On Wednesday May 15th at 6pm St. Andrew Catholic Elementary School welcomed 11 young children and their parents to their Welcome to Kindergarten evening. The school partnered with the Learning Partnership and our community partners Angela an OT from the Children’s Treatment Center and Cheryl the teacher from the New Sudbury Cooperative Nursery School to give the students and their parents some tools to help them be prepared for school in the fall. There was a read-aloud, a letters and numbers activity, craft and a delicious nutrious snack of fruit, meat and cheese. Thanks goes out to Mrs. Waugh and Mrs. Sawkiw from the school who made this such a fun evening.
Category: Kindergarten
St. Andrew Visits Science North
On Thursday May 16th the entire student body and staff of St. Andrew Catholic Elementary School travelled to Science North and spent the day exploring the centre. Thanks to the generosity of a devoted group of parents who volunteer their personal time to work at a bingo the school enjoys a Science North membership and the busing to and from the Science Centre plus many other extracurricular activities. The JK/SK class has just completed a themed unit on space and all the children are very aware of astronaut Chris Hadfield and his recent expedition in space so they were excited to see the life-sized cut out of him at the Centre. This group also participated in the Music Monday Activity where they sang simultaneously with Chris Hadfield while he was still at the Internatinal Space Station.
What’s Inside My Computer?
Teacher Karen Healy and Early Childhood Educator Angela Ross’ class use forms of technology everyday, but how does that technology work? Through hands-on investigation, the full day kindergarten class at St. Francis Catholic Elementary School was able to dismantle a computer tower and a laptop to get a closer look at what is inside. Students Aiden Galloway took apart the CPU fan to get a closer look and Violet Smith tried to figure out where the memory chip goes on the motherboard. When Aiden was finished he said, “I can’t believe I took out a piece of the computer!”
RCMP Visits St. Francis FDK Class
Mme Lachance’s and Mme Lynne’s FDK French Immersion class had the pleasure of having a special guest visit their classroom. Sergeant Andre Lecoz shared his duties as an RCMP officer with the students. He explained all the features of his uniform and allowed the children to try on a smaller version of the coat and hat. Although many children thought he was a cowboy at first, at the end of the presentation they seemed to have a better understanding of what an RCMP actually does to help protect our society.
Hopping into Full Day Kindergarten at St. Anne Catholic School
When the Full Day Kindergarten students from St. Anne Catholic Elementary School returned after the Christmas Break, their teacher Lois Lambert asked, “What type of center should we have in our class?” The FDK students replied, “A Vet Centre”. While the students were engaged in discussion at the Veterinarian Centre, they were talking about adult animals and baby animals. A question was raised from the students, “If an animal has a baby, does it look like its mommy or daddy?” The class looked at the life cycles of various animals. However, they were most interested in the life cycle of a rabbit. The FDK students took this inquiry to life by bringing in a pregnant rabbit. Everyone waited patiently for the pregnancy, which lasted 31 days. Then on February 11, 2013 the bunnies arrived! The students welcomed 4 baby bunnies (a litter of bunnies is called a kit) and now help take care of them. “I love to read stories to the bunnies,” said Kenadie Dixon, a year 2 FDK student. This experience has been an on-going learning adventure. All of the babies that have grown in the classroom will be joining their new families just in time for Easter.
Bringing Spring into the Classroom at St. Charles
Spring has arrived in the JK French Immersion classroom at St. Charles Catholic Elementary School in Chelmsford. The students have been learning about flowers and plants and have been enjoying exploring in the dramatic play centre, “La boutique à fleurs.” On a snowy spring day, the students were captivated by the visit from local florists, Joanne and Morlie, from Fleurs Magiques Flower Shop.
St. Francis Kindergarten Students Take Part in an Explosive Inquiry
Flowing lava, rocks, heat and explosions were the topic of many conversations during the St. Francis Catholic Elementary School full-day kindergarten’s recent study of volcanoes. Mostly curious about lava and how the volcano erupts, the students, with the help of their teacher Karen Healy, were able to find many resources to answer their own questions. According to the students, creating a volcano in the class was the most exciting part of this inquiry and scientifically testing different types of pretend lava to see which flowed or erupted the best was the highlight of our volcano study.
The students were curious about what their teacher was going to use to make the volcano explode. When they were told that we were not only going to try one eruption but three, the students went crazy and were super-excited!
Upon presenting the materials for the three reactions to the students, they were asked to make a Hypothesis (which the students now know is a good guess), about which materials would make the biggest eruption. The students were able to choose from vinegar and baking soda, Elephant toothpaste (Google it!), and Diet Coke and Mentos. A handful of students picked the first two, with the majority of the class choosing the Diet Coke and Mentos. They put our hypothesis to the test and after doing the experiment and recording observations, the students concluded that the Diet Coke and Mentos was the biggest eruption!
The teacher also took this opportunity for learning to talk about safety in the science lab and classroom and how important it is for all students to follow directions.
Nicole Snow, Superintendent for the school, visited the class during their volcano inquiry. “What a great teaching moment for these kindergarten students,” Snow said. “Taking part in a hands on learning opportunity like this really allows the students to get a deeper understanding of the subject they are studying. This is a really great example of an authentic positive learning experience that will stay with the students!”
ABC’s in the Classroom at Sudbury Catholic Schools
Since May of 2012, Joel Agowissa, the Aboriginal Support Worker for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board has been sharing his knowledge of First Nation, Metis, and Inuit cultures with students and staff throughout the board. His programs have been developed to support both the primary learners – Kindergarten to grade 1, and the junior students – grade 2 to grade 5. Agowissa’s ABC program, delivered to primary students, is based on the Aboriginal Biinoojig Centre (ABC) programming. ABC gives the primary students the opportunity to begin their Catholic education with a clear understanding of the foundation of aboriginal cultures.
Since September 2012, Agowissa has visited 12 of the Sudbury Catholic Elementary Schools, with the remainder of the board’s schools scheduled for visits until the end of June 2013. The programming is delivered to all students in the classroom setting and allows for hands-on, visual and interactive learning opportunities. According to Agowissa, “Connecting with students at this age sets the foundation for accurate cultural appreciation, building self-confidence and awareness, and replacing stereotypes with knowledge.”
Nicole Snow, SCDSB Superintendent and Aboriginal Lead states “We are proud to introduce aboriginal culture during the formative years, and recognize the importance of enhancing our programs and implementing and developing new initiatives to support aboriginal student achievement.”
The Sudbury Catholic District School Board has recently re-launched the “Who Are You” voluntary self-identification campaign for aboriginal students. According to Snow, ”This is part of a larger, long-term initiative to improve the understanding of aboriginal histories, cultures, and perspectives, by all members of our school communities.”
Future Angels Visit St. Anne Catholic School
Recently, the Sudbury Catholic District School Board hosted a variety of JK Registration Nights, including one at St. Anne Catholic Elementary School in Hanmer. The Open House was a resounding success, allowing future students and parents to explore what the ELKP (Early Learning Kindergarten Program) at St. Anne Catholic School has to offer. The school was bubbling with little ones excited to explore their surroundings. “It is fun! I want to come back again,” said Gillis O’Daiskey, future student of St. Anne Catholic School. “My new teacher is nice,” said Charlie Caissie.
The parents were very impressed with the classrooms, activities, and layout of the school. They were equally impressed with the amount of staff and teachers who were there to welcome and interact with the future students. “Seeing all of the teachers present to answer questions was outstanding,” said one parent visiting the school.
St. Anne Catholic School offers the full-day kindergarten program in both English and French Immersion. The school also offers plenty of opportunities for students to be exposed to technology including iPads, Apple TV, and MacBooks.