We are very fortunate at "The Ridge" to come together at this time of year to celebrate 2013 while also looking forward to 2014. Today at lunch our Parent Engagement Team and Social committee honoured our staff with a Holiday Luncheon. We are so privileged and thankful to be learning, working and playing together at IRHS, as we truly do believe we could not be in a better place! This is my fourth year at our school and each and every day I am very proud of how hard our staff work on behalf of our students, families and extended community. We couldn't have a more supportive group of parents & caregivers and our relationships with our community are very strong and supportive. This past week we had 30 members of our staff and community partners meet together for our Community Net working Meeting. This is a forum where we share current trends and issues representative of students, staff, our Safe School Action Team, our service side (Administration,Personal Career Counselling, Student Success, Social Worker & Public Health Nurse) as well as vested members of our community. Tom Adams attended representing the Town of Oakville, our local community library was represented as well as other members of the Oakville and Halton Region of Health and Recreation Services. Our parents were also represented during this morning of information sharing, networking and relationship building. It is particularly gratifying to have so many folks engaged, all with the hopes of assisting and providing positive opportunities for our youth. We are very lucky that this group of individuals really believes in the importance of continuing to build and provide for the building of the 40 Developmental Assets which contributes to our young people's positive health, success and achievement.This partnership is extremely important for Iroquois Ridge High School and continues to be a very, strong union as we move forward. Our hope is to include our Feeder Schools next year to increase our membership and hear from very important voices that have not been heard as of yet. This Town Hall format really can make a difference in the actions, plans and next steps that all of us can immerse ourselves in, as a follow-up from important information shared. Next steps can and will make a difference for our students. So....soon it will be holiday time for all members of our "Ridge Family"...we all take this time of year to be thankful and reflect on all that we have, all we have done and all we have given.
On behalf of our admin team (Andrew Bigham, Jim Noble and myself), we wish all of you a safe and happy holiday with those you love and care for. We also wish you a very happy and prosperous 2014!!
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Thursday, December 5, 2013
December Thoughts!
We are in the home stretch before the holiday! Life continues to be very busy at "The Ridge." Winter sports are up and running,; clubs and organizations are planning for many special activities and events in the next few weeks ensuring that all members of our school community will be fully engaged until 1:15 pm on December 19th! Of course, that is the official dismissal time for our launch into the holiday break.
Today we hosted our Semester 1 - Luncheon of Champions where we celebrated 24 of our "Ridge Champions. It is always a pleasure to host such an event like this where we open our doors to our Ridge Family Members while also being inspired by the student stories that our "nominating" staff share.
This is an event sponsored by our Personal Career Counselling Team (Nancy Anstett, Melanie Spelman, Rachel Stecca, Kris Reeve, Elaine Fung and Georgina Cook) which promotes and celebrates students who have made contributions inside and/or outside of their classrooms in a very unique and sigificant way. Many of the Champions have demonstrated personal growth, perseverance or have overcome challenges to succeed...which makes this event very, very important and special. Some times it takes only one acknowledgement like this from ourselves...."significant adults" in our student's lives that can bolster a sense of confidence in our students and I am always inspired and touched by what our staff say on behalf of our kids. With family and other supporters attending this luncheon...the words spoken are genuine and heartfelt with the attendees clearly impacted by the accolades...sometimes the tears follow on hearing so many positive comments and reflections about our resilient teens! A wonderful event that continues to promote and sustain relationships with all members of our Ridge Family! Thanks to Nancy and her PCC Team for continuing to plan, organize and host this tribute to our "Ridge Champions!"
In the spirit of our holiday season, we are hoping to see many of you out this evening for our Winter Holiday
Concert to be held in our "Street." We are looking forward to listening to our musicians and choir under Kevin MCConvey and Caitlin Belanger's leadership. The concert begins at 7 pm...hope to see you there!
In addition, our One Act Plays are happening on Wednesday December 11th at 7pm in our theatre. The plays are directed by our students and they are looking forward to an evening of very interesting and entertaining performances. Please come out and support our kids...they will appreciate that greatly!
Just a reminder that there will be an early dismissal for our students on Thursday December 19th as noted above in my opening remarks.
On behalf of all of us here at "The Ridge" we hope that you will join us prior to the holiday break in celebrating the holiday season. We wish everyone a safe, relaxing and rejuvenating break as we ready ourselves for 2014!
Happy Holiday Season everyone!
Today we hosted our Semester 1 - Luncheon of Champions where we celebrated 24 of our "Ridge Champions. It is always a pleasure to host such an event like this where we open our doors to our Ridge Family Members while also being inspired by the student stories that our "nominating" staff share.
This is an event sponsored by our Personal Career Counselling Team (Nancy Anstett, Melanie Spelman, Rachel Stecca, Kris Reeve, Elaine Fung and Georgina Cook) which promotes and celebrates students who have made contributions inside and/or outside of their classrooms in a very unique and sigificant way. Many of the Champions have demonstrated personal growth, perseverance or have overcome challenges to succeed...which makes this event very, very important and special. Some times it takes only one acknowledgement like this from ourselves...."significant adults" in our student's lives that can bolster a sense of confidence in our students and I am always inspired and touched by what our staff say on behalf of our kids. With family and other supporters attending this luncheon...the words spoken are genuine and heartfelt with the attendees clearly impacted by the accolades...sometimes the tears follow on hearing so many positive comments and reflections about our resilient teens! A wonderful event that continues to promote and sustain relationships with all members of our Ridge Family! Thanks to Nancy and her PCC Team for continuing to plan, organize and host this tribute to our "Ridge Champions!"
In the spirit of our holiday season, we are hoping to see many of you out this evening for our Winter Holiday
Concert to be held in our "Street." We are looking forward to listening to our musicians and choir under Kevin MCConvey and Caitlin Belanger's leadership. The concert begins at 7 pm...hope to see you there!
In addition, our One Act Plays are happening on Wednesday December 11th at 7pm in our theatre. The plays are directed by our students and they are looking forward to an evening of very interesting and entertaining performances. Please come out and support our kids...they will appreciate that greatly!
Just a reminder that there will be an early dismissal for our students on Thursday December 19th as noted above in my opening remarks.
On behalf of all of us here at "The Ridge" we hope that you will join us prior to the holiday break in celebrating the holiday season. We wish everyone a safe, relaxing and rejuvenating break as we ready ourselves for 2014!
Happy Holiday Season everyone!
Monday, October 21, 2013
October Thoughts!
Our second month of the school year finds our students, staff and parent/caregiver community highly engaged and immersed in all aspects of school life. Students are settled into their academic classes and participating in co-curriculars, representing our school with pride and passion! We recently hosted an Honour Society Reception recognizing over 700 of our students who achieved 80% in their classes in 2012/13. Students spoke at the event representing our present Grade 10, 11, and 12's, each making remarks about what "Excellence" means to them and sharing the rich opportunities that they have available to them to learn, grow and achieve success at our school. Our adult audience was duly impressed by the wisdom shared by these young students who also congratulated their peers on the fine achievement of making it to our Honour Roll. Our speakers included: Sean Condon (as Master of Ceremonies), Kevin Zhou, Alana Losier, Erika Bollinger, Connor MacLean, Harriet Yan and Gaelan Kirby. Great job, folks! Special thanks to members of our Parent Engagement Team for assisting with the presentation of certificates in "The Street" and to Tani and Dawn from Aramark for providing the refreshments and treats enjoyed by all! Of course our office team, led by Mrs. Susan Cutler also contributed to the success of this event ensuring that all went without a hitch! Thanks Susan, Suzanne, Krista, Diane, Georgina, Allison, Andrew and Jim for your hard work behind the scenes. It is greatly appreciated!
As many of you know, October 's focus is on "PINK" Month with a variety of events dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness and fundraising for Breast Cancer Research. Both our STUDCO Fallfest and our PINK Day were highly successful as hundreds of our students and community members attended to support this cause. On the PINK Day alone, well over $5,200.00 had been generated in support of Breast Cancer Awareness and Research. Students, staff and school community members collaborated together to ensure the success of these events which marked the 9th year in which IRHS has participated for "The PINK", something we are extremely proud of.
Our Collaborative Mornings are off to a great start as we focus on the building of relationships with all of our Grade 9 students via staff and student led "Link Crew" activities. Special thanks to our staff leaders: Nancy Zigrovic, Paul Beck, Karl Dahlinger, Nicole Klokoff, Michelle McCutcheon, Karen Normet, Alexiis Stephen and Allison Tenn-Yuk for your excellent work on behalf of our kids. You are truly making a difference in easing the transition for our freshman as they begin their high school careers! Kudos to you all!
While our Collaborative Mornings are happening, our staff are working on their own professional learning in support of our students and their success. Each of our Program Leaders has devised a plan for Semester 1 dedicated to our students' most urgent learning needs and are following through during these mornings as collaborative teams. We are very fortunate to have this time to dedicate to student learning and know it will have an influence in shaping our students' success, both inside and outside of the classroom.
In the very near future (Thursday October 24th), we will be hosting our Interview Night. This evening is a great opportunity to connect with our teaching staff, support staff and administration and we look forward to welcoming you in support of our students! Please remember that we offer many supports for students who may be struggling in a particular area and are here to help in any way that we can. Whether it be the classroom teacher, Special Education, Student Success, Personal Career Counselling or our admin team, please seek us out for any assistance that is required to ensure student success. As a team we are committed to all of our students at "The Ridge!"
Very soon, the Mid-Term Report will be distributed. Please look for reports to come home on Friday November 8th. This will be an opportunity to receive an evaluation as to student learning skills and achievement to date while also paying attention to teacher comments in regard to student strengths and needs
at the mid-point of our semester. Again, should you need any additional feedback or support about the results achieved, don't hesitate to contact us. We are happy to assist!
So... as October is soon to fall into November...we continue to see great things happening at our school. It is a very busy place to learn and play. Our co-curriculars are in full swing and we invite you to continue to come out and support our students in their endeavours. Our staff leaders and mentors are extremely dedicated to these "out-of-classroom" activities which enrich the lives of our students and further engage them in the life at our school. We are very fortunate to have such a committed staff who serve as wonderful role models that our young people can aspire to!
In signing off...I wish everyone the very best for your continued success at and partnership with Iroquois Ridge. It is a pleasure and honour to serve you and I cherish each day that I am a part of this great, Ridge Family. It truly is a school like no other and I am very fortunate to be a part of such a great, learning organization!
As many of you know, October 's focus is on "PINK" Month with a variety of events dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness and fundraising for Breast Cancer Research. Both our STUDCO Fallfest and our PINK Day were highly successful as hundreds of our students and community members attended to support this cause. On the PINK Day alone, well over $5,200.00 had been generated in support of Breast Cancer Awareness and Research. Students, staff and school community members collaborated together to ensure the success of these events which marked the 9th year in which IRHS has participated for "The PINK", something we are extremely proud of.
Our Collaborative Mornings are off to a great start as we focus on the building of relationships with all of our Grade 9 students via staff and student led "Link Crew" activities. Special thanks to our staff leaders: Nancy Zigrovic, Paul Beck, Karl Dahlinger, Nicole Klokoff, Michelle McCutcheon, Karen Normet, Alexiis Stephen and Allison Tenn-Yuk for your excellent work on behalf of our kids. You are truly making a difference in easing the transition for our freshman as they begin their high school careers! Kudos to you all!
While our Collaborative Mornings are happening, our staff are working on their own professional learning in support of our students and their success. Each of our Program Leaders has devised a plan for Semester 1 dedicated to our students' most urgent learning needs and are following through during these mornings as collaborative teams. We are very fortunate to have this time to dedicate to student learning and know it will have an influence in shaping our students' success, both inside and outside of the classroom.
In the very near future (Thursday October 24th), we will be hosting our Interview Night. This evening is a great opportunity to connect with our teaching staff, support staff and administration and we look forward to welcoming you in support of our students! Please remember that we offer many supports for students who may be struggling in a particular area and are here to help in any way that we can. Whether it be the classroom teacher, Special Education, Student Success, Personal Career Counselling or our admin team, please seek us out for any assistance that is required to ensure student success. As a team we are committed to all of our students at "The Ridge!"
Very soon, the Mid-Term Report will be distributed. Please look for reports to come home on Friday November 8th. This will be an opportunity to receive an evaluation as to student learning skills and achievement to date while also paying attention to teacher comments in regard to student strengths and needs
at the mid-point of our semester. Again, should you need any additional feedback or support about the results achieved, don't hesitate to contact us. We are happy to assist!
So... as October is soon to fall into November...we continue to see great things happening at our school. It is a very busy place to learn and play. Our co-curriculars are in full swing and we invite you to continue to come out and support our students in their endeavours. Our staff leaders and mentors are extremely dedicated to these "out-of-classroom" activities which enrich the lives of our students and further engage them in the life at our school. We are very fortunate to have such a committed staff who serve as wonderful role models that our young people can aspire to!
In signing off...I wish everyone the very best for your continued success at and partnership with Iroquois Ridge. It is a pleasure and honour to serve you and I cherish each day that I am a part of this great, Ridge Family. It truly is a school like no other and I am very fortunate to be a part of such a great, learning organization!
Monday, September 23, 2013
September Reflection
We are off to a great start at "The Ridge!" Students are settled nicely into classes, our co-curriculars are in full swing and our staff are continuing to work hard to ensure that all of our students have a successful year. Our Grade 9 students have had opportunities to experience the benefits of working with their LINK Crew leaders and participated in a "tree planting", which further developed a sense of "team", while also enhancing the environment at Winston Woods. During our first Collaborative Morning on the 19th, our Grade 12's took part in a Post-Secondary Destinations Assembly organized by our Personal Career Counselling Team. This past Thursday we held our Program Night which was well attended by our parent/caregiver community.In the past two weeks student leaders and staff are collaborating together to plan our PINK Day to be held on Wednesday October 9th. We are also meeting with student leaders to re-vitalize our Ridge Council. Student reps of our clubs, organizations and teams are firming up their purpose and goals for the year while also looking to put together the year's calendar of events. One of our goals is to update our list of offerings on our Ridge Clubs website, so that all of us know what student clubs are running, while also highlighting where and when they will be meeting. The activities and focus of each club, group and/organization will be communicated so that all members of the Ridge Community will be aware of what is offered to enhance student engagement and a sense of belonging. We have also welcomed new staff to our school and are delighted to have them aboard: Debbie Baillie (Art), Joy Baxter (Law), Caitlin Belanger (Music), Vanessa Blouin (Design Tech), Matt Braun (Science), Chris Brooks-Prenger (Computers/Math), David Brown (Moderns/French), Kate O'Connor (Canada & The World/Moderns/French), Adam Roach (English), Jonathan Selluski (Law/Civics/Careers), Sabrina Sibio (English), and Tammy Vrees (Science).
As September winds down we will look forward to an eventful, October! We invite our parent/caregivers to our first "Tuesday At The Ridge", to be held on Tuesday October 1st at 10 am/7 pm. We invite our community to join us on Thursday October 3rd for our third annual Fallfest, with a 6pm start time.We hope to have a great day on Wednesday October 9th as we celebrate PINK Day and raise awareness and funds for Breast Cancer Research. A double header football game against St. Thomas Aquinas followed by a double header girls' basketball game versus Craig Kielburger will be highlights for this day. Please come out to support a good cause and cheer on our student athletes. We will look forward to seeing you! So...as you can see we are gearing up once again at IRHS, for what promises to be another outstanding year. We wish everyone the very best of success in 2013/14 and remind you all that whatever we can do to make this one of the best year's ever..we are here to serve you...our students, parent and caregiver community as always, 100%!!
As September winds down we will look forward to an eventful, October! We invite our parent/caregivers to our first "Tuesday At The Ridge", to be held on Tuesday October 1st at 10 am/7 pm. We invite our community to join us on Thursday October 3rd for our third annual Fallfest, with a 6pm start time.We hope to have a great day on Wednesday October 9th as we celebrate PINK Day and raise awareness and funds for Breast Cancer Research. A double header football game against St. Thomas Aquinas followed by a double header girls' basketball game versus Craig Kielburger will be highlights for this day. Please come out to support a good cause and cheer on our student athletes. We will look forward to seeing you! So...as you can see we are gearing up once again at IRHS, for what promises to be another outstanding year. We wish everyone the very best of success in 2013/14 and remind you all that whatever we can do to make this one of the best year's ever..we are here to serve you...our students, parent and caregiver community as always, 100%!!
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
"Homestretch!"
Hello everyone! We are on the "homestretch" for our 2012/13 school year. Students are immersed in their Performance Tasks and soon will be reviewing for their Final Exams. Our school year end celebrations have begun and will continue until the very, last day of school for our staff - Friday June 28th!
Our athletic program is winding down with a very successful year end string of accomplishments, by our Boys and Girls Soccer Teams( who made Halton play-off competition); Junior and Senior Badminton Teams; Junior and Senior Tennis Teams; Track & Field Team and our Boys and Girls' Baseball Teams. Congratulations to our recent Halton Champions in: Junior Badminton, Girls Baseball and to our OFSAA participants in tennis and Track & Field. Today our Boys Baseball Team plays White Oaks Secondary School for the Halton Championship. We wish them good luck at such an accomplished level of HSSAA Competition. "Go Trailblazers!"
We celebrated our athletic successes with our student/athletes and teacher/coaches at the Annual Athletic Banquet last Thursday. Thanks to all of our students and coaches for representing our school in such a fine fashion this year. Congratulations to our Healthy Active Living Team for putting this special evening together - Marie Guest, Mike Luyks, Christy Busby, Tim Coe and Scott Phillips...you are the very, very best!
This Thursday evening I will have the pleasure and honour to accompany Mrs. Jennifer Flynn (Senior Administrative Assistant) and Mrs. Ellen Irving (Math & Healthy Active Living Teacher) to the Halton Retirement Celebration at the Burlington Convention Centre. This is a wonderful evening that pays tribute to our long serving employees who have contributed so much on behalf of our students, staff and school communities. We look forward to this evening and congratulate Jennifer and Ellen on their contributions to IRHS. We will miss you greatly! Special congratulations also go out to Mr. David Willis (Custodian)on his retirement. Although David will not be joining us at the Retirement Celebration, we pass on our best wishes and best of luck as he begins his retirement in mid-July.
Celebrations will continue with our Grad Prom on June 26th, followed by our Graduation on June 27th at 7pm. We look forward to sharing these two special events with our Grads of 2013 and their families.It is a significant milestone for our students who have worked so hard to earn their diplomas while also contributing greatly to the life of our school! Thanks to all of our staff and our Ridge Families for all of your support of our Grads. We will look forward to seeing you all on the 27th, when we can share in this wonderful, special event together!
Our athletic program is winding down with a very successful year end string of accomplishments, by our Boys and Girls Soccer Teams( who made Halton play-off competition); Junior and Senior Badminton Teams; Junior and Senior Tennis Teams; Track & Field Team and our Boys and Girls' Baseball Teams. Congratulations to our recent Halton Champions in: Junior Badminton, Girls Baseball and to our OFSAA participants in tennis and Track & Field. Today our Boys Baseball Team plays White Oaks Secondary School for the Halton Championship. We wish them good luck at such an accomplished level of HSSAA Competition. "Go Trailblazers!"
We celebrated our athletic successes with our student/athletes and teacher/coaches at the Annual Athletic Banquet last Thursday. Thanks to all of our students and coaches for representing our school in such a fine fashion this year. Congratulations to our Healthy Active Living Team for putting this special evening together - Marie Guest, Mike Luyks, Christy Busby, Tim Coe and Scott Phillips...you are the very, very best!
This Thursday evening I will have the pleasure and honour to accompany Mrs. Jennifer Flynn (Senior Administrative Assistant) and Mrs. Ellen Irving (Math & Healthy Active Living Teacher) to the Halton Retirement Celebration at the Burlington Convention Centre. This is a wonderful evening that pays tribute to our long serving employees who have contributed so much on behalf of our students, staff and school communities. We look forward to this evening and congratulate Jennifer and Ellen on their contributions to IRHS. We will miss you greatly! Special congratulations also go out to Mr. David Willis (Custodian)on his retirement. Although David will not be joining us at the Retirement Celebration, we pass on our best wishes and best of luck as he begins his retirement in mid-July.
Celebrations will continue with our Grad Prom on June 26th, followed by our Graduation on June 27th at 7pm. We look forward to sharing these two special events with our Grads of 2013 and their families.It is a significant milestone for our students who have worked so hard to earn their diplomas while also contributing greatly to the life of our school! Thanks to all of our staff and our Ridge Families for all of your support of our Grads. We will look forward to seeing you all on the 27th, when we can share in this wonderful, special event together!
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon
Today we had the pleasure of hosting an appreciation luncheon for more than 30 of our adult volunteers and members of our parent/caregiver community at IRHS. Without this strong group of supporters, our excellent staff, wonderful students and school we would not be the outstanding school that we truly are! Indeed, our volunteers make a huge difference in the way that they, lead, participate, support and mentor and we are very proud and humbled by their many contributions over the past many years. Our parent/caregiver community is recognized worldwide by the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development and we have been asked to lead and present at many venues and via Virtual Conferences as a school who is exemplary in this regard. We know without the building and sustaining of relationships that we would not continue to have the success and acknowledgement as a top school in Ontario and Canada. It is a privilege to learn and work together on behalf of all of our students. Every contribution made enhances student growth and achievment and ultimately our own personal growth as caring adults. I am extremely proud of the leadership of Nancy Anstett and our Parent Engagment Group and School Council members...which includes all of our volunteers! We have grown in strength and numbers and will continue to do so as we reach out to our future parents and caregivers in the years to come. Special thanks to Uzma Kazi and Gordana Panoska for reaching out to our Newcomer Parents and Caregivers this year. We have been delighted to welcome you aboard as part of the "Ridge Family" and "Ridge Team," now and in future years to come! As we enjoyed our luncheon and the recognition provided today I am most appreciative that we are able to host such an event as a way to thank-you for your continued support of our school. We are very fortunate to be members of this fine school community which is "second-to-none", in all of my travels, as a professional educator. Thanks everyone for an amazing afternoon. We look forward to continued celebrations together as we move towards the end of our semester in tribute to the achievements and accomplishments of all of our vested stakeholders...our students, staff, parent/caregiver and extended Ridge community!
Monday, April 22, 2013
The Latest Spring Report!
Hello everyone! We are into full swing with our spring sports. Recently, our Junior Badminton Team won the Halton Team Championship in spectacular fashion! Our Girls' Soccer team finished 2nd in the McMaster Tournament and our Boys' Soccer Team finished in the "Top 4" at the McMaster Tournament. Our Junior Boys' Hockey Team made it to the finals, at The "Wave" Tournament, with excellent team play and great sportsmanship! We are very proud of our student/athetes and teacher coaches for such great results. Well done!
Our Boy's Baseball, Girls' Softball and Track & Field Teams are in pre-season training with their HSSAA competition about to begin. We look forward to some excitement and great outcomes as these teams seek out top results in Halton Secondary Schools' Athletic Association competition.
On the academic front...IRHS participated in the recent Brain Bee at McMaster University where June Lee finished 2nd and Raphael Koh finished 4th. Congratulations June and Raphael for such an excellent result!
Last Friday, we held our first ever "IF Day" at IRHS. This student led afternoon provided a focus on Personal Safety and included: video testimonials via our Live Broadcast System, guest speaker Anthony McLean, followed by a plethora of student/staff workshops on a variety of topics related to the promotion of student health and wellness. There were 17 different offerings of which students could choose 2 and all workshops were led and facilitated by guest speakers both in- house and from our extended community. Our students and staff have given us really positive feedback about the afternoon as we spent time learning together much meaningful and relevant information... and better yet....advice as to where to seek support should access to resources both in- school and outside of our school be required. Special thanks to Kathryn Patterson, Cheryl Joseph and the Personal Safety Team for all of your hard work in making this day a highlight in Semester 2!
We look forward to our Student Council Elections this week as speeches begin at 9:40 am in our gym this upcoming Wednesday April 24th. Good luck to all of our candidates!
We also look forward to a team of 14 staff getting together to "go deeper" in E/Blended Learning Training, as we spend a 1/2 day together this upcoming Thursday April 25th. An additional full day will follow as we start to focus on subject specific/curriculum that will be offered to our students in the very, near future. Really exciting...as we continue to promote 21st Century Skills for our staff and students.
Lastly, we look forward to our Professional Learning Day this upcoming Friday April 26th. Our staff will learn at various sites in Halton with the learning focus primarily on technology in subject specific/curriculum areas. We will look forward to this day as we get to network with other schools and share the great things we are doing to enhance student success and achievement for all of our students.
There will be more to come this spring on a variety of fronts and we will continue to keep you informed and apprised as we immerse ourselves in the busiest time of our year!
Enjoy your spring everyone...it is almost...really here!
Our Boy's Baseball, Girls' Softball and Track & Field Teams are in pre-season training with their HSSAA competition about to begin. We look forward to some excitement and great outcomes as these teams seek out top results in Halton Secondary Schools' Athletic Association competition.
On the academic front...IRHS participated in the recent Brain Bee at McMaster University where June Lee finished 2nd and Raphael Koh finished 4th. Congratulations June and Raphael for such an excellent result!
Last Friday, we held our first ever "IF Day" at IRHS. This student led afternoon provided a focus on Personal Safety and included: video testimonials via our Live Broadcast System, guest speaker Anthony McLean, followed by a plethora of student/staff workshops on a variety of topics related to the promotion of student health and wellness. There were 17 different offerings of which students could choose 2 and all workshops were led and facilitated by guest speakers both in- house and from our extended community. Our students and staff have given us really positive feedback about the afternoon as we spent time learning together much meaningful and relevant information... and better yet....advice as to where to seek support should access to resources both in- school and outside of our school be required. Special thanks to Kathryn Patterson, Cheryl Joseph and the Personal Safety Team for all of your hard work in making this day a highlight in Semester 2!
We look forward to our Student Council Elections this week as speeches begin at 9:40 am in our gym this upcoming Wednesday April 24th. Good luck to all of our candidates!
We also look forward to a team of 14 staff getting together to "go deeper" in E/Blended Learning Training, as we spend a 1/2 day together this upcoming Thursday April 25th. An additional full day will follow as we start to focus on subject specific/curriculum that will be offered to our students in the very, near future. Really exciting...as we continue to promote 21st Century Skills for our staff and students.
Lastly, we look forward to our Professional Learning Day this upcoming Friday April 26th. Our staff will learn at various sites in Halton with the learning focus primarily on technology in subject specific/curriculum areas. We will look forward to this day as we get to network with other schools and share the great things we are doing to enhance student success and achievement for all of our students.
There will be more to come this spring on a variety of fronts and we will continue to keep you informed and apprised as we immerse ourselves in the busiest time of our year!
Enjoy your spring everyone...it is almost...really here!
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Spring Thoughts!
Hello everyone! Despite our infamous "groundhogs" prediction about winter's end, we all know that Spring and better weather are imminent. We are happy to go into the spring with a return to "co-curriculars" at our school and know that our teacher coaches and student athletes are anticipating great results as they battle in Halton Secondary Schools Athletic Association competition. We are behind you "all the way" and know that you will have eager followers and supporters as you strive for personal bests and best-ever team achievements! We encourage our parent/caregiver and extended community to come out and support our coaches and athletes as they continue to represent Iroquois Ridge with pride and exemplary sportsmanship. The spring also brings with it the challenge of continued academic challenges and achievement. On Thursday April 11th, our students will be writing the OSSLT (Grade 10 Literacy Test). We wish our students the very best of luck as they prepare to take this high stakes test, which is a diploma requirement. On another note, our Interview Evening will be held this upcoming Thursday April 4th from 6:30 - 9:00 pm. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to attend to receive information and feedback related to student learning and achievement to date! We look forward to seeing you and look forward to continuing to support the success of all of our students over the next several months!
Monday, January 28, 2013
Semester Update!
Hello everyone. We are in the process of wrapping up our examination period and are engaged in our turn-around activities, in preparation for Semester 2. Just a short time ago, we welcomed parents and students of our Class of 2016 to an assembly in our theatre, which was extremely well attended. This was an opportunity to showcase our students, student leadership groups, school and programs as we look forward to the Fall of 2013 and our incoming group of freshmen.
This upcoming Friday February 1st, our staff will be engaged in Professional Learning. We will all be introduced to "My Blueprint", which will assist us with our Course Selection Process, and in addition, we will begin learning more about Mental Health, which is a key aspect of our School Improvement work for 2013.We are looking forward to Melissa Matton (Public Health Nurse) and guest presenters, spending time with us in the morning of February 1st, so that we can take this learning and be more aware of the many facets and faces of mental health. The goal of our session is to ensure a better appreciation about how mental health affects our students, how to identify important "look-for's", in regard to our our students, and most importantly, have some strategies as to how to intervene, respond and support our students should they be struggling.
We hope to provide additional opportunities to dig deeper into the topic of mental health during our Friday February 15th, Professional Learning Day and hope to host a speaking event for our parent/caregiver community later this spring. Students of our Safe School Action Team, winners of the Loiuse Russo Award, also have some plans in the works, again with an emphasis on Mental Health Awareness as we continue to educate all members of our Ridge Community about the importance of wellness for all of our youth.
As we look forward to the new semester we are appreciative of our relationship with all members of our school community and look forward to our continued partnership as we ensure student success for all of our students.
Best of luck to everyone for an amazing, Semester 2 - 2013!
This upcoming Friday February 1st, our staff will be engaged in Professional Learning. We will all be introduced to "My Blueprint", which will assist us with our Course Selection Process, and in addition, we will begin learning more about Mental Health, which is a key aspect of our School Improvement work for 2013.We are looking forward to Melissa Matton (Public Health Nurse) and guest presenters, spending time with us in the morning of February 1st, so that we can take this learning and be more aware of the many facets and faces of mental health. The goal of our session is to ensure a better appreciation about how mental health affects our students, how to identify important "look-for's", in regard to our our students, and most importantly, have some strategies as to how to intervene, respond and support our students should they be struggling.
We hope to provide additional opportunities to dig deeper into the topic of mental health during our Friday February 15th, Professional Learning Day and hope to host a speaking event for our parent/caregiver community later this spring. Students of our Safe School Action Team, winners of the Loiuse Russo Award, also have some plans in the works, again with an emphasis on Mental Health Awareness as we continue to educate all members of our Ridge Community about the importance of wellness for all of our youth.
As we look forward to the new semester we are appreciative of our relationship with all members of our school community and look forward to our continued partnership as we ensure student success for all of our students.
Best of luck to everyone for an amazing, Semester 2 - 2013!
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