This past school year had its challenges to say the least! We navigated the two big C's: COVID-19 and construction. Both C's meant school had to be done differently. We stayed in our cohorts (another C word!), and we learned new routines like wearing a mask and using hand sanitizer whenever we moved from one [...]
BY PAM VAN DOP, GRADE 8 TEACHER “Leanne,” I wrote to my editor, “I think I just wrote a book.” Those words catapulted me into a world I had never dreamt I would be in. I mean, I teach math and science, what business do I have writing a book? I have plenty of excuses [...]
BY DARREN SPYKSMA, GRADE 7 TEACHER Unless you are a professional athlete, pop star, or Pokémon champion, the students in grade 7 aren’t that interested in your title. After six and a half years as Director of Learning for the Society of Christian Schools in British Columbia, I am using my professional leave to fill [...]
I’m not exactly a courageous person. I distinctly remember the fear that crawled up my spine when my mom asked me to get something from the basement as a kid. Our below-ground “dungeon” was unfinished, sported a low ceiling, limited lighting, only two half windows, and a number of resident spiders who felt right at [...]
BY CHERYL SCHUTTE, ACS PARENT If you are like 99% of the population, you probably made some sort of plan to eat healthier to start the New Year. I know I did. I printed off some new recipes, bought a few ingredients I don’t normally have on hand, and did some meal planning. One recipe [...]
I was walking to school on one of those rare mornings with a clear, pre-dawn sky, and low-lying fog. It was cool, quiet, and still. The world felt like it was at peace. As I came toward the school, there was a glow—a radiance—causing me to catch my breath. I immediately pulled out my phone [...]
BY KAREN VAN EGMOND, ACS PARENT Just for once I would like to get my act together and send a proper Christmas card. You know the kind—everyone looking at the camera, smiling, wearing matching sweaters. It’s true; I’m dreaming of an unrealistic Hallmark moment. So, when I said, “Hey! I have an idea for an [...]
Something funny is always happening in middle school. And it often involves something happening outside the classroom. Lately, I feel like we have all seen and heard enough about the COVID-19 virus and its impact on our lives. I do not mean to minimize the reality, but it is high time for us to share [...]
We are enjoying having the grade 5 students at the middle school! They have been at our campus for almost two months now and feel right at home. Even though the COVID-19 restrictions allow limited interaction with the grade 5 students and teachers, we are so glad they are here! So, we want to share [...]
Ask any student who’s been on the SALTS grade 8 sailing trip, they’ll talk for hours about their five days aboard a tall ship in the Salish sea; hauling the sails, taking the wheel, and singing their hearts out at the evening “mug up.” Some of them might also tell you about seasickness. That Queasy [...]
