“Try living more in the moment, not the past or the future.”
Dear Families,
Welcome back Jax! We hope you had an amazing weekend with your family in Cuba! It’ll be great to hear some of your highlights; I bet the warm climate was one of them! I'm so envious :)
I hope the rest of you had a lovely weekend with your child. I went to Grafton with some dear friends to celebrate a birthday. We stayed in this charming farmhouse which was nestled in acres of land with horses, sheep and dogs. I was in awe of the setting and scenery, absolutely breath-taking! It was great to have a mini getaway and spend time in nature, for me, this always refreshes the mind, body, and spirit.
We are into our second week of February already, can you believe this?! Though time seems to be zipping by, we have had a delightful start to this month – lots of exciting events and achievements that I’m bursting to share with you all J This being said, let me get right to it …
Alexander & Sammi:
On Wednesday, our school held the Annual Speeches Competition in the gym. Students from Gr. 4-8 delivered their speeches to staff, students, parents, judges, and some Legion members. I am so proud of Alexander and Sammi for representing our class; they both did an outstanding job! You both should be so proud of your achievement as it takes a lot of courage and poise to stand up in front of a large group of people and share a speech. Despite my many opportunities, I know I still get the jitters and have to compose myself when I speak to large audiences. I was thinking of you both as you waited your turn to speak and was sending all my positive energy your way and you did it!!! I believe this will be a memorable experience for you both and help build upon your growing confidence in public speaking opportunities. Well done! Congratulations also go out to my two basketball players I coached this season - Zoe and Quinn both in Grade 8 who were selected to move forward and speak at the Legion!
Here are a few more pictures from the competition:
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| Alexander & Sammi listen attentively to a speech as they patiently await their turn |
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| Alexander delivers his speech on his idol Wayne Gretzky |
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| Sammi delivers her speech on "10 Ways to AnnoyYour Teacher" |
Nordic Highlands:
As part of our Physical Education (Active Living), Science (Habitats & Communities) and Health (Healthy Living) learning, our class is participating in various activities up in Duntroon at this amazing venue! I am so delighted we are having this experience as it is purposeful, meaningful, and FUN! Many students for the first time snow-shoed and cross-country skied , it was a highlight seeing some of my students stepping outside of their comfort zone and persevering with these challenging activities! I am an avid sportsperson, but I have to be honest, skiing and snow shoeing are not something that I have a lot of schema for, so I found myself having to step outside my comfort zone as well. I think this was a blessing in disguise as students connected with me, and we all persevered as a team J
Here are a few pictures of our Nordic FUN!
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| Snow Shoeing to the Sugar Bush! |
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| First attempt at cross-country skiing! |
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| Alex & Eryn - way to go you two! |
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| Wyatt - "Yeauhhh, Miss Gill! This Rocks!" |
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| Andre - guiding and mentoring us |
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| Going up and down the hill |
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| High fives for a terrific morning! |
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| Warming up with some yummy hot chocolate |
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| Daniel getting ready to re-energize for our afternoon of snow-shoeing |
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| Josie & Anjoli taking a break after their morning cross-country skiing adventure |
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| Mr. Nickel delivering a lesson on Winter Survival |
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| All smiles during our shoe |
Parent Volunteers:
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| Mrs. McGuire, Mrs. Peca & Mrs. Knowler - thank you so much!!! |
Thank you Mrs. Knowler, Mrs. Peca and Mrs. McGuire for volunteering your time, energy, and love on Friday! Your support meant the world to the students and me! You did a lot of tying of ski shoes, putting on snow shoes, re-adjusting snow shoes that fell off, encouraging and uplifting students who had fallen down and couldn’t get up (teacher included, ME, thank you Mrs. Peca for this), and supervising to ensure the safety of all. From our hearts to yours … THANK YOU! THANK YOU!! Without you, our day would not have gone as smoothly as it did, you made a significant difference! Our next trip is Feb. 19th and we can’t wait!!!
Website of the Week:
“Looking for engaging ways to introduce your child to reading or to encourage your child to write? Need some age-appropriate book suggestions or rainy day activities? The materials here are your answer—all of them created by experts to be fun, educational, and easy to use outside of school.”
“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.”
Thich Nhat Hanh
Namaste,
Miss Gill
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