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Home  Education Lions Bay School
Lions Bay School
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Looking Back at Three Years of Lions Bay School |
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Written by Pieter Dorsman
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Saturday, 26 June 2010 |
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After three years at the helm of the Lions Bay School PAC (Parent Advisory Council) it is time for me to move on and say goodbye to a job I not only enjoyed, but which opened me up to a new set of experiences that in the end were deeply meaningful. There are a few things I want to highlight and that I want to leave with the Lions Bay community before I move on. I hope it will inspire all residents, parents or not, to continue to support our great school in the years ahead.
Anything and Everything.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about our school is the never-ending process of learning, which of course includes the usual reading, math and science menu, but more importantly anything and everything beyond that. The range of activities and people visiting the school to help a new generation on its way is breathtaking, and here is a small selection of what I saw over the past three years:
Musicals, pioneer projects, tennis, badminton, salmon hatching, owls, field trips, cultural events, Olympians, musicians, talent shows, visiting MPs, Terry Fox runs, Jump Rope for Heart, sport days, beach days, walk-to-school challenges, drawing and painting everything from Pablo Picasso to Vincent van Gogh to Jesse Reno, fairy tale projects, indoor hockey, mountain bikers, visits to Gleneagles, the planetarium, hikes, Paralympic events, school site clean-ups: you name it, it was all offered by the school and its enthusiastic and committed staff. And if some extra money was required to make it happen, the PAC somehow found it.
All of this contributes to a level of excitement and energy that you
can sense walking up on Bayview Road every morning well before the
school bell rings. It is creating a group of children that is so
well-prepared and so well-grounded that when they line up for that bus
to take them to Grade 4 at Gleneagles, you know they will do well in
the bigger world.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 26 June 2010 )
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Written by Kevin Thorpe
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Thursday, 24 December 2009 |
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With the Christmas season just around the corner we felt the need to pause briefly and reflect back on the month that was.
The beginning of November brought with it an opportunity to attend to some important unfinished business. Prior to Halloween we asked the children to consider the desperate plight of children in Rwanda and Malawi and to take action. After some debate a school goal of $800 was unanimously agreed to with the promise that Mr. Thorpe would shave his head if the students were successful in their fund raising efforts. They of course immediately took up the cause and by month’s end had raised almost $1300, an amazing result by anyone’s standards. As promised, an anxious Mr. Thorpe submitted to having his head shaved much to the delight of the student body and a handful of curious parents. Buoyed by the success of this year’s campaign and the promise of a warm, fitted toque, courtesy of the Knitting Club, to protect his newly shorn head from the elements, Mr. Thorpe vowed to subject himself to a similar shearing next fall should the students exceed next year’s goal. Ladies and gentlemen start your clippers.
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Written by Louis Peterson
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Tuesday, 15 September 2009 |
As I write, it is late August and many of our youth are heading to
school. Our twenty-two Grads of 2009 are beginning new adventures, as
are a similar number of pre-schoolers at the start of their educational
journeys. A chat with our Scholarship Winners about their "beginning
journey" has given me a snapshot about what is good and memorable about
Lions Bay for them, and where they hope the path forward will take
them.
Each step from home to playschool to kindergarten-to-grade 3 to
elementary school (4-7) to high school (8-12) represents a transition
in the educational journey. Each of these transitions provides
different interests, and opportunities for various extra-curricular
activities. The students tell me that for some of them, such changes to
the "comfort zone" are challenging, perhaps intimidating, while others
look forward to new adventures. Guiding, caring hands were there to
help along the way. Beginning Playschool and Kindergarten in Lions Bay,
they found a bright, spacious schoolroom and an open plan mix of
classes set against a forest background. Teachers were pleasant,
playtime in the outdoors or on the tennis court was important, and
friendships were made. School was a good place to be! In the summers
there was the Beach, the glorious Beach. At other times there were
visits to our local library. Gleneagles was larger, classes were held
in individual rooms, and there were greater opportunities for sports
and other activities. At high school, academics became a more serious
matter, and thoughts of "what next?" began to emerge. With entry into
the post-secondary phase, yet another transition for Ian Spencer,
Kellen Welch, Eric Berard, Steven Loppe, James Greville, Jackson
Chandler, Chantal Lyons-Stevenson and Linden Ligertwood is about to
begin. Brief snippets from our "chats" are given below, except for
Linden, who was not available at time of writing. The Lions Bay
Community Scholarship Foundation senda Best Wishes to all our new Grade
12 graduates, including those awarded scholarships.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 23 October 2009 )
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Written by Kevin Thorpe
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Tuesday, 23 June 2009 |
The highlight of our Christmas concert this year was the children’s stirring rendition of the song, “It’s About Love”. This beautiful little song speaks to the importance of caring, giving and sharing, suggesting that at the end of the day, it’s really all about love.
Since that fateful December evening, the song has in many ways informed much of what we have tried to do this year with our students. Indeed, over the course of the past nine months the children have raised a significant amount of money for a number of worthy causes, including UNICEF, the Food Bank, and Pennies for Patients, as well as supporting community initiatives such as Plant a Bulb Day and the upcoming Flower Pot Day.
Never a group to rest on their laurels no matter how impressive, the students continued to heed the words of that magical little song during the month of May as they prepared in earnest for the school’s annual Jump Rope for Heart event. Under the watchful eyes of Ms. Shepard and Ms. Kellie, the children spent many hours honing their skipping skills in advance of the big event. At the same time the children canvassed local neighborhoods with a vengeance, leaving no friend or relative unturned, while others took to the Internet, setting up accounts online with great success.
Finally, with the support of staff and a handful of enthusiastic parent volunteers, the children skipped their hearts out for well over an hour, consuming many bottles of water along the way. When all was said and done, our little school of 42 students had raised over $2,000. Incredibly, the caring and giving did not stop there. Just this past week the students generously donated original works of art to be auctioned of at the Garden Show. It was agreed upon by all that the proceeds would be donated to Project Hands, a wonderful organization that the school has strongly supported in the past.
Simply put, this year at Lions Bay Community School has been about love.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 24 June 2009 )
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Lions Bay School is going GREEN |
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Written by Michelle Ganske
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Tuesday, 21 April 2009 |
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It’s EARTH DAY and Lions Bay School is going GREEN - GREEN LUNCHES that is!
As you may already be aware the Village of Lions Bay has recently set up a new Green Community Task Force. The Green goals for this task force are both large and small, ranging from a green energy source to a new idle free bylaw. We at Lions Bay school thought we would do our part by taking our own small step toward a greener future.
Our school goal is to start a GREEN LUNCH program. A GREEN LUNCH simply means a lunch that does not create garbage and is as healthy for you and the environment as possible. This means using containers that are reusable or at least, recyclable. Things like reusable water bottles (metal or plastic) and reusable sandwich and snack containers are great. Avoiding prepackages foods will actually save money too! Try bulk dried fruit in a reusable cup instead of a fruit snack, cut up some cheese instead of a cheese string. If you have to use a zip lock bag, wash it out and use again! Rinse out a yogurt container and take it home to recycle it. Once you get into the swing of it you’ll see how easy it is, and healthy too! We are getting the kids involved to see how GREEN we can be! A few small green steps forward can make lunch healthier and the world a little GREENER too.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 April 2009 )
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