A Message from our Head of School - Jerry Salvador

I hope everyone in BC enjoyed time with their families this past weekend – it is so important to take time to connect and share our lives with our loved ones. This week has been short but no less busy for that. On Thursday I had a thoroughly enjoyable time at the Personal Project Exhibition. Our grade 10 students have put in a lot of time and effort to make their project presentations really shine – and it showed! They were all clearly proud of their achievements and enjoyed the opportunity to showcase their work to their fellow students, staff and parents.

We are still monitoring the global situation with the Coronavirus (Covid 19) and how it might impact travel over the Spring Break. We have decided not to open the school over Spring Break as we had very few students signing up to stay here – most have family in Canada and are choosing to spend time with them rather than at school.

We have some exciting events coming up in the next few weeks – the ski trips are always a highlight, and the senior boys basketball team are a game away from Provincials! The first ever Brookes Westshore Quiz Night isn’t far away - have you got a team together? It should be a great evening of laughter and general knowledge. Have a look below for some other events on the horizon – we’d love to see you there!

Approaches to Learning - VP of Academics, Linda Bayes

The IB Middle Years and Diploma Programmes emphasize the development of ‘Approaches to Learning’ skills to help students “learn how to learn”. These skills are a fundamental component of independent learning and will improve and become more sophisticated with practice over time. Teachers provide students with lessons to develop the skills and opportunities for them to practice.The BC Curriculum has a parallel curriculum framework to develop the learning skills which are called Core Competencies. The teaching of IB ATL skills meets the BC curriculum requirement for Core Competencies.

These skills are not assessed the same as a subject groups and will not receive an academic grade. Students reflect on their skills on an ongoing basis in the classroom and these reflections will be a part of their Term 3 report card.

The ATL framework is divided into 5 categories and each category has specifics skills to be learned and developed over the course of the MYP and DP. Most, if not all students should have developed proficiency in all skills upon graduation from the Diploma Programme.

ATL Skill Categories

Communication skills: Interaction, reading and writing

Social skills: Collaboration

Self-management skills: Organization, Affective Reflection

Research skills: Information Literacy, Media Literacy

Thinking skills: Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Transfer

Friday March 6th is Quiz Night at Brookes!

We are inviting everyone - staff, students and parents - to put together a team of 5 and come along to Brookes to battle it out for the title of Brookes Trivia Team of 2020.

There will be prizes!

Why not test your knowledge against the best Brookes has to offer? It is sure to be a fun evening of laughter and friendly competition!

Teams should include at least one parent, one student and one staff member. If you can't put a team together - no problem! Anyone interested will have a place - we will make sure no-one is without a team.

You can join us for dinner from 5 pm to 6 pm or just come along for the Quiz starting at 6.30 pm. There will be rounds of questions on topics ranging from music, film, geography, sports, and much more.

Let me know if you are ready to take on the challenge!

James

jb oxshall@westshore.brookes.org

Parent Information Session - Grade 10 Families

On February 25 we will hold a parent information session at 5:30 pm and we encourage students and parents to attend.

The information presented at this event will focus on the selection of courses for the Diploma Programme. We will go over the courses we provide and how they are selected to meet the requirements of the IB Diploma.

All Grade 10 parents are encouraged to attend but other parents are welcome.

Spring Fling: Friday April 3rd, 3:30-6:30

It’s been a long, hard, winter, but don’t fret, spring is on the way!

What better way to welcome the spring season than to enjoy some live outdoor music and a BBQ with friends and family. On Friday April 3rd we will have the talented musicians from the band ‘Summer Rain’ and the solo musician Jill Cooper play for our community in the school courtyard.

If you would like more information on these musicians, you can check out their websites here:

https://www.musicsummerrain.com

https://www.jillcoopermusic.com

Families are welcome to join in on the event. Day students, teachers and families wanting to come to this event, please RSVP here so we know how many people will be joining us for the BBQ. Please submit your RSVP by the 10th of March as the kitchen needs notice to prepare.

International Week: Monday April 14th- April 17th

International week is coming this April! This will be a week-long celebration of different cultures and a wonderful way to learn about diversity.

We will have lunchtime activities, international lunches, community block presentations and a talent show to end off the week. Each advisor group will be choosing a different country to represent and preparing a lunchtime activity, an act for an international talent show or a small presentation for the community block.

If students would like to do something on their own, or in a group outside of their advisor group, we would be thrilled to have them participate as well. Students, please contact asalvador@westshore.brookes.org of you would like to sign up for this event.

Personal Project Exhibition

On Thursday February 20th 2020 our Grade 10 students showcased their Personal Projects in the Dining Hall. What an amazing array of talent and passion! - from time management apps to environmental art installations, basketball tournaments to delicious food - our students did an amazing job.

The Personal Project is an independent research-based project for all students in grade 10. It is a significant piece of work based on students' interests, initiative and creativity. The exhibition was a true celebration of the students' work and a great opportunity for them to talk about and showcase their hard work.

Congratulations to all our Grade 10 students on a job well done!

Senior Boys Basketball

The boys won their challenge game last weekend to progress to the Island Championships! This is a big honor, and the first time any Brookes Westshore Basketball team has made it this far. The Island tournament started yesterday, and with one loss and one win the boys are moving on to the quarter finals tomorrow! Coaches Aija and Michaela are so proud and we are excited for the rest of this tournament!

Grade 7 and 8 Design at Brookes Westshore with Mr Art Brendon

MYP design challenges all students to apply practical and creative thinking skills to solve design problems; it encourages students to explore the role of design in both historical and contemporary contexts; and raises students’ awareness of their responsibilities when making design decisions and taking action. Design is the link between innovation and creativity, taking thoughts and exploring the possibilities and constraints associated with products or systems, allowing designers to redefine and manage the generation of further thought through prototyping, experimentation and adaptation. It is human-centred and focuses on the needs, wants and limitations of the end users.

Inquiry and problem-solving are at the heart of MYP design. The subject requires the use of the design cycle as a tool that provides the methods used to structure the inquiry and analysis of problems, the development of feasible solutions, the creation of solutions, and the testing and evaluation of the solution. In MYP design, a solution can be defined as a model, prototype, product or system that students have developed and created independently.

The Design course for the MYP students is based on a Design Cycle. (Investigation, Design Ideas, Creation of a Design, and Evaluation). During the course this year we will focus on three key concepts: Systems, Communities, and Communication, all within the theme of sustainability. The second term has focused on Communities as our Key Concept.

The class project in Grade 7 Design has included designing and constructing drums and pipe marimbas from PVC plastic pipes. Tuning the instruments and learning to play them will be our classes aim in this Unit 2. I anticipate this construction, designing and learning experience will involve all the class as both players and performers.

The Grade 8 class has been involved in planning and designing a TV news broadcaster for the school. The students have considered all aspects of presenting information to the school community. Researching current news stories, writing scripts for the announcements and post-production video editing have kept them engaged in the process of presenting topics that interest and inform us at Brookes School.

A Message From School Nurse Sandra McManus

Dear Parents,

Please find below the link for Vaping Information for parents produced by the BC Lung Association (BCLA). BCLA is working closely with Health Authorities, with funding from the BC Ministry of Health, to produce teaching material on vaping for educators to use in the classrooms and for parents to use with their children at home.

h ttps://bc.lung.ca/sites/default/files/Vaping_Parent%27sHandout_preview_May28.pdf

We hope you find the information useful to start a conversation with your child about the use of vaping products. You may want to check on the BC Lung Association website for additional resources on this topic.

https://bc.lung.ca/how-we-can-help/vaping/vaping-prevention-toolkit