Red Rock Indian Band youth takes home gold medal at provincial competition
By Rick Garrick
RED ROCK — St. Hilary Catholic School Grade 6 student and Red Rock Indian Band citizen Rodney Wawia recently won the gold medal at the Skills Ontario Junk Drawer Races 2021-22 Far Northern Ontario regional level Paper Glider Plane Virtual Competition.
“We are really excited to see where this goes for Rodney — it’s been a very positive experience for him and very exciting our entire board to watch his success,” says Paul Tsekouras, a superintendent of education at Superior North Catholic District School Board (SNCDSB). “Regionally he did receive the gold medal so he is moving on to the next round, and we are really excited in supporting his efforts. So congratulations to Rodney, it was quite an amazing effort on his part.”
Judy Wawia, director of education at Red Rock Indian Band and chair of the Board of Trustees at SNCDSB, was pleased to see Rodney’s gold medal-winning achievement in the Far Northern Ontario regional level Paper Glider Plane Virtual Competition.
“[I’m] very proud to see that our children are competing in events like this and winning,” Judy says in an e-mail comment. “I hope this will encourage other young students to enter competitions.”
Rodney and the other competitors had to design and build their paper glider planes out of approved household materials, including paper products, sticks and adhesives and connectors.
“The students had to make their own plane, also do a blueprint of the plane and then record it flying,” Tsekouras says. “It’s really great that Skills Ontario is allowing these competitions to run virtually, normally they would run face-to-face. Kudos for them making it virtual and creating ways for students to stay engaged with these very rich, authentic learning experiences.”
A video of Rodney launching his paper glider plane during the St. Hilary Catholic School Flight Test for the Skills Ontario Paper Glider Plane Virtual Competition is posted online.
“It’s incredible to see what kids come up with in these competitions,” Tsekouras says. “They are given the parameters and then through their own creativity and ingenuity they create something and certainly his plane, from what I saw from the video but also from the pictures of the plane, is quite durable.”
The Paper Glider Plane Virtual Competition was open to Grade 6-7 students from across Ontario, with regional competitions held across the province. Championship round submissions are due by Feb. 23, with the winners to be announced on March 23.
“We have been, as a board, very involved in promoting anything that Skills Ontario is putting out because we believe in giving students those rich, authentic experiential learning opportunities,” Tsekouras says. “The engagement of our students is so key, especially now through the (COVID-19) pandemic. If there is a way that we could get students learning more hands-on, I think it’s such a huge plus.”
The Skills Ontario Junk Drawer Races also include a Gravity Powered Robot Walker Race Competition for Grades 2-3, a Cardboard Car Race Competition for Grades 4-5, a Hydraulic Crane Challenge Competition for Grade 8, and a Cardboard Hovercraft Race Competition for Grades 9-12.
“If there’s a way for them to explore skilled trades and technologies, that’s what is great about Skills Ontario,” Tsekouras says. “That’s really exploring those pathways for our youngest students and showing them what opportunities and what sectors exist for them later on, so we’re really happy about these opportunities that they provide.”
Information about the Skills Ontario Junk Drawer Races is posted online.