Blog Posts

December 16, 2022

SPIRIT DAY #5 - POLAR EXPRESS

Good Afternoon, South Poplar Families!

Today was our final day of our Holiday Spirit Week: 5 Books♥5 Ways♥5 Dress-Up Days. Just like the main character of “The Polar Express” we all wore our pajamas for our great adventure – his adventure was to the North Pole … ours was to conquer the last day of school before Winter Break. 😉

“The Polar Express” is a favourite holiday book all about believing in the magic of Christmas. Please click here to watch it, our final “Story by the Fire with Wildcat”.

December 15, 2022

SPIRIT DAY #4 - GRINCH DAY

Good Afternoon, South Poplar Families!

Today, for Day 4 of our Holiday Spirit Week: 5 Books♥5 Ways♥5 Dress-Up Days, our whole school was Grinch-ified. We wore green, ate Grinch-cookies, listened to the book, and even had a visit from the Grinch himself. Our hearts have now grown three-sizes as the Who’s reminded us about the meaning of Christmas.

“How the Grinch Stole Christmas” is a classic Christmas story that was written in 1957. Please click here to watch it, our Day 4 “Story by the Fire with Wildcat”.

December 14, 2022

SPIRIT DAY #3 - SNOWMAN DAY

Good Afternoon, South Poplar Famliies!

Today our school community was looking super cool … some may even say snowy cold. Our staff and students let their inner-snowpeople out, donned their white, and enjoyed Day 3 of our Holiday Spirit Week: 5 Books♥5 Ways♥5 Dress-Up Days: “Snowmen at Night” Day.

“Snowmen at Night” is an imaginative story about the nighttime antics of snowmen, which lead to their somewhat disheveled looks come sunrise. Please click here to watch our Day 3 “Story by the Fire with Wildcat”.

December 13, 2022

Champions for Children: Clearbrook’s Path to Strengthening Personal and Cultural Identity

We walk into our schools each day and meet with faces, a multitude of beautiful faces behind which there are stories, personalities, interests, skills, hopes and values. And each day, we are lucky enough to have these children share pieces and layers of themselves in what might seem like surface-level interactions. A welcoming smile can draw someone in and engage them in conversation, and taking some time to listen to a child's story gives insight into their identity and, in turn, gives them the confidence they need to share with others.

December 13, 2022

SPIRIT DAY #2 - STICK MAN DAY

Good Afternoon, South Poplar Families!

Today things got a little bit “sticky” 😉 at South Poplar as we paid homage to “Stick Man”, on Day 2 of our Holiday Spirit Week: 5 Books♥5 Ways♥5 Dress-Up Days.

“Stick Man” is a heart-warming story that focuses on the importance of family. Please click here to watch it, our Day 2 “Story by the Fire with Wildcat”.

We are looking forward to “Snowmen at Night” Day tomorrow.  Don’t forget to let your inner-snowperson out! (Wear white)

December 13, 2022

Pausing for Gratitude

Many of you will know that I am a big football fan, (and an especially big Raider fan). The inspiration for my post this week does not come from Raider Nation, but from the Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith. If you follow the Seahawks, you will know that their Super Bowl winning quarterback, Russel Wilson was traded away and that most pundits thought that with back-up quarterback Smith at the helm, the team would be lucky to win half of their games this year.

December 12, 2022

Spirit Day #1 - Mooseltoe Day

Good Afternoon, South Poplar Families!

Today was a fabulous kick-off to our Holiday Spirt Week: 5 Books-5 Ways-5 Dress-Up Days

Mooseltoe is a wonderful holiday story, where the moose dad's moustache saves Christmas. (Which explains the moustached kiddos that you will be picking up today. 😉)

Please click here to watch our first "Story by the Fire with Wildcat".

November 24, 2022

Early Learning in our Community

The Abbotsford School District's Early Years learning team has been working to ensure that as many children and families have access to early learning support throughout our community. The following services and programs are currently available:

November 24, 2022

Celebrating Student Leadership

I had the pleasure this week of meeting with around fifty of Yale Secondary’s Leadership 12 students. They are an amazing and diverse group of go-getters who help to make their school and community better through service. In addition to the work they do, they are also curious about leadership and routinely invite leaders from various parts of the community to talk about their roles and perspectives on leadership. This week I was the invited guest. Among the things they wanted to learn more about were my background, how I became superintendent, as well as the joys and challenges of the job.

November 8, 2022

In Remembrance

Many of you will know that I am a student of the World Wars, and that over the years I have written about the profound respect I have for our veterans who have put their lives on the line for the cause of freedom. As a teacher I carefully curated stories for my students about pivotal battles and Canadian heroes who helped to pave the way for the freedoms we sometimes take for granted. It was always a treat to welcome veterans into my classroom, and students always came away with a greater appreciation for the courageous lives of our service men and women, as well as the horrors of war.