St. Albert Adult Learning Centre officially launched its new Breakfast Program on February 1, 2010 to rave reviews. Students were at the school bright and early to help staff prepare for the first day of the program. St. Albert Office Supervisor, Ann Brisebois made sure that everything was ready and organized so that the students had healthy food options when arriving at the school. The program is funded by the Breakfast Club of Canada and the Human League. When asked about how she felt about the meal being provided at the school, student Angele St. Germain said that that it was fantastic. “It is absolutely excellent to get to school and have breakfast ready for us.” said St. Germain. “It is one less thing I have to worry about in the morning and makes it easier to start my day!”
Category: Programs
Olympic Family Literacy Day at St. Mary
Family Literacy Day had an Olympic Theme at St. Mary Catholic School in Capreol. Students were able to use computers to search for answers to a scavenger hunt, decorate and then eat “medal” cookies, learn about the Olympic Rings and then create their own symbols to represent peace through sports, and also learn about the four Olympic mascots by utilizing the Smartboard and viewing video clips. But the best part of the day was seeing the Olympic Torch from the Torch Relay and one of the 12,000 torch bearers! James Callaghan, son of Steve Callaghan Chaplain at St. Charles College, visited with the students and staff in his Torch Relay regalia. James was a torch bearer in Collingwood on December 29, 2009. He showed video clips of his run and shared pictures of his brother, Nick, who was a torch bearer in Sault Ste. Marie. The 2010 Olympic Torch Relay is presented by Coca-Cola and RBC, and James was honoured to have been selected a torch bearer through the Coca-Cola contest he entered. James was chosen based on his extensive community involvement and an essay he wrote. James brought the torch so that students and staff could see and hear about the sacred history of the Olympic Flame, symbolizing the principles of peace, brotherhood and friendship. Every student had the opportunity to carry the Torch – what a thrill! Each student is now eagerly looking forward to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games; they feel as if they have a personal connection to the games.
Valley East Schools Compete at Knights of Columbus Free Throw Competition
Students from the Valley East area participated in the second level of the Knights of Columbus Free Throw Competition on January 28, 2010. Students from Immaculate Conception, St. Anne, St. Mary as well as from other boards came together at Immaculate Conception Catholic Elementary School bringing all of their best “free throw skills” to win a chance to move on to the District Free Throw Championship. Students who came in first at their school level competition were invited to participate againstt the best of the best in the Valley area. Richard Rivais,a member of the Knights of Columbus, has been involved with this competition for the past ten years. Rivais was joined by other Knights including Yvan Gunville, Michael Frawley and Bernie Shank who helped run the event. The Knights also had Rivais’ daughter Tracy Rivais and son-in-law Sean Preseau on hand to help with the running of the competition. The winners who placed first at this competition will participate at the District Championship. In the event that the first place winners are unable to compete, the second place winners are given the chance to participate at the final competition. Congratulations to all of our students who participated!
First place winners:
Sydney Hall – Immaculate Conception Catholic Elementary School
Riley Merrimen – Immaculate Conception Catholic Elementary School
Tessa Scoville – St. Anne Catholic Elementary School
Second place winners:
Britney Chevrier – St. Mary Catholic Elementary School
Nicholas Whissell – Immaculate Conception Catholic Elementary
Jordan Connors – St. Anne Catholic Elementary School
Anthony Campioni – St. Anne Catholic Elementary School
St. James Recycles for Haiti
Along with all of the money raising efforts going on at our Sudbury Catholic Schools, Grade 5 Eco-Squad leaders at St. James Catholic School in Lively are collecting milk bags which are used to make sleeping mats. The bags are then crocheted by a neighbour Cindy Kavanaugh into comfortable, waterproof mats which will be forwarded to Haiti. The mats can be used for eating or sleeping and also due to their bright colours these mats do not attract bugs. It takes 250 milk bags to make one large mat and 150 bags to make a smaller mat. To date the students have collected over one thousand milk bags. The St. James students will continue their campaign until the end of March.
St. David Catholic Elementary School Students Creating Cultural Crafts
Students in the Native Studies class as St. David Catholic Elementary School have been working very hard the last few days creating sage pouches with their teacher Mrs. Hardwick. The children worked meticulously as they knew the importance of what they were making. Annie Wemigwans, a grade 5 student explained why it was important to have this sage pouch. “The sage pouch is to remind you of everything you learned during your life and when you die and go to the spirit world it is a reminder of everything you learned when you were on earth” said Annie. Mrs. Hardwick also said that these pouches, or shkimod, were very important because when you smudge with sage, it is cleansing and this cleansing then allows you to have positive thoughts.
SCDSB Update of Monies raised for Haitian Relief
As of Friday, January 22, 2010 our elementary and secondary schools have raised over $7000 in donations to support Haitian relief. Many of the monies raised came from school bake sales, PJ dress-down days, “Hats for Haiti” days, and staff luncheons. One student in particular, Rayden Recollect who is a Grade 1 student from St. David Catholic Elementary School, brought his piggy bank to school and decided to donate every single cent that he owned!! It is students like this that really reflect the Catholic family spirit we have at the Sudbury Catholic District School Board and are very, very proud of all of our students and staff for collecting so much in such a short amount of time!!! It really is a huge accomplishment !
St. Andrew Catholic Elementary Celebrates Hockey Sweater Spirit Day
Staff and students of St. Andrew Catholic Elementary School celebrated Hockey Sweater Spirit Day and invited special guests to the school to join them in reading. Dan Maggio, John Kurtz, Steven Reese, Marcus Foligno and Ben Chiarot of the Sudbury Wolves took the time to come to the school and share the joy of reading with the students and staff. Each Sudbury Wolf player read to three groups of students and had time to answer questions, sign autographs and take some photos. The staff believes that students need to see and hear a variety of people reading to and with them and these gentlemen certainly fit the bill. As the saying goes…”variety adds spice to life.”!
Marymount Academy Announces Advanced Placement Program for September, 2010
Marymount students, teachers, trustees and guests gathered at a press conference held at the school to launch a very exciting and progressive program known as the Advanced Placement Program or AP as it is more commonly referred to.
Beginning in September 2010, Marymount students in Grades 9 and 10 can enrol in the pre AP courses while students in Grade 11 and 12 will be able to register in the AP courses. “Advanced Placement courses offer university level content to our students at the high school level allowing them to delve deeper into the course material and ultimately making them feel more comfortable and gain more confidence when entering university,” says Lucie Cullen, Principal of Marymount Academy. Another benefit of the Advanced Placement Program is that it allows students to accelerate through university as students may achieve advanced academic standing or equivalent credits at universities in Canada and the United States and overseas. According to Dan Bartolucci, Program Leader at Marymount Academy, the Advanced Placement Program is recognized worldwide. “Admission offices regard AP students as high achievers,” states Bartolucci. “Post secondary institutions in more than 30 countries recognize AP in their admission process, including 90 percent of North American colleges and universities.”
Marymount Academy will roll out the Advanced Placement Program in September of 2010 by offering three courses: English, Math and French at the AP level with Geography and Science courses being added the following year. The AP courses will be taught concurrently with the curriculum, and students will write the university exams at Marymount in May. The exams are sent to a central location in the United States for marking and the results are mailed to the students in July. Each AP exam is given a grade point a 5-point scale: Students that score 4 and 5 out of 5 on their exams will receive AP or university credits. Jody Cameron, Chair of the Sudbury Catholic District Program is also very impressed with the school’s Advanced Placement Program. “The AP Program is a perfect fit for Marymount Academy,” Cameron told the student body and the media. “Its innovative, progressive and meets the needs of our students by providing them with opportunities and challenges beyond their grade level. As a result of this program they will walk into colleges and universities with much greater confidence and knowledge as well as credits. It is with great pride that the Sudbury Catholic District School Board support Marymount and its dedicated staff in launching the AP Program.”
Pius XII Catholic Elementary School’s Early Learners Celebrate Family Literacy Day
Students from Pius XII Elementary Catholic School’s J.K. and S.K. classes, as well as children from the Maple Tree Preschool and the Minnow Lake Best Start Hub were invited to celebrate Family Literacy Day in the school’s library on January 19, 2010. Aboriginal Artist and Storyteller William Morin engaged the children in animated stories and had them participate using actions and costumes. Parents were also invited to be a part of the celebration. After the story, the students went back to the classroom and made their own masks inspired by the day.