Today we had our Remembrance Ceremony at the hall (last minute change of venue). It was a great success! Trace and Anna were the MC's and did a fantastic job, and our entire student body worked together to make the ceremony went off without a hitch. We even added a new tradition of laying a wreath at the Cenotaph in Memorial Park. Thank you to everyone who helped and participated. Hopefully everyone will take a moment on Sunday to think about the sacrifices that the men and women in our country have made and are still making every day to ensure we have our freedom. Thank you.

Welcome Back!

I’m a little late to update my blog, but now that school is back into the swing of things I would like to officially welcome everyone back for another exciting school year. I hope that everyone had a wonderful summer and that you are all surviving this awful fall weather that we are having.

This year our school is focusing on several initiatives to help our student’s become more resilient. Mrs. Mohr is in the process of teaching the middle years and high school students about the Circle of Courage. The Circle of Courage is based off the work of Dr. Martin Brokenleg. Dr. Brokenleg believes that we need to teach our children the skills of mastery, belonging, generosity and independence in order for them to become highly successful, resilient, life-long learners. I think his message is very important and it has really made me think about the way we approach education. A lot of times the focus is on student academic achievement, but the Circle of Courage points out that it is our job to make well-rounded students who can be successful in all aspects of their life.

This year we have changed our Student Representative Council so that all students, grades 7-12 are on the SRC. So far the students have been very willing participants and we have some great ideas for this year. The SRC came up with a new mission statement: “Creating positivity that brings everyone together and to provide opportunity.” This will be the SRC focus for the year and we are very excited about it. The SRC will be doing different fundraisers throughout the year and all of the money will be going towards purchasing athletic uniforms for our sporting clubs and towards purchasing various musical instruments that can be used by the students.

The SRC will be hosting the annual Terry Fox run on Friday, Sept 28^th at 1:00 pm. This event is open to the community and we would love to see people come out and support a great cause. Students have pledge sheets and should be canvasing around town.

The 28^th is also Orange Shirt Day which is a day to bring awareness to the survivors of the Residential School System in Canada. Please wear your best orange gear and join us on Friday for both Orange Shirt Day and the Terry Fox Run.

There was exciting news out of the province this week that more than 75% of students across Saskatchewan are now reading at or above grade level. We still have a long ways to go, but this is substantial progress from where we once were.  Star-Phoenix news article_Reading

The PAA 7-9 class is currently taking Food Studies (Home Ec. for people over the age of 30), and they have committed to cooking all the food for harvest dinner this year. This is a major undertaking, but I know all of the students are up for the challenge.

I would like welcome all of our new Kindergarten students to the school this year. We are excited to have Nora Horn, Madisyn Johnson, and Giuliana Vecchio joining our family. I would also like to welcome Aubree Johnson (Grade 2), Daniellyn Johnson (Grade 5) back to our school.

Sincerely

Geoff Goldsworthy

Summer Break is upon us

The summer vacation is here; hopefully everyone will have a relaxing and enjoyable break. While the break provides us with some much needed rest, it is also a time when a lot of students backslide and lose some of the new skills they have picked up over the school year. There are some very simple ways to avoid this backslide without making students feel like they are doing school work. Board games, card games, and dice games are not only great ways to spend time together as a family, they also help students practice their math skills. Strategy board games allow students to use their critical thinking, and sitting down and reading an entertaining book is not only relaxing but it helps to improve our reading skills.

We have had a great year at the school and hopefully next year will be the same or better. In the fall we will have some significant change. Mrs. Bailey Thiessen is moving to the community of Snow Lake, Manitoba, to be closer to her husband’s work. Mrs. Thiessen has been a very important member of our school. She started at our school on a replacement contract teaching P.E. She then filled in for Mrs. Orosz as the K-1-2 teacher for a year, and for the last three years she has been our 5/6 teacher. Mrs. Thiessen’s classroom was always well organized and innovative, and her contribution to our school will be greatly missed.

Our school community will also be growing next year, as Mrs. Orosz is expecting her second child in November. This is very exciting news, but it also means we will be adding another new staff member in October. Congratulations Mrs. Orosz, we can’t wait to see you back here in 2019! The elementary end of our school will look very different next year, but I am positive our students will still receive an amazing education. On that note, please join me in welcoming Mrs. Meghan Vecchio as our new grade 3/4 teacher. Mrs. Currey will be moving to grade 5/6.

Since it is the end of June, we will also be saying goodbye to our five graduates. Johnny Campeau, Blake Guest, Jon Hart, Jessica McCormick and Scott Spedding have been amazing ambassadors for our school and our community. Each of these unique individuals has made our school a better place. They are kind, compassionate and always willing to lend a helping hand. Bjorkdale School would like to wish you all the best in the future, and thank you to Jessica for the great cake.  

Before I end, I just want say thank you to the community for being so supportive. Our archery program would not have been a possibility without your tremendous support. I would like to thank our students for their hard work over this past year. It is easy to underestimate how tiring and difficult learning can be, so thank you for always doing your best. Thank you to the staff for all the things you do to make this school a wonderful place. One of the best things about working in this profession is being with people who are deeply invested in the well-being of students.

Have a great summer! See you again in the fall! 

Using Technology Responsibly

I recently attended a workshop on Digital Threat Assessment. This course was designed to help educators understand the technology that students are currently using, and how to ensure those students are using this technology responsibly. The workshop also provided a lot of good information for parents. I have included a link to the website at the bottom of this post, and I am also including a contract that a mother gave her thirteen year old son when she purchased him a cell phone (it is meant to be humorous, but there are also some really salient points about responsible use of technology).

Mother's contract for cell phone use

Using technology responsibly_Parent resources

Spring edition

It looks as though spring is finally here, which is wonderful to see, unless you are a custodian. Please make sure your children have extra shoes and clothes during the wet season.

Badminton season is wrapping up and I would like to thank four young men who will be leaving our school at the end of June. Blake Guest, Johnny Campeau, Jon Hart, and Scott Spedding have all participated in Sr. Badminton for the last three years. They have not always had great success, but they have always played hard, and have always been respectful sportsman. It has been my honour to have “coached,” these fine individuals, and I want to thank them for being great ambassadors for our school over the years.

Report cards will be coming out on April 20^th; please take the time to review the report card with your child. The marking system can be confusing at times, but the students understand it and should have good insight into the areas they are doing well in and the areas in which they need to improve.

The community potluck is at 5:30pm on April 24^th at the hall. Please come and join us for supper. It is a great event for community, staff and students to interact with one another. There will be an archery demonstration in the gym after supper for anyone who would like to check out the new equipment. See you there.  

Finally, before the break we suddenly and unexpectedly lost Janessa Pauls. Janessa was a Grade Ten student, who started at our school in January of 2017. Although Janessa was fairly new to our school, she had an amazing impact on our staff and our students. Her cheerfulness, zest for life and kindness will never be forgotten. Please extend thoughts and prayers to her family during this time. We love you Janessa and we miss you.

Teacher and Staff Appreciation

The year is really flying along. It is hard to believe that it is already the February break; hopefully the weather gets a little warmer so that the students can actually spend some time outside, instead of just being stuck in the house. It is Teacher and Staff appreciation week across the province and I just want to thank the amazing staff at Bjorkdale School for everything they do to help our children. I once asked a veteran administrator what he looks for when he hires a teacher, and his words have always stuck with me. He said he did not look for a person who is up to date on all the new practices or a person who has strong classroom management; instead, he looked for a person who cares about kids. He said if you find someone that just wants to work and help students, then they will figure out the rest and become great teachers. We are very lucky at this school to have a staff filled with people who deeply care about the well-being of the students. So if you see one of the staff members around the community this week, please take the time to thank them for what they do.

Thank you to everyone who came out and supported the Telemiracle Tea and Art Auction. It always amazes me how much our community is willing to give in order to support a great cause. The Art Auction alone raised $1538 for Telemiracle. I want to thank Beth Bentz for the amazing work she has been doing with our students by teaching art classes after school. Beth is a wonderful talent, and it is awesome that our students get to spend time learning from her.

The archery equipment is here and our program should be starting as soon as we get our net set up. I want to thank everyone in the community who donated money so that we could purchase this equipment. It is great to be able to provide our students with another extra-curricular opportunity, and one that does not require a large student population in order to participate.

The Ski-trip is booked for March 17^th, which is a Saturday. Forms for this trip will be handed out after the break. It would be great to see all of our students and parents participate in this event. A reminder that students in grade three and under require adult supervision, or they will not be given a lift ticket and they will have to stick to the bunny hill for the day.

For those people who know me, I am history person.  I believe we learn best through experiences, whether these experiences are negative or positive. Therefore, as I watched the terrible news from the shooting in Florida, I heard a father say something that we should all try to remember, especially with it being Family Day next week. "Remember to Love your kids, hold your kids, kiss your kids. And don't ever, ever miss the chance to tell them how much you love them."  

Have a great break.

Happy Holidays from Bjorkdale School

Last night was our Christmas Concert, and today is our last day of school before the break. I cannot believe how quickly the first half of the year has gone by. I would like to thank the staff for all of their hard work this year. Your hard work makes sure that our children receive an excellent education. I want to thank the students for all of their hard work. Our students really are the greatest. They are kind, compassionate and generous. They make this building a wonderful place to come each and every day. Finally, I would like to thank the Community for all of their support this year. The community of Bjorkdale is amazing and the amount of support they provide the school is outstanding. We were able to raise $5000 for archery equipment, because of the wonderful generosity of the individuals and the businesses in our area. I cannot say thank you enough to everyone who contributed. This has been an amazing year so far, and I know that 2018 will be even better. The staff of Bjorkdale School would like to wish everyone Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. See you on January 3rd.