Grade 9 Orientation: Our Amazing Race
Our grade 9 students were involved in an All Saints tradition this past week, participating in The Amazing Race activity. This provided students an opportunity to explore important skills such as teamwork, resiliency and participation as they participated in a number of activities. Staff also went over some important points regarding what students would need to know to be successful throughout the year. We also encouraged students to bring a strong level of enthusiasm to their classroom work and the clubs, sports and activities they will involve themselves with this year. Thanks to the many staff who participated in this activity, and a special thank you to Ms. Hay for her organization.
Celebrating “7’s”
In addition to our grade 9 orientation last week, Friday saw a celebration of our newest students to our All Saints family - our grade 7’s. Our day began with a presentation by our school resource officers Constables Peak and Cybulski on appropriate use of the internet and social communication. This served as a great connection to the work students are completing in Religion class around “Samaritans on the Digital Road”.
The afternoon provided us with a chance to build community and enthusiasm among our grade 7 homerooms. Teachers lead spirit activities with their classes, performing some singing and dance moves. We appreciate the contributions of our entire grade 7 staff with a special thank you to our organizers, MC’s for our “concert”, and Ms. Abrams for providing a sweet “cupcake” finish to the day. A great start to the year 7’s!
Terry Fox Run and Spirit Volleyball!
Our busy student council has brought back Spirit Volleyball this year; a chance for grades to compete against each other and demonstrate our All Saints spirit! We have combined this exciting activity with our fundraising walk for the Terry Fox foundation.
On Tuesday September 19th, students will be running/walking a route within our community (Kanata Ave, Knudson Dr., Weslock Way, Walden Dr.) supervised by their teachers.
Students have been provided with official Pledge Sheets this week and have been asked to fundraise to support this worthy cause. Donations can be made in cash, by cheque (payable to Terry Fox Foundation- please include the student’s name and homeroom number in the memo part of the cheque) or online at www.terryfoxrun.org . All donations must be submitted by Thursday, September 28th.
On this same day, each grade will also have a period during the school day where they will participate in Spirit Volleyball. The remainder of the school day will be regular classes. Our cafeteria staff will be providing students with a drink, chips and hamburger/ hot dog/ veggieburger meal for $6 on that day as well. Our rain date for this event is Wed. Sept. 20th. Thank you in advance for your support of these events.
Meet the Staff!
Our Meet the Staff Open House will be held on Thursday afternoon (September 21st) from 4:30 to 6:30. We invite all parents/guardians within our All Saints Community to join us for information about the school, and to introduce yourself to your son/daughter’s teachers, educational assistants, administrators and guidance counsellors. Please review the following schedule:
4:30 to 5:15 - BBQ fundraiser for our Show Choir group ($5 combos)
5:20 to 5:45 - Address (school administration, School Council Chair, Student Services)
5:45 to 6:30 - grade 7&8 teachers remain in the cafeteria, 9-12 staff in the wood floor gym (arranged alphabetically by last name - please bring your son/daughter’s schedule or teacher information)
6:00 - 6:30 - grad presentation (optional)
graduation information (meeting in our learning commons): student services personnel will focus on graduation requirements, post secondary options, scholarships and awards, important dates and communication strategies.
Please understand that the Meet the Staff evening organization does not allow for specific discussions with teachers regarding individual student needs. Do know that you can contact a staff member at the school at any point if you require a lengthier discussion.
Police and Peace Officers' National Memorial Day – Sunday, September 24th, 2017
Flags on all Ontario government buildings across the province will be flown at half-mast on Friday, September 22, and remain at half-mast until Monday, September 25th in observance of Police and Peace Officers' National Memorial Day.
Purchasing Options for Student Technology
As we continue the implementation of Deep Learning across the Board, and increasingly seek out opportunities to leverage digital to support learning, access to enough devices in each classroom is sometimes an issue. Our Board has been investing in technology for many years and will continue to do so, but the demand is rapidly increasing as students are starting to do more and more of their schoolwork online using the collaborative tools available.
BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is a strategy that has been successfully implemented in many of our schools to help support student access to technology. Many families are seeking advice as they consider purchasing a device for their child to use both at home and at school over the next few years. As a result, we have been working with Staples Canada to provide OCSB families with access to an online portal where they can find information and pricing on a few models of Chromebooks that have been specifically recommended by our Learning Technologies Department. These recommended devices are the same durable machines we are using in classrooms, with full keyboards, cameras and touchscreens that also flip over to act as a tablet and were not previously available from Staples.
All Saints Catholic School Council
The first general meeting of the All Saints School Council will take place on Monday, September 25th at 7:00pm in the school learning commons (library). We hope to see many new parents at our meeting at the end of the month. If you are interested in running for a position on the council, you may review the information required in the following forms and send the information required in an email to All Saints High School (AllSaints.High@ocsb.ca)
There is a great deal of information on the CSPA website regarding information for parents and upcoming sessions. You can visit the website here.
Communications:
Check out our blog – allsaintschs.blogspot.ca and our twitter @AllSaintsCHS (Mr. Kelly’s - @seankellyottawa) as well as our website ash.ocsb.ca for all that is happening at All Saints!
Coming Up:
Monday, September 25th: All Saints School Council meeting (7:00 Learning Commons)
September 26th: Opening School Masses at All Saints
