MONTHLY REPORT

February, Apuknajit, An Gearran , février

2020

Riverside students in Mrs. Ryan’s Grade 3/4  researched the community of Africville. Students learned of the injustices that the African Nova Scotian people endured.  Interactive maps were used to guide their learning and discussions. Students then reflected on the past and how to make sure that these injustices do not happen in the future. 

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Message from Regional Executive Director............2

Tweets..........................................................................3/4

Well Being........................................................................5

Math..................................................................................6

Literacy.............................................................................7

Pre-Primary.....................................................................8

Highlights from our Schools.................................9-29

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Message from the Regional Executive Director

February was African Heritage month and the theme this year was the ‘Ties that Bind’: Faith, Family and Community.  Festivities for the month kicked off with the gala held at the Membertou Trade and Convention Centre.  It was a ‘sparkling’ evening with excellent food and entertainment.   

As you make your way through this update you will see some of the many things that our schools were engaged in to promote a deeper understanding of Nova Scotia’s African Heritage.  These activities cross all subjects and really show how creative our teachers and students are.  You will see pre-primary’s learning about kente cloth, and elementary students creating their own using outcomes from art, mathematics and history.  Classes learned about the history as well as the injustices of Africville. Students and staff learned about important contributions made by African Nova Scotia citizens and enjoyed interactive presentations in dance, music, art and theatre.  Special thanks to our African Nova Scotian Education Coordinator, Lynn Crawford-Carter, for all of the work that she did in coordinating with schools to enable these presentations. 

February is also Heart Health Month and getting outside to snowshoe, ski, skate and even camp are some of the activities that schools do to promote health and well-being.  This month, middle school teachers spent two days in an interactive workshop learning about promoting ‘help-seeking’ behaviours in young males as part of ‘The Guys Program’ presented by Moe Green.  This a unique program and we are proud to be able include it as part of our middle school health and well-being focus. 

Please take a walk through this month’s update and see for yourself the wide variety of ways education is happening in our schools.  Our teachers, staff and students are doing an amazing job!    I would like to close with a quote from one of our pre-primary students that I think sums up very well the learning and relationship building about and with each other that we are promoting:

                                        ‘We all come in different shapes, sizes and colors

                                              but our guts are all the same on the inside.’

Whitney Pier Memorial thanks Robert Small for visiting their community! (left)

Being connected is at the heart of Treaty Education (above)

The @school_memorial #WESchool group was spreading some LOVE today at our local seniors’ homes in #SydneyMines! Thanks @gbhmetowe for inspiring us to #spreadthelove! @CBVRCE_NS @WEMovement @GlaceBayHigh @craigkielburger #MHSstudentsrock

Jayden, Grade One student of Brookland Elementary dressed up as what she thinks she will look like at 100 years old. She is wearing a necklace she made with 100 pink buttons for the 100th day of school!

Marion Bridge Elementary students helping the pediatrics department by making sure babies are warm and cozy and not doing without - parents, guardians be proud!

Guys' Program for Middle Schools

Nova Scotia is home to an innovative school-based approach to normalize help-seeking behaviour among teenage boys. A gendered healthy living class for youth who identify as male was created in 2012 in response to a challenge facing the province’s youth health centres. While the centres are very effective at helping youth improve their health, few young males were accessing the centres. These healthy living classes are a safe space for them to explore a range of topics that impact their health, and the health of other genders.

On January 22 /23, middle school teachers and administrators, as well as Schools Plus staff, child and youth care practitioners and regional staff, attended a two day training session with Morris (Moe) Green. He provided interactive sessions that will support the implementation of this program and build confidence in those who are delivering the content. This program has benefited many students, and we hope that it will be another support for our students.

As part of the positive health school action plan, teachers Rose Abraham and Tammy Daigle from Oceanview Education Centre were promoting February’s Heart Health Month to students and staff.  “Be Good to Your Heart” was the perfect theme to promote the week of February 10-14 during a day that is all about the heart, Valentines. Students created posters which could be found in the main hallways of the school, reminding all students to Be Good to their Heart. 

Every morning, students read mindful eating tips and information about the benefits of staying active.  Teachers delivered heart health lessons and activities during advisory classes.  During the week, students enjoyed receiving delicious red apples during an afternoon class.  Velvet MacEachern, a school volunteer, created heart-healthy stickers for the 650+ apples that were delivered to students and staff.   Grade 7 and 8 students enjoyed cleaning and preparing these apples for delivery. Some of the grade 8 students supported the red Valentine's theme by wearing red ties and red dresses to deliver their apples to each class.  

Oceanview Education Centre recognizes when schools serve healthy snacks it gives children an energy boost to keep learning and playing hard at school.  A healthy snack helps children develop lifelong healthy eating habits and can prevent chronic illness such as heart disease. Show someone your true love by giving them an apple on Valentine’s Day to keep their Heart Healthy all year long!

Be Smart, Love Your Heart

As we continue to highlight the  National Council of Teacher of Mathematics (NCTM) eight Effective Mathematics Practices, this month’s theme is to: Establish mathematics goals to  focus on learning. Effective teaching of mathematics establishes clear goals for the mathematics that students are learning, situates goals within learning progressions, and uses the goals to guide instructional decisions.

Grade five students at Harbourside Elementary working on the Frayer Model about quadrilaterals. The Frayer Model allows teachers to assess prior knowledge of students. Teachers can also use this information as formative assessment to establish mathematics goals to focus learning. 

These grade five students then used the information they learned from each other's frayer models to draw their choice of quadrilaterals with a speech bubble of attributes. The students displayed their shapes to show the classifications of quadrilaterals.

Working together in groups, the Grade 3 students at Ferrisview elementary constructed pyramids and prisms and listed attributes that were alike and different.

Mathematics Intervention is designed to provide focused, developmentally appropriate instruction, classroom-based support, and targeted intervention for identified students while immersing them in rich mathematical experiences. Intervention is a joint responsibility of the mathematics teacher, the intervention teacher, the school planning team, and the school administrative team.  Although support and intervention will target gaps in student learning, and so will begin “where students are” in their understanding, the intent of support and intervention is to vertically accelerate students to grade level in identified areas of focus. 

Intervention teachers establish clear goals daily for the students participating to support their learning along the progression of outcomes in mathematics.  Based on student evidence, the intervention teacher adapts their instructional strategies daily to support their learning.

Students at Breton Education Centre are using manipulatives to extend their understanding of fractions, and students at OVEC are building nets to understand surface area.

Anchor Charts can help to focus student learning of important terminology within the grade level expectations.  At Memorial High School, students can reference the anchor charts to support their learning while building confidence and familiarity with mathematics vocabulary.

Students in the grade 2/3 class at Ferrisview Elementary are enjoying the new Well Being resources. The books encourage students to have conversations that focus on positivity and kindness and allows them to explore the elements that contribute to their well being and the well being of others.

Grade six students at Sherwood Park Education Center celebrated African Heritage Month by working in small groups to create their version of Achi - an abstract game of strategy that originated in Northern Africa.  Some students applied their reading comprehension skills to assist them with the game’s construction. Others used writing strategies to effectively communicate directions on how the game is to be played.

Students benefit from effective strategies to grow as writers. Here English 11 students at Memorial High School practice using literacy strategies that support them in organizing their writing and citing evidence using a variety of informational, fictional, poetic, and visual texts. Students also have opportunities to confer with their teacher to discuss their writing, and through explicit teaching, feedback, and sharing, set goals that build on their strengths as writers.

HIGH SCHOOL

MIDDLE SCHOOL

ELEMENTARY

St. Anne's pre-primary program children are learning about African culture and celebrating African Heritage Month with age-appropriate art activities, stories, music and games. Early Childhood Educators have also provided an invitation, by introducing the Kente Cloth to the children in the program.  Immediately, the children were asking questions, listening intently to the story of its origins, and wanting to know more. Through the children's natural curiosity, staff and children researched Ghana and learned about homes, the fishing industry, traditional dress and dance.  After the conversation, children worked together to make their own representation of the Kente Cloth.

Pre-Primary

The  theme “Ties that Bind” resonated throughout the hallways at JBC VC Memorial School. All students under the direction of our music teacher, Susanne O'Brien, learned the lyrics to “Lift Every Voice” and performed this in the gym  during our African Heritage Rally. The focus was on local community members of African descent, their rich history and contributions both locally and globally. Students engaged in research and had an opportunity to exchange what they had learned by creating games, art, poetry and stories about their local heroes both present and past. In addition, students shared the love by creating valentines for seniors and veterans. February 27th also marked the annual  school and community reading of “I am Jazz”, followed by Pancake Day and the 100th day of school. These events helped everyone chase away the February blahs. 

One of our pre-primaries went home and told their mother we all come in different shapes, sizes and colors but our guts are all the same on the inside.

John Bernard Croak Elementary

Pre-primary Learning about Diversity and Primary making Valentines for Vets

Grade 1 Compare and Contrast Activity and Grade 4 Popsicle Stick Kente Cloth

100 Days of Schools

Highlights from Harbourside Elementary

Students enjoyed participating in an interactive presentation on African Drumming and Dance by Mirabel from the Maritime Center for African Dance.

The grade fives created a bulletin board display (left) representing the theme for African Heritage Month 2020, The Ties That Bind.

Display of African Heritage themed books and artifacts in the lobby for students and guests to view.

Grade one students’ writing telling how they will “lift their voices” to make the world a better place and Grade one students’ morning cheer promising to “lift their voices” to be kind. (below)

Grade 3 students enjoyed playing the Africville board game together.

Ms. Sampson and Ms. Barter’s grade two classes designed and created their own beautiful Kente Cloths. 

Grade three students designed their own quilt patterns while learning about the use of quilt patterns as a means of communication on the Underground Railroad.

Pre-primary students invited the grade ones to enjoy some read alouds and learn about African Heritage. 

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Bras d'Or Elementary Highlights

Valentine Buddy pictures were taken for fundraising at Bras d’Or Elementary

Students celebrating Bixby’s Students of the Month at our monthly assembly.

Grade 1 students incorporating math patterning and a culturally enriching activity of making Kente cloth.

Left: 

Grade three students, Ruby Finney and Brody Mac Lean, practicing some Mindful strategies during our monthly student assembly. As we practiced our Mindful strategies, all students repeated our Mindful Mantra: 

May you be happy, May you be healthy, May you be safe, May your life be filled with joy! 

One of the many anchor charts and rubrics co-created with teachers and students.  This anchor chart focuses on writing conventions.

Mr. Kurt Kublek and Macy Ashton, grade one student, incorporating technology with Ozobots and Quiver.  So much fun!!

Shipyard Elementary Highlights

Restorative Practices

Students in Mrs. Beaton’s Primary class along with Mrs. Element’s grade 3 class participates in a Sharing Circle. Each morning all classrooms do a morning “Check in” as a way to build community and strengthen relationships.