CONNECTS MAY 2013
PHOTO 12 EXPLORES ALTERED REALITIES SENIOR KEY BEYOND GRADUATION STUDENTS COMPETE AT HARVARD ECONOMICS CHALLENGE
COLLINGWOOD SCHOOL
Spring Dance Showcase at the Kay Meek Centre
IN THIS ISSUE MAY 2013
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Senior Key: Beyond Graduation Exploring the Gulf Islands I Took a Walk (Or Did I?) Round Square Nicholas Tuck: Humanitarian and Facebook Photo Contest Winner
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Grandparents Visit Wentworth Wall Art at Wentworth North Shore Triathlon Madison Mailey wins Scholarship Rotary Club Awards Young Humanitarian Ray Zhang and Ryan Wang perform at the Kay Meek Centre Upcoming Events/Calendar
Youth Philanthrophy Initiative Harvard University Economics Trip Begbie Canadian History Contest JPEC wins Silver Bamfield Trip Earth Week **Cover photo: Photo 12 students, Matt L., Krystal W., Michael M., Cole T.
SENIOR KEY: BEYOND GRADUATION
In our last article, we talked about how technology is making learning easier for Middle School Key students by taking away the obstacles of outputting their work. In this article, students in Senior Key are given the resources, tips and strategies to help them advocate for themselves in post-secondary education. The area of learning differences is growing; as more research is done, it is becoming apparent that the disconnect between comprehension and demonstrating one’s understanding lies in the process. For example, if a reading difficulty is identified through testing, then a reader can be provided for the student. Making the act of reading more manageable allows the student to understand the material and improve their academic performance. At Collingwood, the Key program helps students unlock their learning by empowering them to work through their learning differences and succeed. Through the use of tools, tips and strategies tailored to each individual student, the Key program recognizes that students learn differently and gives them the resources to succeed not only at Collingwood, but also beyond the school environment. Senior Key begins in Grade 10. At this level Key students are mainstreamed in all of their courses. Usually, it is their skills, reading abilities, or math issues that need finessing. Some students can formulate an idea in their head but have a hard time expressing their thoughts on paper. Senior Key students know at this level what resources and strategies work for them.
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They use these tools to help them bridge the gap between ideas that are stuck and their output. Using an iPad or having a reader available are examples of the tools available to Key students. One of the major benefits to Senior Key is the access to specialists. In the Senior Key department, every teacher has a specialty: Math, English, Social Studies and Science. The Senior level features extremely individualized learning with students meeting with their Key teachers for one-on-one help in a course where they need extra assistance. It is up to the student to make appointments with a certain teacher to get extra help. Continue reading on page 8
EXPLORING THE GULF ISLANDS The final week of our Grade 9 Explore program saw students excited to get back out to the outdoors in warmer conditions! This expedition began on Monday with a gear/prep day, reflection and goal setting; Tuesday to Friday was spent hiking the beautiful Juan de Fuca trail and sea kayaking in the Gulf Islands. The students remember the spring expeditions as the most rewarding and fun experience of all the Explore trips where they are given the opportunity to further develop their leadership skills, outdoor craft and teamwork. With more leadership and independence than previous trips, students did very well taking on the challenges of both a new activity and organizing themselves and others. A trip highlight was the 6 hour solo experience, where students built their own shelter and worked on personal development by reflecting on their experience through journaling. Some additional highlights from the hiking trips included a remarkable sighting of whales after travelling thorough an active pass, seeing an Orca while on a coastal hike, breathing in the crisp fresh ocean air while taking in the beautiful coastal vistas, enjoying dramatic tides from a full moon and sightings of various marine mammals. Highlights for the kayakers were raccoon encounters, sightings of otters, seals, learning about the flora and fauna of the inter-tidal zone and roasting marshmallows on an open fire. This marks the final and culminating experience for these Middle School students. For most of them, they have had three years of unique outdoor experiences, which we hope they will continue to explore further in their Senior School years and beyond. Brei Souza, Explore Administrative Assistant
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L-R: Matt L., Krystal W., Jake Francis, Michael M., Cole T.
I Took a Walk ( Or Did I?) Ever had a dream where you weren’t sure what was real and what was your imagination? Have you ever found yourself suddenly at the Cleveland Dam and you don’t know how you got there? In a large-scale collaborative project, the Photography 12 class explored the notion of altering reality by creating false scenarios in familiar places in this 4-panel panorama. Earlier this year, the class spent half a day at the Ian Wallace exhibition at the Vancouver Art Gallery. We were inspired by Wallace’s piece, The Lookout, which explored similar notions of placing people in a rural setting through cutting, pasting and using watercolours to paint them. Since we have new tools such as Photoshop, that Wallace didn’t have in the late 1970’s we used these to our advantage. The photograph above is originally black and white and the students have used digital painting and overlays to add a “not quite realistic” colour to it. Everything about this piece of work is constructed. We built the panorama from 10 photos that were stitched together by Matt L. Krystal W. then painted all the landscapes, emphasizing an over saturation of the grass and adding a dramatic gradient to the sky. Michael M. went out to capture as many shots of our Collingwood community as
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he could and combined photos from the Headmaster Gallery to fill it out. Cole T. did the majority of the cutting of the people out from their various backgrounds. Each student was then assigned one of the 4 panels and had to put all the pieces together, playing with the scale of each person seen in the panorama. The finished piece is 8 feet wide! Did you notice the large pixelated areas in the panoramas? This was not a Photoshop glitchwe purposely pixelated some of the areas to call attention to the unique nature and convincing illusion of digital photography. Although we are increasingly seeing more and more incredibly detailed and life-like photographs, they are all just comprised of individual pixels. It is our hope that this massive photographic piece will challenge our viewers to examine what photography is and isn’t and to question the blurry line of fiction and truth. The full size piece, was shown at Wet Paint: The Art Exhibition on Thursday, May 30th. Jake Francis, Department Head of Visual Arts Photography 12 Collaborative Project
Student work: Krystal and Matt
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SERVICE SENIOR ROUND SQUARE: INDIA CAR WASH
The India Service Project Participants raised $1004.42 by holding a car wash on May 25th. The proceeds will go towards furthering the building projects they started during their trip to Barind, India, over March Break.
REGIONAL ROUNDSQUARE: NEW BRUNSWICK Silver M. and Natalie W. represented Collingwood at the Rothesay Netherwood Round Square Conference, May 6-10, 2013. The girls camped on the RNS grounds with their international peers, completed a full Model United Nations, rock climbed, finished a high ropes course, participated in leadership activities and song workshops with singer/songwriter Mike Ford, and did various service activities in the town of Saint John.
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The Round Square regional conferences give our students an opportunity to step outside their comfort zone and give back to their community, all the while learning from their fellow students from all over the Americas and Europe.
SENIOR KEY: BEYOND GRADUATION
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This process makes students more proactive in their learning: making appointments, coming early, or staying late to get help better prepares them for the rigors of post-secondary life. Starting in Grade 10, the Key department works closely with the student’s Planning teachers as they start looking at post-secondary schools. By their final year, Key students have identified a plan for themselves that is aligned with their needs and academic interests. Key students succeed at the post-secondary level by making choices that benefit their learning style. If they choose university or college, it is often a smart choice for them to keep their first year course load at a minimum
(2-3 courses), until they become used to their new routines, familiar with their school’s learning assistance programs, and comfortable speaking up for themselves. As their confidence grows, they can work towards carrying a full course load. Preparing students for life after Collingwood is the primary focus in Senior Key, according to Valerie Johnson, Head of the Senior Key department, “Part of our job in Senior Key is to ensure that the students understand that once they leave Collingwood they become the stewards of their education and they must advocate for themselves. It is our hope that Key students leave with confidence, knowing that they have all the resources they need to succeed in the next step of their lives.” Sharifa Samuels, Marketing and Communications Assistant
NICHOLAS TUCK HUMANITARIAN AND FACEBOOK PHOTO CONTEST WINNER Over spring break, Nicholas Tuck, a Grade 5 student at Wentworth, traveled to Cambodia where he volunteered and donated food and supplies to a school. It was a great adventure and a real ‘reality check’ for him, as well. Nicholas was also chosen as this year’s Spring Break A Thon winner. His photo (shown) had the most likes (165 votes) on Facebook, beating out the number two photo with 49 votes. Congratulations on your win Nicholas, you are an inspiration to all of your peers.
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SPRING BREAK LIKE-A-THON CONTEST
SCHOOL LIFE YOUTH PHILANTHROPHY INITIATIVE
Youth Philanthrophy Initiative winners of $5000
Since early February, Planning 10 students have been working on their Youth Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) project. After identifying a social issue of importance to each of their team members, students first short-listed then began working directly with a local non-profit organization to learn more about their mandate and to see first hand how the organization serves the needs of the local community.
had the opportunity to present once again in front of a panel of judges. $5000 was up for grabs to the group who could make the most compelling presentation. After much deliberation by the three judges, the winning group was - Dorrin R. Zoe S., Tina H., Brooke M., Alexa T.- they represented the The Open Door Society that is a charity that helps single mothers and their families on the North Shore.
Six teams were selected to go forward and present at the Finals held on Thursday May 16th. Here they
Congratulations to the winning group, as well as, all the teams that were involved.
BEGBIE CANADIAN HISTORY CONTEST In late April, the Social Studies 10 AP class wrote the Begbie Canadian History Contest, a 2-hour test assessing their knowledge of 19th and 20th century Canadian history and their historical thinking skills especially in primary-source analysis. The top results went to William B. and Richard Z. both with 83% earning them medals for their achievement at the school level.
These results are remarkable considering that, at the time of writing, the students had not learned all of 20th century Canadian history. Congratulations to all the Grade 10 students, and to the top scorers, for their fine effort in this contest. Jennifer Hobson, Department Head of Social Studies
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HARVARD UNIVERSITY ECONOMICS TRIP Over the course of four days one week after Spring Break, Aria G., Aidan J., Laura K., and Jehna D., along with their Economics teacher, Ms. Karcz and Social Studies teacher, Mr. Jacoby, flew to Boston, Massachusetts, to participate in the Harvard Pre-Collegiate Economics Challenge at Harvard University. Team Collingwood competed against 31 other teams, mostly from high schools in the New England area. The competition was a “team jeopardy� style where two teams competed against each other. The team with the most correct answers after twenty questions won the match. Team Collingwood won the first two matches winning their specific group and moving on to the next stage. However, during the third match, Team Collingwood sadly lost on the third tiebreak question. Throughout the competition, Ms. Karcz was very proud as the students displayed a very thorough knowledge of economics and the global economy.
Dr. Greg Mankiw, economics professor at Harvard with Ms. Karcz and Team Collingwood
During our stay, we attended the admissions presentation and tour of Harvard University, and we met up with Collingwood alumni, Jonathan Longcroft. We also visited downtown Boston and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Although short, the trip was full of excitement, learning and fun. Chris Jacoby, Social Studies Teacher
JPEC WINS SILVER! Junior Physics & Engineering Competition (JPEC) is a yearly competition held at UBC for Grades 8-10. Prior to the competition, each team works on two pre-build events. This year, the students built a Money Cart and a Wind-Powered Crane. Our team spent several weeks on building our cart and crane, and they won the Silver medal for the Wind-Powered Crane event. JPEC is a good opportunity for students to learn through building, and to have a great time working as a team. Congratulations to Colin L, Spencer L (Gr. 8), Michael K (Gr. 9), Nam T, Michael C (Gr. 10), and our coaches Leon L (Gr. 10) and Joyce Z (Gr. 11). Edel Vo, Team Sponsor
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BAMFIELD 2013 The Biology 11 Bamfield trip in April was truly an experience never to be forgotten. Biology students applied their knowledge and skills on invertebrate diversity, while differentiating phyla’s through animal characteristics. The fieldwork out on the shores provided a clear sense to the students what real biological sciences were like.
Bamfield is located on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Showers came and went during the day and at times, the gray skies and cold weather slowly deprived us of our energy, but our spirit of learning was still over the top. We were full of energy as we walked down the long beautiful stretch of Pachena Bay Beach or pulled up the heavy ropes teeming with mussels, flatworms and arthropods. During our field trips near the shorelines of Pacific Rim National park, we were provided with a clear insight to invertebrate diversity, as well as seaweed distribution. The entire group had a chance to discuss abiotic factors that could possibly explain the different colours of seaweed, from green, red to brown. Also, we had the opportunity to deepen our understanding of the effects of human pollution on the digestive system of seabirds. Although many of the studies we performed were challenging, they were definitely very exciting, interesting and fun. For example, the Bamfield researchers began an experiment designed for the Collingwood students to see first-hand, sea urchin reproduction, which
was quite unique. Every day, we would have a peek to see the fertilized eggs and their development through a camera attached to the microscope. For future Grade 10 students who will be taking Biology 11 or 11 Enriched next year‌Bamfield is an ABSOLUTE MUST. Not only was the experience rewarding, but Bamfield will allow you to step into the shoes of a marine biologist, and will encourage you to rethink your scientific mind: RATHER OBSERVE FIRST, GUESS AND PREDICT, AND THEN PROVE.
Science is not about what is right or wrong. However, especially in an area like Biology, harnessing the concept of observing and guessing is important, which will help when finding cause. It is the fundamental concept to how future students will be able to research and answer questions like why animals and plants live, behave or defend in a certain matter or why does seaweed contain sulphuric acid. Is it an adaptation? I would like to express on behalf of all the Biology students, their full appreciation, gratitude and thanks to Mrs. Frykberg, Mr. Fox and Ms. Dow for making this possible, as well as the parents who fully supported the outcome of this trip. To find out more, please visit the link to the blog at http://www.collingwood.org/bamfield Erik Jung
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EARTH WEEK
The Senior Round Square students ran a series of fun and meaningful events to celebrate Earth Week this year! From Act of Green for a jelly bean to eco-trivia, students were encouraged to assess their impact on the environment and learn something new. A group of senior students volunteered with the Edible Garden Project (North Shore Community House) at Loutet Farm to prepare the farm for their summer crops. All produce and proceeds from the farm go back to the community and to funding
soup kitchens at NSCH. Anna Y. shared an engaging and powerful ‘Climate Reality’ presentation, aimed at motivating her peers to take action and responsibility on the topic of Climate Change. A big congratulations to the students who put these events together. We encourage you to think of something that you can do today to reduce your environmental impact and tread more lightly on our beautiful planet! Meg Chamberlain
GRADE 8 SALMON RELEASE
SCHOOL LIFE
GRANDPARENTS VISIT WENTWORTH Grandparents Day is a lovely tradition at Wentworth each Spring. This year, we hosted 450 grandparents, who came to visit their grandchildren in Junior Kindergarten to Grade 5. The visit began with a brief assembly where students entertained grandparents with singing and instrumental music, followed by classroom visits. Each class had arranged activities to do with their grandparents and included everything from reading a story together to arts and crafts and personal interviews. It was a terrific way to start off the long weekend!
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WALL ART AT WENTWORTH
The Mural Club at Wentworth started in April right after Spring Break. Students from Wentworth and Morven have been working hard every Wednesday after school to design and create a legacy mural for the long hallway in the new Grade 6/7 wing. Teachers Ms. Justine Cheung and Ms. Holly Fitch have been facilitating the students at Wentworth, and Ms. Angela Walsh has been arranging students from Morven to help. This is the beginning of an initiative to make the school brighter and more beautiful. Thanks for the support and comments so far and please continue to watch our progress.
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STUDENT LIFE
NORTH SHORE TRIATHLON On Monday May 21st, nine Collingwood students from Grades 8 – 10 competed in their second triathlon of the year. The students competed in two distances. The Grade 8/9 race consisted of a 225m swim, 10km bike and 3km run and the Grade 10 race consisted of a 740m swim, 17.6km bike and 4.9km run. In the Grade 8/9 race Brendan A. finished 2nd in his age group, Hailey S. finished 3rd in hers, Taylor Haas finished 4th in his and Charlotte C. also finished 4th in her age group. Amazing races were also had by Conor K. and Julia R.. Our Grade 10s competed in the Ages 16-19 category- Georgie P. finished 2nd, Emma M. finished 3rd and Natasha D. finished 5th! Congratulations to everyone for an outstanding second race of the season! The team is now looking forward to their final race in Victoria on June 9th.
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Grade 1 students, Rio Y. and James H. completed their first triathlon together at 6 years old on May 20th at the North Shore Kids of Steel triathlon.
MADISON MAILEY WINS SCHOLARSHIP Madison Mailey was recently awarded the Katie Drysdale Light Opera Scholarship at the 2013 Vancouver Kiwanis Music Festival. This was awarded for Madison’s talent and high achievement in performing Gilbert and Sullivan’s “Love is a Plaintive Song.” In addition to receiving this award, Madison was also invited by Adjudicator Barbara Dunn-Prosser, to participate in the Provincials for Intermediate Classical Voice after her “Honours” performances on April 22, 2013 of works by Vivaldi, Haydn, Shubert and Head. Congratulations Madison on your achievements!
ROTARY CLUB AWARDS YOUNG HUMANITARIAN
DANCE SHOW
For the past two years Tiana W. (Grade 8) has been attending The Rotary Club (Sunrise) meetings every Thursday morning before school. Although she is by far one of the youngest people at the meetings, she no doubt has one of the loudest voices and has been able to accomplish many service initiatives both at school and in her community. On May 23rd, 2013, in recognition of all her hard work, Tiana was awarded The Paul Harris Fellow Award. This prestigious award is given to those who “raise US$1,000 or more to the Annual Programs Fund, PolioPlus, or the Humanitarian Grants Program, or people who have that amount contributed in their name”. Due to all the hard work that Tiana has done through the Rotary Club and her work with Junior Round Square, she was able to raise over $1000 through the Pennies for Polio Campaign she organized this year and the fundraising for Shelter Box that she organized last year. Congratulations Tiana and keep up the great work!
RAY ZHANG & RYAN WANG LIVE AT THE KAY MEEK CENTRE JUNE 9TH 3:00PM
On Sunday, June 9th, 2013 at 3:00 PM Collingwood’s own Ryan Wang and Ray Zhang will be the key soloists in a special concert at West Vancouver’s Kay Meek Theatre. Ryan age 5, recently came in second place at the prestigious American Protégé Competition and as a result he performed at Carnegie Hall in New York in March, 2013. Ryan is teaming up with his partner Ray, age 6, and they have honed their performance skills impressing audiences all over the Lower Mainland. They have been invited to perform at Bell Performing Arts in Surrey, Fazioli Concert Hall in Italy and with Symphony Orchestra in Shanghai, China. There will also be special guest performances by 45 members of the Sarah McLachlan School of Music’s “Sing, Act, Move Children’s Choir”. All monies collected from the ticket sales will go directly to the Sarah McLachlan “School of Music”, demonstrating the importance of music in our culture for underserved and at-risk youth. Tickets are $15 for students, parents, relatives and friends. You may go online and purchase tickets through the Kay Meek box office here or call 604.981.6335 17
Lester L. giving his fellow cricket player a high five as they face off against St. Georges
UPCOMING EVENTS/CALENDAR • Gr. 6-9 End of Year Concert - 6/3 • Gr. 10-12 End of Year Concert - 6/4 • Gr. 6-7 Athletic Awards and BBQ- 6/5 • Senior Athletic Banquet Awards- 6/5 • Last Day of Classes for Gr. 8-12 • JK- Gr.5 Sports Day- 6/7
• Gr. 6/7 Exam Week- 6/10- 6/14 • Morven Exams - 6/10- 6/14 • Father’s Day - 6/16 • Gr. 8-12 Last Day of School -6/19 • Commencement- 6/25 • Grad Ball - 6/26
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