Student led-video conferencing, virtual trip to Alaska, skating rink in the school yard & much more. This month’s CLC Wrap-up.
Two schools working together
Jagdeep Trehin (Spiritual Animator) has been working with some ethics classes at C.V.R. on Religions from Around the World. A few Grade 9 students were given the opportunity to present their work by video conference to grades 5 & 6 from Franklin Elementary. The students began with their power-point presentations and then spoke about a collection of artifacts that they showed the younger students. Using the VC technology in an interactive presentation was a first for both the high school and elementary students. Invitations have gone out for more Religion “VC” and schools are signing up as we speak.
Here are some testimonials from a few students:
– The kids are really fun and it was really interactive. – (C.V.R. presenter) Kaila Langille
– It was realistic like you felt you were there with them. – (C.V.R. student) Megan Corbeil
– It was fun to present to another school and less stressful. – (C.V.R. student) Alexann D’Avignon
– I like all the pictures because they were real. – (Franklin Student) Brandon Blair
– I found it was really great to see all the artifacts – (Franklin Student) Duncan McIntyre
– I found it really exciting and fun! – (Franklin Student) Darren Thompson
Helping hand
The Chateauguay English Community Network (CECN) provided Centennial Park, St. Willibrord, Mary Gardner and Harmony schools with $100.00 each to go towards their breakfast programs.
Helping hand… part deux
Pierre Moreau, Member of the National Assembly of Chateauguay, provided the “Table de Jeunesse” with a $1000.00 towards their Community Wednesday initiative. Community Wednesdays, which originated at St. Willibrord School, has been in existence for five years and is a collaborative project between multiple partners from the region in an effort to build community awareness of local social services.
NFSB represents!
Twenty-two teachers from our board attended a two day training, provided by LEARN Quebec on “Community Based Service Learning”. This training provided teachers with resources and tools to be able to incorporate community based projects into the curriculum. Our school board had the largest teacher representation of any school board in the province.
Alaskan adventure
St. Willibrord teachers took an exploration of Alaska’s marine life, as the Alaska SeaLife Center did a distance learning video conference demonstration to the staff. The first-hand virtual field trip showcased how fun and educational a virtual fieldtrip can potentially be by video conference for students.
Video conferences galore
C.V.R. hosted two video conferences for the community, one on: “Homework in Peace or Homework Police” & “Parenting 101”.
Chateauguay Valley CLC Nights have begun
The Beginners Computer Club at C.V.R. began on Wednesday nights (7 to 9 pm for 6 weeks), we started with 7 people and the class grew to 13 participants on the second-night, under the expertize of Christina Franc from Qu’Anglo Communications. Look out… there is a whole new breed of computer savvy folks coming your way soon!
Gentlemen start your engines
Thanks to community volunteers Gordie Furey and Gavin Johnston, the Chateauguay Valley CLC has been able to start up an “After School Motors Club”. Boys meet every Tuesday & Thursday and are in the beginning stages of learning about the motor itself and the tools they’ll be working with. It’s disassembling time! Let’s hope we can put it all back together!
Yoga at HAECC
We’ve paired up with Yoga Huntingdon to offer Yoga classes during the cold months at HAECC. Mark Brown the Yoga instructor offers classes on Mondays: 6:30-7:30pm, Tuesdays: 10:00am-11:30am and Wednesdays: 7:00-8:00pm. The classes are open to all community members and the first class is free!
MAPAQ certification
HAECC is offering “Hygiene and Food Safety certification” for restaurant handlers and managers. In January we had seven restaurant workers and managers successfully complete the two day certification. The instructor Judith Lussier was very pleased with the group and the results from this session. HAECC had the opportunity to nominate a promising student to take the course in order to help her become more established in her future career in the cooking industry. Congratulations Patricia Marlin on completing the course!
Art Showcase
HAECC offers an art class with a professional artist two times a year. Pat Walsh the instructor did a wonderful job this session with her students; everyone showed such skill and dedication to the class. The community members always enjoy their time with Pat and say that she has many skills to share with the group. The class held an art show at the Little Green library in Huntingdon where their Art will stay on display for a few months.
Everything you want to know about Schizophrenia:
Ami Quebec offered an educational video conference on January 29th at CVR. The guest speaker was an expert in schizophrenia as well as other mental illnesses. The video conference was very interactive giving the audience a chance to ask question and discuss personal issues throughout the evening. Ami Quebec will offer another video conference on April 23rd from 7:00pm-9:00pm @ HAECC the subject covered will be “So you have a Mental Illness, but you can still have a life and a good one”. We hope to see you there!
Les 5 à 7 communautaires @ Gault Institute a huge success.
The first ever « 5 à 7 communautaires » was held at Gault Institute in late January and the community came out in droves: roughly 280 people came to the evening, 230 had the spaghetti dinner and 19 kiosks were on-site in order to build awareness for families about local services available in their area. Guests even donated $322.70 towards the free dinner. A huge thank you to the students and staff as they should be very proud of the amazing decorating work they did and were great hosts in welcoming families and community members to the school. Don’t forget the next 5 à 7 communautaires is in February at l’École Langlois on the last Thursday of the month.
Gault is on the move!
Remaining active and having a healthy lifestyle is very important for Gault students, here are just a few examples:
– Sporting activities after school with sports stagiare Shannon Carson, courtesy of a grant from “Vie En Forme”
– Outdoor skating in the schoolyard. Special thanks to teacher Anick Leclerc who helps with the upkeep of the rink during the cold winter nights.
– Ballet courses for kids and adults, offered by the elegant Kerwin from l’École de danse Neva Shelton.
– Fencing courses with: Club d’escrime du Roussillon.
– And Zumba courtesy of instructor: Heather Diodati.
In the swim of things
The first 10-week session of swimming classes for Gault students at Cité des Arts et des Sports de Valleyfield ended on happy note! All students received a Swimming Certificate. A new session will start in the spring with the goal to take part in a triathlon in June!
Power of Community: Howick steps up
Did you get an opportunity to read the amazing story of a school and community rallying together to help a family that lost their home in a fire. The “Power of Community” is incredible, a school at the heart of its community.
http://nfsb.me/the-power-of-a-community/
(photo 1: C.V.R – video conference, religions from around the world. The St. Patty’s group came decked out in costume to surprise the students. The Chinese Group were up next with another great presentation. Students getting one-on-one help from our volunteers, a great way for generations to connect! Art class from HAECC.
Photo 2: Gault skating rink, ballet classes and sporting activities from grant.)
‘Community Learning Centres’ are partnerships that provide a range of services and activities, often beyond the school day, to help meet the needs of learners, their families, and the wider community. Their aim is to support the holistic development of citizens and communities.