MM Matters Newsletter - MM Robinson High School

2 4 2 5 U p p e r Mi d dl e Ro ad, B u rl i ngt on, O N
L7P 3 N9
Webpage:
http://mmr.hdsb.ca
Principal:
Andrea Taylor
Superintendent:
Tina Salmini
Phone:
905 335-5588
Vice Principal:
Nancy Annibale
Trustee:
Andrea Grebenc
Fax:
905 335-1927
Vice Principal:
Pam Jenkins
School Advisory Council Chair:
Lynn Wilson
www.facebook.com/MMRobinsonHS
PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE
We are now half way through semester 2 or to view it
in another way … we have 10 weeks left in the
school year! This time will go fast, particularly for
graduating students, so it is important for everyone to
keep focused on their studies. This can be difficult
with the warming weather and longer days, but I
know our MMR students can succeed!
April is Cancer Awareness Month and the daffodil
has represented the fund raising campaign to fight
cancer for decades. I encourage people to purchase
a daffodil pin this month to support cancer research
in honour of those we have lost to cancer, those who
are presently fighting cancer and those who are cancer survivors.
The Week of April 27th is the final push to raise money for the Second Harvest Food Rescue within the
GTA. Student Council targeted $3000 at the beginning of the year but that number was surpassed in
Rotary Medal Winners
Established in 1997 by the Rotary Club of Burlington Central
in keeping with Rotary's mission to foster the ideal of service
within the community. To be granted to students who
demonstrate involvement in extra-curricular or community
activities.
Semester 1, so the new goal is now $3500.
Please support Student Council in this fund raising event.
As well, May 6th is MMR’s first ever “Spring
Chicken” Food Drive to support our local Partnership West Food Bank. The Food Bank is
running low and needs our help. As a reminder
to the MMR Community, the Partnership West
Food Bank is a vital supporter of our Good
Morning Breakfast Program so this is our chance
to give back. Student Council will again be promoting and organizing a neighbourhood pick-up
drive, Stay tuned for more information.
It will be a busy 10 weeks and I wish everyone
all the best as we head down the home stretch
of the school year!
A. Taylor, Principal
Halton
Student Excellence
Award
For a student who has demonstrated outstanding qualities
in more than one of the following areas: academics,
community work, citizenship, and
student leadership.
Samantha Monday
Corinne Bulger
Preston Checketts
Page 2
MM MATTERS
Highlights from Guidance
& Student Services
We are hosting our annual MMR SHSM/OYAP Evening on
Thursday May 28th at 6:30PM where you can see our facilities,
get important bussing information and gather more information
about your specialized program. Invitation to follow for students
who have already been accepted into an MMR SHSM/OYAP
programs for September.
Scholarships
It’s scholarship season for graduating students. Many scholarships
will be posted & close between now and mid May. Check our guidance scholarships website and your post-secondary destination(s)
to keep up to date with possible scholarship opportunities.
Hours
A reminder to all grads to have their community service
hours in by June 1st. Need help finding opportunities??
Check out: www.volunteerhalton.ca
Stay connected and up to date with MMR Guidance
@ https://www.facebook.com/mmrguidance
MM MATTERS
Summer School Dates:
In-Class and Online
Full Credit: July 6th – July 31st
Upgrade Session 1: July 6th – July 17th
Upgrade Session 2: July 17th – July 31st
See Guidance for summer school applications.
Post Secondary Info




Know the deadlines for your programs of interest
Attend information sessions
Visit programs & campuses this summer
These websites might have helpful information:
www.electronicinfo.ca, www.ontariocolleges.ca,
www.myblueprint.ca/halton,
www.apprenticeshipsearch.com, www.collegeoftrades.ca,
www.haltonpathways.ca
Cooperative Education
We have been conducting interviews with students who have chosen coop as part of their course selection for the 2015-16 school year. Students
who have not completed the interview process must do so by April 30th.
Stop by the Guidance Office to make an appointment. There are a variety
of amazing experiential learning opportunities in our community -- we
would like to discuss the options available to you!
Timetable Changes:
The last day to make changes to your timetable for the
2015-2016 school year will be June 1st, 2015. Please
make sure you have checked all of the requirements
needed for your Pathway and for your future destinations
Key Dates to Add to Your Calendars:
April 23rd:
April 22nd:
April 30th:
May 28th:
June 1st:
June 1st:
Marks uploaded to OCAS/OUAC
Last day to drop classes
Full Disclosure
SHSM/OYAP Information Evening
Last Day for 2015-2016 Timetable Changes
Community Service Hours due for Grads
Page 3
Page 4
M M M AT T E R S
Claire Kumagai
IMPROV MM
“Paints
STYLE
the Town”
Each spring, the Halton Regional Police invite local high
school students to participate in their annual “Paint the
Town” art competition, designed to foster a positive relationship between the police and Halton youth. MMR students have participated annually in this initiative. This
year’s theme is “Inclusivity in Burlington.” Claire
Kumagai, a very talented grade 11 student, has earned
the opportunity to produce her proposed painting on the
large canvas provided by the police. Claire chose to interpret this theme through a dynamic Pop Art style design which references key Burlington landmarks, a geographical compass, and cultural diversity. Claire will be
awarded her community service hours in exchange for
her commitment to this ambitious undertaking and receive a letter of appreciation from the Halton Regional
Police. Claire’s painting will be hung in the main foyer of
the Burlington Police Substation, alongside the canvases
of other student participants from Burlington high
schools. Her painting will remain on display in the police
station for one year, after which time it will be donated to
a local charity. Congratulations Claire!
New “BEST BUDDIES” Logo!
Mark Your Calendar
Halton District School Board
We are very proud of Claire Kumagai for taking on another
Art challenge this semester. Claire designed a NEW logo
for our BEST BUDDIES program. This program helps to
establish supportive and positive relationships between
students in our Life Skills Center and the rest of our MMR
student community. Claire’s awesome logo will help to promote this unique program by being printed on t-shirts,
stickers, posters and other materials.
Once again, thank you Claire.
You are definitely an Art Superstar!
May 19 - 22
at the New Street Education Centre
MM Robinson
- Grade 12 Visual Arts Students June 09 - 16
in the Library at MM Robinson
M M M AT T E R S
Page 5
HALTON SKILLS COMPETITION ~ 2015
On Thursday, April 9, 2015, the Halton District School Board’s 26th annual Halton Skills
Competition was hosted by Craig Kielburger Secondary School in Milton.
Approximately 1,000 elementary and secondary students from across Halton competed in a
wide range of skills in more than 40 areas of competitions.
L to R Cam Hall - Bronze Medal, Justin Ide - Gold Medal, Mr. Crechiola, Emily Soyka - Silver Medal
Congratulations to our Electrical students on your Electrical Installations wins.
RAM PRIDE !
Page 6
MM MATTERS
MM Robinson Percussion Update
While many students were enjoying the start of March Break on Saturday March 13, twelve of our
members were up early rehearsing with Hedley at the First Ontario Centre in preparation for the
2015 Juno Awards. The members of the drumline performed the award winning hit single
"Anything" that opened the show with a bang!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKr018EQHfg
In addition to our Hedley performance, MM Robinson Percussion travelled to Trumbull Connecticut
and Dayton Ohio to compete in the WGI Percussion Circuit. This year's show entitled #MORE was
a more mature arrangement both musically and visually. You can check out a performance Saturday April 25th at Iroquois Ridge High School.
Page 6
MM MATTERS
Upcoming Events:
Sat. April 25th ...........................Drumline Ontario Contest Iroquois Ridge High School 1-5 pm
Sat. May 9th ................................Drumline Ontario Provincial Championships- Niagara College Welland 1-5pm
Mon. May 18th ..........................Victoria Day Parade
Sat. June 6th..............................Bread and Honey Parade
Sat. June 13th ..........................Ancaster Heritage Parade
Sun. June 14th.........................Sound of Music Parade
Sun. June 28th.........................Welland Rose Festival Parade
Wed. July 1st ............................Canada Day Parade Parades
Thurs. August 13th .............Dundas Cactus Festival Parade
Sat. August 15th ....................Waterloo Drum Corps Show
Sat. August 22nd ...................PRIVATE WEDDING
Mon. September 7th ...........Merritton Labour Day Parade
Sat. September 19th ...........Acton Fall Fair Parade
Sat. September 26th ...........Niagara Grape and Wine Parade
Page 7
MM MATTERS
MMR
The MMR IMPROV team has had a fantastic
season so far! At the Toronto Regional Tournament of the Canadian Improv Games, they
earned a SILVER MEDAL finishing second
overall against 30 high school teams from
across the Province. The six veterans and two
rookies played with determination, discipline and
enthusiasm! This qualifies our IMPROV Team
to compete in the National Competition in Ottawa the week of April 20th along with the top 20
teams from across the country! Congratulations
to Corinne Bulger, Alec Waddell, Saraya Batista, Owen MacMillan, Charlotte McCaig, Jack Pocaluyko,
Nicole Rice and Zachary Boudrahem for being such amazing ambassadors of MM Robinson. Finally,
best wishes and congratulations to Corinne Bulger for winning this year’s “Julie Dumais Heart Award” at
the Toronto Regional Finals. Stay tuned for results from Ottawa…GO RAMS!
MM MATTERS
Page 9
SWIM TEAM
Congratulation to MMR Swim team members for a great season. Coach Sheppard and Ram swimmers qualified 19 swimmers to the GHAC Championship. One of the relay teams even graced the front
page of the Sports Section of the Hamilton Spectator. The Rams qualify three swimmers for the OFSAA Swim Championship in Etobicoke. Bringing home a GOLD and SILVER medal at her second OFSAA competition was Gr 10 speedster, Eryn Loney. Capturing a 4th and 8th place finish was graduating Senior, Morgan Chambers and in his first Ontario Championship Grade 9 swimmer Ian Chambers
finished 11th.
Grade 9 PHYS ED
A group of enthusiastic Ram Grade 9 Phys Ed students traveled to Hardwood Hills Ski and Bike Center
north of Barrie after the March Break for some late season cross country skiing. Despite the early brisk
temperatures, the conditions quickly warmed to bright sunshine and blue skies. Lots of happiness and
adventure were had by all on the trails. Can't wait to go next year!!!!
Page 10
MM MATTERS
M.M.R Music Bring Home Some Bling!
written by Caroline Mahut
It has been an extremely exciting year thus far for MMR Music! The Senior Jazz Band,
Wind Ensemble, Grade 9 Junior Concert and Jr Jazz Band, Vocal class have been unwavering in their preparations for the upcoming performances and contests and all their hard
work has paid off. The Junior Concert Band and Jazz Band competed at a Music Fest in
London in mid-March and obtained tremendous results. The Senior Jazz Band achieved a
Bronze Medal in the Senior Category while the Junior Concert Band was proud to receive a Gold
Medal on the Junior level!
However, even with all the busy preparations, MMR Music students always have time for fun and
games! Many students participated in an exciting drama game night full of fun drama activities and
unforgettable moments. In early December the music students had a movie night and spent an evening together laughing and eating popcorn. In late January, an amazing trip to LaserQuest was planned
for all music students. At LaserQuest the students spent an afternoon ducking, dodging and hiding
from laser beams shot by their fellow music friends. Finally a spectacular Just Dance afternoon was
planned for the students where everybody could show off their crazy dancing moves. Music at MMR is
not only a program, its an experience too!
Even with all these events, the music season at MMR is not over yet! On May 21st we have our
Spring Concert where all the music groups will be performing including the Jazz Band, Concert Band,
Grade 9 Music Class and Vocal Class. Soon after there is a music festival taking place at Canada’s
Wonderland on May 25th where the students will be performing in the morning and enjoying the park
in the afternoon. We encourage you all to come and see the music students perform at least once this
spring!
M MM M AMTA
TT
ETRESR S
Page 11
Mmmusic EVENTS
Vocal Class students Natalie Wallace & Sarah
Woodburn glam up to be Beauty School Drop-Outs!
Newly formed Sax 4tet William Russell, Emma
Mowbray, Titi Ta & Seth Adamson has started
rehearsing Wednesday Mornings!
Music students showing off their LaserQuest
scores. Congrats to Seth and Marley for their top
scores!
Grade 10 students Michael Gehl, Sarah Kuehn,
Zac Boudrahem, Caroline Mahut, Sharon Kharkine
-Binstock, & Melissa Gardiner at Musicfest!
Grade 9 Junior Concert Band students(Emma
Mowbray, Meg Malloy, Titi Ta, Paige Clark, William
Russell & Diana Tennier) get ready to go for Gold
Page 12
MM MATTERS
The LEARNING COMMONS
Students Love the Library Reboot
The Library Learning Commons reboot is catching on with students at M.M. Robinson. Over the past
year and a half, the library at M.M. Robinson has been changing its look and activities to reflect a new
vision of the library as a Learning Commons, a place humming with lots of learning activities open and
inviting to all students. The reboot is inspired by new ideas about the role of the library in schools
published by both the Ontario Library Association and the Canadian Library Association.
Students are the first to comment on the library reboot. In recent interviews, students describe the
library as a “really accepting space,” “welcoming,” and “homey.” One student comments that the library is “a really good experience. I feel welcome.” Students recognize the reboot has resulted in a
“positive shift in the way we use our library.” Dominque Lataille explains that “there is so much to do
here. You can be take part in study groups with friends and board games and stuff. It’s not just a
reading area, it’s a community area.” Students enthuse that the library is “amazing, educational, and
fun,” and brings “people together for the common good of learning.”
To add credence to the reflections of the students, statistics support the enthusiasm of their comments. Since September 2012, student usage of the library has increased by 82% despite a decrease
in enrollment. Furthermore, class visits have increased by nearly 30%. Finally, students are signing
out more books by nearly 11% over 2012, again in spite of a smaller student population.
The Learning Commons clearly is a great destination for students to collaborate, read, study, socialize, discuss, create, and play. Please be sure to stop by and explore what the library has to offer. Also, be sure to keep an eye out for special events like Reach Trivia Game intramurals, and Open Mic
performances. If you’d like to see the students reflections on the new Library Learning Commons,
take a look at the video on the Library’s web page which you can access through the school webpage
at http://mmr.hdsb.ca/
Page 12
MMRambotics
MM MATTERS
from ...ish to Masterpiece
The theme for this year’s FIRST competition was Recycle Rush!
It took lots of time and energy and of course, putting 2 robots together..... ish. We may have had a
slow start at the beginning, with hardly having one robot to work with at all and not having a second
robot even in mind. But, miraculously, we built 2 beautiful robots and we were one step closer to
competing in Arkansas. After a 20 hour bus ride, some school work, and some recovery time we arrived. During our trip everyone was excited and pumped to get going. We got to watch an NBA basketball game. I enjoyed the game but I cannot say the same for my teammates and Mr. Hammel
would have preferred “icing over of the court, some pucks, skates and good old Canadian grit”. However it was a good experience.
We had a great drive team this year with Jamie Hopkins at the wheel and Tyler Sherrit as our robots
brain. Arkansas was a wonderful experience for everyone and although we didn't accomplish what
we set out to do we did still make the top 8, coming in 3rd place overall. (Not bad for the 23rd placed
team).
North Bay was absolutely amazing, even though it was ice cold, we all came together as a team and
worked our way to the top 8! Our last game we scored over 140 points making the whole team
scream until our throats hurt, hug each other until we couldn't breathe. We won the quality award and
were complimented on our dancing. Coming in 4th place overall was a huge accomplishment since it
was an all Halton team, and I'd like to personally thank Central High School and Georgetown High
School for being with us until the final second counted down.
Team 2200 really made our amazing mentors Mr. Daniel Rothmain and Mr. David Hammel so proud even
though they were tired from all the long hours and from seeing our faces. We could never have done any
of this without their support and dedication for this truly inspirational club. Everyone here is a family and
we just click and work so well together, you'll always have a place and belong somewhere amongst these
insane and talented people. No needed experience, just come in there with a open mind and a handful of
skittles. I am particularly proud of these intelligent individuals and all the hard work they have put in over
the past several months, nothing can take away this experience or any of the memories that will be remembered as good times.
Samantha Mehl, Grade 11 Student