The Art of Procrastination

Brydie Smith Community, Student Spotlight No Comments

 

As adults, we are all too aware of the struggles of procrastination. We are tempted by the pull of instant gratification, making it easier to choose the small, easy or fun task(s) first. It is much more satisfying to see the results of a quick tidy up rather than be content in knowing you have scrubbed every surface in a full spring-clean, especially when you would rather be BBQing, reading, or spending time with your loved ones. I sense some of our students are currently trying to manage similar struggles regarding their school work. In fact, one of our middle schoolers showed me this interesting TEDtalk that she stumbled upon, ironically while she was procrastinating. It is much easier for us to tell our children/students the importance of paying attention to school and staying current with their coursework, than it is for them to avoid the distractions of working from home.

With the YMCA Academy online classes taking place in the morning, students essentially have the whole afternoon to try to manage their time wisely for completing any additional or outstanding assignments. There is of course the 1pm-2pm help session available, and students can book time with staff to work 1:1 on assignments. Below, I have also compiled some tips that may help avoid distractions and procrastination for other parts of their day:

  • Turn off notifications on devices
    This may be a challenge for some students, but setting their devices to “Do Not Disturb”, Airplane Mode or turning off notifications can be a huge benefit to their attention span during class times/additional work sessions.
  • Leaving devices in another room
    Even with notifications turned off, it can be tempting to check for messages or scroll through social media sites. Leaving your cell phone or tablet, etc, in another room (or across the same room) can make it easier to ignore the urges to check a device.
  • Pomodoro Technique
    This is a technique that is designed to break large tasks down into smaller ones. It essentially requires 25 minutes of focused work, with a 5 minute break, repeated four times until you take an extended 20 minute break. This is a long time to expect most of our students to sit and focus, however this same concept can be used in smaller time frames.
  • Set a deadline/timeframe
    This transition into online learning has understandably been a challenge for many students. Setting a deadline or timeframe for school work each day can help students avoid feeling overwhelmed with course content.
  • Create a schedule
    Creating and using a schedule can be a great way for your child to learn how to manage and prioritize their time, a skill that will help them throughout their lives. We are happy to assist any student with making a schedule that suits their needs.

This is a generic list of tips and tools available, and may not be suited to each student. As always, we are happy to work with students who are struggling and have many supports in place to assist all of our students. If you have any concerns about your student, please feel free to contact us!

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).

Coronavirus Inspired Art

Zoe Rutherford Arts, Beyond the Classroom, Community, Events No Comments

Throughout Visual Arts, we have discussed how creating art is one of the greatest forms of self-expression. We can create art about anything to show what we feel, how we feel and why we feel it. We create art to communicate. There is no right or wrong way to make it. Coronavirus, a pandemic and online school is not anything we saw coming. Lots of questions and emotions can arise from situations like this.

Before the break, the class was in the middle of learning about Colour Theory. Our initial classes online focused on the psychology of colour and the idea that colours can be used to express specific emotions.
What these Academy Art students did was create art inspired by how they were feeling in the initial weeks of the pandemic, with a focus on colours and what they associate with those colours.

The results were all so different! Students had to get resourceful and use whatever materials they had access to at home. Some painted, some drew with pencil crayons and some made digital art or a collage. It was so interesting and inspiring to read each student’s reflection expressing how they feel and what their art signified.

Academy students create COVID-19 inspired art
The thing that inspired me was the way I was feeling. I was sad and lonely and found myself craving socializing…The way I thought of describing it was by a roll of toilet paper and it felt right to do so considering what’s going on. It’s related to the problem going on with the world right now and the roll will unwind and tell more of a story the more it unrolls more and includes how I am feeling via pictures. It is important [to create art] because it helps you express yourself in pictures and let people know how you are feeling as well as let you get some of that weight off of your chest. – SE
Academy students create COVID-19 inspired art
I have been having a lot of FOMO when I was quarantined, after seeing photos and snapchat stories, but in reality there is not much happening out there….My mom is in the right corner not looking very happy. I am in the top left corner crying. I don’t know why I put myself crying but it’s just there. My cat is in the middle between my mom and I. He is having a really good time and is loving the quarantine. I am in the middle thinking there is nothing going on in my house. I think there is all the colour in life, which is supposed to be people and being outside and fun just outside me. I’m not in there, because I’m in the black, But in reality, it’s all black anyways. – AF
Academy students create COVID-19 inspired art
I used black because it sort represents being sad and the red represents people being sick. what i was thinking when i did my art i was thinking about being protected against the virus the red symbolizes the danger because i cant go out -FL
Academy students create COVID-19 inspired art
I used blue to represent how hot the flame is in hell to kill the virus. I also used blue for the splatters to show how calm I feel about this whole situation. The reason why I chose black for the background is that I feel this shows respect for the people who have died; black is the colour of mourning. White is in this piece because for me, white means life, which contrasts the black for mourning. The white represents the people who have survived after they’ve had the virus…Art is a way to express your feelings and deep, inner thoughts. It’s a good outlet for feelings like fear or anger. Instead of letting these feelings build up, you can express them through art. My art conveys the fact that I strongly dislike the Coronavirus. If other people feel the same way, then when they see my art, it might connect with them (and me).- NP
Academy students create COVID-19 inspired art
I chose blue and green because the average colour for a safety mask is blue and if i think of the coronavirus i see green…It’s important to create art in difficult times because art helps express how you feel…I feel like the message to viewers is that people are trying to fight the virus and there is maybe hope. -OS
Academy students create COVID-19 inspired art
I used dark blue, dark purple and orange and brown. I also used a very dark green because they remind me of how I fell during this time and my emotions. Art can help with your emotions and feelings and it is very relaxing for some people that have a hard time explaining themself. – CK
I am inspired by my artwork because I am sad and worried about other people and inspicaly poor people because they can be affected by coronavirus. The colours I chose are beige, blue, gray and white. I chose these colours to make me feel sad about coronavirus. – AE

Students Experiment with Tex-Mex

Katie Clay Beyond the Classroom, Community No Comments

 

This week for Cooking Club students put together a variety of mouth watering Tex-Mex foods. This theme allowed students to use the ingredients they had on hand and tailor their dish to their particular tastes. There were quesadillas, tacos, burritos, nachos, taco salads and a bean dip!

With virtual Cooking Club students work at their own pace to prep and cook their food and then are asked to show their dish to the group through the video call. The club is also a chance to socialize with the friends that they have been missing for the last couple of months. This was made clear by some of the student comments this week:

“I come to cooking club because I like making food and hanging out with all you guys.”

“My favourite thing about cooking club is hanging out with friends from school.”

Next week will be another chance for students to get together and practice making pasta- a meal every student should know how to make!