October 2013 - Page 2 of 3 - Sudbury Catholic District School Board

Ministry of Education Consultation Held at Laurentian University

Posted on October 18, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

A series of consultations are being held across the province by the Ministry of Education on building the next phase in Ontario’s education strategy. On October 17, the Ministry invited a wide range of people to Laurentian University to take part in this information input session which included representatives from various community groups, organizations, advocacy groups and agencies that are either directly or indirectly linked to education. Several school board representatives as well as secondary students were invited to voice their opinions about these educational strategies. Mackenzie Connelly, Student Trustee for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board was invited to give input from a student’s perspective.
The following questions were posed for discussion:

What are the skills, knowledge and characteristics students need to succeed after they have completed school, and how do we better support all learners in their development?

What does student well-being mean to you, and what is the role of the school in supporting it?

From your perspective, what further opportunities exist to close gaps and increase equity to support all children and students in reaching their full potential?

How does the education system need to evolve as a result of changes to child care and the implementation of full-day kindergarten?

How can we use technology more effectively in teaching and learning?

In summary, what are the various opportunities for partnership that can enhance the student experience, and how can they benefit parents, educations and our partners too?

As a result, through the various consultations, it is anticipated that a release of a renewed vision for our education system will be launched in 2014.

For more information, please visit Great to Excellent or contact the Ministry of Education at: GreatToExcellent@Ontario.ca

Regals Find Strength in the “Power of Being a Girl”

Posted on October 18, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

All grade 8 students from Marymount Academy were invited to the Steelworkers Hall on October 18 for a full day conference. Organized by the YWCA Sudbury, the students took part in the annual “Power of Being a Girl” conference that provides girls with the opportunity to discuss topics of interest including healthy relationships, communication, body image and decision making. Lori Holden, vice principal of Marymount Academy feels it is a great day for the students to learn about themselves and help build their confidence and personal awareness. “This is such a great event for our students to help them build skills for positive self esteem and increase healthy and productive attitudes,” explained Holden. “It allows the girls to feel empowered and increase their independence. With Marymount being an all-girl school, we recognize the importance of building these skills to support the development of our students to becoming strong, independent, confident women.” Several students in grades 10, 11 and were selected to be trained to become mentors for the conference, and they attended a one day training session on October 5 to learn how to help support the younger students with their discussions and questions. On the day of the conference, the students worked through three separate workshops, which included the Power of Body Image – Media and Identity, the Power in Relationships, and the Power of Words. Several students from grade 8 at St. Raphael and St. Francis Catholic Elementary Schools were also invited to take part in the one day conference.

“Go Gators Go!”

Posted on October 11, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

Bishop A. Carter students showed their school spirit at their pep rally October 10th. The host of Hot 93.5 afternoon show, G-Rant, made a special guest appearance and cheered on the students. G-Rant brought his own energy to the pep rally as he challenged the students to raise $20,000 for a Memorial fund for Mackenzie Rooney, a former student who was killed in a tragic accident last August. Students will be canvassing the community to help raise money to reach our goal. A 8.3 km walk is planned for this event on October 29th.

St. Paul Catholic Elementary School Leaves Its Mark on Coniston Rink

Posted on October 10, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

Every student at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Elementary School participated in the Coniston Community Arts project launch event held on Friday, September 27, 2013. This initial event’s (theme: Hands-On in the Community) purpose was to introduce this new arts group to the students. The idea was that the students would leave their mark in town with the handprint on the outside of the outdoor rink. The St. Paul students enjoyed this activity very much. The Coniston Community Arts members took this opportunity to discuss the importance of taking care of our community spaces. The goal of the Coniston Community Arts is to cultivate social capital through skill building, education and relationships that, in turn, provide a platform for individuals to engage with each other, their community and larger social issues. Teacher Tammy Lavalle and all of the St. Paul staff are very pleased to work side by side with the C.C.A. The hope is that as the St. Paul students become involved and they will promote positive attitudes towards their peers and the community. The next project will take place in the next few months. In the Sudbury Memories Project, the students learn how to document and create a biography. Once this project is completed, it will be available in the local Coniston library. St. Paul the Apostle is proud of its partnership with the Coniston Community Arts!! Thank you to Stephanie Aprea (a St. Paul parent) for all of her support with this project!

St. Paul Catholic Elementary School Leaves Its Mark on Coniston Rink

Posted on October 10, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

St. Paul Catholic Elementary School Leaves Its Mark on Coniston Rink

Posted on October 10, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

Sandra Herbst ‘Sits Beside’ SCDSB Leaders in Their Learning

Posted on October 10, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

On October 2, 3 and 4th 2013, the Sudbury Catholic District School Board hosted learning sessions with Sandra Herbst, co-author of several Assessment for Learning books, a noted system leader, speaker, coach, consultant, and educator with extensive experience in assessment, leadership, and adult learning.

With her warm demure and her real life anecdotes, Herbst shared practical strategies that can be used from the classroom to the boardroom that encourage self-assessment, self-regulation and improved achievement for ALL learners in the board. Over 75 members of the SCDSB community participated in the learning and had nothing but positive feedback to share.

Testimonials

“I really feel that this was one of the best presentations I have attended in my fourteen years with this board. I walked away energized, motivated and with many interesting ideas and strategies to ponder. Ms Herbst was a fantastic facilitator and her belief in educating the whole child connected so well with our catholic graduate expectations.”

“I have been reflecting more on my practice and the way in which I can influence and promote progress in my classroom and my school.”

“What I learned was I need to make myself more vulnerable… in the classroom… just like the teachers who opened their classrooms in the videos we watched.”

“It allowed me to clearly connect with concepts… such as… the difference between assessment and evaluation. It helped me spark new ideas for my teaching practice.”

The learning sessions supported our BIPSA priorities in Assessment for Learning and in technology. If you are interested in reading more on Sandra’s presentation, talk to your respective school leaders to obtain valuable handouts that were shared.

That’s a Wrap at S.C.C. – 112 Thousand Cans to Fill Sudbury Food Bank Shelves

Posted on October 10, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

Once again, the food drive at St. Charles College was a smashing success. Together with its feeder schools, 112 thousand cans were raised for the Sudbury Food Bank – smashing the goal of collecting 60 thousand cans in less than a week.

The food drive began more than twenty-five years ago, and its founder, former student Jim Szilva still takes part in the drive with his children at the school.

The school also teams up with Q92 and KISS 105.3 as well as the students at St. Raphael, St. David, St. Bernadette, St. Andrew, St. Paul, St. John and Pius XII Catholic Elementary Schools.

Students collect a combination of canned foods and cash – the cash portion totalled 15 thousand dollars this year.

St. Bernadette Takes on the Oreo Challenge

Posted on October 9, 2013August 23, 2018 by admin

The Grade 5/6 class from St. Bernadette Catholic Elementary School have been thoroughly engaged in hands-on learning with Oreos.

On Tuesday October 8th, they participated in the O.R.E.O. project, a scientific math-based inquiry project in which hundreds of schools across the country participated.

The excitement began as students hypothesized how many cookies they could stack. Students then tested their hypothesis as they stacked their Oreos. The highest stack of Oreos was 26. They continued their math learning by finding the mean, median and mode of the class.

The learning excitement will continue throughout the curriculum as they will graph their stacking, write stories and then finally get to make sculptures with the yummy cream filling.

Of course, teacher Chantal Therrien’s students admitted that the best part was snacking on the cookies when the project was complete!