Feb. 3, 2016

5102 – 46 St. Vermilion, AB

T9X 1G5

Phone: 780-853-4177 Fax: 780-853-2920

J. R. Robson High

School

In this edition: Principal’s Corner ..................... 1

Around the School ..................... 1

Principal’s Corner Con’t ........... 2

Mental Moments ....................... 2

Curling ...................................... 2

Wellness Coalition Activity ...... 2

Counsellor’s Corner ................. 3

Counsellor’s Corner Con’t ....... 4

JRR Improv Presents ................. 4

What’s The VIBE? .................... 4

JRR Drama Production .............. 4

Video Conference Courses ........ 5

Public Library ............................ 5

Book Exchange and Carnival .... 5

VTP Production ......................... 6

CLASS Courses......................... 6

2016 Yearbook Order Form ...... 7

Mental Health News .................. 8

Mental Health News .................. 9

AHS Measles Letter .................. 10

February Calendar ..................... 12

February Cafeteria Menu .......... 13

Marauder News

Principal’s Corner

Second semester has started!

High school students looking to make course changes must

see their assigned counselor prior to making those deci-sions. I was very impressed

with the overall attitude and hard work of the students in semester one. Keep up the

good work. At the January 25th Parent

Advisory Council Meeting we discussed a variety of topics. Coming out of our discussion

surrounding BTPS Policy’s 202 Students’ Rights and Re-

sponsibilities and 401 Work-place & Learning Environ-ment, the PAC decided to hold

a joint February meeting with Parent Advisory Council

Meeting

Joint meeting with VES PAC will be on

February 22, 2016 @ 7 pm

at JR Robson

the Vermilion Elementary

School PAC on February 22nd at 7:00 pm at JR Robson

School. At this meeting we will share with parents the procedures that will support

these two policies. Guiding the development of these two particular policies and proce-

dures supporting them is the document from Alberta Edu-

cation titled Guidelines for Best

Practices: Creating Learning Environ-ments that Respect Diverse Sexual Ori-entations, Gender Identities and Gen-der Expressions. h t t p s : / / e d u c a t i o n . a l b e r t a . c a/media/1626737/91383-attachment-1-guidelines-final.pdf

Please plan on attending the

(Continued on page 2)

Around the School

Website:

jrrobson.btps.ca

Facebook:

facebook.com/jr.robson.39

Twitter:

twitter.com/JRRobsonSchool

V I B E D a y —students had a chance to learn and participate in many activities

including Human Hungry Hippos

Mental Moments

Principal’s Corner continued

Congratulations to the J. R. Junior High

Curling Team of Indira Speck, Ryan Mac-

Millan (third), Danielle Fedirko (skip), Kira

DeRoo and Julie Newberry. Our team won

a silver medal in Marwayne on Feb. 4 and

now advance to the BTPS Finals in Innis-

free.

meeting if you have any input into the de-velopment of these documents.

I would like to remind parents of Grade 7 and 10 students to fill out and return your Alberta Education Accountability

Pillar APORI survey that you should have received in the mail. It is very important planning information for the school and

school division.

I want to thank Ms. Calyniuk and her

VIBE team for all the hard work they did

in hosting another exciting and enjoyable

VIBE Day on January 27th. Over 400

junior high students form Mannville, St.

Jeromes, Clandonald and Grade 6 stu-

dents from VES spent the day at our

school attending a variety of sessions.

The sessions were led by community ex-

perts and members from various commu-

nity organizations. Thank you to those

who volunteered to work with our future

leaders and experts. Even though some

of our buses did not run that day, many

parents of affected students insured that

their student got here one way or another

to attend.

(Continued from page 1)

How do you chase away the winter

blues? Grade 7 – go outside and do something

with my family Grade 9 – read or listen to music Grade 9 – play sports

Grade 10 – go skiing

Grade 12 – go watch movies with my

family

Curling

Counsellor’s Corner

Interior Design Technology - Mar 18 - Ver-milion campus

Fire & Emergency Services - TBA - Vermil-ion campus

Students can register for one or more sessions

today www.lakelandcollege.ca/infossions.

Grade 11 students – please see Mrs. Polishuk if you need information about career planning or about courses for next year. She would be happy to sit with you and work through a career plan, please see her to schedule an appointment. Parents are al-

ways welcome too if you have questions or concerns.

FYSci Camp - This is a hands-on Health Sci-ence camp for Grade 11 Students wanting to attend either the UofC or Uof A for one week, at no cost. this camp will introduce students to different educational and career options in the health sciences. Students will conduct experiments, tour research labs and attend presentations by university stu-dents. Applicants will require at least a 75% standing in each of math 20, biology 2, and one other grade 11 science class and recom-mendations from two teachers (one science and one other) All participants are in charge of bringing their own lunches. Participants coming from outside of Edmonton and Calga-ry are responsible for their own accommoda-tion and the associated costs. Applications are due May 15, 2015. Here is the web-site: http://www.aihealthsolutions.ca/outreach-learning/educational-outreach/fysci-camp/ Contact Mrs. Hart for more de-tails.

HYRS (Heritage Youth Researcher Summer

Program) Is a 6-week long (paid!), summer university research experience for exceptional Grade 11 students from around our prov-ince. This course is designed to give students from around the province first-hand biomedi-cal and health research experience at a uni-versity campus, and introduce them to the many educational and career options availa-

(Continued on page 4)

Semester two is already here. Wow how time flies. Congratulations to all students who have achieved their goals this semester. Your hard work and dedication

For high school students, February 11 will be the last day to add or drop courses for second semester.

For grade 12 students, your diploma exami-nation results will be mailed directly to you, usually after the long weekend in Febru-ary. If you need to have an exam reread or want to rewrite an exam, the paperwork

should be included in your exam package from the department or you can contact Mrs. Hart as she can access the paperwork as well. Remember you need to make a decision quickly if you wish to pursue either option.

You should also have all of your registrations to post-secondary completed by the end of the month as many post-secondary institu-tions do not accept registrations after March 1. Keep an eye out scholarship deadlines as well.

Lakeland College is hosting information

sessions for any students and parents who would like more information about the fol-lowing programs:

Energy & Petroleum Technology - Feb. 23 - Lloyd campus

Business - Feb 25 - Lloyd Campus

Sign Language - Mar 3 - Edmonton

University Transfer - Mar 4 - Lloyd cam-pus

Environmental Sciences - Mar 4 - Vermil-ion campus

Agriculture Sciences - Mar 11 - Vermilion campus

Human Services - Mar 11 - Vermilion campus

Health & Wellness - Mar 15 - Lloyd cam-pus

Street Rod Technologies - Mar 18 - Ver-milion campus

What’s the VIBE?

ble in this field. Applicants requires at least 85% in each of Math 20-1 or 20-2, biology 20 and one other science class. Here is the website: http://www.aihealthsolutions.ca/funding/training-and-early-career-funding/undergraduate-high-school/hyrs-heritage-youth-researcher-summer/ See Mrs. Hart if you are interested.

WIEST Summer Research Program provides an awesome opportunity for young women and young men who have completed Grade 11 to gain first hand information about the

diverse fields in science, engineering, and technology disciples. Participants work as paid research assistants on a project in an area that is less-traditional for their gender for six weeks in July and August. The young women do research in the Faculties of Engi-neering and/or Science and the young men are placed in the Faculty of Nursing and/or the Departments of Human Ecology and Nu-trition. Here is the website: http://w w w .w i s e s t .u a l be r t a . c a/P ro g rams /SummerResearchProgram.aspx See Mrs. Hart if you are interested.

Forward planning -- We will start the regis-tration process for next school year, after teacher’s convention. Remember, what courses you choose will impact our timetable course offerings for the next school year, so we ask that you give considerable thought to your choices and your needs.

Grade 12 students –

VIBE offers to all grade 12’s the Strong

Interest Inventory. This is an online ca-reer testing program

that has 90 years of research behind it. It is quite extensive and many students see it as accurate.

Students begin by taking a ‘test’ online (about 20 minutes). Then VIBE gets the

results and students sit with VIBE to go over the results (about 1 hour). Stu-dents may also choose to take the credit

that goes along with the Strong – CTR 3310. For more information about the

Strong or the CTR 3310 credit, please see VIBE or Mrs. Hart. VIBE is offering the Strong to Grade 11 and 12 students

free of charge.

Pink Shirt Day – Wednesday, February 24 – Students at JRR are encouraged to

show the support for a kinder world and that they will not tolerate bullying. Wear

a pink shirt on the 24th. The local de-tachment of RCMP and VIBE will be around to give out ‘Pink Shirt Day prizes.

Counsellor’s Corner Con’t

J.R Robson IMPROV PRESENTS

Friday, March 4

4-5 pm

$2.00 at the door

JRR Drama Players presented “Death at

the Pie Auction” Jan 21 & 22

February –March 2016

J.R. Training Lab, Vermilion.

All these courses are FREE.

1. The Perfect Mother Myth: A Conver-sation About Mothering and Mental

Health

February 18th: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Combining research and storytelling to

change the conversation related to perina-tal mood and anxiety disorders like post-partum depression, this session will ex-

plore the vital importance of our own health and self-care strategies while rais-

ing children. An honest look at the myth of “perfect” mothering, the stigma of ma-ternal mental illness and how it can influ-

ence childhood development, the way we parent and the image we present to oth-ers.

2. Building Shame Resilience in Chil-dren: An Empathic and Self Compas-

sionate Approach

March 2nd 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM

Drawing on the research of Dr. Brene Brown, this presentation will explore how

shame can drive behaviours that fuel dis-connection. Through a facilitated discus-

sion that focuses on the connection to self and others, we will explore specific tools for building capacity in children and

youth by recognizing the key importance of empathy and self compassion.

Come one, come all to the Dr. Seuss book exchange/mini

carnival Saturday,

March 5, 2016 Vermilion Pub-

lic Library 11 am—2 pm.

Your entry fee is a gently used or new

book, which allows you access to the many books we have to choose from plus games, crafts, photo booth and more!

In preparation for this event if you have

an abundance of books you would like to donate, please drop them off at one of our collection sites. All books that remain

after this exchange will be donated to Be-lize.

Hosted by Vermilion Girl Guides

Video Conference Courses

Winter Reading Program Our winter

reading program continues through the first three weeks of February with weekly

activities and draws. Watch for your chance to win tickets to Koba’s Great Big Show Live. All reading logs must be in

on Feb. 16th in order to be entered in our system-wide draw. Great prizes to be won.

Blind Date with a Book: Try a mysteri-

ous book and be entered for a Valentine's Day prize. Feb 9th - 12th. Adults only.

Crochet Level 2 Thursdays March 3, 10, 17, 24 at 6:45 pm. If you know how to

crochet and double crochet and are look-ing to make a project, this is the course for you. Ages 10 and up. Cost: $10

Please pre-register. Limited class size.

Vermilion Public Library

We’ve all experienced life’s ups and downs. Things don’t always go our way, or turn out as planned. How well

we cope with hardship and change is based on a concept called resiliency.

Resiliency is the ability to bounce back from setbacks and cope with

adversity. Being able to deal with those setbacks is a key factor in positive

mental health, as well as school, career and relationship success.

Resiliency is not something parents can control or determine, but we do

play an important role in helping our children develop the assets that enable

them to be resilient. Personal resiliency is about our assets – the

resources, attributes and skills – that help us recover from negative events or feelings, cope with challenges

and adversity, and look after ourselves when things aren’t going well. People who are resilient are more likely

to have the confidence to seek support from others in times of trouble.

Resilience building makes a difference! Research demonstrates that building resilience leads to:

So how do you build resilience in children and youth?

Increase bonding and create a sense of belonging. Spend time talking, dreaming, planning and playing together. Tell your kids often that you will always love and accept them.

Set clear and consistent boundaries. Respect their privacy, but take interest in their friends and activities. Always ask where they are going, with whom, and when they’ll be back. It is important to have open conversations about important topics such as; the use of drug or alcohol and dating relationships, and to be clear about your expectations before you need to. Kids respect our clear limits and boundaries when they know what to expect in advance.

Teach life skills like gardening, meal planning and preparation, and money management. Provide caring and support. Show empathy for how they are feeling and help them find solutions to life’s

challenges. Set and communicate high expectations. Talk with your kids about success in school or activities, help

them set realistic goals and support them to reach their goals. Encourage them to do their best! Provide opportunities for meaningful involvement. Put kids in charge of planning the activities for a

family night or celebration, help them find volunteer opportunities and talk about ways they would like to make a difference or give back in their community.

For more great ideas, check out Resiliency at the Alberta Health Services’ website, www.ahs.ca. You can also find additional parent resources at www.psychologyfoundation.org

Addiction and Mental Health News

February 2016

For more information or for available

programs and services in your area contact:

Mental Health Help Line 1-877-303-2642 Addiction Help Line 1-866-332-2322 HEALTHLINK Alberta 811

Decrease

substance abuse

mental health concerns violence

Increase

positive mental health

leadership skills

maintenance of good health

success in school

The ads make life look so easy - everyone seems to be laughing, hanging out with friends, wearing exactly the right clothes. But life can be pretty tough sometimes. Why is it that some people can go through really rough times and still bounce back? The difference is that those who bounce back are using the skills of resilience. The good news is that resilience isn’t something you’re born with or not — the skills of resilience can be learned. Developing resilience is a personal journey.

Strategies for Building Resilience

Make connections. Good relationships with close family members, friends or others are important. Accepting help and support from those who care about you and will listen to you strengthens resilience.

Avoid seeing crises as insurmountable problems. You can't change the fact that highly stressful events happen, but you can change how you interpret and respond to these events. Try looking beyond the present to how future circumstances may be a little better.

Accept that change is a part of living. Certain goals may no longer be attainable as a result of adverse situations. Accepting circumstances that cannot be changed can help you focus on circumstances that you can alter.

Move toward your goals. Develop some realistic goals. Do something regularly — even if it seems like a small accomplishment — that enables you to move toward your goals.

Take decisive actions. Act on adverse situations as much as you can. Take decisive actions, rather than detaching completely from problems and stresses and wishing they would just go away.

Look for opportunities for self-discovery. People often learn something about themselves and may find that they have grown in some respect as a result of their struggle with loss.

Nurture a positive view of yourself. Developing confidence in your ability to solve problems and trusting your instincts helps build resilience.

Keep things in perspective. Even when facing very painful events, try to consider the stressful situation in a broader context and keep a long-term perspective.

Maintain a hopeful outlook. An optimistic outlook enables you to expect that good things will happen in your life. Try visualizing what you want, rather than worrying about what you fear.

Take care of yourself. Pay attention to your own needs and feelings. Engage in activities that you enjoy and find relaxing. Exercise regularly. Taking care of yourself helps to keep your mind and body primed to deal with situations that require resilience.

For more information: http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/road-resilience.aspxx

Addiction and Mental Health News

February 2016

For more information or for available

programs & services in your area contact:

Mental Health Help Line 1-877-303-2642 Addiction Help Line 1-866-332-2322 HEALTHLINK Alberta 811

om

January 2016 Dear School Parents, Staff and Volunteers: PROTECTION AGAINST MEASLES - VACCINE REMINDER FOR SCHOOL PARENTS, STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS Measles is an illness that can sometimes cause severe health problems, and occasionally death. It can be prevented by measles vaccine. A school exposure occurs when a person with measles is present at a school. Persons who attend, work or volunteer at that school are at risk of getting measles. When there is a school measles exposure: 1. Public Health will check all students, staff and volunteers for protection against measles. 2. Students, staff and volunteers who do not have protection against measles may be

excluded, meaning they are not allowed to attend, work or volunteer at school, until the risk for infection is over.

Two doses of measles vaccine given before a school measles exposure provides protection against measles and avoids possible exclusion. Please ensure your local Public Health Centre has a record of immunizations which may have been given previously in different locations in Alberta, Canada, or other countries, translated if necessary. To receive measles vaccine or check immunization records, please contact an Alberta Health Services Public Health Centre. For more information on measles vaccine, please go to immunizealberta.ca. For more information on measles, protection, vaccine schedule, exclusion, and Public Health Centres, please see other side. Thank you for your attention and help in this important matter. Sincerely, Alberta Health Services Medical Officers of Health Dr. Albert de Villiers Zone Lead Medical Officer of Health North West Area

Dr. Chris Sikora Zone Lead Medical Officer of Health Edmonton Zone

Dr. Deena Hinshaw Zone Lead Medical Officer of Health Central Zone

Dr. Richard Musto Zone Lead Medical Officer of Health Calgary Zone

Dr. Vivien Suttorp Zone Lead Medical Officer of Health South Zone

Dr. Wadieh Yacoub Medical Officer of Health First Nations and Inuit Health Branch, Health Canada

Measles: Measles is a viral illness with fever, cough, runny nose or red eyes, and a red blotchy rash. It is spread easily through the air. Symptoms usually start 8 – 12 days after exposure; it takes about 14 days for rash to appear. About one in three children with measles will suffer more severe problems, including ear infections, diarrhea, croup, pneumonia, febrile seizures and inflammation of the brain (encephalitis). Persons who may have measles should contact Health Link Alberta (811). Protection Against Measles: Persons born in 1970 or later are considered protected if they have a written record of two doses of live measles-containing vaccine. The first dose must have been given on or after the first birthday, and the second one after a minimum time has passed (differs by vaccine). Persons born before 1970 are considered protected because most have been infected. Measles-Containing Vaccines: Children aged 1 year and 4-6 years of age, are offered measles-containing vaccine at no charge as part of the Alberta routine childhood immunization program.

Exclusion from school due to lack of protection against measles:

• Exclusion lasts from 5 days after the first exposure up to 21 days after the last exposure. This continues for each new case. All persons attending, working or volunteering at school will be considered exposed, whether they were present when the person with measles was at school or not.

• Excluded persons must remain at home to avoid exposure of others in the community. • Persons who get measles must remain at home for four days after the start of the rash.

To find a local Public Health Centre:

• visit the Alberta Health Services website www.albertahealthservices.ca: select Find Health Care, Find Hospitals and Facilities, Facility Type, and Public Health Centres

• call Health Link Alberta (811) • consult a phone book

For information about immunization visit immunizealberta.ca

February 2016

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 Organizational

Day—no classes

2 Semester II begins

3 4 5 Sno Ball Basketball

Tournament

6 Sno Ball Basketball

Tournament

7 8 9 10 11 12 TES Team Day—no

classes

13

14

15 Family Day—no

classes

16 17 18 19 20

21 22 PAC Meeting (with VES) 7 pm at JRR

23 24 Pink Shirt Day

25 Ski Trip

26 School Based PD Day—no classes

27

28 29

February Cafeteria Menu

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 Organizational

Day—no classes

2

3 4 5 ‘Fryday’

6

7 8 Macaroni & Cheese

9 Pancakes & Sausage

10 Hamburger Helper

11 ‘Fryday’

12 TES Team Day—no

classes

13

14

15 Family Day—no

classes

16 Taco in a Bag

17 Spaghetti & Meat

Sauce

18 Hot Dogs

19 ‘Fryday’

20

21 22 Pizza

23 Caesar Salad

24 Hamburgers

25 ‘Fryday’

26 School Based PD Day—no classes

27

28 29 Chicken Wraps