The Priory School Inc

Remembrance Day Ceremony at The Priory

Bright red poppies carefully positioned over our hearts were the order of the day for The Priory’s annual Remembrance Day Assembly. Piped into our new gym by bagpiper Graham Bradley, students from Kindergarten to Grade 6, along with specially invited guests, Canadian retired military officer, former astronaut and Liberal MP for Westmount Marc Garneau, Provincial Treasurer Francis Baddeley, 2nd World War veterans Phil Scott and James Brunton, widow of World War II veteran Pat Durocher, President of Legion 127 Howie Curotte, and Sergeant Marc Biernat proudly sang the national anthem. Marc Garneau reminded the children to never forget the sacrifice that so many Canadian men and women made for the future of their country. Sergeant Biernat of the Royal Canadian regiment spoke about what our peacekeepers and soldiers are doing now to make the world a better place. A recitation of the world famous Canadian poem “In Flanders Fields” by John McCrea was read by grades four, five and six, and an original poem inspired by a visit to Vimy Ridge was read by its creator, grade six student Massimo DiSilvestro. As a small token of the school’s appreciation for all that they had done, each war veteran and invited guest received a copy of Jane Barclay’s latest book “Proud as a Peacock, Brave as a Lion”. After a solemn minute of silence in remembrance of those who did not return home, War veteran Francis Baddeley sang the appropriately entitled song “Let there be Peace on Earth” to an enthralled audience. With bagpipes echoing through the hallway, invited guests as well as the entire student body made their way back to their classrooms. READ MORE IN THE NEWS: Priory learns to remember

All Smiles for The Priory's New Addition

It was all smiles on the first day of school at The Priory as children and teachers celebrated the expansion of the school. Before entering their classrooms, children participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony and then toured the new wing with their friends and teachers. The Priory’s new wing includes four warm and inviting classrooms, a dedicated French environment for both Junior and Senior French programs, a new light-filled art room, a designated music room and a new and expanded gym. When asked if they like the new addition to their ‘home away from home’, their response was unanimous…“We love it!” READ MORE IN THE NEWS: Priory starts year with gusto

How does a school say good-bye to a teacher who has been there for 35 years? With great difficulty, that’s how! Peggy Riggs has been the grade 6 teacher at The Priory since 1991 and has done an outstanding job of preparing Priory graduates for the rigors and challenges of high school. She began her Priory teaching career in September of 1976, as the grade 5 teacher and quickly established herself as a visionary and proponent of child-centered education. Her love and passion for innovative curriculums and her ability to model and explain avant-garde programs benefitted not only her students but her co-workers as well. Mrs. Riggs also shared her teaching expertise and wisdom with countless student teachers who today are carrying on her vision of 21^st century learning. It is difficult to put into words what legacy a teacher like Peggy Riggs has left at The Priory. Perhaps the last word should come from those closest to her, her last grade 6 class….

“Mrs. Riggs has taught me to never give up and always do my best; that things don’t go away if you just ignore them. She taught me about honesty and trust and how to communicate well with people. She taught me how to become more responsible and how to be a better leader, but most importantly, she taught me how to be a better me!”

On the morning of Thursday, April 20^th, the students of The Priory School played host to a group of very talented musicians. About 60 singers and instrumentalists from The Trafalgar School Stage Band and A Cappella Choir played an exciting concert of music ranging from upbeat rock numbers to heartfelt songs, the beauty of which had some of the audience members with tears in their eyes! Besides the toe-tapping musical selections, the audience was treated to an informative introduction to the instruments of the band, which featured solos by various members of the ensemble including one former student from The Priory School! We would like to thank the students from The Trafalgar School for girls for sharing with us the excellent music that they have worked so hard to master.

A Surprise Visitor In Kindergarten

An intense hush fell over The Priory Kindergarten on April 7^th when a surprise visitor appeared on the scene. The children had been learning about “under the sea creatures” for the past month and through the following clues given by their teacher, were able to deduce who had come to visit them. “She is medium-sized, is soft as well as hard, green and brown in colour, has four legs and has grown since she was a baby” The visitor was of course, a turtle! Tortelina had come for her day- trip to Kindergarten, and what a great time she had! The children observed her during different periods of the day and learned that she loved the sunshine and was afraid of loud noise and sudden movement. Tortelina became the subject of many artistic productions, as the children sat and studied the colours of her shell and tried to realistically depict her on their art pads. A tired but much loved turtle found its way home at the end of the day looking forward to visiting next year’s Kindergarten class.

Student teachers from Australia came to visit the grade 1 classroom. Studying Elementary Teaching at McGill University, the student teachers were overjoyed to talk to the grade 1 children about who they are and where they are from. They taught the children all about three different animals found in Australia. The children worked in small groups as they learned more information about the animals and drew a picture of one animal doing an Olympic sport they thought the animal would be good at. They all enjoyed presenting their creations to the rest of the class and sharing facts they had learned about their specific animal.

On February 2^nd, The Priory School co-hosted a parent information evening with one of Canada’s leading parenting experts, author, and TV host of “The Parenting Show”, Alyson Schafer. Based on the teachings of the famous psychiatrist, Alfred Adler, Ms Schafer was energetic and entertaining as she offered a democratic approach to parenting, where children understand why rules are in place and why some behaviours are unacceptable, with ideas to help parents manage real-life misbehaviours. A question and answer period followed the presentation, which provided parents with advice on how to deal with specific challenges.

Staff Appreciation Week at The Priory was absolutely unforgettable. Every day we were treated to wonderful breakfasts, tasty treats, thoughtful thank you notes, and gifts of appreciation. Our special lunch was held on Friday, February 11^th. We indulged in a variety of mouth watering appetizers, assorted delicious salads and pasta dishes, tasty breads and pizzas, tender tandoori chicken, and perfectly prepared sweet baked ham lovingly prepared by our parents. This feast was then followed by a wide assortment of lovely cakes, cookies, and pastries. It certainly warmed our hearts and our souls! We cannot thank you enough! We feel blessed to be part of The Priory Family and for having such thoughtful, generous and loving parents!

Secrets of Discipline – Ronald Moorish

When Principal Deborah Heuff read Ronald Morrish's With all Due Respect, she knew she had to bring the educational consultant to The Priory School to share his practical tips on effective discipline with teachers and parents. Mr. Moorish, an educator, behaviour consultant, author and the father of four has spent years working with teachers and parents to make discipline a vital part of children’s lives. "Discipline means you’re in training to do things right," Morrish told parents and teachers during his presentation, "but most people believe it’s what happens when you do something wrong." His motivational talk, held on Monday, November 15, was well received by the fifty-some parents who were captivated by his presentation. He spoke of common occurrences that made people laugh, such as the "bedtime battle" or the "homework struggle." He says that these problems can be prevented by instilling routines because routines bring about fewer "events." Morrish believes that discipline as a way of teaching character values, is no longer the case in most families nowadays. "Chores used to be a tool of teaching values from the heart," he said, "helping out from the heart is one of the highest levels of moral and character development in human beings" but, Morrish said "many parents today have a tendency to use behaviour modification techniques to get their children to cooperate. They bribe them with rewards or threaten them with consequences." Instead, Morrish suggests that parents train their children to succeed by teaching them good habits and routines, instead of planning for mistakes.

A Visit from Oscar Winner Co

A special director/producer visited our Grade Three class, Co Hoedeman, who directed the Oscar winning film “The Sand Castle”, a movie inspired by a day at the beach. He spoke to the class about the process of creating a claymation and the hard work and dedication that goes into it. The children saw some of his works and Mr. Hoedman brought in several characters he created and discussed some of the interesting techniques and materials he used, including papier-mâché, paper cutouts, and computer animation. The children enjoyed a very educational and entertaining visit from Mr. Hoedeman and they were very pleased to talk to him about the making of a stop-motion animation. Thank you Mrs. Ryan for inviting Mr. Hoedman to The Priory, we are now inspired to create our very own claymations!

As part of Heritage Week at The Priory, author/illustrator Sarah McEvoy brought her passion and enthusiasm for both her hometown of Fredericton, New Brunswick as well as her latest book, "Meet Me at the Monkey Trees" to the students of Kindergarten and Cycle 1. Using personal photos and relating childhood experiences of her life in Fredericton, Sarah encouraged her young audience to never forget where they came from and to be proud of their heritage.

Another First For The Priory!

Throughout The Priory’s sixty year history in Quebec, the school has been at the forefront of innovative ideas and novel practices. The first began in 1947 with the creation of a “co-educational” English private school founded on Catholic traditions. Co-education was not “de rigueur” at that time and the two founders of The Priory, Mrs. Ballantyne and Mrs. Howlett , were deemed “crazy maverick females, whose time had definitely not come!” Time certainly proved these critics wrong. In 2000, under principal John Marinelli’s direction, The Priory once again took the initiative and organized the first Montreal Regional Heritage Fair which has continued to this very day. This year, with Mrs. Deborah Heuff at the helm, The Priory once again has taken on a new venture – that of becoming the first private school in Montreal to become a member of Peaceful Schools International. To become a peaceful school, a number of criteria must be met. The school must have a safe inviting climate where parents, students and staff work together as a team. In such an environment, students are encouraged to make choices and to be responsible for their actions, to be open-minded and accepting of others who may be different, and to learn ways to deal with conflict in a non-violent manner. All of this embodies The Priory.

With the words from the traditional hymn “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me” in mind, Priory teachers and students from Kindergarten to Grade 6 began their own “peaceful journey”, concentrating on developing individual inner peace through activities that emphasized expressing feelings and emotions as well as finding positive solutions to problems. Lessons in cooperation , respecting differences, communicating effectively in a positive manner and resolving conflict creatively and non-violently all figured into “The Priory Peace Project”. The culmination of this undertaking took place on June 4th, with a special Assembly. Mrs. Heuff read the students the age-old story of “Stone Soup”, about how a community becomes stronger by sharing with each other and working together. At the end of the story, each member of The Priory Family was given a stone that they placed in a freshly cemented mandala circle waiting for them outside. This Peace Circle opened onto a Friendship Garden recently planted by the Grade 3 class. After reciting “The Priory Peace Pledge”, the students looked on proudly as the Peaceful Schools International flag was slowly raised over their school.
CCalling ourselves a “Peaceful School” is not a “fait accompli” just because we met the criteria established by Peaceful Schools International, rather, it is an ongoing process where peace must be taught, modeled and worked at. The Priory Peace Circle and Friendship Garden are only the beginning and serve as reminders of what we have accomplished and what we need to strive for.