During the month of April, Sudbury Catholic Schools celebrate the virtue of Stewardship. At St. James Catholic School students are promoting a variety of environmental friendly initiatives in hopes of reminding everyone that the Earth is a gift to us from God who has entrusted the planet to us.
The grade 8 students are promoting a unique opportunity for all students to become a steward of the Earth by launching a school version of EARTH HOUR. During EARTH HOUR all classrooms are encouraged to turn off their lights during the lunch hour. Students hope that this one initiative is mindful of our ongoing responsibility to take care of our planet. EARTH HOUR is just one of many environmental projects taking place at St. James.
Category: Community
St. Paul Captures Gold at Kiwanis
The St. Paul the Apostle primay choir under the direction of Ms. Kristine Shewchuk and accompanied by Ms. Christina Begin was awarded a Gold Award and a mark of 89 at the Kiwanis Music Festival on Tuesday April 3, 2012. This young group of children sang “A Song of Peace” by Teresa Jennings. The adjudicator wrote “I am thankful to have heard you today! Keep singing!” The staff, students and parents are very proud of their commitment and dedication to their school choir.
They’ve Got the Moves like Jagger
On March 30th, the St. Mary School Community held a dance-a-thon to help raise money for the school. The community collectively raised over $400.00 for our students. Teacher Jenn Bruneau said, “Not only were we raising money so our students could enjoy more extracurricular activities, but we were staying healthy by fulfilling our Daily Physical Activity requirement.” A huge thank you is extended to Mrs. Gauvreau who prepared all the music for our dance.
Additional gratitude is extended to all students who helped raise money to support our school. The whole community felt it was refreshing to be involved in an event that created such spirit and enthusiasm.
Poetry is Cool at St. Ben’s School
St. Benedict grades 7 and 9 students were treated to the living culture of performance poetry by published poet Tanya Neumeyer recently. At first the students were shy, but after Neumeyer’s spoken-word poetry workshops, she had the students writing and presenting their own polished poems on the stage for her and their classmates. At the end, clearly Neumeyer’s passion for poetry was infectious since the students described their week-long poetry experiences as “amazing,” “fantastic,” and “awesome.” When asked what was their favourite part, many responded with a self-confident “writing” and even “performing”. One student requested, “Can you come back?” Neumeyer said it was “a precious gift to see the students transition from contemplative stillness to fun expressive movements. I was inspired by their courage to take steps forward and stretch their comfort zone.”
Tanya Neumeyer is a Toronto-based poet whose visit to St. Ben’s was organized by Teacher-Librarian Ms Marinilli, and funded by the Ontario Arts Council.
Learning Water Perspective at Corpus Christi Catholic Elementary School
Students in teacher Jean Gallien’s grade 5 class are thinking about water. These Corpus Christi students are thinking that, here in Sudbury, the average person takes water for granted. As part of the Sudbury Catholic grade 5 essential question – How do we live in community? – the class began discussions about the Global Community and the importance of water awareness. As a response to this question, and their desire to make a difference, the Corpus Christi students have launched their own campaign to raise funds for the Ryan’s Well Foundation which is a foundation committed to delivering access to safe water in an essential way to improve peoples’ lives in developing countries. Having already started a coin collection in the school, the class has begun discussions about upcoming events and initiatives that will support their fundraiser including a possible walkathon. “Most of us take for granted the water we have,” teacher Jean Gallien stated. “It is a necessity and right now we are in our own little cocoon – this initiative will help teach the global perspective. It also ties into the Sudbury Catholic Board’s Destination Conservation initiative so it is also teaching water preservation in our own communities which is also important.” The Grade 5 class will work on their fundraiser until the end of May.
St. Anne Winter Carnival Spells Last Hurrah For Winter
St. Anne School staff and students celebrate the end of winter with their annual winter carnival. This year however, the entire school body wondered if there would even be a carnival. Sudbury Catholic Board teacher and annual carnival planner, Nannette Shonwise stated, “We will be moving up the festivities by a week to make sure there will be enough snow.” However, a sudden mild spell had even those best laid plans up in the air right down to the last minute. Would the carnival be able to take place outdoors or not? Fortunately, Mother Nature was on their side. The students from J.K. to Grade 6 were able to participate in all types of winter events like hockey, curling, the luge and of course, a hot chocolate station. No team comes out as the grand winner for the day. The purpose of the carnival is to allow the children to just have fun without the added pressure of competing to come in first. The events help promote such virtues as responsibility and patience, as well as promoting teamwork between the youngest to the oldest students. The day was a huge success thanks to the efforts of teachers, parent volunteers and of course, the team spirit of the student body. Winter may be on its way out, but you can be sure the memories of this year’s winter carnival will be around for quite some time! Way to go Angels!
Sugar Bush Visit a “Sweet” Field Trip for Corpus Christi Students
Corpus Christi students from teacher Daniela Visentin’s grade 2/3 class had the opportunity to visit the Despatie Sugar Bush farm in Hanmer recently. The students learned about sap collection and how maple syrup is made. The class was able to walk right into the bush to see the buckets collecting the sap, and then visited the sugar shack to observe the process of making maple syrup. The best part of the day way the chance to roll the hot syrup on the snow with their popsicle sticks allowing them the chance to enjoy their maple treat.
Marymount Academy Takes First in Laurentian University Engineering Competition
On Friday, February 24, Laurentian University held an engineering competition for Grade 12 Physics students from the community’s secondary schools. Each team was required to build a machine that would transport material across a specific distance and then drop the material off at the end of the journey. The students then presented their creation and tested their machine againstt the other competitors. The team from Marymount Academy captured first place in the competition.
Vive le francais! – at St. Paul
St. Paul the Apostle’s Semaine de la Francophonie was a great opportunity to promote the importance of French culture in the lives of their students. Each day began with O’ Canada and a prayer (en français) lead by 7/8 immersion students. The Grade 8 Core French class talked about the gift of learning two languages. On Tuesday, the staff and students dressed in green and white. During the assembly, there was a testimonial from teacher Lucie Gautheir and a beautiful prayer, written by Tiffany Hodgins (Grade 7 immersion), was recited. Since music is a very important part of French culture, a video showcasing second language learners singing “J’aime parler français!” was featured. That song resonated throughout the school for the rest of the week! Wednesday’s activities included a colouring contest for younger students. The older grades were asked to design a St. Paul School francophonie button for next year’s Semaine de la Francophonie. The week ended on a sweet note with everyone savouring their maple syrup cupcakes! At. St. Paul the Apostle School, they celebrated that….. le français ….. c’est le passeport pour le monde!