Believing in Miracles

Posted on September 22, 2011 by admin

As we begin this new school year, I have an important question. Do you believe in miracles? I do—I really do. During my life I have seen many people achieve extraordinary feats. As we look to the months ahead, it is important to be positive and hopeful contributors to our school community. As a result, good things will happen— and maybe we will each even witness a miracle or two.

For proof that miracles do occur, all we have to do is look to nature. Consider the annual run of Pacific salmon. Every year, millions of fish swim upstream and return to the place of their birth to spawn. It is beyond explanation.

In a couple of weeks we should also all notice the start of another natural wonder; the migration of the Monarch butterfly. Millions of butterflies will complete a 4000-kilometer journey to hibernate in the hills of Mexico and northern California. To learn more about this, the Montreal Insectarium is encouraging people to get involved. You can take caterpillars home and care for them until they become butterflies. They are then released with tags on their wings with a 1-800 telephone number. People along the migration path can call in and help scientists learn more about this great migration and natural mystery.

In our school there is something similar going on right now. Committed LCC faculty and staff are trained professionals who guide, nurture and inspire young people to grow, inquire, create, and gain confidence. The development of most students will be impressive—for some, almost miraculous. Working together, I know we will have many wonderful stories to share next June. Let’s now be sure to support the miracle workers as they help our students define their pathways with both confidence and wonder.—Chris Shannon, Headmaster

Des nouvelles de la Classe Rouge, Jouvence

Posted on September 22, 2011 by admin

Bonjour à vous tous,

Le séjour à Jouvence se déroule à merveille. Nous avons recueilli quelques impressions pour vous.

Des animatrices courageuses
Les animatrices s’appellent Splenda, Picasso, Carpet et Shakti. Elles sont vraiment gentilles, courageuses et amusantes. Splenda est tout à fait unique, Picasso est artistique, Carpet est toujours joyeuse et Shakti raconte de très bonnes histoires. Merci à toutes les animatrices !
(Composé par Alexandra Bromberg, français enrichi 5A)

Un grand choix d’activités
J’ai aimé l’hébertisme parce que les obstacles dans la forêt étaient vraiment amusants. On a fait un grand jeu le soir et tout le monde a aimé ça. Il y a aussi du tir à l’arc, de l’escalade et plein d’autres activités. Les activités à Jouvence sont vraiment intéressantes.
(Maria Makarov, français enrichi 5B)

Une nourriture délicieuse
La nourriture est très bonne. Nous avons mangé de délicieuses saucisses au diner hier. Ce matin des crêpes étaient servies pour le déjeuner. Un des élèves a mangé dix crêpes! Tout le monde trouve que la nourriture est magnifique !
(Terry Xiao, Français accéléré)

Schools on Board: Eager with Anticipation

Posted on September 22, 2011 by admin

LCC student Karen Butt is travelling through the Northwest Passage as a part of the Schools on Board/Arctic Net collaboration aboard the Amundsen. Here’s her first reflection.

September 21, 2011

I arrived in Quebec City today, and got to meet all the southern participants. It was a beautiful day and we spent the afternoon walking around the old part of the city. I’m getting really excited because I got to see a lot of pictures and videos taken by someone who’s been on the Amundsen many times. I’m blown away by all the things that there are to experience in the Arctic and I feel like there will never be enough time to embrace it all. I also got to glance through the on-board schedule and I’m really looking forward to tomorrow when I get to enter an entirely different universe.

I’m getting up in 4 hours to fly to Kugluktuk, and we get to board the ship once we arrive. I’m really looking forward to settling in and getting a tour of the ship. What comes after sounds so different and exciting that I can’t believe it’s real yet.—Karen Butt ’12

Kangaroos and Much More to Come

Posted on September 19, 2011 by admin

My first 6 days in Australia have been a completely different experience than anything I could have expected. Upon arriving here in Melbourne, Australia, after a full 24 hours of traveling, I’ve been flooded with a new lifestyle that cannot be replicated anywhere in North America, let alone Montreal!

My first night here was when I saw my first kangaroo. We were driving in the car around the countryside area of Melbourne when within 5 minutes we saw a whole group of kangaroos. There were at least 20 of them, and I was able to take some great photos, but seeing them jump around on the field was amazing.

Since the day after I arrived here, I’ve been attending Ivanhoe Grammar School‘s Plenty Campus, one of two campuses that are run by the school. Here, I’ve taken classes similar to those at LCC but the atmosphere is completely different. The school has multiple small buildings around a central courtyard where all the lockers are. It’s very different than LCC’s campus which can all be accessed indoors. The people at Ivanhoe, and also everywhere else I go, are very nice which adds to the amazing feel of Australia.

The weather has been great, but because it’s spring here, the nights are cold. Today, however, is the hottest day since last summer, reaching almost 30 degrees!

In my first six days, I already feel like I’ve experienced enough to last the next five weeks, but I know that there is much more to come. In a week, Ivanhoe takes a two week spring break and I plan on going camping with the wonderful family that I’m staying with. I’ll also explore the city of Melbourne and maybe go to the beach once or twice in those two weeks.

I’m very excited for what Australia has to offer and hope to see and experience as much as I can over the rest of my exchange period. I’d like to thank Ms. Shadley and everyone at Round Square and Ivanhoe for making this exchange happen!—Jeffrey Morris ’13

Duke of Ed Bronze Trip: New Friends, New Skills and Teamwork

Posted on September 15, 2011 by admin

This year, the grade 9 class had the opportunity to participate in an incredible experience trip that introduced us to the Duke of Edinburgh program (view photo gallery). Not only did we learn useful outdoor skills, the trip also afforded us the opportunity to bond with the 20 new students we welcomed to the class of 2014 at the start of this year.

The moment I heard that this year’s trip was taking place in Notre-Dâme de la Rouge, I knew it would be amazing. This town has already had a great impact on my life: my late uncle was the mayor of Grenville Sur la Rouge for many years.

Canoeing, tenting, hiking and skill management are all examples of the many activities included in this excursion. Grouped into pairs of houses, we had the chance to interact with new classmates and some “old ones” whom we did not know so well. Each activity consisted of a new skill, more concentration and teamwork. The canoeing activity clearly brought out the best of each advisory’s team spirit and leadership. The risk management brought out the best of our fear and concentration, and paid off with a new accomplishment. The hiking led to intense conversation and new friendships. Culminating by some astonishing waterfalls, the hike was one of the best activities of all. Last but not least, the team challenges activity helped us build new aptitudes and further developed collaboration between advisees as well as our interpersonal team skills.

Some of us were given the opportunity to sleep in tents on a separate island close by. This involved canoeing with our necessities, assembling and disassembling our tents and enjoying hotdogs and marshmallows by the bonfire.

Overall, this year’s experience trip was unforgettable. Thank you LCC for giving us the chance to dive headfirst into a new school year. —Victoria Van Ryswyk ’14