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News from the Nest - Jan 16-20

January 13, 2023

Spotlight on Learning:  ITA Professional Cook Level 2 Practical Exam

Kaitlyn McGillivray is a WJM graduate who completed her level one District Professional Cook training program in her grade 12 year. She is now completing her level 2 training at district program at Abby Sr. A part of her level 2 certification was to create and to prepare a meal. All meals were made from scratch and included certain elements to fulfill the certification process. Kaitlyn’s former foods teachers Ms. Leclerc and Ms. Hoang were accompanied by Ms. Pollastretti and Mr. P Gill to take part in enjoying a lunch with the finished products.  We are very proud of Kaitlyn’s accomplishments. Her plan is to complete her Red Seal as professional cook and own her restaurant one day.  Students who are interested in more information about the District Professional program need to visit the Career Center. 

 Kaitlyn McGillivray Meal Plan:

  • Appetizers 
    • Bacon-wrapped Boursin stuffed prawns
    • Roasted Butternut squash and parmesan fried wonton
  • Entrees:
    • Individual seafood lasagnas with homemade spinach pasta and a chive beurre blanc 
    • Tomato, Basil, ricotta tart
  • Dessert
    • Vanilla bean creme brule with whipping cream and raspberries

Affordability Fund

Families/ students who are in need a support – we can help cover costs associated with school fees, clothing, school supplies and transportation – email linda.pollastretti@abbyschools.ca

Congratulations:  Flood Stories Prize WINNERS

As previously mentioned, UFV put on a competition, titled Flood Stories, for artwork and writing relating to the November 2021 Flood.

Flood Stories Prize winning Mouat Art students Jessica Boon (1st place), Julia Janzen (2nd place) and Finn Toews (3rd place), as well as Alaa Alafnan, Kendra Janzen and Neon McArthur’s artwork will be showcased at The Reach Gallery in their Community Gallery space. The opening and awards are on January 28th from 11am-2pm. Everyone is welcome!  All images are at the bottom of the webpage.

JANUARY: DEEP BREATHING BENEFITS 

Every system in the body relies on oxygen. From cognition to digestion, effective breathing can not only provide you with a greater sense of mental clarity, it can also help you sleep better, digest food more efficiently, improve your body’s immune response, and reduce stress levels. So this month, our focus will be on breathing activities. 

Self-Care Monday – January 16

This week’s self-care tip is about:  Meditation and Deep Breathing 

Research has found that meditation has many benefits that can improve a person’s mental and physical well-being. It may ease pain, improve sleep quality, and reduce stress. 

A key benefit of meditation is that it is simple to begin and requires no special equipment. When starting, it is important to be consistent and patient. With time and practice, it becomes easier and will help with focus and just provide a general sense of wellbeing. 

Literacy Assessment Schedule

Students in Gr 10 English classes (Literature, Composition, New Media and/ or First Peoples’ are required to take the Literacy 10 assessment. Student in Semester 1, FRAL 12 also have an assessment.  These assessments are required for graduation.  See schedule below.

Character Word of the Week – AWARENESS

Social Awareness

Students employ interpersonal and social skills and traits (e.g., empathy, sensitivity to the feelings and needs of others, the ability to communicate, etc.) to guide appropriate behavior and create positive relationships and meaningful connections to family members, classmates, peers, teachers, and others.

Key Beliefs:

  • I know how to show concern for others’ well-being.
  • I can act compassionately and with empathy.
  • I am willing to show mercy and forgiveness.
  • I realize that my reputation is on display when I interact with others.

“Good words are worth much, and cost little.” – George Herbert

Grad 2023

Have you purchased your Night to Remember ticket – cut off is February 1st. 

Tickets purchased after January 20 will not receive a custom SWAG bag (due to order timelines on custom merch)

Please complete your cap and gown order

Here is the link https://forms.office.com/r/YCSuuNc3gc

With Gratitude

The size and scale of educational change over the past couple of years has been extraordinary. Prior to Covid-19, educational instruction was face to face with limited teachers using a blended model like Moodle, Canvas etc.  During Spring Break of 2020, teachers flipped their primary delivery to remote and worked to learning a multitude of online delivery platforms. This was and is a tremendous amount of learning and doing by teachers to sustain education.  Then in April/ May of 2020, we transitioned to a blended model whereby students experienced both face-to-face and online.  Yet another learning trajectory for teachers.  The following year, 2020-21, and 2021-22, we delivered education in no less than 7 different versions, schedules, and/ structures. 

I am grateful for a team of educators, who while experiencing with their own uncertainties around the pandemic, maintained the delivery of learning in various forms while learning many technological platforms that were not utilized prior.  Subsequently, many educators have continued to deliver their curriculum in a blended model making instruction visible from anywhere, anytime.   I cannot think of a profession that has made such a shift in pedagogy (strategies used to instruct) and delivery (the how). 

This year, at Mouat, staff have been working to align their instruction, and assessment to the revised curriculum with its emphasis on using learning standards to demonstrate curricular competencies (skills) versus content memorization. All staff have developed an inquiry-based unit which allows for students to have more flexibility in what they learn, and how it is demonstrated.  In a nutshell, inquiry allows all students an entry point into learning with individual choice while being relevant and meaningful.  In addition, staff have been working through incorporating the provincial proficiency scale (extending, proficient, developing, emerging) into their assessment practices.  For many staff, this has meant a significant shift in what and how they assess student learning.   Parents can see this as measuring a curricular competency rather than an end score on a test or assignment.  Much of the philosophy for inquiry, and proficiency revolved around Michael Fullen’s, former Dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) of the University of Toronto, work around Deeper Learning.  Deeper Learning means that what a student learns must be connected to the know or mastery, the do or creativity, and the understand or identity as part of the BC Curriculum.  Why the term deeper learning? The phrase incorporates what we know about how the brain retains learning.  When we connect learning to our sense of self, and to the act or skill (the do/ creativity), we cement the learning within the cortex of our brain.  For example, we can remember a learning experience based on an emotion, an experience, or even a meaningful connection to self.

I am grateful to a staff of educators, who have worked to continue their learning as educators, make changes within their classroom, all while delivering day to day lessons and learning.  I am grateful to staff who while learning new pedagogies, and assessment are also working through new technology platform changes like the MyEd gradebook, Teams, Clevr, and Learning Management systems like Brightspace.  Like our students, learning never ends and it can be a daunting amount of change, risk, failure, productivity, and success.

Deeper Learning Week – What to expect

At the end of each semester, we have altered our bell schedule to allow for larger chunks of time for teachers and students to delve deeply into one area of the curriculum.   Deeper Learner comes out of the revised 2017 curriculum which asks students (and teachers) to demonstrate their understanding using the Know (the learning standards or content of the course), Do (the action or skills referred to as curricular competencies) and therefore Understand (the Big Ideas of the course overall).  Teachers have been hard at work during Semester 1’s SLO days (much like their students) to plan, organize and implement an inquiry based unit.  Inquiry based units allow for students to personalize their learning based on their understanding, their experiences, and makes the content relevant and meaningful.  Some teachers have already done their unit; others will be using their unit during the deeper learning weeks.  This is an opportunity for teachers to give students a driving question (referred to as an “ungoogleable” question) and allow students to solve the question using the know, do, understand model.  As you can imagine, this will look different in each classroom.

Expectations:

  • All students will be in attendance during the entire two weeks and during the entire block(s).  See our schedule to the right.
  • Exams should take place prior to the deeper learning weeks.

Follow-Up:

  • Please ask your child what their driving question was and how they presented their understanding of the question. 

Calendar

  • Monday, January 16
    • ABCD
    • Self-Care Monday –
    • Gr 9 Boys BBall
    • Jr. Girls BBall at Abby
    • Jr. Boys BBall at Abby
  • Tuesday, January 17
    • CDBA
    • Jr. Boys BBall
    • Sr. Girls BBall
    • Sr. Boys BBall @ WJM
  • Wednesday, January 18
    • BADC
    • Student Voice Session w/S. Safir.
    • Gr 9 Boys BBall
    • Night to Remember Parent Meeting
    • Jr. Girls BBall vs ACS
  • Thursday, January 19
    • DCAB
    • Sr. Boys BBall @ Terry Fox
    • Jr. Girls BBall GW Graham Tournament
    • Jr. Boys BBall Langley Christian Tournament
    • Sr. Girls BBall Bateman Tournament
  • Friday, January 20
    • BADC
    • Tutorial Time at 8am Classes Begin @ 9:24
    • Jr. Girls BBall GW Graham Tournament
    • Jr. Boys BBall Langley Christian Tournament
    • Sr. Girls BBall Bateman Tournament
  • SATURDAY:  Sr. Boys BBall vs Nanaimo District