It is a privilege for Grade Seven students of our school to attend outdoor education at Camp Summit in the Squamish Valley. Here are two accounts of what outdoor education was like for the Grade Seven class.

“October 16th to October 19th was one of the best times of our lives. The Grade Seven students went to Camp Summit. At Camp we made amazing memories with our classmates, teachers, and counselors. We met new people and had the chance to do some amazing activities. The activities were so much fun. We went rock climbing, mountain biking, archery, hiking, and learned some survival skills. We played night games and even went canoeing. And after we finished the activities and dinner, we sat around the campfire to learn new songs, and listen to funny stories. And when the fun day was over we went back to our cabins, wrote in our journals and went to bed and woke up to another fun day at Camp Summit.“

“Last October 16th - 19th the Grade Seven class attended outdoor education at Camp Summit. The trip was very fun and full of adventure. For example, we did whole day trip to Alice Lake. We learned how to canoe and go geocaching. We also went on a hike through the Alice Lake forest. Even though it was pouring rain, everyone enjoyed themselves.

Mountain biking, ropes course, archery, and rock climbing were all the activities we did while we were at camp. Also we learned how to make a fire and homemade chocolate-chip bannock. After dinner we weren't even finished with the day. We would play a night game and have a big campfire where we sang songs and did funny skits. While camp was cold,wet, and everything I had was drenched I still had the best time. Not just because of the great food but because my classmates and I all created a close or even closer bond with each other.”

Guest User

November 10, 2017

A Trip to the Vancouver Writer's Festival

Guest User

November 10, 2017

In the month of October, the Grades One and Three classes went to Granville Island to attend the Writer’s Festival. The authors and illustrators we saw were Marie-Louise Gay, Sydney Smith, and Barbara Reid. Some people in Grade Three got autographs! At the very end of the show, Sydney Smith painted a picture for us. Some of the Grade Ones got to help Sydney Smith draw the picture. We had an awesome day!

Written by a Grade Three Student

When we returned from our visit to the Writer's Festival, we painted and spent time writing about our experiences . . . you can visit our creations in the hallway at school!

Guest User

November 3, 2017

Grade Five Visits the Camosun Bog

Guest User

November 3, 2017

On October 17, 2017, the Grade Five class went on a field trip to Camosun Bog in the Pacific Spirit Park. We were lucky to have a Musqueam elder accompany us on our field trip to share her knowledge about these ancient lands.

We learned about plants, their uses, and the differences between plants in the bog. The Grade Five students were very interested in learning about the different plants and their qualities. One surprising fact that the Grade Five students learned was that the Musqueam Band used plants for medicine. The elder told us a Musqueam legend that was passed down from generation to generation. The legend is about a serpent that created all the rivers and creeks near Vancouver. It also created the Camosun Bog. We were very interested in the stories and thankful to have the chance to learn about culture and nature in our own community.

Our trip to Camosun Bog was informative, amazing, and fun! It taught the Grade Five students to look at nature from a different perspective. Thank you to our Musqueam elder for coming with us to the Camosun Bog and for teaching us about all the different plants!

Written by Grade Five Students

Guest User

October 26, 2017

Enrichment

A New Crew of Garden Buddies

Guest User

October 26, 2017

Enrichment

The first unofficial Garden Buddy session was on a fitting day as it was the first day of Fall! Our study of the day was seeds - their adaptations for survival as a species, the great diversity found in seeds, seed dispersal methods, and the basic structure of seeds. We enjoyed finding seeds in our gardens and had a little fun playing with our seeds (who doesn’t enjoy playing with helicopter maple seeds!?)

Another of our recent experiences had us visiting Pacific Spirit Park and the Camosun Bog! It truly was a magical day exploring, learning, touching, smelling and listening to God’s beautiful creation. We started our day learning about the “web of life” and how intricately everything is connected to each other in the forest ecosystem.

Our main outdoor tasks in our first sessions included dismantling last year’s trellises, removing all garden refuse and chopping it to small bits to add to the compost. We even discovered that some compost soil was ready to add to our garden beds.

regina bestbier

October 18, 2017

Walkathon funds support schools in Vietnam & Haiti

regina bestbier

October 18, 2017

Every year, we send some of our Walkathon money to help schools in Haiti and Vietnam. These photos show children from Ling La Parish in the diocese of Kontum in Vietnam.

These children are extremely poor and are unable to go to school because their families cannot afford it. The pastor of the parish works together with the sisters to organize an education program, and this past summer, 120 children from Grade 1 to Grade 7 attended. With the money we sent them last year, they were able to buy books, pencils, and some food for lunch for the students. Father Nguyen Minh Hoang, the pastor, had this to say: “On behalf of the poor in the parish and the students, we would like to thank you, I.C. School, for your generosity. May God bless you and your school.”

Guest User

September 25, 2017

Life in the classroom

Back to School at ICS!

Guest User

September 25, 2017

Life in the classroom

Welcome back to our new and returning families! Our September has started with a furor - we had a strong turn out for Meet the Teacher on September 14, beautiful weather for our Terry Fox Run on September 20, and many of our co-curricular and extra-curricular activities are up and running . . . Garden Buddies, cross country, volleyball, and choir.

We wish you all a happy 2017-18 school year and we look forward to seeing you around our lovely campus.

ICS Families Head Back to School . . .

ICS Vancouver

August 23, 2017

Enrichment

Highlights of the 2016-17 School Year: Garden Buddies Share Their Bounty!

ICS Vancouver

August 23, 2017

Enrichment

To sum up our final months of Garden Buddies, this parent shared her family’s experience with us . . .
"Our child has loved, loved, loved this whole gardening experience! We have had so much information on the process of planting and harvesting, the progress of the group’s vegetables, the challenges of the trellis, the making of the “keep out” signs, etc. And yesterday was clearly the best day of all! We enjoyed the butter on bread at dinner last night, and are looking forward to picking up some radishes and baguette so that we can experience (with some trepidation!) a French breakfast! Thanks for providing the students with this rich learning experience – a great combination of group work, problem solving, self-reliance and sustainability."

ICS Vancouver

August 16, 2017

The Arts

Highlights of the 2016-17 School Year: The Wizard of Oz

ICS Vancouver

August 16, 2017

The Arts

Immaculate Conception’s March 8th production of The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz was like no other! The cast was made up of incredibly talented intermediate students, including, Auntie Em, who was played by a Grade 4 student, The Witch of the North, who was played by a graceful Grade 7 girl, The Witch Of The West, played by a lively Grade 5 student, and and The Wonderful Wizard of OZ himself, played by a sage Grade 7 student. Dorothy Gale was played by a Grade 6 girl who wowed us with her likeness to the “real” Dorothy Gale! Finally, Dorothy’s friends, who accompanied her on her journey to Oz were played by a trio of fun-filled Grade 7s who kept us laughing every step of the Yellow Brick Road!

I think the best part of being in The Wizard Of OZ was getting to know everyone, and making new friends – similar to the Scarecrow’s words to Dorothy. That brings me to the special memories shared by the cast members in our production:

“It was really fun working with people I had never worked with before,” said the Scarecrow.

“I loved getting into character,” said one of the munchkins.

From others in the crew and cast:

“The sound effects were really cool.”

“My favourite part was getting dressed up in costumes.”

“My best memory was acting in front of people. It made me feel very special.”

“My favourite part was on the day of the performance…there was so much excitement in the pitch black waiting for the curtains to open.”

It was all very exciting, and we were sad that it ended so fast. It was hard work to get ready for The Wizard of Oz, but when work is fun, time flies, just like Dorothy’s journey Over the Rainbow.

Written by Dorothy Gale

TS

May 4, 2017

The Arts, Events

Archbishop Carney Speech Arts Festival

TS

May 4, 2017

The Arts, Events

There is a wonderful tradition of Speech Arts at ICS. During the month of February, each student chooses and prepares a poem to deliver in a class competition. Students may also choose to prepare a series of pre-selected bible readings, one of which is picked for recitation during the class competition. Several students from each class are chosen to compete in a school-wide Speech Arts competition in one of two categories: Poetry or Bible Reading. This is always a most entertaining day for us as we listen to the beautiful, humorous, and poignant delivery from our competitors.

Our students performed exceptionally well and we are proud of how many Gold Certificates they earned. We are very proud of you!