YHS – Page 60 – The Yorkie

TRACK & FIELD:
Spring Break truly is the calm before the storm when it comes to JS Athletics. Of course, we are always busy, yet it seems like the “track season” takes us to a whole new level of excitement. With nearly 100 students on a single team, and each of those students participating in six training sessions, we have to be on top of our organizational game. As always, the hard work pays off. Last weekend (April 22, 23) the Tigers participated in their first track meet since 2019, the Vancouver Olympic Club Elementary Track & Field Meet. For the Grade 3, 4, and 5 Tigers, this was their first-ever track meet in a YHS singlet. The Tigers posted, literally, dozens of personal best achievements, and there were many excellent performances that also resulted in top 3 (medal) finishes. One athlete, Jaime, Grade 7, even set a new school record in the 800m. Jaime’s time of 2:35.99 broke a record that had stood since 2005 (Roya Assadi ‘10). Congratulations to all of the Tigers!

On Wednesday, April 27, the Grade 5, 6, and 7 Tigers competed in the Vancouver Elementary School Track & Field Championships at UBC. Results were not available at press time, but you can be sure there were many personal bests, and some very proud coaches.

ULTIMATE:
The always popular sport of ultimate is flying along once again here at York House School. This year, we decided to divide our participants into two teams, Grade 5 and Grade 6/7. Both teams participated in league games on April 19. Results are not kept from the league games, yet they offer our Tigers a chance to test themselves against some highly skilled teams. The Grade 5 team found out very quickly that you had better come prepared to sprint and compete for the space. Although their initial experience was abrupt, the Tigers were quick to adjust and they now have a sense that you will play like you practice. With a large roster of 38, our Grade 6/7 team is embracing the ‘hockey’ mentality of sprinting and working very hard in short bursts, only to have an appropriate rest while your teammates take over. The Tigers are pushing their skills and strategies to new levels, and proving to be one of the best YHS teams we have seen at this level.

The regular season games will continue each week, with the ISEA Playday on May 9, and the SabreFest tournament on June 3. Go Tigers Go!

During the week of April 19, York House participated in a number of Earth Day activities across the Little School, Junior School, and Senior School.

The Green Club organized a clothing swap during the Thursday lunch hour. A video about fast-fashion was shown during TAG (Teacher Advisor Group) and students were also encouraged to come to school in their favourite thrifted outfit to help encourage more sustainable shopping.

On Friday (Earth Day), the Senior School was honoured to have Sheila Watt-Cloutier, Inuit activist, author, and politician, address the Senior School. Sheila has been recognized globally for her work on climate change including receiving the Order of Canada in 2005 and a nomination for the Nobel Prize in 2007. One of the first people to reframe climate change as a human rights issue, her 2015 book The Right to Be Cold: One Woman’s Story of Protecting Her Culture, the Arctic and the Whole Planet, addressed the effects of climate change on Inuit communities. While recounting the recent history of the Inuit peoples in the Arctic, she called on YHS students, as changemakers for the future, to reimagine a new way forward with intention. She also reminded them of the important role women play in driving heart-centred leadership.

The 2020 documentary, The Magnitude of all Things was also screened in the Senior Learning Commons during the Tuesday and Wednesday lunch hour.

Some of our Kindergarten students participated in an Earth Day art project and enjoyed time in the garden: