelly said. “I am so fortunate that I get to do a job every day that doesn’t even feel like a job.” Presenter Brett-Dickie said that “she knows first hand what a wonderful teacher Kelly is, and what a great job she does for her students.” The St. Benedict teacher runs the Student Success programming for the school and also runs several workshops that help people understand the learning disability profiles. As well, she works with several community partners and builds relationships in order to ensure there is tremendous support for the needs of her students. “We are so proud of Kelly and her commitment to our students,” stated Rossella Bagnato, Superintendent of School Effectiveness for the Sudbury Catholic Board. “Her dedication to our students is outstanding, and we are blessed to have her as part of the Sudbury Catholic staff.”
St. Ben’s Alumni Show School Spirit!
Fall was in the air, as the second Girls Flag Football and returning alumni players game took place on St. Benedict field on a sunny Friday afternoon.
Coaches Kim Labrosse and Katherine McNamara were excited that this game brought back alumni from all over, which really shows St. Ben’s school spirit. There were many star performers, but players agreed that the final score was not as important as the comradery displayed. Returning player and former coach Olivia Kirkwood said, “I miss playing and seeing everyone”. Alumni Zorisa Prosser stated, “It was fun to be back”, and Emma Meunier thought playing once again “was awesome”!
The St. Ben’s Girls Flag Football team enjoyed the experience of playing the alumni. It’s like family coming together, and the bond amongst the players is one that won’t soon be forgotten.
St. Anne E.L.K.P. Students Work On Getting “Stuffed” For Fall Celebrations
The month of October can be an exciting one for little people. The English and French Early Learning Kindergarten Students at St. Anne School in Hanmer are no exception. Along with their regular classroom activities during the month of October, they celebrated Thanksgiving and will also be celebrating Hallowe’en. Finding a mascot to help tie the two celebrations together wasn’t very hard. Who better than the scarecrow? The farm fields are full of scarecrows in the fall as the farmers prepare to gather in their crops and those same scarecrows watch over the most important Hallowe’en crop of all. Pumpkins!
With the help and guidance of their teachers, the youngest students at the Sudbury Catholic School in Hanmer took advantage of the nice weather and headed outside to build their own fall scarecrows. Armed with a wooden base for the body, a bale of hay, and all the usual clothing one would expect to find on a scarecrow, the students took turns not only talking about the order and appearance of their individual classroom scarecrows, but also took turns grabbing handfuls of the hay and stuffing their scarecrow bodies. In the end, three different classrooms had created three different looking scarecrows. The scarecrows will sit in the flower beds in front of St. Anne School for the entire month of October watching over the school’s own gardens and helping to put students and staff from all grades into a season of celebrating. Never let it be said that the English and French E.L.K.P. students at St. Anne School aren’t “stuffed” with ideas about having fun!
St. Charles College Students will be treated to the Scientific “Opportunity of a Lifetime
The students from two science classes at St. Charles College will get up close and personal with great Canadian scientist David Suzuki early next month.
Approximately sixty students at the school will take part in a virtual discussion with Suzuki November 2nd.
School science teacher Lloyd Rebeiro completed the application to participate.
Only 200 schools across Canada were selected for the virtual classroom discussions that are being hosted by the National Film Board of Canada and the David Suzuki Foundation.
Rebeiro says, “This is an opportunity of a lifetime for the students. They all know who David Suzuki is because he is the greatest science and environmental guru in our country.”
To prepare for the virtual classroom event, students must watch and study “Forces of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie.”
The student discussion with Suzuki will focus on Suzuki’s core message which is “humans have exhausted the limits of the biosphere and it is imperative that we rethink our relationship with the natural world.”
Some students may be chosen to the contribute to the discussion by asking their very own questions.
The event will take place at 1:30 p.m. on November 2nd in the school’s ampitheatre.
All on Board at St. Paul
Teachers at St. Paul the Apostle School have included the use of technology into the new school year School Improvement Plan. Pictured are Ms. Dahlvik gr. 2/3 FI, Ms. Connelly board assistive technology teacher, Ms. Streitenberger gr. 2/3 regular, Mrs. Lavalee resource teacher and Mrs. Wilson gr3/4 teacher as they work together to create a plan for this new school year.
National Fire Prevention Week at St. Charles Elementary
Students at St. Charles Elementary had in a ‘surprise’ fire drill on Wednesday, October 12, 2011 as part of the school’s participation in National Fire Prevention Week. District Fire Chief, Pat O’Link was very impressed and stated ‘the children did a excellent job on evacuating the building quickly and quietly’. A couple of Grade one students, Emma Huzij and Ryan Leclair, had a surprise of their own when they were given an opportunity to sit in the fire truck, turn the sirens on and wear a fire fighters hat.
St. Anne Students Celebrate Thanksgiving from Harvest to Feast
If you sit down with the students in the English Early Learning Kindergarten Program at St. Anne School and ask them why they feel like the very first settlers at Thanksgiving, they can tell you why. They feel they’ve lived it! In part, they actually have!
Through inquiry, these youngest students within the Catholic Board tried to discover all that they could about the season of fall. Fall is a time of rest for Mother Nature and a time of harvest for people and many of the animals. The students took a trip to a local garden where they actually had a chance to see what happens to plants when they are ripe. Even though some of the students were familiar with gardens, many were not. Who knew that cheese didn’t come from the garden or that so many potatoes could come from one plant?
After “harvesting” carrots, potatoes, pumpkins, and celery, the students returned to school where they began talking about the celebration of Thanksgiving. It was no surprise that they started making connections between the first Settlers and Aboriginal Peoples celebrating their harvest with the traditional holiday they were getting ready to celebrate with their families. The students decided to relive the first Thanksgiving. They wrote and sent home their own invitations, peeled and cooked their garden vegetables, dressed in a type of Thanksgiving costume, and sat down with their parents, grandparents, relatives, and friends to enjoy their own Thanksgiving. All week one English E.L.K.P student, Mae Lin Zoldy, spoke of “being so excited for the class celebration”. She and her classmates weren’t disappointed! With good food such as carrots, potatoes, and turkey on the menu and the great company of their families, these children got a realistic experience of Thanksgiving. Can these St. Anne School English students understand the meaning of Thanksgiving? You bet they can! From harvest to feast, this Thanksgiving was a connection they will never forget!