A Smorgasbord of Fun

Zareh Demirdji Beyond the Classroom, Community No Comments

 

Week three of Board Game Club saw staff and students playing two new games and revisiting a game from last week. The first game we played was Patently Stupid where players are given odd challenges and must come up with creative inventions to solve the problem. Come up with the best idea, and you could be given enough money to produce your product. The second game was Trivia Murder Party, a deadly quiz show where you match wits with a trivia obsessed host. Players answer questions correctly in each round or else face off against one another in devious mini games to make it back into the next round. Lastly, we spent the majority of our time playing trivia challenges on Kahoot, which was such a blast last week, we couldn’t resist playing some more.

Wellness Wednesday: Fitness Club

John Cuthbert Beyond the Classroom, Community, Healthy Living No Comments

 

Each Wellness Wednesday at 11, students join the Fitness Club video call ready to move, sweat and be well.

Fitness Club (also affectionately referred to as the Temple of Swole – a far-cry from the Fortress of Swole-itude frequented by Superman) provides an opportunity for students and staff alike to meet up online for some group fitness goodness. After joining the video chat, teachers Reinman and John guide participants through a whole-body exercise routine designed to improve mobility, endurance and strength.

Each session has its own unique exercise routine, which emphasizes proper workout structure and technique while keeping things fresh and fun. Participants begin with a dynamic warm-up to ready their bodies for the specific exercises in that session. Next, the crew ramps things up with technique instruction and a high intensity interval training (HIIT) set of 10 calisthenics exercises. The group closes the session with a cool-down that aids recovery for whatever the future holds (whether it’s tomorrow’s exercise session or Cooking Club).

Grade 11 Biology Unit 4 – Microbiology

Zareh Demirdji Beyond the Classroom, Science and Math No Comments

 

With the genetics unit in the rearview mirror, the grade 11 biology class moved ahead to its second online learning unit, microbiology. The unit began with a look at the anatomy and morphology of eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. The structure and functions of eukaryotic cells was a review for the class as we had gone over that material in the past, but the form and function of bacterial and viral cells was new for everyone. Next we learned about how each of the aforementioned cells reproduce themselves and then proceeded to learn about their life cycles.

Students learn about microbiology during this session.We ended the unit by focussing on various types of symbiotic relationships and the dynamics of each. The unit itself being a fitting topic for the world we currently find ourselves living in, we spent the last class of the unit discussing bacterial and viral infections, their similarities and differences, and how to treat and prevent both types. To demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the unit, students worked on a mini research project identifying and discussing the various impacts microorganisms have on their environments and the ethical issues related to their use in biotechnology.

Having fun With Digital Art and Music in Commtech

Ada Miller Beyond the Classroom, Technology No Comments

 

During these unusual times it’s necessary to take a step back and do something fun. In the communications technology course we took some time creating fun album covers for made-up bands. This involved using open source software, giving students the ability to continue to do photo editing outside of a traditional classroom setting. It also introduced the concept of alternatives to big name software and problem solving using technologies similar, but not identical to, programs such as Photoshop.

After the album covers were created, students got a chance to experiment with making sound files to attempt to mimic music that would be found on a music album with the cover they had created.

Grade 9 Science Unit 4 – Electricity and Its Applications

Zareh Demirdji Beyond the Classroom, Science and Math No Comments

 

Our second online learning unit was physics, where we focused on electricity and its applications that are used by professionals like AB Electrical & Communications. After briefly discussing the different sources of energy to start the unit, we spent an entire class learning about the ins and outs of static electricity where students once and for all understood the mechanics of how those pesky static shocks work when we grab a doorknob, especially in the winter months. We finished off our discussion on static electricity by discussing the different ways to create and dissipate it.

The rest of the unit was all about current electricity and the different ways we produce it. We first learned about the two types of current electricity, alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC), focusing on the latter. We then moved on to the major components of electric circuits, electrical quantities (current, voltage, resistance) and looked at how each of them behave in series and parallel circuits. Students observed these quantities via online circuit simulators and recorded what they saw and discussed their observations. We ended the unit by looking at the different sources of electricity (solar, wind, hydro, nuclear, fossil fuel) and discussed the advantages and disadvantages of each.