Junior High Students in Cooking Club

Check out our Junior High students in their cooking club!

Click here for video

I Won't Miss It Next Year

On September 26th, I had commitments and could not participate in the Terry Fox run.  I won't miss it next year - here's why:

Dear Anne,

When I was 8 years old, returning from [my Dad's] sabbatical year outside of Canada, with no understanding of who Terry Fox was, I saw him running along the highway in northern New Brunswick with his friend Doug's white van behind for support.  I did Terry Fox Runs through elementary school. His spirit is a part of who I am.  His story is one of the stories that always makes me cry, and he is one of the reasons why I am proud to be Canadian.  He was an exceptional human being.  I want to be like Terry.

Love,

Steve

Dear Steve,At the breakfast table on Friday, I tried to read aloud to Anne Marie and Donna your email about Terry Fox - what he means to you.  I couldn't get through it. Thank you for sharing your deep passion. I think Terry is one example of "Jesus" alive today - giving himself & dying an early death in order to help save others. And, Terry did it rather simply - he put himself out there for people to drive by and take notice. People were changed forever.


Thank you for carrying forth his mission, for changing me.
Love, Anne

*Used with permission!

Terry Fox Rocks!

Thanks to the cooperative efforts of teachers, students, and parents, today’s first annual Terry Fox Run was a great success!  The rain held off so we could honour Terry’s legacy and run with hope in our hearts.  Your children were amazing, participating in their run and cheering others onward with enthusiasm.  Teachers and parents worked together to ensure the safety and high spirits of all children.

I want to send out special thanks to Mr. Griffiths for planning the logistics of the Terry Fox runs.  We are very grateful for the help of Sheri White and Jennifer Corcoran and our Parents Guild who donated enough snacks and water for our entire elementary school.  Thank you!

If you have collected pledges for the Terry Fox Foundation, please bring the form and funds in by the end of the day tomorrow.  Thank you for being a part of Terry’s Marathon of Hope.

Primes

We had our first Primes ceremonies last Friday.  Primes is an award-giving assembly held on Friday afternoons. We have Upper Primes for grades 4 to 6 and Lower Primes for grades 1 to 3; the primary children join our Lower Primes in January.  Primes is a long-standing Sacred Heart tradition based on the belief that positive reinforcement builds healthy self-esteem. Children are rewarded for effort and achievement in all areas of school life. Children are recognized and awarded medals and certificates. Students must be in full uniform and tidy to accept an award at Primes. The child wears the special medal all week. Medals awarded on Friday must be returned to the Principal by the following Thursday.

Field Trips

Our school is located right in the core of Halifax, and this makes it easy for us to enjoy fun, educational, excursions throughout the year.  Already this year, our preschoolers have ventured over to the Public Gardens and our grade threes have been to the Main Branch Public Library and to an exhibit at the Dalhousie Art Gallery.  Sometimes we venture further from home by bus.  Our primary classes traveled all the way to Noggins Farm in the Annapolis Valleyon Monday for apple picking and autumn adventures.  They made apples sauce with the apples they brought back, and it was delicious!

Battle of the Books

One of our most popular co-curricular activities got launched for another year this week.  Mrs. Ferguson, Mrs. Jakeman, Mrs. Fraser, and Sr. Beverley lead the four teams (read, yellow, green, and blue) in this yearlong reading challenge.  Battle of the Books teams meet everyTuesday during morning recess.  It’s an exciting cross-grade literacy initiative that culminates in a city-wide competition in the spring.  Let the games begin!

ASC (After School Care)

After School Care is a great place for students to hang out with friends and try some new activities until parents have finished their workday. 

Mlle Sealy offers a homework club on Monday and Thursday afternoons, and we have space available! 

Basketball Club begins on Monday afternoons for kids in Grades 3 - 6 for 5 weeks. A sign-up sheet is on the Elementary bulletin board. High school students from Fountain Academy are keen to run this very popular activity again. Students will gather in ASC for a snack and then go to the FA gym for 3:45 p.m. Pick up is from the FA gym at 4:45 p.m.

It is not our abilities that show what we truly are,

It is our choices.

-Albus Dumbledore

We've Got Spirit - Sacred Heart Elementary School at Terry Fox Run

The Sacred Heart Elementary School went to The Oval this morning for the Terry Fox Run and chanted our school theme this year "We've Got Spirit"!

Check out the video!

SHHS Walk-a-thon photos!

Grade 7 Boys in Music Class with a bounce!

Grade 7 boys are enjoying their Stomp in Mrs. Merritt's music class!  Unit of work in music.  They have been improving their rhythm skills by composing using basketballs in the gym. 

How cool is this?!

Click here for video link

Sacred Heart Gr. 8 Students at Camp Brigadoon this week!

SHHS Update Week of September 23

What a beautiful last week of summer!  Today we have 32 students and four teachers on a Duke of Edinburgh Bronze hiking expedition.  The weather conditions couldn't be better for them.  Great photo on our Facebook page!

Our opening of school liturgy took place on Tuesday with Fr. Larry Pitcher as celebrant. Thank you to our liturgy committee for planning this for us, and to the liturgy choir for providing the music.  A special thank you to Meg Currie for leading us in the psalm.

Yesterday afternoon we all headed down to Point Pleasant Park for our annual walk-a-thon. Congratulations and thank you to the student council and prefects for making this an enjoyable and well-organized event.  This is the major fund-raiser for the student council so I encourage the girls to bring in their walk-a-thon money as soon as possible.

House Assembly - the Little Theatre was a colourful place at our House Assembly yesterday morning.  All the new students and teachers were sorted into their houses and given a spirited welcome by all members.  Now the race for the House Cup can begin in earnest.  Our four houses are: Barat, Duchesne, Hardey and Stuart.   

Good Digital Citizenship - over the course of the year, in Core classes with grades 7-9 and religious studies class with grade 12, Mrs. MacKenzie will discuss with the girls internet safety. She will also be meeting three or four times a year with grades 10 and 11 to discuss good digital citizenship.  It is important that the girls learn to use technology well and this will be an emphasis in all classes.  I encourage you as parents to have open conversations with your daughter; ask your daughter if she participates in any anonymous on-line activity.  Here is a link to an excellent review site that I think you will find helpful, click here.

Girls' High School Volleyball Coach required:

We are looking for a coach for our school volleyball team. This team plays in the Metro High School Tier 2 league. The commitment would be for Oct/Nov. The team would hope to practice twice a week and usually have one game per week. The practices and games would be scheduled for early evening. If you or anyone you know could fill this position please send a brief résumé to Annette Sherlock- Athletic Director at asherlock@shsh.ca

 

The Honourable Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour & Minister of the Status of Women Visits Sacred Heart

Sacred Heart High School was very pleased and privileged to welcome The Honourable Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of the Status of Women to speak to the students today.

Minister Leitch is from Simcoe-Grey (Ontario) and was elected to the House of Commons in May 2011.  In July 2013, Dr. Leitch was appointed Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women. Previously, she was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and to the Minister of Labour in May 2011.

Dr. Leitch is a pediatric orthopedic surgeon and an associate professor of surgery. She is the former Chair of the Ivey Centre for Health Innovation and Leadership and has served on various councils and boards, including the YMCA and Community Living.

As a volunteer, Dr. Leitch served as council member on the National Research Council of Canada, was a board member of Genome Canada, a director on the YMCA of Greater Toronto board of directors, Vice-President of the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research and founder of The Sandbox Project.

Dr. Leitch earned her Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Toronto in 1994 and her MBA from Dalhousie University in 1998. 

Dr. Leitch has been recognized with the Order of Ontario for her advocacy work on behalf of Canadian children, and in 2005, she was selected as one of Canada's "Top 40 Under 40" for her work in both medicine and business.

Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award!

Congratulations to Class of 2013 student, Ellen Bursey, who just received word that she has achieved her Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award!

Going Beyond Good Enough

When I was in high school, track mattered as much to me as my grades in school.  And thanks to a fortunate circumstance (I believe you make your own luck), I got noticed by the right person at the right time.  I started getting calls from the distance running coach at Harvard University, and with the support of my dad, I completed the arduous application process.  In the spring of my final year of high school, I received the thick packet through the mail, meaning of course that I had been accepted.  None of this was what my family or I had expected; it wasn’t part of some master plan that we’d set out to accomplish.  When presented with such an incredible opportunity, there was only one possible response:  go for it!

From day one, I had the complete support of my parents.  Education, at whatever cost, was a value they held dear, and I am forever grateful to them for this.  Needless to say, my undergraduate experience was life-changing.  Harvard is a remarkable place.  I was taught by some of the world’s preeminent scholars, doors were opened to me (doors that don’t exist here), and I made friends with incredible people.  I met my future wife at Harvard, someone whose parents shared a common value that had been bestowed on her:  education.  Years passed, we lived happily on both coasts of the United States before returning to my home, Nova Scotia, to settle down a bit.  And now I find myself here at Sacred Heart School of Halifax, with two daughters in the school for which I serve as principal.

When I look back now, on my life’s unexpected trajectory, in the context of my current work at an independent school in Halifax, Nova Scotia, I am amazed to see that so little has changed around me while I have changed so much.  When I decided to leave home and travel to the United States to study at Harvard University, I received many conflicting messages from those around me.  Those in my inner circle (family, friends, track coach) were only supportive.  They saw this opportunity for what it truly was:  a chance to attend one of the top universities in the world.  Many others in my community responded with ambivalence at best.  Why leave Canada?  What’s wrong with our universities?  Why would you go to a place like Harvard?  You must be rich.  Are you a snob?

The mentality of “just good enough” is still very much alive and kicking in Nova Scotia, Canada.  I ask this:  What’s wrong with striving for the best?  Why is there such an insecurity around education in our landscape?  Do Nova Scotians want the best education for their children?  Why do most Nova Scotians assume that the best education is a public education?  As an adult now in Nova Scotia, I feel exactly the same as that adolescent boy who had to defend his choice to go to Harvard. I am accustomed to hearing that tuition at an independent school, such as Sacred Heart, for example, is too much and the local public schools are “good enough” for our children.  What we are talking about here is values.  Follow the money trail.  Are home renovations and extravagant vacations really more valuable than our children’s education?  

When it comes to our children’s education, “good enough” is not good enough.  In a local culture that is biased against independent schools, there most certainly is a place for a values-based education, as offered at Sacred Heart School of Halifax for the past 164 years.  Does the rising tide not raise all ships?

Opening of School Liturgy

Sacred Heart School of Halifax celebrates it opening of school Liturgy of the Eucharist on Tuesday, September 17th.

Headmistress's Reception for Parents Tonight! We've Got Spirit!

Headmistress' Address to the Parents

Headmistress' Address

September 12, 2013

(Abridged Text)

Thank you for joining us tonight. And profound gratitude to all who worked hard to make the event so beautiful.

We are beginning our 165th academic year at Sacred Heart school of Halifax.  The person who in 1800 founded our order - the Religious of the Sacred Heart - is Madeline Sophie Barat.  She would enjoy our theme this year: "We've got Spirit." In fact, Sophie Barat said "If I had my life to live over again I would seek only to listen to the Holy Spirit."  As we live this year, may we do the same - create moments of silence to consider what the Spirit is inviting us to embrace in this new year.

I have said this before, and you'll hear me say it again: at Sacred Heart, it isn't enough to teach the children to be smart - we want to sow seeds of wisdom. For us, it's not enough for our students to become successful, we want them to become significant.

To become wise, one needs to listen and experience some silence along the way.  People who are significant are inspired by a Source of Love  that is beyond and within - we want to awaken this in our students.

Our mission is deeply rooted, and there is nothing small about our mission. I want our children & our students, to become women and men who make significant contributions here in Halifax, in Nova Scotia, across Canada, and throughout our world. Sophie Barat consistently encouraged the sisters to have courage and confidence, and to pass this spirit on to the students. Today, we want to empower our young women and men with the same "Courage et Confiance" that led to our foundation 165 years ago.  

This spirit of courage and confidence brought me to Halifax.

When I was in town in September of 2011 … I interviewed for this position, poked around on Spring Garden Road, climbed the Citadel Hill, and jogged down to the waterfront. I went into Lawton’s to buy something and at the register the person asked me if I had an Air Miles card.  I said: “What is it?”  She said you can accumulate points and such.  “Should I do this?” I asked.  “Well,” she said, “that would be a personal choice.”

I learned two things from this encounter.  

1) In the States, the person would have tried to talk me into signing up 

for Air Miles.  

2) I learned that Canadians like their choices.

Sacred Heart is a choice.

You chose Sacred Heart for your child because we are a good fit.  You need not justify this to neighbours, friends or people at the Wag. You do not need to be shy about making a choice that works for your family. There is a place for a school that offers a very strong academic program and rests on a solid spiritual foundation – a Catholic school with a respectful Interfaith Community. You should and DO have this choice here in Halifax. 

I give you permission to own your choice, 

to share your choice, to enjoy your choice, and 

to show your school spirit.  

Please do not keep this choice a secret!

What is this choice all about?

We have 5 Goals and 31 Criteria that help us to live our mission.

Our Goals are to educate to …

A personal and active faith in God;

A deep respect for the intellectual life;

A social awareness that impels to action;

The building of community;

Personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom.

Our strategic plan consists of four main pillars:

1.     Enrollment

We want to grow the school to 525 by 2017, adding sections along the way to keep classes small.

2.     International/ESL We want the international program to serve 50 students, and will work to have them balanced across the grades. To accomplish this, we will eventually need more home-stay families.  I think Parents of ALums (PALs) can be helpful in this regard. The vision is that every SHSH student/family will know a student from another country, host an exchange student or be a home stay family, go on exchange to another SH school, or serve with a school group in Africa.

3.     Finance Our goal is long-term financially sustainable through stable enrollment and more sophisticated advancement efforts. We want to grow our endowment in the long-run, and in the short term I will be looking for our parents to join our employees and Board Members in achieving 100% participation in our Annual Giving Fund. With our finance and advancement committees we are in very good hands.

4.     Technology 

We need to grow the infrastructure and ensure our technology is supporting all five of our Goals - especially serving the educational program.

Guiding the 2012-17 Strategic Plan are the members of our Board of Governors, faculty, staff, administration, and the Parents’ Guild. We are grateful to this team that collaborates on a regular basis to make the program fantastic for your children. Sacred Heart is a choice, and our community is strong. I look forward to sharing this year with you and your children.

Ryan Laird's Visit at Sacred Heart

Thank you to Ryan Laird for your motivational talk on anti-bullying!

Fountain Academy Students at Big Cove Camp!