July 2012 . Issue 11 . Volume 9
calgary science school
Principal’s Message Thank you all for another incredible year! We undertook some major events this year, with great success. We hosted 2 teacher conferences with over five hundred teachers attending between the two of them. We were evaluated by Alberta Education, the results of which indicate that our students are highly engaged, our teachers are creative and innovative in their work, our support staff are invaluable contributors to our success, and the parents are meaningful partners and advisors in the education of their children. We spent over eighty days on overnight field trips, and went on 44 day or half-day field trips as well. We had approximately one hundred parent volunteers assisting in a number of different capacities, for total volunteer hours well into the thousands. We wrote and submitted a new Charter Renewal document to the Minister of Education outlining our vision, mission, goals and principles for the next 15 years. We held many performances and showcases, from the Grade 5 Missing Parts of Speech play to the winter concert, end of term fine arts showcases, grade 6 beginning band concert, our flash mob dance routine in Southcentre Mall, and more. All of this plus many other initiatives or events took place in the 180
instructional days we were fortunate enough to have with the students this year. It truly was a remarkable year. I want to acknowledge the wonderful volunteer appreciation tea that was hosted in the IAC on Friday, June 15. It was a very fitting tribute and thank you to the fantastic volunteers that support our program. As I said during the event, we simply could not be CSS and do what we do without that incredible support. I would also like to acknowledge the retirement of Mrs. Jacquie Moir, who has been with CSS for 10 years now. Mrs. Moir has made the difficult decision to retire after serving her students here at CSS as well as in the CBE and Rockyview School Division for over twenty years. Mrs. Moir, I have greatly valued your contributions to CSS and your unwavering commitment to your students. We will miss you. I wish you all well as we disperse for our summer plans. Be safe, enjoy your family time, as it is precious time, and I look forward to reconnecting with everyone on August 15. Darrell Lonsberry
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
1
16
12
16 14
12 14
JULY 2012
in this issue
Staffing Update......................................................................3 School Council News...........................................................4 Farewell Mrs. Moir.................................................................5 CSS Band Uniform/Outdoor Gear Swap ......................6 Transportation Update.......................................................7 Entering the Dragons Den ............................................8-9 The Power of a Cartoon............................................ 10-11
2
Grade 7 at the Cross Conservation Area................ 12-13 CSS Summer Arts Celebration................................... 14-15 Grade 9 Graduation Evening...................................... 16-17 CSS at the CAAA Track and Field Meet................... 18-19 Giving Back in Belize............................................................20 August Calendar and Important Dates.........................21
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
Staffing Changes for 2012-2013 The process for staffing for the 2012-2013 school year was much more complex than it has been in the past. There are a number of changes to staffing for a variety of reasons. Here is a summary of the changes for next year: MRS. JACQUIE MOIR is retiring after more than twenty years in education. Please see the article on page 19 in this Spectrum for more information. MRS. JESSICA KELLY, who is currently our drama and dance teacher, will be assuming a Humanities teaching position in the fall. MRS. MARLA PAXTON and MRS. SHANNON MITCHEL-FLEK will be sharing the counseling and student services position until Mrs. Mitchel-Flek begins her maternity leave later in the fall. MR. CHRIS DITTMANN will be resuming teaching by taking on a part-time teaching position in addition to the communication coordinator responsibilities. MRS. SHASHI SHERGILL will remain on a leave. MS. JENNY TRINH will not be returning to CSS as a homeroom teacher, though she will continue to be a valued member of our substitute teacher list.
MR. DAVE SCOTT will be teaching part-time next year as he has begun work on a Ph.D. at the University of Calgary. MRS. ABBY SAADEH will be returning to CSS as a classroom teacher. She was a grade 6 teacher two years ago and went on maternity leave at the end of that year. She has been our Inclusive Practices Coach since February. Next year she will be teaching part-time as well as maintaining the role of Inclusive Practices Coach. MRS. AIMEE TRUDEL, currently one of our substitute teachers and formerly having taught PE to grades 4, 6 and 8 at the start of this past year, will be taking on a part-time classroom teaching assignment next year. MS. ERIN COUILLARD is taking a leave of absence for the year. MR. DAN MCWILLIAM is assuming the role of Professional Development and Collaboration Coordinator and so will not have a teaching assignment. We will be welcoming JARED MCKENZIE to CSS next year as a humanities teacher. He has taught for two years in a rural district in Southern Alberta. He will be an excellent addition to our teaching staff. More information about Mr. McKenzie will be found in the August/September Spectrum next year.
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
3
School Council News The last School Council meeting of the school year was held June 5. As expected at this busy time of year, turnout was down compared to the last couple of meetings, but there were still plenty of people in attendance to respond to the Dialogue with Darrell question: “What changes could or should we make at CSS in order to significantly improve the students’ experience next year?” The discussion touched on iPads vs iMacs, outdoor education trips, improved communication, suggestions re: the school website and classroom blogs and more. If you have ideas for Darrell that you haven’t yet shared, please email him directly at darrell.l@calgaryscienceschool.com. Also at the June meeting, we voted to go ahead and book Rocky Mountain Adventure Medicine to provide Remote Responder training to CSS parents next fall. This course is commonly referred to as Wilderness First Aid, and includes Level C CPR and AED training. The course will be held after fall camps / fall break and before the busy winter holiday season. The program consists of 2 full days of classroom training on Oct 20 and 21 (at CSS) and one day in the field on Oct 27 (at Bragg Creek Provincial Park), for a total of 24 hours of instruction. The instructor will provide details about the clothing and gear needed for Oct 27 (24-hour pack, etc.). The cost to participants will be $285 and we need at least 11 parents to sign-up to make this happen. If your employer requires first aid training and you need to be recertified, ask your Human Resources person whether you can be reimbursed for the course fee. The training is recognized by Alberta Workplace Health and Safety as equivalent to Standard First Aid. Course enrolment is capped at 18 and if we have more than that wanting to take the program, we will look into a second offering of the course. Full registration details will be released at the start of the new school year. First Aid training is one of the criteria the CSS leadership team considers when selecting volunteers for overnight camps. Parent volunteers were treated to an impressive program of performances at the annual Volunteer Tea on June 15th. Thanks very much to the school administration, teachers and many students who organized the event which was enjoyed by all who attended.
End of year report As we look forward to summer holidays, it’s appropriate to take a few minutes to think back to everything the CSS community has accomplished over the past school year: from last fall’s Forging Connections Conference; to various fine arts performances; the May 2012 ConnectED conference; the many commendations in the 2012 charter school evaluation; submission of a 15year charter renewal application; the 2nd annual parenting conference in April; the tremendous parent volunteer effort supporting Outdoor Ed overnight camps, other field trips and activities in the school; the iPad pilot project; various research projects; successful fundraising programs (fun lunch, Balzac Meats and SUTP sales); and so much more. On behalf of School Council, I’d like to thank the CSS leadership team and staff for placing such a high value on true parent engagement so that the parent community is a true partner in helping to ensure it’s “Never Just an Ordinary Day” for our CSS students. Looking forward to the 2012/13 school year, here are some dates to mark in your calendar: Weds, Aug 15 Welcome Back Coffee Reception 8:30 – 10:00 am (Gym) Thurs, Aug 16 Outdoor Gear and Band Uniform Swap 4:00 – 8:00 pm (IAC) Thurs, Aug 16 “Camp Sweet” BBQ 5:00 – 6:30 pm (side yard near staff parking) Weds, Sept 5 School Council Meeting 7:00 – 9:00 pm (Anne Tingle Library) Weds, Oct 3 School Council Annual General Meeting starting at 7:00 pm For those families moving on from the Calgary Science School, we wish you well in your new high school communities. For everyone else, enjoy the summer! We’ll look forward to seeing you – rested and relaxed – on August 15th! Denise Kitagawa, President On behalf of your School Council
Volunteers Needed for Annual Camp Sweet Work Bee The annual Camp Sweet work bee will take place on Saturday August 18th beginning at 10 am. We will be providing lunch to all participants and children are welcome as long as they are supervised. It would be appreciated if dogs were left at home. We will need 30-40 people in total to make short work of the job list and should be finished by about 2 pm. The school lawn tractor will be available but will need to be transported by someone with a flat deck trailer who is also able to return it to the school that afternoon. We could also use a smaller gas mower do cut the area around the cabin as well as weed whackers and wheelbarrows. Please reply to Phil Butterfield at phil.b@calgaryscienceschool.com if you are able to help out.
4
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
Farewell
Mrs. Moir Mrs. Moir is retiring, so CSS is saying goodbye to her after 10 years of teaching with us and more than twenty years teaching experience in total. Mrs. Moir joined us in the fall of 2002 and has taught grade 4 ever since. The decision to leave teaching is a very difficult one for most teachers, and it is particularly difficult for Mrs. Moir. She cares deeply for her students and spends many, many hours over and above what is normally expected in order to ensure that her students find success. The transition into retirement for such a dedicated,
student-centred teacher is a difficult thing. It is likewise a difficult thing for a school to lose a teacher like Mrs. Moir. We will miss her dedication, professionalism, and her absolute commitment to her students’ success. I don’t know what the future holds for Mrs. Moir, but I hope it provides her with the enrichment, opportunity, and growth that she has so ably provided to the students of CSS for the past decade. We wish you all the best, Mrs. Moir. Darrell Lonsberry Congratulations to custoidal staff member Oscar Lopez on the successful completion of his Power Engineering: Class 5 (Boilermaker) certificate. Oscar has been a custodian at CSS for 4 years.
Have a safe and relaxing summer!
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
5
?
Save that outgrown, outdoor gear for the CSS Outdoor Gear Swap
Drop off gear to be sold Wed. August 15 8:30 - 10 am & 7 - 8 pm OR Thurs. August 16 8:30 am - 9:30 am
Buy bigger gear at the SALE Thurs. August 16 from 4 - 8pm
••• PLUS •••
Þ
Swap Up Your Band Uniform! This year, the annual CSS Used Outdoor Gear Swap will include a Band Uniform Table featuring lightly used band clothing. Sellers will keep 100% of the sale price, so this is a great opportunity to switch up last year’s uniform for a new, larger outfit at a very reasonable price.
The Band Parent Committee will be collecting the following items for resale: • White, long sleeved, collared shirts • White, short sleeved, collared golf shirts • Full-toed black leotards • Black mid-length skirts (no mini skirts) • Black dress shoes More information, including a sign-up form with sale tags, will be emailed to all families prior to school start-up. Drop-Off August 15, from 8:30 – 10 am, and 7 – 8 pm. The sale will take place Thursday, 6 Day will be Wednesday, www.calgaryscienceschool.com
Transportation Update Looking back and looking ahead
A heartfelt thank you to our bus drivers As the rush of route planning comes to an end, and the school year comes to a close, the thoughts of the transportation team turn to the men and women who drive our children to school every school day of the year - through rain and shine, sleet and heat - braving the icy hills, enduring endless construction and traffic jams, but most importantly, taking on the responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of over 400 CSS children. We would like to commend those parents who have, in some way, thanked their bus driver for their dedication this past year. Finding and keeping dedicated drivers is foundational to a successful busing program.
Looking ahead to August 15 At this time, all registered busing students have been emailed their Route Schedule, indicating their pick up/drop off location and time. With the exception of safety concerns, routes are set, and no changes will be considered until Fall Break. From now until September 12th, the transportation committee will be collecting emails from parents with concerns and requests regarding their busing situation.
Please email the committee (including your route number in the subject line) with any of the following concerns: • You did not register for the bus, but would now like to register for busing. • You have plans to move, and may be in need of a different bus stop or route. • You have concerns regarding your designated stop or route. • You would like to use a different stop or route than where you are listed. All concerns regarding stop location will be reviewed after September 12 and decided upon by the committee as a group. Each concern will be responded to prior to Fall Break, while any changes agreed upon will be implemented immediately following Fall Break. Please email the committee at any time, including over the summer holidays at transportationatcss@gmail.com, being sure to state your designated route number in the subject line. On behalf of the Transportation Analyst, and the Volunteer Transportation Committee, have a safe and enjoyable summer.
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
7
Entering the
8
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
Drago
ons Den Have you ever had a creative or innovative idea for a product or business? Have you ever looked for an app online and realized that it just didn’t exist? Have you ever said to yourself, “This idea would make me millions!!!!”? From the fashion industry to the sports and electronic gaming industry, young people are coming up with big ideas. But how do these ideas turn into money??? If any of these thoughts have ever crossed your mind, then Ms. Pereverzoff’s Ucreate elective is the place for you. This past term, students were given the opportunity to bring out their inner entrepreneur and create a product, business, and/or app from the ground up. Business ideas ranged from babysitting and lawn care services, to a ventilating laptop stand, to a few different gaming apps. Students viewed episodes of CBC’s Dragons Den to get a feel for the aspects of starting a business that matter to investors. The culminating event of the term took place on June 7 when students put their ideas on the line at the CSS version of Dragons Den. Ms. Pereverzoff recruited four real-world “dragons”, composed of local Calgary entrepreneurs. They carefully listened to each student group’s pitch, peppering them with questions about things like competition, start-up costs and profit margins. Certainly a bit of a daunting experience. “It was intimidating at first, having four adults looking at you,” reflected grade 7 student Drew. “Once we started it was good,” added his partner and fellow grade 7 student Kellan. “Basically, we were just getting feedback from people who were entrepreneurs. The feedback was pretty constructive. They found the digital ad we created funny and they appreciated the effort we put into it.” The boys’ pitch to the dragons was a game app idea called Demons in Druland. The boys developed the idea over a period of weeks, including a marathon 9 hour Saturday work session where they created their Keynote presentation and script. The boys plan to take the idea to market and received some valuable advice from the dragons on what it would take to make Demons in Druland a reality. “We learned that we’ll have to hire some coders to help make the app. We have to find out how much it will cost,” stated Drew. Whether their idea ultimately ends up in the Apple App Store or not, the boys relished their experience in both the Ucreate elective and the Dragons Den. “We were given the freedom to make our idea an actual business idea and take it to the market,” concluded Kellan.
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
9
T h e Po w e r o f a Mrs. Nelson’s 7.1 and 7.2 Math/Science classes were recently challenged with exploring human impacts on our natural ecosystems. Nothing too surprising about that. What was a litle “outside the box”, though, was the means by which students communicated their findings and conclusions. Political cartoons are normally the domain of the Social Studies classroom, and indeed this group of students had analyzed political cartoons in Humanities earlier in the year. So, as students researched a specific issue related to human impacts on ecosystems, documenting evidence and differining viewpoints on the issue,
10
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
C A R TO O N
using the medium of a political cartoon to communicate their findings proved an engaging and challenging task. Relying on a mostly visual medium, using symbolism and exaggeration to convey a specific position on a complex issue proved to be more difficult in some respects than a more traditional medium, like an essay. “Students learned that a political cartoon isn’t necessarily funny,” explained Mrs. Nelson. “It needs to make the reader think using a short, visual medium with little text, using aspects other than words to convey the message.”
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
11
Engaging in Real World Learning
at the Cross Conservation Area A Parent’s Perspective.... By Denise Kitagawa Earlier this week I had the privilege and pleasure of accompanying 50 grade 7 students from the Calgary Science School as they headed into the field to collect some baseline observations prior to the reintroduction of beavers to the Pine Creek watershed at the Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area. The Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area is located just southwest of Calgary and consists of 4800 acres of aspen forest and grassland habitats. A portion of the conservation area is open to the general public, with access controlled via an online booking system and subject to a $2/person fee. Day use fees provide access to approximately 20 km of hiking trails, including two self-guided interpretive walks. The Ann and Sandy Cross Conservation Area also offers a range of education programs to school and community groups, summer day camps and other programming. Current program details, including fees, can be found here.
12
The project is a four-way collaboration. The other two partners in the project are Miistakis Institute and Cows and Fish. Over a period of several years, the project will demonstrate the role of beavers in improving ecosystem health through the provision of healthy wetlands. The Cows and Fish organization has produced a video that imparts more background information – Beavers: Love ‘em, Hate ‘em on YouTube. An Okotoks newspaper article on the plan to reintroduce beavers along Pine Creek reports that although the MD of Foothills supports the idea, there are concerns about beavers migrating outside of the conservation over the long term. Members of the Miistakis Institute instructed half of the students on how to assess the mix of vegetation currently growing in proximity to a small man-made reservoir along the Pine Creek. In addition, using a portable grid to survey vegetation at specified locations, students took several photographs of the current shape of the reservoir, water level
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
and vegetation using the iPads assigned to them through the Calgary Science School’s 1:1 technology program. Cows and Fish personnel led the other group of students as they undertook an inventory of riparian plants currently growing downstream of the reservoir. Both sets of observations will help create a baseline picture of the area before beavers are reintroduced to the area in July. The hope is that the students will return while in grades 8 and 9 to make further observations that will help document the effects of the reintroduced beavers.
In addition to helping with the photo record of existing vegetation, I tried my hand at photographing some of the birds, insects, animals and wildflowers at the Cross Conservation Area. I spotted hawks, red-winged blackbirds, tree swallows and other birds; also lacewings, lots of different spiders, bees, wasps and ladybugs. Two white-tailed deer made their way across the rolling hills. Our background music for the day was a chorus of frogs and bird song.
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
13
CSS
14
SUMMER
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
ARTS
CELEBRATION J U N E 1 2, 2 0 1 2 www.calgaryscienceschool.com
15
G ra G ra d u a t i o
Pinebrook Golf June 7
16
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
ade 9 o n E ve n i n g
and Country Club 7, 2012
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
17
CSS at th Track and May 31
18
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
he CAAA Field Meet 1, 2012
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
19
Giving Back in Belize
Grade 6 CSS student Hannah R recently turned a family vacation to Belize into an for her and her soccer team to share some of what they have. Here’s her experience in her own words. During spring break, my family and I went to Belize. I was researching about Belize when I found a blog talking about a school near the area we were visiting. It said that the school needed soccer equipment for their girls soccer team. I thought about how I had some used soccer equipment just laying around the house and wondered if maybe some of my soccer teammates and friends might have some, too. I contacted my soccer team and some close friends of mine and got a ton of stuff to take there. I then included my dentist and orthodontist and got some really neat things for them to use. With all the stuff, we had to take a golf cart from San Pedro, Belize to San Mateo, Belize. As we got to the school, we saw some kids in classrooms and saw the whole structure of the school. After a tour of the school from Lydia (the Holy Cross School volunteer coordinator) we went with the girls soccer team. We gave them all of the equipment and school supplies and they were very surprised about all the stuff we brought. After, Lydia told me that if you drop a ball in the sand, some kids will join you in a game of soccer, and some did! I had a great time in Belize seeing the kids playing soccer and playing with them. I really hope that in the future I do something like this, or even bigger, like building a school or a playground for some kids in need. You can view the video I made of my trip here. Hannah R 6.1
20
Hannah and her Calgary Rangers Soccer Club teammates with the gear they collected for a school in Beliize
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
august 2012 Important dates for August, 2012: August 15 - First day of school! August 15 - Welcome Back Parent Coffee Reception in the gym 8:30-10:00 AM August 16 Picture Day August 16 Meet the Teacher Open House 4:00pm – 8:00pm August 17 Regular classes in morning. Dismissal at 12:00 pm 12
13
14
15
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
16
Meet the teacher night 4:00 - 8:00 pm
17
12:00 pm student dismissal
outdoor ed welcome gear and back parent band uniform coffee swap reception “CampSweet” 8:30 - 10:00 am bbq5:00-6:30pm In the gym Picture Day
19
20
21
22
7.1/7.2 CAMP SWEET
26
27
28
23
24
18 Camp Sweet work bee 10:00 am 2:00 pm
25
7.3/7.4 CAMP SWEET
29
5.1/5.2 CAMP SWEET
30
31
1
5.3/5.4 CAMP SWEET
www.calgaryscienceschool.com
21