Secure School at St. Patrick's Intermediate

We would like to inform our parent/guardian community that there was a “secure school” situation called at St. Patrick’s Intermediate at approximately 11:30 am this morning (Sept. 11th).  Ottawa Police contacted us to indicate that there was a concern in the community and we were asked to go into “secure school”  as a precaution.   Within a few minutes, a school resource officer presented himself at the school and suggested, based on additional information, that we move from a “secure school” to “shelter in place” designation.  “Shelter in place” indicates that students can move within the building, however, they remain inside the school.

At this point, staff began accompanying students to the washrooms, as well as lockers to retrieve their lunches and to the cafeteria to purchase food.  Just before 1:00 pm, Ottawa Police contacted us to indicate that there was no longer a concern in the community, and the “shelter in place” condition had ended.

I want to thank our students who were extremely patient and cooperative throughout the entire situation.  A thank you to our student services staff who assisted with releasing classrooms of students to go to the washroom and to their lockers.  We appreciate the support of our school resource officer and Ottawa Police who were very helpful throughout the process.  We will spend time this year reviewing safety measures and protocol with students, however, their reaction in this case was excellent.

Please contact me at the school if you have any concerns.

St. Patrick's Blog Week of September 8th, 2014

St. Patrick's Blog

Week of September 8th, 2014

Opening Week

We had a great first week at St. Patrick’s Intermediate.  There were a number of orientation sessions for students to ensure they quickly become comfortable in their surroundings.  Grade level assemblies gave us an opportunity to speak to students about being kind to each other, and to seek out a staff member if issues arise.  We have a strong tradition at St. Patrick’s of demonstrating care and concern for each other.  This doesn’t happen by accident - we need to continually review our approaches and make sure we are all content both in and outside the classroom.  

Boot Camp Organization

Our annual “Boot Camp” provides a separate morning for grade 7’s and 8’s to review expectations in 4 different areas.  Our staff outline information and answer questions in the areas of Respect and Responsibility, Community Resources and the use of Technology as a learning tool.  Mr. Kelly and Ms. Burgoyne spent time in the fourth session reviewing routine expectations and speaking to goal setting.  Mr. Kelly chatted with students about the learning process in school.  He used his new unicycle to demonstrate some of the steps we need to take when we are learning something new.  I challenged students to become active participants in the learning process, and to share their experiences with other students, staff and parents and guardians so these people can provide support.

School - Home Communication

There were a number of communications that came home from the school this past week.  We would appreciate you reviewing the Student Information Verification Form to ensure that all contact info is correct.  The Canadian Anti-Spam form should be completed for any email address for which you would like to receive information.  Finally, our students and a parent/guardian should go through the Acceptable Use of Technology form so that expectations are clear on using devices and the wireless network in an appropriate manner at school.  We are also encouraging students to bring in their student fee.  I provided an outline of how the student fee supports activities at school in my first week newsletter that went home.

Monday Morning Assembly

For our grade 7 students, our weekly Monday Morning Assembly will be a new experience in organization and building spirit.  We gather Monday mornings as a full community to listen to our Glee club sing O Canada, to pray and reflect, and to review the weekly agenda.  Students are encouraged to bring their school agendas to record pertinent information.  Another part of our assemblies include student presentations that shine light on learning skills, gospel values and our Catholic Graduate Expectations.

We are hoping all of our parent/guardian community is able to join us on September 18th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm for our Meet the Staff evening.  It provides us an opportunity to introduce staff, discuss school priorities and answer any questions that our community might have.  Please contact the school if you require some language support for this evening.

Have a great week;

Sean Kelly

St. Patrick's Blog Week of September 2nd, 2014

St. Patrick's Blog

Week of September 2nd, 2014

Welcome Back to School!

I would like to extend a very warm return to our grade 8 students and families, and an enthusiastic welcome to our grade 7 students and parents!  We are anxious to begin the learning process within our school community this year.  

On Tuesday, we will have a special schedule providing some additional time in homebase so that teachers can provide students with information about the school year, and distribute a number of forms that we are asking students to bring home to their parents/guardians.  Included in this package is a welcoming letter from the administration explaining these forms and a number of school initiatives for the year.  

Our staff met for a liturgy and to review directions for the school year last week, and I had the opportunity to share a number of thank you’s at that time.  I would also like to share with our parent community our appreciation of our custodial staff, led by Mr. Massey, as well as our office administrators Ms. Clarke and Ms. Foley for their extensive work preparing for the start of this year.  They have worked very hard to ensure that we will have a smooth start, and their work will continue to the end of the year.

Some of the information that our students will receive this week that we would ask you to return to the school after reviewing at home:

• Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation information: Please fill out, sign and return so we can continue to communicate with you electronically by email.
• Verification forms: Please review and correct any information on the sheet.  You are also encouraged to return the language support sheet attached to the form if you require some support in social situations such as our meet the staff or interview opportunities.
• Student Fee: Information is included on the Welcome Letter that describes how we use the student fee.  Please send this in with your child to their homebase teacher.

We are excited about beginning the social, academic and spiritual walk with our community this year.  One of our initiatives includes keeping students, parents and guardians up to date with school news through this blog.  There are other modes of communicating with the school found on the welcoming letter from the administration that your child will bring home on Tuesday.  Please review this and contact the school if we can help with anything.

Have a great week;

Sean Kelly

St. Patrick's Blog Week of June 23rd 2014

St. Patrick's Blog

Week of June 23rd 2014

Closing Ceremonies at St. Patrick’s Intermediate

We are looking forward to celebrating our many achievements this week as we close out our academic and co-curricular year.  On Wednesday morning, we honour the hard work of our Grade 7 students during their Awards Ceremony.  Subject based recognition and overall academic achievement will be celebrated at that time.  On Wednesday afternoon, we continue with a very fitting tradition of honouring our Grade 8 students who will be moving on to Grade 9 at our Closing Ceremonies at Notre Dame Basilica.  Parents who are joining us are asked to arrive with their son/daughter for 1:00 pm for a 1:30 start.  Students are reminded of the proper dress expectations we have been sharing with them since March.  Families are then invited to come back to St. Pat’s where we will host a reception in our cafeteria from 3:00 to 4:15 pm.

On Thursday, June 26th, we will be recognizing the many students who have made co-curricular involvement a priority this year.  Students who have excelled in our many athletic and club activities will be celebrated that morning.  Students will then be invited to a BBQ (purchase tickets in homebase this week) and an athletic tournament in the afternoon.  

Student Voice Project

St. Patrick’s has been fortunate to have been involved in a number of student voice activities this year.  These activities provide students with a chance to shape their learning experiences while interacting with others outside the classroom environment.  One group of our students has been involved in a “Newcomer Project” where students at St. Patrick’s High School who are new to the community mentored newcomers at St. Pat’s Intermediate.  The collaboration produced some exciting results with students sharing experiential learning opportunities that they said augmented their engagement level.  A group of educators at the provincial level heard about this project and were anxious to learn more about the activity.  They came to St. Patrick’s Intermediate to record the students’ reactions and feedback on the experience.  

Stand Up Award Winners Attend YMCA Camp

St. Patrick’s has a long honoured tradition of honouring our students throughout the year based on their progress toward our “Stand up” encouragements.  The students at St. Pat’s stand up for Respect, Honesty, Forgiveness and Peace.  Throughout the year we take time to recognize students who have embodied these characteristics and who truly exemplify what it means to be a St. Pat’s Shamrock.  

Some of these individuals were rewarded for their hard work this past week as we welcomed our recipients to the YMCA camp in Dunrobin.  Students were involved in a host of collaborative games and activities, and all came away having had a great day.  

Year End Thank You’s

I would like to take this opportunity to thank St. Patrick’s students, staff and parent community for the support and commitment that they have shown to our school this year.  A special thank you to our School Council group for the support that they have demonstrated, always getting behind the activities going on at the school.  We look forward to welcoming our incoming Grade 6 students who will become “Grade 7ers” next September.  I hope all members of our community enjoy a summer holiday full of rest and peace.  

Have a great summer!

Sean Kelly

Principal

St. Patrick's Blog Week of May 26th 2014

St. Patrick's Blog

Week of May 26th 2014

Mrs. Sweeney - Capital Educator Award Recipient!

Congratulations to Mrs. Joan Sweeney who was honoured as a winner of the 2014 Capital Educator’s Award at last week’s Edugala Celebration.  65 finalists were chosen from over 380 nominations with only 18 successful winners.  We are very proud of the work that Mrs. Sweeney does in the areas of Arts and Technology instruction as well as her contributions to our Religious studies program.  Families can watch (or record) the gala when it is presented on Rogers TV (channel 22 or 510) on Sunday, June 8th at 10pm.  

We invite all of our parents and guardians to view the work of art that Mrs. Sweeney’s English students created in collaboration with our partners - the senior residents from Billings Lodge in our community.  The piece speaks to the many levels of diversity that we celebrate in our school and with the wider community.  The art work has been given a place of prominence on the wall as you enter St. Patrick’s.

Wall of Remembrance

We are inviting all within our St. Pat’s community to contribute to our Wall of Remembrance that is taking shape adjacent to our main office area in the school.  This will be a place of prayer where students, staff and families can honour a departed loved one by providing a written celebration of their life with a photo to share.  This initiative came about when we recognized a large number of students were sharing some difficult times following the passing of a close relative in their families.  This is an opportunity to provide witness to these people’s lives, and to mark their passing in a shared way.  Remembrance material will be rotated throughout the school year to allow everyone to take part.  Please contact Mrs. Paniccia or Mr. Kozak if you would like to share a relative’s story and picture.

St. Patrick’s Alumni Academic Wall of Fame

We are celebrating the academic success of a number of former St. Patrick’s Intermediate students who attended our school.  This is an opportunity to share the challenging vocations that some previous students have attained in building upon the excellent academic foundation that was fostered at St. Pat’s.  While our display will be up shortly, some of these former students include Chris Lee (following distinguished post-secondary studies - currently working in the aerospace industry), Mark Kennedy (award winning journalist for the Ottawa Citizen - studied Journalism at Carleton University following St. Pat’s), Shelby Spirak (recent student who is now head chef at the Shipwright Inn in Charlottetown, PEI), Dr. Taylor McGuire (expert in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery).  Please contact us if you have information regarding the academic pursuits of any former students.

Elementary School Transition Visits

Mrs. Paniccia, Mr. McKinnon and a group of our Ambassadors made a splash as the “Welcome to St. Pat’s” tour made its way to all of our elementary schools last week.  Our teachers provided last minute transition advice to our incoming grade 7 students, while our Ambassadors shared their experiences for success.  The grade 6 students had some excellent questions for our group and they seem to be very excited to make the jump to St. Patrick’s in September.  Thank you to all involved!

Blog Support

I noticed this week that we are close to hitting the 1000 mark for visits to the St. Pat’s Blog!  I am encouraged that many of you come to this site for information on the school.  A few reminders about us:

• The calendar of student activities is listed at the end of the full blog.  This provides a picture of the many student activities that are taking place during the week.
• Enjoy our twitter feed on the right sidebar of the Blog.  Students are always excited to share their learning experiences through pictures.
• Our Blog can be translated into over 80 languages!  Please spread the word that our community information is readily accessible to all of our families.

Have a great week!

Sean Kelly

Principal

Healthy Schools 2020 E-bulletin

Please see link below for Issue 14 (May 2014) of our Healthy Schools 2020 E-bulletin.

In this issue...

* Active living in nature - resources to help you reap the rewards of outdoor learning

* Minimize physical activity risks for students

* Your students are watching & listening!

* A success from our region - physical activity

The e-bulletin is designed to provide you and your school communities with fun, practical ways to keep healthy nutrition and physical activity top of mind.

Current and past issues are available on the Healthy Schools 2020 website at http://www.healthyschools2020.ca/en_healthy_schools_2020_newsletters.php 

St. Patrick's Blog Week of May 20th 2014

St. Patrick's Blog

Week of May 20th 2014

Student Activities this Week

Congratulations to Mr. Kennedy and our Chess team after they captured GOLD at the Board tournament this past week.  A number of our special education students were involved with the Board’s Swim Meet this past Wednesday.  The students enjoyed a great time with great competition engaging students from across the Board.  Our dedicated readers were involved in a trip to the “Festival of Trees” author presentation last Friday.  The activity took place at the Nepean Sportsplex and the students were involved in a number of literacy activities.

School Improvement Plan for Student Success

A number of St. Pat’s staff were involved in the Board sponsored school improvement plan this past Thursday.  Representatives from intermediate and secondary schools across the board come together to review best practices and innovative approaches at different schools as we set our goals for the coming academic year.  Schools are charged with developing goals in the areas of Numeracy and Literacy, as well as Pathways for students and Community, Culture and Caring.  These goals set the learning for students for the upcoming year, as well as the professional development plans for staff.  The SIP is shared with our School Council every year at one of our meetings.  If you have any questions about our goals, please contact us at the school.

Student Success Visit to St. Patrick’s Intermediate

Individuals from the school board will be visiting St. Patrick’s next Monday, May 26th as they take part in classroom walk-throughs and discussion around school initiatives.  While board representatives used to concentrate on staff descriptions of the learning that is going on, they now concentrate on what students have to say.  We have been encouraging our students to reflect upon their learning so that they can engage in meaningful dialogue with our visitors as they tour classrooms next week.

“We Remember” wall of memory

St. Patrick’s is establishing a Remembrance Wall which will depict family members from among our school community who have passed away.  The Wall will be a prayerful space where we will celebrate the lives of those in our families who have died through pictures and words.  We have encouraged students to bring ideas for the wall, as well as the names and pictures of departed loved ones to our student services department, or to see our Chaplain Mr. Kozak.  Thank you go Mr. Kozak, Ms. Paniccia and Ms. Sweeney for the hard work that went into the creation of our “We Remember” Wall.  

St. Patrick’s School Council Funding Support

A special thank you to the St. Patrick’s School Council who have been financially supporting a number of initiatives over the past few weeks and heading to the end of the year.  Our School Council has purchased a number of Chrome laptops for the classroom, and will be contributing to the purchase of exercise bikes for our new aerobic/weight room that was completed this year.  The Council also provides financial support to our year-end activities including the Grade 8 Closing Ceremonies and our “Stand Up” Award Winners’ trip to the YMCA camp.  We appreciate the Council’s ongoing support of our student and staff initiatives!

Have a great week!

Sean Kelly

Principal