February 15, 2024

KEY RESOURCES IN LANGLEY

• Clickable PDF to Key Resources in Langley
• Instructional Services Website: For all your district-vetted resources K-12!  Check it out!
• Aboriginal Resources vetted by the District
• TCS Sites (TCS SS-grade 3, 4-8, Secondary): Key resources are still being placed in these Teams. If you need access to one of these Teams, please email dzurbuchenjonker@sd35.bc.ca
• District Learning Commons is a lending library of classroom and teaching resources available to all school staff in the Langley School District. All of our items are available to view and book online through the Insignia Library system. Find instructions, an area to check out new resources, request new resources and report lost or damages kits here: https://sway.office.com/qbfcZW739otNIwLe?ref=Link
  We deliver and pick up all the items you request through district mail twice per week (check with your admin assistant to see which days your deliveries are on).

HONOURING TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION

Len Pierre – Transformative Territory Acknowledgment Guide | More info
As a follow-up to Len Pierre’s Ensouling our Schools presentation on Monday, below is a link to Len’s “Transformative Territory Acknowledgement Guide.” This is an extremely useful tool in helping guide all of us on how to move away from performative to transformative Territorial Acknowledgements. 

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

STUDENT INCLUSIVE CONFERENCES AND SPACES | Feb 20, 2024 I Register
Empower your students to take control of their learning journey with SpacesEDU, the ultimate digital portfolio tool designed for educators. Showcase student growth, provide tangible evidence of learning, and instil digital citizenship seamlessly. Join us to discover how SpacesEDU can revolutionize your classroom, fostering a culture of student ownership and engagement. Need another reason? SpacesEDU can help students build skills needed for STUDENT INCLUSIVE CONFERENCES, reduce teacher time gathering evidence of learning, increase organizational efficiency and reduce teacher time gathering evidence of learning during conferences.

Getting Started with Book Creator | Feb 27, 2024
Curious about Book Creator? Book Creator is a District approved app that is available to teachers to use with their classes that allows students to create and publish high-quality books as part of a rich classroom literacy program.  If you would like to learn more about Book Creator and get an introduction to how you could get started with Book Creator in your classroom, please join us and Jon Smith from Book Creator for these virtual session on Tuesday February 27. The Session will be held on Teams and can be accessed via the link below.

• Feb 27th Session with Book Creator: An Introductory Session | Teams Link

Nurturing Young Writers (K – 3) with Matt Glover – Session 2 | Feb 29, 2024 I Register
Writing Conferences are at the heart of teaching students to write well. They’re also challenging since they require teachers to make responsive, in the moment decisions. In this session we will use writing samples and video clips to examine strategies for more effective conferring with students.

That Wellness Thing | Langley Education Centre | March 6, 2024 | More info
Langley Education Centre is hosting its fifth annual wellness event on Wednesday March 6, 2024 from 4:30 – 7 pm! We hope you can join us. #thatwellnessthing features information and resources from a variety of community agencies, service providers, and some of our local post-secondary schools. There will be opportunities to try yoga and light refreshments will be served. The event is open to students 16+ and their families, staff, and the public.

EXTERNAL PROFESSIONAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

Teaching with AI Tools and Tips | Feb 20, 2024 | Register
This 2-hour interactive course provides a comprehensive review of applications for teaching, including those that can be used immediately in the classroom as well as for professional learning, via case studies and hands-on examples.

Teacher Well-Being Series-Honouring the Teacher’s Heart | Register
We have partnered with UC Berkley Greater Good Science Centre’s Education Team to bring you their Honouring the Teacher’s Heart Professional Learning Community 100% free, courtesy of Well-being Canada. This is a four-part series, but you can pick and choose any sessions you need most!

Session 1: Tuesday, Feb 20
Simple, effective well-being practices to integrate into your daily routine.

Session 2:  Thursday, Feb 29
Connecting values to foster agency and integrity in decision making.

Session 3: Thursday, March 7
Compassionate boundary setting to create space in your life.

Session 4: Thursday, March 14
Expressing gratitude to improve our personal well-being and workplace environments.

Sessions will be 1.5 hours and will begin at 4:30pm PT/7:30pm ET. Certificates of completion will be provided upon post-event survey completion.

Multicultural Training Opportunity | Feb 24, 2024 | Contact: shirleymclauren@send.mailchimpapp.com
The program entails a comprehensive visit to prominent institutions of religious significance, namely a Muslim Mosque, Buddhist Temple, Sikh Temple, and a Hindu Temple!
By immersing themselves in these diverse religious and cultural contexts, participants will gain invaluable insights into the experiences and perspectives of various communities.
This first-hand exposure will foster a more inclusive and empathetic approach to teaching, empowering educators to engage with students from diverse backgrounds more effectively.
Registration is $99 per person including a training tour certificate, recognizing their commitment to professional growth and cultural competence. The time commitment is Feb 24, from 10am to 3pm, in Richmond, BC. A pdf flier is available upon request and if interested, a registration link will be sent.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR STAFF/STUDENTS/CLASSES

Amazing Adaptations: Birds Built to Survive | Virtual School Presentation for K-4 | VARC – Research Conservation Education | More info
Let The Vancouver Avian Research Centre inspire your kids with presentations about birds and bird science. We have everything you need for engaging virtual learning. In Amazing Adaptations we explore many of the unique adaptations that birds have. Students will become bird detectives as they learn to use key adaptations to tell what a bird eats, where it lives, and how it survives. VARC Virtual School presentations always include a fantastic Teacher Package full of activities, crafts and more! Book Now.
Science and Nature Program is a teacher led program, designed around the B.C. curriculum to inspire students to develop an appreciation for nature and their environment, through the world of birds. There are 8 different units in this program, available as a package or individually. Each unit includes a lesson plan, 2 Powerpoint presentations (one complete and one with just images), age appropriate activities, crafts, and handouts. For more info check link above in the heading.

2024 Art, Video & Photo Contest for Indigenous Youth | Deadline May 19, 2024 | More info
To celebrate the rich cultural and heritage traditions of the Indigenous people of Canada, FORED is sponsoring its annual artwork, photography and video contest with $150 cash prizes for Indigenous youth, aged 5-18.
The theme is Indigenous Traditional Knowledge & Medicine. This contest is a wonderful opportunity to find a mentor in the Elder community to pass down this important knowledge to Indigenous youth. Previous award winners are sometimes featured in local community newspapers. No commercial use of entries is permitted. View contest details here.
Additional Traditional Knowledge Bursary: For educators or parents with older Indigenous youth possibly exploring post-secondary choices in sustainable natural resources management at BC’s Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (NVIT), FORED also sponsors a Traditional Knowledge bursary of $500 each year (since 2010), administered by NVIT.

TECH TIPS

HOW-TO’S:

Reading Reflections Literacy Centres:

• Primary Grades
• Objective: Students will record themselves reading, watch the recording, and reflect on their reading fluency using curricular “I Can” statements.

• Prior Knowledge Needed: Students should know how to use the Camera and how to hold an iPad.

They should choose a book that they have read more than once from their Guided Reading selection. This lesson can also be done in small Guided Reading groups during Balanced Literacy time. For the full breakdown go to: Reading Reflections (primary) Literacy Centres (Web view) and log in with your SD35 email.

Screen Recording on an iPad:

• Intermediate-secondary students can use this as a reflection tool.
• Screen recording allows you to record the screen of your iPad exactly as you see it at the same time as adding audio if you wish.
• For the full breakdown go to: Screen Recording on an iPad (Web view) and log in with your sd35 email.

DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP VOCAB:

• Addictive Design: features or aspects of a device or app that are intended to hook the user into frequent use.
• Clickbait: an image or headline that tries to get you to click on it, usually for advertising purposes
• Cookies: Small text files stored on a computer that keep track of what a person does on a website
• Credible sources: in the case of digital citizenship, a credible source is an online source of information that is unbiased and is backed up with evidence.

THIS WEEK’S ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TERMS:

• Pattern Recognition: the ability of AI systems to identify and understand patterns in data, which enables them to make predictions, solve problems, and learn from their environment.
• Tokenization: the process of breaking down a piece of text into smaller units, like words or phrases, to better understand its meaning.
• Reinforcement Learning: is when a computer program learns to make good decisions by trying different actions and seeing which ones give the best results.