Springtime in high school means grass in your hair, flip flops clapping in the halls and the smell of pollen drifting through a dark classroom's window. Here's the LVR column, back again this month to give you the scoop on the school.
Springtime at LVR also means sports. Rugby, soccer and baseball are all entering game season, and sports are a good way to get outside and into the May sunshine.
The Terry Fox Run, usually set for September, was rescheduled to the end of April because of the teachers’ strike. The theme was “Terry's Favourite Things” and students could be seen jogging down the street covered in green (Terry Fox's favourite colour) and plastered with stickers and tattoos depicting the Canadian hero's face. I believe a fair amount of money was raised for cancer research, and it was good fun for a good cause.
In mid-April, the school hosted Jesse Miller to speak on the dangers of social media. Miller talked about being safe on the Internet and remaining aware of your online presence. Most people Google their names quite frequently, as a way to be Internet-safe and also just to see how prominent you are when searched. But when Miller requested that students take out their phones and Google their Instagram names, a collective gasp circled around the room. It seems that more exists on the Internet about you than you know, if only one knows how to look. Miller was an impactful speaker and also spoke to parents at an evening discussion, answering illuminating questions such as “What is Facebook?”
In an earlier column I mentioned a change to the cafeteria. The new, healthier options for drinks in our cafeteria, offered by the Kootenay Co-op, have integrated nicely into the system. When compared with lunchrooms across Canada and the US, Nelson is actually much healthier, with salads and curries offered instead of chicken strips and fries. The added drinks are only the finishing touch on what is already a great place to healthily feed the hungry teenagers of Nelson.
Upcoming in May, the drama department will be boarding the bus for the Summerland Shakespeare Festival. It's the one trip drama kids get in a year, and we make the most of it. This year, LVR is taking the play Fifteen Minute Hamlet to the festival. The show is directed by Grade 11 student Ingrid Love. “Shakesfest,” as the kids lovingly call it, is four days of workshops, meeting new people, and yes, Shakespeare.
April was an exciting month, and May will be even more packed as L.V. Rogers gets ready for sports games, drama festivals and most of all, grad.
Gillian Wiley’s column about life at LVR appears once a month.