The St. Jude's Academy Difference Magazine - Nov/Dec 2022 Issue

HEAD OF SCHOOLS: Melissa Chin

FOUNDER: Aaron Sawatsky

EDITOR: Ann Harvey Send Your Comments, Questions & Address Updates to editor@stjudesacademy.com

EDITORIAL REVIEW COMMITTEE

A. Harvey, B Hughes, M. Filion, A. Sawatsky CONTRIBUTORS: S. Gandy, B. Hughes, B. Milburn, J. Halstead H. Vasir, K. Kaur, R. Zerafa, R. Hamieh, L. Russell, M. Haag, K. Padovan, M. Lopes, G. Iqbal, V. Chang, Abby Sawatsky, O. Manning

The St. Jude’s Academy Difference is a communication created and distributed electronically to members of the SJA Family of Schools Community during the academic year.

© St. Jude’s Academy 2022

What sets us apart from other schools is the rare sense of family within our community

Our St. Jude’s Academy community sets us apart from other schools. Our students, parents and staff contribute to its strength. Parents, students, and faculty continue to help each other to nurture the success we have today. Together, we have focused on the students and ensuring they find joy while learning. The past months have been filled with events to create new and lasting memories of their educational experience. Events have included the Annual Grade 4 Blazer Ceremony, spirit-filled House Games, Caribou Math Contest, Nea Archi, MYP and DP Parent Info Sessions, Thanksgiving and Halloween Spirit Days, Picture Days, Guy Fawkes Day, Parent/Teacher Interviews and Conferences, Remembrance Day Assembly, Kindness Day, Science Fair, Ambassadors’ Tea Party, Sports Tournaments, Cross-Country Races, Student Council events and many Lower and Upper School Clubs. In addition, Lower and Upper School students had enriching educational trips and University Trips! Our SK students also completed their academic summative -“Down on the Farm”! The SJA faculty and staff are bringing students and parents unique academic and extracurricular opportunities so that students attend school each day with a smile on their face, ready to learn and to connect with their peers and teachers. We also have welcomed many eager new families interested in joining the St. Jude’s Academy community next year! Our priority 2023-2024 Re-Enrolment for existing SJA students and their siblings has begun with a February 1, 2023 deadline. After this date, any openings will be offered to families on the waitlist. Finally, we congratulate the SJA leadership team, faculty and staff for their success in the IB accreditation process and our Head of School, Ms. Melissa Chin, who was named as the new Director of IB in Ontario.

ACADEMICS

Science Fair

In Grade 2, students had fun conducting a science fair experiment about air and hot air balloons! Students showed their interest in hot air balloons and how they fly when they were identifying the different parts of transportation in the Who We Are Unit. Students learned about how and why people migrate from one place to another and all about air! Students learned that clean air has no smell or colour, the properties of air and that air takes up space and has mass. During our Science Fair experiment, students learned that when air molecules get hotter, they move faster and spread apart. As the air molecules inside of the hot air balloon get very hot, they start to move really fast and spread out! Finally, students learned that as the air molecules spread out, they fill up the balloon causing the hot air balloon to float up!

November IB Knowledgeable Winners

We develop and use conceptual understanding, exploring knowledge across a range of disciplines. We engage with issues and ideas that have local and global significance.

JK Jasika D

JK Harliv D

SK Mason T SK Samar D

Grade 1 Ayaan D

Grade 1 Orion R

Grade 2 Aadya K

Grade 2 Krish A

Grade 3 Aaryan S

Grade 3 Olivia F

Grade 4 Aidan J

Grade 4 Alina C

Grade 4 Aviraj K

Grade 5 Aayan M

Grae 5 Rithika T Grade 6 Michael J Grade 6 Krish A

PYP French Rohan M

PYP French Daniel R

PYP Phys. Ed. Sami K

PYP Phys. Ed. Evan R

PYP Art Zenith T

PYP Music Samantha Z

Grade 7 Guransh S

Grade 8 Avantika S

Grade 9 Kanav B

Grade 10 Ella K Grade 11 Siya S Grade 12 Sarah S

MYP PE Grades 7/8 Maia C

MYP PE Grades 9/10 Hashim W

MYP Art & Design (Music) Grades 7/: Alex K

MYP Art & Design Grades 9/10 Armaan D

MYP French Grades 7/8 Fateh L

MYP French Grades 9/10 Eva K

French Grades 11/12 Evangeline S

ESL Yuhao (Andy) W

The IB learner profile represents 10 attributes valued by IB World Schools. We believe these attributes, and others like them, can help individuals and groups become responsible members of local, national and global communities.

Unit of Inquiry: Where we are in place and time

Students in Grade 3 have been learning about Where We Are In Place and Time. Students have read journal entries about personal histories, homes and journeys of the people who lived in the 1800s. They discovered that the relationships between the early settlers and the First Nations people were not always good but that some of them strived to make it work and wanted to find peace. Students created a boat craft as well as participated in a wagon activity that described the sights and sounds of what the early settlers and First Nations people experienced.

Grade 6 students had a guest speaker visit the school to talk to them about Nuclear Energy at power plants such as Ontario Power Generation and Bruce Power. This is in connection with their current theme of Sharing the Planet, focusing on energy and sharing resources. Our presenter was very impressed by our inquiring questions and in-depth knowledge of the characteristics, transformation and impact of energy.

Learning Healthy Habits

The Ambassadors’ Tea

A Visit to Andrew’s

Junior Kindergarten students have been busy learning about healthy habits as part of their Unit of Inquiry. They learned how to get rid of germs by washing their hands correctly and about oral hygiene. They enjoyed a visit from, Dr. Patel, a dentist who has visited the SJA Kindergarten classes since 2007. Junior Kindergarten students also learned about healthy eating habits by completing several activities where they sorted healthy and unhealthy foods.

Scenic Acres Inspires Students

to Learn about Pumpkins

During a trip to Andrew’s Scenic Acres, JK students learned about pumpkins. In class, they used this information to complete a ‘Pumpkin Investigation’, where they used their inquiry skills to estimate how many seeds were inside the pumpkin, and how many lines were outside. They were then able to incorporate science into the topic by guessing if the seeds would sink or float.

Grade 6 students were tasked with choosing a developing country they would like to learn more about. They were then asked to share the results of their country’s investigations by creating a brochure and then assuming the role of the country’s Ambassador at the Ambassadors’ Tea Party. The purpose of the tea party was to allow Ambassadors of developing countries to meet and exchange information about their country’s needs and resources with other Ambassadors. Issues of concern were discovered and discussed as it relates to themselves as global Ambassadors. Ambassadors expressed their needs as well as what they had to offer. Their goal was to make as many CONNECTIONS as they could. Their brochures helped to explain CAUSATION of how life expectancy, knowledge and quality of life contribute to Human Development Index of their developing country.

Remembrance Day Assemblies

This year at St. Jude’s, we took a different approach to Remembrance Day. Rather than focussing backwards, we looked at the present. In both Lower and Upper School assemblies, we brought in current (young!) members of the Canadian Armed Forces: Pvt. Alves (Toronto Scottish Regiment) and Pvt. Fernandez (32nd Regiment). They addressed the question of why the CAF exists and what its purpose in the world is. Upper School students learned of the CAF’s focus not on war, but on peace. They were reminded that while the CAF is a small military force in the world, it continues Canada’s proud tradition of being highly-skilled and highly-sought after. Most importantly, in true IB fashion, students asked questions – questions, questions, questions – and learned by engaging with real people serving this amazing country we call home: Canada.

SJA Remembers

International Day

In October, the Primary Years Programme students celebrated International Day. Students and parents were invited to visit different countries in our PYP classrooms and learn about the culture, customs and sample the food.

The Grade 5 students have been learning all about the Canadian Government in their How We Organize Ourselves unit. The students had the opportunity to visit the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to consolidate their understanding of the concepts they learned in class.

Guidance

Student Services

Queens University

McMaster University

University of Waterloo Grade 9

University of Ottawa visits SJA

University of Ontario Tech Visits SJA University of Waterloo Grade 10

University of Waterloo Grades 11 &12

Elements & Principles of Design

Art and Knowledge in Theory of Knowledge

(TOK) Grade 12 students discussed how much knowledge was needed to create art or is it all inspiration and innovation? They created their own art piece, including drawing, painting, sculpting, mime and music. They were then tasked with finding “an expert” in their field and discovering what knowledge the experts have and how they acquired it.

Aboriginal / Indigenous Art Unit

The Grade 9 students were asked to create a work of art that incorporated the elements and principles of art the way the masters do.

3 -D Circle Sculptures

Grade 4 students created three-dimensional circle sculptures and had fun while learning all about elements and principles of design.

St. Jude’s Academy Visits the AGO

As part of the unit on photography, our Grade 10 students went to the Art Gallery of Ontario (A GO). Students had a chance to experience some remarkable exhibitions and collections and wrote a reflection to talk about what they saw and learned.

Sculpture

The "Sculpture" unit was a busy time for our Grade 10 students! Students had the opportunity to visit the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO). In class, they worked on assemblage sculpture through their wire portraits, as well as African masks.

Students were assigned further study on these timeless creations and a summative on African masks and its contributions to artistic achievements.

SJA Students attend Regionals

DECA is an international business competition and, after several years of no competitions, are back at it! This year we had 19 students registered for Regionals, and nine of them qualified for Provincials in February. Congratulations to our hardworking students, who competed in Business Administration, Marketing, Entrepreneurship and Finance competitions. We are excited to see what will happen at Provincials in February, then on to Orlando in April!

Students who qualified to go on to Provincials: Isabel B, Eashan D, Caitlyn N, Edward G, Kismet S, Sania S, Melia R, Leah D, Arhan R

U20 Boys Volleyball Team

St. Jude’s Academy had an outstanding return to the SSAF Senior Boys Volleyball League , finishing the regular season undefeated.

On November 23, the team travelled to the Waldorf School in Toronto to compete in the playoff tournament. After defeating the well -supported home team in the first set, they dropped the second, leading to a nail-biter of a third and deciding set. Going point for point until the very end, SJA lost by just 2 points. Congratulations to all players on a very successful season!

Inaugural St. Jude’s Academy Flag Football

The U12 Flag Football team took on all challengers in their first-ever Flag Football tournament. The team showed grit, resilience and heart as they fought their way to the Quarter Finals before losing 20-8. SJA was organized, disciplined, played for their teammates and never gave up.

SOCCER

SJA Elementary boys went to their first soccer tournament and were runnersup. We qualified second in our group, scoring more than 20 goals in our three games after only two training sessions. We won 5-3 in the Quarter Finals and 4-1 in the Semi Finals. We lost the Final match to finish runners-up out of 16 teams!

U12 Soccer Tournament Champions!

The U12 Soccer team hit the ground running in their tournament on November 4, 2022 and never looked back! With a goal differential of 39 goals for and zero against, SJA had the perfect tournament, going 6-0 and winning the championship!

Basketball St. Jude’s Academy

Jr. Boys Basketball Games

November Results:

SJA

SJA

Jr.

Sr. Boys Games Results

SJA

Sr.

SJA IN THE COMMUNITY

SJA Performance at Tree-Lighting Ceremony

SJA students helped kick-off the holidays by performing at Sherway Gardens for the annual tree- lighting ceremony. The students sang holiday songs and all was capture on Global TV!

The SJA MEDLIFE CLUB

What is MEDLIFE?

MEDLIFE Ontario is the network of MEDLIFE high school chapters across Ontario. There are over 23 developed chapters and 30 developing chapters. We represent and share the MEDLIFE Movement with students across schools and communities in Ontario with the goal of empowering young minds. To accomplish our goal, we host an annual Service Learning Trip to Lima, Peru, raise awareness about global health inequality, host fundraisers, and other province-wide initiatives.

We run a MEDLIFE CLUB at SJA and in November, nine students from SJA went to the Mississauga Food Bank and helped to arrange 5,121 pounds of food that catered 5,500 meals. Our student members/volunteers were: Sania, Alina, Evie, Faisal, Kaaya, Leah, Sarah and Neu-Anne.

As part of the MEDLIFE CLUB, our volunteer students are raising awareness about GLOBAL HEALTH ISSUES. In addition to volunteering at the food bank, our students have volunteered to raise funds for GLOBAL WOMEN's HEALTH. The funds are used to help women who are in need of basic health requirements.

If you feel passionately about GLOBAL WOMEN'S HEALTH ISSUES please donate generously via the following link created specifically for SJA: https://secure.givelively.org/teams/medlife/movingmountains-health-4-her/st-judes-academy

MEDLIFE CLUB Initiative

Grade 3 to 6 Christmas Concert