Woodlands School Council

Hello everyone,

This is to remind you that there will be a School Council Meeting at 7.00 p.m. on Monday November 21st, 2011 in the Woodlands School Library. The presentation following the meeting is on Transition to Colleges and Universities, an important topic, particularly for grade 11 and 12 students and their parents. Students will be applying for University and College in the coming weeks. If you have any questions, this is the time to start asking. So mark this date on your calendar and please do come out for the presentation.

The Woodlands School Council

Hi everyone,

Here are some dates for some upcoming University Open Houses. You should register for them as many offer campus tours; you can also just drop by.

Please check here regularly as we will be updating this information as it becomes available. College open houses will be posted shortly.

Ontario Universities' Fair
Friday, October 14, through Sunday, October 16, 2011
Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Metro Toronto Convention Centre

Friday, October 14: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 15: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 16: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

University Fall Preview Days For prospective students and their families.

McMaster University
Saturday, October 30, 2011
http://registrar.mcmaster.ca/tours.html

University of Western Ontario
Saturday November 19, 2011
http://www.welcome.uwo.ca/preview/visitus/index.html

March Break Open House 2012 - Saturday, March 10, 2012

University of Guelph
Sunday, November 6, 2011
University of Guelph campus
https://admission.uoguelph.ca
Science and Engineering Sunday, November 13, 2011

University of Toronto
St George Campus - Saturday October 29, 2011
Mississauga Campus - Sunday October 30th 2011 and March 11, 2012
Scarborough Campus - Saturday November 19, 2011
http://www.utoronto.ca/fallcampusdays/

Ryerson University
Thursday November 4th and November 18th 10
http://www.ryerson.ca/undergraduate/admission/visit/discover.html

York University
Keele Campus, Saturday, November 12, 2011
Glendon Campus, Sunday, November 13, 2011
http://futurestudents.yorku.ca/fallcampusday

University of Ottawa
Friday October 29th 10
http://www.admission.uottawa.ca

Queens University
Saturday, October 30th, and Saturday, November 13, 2010.
http://www.queensu.ca/visit/

Brock University
Sunday November 7th 2010
https://experience.brocku.ca/Undergraduate_Study/UGStudies.ezc

University of Windsor
Friday November 12th 2010
http://www.uwindsor.ca/openhouse/

University of Waterloo
Saturday, November 6th | 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
www.findoutmore.uwaterloo.ca
Science Open House October 30
science.uwaterloo.ca/events/2010

Wilfred Laurier University
Friday, November 5, 2010
http://www.electronicinfo.ca/en/

On Saturday November 5, 2011, the Woodlands School is organizing a fundraiser in partnership with the White Oak Ford Dealership (Mississauga) at the Woodlands School (In the parking lot). The event will be held from 9.00am to 4.00 pm.

The goal of this fundraiser is to complete 300 test drives and White Oak Ford will donate $20.00 for every test drive to a maximum of $6,000.00. Money will be donated to the Woodlands activity of each participant’s choice (e.g. Athletics, DECA, Music, etc). We need 300 households out that day to drive the Ford Cars - There will be TEN models available to drive.

White Oak Ford is also donating food and drinks to the school for a fundraising BBQ, which will be run by teachers and student volunteers.

In addition, Ford is further donating two tickets to a hockey game and a hockey jersey, which will be raffled during the day. Raffle tickets will be sold at the School Council table, located at the front entrance of the school and the draw will take place at the end of the day

This is really a three way partnership between the school, the dealership and the school parents. So lets all get out there and participate. Students will be bringing home forms for parents to book an appointment time to drive a ford vehicle.

PLEASE respond and make your appointment – It is a great way for you to be a part of your school fundraiser. Tell your family and friends (its one entry per household).

Get involved and help make this fundraiser a success for the school and your student. Remember to bring your driver’s licence for this event. After your drive test appointment you will be asked to fill out a form with a representative from White Oak Ford. Please do fill it out as the donations will be based on your drive and the completed form.

Looking forward to seeing you all there.

Thank you and good luck!!

The Woodlands School Council.

Registration for grades 7 through 12 will take place at The Woodlands on the following dates. Students wil be receiving a letter in the next 7-10 days confirming these dates and providing additional details on the requirements for registration.

Grade 9 orientation and ELL orientation will take place on Thursday, September 1 from 10:00am to 2:30pm.

Thanks to all the parents who attended the November 22 Council Meeting, which was a great success. We had 24 parents in attendance many of whom participated in the discussion that followed.

A special thanks to Lily Ye for encouraging eight new families to attend the meeting; these families are brand new to the Woodlands School. We look forward to seeing them again and hope to see more new families at every meeting.

The presentation topic was “Transitioning to colleges and Universities” hosted by Catherine Haire, Head of Student Services and she was joined by Cleo Boyd, Director of Academic Skills Centre at U of T and Dimple Savia, a Woodlands School and York University Graduate.

Shannon Skinner, Liaison Officer from Skills Canada delivered an in-school presentation entitled “Skills Work! What’s Out There” at The Woodlands School on November 9th for the entire grade 8 student body. Queenston Drive grade 8 students also attended this presentation. The 45 minute PowerPoint presentation focused on the career opportunities that exist in the skilled trades and technologies.

Topics covered included:

• profiling careers in the skilled trades,
• apprenticeships,
• trends in the workplace,
• and how students can get involved now and in years to come in hands-on ways. 

Feedback from the grade 8 students was very positive. It inspired many of our students and engaged them with interactive dialogue, eye-opening statistics, a quiz challenge, and video clips of Ontario youth sharing their experience of working in the skilled trades and technologies.

For more detailed information please check out the website www.skillsontario.com or contact Mr. G. Samuels, Guidance Counsellor.

The entire grade 8 student body was fortunate again this year to have participated in an innovative one-day program that will change the way they view their future, Junior Achievement of Central Ontario, together with their corporate volunteers from FedEx Canada presented “Economics of Staying in School” (ESIS) on November 17th.

ESIS allows students to understand how every opportunity is a stepping stone to success and realize the financial demands and constraints of independence. Students can are able to reflect on the advantages of remaining in school to acquire the knowledge and skills needed for long-term career success.

Other Junior Achievement programs for grade 7 will hopefully be offered in the New Year.

Please contact Mr. Samuels, grade 7/8 Guidance Counsellor for more details.

On November 30th, 2010, Woodlands teacher, Rena Billmoria and her Canadian International Law Class (CLN4U) hosted a career fair in the school cafeteria...

My Canadian and International Law class (CLN4U) hosted a career fair on Tues. Nov. 30 in the cafeteria. We examined popular television shows related to law (CSI, Criminal Minds, Bones, 48 Hours Mystery etc.) and used these shows as a springboard into our project. Students worked on projects related to special police task forces, CSIS, behavioural analysis, forensic science, crime scene investigation, corporate law, forensic anthropology, medical examination and private investigation. Students were asked  to use their creative and critical thinking skills to make their booth interesting and engaging. Students used brochures, puzzles, experiments, case studies, board games, television shows, video games and mystery-based problems to promote their career and educate visitors on their topic of study.  Students, as a class, were also involved in many "citizenship" behaviours - they created morning announcements, large posters and used social networking to promote the project to their peers. The independent and collaborative contributions made by students in CLN4U helped to make the fair a great success.

The Woodlands School was thrilled to host "MacHomer" for 350 Gr. 11 and 12 English students on Friday, November 26. Rick Miller's highly entertaining one-man show presented the story of Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, using over 50 voices from the popular TV show, "The Simpsons". MacHomer has been performed all over the world to rave reviews, and our experience at The Woodlands confirmed popular sentiment that "this is THE most memorable Shakespeare experience students will have in high school."

"MacHomer" breaks new ground in its ability to make Shakespeare accessible to all students, regardless of their facility with the English language. Transcending the language barrier with classic Simpsons characterization and expression, Rick Miller still manages to retain a high proportion (85%, in fact!) of the original Shakespearean text in this clever mix of Homer Simpson meets Macbeth. Brilliant split-second character changes, using more than 50 impersonations from "The Simpsons", gave this performance incredible fluidity. Whether used as an introduction to the play or post-study comparitive piece, MacHomer can delight even the most reluctant student of Shakespeare. A thoroughly engaging performer who instantly connects with his teen audience, Rick Miller is to be commended for making Shakespeare relevant, understandable, and fun!

Rick Miller will return to The Woodlands in April, 2011, for a repeat performance of "MacHomer" for Gr. 11 and 12 students enrolled in English courses in Semester 2!

Submitted by Jill Fowler, Curriculum Head English/ Library & Yearbook Staff Adviser

Our Chapters evening, at Square One on November 24th, was a great success. It was organized by Rob Dutton, Mathematics teacher, and this is what he had to say:

"Woodlands students, staff, and family and friends enjoyed an evening of music, a short dramatic presentation, and book talks (student and staff participants), along with shopping of course, at Chapters Square One on Wednesday, 24 November.  Approximately $240 in funds was raised for books for our school library and/or other literacy initiatives.  Thank you to all the participants and guests!"