The Ides of March have come!

So, the Ides of March is a day on the Roman calender that corresponds with March 15th. Historically, it was a day marked by supernatural occurences, omens and prophecies - and notoriously the date of Julius Caesar's assassination in 44BC. His death was a pivotal moment in Roman history - becoming one of the events that marked the transition from the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire!

To mark this very important day, we thought we'd share a few hilarious memes. Read 'em and weep.

                                       - The Lockerbie Comedy Club

What is the grossest sandwich you can imagine?

  "When I walked into my kitchen, I immediately noticed an unpleasant aroma coming from the direction of the counter. When I looked, I saw the grossest  sandwich I have ever seen. My immediate reaction was repulsion mixed with disappointment because  I was incredibly hungry. The bread was completely covered in mould and had turned  'blueish-green' from the fungus that had grown all over it. Inside, there were slices of tomato, lettuce and pickles on top of a spoiled meat patty. Then I realized that it was the sandwich I began eating last week! My mum must have found it under my bed and placed it here to show me [angrily] later. I'm going to be in trouble. " 

  "This sandwich had a frozen steak, with an old black salad on it. The bread was covered by mold and many bugs were eating it. Between the steak and the salad, a ton of orange marmalade was overflowing onto the plate … The mayo was mixed with chunks of black chocolate. The smell was indescribable, it was the worst sandwich I’ve ever seen."

                                                    Two fictional tales by Justin Brooks and Baptiste Faure.

Study Tips!

With exams right around the corner, here are some tips to help you prepare to SUCCEED!

1. Pick a Place and a Time

Everyone has their own idea about the best place and time to study. Whether it's your bedroom at night or the library after school, find a study space and a regular study time that works for you and stick with it.

• Set Up Your Study Space - Your study space should be quiet, comfortable and distraction-free. It should make you feel happy and inspired. Decorate it with your favourite pictures or objects. If you want to listen to music or burn incense, pick a space that lets you do that.
• Find Your Best Time - Some people work better in the morning. Others work better at night. Work out which time suits you and plan to study then. Don't study much later than your usual bedtime - pushing yourself late at night can make  you too tired to study properly.

2. Study Every Day

If you study a little bit every day you'll be continually reviewing things in your mind. This helps you understand things. It also helps you avoid the stress of last-minute cramming.

Early in the year an hour or two a night might be enough to stay on top of things. Later in the year you might need to study more each day.

If you're finding it hard to find time to study, cut back on some (but not all!) of your other activities. Prioritising study might mean spending less time online, or it might mean cutting back on shifts at work, or giving weekend sport a miss for a while.

3. Plan Your Time

It helps to have some plans in motion so you can make the most of your study time.

• Set Alarms - Set alarms to remind you about your study plans. A regular reminder keeps you honest and your plans on track.
• Use a Wall Planner - Stick a calendar or wall planner up so you can see it whenever you're studying. Mark it up with important dates, like exams and assignment due dates. Use it to block out your regular study timetable too.
• Make To-Do Lists - Lists break tasks down into manageable chunks. At the start of the week, make a list of the things that you need to have done by the end of the week. Make a to-do list at the start of each study session too, so that you're clear about what you need to be doing with your time. 
• Set Time Limits - Before you start your study session, have a look at your to-do list and give yourself a set time to spend on each task. If you don't get something done in the set time, consider whether it's the best use of your time to keep going with it, or to start working on something else.

4. Discover Your Learning Style

Most of us have a preferred way of learning. Get to know your learning style and study in the ways you learn best.

• Auditory learners learn by listening. If you’re an auditory learner you could try reading your notes aloud and discussing them with other people. You might like to record key points and play them back.
• Visual learners learn by seeing. If you’re a visual learner you could use colours in your notes and draw diagrams to help represent key points. You could try to remember some ideas as images.
• Tactile/kinesthetic learners learn by doing. If you’re a tactile/kinesthetic learner you could use methods like role-playing or building models to revise key points.

5. Review and Revise

At least once a week you should go back over the things you've studied in class. Thinking things over can help you to understand the concepts and help you remember when you need them the most.

• Quiz Yourself - Get a friend or family member to quiz you on key concepts. Offer to help your friends with their work too. Quizzes are great ways to get confident about what you know and find out what you still need to learn.
• Make your Own Study Materials - Think up some practice exam questions or create your own flash cards to help you study. This way you learn it all twice: once when you make the study materials and once when you use them to revise.

These tips are only some of the things you can do to get the most out of your studying. You might already have other things that work better for you. Find out what your friends do when they're studying. Maybe your teachers have some good recommendations too.

Whatever it is, whatever strategy you come up with, when you find something that works for you, put it into practise and go for it!

Source: http://www.youthcentral.vic.gov.au/studying-training/studying-tips-resources/top-10-study-tips

By: Meghan Pace

Motivational Monday - Love Has No Labels

Love is Love.

Celebrating Lockerbie Student's achievements this week!

Image: [Emilie - far left] The Barbados Women's National Rugby Team During Recent Tour Of Trinidad & Tobago.

This week, three of our students - Emilie, Rebecca & Zoe - have been featured in several local media outlets - one of which being, 'Barbados Today,' for their successes in extra-curricular activities! We're so proud of their successes that we wanted to share them with you, too! 

..... And the prize for Research and Product Development goes to Rebecca Eames and Zoe King!

"Hosted by the Barbados Entrepreneurs Foundation (BEF), The Student Market Place was the culmination of weeks of hard work and sacrifice by students from various secondary schools, who all participated in the BEF $20 challenge.

Students were given $20, with which they had to start up and successfully run a business – keeping clear records of their finances and other business decisions. In addition each school was assigned an advisor; an individual with entrepreneurship experience that would provide mentorship throughout the programme. The students were judged based on their level of creativity, how they were able to work in teams as well as the impact their business would have on the environment."

There was no doubting the level of creativity on display, as products ranged from sweet treats to hand-made fans. Rebecca Eames and Zoe King of Lockerbie College were among those pushing the barriers of creativity with their natural skin care products.

Both young ladies told Loop News of their love for health and beauty products and it was for this reason that they decided to make and sell coffee scrubs and rose bath salts. When asked how they rated the experience, both believed that the challenge was an interesting one but not without its ups and downs. “We both do Principles of Business but this challenge allows us to see the practical side and gain experience in operating a business we are both passionate about,” they noted." - LOOP News, Barbados

- The Lockerbie College Family

Wonders of the World: Lake Hillier

By coincidence, I came across this image of Lake Hillier; a lake that lies on the edge of Middle Island, Western Australia. It immediately caught my eye because of its beautiful pink colour. I didn't think it was possible for a geographical landform to be pink.

Since it was hidden away by dense woodlands of Eucalyptus trees, it was only discovered in January, 1802, by the explorer, John Thistle. They conducted many experiments to find out why it was the colour it was and it was found that it was saturated with salt.

There are no any fish in Lake Hillier - the only living thing that lives there are microscopic organisms called, 'Dunaliella Salina.' This organism is actually what causes the water to have the pink colour. The water can be used to help people with a number of ailments, including: heartburn, stomach aches, nausea and indigestion.

I hope that someday I will be able to visit Lake Hillier. 

By: Beth Eames [Principal Junior Blogger]

Fashion Article Series: The Wonderful World of PLAID

1960's: Plaid

For my second article for the fashion series, I decided to focus on plaid because it’s a pattern and fabric that dates back very far and is still fashionable to this day. I wanted to share the journey of a piece of cloth, originating as a sign of rebellion into a modern day fashion statement. 

Plaid first came into fashion in the late 17^th century in Scottish society.  Plaid was a symbol for rebellion against England and was banned for four decades (wow). Wearing plaid after the Scottish rebellion in 1746 was forbidden. By the 1960’s, plaid fabrics were used in skirts and shirts for women and sometimes seen worn by men, usually worn for business or working looks. 

Because of its fascinating past, plaid tends to be conceived as a style associated with rebelling against society in some way - living on the edge. During the punk rock era, the 70’s - 80’s,  plaid was a staple!

During the Seattle music scene of the 90’s, plaid was seen again as somewhat of a rebellious symbol. Kurt Cobain from the band "Nirvana" often rocked a plaid flannel shirt, and he got that trend going for 'trendy' males too. Plaid went quiet for a while after that, but recently has made a comeback with both hipsters and main stream fashion.

Written By: Rebecca Eames [Principal Blogger]