Cross Curricular Connections: Woodland Art Meets Ecology

Brydie Smith Native Studies, Science and Math No Comments


Last week two classes took advantage of the beautiful weather and went for walking field trips exploring Woodland art and Ecology.

The Indigenous studies class visited a mural by the woodland artist Philip Cote called The Original Family. After recording their descriptions of the mural, through audio notes and sketches, the class identified features of Woodland art, and learned about the history and significance of the art form. The class then sauntered over to Allan Gardens and applied their newfound knowledge to sketching native species in the woodland art style.

The science class is currently studying biology and we recently learned about the levels of ecology. We wanted to connect our learning to real life so we went on a mini adventure to identify levels of ecology in our own surroundings. We walked to Allen Gardens in order to observe the living organisms and non-living matter. We admired the scenery then categorized what we saw into either an organism, population, community, ecosystem or biosphere.

The science class and the Indigenous studies met up after they finished their respective activities and shared what they learned. As a final cross-curricular learning challenge the scientists identified the level of ecology of each species the artists had sketched.

“Our Rights” ART Exhibit

Brydie Smith English and Humanities No Comments

Every child under the age of 18 has rights. These are things that allow us to live a full life and allow us to live to our fullest potential. Every child around the world has the same rights!

In our “Dynamics of Human Relationships” class, we learned about the rights and responsibilities of children by studying the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child. Every student chose a right from the Convention and creatively campaigned for it through art, posters, song or video.

This assignment was about celebrating children as active participants in their own lives and in communities, as active citizens who can and should meaningfully contribute to decision-making-being the loudest voice in the crowd!

“I chose Article 31:The Right to Play and Rest. I picked this ‘right’ because I feel like it is very important that we let people have the chance to play and rest and get to experience life in their own way. I think that playing is important because that is how we learn and grow. I wrote a song about my ‘right’ because I really like music and songwriting and it is something that I really enjoy. I feel like it is a good form of self expression and I think that if I write a song then it would be a good way to get the point across.” AB

“I chose Article 38: The Right to Protection And Freedom From War. I chose this right because war is a traumatizing thing to see by young eyes and so I chose it because everybody needs to be protected from hatred. The message I expressed was in a painting. I enjoy painting very much and I decided to put it into a painting. It’s the one way I can truly express myself.” QK

“I chose Article 23: The Right to Special Education and Care If You Have a Disability. I decided to do this ‘right’ because it is significant for me and other children with disabilities to get extra support to practice their writing, speaking, reading and understanding skills so they will get an education to help them for their future and to learn how to get support when they need it.” AE

“I chose Article 31:The Right to Play and Rest because I think that playing and sleeping as a child is one of the most important things you can do to grow up.” I was inspired by the Unicef videos my teacher showed in class so I made my own video to show my ‘right.’ OS

The Power of Words

Brydie Smith English and Humanities, Experiential Learning, Healthy Living 1 Comment

During the first week of Dynamics of Human Relationships, we spent a lot of time learning about self-esteem, self-concept, and how the two factor into healthy relationships. We took a closer look at how our self-esteem can play a role in what we post on our social media accounts, as well as how our self confidence impacts how we interpret what we see online. During these lessons, we had many open discussions in which students shared some factors that influence their self-perceptions. Students shared stories from the past and present, disclosing incidents of bullying, social trends, and online activity. One student shared of an incident dating back to grade 4 and detailed how she still carries the hurtful comments from almost a decade ago. In order to show the lasting impact of hurtful comments and negative self talk, we participated in a class activity.

We started the activity by each taking one crisp, clean, blank sheet of paper. We then took turns “bullying” and talking negatively to our paper, crumpling the paper with each hurtful comment. We heard comments such as “you will never find love”, “you are worthless”, “you are dirty” and “you are weak”. We stopped bullying our pieces of paper once we had them crumpled up into small balls. We then took it in turns to apologize to the piece of paper for what we had said and tried to flatten the paper back out with each apology. We ended up with creased, ripped, holey and damaged pieces of paper. Despite how much we apologized, we could not fully erase the damage that we had done.

The students seemed to connect with this activity and appreciate the visual aid of irreparable damage. Not only is this an important lesson for when we’re talking to and about others, but it’s also important to recognize that the effects of negative self-talk can be just as long lasting and influential to our self-esteem.

Food and Nutrition Cook Off

Rein Tammemagi Beyond the Classroom, Experiential Learning, Healthy Living No Comments

While we couldn’t cook at school, or share our culinary creations with each other during a potluck, the Food and Nutrition class made the best of our situation, and moved our meal preparations into the comfort of our own kitchens. Over the course of the 5 week octomester we had 4 “cookoffs”, in which the students practiced a variety of important meal preparation skills in the very environment that they should be applying those skills now and in the future. Each meal required that the students demonstrated specific knowledge or skills that they had learned and practiced during each unit. By cooking at home they were able to develop some comfort and familiarity with their own kitchens and in doing so make cooking for themselves and their families more accessible. Though I cannot be certain, as I was unable to taste test them myself, by all indications they made what appeared to be some super yummy creations.

Test Anxiety and Study Habits

YMCA Academy Academics, Community, Student Spotlight No Comments

Test Anxiety and Study Habits
The time leading up to your test can often be stressful and anxiety-inducing. Being in a high-pressured situation can actually deplete or take away from your working memory and reduce your academic performance.

We call this choking.

Choking is not exclusive to kids/students, but is also experienced by adults. This form of anxiety is seen everywhere and in everyday life, but let’s just focus on academia.
It is not unusual for students to feel anxious about school, sitting a test or even having to do a presentation. The issue now is what can we do to help reduce our academic anxiety? Here are my favourite tips for dealing with academic anxiety:

  • Practise positive study habits and stay organized
    • Make use of study tools.
    • No crash studying.
    • Review your material often.
    • Use a bullet journal or an agenda to help stay on course.
  • Practise self-care
    • Go for walks in your community with a friend, your parents or take the family dog for a walk.
    • Exercise.
    • Have a well-balance diet and get enough sleep.
  • Talk about your worries with someone
    • Talking about stressful situations can help put things into perspective and help to find solutions.
  • Write about it
    • Writing about your worries can help to reduce mental distress and improve your overall well-being.
    • Bonus: Writing about positive feelings, such as things in your life that you are grateful for or proud of, can also help to reduce anxiety and depression.

Test Anxiety and Study Habits
To decrease the stress and anxiety that we feel before upcoming tests, it helps to feel prepared and organized. As mentioned above, leaving studying to the last minute is not the best way to do this. There are some great ways that we can spend the semester/octomester preparing for upcoming tests, evaluations, and culminating projects. Here are a few great options to try:

  • Create an ideal study environment
    • This will look different for everyone based on their learning styles and strengths. Some will need a clear work surface with no distractions and a checklist, others may thrive with a laptop on the couch and music in the background. Know what works well for you, and create that environment when you need to study.
  • Maintain lists
    • It’s important to have a to-do list that you can see in order to prioritize your assignments, activities, and study time. It’s also satisfying to cross off the items on your list!
    • It can also be helpful to keep a separate list of things that occupy your mind while you are trying to study. These can be worries that pop up, or other things that you want or need to do. Keeping a blank piece of paper beside you (or a separate app/tab on the computer) allows you to notice these thoughts, track them, continue studying, and return to these thoughts later.
  • Review materials
    • Studying doesn’t just mean re-reading slideshows or re-writing notes. Teachers at the Academy preset their information in multiple ways to cater to all learning styles.
    • You can re-read or re-write if that works for you, but you can also review additional resources provided by your teachers, watch the lesson again if it was an online recorded lesson, answer bonus questions, or even create your own questions!
  • Focus on Main Ideas
    • If a word, topic, or subject is mentioned more than once, that implies importance! Pay attention to the themes that repeat and try to further your understanding in those areas.
  • Note-Taking
    • If you are taking notes in class or while watching a video, keep the notes brief. You want to be able to communicate your thoughts without missing more content.
    • Use short sentences and abbreviations rather than whole sentences.

Test Anxiety and Study Habits
There isn’t one method that will work well for everyone, and the methods that work for you may change as you get older. Try different techniques and see what works best for you. You can read some more Study Habits tips and tricks here. If you ever have questions about how to study, where to access more resources, or want to discuss your test anxiety, remember you can reach out to your teachers, support staff, and the guidance counsellor.

Written by:
Brydie Smith – Educational Assistant
Jamie Banton – Student Life Counsellor