Our senior girls' team had another unbeaten evening this week - Go Gryphons!

Dear Brookes Westshore Families and Friends,

It’s been a busy and eventful week at Brookes!

Shakeout BC

Our students and staff participated in the annual Shakeout BC earthquake drill on Thursday morning. This essential practice ensures that everyone in our school community is prepared for emergencies. We were impressed with the students’ calm and responsible behaviour during the drill. 

Service Community Block

Our Student Leadership Council (SLC) Service Committee led the school’s second community block on Thursday afternoon. The theme of the community block was service, which is a key component of our school. I was very proud to see our student representatives of each grade level share their service projects, from helping at local food banks to participating in beach clean-up. We are proud of our students’ dedication to making a positive impact on our community!

Some of the Student Leadership Council: Susie, Tish, Laura, Sam, Emmett, Meghan, Milo, Lucca, Kate, and Liath (front)

 Pro-D Day

Today, our dedicated educators took part in a great Pro-D Day focusing on continuous improvement and staying updated with the latest teaching techniques and trends. This empowers our teachers to provide a safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environment for our students.

 Term 1 interim learning update

Term 1 interim learning update is issued today through ManageBac. This interim update provides a snapshot of student’s work habits and engagement for the first weeks of classes. We encourage parents to take time to review your child(ren)’s progress and celebrate their achievements thus far. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to our teachers or administration.

We want to extend our gratitude to all our parents and guardians for your support and partnership. Your involvement in your child(ren)’s education is invaluable.

With warm regards,

Dr. Rui Li

Principal

Students listening to the Service Community Block

Fall Snapshot Survey

Our thanks to everyone who completed our survey last week. We are delighted to hear about our successes, and equally delighted to have some clarity around where we can improve. Thank you!

If you haven't had a chance to complete the survey - it is still open. You can access it here: Snapshot Survey. The more information we have, the better we can meet your needs. 

Parent-Teacher Conference Sign-up.

The Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on November 1^st from 15:30 to 17:30 and November 2^nd from 14:15 to 17:30 for both local and international families. 

All times are PST. There will be NO ASAs on these two days. 

November 2^nd will be an early dismissal day at 14:00.

Sign up will be open at midnight on October 24th PST. 

Instructions:

1. Open SchoolsBuddy app or go here.
2. Go to Activities & Clubs
3. Once signup is open, a Parent Teacher Conferences event will be available.
4. Select time/s and book. Each teacher can typically be booked for a 12-minute block.
5. You should receive a confirmation email with your booking time.
6. When it is time to join the conference, you can access it from SchoolsBuddy in your calendar. There will be a Join Meeting button when you are ready to join.
7. The conference will end after your scheduled time without obvious notice.

If you have trouble with SchoolsBuddy please contact gsiemens@westshore.brookes.org for assistance. 

For more detailed instructions see here. 

Flu Clinic

Our school nurse, Melanie Penn RN, is organising a flu clinic here at Brookes for November 7th, 8th and 9th from 9:30 am to noon. More details coming soon.

MYP 3 Design

Architecture: Designing a School

As part of their Inquiring and Analyzing criterion students were treated to a personal tour of our campus with Christina Salvador.

Christina is one of the team of architect's who designed Brookes Westshore. We learned first-hand about the process of research and the development of ideas. Students took notes and asked questions about the school's key architectural features, like our beautiful shared spaces and our buildings' relationship to the natural landscape. 

We are excited to see what fabulous ideas the students can realize in this project using our design cycle methodology!

We are following the MYP Design cycle pictured below. 

MYP 3 Science

In MYP 3 science, students are currently learning about types of cells and cell organelles. Students performed a lab on extracting DNA from strawberries. They came into the lab prepared, and the results were exciting to see! Every group was able to produce strands of DNA visible to the eye.

MYP 1 Science

In MYP 1 Science, students visited the lab to make slime! During this investigation, we learned how to form a hypothesis and identify variables, how to use a graduated cylinder and digital analytical balance, and the importance of closely following the steps of a procedure in the correct order. Some slimes turned out better than others, based on how much borax was added and how closely the procedure was followed.

Don’t have your own graduated cylinder or digital analytical balance? Click the link below for a slime recipe you can easily make with equipment found in your own kitchen!

https://www.pbs.org/parents/crafts-and-experiments/homemade-gak

Montana is representing Team Canada Hip-Hop

Montana from DP2 will be away this upcoming week to compete in Poland on Team Canada Hip-hop!

She has been dancing for around 10 years, dancing and competing at her home studio here in Victoria: Vibestreet. Recently, she decided to audition for Team Canada and was picked to join the Adult Formations team called The Compound, and an Adult small group called The Syndicate. 

Roberta Bierman, a nationally known choreographer based in Vancouver, has been working hard at assembling a team of dancers to represent our country. For the members of the team, this past summer has been spent training in Vancouver, working hard to perfect their choreography. 

We will cheer on Montana and the rest of Team Canada from Brookes, wishing her the best as she represents our country internationally!  

The SDGs light up the UN building in New York.

MYP 4 and the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN

In MYP 4, students are exploring the real-world applications of the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These goals encompass a wide range of issues, including poverty alleviation, gender equality, climate action, and access to quality education. This year, our MYP 4 students are working in small groups and developing service projects that align with these goals.

The first step in this process is selecting an SDG that resonates with the students' interests and passions. For example, some students have chosen to work on an SDG related to clean water and sanitation, and others are focused on zero hunger. This personal connection ensures their commitment to the project.

Currently, the students are engaging in in-depth research to understand the specific issues surrounding their chosen SDG. They are exploring the root causes, local and global impacts, and potential solutions. With this knowledge, they formulate a comprehensive plan to address these issues within their community.

The heart of these service projects lies in taking concrete actions. Once students have finished their research, they develop proposals for how they plan to carry out their service project. Students may organize awareness campaigns, fundraisers, clean-up drives, educational workshops, or even design innovative solutions. For example, one group of MYP 4 students is partnering with Community Fridge Victoria to support SDG 2—Zero Hunger. Another group of students is partnering with North Island Wildlife Recovery Center to raise funds for animals in their care, supporting SDG 15—Life on Land.

Interested in learning more about the Sustainable Development Goals guiding these service projects? Click here: Home | Sustainable Development (un.org)

Students in our Model United Nations ASA preparing for a debate on political violence (SDG 16).

DP 1 Food Drive 2023

Hi! I'm Isabella! I and other DP1 students would like to invite you to donate for the first food drive this school year.

We are doing this as a CAS project (Creativity, Activity, Service), and it is a great opportunity for all of us to give back to our community. It will take place from November 6th to December 18th, there will be boxes placed at the front desk where students will be able to place the food they bring according to the school House they're in. The food will be taken to the Goldstream Foodbank.

According to this food bank, some of the foods they accept can be Canned Soup (Mushroom, Tomato, Vegetable and Chicken Noodle), Alternative Milk, Pasta Sauce/ Noodles, Canned Beans, Coffee, Personal Hygiene Items, Canned Fruits, School Snacks (Granola Bars, Puddings etc.) 

Do not hesitate to contact me or my classmate Nezvith for any doubts about what's eligible to donate. Thank you in advance! 

Isabella - itamez@westoshore.brookes.org 
Nezvith - nguardado@westshore.brookes.org 

Not quite a book club, but we thought we would share some of our favourite books with you and offer you the opportunity to share your favourite reads with us! 

First up: Mr. B and Elantris by Brandon Sanderson:

This is the story of a man who catches a terrible magical disease and is thrown into a prison city for those with the disease. He tries to unravel the world's magic system while surviving in terrible circumstances and trying to bring civilization back to those locked in the city with him.

If you would like to let us know your favourite book, and why you like it so much - please email your recommendation to jboxshall@westshore.brookes.org

Senior Girls Volleyball

The senior girls’ volleyball team hosted Edward Milne (EMCS) and Glenlyon-Norfolk (GNS) last night. The team played very well, defeating EMCS (25-10; 25-14) and following that up with a victory over GNS (25-16; 25-12).  

It was a solid team effort with everyone making contributions to the win. Their coach was very impressed with their good team play. Special thanks to volunteers Emma K, Olivia M, Ximena, Rylan, and Kura for being scorekeepers and lines people.

Brookes Westshore acknowledges that our school is on the traditional lands of the Xwsepsum (Esquimalt) and Lekwungen (Songhees) ancestors and families.
With gratitude, we live, work and learn here where the past, present, and future of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, faculty and staff come together.