11/22/2011

Dear Parents/Guardians:

Where has November gone? I can't believe we are only a month away from Christmas holidays and Advent begins this Sunday , November, 27th. We have been very busy at Mother Teresa - Report cards, interviews, Remembrance Day and last week we celebrated National Bullying Awareness week at Mother Teresa.

MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAPLAIN Christmas Blessings Collection As Advent approaches we are gearing up for our Christmas Blessings Collection. This is the time we ask everyone to dig deeply into their wallets and donate cash and Canadian Tire money to support school families who require financial assistance. Our target this year is $6000 cash and $1000 in Canadian Tire dollars. The Blessings collection begins on Monday, December 5 and ends onFriday, December 16. We have two full weeks to meet our goals. Please remind your children to bring their donations into their homerooms. The winning two homerooms will be treated to a pancake breakfast served by staff.    Advent Prayer Services Our community prayer services will take place on Wednesday, December 14. The first sitting is from 9:15 to 10:00 and the second sitting will be from 10:20 to 11:05. Please let me know if you would like to join us and we will make sure that you have a seat reserved. Martha Dougherty Chaplaincy Team Leader Mother Teresa High School 823-1663 ext. 2019 REMEMBRANCE DAY ASSEMBLIES Our Remembrance Day Ceremony reminded us of those who risked and sacrificed their lives for our freedom or the freedom of others. All of our Mother Teresa students, staff and honoured guests were amazed by the ceremony produced by our staff and students under the leadership of Mme Milliard. The ceremony was both meaningful and very poignant. Dancers, singers, musicians, actors, narrators, flag bearers and our own resident piper hosted a wonderful tribute to our veterans.   A special thank you to our tech crew under the leadership of Mr. Linke who made sure everything ran extremely smooth and seamless. NATIONAL STAND UP TO BULLYING WEEK National Stand up to Bullying week ran from November 14th to November 19th. Here at Mother Teresa High School the Stand up to Bullying Squad (SUBS) headed up an informative and educational week. Current research tells us that bullying will stop in less than 10 seconds most of the time, when others get involved and befriend those who are being bullied. This is easy to say, but often very difficult to do, especially for young people. Nine SUBS members had two days of Beyond the Hurt Youth Facilitator Training by Red Cross. This interactive training teaches Youth Facilitators (YF) : How interpersonal power issues are played out among young people What common tactics are utilized by bullies Intervention and prevention issues, including the legal system and school policies How to respond to disclosures and what support services are available What impact harassing behaviour has on young people Proactive strategies for preventing harassment, abuse and bullying from occurring at individual, organization, and community levels How to prepare and deliver a workshop on bullying and harassment prevention to younger peers Mother Teresa SUBS are 40 members strong. Last week they kicked off with a facebook campaign beginning on Monday. Ask your children to see their facebook. This was a great week to clean up those friend lists, discuss appropriate behaviour on facebook/texting as well as other social media, and decide whether your child should spend less time facebooking and texting. The SUBS also visited the homerooms with ideas as to how to STAND UP for others and ourselves. They wore their shirts which state "STOP BULLYING, YOU ARE NOT ALONE" throughout the week to promote the National Bullying Awareness Week. The newly trained Youth Facilitators trained all the members of SUBS and they began presentations to Grade 7 and 8 students. These presentations will continue throughout the year. 12 FACTS on Cyber Bullying: 1. Nearly 35% of students have been threatened online and almost one in five have had it happen more than once. 2. Among this percentage, being ignored and disrespected were the most common forms of cyber bullying. 3. Nine out of ten middle school students have had their feelings hurt online. 4. About 75% have visited a Web site bashing another student. 5. Four out of ten middle school students have had their password(s) stolen and changed by a bully who then locked them out of their own account or sent communications posing as them. 6. About 21% of students have received mean or threatening e-mails. 7. The psychological and emotional outcomes of cyber-bullying are similar to real-life bullying outcomes, except for the reality that with cyber-bullying there is often no escape. School ends at 2:50 p.m., while the Internet is available all the time. 8. The primary cyber-bullying location where victimizing occurs, 56%, of the time, is in chat rooms. 9. Girls are about twice as likely as boys to be victims and perpetrators of cyber-bullying. 10. About 58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online. More than four out of ten say it has happened more than once. 11. Cyber-bullying has increased in recent years. In a national survey of 10-17 year olds, twice as many children indicated they had been victims and perpetrators of online harassment in 2005, compared with 2000. 12.  Cyberbullying CAN and DOES often lead to TEENAGE SUICIDE.......FACT! (Information gathered from another Anti-bullying page) Helpful websites for parents: http://www.google.ca/familysafety/ http://www.bewebaware.ca/english/cyberbullying.html OSAID STUDENTS ACTIVE AT MT MTSAID awareness week is taking place Monday, November 28th to Friday, December 2nd. Tuesday November 29th: During high school lunch on the cafeteria stage, students will be encouraged to participate in the "Wii Distracted Driving Challenge" to highlight the dangers of attempting to "drive" while sending a text. Wednesday November 30th: During high school lunch in the atrium, students will be encouraged to participate in an obstacle course with impaired vision goggles. An Ottawa Public Health nurse will join us. She will be bringing impaired vision googles and plasma cars to use in the obstacle course. Thursday December 1st: During high school lunch in the atrium, MTSAID members will be selling "mocktails" to promote alternatives to drinking alcohol. Friday December 2nd: During high school lunch in the atrium, students will be encouraged to place their handprint on a sign that shows their commitment not to drive impaired. HEALING AFTER TRAUMA DR. SUZANNE SIMOND, PSYCHOLOGIST - PRESENTED AT MOTHER TERESA - HEALING AFTER TRAUMA On Monday, November 14th the Mother Teresa staff and community were invited to attend a session with Dr. Suzanne Simond, Psychologist with the Ottawa Anxiety and Trauma clinic. Dr. Simond specializes in working with individuals suffering from PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress Stress Disorder) Two thirds of her clients are members from the general public and the remaining third are RCMP members. She adapts her interventions to meet the needs of each client. Dr. Simond   began her presentation by defining trauma and what happens to our body and brain in the days, weeks and even months after someone experiences trauma. She also highlighted common reactions, coping skills and the warning signs that someone may need professional help to deal with the effects of trauma.   Dr. Simond's presentation was well received by both the staff and the community. Other areas she covered in her presentation are listed below: What is the normal coping process after a trauma? What is the process of healing over time? What are effective coping strategies? What are warning signs and symptoms of difficulty coping? What does Post Traumatic Stress Disorder look like? When is it time to seek help? TRIP TO THE MUSEUM OF NATURE           On Friday November 4th, forty-six Grade 11 biology students headed off to the Museum of Nature for the day. There, students were immersed in many wonderful hands on, visually stimulating, and thoroughly engaging exhibits. Of note, "The Extreme Mammal" exhibit allowed students to explore different evolutionary outcomes and to witness a wide variety of animal specimens. Some of the animal examples were currently living and some were extinct, but all demonstrated a highly adapted body plan that was very well suited to their natural environments. For students, seeing a complete blue whale skeleton, as well as seeing the tiniest mammal, the now extinct shrew-like Batodondoides, deepened their appreciation for the diversity of life on Earth. By touring the extensive fossil collection, students were afforded the opportunity to explore the evidence that supports the Theory of Evolution.                 We are very fortunate to have such a wonderful resource like the Museum of Nature so close to our community. The feedback from the students was very positive. In our classroom studies, we have been talking about diversity, genetics and evolution. This field trip really tied together many aspects of our classroom learning to date. THE ANNUAL SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR Our Annual Scholastic Book Fair will be held in the atrium during the day on: Wednesday, November 23 Thursday, November 24 Friday, November 25. All students will have an opportunity to visit the Book Fair and make purchases. Parents are also invited to drop by during the day to do some Christmas shopping. GRADE 7/8 READ-A-THON - NOVEMBER 3 Please view the attached video clip from this exciting day. 7/8 Read A Thon OTTAWA PUBLIC HEALTH Grade 7/8 students will be receiving their second immunization on Thursday, November 24 and Friday November 25th.   The third immunization will be received in May 2012. STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS Small Stage = BIG TALENT Come out and support our Titan Talent Lounge on Thursday, November 24th in the MTHS Cafeteria. This event will show case some of the amazingly talented Titans we have at MT. The event begins at 7:00 pm and the cost of admission is $3. See you there!! SCHOOL PLAY (Save a Date) This year our Students will perform Jesus Christ Superstar on December 15-17. Come out and support our cast and crew as they have been working extremely hard at rehearsals under the direction of Mr. R. Linke. More information will follow in the next Constant Contact. TITAN SPORTS CONGRATULATIONS TO - The Junior Boys' Soccer Teamwho captured the school's first ever tier one National Capital Championship on Thursday, November 3rd at Louis Riel. The team won 1 - 0 over Louis Riel in their historic championship victory. Coach Rowley and Coach Gervasi are extremely proud of the boys' hard work and success as they represented Mother Teresa with class. The 7/8 Boys' Volleyball Team who qualified for the playoffs as the 6th seed (2nd in the West Division). The boys played in the Quarter Finals against St. Joseph, where unfortunately they lost a hard fought battle. Well done boys!! We are very proud of you. Our Sr. Boys' Volleyball Team who placed first in the western division during regular season play this year. They beat Lester B Pearson in the Quarter Finals and took St. Michaels to a 27-25 finish in the semi-finals where they we were finally knocked out. We want to thank Brendan, Oscar, Harry and Manuel who are in Grade 12 this year for an excellent season, and we welcome the rest of the boys back next year for what is sure to be a great year of volleyball. Special thanks should go to Stephanie and Michelle who volunteered their time at practices and who were our faithful score-keepers at every home game this season. Congratulations to the Junior and Senior Boys' Basketball Teams who, this past weekend, had great success in their respective season opening tournaments. The Senior Boys' Basketball Team competed in the John Cullen Referees Tournament where they opened play by defeating Fellows High School 48 - 32. The team was led by a strong defensive team effort holding Fellows High School to 11 points at halftime. Cody McLeod led the team in scoring with 13 points. In their second game the team continued their strong defensive performance by beating Carine Wilson High School 55 - 41. The team was led in scoring again by Cody McLeod with 19 points. In the quarter finals the team fell to a more pre-season ready and polished St. Peter's team, who went on to win the tournament. Meanwhile, in a rematch of their tournament opening game, the Junior Boys' Basketball Team found redemption by capturing the Bronze medal at the St. Patrick's Irish Classic, defeating Sir Robert Borden 49 - 44; the team had lost to Borden 50 - 48 earlier in the tournament. In that narrow first round loss Jared Maloney led the team in scoring with 25 points. The team played Longfields/Davidson Heights Secondary School in the second round of the tournament and defeated their Barrhaven neighbour 66 - 40, led by Jason Adamski with 18 points. In the quarter finals the team grinded out an impressive 50 - 46 defensive victory, coming back from 10 points down to defeat South Carleton. The team was led in scoring by Carl Rhyndress who scored 26 points including 7 three pointers, dropping 4 in a row at one point in the 4th quarter. In a tough quarter final game the Junior Titans fell to Immaculata High School, only to rebound later that afternoon to capture the Bronze medal. SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS Fundraiser Thank you to the Mother Teresa community members who purchased gift cards as part of our Fundraiser. We raised approximately $1000.    Free Parent Seminar On Monday, November 28, 2011 CHEO and the OCDSB are offering a free parent seminar. MIDDLE CHILDHOOD MATTERS What you Need to Know about your 6-9 year old. 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm The Adult High School on Rochester Street Free Parking Please register at www.cheo.on.ca/cheoconnects REMINDER:  FLU CLINIC AT MOTHER TERESA Ottawa Publc Health is holding a free flu shot clinic at Mother Teresa High School on: Wednesday, November 30 3:30 pm to 8:30 pm Please open the attached document from Ottawa Public Health for more information. Public Health Document

As we begin our journey into the Advent Season may we wait in Joyful anticipation for the Birth of Christ!  Mary Ellen Agnel Principal, Mother Teresa High School

11/02/2011

Dear Parents/Guardians:
 


We are heading into a busy November. The last couple of weeks of October have been exciting at Mother Teresa for both students and staff.   Here are some of the great happenings.

MT HOSTS AWARD CEREMONY FOR OUR CURRENT GRADE 10-12 STUDENTS On Tuesday, October 18 Mother Teresa honoured its current Grade 10-12 students with the presentation of Academic Awards from the 2010-11 school year. The ceremony was held during period 1 and was well attended by students and parents. Honour Roll Certificates were presented by the Vice Principals to 243 students who achieved an overall academic average of 80% or higher last year. We also presented the Department Awards and finally the Top Student Awards. I have included the names of our top students from the 2010 - 11 school years. In Grade  9,  with an overall average of 92.5% - Andriy Cherwick In Grade 10, with an overall average of 96.7% - Alicia Roy In Grade 11, with an overall average of 94.5% - Samuel Wehrle Congratulations to all of our academic awards winners on their accomplishments during the 2010-2011 school year. WORK 4 U 2 Our Grade 8 students had the opportunity to travel to the Aberdeen Pavilion on October 25th and experience displays of many career opportunities and pathways that are available through their high school career.   Students were able to talk to professionals and gain knowledge on various careers that will be available to them after they complete high school.   Upon their return to school, the students gathered in the Learning Commons for a presentation from Constable Amy Sturgeon, our SRO, on the appropriate use of computer technology and the cyber world. REMEMBRANCE DAY ASSEMBLIES ON NOVEMBER 11 We will be hosting two assemblies in the gymnasium: 1)  9:00 am for Grades 7, 8 and 9 2) 10:00 am for Grades 10, 11 and 12.   Our Remembrance Day Ceremonies will remind us of those who risked and sacrificed their lives for our freedom or the freedom of others. Your participation on November 11th will assist us in honouring this important day. We sincerely hope that you will be able to join us. OSAID STUDENTS ACTIVE AT MT On Sunday October 16th, Mother Teresa's O.S.A.I.D (Ontario Students Against Impaired Driving) group proudly participated in the 5km M.A.D.D DASH at Earl of March High School. Among the 400 participants, Mother Teresa High School was represented by the following TITANS: Callie Arbuckle, Melissa Demers, Valerie Milian, Jasmine Khan, Michelle Grenon, and Stephannie Abreu with their staff advisor Marlena Kowal. OSAID is a group of Ontario students taking a stand against impaired driving. O.S.A.I.D's main focus is to raise the awareness about impaired driving and the devastation that it can cause by organizing activities that provoke discussion among students. For more information about O.S.A.I.D please visit www.osaid.org For more information about M.A.D.D please visit http://www.madddashottawa.com/en/ DILA CONFERENCE On Tuesday, October 25th, approximately 40 students from Mother Teresa, along with other groups from the Ottawa Catholic School Board, took part in Ottawa University's DILA conference. DILA is a Day of Information, for a Lifetime of Action with focuses on areas such as: Human Rights, Child soldiers, Poverty reduction, Environmental issues, Refugees, Right to water, Sustainability, etc. Students chose to attend workshops and were able to hear from keynote speaker, Michel Chikwanine (former child soldier and a graduate from St. Patrick High School) who spoke about 'From Me to We'. http://www.metowe.com/speakers/raymond-ablack/ For lunch, students were provided with fair trade, organic lunches, and had the opportunity to visit themed workshops and were given time for action planning aimed at coming up with ways to take what they have learned and share it with their entire school and surrounding community. GRADE 7&8 STUDENTS DANCE THE AFTERNOON AWAY Mother Teresa Grade 7 and 8 students had a very successful dance on Friday, October 28th. What better way to spend a cold Friday afternoon than to be dancing and having fun with your peers. The students who participated in the dance had an awesome time. The DJ was great and the dance floor was hopping. Thanks to all of the organizers and supervisors of this wonderful afternoon. I  MATTER U MATTER GROUP - MENTAL HEALTH FAIR ON NOVEMBER 3RD. Our Mother Teresa Mental Health Resource Night is taking place thisThursday, November 3 between 2:30 - 7:00 p.m. Come visit the information booths to learn more about the mental health resources available in our community. We are looking forward to participation from the following groups/organizations: Bereaved Families Ottawa, Catholic Family Services, Ementalhealth.ca, Hopewell, MT's I Matter U Matter Group, MT's Live It Up Group, MT's Stand Up to Bullying Squad (SUBS), Nepean, Rideau and Osgoode Community Resource Centre (NROCRC), Ottawa Police Services, Ottawa Public Health, Parents Lifeline of Eastern Ontario (PLEO), Rideauwood Addiction and Family Services, Royal Ottawa Hospital (ROH), South-Nepean Community Health Centre, Youth Net, and Youth Services Bureau (YSB). MOTHER TERESA STUDENTS WILL ATTEND PEACE CONFERENCE Students from Mother Teresa will attend the annual Peace Conference on Friday, November 4th. Our students will be engaged in dialogue with other students from the Board, based on the Board's theme "Though many we are one Body in Christ". Participants will have the opportunity to work with other students and consider who they are called to reach out to and include in their school, local and global communities. Our Titans will have the opportunity to listen, learn and share with students and staff who are working to make all feel included, valued and safe in our communities. We will also be able to check out valuable displays from a variety of city and community programs which reach out to youth. DR. SUZANNE SIMOND, PSYCHOLOGIST PRESENTS HEALING AFTER TRAUMA The Mother Teresa School Community invites you and your family to an evening with Dr. Suzanne Simond, Psychologist with the Ottawa Anxiety and Trauma Clinic for a presentation Healing After a Trauma Topics to be covered: What is the normal coping process after a trauma? What is the process of healing over time? What are effective coping strategies? What are warning signs and symptoms of difficulty coping? What does Post Traumatic Stress Disorder look like? When is it time to seek help? Monday, November 14th, 2011 7 to 8:30 PM Mother Teresa Catholic High School Cafetorium 440 Longfields Drive If possible, please RSVP to rsvp@mths.ca MOTHER TERESA STAFF SHOW THEY CARE Yet again, Mother Teresa Staff have come together to support the United Way in our community. We started our fundraiser on October 14th with our bagel breakfast. The yummy bagels came from Kettleman's and the coffee was provided at a discounted rate by the new Starbucks on Greenbank. We received almost 50% of our pledge sheets that day and were off to a great beginning.     The follow-up to our breakfast was our 1st silent auction combined with a live auction event on October 20th. Donations for the silent auction came primarily from staff donations as well as from businesses in the community. There was stiff competition for the items in the silent auction. Our live auction began with a pair of tickets to a Senator versus Leafs game and so began an entertaining afternoon where services provided by the staff were auctioned off. Some of the best items were things like offers to babysit or to purchase and deliver coffee from Starbucks for a week. The services offered also highlighted the talent available on staff as chefs, photographers, musicians, artists and jewelry makers offered up their services to the highest bidders. At the end of the day, when all the items had been auctioned off, we were able to raise over $3000 for the United Way. A special thank you to all the wonderful businesses who contributed to the live or silent auction!  The Works                             Chances R                                            Cake Shoppe  Lois 'N' Frima's                  Heads Up                                            Overtime Sports Repair La Porto A Casa                 Edge Imaging                                     First Choice Haircutters We completed our fundraising with a chili lunch and a raffle. Today, all Ottawa Catholic School Board employees can pay to wear jeans to school and monies raised will go to the United Way. Much of the money will be directed towards the Catholic Education Foundation - coming back into our community to help students and families in need.  Excellent job everyone and we look forward to another successful year next year. Sheila Soprovich United Way Committee Co-Chair -Mother Teresa High School   STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS Homecoming Dance ( October 21st) The Homecoming Hoedown was a Success with approximately 260 students showing their Titan spirit by dancing the night away. The decorations were awesome and the dancing non-stop. TITAN SPORTS The last few weeks saw the Junior Boys Soccer Team wrap up their regular season with a 4 -1 victory over Earl Of March and a 10 - 3 victory over Bell HS. With these wins the team finished the season with a 6 - 1 overall record and in 2nd place in the West Division. The playoffs kicked off with the Junior Boys hosting Sir Wilfrid Laurier on Wednesday Oct. 26th. The boys played extremely well and controlled the play in their offensive end, winning 7-3. As a result of their fine play, the team won and advanced to play Immaculata on Friday where they won 1-0. With this victory on Friday, the team played John McCrae yesterday in the semi-finals and won 1-0.  Now the team will play for the school's first ever Junior Boys Soccer National Capital Championship tomorrow at Louis Riel at 4pm.  Good Luck Titans! The Varsity Girls' Basketball Team improved their record to 6-2 on Friday night beating Delauriers 41-15. The win guarantees the girls a spot in the playoffs. The Titan Football Team won their game on Friday 9-0 versus Sir Wilfred Laurier and finished the season with a 5-1 record. As a result of this win they will be hosting their first ever quarter final game at MT on Thursday, November3, @ 2:30 versus St. Patrick. Our Girls' Hockey Team will play St. Pius at the Civic Centre on Friday, November 4 @ 2:00.  This game is in conjunction with the Board's Peace Conference which is being held at the Civic Centre on this day. This year's Mother Teresa Cross Country Teamcompeted in the National Capital meet Oct 27th at the Hornets Nest. Nine of our runners from the West End Conference qualified and competed in the National Capitals including; Raquel Oleksin, Bridget D'Angela, Drew Finlay, Ciara Curcio, Mary Wade, Shauna Wotherspoon, Lauren Wong, Jordan Devine and Chris Charron. The runners have been training hard since the beginning of the school year and closed out the season with excellent race times and outstanding improvements. All the runners were fantastic competitors and maintained a winning attitude and effort despite the freezing temperatures. Thanks for a great season, keep running and we will see you next year!               Ms. Pipkins and Mr. Prigent.   OTTAWA PUBLIC DENTAL SCREENING Dental screening will take place for the Grade 8 students and certain classes of Grade 9-12 students on November 9th and 10th in accordance with the Ontario Ministry of Health Promotion and Sport- Mandatory Programs. After the examination is completed, only students identified as having dental needs will bring home a form for follow-up recommendations. Any questions regarding this screening should be directed to Vice Principal, Mr. P. Gillis at the school. CANADIAN CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS MESSAGE ON SOCIAL JUSTICE Please see the attached message on Social Justice. This message is vital to all of our students and contains some excellent information. Social Justice Message SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS MTHS Christmas Elves (aka: School Council) are hard at work with our Fundraising Initiative to benefit all MT departments and help supplement resources for our school community. Do you buy groceries? Gas? Christmas gifts? Do you go out to dinner, occasionally? Well...have we got a deal for you !! MT Catholic School Council has partnered with FUNDScrip Gift Cards, which means when you purchase gift cards through this program your money works TWICE ! 1.)    You get a regular, full value, vendor issued Gift Card to spend on items you normally buy anyway, and... 2.)    A percentage of Gift Card Sales comes back to MTHS for our fundraiser. We are launching this initiative on Thursday, November 3rd. Look for hard-copy order forms coming home with your child. Make your list...check it twice...and take care of all your Christmas shopping needs by ordering from a huge variety of Gift Cards available through this program. All Orders MUST be in the school on or before NOVEMBER 18th.Orders will be delivered to School Council by November 25th and will be available for pick-up at the office from Tuesday, November 29th. There will also be two evening pick-up dates (specific date info. to follow). Make your money work TWICE - for you and your MTHS Community. Thanks! UPCOMING DATES  Thursday, November 3rd        Grade 7&8 Parent Teacher Interviews                                                                 2:30 - 5:00 and 6:00 - 7:30                                                        Mental Health Fair 2:30-7:00 Friday, November 4th               Peace Conference and 67s game Monday, November 7th           Grade 7 & 8 students to 67s game Wednesday, November 9th    High school report cards distributed Friday, November 11th             Remembrance Day Ceremonies Monday, November 14th          Dr. Suzanne Simond, Psychologist presents                                                              Healing After Trauma                                                                7:00-8:30                                                                in the cafetorium Wednesday, November 16th     High School Parent Teacher Interviews                                                               2:30 - 5:00 and 6:00 - 7:30 Friday, November 18th                PD Day - No school for students BARBARA COLOROSO - KIDS ARE WORTH IT  "Because they are children and for no other reason they have dignity and worth, simply because they are..."    Barbara Coloroso Please visit www.kidsareworthit.com for further information Please join us for a family evening at Notre Dame High School (in the auditorium) 710 Broadview Avenue Ottawa, Ontario K2A 2M2 November 8th, 6:30-8:00 p.m. CSPA'S FREE PARENT SYMPOSIUM CSPA's free parent symposium, Parenting Now, will be held on the morning of Saturday, November 12th, at St. Patrick's High School.  The keynote speaker will be Dr. Bruce Ferguson, Director of the Community Health Services Resource Group at The Hospital for Sick Children. Join us for free breakfast, great workshops and valuable parent information.     Please see letter below for more information. Dear School Principal, The Catholic School Parents' Association (CSPA) is hosting a symposium for parents with children in grades K-12. Parenting Now - Supporting Healthy Minds will take place on the morning of Saturday, November 12, 2011 at St. Patrick's High School. This event is FREE for all parents and school staff, and will include breakfast. The keynote speaker Dr. Bruce Ferguson, Director of the Community Health Services Resource Group at The Hospital for Sick Children, will talk about Raising Resilient Children. This year, parents have two streams to choose from: Stream A consists of a variety of workshops to attend, including the following: * Anxiety in Children and Youth * Raising Happy, Healthy Children: Ten Things Every Parent Should Know * Drugs, Alcohol and Your Pre-Teen - Understanding What Kids Are Facing * Girls' Self Esteem - A Foundation for Healthy Living * Understanding ADHD * The psychoeducational assessment: understanding it's function * Anger control training for children and parents Stream B consists of a special 3 hour safeTALK training session. SafeTALK is a suicide prevention program. Advance registration is required for this training. Further details and workshop descriptions are available on the CSPA website at www.ottawacspa.ca. Thank you for your continued support. Cathy Philpott & Joanne MacEwan Co-Chairs Catholic School Parents Association (CSPA) 613-821-6168 613-738-472 Flu Clinic at Mother Teresa Ottawa Publc Health is holding a free flu shot clinic at Mother Teresa High School on: Wednesday, November 30 3:30 pm to 8:30 pm Please open the attached document from Ottawa Public Health for more information. Public Health Document

I hope everyone has a great November!  Mary Ellen Agnel                                              Principal, Mother Teresa High School

10/18/2011

Dear Parents/Guardians:
 


The days are getting shorter and yet we seem so much busier at Mother Teresa. Here are just a few of the happenings past and future that I want to share with you.

CHAPLAIN'S CORNER Opening liturgies were wonderful and many thanks to Fr. Steve Amesse for his presence. Class visits to the chapel are underway and ACTS (A Chance to Serve) as well as the S.A.A.E (Students Against the Axis of Evil!) Team are already tackling the issues of justice and the reign of God. Thanks to those of you who have contributed pop can tabs to our on-going collection. The tabs are donated to Ronald McDonald House (RMH) and are then converted into cash at a local recycling facility. The cash is used to pay for a child and parent to stay at RMH while undergoing treatment at CHEO. We will be collecting Canadian Tire money again this Advent. The funds are converted to gift cards and are given to our families in the Christmas Blessings Program. Stay tuned for details of upcoming programs. Martha Dougherty Chaplain, Mother Teresa High School WORLD HUNGER WEEK AT MT At lunch time everyday, students will be invited to sign a letter to Pierre Poilievre, MP, advocating for continuation of Canada's commitment to helping developing countries adapt to and fight climate change. Climate change has a huge impact on world hunger. The written announcements will include a fact a day. The letter to our MP is a compilation of letters from The Food Grains Bank, Food Banks Canada, and Development and Peace. It is here for your reference. Click here to download letter.  The Students Against the Axis of Evil (S.A.A.E) Team will be promoting this campaign during lunch this week. DISCOVER A WORLD OF CAREER POSSIBILITIES:  WORK 4 U 2 WHAT:                 WRK4U2 is a pathways and career demonstration day designed for all Grade 8 students and their parents to showcase the variety of unique opportunities available in our community and in our schools.  WHY:                 To explore educational and career pathways including various apprenticeships, trades and technologies along with specific focus programs in our schools  WHO:                 Presented by educators, current high school students, business partners, and community employment agencies WHEN:               Tuesday, October 25th, 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. -    one hour visits for each school -    parents may view the exhibits during the times mentioned above WHERE: Aberdeen Pavilion at Lansdowne Park HOW:                  Your child will be bussed from their school to the Aberdeen Pavilion, 1015 Bank Street, Ottawa. LEARNING COMMONS NEWS (Formerly known as the Library) Mother Teresa Learning Commons will be hosting the Grade 7/8 Read-A-Thon on November 3, 2011. This fun day of reading, guest speakers, and prizes is open to any Grade 7 and Grade 8 student.    Pledge sheets are available in the Learning Commons.  All funds raised will go toward purchases in the Learning Commons. RUN FOR M.A.D.D. TITANS participated in the 5km walk/run for M.A.D.D at Earl of March High School.Among the 400 participants, Mother Teresa High School was proudly represented by M.T.S.A.I.D members: Callie Arbuckle, Melissa Demers, Valerie Milian, Jasmine Khan, Michelle Grenon, and Stephannie Abreu. Our Jeans Day contributions for Friday November 4th will go towards supporting M.A.D.D.'s efforts to provide support service to victims of impaired driving and to heighten awareness in our community about the dangers of drinking and driving. I MATTER U MATTER GROUP I Matter U Matter is a group whose mandate is to de-stigmatize mental illness and to promote mental wellness. This year a group of students has been formed to focus specifically on mental health promotion. This group of Grade 12 students will be going into Grade 9 religion classes to encourage mental wellness. The I Matter U Matter team is also organizing a Mental Health Fair at MTHS on Thursday November 3 from 3:30-6:30 pm. This coincides with the afternoon of the 7/8 parent/teacher interviews. Representatives will be on hand to inform our community about mental health services available to us. Here are the confirmed organizations (to date) that will have information displays and staff present at our Mental Health Resource Night on November 3rd: ementalhealth.ca Hopewell Ottawa Bereaved Families Ottawa Public Health Ottawa Police Rideauwood South Nepean Community Health Centre YouthNet Youth Services Bureau TITANS QUILT The Mother Teresa Victoria Quilts Club held its first gathering after school last week and was able to complete one quilt.  Club members met Betty Giffin, the founder of Victoria Quilts Canada.  Betty informed the group that Victoria Quilts Canada was established in 2000 and in its first year, 16 quilts were distributed to adult cancer patients in the Ottawa area.  This non-profit charitable organization is staffed entirely by volunteers.  So far, over 13,000 quilts have been distributed free-of-charge to people with cancer. To request a quilt or to make a donation, please contact the National Office at (613) 843-9212 or e-mail betty@victoriasquiltscanada.com   For further information, please visit their website at http://victoriasquiltscanada.com.  Our club members plan to meet twice a week to work on the quilts. Students can easily obtain their community service hours while helping a great cause.  It's fun, easy and relaxing. MT TITAN WEAR Titan-wear on the school website has been updated! We have a new line of girls' sweatpants and some new look hoodies.   Look under "Our School" and "Tuck Shop" to see the catalogue, clothing descriptions, and the order form.   Order forms will be going home with students in the next little while. You can also print an order form from the web site. They are due by Friday, October 28. All clothing will be in long before Christmas so you can even use it as a Christmas present!! Students can try different sizes on by coming to Room 216 before school, at senior lunch, or after school. Please contact Mr. Len Baldin at ext.3005 should you have any further questions or e-mail len.baldin@ottawacatholicschools.ca  CAMERA EQUIPMENT DONATIONS Not sure what to do with that old film camera that has been gathering dust in storage for the last number of years? The Photography Department at Mother Teresa is expanding and is graciously accepting any donations of film camera equipment. We would be more than happy to pick items up at your location. Please contact Richard Linke at extension 3034 if you have anything you think we could use. MT STUDENTS EXPERIENCE CAMP SONSHINE On October 5th and 6th, six Grade 9 students and one teacher from M.T. spent the 2 days cleaning up and preparing Camp Sonshine for the winter season.Camp Sonshine is part of a Christian-based organization that provides care for developmental and physically challenged people, located 150 km north of Ottawa on Lac Corbeau, Quebec. The M.T. students are participants in an experiential learning program called Destination Employability. The program strives to help students gain essential employability skills and develop self confidence. The students were able to obtain community service hours while in attendance at the camp. With permission, the following is an excerpt from the journal of one of the students. "The trip was fun. We got to know Matt (caretaker for the camp) and he gave us a good introduction to the camp and explained what it was all about. I found that it was a good outdoor experience because some of us don't spend much time outdoors.  It felt good to be in the outdoors. We got to know our classmates better. It was a good bonding experience. I really liked stacking the logs and working as a team. I thought the canoes would be harder to move because they were big, but they were light. I got to make salad and helped in the kitchen." GRADUATING STUDENTS POLICIES AND DEADLINES As you are aware, all graduating students must complete 40 hours of community service prior to graduation. In the past, it has been the practice of some graduating students to leave their Community Service Hours to the last month of school, thereby jeopardizing their graduation in June. As a result, the following policies are now in place at Mother Teresa: PROM: All graduating students must have their 40 hours of community service completed if they intend to attend their Prom. Hours must be submitted to Student Services prior to May 11th, 2012. GRADUATION: In order to attend the Graduation Ceremony, students must have their 40 hours of community service completed by June 11th, 2012. Community Service Hours forms are available in Student Services or on the Mother Teresa website. STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS Homecoming Dance ( October 21st) The Homecoming Hoedown is the first of two High School dances scheduled for this year, and Student Council hopes to get as many students as possible to come out for a great time. Students will get to vote for their Homecoming King/Queen & Prince/Princess with the purchase of their tickets. We are hopeful that the fresh theme idea will encourage students to buy tickets and show their Titan spirit. October/ Halloween Spirit Week ( October 24th-31st)This spirit week will be Halloween themed, with a variety of dress up days to encourage creativity among the student body, as well as Halloween Dress-Up day itself, on Monday the 31st. Student Council will host the usual door decorating contest and would like to have other activities as well, such as Halloween Trivia over the morning anouncements. We hope that all Titans dress up and show their Titan spirit! TITAN SPORTS Congratulations to the members of the 7/8 Girls' and Boys' Flag Rugby teams who competed this past month in the OCSB Intermediate Flag Rugby tournaments. The boys finished with a 3-0 record in round-robin play; however, they lost a heartbreaker (6-5) in the quarter finals. The girls went 5-0 in round-robin play, and then went on to win their quarterfinal, semi-final, and final matches to take the first annual OCSB Intermediate Girls' Flag Rugby Championship. Awesome Job Girls!!! The 7/8 Cross Country Team had an incredible turnout to practices and had almost 40 students compete in the meet on September 29th at Terry Fox Stadium. The team met several times after school to practise, and focused on reaching personal goals which varied from runner to runner. At the end of the meet, Mother Teresa was extremely successful, finishing with combined points that were in the top 5 schools for each division. (Grade 7 girls, Grade 7 boys, Grade 8 girls, and Grade 8 boys). Our top finisher was Grade 7 student, Lindsay Warne, who finished 2nd and only one hair shy of 1st. In the Grade 7 boys division, Nick Caves and Sam Laviolette finished side-by-side, claiming 3rd and 4th spots respectively. MacKenzie Corrigan finished 5th in the Grade 8 girls division and Jeremy Trefry was the top finisher for the Grade 8 boys, finishing in 10th overall. All runners finished the race successfully, and all runners improved from the onset of the practices. The team made Mother Teresa H.S. very proud and represented our school in tremendous fashion by exemplifying positivity, respect, and determination. Thanks to Bridget Hayes for helping to coach these young athletes and showing them the power of positive thoughts!! Congratulations to all of you!!! Upcoming for Grade 7&8 sports is girls' volleyball. The Titans Sr. Boys Volleyball Team remains sharp both on and off the Court as they continue their season. The boys are riding a winning streak having taken 15 straight sets against teams across the west end of Ottawa. Their record sits at 5-0 with home games scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday this week. Games start at 4pm. Come on out and cheer the boys on as they take on Notre Dame and Holy Trinity. Return of the Titans After a one-year hiatus, football has returned to Mother Teresa High School! A total number of 44 students are part of this year's varsity program. There are many students returning who were part of the junior football team 2 years ago; this has given the team some stability since many players are already familiar with some of the offensive and defensive formations implemented by the coaching staff.    The team has a 3-1 record so far this season. After an opening loss, the team has won three consecutive games. The defense has played especially well, not allowing any points against in the last 3 games. This year's group of students have fully bought into a team concept. Each player has demonstrated the dedication, commitment, and hard work required to be successful. The team is focused and has their sights set on making the playoffs. BE HEARD - HAVE YOUR SAY! The Ottawa Police Services and the Ottawa Police Services Board are hosting a Let's Chat Youth Café because they want to hear from you! Come join a real police-youth conversation and explore the questions and issues that matter to you and your friends.   Wednesday, October 26, 2011  6:00 pm Nepean Sportsplex - Hall A OTTAWA PUBLIC HEALTH SURVEY Grade 11 and 12 students received a parental consent form Monday in homeroom to complete an online survey regarding attitudes and behaviours around cancer. If you wish your son or daughter to participate in this survey, please sign and return the consent form. SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS CSPA's free parent symposium, Parenting Now, will be held on the morning of Saturday, November 12th, at St. Patrick's High School.  The keynote speaker will be Dr. Bruce Ferguson, Director of the Community Health Services Resource Group at The Hospital for Sick Children. Join us for free breakfast, great workshops and valuable parent information.     More details can be found at www.ottawacspa.ca UPCOMING DATES Friday, October 21                   High School Dance 7:00pm-10:00pm Tuesday, October 25                Work 4 U 2 Day - Grade 8 Students Thursday, October 27               Progress Reports - 7&8  Friday, October 28                   7/8 Dance 1:30pm-3:00pm Wedneday, November 2            Take Our Kids to Work Day - Grade 9

Mary Ellen Agnel                                              Principal, Mother Teresa High School