Forsyth Road Elementary 23-24
OUR CONTEXT
“Seek wisdom, not knowledge. Knowledge is of the past; Wisdom is of the future.”
- Lumbee Tribe
Welcome families to Forsyth Road.
We acknowledge that our school is located on the shared and unceded traditional territories of the qʼʷa:n̓ƛʼən̓ (Kwantlen), q̓ic̓əy̓ (Katzie), Semyome (Semiahmoo), and other Coast Salish peoples.
At Forsyth Road, we believe that our learning is intimately tied to the First Peoples Principles of Learning.
Within our school walls you will feel a sense of community and collaboration. We understand the importance of building connections with one another, and the strength that comes from being able to work together.
“If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” – African proverb
Our school continues to grow and expand, but we strive to be a place where people’s differences are cherished, and they feel included. We have nearly 500 learners with a variety of cultural and linguistic backgrounds; a staff with extensive knowledge and experiences; and a community of supportive parents.
Forsyth Falcons are cooperative, focused, strong, and resilient. We work collaboratively to build a community that supports one another. We encourage staff and students to take risks and achieve their goals.
OUR LEARNERS
Literacy is a skill that is fundamental to the ability of students to build deeper connections and inquire about the world around them. Creative thinking allows students to generate ideas through collaboration, communication and free play; it is embedded in memory, history and story.
Our students can engage in ongoing reflection as they develop their creative ideas; learning is holistic, reflexive, experiential and relational.
Our students are provided many opportunities to connect what they are learning to their everyday lives. It is important for our students to understand the importance of reflection and use these strategies in self-development. In this grade 6/7 class, they were tasked with volunteering around the school and then given the chance to reflect on their experiences. Student reflections allowed them to build deeper connections with what they were learning and see the importance of giving back to their school.
This group of grade 6 and 7s were volunteering around the school, and sorting donation items that would be given to the families of our school community. 
Reflecting on the importance of giving back to their community and to nature during their planting of trees in a local park.
Our students can get new ideas in areas in which they have an interest and build their skills to make them work; learning involves patience and time.
Many of our intermediate learners were encouraged to explore the world of entrepreneurship; they used research skills, creative skills and social skills to develop, test, and sell products that they were passionate about.
This is a 2/3 class that explored the world of biomes; they were encouraged to choose a biome of interest to them, and then recreated it and share them with their classmates.
Our students can gather and combine new evidence with what they already know to develop reasoned conclusions, judgments, or plans; learning involves recognizing the consequences of one's actions.
This is a grade 1 student's work on exploring their culture and family tree. They were able to use the information they know, as well as information from parents and research to complete their project.
Our students explore and inquire about the life cycle of a gourd. They are able to share their current understanding, as well as learn new and exciting information while having hands on experiences.
OUR FOCUS
We believe that all of our students should be prepared for a life outside of school and be contributing members of society. For our students to have success in this, they need to have a strong foundation in literacy. Our educators are focusing on developing student's ability to think critically and creatively, communicate in a variety of ways and build their sense of belonging within the school and community.
Our students' learning goals for this cohort include:
- Communicating clearly with purpose and intentionality, using various forms of communication.
- Applying critical and reflective thinking to acquire and interpret information, and to make choices about how to communicate their ideas.
- Applying their personal awareness as they reflect on their efforts and goals.
Teachers at all grade levels provide our learners with many opportunities to develop their literacy skills across multiple subject areas. Students are using reading and writing to express themselves and their understandings, and to share their personal stories with the school community.
This is an example of a student's work and their connection to Terry Fox. It highlights their understandings of the importance of our yearly Terry Fox run.
To get a better understanding of our students and their ability levels, we collected data on their literacy levels using Dibels, a measure of assessing the acquisition of literacy skills, Heggerty, small group assessment and whole class teacher assessment. Based on in class teacher assessments, overall we have found that twenty-five percent of our students are emerging in their ability to read grade-level texts and require direct instruction to acquire the skills that are lacking.
OUR NEXT STEPS
As we continue our learning journey...
Over the past two years, literacy has been our school's focus. Students continue to develop their ability to build deep connections with text, and express themselves both through written form and orally. Through targeted instruction, teachers have seen an improvement in student's ability to grasp new concepts without being held back by the content.
This is one example of a learning opportunity provided to our students by one of our teachers. This opportunity allowed these students to learn about a new culture and then have the chance to express their learning through written expression.
This student started the year with an aversion to writing, and would often have meltdowns when it came to journaling. At the end of the year this student expressed their feelings toward writing and said that even though they still did not enjoy writing, they knew that they were now capable of doing it.
Unpacking our data
As we continue to collect data and information from our learners, we will strive to create learning opportunities that are relatable and equitable for all. We will make adjustments to our plans as our students progress through mastering reading skills and continue to provide opportunities for students to build a deeper sense of belonging and identity within our school environment.
Surrey Schools
Formed in 1906, the Surrey School District currently has the largest student enrolment in British Columbia and is one of the few growing districts in the province. It is governed by a publicly elected board of seven trustees.
The district serves the cities of Surrey and White Rock and the rural area of Barnston Island.
