Nicole's Notes: Volume 18 (Jan. 20/14)

Al Stewart and Antonio Ballard with Mrs. Gillis' Class

Happy Monday TOSH Parents and Guardians!

WOW! This is the final instructional week of Semester 1! The school year is flying and final exams marks the "half way point" for our students and staff. Please note the Final Exam schedule below and it is important that all students arrive on time and ready to go by 8:55 a.m. each day for their final assessments. If your son/daughter is not present and alternate arrangements have not been made through the administration, we will be giving you a call to let you know!

Please make sure that your son/daughter has completed all assignments that will still be accepted by teachers by Friday and encourage him/her to start reviewing for exams sooner rather than later. If help is needed, just ASK!!!



THANK YOU to Island Storm players (formerly of the Summerside Storm) Al Stewart and Antonio Ballard who dropped into TOSH this week and spent some time on the court with Mrs. Gillis' class!

WELCOME BACK to Mrs. Amanda Arsenault who is returning from maternity leave this week!

ALL THE BEST to Ms. Cindy MacKendrick, M. Mario Fiset, and Ms. Amanda Allen who will be leaving us on their deferred leaves for Semester 2 on Jan. 31!

WELCOME to Mr. Brian Carruthers who is joining our staff to fill Mr. Faber MacDonald's position!

WELCOME to Ms. Emma Boswell who will be filling M. Fiset's position!

THANK YOU to Mr. Mark Gregory who did such a great job in Mrs. Arsenault's absence and who will be filling in for Ms. MacKendrick Semester 2!

UPCOMING DATES TO NOTE:

January:    
22-28  CSLA Winter Board Meeting-Nicole Out
27      FINAL EXAMS-BLOCK A (9 AM)      
28      FINAL EXAMS-BLOCK B (9 AM)
29      FINAL EXAMS-BLOCK C (9 AM)
30      FINAL EXAMS-BLOCK D (9 AM)
          Principals' Meeting-Nicole Out
31      Turn Around Day-No Classes

February:
5-6    Transition Planning Presentation to Grade 11 Students-Mr. Donovan
10      Semester 1 Report Cards sent home to parents (via students!!)
17      Islander Day- No Classes
18-21 Winter Carnival Week
25      2014-2015 Course Description Handbooks out to students
26-27 Transition Planning Presentation to Grade 10 Students-Mr. Donovan
28       Collaborative Planning Day- No Classes

March:
4        Band Days
7        School Effectiveness Day-No Classes
10      MADD Assembly
17-21 March Break-No Classes


PBL CELEBRATION NIGHT JAN. 16
The end of the semester is always a time of celebration and this past week was no exception. Students in Mrs. Milton's WRT 421, Mr. Ramsay's PHY 521/621 and SCI 421, Ms. Evans' ART 621, and Mrs. Halupa's SCI 421 classes hosted a Project Based Learning celebration evening on Thursday, Jan. 16 that was well attended by parents and community members. The research team from UPEI who were involved with Mrs. Milton's class projects were in attendance, as well. We thank them for their collaboration with our school and look forward to hearing their research results. I was truly impressed by the quality of our students' work and took some pictures to share with you here:

PHYSICS 521/621

Mr. Ramsay Measuring Success!

ART 621

WRT 421

Mrs. Milton Addresses the Audience

Mrs. Halupa Oversees the World Builders

PHYSICS 521/621

ART 621

Mrs. Evans Poses with Maria

POST-SECONDARY VISIT SCHEDULE:
Portfolio Days (Holland College)- Jan.31/14
UPEI Info Session (Pre-register in Student Services)- Feb. 13/14 @ 1 PM
St. Thomas On Site Waved Admission Fee (Student Services)- Feb.19/14
UNB On Site Waved Admission Fee (Student Services-15 min interviews)- Feb. 26/14
UNB Evening Info Session (Loyalist Inn)- Feb. 26/14 @ 7 PM

FUNDRAISER FOR TOSH BREAKFAST AND LUNCH PROGRAM!

One of our TOSH families has generously decided to share their creative talents with us and donate the beautiful plaques (pictured below) for a draw fundraiser. Tickets will be available in the Main Office here by mid-week and are selling for $2 each or 3 for $5. There are THREE prizes to be won and the draw will take place on Feb. 14/14. All proceeds from ticket sales will go directly to our TOSH Breakfast and Lunch programs. THANK YOU to the MacDonald's for helping in this way and I would encourage you to get in on this draw! Check out what you could win!!!

First Prize- $75 value

Second Prize (Family Name plus 3 first names)- $25 value

Third Prize (Family name and 2 first names)- $20 Value

SEMESTER 2 COURSE CHANGES

The final date for Semester 2 course changes is Friday, February 7/14 but we are encouraging students who know they wish to make changes to get on that sooner rather than later. Some courses are already full but we will do our best to accommodate students who have specific changes they wish to make. They should see Mr. Jason Gallant (Main Office) or Mr. Jim Donovan (Student Services) ASAP!


ANCIENT HISTORY MEDIEVAL PROJECTS-JAN. 17
Ms. Allen's HIS 421 students presented their projects in the hallway by the bus doors on Friday. These grade 10 history students researched people who lived in Medieval times and then "represented" their findings by dressing in period clothing and displaying "artifacts" from that period in history. Check them out!!

Ms. Allen Assessing Through Questioning

MS. HAIRE'S HAPPY WANDERING!
It has been a privilege to get into classrooms more regularly lately and witness the AWESOME work that our students and staff are doing! A picture says a thousand words, so here you go!

Planes!!

Dr. Pringle's creative "test writing in a lab" technique!

Chemistry solutions available to Mrs. Keough's students!

Mr. Beaulieu and our future welders finishing up projects!

Mr. MacKinnon explains a task to Scott!

An Automotive "Light Bulb Moment"!

On the job!

Buildings going up in Carpentry class!

Saw horses galore!

End of class treat in Aviation: Flight Simulator

Clear for landing!

KUDOS TO OUR KIDS!

To the students who participated in the PBL Night on Jan. 16!

To Ms. Allen's HIS 421 students for an awesome Medieval Fair!

To our TOSH men's and ladies' dodgeball teams for representing us so well at the provincial dodgeball tournament!

To all the students who participated as mentors in the Lunch Buddies Program this semester!

To Taylor Sonier for kindness shown towards a fellow student!

To Bruce Ramsay and Kaitlin Taylor for their dedication to the Breakfast Program!

Challenge:  Help your son/daughter come up with a study plan for final exam week. Also help make sure there is a quiet place for him/her to prepare for these important final assessments!

Quote of the Week:  "Worry is not preparation."~ Buddist proverb

I am off to my Canadian Student Leadership Association Winter Board Meeting on Wednesday this week and will be returning next Tuesday. I will be keeping in touch via e mail and text, but Gerald MacCormack will also be Acting Principal in my absence. Please contact him or Jason Gallant if you have any immediate questions or concerns while I am away. 

Have a wonderful week!

Nicole