May 10, 2024
Dear Banff Trail School Families,
I thought I would share a few things going on around the school for admin, teachers, and students.
From the administration level, over the past three weeks, I have worked on making the best use of anticipated funds for September enrollment, in consultation with the CBE’s various departments (including Finance, Support Staffing and Teacher Staffing). With the growth of Calgary’s population over the past couple years and anticipated continued growth, our school, along with all Calgary schools, is also seeing growth in our program. This is compounded by the fact that most other French Immersion schools surrounding Banff Trail School are also very limited in their ability to take in new enrolments, due to school capacity constraints, and families are looking to find other locations (such as our school) to have their children experience French Immersion. I am so glad to see growth in interest in language learning; I happen to chair a committee of Principals who are examining ways to market our Languages programs, which is perhaps redundant in this time of explosive growth for our city, but I place strong value in French Immersion programming. When I first arrived at Banff Trail in November 2020, our student count was around 325 students, whereas this fall we are projected to grow to around 392 students; a sizable jump in a relatively short amount of time. Next on my agenda will be to look at instructional hours, including the detailing around exact bell times to account for CBE’s Traditional Calendar for 2024-25; I anticipate that this should be ready to announce in late May/early June, and likely will not deviate far from existing bell times.
Teachers are examining the curricula, ensuring that all components are addressed before the end of the school year. This is approaching very quickly, and although assessment is ongoing throughout the year, the work of crafting report cards will begin in earnest in the coming weeks. Teachers are also engaging students in some final assessments that connect to our School Development Plan, as we do a final check relating to the extent to which our school-wide strategies and goals (relating to French oral capacity development) were successful. Early indications are definitely positive, but we will share results at a future 2024-25 school council meeting.
Students have begun a sequence of three residencies, which are fully-funded by the efforts of our amazing, supportive School Council. This week, the gym was alive with movement and sound, as students improved their dancing skills with the help of SoundKreations. This continues until the end of next week. In the first week of June, we welcome Evergreen Theatre for a one-week residency, followed by a two-week lacrosse residency with Elev8 Lacrosse. With the warming temperatures, we are also looking forward to more outdoor lunches with our students, as well as exploring various outdoor learning opportunities as a class, both on school grounds and in nearby West Confederation Park.
The final 7 weeks are going to go by very quickly and be paired with increased excitement, with the many things that we have happening in the school; we’re all looking forward to sharing in it with the students!
For your consideration:
Anita Crowshoe Speaking Engagement: As shared earlier this week, School Council has arranged for a speaking engagement from Banff Trail School friend, Knowledge Keeper, teacher, and Piikani Nation member, Anita Crowshoe. This will take place at our school on Tuesday, May 21st from 6:00-7:00pm in the amphitheatre area of the school field. If the weather does not cooperate, School Council will move it indoors to the Learning Commons.
Next Theme Day: On Tuesday, May 28th, we will be hosting our next Spirit Day: Western Day! We invite everyone to dress up with Western cowgirl/cowboy theming for this event; of course, a reminder to keep toy weapons at home for all dress-up events.
Outdoor Lunch: The approaching beautiful weather will allow our Lunch Supervisors to host some lunches outside for students. Please remember to prepare your children for warm, sunny outside time as you see fit, such as by applying sunscreen before coming to school, packing a hat/sunglasses, etc.
Upcoming Dates:
May 6-16: SoundKreations dance residency
Friday, May 17: CBE-wide Non-Instructional Day-no school for students
Monday, May 20: Victoria Day-school closed
Tuesday, May 21: Anita Crowshoe Speaking Engagement, 6-7pm
Tuesday, May 28: Theme/Spirit Day—Western Day
Thursday, May 30: Volunteer Tea (details to come)
Have a wonderful weekend,
Ryan Turner
Principal, Banff Trail School