Instead of the traditional gathering in the gym with dignitaries and guests to observe Remembrance Day, COVID restrictions resulted in an online gathering through a video put together by students and teachers.

This year was the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII. The video that was made this year focused on how to continue that tradition of commemorating Remembrance Day with the younger generations. In an effort to experience the observance in ‘real-time,’ Teachers displayed their screens joining a Microsoft Teams meeting where the video was shared.

The video involved efforts by many people and was well-received. The video included the Canadian National anthem, snippets from the Canadian military, students in cadets, and students from many different classes such as History, Social Studies, Dance, Leadership, Choir, and Art.

Students involved in making the video were glad to be a part of the event. Students felt the significance of being involved in the making of the video. “Being involved was very important to me because I was apart of something that educated and spread awareness to our school about Remembrance Day and the importance of us to continue spreading awareness for the fallen soldiers that fought for our freedom,” said grade 11 Riverside student Nicole Phillips.

The video was put together by Mr. Brian Barazzuol, Ms. Caroline Ross, and Mr. Ben Lepore. The various sections of the video were filmed independently and edited together into a 25-minute video. The recording was planned in October and took one week to record and another week to edit.

According to Mr. Barazzuol, there were a few challenges they faced when preparing for the Remembrance Day video. Everything was filmed during flex time which is only 30 minutes, and there were some difficulties in coordinating student participation and figuring out when to present the video to everyone with the lost class time and quarter one coming to an end.

There were also a few challenges when presenting the video to the classes. Sharing the video on Microsoft teams was slow and choppy. Many teachers found other ways to play the video, rather than watching it on teams to prevent further glitches. This led to classes watching the video at different paces, but everyone watched the full video.

After all the hard work, time, and effort from the staff and students, Remembrance Day was greatly celebrated on time and in the best possible way that it could have been commemorated this year…

Students can watch the video again HERE