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Ellison Elementary is a safe, caring, respectful and responsible learning community. This reflects the values and beliefs held by students, staff, and parents. Ellison Elementary School has a population of 350 students in grades K-7, and includes an Aboriginal community of over 60 students. Almost all of our Aboriginal students live within the urban area surrounding the school. We are proud to work together with a dedicated staff of over 40 (teachers and support staff) who care deeply for our students and their families with an understanding of the diverse needs of our community.
Our staff encourage parent helpers in classrooms and around the school in various capacities which brings our community closer. Once each term we host “Fireside Chats” where parents have a meal together and learn about ways to support students. We often feature a guest speaker, who is an expert in their field, to teach our community and answer questions they have about helping their children learn.
We are located near the Fulton Wetlands, a natural environment that is used regularly by most grade levels to help their students experience the nature and place-based learning.
Our Mission Statement is to foster a caring and innovative community, which encourages kindness and supports all learners to be the best that they can be.
Our motto is Ellison Eagles “SOARing to Success!”
S – Self Regulation
O – Orderliness
A – Accountability
R – Respect
We foster a caring community that provides opportunities in all areas to promote growth. Students at Ellison take ownership of their learning. They are supported through open dialogue, individualized learning opportunities, and security knowing that we are all part of one learning community.
1. Promoting and supporting a healthy lifestyle by;
The milk program
Fruit and vegetable program
Breakfast club
Snack and lunch program
Daily physical exercise
Extra curricular activities
Outdoor play
Variety of field trips
The staff at Ellison believe in promoting a healthy lifestyle. Students are welcome to breakfast every morning which serves approximately 60 to 80 children each morning. Morning snack is provided for about 150 students each day. We provide lunch for approximately 45 students on a regular basis.
We are supported with a dedicated PAC Executive and many hardworking and committed parents. We are generously supported by community associations and service organizations.
2. Students are surrounded with a safe and caring environment where they are developing within learner-centered classrooms.
We see growth in Literacy and Numeracy which are supported by many different learning experiences.
Daily 5
Reading intervention
1 to 1 reading
After school reading program
Guiding teaching practice from phonological awareness and reading assessments
Differentiated instruction in reading and numeracy
Community volunteers reading with students
Buddy reading
Guided reading
Early interventions for high-risk readers
Small reading group blitzes
Team teaching
Chess club
Individual, small group and large group reading
Educational forums for parents on reading and numeracy skills and strategies
3. We use relevant data to guide our instruction while focusing on the social-emotional and intellectual well-being of everyone in our community.
Our Kindergarten team has been using a team teaching approach which allows for more interaction between teacher and student, ensuring that more students will be engaged with a focus on individual growth academically, emotionally, and socially.
We utilize small group reading instruction, project based learning, and support the development of educated citizens with 21st century skills.
One of our school goals is to improve reading so we surround students with books. Throughout the day there are opportunities to enjoy stories and practice the learned reading strategies. Our classes participate in Reading Blitzes daily, where staff work with small groups targeting specific reading strategies as well as Literacy interventions with the classrooms.
We are fortunate at Ellison to have a dedicated and hard-working group of volunteers for our Reading Together tutor program. Adults work with our students to help develop reading skills each day. We also host the After School Reading Program, Summer Reading, and we have one of SD #22 Reading Intervention Teachers working on a Reading Intervention model with several students.
Many of our Primary classes utilize “Daily 5” in the classroom, including listening stations for reading, reading to self, and reading to others.
Ellison also hosts “Fireside Chats” so parents and staff can break bread together with a dinner and a guest speaker who presents strategies that can be used at home to help students in all areas of learning.
Whole school gatherings
Whole school assemblies provide opportunities to develop a positive school culture where students learn intellectual, social, and emotional skills that they need to develop in order to engage in deeper understanding and life-long learning. Our staff takes time to build strong relationships with all students and their families, as they collaborate together to improve student success.
Staff all believe in using positive reinforcement to teach self-regulation and respectful behaviours.
Collaboration/Professionalism/Dedication/Positive Reinforcement and Modelling
We continue to develop capacity in our staff through collaboration and Professional Development with the new curriculum. Our staff participates in continuous analysis of our school data in order to plan for the ever-changing needs of our school community.
We will reinforce the behaviours and expectations set out in our Ellison Eagles S.O.A.R.S. Matrix, and use formative assessments to guide instruction in order to help students achieve their best!
Team Teaching
Differentiated/Small Group instruction
Incorporating First People’s Principles of Learning
Ellison students work with Aboriginal teachers and elders to better understand First Peoples Principles of Learning in context. Students read leveled Aboriginal stories from Strong Nations Publishing, and our Kindergarten classes have First Nation play centres to teach about Aboriginal culture. Two of our staff members have also participated in the SD #22 Cultural Safety Professional Development Day sessions to deepen understanding of First Nation views and how to incorporate them into our classrooms and school.
Our staff responds to the individual needs of our unique students and differentiates instruction to meet those needs. We use relevant data to guide our instruction while focusing on the social-emotional and intellectual well-being of everyone in our community.
Our Kindergarten team has been using a team teaching approach which allows for more interaction between teacher and student, ensuring that more students will be engaged with a focus on individual growth academically, emotionally, and socially.
We utilize small group reading instruction, project based learning, and support the development of educated citizens with 21st century skills.
We have monthly Aboriginal displays created by our students, and we embrace and honor Mother Earth.
Our school is located in a unique place in our city where students get to enjoy the wetlands and experience nature to augment and enhance learning.
Students have the chance to go on numerous nature walks to interact with their environment. For example, our Kindergarten class adopts the Oak tree in our school yard. The kids name the tree “Oakley” and learn about the cycle of nature by observing Oakley’s changes throughout the seasons while using their senses to understand Oakley’s differences at various times of the year.
Love of technology
Our students used coding to program lego robots and create specific movements that followed a plan.
We love play-based learning
Field trips that provide new opportunities
Some of our student learning happens out of the classroom. The rock-climbing wall is a fun and engaging activity our grade 7 students get to do at Eagle Bay Outdoor School.
Our students have the chance to go on many field trips throughout the year to learn in a hands on way.
We will continue to use consistently gathered data to guide our teaching practice so we may continue to focus on specific areas in Literacy and Numeracy that require more guided instruction.
We will continue to encourage, invite, and celebrate:
Our strong community support
Our athletes
Our Intermediate students participate in track and field in the Spring where they learn about various sports and skills.
Students also learn about bike safety and exercising for a healthy lifestyle.
Our musicians
All of our students have the opportunity to develop a love for the arts through drama, dance, and music. Our Music program brings our school together for performances, choir, and at our Winter or Spring Concerts. We also host a talent show so kids can demonstrate their excellence in various ways.
Our love of nature and play
Our love of reading
Our love of writing and numeracy
Our love of building and creating
Giant Jenga teaches students about spatial awareness, problem solving, teamwork and gravity! It is also a great way to have fun on a rainy recess day.
Our love of teaching and learning
Our students get the chance to teach skills they have mastered to others. We believe in an “open door” policy for families to discuss ideas and share knowledge with the staff, and encourage dialogue between families. Our warm and caring climate welcomes parents with opportunities to visit each other on the chairs in the hallways, picnic tables outside our school where parents and students can chat, as well as our always popular “Back To School BBQ” where our community comes together to set the positive tone for the year.
And our love and support of each other
At Ellison, we have caring students who help one another and contribute to our school and community in a positive way. We have improved our parking lot to help students be safe, and we even have staff members who give out stickers to those students who use the crosswalks.
Our “Walking School Bus” program helps students get to school and home safely each day, as a parent volunteer walks with groups of students who meet at a specified location each day so they can all travel together.
Our Intermediate students serve as lunch monitors in primary classes, office monitors, and peer helpers which promotes empathy and community here at Ellison.
Ellison Elementary is a safe, caring, respectful and responsible learning community. This reflects the values and beliefs held by students, staff, and parents. Ellison Elementary School has a population of 350 students in grades K-7, and includes an Aboriginal community of over 60 students. Almost all of our Aboriginal students live within the urban area surrounding the school. We are proud to work together with a dedicated staff of over 40 (teachers and support staff) who care deeply for our students and their families with an understanding of the diverse needs of our community.
Our staff encourage parent helpers in classrooms and around the school in various capacities which brings our community closer. Once each term we host “Fireside Chats” where parents have a meal together and learn about ways to support students. We often feature a guest speaker, who is an expert in their field, to teach our community and answer questions they have about helping their children learn.
We are located near the Fulton Wetlands, a natural environment that is used regularly by most grade levels to help their students experience the nature and place-based learning.
Our Mission Statement is to foster a caring and innovative community, which encourages kindness and supports all learners to be the best that they can be.
Our motto is Ellison Eagles “SOARing to Success!”
S – Self Regulation
O – Orderliness
A – Accountability
R – Respect
We foster a caring community that provides opportunities in all areas to promote growth. Students at Ellison take ownership of their learning. They are supported through open dialogue, individualized learning opportunities, and security knowing that we are all part of one learning community.
1. Promoting and supporting a healthy lifestyle by;
The milk program
Fruit and vegetable program
Breakfast club
Snack and lunch program
Daily physical exercise
Extra curricular activities
Outdoor play
Variety of field trips
The staff at Ellison believe in promoting a healthy lifestyle. Students are welcome to breakfast every morning which serves approximately 60 to 80 children each morning. Morning snack is provided for about 150 students each day. We provide lunch for approximately 45 students on a regular basis.
We are supported with a dedicated PAC Executive and many hardworking and committed parents. We are generously supported by community associations and service organizations.
2. Students are surrounded with a safe and caring environment where they are developing within learner-centered classrooms.
We see growth in Literacy and Numeracy which are supported by many different learning experiences.
Daily 5
Reading intervention
1 to 1 reading
After school reading program
Guiding teaching practice from phonological awareness and reading assessments
Differentiated instruction in reading and numeracy
Community volunteers reading with students
Buddy reading
Guided reading
Early interventions for high-risk readers
Small reading group blitzes
Team teaching
Chess club
Individual, small group and large group reading
Educational forums for parents on reading and numeracy skills and strategies
3. We use relevant data to guide our instruction while focusing on the social-emotional and intellectual well-being of everyone in our community.
Our Kindergarten team has been using a team teaching approach which allows for more interaction between teacher and student, ensuring that more students will be engaged with a focus on individual growth academically, emotionally, and socially.
We utilize small group reading instruction, project based learning, and support the development of educated citizens with 21st century skills.
One of our school goals is to improve reading so we surround students with books. Throughout the day there are opportunities to enjoy stories and practice the learned reading strategies. Our classes participate in Reading Blitzes daily, where staff work with small groups targeting specific reading strategies as well as Literacy interventions with the classrooms.
We are fortunate at Ellison to have a dedicated and hard-working group of volunteers for our Reading Together tutor program. Adults work with our students to help develop reading skills each day. We also host the After School Reading Program, Summer Reading, and we have one of SD #22 Reading Intervention Teachers working on a Reading Intervention model with several students.
Many of our Primary classes utilize “Daily 5” in the classroom, including listening stations for reading, reading to self, and reading to others.
Ellison also hosts “Fireside Chats” so parents and staff can break bread together with a dinner and a guest speaker who presents strategies that can be used at home to help students in all areas of learning.
Whole school gatherings
Whole school assemblies provide opportunities to develop a positive school culture where students learn intellectual, social, and emotional skills that they need to develop in order to engage in deeper understanding and life-long learning. Our staff takes time to build strong relationships with all students and their families, as they collaborate together to improve student success.
Staff all believe in using positive reinforcement to teach self-regulation and respectful behaviours.
Collaboration/Professionalism/Dedication/Positive Reinforcement and Modelling
We continue to develop capacity in our staff through collaboration and Professional Development with the new curriculum. Our staff participates in continuous analysis of our school data in order to plan for the ever-changing needs of our school community.
We will reinforce the behaviours and expectations set out in our Ellison Eagles S.O.A.R.S. Matrix, and use formative assessments to guide instruction in order to help students achieve their best!
Team Teaching
Differentiated/Small Group instruction
Incorporating First People’s Principles of Learning
Ellison students work with Aboriginal teachers and elders to better understand First Peoples Principles of Learning in context. Students read leveled Aboriginal stories from Strong Nations Publishing, and our Kindergarten classes have First Nation play centres to teach about Aboriginal culture. Two of our staff members have also participated in the SD #22 Cultural Safety Professional Development Day sessions to deepen understanding of First Nation views and how to incorporate them into our classrooms and school.
Our staff responds to the individual needs of our unique students and differentiates instruction to meet those needs. We use relevant data to guide our instruction while focusing on the social-emotional and intellectual well-being of everyone in our community.
Our Kindergarten team has been using a team teaching approach which allows for more interaction between teacher and student, ensuring that more students will be engaged with a focus on individual growth academically, emotionally, and socially.
We utilize small group reading instruction, project based learning, and support the development of educated citizens with 21st century skills.
We have monthly Aboriginal displays created by our students, and we embrace and honor Mother Earth.
Our school is located in a unique place in our city where students get to enjoy the wetlands and experience nature to augment and enhance learning.
Students have the chance to go on numerous nature walks to interact with their environment. For example, our Kindergarten class adopts the Oak tree in our school yard. The kids name the tree “Oakley” and learn about the cycle of nature by observing Oakley’s changes throughout the seasons while using their senses to understand Oakley’s differences at various times of the year.
Love of technology
Our students used coding to program lego robots and create specific movements that followed a plan.
We love play-based learning
Field trips that provide new opportunities
Some of our student learning happens out of the classroom. The rock-climbing wall is a fun and engaging activity our grade 7 students get to do at Eagle Bay Outdoor School.
Our students have the chance to go on many field trips throughout the year to learn in a hands on way.
We will continue to use consistently gathered data to guide our teaching practice so we may continue to focus on specific areas in Literacy and Numeracy that require more guided instruction.
We will continue to encourage, invite, and celebrate:
Our strong community support
Our athletes
Our Intermediate students participate in track and field in the Spring where they learn about various sports and skills.
Students also learn about bike safety and exercising for a healthy lifestyle.
Our musicians
All of our students have the opportunity to develop a love for the arts through drama, dance, and music. Our Music program brings our school together for performances, choir, and at our Winter or Spring Concerts. We also host a talent show so kids can demonstrate their excellence in various ways.
Our love of nature and play
Our love of reading
Our love of writing and numeracy
Our love of building and creating
Giant Jenga teaches students about spatial awareness, problem solving, teamwork and gravity! It is also a great way to have fun on a rainy recess day.
Our love of teaching and learning
Our students get the chance to teach skills they have mastered to others. We believe in an “open door” policy for families to discuss ideas and share knowledge with the staff, and encourage dialogue between families. Our warm and caring climate welcomes parents with opportunities to visit each other on the chairs in the hallways, picnic tables outside our school where parents and students can chat, as well as our always popular “Back To School BBQ” where our community comes together to set the positive tone for the year.
And our love and support of each other
At Ellison, we have caring students who help one another and contribute to our school and community in a positive way. We have improved our parking lot to help students be safe, and we even have staff members who give out stickers to those students who use the crosswalks.
Our “Walking School Bus” program helps students get to school and home safely each day, as a parent volunteer walks with groups of students who meet at a specified location each day so they can all travel together.
Our Intermediate students serve as lunch monitors in primary classes, office monitors, and peer helpers which promotes empathy and community here at Ellison.
Checking
Where am I going with my learning?
How do we weave Indigenous ways of knowing into our daily practices?
Checking
Where am I going with my learning?
Can Ellison Learners answer the question, “Where am I going with my learning?”
Can our students describe in their own words what they are learning, and why it is important?
Students are active participants in the process of communicating their learning. As a staff, we are focused on integrating the curricular competencies and core competencies into daily practice. During the 2019/20 school year, students became actively involved in setting the criteria for learning projects and for self-assessing their learning in relation to the criteria. Students are continuing to develop their skills from K to grade 7 in determining their personal goals and how to self-assess their learning and progress in relation to the proficiency scale and the curricular competencies. Students are able to share their knowledge and understanding of their learning in a variety of ways.
Do students understand themselves as learners? Do they demonstrate metacognition (are they able to think about their thinking)?
As of the 2019-2020 school year, SD22 underwent a significant change in reporting practices to align with the BC Curriculum. The district introduced a new reporting order, called Communicated Student Learning. As part of communicating student learning process, students became involved in reflecting on their learning and setting their personal academic and social emotional goals. Students are learning to think about their learning and their thinking. They are active participants involved in student/teacher and parent conferences to celebrate their successes and to determine their future personal learning goals.
How do we weave Indigenous ways of knowing into our daily practices?
Do our learners experience a sense of connection to the land?
Is learning from the environment a part of the teaching/learning experience at Ellison?
At Ellison, we have a strong focus on place-based learning. Many classes participate in outdoor learning experiences such as ‘Walk-about Wednesdays, ‘Wilderness Wednesdays’ and other place-based learning experiences.
Do our Indigenous learners see themselves reflected in the curriculum, and in the literature they are reading daily?
Is the prior knowledge that the learners have respected and valued?
Scanning - Questions Considered in the scanning process
Social Emotional Learning and Well-Being
Ellison Elementary Student Learning Survey Results 2020/21
Scanning - Questions Considered in the scanning process
Social Emotional Learning and Well-Being
The Student Learning Survey is a provincial measure given to Gr. 4 and 7 students. It gathers information from parents/guardians/caregivers, teachers and students on topics related to school environment, safety, and achievement. The information is used for planning in individual schools and provides a district and provincial perspective. The results are important in identifying and celebrating current strengths, as well as determining where the school needs to focus improvement.
At Ellison, we work as a staff to ensure that our students feel cared for both mentally, emotionally and physically. We meet regularly with parents as a school and home team to support each individual student, we have a breakfast and lunch program and welcome students to ‘take what they need’ and we encourage a strength-based and positive approach to supporting each child.
Our School Motto is: Ellison Eagles – SOARING to Success
Our students are directly taught the virtues and competencies of our SOAR motto:
S- Self-Regulation
O – Orderliness
A – Accountability
R – Respect
We are working as a staff team to develop common language to support the explicit teaching of self-regulation. In the 2020/21 school year, we have been working on teaching the important skill of how to manage our emotions and how to develop a personal toolbox for how to regulate our bodies throughout the day.
Ellison Elementary Student Learning Survey Results 2020/21
Focusing
Focusing requires a collection of information to clarify what is happening.
How are our Gr. 4 & 7 students doing in literacy and numeracy on the Provincial Foundation Skills Assessment?
How do we respond as a school and focus our energy so that we can change the results and the experiences for our learners?
Focusing
Focusing requires a collection of information to clarify what is happening.
How are our Gr. 4 & 7 students doing in literacy and numeracy on the Provincial Foundation Skills Assessment?
How do we respond as a school and focus our energy so that we can change the results and the experiences for our learners?
Developing a Hunch
Hunches are about professional practices and curiosity as a school team in order to discover possibilities.
What can we do as a staff team to have an impact on student academic learning and social emotional learning?
Develop Common Language and Shared Practices to support student learning.
Developing a Hunch
Hunches are about professional practices and curiosity as a school team in order to discover possibilities.
What can we do as a staff team to have an impact on student academic learning and social emotional learning?
Our teachers are engaged in professional learning communities and each teaching group has been focussed on inquiries of practice, focussed on areas of need within our school.
Develop Common Language and Shared Practices to support student learning.
We are reviewing our data to inform our instruction and our direction as a school. We are focussed on developing systematic approaches to support our learners both academically and in the social-emotional and mental health areas. We believe in the importance of educating the “whole child” ~ educating the heart and the mind.
Learning
Ellison Teachers Professional Learning Groups and Inquiries of Focus for 20/21
School Spirit and Staff and Student Engagement
Learning
Ellison Teachers Professional Learning Groups and Inquiries of Focus for 20/21
Literacy Skills – In the primary years, focus on developing common language and practices that will support the building of strong foundational skills in literacy.
What do we not yet understand or need to know as a primary team to support vertical alignment of literacy practices in the early years?
What are some common assessments that we need to all do to inform our daily practice?
How do we respond to the assessment? Do we have a shared understanding of the targeted and timely steps required following a pre-literacy assessment, or reading assessment? What are the widely held research based practices that we can all engage in on a daily basis to support foundational literacy skills in the early years?
Numeracy – In the intermediate years, what is a common assessment that aligns with the learning standards of the redesigned curriculum that the intermediate teachers can use that will inform teachers on student strengths and challenges? Following the assessment, what are some high yield routines in numeracy that we can incorporate into our classrooms that will support student learning in numeracy?
School Spirit and Staff and Student Engagement
The 2019/20 school year, was a year of significant change as the Pandemic had a significant impact on our local and global community.
The multiple changes in school routines, the physical distancing and cohort design had an impact both on school spirit, but also school engagement with limited opportunities for togetherness and team sports.
Our teachers investigated ways to create a sense of togetherness and ways to create celebration and excitement.
As the recovery from the pandemic will continue into the 21/22 school year and perhaps further, the question of how do we continue to create opportunities to re-create community, celebration and togetherness will continue to be a relevant question and pursuit.
Taking Action
Targeted Reading Instruction and Support
Ellison Eagles S.O.A.R - "S" is for Self-Regulation
Student Engagement and Belonging
Taking Action
Targeted Reading Instruction and Support
Primary Small Group Literacy Instruction – Collaboration Series:
With a goal of creating common language and best practice strategies, primary teachers have come together within their grade groupings to review and discuss components of a balanced literacy framework, small group literacy lesson frameworks and high yield activities that target differentiated literacy instruction.
PM Benchmark Review:
By reviewing key literacy assessment tools, teachers can fine-tune procedures and discuss reading behaviours observed during the assessment.
Targeted Reading Instruction and Support:
Through regular data review, our District Literacy Support Teacher, Reading Instruction Teacher and Admin, meet regularly to review our literacy data. Using teacher input and data, we direct timely and target reading intervention to those students who are currently in the emergent and developing areas.
Students identified to receive intervention and support will meet with our Literacy Intervention Teacher or our school based Reading Teacher on a daily basis to receive intensive small group instruction and support.
Read to Me Voluteers:
Students receive additional 1:1 support from a trained volunteer reading instructor. Students in our intermediate grades typically receive this support in addition to the literacy support provided in class. This intervention provides reinforcement of the literacy skills taught. Due to COVID – this program has been postponed for the 2021/22 school year.
Ellison Eagles S.O.A.R - "S" is for Self-Regulation
In the 2019/20 school year we revamped our Positive Behaviour Supports and our school-wide expectations and Code of Conduct. Our new motto is “Ellison Eagles ~ SOARing to Success.”
The “S” in SOAR stands for Self-Regulation. The ability to self-regulate the mind and body in various settings throughout the day is an important and life-long skill. As a staff, we are explicity teaching the skill and ability to self-regulate. Many teachers are using various strategies to teach this skill, such as the Mind-Up Curriculum, as well as school-wide strategies such as WITS, and the Zones of Regulation.
Student Engagement and Belonging
Student Recognition:
For the 21/22 school year, we will continue to focus on the school wide implementation of our newly developed positive reinforcement system -the “Eagle Eyes.” We will also fully implement our SOAR award as a recognition and celebration of every student in the school throughout the year. We were unable to fully continue this work, due to COVID and the postponement of school wide assemblies.
Sense of Belonging:
During the 2020/21 school year, we began to work with a local indigenous artist to develop a new school logo. Unfortunately, this work was postponed due to COVID, but in the 2021/22 school year, we will continue to work with a local artist to develop a logo that represents our local territory of the Sylix nation.
For the 21/22 school year, we will create a “Welcome Room” where our Aboriginal Support worker, can continue her fabulous work of supporting our students with indigenous ancestory, as well as supporting teachers in their work of weaving an indigenous focus into their daily instruction. Additionally, we want to continue the work of place based learning and learning about our local environment and learning from the land.
