Grades 1, 2 & 3 students at Holy Trinity start an Upcycling club with funding received from Learning for a Sustainable Future Action Project.
To celebrate Christmas, the students created a massive Christmas tree out of recycled boxes. Classes designed, painted and decorated the boxes that would have otherwise gone into the recycling bin. This beautiful masterpiece is showcased in the school’s entrance.
We can’t wait to see the other projects this club will be creating!
Category: Schools
Join our Virtual Dance Party!
On Tuesday evening, families participated in an Hour of Code while participating in a dance party and learning about coding all at the same time! This session was designed for families to learn the basics of coding without even using a device.
Students learned that events are a useful way to control when an action happens and can be used to make multiple things act in sync. In programming, events can be used to respond to a user controlling it (like pressing buttons or clicking the mouse) and that events can make programs more interesting and interactive.
Following, our teachers taught various dance moves such as the “Star, Dab, High Clap and This & That”. Then, families were asked to create their own unique dance algorithm and to share their finished products in order to have a chance to win a family prize pack.
There is still time for families to join our next Dance Party on December 10th at 6pm. To register go to: Learning Support Hub for Students and Parents.
SkillsAtHome Challenge Series Challenge #16: Build A Robot
Ms. Reale’s Grade 1 & 2 class at Holy Cross School was assigned challenge #16 as it relates to mathematics and literacy curriculum expectations. Students were asked to use their imagination to create and write about a robot following the challenge rules set out by Skills Ontario. This challenge introduces children to robotics and project planning.
We encourage students to enter the 2nd last challenge in the series for a chance to win one of three prizes. Submissions are due by December 14th at noon. More information about this challenge can be found at the following link: Build a Robot.
Father Larry Shares a Message of Connection and Hope during the Christmas Season
St. Francis School Council hosted a parent session with Father Larry Rymes on December 3rd, 2020. Families were invited to join a Zoom session to discuss “Connection at Christmas during Covid Times.” Father Larry led the group in prayer and an interactive discussion about connection at school and with Our Lady of Hope Parish. “We were thrilled to be able to offer our school community an opportunity to connect with other families and our parish to discuss connection during this very unprecedented time. We are always thankful for Father Larry, his insight and comedic relief!” said, Natasha Folino, St. Francis Acting Principal.
Marymount Students Send 3500 Christmas Cards to the Canadian Armed Forces
Students and teachers at Marymount Academy all came together to truly share what Christmas is about; spreading joy and love to everyone.
While this holiday season will be different with COVID-19, our Canadian Forces are always putting themselves in harm’s way to ensure we can spend the holidays with our families. Creating Christmas cards for the Canadian Armed Forces is something we did as a school to share the holiday spirit with them. We are forever grateful for their sacrifices and service.
Christmas is a time when you want to be surrounded by love and family. For the Canadian troops overseas, this must be a very difficult time and although we can’t all understand, we can empathize and help support in any way possible. This year we have decided to create Christmas cards for the Canadian Troops and send joy to them during the holidays. Students have been busy making cards this week and last in hopes of spreading love and cheer this holiday season. The cards will be mailed out this Friday, December 4 to the military headquarters in Belleville, where they will be then deployed to different locations around the world where our troops are stationed. We have come together as a community of students to share in the Christmas spirit as we will be sending 3500 Christmas cards out to the troops.
Ms. Gattoni, the teacher who spearheaded this thoughtful gesture at Marymount shared that “we were truly overwhelmed by the amount of cards students were making. The beautiful and thoughtful messages and warm wishes they included for the Canadian Forces truly demonstrates what wonderful and caring students we have at Marymount.”
St. Francis Student places Third in the Ontario #SkillsAtHome Challenge Series Challenge #14: Build a Fort
Owen Carpenter, Grade 6 student at St. Francis School, placed third in the #SkillsAtHome Challenge – Build a Fort.
Challenge #14 required students to build a blanket-covered structure in their home using household items such as blankets, broomsticks, pillows and couch cushions. Students were to collect and take inventory of the fort materials around their home. Using the materials they collected, the students created a design on paper and then built it. Challengers were marked on their ability to use creative items for their structures, the details within their blueprint designs as well as their overall structure. This challenge involved the following skills: planning, design, creativity, organization and fine motor and promoted the skilled trades of architectural design, ironworker, welder, and home renovations.
Owen and his brother had a fun time designing and creating their own unique forts. Owen created an army base equipped with sleeping quarters, kitchen, war zone and command base. Owen has been participating in several of Skills Ontario’s challenges.
“We congratulate Owen on his third-place finish in this #SkillsAtHome challenge. Sudbury Catholic students continue to achieve success through the series of challenges,” said Joanne Bénard, Director of Education. “We continue to invest in providing innovative and hands-on experiential learning opportunities for students Kindergarten to Grade 12 and we thank Skills Ontario for their continued partnership. The skills being developed support our focus on equipping all of our students with the skills they need for the future.”
We encourage our teachers and students to enter the excitement by joining in the last 2 competitions:
– Challenge #16 Build a Robot: November 30, 2020- December 14, 2020
– Challenge #17 Cake Decorating December 14, 2020 – January 4, 2021
The St. Francis School Community Comes Together Virtually in Prayer each Month
Students, staff and families continue to come together in prayer each month via Zoom and to celebrate those students who do an exceptional job of exhibiting our value of the month. “We are truly blessed to have Father Larry who continues to build positive relationships with our school community by visiting our school each week to meet with our students and to lead us in prayer each month at our monthly prayer service,” said Meghan Dopson, Acting Vice Principal.
St. Charles Students Get Caught Being Safe
To help support students and encourage to make healthy and safe choices, St. Charles School has created the ‘Caught Being Safe’ campaign. Classes received tickets if they were caught wearing their masks safely and properly, being socially distanced inside or out in the school yard, and going above and beyond to keep the school safe. Classes are able to submit their tickets for a chance to win a pizza party.
The school hopes to continue the campaign throughout the year to celebrate student achievements!
Holy Cross School Complete Virtual Field Trips
Virtual field trips are a form of experiential learning. With the internet and technology, the barriers of time, cost and location have been removed making a wide variety of learning activities and experiences possible to students. Virtual field trips allow learners to engage with and to learn about authentic artifacts and to explore places important to their curriculum.
For instance, Ms. Reale’s science class at Holy Cross School is learning about the characteristics of living things and the growth and changes in animals. What better way to learn and engage students then a trip to the zoo? Dr. Zoolittle and Roberta the Zebra, shared interesting facts about some animal architects such as the black-headed weaver bird, the burrowing owl, the dung beetle, the meerkat and the beaver. Students traveled safely to the San Diego Zoo and even had time to meet and pet both Shiloh and Justeen, the zoo’s friendly beavers. Students also learned about leaf art and how to make no bake beaver dams for dessert!
If you would like assistance or more information about bringing virtual field trips to your class, contact Christina Raso, Experiential Learning consultant at: christina.raso@sudburycatholicschools.ca.