On Thursday, April 25th, we had nine students attend our KCS Kindergarten Orientation. Not everyone could make it, but those who did had an awesome time! Their morning included a tour of the school, some games in the gym, and some fantastic activities in the k/1/2 room. Students in attendance included Ella G, Aurora R, A.J. M, Shawn S, Marissa G, John K, Lacie B, Eric D, and Matthew M.  We look forward to having this eager and enthusiastic group of students join our KCS family at the start of the 2013 school year!

John Wilson, a successful Canadian author, wowed his grade 1-12 audience this morning as he shared his love of writing.  He emphasized the need to write about what you love, visualize your characters, and place them in situations that could take place, whether that be in the real world or the imaginary world. He expressed his love of history and how history can become an excellent setting for fictional characters. John particulary likes the obscure, untold stories in history, such as the deserters in WWI. Students were quick to rush to the library to sign out his books and are looking forward to new books that will be arriving soon!

"I was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, but I grew up on the Isle of Skye (I could speak some Gaelic when I was four), and in Paisley, outside Glasgow. I was troubled teen and only applied myself in high school when someone said I couldn't do something. One time I was in the Principal's office for some forgotten reason, and he said I would never amount to anything. That annoyed me and I set out to prove him wrong, (was he smart?). Anyway, I went to St. Andrews University and did an Honours Degree in Geology. I worked in Zimbabwe, but there was a war on, so I came to Alberta and worked in Edmonton for ten years. I started freelance writing in 1989 and moved out to Vancouver Island in 1991 to write full time. I firmly believe that kids need books that can transport them to a different place. The place I take them is the past. History inspires everything I write—from stories about dinosaurs to boys caught up in the Second World War. As I write, I try to imagine myself in the time and place I've researched, after all, the past must have been just as exciting, confusing and complex to those who lived through it as our world is to us. My particular interests are in war and how young people, trapped in events they can only barely comprehend, have dealt with the horrors of conflict on a local and global scale. Teachers like my books because they appeal to boys and get them reading, but girls aren't immune to death-defying escapades and I write for anyone who enjoys excitement and adventure in their reading material."  

On Friday, April 12^th, our grade 5-10 students participated in a KCS Middle Years Conference organized by our Prairie South Learning Support Team.  Students started their day in the gym where they enjoyed healthy fruit and protein smoothies that were served up by KCS staff.  Mr. Onraet welcomed guests and provided an overview and rationale for the day ahead. Chelsea Crooks, Student Counsellor, provided an introduction to the first session. Mrs. Hildebrandt, PSS Educational Psychologist, guided the students through a session related to personality traits.  Students then participated in team-building activities that focused on collaboration and communication. 

Following the morning session, students were treated to a pizza lunch and a full afternoon of break-out sessions as outlined below:

• Conflict – Mrs. Hildebrandt, PSS Educational Psychologist
• Communication – Deann Daniel and Valerian Brennan, PSS Speech-Language Pathologists
• Self- Care – Shirley Packet, Student Support Consultant and Heather Hobbs, Learning Consultant

It was an amazing day of learning, fun, and positive interaction sprinkled with healthy food and laughter. Students striving for optimal performance in all aspects of their life have a better understanding of what they need to do to reach their goals. 

KCS students and staff would like to express their appreciation to the PSS Learning Support Team for their guidance and support.

Hats off to Celina, Shevonne, Shelby and Brianne for being positive KCS ambassadors at the Progressive Agriculture Safety Day held in Tugaske on Tuesday, March 26th. As members of the KCS SmartRisk/Parachute team in our school, they accepted an invitation to be guest presenters at the event. They shared their enthusiasm and knowledge about Helmet Safety to 165 K-6 students from surrounding schools. The hard work and planning they put into this commitment definitely paid off - their presentation was informative and engaging. The young participants enjoyed the game of Jeopardy to test their knowledge about helmet safety and equally enjoyed the prizes that they earned for their efforts. Being guest presenters at this event was an authentic leadership opportunity for our Communications/Leadership 20 students to practice their skills and these four young adults certainly set the bar high and achieved their goals!

“Please pass along a huge thank you to the students from your school who presented at the Progressive Agriculture Farm Safety day…they did an awesome job of presenting, they represented your school so well and acted very professionally!!! You are so fortunate to have these ladies in your community!!!  They are an awesome crew!!!”(Kathy Russell\Farm Safety Day Coordinator)

“The largest event of its kind, We Day celebrates the power of young people to change the world. Youth coming together to lead global change is the movement of our time.” (www.weday.com/)

Please help our KCS students and staff as we strive to be positive change agents in our communities and around the world. Please get your pennies to KCS staff or students anyway you can - 2500 pennies provides clean water for one person for the rest of their life! You have until Friday, June 14^th to get your pennies to KCS. At that time, we will calculate our grand total, deliver pennies to the bank, share our results, and find ways to celebrate our collective success as we strive to be positive change agents. Your support is greatly appreciated.

To get us started with moving the We Day vision forward at KCS, we have provided some background information below related to We Day. In future web postings, please watch for student feedback related to our participation in We Day Saskatchewan in Saskatoon and ongoing communication related to this initiative in our school and community. They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. I think the images above certainly capture that sentiment.

Note to Parents from Mr. Onraet

“At KCS, the We Day initiative is being spear-headed by our grade 11 Communications/Leadership class with the support and encouragement of Prairie South Schools (PSS) Board of Education. Our grade 11 students have shared their vision and enthusiasm for this initiative by presenting to KCS staff, Kincaid School Community Council, and our grade 7-11 students.

Following the presentation, each student from grade 7-10 was given the opportunity to answer a questionnaire to indicate their level of interest in terms of getting involved. The questionnaire asked them to reflect on what they had hoped to gain from the experience and what they had to offer the initiative. From the student responses, we were able to determine the grade 7-11 KCS team that will travel to Saskatoon for the We Day event. Students not travelling to Saskatoon will have an opportunity to view the one-day celebration via live-feed to our school.

WE are proud of the leadership of our students and excited to provide this opportunity for each of them to embrace positive change both locally and globally.” (Mr. Onraet, February 20^th, 2013)

Background information provided by Free the Children:

What is We Day?

The largest event of its kind, We Day celebrates the power of young people to change the world. Youth coming together to lead global change is the movement of our time. We Day is the manifestation of that movement for a generation of youth.

We Day Saskatchewan will bring together 15 000 youth from 400 schools to celebrate amazing achievements of young people who have made the commitment to being change agents of positive change both locally and internationally. We Day will connect them with some of the world’s most accomplished and socially conscious leaders, speakers and performers. Past We Days have played host to a variety of special guests including actor and activist Martin Sheen, former US Vice-President Al Gore, Lt. General Romeo Dallaire, Canadian performer Nelly Furtado, and many more.

We Day has grown to more than 500 000 young people learning about social justice issues, 1.7 million volunteer hours served, and an average of 230 engaged students per involved school. To learn more, visit www.weday.com and watch a three-minute highlight video.

What is We Schools in Action?

We Day is more than a one-day event, it’s part of a series of actions during a year-long program within schools. Groups that join We Schools are asked to make a commitment to taking one local and one global action in support of any issue or organization, and to report online to Free the Children about what they have accomplished. Through the program, school communities are transformed by positive changes in student behavior, heightened student engagement and the belief that it’s cool to care. Learn more at www.freethechildren.com/weschools.

The program unfolds in five steps:

1. 1.Register and Commit

ü  Sign up!

1. 2.Get Inspired

ü  Attend or watch We Day

1. 3.Get Educated

ü  Use educational materials

ü  Teachers attend in-service training

1. 4.Take Action

ü  Local and global actions of your choice

1. 5.Report Back

ü  Fill out two online reports

Students who participate in the We Schools in Action program gain:

• New leadership skills and confidence
• Self-awareness of their own abilities to be agents of change
• Friendships with those they may not have otherwise developed
• Broadened worldview and critical thinking skills.

Through participation in the We Schools in Action program, teachers benefit from:

• Differentiated tools for instruction
• Renewed inspiration for why they went into teaching in the first place
• Meaningful connections with students
• Simple ways to embed social justice into the classroom
• Teacher in-services trainings