VOLUME89,Issue2SEPTEMBER2016

RICHMOND SECONDARY SCHOOL

NEWSLETTER HOMEOFTHECOLTS-ESTABLISHEDIN1927

Principal:Mr.JimAllisonAddress: 7171MinoruBlvd,Richmond,BC,CanadaV6Y1Z3VicePrincipals:Mr.GordonFitt&Ms.SandyHuiPhone: 604-668-6400Fax:604-278-4734PAC:Ms.O.Fedorenko EarlyWarning: 604-247-2658TrusteeLiaison:Ms.S.NixonTwitter:@richmondcolts

Website: http://rhs.sd38.bc.ca

Principal’s MessageWelcome students and parents to Richmond Secondary School! Our enrollment is currently 1,180 students and it was great to see so many happy and enthusiastic faces brighten up our hallways on the first few days of school. Our primary purpose remains the same - to meet the learning needs of each of our students and provide them with a safe, supportive learning environment in which they can thrive and grow. At our opening grade assemblies, we welcomed everyone to Richmond, clarified expectations and encouraged students to get involved in life outside the classroom in a positive way. We reinforced our themes of kindness, care and respect – for yourself and for all others, for the school, for our neighbourhood and community. We spoke about being resilient and believing in yourself, but also asking for help when you need it – we care about students and we want everyone to be successful. Please encourage your teen to set realistic goals and support them in becoming actively engaged in their own learning and to participate in all aspects of the Richmond High community. I encourage parents and guardians to stay connected to the school, follow us on Twitter and check or subscribe to our website regularly for the latest news, updates and upcoming RHS events. I look forward to meeting many parents on our Meet the Teacher evening on September 22 at 6:30pm. Thank you, Mr. Jim Allison

Welcome To Richmond Secondary School! A school organization is only as good as the peoplewho attend,work and learn there. We are very excited towelcome back Vice Principal Mr. Gordon Fitt from parental leave and the following new and returning staffmemberstoourschoolforthe2016-2017schoolyear.WewishthemwellandlookforwardtotheircontributionstoourstudentsandRHSColtscommunity!Welcometo:Ms.ChristineCampbell EducationalAssistant Ms.LisaLo ScienceandMathMs.ElainaCoblin ColtProgram Ms.DinaMedicoff EducationalAssistantMs.JessicaDiggens MathandScience Ms.EllenRamsden SocialStudiesMs.ArsalaIrshad MathandScience Ms.GinaSena CafeteriaandACE-ITProgramMs.RakshinKandola EnglishandELL Mr.VincentTam MandarinMs.NancyLi FrenchandSpanish Ms.JenniferVi BusinessEducationandELLMs.PaulinaLino Cafeteria–Cook Ms.SheilaghWatermanHomeEc Mr.GideonLin English,ELL&Socials Mr.RogerYoung EnglishMs.AmberChalland EducationalAssistant

“Home of the Colts” GO SHARKS

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RSSNEWSLETTERVOLUME89,Issue2SEPTEMBER2016

“Home of the Colts” GO SHARKS

AcademicExcellenceatRichmondSecondary:The Ministry of Education reported that 81% of our 2016graduatingstudentsachieved"Honours"statusformaintaining"better than a B average for the 80-credits required forgraduation." Congratulations also to the hundreds of RSSGrades10,11and12studentswhowroteProvincialExams inJune. Our students achieved significantly higher than thedistrictandprovincialaveragesinScience10,Math10,English10andEnglish12.Specialcongratulationsgoestothefollowingstudents who achieved a remarkable score of 100% on aProvincialExam: JustinChan Math10 CarolineChen Math10 MeiAnChen Math10 MenaHessein Math10 KarynKomatsu Math10 AlexWu Math10 LeonLin Science10 AnnaWei Science10 VivianZhang Science10TheseRSSstudentsachievedexcellentoran"A"resultontheir2016ProvincialExams-congratulationsto:English10KenBai JosephineChanBrianChang SharonChengLaurenDa SophiaDeLaTorreDannaDelaCruz TimHeAlexandraHernandez EmmaHongMelissaHuen SeanLanHalliwellLi ChristinaLinPhillipLiu RyanLiuAdeleLuo JoshuaLyDerrickMow YsabelleSantaAnaViktoriaTryfonova CharlesWuWoodyWu MandyXuThomasZhang VivianZhangSocialStudies11AndrewBalce ArielChenSandyChen NatalieCookeHannahDurland DevinLamLucyLi BryanMannConstanceMuradyan YuriOdaTatianaPovoroznyuk TeganSyhoMarcoYip ZoeZhang

RSSProvincialExam"A"Results:English12PearlAyem SusanBaiJasperChan RichardChanTiffanyChang CindyChaoFionaChen NoelleCheungKareemElMenyawi DanEstrinBrianFabula MabonFooAadharGaur ArsenenGervacioNikolGrishin JasmineGuoJessicaJiang AmyKangMonicaLee VincentLeeJoyceLi AlexanderLiEileenLiu JerryLiuKristyLok AliceManJoaquinMercado ConstanceMuradyanAnushkaNair ChungYanNgMalaikaNoronha JuliannePeFatimaQaddoumi JustinRamosDarrenSheh GaurikaSohnviMikeWang DarraghWinkelmanVictoriaWong KittyWuCathyYan ColinZhangAnnieZhouScience10AlexAlitagtag RowinaChanBrianChang JeanChenCarolineChen LiangChenSharonCheng JoshuaChungLaurenDa AndyDongJessieDong DavidDuanRyanFeng MarianGauzshteinElsaGuan RachelGurdasAlexandraHernandez MichelleHungWendyJiang SeanLanCyrusLee HalliwellLiCindyLi JacintaLiLucyLi ElsonLiangChristinaLin LeonLinYoanneLin EmmaLiuJessicaLiu PhillipLiuPaulLiu AdeleLuoJoshuaLy AndyMaDennisMo DerrickMowJamesMurgatroyd CandiceNgJaydenNg ChrisPan

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RSSNEWSLETTERVOLUME89,Issue2SEPTEMBER2016

“Home of the Colts” GO SHARKS

RSSProvincialExam"A"Results:Science10(Continued):AlinaSandhu AmyShaoAmarisTang ViktoriaTryfonovaJohnTurkson UsmanVirkAmandaWang LilyWangAnnaWei BenjaminWenCharlotteWong MonicaWongCharlesWu WoodyWuAmyWu BillWuMandyXu VivianXuAngelYang JasonYinYifeiYin RebeccaYuHenryYu HowardZhangRitaZhang ThomasZhangVivianZhang PhilipZhengClaudiaZhouMath10JustinChan RowinaChanBrianChang BryanChenCarolineChen LiangChenMeiAnChen LilyChenKevinChen SharonChengTiffanyCheng WendyChienArianaChoi JoshuaChungGabrielleCua LaurenDaDannyDeng DaisyDiWilliamDomo AndyDongMeteorDong ChristinaDuanRayanneFatih KeiraFengAshleyGervacio RyanGuanElsaGuan HanyuGuoJakeGuo RachelGurdasMenaHessein EmmaHongEthanHsu SelinaHuangMelissaHuen MichelleHungWesleyKao KarynKomatsuHowardKwan CatherineLamVictorLi LucyLiElsonLiang ChristinaLinLeonLin SimonLinEmmaLiu PaulLiuBrandonLu JoshuaLyAndyMa JuliaMercadoDerrickMow CharleneMuiJamesMurgatroyd AlexNg

I.B.DiplomaStudents2016Richmond Secondary is the only school in the DistrictcertifiedtooffertheInternationalBaccalaureateDiplomaProgramme. This is a two-year program recognized byuniversities all over the world for producing thoughtful,skilled, capable, resilient and well-rounded learners. I.B.students are evaluated using a 7-point scale in therequired subject areas and 3 additional points for the‘coreareas’foramaximumof45points.Studentsneedaminimumof24-pointsandtomeetotherrequirementstoachievean IBDiploma.Note thata scoreof40ormorepointsindicatesthatstudentshaveachievedexceptionallywell–onaworld-widescale. Congratulationsto67RSSstudents who achieved an IB Diploma in 2016 and toAnnie Zhou, Darren Sheh, Mabon Foo, Amy Kang,AnushkaNair,ColinZhang,AliceMan,CathyYan,SarahWangandMichelleNgforachievingafinalgradeof40orhigher–averyimpressiveaccomplishment!

RSSExam"A"Results:Math10(Continued):CandiceNg JaydenNgRalphPascual RussellPascualLancePineda StephanieQuanYsabelleSantaAna CheyaneSeeCarolShen CalvinSimMinahoSugimori WilliamSunWinryTan AmarisTangJamesTang JunCarloTorranoBertonTsang CelinaTseJohnTurkson UsmanVirkSameehaWadhwania WesleyWangDanielleWang AnnaWeiBenjaminWen KenjiWongCharlotteWong MonicaWongAlexWu AmyWuBillWu ConnieXiongVivianXu AngelYangDavidYang CavanYaoHellenYeung JasonYinYifeiYin CarmenYipRebeccaYu HenryYuAnnieZhang TomZhangHowardZhang IvyZhangRitaZhang ThomasZhangTianXingZhang HelenZhangPhilipZheng

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“Home of the Colts” GO SHARKS

RSSNEWSLETTERVOLUME89,Issue2SEPTEMBER2016

I.B.Survey–PleaseRead:As a member of the international organization of I.B. World Schools, every five years Richmond Secondary School is expected to formally undertake a Self-Study, which includes a thoughtful examination our IB Diploma Programme. As part of our Self Study process, we are exploring and evaluating the nature of our Diploma Programme and the way we offer it to the community, identifying strengths and areas in need of growth as we go. In December 2016, we will submit our Self-Study report to the head office of International Baccalaureate program. We'd like your thoughts on our IB Diploma Programme, and ask that you take a few moments of your time to complete the survey at the link below. Thank you in advance for your time and assistance -- https://rhsib.wordpress.com/survey/

Grade8Mini-Camp&Sleep-Over!We are very excited to welcome all of our Grade 8 students at the “RHS Mini-Camp and Sleep-Over” event at the school on September 23 and 24. Staff and senior-student leaders have been working hard to plan many thoughtful and fun events, all designed to help our newest Colts get a great start to their high school years. This camp is intended for all Grade 8s and will be closely supervised by staff and promises to be a safe, inclusive, thoughtful and fun event. If your child is not yet registered, please contact the school office to sign up. If you have any questions or concerns, please leave a message for Ms. Chan, Mr. Winograd or Mr. Allison at the school as soon as possible! Please see more information on the RHS website under the Parents tab on the homepage menu bar.

ParentsWelcome!ParentsWanted!Itwasgreattosee16parentsattendourfirstPACmeeting on the evening of September 14! Allparents and legal guardians of RSS students aremembers of theParentAdvisoryCouncil (PAC)and are welcome to attend PAC meetings. OurPAC meets on the 2nd Wednesday of the monthandwillmeetnextonOctober12andNovember9at6:30pmintheschool libraryand themeetingsare informal. PAC is a great way to meet theprincipal and other parents and find out moreabout the school, educationpolicies andhot teentopics.FormoreinformationortobeincludedonthePACemaillist,pleasecontactchairpersonOlgaFedorenko at olgfedrn@gmail.com Similarly, allRSS parents are invited to join Dry After Grad(DAG) to be involved in a satisfying project andmeetandworkwithotherkeenRSSparents. Weneed parents of the grads of 2017, but alsoparents of current Grades 11, 10 and youngerstudents to be sure the Colts DAG experienceremainsvibrantandsuccessful forall students intheirGrade12year. TohelpwithDryAfterGradcontactLynnBraunatlynn.braun@hotmail.com

SeptemberisLiteracyMonthThe Richmond School District and the City ofRichmond are celebrating Literacy Month inSeptember. The modern definition of literacyincludesmorethanreadingandinvolvescomplexcognitiveorthinkingskillswherestudentsaccessthe ideas, information and experiences that helpthem to understand themselves and their world.Literacy includes reading, writing, thinking,listening, speaking and digital/computercommunication skills and all are inherentlyconnected in thedevelopment andassessmentofliteracy. Literate students who are engaged in,and able to think about, assess and makeconnectionswithwhat theyarereadingaremoresuccessfulinallareasofschool. AllRHSstudentsare encouraged to check out the wide range ofoptionsavailableatourschoollibraryandreadforinterest and pleasure regularly. Parents can helpby having a range of reading materials in yourhome, encouraging visits to the local library andbymodelinggoodreadinghabits.

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RSSNEWSLETTERVOLUME89,Issue2SEPTEMBER2016

“Home of the Colts” GO SHARKS

RSSNEWSLETTERVOLUME89,Issue2SEPTEMBER2016

GettingInvolvedatRichmondSecondarySchoolandBuildingaStrongColtsSpiritAllRHSstudentsareencouragedtoget involvedinatleastonepositiveactivitythisschoolyear.Tryoutforateam,volunteerasamanageror comeouttogamesandcheerontheColts. Joinor leadaclub,auditionforaplay,participate inSpiritWeeksor raiseawarenessorfundsforlocalorglobalcauses.FollowourColtsteamsonTwitter@Colts_Athleticsorcheckouttheathleticswebsitehttp://coltsathletics.weebly.com/ or contact our Athletic DirectorMr.Winograd. These RHS teams are offered in the RSSAA fallseason:boys'soccer,seniorboys'volleyball,seniorgirls'volleyball,grade8girls'volleyball,grade9girls'volleyball,cross-countryandswimming.Similarly,cheerleadingtryoutsarenowunderwayandawidevarietyofclubsareformingandwewillhostaClubs’DayatlunchonFriday,September30.Events liketheGrade8Mini-Camp&Sleep-Over,thefirstSpiritWeekwithdifferentfun,dress-upthemed days going from September 26 to 30, the annual RHS Terry Fox Run on September 29 and theGrad Boat Cruise onSeptember30areallopportunitiesforstudentstobeconnectedandinvolvedinourschool.Vibrantschoolspiritandastrongsenseofbelongingareimportantandweencourageallstudentstomakethechoicetogetinvolved!#GoColtsStayingConnectedtoRichmondSecondarySchoolStudents,parentsandallmembersoftheRHScommunityareinvitedtostayconnectedtowhatishappeninginourschool and district by bookmarking or subscribing to the school website, reading our digital newsletters andfollowing the school on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. We are committed to updating, posting and sharingschoolevents,thelatestcalendarinformationandnewsregularlyandencourageyoutojoinus!

Grade12–Grad2017News:Grade12isabigyearandthereisalotofinformation,deadlinesandeventsforstudentsandfamiliestoknow.WekickedofftheyearwithaGrade12assembly onFriday,September9andincludedafreehotdog lunchforour2017 grads. Each studentwas given a detailed, two-page handout outlining the keyRHS grad2017 events anddatesaswellasotherimportantinformation.OurdedicatedschoolcounsellorsandourCareerAdvisor(Ms.Jones)work very hard to keep up-to-date and share information on post-secondary applications, deadlines andscholarshipswithstudents. All Grades12sare encouraged toattend theuniversity andcollegevisits toRHS, dosomeresearch,writedowntheirquestionsandmakeanappointmenttoseetheircounsellororMs.Jones.ThefirstGrad2017event is theBoatCruise onFriday,September30andwewillhostaGrade12ParentInfoNightonThursday, October 6 at 7pm. Grads should bookmark this website& FB page and check them every week:https://msjonescareercentre.wordpress.com/andhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/773537476061293/

UpcomingRHSDates:Thursday,September22 MeettheTeacherat6:30pmFriday,September23 Pro-DDayFriday&SaturdaySept.23/24 Grade8Mini-Camp&Sleep-OverSeptember26-30 RHSColtsSpiritWeek(seewebsitecalendar)Wednesday,September28 I.B.Graduationfor2016DiplomaCandidatesThursday,September29 RHSTerryFoxRunFriday,September30 Clubs’DayatLunchFriday,September30 Grad2017BoatCruiseTuesday,October4 CanadianUniversitiesatMcMath6:30pmWednesday,October5 WorldTeachers’DayThursday,October6 Grade12ParentInfoNight7pmMonday,October10 ThanksgivingDay(schoolclosed)Wednesday,October12 PACat6:30pmintheschoollibrary