A warm welcome was extended to twelve visiting Dutch educators by District Superintendent Laurie Keoughan and District 16 staff on Sunday April 5th. The visitors spent several days in schools of Districts 15 and 16 as part of a teacher exchange program that has the aim of further developing a three year old program of educational collaboration. While in the area, in addition to classroom visits, the very busy Dutch educators spent time exploring New Brunswick’s culture and heritage through an extensive program arranged by their hosts.
On April 3rd school superintendent Laurie Keoughan and District 16 technology mentors Rick Hayward and Joey Savoy hosted a delegation of four staff members from Colegio Williams, a well established private school located in Mexico City. The visiting educators were in Miramichi to explore opportunities for student exchanges and collaborative learning projects.
One hundred students participated in the District 16 2009 Science Fair at Nelson Rural School on April 1st. The students’ scientific thinking and knowledge, displayed over a wide range of topics, impressed both judges and members of the public . Top projects were identified at the various grade levels, but the selection was not an easy one for those making the decisions. “It was very satisfying to hear so many students using scientific vocabulary with such ease”, remarked one of the judges.
Miss Barrieau’s grade 6 classroom at Harkins Middle School will be the setting of a SMART Learning Environments Initiative this spring. It is one of five classrooms in the country chosen by the Canadian company SMART Technologies, maker of the inter-active white board, SMARTBoard, to take part in the study. The purpose of this undertaking is to investigate how SMART products support whole class interactive teaching, cooperative group work and individual learning.
Early Saturday, March 21, 2009, 8 student chefs from 4 District 16 High Schools arrived at Miramichi Valley School to prepare 3 courses for 2 professional chefs. Chefs Graham Tricket and Terry Pond were charged with judging the students as they prepared and presented their courses. The District 16 students had been previously selected from in-school competitions. Recipes for the competition were provided by chefs from NBCC St. Andrew’s and Moncton campuses.
On March 17, 2009 (St. Patrick's Day) the grade two students at NSEE participated in an interactive readers' theatre play with the Cleveland Institute of Music of Cleveland, Ohio. The students were given an opportunity to learn about Mozart and classical music in a fun, and authentic way. They listened to the orchestra as well as clapped and sang along with some of the singers and music. The Cleveland students shared things about themselves and their instruments after the play. It was a wonderful and non-threatening introduction to the joys of classical music.
Miramichi Valley High School art teacher Theresa MacKnight offered one day enrichment workshops on the Art of the Sketchbook to 4 groups of students throughout the district in mid-March. Students received their own artist-quality sketchbook and spent the day exploring new materials and techniques. They learned how artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci, as well as contemporary artists, have used sketchbooks in their artistic lives. The students had a rewarding experience meeting new, like-minded peers and exploring ways to expand their own creative instincts.
