The St. Francis School community kicked off Bullying Awareness Week with a prayer service and school-wide pledge to “Stand Up to Bullying”.
On November 18th, students, staff, and parents wore blue as a sign of peace and safety. Sunglasses and logos stating “Bullying Gives Us the BLUES” were worn with pride.
Recently students had a special guest at St. Charles Catholic Elementary School! Buster the Bus came to see the students in FDK to grade 3 to talk about bus safety. Pictured, Ryan Cooney and Buster are practicing how to cross the street safely.
On Monday, November 11th, the staff and students at St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School paused to remember the thousands of men and women who fought and who fought and died, defending Canada. Using the monthly virtue of Justice as a theme, the students were invited to consider the connection between Justice and Peace. Without Justice there can be no Peace. There were poignant songs to remind the school community that even though the brave have fallen, we will see them again one day and we will have the opportunity to say “Thank You”. The school’s librarian, MaryBeth. Miller, read “In Flanders Fields”, which has a special significance for her as she is related to the author, Col. John McCrae. Through prayer and song, the entire school community offered thanks for the bravery of our Canadian Forces for the gift of freedom won for us on distant battlefields. To conclude the service, as students departed they were invited to place their poppy on the “Justice” banner between the crosses, as in the poem “In Flanders Fields”.”
On Thursday, November 14, students and staff of St. Francis Catholic Elementary School showed their support for World Diabetes Day. As there are three students at the school who have diabetes, the students and staff came together and wore the colour blue to acknowledge the day and show their friends/students their support. They are all hopeful that one day a cure will be found!
On a chilly Monday morning, the St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School Photography club headed out to shoot some pictures in the local neighbourhoods. Teacher Angela Hodgins and chaplain Rob Pappin led the students on a walk about the Mallard’s landing area and captured many stunning images of the beauty of an Autumn morning. The photography club is a newer club in the school and students and staff are excited to display some of their work. They also work closely with the year book club to capture the various sports and other activities that are happening at the school. The club is open to all students and new members are always welcome.
On Thursday, November 14th the Gr. 11 Fitness class at Marymount participated in a boot camp and kangoo session with Clint and Lisa from Bodyworks Studio. This is the third time that Bodyworks Studio has visited Marymount and the fitness sessions are becoming more and more popular. With random spectators popping out of nowhere, the galleries and cafeteria filled throughout the period to see what this kangoo was all about. The students in the Gr. 11 Fitness class demonstrated that it’s all about cardio, strength, and endurance……not to mention FUN!!!! Most popular question at the end of class – “whoa….k seriously, when are we doing that again???”
Marymount Academy students had the opportunity on Friday, November 8 to look into their futures. Over 22 different presentations were set up for the students – all by women in successful careers willing to share their stories. Brenda Thompson, head of guidance for the school set up this career day to showcase a variety of careers to inspire the students. The students could sign up for four of the 22 different presentations including a firefighter, a physiotherapist and a carpenter. What was really great for the students was that several of the presenters were also graduates of Marymount Academy and they shared their journeys from their Marymount days down the path to their present careers.
“With a school made up of all female students, we know it is important to inspire the girls and help them recognize their unlimited potential,” explained Thompson. “Our students do very well academically, and we know that it is key to showcase a multitude of career options for them to help them achieve their own successes.”
For the second year in a row St. James Catholic School has been recognized for its participation in the ‘ Our Dreams Matter Too’ campaign. This campaign was originally created by Shannen Koostachin, youth education advocate from the Attawapiskat First Nation in Ontario. Her dream was for safe and comfy schools and culturally based education for First Nations children and youth. First Nations schools receive less funding per student than Provincial and Territorial schools, and zero dollars for things like libraries, computers, languages or extracurricular activities. Shannen advocated to try to convince the Federal government to give First Nations children a proper education before tragically passing away at the age of 15 years old in 2010.
Students from St. Francis Catholic Elementary School in grade 2 and 3 eagerly wrote postcards to war veterans for Remembrance Day. The postcards were provided by Veteran Affairs Canada. The class put their friendly letter writing skills to use in order to compose a thoughtful message. Students in teacher Graziella Visentin’s class annually write postcards to thank veterans for being brave and courageous in order to protect others. The grade 2 and 3 students acknowledged the veterans’ efforts and their gratitude for the freedom we so much enjoy today. This year the postcards were sent to war veterans residing in Ottawa, Ontario.
Grade 2 and 3 students pictured above, participated in a Remembrance Day Service with their classmates and members of the Royal Canadian Legion. Students read an acrostic poem entitled, REMEMBER, after the laying of wreaths during the service.
