Our “Legendary” Story
Welcome to McKenzie Highlands, home of the “Legends”!
Our school opened in September 2016, with a population of 275 students. Today, we sit with a population of almost 830 students!
Our school is built upon the pillars of academics, athletics, artistry, and citizenship. Staff see their primary responsibility to attend to the development of all students across five domains – intellectual, physical, social, emotional, and ethical.
As an authentic middle school, we see our work as supporting students transition from children to that of standing on the cusp of adulthood. A core belief of ours is that students in lower grades should have an experience that closely mirrors their elementary experience while students in the higher grades are exposed to a learning environment that will effectively prepare them for what they will meet in high school. Hence, why we have generalists in grades 4 and 5, two core teachers at grade 6 and 7, and subject specialists in the upper grades.
We believe that learning tasks should be engaging, relevant, and challenging, and incorporate elements of choice. We also know that for some students, challenges present themselves in learning. Hence why we have both literacy and numeracy specialists to provide intentionally targeted support. Additionally, we also have Physical Education specialists, a music specialist, an art specialist, and a full-time counsellor.
Also crucial to the middle school experience is a robust complementary learning program. Our students are offered a wide range of “option” courses in addition to their core program at grades 6 to 9. For some students, these courses can be potentially huge in “sparking” a career interest.
In attending to our other pillars, we have, in just under three years, built an exceptionally strong physical education and athletics program, offer a full band and choral program, stage an annual play, hold an annual talent show, have close to 30 extra-curricular clubs, and afford our students with access to a vast array of field trips to complement their learning experience. Highlighting these experiential learning experiences would be the West Coast sailing trip and the Heritage Trip to Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City. Additionally, we provide a host of both formal and informal opportunities for students to develop their citizenship capacity. Examples include our leadership classes, mentorship program, and the Principal’s Advisory Council.
We hope that you will choose to share in the “Legendary” experience!
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call me at (403) 817-3544 or email me directly at dwmartin@cbe.ab.ca.
Yours truly,
Daryl Martin
Principal
