Please hold the following dates for Counsellor Zoom meetings starting at 8:30am:
                       
                       January 21st        
                        February 25th 
                        April 6th
                        May 19th           

KidStart is a volunteer mentoring program for vulnerable children and youth aged 6-18, who are vulnerable to, and/or experiencing crime, addiction, abuse and crisis within the family. Participants are matched with adult volunteers who mentor and help build self-esteem through positive achievement. 

December Snapshot topic: helping children and youth manage their emotions, particularly during these challenging times. 
Early Learning and Elementary Snapshot
Middle Snapshot
Secondary Snapshot

In essence, the first wave was new to us all and some figured how to accommodate it but with the second wave, those we are concerned about know how difficult it was and feel the overwhelm of extended quarantine measures.  The best intervention that schools can provide is to be thoughtful and creative about how to stay connected to our students and their families as much as possible.

Listen, Protect, Connect: An Evidence-Informed ModelIn keeping with best practice guidelines, Psychological First Aid for Schools: Listen Protect Connect - Model and Teach is a model of immediate help focusing on support and assistance provided to students by adults who are employed by a school or school district, specifically, teachers, educational aides, administrators, and staff members.

These guidelines are provided by the authors as a resource for school district leaders, school administrators and community professionals who work with and support students and their families. They provide recommendations for thoughtful trauma-informed planning to prepare for re-entry back into the school setting during the pandemic. 

This Trauma-Sensitive Toolkit is designed as a resource for educators, mental health professionals, and families to help:
Understand ways that trauma may present in children and teens in various settings at home and within the online learning space, including  anxiety, hopelessness, withdrawal, irritability, depression, and exhaustion.  Equip you with accessible 7 yoga and mindfulness tools to support your children and teens through the effects of trauma, and Identify the compounding effects of multiple collective traumas on vulnerable youth, including marginalized, and/or disenfranchised individuals and communities.

This is a free family program for children aged 8 - 12 years old focused on supporting kids getting on a healthy weight lifestyle program.  It is a virtual, interactive program running from January to March, and is facilitated by a dietician. 


Families can register by visiting https://generationhealth.ca or by calling 1-888-650-3141.   

A helpful visual tool/booklet to share with students and teachers to help them understand their Fight/Flight/Freeze responses as well as helpful tools to support regulation.

The science suggests that teenagers still need lots of social emotional support-but SEL work tends to focus on the elementary years.  The article offers suggestions to educators about how to weave SEL practice into the school day.

Many families are looking for better ways to guide their kids’ technology use, and to avoid battles and negotiations around screen time, video games, and tech use at home. This has become even more of a concern for many parents and caregivers with the increased use of screens during COVID-19. In our latest podcast episode, Dr. Shimi Kang, child and youth psychiatrist, and her teenage son Joesh, offer practical tips for families to develop or reset healthy tech habits at home

Joanne Mitchell District Indigenous Counsellor
As District Indigenous Counsellor,  Joanne is passionate about incorporating authentic learning about Indigenous issues into our schools. She feels it is important to understand a full spectrum of Indigenous perspectives: the history of Indigenous dispossession and trauma; the strength and resiliency of the culture; and, to present the beauty and intricacies of Indigenous worldview. With other members of her team, she strives to wrap our children in the protection of cultural strength and identity, and inform a new generation of learners about the importance of Truth and Reconciliation. The Indigenous team is here to create a vision for our district to move towards reconciliation by providing guidance and support to public educators to seek out authentic voices, unpack colonial theories, and find the confidence to move forward in our vision where reconciliation can be felt both personally and professionally