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Belonging and Connection

Our evidence of student learning this term came in two parts. One was a wealth of reflections from students that illustrated what they learned from our work on caring for place. You can see the students' ideas in the photos attached. 
 
The second was our year-end school survey that was developed to mirror our survey from the beginning of the year. This would allow us to see if we were able to see growth in the areas we hoped to develop. Approximately 18%, or 75 students, did not complete the year-end survey, making comparison to the first term challenging.
 
This survey did, however, reflect the following information for us:
 
Our school community has made meaningful strides in fostering belonging and connection:
  • Strong relationships: Students consistently highlighted friendships, kind teachers, and supportive staff as the best parts of school.
  • Positive feelings: A large majority of students reported feeling safe, confident, and happy at school, with many noting improvements over the year.
  • Student contributions: Many students took pride in acts of kindness, helping others, and participating in initiatives like the pocket forest and garbage clean-up.
  • Staff reflections: Staff expressed appreciation for the students, their colleagues, and the sense of community, with many noting growth in kindness and connection.
 
 
While there’s much to celebrate, the survey also surfaced areas that could benefit from focused attention:
  • Lack of kindness and exclusion: A recurring concern across grades, especially in intermediate years. Some students still feel unsafe or left out.
  • Emotional well-being: Several students expressed feeling lonely, stressed, misunderstood, or invisible. 
  • Facilities and cleanliness: Student respect for bathrooms, garbage, playground, and school grounds were frequently mentioned as needing improvement.
  • Homework and workload: Some students, especially in upper grades, feel overwhelmed by homework and long work blocks.
  • Staff feedback: A few staff members expressed a desire for stronger school-wide cohesion (shared direction and expectations).

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Updated: Thursday, July 24, 2025