Sir John A MacDonald (SJAM)

 Sir John A MacDonald (SJAM)

May 3rd, 2021

Mrs. Will

Hello Families! 

This blog is dedicated to information about SJAM. I am aware that some students will be moving out of area and a few have been accepted to G.P. Vanier's French Immersion program. If you know that you child will not be attending SJAM, please skip this blog post! 

If you have any other questions about SJAM or other junior highs for your child, please reach out to me over email or by phone. 

Most of our students will be transferring to SJAM and this is the information the students were given last Thursday during a presentation:

1. Online Open House for Parents will be this Thursday, May 6th at 5:00pm. I am still waiting to hear from the principal for a link for families and will email it to you all once I get it. 

• Lockers - students will have 2 lockers. One will be for their books and belongings and a second smaller one will be for their gym clothes. They are combination locks that the school will provide so please do not buy your own. 
• Gym - Students are required to change for gym. You can purchase a "gym strip" from SJAM like a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, or bring your own clothing from home that would be appropriate for gym class. Students do not have to wear shorts. Proper gym shoes will be needed and can be kept in their gym lockers. 
• Timetables - SJAM uses a 7-period system to break up their day. 5 periods in the morning, 2 after lunch. 
• 2 periods are for humanities (social studies and literacy together) - Teacher A
• 2 periods are for "Smath" (science and math together) - Teacher B
• 1 period for gym - Teacher C
• 2 periods for complementary or options courses  - Teachers D and E
• Students will also have a homeroom teacher for attendance. This could be one of their teachers they have for their other subjects
• Students get to pick 4 complementary courses (we called them option classes when I was in school). Two will be in the first half of the year and the other two in the second half of the year.
• Complementary courses offered include outdoor education, construction, foods, computers, art, drama, band, film studies, etc. These options can change based on Covid and how many students are interested. For example, there is no French class being offered next year but that doesn't mean one could not be added back in grade 8. 
• SJAM is planning to have clubs and sports teams running for next year. This can change due to Covid.
• Students will be able to pick their complementary courses in the next few weeks.
• There are lots of clubs that students can join. They are also able to start their own clubs if they find a teacher to supervise it. 
• There is no cafeteria but there is a snack stand and students can get lunch and snacks there if they need something to eat. 
• Grade 7 students are not allowed to leave the school grounds at lunch time until after Spring Break unless they walk home for lunch. After Spring Break, students would be able to walk to the McDonalds or 7-11, etc.