Eco Film screen shot, Track affirmations from the class & a few shots from the meet, Hot Docs' Fed Up! & Driving with Selvi, Spring Fling raffle tickets, Ontario Science Centre & Children's Mental Health week

This has been one of the busiest weeks in recent memory.  The "Proudnaus" Eco Film project was submitted to the Planet in Focus film panel for consideration.  Over the past couple of weeks, Ms. Bernaus and I had edited the scenes and footage into a finished project.  Here is a screenshot of the initial scene:

At Birchmount Stadium, there was a qualifier meet in Track and Field.  It was very wet and cold, but we had some great performances and several athletes who will move on to the South Conference Championships next month.  I have some photos of some of our class members at the meet, but I will need time to compile them and add them to the blog.  In the meantime, there were some nice messages, on the board, before we left and when we came back.

I did not have the opportunity to get photos of all our Room 28 athletes at work at Birchmount Stadium.  Here are some of the photos I captured from the meet of our class:

Hot Docs film: Fed Up!

Here is the trailer for this great documentary we watched this week.

One of the exercises prompted a look at some of the ingredients in the snacks we eat.  I will post the images of the snacks and the top 3 ingredients in the samples we received from the class.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/08/sugar/cohen-text

Unfortunately, I don't think I am able to read this article -- which Charlie told me about -- unless I subscriber to National Geographic.

The HotDocs for Schools film initiative is an excellent opportunity to explore the experiences of others and engage in some rich classroom discussions.  On Wednesday, we completed watching this film and will use it as a discussion piece for a Community Circle on Monday.  

To assist with this, here are a couple of trailers, related to the documentary.

http://drivingwithselvi.com/

Film director and prodcer Elisa Paloschi and Selvi:

Here is a beautiful link to some fun the Director, Cinematographer, Producer, Elisa Paloschi, had with Selvi:  https://vimeo.com/117442775?from=outro-embed.  Elisa first met Selvi, when she was working at a refuge for victims of human trafficking, in Mysuru, at the Odanadi Women's Refuge centre (http://www.odanadi.org/) which which is in southern India.  https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Mysuru,+Karnataka,+India/@12.3108045,76.5654772,12z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x3b00c582b1189633:0x559475cc463361f0!2sTamil+Nadu,+India!3b1!8m2!3d11.1271225!4d78.6568942!3m4!1s0x3baf70381d572ef9:0x2b89ece8c0f8396d!8m2!3d12.2970683!4d76.640625

Spring Fling raffle tickets handed out!

Ontario Science Centre

I did not take an abundance of photos on this trip, but here are a few and a little context for the main portion of the trip.

The main reason for the trip -- aside from that it is a lot of fun -- was this presentation for Children's Mental Health week.

MENTAL HEALTH: THE SCIENCE OF ANXIETY (Grades 6-8)

My heart is racing, my mouth is dry and my stomach is in knots! Don’t worry, everyone feels anxious sometimes. Explore what’s really going on in our brains when we experience anxiety, how it affects our bodies and why stress can sometimes be a good thing. Good mental health is more than the absence of mental illness. This program will introduce students to evidence-based strategies to manage stress and anxiety. https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/school/events/supermondays/

I really enjoyed this presentation and so glad to see this topic being discussed.  A lot of students, and adults, often feel the grips of anxiety and are not sure what causes it or what to do when the feelings creep up.  Towards the end of the presentation, a series of links were posted to guide students to places when they are feeling uncertain about where to turn to for support.  The photo is kind of small so I will post the links I think are most helpful here and at the links section of the blog.  

School Mental Health ASSIST (SMH ASSIST) is a provincial implementation support team designed to help Ontario school boards to promote student mental health and well-being. This support is provided via leadership and coordination, resources, and implementation coaching support. from:  https://smh-assist.ca/

Anything you ever wanted to know about mindyourmind - from who we are, to what we've done, to why we exist. from:  https://mindyourmind.ca/about

This website is designed to help youth and young adults in British Columbia check out how they’re feeling and quickly connect to mental health resources and support. Support includes education, self-care tools, website links, and assistance in connecting to local professional resources. from:  http://mindcheck.ca/

Did you know that anxiety disorders are the most common mental health illness in Canada? We provide my anxiety plans (MAPs) to help you understand and manage anxiety. Empower yourself by watching our educational videos, downloading the MindShift app and getting involved by becoming an Ambassador. from:  https://www.anxietybc.com/

After being out for 2 days last week, I am looking forward to settling back into a routine of 5 full days of teaching.  Our preparations for EQAO will continue, along with pulling together different components of the school program for this year.  It is so hard to believe that the school year is almost done!