The following is a list of Good News that has happened in our schools throughout the month of March, 2010. We also have an archive of good news stories from the previous school years. If an article has a photo, you can view a larger image simply by clicking on it. Some stories may have more information and/or files attached. Such stories will show a See Attachment link which will open the additional content in a new browser window.
 

This Month's Good News Stories

A Winning Design for Cupid's 400 Stamp March 19, 2010 Lake Academy student, Erika Billard, is the provincial junior winner of the Cupids 400 Stamp Design Contest. The grade 6 students in Miss Peach's art class took part in the Heritage Week "Design a Stamp" contest. The contest ran province-wide and required students to design a stamp for the theme of "Digging for our Stories". Students reflected on the history of their families located in the communities of Grand Bank and Fortune. Erika's artwork will be used for the provincial t-shirt design and will be on display at the Cupids Legacy Centre. She will also receive t-shirts for her family and a $100 from the Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Fairs.

Beaconsfield Students Stand Up to Bullying March 19, 2010 On February 26, Beaconsfield Junior High participated for the first time in International Stand Up to Bullying Day. All staff and students were asked to wear pink. Many went the extra step by wearing the official "Stood Up" shirt and signing the pledge on the back to help end bullying.

Rice Day for Timor Leste at Queen Elizabeth March 17, 2010 On Wednesday, January 13, Queen Elizabeth Regional High School participated in "Rice Day". The Queen Elizabeth Leadership Team, and two teacher sponsors, Ms. Tina Blackmore and Ms. Sophia Slaney, sold bowls of rice in the main lobby during the lunch hour at a cost of $2 each. Money raised was donated to Two Villages, an organization that will use the money to help the Young Farmer Scouts of Timor Leste, one of Asia's newest and poorest countries. Timor Leste became an independent country in 2003 after 20 years of violent struggle. Two Villages is raising money to help Timor Leste grow their agricultural and leadership skills while also helping their community.

Classroom Transformed into Journal Café March 17, 2010 Grade 6 students at Holy Name of Mary Academy found a unique way to share their journal writings. The classroom was transformed into a café setting. Students were served hot chocolate and desserts while each class member used a podium from which they read their journal writing. It was truly a success as students were engaged in all strands of the Language curriculum. Activities like these give students a worthwhile purpose for writing/representing, speaking, listening and reading.

Pearce Junior High Students Celebrate Newfoundland's Culture March 11, 2010 In January, the Grade 8 students at Pearce Junior High School created their own version of the traditional Newfoundland Kitchen Party in order to meet the Social Studies curriculum outcomes. To help contribute to our kitchen party, we, along with our classmates, did numerous things. We baked treats such as bread, pies, and toutons. For the entertainment, people sang, played instruments like the accordion and guitar and some people dressed as mummers. This very much resembled the traditional Newfoundland Kitchen Party. This assignment helped each class recreate a kitchen party from days before our own time. This was a great learning experience which taught us about our Newfoundland culture.

'I-Touch' Others With Kindness March 10, 2010 On Thursday, February 18, Mount Pearl Intermediate students recognized February as Violence Prevention Month by posting messages of kindness throughout the school. Elementary students were provided footprints which they completed to offer suggestions on how to 'Follow the Way to a Kinder School'. Junior High students used a template of an I-pod Touch and were encouraged to create an original message of kindness, a top ten list of songs which portray kindness, famous quotations which feature the topic of kindness, or kindness applications. Students were also encouraged to perform Random Acts of Kindness throughout February, as well as throughout the school year.

Students Visit District Office March 10, 2010 Five students from St. Mary's Elementary School who had the honour of being named "Principal for a Day" enjoyed a memorable experience on Friday, February 26, 2010. They, along with Mrs. Nancy Elkins - principal, and Mrs. J. Davis - school secretary were treated to a tour of District office and were fortunate that Mr. Ford Rice, CEO, Eastern School District, took time out of his busy day to spend some time with them.  As well as meeting with Mr. Rice, they also met quite a number of District Office personnel.

Crescent Students Go Hairless for Charity March 8, 2010 On Tuesday, February 9, 11 students and seven teachers at Crescent Collegiate in Blaketown went hairless for Haiti and for the Locks for Love charity. After a two-week fundraising blitz, a general assembly of students cheered as teachers and students alike took on a drastically different appearance. Even Crescent's principal, Ms. Chislet-Lahey, had her locks shaved with the assistance of Constable Hire of the Whitbourne detachment of the RCMP. Students smashed their original goal and presented $10,000 to the Canadian Red Cross. Student Erin Bonisteel generously donated her long locks to the Locks for Love charity, an organization that provides hair pieces to needy youth.

St. Matthew's Silly Squad Lends A Helping Hand March 8, 2010 Just over five years ago, St. Matthew's Elementary embarked on a new idea to get students more involved in understanding social justice and learning ways to show empathy for their peers worldwide. The program, known as The Silly Squad, is led by a team of teachers and a group of elementary students who show a willingness to lead. Each month the squad meets to look at fun ways for students to show spirit and to discuss worthwhile charities the school population could support. Students are asked to dress in themes such as Hawaiian, rock and roll, fancy dress, and PJs while bringing in spare change to support one of their causes. Students have supported the Children's Wish Foundation, Spread the Net, Janeway Day, various cancer projects and earth initiatives. To date, the Silly Squad has raised over $5000 for worthy causes.

Students Enjoy a Bowl of Rice and Support a Worthy Cause March 4, 2010 With the help of the students, staff, and community, Rice Day was met with great success at Holy Name of Mary Academy. Rice Day is a fundraising activity created by Two Villages, with the intent of engaging members of the school and the community in eating a simple bowl of rice for lunch. The activity helps raise awareness of some of the world's struggles with food supply issues. Many schools across Newfoundland participated in this event. Students stayed in school for their lunch and were fed a simple bowl of rice while donating money to this year's project- the "Young Farmer Scouts" of Timor Leste. For further information on Rice Day, and Two Villages, visit www.twovillages.org

Family Literacy and Healthy Living March 4, 2010 Tricon Elementary celebrated Family Literacy Day on January 27. Parents and students gathered in the gymnasium for a sing-a-long, class performances and Karoke. Even the pre-school children had a performance. Since Tricon Elementary is an Active School site, teachers and students combined the songs and movements to help celebrate Family Literacy Day while being active at the same time!

St. Peter's Students Get Active! March 2, 2010 On January 13 the Grade 4 students at St. Peter's Elementary in Mount Pearl enjoyed snowshoeing on the great trails in the area. Since it was the first time snowshoeing for many students, we had lots of tumbles but, more importantly, lots of laughs. With the sun shining it was a beautiful day to be active and to enjoy the outdoors. We are happy to report that since that time, with continued practice, our students are becoming more coordinated on the snowshoes. Promoting physical activity is always a great investment for schools and we anxiously await more snow to fall!