Prospective JK students and their families enjoyed a variety of stations at the Kindergarten registration evening held on February 7th at St. James Catholic School in Lively. The up and coming JKers experienced a glimpse into school life by participating in a wide variety of activities; such as hands-on Smart Board activities, playing with gym equipment, and visiting and exploring the Kindergarten classrooms.
Category: Programs
Learning to Make Every Penny Count
Two teachers at St. Anne Catholic Elementary School decided to join forces. JK/SK teacher Cheryl MacRury and Grade 7 teacher Kathy Belanger decided they wanted to get their students involved in a community action project, and figured they would have more of an impact if they worked together. The teachers applied for a grant with the Canadian Teacher’s Federation and were successful, allowing them the opportunity to bring their project to life. Both classes decided that they wanted to help animals, specifically the Wild at Heart Animal Refuge. The two classes split the grant money and put it towards a different part of the project. The grade seven students decided to purchase digital cameras so that they could document their project and put together multimedia projects to showcase their progress. The JK/SK class decided that they would take some field trips to the shelter itself so that they could learn more about the animals they are hoping to help. In order to get their project started, the classes decided to visit local businesses and organizations in their community, and if allowed, leave donation cans in support of their project. All they were asking for were people’s pennies. Several businesses immediately jumped on board. After the first collection, they very quickly they realized that their penny collection was going to be a great teaching tool for their students. Every few weeks, the students gather together in one classroom and break off into groups of a few grade seven students and one JK/SK student. Each student is then given a pile of pennies that have been collected and the older students guide the younger student in counting out 50 “penny piles”. “Peer learning is such a great teaching tool for our students,” Belanger commented. “The older students become mentors for the young students and each look forward to our meetings as they enjoy learning from each other!” So far, the students have collected and counted over $70 in pennies over the last couple of months.
“Our students are not only learning numeracy, they are also learning literacy, technology, the importance of compassion, community and virtues.” Stated MacRury. The two classes will continue to meet on a regular basis to tally their collections right into June. The Grade 7 students will then have the opportunity to showcase their media presentations to the rest of the school. The group is hoping not only to donate funds to the shelter, but also donate much needed items like food and cleaning supplies.
“The dedication and hard work of our staff is second to none,” Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board stated. “These kinds of projects really engage our students, and allow them to see beyond the classroom. These are important life lessons that are a foundation for success in life.”
St. Anne Students Believe in Motto “Respect For All”
The pupils at St. Anne School in Hanmer pride themselves on demonstrating Catholic virtues. Since September, the students within the Sudbury Catholic Board have worked very hard to practice those virtues of respect, faith, justice, patience, and responsibility. Recently, a presentation from Camp Quality helped to re-enforce all these virtues and more.
Camp Quality is an organization run by volunteers who provide children with cancer the opportunity to experience the joys of camp life during the summer. The camp location in Northern Ontario can be found on the west arm of Lake Nipissing near Monetville. During the school year, the camp sends volunteers and life size puppets into schools to work with students from all grade divisions. Some of the puppets are recovering from leukemia or cancerous tumours. They explain to other puppet friends their feelings and concerns as they return or get ready to return to school. The performances are free for elementary schools and help children to understand the importance of caring for and offering support to one another, especially when a child has a major illness such as cancer.
The St. Anne students enjoyed the presentation immensely. Many of the students themselves have family members who have experienced cancer. The Camp Quality volunteers not only helped re-enforce those virtues already learned, but helped prepare the children for future virtues such as compassion, courage, kindness, and helpfulness. When asked about the presentation itself, the students from all divisions got the message loud and clear. “We may not always look the same on the outside, but we are still the same person on the inside.” Way to go Angels!
St. Raphael Celebrates Family Literacy Day
On Friday January 27, Family Literacy Day, staff, students, and parents at St. Raphael School participated in a variety of literacy workshops. Each workshop was linked to the importance of being able to read by such presenters as Roger Nash, Sudbury Poet Laureate, Mark Gentili, Managing Editor of the Northern Life, Emily MacMillan, Nickel District Conservation Authority, and Darren MacDonald of the Sudbury Star. Pictured is Brad Blackwell from Killarney-Shebanoning Outdoor Education Centre whose presentation was entitled “If Trees Could Talk”.
St. Benedict Bears Win Bears Classic Basketball Tournament
HIghlights from the Bears Classic Basketball Tournament…
Semi-Finals
St. Benedict defeated St. Denis 19-6
Jean Paul II defeated Pincrest 35-22
Final
St. Benedict defeated Jean Paul II 42-34
Player of the game. St. Benedict #41 Aiden Hurley with 17 pts in the championship game.
Bears capture the 2nd elementary tournament banner of the year.
All-Stars
Jean Paul II #55 Andre Frappier
Jean Paul II #33 Nickolas Hillman
St. Benedict #55 Ethan Joudain
St. Benedict #1 Tristan Simeoni
St. Benedict #41 Aiden Hurley
St. Charles Catholic Elementary Take Part in the Knights Of Columbus Free Throw Competition
St. Charles Catholic Elementary School held the Knights of Columbus District Free Throw Competition this past weekend. Pictured are the first place winners from St. Charles Catholic Elementary who will advance to the Regional Competition in February for their age category. Congratulations and good luck at Regionals!
St. Paul Says Good-bye to Bishop Simard
St. Paul the Apostle School celebrated the Eucharist with Bishop Noel Simard on Thursday January 19th in the the school gym. The school was fortunate to celebrate with the Bishop one last time before he leaves our diocese to become the Bishop of Valleyfield Quebec.The staff and students prepared small farewell gifts for Bishop Simard which he was thrilled to receive. He told everyone that he will cherish his memories of his time as the auxiliary Bishop and especially his time visiting schools and working together to promote Catholic Education.
St. Anne Angels Become Gators for the Day
Five students from St. Anne Catholic School in Hanmer had an opportunity to see their future, and wear a Bishop Alexander Carter Secondary School Gator jersey at a recent feeder school event. BAC invited grade 8 students from St. Anne School to watch a spirit building hockey game at Centennial Arena, where their boys and girls hockey teams played againstt one another. It was an exciting and close game,finishing with a score of 3 – 2 for the boys hockey team.
St. Albert’s Personal Support Worker Program Receives Official Accreditation
A full class of twenty-four students was on hand for the announcement on Wednesday, January 10, that the St. Albert Adult Learning Centre Personal Support Worker (PSW) program has officially received accreditation in their program. The PSW program began accepting students in September 2010 and is currently hosting its fourth PSW class. Approximately 100 students will have graduated from this accredited program by June 2012 with over 90% of students finding work in their field. What makes the PSW program at St. Albert unique, is that students can obtain their PSW certificate as well as credits towards their high school diploma. Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board commented to the group about this wonderful accomplishment. “The staff of St. Albert has worked so hard to make this opportunity available for its students,” McCullough stated. “Receiving official accreditation for the program is evidence of this hard work. The students who have, and are taking part in this program, continue to show success in their new careers. On behalf of St. Albert, I would like to thank all community partners, long term care facilities and community care agencies who have helped the St. Albert PSW program grow through accepting students for their experiential placements. Together we are making the greater City of Sudbury a healtheir place to live.”