School District No. 67 (Okanagan Skaha)
RECOGNITION OF STUDENT/SCHOOL SUCCESS
December 15, 2008
School District No. 67 (Okanagan Skaha) extends congratulations to the following students/groups for
these outstanding examples of success for November:
CARMI ELEMENTARY
The first term of school has gone by very quickly. Students are settled into their classrooms and have
participated in many school events/activities:
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Cross-country running practices and meets, soccer practices and games, intramural
volleyball/newcomb at noon, Action Schools morning exercises, Open House/Dinner/Family Dance,
Carmi’s grade 5 Leadership Conference, the Fire Prevention Performance, Unicef activities, the
Terry Fox Run/Assembly, Big Brother/Sister in-school mentorship, Extended Care visits, weekly
assemblies, Block X, Fun Lunches on Fridays and everyday learning all contribute to Carmi’s
positive school environment. We whole-heartedly thank student leaders from Princess
Margaret Secondary and Penticton Secondary for providing the grade 5 students (and
Parkway’s grade 5 students) with such meaningful sessions about leadership.
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The “Block X” Social Responsibility program on Fridays has been very successful. Students
worked together in family (cross-graded) groupings on various themes, such as respect and
honesty. The grade 1/2 class has been instrumental in the Unicef campaign promoting “Kids
Helping Kids” and grade 3 students continue to bring cheer to the Extended Care residents.
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Report cards went out on November 14th and parent teacher interviews were held the following
week. Many classes have students involved in the interview process, showing their parents what
they have learned, as well as explaining the new, cool way to do math. Many students strive to do
leadership activities and take responsibility for themselves and the school. It takes the hard work
of students, staff, parents/caregivers, the community and district working together, to provide
opportunities that enrich the education of the children.
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The school had a fun costume parade and Halloween assembly on Oct. 31st and a very
meaningful student led Remembrance Day Assembly was held on November 10th. The grade 5
student leaders did an amazing job leading the assembly and each class participated doing a song,
poem or speech. Each class also participated with a song or poem for the Halloween assembly.
Many parents attended and it was enjoyed by all.
Carmi Elementary
Grade 5 Leadership Conference
Carmi Elementary
Remembrance Day Service
Carmi Elementary
Halloween Assembly
COLUMBIA ELEMENTARY
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Columbia Elementary’s Remembrance Day
Assembly was entirely run by students. Grade
5 leaders were emcees, presenters, and
directors. The intermediate choir, under the
leadership of music teacher Joanne Forsyth,
sang of peace and freedom from war. Ron
Olsen, Columbia’s Vice-Principal, has
organized this ceremony for many years.
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There were many happy faces at Columbia
when the announcement was made that the
new adventure playground was ready and open
for play time! A special thanks to the PAC for
the monumental fundraising that was involved.
Students are now at work deciding what the
playground rules should be for the new
equipment, and older students are
designing a fitness circuit for all to participate
in for DPA (Daily Physical Activity).
GIANT’S HEAD ELEMENTARY
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The Special Events Ambassadors helped promote the UNICEF fund raising campaign with their
well prepared assembly and daily announcements of encouragement. Once again the generosity of
the community is evident when it comes to helping others in need. Last year the school raised
$2,838.32 and this year they raised close to $4000.00!
•
Thanks to the 15 volunteers Giant’s Head once again had an extremely successful book fair! The
profits from the book fair will be used to purchase close to $3,500 worth of books from Scholastic
for the library.
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Thank you to the Special Events Ambassadors: Evan Fisher, Autumn Cork Evans, Spencer
McIntosh, Tyata Mullis and Zack Chermsnok. These students worked hard volunteering and
preparing for various events and announcements throughout the school.
KALEDEN ELEMENTARY
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Some of Kaleden Elementary November’s Successes were:
Students who completed art work for the
Remembrance Day Poster Competition.
The Students worked on their own time,
did wonderful work and had thoughtful
discussions.
Captain Kaleden showed up at the school on October
31st. Students are still mystified by her super powers!
•
In November,
everyone focused
school-wide on
courage and what
courage meant.
One Kindergarten
student said “I can
be courageous by…
riding my two
wheeler. I fell and I
didn’t get hurt.” The
board below had all
students’ thoughtful
remarks. Wow - are
they smart!
KVR MIDDLE SCHOOL
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Library Circulation is at an all time high in the first term! Accelerated reader programs and reading
recognition as well as support in all classrooms pays dividends.
•
Grade 8 Leadership students raised awareness and funds for Operation Shoe Box, Families in the
Community, and Hoops for Heart.
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The grade 8 Girls’ Volleyball team won the South Okanagan Zone Championship which was held
at Summerland Middle!
McNICOLL PARK MIDDLE SCHOOL
November has proved to be successful due to:
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A pilot program called Fit4Defense was started and it is a great success! The instructor Michelle
Tremblay comes from Kelowna twice a week for a period of five weeks to work with three of the
classes. Director of Instruction, Brian Celli visited the school to watch and be apart of the program.
NARAMATA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
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In early November, Jenny Long (Artist in Residence) was at Naramata School working with
students to plan as well as design a school mural. Students brainstormed ideas about what makes
Naramata a special, unique place to live and learn. The students had lots of great ideas so the
challenge will be to create a concept to capture all these ideas in a mural.
•
Paul Mend and several former Naramata students visited the school to put on a volleyball clinic for
the grade 3, 4, & 5 students. The clinic was a huge success as the students have shown great
improvement in their skills over the course on the day. Currently, there are over 30 students
participating in intramural volleyball at lunch on Mondays and Thursdays.
PARKWAY ELEMENTARY
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Construction has started on the outside front entrance way of the school. Pouring cement for new
sidewalks and stairs will be happening soon (weather permitting) and plans are underway to place
some greenery where the trees used to be.
•
Parkway held their second ‘Movie Night’ of the year. Students brought their families to join in and
watch a movie. It was a great success with over 220 people in attendance!
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The grade 1 to 5 students all attended a Musical Performance at the Cleland Theatre. The students
really enjoyed the production. A big thank you goes out to Princess Margaret students for putting
the show on. It was just excellent!
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The ‘Pennies for Playground’ Fundraiser has brought in $922.00. Thank you so much to everyone
that has contributed!
PRINCESS MARGARET SECONDARY SCHOOL
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The Senior Boys’ Volleyball Team has qualified for the Provincial Tournament for the first time in
the history of Princess Margaret Secondary School! Quite outstanding!
PENTICTON SECONDARY SCHOOL
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Over 65% of the Penticton Secondary students are on the first term honour roll.
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The Junior Girls’ Volleyball team won the Okanagan Valley Championships and will be attending
the Provincial Championships in Surrey, BC.
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The Senior Girls’ Volleyball team also qualified for the Provincial Championships to be held in
Kelowna. Enormous thanks go to Andy Botero for a job well done!
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The Senior Boys’ Volleyball team qualified for the Provincial Championships to be held at UBC-O
later this month.
SKAHA LAKE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Skaha Lake Success Stories in November were:
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The Aboriginal Education program hosted two events in November. On November 4th, SLMS
hosted middle school students from the district in the ‘Four Foods Feast’ informational workshop.
Students learned about the traditions and stories and sampled traditional foods. The students will
attend the ‘Four Foods Feast’ at the En’owkin Centre on November 20th.
•
Another great event was the ‘Spaghetti Dinner’ that took place at Skaha Lake on November 13th.
Over 80 students and their families from the Penticton Indian Band attended with Skaha Lake staff.
PIB students from all middle and secondary schools were invited. Everyone took part in ‘getting to
know you’ activities as well as enjoying the many draw prizes that were available. Many thanks to
the Aboriginal Education program staff for putting on such a great dinner.
•
Skaha Lake staff was involved in 3 different in-service opportunities in November. On November
3rd, all teachers and some of the CEA’s attended a ‘Fostering Resiliency’ workshop. On November
5th, the grade 7 teachers plus the counselor at the school attended the ‘Friends’ training in Oliver.
On November 18th, three teachers and the Vice-Principal attended the ‘Leadership for Learning’ inservice with Faye Brownlie in Kelowna.
SUMMERLAND MIDDLE SCHOOL
Summerland Middle School staff and students were very busy in November – some highlights:
Drop Everything and Read Day
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Summerland Middle School held their first ‘Drop Everything and Read Day. Students and staff
carried their favorite fiction or non-fiction book. Three times during the day, soft music would come
over the announcements as a signal to drop and read. The day was very successful and provided
an opportunity for student and staff discussion regarding current reading and favorite reading!
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Remembrance Day at Summerland Middle – Reaching out to the Seniors:
For a number of years Summerland Middle School has had Senior Greeters. Many of the greeters
are now living in the Summerland Senior Complex. Division 7-1 with their teacher Mrs. Jessa
Arcuri is now reaching out to these seniors. The class spends part of a morning each week visiting
the residents at the Summerland Village Senior Centre. The seniors say their favorite activities
include having the students read to them or playing cards with their young visitors. The students
say they love listening to the stories their senior tells them. Many students say “It’s real live ancient
history!”
This year at the Remembrance Day Assembly the school honored two of their seniors, Mr. Jim
Brown and Mr. John Slack, both are veterans. Both veterans were accompanied by 15 senior
buddies who later joined their buddy class for a tour of the school as well as an opportunity to
partake in some light snacks. It was a very successful morning - Senior buddies stated that it was
the best Remembrance Day Assembly ever!
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Student Recognition Assembly:
Leadership grade 8 students recently planned a School Wide Assembly. At this assembly students
were recognized for various leadership achievements and initiatives around the school. The main
theme was the Tribes Appreciation Statements. Various students and staff were ‘appreciated’ for
involvement in school spirit and building an all inclusive environment. The assembly ended with
the students planning a teacher versus student ‘Egg Toss’. A great event and the Leadership
grade 8 students are to be commended for planning such a worthwhile assembly!
Building School Spirit
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DPA & Healthy Nutrition – Grade 6 Students Walk for Breakfast
All grade 6 students at Summerland Middle School, along with their teachers completed a ‘Walk for
Breakfast’. Students walked as a group for approximately 25 minutes and then met in the Multi
Purpose Area. All students received a healthy muffin, glass of milk and pear or apple (donated by
SADI). As students ate they learned about nutrition while various draws for motivational prizes
(socks, skipping ropes, soccer balls, etc) took place. The walk was featured at the Dash, Healthy
School Conference sponsored by Breakfast for Learning which was attended by SMS Home Ec
Teacher, Ms. Angela Martin. Ms. Martin is also the schools Action Schools BC and Healthy
Nutrition Trainer and Coordinator.
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Raise-A-Reader Day in Summerland:
Teacher Librarian Ms. Holly Colquhoun and students at Summerland Middle School collected
$110.00 in donations for Raise-A-Reader Day. Students bought coupons at scholastic and had
opportunity to have their names put in a draw for various prizes from the school Book Fair. The
event was organized and run by students and created a great deal of interest, not only in the Book
Fair, but the enjoyment of reading for pleasure.
Raise-A-Reader Day
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Grade 8 Exploratory Classes at Summerland - Home Economics
Grade 8 students Kayla and Hailey supervise Austin as he puts his ghost cookies into the oven.
Students in grade 8 recently completed the sewing portion of their Home Ec Exploratory Class and
are now working through various cooking units. The Term I exploratory classes are finished
December 1st.
SUMMERLAND SECONDARY SCHOOL
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The Senior Boys’ Soccer Team competed in the Provincial AA Soccer Tournament in Burnaby.
Provincial AA Soccer
Tournament in Burnaby
Provincial AA Soccer
Tournament in Burnaby
Provincial AA Soccer
Tournament in Burnaby
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Summerland Secondary School participated in two excellent Remembrance Day Ceremonies
organized by the student Leadership class. These ceremonies included individual tributes to those
from Summerland who gave their lives.
TROUT CREEK ELEMENTARY
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Trout Creek Elementary continues to build on their socially responsible learning community. This
year the grade 4 and 5 students read social messages over the PA to introduce and lead
discussions around each week’s theme. Classroom teachers conduct follow up activities to further
enhance students’ understanding of the importance of each value. Since the second week of
September, the school has been learning more about:
*friendship
*saying “no” to bullies
*thankfulness
*national wear pink day
*courtesy
*peacefulness
•
The Trout Creek Cross-Country Running Team wrapped up a very successful season. The team
consisted of 44 athletes (85 % of all TC grade 4 and 5 students) who averaged 8 km of running per
week.
This enthusiastic group of athletes set running goals and continually strived towards their personal
best. The focus for the Team was to increase fitness levels while acquiring proper running
techniques, encourage and appreciate the efforts of others and of course… to have fun.
This season the team participated in 2 Races – Naramata and at Trout Creek.
TEAM MEMBERS
Grade 4 Boys: Noah Vaisanen, Greg Mercer, Pavel Gill, Grayden Portman, Brandon Bartolomeoli,
Kody Lundell
Grade 4 Girls: Maria Raitt, Sydnee Chick, Cate Critchlow, Stella Siemens, Natasha Faye, Jensen
Kentel, Thea Lemare
Grade 5 Girls: Jessica Erhardt, Camisha Mortensen, Kira Hughes, Chantal Ashton, Kendra Reger,
Ella Weir, Katrina Kricke, Haley Laktin, Sylvia Mott, Hayley Anderson, Miranda Basso, Pascale
Cadieux-Johnson, Danielle Erdt, Kaitlin Goodman, Martha Headland, Arielle Jenkins, Emily Jerry,
Sarah Lundman, Tia Martin, Elia Rodriguez, Maya Venkataraman, Emma Cameron, Ali
Vandermey, Jessica Hobbs
Grade 5 Boys: David Zhang, Kyle Walker, Dan Nixon, Jacob Cerutti, Scott Anderson, Cam Varchol,
Geoffrey Stathers, Decio Pescado
Special Mention goes out to the following runners who placed in the top 10:
Grade 5 Boys - Scott Anderson 1st place at TC and 7th in Naramata, Cam Varchol 1st place
Naramata and 2nd place at TC, Geoffrey Stathers 2nd place Naramata.
Grade 5 Girls – Maya Venkataraman 1st place TC and Naramata (Record breaker), Ella Weir 2nd
place TC and Naramata, Danielle Erdt 10th place Naramata.
UPLANDS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Uplands Success Stories for November:
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November 4, 5 and 6 - Parent Teacher Student Conferences were held.
November 21 - 248 wonderful report cards went home for families to review and goals for
second term to be created.
November 10 - Students, parents, staff, a Trustee, two decorated veterans and several
community members took part in an OUTSTANDING Remembrance Day Assembly.
Penticton Pipe Band, a Pen High trumpeter, student choirs were among the many highlights.
Fall School-wide running has been completed and the students are now exercising in the
gym on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for part of the DPA requirement.
Several staff members attended the SMARTLearning Conference in Burnaby.
Grade 3, 4, and 5 students have started Accelerated Reading as part of a home reading
program.
Uplands community generously supported the Uplands Book Fair, Nov. 4-6.
Grade 3-5 students participated in the Volleyball BC Workshop on Nov.18.
All classes will see the Cultural Performance The Birth of British Columbia from the Canadiana
Theatre.
WEST BENCH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
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Teachers from West Bench Elementary went to Smart Learning Workshops in Vancouver.
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The Guitar Club as been meeting on Friday mornings. They have 22 new guitar players. The
students will be performing at the West Bench Christmas Concert at the Cleland.
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All classes participated in this year’s Remembrance Day ceremony. Classes presented beautiful
songs and poems. Corporal Bacon was the guest speaker. He has served in Afghanistan and in
Bosnia. He talked to everyone who attended about the importance of Remembrance Day.
Remembrance Day Ceremony
WILTSE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
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Wiltse Community Playground - The official grand opening of the playground was recently held at
Wiltse. The project was made possible through the efforts of their PAC and Playground Committee
Chairperson, Derek Hurst. The time and effort that Derek put into creating a truly remarkable play
structure was incredible. Financial support was provided by the Wiltse PAC, Penticton Auto
Dealers, Community Foundation of the South Okanagan, ActNow BC, Ronald McDonald House
Children’s Charities as well as School District No. 67 and the SD67 Maintenance Department. The
following comments made by students prove how great it really is!
“It is so colourful…you just want to play!”
grade 3
“It’s pretty cool…kids get to jump around a lot!”
grade 2
“We’ve used it for DPA and everyone gets to go their own circuit!”
grade 5
“The best part are the bucket swings…you get to kneel on them!”
grade 4