| In June 2021, the Federal Government declared that September 30 will now be recognized as the National Day for Truth & Reconciliation. The intention of the day is to recognize and honour residential school survivors, their families and communities. It will also ensure that public commemoration of the tragic and painful history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process. All CBE schools will recognize this day and there will be no classes on Sept 30. This year, September 27-October 1 will be known as Truth & Reconciliation Week. During this time, QES students and staff will be making space each day to honour Every Child Matters and Orange Shirt Day while learning about the history and legacy of residential schools. Throughout the week and in particular on Wednesday, students are invited to wear an orange shirt. Teachers have been working to develop age-appropriate entry points for all learners and intentional land-based learning activities that help us all grow our understanding of Indigenous ways of knowing. These are ongoing conversations in our school as we work towards meeting our QES Call to Action. Students will engage in a variety of activities to build intercultural understanding, empathy and mutual respect. I would like to again share Spirit Bear's Guide as a family-friendly resource to learn about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action. As an added piece towards our ongoing commitment to reconciliation, QES has organized a school-wide donation drive with 100% of donations going to the Urban Society of Aboriginal Youth (USAY). This is a local not-for-profit organization that relies heavily on donations from the community to provide support and programming for Indigenous youth in our area.
To take part in our donation drive, please do one of the following: - Send a cash donation in a labelled envelope inside your child's agenda to give to their classroom teacher.
- Go to https://usay.ca/ and click on “Donate" for E-transfer and Credit Card options. Online donations over $25 can receive a receipt. Please be sure to state that this is part of our QES donation drive.
Online donations will be accepted at any time, however, our final day for cash collections will be Friday, October 1st.
We look forward to this important kick-off week of learning that we can continue to build upon as we move forward through 2021-22 and beyond. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child's teacher or myself.
|
