Wishing Wall Link Change

Hello,

Just a quick update. I have had to change the link for our Wishing Wall. Please go to the following link from now on to post your suggestions, ideas or just to say hi!

http://www.wallwisher.com/wall/tfreezen2

Earth Hour 2010!

On Sunday, March 27th the world will be celebrating Earth Hour 2010. Earth Hour is sponsored by the World Wildlife Federation. This hour encourages countries, cities and individuals to turn off their lights for 60 minutes to bring awareness and support for the fight against Global Warming. Share this video with your students. You can also visit the official website for Earth Hour at http://wwf.ca/earthhour/.

Paralympic Update!!

The Paralympic Games are coming to a close on Sunday and Canada has had an excellent games. Check out the table below for the medal count for Canada and all participating countries.

Canada's alpine skiier, Lauren Woolstencroft set a Canadian record, winning 5 gold medals at these games. Brian McKeever won 3 gold medals in Men's Cross-Country Skiing. Canada also won gold in the wheelchair curling event. In all, Canada won 19 medals at the Paralympic Games!! A huge CONGRATULATIONS to the Canadian Paralympic athletes.

What's Next for Vancouver?

Well, the Olympics are over. But are they? Starting on March 12th, Canadian athletes will be participating in the Paralympics in Vancouver!! 46 Canadian athletes will be participating in Ice Sledge Hockey, Alpine Skiing, Wheelchair Curling, Biathalon, and Cross-Country Skiing. The Paralympic Cauldron will be lit on Friday, March 12th in Vancouver. Thirty four nations will be competing!



Check out the following links for some great information on these games:

The official Vancouver Paralympic Site:

http://www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games/

Canadian Paralympic Committee:

http://www.paralympic.ca/index.php

Wikipedia Information (great links to the various sports and a schedule of the different events)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Winter_Paralympics#Participating_nations

CTV's site for the Paralympics:

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/paralympics/index.html

Watch the Blog for updates! Go Canada Go!

VPMS Wish Wall

Hey Everyone,

Do you want to make suggestions of books we should have in the library or events we should host or just want to drop us a line. Well, you can now check out our new Wish Wall. Leave us your suggestions by adding a sticky note to our wall. We will check it and see what we can do. Check it out at http://www.wallwisher.com/wall/tfreezen. All you have to do is double click on the note area and a sticky note will appear. Type in your message and press okay. You can also embed images, links, video, and audio files.

I look forward to all your suggestions and to hearing from you. We have a shopping day coming up in April, so start sending those suggestions soon!

Canada Takes GOLD in Ski Cross!

Canada's Ashleigh McIvor has won the first GOLD medal ever in the Ski Cross event. This brings Canada's Gold medal count to 6 medals. Ski Cross makes its debut at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.

Ski Cross is a race involving 4 skiiers who ski over a course that involves rolls, ridges, flat sections, and banks. This course is similar to the snowboard cross course. This leads to fast and exciting competition. The following video is an example of a Ski Cross race.

Canada also continues their quest for Hockey Gold by advancing to the quarterfinals in Men's Hockey. Canada won against Germany last night 8-2. They will meet Russia tonight at 7:30. Canada and Russia are huge rivals which dates back to the 1950's, not only at the Olympics but through World Cups as well. This should be an exciting game!!!

Canada Skates to GOLD!!

Last night was a night filled with magic and GOLD as Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue won in the Figure Skating Ice Dance competition last night. This couple made Canadian history by winning the being the first and youngest North American Ice Dance pair to win!

Also Canada Women's Hockey team won against Finland 5-0. The Women's team now faces the US for the Gold medal on Friday, February 25th!

The game to watch today - Men's Hockey - CANADA vs GERMANY! Canada has to win this game to advance to the quaterfinals and a chance at a medal. If Canada wins, they will face Russia.

Canada's Weekend at the Olympics

Canada added more medals this weekend to our total with a Gold medal in Men's Skeleton and a Silver medal in Women's Speed Skating.

Jon Montgomery, from Winnipeg, won a Gold medal and set a new track record in the Men's Skeleton event on Friday. Montgomery raced down the Whislter track and won with a time of 52.20 seconds!!

Kristina Groves took her second Silver medal in the Women's 1,500-metre Speed Skating event at the Richmond Oval on Sunday. Check out her skate at the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYJHgQKS9E8&feature=featured

Unfortunately, Canada had a disappointing loss to the USA in Men's Hockey. Canada now faces Germany in a match that will determine if they will make it to the quaterfinals and a chance at a Gold medal. The Women's Hockey team faces Finland this evening, on their way to winning a medal at the Olympics.

Other things to watch for today:

Men's Curling - Canada faces the USA. Currently the Canadian Men's Curling team is undefeated in the Olympics.

Women's Curling - Canada faces Sweden. The women have lost one game to China at the games.

Figure Skating Ice Dance - Watch for Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. They are in a good position to win Canada's first Gold medal in this event.

Another GOLD!!

Canada won another GOLD in Women's Speed Skating. Christina Nesbitt won a gold medal yesterday by 2/100ths of a second in the Women's 1000-metre speed skating event! This brings Canada medal count to 7 - 3 Gold, 3 Silver, and 1 Bronze. Nesbitt has trained at the London Speed Skating Club in London, Ontario.

Check out this short video about Christina Nesbitt at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M26KdfZ63So

Also yesterday, the men's hockey won an exciting game against Switzerland in a 3-2 victory. The men's team won in a shootout with Sidney Crosby scoring the the winning goal. Canada meets the US on Sunday!

Canada's Curling teams continue to be strong with the men winning against Sweden 7-3 and the women winning against Germany 6-5. Both teams play again today against Denmark.

Today we look forward to cheering our Canadian athletes on in the Women's Skeleton event, Figure Skating Ice Dance, Men's Ski Jumping, Men's Super G Alpine Skiing, and Women's Cross-Country Skiing 15km event.

MOVIE NIGHT - "Cool Runnings"

Join us next Tuesday, February 23rd for our Movie Night. We will be keeping with the Olympic spirit and showing "Cool Runnings." This movie is the comedy loosely based on the true story of the Jamaican National Bobsled team who participated in the 1988 Olympics in Calgary. This film stars Canadian actor/comedian John Candy.



The Jamaican Bobsled team made their debut at the 1988 Olympics, but failed to finish when their sled crashed. However, they did come back 1992, 1994 and 2000 Olympics. They finished 14th at the 1994 Olympics ahead of the USA, Russia and France. Unfortunately, the team did not qualify for the 2006 and 2010 Olympics.

Join us for this hilarious movie!! Sign up in the binder outside the library .

Day 6 in Vancouver!

Canada walks away with another medal on Day 6 at the Olympics. Marianne St-Gelais of St. Félicien, Que won a Silver medal in the Women's 500-metre Short Track Speed Skating event yesterday. Check out the link below to learn more about Speed Skating.

http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-speed-skating/videos/meet-speed-skating

That brings Canada's medal count to 6 medals - 2 GOLD, 3 Silver, and 1 Bronze. Today we look forward to another curling match as the Canadian Men's Curling team faces Sweden and Men's Hockey as Canada meets Switzerland. We also head to the slopes with the Women's Super Combine Slalom and Women's Super Combined Downhill event. Also the Women's Speed Skating 1000m event is happening at the Richmond Oval today.

Learn about all the Olympic sports at http://www.vancouver2010.com/.

Another GOLD for Canada!

Canada got its second GOLD of the Olympic Games yesterday!! Maelle Ricker is the first woman to win a Gold medal on Canadian soil. She won yesterday in the Women's Snowboard Cross event. Snowboard Cross combines skiing, snowboarding, and skateboarding and is a recent addition to the Winter Olympics. Check out the video at the link below to learn more about this fast paced and exciting sport!

http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-snowboard/videos/no-bullying-in-snowboard-cross_116216g127520-HR.html



Yesterday Canada also won matches in Men's Curling against Norway and Men's Hockey against Norway. Today, we look forward to watching our Canadian women in Alpine Downhill Skiing event. Watch for Britt Janyk and Emily Brydon. The Canadian Women's Curling team is also playing against Japan in their second Round Robin session. The women's Curling team won their first game against Switzerland 5-4.

Be sure to catch Olympic coverage on CTV (channel 08), TSN (channel 30), and Sportsnet (channel 22).

Canada Has GOLD!

This weekend was a big weekend for Canada at the Olympics. It started on Friday with the Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver, showcasing our country and welcoming the world to Canada. If you missed it, check out some of the stunning images from the ceremonies in this video.



Canada won it's first GOLD medal in the Men's Freestyle Moguls. Alexandre Bilodeau won Canada's first Gold medal ever on Canadian soil on Sunday with an amazing performance. Check out his interview and photos at the following website:

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/video/player/woly;_ylt=AjGZwbM0pdNQ3Yalk.0hMlqjlgY6#woly/18150112


If you want to learn more about this sport, check out the official Olympic website at http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-freestyle-skiing/additional-information/about-the-sport_145932mW.html. Be sure to also check out all the great information about each of the sports in information section for each sport. There are even podcast to listen to in the "Athlete's Voice" section.

Canada also won silver in Women's Moguls and in Men's Snowboard Cross. A Bronze medal was won by Kristina Groves in Ladies 3000m Speed Skating. Our Canadian Women's Hockey Team also had an outstanding weekend, winning both of their games against Slovakia and Switzerland.

Coming up today:

Men's Hockey - Canada vs Norway
Men's Figure Skating - Short Program - Watch for Patrick Chan
Men's Curling - Canada vs Norway
Women's Curling - Canada vs Switzerland

The Olympics are Here!

They are finally here - the Vancouver 2010 Olympics!! The excitement has been building for months. Check out the blog throughout the Olympics for regular updates and information. To start off, be sure to go to these fantastic websites for information on the different sports and Olympic events!!

The Official Website of the 2010 Olympics.

http://www.vancouver2010.com/

CTV is the official television station for the Olympics and has great stuff on their website. Check it out at:

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

Yahoo Sports has lots of great information as well.

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/olympics/vancouver

Visit the TDSB Olympic Blog.

http://2010funandgames.com/

Opening Ceremonies start tomorrow night with a preview show at 7pm, with the actual ceremonies beginning at 8:45! Gather family and friends together and cheer on our atheletes!

Book of the Week - February 8th

Africville was a black community settled by former slaves of American and British owners. This settlement began Nova Scotia in the mid-1800's, but was was demolished in the 1960's. It is now a historical site in Canada. Last Days in Africville by Dorothy Perkins is the story of twelve-year-old Selina Palmer and her family who stuggle with the knowledge that their home and community is about to be taken away. Check out the website and video below to learn more about Africville.

http://www.africville.ca/index.html



More information on Africville, such as television and radio clips, can be found in the CBC archives at http://archives.cbc.ca/society/racism/topics/96/.

Book of the Week

I have decided to start featuring a "Book of the Week." Each week I will post information about a book we have in the library. I will also display this book on the circulation desk. This weeks book is "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis.

The main character, Elijah is the first child born free in Buxton, a settlement of runaway slaves in Ontario. In the story, Elijah must begin a dangerous pursuit of a thief into America. While in America, Elijah discovers the horrors of slavery, his parents escaped. This book begins a month celebrating the African Heritage!

Here is a video book review for the book.



The author, Christopher Paul Curtis, was born and raised in Michigan and later attended the University of Michigan. He wrote his first book, "The Watsons Go to Birmingham" in 1963. He has received the Newberry Award and Coretta Scott King Award for his writing. He and his family currently live in Windsor, Ontario. Here is an interview with the author.



You can also check out the Buxton Museum at:

http://www.buxtonmuseum.com/

Be sure to check out the Web Links . There are some great resources talking about and giving the history of Buxton.

Library Schedule

Here is the Library Schedule for Jan. 18th to the 22nd. Be sure to sign up for lunch hours in the binder and wait for Ms. Friesen to pick you up.

Library Schedule.doc