Stephen Lewis Secondary School

News Archieve 2007-2008

June 13 - Progress reports - Progress reports update student achievement just prior to the examinations

June 11 - York Region public secondary students maintain strong performance on Grade 10 literacy test

The 2008 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) results released today by the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) show a high proportion of York Region District School Board Grade 10 students continue to demonstrate literacy competence, relative to other school districts across the province. The percentage of students who passed the test once again substantially exceeded the provincial average.

Of the 9,157 York Region public secondary Grade 10 students who wrote the test for the first time, 88% were successful, compared with an average success rate of 84% among other school districts across Ontario. "We congratulate all of the York Region Grade 10 students who were successful on the Secondary School Literacy Test," said Diane Giangrande, Chair of the York Region District School Board. Ms. Giangrande said the Board's long-term and intense focus on literacy improvement for all students is directly responsible for the Board's record of strong literacy achievement.

Dr. Beate Planche, Superintendent of Curriculum and Instructional Services, agreed that concentrated focus on literacy improvement by teachers across the entire school district is proving the value of persistence in achieving continuous improvement. "We are very proud of the collaborative effort of trustees, supervisory officers, school leaders, teachers and curriculum consultants in sustaining a clear focus and in following through on our commitment to help students improve their learning," she said.

The OSSLT has been administered each year since 2002 by the EQAO. Passing the test or alternatively, the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course, is a requirement for high school graduation.

June 10, 11 - Rumors - school play - "Rumors" is a quick paced comic triumph that offers hilarity at every turn and is filled with characters that have no boundaries to what they will do or say to maintain their reputation. The play showcases the work of Grade 9-11 drama students.

May 5 - Visit by Jerusalem Academy of Music - Five highly accomplished music students from the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance performed at the school. The students ages 11 to 15 played piano, violin, cello and saxophone. They were joined by a nine-year old Canadian pianist along with our music students.

February 18 - Family Day - Recently, the Government of Ontario announced the creation of Family Day as a province-wide statutory holiday. This year Family Day will be held on Monday, February 18, 2008. Please note that school will be closed on the 18th.

February 13 - Join us to learn about careers and post-secondary pathways, as well as course selection information for next year. The presentations begin at 7:00 pm

February 8-15 - All students will receive course selection information for next year. All forms are due back to the school not later than February 22.

February 8 - Semester 1 report cards were issued. The report card consists of the list of courses with final marks and a separate summary of credits earned report. A school newsletter was also issued. 33% of our students had an academic average of 80% or higher for our honour roll.

October 22 - Workplace safety

In February 1999, Mr. Ellis, a small business owner and father of four, lost his 18-year-old son David in a workplace accident. David died after becoming entangled in a dough mixer at a local bakery. He was on his second day of a temporary job. To honour the memory of his son, Rob Ellis now works alongside with Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) to promote safety for young workers and the importance of accident prevention. He spoke to our co-op and technology students about workplace safety. The technological studies department established the Rob Ellis award for the top student in technology education.

September 28- Our students raised money for the Terry Fox Run

September 27- Over 100 students received honour roll certificates and subject awards for their achievement second semester last year

September 26 - 7 buses of students descended on Camp Robin Hood in Markham for our Grade 9 Welcome Day event. Our leadership class helped to facilitate the actiities which stressed cooperation and team building.

News Archieve 2006-2007

Click here for the current news items.

June 20-26.
The June Exam schedule has been distributed. Be sure when and where you write each exam. Ask your teacher if you are not certain. Begin reviewing and preparing your study notes now!

June 7 The drama club presented "Drop Dead Juliet! a comedy in one act by Allison Williams. It was well received by the audience, as well as the Grade 8 students who watched the dress rehearsals. The presentation also included performances by our Taiko Drum ensembles as well as vocal performances by Tooti D.
May 24. Our cheque for $12,000 has been sent to the Stephen Lewis Foundation. It is an amazing accomplishment for the 120 students and staff who participated. We thank our community for making it happen!
On May 23 a representative from the University of Guelph come in to speak to science students about careers in engineering. She started off with an engaging presentation and then students had an opportunity to design, build, and test their own windmill. Click here to take a look at the pictures.
Progress reports were sent home on May 18. These reports reflect each student's current achievement in their courses.
May 8, 2007

Stephen Lewis visited on May 8 for our official opening ceremonies. A variety of student dramatic and musical performances were followed by the presentationof a cheque for $10,000 for the Stephen Lewis Foundation and the ribbon cutting ceremony.
April 27 Wake-a-thon

The 12hours for $12K wake-a-thon was a great success. 120 students and staff supervisors participated in presentations, sports activities, challenge games and other activities from 7pm to 7am the next day. We thank all of the community sponsors which helped make the event a great success. The funds raised will be presented to the Stephen Lewis Foundation at the official opening ceremonies.
The first York Region VEX Robotics Competition was held at SLSS on March 1. Students from five teams in the GTA competed in the challenge which required students to hang their robots on a bar and shoot baseballs into a basketball-style net. Despite the inclement weather, a team made the trip from St. Catherines! The competition was tough. THe challenge encouraged students to use and apply concepts and skills that are taught as part of the math, science and computer studies curriculum in a practical setting. Students demonstrated their team and leadership skills by working together to design and build the robots. Congratulations to the SLSS Sharks Robotics team who finished fourth in the competition of nine teams.
Super Heroes Boot Camp was the theme for the York Region Science Olympics held at York University on March 1. Although we were the smallest team, we were the loudest and were awarded 1st place for school spirit! The competitions centred on collaborative problem solving, lab based inquiry and practical applications of physics, biology and chemistry.
On February 22, 2007 our students participated in a video presentation at "Megaconference Jr 2007" a project that gives students from around the world the opportunity to collaborate and contribute to each other's learnings. Our students were part of the team presenting the Africa quest with leaders from the York Region District School Board.
The Jr. Girls Volleyball Sharks placed 3rd in their tournament on Friday February 9
Semester 1 final report cards were distributed on Friday February 9. More than 100 students achieved an average of 80% or higher to be placed on our first honour roll. Congratulations!
The February 2007 newsletter was distributed with report cards on Friday February 9.
The Jr. Boys Basketball Sharks defeated Thornlea 62-41 in the first playoff game on Tuesday February 6.