Student Exchange: Riding the Waves in the Sunshine State

Posted on April 15, 2016 by admin

Gigi_Gelgor3 I have been living Boca Raton, Florida, for over a week. During my stay, I have experienced many new things. In some ways, it is similar to Montreal and in other ways it is quite different.

When I landed at the Florida airport, I was kind of nervous but once I saw my host family, I wasn’t as scared. I had already been communicating with them for at least a month and that certainly helped. One of the first things that struck me was the heat. I was way too hot in sweatpants, long sleeves and furry boots!

The first week at a new school can be nerve-racking for anyone. My exchange helped me feel at home and comfortable. I noticed a number of ways that Saint Andrew’s is different from LCC. Practically everywhere you go, you’re outside. All the classes are indoors but when you leave each classroom, you’re outside in the beautiful hot Florida weather.

Saint Andrew’s also has 6 periods, not including lunch, and each class is 55 minutes. The girls wear short-sleeve polo shirts (like the ones worn in kindergarten at LCC) and skorts. The boys wear similar shirts and shorts. No ties! They are allowed to wear any kind of shoes they want. I must confess, after the second day I did the same and wore my running shoes.

On the weekend, I went to Delray Beach and it was incredible! The waves and water were beautiful! The only downside was that I forgot to wear sunscreen and got sunburned! There was also a fair on the main street right next to the beach. We shopped and wandered around looking at all the artists and their artworks and crafts. There is so much more colour here compared to Montreal.

I’ve made lots of new friends and I hope to be in contact with them for a long time. I’m having a great time in Florida!

– Gigi Gelgor ’19, Exchange Student at Saint Andrew’s School

“You are Enough”

Posted on March 24, 2016 by admin

cmu15 0129 A51R9087 Last week, we all heard the terrible news about the tragic death of a grade 9 student at one of Montreal’s independent schools. On behalf of our entire LCC school community, I immediately sent condolences to the head of school and expressed our collective sadness and sense of solidarity.

When such a tragedy occurs, it reminds us all of the fragility of life and it reinforces the terrible sense of isolation and desperation that mental health problems can inflict upon people of any age. As a head of school, I am particularly sensitive to and respectful of the daily challenges faced by teenagers and pre-teens. I openly reinforced that to high school students in assembly yesterday. They are all growing, adjusting, adapting, and exploring and testing many boundaries. At different rates, students are learning and developing personal skills and attributes, while experiencing shifting relationships with friends, teachers and parents. Indeed, they live lives on shifting sands – and one of our key roles at school is to provide stability, grounding, and a genuine sense of connectedness.

By its very nature, adolescence is challenging, and feelings can range from strong – a sense of achievement and happiness on one day – to persistent frustration on another. For some young people, they can sometimes even suffer from quiet moments of despair or desperation. That’s why we have a lot of built-in supports here. I reminded students that if and when they are persistently upset or struggling, they should never do so alone. I urged them to reach out – to speak to a friend, their advisor, a counsellor, a teacher, or coach. That is why those people are there – never to judge, but to support, guide and help, genuinely help.

Rest assured, experiencing a wide range emotions is very typical for adolescents. So, I reminded them at our Tuesday assembly of the words of Scott Fried, a former guest speaker at LCC, that I have often repeated: “You are enough – yes, you are enough.” As educators, our teachers feel privileged to work with such a motivated group of young people – just as they are right now; that’s enough. Sometimes, our students need to put aside visions of tomorrow and what they may become because we are entirely pleased to work with them as they are at this moment. Getting to another place and defining a sound future will happen in due course. Despite our society’s obsession with a “better tomorrow” we need to first encourage young people to be happy in their skin and be content with today.

Together our staff believes deeply in each of our students, and in our two most recent surveys of students, they told us they actually feel very safe and very supported here. Perhaps more than anything, that fact/evidence is important to all adults at LCC. Indeed, perhaps the greatest measure of a community is our capacity to come together to support each other unconditionally. I’m proud to say that I think we do a pretty good job of that.

Happy Easter! Let’s all enjoy the onset of spring together.

Christopher Shannon
Headmaster

Student Exchange: My Last Days Down Under

Posted on March 23, 2016 by admin

Terry_Xiao5 Unfortunately, my amazing stay in Australia is coming to an end. During the past two weeks, Tom’s family and I visited several places. First off, we went to the Eureka Tower, one of the tallest buildings in Melbourne where we went on a glass elevator called the edge, which moved horizontally out of the tower. It was a thrilling experience and it allowed me to see the city from a very different perspective.

Also, on the weekend we traveled to Sydney by plane, where we were able to climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge, body surf at Bondi Beach, and take a ferry to Manly. Even though I initially thought that climbing the bridge would be very scary because of how high it is, it wasn’t actually frightening. In fact, I really enjoyed it since it gave me a great view of Sydney. I was able to see the Sydney Opera House as well as the entire bay, which is one of the largest of its kind in the world. Bondi Beach was great as well, since Tom taught me how to body surf and the waves were huge. Riding the waves was a thrill and fun, even when I failed and got dumped on my first try. Finally, on the last day of my stay in Sydney, Tom and I took a ferry to go to Manly, where I was able to observe multiple landmarks, such as a presidential residence and the city skyline. The area was also very serene and quiet, and it was a nice change from the shorelines that I’m used to.

This past Wednesday, Tom and I went on an excursion to Sovereign Hill in Ballarat, a small town, along with all the other exchange students and hosts at Carey Grammar School. It took two hours to drive there and I have to say it is quite different from Melbourne. Ballarat was very quiet and it seemed like it wasn’t very busy. But we weren’t there to visit. Instead we went to Sovereign Hill, which is an open-air museum that depicts the early stages of Australia where there was a lot of gold mining. The whole place looked very authentic and we were even able to try to dig for gold.

All in all, I had a wonderful time down under and I was able to experience Australian culture. Before I came to Australia, I thought that Melbourne would be very different from Canada, but it is actually pretty similar to Montreal, and I really connected with my friends at Carey. I have also benefited a lot from the exchange. For example, it made me more independent as a person and expanded my horizons. I will truly miss everyone that I have met.

See ya, Australia. I hope to come back and visit!

– Terry Xiao ‘18, Exchange Student at Carey Baptist Grammar School

Student Exchange: A Life-Changing Experience

Posted on March 21, 2016 by admin

Sophie_Tellier5 As I am on my way to the airport to catch my 7 am flight out of Melbourne, I cannot believe how quickly this experience has gone by. These past six weeks have been some of the most eventful, fun, and life-changing times. I am so incredibly happy to have taken this opportunity and gotten the chance to meet
so many wonderful people from the city of Ballarat.

My second weekend in Australia was spent at the beach. We spent some time in an area called Anglesea where I got to meet my exchange’s grandparents and see where Anna would be working during the summer. We also went to a small beach in an area called Geelong, where we then drove onto the famous Great Ocean Road!

On my third weekend, I found myself in Sydney. Sydney was one the best parts of my trip. We walked along the Sydney Harbour Bridge where we could see the beautiful opera house. We then explored the opera house and had the perfect view of the Sydney Harbour. On our second day, we went to the top of the Sydney Tower, walking onto glass floors outside the edge of the tower. I got to see the entire city in an hour, which was incredible.

Melbourne was next. Most of our time was spent shopping, though we also went to the Melbourne Star, which is a giant Ferris wheel with views of the entire city. And we spent some time at the pier.

My final weekend was spent at Halls Gap, where I got the chance to go on a beautiful hike and see an amazing waterfall.

After that, unfortunately I had to start packing. Leaving Ballarat Grammar School was pretty hard. I had made such amazing friends and I am hoping to get the chance to come back and visit all of them. As I arrive at the airport, and I say goodbye to my exchange family, it still hasn’t sunk in that this experience is already over, though I do get the chance to see my exchange in three weeks when she comes to Montreal. I am so happy I got the chance to take part in such an amazing experience. I will have these memories forever.

– Sophie Tellier ’18 Exchange Student at Ballarat Grammar School

Student Exchange: Farewell to Australia

Posted on March 21, 2016 by admin

Anthony_Fata2 It is my last week here in Australia and I have created many long-lasting memories that I will cherish forever.

For my last weekend, my exchange family and I went camping at Mount Gambier, an area with amazing natural sites located halfway between Adelaide and Melbourne. We were also going to see an amateur motorcycle race taking place there. We camped out, and in the morning we watched the race. It was really exciting to see how fast the motorcycles raced. We then made our way to Blue Mountain Lake, a crater lake which is known for its amazing colours. That day, it was a beautiful clear blue colour but, apparently, it changes colours during the year depending on the temperature. We then visited the Tantanoola caves, with incredible stalagmites and stalactites. I have never seen a cave like this and it was fascinating. I had a lot of fun this weekend and it was a great way to end my exchange. I really enjoyed spending time with Phoenix and his family!

My stay in Australia has been one of the best experiences of my life and I can’t believe that five weeks have gone by so fast. I truly had a lot of fun with my exchange, Phoenix, and his family, and I learned many new things. I have made many new friends and hope to see some of them later on in my life. I have also experienced some new things like playing cricket and volleyball, which I really enjoyed. I have seen many incredible Australian animals like koalas and kangaroos and had a chance to see these animals up close. I attended a great school and was very lucky to be here. On my last day, I received a big Australian flag signed by all my new Australian friends.

At first, I was a little nervous about this exchange and being so far away from home for such a long period of time. However, thanks to my exchange, his family, and the great people at Westminster School, my experience was amazing. I also learned a lot about myself and how I am able to adapt to a totally different environment.

– Anthony Fata ‘18, Exchange Student at Westminster School