Principal's Remarks
I got just a little bit excited yesterday. We had our first Learning Expo in a long time.
I know there are some families who haven’t been into our school classrooms for a couple of years. If you asked me what I saw as some of the biggest challenges of the COVID-19 Pandemic over the last couple of years, I would have to answer providing something constant for our students, families, and staff here at school; restrictions around activities, travel and accessing medical assistance; and, the impact it has had on our sense of community and belonging. I know there continues to be the threat of restricting activities if our case numbers increase, but I have to say that our program of having families in classrooms on Tuesday did something for my soul.
As I wandered around the school, I saw parents, grandparents, aunties. and other family watching students learn in Maths, Reading, Health and French classes, just to name a few.
I know we have a long way to go to rebuild our sense of school community and belonging, but I felt like today was a start. As I walked some parents to their child’s classroom, the excitement for them was so obvious. One even said something like, “I am so excited to be able to do this!”
For those who attended, you will have noticed that most of the activities the students were taking part in were everyday things they do in class. It was designed to give families a window into the classroom learning lives of our kids. I hope those who were able to attend were warmed by their time.
Thank you to the leaders, teachers, and support staff who helped make things work.
I know I often shout out the virtues of community and helping our kids to feel as if they belong, but Tuesday’s event confirmed this for me even more.
It also reminded me of something I read in an article recently by Madara, “Sense of belonging includes community support, cooperation, unity and solidarity with others. It involves seeing community as a symbol of certain values, norms and practices shared among members of a particular group of people.” (2019)
That is what I saw yesterday.
I want to thank and encourage you as we work together to continue to create this sense of belonging for our children at Prescott Primary Northern.
Have a great week with your kids,
Mark B