St. Paul’s Junior High

340 Newfoundland Drive

St. John’s, NL A1A 3R9

Ph. (709) 753-6630

http://stpaulsjh.net

F O L L O W S T . P A U L ’ S O N

T W I T T E R @ S T P A U L S J H

MPORTANT DATES (NEW DATES ADDED)

• Thursday, May 11

School Dance

• Tuesday, May 16

Grade 9’s orientation meeting at Holy

Heart of Mary

• Friday, May 19

Staff PD—NO SCHOOL for students

• Monday, May 22

May 24 weekend holiday. School

closed.

• Thursday, May 25 School

photographer in to take team pictures

• May 26, 2017 Family survey for

school development due (See page

from Gov. of NL for details and link)

• May 31, 2017 Demystifying Junior

High– Parent Session 7:00 PM

• Wednesday, June 21

*NEW DATE Grade 9 School Leaving

Celebration

• June 19-20

Jazz Band and Show Choir excursion

around d’bay

• Thursday, June 22

Report Cards released Happy

summer!

• Monday, September 11

Picture day at St. Paul’s

We are very proud of our students who continue to do amazing things both in and out of school. If you have noteworthy student news to share, please let us know. You can e-mail details and pictures to lisabudgell@nlesd.ca

Viper News Volume 9 May 2017

School Scene

Before the Easter break, some of our Grade 7 students travelled with Ms. Rowe and Mr. Drover

to Hepworth, Ontario for a Sports, French and Friendship exchange trip. They had a exchange trip

full of exciting activities, fun, and friendship. The Ontario students visited our school last week and

had a wonderful experience in NL. They will have lots memories to last a lifetime, and of course,

many stories to tell.

Congratulations to our SPJH boys

hockey team winning the 14th

Annual Invitational Hockey Tour-

nament. The road to this success

was the result of winning games

played with several of our local

High Schools and junior High

Schools. Such tremendous talent.

Thank you to teachers Coach Nor-

man, Coach Perks, as well as

Coach Cook, for their outstand-

ing coaching. Thank you to the 60

plus students and teachers who

took the time to watch the gold

winning game, great school spirit.

WAY TO GO VIPERSSS!

Congratulations to our chess team who attended the Newfoundland and Labrador School Team Chess Championship on Saturday past at Mary Queen of Peace and placed 2nd overall! Participants were Owen Yetman, Sami Puestow and Ranjeevan Ilan-go. Sami also placed 3rd in the individual tourna-ment. Awesome play guys!

Talk To Your Kids About Money—St. Paul’s Money Fair

Scotiabank’s Talk with our kids about Money initiative was Wednesday, April 26 and to recognize this event, St. Paul’s hosted it’s first TWOKAM - Money Fair. Several of our grade 7 students explored the importance of an economic education and learned some very valuable lessons in financial literacy. We were also very honoured to hear from our guest speakers; Finance Minister, Hon. Cathy Bennett; Asst. Director of Education, Ms. Lucy Warren never too early to talk to your kids about financial responsibility. Our special guests were extremely impressed with the outstanding studentwork. Special thank you to teacher Ms. Rowe and Christine Greene for making it all possible. Great turn out from families as well, awesome support and thank you. You can find lots of good tips here: http://talkwithourkidsaboutmoney.com/

Page 2

Heritage Fair

On March 23 our Social Studies department

provided an opportunity for students to partici-

pate in our local school Heritage Fair where

seven students were selected to present their

projects at the Regional Heritage Fair. This

weekend, our seven students presented their

research at Watervalley High School. Congrat-

ulations to three of our students that took home

major awards: Sara Moores won the Public

Library Award., Jada Santuccione won the Social Reform Award and Michael Kelly won the

Archival Materials Award. A special thank you to our Social Studies department and especially to

Ms. Kellie Rodgers for organizing this event.

Students who represented SPJH at the Regional Heritage Fair were: Sara Moores, Michael

Kelly,John Haire, Emma Coady, Olivia Jones, Ella Banfield and Jada Santuccione.

Check out the CBC interview of our very own grade 8 student John Haire. John discussed his

research and the experience at the Regional Heritage Fair: http://cbc.ca/1.4103116

Page 3

Eastern Regional Science & Technology Fair

Congratulations to all 16 of our students who represented St. Paul's at the Eastern Regional Science and Technology Fair. They

enjoyed their experience and we are very proud of them. Here are the award winners:

Memorial University Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences Award-Best project Computer Engineering $200/project ($200 cash)- Les Algorithmes: Mahiba Khan , Hailey Robichaud

Junior - Life Sciences Silver- La croissance des plantes: Hydroponique vs la terre: Matthew Woodrow

Junior - Life Sciences Honourable Mentions- Levure au levain: quelle combinaison s'élève au sommet en premier: Emma Howell, Waste Reduction Through Efficient Plant Reproduction: Thomas Byrne, Eye color and Sight : Eric Duffett , Jacob Scott

Intermediate - Life Science Honourable Mention- uelle Couleur est-il?: Annika Healey

Comment est-ce qu'un téléphone cellulaire affecte le temps de réaction?:Charlotte Muise , Brynn Furlong

Intermediate - Physical Science Honourable Mentions- Les Algorithmes: Mahiba Khan , Hailey Robichaud

Let’s Talk Science Challenge Success!

On Monday, April 24th, two teams

from St. Paul's competed at the annu-

al Let's Talk Science Challenge at Me-

morial University. The Rainbow Rab-

bits team of Rohan Tamang, Moizali

Khan, Ranjeevan Ilango and Erika

Jeffery represented the school with

pride. The Vipers team of John

Hiscock, Chunhao Han and Erin Butler

won second place and were awarded medals, programmable robots and a Chapters gift

card. Congratulations to both teams, and thanks to Ms. Lindsay Janes and Ms. Carolyn Mckinlay

for helping the teams prepare.

Hands on Science

Students learn about “Ohm’s Law” and electrical resistance in a physics lab.

Page 4

Notes from the Music Department Congratulations to the Jazz Combo who was invited to perform at the Kids Eat Smart Foundation Gala Awards Banquet at the Delta Hotel last month. Bravo!!! Music Department Strikes Gold! (and other precious metals)That’s right! The music department has struck gold (and silver). This month, the Jazz Combo, Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, and Junior High Choir participated in the Rotary Music Festival at the School of Musicat Memorial University. They were adjudicated by world-class clinicians who ranked them on their performances according to a national standard. We are extremely proud of the hard work and dedication of our young musicians and are happy to report that the Jazz Combo, Jazz Band, and Symphonic Band all received a Silver award while the Junior High Choir received a Gold award! Congratulations to all members of the band and choir on their achievement!!! Special congratulations to the Rotary Music Festival Honors Award recipients: Erin Johnston (Junior High Choir) Ella Antle (Jazz Combo) Mary Antle (Jazz Band) Robin Peters (Symphonic Band) Congratulations also to Gr 8 student, Julia Cass (trombone), who auditioned for and was selected to perform with the Rotary Jazz Band 2017. Excursion Around d’Bay - Jazz Band/Show Choir Road Trip On Monday, June 19-20, the Jazz Band and Show Choir will take their show on the road for our annual *Excursion Around d’Bay. The day will include a performances for our feeder schools as well as a performance in Coley’s Point. We will also hike through Salmonier Nature Park and overnight at the Lavrock Centre.

ArtSmart

St Paul's is very happy to have received an ArtSmarts grant for $4900.00 which allowed students to learn about life in the 1920's and 30's. Using our grade nine curriculum, visiting artists Ruth Lawrence, Beni Malone, Greg Bruce and Melanie Ozon introduced students to various topics of this era including music, fashion, advertising and cir-cus performance.

Page 5

Physical Education As part of their Physical Education program, the grade 7 students enjoyed a great day at Rotary Park. ‘

Outdoors Club The outdoor recreation program with Mr. Drover will meet on Thursdays from 3:00 to 4:00. All students who have an interest in hiking, camping, outdoor survival, etc. are asked to see Mr. Drover to to sign up. It is open to all students. Some activities will in-clude: Setting up camp and spending a night in the woods, cooking on an open fire, wilderness first aid, map and compass use, GPS, building an outdoor survival structure, and lean to shelter. See Mr. Drover if interested.

Breakfast Program

Congratulations, and thank you ,to the parents and students who supported our Kids Eat Smart Program at Dominion. Ms. Rowe organized a breakfast club event where students and parents volunteered to bag groceries and customers donated to the our break-fast program.

Page 6

Star Students

Congratulations again Zaira Freda on being selected as this years 2017

City of St. John's, Junior Youth of the Year! The Municipal Advisory Com-

mittee on Youth, Youth Representatives who voted stated the following: “we

were absolutely blown away with your outstanding nomination form and all

that you have accomplished. You are very deserving of this award and it is

wonderful to have a youth like yourself making such a positive, meaningful

and lasting impact on our community. “

Zaira, along with the other nominees, including Gr. 9 student Mahiba

Kahn, were honoured at a luncheon and award ceremony on May 5 at St.

John’s city hall.

Congratulation to Olivia Jones in grade 8 on winning the NL Arts and Letters Award for Music in the Junior Division. Her song, "Marilyn Monroe Where'd You Go" is fea-tured at the Rooms in the Arts and Letters exhibition. She was also invited to per-form her song at the Rooms, on May 6th, during a reception honouring the winners. Great job Olivia!

Page 7

NLESD Public Speaking Event

Students who are interested in the district public speaking event should see their Language Arts teacher, or the Depart-ment Head, Mrs. Peddle. Here’s what you should know about the event: - Students should choose the topics for their speeches in consultation with their teacher sponsor. - Speeches should be between 3-5 minutes in length. - Schools are invited to send one student per school. - Any student may be selected from any intermediate level. The Public Speaking Event will be hosted at the District Conference Center on Strawberry Marsh Road on Tuesday, May 23, 2017 (7:00 - 9:00 PM).

School Photographer– Team Pictures

That would be great. Lifetouch Photographer will be at the school on the morning of May 25th taking sports/

clubs/ group photos for the 2016/2017 yearbook.

Demystifying Junior High

The St. Paul’s Jr High School Council will host an information session for parents of students starting grade 7 in Septem-ber, 2017. This meeting will be held in the school library on May 31th at 7:00 pm.

June Exams

The year-end assessments will be offered in English Language Arts, Science and Mathematics. The follow-ing dates has been approved by district and school:

Wednesday, June 14

th

Grade 9 Provincial Assessments in ELA 9:00-11:45 Grade 8 Science 9:00-10:30 Grade 7 Math 9:00-11:45

Thursday, June 15

th

Grade 9 Math Common Exam 9:00-11:45 Grade 8 ELA 9:00-11:45 Grade 7 Science 9:00-10:30 Friday, June 16

th

Grade 9 Science 9:00-10:30 Grade 8 Math Common Exam 9:00-11:45 Grade 7 ELA 9:00-11:45

School Tutorials

Please encourage your children to take advantage of our Wednesday’s tutorials @ 3:00 And Science Tutorials every Thursday

Important Notes on Reporting Absences and Using PowerSchool Information

REPORTING ABSENCES: Just a reminder to parents to please let us know if your child will be absent from school. You can notify us through our app, which can be found in the app store, or by e-mailing your child’s homeroom teacher and our school secretary, victoriaelliott@nlesd.ca UPDATING STUDENT INFORMATION: If you have made changes in any of your contact information please e-mail our secretary, victoriaelliott@nlesd.ca so that she can update the information in our Powerschool database. This may include changes in e-mail, phone numbers, address, or emergency contacts. POWERSCHOOL DATA: All families should have their username and password for PowerSchool. This will provide you with all the assessment data collected from your child. PowerSchool will also give you information regarding your child’s attendance.

Student & Parent Resources from NLESD The NLESD has partnered with Eastern Health to provide students and parents/guardians with resources and infor-mation about a variety of Health and Wellness topics: Child Health, Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, Injury Prevention, Tobacco-Free Living, Puberty, Mental Wellness, Parenting, and Talking to your Teen about Sexuality and Sexual Health. As well, the NLESD website has resources about Internet and Social Media Safety for students and parents/guardians. To access these resources, go to www.nlesd.ca, click on ‘Students and Families’ and then ‘Resources’

Page 8

Updated Mobile Devices Policy—Please Take Note!

As we mentioned in our February newsletter, the acceptable use of cell phones and other mobile devices has been a hot topic over the past few months, both in the media and in our own school. As an educational institution our priorities are:

• To ensure the safety of our students

• To provide the best learning environment for all students

• To educate our students about acceptable behaviour, including while using tech-nology

• To use technology appropriately in our learning environment We started by reviewing our current practice and spoke with other intermediate and high schools about their expectations. We asked teachers for their feedback, heard from a number of parents, and met with the student leadership group as well as the school council to get their input. As of Monday, March 6th, here are the expectations about the use of mobile devices at St. Paul’s Junior High:

• Students are permitted to bring cell phones/electronic devices to school, understanding that they are doing so at their own risk. The school is not responsible for loss or damage of these devices.

• Students are not permitted to use cell phones/electronics during class time unless they are specifically directed to do so by a teacher.

• Class time begins at 8:50 with the homeroom bell.

• During class time, cell phones must be turned off or put on ‘Do Not Disturb’ and must be put away—in a locker, in the teach-er’s cell phone basket, or in a pocket—we should not see them, and we should not hear them. Ear buds must be put away as well.

• Teachers may require that cell phones be placed in the basket or left in the lockers during particular activities (i.e. tests).

• Students may not use their phones in the hallways between classes, or if they have left class for any reason.

• If a teacher allows students to use their devices during class time for a particular instructional purpose (such as accessing their GAFE account information or using the stopwatch function), they are to be used for that purpose only.

• Students are permitted to use their devices during recess and lunch time.

• Students are not permitted to record audio/video or take pictures in school unless it is under teacher direction, for exam-ple for a class project. This includes non-class time such as before/after school, recess, lunch, gym nights and dances.

• If students need to contact parents during class time, they must use the office phone. If parents need to contact students during class time, please contact the office at 753-6630.

If students do not adhere to these expectations, there will be a range of consequences depending on the nature and severity of the infraction. Generally speaking, for the first infraction, students will result in the student having to or pass in their phone at the office in the morning and collect it at 3:00 (or leave their phone at home) for a week. A second infraction means that the conse-quence will be in place for a month’s duration If there is a third infraction, the student will have to leave the phone at home or at the office for the remainder of the year. Just as a reminder, homeroom starts at 8:50, recess is from 10:54—11:09, lunch is from 12:07—12:57 and our school day ends at 3:00. If you need to reach your child during class time, please call the office at 753-6630. If your child needs to reach you during class time, they must use the office phone rather than their device. We encourage you to discuss these expectations with your child, and we appreciate your support as we continue our efforts to provide the best learning environment possible at St. Paul’s. If you have any comments or feedback about our updated cell phone/mobile device policy, please let us know by contacting Mr. Drover or Ms. Budgell.

Page 9

School Development Family Survey

As part of our School Development process, we are asking all families with students at St. Paul's to complete the survey found here:

https://www.research.net/r/SDFamilyEN Please see letter for further details.

April 24, 2017

Subject: Request for Feedback – Family Survey

Dear Parent/Guardian,

This year, the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development is launching new annual school development surveys to replace previous school development and school climate surveys. The new surveys were designed and tested for reliability and va-lidity by Panorama Education and researchers at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, and are currently being used by over 7,000 schools in 15+ countries. The Department piloted the surveys using online survey administration in five schools in Fall 2016, and the feedback from the pilot was used to make adjustments to the survey instruments.

The results of the Family Survey will help schools better understand the perceptions of the parents/ guardians in their school com-munity. Together with feedback from students and staff, the survey data will help schools to identify strengths and areas for growth as they engage in school development.

The survey is anonymous, which means that we cannot connect your survey responses to you. We encourage everyone to partici-pate so that we have the most accurate representation of family perceptions at your school.

Please complete the Family Survey by May 26, 2017 by clicking on the following link: https://www.research.net/r/SDFamilyEN. If you do not have internet access, you may contact your school to arrange access to a school computer or mobile device for sur-vey completion.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the new school development surveys, please contact:

Jennifer Smith at 709-729-5588 or jenniferfsmith@gov.nl.ca or

Patricia Emberley at 709-729-6850 or patriciaemberley@gov.nl.ca

Thank you for your participation and for being a valued member of your school community.

Sincerely,

_____________________ Ron Smith Director, Evaluation and Research Division

Division of Evaluation and Research

P.O. Box 8700, St. John’s, NL, Canada A1B 4J6 t (709) 729-3000 f (709) 729-3462

Page 10