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From “Anne of Green Gables” to “Annie”; “Tom Sawyer” to “Aladdin”, children have always figured prominently in North Frontenac Little Theatre productions. To recognize this fact in this, our 40th anniversary year, students were invited to participate in a special poster contest so they too could celebrate and demonstrate their appreciation of our live theatre company.

Posters were to focus on the celebration of NFLT’s 40th Anniversary, were to have an original concept and design, and could not be computer aided.

The contest was open to students in Central and North Frontenac. All participants received a special anniversary certificate and the winners got monetary awards as well.

Submissions were dropped off at the Cardinal Café in Sharbot Lake and totalled twenty-eight by the May 1st deadline.

NFLT thanks all the contestants for honouring our theatre company with their art, and is pleased to announce the winners:

Intermediate Division - 1st Place: Samantha Driscoll, Harrowsmith Public School, Gr. 7; 2nd place: Sarah Powell, GREC, Gr. 7; 3rd place: Amy Watkins, GREC, Gr. 7

Junior Division - 1st Place: Jenna Rose GREC Gr. 6; 2nd Place: Sloane Putnam GREC, Gr. 6; 3rd Place: Isabelle Tryon, LOLPS, Gr. 4

Primary Division - 1st Place: Emily Parks LOLPS Gr. 3; 2nd Place: Ted Saunders, LOLPS, Gr. 3

The winning posters are on display at NFLT’s Tichborne Hall. The public is invited to see them, along with other memorabilia on Friday, 7:00 pm, August 16th, 2019 at the “Tichborne Hall Open House and Listen Along”. Please come celebrate with us, won’t you?

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

The Art Club at Land O’Lakes Public School in Mountain Grove held its annual exhibition last week with a theme of self-portraiture.

And, like all budding artists before them, they displayed an incredible amount of creativity, including playing with what ‘self-portrait’ means.

“Gabe painted Alex, Alex painted Gabe,” said teacher Lee Hull, who oversees the after-school activity. “Bella painted Bella and Izzy painted Bella.

“They got a certain amount of instruction and then we just let them do their thing.”

For example, Bayley Morden painted himself as the Joker.

“Yeah,” he said.

“We’ve done landscapes but it always rains or the leaves fall,” said Hull. “We’ve done mannequins with drapery and still lifes.

“We wanted to do something new this time.”

And they by-product was that the 20 Grade 4-7 students really let their minds loose, creativity-wise.

Keyana Whan incorporated words into her portrait.

“I kinda just wanted people to know what my hobbies were and the stuff I like,” she said.

Emilynn Crawford took a more traditional approach, albeit with a very expressionist mindset.

“I do like the realistic,” she said. “I started off thinking how the painting was going to look.”

“When painting, I’m happy and the love is in the picture even though painting is not really my art.

“I’m more into drawing and blending.”

Rachel Gray’s piece was very illustrative, with just the right touch of emotion.

“I’m just trying to make it look realistic,” she said.

And then there’s Alex Gill of ‘Alex painted Gabe’ fame.

Not only did he do a painting of a buddy, he took great pains to create a mood with setting, which may say more about the artist than the subject, perhaps making it the most creative ‘self-portrait’ of the bunch.

The background of Gill’s painting is of the night sky, compete with a full moon.

“I tried to paint stars, but they’re tough,” he said. “I just thought of it (the moon) after we saw a movie in French class about space.

“I want to be an astronaut when I grow up.”

The paintings were presented nicely in a circle, on easels that were purchased a couple of years ago from a Limestone Learning Foundation grant.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 22 November 2017 14:23

LOLPS students visit Sherlock’s Escapes

Last Wednesday, students in Barry Harding’s grade 6-8 class made the trek down to Kingston to be the first class in the Limestone District to problem solve their way out of four Victorian style rooms. The goal of an escape adventure is to work as a team to find clues, answer questions and solve riddles to escape the room in under 60 minutes. Sherlock’s Escapes uses infamous characters such as Jim Moriarty and Irene Adler to help paint a picture of what it must have been like to be Sherlock Holmes.

 

The class was split into two groups. One group at a time would begin in Moriarty’s photo lab, filled with vats of chemicals and photos as clues to help them enter the next room, Irene’s Kitchen and then into a store room. Clues from one room would often transfer to the next room. The rooms have an escape rate of around 20% for adults. And while neither team finished, they were each only one room away.

 

While the other group was waiting for their turn in the rooms, they split into another two groups and created mini treasure hunts for each other. They used cards, a bunch of different kinds of locks the decor of the rooms they helped each other solve the 10 minute mysteries. In one of these puzzles, candy was locked in a box, and the key to the box was placed on a book. To find the book the students had to find hidden letters that led them to a combination lock that led them to a map where the title of the book (China Tides) was marked on a globe.

 

 

Makenzie Drew, Erika Wood, Izzy DeSa, Allison Chacon (above), Bella Uens, Keyana Whan.

 

Erika Wood solving the combination lock.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 10 May 2017 13:05

Celebration of Dance - LOLPS team

Each year the Limestone District school Board gathers thousands of students together for a dance party known as the Celebration of Dance. This large gathering of students (which was held at Old Fort Henry again this year) provides an opportunity to celebrate movement and expression through dance.

"Celebration of Dance helps students to increase their levels of physical activity while having a lot of fun," said Lara Paterson, a physical activity specialist with KFLA Public Health and the Limestone District School Board, in a statement.
All LDSB elementary schools are invited to apply to have a dance team lead one of the dances each year.

This year, Land O' Lakes Public School was lucky enough to be chosen to enter a team and choreograph a routine. Nine students worked diligently in the fall to learn their dance. They were videotaped and added to a YouTube link (along with the rest of the dance teams who were chosen from other schools). All schools participating have used these YouTube videos to teach the selected dances to the rest of the students in preparation for the big day. The students at Land O' Lakes Public School have been practicing their dances for the past several weeks and the school was  an empty place on Tuesday, May 9th, as almost the entire student population traveled by bus to Old Fort Henry to participate in this year's Celebration of Dance!

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 10 May 2017 11:30

LOLPS Music Monday

Launched in 2005 by The Coalition for Music Education, Music Monday is the world’s largest single event dedicated to raising awareness for music education. Each year on the first Monday in May, hundreds of thousands of students, educators, and music makers participate in a simultaneous nationwide concert performance of an original song written by a Canadian artist. This year's song, entitled Sing It Together was written by Marc Jordan and Ian Thomas.

On Monday, May 1st, the Land O' Lakes Public School Glee Club, directed by Kathy Bateman was once again invited to participate in the national showcase concert held in Ottawa at the NAC. This is the second time that the LOLPS Glee Club has participated in this national showcase concert. The last time Kathy took a group to Ottawa was in 2014 when her students performed the song, Is Somebody Singing cowritten by Ed Robertson (of Barenaked Ladies fame) and Canadian astronaut, Chris Hadfield.

This year's experience was one that the 28 Glee Club members who span grades 1 through 8 won't soon forget. They sang their hearts out along with hundreds of other students in a massed choir. Their performance can be watched online. Go to www.musicmonday.ca to check it out!

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Morgan Cowdy (14) and Austin Barker (8) are the bus monitors on a Martin’s bus that takes them to Land O’Lakes Public School (LOLPS) each day. On Monday (March 27) the bus was running late because of icy roads. It was almost at the end of the route at 8:30 in the morning when it crossed over Hwy 7 from the Frontenac Road to go  a short way up the Bell Line Road to pick up the last of its students before turning back and heading to the school.

As the bus was heading up a hill it hit glare ice and began to slide sideways and it eventually came to a stop, blocking the entire road. The driver, Joe Borg, told the two monitors to make sure everyone stayed in their seats, as he got off the bus to put out flares on the road to warn oncoming traffic about the hazard.

“Then he fell pretty hard on the ice,” said Morgan Cowdy when interviewed the next day.

It was clear that Borg was injured, as he did not move right away after falling, and then was struggling to get back to the bus.

“Morgan said she was going to help him get back and asked me to watch the kids on the bus and make sure no one came to the front,” said Austin Barker.

So, even though bus monitors are told not to leave the bus, Morgan Cowdy got off the bus to see if the driver needed assistance.

“I didn’t go far, because we are not supposed to leave the bus but he was looking pretty shaky,” she said.

In the end Joe Borg made it back to the bus on his own.

“Joe sat in the driver’s seat at first and then he  sat down on the floor because he was dizzy. He told us to use the radio to call for help, and I asked Austin to make the call because I was so nervous,” said Morgan.

Austin called the bus company on the radio, and was trying to explain what was going on, when he noticed a Central Frontenac sand truck headed towards them from the other end of the road. Morgan called her father, who works for the township roads department as well, and her father called the sand truck operator on the Bell Line Road just as he was reaching the bus and he was the first one to arrive and offer assistance.

“He asked Joe if he wanted to lay down, but he said he didn’t and he stayed there, leaning on my leg to keep his balance,” said Morgan

By now the school and emergency services had been notified, and Austin went over to help the rest of the kids on the bus, some of whom were visibly upset.

Emily Yanch, Principal of LOLPS, was the next on the scene,  followed by a backup driver.

“The kids had done a great job already and I did what I could. I don’t know how the bus even made it that far up that hill because it was glare ice. My car barely made it.

The ambulance arrived and made it to the scene. Joe Borg was taken to Perth hospital and was then transferred to Smiths Falls for a scan. He was released later but reportedly then returned to the hospital later on. There was no further word on his condition as of Tuesday afternoon.

“Two of the kids on the bus were crying because they were scared,” said Austin.

“We went to them and held them a bit, and they were ok after that,” said Morgan.

The students ended up staying on the bus, which did not turn around but traveled to the far end of Bell Line road where it meets Road 509, before taking 509 south and then Hwy 7 west from Sharbot Lake to Mountain Grove, not reaching the school until 10:10.

Morgan said she was feeling a bit “weird” for the rest of the day, and on the bus ride home. She said she was feeling better the next day, “but I am worried about how Joe is doing,” she said.

Austin also said he was worried about Joe.

“The kids came through, they did an amazing job yesterday. Some kids would not have the where with all to do what they did,” said Principal Yanch.

Cathy Borg, Joe’s wife, said that he is suffering from a severe concussion and deep bruising. She said that the children did very well on Monday to help him out, but that the accident should never have happened because the township should have ordered their road crews out before the buses were on the road.

“I hold the township responsible for this. Joe drives up and down the Frontenac Road and the Bell Line Road every day and we have asked many times this winter for crews to sand and salt and clear the roads before the bus goes out and they haven’t done it.”

She said that the road crew that came to help out after Joe fell should not have been sanding the road at 8:30, but should have been there a couple of hours earlier.

“It’s pretty basic to sand the roads before the school bus comes. We are lucky that none of the children were injured. I don’t know what Joe is going to do. He is pretty badly injured. Who knows when he will drive again,” she said. “It is time the township did something about this. The have been told about it again and again and now this happened. They are at fault.”

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
Thursday, 29 September 2016 00:03

Land O'Lakes Timber Wolf Run

On September 26, Land O' Lakes Public School hosted its 10th annual Timber Wolf Run. North Addington & Granite Ridge Education Centres, as well as Prince Charles and Clarendon Central Public Schools sent students from grades 1 to 8 to participate with the Land O' Lakes students.

Jen Meulenaar, the Grade 1/2 teacher and running coach for Land O' Lakes Public School, organizes the Timber Wolf Run along with the help of staff, volunteer parents and former students. “This is a great chance to get the northern schools and southern schools together to have some fun and get some exercise,” Meulenaar said. “The kids always enjoy it.” This year, the students of Land O' Lakes also learned about Terry Fox and raised $84 for the Terry Fox Foundation.

In preparation for the Fort Henry Regional Meet next Thursday, students from grades 1 and 2 ran 1km; grades 3 and 4 ran 2km; and grades 5 through 8 ran 3km (distances approximate) up and over the hills behind the school.

The results were:

GRADE 1/2 Girls: 1. Savanna Rose PCPS; 2. Lexie McCullough GREC; 3. Poppy Miller PCPS

GRADE 1/2 Boys: 1. Jackson Mosher LOLPS; 2. Parker Beeg CCPS; 3. Talan Stubinski PCPS

GRADE 3/4. Girls: 1. Chloe Saunders LOLPS; 2. Natsuki Ono LOLPS; 3. Cassie Tryon LOLPS

GRADE 3/4 Boys: 1. Logan Chiasson GREC; 2. Ryder Mallett LOLPS; 3. Drake Thomas PCPS

GRADE 5/6 – Girls: 1. Rylee Beattie GREC; 2. Julia Cuddy NAEC; 3. Alexus Wagner NAEC

GRADE 5/6 Boys: 1. Vann Thomas PCPS; 2. Lincoln Elliotte PCPS; 3. Josh Rowe PCPS

GRADE 7/8 Girls: 1. Lexus Cochrane PCPS; 2. Heidi Riddell LOLPS; 3. Katie Tryon LOLPS

GRADE 7/8 Boys: 1. Braydon Dunham GREC; 2. Mason MacDonald PCPS; 3. Gregory Ross CCPS

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Land O'Lakes Public School Grade 2/3 teacher, Danielle Harding, understands that one of the best ways to get students interested in ancient history is to present it in the form of a play, and as it often goes with youngsters, sometimes the more hysterical things get the better.

On April 7 and 8, Ms. Harding and her ϋber-talented cast and crew performed the D.M. Larson play, “The Hysterical History of the Trojan War” for students at the school as well as students from North Addington Education Centre, Granite Ridge Education Centre, and Clarendon Central Public School.

The play involves a large cast of characters, mostly Greek gods, whose interactions and relationships bring about the conflict known as the Trojan War. The play is the perfect vehicle for getting youngsters interested in ancient history, since it offers up lots of intricate sword fighting, a slew of Trojan guards and Spartan soldiers, numerous guffaws, and best of all, a number of anachronistic add-ins like cell phones, clever sound and lighting effects, songs, and one awe-inspiring foot stomp/rap tune, which fully engaged the audience much more than any straight history play could.

The plot and the action unfolded at a mighty clip. The audience was kept on the edge of their seats since they were asked by Athena, who directed the Spartan half of the audience, to cheer on the Spartans while Helen encouraged the other half to “Go, Troy!”

The moveable props in this production were also exceptional and included a chain-drawn stage door and a looming Trojan wall as the two main focuses on the stage. A spectacular ship sailed through the gym at one point and, yes, there was a Trojan horse too. The costumes were equally dazzling with the lead actors sporting wrap-up-the-leg sandals, leafy laurels and more.

Hats off to the entire cast and crew in bringing the play so aptly to life and enticing youngsters to learn about the ancient history of Rome and Greece, and all the gods and goddesses who wreaked so much havoc there.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

On February 26, students and staff at Land O'Lakes Public School in Mountain Grove were treated to a special presentation courtesy of Peter DesRoche, president of the Arden Legion Branch 334.

At a school-wide assembly that took place in the gym, DesRoche announced the winners of the Legion Zone G1 literary essay and poster contests. Close to 900 students from schools across Zone G1, which includes Legions in Kingston, Sharbot Lake, Napanee, Tamworth, Arden, Sydenham and Northbrook, took part in the contest. The students submitted their entries back in December last year. Primary, intermediate and junior-aged students at each school were invited to submit entries based on the theme of Remembrance. The students were to either write or draw what the term “remembrance” means personally to them and the feelings to which it gives rise.

Each Legion branch chose nine submissions: three essays, three black & white posters, and three colored posters from each school, which were then judged for the final zone level awards, and three students from LOLPS won second place.

Mariah Marie Mallette won in the intermediate essay category; Natsuki Ono won in the primary black and white poster category; and Sarah Morden won in the primary color poster category.

Five students also received honorable mentions: Parker Thompson, Elayna Jackson, Zachary Hatt, Chloe Saunders and Carly-Kate O'Brien (who was not present for the photo). DesRoche thanked all the students who submitted entries, which he described as “exceptional submissions that demonstrated your attentiveness and enthusiasm for the topic”. Finishing off the assembly, DesRoche read part of a poem that was written back in 1993 by a student, titled “Little Red Flower”. He wrapped up the presentation by wishing the students luck in the upcoming November 2016 contest and said, “Keep up the good work!”

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

It is not the first time that Mr. Hull, a grade 7/8 teacher at Land O'Lakes Public School in Mountain Grove has relied on the use of Canadian Geographic's huge and handy historical floor maps to teach his students about Canadian and world history.

Canadian Geographic offers a number of free teaching aids to teachers and last year Mr. Hull's students used similar maps to learn about the War of 1812.

This year Mr. Hull has been using one of the company’s newest teaching aids, titled “Drawn to Victory”, which helps to bring the history of World War 1 to life for students.

When I visited Mr. Hull's classroom on January 28, the students were watching a documentary titled “In King and Country” about the battle at Passchendaele.

Later in the gym Mr. Hull instructed the students to unfold a huge floor map depicting the European countries involved in World War 1. For this unit the students were looking at the war’s impact on the populations of Great Britain, Germany, France and Belgium and in particular, population statistics of these countries both before and after the war.

With the assistance of plastic chains, the students were first asked to outline the borders of the European countries involved in the conflict. Then, using a number of colored blocks (each representing 1 million civilians), they showed the populations in each country before the war broke out. Removing blocks showed the number of people killed during the war in each country.

Hull said that the interactive maps help students better understand the geographic area of conflict and its impact on the populations of the countries involved by giving the students numerous hands-on opportunities to interact with the maps and their related tools. The package not only includes the floor maps but also a number of different topics of focus that include war cartography, map reading, Canadians in battle and Europe then and now.

Hull’s goal is to make history real for the students and he stressed that some of the students who may have had relatives involved in the conflict better understand the history. Hull had nothing but good things to say about these teaching aids, which bring his students out of the classroom to explore history in a unique and interactive way.

For more information about the many teaching aids available from Canadian Geographic visit cangeoeducation.ca/resources

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
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