JP II October Newsletter

On September 23rd, Honourable Scott Moe, Premier of Saskatchewan, the Honourable Jeremy Cockrill, Minister of Education, the Honourable Terry Jenson, Minister of SaskBuilds & Procurement, Light of Christ Catholic Schools Board Members and Senior Administration, special guests, and community members joined the John Paul II Collegiate students and staff for a celebration of the renovations and additions to the school that are nearing completion. We are very pleased to have all of our renovated phases opened for use by our students.

Many sports and clubs are active right now and we are very proud of our student’s efforts and accomplishments and the manner in which they represent JP II. I wish everyone involved in the Fall activities all the best and hope that they build memories that will last a lifetime.

Parents are encouraged to follow their student’s progress, by logging into EDSBY. EDSBY provides information about your student’s attendance, grades, assignment due dates, school events and other information. Contact the office if you need to set up your account.

This year our staff are working on the following Learning Improvement goals. They are:

#1 Teacher Clarity focusing on student learning

Teachers will select area of focus

• High Impact Practices

• Building Thinking Classroom

• Conferring

• Assessment

Use new FTV tools to support

• Peer Observation Tool

• Student Voice Tool

#2 Integrate and grow into newly renovated spaces with a number of new staff.

Renew and Refresh Faith and Strengths

#3 Using our faith as a guide, have positive and respectful relationships for all
students at all times while enhancing student strengths, mental health and
wellbeing. (Faith, Strengths, and Mental Health & Wellbeing)

JP Admin Team

Mr. Yockey, Mrs. Kirby, Mr. Donahue

CAREER NEWS

POST-SECONDARY APPLICATIONS

Application season is well underway. If you need assistance with the application

process, please make an appointment with Mrs. Fransoo.

SUTIL CAREER FAIR

Saskatchewan Universities Technical Institute Liaison offers several presentations from

a wide variety of post-secondary institutions. This will take place at our school on

October 8 in the afternoon for our grades 10-12 students. Information booths will also

be set up for viewing.

TRY-A-TRADE

The hands-on event will be at the North Battleford field house on October 10. This is a

great opportunity to explore trade related post-secondary training and careers. We look

forward to attending this event with our grade 10 students. Transportation will be

provided to and from the event.

OPEN HOUSES

Many post-secondary institutions are offering on campus and/or virtual open houses this

fall. Be sure to check the Edsby announcements to find out more information these

events or navigate to the post-secondary site to see when the open house event is

taking place.

CREDIT CHECK

Grades 10-12, if you would like to ensure that you are on the right path to graduate feel

free to make an appointment with guidance to go over your current and future courses.

We would like to thank all of the staff and students who helped plan our Community Round Dance. We would also like to thank all of the schools in the community, community members, and JPII students and staff who attended to make this a great experience for everyone. Thank you to our sponsors for the Round Dance: Battlefords Agency Tribal Chiefs, McKenn Contracting, Freedom Skate & Snow, and Fauchon Electric.

Next up for our students and staff, we will be starting our Ribbon Skirts and Shirts making in October and begin planning for our Family Christmas Supper that happens in December.

Reminder to students that the Braided Journeys Room is open most periods and at lunch if you need a place to hangout or help with school work.

September came in fast and we had some exciting things happening. The POP Room has been busy with students coming in and out. Some come in to say hi, some to do some school work and some to grab a bite to eat. It has been wonderful to see all your smiling faces and meeting

new students.

September had me and the school counselors visiting the grade 8

homerooms and welcoming them into our school and showing them some

relaxing techniques for coping with school work and life.

One of the techniques we shared was Squeeze the Lemon technique, as

well as the Box Breathing exercise…. You can try these at home with

your child.

Image you are holding a lemon in both hands. Squeeze those lemons by

squeezing your hands into fists for 10 seconds. Then release and relax.

Remember to breath and repeat.

Box Breathing refers to the fact that a box as four sides, a concept

represented here by breathing while you slowly count to four for a

total of four times-four counts of breathing in, four counts of holding

your breath, four counts of exhaling and four more counts of holding

after you exhale. You can draw box on your leg or hand with your finger

if that helps you to image the four sides.

In October we hope to have some students join our Peer Support group

and will focus on the Self-Regulation.

Regulation is something everyone continually works on whether we are

aware of it or not. We all encounter trying circumstances that can test

our limits. If we can recognize when we are becoming less regulated, we

are able to do something about it to manage our feelings and get

ourselves to a healthy place. This comes more naturally for some, but

for others it is a skill that needs more attention and practice.

Our hope is that we all have a wonderful fall, and we look forward to

working with students, parents and staff in the upcoming months.

Chaplaincy – A huge hello from our Chaplaincy department at JPII Collegiate. Our school year is in full swing and our faith activities are an integral part of everything we do. We have started our Week-day Masses, classroom presentations in our Catholic Studies Classes, as well as assisting students in developing and implementing their Christian Action Projects.

At our Catholic school, we take great pride in being a community of faith that welcomes everyone, regardless of their beliefs. Each day begins with prayer, where we seek divine assistance for ourselves, our community, and the wider world. This daily practice serves as a powerful reminder to our students that Christ is the cornerstone of our school, guiding us through both joyful moments and times of uncertainty.

We are also excited to be undertaking some renovations and updates to our beloved chapel, we will keep you posted!

As we approach Thanksgiving, we invite all parents, caregivers, and alumni to join us for our Thanksgiving Mass. Tentatively scheduled for Friday, October 11th, at 10:50 a.m., this special gathering will be an opportunity for our entire school family to come together, pause, and reflect on the blessings we have received throughout the year.

We believe that prayer strengthens our bonds and nurtures a spirit of thankfulness within our community. Together, we will lift our voices in gratitude, honoring the gifts of faith, family, and friendship that enrich our lives. We look forward to celebrating this meaningful occasion with you!

This year we are so excited to share that our Social Justice League has 34 very active and willing members who are focused on giving back to our community by acts of mercy. We recently had our first gathering and set a food drive as our first project. Furthermore, we have set a very ambitious goal of collecting 10,000 food items for our local food bank. There will be opportunities here at school, as well as 30 students who will go door to door on Halloween night, not to collect candy for themselves, but food items for those who are in need. This energetic group will use their Clifton Strengths to do everything they can to meet their goal. We respectfully ask you to encourage your child/student to bring as many food items as possible to school. They will be collected in their 1st period class. On behalf of the Social Justice League, please help as you can. Keep us in your prayers, and together we will follow the teaching of Christ to feed the hungry.

Calling all members of the Arts Academy Club! We will hold our first event of the year on October 29th from 3:45 to 5:00 pm in the Commons. We will have a pumpkin painting night. You must submit a sketched plan that includes the necessary materials. You may work with a group, partner, or independently. You only need to submit 1 plan for each group. Please list all group members in your plan. This event is only open to 15 students. Please apply quickly. Applications will close on October 22nd. Submit your proposals to the Arst Academy Group. You must be a member of the Arts Academy Club to participate in this event. Are you interested in becoming a member? Please request to join the club on Edsby. This will give you access to all of our future events and activities. Stay posted for more incredible artistic opportunities.

The Senior Boys Volleyball Season is well underway. We’ve attended 4 tournaments to date and have had some strong showings against 4A and 5A teams.

Most recently we hosted our home tournament. The gym saw a high level of competition throughout the weekend. The JPII Crusaders finished 2nd after the round robin and then advanced to the semi-finals.

A 3-set match saw the Crusaders defeating Warman in the first playoff round. The team then moved into the gold medal match where they faced Lloyd Comp. After a battle in the final match, the boys finished with the silver medal. A big thank you to everyone who came out to support our team by taking in the action over the weekend. Additionally, we had some strong student helpers throughout the weekend who assisted with the score table and lines keeping duties. Thank you for helping all weekend long.

We are looking forward to our October schedule when we travel to Lloydminster, Prince Albert and

Moose Jaw. Hope to see you out supporting Crusader Volleyball!

John Paul II Collegiate

Vice-Principal: Mr. Frazer Donahue

Vice-Principal: Mrs. Karolyn Kirby

Main Office: Aurora Ironstand

Phone: 1-306-446-2232

Email: john.paul@loccsd.ca

Website: John Paul II Collegiate (loccsd.ca)

Location: 1491 97th Street

North Battleford, SK

S9A 0K1

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