The Grade 2 students at Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School sent their Postcards for Peace to veterans to thank them for having served in the past wars. The students recognized that many of Canada’s service men and women continue today, to leave their families and friends, in order to bring peace to many countries around the world. The children discussed how they are all peacekeepers here in Canada. They learned that they can all help with “peacekeeping missions” by respecting and helping each other in the school playgrounds, at home, and in their neighbourhoods. One of the biggest lessons learned is that It’s so important to learn from the past.
A Beary Scary Halloween
On October 31’st 2013, students from St Benedict Catholic Secondary School visited Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School. Student Council president Brendan Sullivan, vice president and student trustee Mackenzie Connelly, and beloved mascot, Benny the Bear represented St Benedict as they read to grade 1 and 2 students in both English and french. “We thought this would be a great opportunity to bond with the students who share our campus and spread some Halloween cheer,” said Connelly.
After reading the books, Benny and the students donated them to Holy Cross and gave out Halloween stickers and high fives from Benny. “This experience has been very rewarding for us. We were able to practice our bilingualism and meet the students who will become future Bears,” stated Sullivan. “I look forward to continuing to connect our two school communities.”
Paper Airplanes and Space
On Friday, Oct. 18th, students at Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School joined Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield in kicking off National Science and Technology Week by participating in a Canada-wide Science lesson. The Gr. 2 students folded 3 sets of airplanes and adapted the wings for each model in order to simulate gravity and atmosphere on Earth, the Moon and Mars. Each student then had an opportunity to test all three paper airplanes and compared the flight distance for each model. This was a day when making paper airplanes in class definitely did not break the class rules!
Praying for Animals at Holy Cross
On Wednesday, October 2nd, the Holy Cross School community gathered to celebrate the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi in a liturgy with Father Jim Hutton. Students were asked to bring along a favourite stuffed animal, as a symbol of the animals of the world. St. Francis loved animals, calling them his brothers and sisters. During the liturgy, students held their animals up for a special blessing and prayer for all of the animals of the world.
Sudbury Catholic Students Participate in Metis Heritage Days
The Sudbury Catholic District School Board recently held Metis Heritage Days at Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School. Nine elementary schools participated in the cultural presentations. The facilitator, Scott Carpenter, a Community Development Officer with the Metis Nation of Ontario, led the hands-on presentations.
Highlights for many student and staff participants included Carpenter’s beautiful display of Metis artifacts. The Metis people are one of the three recognized aboriginal peoples in Canada. They trace their descent to mixed First Nations and European heritage. Almost 400,000 people self-identify as Metis in Canada. Joel Agowissa, the Aboriginal Youth Worker for the Sudbury Catholic District School Board said, “The students were engaged, interested and had a many questions for Mr. Carpenter. It was an honour to have Mr. Carpenter who is a member of the Metis nation speak to our young students and help us build inclusive learning environments for our students.”
Holy Cross Free the Children Club We Are Silent Campaign
Members of the Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School Free the Children Club joined thousands of students around the world in the ‘We Are Silent” Campaign on April 18th. Students took a “vow of silence” in order to experience what it is like for poverty stricken children to not have the right to speak out about their basic needs, including an education. The “Day of Silence” brought awareness to Free the Children Club members and the Holy Cross School Community.
Bringing in Small Change to Make BIG Change
Since October, the Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School grade 3 students from teacher Eva Scola’s class, and the grade 3/4 students from teacher Shanna Whalen’s class have been learning about the water crisis in Ghana, Africa. The students were involved in the 2012/2013 School Challenge through the Ryan’s Well Foundation, that involved raising awareness, and money, to build a well and laterines in Ghana. The students came together to engage in discussions, and to create a plan that would make others in the school aware of Ryan’s Well, and the lack of clean water in Africa. These students had a goal to raise $750. Through pledges from families, the collection of coins in our class piggy banks, and a truly amazing participation in our Wacky Hair for Water Day- Bringing in small change to make BIG Change in Africa-, the students of Holy Cross were able to more than double their goal. They raised $1689! “We are extremely proud of our students,” said Shanna. Whalen. “They demonstrated a genuine concern for people they don’t even know. They were able to get their message across to their peers, through their great Christian leadership. They wanted to make a difference, and they definitely did.”
FULL DAY Kindergarten Information/Registration Night -TODAY – Tuesday, February 5, 2013
There will be an information/registration night TODAY – Tuesday, February 5, 2013 for all parents interested in registering their child(ren) at one of the Sudbury Catholic elementary schools for FULL DAY Kindergarten beginning September, 2013.
The information/registration night will start at 6:00 p.m. For more information about this event, please contact your local Catholic elementary school. For contact information about each school, go to http://www.scdsb.edu.on.ca/schools/schools.php, or contact the board office at (705)673-5620.
Inaugural Cubs and Bears Junior Co-ed Volleyball Tournament
On December 9th, Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School held its first Junior Coed Volleyball Tournament. This tournament was run in collaboration with St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School.
Newly dubbed the “Cubs and Bears Junior Co-ed Volleyball Tournament”, there was a total of 15 teams entered with a round robin in three pools with the top 2 teams in each pool advancing to the finals (also included the top two 3rd place teams advancing as well to the quarter finals).
The results are as follows: Gold medal winners Holy Cross 2 coach Mr. Gallien.
Silver medallist St. James A team coach Mr. Lariviere
Bronze medallist St. Anne B team coaches: Mrs. Mazerolle and
Mr. Merigioli
Fourth place finalist St. Paul coaches: Mrs. Valiquette and Stacey Vendramin
This was history in the making as it is the first year of existence for Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School and were able to have four teams entered in this tournament. This is the first of many types of tournaments that will run as a joint effort.
Holy Cross Students’ Transit Ride to Public Library
The Gr. 2 students in the Regular English program at Holy Cross Catholic Elementary School recently participated in a program arranged between the Sudbury Public Library and the Greater Sudbury Transit. A class bus pass granted them the opportunity to ride the Sudbury Transit in order to spend the morning at the South End Public Library. For many of the students, this was their first time using the public transit and it proved to be an exciting adventure. The school program consisted of a tour of the new South End Library, a demonstration of how to locate and access books on the computer, story time and a craft. By the end of the session, students were able to leave with their personal library card, a good book to read and a reason to return with their family or classmates.