Newsletter - Immigrant Services Society of BC

THE
Edition #2
N ewsletter
ISSELSA
June 2010
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at the ISSofBC Richmond Open House
In celebration of the new location in Richmond on Cedarbridge Way, a ribbon was cut by students and special guests.
The event took place on May 12th, and was wonderfully hosted by two Level 3 students, Yvonne and Ihab. The event
also marked the Richmond opening of the New Faces of BC photo exhibit at the Cedarbridge location.
Pictured from left to right are Karen Lai, Ying Fang (Yvonne) Chen, Ihab Tayem, Patricia Woroch, Athena Adan and
Maria Rajanayagam
Write an article and send it to us! We will choose one article for our next edition. If we publish your story we will give you
your choice of one of the books from the ISSofBC ELSA book order service. Write about anything you want. Suggestions
include; an experience you have had since moving to Canada, your family, your favorite hobby, your first country, your
feelings about your new home. You choose what you would like to write about. Don’t worry about what you write, or what
level you are in, just do your best and send it by email to [email protected] along with your name, location
(Vancouver, Richmond, Coquitlam, New West) and your level. The deadline for this contest is July 31st, 2010.
Students’ work - New Westminster
Donnelly’s Fraser River Show
On April 14, 2010 we had a very useful visit to the Fraser
River Discovery Centre in
New Westminster. FRDC is a
museum that focuses on the
economic, environmental,
cultural and historical
importance of the Fraser
River.
There we found a very interesting story about an
environmental
activist and
marathon
swimmer, Fin
Donnelly.
Donnelly has
been active in
raising public
awareness about
the rivers and
watersheds of
his home
province of BC for more than 14 years. He completed 14
marathon swims covering 3,200 km of BC’s rivers, lakes
and ocean, including swimming the 1,400 km length of the
Fraser River twice. His first swim of the Fraser River was in
1995, and a year later, in 1996, Donnelly founded the
Rivershed Society of BC. The society’s vision is one of
people making sustainable lifestyle choices in the Fraser
River Basin. Donnelly completed his second marathon
swim of the Fraser River during one month in 2000.
Fin Donnelly now is 44 years old, and he is
Member of Parliament in Ottawa. He represents the
electoral
district
of
New
Westminster – Coquitlam and he
is a member of the New
Democratic Party. He graduated
from the University of Victoria
with a Bachelor of Arts degree in
philosophy. He lives with his wife
Lynda in Coquitlam’s Town
Centre.
Naser Hajrizi & Zheni Filipova EFW 5 New Westminster
THE ISS  ELSA Newsletter  June 2010
New Westminster students
reveal the secret of the court
On April 20, 2010, New Westminster Level 4 and 5
students visited B.C. Provincial Court in south Surrey.
The Provincial Court is the first level of law in British
Columbia. It has five divisions – Criminal, Family,
Youth, Traffic and Small Claims.
We started our visit by participating in a court
orientation led by Glenn Mc Arthur from the Justice
Education Society. Individual students acted as judge,
sheriff, police officer, court clerk,
defense lawyer, crown counsel
and witness. We learned legal
terms and principles of courts in
Canada. Students asked questions
about trial procedures and how
witnesses swear to tell the truth in
court.
We sat in several different court
rooms to observe court events
like a bail hearing and a guilty hearing. We tried to
understand the rules for court activities.
We had a meeting with a judge who answered questions
about judgments and jury service. For example, one
student asked the judge, “What is the hardest part of
your job?” The judge answered, “Finding the truth is the
hardest”.
Through this field trip we learned how B.C.’s court
system works and why the system is so important. It was
an interesting field trip. All the students become more
familiar with how the court operates.
Brian Chang, Ana Wang, Kyogetsu Naruke, Zheni
Filipova and Naser Hajrizi
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Teacher’s Tip
ESL Lessons
for ISSofBC
Language
Janis’ ESL
Links
Student News
& Events
Resources for
ISSofBC Teachers
Janis’s ESL Home Page
ISSofBC now has a student website for you to use in the computer room and at home! We’re excited
to offer you more opportunities to practice English in your free time.
There are three main parts of the website for ESL students:
Janis’s ESL Links

These pages have many links to vocabulary, listening, reading, grammar and other exercises.

You don’t need a password to use these exercises.
ESL Lessons for ISSofBC Language College Students

These pages are only for ISS students, so we put a password on them!

The password is going to change soon, but now it’s student10.

The password for the videos is janisiss.

ISS ELSA teachers made the videos and photo stories on these pages.

We welcome ideas from students for new videos!
Student News and Events

This is the page where the ISSofBC ELSA Newsletter is posted.

You can read the current newsletter or look at past ones.

There’s also a calendar on this page.

Look here to find out when the school is closed or when there are special school events.
(Each ELSA school has a different colour.)

You can also see red boxes showing Canadian holidays and special days.

The blue boxes show community events. Go ahead and click on one! It will help you find
some fun things to do in your free time.
We invite you to explore the website and find something you like to learn about. If you try something
and it’s too easy or too hard, don’t waste your time! Go to another activity. There are lots to choose
from. By the way, usually the easiest activities are first and the most difficult activities are last.
THE ISS  ELSA Newsletter  June 2010
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Other happenings
New Westminster ISS Open House
ISSofBC hosted an Open House of their newly established site in New Westminster on April 14,
2010. Though the site had opened in 2009, excitement still prevailed in the newly renovated offices and classrooms.
The New Westminster site is currently serving
more than 100 people every week through its programs: English Language Services for Adults;
Youth Connexions; Multilingual Case Management; and Skills Connect.
The Open House welcomed several community organizations, representatives from Douglas
College, the Ministry of Housing and Social Development, and several members of ISSofBC’s
staff, management and board.
The afternoon’s activities were hosted by
Khim Tan, site manager of the ELSA program in New West, and Jamshid Arefi,
Manager of the New West’s MCM office.
Ribbon cutting was done by the City
Councillor/Acting Mayor Betty McIntosh
and ISSofBC’s CEO Patricia Woroch.
Over 100 people attended the event, complete with the largest scissors in the
world, an ISSofBC trivia contest, refreshments, cake and warm welcomes for all
who attended.
Read, Speak, Succeed
ISSofBC is pleased to be part of a new program to
help Richmond residents with ESL needs. Read,
Speak, Succeed started in May and offers tutoring
for ESL learners 4 days a week:
The program makes a tutor available for 30 minute
sessions. To use the service, go to the 2nd floor
program room and sign up for a session, and
make sure you bring the work you want help with.
The program is scheduled to continue until October 23rd, but will have a 6 week break from July
23rd to September 6th.
THE ISS  ELSA Newsletter  June 2010
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What’s happening in...
We’ve been keeping our eyes and ears open for free events happening in our communities that you
might be interested in. Here’s some of the events we’ve learned about….
When:
Where:
What:
Saturday, July 10, 2010 - Sunday, July 11, 2010
1120 Brunette Avenue, Coquitlam
When:
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Where:
Richmond, BC
What:
Steveston Salmon Festival
Fair in the Square: Backyard Birthday Bash!
The day begins at 10am with a parade through
historic Steveston village. Then, the Festival is
officially kicked off at our Opening Ceremonies
on the Main Stage at 12:30pm with dignitaries,
speeches, & the singing of O Canada. After the
official opening, the stage bursts with great
entertainment all afternoon. Festival highlights
include attractions such as the Japanese Cultural Show, Craft Fair, Trade Show, an awesome Children’s Festival, Carnival rides &
Midway, Martial Arts Demonstrations, Youth
Rock Fest, multi-ethnic Food Fair plus an Art
Show & Exhibit. The main attraction is our
famous salmon barbecue where over 1200
pounds of wild salmon filets are grilled over
open fire pits.
From noon to 4pm both days, celebrate the 10th
anniversary of Maillardville’s favourite free family
event, Fair in the Square! It’s a backyard birthday
bash featuring live performances by the astounding Uzume Taiko, the upbeat French Canadian
tunes of Les Jammers, the colourful Mr. I and the
Rainbow Singers and much more. Create a fabulous birthday hat and partake in old-fashioned
races and carnival games, enjoy artisan demonstrations and get messy in the annual watermelon eating contest. For the full lineup, visit
www.fairinthesquare.ca
When:
Thu. June 10, 2010 - Thu. October 7, 2010 @ 3pm
-7pm
Where:
Tipperary Park, beside New Westminster City Hall
(501 Royal Ave)
When:
Friday, June 25, 2010 - Sunday, July 4, 2010
What:
Royal City Farmers Market
Where:
Canada Place, Vancouver
Weekly Farmers Market every Thursday.
What:
Jazz at Canada Place
Free Lunchtime Concerts
Featuring fresh farm produce, plants, quality crafts
from local artists and artisans, gourmet prepared
foods, community information, live entertainment, When:
and more.
Where:
When:
Saturday, June 26, 2010, 9:00AM - 6:00PM
Where:
Percy Perry Stadium
1299 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam
What:
B.C. Highland Games
If you like pipe bands, drumming, dancing and
Celtic music then the Highland Games are for you.
The main stage has all day entertainment showcasing Celtic bands, singing and dancing. You can
taste Scotch Whisky, see heavy events including
Caber tossing and watch world championship piping, drumming and dancing.
What:
Thursday, July 1st, 2010
2734 Murray St. near Rocky Point Park,
Port Moody
23rd Annual Canada Day at Canada
Place 2010: Our Canada
Dust off your red & white gear and join us for
a full day of free family fun to celebrate our
great nation and being Canadian. The daytime festival is at iconic Canada Place and
surrounding streets on July 1, 2010 from
10:00am - 6:00pm, followed by the 2nd annual Canada Day Parade at 7:00pm and the
4th annual Canada Day Burrard Inlet Fireworks Show at 10:30pm.
* More information on these events and many more can be found at www.kidsvancouver.com/events
THE ISS  ELSA Newsletter  June 2010
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ISS Resource Centre
Dear ELSA students,
I am writing to let you know about the Multicultural Youth Circle Program (MY Circle). It is a fun leadership program for immigrant and refugee youth ages of 14 to 24 who are facing challenges adapting into Canadian
society.
The goal of the program is to get 15-20 youth from all over the world working together to break their isolation,
learn practical skills, make new friends and gather information about the services and resources in their
communities.
The trainers and the coordinators of the program are all young newcomers who have completed MY Circle
themselves; their goal is to create a safe, supportive and comfortable place where other youth can gain
validation and understanding around the complex issues of integration and adjustment.
MY Circle is a FREE training for immigrant and refugee youth and a great opportunity to become Peer Support
Group Facilitators and Young Community Leaders.
During the training, we provide free lunch and free bus tickets. At the end of the training, participants receive a
certificate of completion and a letter for 80 hours of volunteer work. This kind of volunteer work looks great on a
resume when the participant is applying for a job or a scholarship. We can also serve as a reference or write
support letters if the participant needs anybody to vouch for them.
After the training we hope that the youth participate more actively in their communities and use their newly acquired skills to help other newcomers integrate. The idea is that the youth will go back to their communities to
deliver peer support groups to other immigrant and refugee youth experiencing difficulties adjusting to life in
Canada.
It is important for you to know that this program requires strong commitment: we ask the youth participants to
join us for 12 days of training for 6.5 hours each day from 9:30-4pm; BUT it is lots of fun, a great opportunity to
make new friends, and a good chance to learn from other cultures and give back to your community. If you want
to participate, or know of a youth who would like to get involved, please contact us!!
We usually run 4 (sometimes 5) trainings across the Lower Mainland over a year - usually one in the spring
(every Sat.), two in the fall (every Sat.) and also one in the summer (Mon. – Thurs.).
Please write us back if you have any questions;
we are looking forward to meeting you,
The MY Circle Team
Fiona, Jorge and Nathalie
(604) 684-7498 ext. 1634/1637
[email protected] or [email protected]
Or [email protected]
Editor: Kurt Munari
THE ISS  ELSA Newsletter  June 2010
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Design Editor: Tatiana Sturari
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