Hundreds of St. Albert students got a cool start to their summer vacation this week by going back to school.
About 300 St. Albert students climbed walls, baked cookies, carved skateboards, and learned to read and write this week as part of the annual Super Cool Summer School Program.
The program is a joint initiative by St. Albert’s public and Catholic school boards and flips between the Richard S. Fowler and Sir George Simpson schools every two years, said program principal Susan Anderson. (It’s at Simpson this year.) The two-week program lets students take up to four courses to brush up on their math, play sports, or learn new skills.
New this year are a pair of junior high art courses where students learn how to sketch and paint in a variety of ways, and an Introduction to Late French Immersion, where Simpson teacher Michelle Lamble gives students a crash-course in French.
Many students want to get a bilingual diploma in order to expand their job opportunities, Lamble said.
“I myself wouldn’t be standing here today if I didn’t have one.”
This new course teaches students basic nouns, pronouns and expressions so that they can hop into a French immersion program in junior high, she said (immersion normally starts in Kindergarten). One of her current students told her he hoped it would help him learn a third language.
Other courses cover study skills, math, skateboard manufacture, computer programming, and basketball. Many students take an academic-type course in the morning and a fun one in the afternoon, Anderson said.
“The students love the relaxed atmosphere of summer school,” she said, as well as the in-depth focus on specific subjects.
Teacher Brad Wolter, a 12-year veteran with the summer school, supervised student Katelyn Dea as she scaled the Mark DeLaurier Memorial Wall in the Simpson gym.
“Keep your hand by your hip!” he said.
This course teaches students the basics of rock-climbing and the importance of respecting each other and your equipment, Wolter said. The big three-hour blocks of summer school let him get into much more depth than he could normally do in a typical school period.
Over in the science lab, teacher Doug Ducharme was using celery and coloured water to demonstrate evapotranspiration. His Young Scientists course was meant to encourage students to get interested in science.
“It’s a good opportunity for them to keep their minds focused throughout the summer,” he said, adding that his brain sometimes takes a break during the summer months.
It also gives him a chance to do experiments that he can’t normally do during the school year, such as papier-mâché volcanoes and Mentos-and-Coke geysers.
Grade 5 student Mila Feraco was using tape and a pencil to learn about fingerprints in Ducharme’s class. She said this was the second time she’d enrolled in the summer school, and that she planned to attend again next year.
Feraco said she spent last week learning how to hold a camera and touch up photos as part of the digital photography course. She also hoped to see some “awesome” explosions as part of Ducharme’s class.
“I’m really excited for Sweet Treats,” she said, referring to one of the school’s cooking classes, “because I love baking and I can’t wait to learn new recipes and cook with other people.”
Summer school is a chance to learn more about what you love, Feraco said.
“There are things that can suit everyone here.”
Super Cool Summer School wraps up this Friday.
