resources/1/HPCDSB Annual Report.pdf - Institute for Catholic ...

CELEBRATING
SUCCESS
in our Catholic Schools
God is able to do immeasurably more than
we ask or imagine, according to his power that
is at work within us. Ephesians 3:20
A discerning believer…
Preparing students to receive the
sacraments of Communion, Reconciliation
and Confirmation invites the help of
families, along with their parish and school
communities. Father Dick Bester helps
to assemble this network of support by
preparing sacramental retreats:
“Father Tom and I lead presentations, then
enlist parent volunteers to host work stations
with activities related to each particular
sacrament. It’s amazing to see the growth
in the students over the course of their Grade
2 year: they come to a sense of sin, of God’s
love and his forgiveness. We relate that to
them in terms of belonging to
a family. Sometimes you need to apologize,
and it’s the same way in the family of
the church. For communion, students develop a real
reverence for the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ.”
“Each sacramental group is presented to their parish
family at a weekend Mass so the general congregation can
show their support. Preparation very much involves the
home, school and parish together.”
everything around them is new – right from
what to do when the bell rings. Heidi stressed
the importance of our spending one-on-one
time with students. She made us aware of
language comprehension issues that make
tests and homework more difficult. From
explaining fire drills, to special schedules and
marking schemes, she opened our eyes to
many academic and cultural differences. Her
suggestions will help us help our ELL students
even more effectively.”
A reflective, creative and
holistic thinker…
With a little creativity, the basketball team
at Holy Name of Mary School celebrated the
athletic talents of 8 th Grade student Eric Voss
– a wheelchair athlete who played alongside
his able-bodied teammates in the HPCDSB
Tournament for the first time last spring.
Eric explains: “They created two lanes at the
sides of the court for me to play in, with the
able-bodied players in the middle. We each
stayed in our own sections of the court. My
teammates really worked on including me
because they knew I could hit the outside
shots. We played four games that day, and it was a great
experience. I liked being able to play with my friends and
participate, and look forward to playing again this year!”
“Eric has the skills and the talents to play on the team, so
An effective
communicator…
For all those who have wondered
how to best help students learn
English as a second language,
there is Heidy Ramirez-Lopez.
Earlier in 2009, Heidi was a
Grade 10 student at St. Mike’s,
a new immigrant, and a seminar
speaker who talked about ELL
from a students’ perspective.
Teacher Elaine Bancroft says that Heidi’s
insight has helped to change her teaching style:
“She did a tremendous service to me in making
me more aware of the challenges that students face when
we invited him to play, as we would any other student with
his level of ability,” says Mr. Haber, Principal of Holy Name.
“We’re always thinking about ways to create the strongest
level of inclusion for sports when safety is not an issue.”
Faith and Learning... Celebrating the Journey
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