McAllister Farm Visit!

By Braden Coughlan

Blackville students from kindergarten to grade 1, went on a fun-filled field trip to McAllister Farm, where they participated in many activities on Friday October 7.

The students were invited to pick apples, and go on a beautiful October hayride. When asked about her experience Kindergarten student Jerrica Manderville said, “We got to pick lots of apples, and my favorite part was the hayride."
Students have been participating in this field trip for years, and from the smiles on the kids’ faces, it will most likely continue for years to come.

For more pictures from this trip, click here .

Universities overtake local High School Gym

By Nathalie Sturgeon
Photos taken by Nathalie Sturgeon

Grade 12 students of Blackville School travelled to Miramichi Valley High School for Atlantic Association of Registrars and Admissions Officers (AARAO). A variety of colleges and universities were in attendance.

Student TJ Donohue said “I liked how the recruits provided us with information we didn’t know.” Taylar Curtis added by saying that she liked that recruiters showed a genuine interesting in students and were eager to help you.

James Vickers said he found after visiting this expo that he was easily able to narrow down his choice to one specific university based on the attitude and information provided by the representatives.

The AARAO provided students with an in-depth look at their futures, and succeeded in helping them make informed decision.

In this picture:
Lindsay Sullivan
Sarah-Beth Hayes
Kennedy Coughlan
Ashley Coughlan
Michael McNeil

Blackville School student participates in Rick Hansen Relay

by Braden Coughlan

Grade 10 Blackville student Kendra Underhill participated in the annual Rick Hansen relay that was held on October 1st.

Rick Hansen created the relay event. Hansen is a paralympian who was paralyzed in a tragic car accident when he was only 15. In 1985 Rick Hansen began his Man in Motion tour spanning over 26 months and covering 40,000 kms over 34 countries.

Since then there has been an annual Rick Hansen relay, which raises money and awareness for spinal cord injury problems.

Kendra says that participating in this event was very exciting and it made her feel proud to be running for a good cause. She learned a lot about what Rick has done for people suffering from spinal cord injuries.

Kendra says that if all goes well she would enjoy participating again next year. Currently Rick has raised more than 200 million dollars, with no end in sight.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving

High School students are shown the “damages” of impaired driving

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Canada came to Blackville School to present a newly made film called “Damages” on October 5. André LaFlamme from MADD gave a short introduction and then proceeded to show the film.

The intended goal of the presentation is to reduce the amount of drunk drivers among teens. MADD would like to see teens reflect upon their ultimate decisions, between driving under influence or getting into a vehicle with someone you know who has exceeded the legal limit.
Grade 12 student Melissa Underhill said, “the testimonials were the hardest to watch.” Underhill added that she could relate to the mother because she is the same age as the daughter she lost as a result of a drunk driver.

Grade 9 student Whitney Tucker said, “the movie was the most effective; because it was so real.” She felt the acting was really good.
LaFlamme will be taking the presentation to over 300 schools across Atlantic Canada, and Quebec, in hopes that students will begin to think before they act.

Image names from left to right: Carly Hallihan, Sarah-Beth Hayes, Dallas Underhill, TJ Donahue, Andre LeFlamme, Cory Keenan, Michael McNeil, Marissa Donohue, Michaela Jardine

A New Technological Aim at Student Learning

By Nathalie Sturgeon and Braden Coughlan

Blackville School is part of a provincial initiative called “Demonstration Schools.” The aim of this initiative is to study the impact of technology and computers on student learning. Along with 36 schools across the province, Blackville will represent District 16.

The focus of this research initiative is three folded. How does technology impact students? How does technology affect the engagement of students? And, lastly, how does technology address the education of diverse learners?

Blackville School has specified two questions they would like to see answered by this initiative. Is there a correlation between one-to-one access and students being on task? Secondly, will access to online resources and a variety of options for student feedback lead students to take personal ownership of their learning?

A designated team of high school teachers has been assigned to do the research, but all high school teachers will assist in the project. The school will receive assistance from District 16 Technology Mentors Joey Savoy and Rick Hayward. They will help educate students and provide Blackville with data.

“The project is really a living and evolving one that sees us addressing new needs as we identify them through our student body,” said Blackville School Vice-Principal Aaron Johnston.

“However, like any research proposal we will have to wait and see what the data at the end tells us. But, I am optimistic that this will prove to be a good initiative,” continued Johnston.

After being asked whether more money would be set forth for a program surrounding technology, Johnston had this to say, “I am hopeful that the department will find this to be a progressive initiative and be able to help fund it.” This comes after District 16 implemented SMART Boards in all their classrooms.

Grade nine student Brittney Hayne said she finds the net books convenient when doing her work. Grade nine student Madison Astle added, “Google is like a dictionary on its own, you can pretty much find anything. If you need anything you can just search it on the internet.”

“Regardless of what the results are, Blackville School will continue to be an advocate for technology in the schools. We will use it to teach, use it to engage, and use it to reach higher and higher levels of achievement,” said Johnston.

Photos by Taylar Curtis

An Apple Leaves a Lasting Impression

An apple a day keeps the doctors away, but no one ever said anything about leaves.

On Tuesday, October 4 Grade 6 Blackville students Jules Keenan and Emily Peterson found an apple that had something very unusual about it.

Emily was digging through her lunch can and found a bright red shiny apple. Thanks to her friend Jules, the apple was saved. Jules noticed a subtle imprint of a leaf on the apple.

Seeing that this was a special apple Emily traded it with her teacher, Mrs. Carmel Fiander for another apple, and the apple is now kept in the science room.

By Braden Coughlan

Outdoor Pursuits Canoe Trip

Blackville Highschool's Outdoor Pursuits class went canoing last Friday in Blackville, click here for more pictures!

Tweeting CBC

Blackville School Grade 11 student Natalie Sturgeon uses Twitter and she is also very interested in pursuing a career in journalism. So it was not surprising that she followed Terry Seguin on Twitter. Mr. Seguin is, afterall, the host of CBC Radio One Information Morning Fredericton.

But it may be surprising that Natalie asked Mr. Seguin to visit Blackville School after reading on his Twitter account that he visited a school in Fredericton. Mr. Seguin replied in the positive, and on Friday morning, November 19, the CBC journalist and radio host made the trek from Fredericton to Blackville to speak to the Journalism 120 class.

The students had quite a few questions for the CBC journalist who spoke to them about a wide range of topics from journalism ethics to the interviewing process. He sparked a lot of interest among the students about considering a career in journalism, and many of the students stayed after his presentation to ask him more questions.

While Nathalie is not in Journalism 120 this year, she did attend the presentation and she was one of the students who spoke to Mr. Seguin after the presentation. Mr. Seguin asked the students who used Twitter to add him so they could continue the discussion.