Dear Brookes Westshore Families and Friends,

What a week it has been, as snowflakes painted a winter wonderland landscape around us! Thanks everyone for your continuous support and understanding as we navigate the inclement weather conditions this week. I hope this newsletter finds you safe and warm.

The highlight of the week was undoubtedly the snow day that turned our usual routine into a day of snowy adventures. Dorm students and staff embraced the joy of building snowmen, making snow angels, and savoring hot chocolate. It was a delightful break from the norm, fostering a sense of camaraderie and shared excitement.

A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated maintenance team who made sure our school was safe and accessible during the snowy weather!

Next Wednesday, January 24^th, is the long-awaited school-wide ski trip to Mt. Washington! For those students who are not going skiing, we understand some may be staying home on this day, although there will be classes for those attending school.

Finally, we have wonderful news! We have booked the tickets for the final four students from Ukraine to fly to Canada. They will be traveling to Victoria with their chaperone on Monday!  Of course, they will need a few days to settle in and find their feet - students can expect to see them in class this Thursday.  We are so happy that they will be joining us.

Wishing everyone a cozy and joyful weekend!

With kind regards,

Dr. Rui Li

Principal

MYP4 Science

Students in MYP4 are learning how to classify substances based on their chemical components. This week they were challenged to make educated guesses for the identities of the mystery substances! 

Small acts of service can have a big impact on those we serve.

Ivan, Kai, Taishi, Iris, Arvin, and Justin in MYP5 wanted to help a young family in need of a special Christmas. We reached out to the Mustard Seed Hamper Program, and they let us know about a little boy who really wanted a soccer ball. The students came through right away, adding a fooseball game, cookies, chocolate and hot chocolate, a grocery gift card, and a movie theatre gift card. Their thoughtfulness was much appreciated by Sasha, Kai (age 6) and Bo (age 7) in a lovely handmade card.

Note from the family: “Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity. All the best in 2024.”

Creative Writing Contest

Are you an avid writer? Do you love writing poems or enjoy creating stories? Exercise your creative writing skills in the Brookes Westshore writing competition for house points and prizes! Prizes will be awarded to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in both categories of Grades 4-7 and Grades 8-12. They include $50 and $25 Russel Books gift cards and hundreds of house points!

Submissions are due Feb. 3rd. Please use this link or QR code below to find out more about the contest's prizes and rules, as well as to read the prompts, criteria, and submit your creative writing!

The Grad Photos will be on January 29th, 30th, and 31st. More details will be in next week's newsletter.

School Ski Trip 2024

Everyone is looking forward to this year's ski trip to the Mt. Washington Alpine Resort on Wednesday, January 24th!

Blue Monday

Monday was Blue Monday - supposedly the saddest day of the year. So - we treated students to peppermint tea and some warming fires in the courtyard. We all enjoyed the warmth - inside and out!

Snow Day!

With the snow day on Wednesday this week local students stayed at home - but our international boarders had fun in the fields of Royal Roads University (our neighbour and partner). For some students this was their first taste of a BC snowfall!

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.