The Clarkson Community Newsletter
Literacy is a gift for life. The Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (“OSSLT”) provides parents, guardians and educators with transparent information about the reading and writing skills students are expected to have acquired in all subjects up to the end of Grade 9. Successful completion of the OSSLT is one of the 32 requirements for a high-school diploma. Results will be sent home with June 2014 report cards.
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The Clarkson Community Newsletter
Arts Department
We’ve been busy in the drama studios this semester! Students have worked on enhancing communication skills, working with masks, exploring characters, writing scripts and of course, acting! Congratulations to all grade levels as they demonstrated a solid understanding of theatre through their Anthology, Collective, and Docudrama creations. Have a great summer everyone!
Attention all aspiring playwrights! Once again Clarkson is looking forward to submitting entries to the annual Studentwrights drama festival the week of November 24th. If you are interested in submitting a play, why not start writing this summer? The work must be between 5 – 20 minutes in length. Listen to the announcements in September for further details! Write-on everyone!
Photography
Clarkson’s Photography department is growing. Next year, the photography department will grow to a total of 5 classes, which is a marked improvement from the current 2 classes! Part of the department’s growth is due to the 2 new grade 12 yearbook courses. Mr. Zimmer and his students can’t wait to get started on next year’s yearbook. Also, Clarkson photography won all 4 categories for the Capture Clarkson photography contest. Congratulations to our 1 former and 3 current students for their outstanding success (Bessie Yu, Aneequa Ahmed, Neil Maguire and Antonio Dasilva-Ennew, respectively). Lastly, the photography department bought 2 Nikon D3100’s and a large, wall size, white screen to further its success with its courses and new yearbook endeavour. As always, the art/photography department is looking for new and interesting ways to display student work; competitions, events and shows are always important venues for students to display their work.
Visual Arts
As summer approaches we are able to look back and reflect on the art of the past year. We truly have talent among us. I am pleased to say the grade nines this semester finished a large scale drawing and a few grace the Parent-Council frames in the hallway. We have increased the scale of some of our work and are excited to see the mural in the cafe finished. All of the students have created memorable pieces and some will remain over the summer for display in the case at the front of the school. The art room is graced with apple paintings and the final art of the grade 11 and 12 class. If you would like to pick up your work, please do so in the art room.
Changes to the art room for next year will include a new addition to the art department with Mr. Zimmer teaching the photography classes a new teacher joining our mix and I will remain part of guidance along with a few art courses. Our students are busy getting me ready to share our art using Instagram and other technology. It is amazing to see how the artwork gets such a quick and positive reaction.
Take the time this summer to fill those sketchbooks with drawings and photographs, paintings and sketches to use for inspiration in your work next year. Be safe, be creative. I look forward to seeing you in room 126 in the fall. To my graduates this year I say a fond farewell with "Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So...get on your way!" you have certainly left a strong impression with Clarkson.
Music
Congratulations to the Music Chargers on an AMAZING Spring Concert! The Choir's performance of Everybody Wants to Rule the World took us back to the 80's, and Michael Jackson's Black or White had the audience on its feet. The Concert Band hit like a truck withprofessional-level arrangements ofSgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Fantasy Adventure at the Movies and The Blues Brothers. Our solo performers were fantastic, and our AMV class gave an inspiring note-perfect rendition of Avril Lavigne's Keep Holding On - the first such class to perform in 5 years! Many thanks to the Music Council for putting together a terrific show.
With off-the-hook pizza parties and theatre trips to WeWill Rock You, the Music Department is an exciting place to be with some of the most talented and hard-working students at CSS. The caliber of performance is the highest it's ever been, and it's only going to get better with Mr. Zimmer coming aboard. Many thanks to staff and Administration for their outstanding support, and we look forward to another great year in 2014/15!
Business/Technology Department
News from the Technology Department
Mr. Petsinis and Mr. Morettin continue to produce some amazing Manufacturing Specialist students. Mr. Petsinis’s classes are becoming masters at using the CNC Milling Machine while Mr. Morettin’s class honed their skills at using a 3D printer. As a year-end highlight, Mr. Morettin and Mr. Petsinis used a field trip to Canada’s Wonderland to illustrate different Manufacturing skills.
Mr. Drake and Mr. Manny’s Grade Nine students launched their self-made Dragsters for the right to claim title to Clarkson’s fastest cars. Mr. Drake’s computer classes worked hard at learning how to use different software packages.
Mr. Manny has been busy with some excellent projects in both the Wood Shop and Auto Shop. Some phenomenal chairs and desks were created by his students. Mr. Manny was responsible for helping the local community out by designing and building a portable lemonade stand and multiple display boards.
News from the Business Department
Ms. Bakyta has had a wonderful impact on the business department and its’ students. She did some incredible work with Photoshop, re-designed and decorated Room 212, and was a significant contributor to Clarkson’s Breakfast Club. Ms. Bakyta was also instrumental in arranging for a field-trip to the Toyota plant.
Mr. Lethbridge and Ms. Wong would like to say “Thank you” and “Good Luck” to our graduating students. This graduating class had some wonderful students.
We wish everyone a Safe and Happy summer holiday!!
English
Comings and Goings
In September, we will welcome two new teachers to the English department, to replace two of our long-time members. We are very sad to see Ms. Poynterretire after 28 years at Clarkson and 32 years of teaching in total. She has been an inspiration to young teachers and students, and we wish her well in her retirement.Mrs. Pedersen-Brown will be staying at Clarkson, but leaving the English department to work in Special Education, specifically in the Contact program.
Over the summer months, the rest of the department members will be prepping new novels for our courses, including The Graveyard Book, 419, Tomorrow When the WarBegan, The Maze Runner, Looking for Alaska, The Book Thief, and for our English/ESL/International students In The Sea There are Crocodiles, Shaken, TheWave and some new short plays.
Mathematics
Congratulations to the following students for their outstanding performances in the Fryer, Galois, Hypatia and Euclid Math contests.
Fryer (Grade 9):
School Champion Medal
Qisheng Xia
Certificate of Distinction
Qisheng Xia and Grace Fennelly
Galois (Grade 10)
School Champions Medal
Yuchen Miao
Certificate of Distinction
Yuchen Miao and He Cory
Hypatia (Grade 11):
School ChampionMedal
Wentao Xu
Certificate of Distinction
Wentao Xu
Euclid ( Grade 12)
School Champion Medal
Ingyuan Gao
Certificate of Distinction
Ingyuan Gao, Qinyu Lei, Chuanhui Li, Shaoyu Tan
Students who participate in the Canadian National Mathematics League (CNML)contests are expected to write a total of six contests over the academic year. Our top performer this year is Harneet Singh. Special mention goes to William Xu, Kylin Lei, Jessica Li, Ayman Lyaghfouri and Sania Wadalia for their mathematical endurance.
Over the 2013-2014 school year, extra help in mathematics was available to all grades 9 and 10 students every Tuesday and Thursday during the lunch period. This support was made possible because of a small group of grade 11 and 12 students (Math Senior Scholars) who volunteered their time and mathematical expertise. A special thank you to our Math Senior Scholars: Purawai Vyas, Brianne Laverty, William Tran, Aneequa Ahmed, Zeahaa Rehman, Zen Yan, Christopher Watts, Justin Nandlall, Leyla Magamodova, Della Giguere and Martin Ciuraj.
We also take this opportunity to recognize Abdullah Soltan and Daniel Scarlett who volunteered to help their peers in the MCR 3U course during their lunch period.
Students in Mr.Kittel, Mr. Camarena and Mr. Ramsay’s MCV 4U classes combined work and fun on their trip to Canada Wonderland this semester.
The teachers in the math department take this opportunity to congratulate the graduates who were presented with Grade 12 Math Awards for their outstanding performance in their specific courses.
Languages Department
Bonjour! ¡Hola!
Students worked hard on improving their language skills, and their hard work has had its rewards. Students studying Spanish had a fantastic time making piñatas and Señora Loutrianakis enjoyed cooking tasty traditional Hispanic food with her classes!
Délicieux! ¡Olé!
On May 26th, grade 9 French students (immersion and core) enjoyed hot homemade crêpes and a movie at our very own Café français. C'était si bon! In April, Madame Loutrianakis, Mme Smiley and Mme Gerulath's brought a lucky group of students to le Papillon restaurant downtown Toronto to enjoy some authentic French cuisine and a fun scavenger hunt in the St Lawrence Market. Comme on s’amuse dans le departement de français!
The Modern Languages department, jointly with the Social Science department also jetted off to Europe for our Clarkson Senior trip. Our Chargers were exemplary travelers and enjoyed their incredible opportunity to practice their foreign language skills in France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
The Toronto French Contest is a great opportunity for grade 12 students studying French as a Second Language to win prizes and scholarships. All secondary schools in the City of Toronto or in the Peel, Durham and York regions are invited to enter their top students from Core Plus/Core French and Immersion/Extended French. This year, we were well represented by Kathryne Boreham, Jazzmine Kosmal and Tianna Damario. Special congratulations to Tianna for winning a Prix d'Excellencein the category of Extended/Immersion. Bravo!
The Ontario Secondary Schools Spanish Contest likewise invites students of all levels (beginner, intermediate, advanced and native) to compete against other students from across the province. In all categories (but one) we scored in the top ten. Congratulations to Cynthia, Natalia, Allison and Zeahaa and thank you for representing our school and our languages department. ¡Felicitaciones!
Clarkson Chargers continued their fantastic work at the Concours d'art Oratoire cette année. Ayman Lyagfouri, Dylan Matthews, Kathryne Boreham and Arielle Lynn proudly represented Clarkson with their phenomenal speeches. Congratulations to all and special mention to Arielle Lynn who progressed to the Provincial level! Félicitations tout le monde!
Our French club, Cercle d'amis experienced some treats from different francophone countries at their year-end party. Québécois cheeses, croissants, and French chocolates were among the "taste of the culture". In addition, students sang along to music by Stromae and Coeur de Pirate. On adore célébrer la culture francophone variée!Throughout the year, we have been brainstorming new ways to attract students to the modern language courses and get them involved in languages. Thoughtful planning of a new display case and creative ideas of different ways to experience francophone culture will be put into action for the 2014-2015 school year! All students are welcome to join Cercle d'amis whether enrolled in a French course or just looking to have some fun in another language! Venez vous-en!
Many thanks to our fantastique French Senior Scholars (Natalia, Georgia, Kristen, Arleana, Tianna, Rosalyn and Allison) who regularly made themselves available to provide extra help to students studying French. Students can focus on a variety of areas such as improving grammar, writing skills, pronunciation and reading comprehension skills. We will be up and running again in the Fall of 2014.We are available every Tuesday and Thursday in room 217, from 11:20 a.m. to 11:50 a.m. Please see Mme Gerulath if you are interested in being a French Senior Scholar this Fall or if you are looking for extra help.
Bonnes vacances! ¡Buenas vacaciones!
Health and Physical Education
Spring Sports
This spring Clarkson competed in the following ROPSSAA sports: badminton, senior boys’ cricket, varsity boys’ baseball, girls’ slo-pitch, track and field and both boys’ and girls’ senior soccer. Clarkson also offered co-ed ultimateFrisbee as a new sport this year. Special congratulations go out to the varsity boys' baseball team that participated in the ROPSSAA Tier 1 play-offs this year. They lost an 11-8 thriller to Mayfield in the quarter-finals.
OFSAA Track and Field Participants
2014 was a wet and cold track season, but our 37 team members showed true grit at the meets they attended. The first one was cancelled due to inclement weather.
At the next one, the St. Marcellinus meet, Liam Kelton came 1st in the M.B.400 with a time of 58.33. There were three seconds--Myles Abreo in J.B. 1500, Romello Taylor in S.B. high jump,and Robbie Toth in M.B.triple jump. In third place was Zack Knight in S.B. long jump and Jazmin Bailey in M.G. high jump. There were three 4th place winners- Rachel Clark in S.G.3000, Sophie D'Acunto-Tanner in M.G. shot put, and Romello Taylor in S.B. long jump. In the M.G. relay, Izzie, Rachel,Chelsie and Nakita sped around the track. In J.G. relay, Fawzia, Jordyn, Karizzma and Zoe tore up the track.
The Blue and Gold meet was cold and extremely rainy (27 cm)!. We came out shining with six gold medals! In first place was: Arij Alarachi in J.G. 100,Chris Smith in S.B. 100,Liam Kelton in M.B.400, Karizzma Taylor in M.G.400, Robbie Toth in M.B. long jump and Rachel Clarke in S.G. 400. There were six silvers as well. They were: Myles Abreo in J.B. 1500, Rachel Clark in S.G. 800, Hannah Sharpe in steeplechase, Zack Knight in S.B. long jump, and Romello Taylor coming in second at both S.B. high jump and S.B. Getting bronze were: Zack Knight in S.B. triple jump, Summer Eltajii in M.G. high jump, Danny Bojic in M.B. 400m and Kevin Gutzeit in M.B.100. Fourth place went to Shanel Bailey in S.G.100, Sophia D'Acunta Tanner in the 400, Sarah Pitoscia in J.G. hurdles and Stephanie Hughes in the OpenGirls’Steeplechase.Fifth place went to Izzie Robinson in M.G. shot put.
At the Phillip Pocock Throws and Jumps meet, Jazmin Bailey came 1st in M.G. high jump. Liam Kelton came 1st in M.B.long jump, while Robbie Toth placed 1st in M.B.triple jump and second in M.B.high jump.
Thirty-three athletes qualified for, and participated at,R.O.P.S.S.Acompeting against fifty-three schools at Chinguacousey Park. At the finish line in first place was Liam Kelton with 54.64 in the M.B. 400. He came 2nd in M.B. long jump, with a jump of 5.98 As well, Liam came 5th with 1.55 in M.B. high jump. In M.G. high jump, Margaret Wiecek came 4th with 1.35 while Jazmin Bailey came 5th with 1.30. Robbie Toth came 3rdin M.B. pole vault with 2.45,and 3rd in M.B. triple jump. Sarah Pitoscia came 3rd in J.G. pole vault, and Rachel Clark came 2nd in S.G.800.Romello Taylor came 4th in S.B.high jump, jumping 1.85meters.Many athletes attained their personal best at this meet!
Then it was on to South Regionals, which was held at St. Marcellinus. Our athletes earned their spot there by qualifying in the top five at ROPSSAA. On the first day, Sarah Pitoscia and Robbie Toth participated in pole vault. Robbie placed 6th. With an injury, Romello Taylor managed to jump 185cm., placing sixth in S.B. high jump. Liam Kelton did a great job in long jump, earning 2nd place with a jump of 6.04 (narrowly missing 1st by 2cm!). He went directly from there to his 400m run, where he left all the other runners in the dust, coming 1st with a time of 54.59. On the second day, Liam Kelton and Margaret Wiecek participated in high jump, and Rachel Clark in the 800m run. Jazmin Bailey tied for fourth with a personal best of 140 and had to have a jump off, finishing 5th in M.G. high jump. Robbie Toth placed a remarkable 2nd in M.B. triple jump with a personal best of 11.90.
OFSSAA took place at St. Marcellinus, with our athletes competing against the best in the province. There, Liam Kelton ran in the fastest of three heats in M.B. 400. He ran an amazing personal best of 53.72. He qualified for the finals, but was unable to run due to an injury. He finished eighth in this event as well as in long jump, with a jump of 5.83.Robbie Toth represented Clarkson in M.B.triple jump, placing 16th in the province. Congratulations to these dedicated athletes. Well done Chargers!
Mr. Walford and Ms. Maika would like to thank Marissa Gale and Lakeya Tomlinson for their invaluable work as team managers.