My name is Alaynah Buurmeester. I’m 12 years old and I go to Horse Lake Elementary School.
I am very happy to be given the job of writing a monthly column for you. Every month, I’ll be writing what is going on at my school.
Last week, our Grade 6 and 7 students participated in volleyball tournaments.
The Grade 7 volleyball tournament was held at the Mile 108 Elementary School. We came in second place. Everybody showed great effort and sportsmanship.
The Grade 6 tournament was held at our very own school, Horse Lake Elementary. They also came in second place.
Great job by all the students who participated, and a big thank-you goes to our coaches.
The Grade 7 students were also lucky to make First Nations drums. Mike Case came to our school to teach us everything he knows about drum-making.
We made one big drum and two smaller hand drums using a moose hide and deer hide. We made the drums from scratch.
The process took a long time. It included taking the hair off the deer and moose hides, tanning them, making the drum rings, and much more. Mr. Case taught us the art of drum-making in hopes that as we get older, we will teach the younger kids, so this art will never get lost in history.
Also these past weeks, teacher Mike Davidson has arranged a food bank. Students have cheerfully decorated some boxes that fit right in with the jolly season, so people know where to donate. We are trying to get as many children and parents to donate to the food bank for the holiday season as possible (non-perishable food items only).
Speaking about Christmas, our PAC is putting on a Christmas store so children can get some Christmas shopping done at their own school – very generous, if you ask me. The store will be open at recess and lunch until Dec. 13.
Some Grade 7 students volunteered to wrap the presents, so if you’re not the best wrapper, don’t worry, we’ve got it covered.
Thank you for reading my column. I’ll update every month, so come back next month to see what happens next at our school.
Alaynah Buurmeester is a Grade 7 student at Horse Lake Elementary School.