2011 03 Spectrum

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MARCH 2011 • ISSUE 7 • VOL . 8

Attention Parents:Registration and re-registration for the 2011-2012 school year begins on March 16.

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THE CALGARY SCIENCE SCHOOL

Report Cards and Student-led Confer-ences - March brings with it a couple of regular, but impor-

tant milestones for us. Trimester 2 comes to an end, which means that report cards and student-led confer-ences will follow. I encourage you to contact your child’s teachers if you have any questions about their achievement and progress. I also strongly encourage all families to at-tend the student-led conferences on March 17 or 18, even if there is the feeling that everyone is up-to-date on what has been happening in the classrooms. Student-led conferences are a time to celebrate students’ hard work and achievement, so I hope to see everyone celebrate with us.

Registration for 2011-2012 - March is also registration time. The fee struc-ture for the 2011-2012 school year is likely to be approved by the Board at their March 15 meeting, so registra-tion for new students and re-regis-tration for current CSS students will be opened the following day. Reg-istration or re-registration and fee payments will again be completed on-line.

Calgary Science School Parent Fund-raising Society - The last item I want to touch on is the hard work of our school council. They are an incred-ibly motivated and talented group. One of their priorities as of late has been to pursue the establishment of a registered society so that the soci-ety might apply for a casino license.

It is the reality in the province right now that casinos and grants are the two primary ways that govern-ment is funding registered not-for-profit community groups such as those that have been established by many school councils across Alberta. I support the work of the council to provide this supplemen-tal funding and encourage anyone who would like to discuss it with me to join me at my Dialogue with Darrell on Thursday, March 3 at 9am in the staff room.

Darrell Lonsberry

Principal’s Message

www.calgaryscienceschool.com

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IN THIS ISSUE16. 22.

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MARCH 2011P r i n c i p a l ’s M e s s a g e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

A n n e T i n g l e L i b r a r y R e p o r t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

B o a r d O f D i r e c t o r s R e p o r t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Tr a f f i c S a f e t y C o m m i t t e e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n A n a l y s t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

C o m m u n i t y G a r d e n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

C S S i n A f r i c a U p d a t e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0

S c h o o l C o u n c i l N e w s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2

F r o m Yo u r S c h o o l N u r s e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 3

C S S B a n d Pa r e n t Vo l u n t e e r s . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 3

C e l l P h o n e U s e a n d P r a n k C a l l s . . . . . . . . 1 4

From your Parent Volunteer Committee..1 4

C o m p o u n d I n t e r e s t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5

C S S S c i e n c e Fa i r. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 6

C S S F e a t u r e d A r t i s t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2

6 . 3 & 6 . 4 Wi n t e r C a m p. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 4

M a r c h 2 0 1 1 C a l e n d a r. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 6

A p r i l 2 0 1 1 C a l e n d a r. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 7

R o b o t G a m e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 8


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MARCH 2011

New additions to our Parent Resources from well-known authors this month:The Curse of the Good Girl: Raising Authentic Girls with Courage and Confidence (2009)Author Rachel Simmons (Odd Girl Out, and Odd Girl Speaks Out) argues that in idealizing the Good Girl, we teach girls to embrace a version of self that cur-tails their power and potential. “Unerringly nice, polite, modest and selfless, the Good Girl identity is an identi-ty so narrowly defined that it’s unachievable.” Real-life experiences such as conflicts with peers or mistakes in class can cause these girls to become paralyzed by self-criticism, and thus inhibit the natural development of social skills and habits. Simmons provides a guide to reverse this trend. From the book inside cover flap: “At once illuminating and prescriptive, The Curse of the Good Girl is an essential guide to contemporary girl culture and a call to arms from a new front in female empowerment.”

Girls on the Edge: The Four Factors Driving the New Crisis for Girls (2010) Psychologist and physi-cian Dr. Leonard Sax identifies and discusses four key factors he believes teenage girls face today - sexual identity, the cyberbubble, obsessions and environ-mental toxins. Following his discussions of these four

factors, Sax offers strategies for empowering girls to grow to become independent and confident women. He believes “social connectedness” is critical for girls within our society to reach their full potential, by en-suring they are involved in communities of women that bridge the generations.

Of equal interest is Sax’s 2007 publication:Boys Adrift: The Five Factors Driving the Epi-demic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachiev-ing Young Men. The five factors Sax identifies are video games (disengagement from real-world pur-suits); teaching methods (current trends in education have unintentionally turned boys off ); prescription drugs (overuse of ADHD medications and the irre-versible damage to motivational centres in the brain); endocrine disruptors (environmental estrogen from plastic and food, and the impact on boys’ develop-ment); and, the devaluation of masculinity (the shifts in popular culture of role models for boys). These titles are included in the parent resources list-ed within the library website: http://web.mac.com/css_library/Site/Welcome.html

Wishing you all a great month of March, as we antici-pate the arrival of Spring.

Donna Johnson AldenTeacher-Librarian

ANNE TINGLE LIBRARY REPORT


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REPORT

The past few months have been very busy for the Board of Directors. The New Year began with our an-nual Board of Director’s Retreat in early January which was quickly followed by the “Action on Research and Innovation” online survey initiated by the Government of Alberta and a conference in Red Deer sponsored by The Association of Alberta Public Charter Schools.

At the same time, we welcome a number of new mem-bers to the Board. Specifically Dr. Sharon Friesen, As-sociate Dean, Faculty of Education, of the University of Calgary, Teri Henderson from Meyers, Norris and Penny, Lindsay Hogan from Conroy Ross and Dale Ronsky, our parent representative from School Coun-cil.

We have a number of Subcommittee initiatives under-way.

The External Collaboration Committee is in the pro-cess of developing a five year plan which visualizes the Calgary Science School as a centre of research, in-novation and excellence in teaching and learning. A significant portion of our Retreat this year was dedi-cated to discussing the future vision for the Calgary Science School. The guiding principles for this vision encompasses the ideals of Alberta Education’s vi-sion for transforming education in the 21st Century through the promotion of engaged learners, ethical citizens and an entrepreneurial spirit. We are strongly committed to the continued development and shar-ing of our innovative practices with respect to our three Charter goals: inquiry-based learning; effec-tive technology integration and Environment and Outdoor Education within a Global framework. As a

charter school we recognize the importance of foster-ing the development of exemplary teaching practic-es, promoting student engagement and developing research-focused relationships that enhance teaching and learning practices at the Calgary Science School. A number of goals are being discussed at this stage and will be shared with our School community at a future date.

The Fund development committee was established to build funds to enhance, support and disseminate the development of a centre of research, innovation and excellence in teaching and learning. This committee has been developing action strategies for funding specific infrastructure capital projects which would enhance our ability to fulfill the vision for the Calgary Science School.

The Facilities Committee, after a very busy year, with the construction of the Instructional Activity Centre (IAC) and a new multi-purpose kitchen/staff room for the school, is actively considering a number of new projects. The list includes a project to engage stu-dents and staff in research to determine physical fac-tors that affect learning, including wall color, lighting, air movement, physical arrangement of instructional spaces, and layout of school grounds and game lay-outs to promote physical activity. As well, a compre-hensive energy audit to determine the feasibility of investing in energy reduction technologies and to promote the involvement of staff and students in the implementation of energy conservation strategies and a grounds audit to ensure the physical building and grounds are safe, secure and well maintained will be undertaken.

Ms. Lori Wilhelm-Einsporn (Board Chair and Chair of the Governance Committee) Mr. Harold Lemieux (Board Vice Chair) Mr. Dave Robinson (Board Past Chair) Ms. Cheryl Lemieux (Chair of the Finance Committee) Dr. Torben Bech-Hansen (Chair of the External Collaboration Committee) Ms. Lorraine Chan; Ms. Catherine Cook (Chair of the Fund Development Committee) Ms. Stephanie Davis; Mr. Tim Edwards (Chair of the Facilities Committee) Dr. Sharon Friesen; Ms. Teri Henderson; Ms. Lindsay Hogan; Ms. Debra Pylypiw (Chair of the School Operations Committee) Mr. Dale Ronsky; Mr. Tom Short (Chair of the Communications Committee) Dr. Norm Vaughan

BOARD OF DIRECTORS


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The School Operations committee continues to moni-tor, review and update the policy manual to reflect intent and practice. This committee will also contin-ue to monitor the sustainability of the transportation system.

The Communications Committee has been working on the ongoing update of the website. A working model of the website was demonstrated to the Board of Directors at its last meeting and we hope it will be up and running in the near future. This website was designed to take the Calgary Science School to a new level of technology use, as well as provide a much wider scope of information for its stakeholders, which includes parents, students, alumnae, interested indi-viduals and corporations.

As a Board, we strongly support professional collabo-ration and providing opportunities for our teachers to develop professionally, while fulfilling our Charter Mandate. The last few months have seen a number of initiatives where our teachers have had the opportu-nity to participate or lead in a number of areas.

• Ms. Shashi Shergill, Ms. Rachelle Savoie, Mr. Jon Hoyt-Hallet and Mr. Garett Kutcher were invited by the Apple Corporation to participate as a team in a unique problem solving activity promoting innovative teaching practices. They were the only Canadian team of the 16 teams from various lo-cations in the United States and one team from Australia who participated in this unique learning experience.

• Mr. Neil Stephenson has been involved in giving several presentations relating to inquiry-based learning and the work of the Calgary Science School to students involved in the teacher prepa-ration program at the University of Calgary.

• Mrs. Brown and Ms. Groeller, together with some of their students shared exemplars of learning at the Calgary Science School through a presenta-tion to first year students in the Master of Teach-ing program.

• Dr. McKinnon, our superintendent was a member of a panel presentation dealing with the landscape of education in Alberta and expectations for new teachers, for the 400 second-year students who will be graduating from the University of Calgary, Master of Teaching program in April.

• Dr. Shelley Robinson worked with 40 teachers from the Calgary Board of Education on the topic of assessment as it pertained to some of our Al-berta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI) re-search and project work at CSS.

• Mr. Jon Hoyt-Hallet (grade 9) and Ms. Natalie Down (grade 7) teamed up with two teachers from Arbor Lake School for a collaborative team teaching experience in which they will spend two days in each school. As well, there will be op-portunities for the administrators to benefit from learning about leadership in each school.

• Dr. Shelley Robinson presented at the February 2011 AISI Conference showcasing the work of our school on the topic of assessment.

• In highlighting examples of exemplary teaching in the Calgary Science School at the Feb 15 board meeting, commendations were extended to: grade 7 teachers Mrs. Carolyn Armstrong and Ms. Nata-lie Down who facilitated the active and enthusi-astic involvement of their students in researching and interpreting the statistics of NHL hockey play-ers through Internet sources and using the infor-mation to determine the level of success of their hockey draft teams; grade 8 humanities teachers Mr. David Scott and Ms. Jaime Groeller who had students prepare their own graphic novel in com-ic book format based on the key elements of the original novel and Mr. Scott Petronech who pro-vided an overview at the board meeting of the use of technology to enhance learning and teaching in the Calgary Science School through the years, a description of his involvement in working with other schools and school jurisdictions and a dis-cussion of his vision for the use of technology in the future.

We believe there is tremendous potential for our teachers and students in promoting teacher collabo-ration within the school and beyond.

Lastly, we would like to thank all parents who com-pleted the online Alberta Education survey on the future of charter schools. The future of the Calgary Science School and all Charter Schools in Alberta is dependent on the voice of Albertans. We are most ap-preciative of your ongoing support of the work of the Calgary Science School.

Lori Wilhelm EinspornChair of the Board


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TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMITTEE UPDATE

The Traffic Safety Committee recently conducted an online survey of CSS parents to gauge driving patterns around the school during student drop off and pick up times, as well as to determine safety concerns identi-fied by parents. The survey resulted in 183 responses and provided a great deal of useful information that will assist the committee in implementing a safety awareness program.

As the committee reviewed the anecdotal responses on the survey, a few key concerns emerged repeatedly with respect to driving and parking habits in the vicini-ty of the 58th Ave. and 34th St. intersection. (See photo above.) Parking in the crosswalk, executing U-turn’s, and disregarding the required parking clearances for stop signs were noted as frequent occurrences that compromise the safety of children, primarily during the after school pick up time period between 3:20 and 3:45 pm.

Over the next month a safety awareness program will share reminders of safe driving practices that will en-sure the safety of CSS students as they are dropped off in the morning and picked up in the afternoon. In ad-

dition, the City of Calgary will be providing temporary ‘No U-turn’ signs that will be positioned on 58th Ave. and 34th St. as a visual reminder for motorists to refrain from this maneuver. Large orange pylons will also be evident to indicate a buffer zone on either side of the crosswalk near the pedestrian gate on the west side of the school grounds. The committee is also exploring the viability of a school safety patrol sponsored by the Alberta Motor Association and will be seeking Board approval in March (a requirement of the AMA) to pur-sue further discussions and possibly arrange a safety audit of the streets around the school.

In launching the safety awareness campaign, the fol-lowing traffic guidelines are provided as a reminder of the expectations for drivers as students are being dropped off and picked up from school:

U-turns• Avoid making U-turns on any roadway surrounding

the school. This is a dangerous practice at any time and is made more so when children are crossing the roads.


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Parking (please see map for reference)

• Park in designated areas only. • The east (school) side of 34th St. from the stop

sign at 58th Ave. south to the Lakeview Com-munity Center is the approved drop off and pick up zone.

• Parking within 5 meters of a stop sign or cross-walk is a bylaw infraction as well as a profound safety hazard and should therefore be avoided.

• The stretch of 34th St. from 58th Ave. to Lewis Dr. and the south side of Lewis Dr. in front of the school is reserved for school buses and is not designated as a drop off / pick up zone for students.

• Avoid obstructing our neighbour’s driveways; they have been very tolerant but did report in the community survey their concern with ve-hicles blocking access to their properties on oc-casion.

• The alley at the rear of the school is not a des-ignated drop off / pick up zone as the flow of traffic cannot be controlled and student safety is therefore compromised.

Speeding•The playground signs that dictate a maximum speed of 30 km/h from 8:30

am to one hour after sunset govern the speed limit around the school.

• As we have many students arriving before 8:30 am, we request that drivers voluntarily extend the 30 km/h limit to 8:00 am in the interest of safety.

While we can appreciate that many people are in a rush to drop off or pick up children and get them to extracurricular activities, patience and courtesy for others will go a long way in ensuring our students are safe while going to and from school. Thank you to all who participated in the survey; your responses and comments are appreciated and valued. If you have further comments or suggestions to improve traffic safety around the school, please contact Phil Butterfield at [email protected].

Phil Butterfield


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Transportation Analyst, a New CSS PositionCSS Transportation has grown considerably since the school moved to Lakeview for the 2002/2003 school year. Currently, over 420 students, or over 70%, are reg-istered riders. The task of organizing and managing the bus system has become too large for a group of volun-teers. The CSS Board created the position of Transporta-tion Analyst to assume those transportation duties that cannot be covered by either the committee or existing CSS staff. After resigning as Chair of the Transportation Committee in October, I was hired as the Transportation Analyst starting in Nov, 2010.

About the same time, CSS began using new software, Ed-ulog, to store all transportation data. The transportation committee volunteers have no access to this software, so a large part of my work is using Edulog to keep track of students, bus stops and routes. I continue to liaise with Southland Transportation. As well, I am to ensure that CSS bussing runs on a sustainable basis by work-ing to keep expenses down while providing a reasonable level of service to as much of Calgary as possible. A key aspect of my work is to work closely with the committee to develop new routes each year.

New Role for Transportation CommitteeThe Transportation Committee remains a vital part of CSS bussing. The volunteers continue to be responsi-ble for communicating with parents in order to provide them with better service. They will update parents in the monthly Spectrum and will email parents directly as needed. Parents can still contact the committee via [email protected] with any comment, question or concern about bussing. The current mem-bers have committed to checking gmail twice a week. Please don’t send any urgent message to gmail, rath-er contact Kathy Babiuk.

The process of yearly route development will be changed by both the Edulog software and the work of the trans-portation analyst. Exactly what the new process will be remains to be determined. Likely, each year the volun-

teers will decide how much input they are able to provide and how many of the analyst’s recommen-dations they will follow. The goal is to get valuable input from the coordinators while keeping their time commitment at a manageable level.

There will be several openings for route coor-dinators next year. We invite anyone interested to contact the committee by email. By getting in-volved now, you will benefit by being mentored by the current route rep as well as participating in route planning. The only requirement is to be willing to provide fair service for all. We are looking for reps from the NE and the SE as well as the part of the NW east of Nose Hill Park. If you live elsewhere and are interested please contact us as more openings may come up.

2011-2012 Registration & Route Planning Registration should begin mid-March and route de-velopment for next year will begin shortly after the registration deadline. CSS will communicate those dates once they are decided on. We plan routes for those registered so please make sure you register before the deadline in order to be included. The new routes should be published in early June and the committee refrains from major changes after that. We always try to accommodate late comers but only if that can be done with minimal impact on existing routes and times. Please note that space is limited on our west side busses, for those living west of Sar-cee Trail. and south of C.O.P. We will plan for all who register before the deadline but those who register late may be put on a waiting list.

If you are planning to use the bus next year and will live in a community that does not currently have a stop, please email me at [email protected], attn: Margaret Mills. I will be happy to advise you on the likelihood that we can provide for your needs.

TRANSPORTATION ANALYST


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Transportation Fee The fees for next year will be announced at the same time as the registration dates. Please watch for this important information.

The transportation fee covers the cost of bussing and includes the administration cost associated with registration and withdrawal, if applicable. This portion of the fee, sometimes referred to as the ad-min fee, is non-refundable for any who withdraw but is not an additional fee. For 2010-2011, the trans-portation fee was $810 and $100 of that was non-refundable. There is also a late fee • for those who choose not to register for bussing

by the spring deadline• for those offered a place at CSS after that and

who don’t choose bussing when they initially register for CSS

CSS does not offer a reduced fee for part time usage of the bus system. This has always been a Board policy. Part time usage could take many forms: one way (either AM or PM), alternate weeks, half weeks, etc. The CSS system is too small to as-sume that another part time rider will share a seat and therefore share the cost of providing that seat. In order to guarantee a space, we have to provide the seat on a full time basis and so we charge the full fee. This is more applicable than ever as we seek to reduce costs by filling busses to capacity. Using small busses on some routes helps to reduce costs precisely because it reduces empty seats.

Feel free to email with any comment or question about these topics or anything else to do with trans-portation.

Regards,Margaret MillsCSS transportation Analyst

TRANSPORTATION ANALYST

COMMUNITY GARDEN

Ma r y, Ma r y quite contra r y, how do es your ga rden grow? This and other questions can be investigated by students and the community at large as we embark this Spring on building and planting our f i rst community garden. The Calgar y Science School (CSS) and the Lakeview Community Association (LCA) are col laborating to build a community garden beside the Lakev-iew Community Center. The init ial bui lding of the garden is being funded by a grant from the Alber ta Healthy School Community Wellness Fund, and is being generously matched by a do-nation from CSS. A joint committee composed of representatives from CSS teachers and par-ents, LCA members, and the Lakeview commu-nity residents have been work ing, along with students at CSS, to plan the garden.

Now, we need your help with the actual construction of the garden.April 16, 2011 is the first planned build date with April 30 and May 7 as backup dates if the weather is unco-operative. Here are some opportunities for participa-tion:

Pre-build – Week of April 4, 2011• volunteers for pre-cutting the wood for the boxes• tools required (measuring tapes, drills, and a

power saw)

Build - April 16, 2011 (weather permitting)• volunteers for construction of the boxes, filling

the boxes with soil• tools required (backhoe, drills, wheelbarrows,

shovels, rakes)

Open HousesFor more information on the garden and the construc-tion, please visit us during:

1. Student-led conferences: March 17 (4 - 8 pm) & 18 (8am - 1pm) in the IAC at the Calgary Science School 2. Lakeview Community Association March 23 at Lakeview Community Association 7pm 3. Contact the committee via email:[email protected]

Tanya Stogre & Karen CuthbertsonCo-Chairs, Community Garden Project


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At CSS, we strive to discover what it means to be a global citizen. This year, through an African charity organization called Hands at Work in Africa, we are connecting with communities in South Africa that have been most affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic and have the fewest available resources to deal with it. CSS Humanities teacher, Mr. Dittmann, is spending a year with Hands at Work as a volunteer. Due to your amazing generosity during the month of December, CSS is funding a number of projects to improve the safety and security of orphaned and vulnerable chil-dren. This month, we have the opportunity to learn the story of a child-headed family of four that we are partnering with.

Ernest is a nineteen year-old, grade eleven student. He and his younger brother, sixteen year-old Sthem-biso, head their household, which includes their younger sisters; thirteen year-old Thobile and eleven year-old Bawinile.

The four children lived most of their lives with their mother and father in their current house. The house is really just a small, one room shelter consisting of sheets of scrap metal, patched onto wooden poles found around the community. There is no electricity or out-house toilet. The children fetch water from the commu-nity pump, like most households in the community. The gaps in the roof and walls are easily penetrated by rain and the flimsy door provides little security, a particular concern as the girls get older.

In 2007, their mother became very ill and passed away the following year. Though losing a parent is devastat-ing on its own, in many poor communities in South Af-rica, people often deal with terminal illness without ac-cess to hospitals or doctors. Children watch parents die before their eyes and the emotional wounds that result are as difficult for the children to deal with as having to move on without their parent. Given that the fam-ily lived together in one small room, the children were likely not spared any aspect of their mother’s death.

CSS in Africa Update

From left, Ernest, Bawanile, Careworker Siyabongile, and Sthembiso. Missing is 13 year old Thobile.


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However, these are not the only challenges the chil-dren have faced. Shortly after their mother passed away, their father left the family with no explana-tion. He simply disappeared one day. He is still living in the community but has taken another wife and has little contact with the children.

The children rely on food parcels provided by their local care workers and money that Ernest makes doing yard work for neighbors on weekends and during school holidays. The three younger siblings also participate in a government-feeding program at their primary school. The children receive regu-lar visits from Siyabongile, a volunteer care worker with the local community organization that Hands at Work partners with, called Senzhokule Home Based Care. Siyabongile cared for their mother during her illness and has continued to be the most constant adult in the kids’ lives. She asks them how school is going, whether they have enough food, and just what’s generally on their mind. With-out her, Ernest stated that there would be no one speaking on their behalf. It was Siyabongile who brought the children’s living conditions to the at-tention of Hands at Work.

A recent development has created tension between the two boys. A neighbor they have known for years has taken in Ernest. He sleeps at the neighbor’s and shares their meals. Ernest explains that their house is just too small for all of them and he no longer wanted to share a bed with his brother while his sisters slept on a foam mattress on the floor. The day-to-day role of running the house has now fallen to Sthembiso. It is obvious that Sthembiso feels abandoned by his brother.

However, the family will soon be living together again. A portion of the $13,000 raised by Calgary Science School will provide a three-room house for the children along with basic furniture and house wares. The cost of this project has been projected at $6,650. By the time you are reading this, the foundation for the house will have been dug and the walls begun. The children are excited about having “a real home” and it is so great to see their usually stoic faces change to smiles when they talk about the house. Senzhokule Home Based Care and Hands at Work in Africa wish to express their grati-tude to Calgary Science School. You are changing the lives of these children. Stay tuned for more updates on this project and others.

Chris Dittman

The children’s current home.


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There was a good turnout for the February meeting of School Council. We were fortunate to have Dr. Garry McKinnon as our special guest speaker. Dr. McKinnon spoke about the future direction that Charter Schools may take in Alberta with the upcoming changes in the new School Act. He stressed that there are a significant number of unknowns ahead with the current political party leadership race and the Province facing yet an-other deficit budget. Dr. McKinnon discussed the three pillars on which Alberta Education is focusing: Engaged Learners, Ethical Citizens and Entrepreneurial Spirit. Dr. McKinnon gave clear examples of how CSS is well posi-tioned to lead the way on these pillars.

Darrell Lonsberry and Dr. McKinnon then led a group discussion with regard to the Alberta Education Survey on the Future of Charter Schools in Alberta. The discus-sion was well received by those in attendance and at the end, we asked if Dr. McKinnon could join us again for a future meeting to continue the discussion on the future of charter schools and more specifically CSS. We will be scheduling Dr. McKinnon to return later this school year or early next fall.

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• Our second Balzac Meat sale was a success! We are still tallying the final numbers, but it raised at least $5000 for CSS! Unfortunately, we will not be able to have a third sale this school year as Balzac Meats is fully booked. Stay tuned for our dates for next school year’s sale(s).

• Please remember to pick up your Balzac Meat orders on March 17th from 7:00-8:30pm! Many thanks to our volunteers Karen Morrison and Carolynn Vodden for their efforts to make this another successful fund-raiser.

SCHOOLCOUNCIL NEWS

IN OTHER NEWS

• The Garden Committee is working hard on preparing for the first spring planting!

CSS Parent Fundraising Society UpdateActing on the mandate by Parent Council and the result of the 2010 Annual Parent Survey where 84% of respon-dents supported fundraising and over 67% supported casino fundraising, the CSS Parent Fundraising Soci-ety has been created and held its first meeting in early February. At this meeting, officers and directors were elected to operate the society until the annual general meeting next fall. The first initiative of this new Society is to pursue an application for casino fundraising with the Alberta Liquor and Gaming Commission. Parents with concerns regarding social responsibility with casi-no fundraising are invited to contact Marc Koole ([email protected]), Ray Caddy ([email protected]), or Darrell Lonsberry ([email protected]).

Elections results for the CSS Parent Fundraising Society

LOOKING AHEAD

FUNDRAISING

President: Marc Koole Vice-President Ray Caddy Treasurer: Allison Earl Secretary: Karen Cuthberton

Director: Faye StrongDirector: Gail Swystun AbbiDirector: David McKenzie

Hope you all have a great spring break! See you at the May 4th Parent Council meeting.

Ray CaddyOn behalf of your Calgary Science School Council


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ABCRECIPE FOR FAMILY MEALTIMES CALLS FOR 3 INGRIEDIENTS: ABC

A University of Illinois scientist reports that fam-ily mealtimes containing 3 ingredients in the right amounts are linked to many benefits for children, in-cluding a reduced risk of substance abuse, eating dis-orders and obesity.

Action- eliminate distractions such as cell phones, hand held games and television

Behavior Control- use discipline that is not harsh and teaches table manners

Communication- show genuine interest and concern about what is going on in each others’ lives.

Any good recipe is specific about the amounts of each ingredient.

Communication is by far the most important ingredi-ent. The average family meal takes 18 minutes, it is recommended that about 2 minutes be allotted to ac-tion, 4 minutes to behavior management, and 12 min-utes to positive communication that lets kids know how important they are, helps them resolve trouble-some issues and verbalize their concerns.

Sharing meals with the family:-• Improvesfamilycommunications• Increasessenseofsecurityinchildren• Improveseatinghabitsofchildren• Enhancessenseoffamilyvalues• Helpschildrendobetterinschool• Savestimeinmealpreparation• Teenagers are less apt to use alcohol and

drugs• Children understand their family values and

traditions

Nasreen SunderaniSchool Nurse

Recent research suggests that poor organization, a lot of chaos in the family environment disrupt learning and predicts poor social and emotional development. Families’ mealtimes that follow ABC guidelines are an important ritual that parents can use to counter this trend.

We are looking for parent volunteers to join the parent band committee. If you are interested in joining, we welcome you to attend our next meet-ing held on March 22, 2011 at 8:30 AM at CSS.

Please email: Carolynn Vodden at [email protected] for more information or to confirm your attendance.


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Cell phones have evolved as a key means of connect-ing parents with their children in the event of emer-gencies or to plan after school activities. When used as such, cell phones serve their purpose well, provid-ing a sense of comfort and convenience that your chil-dren are never more than a phone call away.

Unfortunately, some students use their cell phones inappropriately by making prank calls during the bus ride to and from school. Several incidents of this na-ture have been reported, including calls to the Kids Help Phone that then occupy a crisis counselor who needs to attend to legitimate callers. Other prank calls have been made to randomly dialed numbers or those seen on the sides of passing commercial vehicles that result in residents or businesses being subjected to swearing and nonsensical comments from students.

If your child has a cell phone for emergencies, please review the appropriate use of it with respect to phone calls, text messages, or instant messaging (i.e. – Twit-ter). It is also a sound idea to check the call log of

CELLthe phone to see what numbers have been dialed or texted. If you would like further information on mon-itoring the use of cell phones or instant messaging devices, please do not hesitate to contact the school.

Phil Butterfield

Phone Use and Prank Calls

Did YOU volunteer in the month of February?Did YOU sign-in and record your hours?John Cadman did and he is our Volunteer of the Month for February. Congratulations!To be included in next months draw please remember to sign in, wear a volunteer badge and log your hours every time you volunteer.

Thank you to all the volunteers who:• helped judge science fair this year• are working with Mr Scott’s grade eight Renaissance project• have provided great resources for Ms Bailey’s Phys Ed enhancement program

“Volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they just have the heart..” - Elizabeth Andrew

FROM YOUR PARENT VOLUNTEER COMITTEE


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The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

LET’S MAKE A DEAL. There are 3 doors and be-hind each door there is a deal that will result in a stack of cash after 30 days. You have 1 minute to choose the door of your preference.

DOOR 1On Day 1 you will receive $25,000. The amount, $25,000, will double on Day 10. The Day 10 amount will double again on Day 20 and the Day 20 amount will double again on Day 30.

DOOR 2You will receive $10,000 every day for 30 days.

DOOR 3You will receive 1 cent on Day 1 , 2 cents on Day 2, 4 cents on Day 3, etc. The number of cents (pennies) will continue to double every Day for 30 days.

If you know about compound interest you know there is a clear door to chose!

WHICH DOOR DO YOU CHOSE?

Mr. Bob Rahn came to speak to the grade 8 classes on Thursday February 10, 2011. His presentation was titled Compound Interest: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.

In this presentation Mr. Rahn explained the pros and cons- or, in his words, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly - of compound interest. The presentation was both in sightful and interest-ing, pun intended.

Mr. Rahn explained that compound interest has both pros and cons. Interest is basically “your money work-ing for you”, but it can produce extraordinary results and illusions, which may fool people into believing what the bank wants them to believe.

or example, take the Inventor of the Chessboard fable. If you are not familiar with it, follow along:

When the creator of the game of chess showed his in-vention to the ruler of the country, the ruler was so pleased that he gave the inventor the right to name his prize for the invention. The man, who was very wise, asked the king this: that for the first square of the chess board, he would receive one grain of rice, two for the second one, four on the third one and so forth, doubling the amount each time. The ruler, who was not strong in math, quickly accepted the inven-tor’s offer, even getting offended by his perceived no-tion that the inventor was asking for such a low price, and ordered the treasurer to count and hand over the rice to the inventor. However, when the treasurer took more than a week to calculate the amount of rice, the ruler asked him for a reason for his tardiness. The trea-surer then gave him the result of the calculation, and explained that it would be impossible to give the in-ventor the reward. The ruler then, to get back at the inventor who tried to outsmart him, told the inventor that in order for him to receive his reward, he was to count every single grain that was given to him, in or-der to make sure that the ruler was not stealing from him.

The amount of rice is approximately 80 times what would be produced in one harvest, at modern yields, if all of Earth’s arable land could be devoted to rice. This story truly shows the effect of compound inter-est. It was one of the many examples that Mr. Rahn gave.

As you can see, compound interest really does have its pros and cons.

Oh, and that problem I gave you earlier? The one with the three doors? Which door did you chose?

Door 1- $200 000Door 2- $30 000Door 3- $10 737 418.20

Julia C (8.1)

COMPOUND INTEREST

“The most powerful force in the Universe is Compound Interest”--- Albert Einstein.


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Grade 5

On Tuesday, February 8th, CSS held its 11th Annual Science Fair. Fi f t y-three projec ts were featured f rom grades 5 through 9 . Judges were wowed by the students’ k nowledge and depth of understanding of their topics and their ef fec t ive communicat ion sk i l l s . Thir t y projec ts were selec ted to move on to the Calgar y Youth S cience Fair which wi l l be held M arch 16-19 at the Stamp ede G rounds . A big thank-you to a l l of the judges who gave their t ime and exper t ise to our students. Congratula-t ions on a job wel l done to a l l par t ic ipants. Please note that the grade 4 science fair was held separately and wi l l be repor ted in the nex t Spec trum.

CSS SCIENCE FAIR

Name(s) Project Special Award Rank Erik S Are All Balls Equal? Enthusiasm Liam A Don’t Cry Over Spilled Oil Better World CYSF

Daniel Do The Eyes Have It? Enthusiasm CYSF Silver

Stephanie B Hidden Rainbow: Paper Chromatography Speaker Award CYSF Bronze

Delaney H The K9 Nose Knows Skepticism CYSF Scott L Ice Ice Baby Display Evan A Glasses for the Colorblind? Display

Madyson E Gushing Geysers (need electricity) Speaker CYSF Gold

Anchita S Warding Off Windchill Enthusiasm CYSF Hannah R

& Jovana G What’s Haunting Your House? Better Award CYSF

Jon B Wacky Windmills Originality

Amanda C & Mackenzie L Twisted Turbines (need electricity) Better World

Jameson B Carrots in Space Originality

Victoria B The Blind Side Display


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GRADE 6Name(s) Project Special Award Rank

Julia C Freezing Forests, Tropical Trees Skepticism

Rylan and Kirsten C Gliders and Aerodynamics Display CYSF

Joel P & Maxwell L Lighter than Air Originality CYSF

Danika V Plant Defenses Speaker CYSF

Sean H & Adrian H It IS Rocket Science Enthusiasm

Makenna W & Alyssa L Hands Off! Display CYSF Bronze

Aaron K Do we need a Moon Base? Speaker

Maggie C Ornithopters Originality CYSF Silver

Amanda W Dynamic Air Enthusiasm CYSF Silver

Peter R Mountain Pine Beetle Better World

Michael W Airfoil Aerodynamics Skepticism CYSF Gold

Karthik D Helicopters Enthusiasm

Sanchit C Hydroponics: Food for Mars Better World CYSF

Emma S & Leah Matthews Silent Witness Originality

Name(s) Project Special Award Rank

Joseph M Growing Limbs Speaker Gold


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Name(s) Project Special Award Rank

Joseph M Growing Limbs Speaker Gold

GRADE 7


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Grade 9Grade 8

Name(s) Project Special Award Rank Evan K Fibre Optics: Keep It Clean Speaker CYSF/Bronze

Jennifer K & Aidan L Bombs Away! Detecting Landmines Display CYSF

Graham F & Rocky W Piezoelectricity: Nature’s Battery Display CYSF Julia C Vivaldi Helped Me Get an A in Math! Display CYSF/Gold

Gabriella M Tense Water: How Elevation Affects the Surface Tension of Water Display

Selena K Sensory Receptors: Can you sense that? Enthusiasm CYSF

Edward K Delicious DNA Speaker CYSF/Silver Taylor G Air Today, Liquid Tomorrow Sick, N/A

Cameron B Phasinating Photons Speaker CYSF Samantha H & Sonja G Aiding The Blind Enthusiasm Haley Y & Emily McD Run Forrest Run Enthusiasm


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Name(s) Project Special Award Rank Zoe W & Wesley P Blinding or Bland? Display Award

Carson W Medicine vs Ethics: How Far Should We Go? Speaker Award CYSF

Nick L The Aerodynamics of Golf Enthusiasm CYSF Jusleen S & Eric T On the Tip of My Tongue Originality

Jasmine W & Gabrie W K Migraines: Pain in the Brain Better World Quinn B & Josh H Your Brain on Music Originality CYSF/Bronze

Jasmine C & Natalie Y Singing Spoons Better World Brandon B & Brant L Dreams Skepticism

Cameron A & Lyndon B Training Tirade Enthusiasm CYSF Iwona A Stem Cells Speaker CYSF/Silver

Jeremy S & Mark W Aerodynamics Better World CYSF Duncan P Beans and Genes Enthusiasm CYSF/Gold

Grade 9Grade 8


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Katelyn started drawing at the age of three when her sister decided to teach her. Katelyn, wanting to please my sister, would practice drawing everyday. When she was six, she began professional art classes. However, she didn’t enjoy them because the teacher forced her to use direct reference and only allowed her to create art in the style of realism. After three months of aggrava-tion, She dropped out. Katelyn decided that art would become something that she would do for her own plea-sure, and not to please others. Ever since that fateful day, she has kept to this principle and does not create realistic art unless it is on her own terms. Surrealism is the style of art that Katelyn has been trying to master over the past two years and she believes that she will

K at e ly n (9. 2)be creating it for many years to come. Katelyn is currently creating a wire sculpture of a tree, and although the bead-work on the tree is not yet complete, she is pleased with the direction she is moving with this project.

CSS Featured Artists CSS Featured Artists


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Kelly is fourteen years old and has attended the Calgary Science School for two years; she is currently in grade nine. She is serious about her academics and dedicates much of her time to ensuring she realizes her potential in this area. She also enjoys participating with her classmates in school competitive team sports. Kelly devotes much of her free time developing her passion for the visual arts. Currently her favorite medium is working with oil paints. Her long term goal is to integrate her passion for art with a fulfilling career. Independent art classes at CSS and lessons at Swintons Art Supplies have helped her to develop her art skills. Kelly hopes to continue her Visual Arts learning by attending the PVA Program at Central Memorial High School. This year Kelly is working on at-taining a more realistic look in her paintings and sketches; she is also working on mood development in her subjects and portraits.

CSS Featured Artists CSS Featured Artists

K e l ly H (9. 3)


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By E.J (6.3)

Boys & girls of 6.3 headed for Ribbon Creek on January 25 2011. We stayed for 3 days and 2 nights 6.3 got to Ribbon Creek around lunch time, and were super excited to do all the fun activities like avalanche training, and snow shelter building.

We’re Here! We finally reached Ribbon Creek around 12:00 pm. We went over a couple of rules, moved into the dorms, then had some lunch. Right after lunch we headed right into activities. The activities were so much fun. Over the 3 days we did lots, we played the animal game, went ski-ing, built quinsy’s, & had a lot of hot choc-olate!

The experience was amazing. We all loved Winter Camp. It was an amazing experience because we got to experience so much things we haven’t before, like skiing & quinsy building. The dinners were delicious, and everything else was just amazing. Free time & hanging out in the lounge was also very fun.

Winter Camp was forever memorable. I definitely recommend experiencing it for yourself.

6.3 & 6.4 WINTER CAMP

RIBBON CREEK


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6.3 & 6.4 WINTER CAMP

By Maanasa D (6.4)

On February 2-4, 2011, Company Of Adventurers guides, Dino, Jenna and Elsbeth came to Winter Camp with CSS’s 6.4 to teach them winter survival skills. As experts in this area, they taught 6.4 all that they knew. The Winter Camp took place at Ribbon Creek Hostel, Kananaskis. Some of the interesting things they taught were avalanche rescue skills, survival skills and how to build a fire.

“The guides were nice, funny, taught good stuff and motivated us!” said Paige M, a 6.4 student.

Heather N (6.4) stated that, ”The guides were a special treat to the wonderful experience and they were very likable and nice.”

The Company of Adventurers has been introducing people of all ages -from school children to senior citizens - to adventure in the outdoors for over 25 years.

If you are in grade 5, you should be very excited about going to Winter Camp next year because the guides are amazing. Visit the Company Of Adventurers, website at: http://www.companyofadventurers.com.

AMAZING PEOPLE


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School Council Meeting 7:00 - 9:00 PM

Outdoor Ed Elective field trip - KananaskisAll Day

Etiquette for Success 12:15 PM

Org DayNo Classes

Gr 6 PE Field Trip at Mount Royal




Gr. 6/7 Beginning Band Kiwanis Festival

Report Cards Go Home

Board of Directors Meeting5:00 PM - Library

REGISTRATION & RE-REGISTRATION

BEGINS

Student Led Conferences4:00 PM - 8:00 PM

No Classes

Student Led Conferences8:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Parent Band Committee Meeting 8:30 AM

Last Day of Classes before Spring Break

Day 5b Day 1a Day 2a

Day 3a Day 4a Day 5a Day 1b Day 2b

Day 3b Day 4b Day 5b Day 1a

Day 2a Day 3a DAY 4a DAY 5a DAY 1b

1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30 31

March 2011

Spring Break


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Day 2b Day 3b Day 4b Day 5B Day1a

Day 2a DAY 3a DAY 4a DAY 5a

Day 1b Day 2b Day 3b Day 4b

1 2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

17 18 19 20 21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Band Meeting (for gr.5 parents)6:30 PM - gym.

Fort Steele parent info meeting 7:00 PM - gym

Class Photos Good FridayNo Classes

PD Planning DayNo Classes

Parent Board Committee Meeting 8:30 AM

School Council Meeting 7:00 - 9:00 PM

Outdoor Ed Elective field trip - KananaskisAll Day


Org DayNo Classes





Gr. 6/7 Beginning Band Kiwanis Festival

Report Cards Go Home

Board of Directors Meeting5:00 PM - Library

REGISTRATION & RE-REGISTRATION

BEGINS

Student Led Conferences4:00 PM - 8:00 PM

No Classes

Student Led Conferences8:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Parent Band Committee Meeting 8:30 AM

Last Day of Classes before Spring Break

Day 5b Day 1a Day 2a

Day 3a Day 4a Day 5a Day 1b Day 2b

Day 3b Day 4b Day 5b Day 1a

Day 2a Day 3a DAY 4a DAY 5a DAY 1b

1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30 31

APRIL 2011

Spring Break

Spring Break

2011 03 Spectrum

Documents

Transcript of 2011 03 Spectrum