Good morning!

I hope everyone had a lovely long weekend outside enjoying the beautiful weather!  With the summer conditions outside it has reminded us how quickly this school year is going.  It is hard to believe that there is less than a month left of this school year! 

Now that the end of the year is approaching, all of the exciting end of the year activities are beginning to be prepared for.  The Annual St. Jude's Academy Science Fair has been moved to the morning of May 31st, with the Track and Field event taking place that same afternoon.  This day is a great day to come out and see the wonderful work the students have been doing in their science units, as well as their fitness skills which will be showcased in the afternoon.  Please see your children's homeroom teacher's blogs for more information about these exciting events!

Another fascinating event that is coming up at SJA is the grade 6 Exhibition.  This is a major event in the world of IB.  It is a time for the grade 6 students to showcase all the work they have been doing in the PYP to date, as well as the growth they have shown through the Learner Profile.  For many weeks the grade 6's have been independently synthesizing their prior learning by researching, writing proposals, making action plans, going into the community, and creating presentations on a topic of their choice.  The end goal of the Exhibition project is for the students to find ways to take their learning done throughout the PYP and turn it into positive actions that will better themselves and/or the community.  The Exhibition projects will be presented to the school and the community during the day of June 5th, as well as prior to Arts Night on June 5th.  Please keep your eye out for more information about this event, or speak to Ms. Chin for more information!

The teacher's blogs will have more information about these events, as well as all the other important upcoming events at SJA.

Best regards,

Mrs. Nelson

Good Afternoon!

The end of the month is upon us with today being the last day of April.  With May being right around the corner, it means SJA is bringing in a new Learner Profile Attribute to focus on for the month.  This month we are looking for students who are being Inquirers.  The IBO's definition of an inquirer is a student who can 'develop their natural curiosity. They acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show independence in learning. They actively enjoy learning and this love of learning will be sustained throughout their lives.'

Teachers and students will be on the look out for students showing these important characteristics this month and will be nominating a student at the end of the month to win the Learner Profile award.  If you see your child showing qualities of an inquirer, please send me an email to cnelson@stjudesacademy.ca so that their name can be added into their class nominations.

Have a great week!

Mrs, Nelson

Good afternoon!

It's hard to believe, but as an educator we are already beginning to reflect back on the school year.  The wonderful learning and all the great experiences are being recorded and used to help create amazing experiences for future years.  That being said, this is a great time to remind ourselves of the 6 Units of Inquiry that help drive the learning that is done in the Primary Youth Program (PYP).  Each classroom is inquiring into one of the units at any given time.  They help guide the learning that is done in the classroom, and they give the students a great opportunity to inquire into important local and global issues.

Who we are

Inquiry into the nature of the self; beliefs and values; person, physical, mental, social and spiritual health; human relationships including families, friends, communities, and cultures; rights and responsibilities; what it means to be human.

• Where we are in place and time

Inquiry into orientation in place and time; personal histories; homes and journeys; the discoveries, explorations and migrations of humankind; the relationship between and the interconnectedness of individuals and civilizations, from local and global perspectives.

• How we express ourselves

Inquiry into the ways in which we discover and express ideas, feelings, nature, culture, beliefs and values; the ways in which we reflect on, extend and enjoy our creativity; our appreciation of the aesthetic.

• How the world works

Inquiry into the natural world and its laws, the interaction between the natural world (physical and biological) and human societies; how humans use their understanding of scientific principles; the impact of scientific and technological advances on society and on the environment.

• How we organize ourselves

Inquiry into the interconnectedness of human-made systems and communities; the structure and function of organizations; societal decision-making; economic activities and their impact on humankind and the environment.

• Sharing the planet

Inquiry into rights and responsibilities in the struggle to share finite resources with other people and other living things; communities and the relationship within and between them; access to equal opportunities; peace and conflict resolution.

These 6 units of inquiry allow students the opportunity to reflect on their roles and responsibilities as learners and become actively involved with their education. The units provide an in-depth exploration of important ideas that students will work on in a variety of ways.  Make sure to notice the Program of Inquiry board in the front foyer that shows the units of each grade at SJA.

Best regards,

Mrs. Nelson

Good afternoon!

One of the great gifts about being a teacher is that we are constantly learning and growing along with our students.  One day is never the same as the next, which leaves teachers and students excited to see what will come next.

Inquiry-based teaching relies on this type of atmosphere.  It believes that students thrive when they are connected and responsible for their own learning.  It believes that authentic learning cannot be accomplished when the students do not find the material relevant to their own lives.  It believes that learning is best done when the students are challenged to participate in the design and direction of it.  It believes that learning is a shared experience and it should be celebrated with those people around us, and that sharing experiences helps us to grow.

Inquiry-based teaching is a fundamental part of the learning environment at St. Jude's Academy.  Instead of being given a question and told the answer.  We want our students to learn by asking questions and creating questions of their own.  We want them to research and collect evidence, and then design arguments of their own.  This is just one of the many examples of how we promote inquiry in our classrooms at St. Jude's Academy.

Being inquisitive is a natural state of children.  We hope to foster this important characteristic to help our students become the most successful and independent learners they can be.


Best Regards,

Mrs. Nelson

Good Afternoon!

Welcome back after what I hope was a safe and restful March Break.  I hope all SJA families had a wonderful time, but like me, are excited to get back to fun and learning!

A lot of great things have happened at SJA in the last few weeks- visits from community helpers, classroom experiments, and spirit days.  The students have all had a great time participating in the range of activities available to students at SJA.

There are also many events to look forward to in the next few weeks.  One major event to look forward to is the math contest on April 17th!  Students in grades 3 through 8 will have the chance to participate in a national math contest.  Students will independently complete the contest at SJA.  When completed the test is shipped out and marked against students from across Canada!  Winners of the contest will be announced in May with 'honour roll' students being acknowledged online.  Ms. Chang is offering math preparatory sessions during recesses for any students interested in gaining extra help before the contest takes place.


Have a great week!

Mrs. Nelson



Good morning!

I hope everyone had a wonderful time at the Gala last night.  I have been told by parents and teachers that it was a lovely evening full of dancing, a delicious buffet, and great performances by the students of St. Jude's Academy!  Thank you to all the friends and families of St. Jude's that came out to make this important event such a success.

This year's Bollywood theme of the Gala really speaks to the IB philosophy of helping students to become internationally minded.  Students who may not have been exposed to Indian food, clothing and music before, had the chance to broaden their experiences and see the wonderful aspects of a culture that may be different from their own. This is what being internationally minded is all about!  Our goal as educators of an IB candidate school is to help our students develop a strong sense of themselves, as well as other people, customs, cultures and countries.  The Gala is just one of the many ways we are doing that at St. Jude's Academy.

Have a great week,

Mrs. Nelson

Good afternoon!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Family Day long weekend!

The teachers at St. Jude's Academy have been doing a great deal of work with inquiry of the last few weeks.  As a school we have been researching it, discussing it, and have been putting it into the classrooms more and more each and every day.
In some of the research I have been doing I found a wonderful passage by Rachel Carson from her writing The Sense of Wonder (1998).  She said....
 

                        “I should ask that a gift to each child in the world be

                         a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last

                         throughout life, as an unfailing antidote against the

                        boredom and disenchantments of later years, the sterile

                        preoccupation with things that are artificial, the alienation

                       from the sources of our strengh'  (Rachel Carson, 1998)

I think this is a great example of why inquiry is so important to St. Jude's and the IB.  At some point in our lives we begin to stop questioning the world around us and just accept things.  Imagine what life would be like if we continued on with an insatiable quest for knowledge and understanding of the world we live in!

This is what inquiry-based learning is all about.  It is teaching children that not only is it acceptable to ask questions, but that it is encouraged.  It is teaching information that is relevant to the children, because they are sharing in the creation of the learning process.  It is about investigating, researching and reflecting on information we have learned.  It is using and fostering the natural inquisitiveness of children and turning that into a life long skill that will assist them forever onwards.

Have a great week!

Mrs. Nelson