Open House this Week

This week we have our open house and it has me thinking about when I first started at Olivet
as a student. I toured the school with my parents and got excited as I imagined myself in one of the desks. Then the  long wait for September to finally come so I could be at school. It did eventually come.

I used to be a shy child so the small class sizes were a perfect fit for me. It enabled me to make friends a lot faster and not get lost in the crowd. Every teacher (even the ones who did not teach me) knew my name and I felt comfortable going to if I needed help. My home room teachers knew my strengths and weaknesses and were very good about encouraging me to do my best.

My favourite class was definitely music! Every year all the students would look forward to Spring Concert and the musical that would be the center point of the evening. Now we also have the French Show to look forward to as well as classroom productions that parents are invited to through the year.

I hope you take an opportunity to take a peek around the school and see why they love it here too!

Lindsay Mueller
Administrative Assistant and Alumna
Olivet School

For more information about Olivet School's Open House, please visit our webpage at http://olivetschool.ca/admissions/open-house/.

Remembrance Day

No reasonable person seeks warfare.  On the other hand, while evil remains in the world, there will be people who try to take lives, property, or freedom from others.  Defending one's home, or one's homeland from such an assault is sometimes necessary, and those of us who live in freedom and prosperity need to remember from time to time that our freedom and prosperity came at a high price.  It is appropriate, therefore, that we take some time every year to honour the memory of those who put down the tools of their daily work for a time and served the cause of freedom.

The book True Christian Religion puts it this way:  “That one's country should be loved, not as one loves himself, but more than himself, is a law inscribed on the human heart; from which has come the well-known principle, which every true man endorses, that if the country is threatened with ruin from an enemy or any other source, it is noble to die for it, and glorious for a soldier to shed his blood for it.  This is said because so great should be one's love for it.  It should be known that those who love their country and render good service to it from good will, after death love the Lord's kingdom, for then that is their country; and those who love the Lord's kingdom love the Lord Himself, because the Lord is the all in all things of His kingdom” (TCR414). 

 

 Today is Remembrance Day.  We invite you to reflect on the blessings we have in Canada and think about those people who bravely fought to make it possible for us – and many others – to enjoy those blessings.

 

Rev. James P. Cooper

Pastor, Olivet Church

 

For more information about Olivet School please visit our website www.olivetschool.ca.

Halloween in the Playschool class

The Playschool class is celebrating the spooky season of Halloween!

This Playschool friend is visiting the pumpkin patch.

Playing in the bog water table is fun, especially if you catch a frog!

These playschool friends are hammering  golf tees into pumpkins.

Squeezing paint, makes these pumpkins look pretty.

 

The haunted house-box is fun to colour in!

This friend found a worm in the rice table, eeks!

While sifting through the sand she found spiders, flies, and mice, oh my!

Painting bats is very fun indeed.

This friend is beading a very festive bracelet.

The I-Spy Halloween puzzle is challenging, but not too hard for this Playschool friend.

 

For more information about Olivet School please visit our website www.olivetschool.ca.

Olivet School at Private School Expo

Olivet School was well represented at the Private School Expo this past Saturday. We had some good conversations with inquiring parents, some of whom we hope to see at our November 20^th open house.

This year in addition to Olivet Staff members (Mr. Smith, Mrs. Bradfield, Ms. Williams and Miss Mueller), Dmitry Petrakov (one of our elementary school parents) and Vitan and Yoan Pravtchev (alumni) joined us for the whole time. They were invaluable additions -  both in speaking to inquiring parents and giving valuable feedback on how to present the booth in the future.

Thanks very much for the support!

We Found a Snake!

The students found a garter snake in the field by the school. They were playing in the trees when one of the students came shrieking out with excitement. The snake had loitered into their fortress! The snake was eagerly shown around to the other students before being released back into the field.

 

If you would like more information about Olivet School please visit our website www.olivetschool.ca.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It is a natural human tendency to look for and talk about the petty annoyances in our lives.  If we’re not careful, this can get in the way of our being able to see the many blessings we enjoy in this beautiful and peaceful land.  That’s why it’s such a good idea for us to have a national day of Thanksgiving – it gives everyone an opportunity to take a fresh look at their situation and instead of looking for things to complain about, begin to see and be reminded of the things that are good and useful.

We should remember the natural blessings of life in Canada, and the blessings that come from the protection of our rights as citizens, especially the freedom of thought and speech.  Let’s take it up one more step.  Let’s also try to be thankful for our Divine blessings.  These are the blessings that are most important of all, because they provide nourishment and protection for our eternal soul. 

One of the reasons that Olivet New Church School has been around for more than a hundred years is because there are people who are dedicated to the idea that there should be a place where children can be educated in a loving environment, where their natural, mental, and spiritual needs are all taken into consideration in everything they do.  To live in this world in a way that prepares one for eternal life in the next is one of the greatest blessings, and we are truly grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this great work.

 

Rev. James P. Cooper

Pastor, Olivet Church

Playschool Goes to the Orchard

“A” was for apple in Playschool last week. The students and their parents went to Carl Laidlaw Orchards to learn about apples from the farmers.

During our time at the orchard Playschool enjoyed several sensory activities.

These students had fun playing with tractors in corn and grain.

Romping in piles of hay was fun!

Before going out to the orchard we had the opportunity to try different apples.

It was a gorgeous day for a tractor ride to the orchard to pick apples.

 

Some families made pies. 

Making pies required some effort, as the students had to peel, break apart the apples,

mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg

before preparing the pie crusts.

Here is a pie before it goes into the oven.

Doesn’t it look delicious!

For more information about Olivet School visit our website at www.olivetschool.ca.

Taking soil samples at school

Soil samples are being taken around the school this week and the kids are enjoying being able to watch these mighty machines at work. They were so interested in fact that the engineer in charge of the job offered to speak to the students in KG to Grade 6 and answer any questions they might have about what they have seen the crew doing. It was a learning experience for all!

The Junior Room students watch as the drilling machine is being prepped for boring the first hole.

The first drill piece is put in place.

The first step is for the machine to dig past the asphalt so that is can get to the soil to collect samples. 

The engineer speaking to the students about the job.

The engineer drew a diagram showing the different components of the job. The picture of the far left shows the soil composition from the first sample set they took. The picture at the top of the page is a cross cut diagram of the building and what they think is under the foundation. The bottom picture is a top view of the school showing all the different areas the machines will be taking samples. The last picture on the right is the drilling machine, showing how is sends its drill 15 feet into the ground and collects samples as it goes.

The students enjoyed his talk and gave him a round of applause when he had finished.

For more information about Olivet School visit our website at www.olivetschool.ca.

Fun with Magnets

 

The Junior Room students are playing with magnets in class.

 

They enjoyed using magnetic attraction and repulsion to make their magnets do different things.

 

Follow the link to see what they did http://youtu.be/mwxiyKMqVgY.

   

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For more information about Olivet School visit our website www.olivetschool.ca.

Colours in Nature

The Kindergarten class took pictures for their Colours in Nature books. They found:

red apples,

purple grapes,

 

yellow flowers,

and a grey tree!

 

Interested in learning more about Olivet School? Visit our website at www.olivetschool.ca!

Our Mural of Summer Time

The Kindergarteners painted their impressions of summer time in two large murals. Be sure to take a look! The murals are in the hallway of the Principal’s office.

Welcome Back!

Welcome back to school! We hope that everyone is as excited as we are to start the new school year! Just a quick reminder, the first day of school is Tuesday, September 3rd and its only a half day for students in Kindergarten to Grade 6, so they are dismissed at 1:00 p.m. 

Family and friends of students starting school  on the first day are welcome to attend the school opening worship service at 11:35 a.m. in the playschool classroom for playschool students and families or at 11:30 a.m. in the chapel for JK-Gr.6 school families. The first day of school for the Tots’ Time students is on Monday, September 9^th.

After worship all are welcome to join us on the school yard for a BYO picnic, so make sure you bring your picnic blanket!

Forest of Reading Awards

Last week the Grade 2-6 students attended the Forest of Reading Awards. This year was particularly exciting as we had 3 Olivet students on stage during the ceremony! One of our grade 3 students was the official sign holder for author Angus Mike Deas. Another of our grade 5 students introduced author, Ingrid Lee. We even had one of our grade 6 students help to announce the nominees for the 2013 Silver Birch Fiction Awards! We are so proud of all our students!

The Forest of Reading Awards is an event much anticipated by the students and teachers. Every year a box of new books is delivered to the school and the teachers almost have as much fun as the students going through it and reading the new arrivals.

The students are required to read a certain number of books for their reading level to be able to vote on their favourites. To ensure that the students comprehend the stories they are reading they are also tested on the books they have read. These book reports are always captivating to hear, as a student describes their favourite part of the book.

But the best part of the Forest of Reading is going down to the Harbourfront each year and hearing the cheers of excitement from the young audience members as their favourite authors take the stage. It is great to see these authors being greeted like rock stars! After the award ceremony the students have a chance to meet the authors and get their autographs.

For more information about Olivet School visit us at www.olivetschool.ca.