Harold Bishop »

What Do We Know About Our Learners? Our school is wonderful, multi-ethnic mix of students whose families come from all over the world.  Our school is culturally diverse  which makes for kids working together well and being accepting of each others’ differences. Our students are very proud to be citizens of the Harold Bishop community.  They show up excited to learn and participate in all that our school offers.  Harold Bishop students understand that their actions and attitudes make a positive difference at our school and in the larger community.  Their enthusiasm for participating in learning adventures is remarkable:  Students show daily that they are willing to take risks, explore their own passions and try new things; they have a “Let’s do it attitude.” From in-class assignments and projects to whole school activities such as our Aboriginal Day, our students are fully engaged and are creative and diverse thinkers. We are proud of our students’ care and compassion for others.  They are truly and empathetic group who welcome and embrace new students. Students love to say Hello to adults in the morning and they are grateful for all the things staff do for them.  They also care and support each other and show tremendous learning when working through challenging social situations. They are also very respectful when asked to do something or correct their behavior. Harold Bishop students are always eager to get involved in as many ways as possible at school.  Students are excited to be at HB and rely on our school for stimulation and happiness. They truly aspire to be the best they can be and to make a difference in their world. Evidence of a strong student work ethic is highly evident throughout the hallways and classrooms at HB. Our staff are a talented and dedicated group who have a powerful attachment to our students.  Through our daily connection to students and  high aspirations, our staff continually model and teach what it means to be a Harold Bishop Bear.  Our teachers have embraced learning about formative assessment, self regulation and making learning visible and impactful.   Staff and students live our BEARS motto: Brave, Encouraging, Active, Respectful, Safe. We feel very proud of our students’ academic and social progress and we are confident in their abilities to continue to deepen and enhance their learning. One area of continued learner focus is helping students gain greater awareness and ownership of their own learning.  We need to improve upon students’ abilities to reflect on their own learning and create realistic and achievable goals for themselves through formative assessment practices. Parents trust us and support us with their students.  They show concern for their kids and their well-being but we need to continue to help make them partners in their children’s learning.          

–       ongoing review of FreshGrade portfolios

–       discussions with teachers about student performance and formative / summative assessment evidence

–       student led / 3 way conferences

–       parent reflections on their child’s learning

–       conversations with students about where they are at in their learning and what their next steps are

–       students being able to articulate the feedback they receive from their teachers

–       student reflections on their own learning

–       All of our focus comes under the umbrella of a recently mandated curriculum that requires teachers and students to shift their focus to new areas of importance, competency development.

–       Helping students gain understanding of where they are at in their learning

–       Students being able to set realistic and achievable goals

–       Students being able to understand and articulate what they know and don’t know

–       Continued reading and professional workshops on effective use of quality assessment to support students in knowing where they are at in their learning and what are the next steps.

–       Specific focus on Numeracy and the development of students’ curricular competencies through the effective of instructional strategies and processes.

–       Understanding and planning with Social Studies curricular competencies.

–       Teachers meet regularly to discuss “Mathematical Mindsets” by Jo Boaler in a math inquiry group. 

–       Numeracy helping teacher is making regular visits to support teachers with Number Routines and balanced Numeracy program

–       Social Studies helping teacher is engaged with many of our teachers around planning with curricular competencies (skills and strategies) rather than content.

• Teachers continue to build effective communicating student learning strategies.  Through student led conferences, 3-Way conferences, FreshGrade portfolios, teachers are working hard at making students the centre of their learning journey through reflection  on their progress and goal setting,