Blog Posts

What better way to kick off a chilly fall season than with a hearty bowl of soup? At Chief Dan George Middle School, we have worked hard on our garden beds and greenhouse space this past spring and fall. Last May, our students planted a Three Sisters Garden - the traditional indigenous practice of planting maize, squash, and bean plants. Upon our return in September, the fruits of our labour were ready to be harvested.

At Colleen & Gordie Howe Middle School, we start the year with school-wide read-aloud. The goal for our read-aloud is to engage students in meaningful and relevant conversations and to foster a deeper sense of school community. This year, the staff selected “Count Me In” by Varsha Bajaj. The story follows two unlikely friends that are brought together, to both of their surprises. Unfortunately, a racially motivated assault happened to them and one of their grandparents.

When asked to reflect on a classroom, most of us will envision rows of desks facing a blackboard where a teacher stands. For decades, this image represents the learning space for millions of students and yet excludes how we learn naturally and daily in non-school environments. True knowing and understanding mean being able to transfer knowledge from one setting to another.

I have recently had some conversations with youth in our schools regarding what matters to them in their education. They point to having adults who care about them, opportunities to engage in different kinds of activities, and social groups that they feel a part of. This seems to make sense and I would argue this is what we hope to achieve in our middle schools for all of our learners. Given our middle school vision of “joyful, inquiry-based approaches that create access to experience and opportunities to develop agency, identity, and belonging”, we are headed down the right path.

The Honourable Senator Murray Sinclair remarked in an impassioned plea that “we need to pursue reconciliation consistently and passionately. Education has gotten us into this mess, and education will get us out. We see this as our challenge and our hope.”

The Vancouver Sun recently paid ASIA Sumas a visit, hoping to chat with various students about their experiences over the past two years. The writer was particularly interested in learning what students thought they needed given that there is hopeful news that we are moving away from the constraints and repercussions of a global epidemic.

Saying Thank You Through the Arts