Another amazing week in the rear-view mirror and there were a lot of great things going on in and outside of the school. Last Tuesday, Jamie, Ron and myself had the honor of sharing your story at division office with John Kuzbik, some superintendents, a board member, and two other schools. A cool part of this process is the opportunity for other schools to offer feedback and ask questions after watching our presentation. The comment that made me smile the brightest was an anonymous one that simply said, “I can tell there is great team work going on at Hepburn School”. Who ever said that was right, and I’m glad that the stories and images Ron and Jamie shared conveyed that important message.

Last week it was evident yet again how much heart there is in our educational community, as the activities were once again, focused on the students. Seeing Sandi go above and beyond to collect money for a needy cause and also spend time power washing the tarmac was just one example, thanks for that Sandi! Jackie and Ruth organized a couple of special days for the students where they could learn about lacrosse and track and field from some experts, thanks for that Jackie & Ruth. Ron has been working tirelessly on making a dream of using Bethany a reality, and I know the extra hours he is putting in on that, not because it is best for him, but because it is best for the students, thanks for that Ron! Seeing the EAs work magic with the students who need just that little extra so school can be a place where they can thrive, not just survive, thanks to all the EAs for that. Everything else that is going on, from SRC fundraising, to SaskTrip plans, to grad planning, to basketball wind ups, to persuasive writing projects, to TinkerCAD, to Track and Field practices, and on and on it goes. I always worry that I’m missing some information when I point out some of the cool things I hear and see during a week, so if I forgot to mention something you were involved in, I apologize. What impresses me the most is the humility with which you approach all of these activities. Never once has anyone of you come to me and said, “please mention me in On the Horizon for the work I am doing”. You do the work because you care, and you care because our kids are worth it, thank you everyone for that!

My focus this week is on the importance of humility. In the first learning link (which is just an excerpt of a larger document), humility is defined and viewed through the lens of teaching. Do you feel you need to be the expert in the room? Does all the teaching have to flow through you? How do you model humility for your students?

Learning link 2 comes from Dave Stuart Jr (@davestuartjr) who writes about the importance of humility and how it can make you a better teacher. His article really had me asking myself a lot of questions (which is the sign of a great article, isn’t it), especially on how we receive compliments. Have a read, I’d be interested to hear about what your thoughts are on humility.

The final learning link is a gripping TEDtalk that will make you laugh, and might bring a tear to your eye. The title of the talk speaks for itself, Ben Dunlap is a very good story teller.

Here is just some of the things that are going on this week:

Monday:

• 9:00 am ~ bus drivers meeting (staff room)
• Track practice after school

Tuesday:

• Gr. 4 persuasive writing proposal presentations (classroom)
• Track practice after school

Wednesday:

• K – 6 yard clean up, please supply a rake or wheel barrow if you can

Thursday:

• Wacky hair day
• Sheppards Villa Lunch ($2.00)
• Bruce gone (am only ~ medical)

Friday:

• Ron gone (all day)

Saturday:

• Steak night (see Ryan for more information)

As always, create a great week!