THE 2020-2021 SCHOOL YEAR!

Balloon Pop Party &
Wacky Day

The Student Council hosted an amazing fundraiser to raise money to purchase paint so classes can paint murals on the wall of the flats.  The fundraiser was a Balloon Pop Party.  Each student could purchase balloons filled with prizes such as lollipops, candy bars, class parties; pool parties, popsicle parties, ice cream parties, electronics parties, movies and game afternoons and the coveted grand prize - Principal for the Day!  We sold 800 balloons!  To make the day extra fun, students were encouraged to dress super wacky and have a great day!

Grades 7 & 8 Field Trip

Our 7th and 8th graders had the chance to enjoy day outside the classroom recently.  The groups enjoyed a day at the Saddle Hill Adventure Park.  Once there, they had the chance to work together in various activities including a human maze, rock climbing and a friendly game of laser tag.  Students, teachers and the Principal all tackled the rock climbing wall and put all of our endurance to the test.  

After leaving the Park we headed to Black Rocks to take a hike down on the rocks and enjoy the beauty that most don't get to see up close and personal.  It was a wonderful and well deserved day of bonding for these dynamic students.

Grade 4 Field Trip

The grade 4 class took learning outside the classroom and applied it to real life.  In Science class they have been learning about gears and pulleys along with various types of rocks.  What a perfect connection to take students to the quarry to learn about how the rocks are crushed with equipment made up of gears and pulleys.  We also arranged to take the students to the Rock & Gem Museum in Saddlers.  This hidden 'gem' is run by a very kind man named Almond.  He shared his knowledge and passion about rocks with the students.  His collection is extensive and he welcomed questions from our students.  From the Rock & Gem Museum, we headed to Cayon where we walked to White's Estate.  We had lunch inside a Sugar Mill.  The students have been reading Esperanza Rising in class and that story has to do with life as workers on a farm.  We thought it would be interesting for students to see an old estate where sugar was cultivated and harvested.  After lunch we walked down White's Mountain through some farms back to the main road, where our bus was waiting. We had one final stop to make at the Spooner's Cotton Gin.  It has been recently refurbished and the students were able to explore the old equipment once again find gears and pulleys.  It was a wonderful day of fun and learning.

Grade 6 Field Trip

The grade 6 students had a fun day outside the classroom.  They took a trip out to the beautiful Black Rocks and hiked on the new trail that was made.  It was low tide so they were able to walk through areas that are normally covered in sea water.  From there they headed to Cayon to take a hike into the rainforest. The Cayon Ghaut is a magical place with pools and bamboo forests and an aqueduct.  The students had the chance to become one with nature and enjoy the beauty that surrounds us.  It was much needed and well deserved day of bonding and fun.

Leap into Reading: 2021 COVID Edition

Passport to Reading:
Travel without Leaving Home

This year we put a spin on our read-a-thon and used COVID to our benefit. We  themed the event Passport to Reading: Travel without Leaving Home.  The aim was for children to explore the world through books since we can't travel as easily.  It was a fun week and a half filled with activities.  Watch the video below to see all of the winners along with highlights of our event.  Thanks to everyone for the generous support.  We raised over $21,000EC to put toward resources for our school!

2021 LEAP into Reading
(Read-A-Thon)

We have just started our 6th annual, LEAP into Reading, Read-A-Thon.  The theme this year is Passport to Reading: Traveling without Leaving Home (COVID edition).. The kick off event was our 2nd annual Reading Garden Party.  Last year this event was held after school and parents were invited on campus to really celebrate reading with our school community.  This year with our COVID protocols, we held the event during the school day and students were encouraged to bring their favorite book, a picnic blanket and a snack.  The last period of the day was spent in various locations around campus reading books.  The students really got into the event and were enjoying the time reading and earning extra minutes toward their reading goals.

Term 1
Honor Roll & Principal's List

This year we shifted to a two term system.  This allows each of the terms to have an equal length rather than having three unequal terms.  That means in February we had the end of our 1st Term!  Students worked very hard.  While not all students made the Honor Roll (80% or higher in all subjects) or Principal's List (90% or higher in all subjects) everyone worked very hard.  We are proud of the achievements of everyone.  Keep working hard and reaching for the stars!

Student Council Recycling & 'Upcycling" Challenge

This year the Student Council brought back its annual Recycling Challenge.  Students brought in plastic and cardboard competing to be the individual winner and the class winner with the most recyclables.  

The Winners were:

Week 1: Sofia (Grade 1)

Weeks 2-4  Zoee (Grade 8)

Overall class winner - Grade 8

The Council also added an 'Upcycle' challenge.  In this challenge students and classes were tasked with turning 'trash into treasure' and creating awesome projects from recycled materials.  The submissions were very unique ranging from composters, to area rugs, life-size chess boards and a SKI mascot costume.  

The winners were:

Class Challenge:

1st Place - Grade 4

2nd Place - Grades 5 & 8

3rd Place - Grades 2 & 6

Individual Winners:

Middle & High School - Camille

Elementary - Vrutika

Science Day

This year since we were not able to have our traditional Science Fair, we had a Science Day on the day of our Virtual Fair.  On this day classes stopped their normal activities and spent the afternoon engaged in various science related activities.  The students really enjoyed the various challenges and experiments that they participated in!

Grade 9 Practices CPR, Heimlich & AED

The Grade 9 students take a class each year called Healthy Active Living.  Part of the curriculum is an introduction to CPR, Heimlich & the use of AED machines.  This year we were able to borrow the practice dummies and the students were able to have a practical experience with the technique on both adults and children.  It was a great learning experience for all.

Golden Trash Can Award

This year we have continued our efforts to have our students really show their care for their classroom environment.  The Golden Trash Can Award is presented each week to the class that keeps their room the cleanest.  Ms. Ancilla determines the winners each week. She says the competition has been pretty fierce this year.

Annual "Mickey" Drive

Each year our Student Council partners with Mickey's Hope Foundation.  Mickey's Hope is a chartable organization that has aided 100's of families in the Federation over the last 25 years.  Families are assisted in countless ways from food, to household items such as bedding, dishes, furniture, appliances and clothing.  Mickey's Hope assists with medical needs as well as tries to help families who might have suffered a house fire, or even have lost jobs.  This work is year round, 365 days a year.  

Each Christmas we sponsor a drive in which we collected clothing and household goods along with non-perishable food items and new toys.  We sponsor10-15 families and spread holiday cheer with food baskets and Christmas gifts for their children.  We then assist Mickey with delivering the baskets.  We have met some amazing and appreciative families through the years.   The efforts of Mickey's Hope are ongoing.  If you ever have donations - Mickey accepts pretty much everything.  Just let us know so we can assist in making the connection.  Thanks to everyone for the continued support.

Spelling Bee

This year there was no National Spelling Bee, but we still had our school bees.  They were broadcast live from the Art Room to the classrooms where students.were able to cheer on their classmates!  COVID or not, we really wanted to give our awesome spellers a chance to shine!

Halloween

Halloween is always a fun time for students to show their creative and wacky sides.  Teachers and students alike have fun dressing up in their costumes.  Pictured to the left.... Ms. St. Pierre & Mr. Ade dressed up as Jack and Jill and we had to stage their 'tumble".

Breast Cancer
Awareness Day

SKI Students once again showed their support on Breast Cancer Awareness Day.  Students wore pink to raise awareness about Breast Cancer.  They also raised funds to donate to the Essence of Hope Foundation.  Parent and Essence of Hope representative, Lizbeth Burrel accepted the donation from our Student Council.

Mascot Challenge

Along with the dress-up days for Spirit Week, the Student Council also added a challenge to come up with an official mascot for our school.  There were many submissions, however, there could only be one winner.  The entry from Mariza in grade 6 that won, was the S.K.I. Rockets!  The Student Council aims to work toward having our very own SKI Rocket as a mascot costume in the future.  What a fun competition!

Spirit Week 2020

This year the Student Council:

Monday: S.K.I. Color Day

Tuesday: Wacky Hair & Hat Day

Wednesday: Crazy Dress-Up Day

Thursday: Rock Your Socks. & Masks Day

Friday - Pajama Day

The "S.K.I. Rock Your Colors" Independence Concert

We love to honor the beautiful Federation that we live in.  However, this year with our newly adopted COVID protocols, many of our celebrations need to be reshaped.  One such celebration was our independence festivities.  It is so important to expose our students to the culture of St. Kitts & Nevis, but we need to find a way to do so while adhering to our distancing protocols.  To that end, we came up with the idea of having a concert on the Flats.  The layout of the flats is pretty much like an outdoor amphitheater.  We got a tent, obtained a massive sound system, and put together a pretty stellar line-up of entertainers to perform for the children.  With our recess zones already in place for lunchtime, we kept our ropes up and assigned grades levels various places to sit for the concert.  The event was hosted by Ms. Emileta, who dressed in a full clown costume, to model that aspect of our culture with the students!  The line-up included:

• The St. Christopher Steel Band
• A Masquerade Troupe
• Mocko Jumbies
• The Ministry of Culture's Mr. Phipps (a drummer) along with a dancer 
• Nicha B - a local singer
• King Konris, SKI dad & the only Calypsonian to win the National Calypso Show, 4 times in a row!

The line-up was fantastic.  The children thoroughly enjoyed the show, they were up and dancing and smiling the entire time.  We can't wait to be able to do this again in the future and invite the whole SKI Family!

Happy 37th Anniversary of Independence St. Kitts & Nevis!

1st Day of School

The 1st day of school for the 2020-2021 School year was full of fun.  We, of course, had to adapt to some new protocols due to COVID-19, but we did so with ease.  The students donned their masks, and worked on their distancing throughout the day. They also learned their new play area zones, as well as new arrival and dismissal procedures.  While many of these routines are not part of our typical 'norm', they are now part of our 'new norm.'  The school year promises to be a great one despite some of our restrictions.