CONNECTS NOVEMBER 2012
BRING YOUR OWN DEVICE CAPILANO WATERSHED PROJECT OUR STUDENTS TALK U.S. POLITICS
COLLINGWOOD SCHOOL
Cast of 12 Angry Men practicing before their opening night
IN THIS ISSUE NOVEMBER 2012
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PARENTING SUCCESSFUL CHILDRENDR.MADELINE SPEAKS GRADE 8 FALL EXPLORE
STUDENT TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM- BRING YOUR OWN DEVICE FAQ ROUND SQUARE CONFERENCE
CAPILANO WATERSHED PROJECT TALL SHIPS
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BACKPACK BUDDIES KIDS PRIVATE SCHOOL EXPO HOUSE STANDINGS RAY HAN’S YEAR OF PERFORMANCES WE DAY 2012 REMEMBRANCE DAY ASSEMBLY
HISTORY CLASS LEARNS U.S. ELECTORAL PROCESS PUBLIC SPEAKING FINALIST OFF TO SOUTH AFRICA MACMILLAN SPACE CENTRE TRIP UPCOMING EVENTS / CALENDAR KWANTLEN SCIENCE CHALLENGE OUR TEACHERS- Highlighting Melissa Seibel, Michal Hodal & Allison Bernat
PARENTING SUCCESSFUL CHILDREN DR. MADELINE LEVINE SPEAKS Every parent wants successful children; however, our narrow vision of success, focused on external rewards and over-praising, is creating a generation of children that are afraid to take risks, lack confidence and have low self-esteem. Our well intentioned protectionism often leads to depression, anxiety and poor coping skills. Madeline Levine, bestselling author, researcher and psychologist, spoke to the Collingwood faculty and parent community sharing the latest research and literature on how our over-parenting and interfering is hindering our children’s ability to develop the necessary coping skills and self-confidence needed to be successful healthy adults. Her research driven, engaging and humorous presentation struck a chord with all who attended. Lessons to take away: Avoid over programing and make time for Play, Family and Down time. Quality PFD time is the
increased likelihood of developing anxiety,
lifeline that fortifies strong relationships with
depression and other stress related disorders.
your children that will be needed when times are tough. Make time to eat together, play
Let children do what they “can do” and “can almost
together and talk together.
do” - Doing things for oneself is motivating and builds confidence and self esteem. “The happiest,
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Sleep - Kids are not getting enough sleep!
most successful children have parents who do not
Research shows that elementary aged children
do for them what they are capable of doing, or
need at least 10 hours of sleep each night. Lack of
almost capable of doing; and their parents do not
sleep causes inability to focus, learn, and
do things for them that satisfy their own needs
concentrate. Studies show that children who do
rather than the needs of the child.” Doing things
not get enough sleep have lower grades and an
for our child unnecessarily or prematurely can
reduce motivation and increase dependency.
Avoid setting your children up for failure and the
When we do too much for our children they
fear of disappointing their parents. Do not
develop an unhealthy ability to persevere and
over-stress the metrics - Grades, trophies and
work through issues. Learning is hard and requires
external rewards are important; however,
persistence and effort. There is a blessing in a
too much focus on the external takes away from
B- and making mistakes.
deep learning, critical thinking and collaboration. “Having tutors prep your anxious 3-year-old for a preschool interview because all your friends’ children are going to this particular school or pushing your exhausted child to take one more advanced-placement course because it will ensure her spot as class valedictorian is not involved parenting but toxic over-parenting aimed at meeting the parents’ need for status or affirmation and not the child’s needs.” Keep a wide view of success - very few of us take the straight line; we learn from trial, error, and struggle! This is how we develop resilience and self-esteem. Love your children for who they are. Nurture them, coach them, support them! Here is a Link to Madeline Levine’s New York Times article - “Raising Successful Children”
Be careful with the type of praise we give -
T aken from Collingwood’s Learning Mindset Blog.
Praise can have negative effects on motivation, risk-taking, creativity and learning. Studies find that students who are told they are the best or great often have nowhere to go but down. Praise effort, work habits, improvement, and perseverance.
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GRADE 8 FALL EXPLORE Grade 8 Fall Explore was a great success! Each of three weeks, two groups headed to the interior Stein Valley and the alpine of Manning Park. They enjoyed fabulous fall weather, which was a nice addition to the trips that the students were embarking on. As many past Explore students know, Stein Valley is one of our favorite locations due to dry weather, beautiful scenery and rich First Nations history as evidenced by the myriad of pictographs seen among the rocks on the canyon walls. It is a beautiful alpine hike with a near perfect camping spot for Grade 8 students. We don’t always get up there if the weather doesn’t cooperate, but as the students who were lucky enough will attest, the vistas up there on a clear day are breathtaking. The third group each week spent their days at beautiful and popular Cheakamus Lake near Whistler.
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A student highlight was the solo experience where students fell into bliss sitting beside the lake side listening to the tranquil sounds from the Singing Creek. Fall Explore is a time for students to apply new found cooking skills while on their wilderness adventures develop their skills in teamwork and leadership, and connect to our beautiful natural environment. Coming soon is Grade 8 Winter, which focuses on creating new skills in snowshoeing and cross-country skiing at Manning Park. This winter camping experience continues to expand student’s knowledge of camp craft and community living with an emphasis on self-care, reliance and teamwork. Our team is excited and looking forward to all our Explore Adventures this year. From Grade 7 to 9 we are sure to create many wonderful experiences for our students to remember always as highlights of their school life.
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STUDENT TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM BRING YOUR OWN DEVICE FAQ’s on Student Technology in The Classroom:
learning environment at school.
Collingwood`s Position on Bring Your Own Device Q – Does Collingwood require students to bring a Q – How does Collingwood integrate technology in
certain device to school?
the classroom? A - The ever changing nature of technology means A- Collingwood`s mission is to prepare its students
that young people must be comfortable using
to thrive in meaningful lives. With the pervasive role
a variety of devices and clearly one size does not
of technology in today`s society, the development
fit all. If it did, the plethora of devices available
of technology skills that will enable our student
today simply would not exist. This reality is the
to solve problems, complete projects, and enhance
foundation of Collingwood’s position on student
their creative abilities is critical to achieving that
electronic devices in the classroom. We aim to
mission.
expose students to all types of devices and technology. This is imperative, so when they are
Q – Does Collingwood supply laptops to each student?
faced with a new device, application or piece of software, they have the skills to decode it and
A - From grades 6-12, Collingwood supports a
make it work for them. When selecting technology
“bring your own device” (BYOD) program, where
at Collingwood, we choose a wide array of devices
students bring a device or devices of their
that teach students to think and enhance their
choosing to school to support their learning.
learning.
For those students who do not have or cannot afford to bring their own device, we offer a laptop
Q – What are the Pros & Cons of IPad’s?
sign out program from our library. We aim to graduate students who are comfortable working on
A - The iPad is a popular device that many schools
the device or devices of their choice and know what
have chosen as a required device for their
tools best support their learning. We believe that
students. At Collingwood, we feel that the iPad
the choice of device or devices should be personal
is an excellent device for students to use when
and not limited to learning while at school. Instead,
consuming digital media. In addition, iPad’s play
we feel this device should be one that the student
an important role in our Key Program. Within Key,
uses to learn and explore in all areas of interest
students and teachers use a variety of
whether it is for a Biology class, creating skateboard
applications to support specific learning
videos or exploring any interest outside their formal
differences.
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Application-based learning is also frequently used in our Elementary program, particularly to help students learn to read. iPads are also excellent as a secondary device for those students using electronic text books. Electronic textbooks are increasingly available for grade 12 and Advanced Placement courses. By the time they reach Grade 6, most students at Collingwood may begin to run into issues if their primary device is an iPad. There are a variety of reasons for this, most of which center around production of work from the current iPad platform. IPads have the ability to create content but for most students, this process can be more cumbersome than on other devices. By the time students reach middle school, students are becoming more critical consumers of web content, some of which requires “flash�, which iPads do not support. At this level, collaboration in the classroom increases and with an iPad, using programs like Google Documents is quite difficult. In addition, our student research platform, Noodle Tools and our online plagiarism program, TurnItIn do not currently work with the iPad. These are crucial tools for university preparation and we want our mainstream students to be comfortable using them. It is for these reasons that the majority of our students use a netbook or laptop computer as their primary device while at school.
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Q – What device does Collingwood want me to buy for my son or daughter? A - The findings from our research suggest, rather than a school supplied standard device for everyone, schools allow students to choose a device that best works for them. Technology has become highly personal and what works for one individual may not be the best for another. This is why we feel that the final decision on which device to choose should be left to individual students and their families. If you have questions, please contact either Paul Klintworth (Wentworth) or Jen Dousett (Morven). Q - I want to read more about BYOD, can you point me to some research? A - Collingwood’s BYOD program draws from a variety of current research (Bransford, 2000; Goodwin, 2011; Government of Alberta, 2012) into the best practices associated with choosing an individual technology device. Here are the specific references: Bransford, J. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience and school: National Academies
Press. Accessed 12/26/12 from http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309070368
Goodwin, B. (2011). Research says: One-to-one laptop programs are no silver bullet. Educational
Leadership, 68(5), 78-79. Accessed 12/26/12 from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/feb11/vol68/num05/One-to-
One_Laptop_Programs_Are_No_Silver_Bullet.aspx
Government of Alberta. (2012). Bring your own device: a guide for schools. Accessed 12/26/12 from http://education.alberta.ca/media/6749210/byod%20guide%20revised%202012-09-05.pdf
John Reid, Dean of Instructional Growth and Faculty
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ROUND SQUARE DENMARK CONFERENCE 2012
DEMOCRACY NOW Early in October Ms. Chamberlin, along with Jayme Jenkins-Boale, Dorothy Rhee, Lucy Liu, and Adam Wray, traveled to Denmark for the 2012 Senior Roundsquare Conference. The theme of the conference was democracy, and the purpose was to meet other student leaders from schools around the world to exchange ideas regarding leadership and service and learn about other cultures. The group stayed in Herlufsholm Boarding School, a 500-year-old campus located two hours outside Copenhagen. Schools from Germany, England, India, Armenia, Kenya, South Africa, Canada and Australia were represented. Over the week the students engaged in a variety of activities ranging from debating current issues in a student-led Model UN to visiting the Parliament buildings to exploring the ropes and ladders of Denmark’s high-ropes course, Kragerup Gods. “One of my highlights of the conference was the tour around Christiania, a self-governing neighborhood located on the outskirts of Copenhagen. Throughout the tour we were able to learn about the history behind the establishment of the area and see the lifestyles of its inhabitants,” said Dorothy Rhee of Grade 11. “At the conference, my highlight from the trip was boarding with 12 other boys, and meeting many people with lives and beliefs that were a lot different than mine. Overall, the conference was a very eye-opening experience,” exclaimed Jayme Jenkins-Boale of Grade 12.
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CAPILANO WATERSHED PROJECT WHAT WOULD THE SALMON SAY? If salmon could speak, what would they say? This was a question posed to the entire Grade 8 class this term as they embarked on the second annual Capilano Watershed Project: a project intended to expand student’s local and global awareness of water issues.
With the Capilano River and salmon hatchery-quite literally-- in our backyard, this is the best place for students to learn about water in Vancouver and connect to their community, while better understanding the global disparity in the availability of fresh water.
The Capilano Watershed project is an integrated, place-based education program, initiated by Jessica Richmond (Explore Department), that seeks to answer the following questions:
For our students, the goal is for them to continue to consider their impact (long after the conclusion of this project), and adjust their habits to better appreciate this limited resource. Some of the ways that you can make a difference is to install low-flow showerheads, turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, or limit how often you water your lawn. All of these measures will ensure that we have enough fresh water for generations to come.
1. 2. 3.
How much water do you use? How does it get to us? Where does our water come from?
Over the course of two weeks, each department taught a lesson about water: in Science; they learned about salmon hatcheries, in English; they researched the world water crisis, and in Math; they calculated their average water usage. The goal of this integrated project was to give students a better understanding of the issues facing the world, with regards to the availability of fresh water.
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Kudos goes out to Jessica Richmond and John Reid, who presented the Watershed Project at the American Middle Level Educator’s National Conference held earlier this month in Portland, Oregon. Sharifa Samuels, Communications and Marketing Assistant
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TALL SHIPS For five days and four nights, we sailed the Gulf Islands under a boundless sky with the ocean as our backdrop. The Tall Ships team of James Cai, Sara Choi, Michael De Lazzari, Alex Debelle, Samantha Huang, Tiffany Lion, Hannah McKinney, Madeleine Phillips, Jordan Sayer, Jack Shi, Jeff Sutcliffe, Ben Teo, Sabrina Wang, Chris Wotherspoon and two teachers, Ms. Morris and Mr. Field. The Tall Ships team departed the 16th of October aboard the Maple Leaf with sea legs eagerly prepared. Built in 1904, schooner the Maple Leaf was the perfect vessel: she radiated a well-loved brilliance, evident and imbedded in every line, every frame, every plank. The officers consisted of three men whose laughs rivaled the waves, and a chef, who we all affectionately called “Cookie”, whose cooking was a force to be reckoned with. The crew taught us invaluable lessons, from ecology to ship terminology to the importance of working together. By the final day, we could all name and operate the ship effortlessly from the jib to the mainsail and everything in between, and ultimately set sail in “three minutes and eighteen-seconds,” a memorable feat that none of us will forget. We formed close-knit friendships with each other, and at night the stars in the sky would echo with our laughter. Many moments such as the waves washing over our toes, and huddling with everyone to watch the sunrise will be ingrained in my mind.
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We had mostly crystalline days, and even then, the rainy days spent with chattering lips and numb fingers were instantly warmed with jokes, smiles, and cups of hot chocolate. We made stops in several bays and hiked through national parks and neared sea lions. We were in awe as we saw the wings of a bird as it took flight, the decadent curve of arbutus bark, the crunch of autumn leaves under our boots in the hiking trails, and the agility of the swift-footed mountain goat. We exultantly heard the wind as it brushed our faces. Through the Tall Ships experience, we realize the delicate balance of our ecosystems, the importance of having a sense of wonder and unity. It was truly was the trip of a lifetime. Written by Sabrina, Collingwood Grade 10 student photo credit: Kevin Smith--Maple Leaf Adventures
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SCHOOL LIFE
Morven teachers in costume. L:R Angela Stevens, Jake Francis, Catherine Underwood, Angela Walsh
BACKPACK BUDDIES ON CTV On Friday the 9th of November, Mme. Mofazali, Mme. Vieira and Ms. McCracken together with Amar Mainra, Lucy Guo, Chaeri Lee and Leili Ghaemi appeared on CTV Morning Live to raise awareness and to speak about Collingwood’s new initiative Backpack Buddies
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To see the full interview, check out the CTV website http://bc.ctvnews.ca/ctv-morning-live Search Kids helping other kids with Backpack Buddies
OUR STUDENTS IMPRESS AT OUR KIDS PRIVATE SCHOOL EXPO
Collingwood School was well represented at the Our Kids Private School Expo held on November 11th at the Westin Bayshore Hotel. Grade 12 students William Li and Tiffany Lion were joined by Grade 9 student Jordan Mauro to provide support services for this major event. Our cheerful students greeted more than 600 families and assisted them in navigating through the bustling exposition. William and Jordan were positioned on the frontline at the main registration desk while Tiffany welcomed families as they visited the Collingwood booth located inside the expo. Many of the guests remarked that they wanted to know more about Collingwood School simply because they were so impressed upon meeting our three student volunteers. High praise goes to our three Admissions Ambassadors for their indefatigable energy, their keen organizational skills, and their ability to speak knowledgeably and compellingly about their beloved school to the throngs of attendees. Congratulations on your outstanding efforts, Jordan, Tiffany and William!
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KINDIE BUDDIES PUMPKIN CARVING
SCHOOL LIFE HOUSE STANDINGS Here are the most recent stats for the European Handball Tournament; where does your house rank? Middle School Rankings
Points
Senior School Rankings
Mackenzie
5
Groos
5
Groos
4
Houssain
4
Geer
3
Senft
3
Houssain
1
Mackenzie
1
Byrd
0
Geer
0
RAY HAN’S STELLAR YEAR OF PERFORMANCES
Congratulations to Ray Han who was involved in a stellar performance this past weekend (Saturday, November 17th) at the Orpheum Theatre. Ray was part of the Vancouver Academy of Music, Beethoven extravaganza with almost 200 musicians and singers taking part. There are not many students who can say they performed at the Orpheum Theatre AND Carnegie Hall in the same year. Bravo Ray!
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Points
2011 CAIS LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE Spencer West, public speaker for Free the Children, climbed Mt. Kililmanjaro this year.
WE DAY 2012 - POSSIBLE REDEFINED Over seventy Collingwood students from grades 6-12 attended this year’s We Day celebration at Rogers Arena with 20,000 of their peers! The event is designed to inspire young people to take action in the humanitarian causes that they feel passionate about and to recognize the incredible power of change of our youth. Our students were inspired by the event’s guest speakers: Archbishop Desmund Tutu, Magic Johnson and the Kielburger brothers, along with performances by One Republic, Demi Lovato and Shaun Desman. Each year, our students organize and lead various service projects and awareness initiatives through our Round Square programme and their efforts were celebrated on this amazing day. If you are interested in getting involved in the Round Square committees, please see Ms. Chamberlin (Grades 10-12), Ms. Bernat (Grades 8-9) or Ms. Johnson (Wentworth).
WE WILL REMEMBER
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COLLINGWOOD STUDENTS LEARN THE US ELECTORAL PROCESS
Collingwood’s Social Studies Department and History 12 students welcomed Mr. Joe Salazar, Deputy Consul General of the United States in Vancouver, who spoke recently to our Senior students about the upcoming United States election. He began his presentation by outlining the various positions held by each political party regarding some of the major issues. Mr. Salazar read political statements and students had to determine to which of the two political parties the position applied. Mr. Salazar explained the nuances of the Electoral College, the institution that officially elects the President and Vice President of the United States. In his PowerPoint presentation, he showed the students various maps that illustrated the voting patterns from the last few elections. He then showed possible map projections for the election on November 6th. The presentation ended with Mr. Salazar fielding a number of questions from the students. Judging by the applause at the conclusion of his presentation, our Senior students are now Photo caption: Mr. Salazar with Grade 12 students Adam, Michael, and Mr. Jacoby, Ms. Evans, Mr. Sword
better informed about the U.S. electoral process.
PUBLIC SPEAKING FINALIST GOES TO SOUTH AFRICA Our School has a vibrant tradition of public speaking and we are extremely proud that our students have won the World Individual Speech and Debate Championships three times in 2004, 2206 and 2007. This year promises to have equal potential as Grade 10 student Safir Jazayeri, through his successful performance at the Internationals in October held at Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School in Calgary, won a place to compete in the Worlds. Often competing against older students, this talented 15 year old excelled in his three chosen events - impromptu speaking, persuasive speaking and interpretative reading – and garnered him the honour of flying the public speaking flag at the Worlds next Spring in Durban, South Africa. He is one of six students representing Canada. Safir and his proud coach, Julia Clarke, will attend the Worlds from
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March 29 – April 5, 2013.
GRADE 6 CLASS VISITS THE H.R. MACMILLAN SPACE CENTRE
This term the Grade 6s visited the H.R.
My favourite exercise was when we saw interactive
MacMillan Space Centre; two of the students
experiments on stage and got extra time to explore in the
wrote an account of their experience on this
Cosmic Courtyard.
trip. This was a thrilling and fun learning experience When I heard we were going back to the H.R
and I would love to go again.
Macmillan Space center, fond memories from my Grade 3 trip flooded back. While there,
Jaclyn Holtby 6C, and Muneet Gill 6C
we engaged in activities and fun learning experiences. Our building station was the Rockets, we each built a rocket, decorated, and launched it. Personally, my rocket only
UPCOMING EVENTS/CALENDAR
went 15m, but the highest was 82m! While at it, we learned about space travel and results to different fin designs, and styles. We were part of a game show in the planetarium about space travel, and the planets and moons, surface and atmosphere.
• Dance Show- 12/19 • Christmas Concerts-Wentworth - 12/ 4, 5, 12 • Festive Store- 12/10 • Scholastic Book Fair- 12/12-14 • Santa’s Breakfast- 12/14 • Carol Services- WW- 12/20, M- 12/21 • Last day of school before Winter Break • Wentworth- 12/20 • Morven- 12/21 21
KWANTLEN SCIENCE CHALLENGE
Collingwood students working on the Geology portion of the Challenge. On Saturday, November 24th Emily Bugeja, Michael Chen, David Oh, Casey Thomas-Burns and Leon Li competed at the Kwantlen Science Challenge at the Richmond campus. The five students represented Collingwood in the junior division against 26 other Lower Mainland schools. The day was comprised of five one-hour challenges in Math, Geology, Physics, design and “Science Jeopardy.” We placed first in the math challenge and created a functional steam-powered “putt-putt boat” for the design competition.
can be found at http://kwantlen.ca/sciencechallenge. html. Although our junior team did not place in the top 5 at the end of the day, our students worked very well as a team and were engaged with the challenge from beginning to end. We hope the Grade 8s will be part of next year’s junior team and that our Grade 10s will advance to the senior competition for 2013. Congratulations to our students for a solid effort and positive team spirit.
Photos of the day and details on the event Derek Wong, Associate Director of University Guidance
RECOGNIZING OUR GREAT TEACHERS On the evening of November 20th 2012, Melissa Seibel, our teaching intern in the English department, was awarded the prestigious Outstanding Practicum Award at UBC. To be eligible for this award a student teacher had to make a significant impact on the school and on the students. Congratulations Melissa on your
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award!
OUR TEACHERS
Michal Hodal, Physics Teacher
This summer I was one of 50 teachers who had the opportunity to attend the EinsteinPlus Teacher Workshop; a one week intensive workshop at the University of Waterloo Perimeter Institute for Theoretic Physics. Attending this workshop was an amazing experience. It gave me the opportunity to network with teachers from all around the world and to learn about new and exciting physics. Indeed, learning from the leading experts in the field of theoretical physics was a humbling experience that had me feeling like a student again; puzzled and not without a major headache. Finally, the greatest benefit of attending this workshop was that I learned new engaging teaching strategies that I could use with my students in the classroom. Using these activities and demos in my classroom is a constant reminder of the high value and impact that this conference had on me and my teaching practice
This past October I had a chance to race at the World Triathlon Championships in Auckland, where I represented Canada as a part of the Team Canada Age Group team. Although, I have raced internationally before, this was my first race this far from home, and it was an incredible experience! As usual, Triathlon Canada outfits us well, and we usually have the most sought after uniforms at the closing ceremonies where athletes have the opportunity to trade uniforms. The weather was quite windy and rainy which made for some very scary training sessions as we were blown sideways on our bikes from the big gusts of wind! Fortunately, the rain subsided for the opening day. We enjoyed the sunshine as we paraded into the opening ceremonies being led by a group of Maoris who greeted us with a variation of the Haka. As I lined up for the swim start I could see the water beyond the pier getting choppier but didn’t think much of it. It was by far the hardest swim I had ever done and was glad to get out onto the bike. The bike ride was on a beautiful hilly course through the suburbs of Auckland and from there, it was run time. I was lucky enough to run with one of my fellow club mates, pushing each other each step of the way until we crossed the finish line together! Overall, it was an amazing experience and I am so happy that I was able to participate in such a wonderful event. Thank you to everyone at Collingwood who has helped to support me along the way!
Allison Bernat, Languages Teacher
Thank you Collingwood and the Professional Growth Committee for this fantastic learning opportunity. Michal Hodal
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Stefan Kowalski enjoying the beach during the Grade 8 Explore trip.
HALLOWEEN AT COLLINGWOOD
Head librarian, Mary Elise Citton, embracing the Halloween spirit as Effie from the Hunger Games
collingwood theatre presents the riveting courtroom drama by reginald rose featuring dual casts
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A N G RY MEN
NOVEMBER 27th & 29th at 7:00pm
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A N G RY WOM E N
NOVEMBER 28th & 30th at 7:00pm $10 Adults / Collingwood faculty and students free with valid identification