IOHS students Forest Johnstone, Solveig Lampson, Amber-Lee Bartlett and Eilisha Huston-Schlegel have won arts scholarships through the Cowichan Valley Arts Council. The scholarship includes an initial art opening at Portals, the CVAC hub in the Island Savings Community Centre in Duncan, as well as mentoring, workshops, honourary CVAC memberships and places in the 24th annual Cowichan Valley Spring Arts Show.
IOHS Student Amber-Lee Barlett’s art was selected from an “overwhelming” quantity of submissions, to decorate the Queen Alexandra Foundation for Children’s Jeneece Place, a residence for children and their families while children are undergoing treatment in Victoria. President and CEO of the Foundation, Ron Hewitt, welcomed and congratulated Amber-Lee personally when Amber-Lee and art teacher Simone Luckham delivered the painting. Amber-Lee has been invited to attend the Grand Opening of Jeneece Place on January 20, 2012. Our proudest congratulations to Amber-Lee.
Classes 11 & 12 are studying Parsifal and Medieval History with senior Faculty member Richard Tibbets this block.
We look forward to welcoming new students and old on January 9th. Grades 9 & 10 will be beginning a Chemistry block, with Grade 10 preparing for the provincial science exam on Jan. 26th. Grades 11 & 12 will have Drama for their main lesson.
Christmas Swags
Class 12 is making Christmas Swags for $10/each. You can decorate your front door beautifully and economically, and support Class 12 and FINCA Canada at the same time. FINCA provides micro financing for projects in the developing world.
Contact Island Oak to order, or just drop by between 8 am and 2:30 pm. For the same price, you can also make your own swags at Glenora Farm Christmas Fair on December 18th.
In a fast-changing world, it’s important for students to be aware of new career opportunities. Yesterday we had a visit from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) from Georgia, USA, a school preparing talented individuals for creative careers.
We learned about exciting new careers;for example, a brand-new degree in “Service Design”; the profession of designing customer experiences. The curriculum for the program is broad, encompassing such classes as psychology, anthropology, interior design and graphic design.
The school offers 41 programs; majors and minors can be mixed and matched for broader marketable skill sets. Students can travel between SCAD’s campuses at Atlanta, Savannah, Hong Kong and the south of France.
The representative was very interested in our Grade 12 project format because it encompasses many of the writing and presentation skills they foster at SCAD. She said students might consider using their Grade 12 projects as part of an application portfolio. As well, students are invited to get a head start with college credits by taking a SCAD course or two online while they are completing high school (time permitting of course!), or coming for 5-week summer school at SCAD to earn college credits in advance.
There is more information available at Island Oak, or go to SCAD’s website athttp://www.scad.edu/
Scent of Balsam, glowing candles set in apples gradually lighting up a beautiful spiral of greenery filling the floor of the room. Music—harp by Cherry Baines and flute by Jane Way, accompanied meditative spirallers from the public on Sunday. Alumni parents Lorna Lawson, Paul Ruszel, Jane Kalamakov, Vivi de Graff and Nadine Nelson provided the spiral event. On Monday morning the entire school population entered the darkened room and bit by bit lit it up with their apple-candles to the music of Chris Bertin and alumni parent Lee Masters.
A Year of Rich Learning Experiences Over cookies and tea, we heard about the incredible array of events, cultural and outdoor adventure outings, and individual and community accomplishments that Island Oak students engaged in last year. And we got a glimpse of a similarly rich year of learning experiences ahead.
Balanced Operating Budget A balanced operating budget was presented and accepted.
BC Dogwood Diploma AND Waldorf Education: How Do They Balance? We heard about the way Island Oak meets and exceeds Ministry standards so that students have maximum choices after graduating, and are equipped to go on to the post-secondary institution of their choice. We heard about a track record of honours high school diplomas and high grades on Ministry exams. And we learned how Island Oak High School manages to deliver the valued B.C. Dogwood diploma and do it well, without sacrificing Waldorf philosophy in its curriculum and teaching methods. The first Waldorf school in Stuttgart, Germany balanced state requirements with Waldorf philosophy, and we continue to do so here in the service of our students.
If you missed this very interesting AGM, you are welcome to view the minutes in the office.
It’s the week after Thanksgiving, when many of us were blessed with the abundance of turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and sweet potatoes as well as the good company of friends and family.
We are grateful for all that we are blessed with, and recognize that many are not so fortunate.
This week at Island Oak, we are collecting food and cash donations for the Farm Credit Canada Drive Away Hunger program. The food will be made available for hungry people in our community.
Please bring in your donations of packaged foods or cash by Thursday, October 13th.
“It is important for people to realize that we can make progress against world hunger, that world hunger is not hopeless. The worst enemy is apathy.” Reverend David Beckham.
We are a Small Waldorf School with a Big Embrace. We are located on beautiful Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.
