Students in teacher Tammy Lanci’s grade 1/2 class at St. James Catholic Elementary School had a tasty opportunity recently. After reading the classic storybook “Stone Soup” together, the entire class got to enjoy their own bowl of stone soup prepared by resource teacher Sarah Pappin and student helpers Noah Wulff and Hope Nyabeze.
Category: Programs
A “Purr”-fectly Great Day to Learn about Pet Responsibility at St. Francis
The students of FDKFI in teacher Mme Lachance and Mme Lynne’s (ECE) class at St. Francis Catholic Elementary School had a special guest recently. Charms the cat came by for a special visit as the students have been learning about the value of having a pet in the home. Although they are cute and cuddly, the children soon found out that owning a cat also requires care and responsibility. A pet is like a family member and it requires special care and love.
Junior Cardinals take Gold at Basketball Tournament
The St. Charles College grade 7/8 Cards are quickly filling up an elementary wall with all their athletic accomplishments. The St. Charles College elementary boys’ basketball team took gold at a tournament over the weekend. The 7/8 Cards Classic was open to twelve boys’ teams from all four school boards in the city.
St. Charles College entered two boys’ teams with head coach Sarah Sauve.
There were several close matches but the Cards took the top spot.
Captains Noah Carpino, Andrew Middleton and Chris Valcin showed leadership and dedication as the newest members of the Cards family.
“Good Morning Cards” is How St. Charles College Students Start Their Friday
St. Charles College Grade 11 student Brodie Siren has always had a flair for the airways. Since grade 9, he and a friend have been running independent radio shows on You Tube under the names Quantum Beats Project as well as Sync Podcast. They have now turned their attention to Cards Radio. It’s a thirty minute radio show that airs every Friday morning ahead of morning announcements, anthem and prayer at St. Charles College. The program features a game show, news, sports and music that appeals to the dynamic young audience at SCC. Siren is also the school go-to guy when it comes to tech support and electronic set-up. This spring, he will be the stage manager for the schools’ musical production of High School Musical. Siren hopes to pursue a technical field of study when he leaves St. Charles College next year. In the meantime, he is building his portfolio with Cards Radio and is also starting a grocery delivery business based on the Internet.
Hitting the Trails at St. Paul
St. Paul Catholic Elementary School teacher Lisa Wright’s Grade 2/3 FI students had a wonderful morning with Sudbury Catholic outdoor education teacher Brad Blackwell on Thursday, February 18th. Students learned that creatures in this area have 3 choices to make during winter. 1) hibernate 2) migrate 3) stay and tough it out . Mr. Blackwell delivered an interesting and amusing presentation. He brought some “nature treasures” such as antlers and bones and some replicas of tracks and scat. After the in-class presentation, they ventured outside on the Jean Tellier trail near the school. For almost all the students , this was their first time on snowshoes. They explored the trails looking for signs of animal life. They found snowshoe hare, squirrel and mice tracks. Students even found scat!
Immaculate Runs Fun Friends All Year Round
Thanks to our Immaculate Conception Catholic Elementary School’s Educational Assistant, Moira Swiatek, students in the primary and junior division enjoy the resiliency based program called “Fun Friends.” In their groups, they discuss feelings & emotions, red & green thoughts and how to change the red thoughts into green or positive thoughts. The children also learn relaxation strategies to calm their bodies down. One of their favourite activities is called the “milkshake” breathing technique where students inhale a large breath and exhale through a straw into a cup of chocolate milk which then produces bubbles. Fun Friends is a safe environment where students can learn to be courageous and make life long friends.
MMA Student Places Nationally in Historica Canada’s “How We Remember” Contest
Grade 11 Marymount Academy student Casey McGee really enjoys art. As well, she loves learning about history. When her teacher mentioned a contest that combined both subjects, she knew that it was something she wanted to get involved with. Teacher Catherine Levesque had heard about Historica Canada’s “How We Remember” Contest that reflected on the subject of Canada’s role in the First and Second World Wars. Students could send in written submissions as well as artwork that reflected the theme so Levesque took the contest and created an assignment for the class with it. The students then had the option of actually submitting their written work or artwork to Historica Canada. With hundreds of submissions from across Canada, McGee was contacted through her teacher to let her know that she placed second nationally for her artwork submission entitled “The Unknown Soldier”. One of the jurors, Scott Waters, shared his opinion of Mcgee’s piece, “This piece was the strongest as it conveyed the most meaning, without being overly literal and illustrative. Its iconic stoicism combined nicely with a playful quality and allowed the piece to occupy varying emotional terrain. It was also a technically strong painting.”
McGee was thrilled that she placed so well in the contest and it has encouraged her to continue with her drawing and learning. “I always carry around my sketchbook with me where ever I go, and this contest was really great in that it combined my love of art and my love of history.” Marymount Academy principal Lucie Cullen, was thrilled with McGee’s second place win nationally. “Casey is a gifted artist and a strong learner,” explained Cullen. “At Marymount we always seek out opportunities as a staff for our students to thrive and really excel. Casey is a great example of this as she was able to showcase her talent on a national level – we are very proud of her.”
Being Kind at St. David School
“It is all about doing kind things.” St. David Catholic Elementary FDK students have been learning a lot about doing kind things recently. “It is a common theme always in our classroom.” explained teacher Cindy Blinn. As part of their learning, the students decided that they wanted to do a kind thing for someone special in their lives. Together they decided to host a pasta luncheon for their someone special and each student was allowed to invite one special guest – whether it be their mom, dad, grandparent, babysitter, etc. The students prepared by planning out the lunch menu – pasta, buns and juiceboxes, with a special cake for dessert. The class even made the decorations for the room so that their environment was filled with colourful artwork for their guests. “it is a great way to really reinforce the concept of kindness with our students,” explained Blinn. “We always talk about it, but more importantly we always try to model this behaviour with each other and with those who are in our lives. This luncheon was a great day for both the students and guests and everybody was very pleased with the outcome.”
BACCSS Student Following His Passion to Success
A teenager’s life is filled with many decisions. Choosing courses and a career destination can cause stressful situations, but as Alex Laurin leant, it is important to choose a career that you love to do. Alex, a grade 12 student at Bishop Alexander Carter, started his grade 9 year in the pathways program. He often thought about architecture and tried to upgrade a few classes but struggled, especially in math he said. Deep down he knew that university and college would not be his destination. It simply was not for him. Alex’s destination was the workplace.
Alex met with the guidance counsellor at the school, Heather Duguay, to explore career options. He loved the thought of being able to design things. With encouragement from Mrs. Duguay and his parents, he enroled in the Specialist High Skills Program (SHSM) in Manufacturing and Robotics in the school.
“I was surprised to find out I was really good at welding”, Alex explained. “I love to create and make things with my hands”.
Discovering his new talent, Alex set his own goals and discussed these with his parents. He felt that his parents were excited that he found his passion.
“My dad was really supportive of my career goals. They bought me my own welding mask and boots”.
Today, Alex is finishing his SHSM course and is completing his coop placement at Belanger construction. He is a registered OYAP (Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program) student through the MTCU (Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities) and a registered level 1 apprentice through the College of Trades. Alex has been a valuable asset to Belanger Construction and they encouraged him to write his Canadian Welding Bureau test (at the employer’s cost). Alex was successful in this test and has obtained his welding certificate in shielded metal arc welding. His advice for students, “Work hard and know what you are getting into and do your research into career option. But most of all, enjoy it!”.