Schools within the SouthEast Cornerstone Public School Division created an atmosphere of fun, frolic and educational edification on Friday, January 27 for Family Literacy Day. For some students, it was their first opportunity to experience such an official day within their school community; for others, it was another exciting and informative experience. Though literacy is not only promoted on Family Literacy Day, it is an important opportunity for schools to further re-iterate the importance of cognitive, reading and writing development in students. The UNESCO Institute for Education re-emphasizes the importance of literacy and propels each principal, administrator, parent, student– everyone, to strive for, and attain excellence in literacy. Here are a few highlights of the day’s activities.
Wapella School Cowboy Poet, Morley Thorpe from Spy Hill, members of the community and the SECPSD visited and shared in the activities at the Wapella School on Literacy Day. One activity which sparked much excitement was a round dance with Mrs. Weatherald, the Superintendent of that school. The school assembled in the gym with families and had a family games night. Games such as Cranium, Sorry, Disney Trivial Pursuit, Jenga had various age groups participating.Wapella expresses gratitude to all those helped make Literacy Day such a success!‘33’ Central School
Parents who attended the Literacy Day program at Central had nothing but positive comments to share. The day’s activities began with snacks and stories from Green Eggs and Ham, followed by group activities such as Numbers, Cookie Decorating and If you give a Mouse a Cookie. Perhaps the most favourite activity was the Number Hunt, which saw students searching the school environment and documenting as many numbers as they could find. Much to the enjoyment of students and parents, the staff engaged students whose families were unable to make it. The students, parents and staff loved the opportunity to engage in such an educational experience.
Rocanville School
The Journey to Learning Passport is out, and the grades K-6 students and their parents have been capitalizing on the opportunity to register their passports online. Students were sent home with the documents to be completed and will share with their classmates the processes that were used to complete the documentation. On Family Literacy Day, stations will be constructed in the Library for various learning activities as well as a Pajama Day is planned for K-9. Students and teachers will engage in the process by ensuring that stories are read and discussed in their classes. Family Literacy Day at Rocanville saw parents and grandparents in their numbers, as they read with the students from kindergarten to grade 6. Decked in pajamas, students and staff participated in activity centers that were set up. The first activity center was dubbed Learning Around Town, which allowed students to place an order from a local restaurant based on the dietary preferences of their group. They were then allowed to document each item and its cost and provide a bill for the service. Students also composed grocery lists with their parents to be used for the next visit to the grocery store.
The second activity center was Learning Around the World, which allowed them for example to locate and document five interesting facts about a country of their choice. Finally, Learning Around Home had students following directions on a tin to prepare a glass of juice, make a batch of kooky clay from a recipe and sort laundry into different colours. The event was a grand experience and the school now waits to see if they are the grand prize winners for the Passports to Learning online competition from ABC.
Wawota Parkland School
Families joined in the excitement as the staff of Wawota read with them. Parents brought blankets, mats and refreshments as they shared in the activities. For parents who were unable to attend, students were placed in reading buddy literature circles. Parents were also presented with family tips to assist their children on the journey of literacy.
Haig School Haig visited the library to celebrate Family Literacy Day, with over 20 families in attendance. Stories were read and the families participated in a scavenger hunt in the library as they learned the kinds of books and toys that can be borrowed from the library. A special library book bag was also created, much to the enjoyment of muffins, inspired by the story, If you give a Mouse a Muffin. Information about Family Literacy was distributed and each child was presented with their very own book.
Manor School Students started the activities with a word scavenger hunt, which involved searching classrooms, hallways and the library for a variety of grade-level appropriate words. Students were eager and seemingly overly excited and enjoyed taking books from the town library once they were read. Students were divided into groups, according to grade level and were read one or two Robert Munsch books by a volunteer from the town. The scavenger hunt ended when students returned to the school grounds; the K-6 students were given the opportunity to get together in their Reading Buddy Groups as they discussed and analyzed books. Overall, it was a fun, literacy focused day as students with varying abilities were able to enjoy different forms of literacy. The school hopes to re-create the activity, given the participation and excitement it drew.
MacLeod Elementary
Students returned with their Journey to Learning Passports on Literacy Day with added hopes of being the winners of exciting prizes. Prizes such as books, posters and candy were awarded to students, as well as gift certificates for one student in each classroom. The certificates, donated by the PPP Parents, would be used to purchase books at the local bookstore. The entire school was also able to enjoy Grandpa’s Big Tobaggan, as members of staff read to them. The students had a lot of fun and were excited about the activities and their prizes!
Ogema School
On January 27, Ogema Kindergarten to Grade six students participated in a group activity to promote reading and learning. The activity was also in recognition of the 2012 Chinese New Year of the Dragon. In two groups, they read the book The Popcorn Dragon; then in smaller groups, they did a visual retelling of the story. The activity finished up with a snack of popcorn for all. Learning happens in everything we do. Whether you team up to sort laundry, write a grocery list, or discover a new route to school, you are learning together. Take the learning journey at www.FamilyLiteracyDay.ca
“Literacy arouses hope, not only in a society as a whole, but in the individual who is striving for fulfillment, happiness and personal benefit by learning how to read and write. Literacy...means far more than learning how to read and write...the aim is to transmit knowledge and promote social participation.”