Departments

Arts

Drama and Dance

At Bishop Reding Secondary School Drama is offered at the grade 10, 11 and 12 levels. Grade 10 Drama establishes the necessary foundations by beginning with the history of drama and works through the fundamentals of stage practice. In the senior level courses, students are given the opportunity to engage and further their performance techniques by performing for larger audiences, writing and producing scripts, learning more about theatre technology and refining the dramatic craft. A live theatre production is seen each term which adds to the drama experience and students can see what it is like to produce a major production. With pre-show chats, students can ask questions of actors about roles and craft. Introductory Dance offered in Grade 10 will develop artistic scope in the dance arts.

Music

We offer a comprehensive music program at Bishop Reding. Students can select Instrumental Music and/or Vocal Music in Grades 9, 10, 11 and 12. In addition we offer an Instrumental Jazz course in Grade 12. Guitar courses are offered at the grade 10, 11 and 12 levels.

Visual Arts

Visual Arts at Bishop Reding is offered at each grade level. The focus of the visual arts program is to combine creating and presenting with responding, reflecting and analysing while learning conventions, techniques and processes involved in the visual arts.

Media Art & Photography

Media Arts incorporates materials, practices, tools, and skills from a variety of arts disciplines. The technologies and processes used and adapted to media art involve photography, software, film, sound and video. The courses offered at Bishop Reding include Grade 11 ASM 3O1 and Grade 12 Photography AWQ 4M1.

Business and Computer Studies

Canadian and World Studies

The Canadian & World Studies Department offers courses and opportunities that seek to develop a greater awareness of the world and Canada’s role within it. Framed by the Catholic faith, our courses, trips and events aim to not only examine issues from a geographical, political, legal and historical perspective, but also from moral and ethical standpoints as well. Students are presented with engaging opportunities to develop their critical thinking skills in order to investigate events, both past and present, and to challenge their current understanding of the world in which we live.

Cooperative Education

Cooperative Education credits at Bishop Reding are a unique learning opportunity that takes our students out of the formal classroom learning environment and into the real world of work. The opportunity to experience the workplace in any subject area helps our Bishop Reding students explore the career options available in the Halton community and gather much needed valuable information to make informed decisions about career choices and all post-secondary destinations. Placements include all subjects and all levels and focuses on gaining real world work experience.

Cooperative Education programs combine a full-semester, half-day work placement in the community with a school-based classroom component to earn 2 co-op credits. Up to a maximum of 3 co-op credits can now be used as part of the 18 compulsory credits required by students to earn their diploma. Make an appointment to see your Guidance Counsellor if you are interested in participating in a Cooperative Education experience.

English

All students at Bishop Reding are required to take English during their four years of secondary school. Our program offers three levels of course instruction consisting of academic/university, applied/college and locally developed/essential:

  • The academic/university level courses are intended for students pursuing university after graduation (ENG 4U is a mandatory prerequisite for university applicants).
  • The applied/college level courses are intended for students interested in attending college, pursuing apprenticeship programs or entering the workplace after graduation from high school.
  • The locally developed/essential courses are available for students working below grade level in English and intending to pursue employment following completion of high school.

In addition to the core program, the English department also offers Media English and Writer’s Craft, two senior elective courses which can be taken in addition to regular English courses.

English Help is offered every Monday in the library immediately after school. Students working on English assignments or homework are welcome to get additional help from supervising English teachers as often as necessary.

Modern Languages

The Moderns Department at Bishop Reding offers an array of courses for students interested in pursuing Modern Languages. Students are required to take grade nine French at the applied, academic or extended French levels. French is available at all levels in grades ten to twelve depending on the interest of the student body.

The extended French program involves two credits per year (with the exception of grade twelve which consists of only the language course), one in language and the other in another subject offered in French. In addition to language, in grade nine, students study geography, in grade ten, history, and in grade eleven, world religions. After completion of all seven extended French courses, students are granted a certificate.

In addition, Bishop Reding also offers an Italian program which begins in grade ten.

Health and Physical Education

The health and physical education program promotes healthy active living, and enjoyment and regular, enthusiastic participation in physical activity. The courses will help students understand how their personal actions and decisions will affect their health, fitness, and well-being. All courses in this curriculum address relevant health issues and provide students with a wide variety of activities that promote fitness, the development of living skills, and personal competence.

The health and physical education courses in Grades 9 and 10 are made up of four strands: physical activity, active living, healthy living, and living skills. In each course, students will develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to enjoy a healthy lifestyle and to build a commitment to lifelong participation in physical activity. The focus on positive, responsible personal and social behaviour in physical activity settings encourages students to make safe and wise choices.

The expectations in the Grade 11 and 12 health and physical education courses are organized into the following strands:

Grades 11 and 12, Healthy Active Living Education

  • Physical Activity
  • Active Living
  • Healthy Living
  • Living Skills

Grade 11, Health for Life

  • Determinants of Health
  • Community Health
  • Vitality

Grade 12, Exercise Science

  • The Biological Basis of Movement
  • Motor Development
  • Physical Activity and Sports in Society

Grade 12, Recreation and Fitness Leadership

  • Leadership
  • Facilitation of Recreation and Leisure
  • Physical Fitness and Well-Being

These courses emphasize regular participation in a variety of enjoyable physical activities that will enhance students’ fitness, health, and personal competence, and that will promote lifelong active living. Students will be encouraged to pursue physical activities outside the school program for fun, personal fitness, and health. In the living skills component of these courses, students will learn and apply decision-making, conflict resolution, and social skills. Issues investigated in the healthy living component include healthy growth and sexuality, mental health, personal safety, and injury prevention.

Library

Hours: 7:30 AM – 3:30 PM daily

Staff

  • Mrs. Takala, Librarian
  • Mrs. Henderson, Library Clerk

Library Services/Resources

Citation Aids

Your Library has a world of knowledge and knowledgeable assistance waiting for you.

Mathematics

There is safety in numbers and math counts!

Extra Help

General Extra Help sessions are run by the math department every Wednesday, from 2:45 to 3:45 p.m. in Room 209.  Math teachers will assist with these sessions on a rotating schedule.  The structure of these sessions is that students are working individually or in small groups on homework, test correction and/or test preparation while the teacher circulates the room answering questions.  Some students use this time simply as a place to do homework, while others use it to get help on specific topics where they are experiencing difficulty.  The amount of individual attention received by the student will vary depending on the number of students who attend each week.  It is the student’s responsibility to raise his/her hand if he/she needs assistance from the teacher.

Online homework help:

Math Contests

All contests will take place in the library.Notes:

  • Students are to go directly to the library on the day of the contest. Do not go to period 1 first.
  • Registration will take place using com
  • Students are to write the contest based on their current grade, regardless of the math course he/she is currently taking (i.e. a grade 11 student enrolled in a grade 12 course is still eligible to write a  grade 11 contest)
  • The cost reflects the amount charged by the University of Waterloo
  • There will be no refunds once the contests have been ordered.
  • Students are responsible for remembering to go to the library at the appropriate time.
  • For more information and past contests & solutions, please visit www.cemc.uwaterloo.c

EQAO

The Grade 9 EQAO assessment is written by all students registered in a Grade 9 Academic or Grade 9 Applied Mathematics course. This is a ministry mandated assessment that does count towards a student’s final mark.

Students will write the EQAO assessment towards the end of the semester in which they are studying math.

  • Semester 1 – (actual dates TBD)
  • Semester 2 – (actual dates TBD)

More details, including the specific date(s) and time will be given at a later time. Please see http://www.eqao.com/ for more details, including sample questions from past assessments.

Religion

The Religion courses offered here at Bishop Reding are guided by the Institute for Catholic Education and its 2006 Religious Education Policy Document:

Religious Education, as an evolving discipline, enables young people to discover the truth, nurture the attitudes and develop the skills necessary to grow as young Catholics in these changing times.  For these reasons, Religious Education is designed to promote a Catholic identity that will assist them in the task of becoming life-long learners in relation to their faith within a multi-religious and sometimes anti-religious society.  It is also designed to assist in the process of ethical and moral formation within a culture that all too often fails to recognize the call of God upon men and women, the fundamental dignity of the human person and the existence of absolute ethical norms. (ICE, p. 2)

Our Grade 9, 10 and 12 Religion courses are based on the catechetical series resources provided by our Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops:  Be With Me, Christ and Culture and In Search of the Good.  Our Grade 11 World Religions course has as its primary resource, the Assembly of Ontario Catholic Bishops sponsored text: World Religions A Canadian Catholic Perspective.

All of our Religious Education courses endeavour to assist students as they develop their knowledge of religious language, concepts and ideas in order that they may come to a greater sense of religious literacy as expressed in our Catholic world view.  The courses in our Religion programme here at Bishop Reding  “invite students to build their relationship with the person of Jesus Christ as witnessed to by the Catholic faith, which recognizes the centrality of God, the dignity of the human person, and the importance of ethical norms.”  (ICE, p. 3)

Science

Science is a core subject and science education is important for many reasons. Today’s world is changing quickly and the future will require skills that are developed through the science curriculum. Critical observation and analytical thinking skills are strong tools to meet the challenges of the future. Complimenting literacy and numeracy, science education allows the student to address the complexity of decisions made in areas of personal health, consumer choices, life style choices, community responsibility, and global resource sustainability.

The grade nine and grade ten science courses introduce scientific thinking and survey the disciplines of biology, chemistry, physics, and earth and space science. Senior courses are more detailed and typically specialize in deeper aspects of the four disciplines of the junior grades. Many post secondary programs and educational pathways require science course prerequisites. Science courses are a popular choice for many senior students. Science is stimulating and challenging. Science is fun.

As Albert Einstein said:

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.”

Science education offers an entry into this world of wonder where students develop awe and open their eyes, minds, and imaginations to tomorrow.

Social Sciences and Humanities

Courses offered in the areas of the Social Sciences and Humanities are: introductory courses in Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology in grades 11 and 12; Family Studies courses – including Food and Nutrition, Human Growth and Development, Parenting; and Humanities course such as Philosophy in Grade 12.

Special Education

The Special Education Department recognizes that education must address the unique strengths and needs of all students. It is, therefore, understood that all students have the right to quality education and to develop to their fullest potential. Our Special Education Programs are totally integrated into all aspects of the school environment. The Special Education Resource Teachers (SERTs) work collaboratively with staff member in a variety of ways:

  • Assisting with program modifications and accommodations;
  • Providing in-class support;
  • Developing individual educational plans;
  • Supporting the inclusion of exceptional pupils within the classroom.

It is the role of the Special Education support services to empower and encourage the school’s community to meet the individual needs of all students.

SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TEACHERS

  • Ms. M. Bradley – GLE Teacher/SERT
  • Ms. S. Bradley – GLE Teacher/SERT
  • Ms. L. Cianciolo-Bour – Special Education Teacher
  • Ms. T. Johnson – GLE Teacher/SERT
  • Ms. S. Joseph – Special Education Department Head
  • Ms. E. Kosztya – GLE Teacher/SERT
  • Mr. R. Ridler – SERT
  • Mr. M. Sawchuk – GLE Teacher/SERT

SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANTS

  • Ms. M. Amun
  • Ms. G. Brown
  • Ms. L. Cotto-Ortiz
  • Ms. L. Falzon-Dimech
  • Ms. N. Frendo
  • Ms. B. Mestriner-Hilario
  • Ms. L. Nair
  • Ms. J. Osatchuk
  • Mr. N. Parmar
  • Ms. D. Price
  • Ms. J. Tielemans
  • Ms. S. Tomy

COURSES

GLE10 and GLE20 Learning Strategies: Skills for Success in Secondary School

This course focuses on learning strategies to help students become more independent learners. Students will learn how to develop and apply literacy and numeracy skills, personal management skills, and interpersonal and teamwork skills to improve their learning and achievement in school, the workplace, and the community. The course helps students build confidence and motivation to pursue opportunities for success in secondary school and beyond.

GLE10 Program Emphasis

The year one GLE course places an emphasis on understanding how and what can be done to improve learning throughout secondary school including study strategies, time management skills and digital literacy skills. An important goal of GLE10 is to improve self-awareness and build self-advocacy skills needed to foster independence.

GLE20 Program Emphasis

The year two GLE course continues to build on skills, strengths and independence goals with a focus on improving organization skills A primary focus is continuing to develop critical thinking skills as these are required when students write the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT).

GLE30 and GLE40 Learning Strategies: Skills for Success After Secondary School

This course improves students’ learning and personal management skills, preparing them to make successful transitions to work, training, and/or post-secondary education destinations. Students will assess their learning abilities and use literacy, numeracy and research skills, and personal management techniques to maximize their learning. Students will investigate trends and resources to support their post-secondary employment, training, and/or education choices and develop a plan to help meet their learning and career goals.

GLE30 Program Emphasis

The year three GLE places emphasis on evaluating, planning, and choosing programs that will support possible pathways beyond secondary school. Self-advocacy continues to be developed with a focus on greater independence and developing SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-based, Timely) goals for their future. The future paths explored relate to the workplace, apprenticeships, college, and or university placements.

GLE40 Program Emphasis

The year four GLE places an emphasis on applying to and choosing a post-secondary program. Students will explore future careers and learn how to write an effective resume along with developing an understanding of financial aid, bursaries, and scholarships. Students are provided the opportunity to directly connect with staff from Accessibility Centers from various Universities and Colleges in order to have a better understanding of accessing and utilizing accommodations post-secondary. Click here at www.transitionresourceguide.ca to get accessibility information for the Universities and Colleges in Ontario.

AUTISM Scholarships and Information

Autism Ontario offers three categories of scholarships. Awards are offered to individuals on the spectrum, siblings of an individual on the spectrum, and the child of a parent on the spectrum, all entering their first year of post-secondary education. If you would like more information visit www.autismontario.com

ACCESSIBLE Learning Services

MOHAWK

Mohawk Accessible Learning Services delivers Project Connect, a workshop that will focus on self-advocacy, educational technology, Mohawk’s learning management system, and much more. There will also be sessions for parents/guardians and students with Autism. For more information contact Accessible Learning Services at 905.575.2211

HUMBER OR GUELPH-HUMBER

Humber or Guelph-Humber Accessible Learning Services offers programs for students who identify as having a disability. For more information go to, wegotyou.humber.ca

MCMASTER UNIVERSITY

McMaster University’s Student Accessibility Services (SAS) provides support to students with a disability, similar to the accommodations in place from an IEP in high school. They also offer additional supports including assistive technology, learning strategies, library accessibility services, and a transition program to help incoming students transition into university.

For more information please visit,  www.sas.mcmaster.ca/transition

Technology Education

Technological education provides students with useful and valuable skills. These skills provide them with the tools that our technology driven world demands. From drill bits to computer bits, students will get hands-on experience with a wide variety of technical possibilities. Safe work practices are learned in all shops and on all equipment.

Technology classes provide immediate skills and prepare our students for post-secondary paths such as trades & apprenticeship, college technology programs and university fields such as engineering. Many of our graduates have gone on to successful careers because of their technical skills.

Technology programs offered at Bishop Reding include:

  • Communication Technology
  • Computer Engineering
  • Construction Technology
  • Cosmetology
  • Information & Computer Technology
  • Electrical Technology
  • Hospitality
  • Technological Design
  • Transportation Technology
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Links

Continuing Education

Thomas Merton Adult and Continuing Education