Brush paintings by several of our students will be on exhibit as part of the 2019 Asian Heritage Month Art Exhibitions! The pieces will be on display to the public, so check out the amazing work of our artists and other students around the TDSB!
Saturday, April 20 to Thursday, April 25 at the Toronto City Hall Rotunda
Monday, May 13 to Sunday, May 19 at the Toronto Metro Hall Rotunda
As you may know, the recent cutbacks to Ontario’s education budget will have a significant impact on class size and course choices for students. Alternative schools such as ours are particularly vulnerable to these changes. The TDSB is holding consultations on its budget, and is interested in hearing from school communities like ours in order to best support our students. If SOLE has made a difference in your life, now is the time to tell that story!
SOLE students, staff, and parents are invited to speak at the TDSB’s budget consultations on Wednesday, April 24, starting at 4:30 PM. You can choose to attend or present a 5-minute deputation. The consultation is at the TDSB’s headquarters at 5050 Yonge St. (right near North York Centre Station) .
For more information, visit the TDSB’s 2019-20 Budget page. Interested in joining us? Talk to Rachel or Shannon!
Do you need extra help in math? Our new math tutor, Josh, is available Tuesdays and Thursdays at lunch. You can find him in Michael’s room!
Rachel’s Game Design class had a two-day workshop with Daniel Bishop, a designer and writer of roleplaying games. Students learned about the principles of creating a roleplaying adventure, the market for writing, and how to run a game, ending with a deadly and hilarious Dungeons & Dragons funnel tournament. Thanks for sharing your expertise with us, Daniel!
April 10, 2019 marks the International Day of Pink. It is a day where communities across the country, and across the world, can unite in celebrating diversity and raising awareness to stop homophobia, transphobia, transmisogyny, and all forms of bullying.
The International Day of Pink was started in Nova Scotia when 2 straight high school students saw a gay student wearing a pink shirt being bullied. The 2 students intervened, but wanted to do more to prevent homophobic & transphobic bullying. They decided to purchase pink shirts, and a few days later got everyone at school to arrive wearing pink, standing in solidarity. The result was that an entire school took a stand and began working together to prevent homophobic & transphobic bullying.
The message was clear: anyone can bully, any can be victimized by bullying, but together we can stop it.Each year on the second Wednesday of April, millions of people wear pink and take a stand. The Day of Pink is a symbol, a spark, that empowers and inspires youth across Canada to create amazing social change!
Students in Shannon’s Organize Your Life class talked with our Toronto Public Health nurse Jessica about promoting facts-based, no-stigma, harm reduction-based conversations on drug use/misuse. An ongoing leadership opportunity for those involved is in progress! If you’re not in HIP4O and want to participate in the ongoing work around this issue, connect with Shannon as soon as you can. Jessica will be back at SOLE the week of April 15th, so keep checking the main whiteboard for details!
Partnering with Toronto Public Health is critical for student wellbeing and mental health promotion that aligns with our @TDSB Action plan. Thanks to Jessica and Silvana for their collaboration in helping to guide student led initiatives!
Rachel’s Art class and Shannon’s Organize Your Life class took part in an incredible Chinese brush painting workshop with Dr. Lien Chao and Irene Hung. Students learned about the history, materials, and techniques behind this unique art form, as well as its underlying philosophical concepts. Through this engaging two-hour session, students developed their skills with the medium and had fun producing dozens of imaginative free-flowing paintings.
Workshops like this one demonstrate the power of the arts to foster self-confidence, promote cross-cultural understanding, and allow students to express themselves in positive and creative ways. Stay tuned for two upcoming shows that just might feature some art from this workshop, and a huge thanks to Lien and Irene for providing us with this valuable opportunity!
Shannon’s 11/12 English and Perryne’s Presentation Skills classes participated in a dramatic workshop with facilitators Sadie and Kai! Students worked collaboratively to explore scene creation and subtext with both group-created improvisational sketches and the dinner scene from Elena Belyea’s Cleave.
Drop by the Student Lounge to see the changes we’ve made! Now it’s easier to find information on jobs, volunteer opportunities, health and wellness, and more. We have games and activities to help you chill out. A huge thanks to Silvana La Rosa and our four amazing student volunteers for making it happen!
A reminder that the Student Lounge is everyone’s space. Please keep it clean and tidy, and remember that you should only be using it outside of class time (before and after school, lunch, and spares).
SOLE Parent-Teacher Interviews are Thursday, March 21st from 5 pm to 8 pm. Please sign up online for a 15-minute interview with each teacher by clicking the button below. If you have a problem accessing the online sign-up system, email Rachel at rachel.rosen@tdsb.on.ca or call Debbie, our Office Administrator, at 416-393-0756.
