PICTURE BUTTE – Education Week provides Albertans with a chance to highlight the important role education plays in shaping the future of our province. At Dorothy Dalgliesh School, the celebration was also an opportunity to recognize those who make the staff’s job of educating young minds a little easier.
Among the activities the kindergarten to Grade 6 Palliser school held during Education Week was a thank- you tea for both volunteers and bus drivers.
“We like to recognize our volunteers because they offer so much to the classroom,” said Principal Shari Rogerson. “They come in and spend time reading with the kids, they make sure there’s enough support when we put on a big event, and they do things like help out with hot lunch, which is really important to the kids.”
The tea has been a tradition at the Picture Butte school, she said, and an important one given the necessity of community support to provide the best education possible for every student. While most of the volunteers are parents, Rogerson said they’d like to encourage others to become involved.
“We really want it to be an important place for the community to come and feel like they are part of the school,” she said.
Bus drivers, meanwhile, play a big role in the school day of many Dorothy Dalgliesh students. Almost 65 per cent of the school population of about 180 students takes the bus to and from school each day and those drivers can help set the tone for the day ahead.
“They probably have one of the toughest jobs,” said Rogerson. “They’re kind of like a classroom teacher, except they do it all facing the opposite direction of the kids.”
Every class in the school dropped by the gym to offer the volunteers and bus drivers thanks. Some did it through poetry or song and others through video clips, while students also presented each guest with a painted rock, card and personally-written thank you.
Rogerson said it’s important to show appreciation for their efforts, but it’s also an opportunity to help students realize these aren’t just anonymous adults who come and go during the school week, but people who make a difference in their lives.
One of those difference-makers for both Dorothy Dalgliesh and their high school counterpart is the Picture Butte Public School Betterment Society (PBPSBS) . The society is hosting its second annual golf fundraiser at the Picture Butte Golf Club June 3, with the elementary school and Picture Butte High School the fortunate recipients. For details, CLICK HERE.
“It just makes so much difference for the kids in the areas of technology, literacy, physical activity and addressing the individual learning styles the kids have,” said Rogerson of the some of the areas covered off by the most recent funding the PBPSBS provided.
Staff, students and supporters across Palliser Regional Schools marked Education Week in a variety of ways.
Parents, who were provided with an Internet safety session earlier in the week, returned the favour by putting on a lunch for all staff at Coalhurst Elementary School. Students at Kate Andrews High School in Coaldale enjoyed free smoothies and showed off their talents for family and friends at a spring drama production.
Master’s Academy put on a spring concert and had students in Grades 3-6 showcase their talents at the Calgary Music Festival, while Barons School held a Mother’s Day Tea and student showcase. Milo Community School put on a number of events, including Mental Health Awareness Day and Global Awareness Day.
The Omar Bin Al-Khattab Campus of Calgary Islamic School celebrated Muslim Brotherhood Day, while Trinity Christian School in Calgary put on a musical theatre showcase. At Arrowwood Community School, families received 7 Habits Home Activity Cards to discover more about the positive messages their children are learning at school.
See the gallery for a photo of Grade 3 student Dallin Bertschy from Milo Community School's Crazy Hat Day, as well as several more images from the thank-you tea at Dorothy Dalgliesh.
Education Week 2016 Photographs
