POLONIUS: WHAT DO YOU READ, MY LORD?
HAMLET: WORDS, WORDS, WORDS.
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE. HAMLET, ACT II SCENE II
February 2016 Vol. 2 Iss. 6
Learn and Love
February has arrived, and with it, the season of love. While many of us focus on the
mid-month celebration of romantic love (Valentine’s Day), we encourage you to
celebrate the love of acceptance and inclusion during the entire month. February is
Black History month, and reminds us that love means more than flowers and
chocolates: it is one of the most powerful forms of human interaction we know. Take
some time and learn about people – of all races – who have stood up in the name of
love for everyone to make the world a more accepting and beautiful place.
LIBRARY NEWS
WELCOME TO THE LIBRARY GALLERY!
Our walls are alive with beauty! The art department has curated a wonderful
collection of student art work to hang on our walls and in select display areas. The
computer lab has been turned into a gallery of digital photography and surrealist
paintings and an alcove facing the hallway has been dedicated to some amazing
paintings on canvas. Ms. Corbett has also added many exciting and information-rich
posters around the library to help please your eyes and boost your knowledge. One
of our favourite spaces is the environment corner; located by the fish tank, it offers a
wonderful array of interesting posters students can read.
The library would like thank all the staff and students who have helped
make our space visually rich and exciting!
WHAT’S ON THIS MONTH
FEBRUARY 4
Semester 2 classes begin
FEBRUARY 9
Civvies Day
FEBRUARY 10
Ash Wednesday (Liturgies)
FEBRUARY 12
Report cards are distributed
FEBRUARY 15
Family Day – No school
AUTHORIZE IS BACK
Get your pens and books ready, ND; Authorize has returned. This club is for any of
you readers and writers out there who want to play word games, talk about books,
and put on a great show of original writing near the end of the semester. See Ms.
Mallen in the library for more information or to join!
COMMUNITY NEWS
ITALIAN CONTEST
This year’s Italian Language and Culture Contest will be held on May 2 nd, 2016, at the
University of Toronto St. George Campus. If you are creative and have a passion for
Italian culture, please see Mrs. Ferlisi in room 117 for details. You can also check out
http://tisso.apps01.yorku.ca for more information! Good luck, ND!
FEBRUARY 19
Lab Calendar released for teachers
FEBRUARY 19-20 (FRI, SAT)
ThinkFast
FEBRUARY 24
Pascal Math Contest
Library is closed period 1
Page 1 of 2
THE BACK PAGE
NOTES IN THE MARGIN
FEATURED REVIEW
The Book of Negroes, a novel written by local Canadian author
Lawrence Hill, has gained national acclaim and been adapted into
a CBC 6-episode miniseries. It follows the fictional, but also very
realistic, life of Aminata Diallo, an African-American women who
was abducted from Niger and brought as a slave to South Carolina
during the American Revolution. The story traces Aminata’s life,
from age 11 through adulthood, in a remarkable story of struggle
and love on the path to freedom.
ON DISPLAY THIS MONTH
Our upper level display this month was graciously and expertly put together by members
of the Black History Month Committee. Featuring a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction
titles, the display highlights remarkable achievements in the
history of African-American, African-Canadian and other black
communities around the world. The committee has also
provided select summaries and reviews of the more prominent
titles. We encourage you to come in to borrow any of the
amazing titles we have available.
Our lower level display asks
students to consider other forms of love, besides romantic,
including love of family, friends, and the world. Atop the
display case is a large poster where staff and students can
Tell Us What You Love. Feel free to come and add to our
poster and borrow any of the books in the case.
NEW BOOKS AND BEST BETS
REEL BOOKS
OMG Shakespeare Series:
Srsly Hamlet and YOLO Juliet
The Butler is a 2013 film and novel inspired
by a news article printed in the Washington
Post in 2008.
EXAMS AND SEMESTER END
January was a blur! After
arriving back from our two
week holiday, Notre Dame staff
and students got right down to
the business of preparing for
exams. Christmas can often be a
stressful or difficult time, but
many of our students have
shared their stories of hope and
joy from the holiday season.
Those stories remind us that
there is always light to be
found, even when we are
overwhelmed.
This message helped many of
our students and staff work
through the stressful transition
from first to second semester.
Everyone in our community
worked hard to make the exam
period and the following
semester switch a wonderful
success.
The library would like to thank
all the staff and students who
helped us recover our books,
which helps us prepare for
another amazing semester. We
hope everyone has a fun and
successful semester two!
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Mixing pop culture and classic literature, the
OMG Shakespeare series is fun, accessible,
and follows Shakespearean plot lines.
Written as text conversations full of emojis
and hashtags, these books are a great
introduction to some of Shakespeare’s most
famous plays. The books give a who’s who
(list of players) and follow the script of the
original texts. Come check them out today!
Loosely based on historical events, the film
follows the remarkable life of Eugene Allen,
a butler who served in the White House for
34 years. Although the film takes liberties
with historical accuracy (including changing
the main character’s name), the film, novel,
and article highlight an important AfricanAmerican man during turbulent times.
Help us make the Bookmark
amazing! If any staff or student
would like to contribute a Reel
Book or Featured Review
paragraph, let us know. You can
also promote any school-wide
events, special speakers, and
other community programs in
the calendar. Please let us know
in advance (preferably the
week leading up to the new
month) so that we can add your
contributions to our newsletter!
Page 2 of 2