October 1, 2021
- Instructional Services Website: For all your district-vetted resources K-12! Check it out!
- Aboriginal Resources vetted by the District
- District Learning Commons – K-12 Resources to book out! Kits, Lit Circle Sets and more!
- 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 mismith@sd35.bc.ca
HONOURING TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION
Learning about Water Through Teachings and Perspectives of Indigenous Peoples
B.C. is powered by water. For Orange Shirt Day this year, BC Hydro would like to highlight the unique relationship Indigenous Peoples have with water, so your students can learn how to protect and conserve this natural resource for generations to follow.
To help you take part, we developed 24 new curriculum-aligned K-12 activities for your students with the help of Indigenous educators and subject matter experts. Your class will learn all about respect for the land and others, reconciliation, water conservation, and more.
Explore our new materials now and inspire your students to learn about water through the teachings and perspectives of Indigenous Peoples.
Every child matters
Janelle, our Event Planner at BC Hydro, shares her story. Read the blog post
DISTRICT PROFESSIONAL LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
To see our full calendar of offerings, visit www.thinklangley.com
NEW Storytelling with MS Tools
October 4 [Register]
Learning how to share a story of learning is an important, lifelong skill. This workshop will look at: Understanding the common elements of interesting stories and Microsoft tools, understanding the distinct aspects of Microsoft tools, working through the story steps with a team, and locating specific resources per to support storytelling with MS tools.
NEW Capturing Student Learning Using Digital Portfolios: Primary Focus
October 4 [Register]
Digital portfolios are excellent ways for students to show their learning and growth over time! As the way we communicate student learning changes and evolves, digital portfolios are proven to make capturing and sharing student achievements easy and fun. This session is focused on having primary students use myBlueprint: All About Me to develop their K-12 learning journey portfolio.
From Phonological Awareness to Reading Building a Strong Foundation
October 4, 18, & 25 [Register]
As teachers, we strive to provide a rich learning environment and a balanced literacy approach to helping all our learners become strong readers, writers and communicators. The BC Early Learning Framework recognizes that children approach learning in different ways to construct knowledge, test theories, explore and express ideas. We want to give all children access points to reading and the tools to success. We have created this 3-part series of workshops on early reading development to help you explore the skills that all students need to be successful in learning how to read. By attending this workshop, you will grow an understanding of how a child learns to read and how writing and vocabulary are an integral part of this process. While learning to talk is natural and innate, reading skills must be taught.
SD35’s Read-Speak-Champion Virtual Author Series with Author Danny Ramadan
October 5 [Register]
Sign up your class for a virtual session with Danny Ramadan, a Syrian-Canadian author and LGBTQ – refugees activist who wrote Salma the Syrian Chef, a 2021 Langley Picture Book of the Year! During this interactive session, Danny will talk about his book, his writing and answer student questions! Designed for teachers to sign up their class and to present the session to students during class time.
Math Place: A New Math Resource for Grade 1-3 Teachers
October 5, October 19 [Register]
Math Place is a newly approved Math resource for Grade 1-3 teachers. This September, each school will receive 1 kit per grade of the NUMBER and OPERATIONS set. Join Diane Stang, the author of Scholastic Math Place, as she goes through the kits and shows you how this new resource aligns with the BC curriculum and how you can use it as part of your math instruction. This is a great way to start building number sense in your students right at the beginning of the year.
Microsoft Office Training Info Session
October 6 [Register]
Want to learn the Microsoft Office Suite? Already know Office, but want to buff up your skills or get certified? Join us for this Microsoft Office Training Info Session! Choose to learn one Microsoft Office app or learn them all. For those who have some foundational skills, you can challenge yourself with expert levels. You can also get certified! This program is available to all SD35 employees.
The Power Hour of Co-planning
October 6, December 1, 2021, and January 12, 2022 [Register]
Get ready for an energized shot of learning! Tan Huynh will be guiding teachers through three different topics to co-plan with a colleague (or more)! These are virtual so that you can grab a snack, your laptop, and your favourite teaching buddy all from the comforts of your own classroom. Work together on pre-existing units, lessons, or brew some new ideas.
Beyond the Classroom
October 12 [Register]
An opportunity to have an inspiring and motivating conversation around a book written by Langley teacher Tim Stephenson. The book is a collection of themes and ideas taken from a long career that has been marked by strategies and activities that have taken Tim’s practice…beyond the classroom.
NEW Welcome to Langley!
October 18 [Register]
New Teacher to Langley? You’re invited to join us for an afternoon of fun, information, snacks, and prizes. We want to welcome you to the district and let you know about the variety of available resources. We will have speakers from Instructional Services and Human Resources to answer all your questions. Sign up by October 14th. Looking forward to meeting you!
NEW Create, Invent, Build!
October 19, October 26, and November 2 [Register]
LEGO Mindstorms is a robotics kit that can build understanding of engineering, construction, and programming. In this series of workshops, learn how to link curricular competencies from math, language arts, science, social studies, and more. You will also learn the fundamentals of programming the robots to do certain tasks and use creativity to create solutions to problems.
NEW Intermediate Digital Literacies Lessons
October 25 [Register]
This session will build on ideas you may have tried during Digital Citizenship Week or in the past. Come to this workshop to learn and share what are the Digital Literacies, which Digital Literacy skills to target, how to embed skill develop into existing classroom practice, how to support parents, and where easy to use resources are located.
Capturing Student Learning using Digital Portfolios: Intermediate/Middle Focus
October 27 [Register]
Digital portfolios are excellent ways for students to show their learning and growth over time! As the way we communicate student learning changes and evolves, digital portfolios are proven to make capturing and sharing student achievements easy and fun. This session is focused on having intermediate/middle years students use myBlueprint: All About Me to develop their K-12 learning journey portfolio. Participants should bring a computer as well as a mobile device (iPad etc) with them to the session and be prepared to do hands-on learning.
NEW Katie White | Elementary & Secondary Assessment Professional Development Series
Secondary Educators: October 28, November 4, and November 18 [Register]
Elementary / Middle Educators: November 1, 8, and 15 [Register]
Join Katie White as she explores how to “Soften the Edges” of assessment practice so that teachers and learners benefit. By the end of this three-part series, participants will be able to design more inclusive assessments and be able to apply new assessment strategies to a broader scope of learners. You’ll walk away with practical examples, guidance on things to try now, and ways to support one another in keeping the momentum.
NEW Digital Numeracy Skill Builder
November 23 and 30 [Register]
Finding, evaluating, organizing, creating and communicating information is what math is all about! In this workshop, you will learn how to incorporate digital tools to help students demonstrate their learning in math and numeracy. We will be using different activities and games to illustrate number concepts, patterns, geometry, and number sense. Attendance at both workshops is recommended!
Creating Community with Green Screens (for the Holidays)
November 24 [Register]
Just in time for December activities! Come learn how easy green screens are to use. This hands on workshop will walk you through how to use the green screen kits available for booking from the District Learning Commons.
Provincial Pro-D Day | Friday, October 22
ACT CPR & AED Teacher Training Workshop with NEW Opioids Overdose Response Training enhancement [Register]
The ACT program prepares teachers to deliver the Compression-Only CPR and AED course to students. ACT is now adding the Opioid Overdose Response Training to the existing CPR and AED program already established in Langley schools. This workshop will provide teachers with Level A CPR & AED certification. Taught by CPR agency Instructor Trainers, the content takes into account the teaching expertise of high school teachers and is designed to prepare teachers for delivery of the program in the school environment.
Connecting the Pieces: Pre-K & Kindergarten Conference [Register]
Our annual conference dedicated to professional development for kindergarten teachers and early childhood educators. Our workshop line-up includes local and internationally recognized experts selected to share their innovative and practical ideas for working with young learners. This year’s keynote is Susan Harris MacKay from the Centre for Playful Inquiry.
Get Your Marking Game On, It’s in Your DNA… 9 [Register]
Proficiency Scales, what do they mean to you? Get a better understanding of marking using proficiency scales by grading last year’s DNA9. This year is the first year Grade 9s will be receiving a proficiency mark, no percentages or letter grades will be given. So get a leg up on your marking ability!
NEW Tackling CB IEPs [Register]
This workshop is designed for Resource Teachers who would like to receive further support and guidance for writing CB IEPs. Resource Teachers can bring along their Learner Profiles, as well as draft goals/objectives/strategies and work through developing their students’ CB IEPs. Some support for MyEd processes and workflows may also be available – however the purpose of this particular workshop is to engage in collaboration with other Teachers from across the district to ask questions, get feedback and increase comfort level with the new CB IEP philosophy in order to develop CB IEPs that are student-centered and tailored to the students’ individual needs.
Tan Huynh’s Guided Co-planning with Colleagues [Register]
This full-day event is dedicated to giving teachers time to collaborate with their colleagues to support their language learners. Teachers will be guided by Tan in ways to co-plan at various levels such as writing, lessons, and assessments, and then given time to create together. They may choose to work with other ELL teachers, content teachers, and resource teachers to foster rich learning opportunities for their students. At the heart of collaborative professionalism is “leadership from the middle (your peers in your own and other schools).
NEW What You Need to Know About CB IEPs [Register]
In this workshop designed for classroom teachers you will learn about the philosophy of Competency-Based IEPs, the difference between Inclusive IEPs and CB IEPs, and the implications for classroom practice.
To see our full calendar of offerings, visit www.thinklangley.com
DISTRICT LEARNING RESOURCES
Safe Bodies Strong Kids
SBSK (Safe Bodies Strong Kids) is a locally developed, evidenced-based, sexual abuse prevention program for students in Grades 1-3. Eleven school districts from the BC lower mainland have spent two years developing this program. It is based on best practice as described in the most recent sexual abuse prevention research, and aligns with the Ministry of BC Physical Health and Education Curriculum. The curriculum is now available for your Grade 1-3 teachers in TCS StrongStart – 3 Teams, along with the training PowerPoint.
There are resources referenced in the SBSK curriculum, and we are pleased to provide them to you. Sets of high-quality printed photos and book, “Your Body Belongs to You” will be arriving this and next week in your schools. There are multiple sets coming to each school, please share amongst your Grade 1-3 classrooms. The Kindergarten SBSK curriculum is also in its final stages of development, stay tuned for more information.
Please reach out to Lisa Lainchbury or Gail Markin if you have any questions or would like further information.
SD35 Career Ed Referral Form
- Are you a teacher who read a student assignment that mentioned their desire to become a pre-school teacher?
- Are you an Aboriginal Support Worker who knows of a student training for the firefighting fitness assessment?
- Are you an SEA who has learned that one of your student worked in construction last summer?
- Are you a counsellor with a student who wants to explore careers in healthcare?
Complete the SD35 Career Ed Referral Form! It can be completed in 1-2 minutes and someone from the Career Ed Department will connect with that student and/or their family so they can learn about some opportunities that can benefit them!
EXTERNAL STUDENT/STAFF OPPORTUNITIES and LEARNING RESOURCES
Fire Prevention Week
This year, Fire Prevention Week™ runs from October 3 to 9 and the theme is “Learn the Sounds of Fire Safety.” Knowing the different sounds smoke and carbon monoxide alarms make, and what to do when they sound, will keep you and your family safe.
How can I teach fire safety and prevention in my class?
Visit the BC Office of the Fire Commissioner (OFC) or National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) websites, which have free materials for teachers and educators. These resources make it easy to teach fire safety tips during Fire Prevention Week, or any time of year.
Reach out to your local fire department by calling the non-emergency number. They might be able to visit your class and give a presentation.
Sparky.org offers online activities and games just for students. So even if you can’t get an in-person visit from Sparky, kids can still “meet” him and hear his important message.
Also visit Sparky’s School House for lesson plans, posters, videos, games and much more. There’s also the Learn Not to Burn program for children in preschool to grade 2.
The Office of the Fire Commissioner is hosting a poster and video contest for all students from kindergarten to grade 12 attending an Indigenous, public or independent school in B.C. The contest deadline is October 22 and there are some fantastic prizes to win!
View and download the full contest rules, info sheet and other details here.
Outdoor Learning Resource from EdCAN Network:
Outdoor learning spaces are rich learning environments that can help students appreciate nature and biodiversity before being introduced to bigger environmental issues (e.g. pollution and deforestation). Read more Tips for teachers
Environmental Education:
October 20 – Take Me Outside Day 2021
October 22-23 – Classrooms to Communities 2021 Conference
Metro Vancouver Regional Parks Field Trips
Metro Vancouver Regional Parks is ready to welcome your group on an outdoor adventure in learning. From salmon to forest and more, there are topics to suit every group.
As days shorten and temperatures drop, big changes are happening outside – leaves are changing colours and falling, animals are preparing for colder months – making this a wondrous time to engage your group in nature observation and exploration. Join knowledgeable park interpreters for fun, hands-on field trips in regional parks. Safety measures are in place to protect you and your group.
Programs are available at Burnaby Lake, Capilano River, Deas Island, Minnekhada and Pacific Spirit regional parks. Details and pricing can be found HERE.
Provincial Outreach Program for Early Years
POPEY is the Provincial Outreach Program for Early Years. View and register for the online sessions soon. There are so many great sessions available this year!
The Learning Assistance Teachers’ Association (LATA) of BC
The conference planning team at the Learning Assistance Teachers’ Association (LATA) is excited to offer an outstanding virtual professional development opportunity at the annual LATA conference, ADVANCES IN THE SCIENCE OF READING – WHAT EVERY TEACHER NEEDS TO KNOW, on Friday, October 22, 2021. This year’s keynote speaker, Dr. Deborah Glaser, will talk about the fascinating world of decoding, encoding, language comprehension, and the reading brain.
Workshop facilitators cover a range of topics including: Math for French Immersion classes, Diversity in the math classroom, Executive Functioning, Reading Intervention, Teaching the Foundational Reading Skills, and Roundtable discussions on ELL, Literacy, and Co-teaching. Descriptions of conference workshops and facilitators, along with complete registration information can be found at http://lata.ourconference.ca. We sell out each year, so register soon.
Gears & Gadgets: An Introduction to Engineering and Computer Science.
Gears & Gadgets: An Introduction to Engineering & Computer Science is a free online STEM program for young girls between the ages of 9 to 11, who are interested in engineering and computer science. The program is designed to help address the gender disparity present in the engineering and computer science fields. We will be providing fun and interactive activities on Zoom to young girls and gender minorities throughout Canada concentrated around the subject areas of computer science and engineering. This program will be free of charge to all of its participants and it will be hosted by engineering and computer science university students from institutions such as Queen’s University and University of Toronto. Additionally, we’ve partnered with the charity SuperNOVA, an organization dedicated to providing STEM outreach programs similar to Gears & Gadgets.
The engineering stream will run every other Thursday and will start on Thursday, October 21st, 2021 and the computer science stream will run every other Monday and will start on Monday, October 18th, 2021.
Please view or share the Gears & Gadgets poster and to register for upcoming events, click here.
School for Social Justice and Global Stewardship at UFV
The University of the Fraser Valley’s Global Development Studies (GDS) program has moved into a newly-created School for Social Justice and Global Stewardship at the university. The GDS program is growing, and we will be working closely with other UFV programs such as Peace and Conflict Studies and Indigenous Studies. Feel free to share this information poster with your students.
The GDS program will also be hosting some special virtual lectures/speakers in November and December that high school students and teachers are welcome to attend. The details on the lectures/speakers and the links to join are listed below:
GDS 100 – A World of Development Special Lectures:
-Nov 1st: Addressing Intersectional Gender Inequalities and Sustainable Development Goal no. 5 (Dr. Geetanjali Gill, GDS Co-Chair)
-Nov 8: Food Security with Guest Speakers from Community organizations (Dr. Cherie Enns)
-Nov 15: Fair Trade Coffee in Latin America (Stephen Piper, GDS Co-Chair)
-Nov 22: Environmental Challenges and Development (Dr. Stefania Pizzirani and Dr. Cherie Enns)
-Nov 29: Sustainable Development Goal 11: Future of Cities and Development (Dr. Cherie Enns)
All of the above sessions will be held from 1-2 pm on the specified days. Please use this link to join.
GDS 260 – Gender and Global Development Special Lecture:
-Dec. 3rd: Afghanistan, Women, and Sports (GDS Alum Chelsea Novakowski will be presenting on her Masters degree research in Afghanistan)
The above session will be held from 8:30-9:15 am on Friday, Dec. 3. Please use this link to join.