Sudbury Catholic District School Board

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Bags for Beds at St. Charles Elementary

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The Dearness Conservation team at St. Charles Catholic Elementary Catholic school challenged their students to bring in milk ‘bags for beds’ and they did – “We can’t believe that the school collected over 2000 milk bags” says Rolande Nault, Club 50 Azilda member, ‘this will definitely make life a lot more comfortable for children and their families, especially those children in the Mariam Centre Orphanage and Outpatient Care in Haiti’.

The ladies at Club 50 Azilda take milk bags, cut them into strips, tie them together and then roll them up into balls just like yarn, then crochet or knit them into finished mats. These mats are very useful in keeping out parasites and can be used as beds for surgeries as they can be washed for the next patient. They become very soft in the heat and are also waterproof. ‘The ladies do an outstanding job creating these mats and then ensuring that that are shipped to Haiti’ says Ms. Giroux, teacher and Dearness Conservation Team member at St. Charles Catholic Elementary School. “This challenge had our students ‘think locally and act globally’ a quote that is said many times to our students to instill lifelong responsible citizenship. This challenge was a great opportunity to partner with a community organization, teach students the importance of reusing materials and teaching them the importance of giving back”.

St. Anne Catholic School Student Headed to Provincials for Cadets

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On January 28th and 29th, Daniel Caton, a grade 8 student from St. Anne Catholic School in Hanmer, participated in a regional biathlon competition for the Royal Canadian Cadets. The competition took place in Sault Ste. Marie, with approximately 190 participants from Northern Ontario. The two day event invited many spectators and had both individual and relay events.

Caton’s relay team finished second overall and advanced to the provincial championship which will be help in Sault Ste. Marie on February 18th and 19th. Daniel held the best record for targets hit on his own team, hitting 8 out of 10 targets. “I was really excited and proud of my team. All of the training was well worth it. I think we have a good chance to place in the provincial championship,” said Caton. Daniel also participated in an individual event, where he placed 22nd overall.

Daniel is a part of the Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron of the Sudbury Armouries. He has been involved with the Cadets for approximately two years, and has enjoyed the experience thus far. He is also an honour roll student in teacher Jody O’Daiskey’s class at St. Anne School, part of the Sudbury Catholic District School Board. “I am very happy for Daniel and his accomplishments. He has worked hard training for this event. It was wonderful to see him beaming with pride when he shared his accomplishments with our classroom,” O’Daiskey said.

Cupid Arrives Early at St. James School

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Cupid arrived early at St. James Catholic School with a message for all students. Every student and staff member received in a Valentine Candy Gram along with a reminder from Cupid. The message read, “On Valentine’s Day we remember to let those we care about know that we love them. Tell your parents, brothers, sisters and other family members how much you love them. Be kind to your friends and remember to smile. Happy Valentine’s Day”.

St. John Catholic School Celebrates “World Day of the Sick”

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In keeping with the spirit of the “World Day of the Sick” (Saturday, February 11th), a celebration was held at St. John Catholic Elementary School on Wednesday, February 8th,at which time students, staff, and invited guests joined together to take part in a prayer service honouring their community. Reverend Jim Ketzler from St. John the Evangelist Church led the service in which statues and crucifixes that were donated by the Sisters of St. Joseph from the former St. Joseph Health Centre (General Hospital) were blessed and then distributed around the school. As well, there were special blessings for all health care providers and the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick for all those who were present and in need. “At the beginning of the school year, all of the principals gathered together with Bishop Simard, Senior Administration and our parish partners, to put together pastoral plans for our schools,” Tricia Dowdall-Cerilli, Principal of St. John stated. “We had discussed many options, but we knew that this was definitely something we wanted to celebrate as we were so honoured to be gifted these crucifixes and statues from the hospital. Seeing as in the month of February, we celebrate the virtue of empathy – we knew that the timing was perfect for us to bring our community together, and take part in such a wonderful, meaningful celebration.”

“Beyond the Hurt” Program at Bishop ACCSS Recognized by Education Minister

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On Wednesday, February 8, 2012 Bishop Alexander Carter Catholic Secondary School participated in a teleconference with Loretto Abbey Catholic Secondary School in Toronto and the Honourable Minister of Education Laurel Broten on the topic of Mental Health and the dynamics of bullying and harassment in secondary schools.

Bishop Alexander Carter had the opportunity to speak about their school program, “Beyond the Hurt”. Bishop Alexander Carter is a safer school community because of the Beyond the Hurt team. The team led by two teachers Heather Duguay and Shelley Raymond and currently 10 Bishop students, seeks to raise awareness of bullying and harassment while providing a supportive environment for youth.

The dialogue was purposeful and helped to support the direction of the group for future endeavours.

St. John’s Families E.A.T.!

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On February 1st, the Sudbury and District Health Unit and St. John Catholic Elementary School came together to offer an informative and tasty evening for families called E.A.T. (Eat Healthy, Anaphylaxis Awareness and Take and Taste). The SDHU began the evening with a presentation on allergies and anaphylaxis awareness. Families then sampled a variety of tasty, nutritious and nut-free lunch items such as egg salad pitas, veggie wraps, snack mix, fennel salad and black bean brownies. Students and their families explored new fruits such as papaya, mango, star fruit and grapples. There were interactive games for the children and recipes for the parents!

St. James Hosts JK Registration Night

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Prospective JK students and their families enjoyed a variety of stations at the Kindergarten registration evening held on February 7th at St. James Catholic School in Lively. The up and coming JKers experienced a glimpse into school life by participating in a wide variety of activities; such as hands-on Smart Board activities, playing with gym equipment, and visiting and exploring the Kindergarten classrooms.

Students at St. David School Welcome Messages of Anti-Bullying and Restorative Justice

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Chad Solomon, local artist and author of the graphic novel series, “Rabbit and Bear Paws” presented a series of interactive workshops to the students of St. David School. The sessions were based in restorative justice and advocating for a bully free school environment. Chad Solomon is a member of the Henvey Inlet, First Nation. His grandfather Art Solomon, was a traditional healer and justice activist. Mr. Solomon told stories of his grandfather to the students, always with the hint of laughter and his life lessons learned.

The restorative justice sessions were interactive workshops using the puppets, “Rabbit”, “Bear Claw” and “Strawberry”. The students became the puppeteers and were able to discover how to resolve bullying using restorative justice practices. Mr. Solomon also worked with the intermediate students at St. David Catholic School to help them create a graphic novel page based on the Seven Grandfather Teachings of love, wisdom, respect, humility, truth, bravery, and honesty. Mr. Solomon encouraged students to recall their own personal experiences and use their imagination when creating stories. According to Tara Theriault, the school’s Child and Youth Worker, “It was a great day for the students of St. David School. They heard a message that promotes equality, understanding and respect. Mr. Solomon used humour as a tool when he worked with our students and they really enjoyed the day and walked away being inspired to make a difference”.

Learning to Make Every Penny Count

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Two teachers at St. Anne Catholic Elementary School decided to join forces. JK/SK teacher Cheryl MacRury and Grade 7 teacher Kathy Belanger decided they wanted to get their students involved in a community action project, and figured they would have more of an impact if they worked together. The teachers applied for a grant with the Canadian Teacher’s Federation and were successful, allowing them the opportunity to bring their project to life. Both classes decided that they wanted to help animals, specifically the Wild at Heart Animal Refuge. The two classes split the grant money and put it towards a different part of the project. The grade seven students decided to purchase digital cameras so that they could document their project and put together multimedia projects to showcase their progress. The JK/SK class decided that they would take some field trips to the shelter itself so that they could learn more about the animals they are hoping to help. In order to get their project started, the classes decided to visit local businesses and organizations in their community, and if allowed, leave donation cans in support of their project. All they were asking for were people’s pennies. Several businesses immediately jumped on board. After the first collection, they very quickly they realized that their penny collection was going to be a great teaching tool for their students. Every few weeks, the students gather together in one classroom and break off into groups of a few grade seven students and one JK/SK student. Each student is then given a pile of pennies that have been collected and the older students guide the younger student in counting out 50 “penny piles”. “Peer learning is such a great teaching tool for our students,” Belanger commented. “The older students become mentors for the young students and each look forward to our meetings as they enjoy learning from each other!” So far, the students have collected and counted over $70 in pennies over the last couple of months.
“Our students are not only learning numeracy, they are also learning literacy, technology, the importance of compassion, community and virtues.” Stated MacRury. The two classes will continue to meet on a regular basis to tally their collections right into June. The Grade 7 students will then have the opportunity to showcase their media presentations to the rest of the school. The group is hoping not only to donate funds to the shelter, but also donate much needed items like food and cleaning supplies.
“The dedication and hard work of our staff is second to none,” Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board stated. “These kinds of projects really engage our students, and allow them to see beyond the classroom. These are important life lessons that are a foundation for success in life.”

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