Rotary Summer Literacy 2016 Registration Information

The Rotary Summer Literacy Program is back for the summer of 2016.  The registration link is below:
http://goo.gl/forms/K3lCsXCaG8
Register early so you are not disappointed!  Space is limited!

Another Summer Come and Gone!

As we wrap up our program today, we reminisce on all the great memories we made over the last month. From the Amazing Rotary Summer Literacy Race, to Dreams Come True and Hero Up, all the way to Camp Rocks, we have been on a wild and crazy journey together this summer. 

When we celebrate our journey this afternoon at Final Jam (beginning at 1:00PM in the Cathy Wever Gym incase you're interested in attending), we will be sad to say goodbye to our campers for another year. 

As always though, there is a silver-lining. A lot of hard work and preparation goes into programming four fantastic weeks of camp, and we are so incredibly happy our efforts have brought smiles and laughter to so many faces this July. So, although we say goodbye today we say good luck and see you soon as well! 

We wish all our campers a fun and safe last month of summer and good luck at school in the fall. We hope to see each of you again back at Rotary Summer Literacy! 

RSL Authors of the Day!

Check out Kyla's awesome story she compiled this morning during Reflect, Relate, Retell. 

One day Mr. Blunsdon was walking through Cathy Wever when the door to the gym swung open... standing in the door way was Batman. He walked into the gym and said, "Mr. Blunsdon you're coming with me." Like anybody who saw Batman he said, "I'm your biggest fan." Batman responded, "Cut the chit chat, let's go... oh, and drink this potion!" Instantly, he turned into Robin. Mr. Blunsdon was so surprised he screamed like a little girl because of how excited he was. Batman sat in his bat-mobile and Mr. Blunsdon just stood there. "Are you coming?" asked Batman. Mr. Blunsdon jumped into the bat-mobile.

All of a sudden, Batman saw the Batman sign in the air. Someone was in need of assistance. So, they went and helped the poor old lady get her kitty named Dori from the top of the Eiffel Tower. "That was so cool," yelled Mr. Blunsdon, "I can't believe I get to be Robin forever." "Hold on," said Batman, "the potion will rub off by dawn." So, of course, Mr. Blunsdon was upset because he wanted to be Robin. But, he was still over joyed that he got to be Robin for the rest of the night.

It was almost morning. That meant he'd turn back to Mr. Blunsdon! Batman turned right and headed to Cathy Wever. Mr. Blunsdon got out of the bat-mobile and turned back into himself. "I'll never forget this night," said Mr. Blunsdon. "I'll never forget you either," replied Batman, and never did they ever forget one another. The End.

RSL Authors of the Day!

There once was a boy named Bruno. He loved soccer. He plays soccer with his friends all the time, until today, because it rained without stopping all month long. One day, Bruno found a beautiful turquoise rock and he said I wish I was turquoise. Suddenly, everyone was turquoise. Bruno was super scared. Then, a little fairy came and said, "Bruno, if you want to get out and go back to your normal life you have to do three things: 1) run to a sign that says dig and grab the shovel and dig until you see a button 2) press the button 3) get sucked up by an air tube and you'll see a king. Give the turquoise stone to him and you'll return to your normal life. This will take you one whole day. Bruno listened and it took one whole day. Then, he gave the stone to the kind and everything turned back to normal. The End. -Nathanael 

Last week we HERO'D UP! Now it's time to see what some local heroes had to say about their daily routines and duties!

Last week's theme was HERO UP! In keeping with the theme many of our senior campers were given the opportunity to ask some local heroes a few questions. Here are the answers they received... 

Police Sergeant - D. 
1. How long have you been on the force? 9 years.
2. What is your favourite area to patrol? Anywhere people are having fun outside!
3. Does your squad ever use police dogs? Yes, we have four K-9 officers.
4. What protocol do you follow when you arrest someone? Their rights to counsel are read, contact lawyer, handcuffed, searched and taken to custody.
5. What tools do you use to keep us safe when you are on patrol? Patrol car, firearm, taser, baton, pepper spray, but most importantly my verbal communication skills.
6. How does the siren on your police car work? I have a special button in to press when I need the siren on.
7. Are you ever scared or nervous when you're on patrol? I'm always on alert!
8. Do you eat donuts like they show on TV? I enjoy a good Danish!
9. What made you decide to become a police officer, and how did you go about pursuing your dream? I had family members as officers. I wanted to do this my whole life. I stayed in school, had the right kinds of friends, and stayed out of trouble. I took Police Foundations at Mohawk College as well.
10. What is your favourite part of your job? Seeing the bad guys in jail and getting involved in the community.

Fire Chief - S. 
1. What tools help you to survive while fighting a fire? The tools that we use to survive when fighting a fire include an axe, ladder and a hose.
2. How long is the longest fire hose you use? The longest hose we use is 45m long.
3. How heavy is your fire fighting suit? A full fire fighting suit weighs 65 kg (130 lbs). This can be very heavy and make you feel very hot.
4. What is the scariest moment for you when you are fighting a fire? The scariest moment for me when fighting a fire is when the smoke becomes so thick and black that you cannot see anything, not even your own hands.
5. What do you do to stay in shape? To stay in shape we lift weights, and run up and down the escarpment stairs.
6. Do you actually slide down a fire pole when the alarm sounds in the station? Yes, we do slide down fire poles when the alarm sounds to make sure we get to the truck as fast as we can!
7. Have you ever been trapped in a fire? I have never been trapped in a fire personally, but it has happened many times to other fire fighters and luckily we are able to rescue them quickly.
8. How many minutes does it take for the firetruck to respond to a call? In the city of Hamilton, it takes approximately 4 minutes for a firetruck to respond to a call.
9. How many fires occur in Hamilton per week (on average)? On average, about 200 fires per week! This includes smaller fires such as gas fires/bins. 15-20 buildings/homes catch fire per week.

Royal Canadian Airforce Pilot - Andrea 

1. Do you get dizzy when you spin in the air? Sometimes. Especially when we do what's called a spin: you lower the power so low the plane can't fly any more and then you kick one foot on a rudder pedal (rudders make you point the aircraft left or right) and all of this makes the plane spin down towards the ground and you can get very dizzy. Don't worry though, pilots practice this all the time so they learn how to safely recover.
2. What kind of plane do you fly? A Harvard-II turbo prop. It has a propeller on the front of the plane and is driven by a turbo jet engine.
3. Are you scared of heights? Were you ever? Sure I am! A lot of pilots are, actually. Isn't that funny?
4. How did you go about joining the airforce? When I was in high school I went to the local recruiting centre you go to if you want to join the military. I asked a lot of questions to make sure I knew what I was getting myself into. When I decided I wanted to join the airforce, to become a pilot, I told them and they started the process.
5. Does anyone fly the plane with you? Sometimes I fly with an instructor pilot who shows me how to do new things and be an even better pilot. Sometimes I fly with a student, where I show him/her how to fly and be a better pilot. Sometimes, I fly by myself and practice all the different ways to fly.
6. Who are you related to at RSL? Amy MacDonald - she is my awesome cousin!
7. Was it difficult to advance in your career as a female pilot? Did you face any gender/stereotype related struggles? Yes, at times. But, they came later in my career. In military university and in pilot training - all of which took 7 years - I never ran into any difficulties. After I finished the bulk of my training, and was flying on an operational squadron, there were two sets of people who had a problem with me. 1) Older army guys. They guys were pretty hardcore, and nothing scared the,. They thought some women would give up easily when things got tough. Once they learned that I wasn't like that, they soon came to respect me, and my position. 2) Men who thought I shouldn't have gotten the position I received just because of my gender.
8. Have you ever feared for you life while flying? I have never feared for my life but I have had my cage rattled a few times!

McMaster University Professor - Q. 

1. Have you ever helped someone? I think people help each other more than we realize, and sometimes when we don’t even know it. There’s lots of little things that we do, like help our neighbours by shoveling their sidewalk, or bringing flowers to the dentist office to thank them for being so nice and helpful themselves, or help my kids with their homework or with projects. I often help my students with their work—I’m really good at asking questions so that students can figure out how to accomplish their goals, sort of like an academic coach. In addition, I try to provide a space where students can feel safe talking to me if they have more important problems that they need help with. I listen well, and help find others who can help with their specific issues—sometimes health care workers or social workers. One bigger thing I’ve helped with is that my mom had cancer and I moved to her city so I could go to appointments with her and help around the house (she is doing well now!).

2. How do you prepare for the trips you take? What do you pack? I am someone who wavers between extreme organization and total chaos. So my packing looks like this: I research the location, buy maps (yes—the paper kind!), learn some words in the local language, and pack clothes and gear based on the weather and how much work I will be doing vs what leisure activities I’ll have a chance to do. Then, when I’m actually packing, I can’t decide on what I will actually need or want, so I stuff as much as possible into my suitcase. I then check for important papers several times, to make sure I haven’t forgotten my passport, tickets, and hotel reservation. By the time I get to my destination, I’m exhausted! 

3. What is most of your research about? Most of my recent research is about reality TV. Why is reality TV so popular? How is having more reality TV impacting other types of TV, like documentary and drama? Why do we have 15 international versions of the same program? What makes So You Think You Can Dance Canada or Top Chef Canada “Canadian”? How does gender, race and ethnicity, nationality get presented on reality TV programs? And I’m also interested in broader issues about television: Why is Netflix so popular? Why is Netflix not regulated the same way as cable systems? What will television look like in 10 years?

4. Do you ever get nervous when presenting your research? Yes! I still get nervous presenting my research. Over the years, I have learned how to prepare for presentations and how to calm my nerves, but I still get very nervous beforehand. I have also learned to identify why I get nervous, and how to address specific aspects of being nervous. Part of this is called “anxiety”, and I have struggled with this since I was very young. Talking to a social worker has helped me learn how to handle my anxiety.

5. Have you ever struggled to communicate with the local people throughout your travels? I love learning languages, and in fact, in university, I majored in Russian and studied in Russia for one semester. When travelling, I try to learn a few words and phrases so that I can show respect to people. Recently, I visited Sweden, where “hi” is “hej hej” (pronounced “hey hey”). I liked it so much that I’ve now started greeting people in Swedish! Despite my efforts, I make mistakes, and usually don’t know enough to have real conversations and end up having to use non-verbal language—gestures, pointing, facial expressions—to help communicate. I find that people are really generous when you make an effort to speak an unfamiliar language. When I was in Puerto Rico in May, I accidentally kept speaking in French instead of Spanish! Everyone was cool about it, though, and just

laughed, which made me feel at ease, oui/si? 

6. Do you like ice cream or cookies more? Cookies. Easy. Especially chocolate chip, ginger snap, molasses, lemon poppy seed, snickerdoodle, shortbread, double dutch chocolate, butter cookies with icing, oatmeal raisin, cookies topped with Reece’s peanut butter cup or M&Ms, cinnamon spice, pumpkin cranberry, and thumbprint.

RSL Authors of the Day!

Today one of our young junior friends, Colton, composed these sentences during differentiated writing. Great job Colton! Keep up the great work.

Tomorrow, I'm going to my pool. I will go for a ride on my dad's motorcycle. I will be tired afterwards so I will go to bed.

I'm going to Brampton on the motorcycle tomorrow. When I get home I will play outside.

I went in my pool. My baby cousin was in it. I splashed him, and then my dad came and drove me back home on his motorcycle.

I get to go to the gas station and then to the mall on his motorcycle.

I get to go swimming in my pool today. I am also going to play on my PS3 and I'm getting a new phone - the iPhone 4.

RSL Authors of the Day!

Here are some snippets of writing produced this morning during Reflect, Relate, Retell. The work our campers have been putting in this summer is evident in the increased length and quality of the writing being produced. Enjoy! 

A long time ago, the dinosaurs were destroyed by an asteroid. Until today, under the sea was Aqua man. In the USA, lived Captain America. In Gotham city, was Batman, and in Kansas City was Superman. The superheroes formed a team called The Perfect Four. This is their story. In 1998, while Superman was high in the sky, he saw the forms of mutant dinosaurs. He reported what he saw so Aqua man went to check it out. But, something attacked him from behind while he was checking, and no one could find him. In the meantime, Captain America and Batman were fighting the dinosaurs while Superman looked for Aqua man. But, a creature with kryptonite attacked Superman and he vanished. What will happen next? To be continued... -Nathanael

The Dark Forest 
One day Sumo Mouse was just sitting in his lab waiting for someone to call for help. He waited for four hours for someone to call for help. Then, someone called for help in the dark forest. Sumo Mouse was scared to go into that forest because there were some people who died in there. Also, the plants in that forest came alive. The plants have killed some people that went into the forest too. So, one kid wandered in to the dark forest and fell and hit his head! Sumo Mouse was flying over top of the trees and saw the kid. He swooped down, but when he was going down he got caught on a branch and he ripped his cape. Once his cape ripped, he fell on the kid. The kid woke up and screamed. The kid's scream was so loud that all of the plants came alive, attacking Sumo Mouse and the kid. Sumo Mouse was so lucky to have a laser with him so he used the laser to fight off the plants. But, it was not strong enough to kill the plants so Sumo Mouse and the boy ran and ran and ran and ran. But, they could not find their way out and then Sumo Mouse forgot he could not fly. So, Sumo Mouse had to find a leaf or something strong to cover the rip in his cape. So, they went looking for something and they found a strong leaf. But, there was nothing to stick it to his cape with. Sumo Mouse remembered he had tape for emergencies. So, they taped it and began flying out of the dark forest and Sumo Mouse took the kid to his mom. So, Sumo Mouse and the kid lived happily ever after. The End. -Madison

One time Super Mouse went to Chile for an undercover mission. His mission was to stop the bad guys stealing from the shops. When he got there, he found the place and fought until Super Mouse slapped him in the fave and the bad guys ran away and his mission was done. So, he went home and he ate a snack and when to bed. When he woke up the next morning, he had another mission. It was in Mexico. The bad guys were stealing the king's crown so he ran away with the crown. He got a net and caught the bad guys and Super Mouse gave the crown back to the king. His other mission was done. He had to go to Haiti next to save the day there as well. -Kai 

I think that a team of super villains is better. Here is what I came up with: Catwoman, Cheetah, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn. Here's the story of how they met...
One night in Gotham City the Gotham City bank had been refilled with $1,000,000 on the news. Scientist Barbara Ann Minerva was watching on her hotel T.V. She decided to take a break from Washington, D.C. crime and rented a hotel in Gotham City. After hearing the news, she turned into her villainous ego, Cheetah. In her cat form, Cheetah ran towards the bank, her tail flicking about excitedly. To her surprise, three other people were already there. One was dressed as a black cat, another wore a jump-suit made of poison ivy, and the third one wore a black and red jester costume. As Cheetah dashed in, she realized the 3 people were all women! Suddenly, guards came in. The four villains whispered to each other as two men stood guard. "What do we do now?" asked Poison Ivy. "Wait, I have a plan," said Cheetah. After reviewing the plan, the girls spring into action. Cheetah bit into the rope they were tied up in, and it ripped apart, freeing them. Then, they ran from the building. "You rocked, even though we didn't get the money. We made a pretty god team." All the villains agreed. -Alexis