Keeping P.A.C.E. | September + October 2023

Keeping P.A.C.E. | September + October 2023

THE PACE OF THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Hereโ€™s to new beginnings! This year has started exceptionally well with some familiar and new unique learning opportunities for our P.A.C.E. students and teachers alike! From our yearly Terry Fox participation to exciting farming and leadership adventures there have been many smiles and such an overwhelming eagerness to learn through exploration. We could not be more excited to see what the rest of the 2023-2024 school year brings!

SEPTEMBER + OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS

On Tuesday September 12, Shea Coughlan (a Terry Fox School Runย Ambassador) passionately shared Terry Foxโ€™s story with our grades 1-6 students, inspiring them to actively engage in their community by participating in the Terry Fox Run held annually at P.A.C.E.

On Friday September 22, P.A.C.E. students began their annual competition for the coveted House Cup in a special school-wide event called “House Day” – each team hoping to earn house points through friendly competition against their peers. It was a fabulous, fun-filled morning for all students and staff!

We also hosted our annual Terry Fox Run on September 22 to help raise money for cancer research. We are grateful for all of the support from the P.A.C.E. community! Over the years, we are proud to say that P.A.C.E. students have raised $106,894 for cancer research.

On September 26, our grades 6-8 students competed against 11 other schools in the annual SSAF Ultimate Frisby tournament. It was a beautiful day and congratulations to all athletes for making it to the playoffs!

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On Friday September 28, we commemorated orange shirt day. Everyone was encouraged to wear an orange shirt as a way to raise awareness of the intergenerational impacts of residential schools. We aimed to honour the experiences of Indigenous Peoples and to celebrate their resiliency by recognizing ‘Every Child Matters.’

From October 4-6, our grade 8 students embarked on a leadership and team building field study at Olympia Outdoor and Challenge Education Centre. Through various custom designed activities, students worked on character development strategies to allow them to explore critical thinking, personal responsibility and integrity, as well as team leadership skills. The experience was challenging, enjoyable and memorable for all!

On October 11th, our grade 3 scientists visited Forsythe Family Farmsย to see soil in action! They fed the goats and sheep and learned about how the animals depend on soil to produce their food, while also helping the soil by providing fertilizer for it. Students had a chance to observe some soil experiments, including how rocks turn into soil through erosion and how water drainage is affected by the amount of space between particles. They also went on a nature walk and observed many different types of mushrooms helping decompose the organic matter back into soil. Students compared the black forest soil to the light grey soil found in the pumpkin patch while getting to choose their own pumpkin as a souvenir!

To complement their first unit in Global Perspective – Early Settlements and New France – our grade 7s enjoyed a field study at Sainte Marie Among The Hurons! Students had the opportunity to view the site of the Jesuit settlement and many historical buildings, such as a longhouse! They also enjoyed learning about quill making, and even had the chance to make their own quills and try writing with them.

Our grade 2s had a wonderful time on their field trip to the ROM.ย  Students thoroughly enjoyed exploring, researching, and drawing a wonderful variety of minerals, gemstones, meteorites, and rocks bringing everything they have learned in theme studies to life in a beautiful and magnificent way.

To complement their Science unit – Characteristics of Living Things – our grade 1s visited Round The Bend Farm. They learned about different vegetables and the growing process, took a wagon ride, explored corn mazes, and fed a variety of farm animals. It was an a-moo-zing day!

SETTING THE PACE

What a fantastic couple of months! We have achievements to be proud of but still have work to do. As we look ahead to November and December, we are excited for:ย 

  • November 1 – U12 Flag Football Tournament
  • November 3 – U14 Flag Football Tournament
  • November 8 – Beaver Computing Contest (grades 5-8)
  • November 10 – Remembrance Day Assembly
  • November 13 – Immunization Clinic (grades 7-8)
  • November 14 – U12 Indoor Soccer Tournament
  • November 16 – Canada Jay Mathematical Competition (grades 7-8)
  • November 20 – U14 Girls Soccer Tournament
  • November 23 – U12 Co-Ed Soccer Tournament
  • November 24 – Awards Assembly; Term 2 Begins
  • November 30 – U14 Boys Soccer Tournament
  • December 1 – Term 1 Report Cards Distributed
  • December 4 – U14 Dodgeball Tournament
  • December 6 – U20 Dodgeball Tournament
  • December 7-8 – Parent-Teacher Interviews (school closed)
  • December 13 – Holiday Music Concert
  • December 15 – School Closes at 12pm for Winter Break.
  • January 8 – School Resumes

Keep pace with whatโ€™s going on with our students with our bi-monthly blog updates. For an insiderโ€™s view into your childโ€™s enriched learning experience, join the P.A.C.E. community on Instagram.

Keeping P.A.C.E. | September + October 2022

Keeping P.A.C.E. | September + October 2022

THE PACE OF THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE

HELLO 2022/2023 SCHOOL YEAR! We are super excited to have everyone back at it once again. We really hit the ground running and could not be more impressed with everyoneโ€™s willingness and eagerness to grow, adapt and learn this term! Letโ€™s take a look back at a few highlights from the start of the year!

SEPTEMBER + OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS

In September P.A.C.E. held its 2022-2023 student council elections! We are so proud of all candidates. Congratulations to all!

Our students began the annual competition for the coveted House Cup in a special school event called, “House Day”. A sea of colours could be found across campus as students proudly sported their assigned house colour [Delta (blue) Theta (yellow), Sigma (Purple), Omega (red)], with each team hoping to earn house points through friendly competition against their friends on the other side. The sound of energetic music, laughter and cheering filled the school and our grounds instilling a contagious sense of school spirit. The student council executive, along with multiple high school volunteers, organized yet another incredibly successful House Day complete with outdoor sports, trivia, minute-to-win-it, huckle buckle, dodgeball and the much-loved teachers versus students basketball game.It was a fabulous fun-filled morning for staff and students!

P.A.C.E. hosted its 22nd annual Terry Fox Run! Since 1995, P.A.C.E. has proudly raised over $100,000 for the Terry Fox Foundation. We’re grateful for all of the support from the P.A.C.E community to help us continue to donate to this meaningful cause.

Pendant la session de franรงais, les รฉlรจves de la dixiรจme annรฉe ont fait le rรฉsumรฉ de La Belle au Bois Dormant de Charles Perrault et ont fait des illustrations qui reprรฉsentaient ce conte de fรฉes.

During French class, the grade 10 students did the summary of The Sleeping Beauty of Charles Perrault and complemented their work with beautiful illustrations. Check out Lauren Brownโ€™s!

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Our Elementary Ultimate Frisbee team played in their first SSAF tournament of the year. It was a cool day, but the team showed dedication and perseverance and placed 3rd in a very competitive tournament. Well done!

And congratulations to the U20 P.A.C.E. Ultimate Frisbee team for finishing in 1st place at the SSAF U20 Ultimate Frisbee Tournament!

In our extracurricular sketching program, students have been learning about shadows and light through the sketching of 3D shapes. Check out their cubes!

The grade 3s visited Forsythe Farms to expand upon what they’re learning in their Soils Unit in Science class. Students had the opportunity to feed animals and learn about how manure is used to add nutrients to soil; compared properties of the soil at the farm compared to the soil found in the nearby forest; and examined the rate at which different soils drain water.

The grade 8 science students participated in a Botany field study at Bruce’s Mill Conservation Area. They collected soil and leaf samples to analyze the health of ecosystems, and took to the trees for some tree top trekking. It was in-tree-guing!

The grade 9 students are studying Ecology in science! To complement the unit, the students visited Bond Lake, an important part of the watershed system on the Oak Ridges Moraine. Using a map as their guide, they located different sites and landmarks around the lake, and collected soil and water samples to determine the impact of urbanization on the environment. Did you know that the Oak Ridges Moraine was created 15000 years ago from continental glaciers, spans 160 km, is a natural filter of rain water and feeds 65 different rivers with clean water? And lucky for us, only a 10 minute hike from our school.

The grade 6s took a field trip to Black Creek Pioneer Village to complement their study on the Victorian Era. Students participated in activities that are reminiscent of the Victorian Era and experienced a day in the life of a student during that time in history.

SETTING THE PACE

What a start to the 2022/2023 year! We have achievements to be proud of but still have work to do! As we look ahead to November and December we are excited for:ย 

  • November 2- Toronto Symphony Orchestra at Roy Thomson Hall (grades 7-11)
  • November 7 – Beaver Computing Contest (grades 7-9)
  • November 10 – American Mathematics Contest (AMC10 and AMC12 – by invitation only)
  • November 10ย  Grade 12 parent evening (university applications)
  • November 11 – Remembrance Day Assembly
  • November 16 – Canadian Senior and Intermediate Mathematics Contests (Grades 10 and 12 by invitation only)
  • November 17 – Awards Assembly
  • November 17 – Gray Jay Contest (grade 8)
  • November 18 – Term 2 begins
  • November 23 – Vaccination Clinic (grades 7 and 8)
  • November 25 – Famous PEOPLE Players (grade 4)
  • November 25 – Term 1 Report Cards Distributed
  • November 29 – Science Odyssey (grade 5)
  • December 1-2 – Parent and Teacher Interviews (school closed)
  • December 7 – Music Concert
  • December 8 – Financial Literacy Test (by invitation only)
  • December 9 – January 2 – Winter Break (school closes on December 9 at 12:00 p.m.)
  • January 3 – School Resumes

 

Keep pace with whatโ€™s going on with our students with our bi-monthly blog updates. For an insiderโ€™s view into your childโ€™s enriched learning experience, join the P.A.C.E. community on Instagram.

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