Superintendent’s Update

Dear Parents and Caregivers:

In December, we are preparing for holiday celebrations, and learning about and championing human rights for the Dec. 1-31 - Universal Human Rights Month.

Wellbeing and Wisdom

In December, we are focused on the core values of Wellbeing and Wisdom in the 2022-2027 District Strategic Plan. Wellbeing is fostering opportunities to promote emotional, psychological, and physical wellbeing for all students and staff. Through consultation with the Aboriginal Education Council, we learned that the “Beaver” represents “Wisdom” and is known to guide communities through role modelling hard work.

École Lloyd George Elementary School

Principal Dumas, Vice Principal Hurren, and I reviewed their word clouds representing student and staff ideas about what it means to belong in their school community. The words, “comfort” and “comfortable”, “safety”, and “honesty” were some of the prominent words in their Wordles. When we entered the computer lab that had been converted into a sensory room, the entry sign was “BIENVENUE AU LABO” (Laboratoire d'Apprentissage, de Bien-être et d'Opportunités. In English, they say LAB Learning And Belonging). Two staff were preparing for a school celebration of a family and one student was reading quietly. This is an inclusive space where students are invited to decompress. “Multipurpose spaces are important to invite students into safe spaces where everyone can engage in a time away from the usual busyness of the daily life in school,” said Mme Dumas. We continued to visit classes. Grade 7s shared their study of seven countries’ celebrations at this time of year. Grades 2, 3 and 4 students were doing English and French language arts activities and one Gr. 3 class was having a “pyjama day” because they had earned it from reading for over 100 days. In the learning commons, students were reading and taking out books. Principal Dumas shared that the “loose parts” boards are very popular at lunchtime, and she added, “We have been collecting ‘street data’ to learn students’ perspectives and a grade one student entered to play loose parts at lunch and said, ‘I’ve been waiting all day for this!’”. We concluded our class visits in Kindergarten and students were making designs using tangrams, reading, drawing, and writing.

International Day of People with Disabilities- December 3, 2022

In the 2022-2027 District Strategic Plan, our vision is fostering educated and resilient citizens empowered to contribute to a diverse, inclusive, caring, and sustainable society. As part of our collective efforts to enact this vision, we raise awareness of certain days in local, provincial, national, and international calendars. The annual observance of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) on December 3rd was proclaimed in 1992 by the United Nations General Assembly resolution 47/3. Read more.

Student Equity Council

The District is actively engaging with students from diverse backgrounds to form a Student Equity Committee, who will be creating a survey for students in the district to reflect on their lived experiences within the school district. From information gathered, the committee will be creating a plan to address human rights education in the areas of racism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism and ableism. SD73 is grateful for the generous financial grant received from the Stollery Foundation to carry out this important work. Thank you to Assistant Superintendent Mochikas for her leadership in applying for this grant and bringing alive the Cultural and Identity Priority–To develop a sense of identity in individuals and cultural safety and humility in communities– in the 2022-2027 District Strategic Plan.

Minister Whiteside’s Call to Action

Minister Whiteside’s call to action to take part in 16 days of activism against gender-based violence began on November 24, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and continues until December 10, Human Rights Day. Read more.

No School on December 5, 2022

Staff professional learning on December 5th means no school for K-12 students.

Preparing for Schools of Choice Registration and Kindergarten Open House

For parents who have children entering Kindergarten, join us in January and February to learn more about schools of choice and registration in Kindergarten. Read more here. Thank you to the District English Learning Team for supporting learners to transition into Kindergarten, an important part of the Intellectual Development Priority in the 2022-2027 District Strategic Plan.

I hope that you have a weekend filled with activity, fun, and rest.

Rhonda Nixon, PhD

Superintendent