◄ March ~ April 2018 ~ May ►

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 Happy Easter

2 NO SCHOOL

3 School re-opens

4 5 6 7

8 9 10 Kindergarten Vision Screening @ 10:40 ************** Public Library here ************* Guys Read @ lunch

11 Wild Hair Day

12 13 14

15 16 NID DAY No School

17 Guys Read @ lunch

18 Hot Lunch—Pizza

19 20 21

22 Earth day

23 24 Guys Read @ lunch

25 26 Take me outside day *********** Early Dismissal @ 2pm

27 28

29 30 PAC Meeting @ 6:30

Notes:

All school information is also on the

above site

Check out our new website:

https://www.sd6.bc.ca/school/mmes

Please return report card covers,

comment sheets and envelopes.

Thanks

Wow, March was a busy couple of

weeks. Hopefully everyone was able to

enjoy some fun and relaxation. We are

now on the home stretch to the end of

the year. We are all looking forward to

Spring and with it warmer weather for

us all to enjoy.

Guys Read will be starting on Tuesday, April

10th and will con-tinue each Tuesday for 8

weeks. All boys in Gr. 5-7 are welcome to

attend with Ms. Pattie May @ lunch. This programme combines a book club experience with related games, snacks, and creative projects, and engages boys with a variety of reading material (humour, graphic/comic novels, thrillers, science fiction, non-fiction) and activities that make reading social and fun.

FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DESK

Spring has Sprung (or at least it’s trying)!

I always take a moment in April to take a deep breath—to get ready for what

educators call the month of April/May/June. The next three months will come with a

storm of activity for our students, and then the school year will come to an end. Term

three is often a challenge for students as they feel the warmth of Spring calling to

them like a long, lost, friend. For educators, it’s the last academic push. The last

chance to boost academic progress for the school year. For parents, it’s a great time

to ask children what successes children have been proud of this year and to

question them about what they would like to accomplish, academically, by the end of

the school year. Now is not a time to wind down. Take a moment, yourself, to reflect

on the academic gains your child has made this school year. What would you like for

her/him to experience before June? Academic conversations at home can do

wonders for students’ perseverance in this home stretch.

M.M.E.S. Vision - Drafting Committee Formed

Thanks to Laura Favreau and Brenda Danyluk for joining our

M.M.E.S. Visioning Committee. This committee will take a

look at stakeholder feedback and draft a few short vision

statements that communicate what our school community

values. If you’d like to add yourself to the committee, please

email Alyssan.Gauthier@sd6.bc.ca.

Madeline Rangel and

Kain Langridge

receive medals for their

winning crane design at

the Mega Maker

Regional Skills

Competition in

Cranbrook, B.C. Thanks,

Karl Sindholt for

registering our M.M.E.S.

students in this design

competition!

April, 2018

Join Us In The Classroom:

Click on the above QR Code, or scan

this code with a QR code reader on

your phone or tablet to view a video

from the Mega Maker Regional Skills

Design Competition in Cranbrook last

month!

A message from Alyssan Gauthier

Vice Principal, Martin Morigeau Elementary School

Photo Caption

Join Us In The Classroom:

Don’t forget to click on the link (or scan the

QR code by downloading a free QR Code app

on your phone or tablet) to check out Madelineand Kain as they work on their winning crane

design at the Mega Maker Regional Skills

Design Competition in Cranbrook last month.

Each month, we’ll feature a student video to

profile learning that reflects the Revised BC

Curriculum.

“Learning for Life”

Martin Morigeau Elementary School

Box 69, 4891 Beatty Ave

Canal Flats, B.C. V0B 1B0

Phone: (250) 349-5665

Our focus at M.M.E.S. is real-world,

hands-on, experiential education.

If you have suggestions for how we can

make your child’s learning adventure more

relevant, please let us know!

Marguerite Blanchard and Taya Nesbitt, as well as

Emily Rangel and Ryan Dixon show off their catapult designs!

A Message From Mr. Carriere, Superintendent of Schools, SD6

Dear Parent/Guardian:

Get ready to Share your Thoughts with Thoughtexchange to help us gather the information we need to set District Directions 2023 for Rocky Mountain School District No. 6. District Directions will be the key focus areas for our School District for the next 5 years.

Thoughtexchange is an online learning process that allows us to reach out to all our District partners. This Exchange enables us to hear their thoughts and learn about their priorities.

You will be invited to participate in an Exchange that flows through three steps:

1. Share – answer open-ended questions about education in our District

2. Star – review ideas from other stakeholders and rate the ideas you like best

3. Discover – learn what is important to the community as a whole

You will soon receive an Email invitation to participate from our District. If you haven’t received an Email by April 16, please visit the SD6 website for the Thoughtexchange link to participate or Email lee.erikson@sd6.bc.ca and request the link to participate.

To learn more about the process visit Thoughtexchange or email support@thoughtexchange.com.

Thanks, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Paul Carriere

Superintendent of Schools

Rocky Mountain School District 6 is working hard to bring SOGI (Sexual Orientation Gender Identity) information to parents and students. Check out this link to learn more about SOGI:

Martin Morigeau Elementary School

READY, SET, LEARN

Friday, May 11th, 2018

*Please pass this information on to families you know with three year olds.*

Martin Morigeau Elementary School will be hosting a Ready, Set, Learn event on Friday, May 11h, 2018 from 9:00 – 10:30 a.m.

Children, who will turn three and four years old between January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2018, and their parents, are invited to attend.

This event is to make early connections with school and community contacts for families with young chil-dren. Families will receive helpful information and an age appropriate book for each three year old to take home.

There will be a presentation and school tour for children and parents, and an opportunity for parents to ask questions about early learning. There will be Circle Time for the children and they will also enjoy some play time and a snack.

Register by phoning Holly Pietrosky @ 250-349-5665 before May 7th, 2018.

Sponsored by: Ministry of Education, Ministry of Children and Family Development, Ministry of Health Services

Hosted by: School District No. 6 (Rocky Mountain) in partnership with the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy

Love to LearnA programme for parents and their children ages 3-5 years old. This 10 week programme will help parents recognize and support their children’s emerging literacies, and build pre-kindergarten skills. Love to Learn provides shared experiences for children that are centered on fun and engaging play-based learning activities.

K/1 Skating Days

Vermicompost (worm poo!) harvesting A few brave souls from our intermediate class harvest our

vermicompost (worm poo!). To harvest the vermicompost, students

cone the poo (including worms), then take off the tip off of the cone

in stages, as the light-sensitive worms burry to the

bottom of the cone. This worm poo is what we’ve

harvested from feeding our food scraps to our com-

posting worms this year! Vermicompost is amazing,

free and organic, plant fertilizer. We will use it to feed

our school plants and the native plants we will grow

this spring!

Our grade 2/3 class celebrates St. Patrick’s Day in style!

K/1

Ski

Day

Sooo

Much

Fun!!

Grade 2/3 mapping the

school yard and ski day.

Gr. 5-7 At DTSS Basketball Jamboree

The Gr. 5-7 classes from

the district. What a

great opportunity for

our students to meet

and interact with their

upcoming peers!

SKI DAYS

Thank you FHS Ski

Hill and Chris Veen

for all your work

putting this together

for our school!

Career Day

@ DTSS

What’s in the bag?

Spuds in Tubs!

HEALTH PROMOTING SCHOOLS NEWSLETTER

MARCH 2018

Teaching and Learning

Healthy Schools Information Sharing

The following School Districts have a Healthy Schools tab on their websites. Take a look at all

the great information available from: SD 5, SD 8, SD 20,

SD 22, SD 23, SD 27, SD 73, SD 83

Teaching Toolkits

The Interior Health Website now has a section with resources for teachers on a variety of health

related topics. For more information see: Teaching Toolkits.

ABORIGINAL

First Nations Parents Club

The key role of parents in ensuring the educational success of their children

The First Nations Parents Club resource acknowledges the key role that parents play in the

educational success of their children. It also supports the encouragement of First Nations ways

of knowing and First Nations languages, culture, history, experiences, values and beliefs into

the classroom and school environment. The purpose of this resource is to provide an overview

of educational terminology, the roles of various professionals who work within school

communities and the rights of parents in the education system in order to support First

Nations parents in taking an active role in their children's education. While the resource uses

the term “parents” for convenience and simplicity, the information included in the resource is

applicable to grandparents, family members, Elders, guardians, caregivers and all other adults

who contribute to the lives of First Nations Children. The First Nations Parents Club resource

was created by the First Nations Education Steering Committee (FNESC), and the First

Nations Schools Association (FNSA).

MENTAL HEALTH

Teaching and Learning

Stress Lessons: Tools for Resiliency

A new resource by The Psychology Foundation of Canada for Grades 9-12

Stress can be our friend in moderation, but not if it’s more than we can manage. When our

stress systems get overworked, we are at increased risk for various mental and physical health

problems in the long term and will have a hard time staying focused and doing our best in the

short term.

Stress Lessons: Tools for Resiliency” is full of psychologically-sound strategies and tools, is

designed for education professionals and their partners, who want to help youth develop

resilience – the ability to not just survive but thrive in our exciting and stress-filled world – and

positive coping skills. With components for teachers, counsellors, administrators, parents and

caregivers, it provides a comprehensive approach that will help youth:

Recognize the signs and symptoms of stress;

Understand what stress “feels” like;

Identify stressors and their impact;

See the upside of stress;

Develop/implement coping and problem-solving strategies; and

Foster an increased sense of well-being.

You can access “Stress Lessons: Tools for Resiliency” and other school related resources at

The Psychology Foundation of Canada .

Stress and Children

Even very young children experience stress, and it is important for parents to recognize and

help children learn to deal effectively with it. When we help children take control of their stress,

they begin to build coping skills that will last a lifetime.

It starts with basics: helping children feel connected, providing a stable and happy home

environment, modeling effective stress management, and comforting children when they are

overloaded with stress.

For more information about the impact of stress on children and simple tools and strategies

you can use to help children handle stress effectively, see the Parenting for Life tip sheets

available in 8 different languages.

Additional resources on subjects from sleep to screen time can be found in the Every Mind

Matters Handouts, Parenting for Life Booklets and online at The Psychology Foundation

of Canada .

Foundry

Foundry centres like the one in Kelowna, provide a one-stop-shop for young people to access

mental health care, substance use services, primary care, social services and youth and family

peer supports. They provide safe, non-judgmental care, information and resources, and work to reach young people earlier – before health challenges become problematic. Foundry centres

bring health and social services together in a single place to make it easier for young people to

find the care, connection and support they need.

The foundrybc.ca website, supported by The BC Children’s Hospital, contains the following great resources for parents and teachers throughout BC:

Get Support

Mental Health and Substance Use - Information and Tools

Supporting Others

NUTRITION

Teaching and Learning

Nutrition Month

Nutrition Month 2018 is dedicated to helping Canadians unlock the potential of food. Check

out the Nutrition Month 2018 website for more information and resources such as

factsheets, recipes, etc., that can be used to promote Nutrition Month with parents, teachers

and students.

SUBSTANCE USE PREVENTION

Teaching and Learning

Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research (formerly CARBC)

Nurturing resilience: a self-directed inquiry group guide was created to support professional learning among educators but may be useful to parents or other adults who

interact with children. This guide supports those who work with children to help them develop

self-regulation and build the competencies needed to survive and thrive in the constantly

changing societies we live in today. Developing self-regulation and cognitive, social and

emotional competencies increases well-being and resilience which decreases the risk of

developing mental, emotional and behavioural health problems later.

Developing the virtue of resilience is fundamental to effective drug education. In contrast to

zero-tolerance drug education that seeks to isolate children from drug use, resilience-based drug education (e.g., iMinds) aims to develop children’s capacity to manage their own well-

being while interacting with environments in which drug use is common.

Resilience is an inclusive concept related to various competencies and capacities. It fits well

with the broader scope of British Columbia’s new K-12 curriculum with its emphasis on core

competencies including critical and creative thinking and “the skills, strategies, and

dispositions that help students to stay healthy and active, set goals, monitor progress, regulate

emotions, respect their own rights and the rights of others, manage stress, and persevere in difficult situations”.

For more information see page 11 on ‘Resilience and the Role of Schools and Teachers.

TOBACCO REDUCTION

Teaching and Learning

Smoking and Video Games

Smoking imagery is not confined to just films. To learn more visit: truthinitiative.org

VIDEO: How the vaping craze is putting the health of our teens at risk

Interior Health’s own Cheryl Sidenberg sits down with Kelowna Now to discuss current vaping issues that are trending with our youth in the Interior.

Watch this 16 minute recording here

First to 5% by 2035

Actions recommended to end tobacco-related deaths in BC and achieve the lowest smoking rate

in Canada requires connecting with today’s biggest group of new tobacco users,15 to 24-year olds. For more information see:

cleanaircoalitionbc.com

Break It Off Contest

Test your knowledge on the reasons to break up with smoking for a chance to win 1 in 5 $1000

Flight Centre gift cards! Hurry, contest ends March 9th. breakitoff.ca

Community Partnerships

IH Tobacco Contacts:

Do you need to reach the Interior Health Tobacco Team? Email: tobacco@interiorhealth.ca

For previous newsletters: Health Promoting Schools Newsletters

Or contact:

Valerie Pitman

RN BN BScPsych

Regional Knowledge Coordinator for Healthy Schools

Maternal, Child and Youth Health - Population Health

Interior Health, Trail, B.C.

email: valerie.pitman@interiorhealth.ca phone: 250-364-6221 www.interiorhealth.ca