5th annual Skating Trip at Nathan Phillips Square

YMCA Academy Beyond the Classroom No Comments

On Friday December 12th, The YMCA Academy embarked on their fifth annual skating trip. The inaugural trip was the brain child of an alumni of the Academy and has since become an exciting tradition we look forward to each year. A few slips and falls were not enough to discourage fun, excitement and Timmy’s hot chocolate.  We love this trip as a time to hang out with friends, get a breath of “fresh” air in downtown Toronto and enjoy some physical winter fitness.

“One fun thing that happened is that I got to race my new friends on the ice,” said Zach, a Grade 9 student at the Academy.

One student even learned how to skate for the first time. He started by sitting down, then he put his feet on the ice. Then, two nice kids brought him a thing to push to help him skate and stand up on the ice. After, he stopped using that thing and started skating on his own, but he always had someone on his side.

“You don’t have to be good at skating to go on a skating trip,” said Adam, who is also a Grade 9 student at the Academy. “It only matters if you have fun.”

By Zach DS and Adam V.

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Tissue Paper Stained Glass

YMCA Academy Arts, Native Studies, Student Spotlight No Comments

The Grade 9 Native Studies class created stunning tissue paper “stained glass” compositions inspired by the artworks of the Ojibway, Algonquin and Mi’kmaq First Nations. Using thick black lines, a broad colour pallet and abstract designs, students applied elements often found in Eastern Woodland art to their own multi-media projects. Rather than on the wall, these transparent pieces will go on the windows!

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Art Gallery of Ontario 2014

YMCA Academy Arts, Experiential Learning, Native Studies No Comments

The Grade 9 Expressing Aboriginal Cultures class visited the Art Gallery of Ontario on a snowy morning this week.  We toured around the Canadian Exhibition which features some gems by the Group of Seven and also saw two original paintings by the Eastern Woodlands master Norval Morriseau.  At the end of the trip we got to step into the dark and mysterious projection booth in the Jackman Hall theatre.  Old fashioned film is heavy!

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Elephant Toothpaste Lab

Zareh Demirdji Experiential Learning, Science and Math No Comments

Learning about the 6 types of chemical reactions is not always exciting for everyone, especially if it is done solely through practice worksheets. Furthermore, simply discussing and being able to recognise the different types of chemical reactions can be somewhat intimidating to most students.

But life is not always about remembering equations and formulas, because let’s face it; most students forget the majority of the equations and formulas they have learned once they leave the walls of educational institutions. If, however, you can help students see through the equations and formulas and how they apply to the world they experience around them, they will remember that for many years after they have forgotten the formulas and equations.

In order to bring the chemistry from the whiteboard and worksheets to life, we look at a real-time example of a decomposition reaction. We take a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and add to it a few drops of food colouring (for effect) and a few drops of liquid dish soap (for the wow factor). In years past, we have added yeast to speed up the reaction, but this year we tried potassium iodide and a higher concentration solution of hydrogen peroxide for a bigger and better effect. Alas, as happens in science from time to time, the reaction was no different than years past, however, the what the students witnessed still evoked the usual oohs and aahs as the oxygen produced from the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide quickly expanding the soap bubbles in the solution and quickly foamed up and over the graduated cylinder.

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Feast of Thanks Potluck Lunch 2014

YMCA Academy Beyond the Classroom, Community, Native Studies No Comments

This past Thanksgiving, staff and students celebrated Canada’s Indigenous peoples and cultures at our third annual Feast of Thanks potluck lunch.  We were honoured to host Darlene King from the Native Women’s Resource Centre of Toronto and storyteller Jim Adams who offered a song and blessing to open our event.  We are grateful to all of our families for contributing amazing dishes like turkey and stuffing pie, stuffed squash, homemade ravioli and delicious pies.  Thanks also to students in Todd’s Equity class, Brandon’s Politics class and Alexi’s Aboriginal Voices class for educational displays and dish duty!

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