World Food Day

From the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization:

The 2014 World Food Day theme – Family Farming: “Feeding the world, caring for the earth” – has been chosen to raise the profile of family farming and smallholder farmers. It focuses world attention on the significant role of family farming in eradicating hunger and poverty, providing food security and nutrition, improving livelihoods, managing natural resources, protecting the environment, and achieving sustainable development, in particular in rural areas.

The UN General Assembly has designated 2014 “International Year of Family Farming.” This is a strong signal that the international community recognizes the important contribution of family farmers to world food security.

For more on World Food Day, check out these links:

International Day of the Girl Child

The United Nations has declared October 11 to be the International Day of the Girl Child. The day was first celebrated in 2012, as an opportunity to recognize the rights of girls, to raise awareness about the challenges that they face around the world, and to celebrate our daughters, sisters, friends and students. Sadly, girls around the world daily face discrimination, violence and the violation of their human rights.

The theme for 2014 is “Empowering adolescent girls: Ending the cycle of violence” – See more at the United Nations page on International Day of the Girl Child.

reasonsforgirlsday
A Dozen Reasons for International Day of the Girl. Click the image for more info. (source: dayofthegirl.org)

We can be thankful that Canada is amongst the leaders of the world in protecting the rights of girls.Yet even here there is more work to be done, and certainly we must continue to fight for the rights of girls around the world.


“Empowerment of and investment in girls are key in breaking the cycle of discrimination and violence and in promoting and protecting the full and effective enjoyment of their human rights”

-United Nations Resolution 66/170

 

 

World Mental Health Day

Lord Tweedsmuir students and staff are wearing purple today to show their support for World Mental Health Day. The day was established with the goal of raising awareness about Mental Health issues, to promote Mental Health initiatives, and to fight against the stigma of Mental Health problems. Find out more:

World Health Organization

World Federation for Mental Health

Canadian Mental Health Association

Myths About Metal Illness
Click the image to see the rest of the Myths about Mental Illness (Source: CMHA)

Who Comes to the School Library?

Who comes to the School Library?  That is an excellent question.  The short answer:  We get hundreds of people visiting each day, and tens of thousands of visits each year.

Some of our visitors are people who come multiple times a day, every day.  Some come more casually. Some students come down when their classes are booked into the library.  Many IMG_0457more come down as drop-in students, either during class or during “study blocks” or “free blocks.”  And many more again make their way here before school, at lunch, and after school.

We have class bookings from virtually every department and grade in the school.  While it is most typical to have Social Studies or English classes come in, we have had classes and small groups of students come in from Science, Math, LST, French, Spanish, Planning, PE, Woodwork, Cafeteria, ELL, Hockey Academy and more.

IMG_0017[1]We have hosted a multitude of special events, some that come every year, such as Safe Teen, Food Safe and International Games Day. We have been delighted to showcase our local talent with such events as the LTS Poetry Slam and Library Unplugged. We have hosted guest speakers such as war veterans, poets, writers and more.

We host meetings of all sorts, including meetings of Department Heads, the Parent Advisory Council, the Scholarship Club, sports teams and more. We host immunization clinics, photo sessions, book displays, contests and more.

IMG_0110[1]Students come here looking for a place to do research, study, work on projects. Some want to work alone, some prefer to work in small groups. We offer space for both.

Students come here looking to borrow from our growing collection of PlayAway Audiobooks,  DVDs, eBooks and other alternatives to print media. Our magazines and newspapers draw in many visitors.  Students also want to make use of our growing collection of board games and table games.

Students and staff come here looking for good books to read.  Students and staff come here looking for a quiet comfortable space in which to read.  We are delighted to do what we can to make that happen!

Whatever the reason, we get hundreds of visitors each day. If you haven’t been in to your school library lately, we hope to see you here soon!

 

International Day of Families

20th Anniversary of the International Day of Families and the International Year of the Family.

The United Nations has proclaimed that May 15 of each year shall be used to celebrate the importance of Families. 2014 marks the 20th year that International Day of Families has been observed.

For more information:

 

 

 

Youth and Child Mental Health Day

Over a million Canadian children and youth are affected by mental health issues, according to the Mental Health Commission of Canada. Yet less than 20% will  receive treatment or appropriate care.  In recent years in Canada we have taken strides towards removing the stigma of admitting to mental health issues. However, we still have so far to go.

Child & Youth Mental Health Day, May 7th
source: FamilySmart

Learn more:

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day (actually celebrated on September 16). In fact, in Mexico itself Cinco de Mayo is a minor holiday outside of the state of Puebla. However, this holiday is observed in a big way in the United States, particularly in states with high Mexican-American populations, such as California, Arizona and Texas. More and more Canadians are celebrating Cinco de Mayo as well, including those with Mexican roots and those without. Just as you don’t have to have Irish heritage to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, you don’t have to have Mexican heritage to join in on the fun of Cinco de Mayo!canada-mexico

World Press Freedom Day

o we really need World Press Freedom Day? Take a look at some of these statistics:

Press Freedom in 2013
source: Reporters Without Borders

Freedom of the Press is one of the fundamental requirements of democracy. Citizens are not free when the state restricts their access to information, or when the state fails to stop others from doing so.

Violence is a threat to the press in many parts of the world. However, even here in North America, where we live in one of the most democratic societies, control of our free and open access to information is an ongoing battle.

Learn more:

May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada

Asian Heritage Month gives Canadians of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds the opportunity to learn more about, and celebrate, the history of Asian Canadians and the contributions of Asian Canadians to the development of our nation. Canadians trace their roots to all corners of the globe, including such places as China, Japan, the Philippines, Korea, Vietnam and many more Asian nations.

for more information on Asian Heritage Month:

Library Closing, to be Replaced by District Hazardous Materials Testing Lab

In a move that surprised many, the Surrey School Board this morning passed a motion which will close all the school libraries in Surrey. The district was under pressure from the Ministry of Education and the provincial government to make this move.

The school library at Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary will be replaced by a Laboratory for the Testing of Hazardous Materials and Bio-Waste. Other schools will have their libraries replaced with different government and private facilities, such as a Motor Vehicles Branch at North Surrey, a Sewage Treatment Plant at Elgin Park and a Minimum Security Jail at Semiahmoo.

Said a provincial government spokesperson, “We had to. You got to find room for so much important government stuff.  And, like, you know, nobody reads anymore, so whatevs.”

Many students and parents have reacted with shock and anger. Efforts are being made to mount a campaign to fight this outrageous move.  Please be sure to phone or email the Surrey School Board and the superintendent’s Office of School District 36, your local MLA, the Minister of Education and the Premier to express your dismay and disagreement with this ridiculous decision.