Massimo and Donna in Ms. Visentin ‘s Gr. 2/3 class at Corpus Christi School, proudly display the prayer cloth which classmates and family guests signed, after their Open House Celebration during Catholic Education Week. Students and family united in song to “Yes, We Believe” to reaffirm their Catholic Faith, before the activities began. Parents had an opportunity to listen to their favourite poem which the children had created throughout the year, along with many other writing pieces from their Writing Portfolio Collection. The students and their guests also worked together on the laptops in order to design a comic strip which summarized Sudbury’s origins as St. Anne of the Pines.
Category: Community
The Living Rosary at St. Christopher
St. Christopher’s students celebrated Catholic Education Week with a number of activities within the school. The staff and student participated in the “Living Rosary” within the gym at St. Christopher’s school. Students represented a prayer within the rosary and led us as we prayed the rosary together. The gym was darkened and lights were lit as each prayer was said. May is the month of Mary and she is Jesus’s mother. Father Jim Hutton, from St. Patrick’s Church, and Father Andre were also participating in our rosary. The are with some of the grade 5 students.
St. David Running Club Takes Part in the Sudbury Rocks Walk, Run, Race For Diabetes
As part of their ongoing commitment to fitness, St. David students participated in the 1K Strong Kids Fun Run at the recent Sudbury Rocks Walk, Run, Race For Diabetes. During education week the students collected pledges and raised approximately $100 dollars. The running club has not only been running but have also been reading once a week with community volunteers and reflecting on their running in their running journals as a way to promote literacy and physical fitness.
Read-Alouds at St. David
The Grade 1 class was very excited to have Rossella Bagnato, Sudbury Catholic Superintendent of School Effectiveness come to the school during Catholic Education Week to do a read aloud with the book ‘The Very Cranky Bear’. The students thoroughly enjoyed the story that Mrs. Bagnato had to read the story twice!
SCDSB Hosts Third Annual Turning Points Essay Awards Ceremony
Students, parents, teachers and invited guests gathered at the Sudbury Catholic District Board office on May 9, 2012 to take part in the SCDSB’s third annual Turning Points Essay Contest Awards ceremony. This essay contest is an initiative which stems from the Learning Partnership which is an organization that champions a strong public education system to deliver innovative programs, credible research, policy initiatives, executive leadership and public engagement across Canada. Turning Points is a character development and literacy program that allows students to reflect on their fundamental values and, through a process of self-reflection and dialogue, write a narrative essay about a significant event, or turning point in their lives. As it is the third year, student participation has continued to grow as teachers have continued to encourage their involvement with this rewarding program. The secondary students that took part in this contest and authored the winning essays were awarded plaques, a copy of the publication, as well as monetary awards at Wednesday night’s celebration. The students were honoured for their efforts and several students had the opportunity to read their essays allowed. The audience was visibly moved by these emotional accounts and several of the teachers involved spoke of the courage and strength of their students to be able to write such heart-felt accounts of their experiences. Allison Cameron, a Marymount English teacher was the master of ceremonies at this event and was visibly moved after the students read aloud their essays. “Even after being involved with this initiative for three years, I am never really prepared for the poignant words our students have written and shared with others,” Cameron stated. “The courage of these students to express their deepest feelings and emotions about their life’s turning point is so powerful – for the student, and their families.” Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for the Board echoed Cameron’s sentiments. “I am thrilled that the this program once again met with such success, and am so honoured that our students have courageously shared their most personal and meaningful life experiences. We are certainly overwhelmed by their talent and honesty involved in this writing experience.”
St. Raphael Early Learning Kindergarten Students Celebrate their Moms
Students in the two Early Learning Kindergarten Programs at St. Raphael Catholic School professed their love of their mothers with a show stopping performance on Monday, May 7th. As part of the school’s Catholic Education Week events, the two classes took turns singing songs in honour of their mothers and grandmothers. The families also enjoyed a slideshow and video presentation that had all the students professing what they loved most about their moms. Afterwards they had the opportunity to share in some refreshments with their classmates and their families. Some students were fortunate enough to have generations of moms together in the room – with grandmothers, and even great grandmothers in attendance. Rosemary Tripodi, one of the Early Learning teachers explained the history of the school’s Mother’s Day tea. “We have been hosting this event for approximately five years now,” Tripodi stated. “Every year, we get such positive feedback as it is really is such a wonderful opportunity to not only showcase our students’ talent, but to give parents a chance to enjoy their child’s company in the school setting. The students, their families and the staff really love this event as it is such a feel good morning – everyone leaves with big smiles and warm hearts!” As well as taking in the performances, the parents also walked around the entire gym as every single wall had pictures and tributes to the students’ mothers.
St. Andrew Hosts Hawaiian Day Bookfair
The parents of St. Andrew School are hosted a Scholastic Book Fair during Catholic Education Week. To kick start the week students were encouraged to get dressed in Hawaiian gear and the best dressed from each class won $10. of free books.
Mentoring Students and Making Memories
The Grade 1 students at St. Bernadette Catholic School partnered with teacher Paola Gutcher’s Parenting Class from nearby St. Charles College to create wonderful Memory Boxes. The Grade 1 students read the book, Lighthouse: A Story of Remembrance and the class decided to create memory boxes that would celebrate highlights of this past school year and all of the love and important memories in their lives. Pictured are St. Bernadette grade 1 student Christina Gregory and St. Charles College student Julia Furlotte working on the memory box together.
Paralympic Athlete Brings “Passion for Sport” to St. Charles College
Robbi Weldon started downhill skiing at the age of three. Many years later, she would compete on the international level as a Nordic skier and cyclist as a Paralympic athlete. Weldon of Thunder Bay has been in Sudbury the last few days, sharing her story and passion for sport. She visited St. Charles College to inspire the students in the Exercise Science class. Weldon also shared her dreams for the upcoming games in London, England.
Weldon was diagnosed with a genetic eye disease when she was a teenager in high school. The macular degeneration disease she was diagnosed with has not stopped her from living out her dreams. She’s 2011 Parapan Am Games 4-time Gold Medalist, 2011 World Champion Road Cyclist in the Time Trial and the 2010 World Champion in Road Racing.