The Shark Tank
Off to the Nation’s Capital!
By Angelina Zahajko
On Tuesday, February 16th, thirty-seven grade
eight students embarked on a journey to our
nation’s capital; Ottawa, Ontario. The faculty at
Island Lakes Community School decided that
the best way to learn about their Canadian
culture and history was to go out into the world
and experience it themselves. And that’s exactly
what they did.
For four days, the students were fully
immersed in the Canadian history that lives all
throughout the city of Ottawa. Whether it was
skating on the Rideau Canal, looking down at
the view from the Peace Tower, or touring the
streets of the Byward Market, there was an
activity for everyone here at the Nation’s
Capital.
Fate of Mock Accused
Hangs in the Balance
By Angelina Zahajko
Grade eight student, Chris Cicco, was accused
of theft, in the Supreme Court of Canada, at a
mock trial that had occurred that afternoon on
February 16th. The boy was accused of stealing a
pair of Air Jordans® from right under Matteo
Cerullo’s , the victim and fellow classmate’s,
nose.
When the victim was questioned about the
accident, he was appalled at his fellow
classmate’s behaviour. “I felt devastated,”
Matteo replied, during questioning after the
trial. “He ripped my balling shoes out of my
cold, little hands and I couldn’t believe what
was happening at the time. I just feel so very
bad.” But there are two sides to every story.
When the accused was questioned by our
reporters, he had very little words to say in his
Figure 1: Students (from left to right) Chris Cicco, Connor
Pagtakhan, Tailynn Dang, Harrison Staerk, Angelina
Zahajko, and Morgan Speers stand in front of the Peace
Tower, the main focus of the Parliament Building.
argumentative state. When he was asked if he
truly feels he committed the crime, he
responded, “No I didn’t do it. I’M INNOCENT!”
Chris blames his mock lawyer, Angelina Zahajko,
for the outcome of the trial. “It was my lawyer.
She lost my case. She is a bad lawyer.”
Whether it was the accused, the victim, the
lawyers, or the jurors, every person in the
Supreme Court of Canada learned a little more
about the justice system that day. The fate of
the accused still hangs in the balance. His fate
may not be sealed, but his education has
advanced by miles.
If you see this boy,
contact the authorities
immediately.
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The Shark Tank
Grade 8 Students take Hold
of the Reigns
By Angelina Zahajko-Montebello, QC
Figure 2: An action shot captured from the
maniacal sled by Jenny Gellatly in Montebello,
QC.
On Wednesday, February 17th, the Winnipeg
natives travelled across the Ontario border into
the neighboring province of Quebec. Their bus
dropped them off in the small, French
community of Montebello where they
experienced the thrill that is dog sledding. “I
loved dog sledding because it was something
I’ve never done before,” replied Morgan Speers
after returning from the trip. This was the case
for many students that participated in the
activity. It was an up close view of what
Canadian history was really like and thanks to
the amazing people maneuvering the dog sleds,
the experience was as smooth as could be. But
we can’t forget the “brave students” that
volunteered to sled alongside the experts and
took their turn at the reigns.
“While riding at the back, you learn more about
the expertise involved in running a successful
dog sled team,” Speers quoted, “I felt so lucky
to have the opportunity to ride in the back of
the dog sled. It honestly made me feel like the
alpha of the group.” No matter what position
you were in, dog sledding was an exhilarating
rush for all.
Lest we Forget; An Inspiring
Reminder Four Months Later
Figure 3: The Tombstone of the Unknown Soldier
the battlefields that took the lives of so many.
On February 17th, thirty-seven students
were reminded of the hardships and sacrifice
the soldiers of the first two World Wars made
for our country. At the Canadian War Museum,
various war memorabilia was collected over the
years from tanks, aircrafts, plaster war castes,
and even valuables as rare as Hitler’s car. From
World War One to the current attacks in Syria,
walking into this museum was like walking into
One of the main attractions at the Canadian
War Museum was the Tombstone of the
Unknown Soldier. This tombstone represents no
one, a man who died without a name or a face.
This tombstone allows us to bow our heads and
take a vow of silence for the ones who will
never know what happened to the ones who
were forgotten.
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The Shark Tank
Centennial Anniversary
turns up the Heat
By Angelina Zahajko
Straight out of the “Shark Tank”, thirty-seven
adolescents were seen in front of the
Parliament Building, on February 18th, alongside
their tour guides from Evolve Tours and the
staff that accompanied them on the trip. It was
the third day in the four day Ottawa excursion
and the classmates were scheduled to visit the
shining star of the nation; The Parliament
Building.
At the Parliament Building, the students were
educated about the advances and hardships
that hit the Parliament Building over the years,
including the fire of 1916. This tragic incident
that set the Centre Block ablaze is thought, by
historians, to be an act of arson. Jennifer
Ditchburn [The Canadian Press] claims, “It
happened in the middle of the First World War,
and there were many at the time who believed
it had been deliberately set by German
saboteurs.” Another theory comes from Marc
Montgomery [RCI-CBC] who states, “The fire
was widely rumoured to be an attack by
saboteurs, however although never
determined, it’s now thought that it began with
a carelessly discarded cigar into a waste
basket.” The only thing left of the initial Centre
Block is the Library of Parliament, due to the
fire-proof, iron doors that sealed out the
flames. The centennial anniversary of the fire
that still leaves historians wondering had past
the week before but that didn’t mean that the
topic was forgotten.
Figure 1: A panoramic view of the Library of Parliament;
the only room that survived the fire of 1916.
Figure 2: A view from the top of the Peace Tower
overlooking the Library of Parliament
Another exciting topic up for discussion,
among the students, was the very thought of
seeing Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of
Canada. On February 17th, parliament happened
to be in session and representatives were
making their way towards the House of
Commons. In fact, representative of
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Sean
Casey of the Liberal party, approached a small
group of students and inquired about their trip.
As exciting as it was,
Tailynn Dang quoted, “It
was cool that the man
went out of his way to talk
to us, but personally I just
couldn’t believe that Justin
Trudeau was in the room
next to ours. I mean, true,
we never got to see him,
but just to know he was
there was insane.”
On a normal guided tour at the Parliament
Building, one of the first stops would be the
House of Commons but, since parliament was in
session, the students had time for one final
treat; a trip to the top of the Peace Tower.
Nearly three-hundred feet in the air, the
students got a birds-eye view of the capital city
and a “picturesque landscape that they will take
with them forever.”
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The Shark Tank
Tails & Tumbles
By Angelina Zahajko
A highlight for many of the young
Winnipeggers was skating on the Rideau Canal,
the world’s largest skating rink. At a recordbreaking 7.8 kilometres, the winding river
stretches from the Dows Lake right into
Downtown Ottawa. The group had a wide
spectrum of skaters from the elite to the
beginners but no matter how much skill one
possessed, everyone found a way to have a
great time, on and off the ice. Although the
Rideau Canal is the main focus of the attraction,
many people, foreigners and locals, come out
for the ‘Beavertails’.
Figure 3: A picture of the Rideau Canal at the 1 kilometre
mark.
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