Above: High-fives all around as Director Blancher greets students arriving at River Heights School

The Great Grand Erie Road Trip: Director Blancher Kicks Off 2019-20 with an Adventure on the First Day of School

It’s the first day of school in Grand Erie. At River Heights School in Caledonia, a thick fog has rolled in off the river. It’s no matter, though. Everyone is finding their way – whether they’re new or returning students and parents – thanks to the school’s teaching and administrative staff who are providing a welcoming first point of contact.

Joining them is Brenda Blancher, Director of Education, and Linda De Vos, Superintendent of Education for the Haldimand family of elementary schools. It’s great to have the additional friendly faces considering nearly 90 French Immersion students in Grades 4-8 are completely new to the school. Beginning this year, the French Immersion program is split between River Heights and Caledonia Centennial Public School (Kindergarten to Grade 3).

“The last time I took French was in the ‘80s during university,” recalls Blancher as she makes her way to the Grade 8 French Immersion class right after the first bell rings. “You know what they say, if you don’t use it, you lose it.”

If Blancher is now experiencing some first-day jitters about her command of the French language, she doesn’t have to worry because the Grade 8 students are happy to share what they know. This time next year, they’ll be part of Grand Erie’s first cohort of Secondary French Immersion students in Haldimand-Norfolk.

Grade 8 student Olivia steps up to provide a quick lesson for Blancher.

“Avez une bonne année,” she says slowly with careful pronunciation, and Blancher repeats the phrase to the class. So far, the first day is fantastique.

Right: Director Blancher receives a warm welcome from student Addison during her visit to a Special Education classroom at Pauline Johnson Collegiate and Vocational School

Travelling down the county road and into the city, Blancher arrives at Pauline Johnson Collegiate and Vocational School to check in with Principal Griffin Cobb on his first day at a new school. First days in Grand Erie are old hat for Cobb, who attended Elgin Avenue Public School and Simcoe Composite School growing up, and then came right back after completing his post-secondary education to begin his career in teaching.

“I always really looked forward to school,” says Cobb, whose son just happened to start Junior Kindergarten that morning at Blancher’s first stop, River Heights. “It’s a fresh start, and nice to be back with your friends and colleagues.”

Cobb and Blancher visit one of the Special Education classrooms at Pauline Johnson, where Educational Assistant Bill Papachristos is working with Adam to map out the student’s new routine. They utilize a tablet with the day’s schedule laid out in blocks of time, indicated with visual icons. The educators are doing a great job of ensuring everyone in the class is adjusting to their new schedules.

Right: Director Blancher takes a bite out of an imaginary hamburger during playtime in the Kindergarten classroom at Echo Place School

Next stop is a brief jaunt down the road to Echo Place School, where Vice-Principal May-Lynn Liao greets Blancher. Liao remembers being a Kindergarten Teacher years ago, when Blancher paid her another kind of visit, this time for the purposes of an evaluation, part of Blancher’s duties in her former role as Superintendent.

“Of course I was nervous,” says Liao of the evaluation. “But, it’s important to remember that we’re all new at some point, and to remind ourselves that we have the tools we need to succeed.”

Fittingly, Liao and Blancher visit first-time Kindergarten Teacher Ashley Lake, who is preparing for story time with Grand Erie’s newest students.

“Kindergarten is an exciting time of curiosity and wonder,” says Liao, who is beaming with pride at the hard work the school’s teaching and custodial staff have put into getting Echo Place ready for today. “Having flexibility and a positive attitude is the main thing when it comes to first days, and any day.”

Right: Director Blancher joins Principal Gail Ash and Teacher Jayne West during an outdoor nutrition break at St. George-German School

It’s up to the north end of Grand Erie after that, to visit St. George-German School, where Principal Gail Ash greets Blancher in her new office – she’s spent the past four years at Princess Elizabeth Public School, so this is another first.

“I don’t think it matters how long you’ve been in education, the first day always brings on those jitters,” Ash says.

Ash and Blancher make their way out of the office to see what’s going on in the school yard, greeting secretaries Kathy Rayner and Ann Birkett as they go.

“Secretaries are the heartbeat of the school,” Ash says to Blancher as they make their way through the hallways. Outside, students are enjoying a nutrition break, and making great use of the school’s grounds to play games and explore. Supervising the action is Teacher Jayne West, whose past experiences as a supply have meant lots of first days.

“I’m always looking over my daily notes, and ensuring I know exactly what I’m doing and where I’m going,” she says of her strategies for weathering new experiences. “Preparation is key.”

As the bell rings, it’s time for Blancher to head to the final stop on the Great Grand Erie Road Trip: Waterford District High School.

It’s towards the end of the day, and Principal Rob Malcolm and new Vice-Principal Geoff Stead invite Blancher to check out the kitchen-classroom space which serves the Hospitality program. Teacher Jennifer Dinsmore is providing a hands-on tour of the space – including a new dishwasher, which will mean more time cooking and less time scrubbing dishes – for the Grade 9 class of future culinary greats.

The bell rings to signal the end of the day, but not everyone heads straight to the buses. The gymnasium is the place to be, as students sign out equipment for the upcoming football tryouts, and a Grade 9 class finishes up a game of basketball with Teacher James Osborne.

Right: Director Blancher gets a free-throw lesson from Spencer at Waterford District High School.

Principal Malcolm asks if any students would like to volunteer to demonstrate a quick free-throw lesson for Director Blancher, and Grade 9 student Spencer takes it up. With all the qualities necessary for leadership, Spencer offers supportive pointers on stance, alignment, and stabilizing the ball in preparation for the throw. The first shot falls short. The second one does too. But the third time’s the charm, and a reflection on the student and the teacher, as Blancher sinks the basket effortlessly. The exchange echoes Grand Erie’s Multi-Year Plan and its Achievement indicator, which sets high expectations for students and staff, with an emphasis on understanding effective learning strategies.

Blancher isn’t looking to take up intramural basketball this fall; however, the first day back in Grand Erie has been a slam dunk in terms of the teamwork and dedication that made it a Success for Every Student.

Photos by Grand Erie Communications

Woodman Girls Earn Wrestling Pennant

Woodman/Echo Place Wrestling Club was successful at the Brant Schools Wrestling Tournament held Thursday, May 8 at W. Ross MacDonald School for the Blind.

There were 26 wrestlers between the two schools that regularly practiced Wednesdays after school with Principal Greg Rowe. That practice must have paid off as 22 wrestlers received medals. Congratulations to the team who earned 5 gold medals, 13 silver medals and 4 bronze medals.

The girls’ team were the Girls’ Wrestling Champions and received a pennant. The Boys’ Wrestling team came in 2nd to a team from Banbury. Congratulations to the following team members: Dalton V., Jason L., Hunter W., Kavin G., Jarrett N., Ty H., Josh M., Juron L., Cole W., Gavin S., Simon H., Isaac C., Aaron B., Jude S., Tessa F., Kadyn J., Brittany B., Chloe S., Erin G., Hayle B., Avery M., Delana N., Thomas C., Justice H., Ryan J., and Marisa C.

Thanks to Principal Greg Rowe for coaching the team!

Badminton Tournament Results

On April 24th, the badminton team from Woodman went to the tournament at Pauline Johnson High School. This tournament had double elimination, so that if you lost 2 games, you were out of the tournament. The team had been for over a month now. Our coaches were Mr. Salter and Mr. Ellis. They decided which players would play singles, doubles, or mixed doubles. Teaghan and John, and Maggie and Hunter were picked to play as Mixed Doubles. Boys' Doubles were Parker, Zack, Jasanpreet, and Evan. Girls' Doubles were Mia and Jade, and Madison and Mindy. Single players were Megan, Arpun, Erica, Justice, and Jason. They also had Delana and Trista as the leaders in badminton for when they enter into grade 8 next year.

This year could be Woodman's record for the most teams that were in the top 5 and teams that placed in the top third or higher. Maggie and Hunter came first in Mixed Doubles, playing 4 games. They lost only 1 game in the finals for best 2 out of 3! Erica who was playing Girls' Singles also came in first! Mia and Jade also came first in Girls' Doubles with no losses. People who placed third were Teaghan, John, and Justice. All the people in third place that were playing for second had a tight game with their opponent. Justice for example was playing in Boys' Singles. He won 1 game and lost 2 in his final game. Both games he lost were only 5 points or less to his opponent. Woodman and Echo Place's teams did great this year!

A big thanks to Mr. Salter and Mr. Ellis for taking their time to have practices for the team. Also a big thanks to Mrs. Hearn for helping out with the tournament.

Chess Club News

This spring we held two very successful chess tournaments for the intermediate and junior players from Woodman and Echo Place Schools. We were then able to send a team to the Intermediate Tournament at King George School on April 2nd; Simon, Maggie, Jayd, Maia, Josh and Joe represented us well, showing that we are a team to watch out for in the future. On April 16th our Junior team consisting of Kenny, Jude, Jasper, Kavan, Ajay and Andy went to St George and placed 4th overall. A great wrap-up to our Friday afternoon chess club.

Mrs. Penny Wyatt, Chess Club Supervisor

Woodman Owns the Podium at Canada Skills Competition

On March 5th, two groups of students, along with teacher supervisor, Mr. Greg Salter, traveled to Waterloo to once again compete in the Canada Skills Competition. Last year, at this same event, Woodman came home with the provincial gold medal. Will they do the same again this year, was the question....This year, Woodman, successfully sent two boats to the competition. Once again, Woodman reigned supreme and finished not only in gold, but silver as well. Congratulations to the following medalists!

I've asked one of the participants, Mindy P., to write about the experience. Here is her account:

The grade 8 students from Woodman participated in the Ontario cardboard boat contest. To build a boat they had limited supplies (1 roll of duct tape, 2 8x4 ft cardboard sheets, and measuring utensils). The first time the grade 8 students built a boat was with the whole class. At Wayne Gretzky they raced against schools in Brantford. Jason got Woodman’s record for the fastest speed with 16 seconds!

A few weeks later and 8 grade 8’s were going to Guelph to compete with schools in Southern Ontario. Team number 34 consisted of Justice, Mindy, Alexis and Teaghan. Team number 21 had Kendra, Maggie, John and Hunter. The rules at Guelph were that all teams had 2 hours to make their boat and decorate if desired. One rule about the racing was that only 1 or 2 members could paddle. Team number 34 had Justice and Teaghan paddling, and team number 21 had Maggie paddling. The only new material that was introduced was special glue that bonds cardboard together. Although there were rules with the glue such as it cannot be visible. Both Woodman teams were able to finish on time with enough time to decorate and spare. Team number 34 made their boat a Christmas theme and team number 21 made their boat as Poseidon, a Greek god. Woodman left with a gold medal and a silver medal. The silver medal winners were team number 21 they raced their boat in 25 seconds and held 720 pounds! They were the winners for the most weight and collected 86.50 points out of 100. Team number 34 took the gold medal home and raced their boat in 22.72 seconds and held 475 pounds! This team had the fastest time and had 95 points in the end!

A month later and Woodman’s teams were advancing to the provincials. Rules were the same, but team numbers were different. Team number 2 had Kendra, Maggie, John and Hunter. Team number 13 was composed of Justice, Mindy, Alexis and Teaghan. This time team 2 decorated their boat as a Viking boat, and team number 13 continued with their previous Christmas theme. Also the paddlers for team number 13 were Teaghan and Justice and team number 2 had Maggie and Hunter. The most satisfying part of the provincials was that Woodman won silver and gold again! Team number 2 raced in 23.56 and could hold 6 students altogether weighing 720 pounds and finished with 82.25 points out of 100. Team number 2 paddled the boat in 21.81 seconds and held 578 pounds, this team earned 86 points. Woodman School has once again won gold in provincials and improved with silver as well!

Woodman Snack Program

The Morning Snack Program at Woodman-Cainsville School is running well; children are offered a healthy snack featuring three food groups every morning, thanks to our many volunteers and community partners. Our amazing shopper is Ms. Dean and the food is delivered on a weekly basis. A special thank you to our parent volunteer, Ms. Jessica Hearns, who is in charge of the "chop crew".

Student volunteers Trena McAuley-Allen, Nick Radmore, Josh Barnett, Rhianna Foster, Sklyar Potts, and Kadyn Jenkinson have all been working to get the food ready for the bins and the bins ready for the classes. Thanks to all of them!

Editor's Note: A big thanks to Mrs. Wyatt, Mrs. Barrieau and Mrs. Johnson who coordinate the student volunteers every morning before school and who get the bins ready after school. We thank them for their commitment to this service to the students of Woodman-Cainsville Public School.

New Student Information System Update for Parents

Dear Parents/Guardians of returning students,

As we enter the school year, parents/guardians may be interested to learn that Grand Erie District School Board has migrated to a new Student Information System. This new software enables school and Board staff to manage student information more effectively.

Through the registration process, parents/guardians are able to review the information previously collected by your child’s school. Some fields in the new student information form are blank for you to complete, giving you the opportunity to ensure that we have the most current information in the new system.

Grand Erie District School Board is committed to the privacy and protection of your child’s information by keeping accurate and relevant records. The collection of student and family information is necessary to provide an educational program for your child and to ensure a safe school environment for all students.

We appreciate your time providing information to ensure that our records are complete and accurate. For more information or concerns, please contact your school secretary or Principal.

Sincerely,

David Abbey

Assistant Superintendent of Education

Yellow Day in Support of The Canadian Cancer Society

Friday April 17th is Yellow Day at Woodman! Students will be wearing yellow and decorating daffodils to build a garden of hope on our stage. They can place their own name or the name of a person they wish to honour on their flower. Students can bring a $2 donation. The Canadian Cancer Society will issue receipts for anyone who wishes to donate $10.00 or more. We are very proud of our Grade 8 heroes Meagan, Stacey and Vanessa for volunteering to lead this initiative. Woodman was the first (and still the only) elementary school in the board to accept the challenge.