September is Gone

Well, the month of September is gone.  It's hard to believe that Halloween is just around the corner.  This is also normally a time when we would be looking at our first set of parent interviews, but due to job action, they will be delayed.  Parents who wish to find out how their student is doing, are encouraged to contact teachers directly by phone, as there will be no progress reports going home at this time.

School spirit was in full force last week with the annual grade 8 barbeque put on by the counselling department and peer counsellors.  Grade 8 students were hosted for lunch on Thursday where they were provided hamburgers and hotdogs and given an opportunity to mingle with their friends and some older students.  The Peer Counselling group completed their training session last weekend at Jewel Lake with Mrs. Webster and will now be starting to meet with their grade 8 groups on a regular basis.  Thanks to those who helped with the food preparation!

Also last week, a small team of teachers took on the senior girls volleyball team Wednesday at lunch.  The teachers took the lead early in the match by winning the first game, but the girls came back in the second game led by Paige Kopan's massive block on yours truly.  Word has it we are looking for a re-match with the girls in the next couple weeks.

To end the week, our Educational Assistants and principal/vice-principals attended a session on "Non-Violent Crisis Intervention" all day on Friday.  This training session focused on how to work with students experiencing high levels of anxiety and possible physical/verbal outbursts.  I'm glad to say, that our Student Services team including our teachers, EA's and Child Youth Workers, do a great job on a regular basis of keeping our students in a good place both physically and mentally.  Through their ongoing commitment to maintaining a good learning environment, most of our students are able to cope even when faced with a multitude of challenges both at school and home.

And on a sad note, this coming week will see us say goodbye to our science guru Mr. Behl as he sails (or rides his bike) off into the sunset of retirement. 

Mr. Behl has meant a lot to the students at GFSS and will be missed not only for his expertise, but his lasting commitment to excellence and high standards in the classroom.  Through his Socratic approach to questioning, Mr. Behl has continually challenged his students to think and solve problems for themselves.   We look forward to roasting....I mean, saying goodbye to Mr. Behl on Thursday at his retirement luncheon.  Cheers.