admin, Author at Sudbury Catholic District School Board

St. Mary’s Friends – Across “The Pond”

Posted on June 6, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

St. Mary students had a first hand glimpse into the celebrations surrounding the recent Royal Wedding of Will and Kate when letters and pictures from their Pen Pals in England arrived. For the past two years, letters, gifts and even school apparel have been exchanged with St. Nicholas Church of England Primary School in Rayleigh, England (a distance of fifty-one kilometres from London, and a distance of 5646 kilometres from Capreol).

Last school year a link was made with Mrs. Lorna Pigman, Headteacher at St. Nicholas. Student letters were soon exchanged. Information about our Pen Pals was displayed on a central bulletin board so that all could read about our new friends. It was interesting to see that both schools have the same school colours, blue and gold.

This last set of letters included information about the Royal Wedding. The school had a street party in the playground. Students all brought food and were able to play party games. Everyone wore the colours of red, white and blue on the national holiday. St. Mary students will soon be writing about the end of year activities and their summer plans.

Pichi Ngamo at St. James Catholic School

Posted on June 6, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

Lana Trudeau, Aboriginal support worker with the Sudbury Catholic School Board has the led the Pichi Ngamo Program (Robin Sing) at St. James Catholic School. The Pichi Ngamo program is a seven session Aboriginal focus lunch program, which builds cultural esteem and pride. The students involved in the project had the opportunity to create cultural crafts such as Medicine bags, handshakers, and beaded key chains. Also included in the Pichi Ngamo program, is the tradition of the Talking Stick. In this tradition the Talking Stick is passed around the circle and whoever is holding the stick can speak of any moment in their personal history. The Talking Stick is a symbol of respect for the thoughts and stories of all participants and what is said in the circle remains there.

St. Anne Student Looks For Gold

Posted on June 6, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

Victoria Dawson, a Gr.1 student at St. Anne School, hopes that her efforts will reward her with a few gold nuggets. After spending the day at Dynamic Earth with her classmates participating in many mining activities, including a trip underground, Victoria tried her hand at one of the earliest forms of searching for minerals, panning for gold. When asked what she might do if she actually found gold, this young student within the Sudbury Catholic Board said, ” First I would show it to my teacher and friends, then I would take it home and give it to my mom for her birthday.” The primary and some junior students at St. Anne School in Hanmer enjoyed their visit to one of Sudbury’s most famous tourist attractions and learning center. It gave them a good opportunity to learn about mining in the past. Comments such as,”My poppa, my dad, or my mom works in the mine,” helped the children to make connections with the jobs many of their parents and grandparents participate in on a daily basis. A great learning day was had by all!

E-Waste Collection at Marymount Academy

Posted on June 1, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

The entire student body of Marymount Academy was issued a challenged by one of the computer studies classes. “Bring in your garbage” was what the girls were asked – but not just any garbage. Students and staff have been asked to bring in all of their e-waste for the week of May 30 to June 3, 2011. This collection was the idea of teacher Desiree Lacourciere’s class after having several conversations about the effect of electronic waste on the environment. The students contacted a company called Greentec to help them with their collection. As well, the class divided into groups and put together short videos to inspire the entire school to join them in their collection. All of the videos were viewed and voted on, and the winning video was premiered for the entire school at the e-waste collection launch on May 30. When addressing the students, Lacourciere encouraged all students and staff to talk to their families and find whatever old electronics they had to contribute. “My students were the inspiration for this initiative,” Lacourciere said. “ In class we learned so much about the harmful effects of electronics on the environment and we knew that we couldn’t just sit back – we had to get on board as a school community.” Lucie Cullen, principal of the school echoed Lacourciere’s encouragement and spoke of the importance of getting involved. “At Sudbury Catholic Schools, we are called to be stewards of the earth, and at Marymount Academy we always take action when we are passionate about what we believe in.”
The students have one week to collect items such as old computers, printers, printer cartridges, cell phones, batteries, digital cameras, monitors, televisions etc.

“Heart Heroes” Make A Difference At St. Anne Catholic Elementary School

Posted on May 30, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

Primary and Junior students at St. Anne School in Hanmer questioned teacher, Mrs. Desmarais. “What is a Heart Hero?” Mrs. Desmarais’ response was that a Heart Hero was anyone that wanted to help keep all kid’s hearts strong and healthy. She outlined to students how they could work together to make a difference not only to their own health, but to the future of healthy hearts everywhere. Those words were all that the Catholic Board students needed to hear. In association with the Heart and Stroke Foundation, the elementary students participated in the “Jump Rope for Heart” fundraiser.

The students prepared for the event by raising pledges. Next, they began a campaign of improving their skipping skills and stamina during gym classes and recesses. A skipping “phenomena” took over the school. The school administration and teachers helped with the excitement by offering incentives for students with the most pledges. Goals of $1000.00 to $5000.00 or more would result in students being able to throw pies at staff members in front of the entire student body. Mr. Guy Mathieu, the school principal, stated, “The amount of enthusiasm that has been generated with this fundraiser is incredible! I am always amazed at the school spirit demonstrated by the students, not only with their efforts in bringing in pledges, but also at their enthusiasm within the gym at the actual pie throwing contest.” All money amounts raised are put to good use by the Heart and Stroke Foundation. A pledge of as little as $5.00 can be used to purchase test tubes for lifesaving research, while funds of up to $150.00 can be used to buy a blood pressure monitor to keep patients healthy.

The fundraising activity was a huge success! More than $5000.00 was raised. A school assembly will be held in June where staff members will keep their promises to the St. Anne “Heart Heroes.” Even though the Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser is over, school skipping ropes are still in demand by students in all grade levels. The Sudbury Catholic Board students have learned, “They can make a difference in the lives of others!” Way to go Angels!

St. James Hosts Family Aboriginal Night

Posted on May 26, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

St. James Catholic School in Lively hosted a family evening for its Aboriginal students and families at the Atikameksheng Anishnawbek (Whitefish Lake First Nation) Community Center. Approximately 120 students, parents, grandparents, relatives and St. James staff gathered to celebrate and spotlight the work and achievement of St. James’ Aboriginal students.
The evening began with a smudging ceremony by grandparents Julie and Frank Ozawagosh, followed by an opening song led by parent drummer Candace Ozawagosh. St. James principal Cara Soehner, Councillor John Vallely, Sudbury Catholic School Board Aboriginal Lead, Shelly Moore-Frappier and Catholic school trustee Estelle Scappatura all spoke of the importance of relationships and teamwork for the education of children.
The evening concluded with Ojibway Family Bingo where the students called the Bingo numbers in Anishinaabemowin. The closing song was provided by the Atikameksheng Anishnawbek drummers. The photo captures the community spirit present at the Family Night.

Empathy at St. Paul Catholic Elementary School

Posted on May 20, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

In keeping with this months virtue of Empathy, the St. Paul Catholic Elementary Students in Ms. Purawec’s 7/8 FI class collected money to purchase sandwich fixings and on Friday May 20th all the students worked together to prepare sandwiches and a small sweet to be delivered to the Elgin Street Mission. The students worked in an assembly line fashion as some buttered, some spread the mustard, some added the cheese and some added the meat. The last station was the group who added a small sweet and short message with each completed sandwich. We are very proud of our students and their generosity.

St. James Students Go “Bongo”

Posted on May 20, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

The grade 2 and 3 French Immersion class at St. James Catholic Elementary School enjoy the bongos, intended to help students develop a good sense of beat, how to play rhythm, as well as developing an understanding and appreciation of music. Teacher Mme Itotoz taught students techniques for producing a variety of tones and drum sounds and the students were proud of the use of patterns to create a class musical composition.

Welcome to Kindergarten at St. Bernadette

Posted on May 20, 2011August 23, 2018 by admin

Students who will be beginning their educational careers this coming September gathered recently at St. Bernadette Catholic School for an afternoon in the life of a JK student.
Parents and students experienced story time, explored letters and numbers, enjoyed healthy snacks, fashioned play dough creations and had their first bus ride.
After the session students left with a goody bag full of resources to stimulate their learning through play during the summer months while they wait for the first day of school in September.