Four Year Plan In the spirit of capturing the hearts and minds of staff who Communique share the same values, beliefs and vision for students, Rocky View Schools (RVS) is pleased to present the first of four Beginning with the communiques on its Four Year Plan, entitled “Innovators by "Why?" Design – Beginning with Why.” Dedicated to answering the many questions posed by staff related to the jurisdiction’s new Spring and Fall Playbooks, the communique also provides a cursory look at the work of our four Superintendent Design Teams and the needs of our students, parents and staff as shared by schools through their Spring Playbook submissions, Oct. 15, 2019. Be sure to check out the communique’s accompanying video, featuring voices from the field regarding the Spring Playbook’s Discovery Phase. NEWS TO KNOW Sneak Peek at RVS' new Four Year Plan RVS is excited to present its new Four Year Plan, Nov. 28, 2019, following the Board of Trustees meeting. In addition to featuring RVS' new goals, outcomes, performance measures and strategic priorities, the plan features highlights of the capital plan and revised budget. Stay tuned for the official release! Sleep Better, Feel Better Getting enough sleep? RVS values the health and safety of its employees, noting many suffer from a lack of sleep. Although life circumstances can affect sleep patterns, sleep is essential to employees' overall well-being. Read Morneau Shepell's Making Your Dream of a Better Sleep Come True to learn tips on getting a more restful sleep, which results in more productive work days. Staff with sleep issues/concerns can contact Occupational Health Nurse JoAnne White or their family doctor. Choice in Education Survey Albertans have until Dec. 6, 2019, to participate in an online survey from the Government of Alberta that aims to identify opportunities to protect and enhance education choice. Feedback will be used to inform the development of the Choice in Education Act. Rocky Raccoon to Brave the Elements Although they don't hibernate, raccoons do hole up in dens during the bitterest days of winter - but not RVS' Raccoon! Have a school event or classroom event coming up? Invite Rocky! He's ready to brave the cold winter weather to visit schools across the jurisdiction to help spread school spirit! Prior to submitting a booking form, please check Rocky's calendar to view his availability. Generally Rocky does not attend more than one event per day. So don't delay, invite him today! Chrome Browser/PowerTeacher Pro Assignment Descriptions Issue When using Chrome, some teachers have reported issues with entering assignment descriptions in PowerTeacher Pro. Issues include the small size of the assignment description box, not having a WYSYWYG HTML editor and not saving, despite clicking "save." Although the problem does not appear to be widespread, PowerTeacher Pro users can verify if descriptions are being captured by clicking on "edit assignment." Teachers who don't see descriptions are asked to switch to an alternate browser such as Safari or Firefox. If the issue persists, please submit a ticket to the Service Desk. PowerSchool Report Card Templates Teachers are asked to take note that report card templates for Term One are ready for use with each template having been tested against each school. The naming convention for the new reports starts with: NEW_T1. Please note, once a report card has been generated, issues may be encountered. If this occurs, please call the PowerSchool Team at ext. 4115 or submit a ticket to the Service Desk. O365 Group Calendars on Outlook Mobile Good news! Group calendars are now available for viewing on Outlook mobile for iOS and Android devices. When accessing Outlook on a mobile device, simply click the calendar icon on the bottom right-hand corner, followed by staff initials (in iOS) or hamburger menu (in Android) in the top left- hand corner. From here, users will see the group calendar checklist. Questions can be directed to O365/Sharepoint Specialist Alex Siedule or Software Support Analyst Risto Harkonen. We Are the Champions! Volleyball News Congratulations to RVS' middle school volleyball champions! Thirty-four teams competed for gold at RallyPointe, Nov. 6/7, 2019. Thanks to all coaches and Commissioners Craig Churchill from Banded Peak and Jon Goldie from Chestermere Lake Middle. The winners were: Jr. 1A Boys - Beiseker Community School Jr. 1A Girls - Prince of Peace Jr. 2A Boys - Springbank Middle Jr. 2A Girls - Bearspaw Middle Jr. 3A Boys - Manachaban Middle Jr. 3A Girls - Springbank Middle Congratulations to RVS' high school volleyball champions! Thanks to all coaches, with a special nod to Commissioner James King from George McDougall. Divisional play finished up, Nov. 8, 2019, with the following teams posting wins: Junior Varsity Girls Tier 1 Cochrane Cobras Tier 2 W.H. Croxford Cavaliers Junior Varsity Boys Springbank Phoenix Senior Varsity Girls Springbank Phoenix Senior Varsity Boys Cochrane Cobras Football News The Cochrane Cobras football team is preparing to defend its Tier III Alberta Schools Athletic Association championship, Nov. 23, 2019. Congratulations goes out to the Cobras as Division A champs and to the Springbank Phoenix as Division B champs. Thanks to all coaches for their dedication and expertise to high school football. Special thanks goes out to Commissioner Brian Utley. INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES Inclusive Education Indicators To ensure RVS is demonstrating a commitment to inclusive education, teachers are asked to review the Indicators of Inclusive Schools resource guide, which offers information and tools that can be used to develop strategies and action plans to strengthen inclusive education and ensure equitable access for all learners. Alberta's education system is built on a values-based approach to accepting responsibility for all children and students. It follows six principles of inclusive education to achieve the province's vision for an inclusive education system. Watch Valuing All Students, part of a nine video series released by the Alberta government. RVS STORYTELLERS Beiseker high school teacher Tatum Nixon and Gr. 5 teacher Kaity Weinz collaborated on Dragon's Den, a Gr. 10 science initiative, which created authentic bonding opportunities for students in elementary and high school. Grade 5 students came up with a list of everyday problems for the Gr. 10 students to solve. In response, the group ideated, designed and created a working prototype using chemical reaction to solve these everyday problems. Grade 5 students were invited back on Dragon's Den Day to see how the Gr. 10 students used their prototype to find solutions to the proposed problems. The prototype was reviewed by a panel of Dragons, comprised of staff from the EC. This project is but one great example of making learning visible in RVS. LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES Master of Education in Education Studies Program Educators interested in pursuing The Master of Education in Education Studies Program (MES) offered through the University of Alberta can apply by visiting the university's website. The program is aimed at enhancing educators' knowledge and practice in the areas of leadership and school improvement. The MES begins in July followed by online delivery in a two-year, part-time, course- based program for working educators who want to pursue graduate studies without taking a leave from their careers. To optimize the learning experience, the program is cohort-based. Questions can be directed to the MES Graduate Administrator. Two-Day Standard First Aid Want to become first aid certified? Staff is invited to register for a two-day Standard First Aid Course, Dec. 2/6, 2019, at Cochrane High. The course includes emergency first aid skills, first aid for other injuries and illnesses, including head and spinal injuries, fractures of the upper and lower limbs, as well as cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillators training. The cost is $100/person. For designated school or EC first aiders, the cost will be covered. Questions can be directed to Anne Kromm at Cochrane High School or JoAnne White in Occupational Health. Register via the RVSPL System. RVS BLOG RVS Guest Blogger: Westbrook School Assistant Principal Hana Hooper Engaging All and Planning for Tomorrow - To discover the big ideas and build a collaborative community focused on student learning, Westbrook School engaged with all stakeholders to identify school strengths, needs and opportunities. Staff, students and community worked together to develop Westbrook’s school profile and came up with some driving questions for the coming school year. The process was highly collaborative and reflective, building relationships and understanding. The school staff continue to reflect on the data from this process to further define Westbrook School. Read More... SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER Learning Math with Gus the Plus+ - Cochrane Christian Academy Gr. 1 teacher Christine Madore uses creativity to help her young students build fluency in addition. With the help of Gus the Plus+, students built addition machines to help add numbers to 20! See Christine's Tweet and follow her on Twitter. ON THE SHELF Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know This week's recommended read comes courtesy of Director of Schools John Murphy. "How did Fidel Castro fool the CIA for a generation? Why did Neville Chamberlain think he could trust Adolf Hitler? Why are campus sexual assaults on the rise? Do television sitcoms teach us something about the way we relate to each other that isn't true? Something is very wrong, Gladwell argues, with the tools and strategies we use to make sense of people we don't know. And because we don't know how to talk to strangers, we are inviting conflict and misunderstanding in ways that have a profound effect on our lives and our world." ~ Publisher, Little, Brown And Company.