Bank pitches in
A new Burnaby school district program for at-risk youth got a boost from a local credit union last month.
Take a Hike is an alternative education program that offers a combination of adventure-based learning, academics, therapy and community involvement for students who have had trouble succeeding in the regular classroom environment.
Based at the Canada Way Education Centre, the joint School District No. 41 – Take a Hike Foundation program started here in September.
On Jan. 27, the Burnaby Westminster Savings Credit Union donated $5,000 to the initiative.
“I strongly believe every child is a puzzle piece and no matter what obstacles get in their way, each one deserves a chance to find their place in this puzzle,” customer service representative and Take a Hike volunteer Davina Sam said. “Take a Hike provides youth with the tools to gain the confidence to find their place and make a difference.”
For more information about the Grade 10 to 12 program, visit takeahikefoundation.org or contact CEO Matthew Coyne at [email protected] or 604-630-5818.
Kindergarteners code
Cameron Elementary students from kindergarten to Grade 7 recently got a taste of computer coding, and now they’re getting ready to use their newfound skills to program robots.
In December, at the urging of a Cameron parent, teacher-librarian Jacqueline Kirzner got the school involved in the Hour of Code, an online introduction to computer science designed to demystify code and show that anybody can learn the basics. Students as young as five learned enough code to make their own simple video games.
“This isn’t a scary new world,” Kirzner said of learning code. “You go through one step at a time.”
She is now preparing to launch a once-a-week computer club for students in kindergarten to Grade 7 this spring. The main activity will be to program six school robots acquired through the Fuel Your School program.
For more information on the Hour of Code, visit code.org.
Alpha argues
Alpha Secondary debaters took top spot in the senior and novice categories at the Lower Mainland Central Regional Debate Tournament at Burnaby Mountain Secondary last month.
Hamish Clinton took first place as individual speaker, while Drew Powell came fifth. The pair then went on to win first place as a team, earning a spot at the provincial tournament, also known as the Law Foundation Cup, Feb. 27 and 28.
In the novice category (grades 6 to 8) Alpha’s Lucas Fleming took top spot as individual speaker, while Cole Diepold came second. Fleming and Diepold then won first place as a team and will also head to the provincials, to be hosted at St. George’s School in Vancouver.
Do you have an item for Class Act? Send ideas from Burnaby schools to Cornelia, [email protected], or find her on Twitter,
@CorNaylor.
