FOCUS: 2024-2025

This year we are going to focus on computational fluency with our students in math.  We will be looking at an assessment in September to see where our students are in their learning.  We will also be asking students how they feel about math and if they are confident when doing it.  Throughout the year we will be working with our District Math Consultant who will help guide us in helping our children develop stronger mathematical skills and confidence.

OUR FOCUS 2023-2024

We are back to school now and making plans for the year.  Last year we worked on developing our reading skills and that will continue to be a focus this year.  All children will participate in a reading assessment so teachers know where they are at and what will need to be an area to concentrate on in order to become proficient readers. 

Throughout all that we do, we continue working with the students on developing Core Competencies and how these intertwine throughout learning and generally being with others in the world.  Again, children will be asked during the school year, what Core Competencies they are working on and what their next steps in learning will be.

      Building connections with our students always has and always will be an intentional behaviour that we know benefits childrens' well being and their access to learning. The reason we are here is for children and we want to meet their social and emotional needs the best we can so that they feel safe, connected, and happy. 

2022-2023

Throughout the Spring of 2022, Byng staff and children continued to build community and relationships in order for students to feel safe, happy, and engaged in their learning.  The staff was surveyed in June and came together to discuss how important it was for us to continue this relationship building so that children felt connected to others.  Having students that feel taken care of in their school home, would help their minds be ready for learning. 

      As a staff we are being intentional with building school community.  We are connecting students to more adults in the school so that children have more comfortable access to adult supports and relationships.  We are bringing in the Social Emotional Consultant to work with the staff on the November Pro d day to help us gain a deeper understanding of why our relationships and getting to really know our students, is so incredibly important for children's development.  We will survey students in late October and in May to see if there is an increase in students feeling connected to two or more adults in the building.  

      We have a group of teachers working on a District Innovation Grant with the focus on Social Emotional Learning.  We will be having a monthly book club and will be reading "Teachers These Days."  We are hoping to get more insight into how teachers themselves can self regulate in order to help their students self regulate.  

      Literacy skills of course have always been important, and with some assessment done in this area in the spring, we found that students needed more intentional teaching around literacy strategies so that they are better prepared to read and get more meaning from what they are reading. 

      With this information, we developed a plan to begin the school year with a school wide reading assessment (the DART) in order for teachers to know what students need in order to plan for instruction for the term.  On our September Pro D day, we worked with the District Literacy Consultant to help us plan the term instruction to increase literacy fluency and comprehension.  We will continue to work with the consultant throughout the year. We hope to increase the numbers of students who are Proficient in reading by the end of the year and we will compare numbers from October to May.  

      Throughout all that we do, we continue working with the students on developing Core Competencies and how these intertwine throughout learning and generally being with others in the world.  Again, children will be asked during the school year, what Core Competencies they are working on and what their next steps in learning will be.