In the Loop – November 3, 2022

November 3, 2022

KEY RESOURCES IN LANGLEY

HONOURING TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION

Tracking the TRC’s Calls to Action The first 42 Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) call upon Canada to act on the “legacy” the residential school system created. Join Niigaan Sinclair, one of Canada’s leading voices on truth and reconciliation and the TRC Commission, for his five-part webinar series, which examines the progress made since 2015. Sponsored by Nelson, the series will provide information and relevant resources on the responsibilities of educators in fulfilling the Calls to Action and how this work connects to education today. Each webinar takes place live from 4:30 to 5:45 p.m. (MST) and will be accessible on demand until the Fall 2023. School and district-wide purchasing is available!

Indigenous Leadership as Ceremony:  Weaving Together our Collective Stories and Knowledges into the Fabric of the British Columbia Public Education System:  This outstanding article was written by the BCSSA indigenous Leaders and appeared in the Spring 2022 edition of the InspirEd journal.  Read the article HERE

Indigenous Relations Academy Self-Guided Course. 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act is now available as a course! The self-guided training is filled with 21 knowledge checks that will help test participants’ understanding and even provide new information relevant to the current day. Costs for the online course, which will take up to three hours to complete, is $21/person.

Recommended Books to Understand Residential Schools In this CBC feature article, “48 books by Indigenous Writers to Read to Understand Residential Schools,” a Cree author based in Winnipeg, David A. Robertson, has compiled a list of 48 books, (fiction, non-fiction, poetry) for all ages to learn more about the experiences of Indigenous children forced to attend Indian Residential Schools. Each recommended book comes with a brief overview of the book and its suitability for different audiences.

DISTRICT PROFESSIONAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
To see our full calendar of offerings, visit www.thinklangley.com

Read. Speak. Champion Virtual Author Series: Jasmin Kaur – When You Ask Me Where I’m Going. [On-Demand Learning Feature]
As contemporary educators, we have a responsibility to share diverse stories and varied perspectives with our students. To do so, it’s integral that we first listen to and learn from those voices ourselves. Join us as we learn from these diverse Canadian authors! Join Jasmin Kaur as she speaks about her poetry, her writing and her inspirations.

Save the Date! Odyssey 2023! – February 10
As part of our ongoing commitment to Truth and Reconciliation, Odyssey will once again be Indigenous focused. The day will be structured similarly to last year’s Odyssey where ALL District employees will participate in school and department teams at their respective sites. Like last year, while there will be some keynote sessions, there will also be an opportunity for staff to choose where to focus some of their learning. While staff do still have the autonomy to choose their professional development on February 10th, we are once again hoping for almost full participation in our main Odyssey session. More details to come!

Make Science and Math come Alive with Gizmos – Nov 8, 9, 22 & 23 [Register]
Gizmos are interactive online simulations and case studies for math and science that power inquiry and understanding through hands-on learning and experimentation. With more than 450 Gizmos covering STEM topics for grades 3-12, students can dig deeper into subjects and really understand challenging concepts as they form, analyze, and test ideas to find solutions, just like real mathematicians and scientists.  Sign up for your preferred sessions.

Coast Metro K-8 Number Sense Series – Nov 9, 23 & Dec 7 [Register]
Join Marian Small for a three-part professional development series on Numeracy.  In this series, Marian will present classroom teachers with specific ideas and strategies for teaching number sense for grades K to 8.  The concepts and ideas introduced will also be linked directly to Marian’s book entitled, “Making Math Meaningful.”

NEW: New Support Orientation – November 9 [Register]
This orientation is an opportunity for new support staff to learn important information about district policies and programs and meet their union executive. ALL CUPE 1260 support staff employees are encouraged to participate.
Presenters: Kate Walker, Kim Anderson, Magdy Ghobrial, Mike Pue, Megan Zazelenchuk, Megan Duke, CUPE 1260

 NEW: SD35’s Read-Speak-Champion virtual author Series – Nov 29 [Register]
As contemporary educators, we have a responsibility to share diverse stories and varied perspectives with our students. The Read. Speak. Champion Virtual Author Series is dedicated to spotlighting Canada’s BIPOC and LGBTQ2IAS+ authors.   Register your class (grades 8-12) for a virtual author session with Trinidadian-Canadian YA novelist Liselle Sambury. She’ll be talking and reading from her debut fantasy novel, Blood Like Magic, a Governor General’s finalist, as well as sharing about writing process. Her books include both fantasy and horror. Please note there will be opportunities before and during the session for students to submit questions.

NEW: Numeracy 10 Credentialing – January 7 [Register]
The purpose of the credentialing workshop is to outline the duties and responsibilities of provincial assessment markers, establish valid and reliable assessment processes, and credential educators for the marking of the provincial assessments. Whether your interest is in learning more about assessment, engaging with provincial standards, or getting certified for future paid marking; this is an excellent professional development opportunity.

Supporting Grieving and Bereaved Students – January 24 [Register]
The Child and Youth Bereavement team from the Langley Hospice Society will guide us through a presentation that will explore how children experience and express grief, how grief may vary between different ages and developmental stages, and how teachers and other school staff can provide support to children who have experienced the death of someone significant in their life.

EXTERNAL PROFESSIONAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

Free, Virtual Professional Learning Workshops on Outdoor Learning
Are you interested n learning more about you can bring learning alive for students by taking them outdoors and engaging in place-based outdoor learning activities that engage students with the ecological and physical world around us?  The Outdoor Learning Store is offering a Fall Series of these workshops absolutely free to educators.  Learn more by going to https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/

Nelson Professional Learning Opportunities:
See links below for more detailed information regarding live sessions.

EdCan Well at Work Free Online Leadership Course: (more info)
The EdCan Network – with the support of Canada Life’s Workplace Strategies for Mental Health – has launched a free professional learning course, the Well at Work K-12 Leadership Course, which is now available asynchronously online for school district leaders, wellbeing leads, school principals, and teams. Featured speakers include Jennifer Turner, Mary Ann Baynton, Claire Guy, Brian Andjelic, Christina MacKinnon, Dr. Charlie Naylor, Mali Bain,Michael Bowden, Izi Loveluck, Pan Rannelli, and Dr. Christine Bellini This course is the first of its kind to focus on workplace wellbeing specifically in the education sector from a systemic perspective, and it consists of 8 bite-size learning modules accompanied by additional resources and services which provide gateways to deeper learning and customized support.

RCMP Heritage Centre (more info)
Provides teachers the opportunity to learn about the RCMP, our country’s National Police Force. The RCMP Heritage Centre’s Education Brochure 2022-2023 provides information about virtual programs offered at the Centre from the Creation of the Force to forensics to Indigenous Cultures.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR STAFF/STUDENTS/CLASSES

Join the VSO at an upcoming Symphonic Encounters – 2022/2023 Season (more info)
The VSO’s open rehearsal program, Symphonic Encounters, takes students, teachers, and community groups behind the scenes to discover what it takes for the musicians, conductors, and production team of the Vancouver Symphony to prepare for a world class concert. Our first Symphonic Encounters event promises to be a powerfully moving experience!

LEARNING RESOURCES

Videos from Curio for Remembrance Day (more info)
Curio is a free resource available to all teachers in the Langley School District. They have a number of great, free videos teachers can use around Remembrance Day.
Curio – CBC and Radio Canada curated videos and resources for educators! Click here to get started. Curated multimedia materials around themes such as “Freedom of the Press,” “Indigenous Governance,” “Artificial Intelligence” and “Active & Healthy Living for Youth.” Please note that teachers are responsible for evaluating any learning resources they use for their specific contexts and learning goals (click here for learning resource evaluation support).

The ABC’s of Youth Substance Newsletter (more info)
The ABC’s of Youth Substance Use Digest is a monthly bulletin where you will find practical, web-based information to support your work to prevent, delay and reduce substance-related harms for youth. The ABCs refers to Autonomy, Belonging and Competencies. They are three factors that promote youth wellbeing and prevent, delay and reduce substance-related harms.The ABCs of Youth Substance Use will amplify youth voices, experiences and concerns on substance use prevention and harm reduction.The ABCs of Youth Substance Use aligns with the BC Mental Health in Schools Strategy. 

How to Stop Facebook Tracking With the Off-Facebook Activity Tool (more info)
We all know that Facebook is watching us. It knows what we like, what we don’t like, and it uses that information to show us ads. But did you know that Facebook is also tracking you, even when you’re not on their site? It’s true!
Facebook has a tool called the Off-Facebook Activity Tool that allows them to track your activity on other websites and apps. But there’s a way to stop them.

New Teams Notification Controls
There are New Teams notification controls that include Teams notifications adhering to your device’s do not disturb: New Teams Notifications  (Web view)

Reminder when posting in Teams
If you are posting to a Channel looking for specific input, please remember to start your post with @ and the name of the Team, Channel or person. That way it will appear in the Activity Feed to alert people.

SOGI Information and Resources:

B.C.’s Safe and Healthy Schools Website offers a wide array of resources to keep schools, and those who rely on them, healthy and safe. This includes the updated Public Health Guidance for K-12 School Settings and the Provincial COVID-19 Communicable Disease Guidelines for K-12 documents, as well as other important resources.

French Resources:  now available at FocusED:   https://focusedresources.ca/en/french-resources

Anti-Racism Resources:  An inventory of anti-racism resources is available through Focused Educational Resources. Learn more

MY BLUEPRINT RESOURCES

myBlueprint Monthly Objectives Newsletter K-6/7 and 7-12
This November our Monthly Objectives Newsletters are all about supporting student success through self-discovery.

Instructional Services | #Think35

4875 222 Street, Langley
BC, V3A 3Z7
Phone: 6045347891
© 2015 Langley School District