sCapital News Wednesday, Decmeber 17, 2014
www.kelownacapnews.com B15
Okanagan Mission Secondary Excellence through Effort
Community Connection
OKM music program continues to thrive BY MR. ED SCHNELLERT, OKM MUSIC CURRICULAR HEAD OKM Music is thriving with over 500 music students in our Concert Band, Jazz Band, Commercial Music, and Choir classes. OKM Senior Music Directors, Mr. Schnellert and Mrs. Dobbs, have created leading-edge 21st Century rehearsal supports that use technology and interactive instructional techniques. Students can practice online anywhere to Director’s custom rehearsal support tracks, apps, or online. Our success is from creating meaningful music within our community - with lots of tours and fun. The addition of 5 new “breakout rooms” allows students to collaborate and rehearse in small teams and sections. We welcome Ms. Angle into the music program! Our instruction brings 1000 scaffolding lessons from grade 7-12. Our grading lowers emphasis on external judgment and competition, and raises focus on students’ enjoyment via
inspirational musical experiences. If it’s educational, we’ll learn from it. We support the discipline needed to develop highly technical skills, by correct repetition/ practice, and persistent commitment. The greatest motivator is the sense of purpose that comes with working with others towards experiences that be transcendent... The outcomes are great: students in today’s world need to develop a balanced sets of skills, including creativity and sense of culture - which are nurtured in music. By practical measures, entrance applications to universities and workplaces are asking:“…in addition to your academic GPA, what else have you done?” In
today’s world, it’s no longer good enough just to have good grades – students with 95% GPA’s are common(!) Employers and post-secondary institutions want to know that you can work with others, develop your skills, show passion for a community, and be a team-player...this goes on your resume. Above all, OKM music helps students develop a sense of culture, creativity, and community that lasts a lifetime. See our website for samples of our performances, tours, and instruction: okmmusic.weebly.com
OKM Performing Arts Students Finally Have a Place To Play FREDERICK MEYER, DEVIN ARAUJO AND OKM PHOTOGRAPHY TEACHER MR. JAMES FRANSSEN
BY NIKOLAI LESACK, OKM GRADE 12 STUDENT In the recent expansion Okanagan Mission Secondary school has had the good fortune of adding its own black box theatre. This specialized space will provide many new and exciting opportunities for the school’s drama and fine arts programs. The school currently offers 35 blocks of different fine and performing arts classes for students from grades 7 to 12. For years OKM has struggled with having too many performing arts students who didn’t have an adequate place at our school to show off their talents. This new space will allow students to showcase their talents in an intimate theatrical venue. The theatre will also be used for a variety of other school functions including musical perfor-
mances and dances. The new theatre is utilized throughout regular school hours and will provide many new possibilities for before and after school programs which include the Triple Threat and the Missionmainstage Theatre Companies. These companies enroll students from across the district. Triple Threat is a course for students who want to perform musical productions showcasing their singing, dancing and acting skills. Missionmainstage is a company that focuses primarily on acting and usually produces at least two productions a year. In prior years, rehearsals were held in the school drama room while Rotary Centre for the Arts was rented for the public performances. Now rehearsals and performances will be held in the theatre allowing the students to practice and perfect their performances much earlier. This new ultra high-tech theatre
features LED lighting, professional quality sound, state of the art projections, a cyclorama, as well as an aesthetic design. The crown jewel of the facility is the cable grid which is the latest in black box theatre technology. It is one of three cable grid systems in western Canada and the first in the Okanagan. Housed in the ceiling of the facility, the cable grid is essentially a steel woven web which crosses the entire ceiling. This grid allows students to move safely across the entire space and create unlimited lighting, sound and set design effects. It provides students the opportunity to accomplish technical theater tasks en masse as multiple students can be on the grid changing lighting fixtures, hanging sets or wiring lights. As a result, OKM is able to offer a stagecraft course for the first time. This course allows students to study the technical aspects of operating a theatre using similar equipment to professional venues in town while providing new employment opportunities for students in the community The facility will host its first public production in the third week of January/2015, when Missionmainstage will perform Shakespeare’s classic, Romeo and Juliet. Triple Threat will follow with its performance of Bye Bye Birdie in April of 2015. We hope to see you there.
December 2014
The psychology of Windows
LINDSAY BOTTERILL AND MS. HOUNSELL’S PSYCHOLOGY 12 CLASS What is the first thing you notice when you walk into a room? Perhaps you notice the colour of the walls, the furniture or the general atmosphere. Or maybe, your eyes automatically search for a window that allows you to view the outside world. They are integrated throughout our lives, in homes, work places, community buildings and even in schools. Okanagan Mission Secondary has been fortunate enough to add a fourteen new classrooms to the school. One of the main topics of discussion is the addition of windows into the classrooms. These windows give both students and teachers the ability to see their environment outside; additionally, there are windows on the inside, allowing everyone to see into the halls. As well, people walking in the halls can see into the classrooms. Although this may lead you to think windows are a distraction, the overall response has been quite positive. Generally, teachers have noted a complete change in the atmosphere of their rooms since moving into the new wing. Not only does it positively impact learning throughout the classroom; but it also changes their mood for the better. They no longer feel caged in by four, solid walls. However, it seems that the students are the ones enjoying the new windows most of all. With a source of natural light, students are finding an immense improvement to their focus and their attitude. Furthermore, these windows provide a very welcoming environment for students to enter. And, being able to see the outdoors offers a unique inspiration that was hidden behind walls before. As for the windows inside, students have really enjoyed people watching, and having the ability FREDERICK MEYER, DEVIN ARAUJO AND OKM PHOTOGRAPHY TEACHER MR. JAMES FRANSSEN to silently communicate with their friends. Overall, the implementation of the windows has been a great addition to the new wing!
Sports Players Rejoice with the Completion of OKM’s New Gym KEVIN JACOBS AND SHAUN TAYLOR, OKM GRADE 12 STUDENTS The sound of thundering feet and the squeak of gym shoes once again echoes throughout the halls of OKM; the new gymnasium is open for business. With a modern design, the gym makes use of natural light during the day, showing off the shiny new wooden paneling and the polished floor. The ceiling is free of an array of pipes and wires known to all high school students, instead consisting of glossy black metal sheeting. The gym is a new twist on an old favourite, a facility that can host all manner of sporting events and their fans. Overlooking the gym is a revamped weight and fitness room, where students can exercise and enjoy the sporting events of the day from a lofty vantage point. The new facilities have players thrilled to be back in the game after a rocky start to this year as a result of the BCTF job action. Volleyball player Tanner Thiessen shared his experience with us, saying “The volleyball gym is much better than the old gym, the ceiling is higher, and the lighting is much better. Our volleyball season of three months was shortened by one month, and I’m not too happy about that, but we’re back in the game now with a great new gym and that’s what matters.” Thiessen and the rest of the OKM senior volleyball team recently com-
peted in the Valley Championships, placing third, and will be competing in the Provincial Championships later this month. The addition of this new gym has given OKM a great opportunity to expand its prospects in sports, utilizing both the new and old gymnasiums to make sure that athletes always have a place to play. Regarding the new facilities at OKM, volleyball player Bailey Leatherdale had this to say: “Yeah
FREDERICK MEYER, DEVIN ARAUJO AND OKM PHOTOGRAPHY TEACHER MR. JAMES FRANSSEN
we lost some time to the start of this year, but we’ve more than made up for it with the new gym and all that. We got back in the court, we’ve been doing pretty okay at our games and tournaments, and the new gym is just icing on the cake. Whatever happened at the start of this year is over, and we’ve got a really bright future ahead of us.” Thanks to the new gym, students are able to continue their sport pursuits in an exponentially better environment. Overall, this new gym has proved to be a great addition to OKM and will continue be so for many years to come.