April 30, 2021

Please click on this link for a letter from our Superintendent: https://www.holyspirit.ab.ca/resources_publications/news/whats_new/lethbridge_grades_7-9_move_to_online_may_3-14

Here are the specifics about FLVT:

May 3 – 14, 2021

• Classes taught will include the academic cores of LA, Social, Science, and Math, Religion, Health and Wellness, and FLVT Class.  On Friday, there will be no Physical Education classes, and during Reading classes, students are to read independently. Attendance for all Google Meet classes are mandatory (please remember to turn on your camera);
• The primary mode of online learning will be Google Classroom;
• Mr. Leger will be contacting his 8/9L class regarding the programming for the next two weeks;
• From May 3 to 14, 2021, complementary classes (option) classes are cancelled;
• Monday to Wednesday, period 5 tutorial class will allow students and teachers to connect if additional support is needed.  Teachers will connect with students in a Google Meet at least once a week during this time.  Teachers will not be available Thursday, period 5;
• As this is only for two weeks, the school will not be lending out any devices;
• Please contact the school if a student, who is not in quarantine or isolation, needs to come to pick up an item or resource;
• We hope to return to in-person learning for all our Jr. High students on May 17, 2021.

April 29, 2021

Our government just announced that all Grade 7-12 students in Lethbridge will be moving to Online Learning from May 3 to May 14, 2021. Students will return to In-Person Learning on Monday, May 17, 2021. Friday, April 30 is a regular day of school for our Jr. High students. Please watch the government announcement:

We will announce specific information as soon as possible, probably tomorrow. Also, Holy Spirit Catholic Schools will be making an official announcement tomorrow.

April 27, 2021

Dear staff, parents, and guardians of students in FLVT’s Grades 4LC and Grade 6L Classes,

As you are likely aware, a number of our school’s staff are currently in quarantine due to COVID-19. Unfortunately, with a decreasing number of available substitute teachers, this has impacted Father Leonard Van Tighem School’s ability to operate at this time.

After serious consideration of our options, we have determined that the best course of action will be to move the Grade 4LC and Grade 6L classes to online learning from Wednesday, April 28, 2021 until Wednesday, May 5, 2021. Attendance will be mandatory and teachers will continue to provide quality learning opportunities for students. Our current plan is to resume in-school learning for these grades on Thursday, May 6, 2021.

Please note that these students are NOT being quarantined. Rather, we are simply moving to online learning format while we navigate this difficult situation. In the meantime, we thank you in advance for your continued prayers and support during this time.

Sincerely,
Principal Greg Kostiuk, Father Leonard Van Tighem School
and
Superintendent Ken Sampson, Holy Spirit Catholic School Division

As you are aware, Alberta Education has developed a new draft curriculum for K to Grade 6.  Also, our school division has decided not to be part of the pilot process.  Please see this link for the reasons for this decision:

https://www.holyspirit.ab.ca/resources_publications/news/whats_new/division_response_to_the_draft_k-6_curriculum

On April 26, 2021, from 7 pm to 8 pm, our FLVT School Council has arranged for a virtual presentation from our Superintendent, Ken Sampson, and our Director of Learning, Carmen Larsen.  Mr. Sampson and Mrs. Larsen will be doing a brief presentation regarding the draft curriculum.  Also, they will be sharing how parents may choose to provide feedback.  After the presentation, parents will have an opportunity to ask questions.  Here is the link for the Google Meet:

https://meet.google.com/rpy-xphe-jje?authuser=0

Thank you to our School Council for arranging this virtual presentation, and thank you to Mr. Sampson and Mrs. Larsen for coming.  We hope to see you on Monday, April 26, 2021.

We are glad to announce that we plan to return to In Person Learning for all our Grade 7 to 9 students effective Monday, April 19, 2021.

Thank you for your continued understanding and support as we continue to educate to our students during this pandemic.

Father Leonard Van Tighem School

Alberta Education Assurance – Information for Parents

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Alberta Education is conducting the annual Alberta Education Assurance Surveys until the end of March.  These surveys help guide our school.

Parents of students of grades 4 and 7 will receive a survey mailed to their homes directly from Alberta Education.  Also, all students in grades 4 and 7 and all teachers will be completing their surveys online through their schools.  All surveys are anonymous.  Respondents are expected to answer the questions based on the experiences they have had at their school.

We strongly encourage your participation as the results help us identify our school and jurisdiction’s strengths and areas of growth. Survey results will be available to jurisdictions by the start of May or June 2022 and will be reported publicly by jurisdictions as part of the Annual Education Results Reports in the fall of 2022.

Parents have told us that there are questions asked on the Alberta Education Assurance Survey for which they have little information.  As a result, they often select “don’t know” as their response. Regrettably, any survey response of “don’t know” reflects negatively on our school.  Please see the below example:

The survey will report that only 30% of our parents believe “High School students demonstrate the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for learning throughout their lifetime.”  Parents may skip any question they feel does not apply.

To help parents, we have created the below document as an overview of the actions we use to support each child at our school regarding the questions many parents answer “don’t know” as their response.  Although this is not a complete list, it provides a general idea of the effort we make to meet the needs of each student in the specified areas.

We hope this document provides you with information that helps you to complete the Alberta Education Assurance Survey.  If you need more clarification or would like to speak about our practices, please contact Father Leonard Van Tighem School at 403-381-0953.

Respectfully yours,

Greg Kostiuk

Principal

Please read this very important announcement:

April 11, 2021

Dear parent, guardians, and staff of all Grades 7, 8, and 9 students at Father Leonard Van Tighem School, 

After discussion with administration, we have determined that all Grades 7, 8, and 9 students at Father Leonard Van Tighem School will move to online learning for the week of Monday, April 12 through Friday, April 16, 2021. Attendance is mandatory and teachers will continue to provide quality learning opportunities for students.  Our current plan is to resume in-school learning on Monday, April 19, 2021.  

The rationale for this decision is first, and most importantly, that the number and configuration of staff currently isolating will significantly impact the ability of the school to operate during this time. Secondly, with the increased number of COVID-19 cases in our region, including the B.1.1.7 Variant, we are hopeful that this time will curb infection rates while ensuring the least disruption possible for our families with younger children who require child care. 

We understand and appreciate that this announcement may cause additional pressures on your family and apologize that more notice could not be provided as we have been in dialogue with Alberta Education throughout the day.  We remain hopeful that these efforts will limit the spread of COVID-19 and thank you in advance for your help in following the health guidelines set out to ensure the safety of our schools and communities. 

There will be a follow up email from the school outlining specifics soon.

Sincerely, 

Greg Kostiuk, Father Leonard Van Tighem School, 

and

Ken Sampson, Superintendent of Schools

Here are some specific points:

• Teaching and learning will follow the established timetable Monday to Thursday AM and all day Friday;
• Classes taught will include the academic cores of LA, Social, Science, and Math, Religion, Health and Wellness, and FLVT Class.  On Friday, there will be no Physical Education classes, and during Reading classes, students are to read independently. Attendance to Google Meet classes are mandatory;
• 8/9L classes: Mr. Leger will be contacting parents tomorrow morning about their online classes;
• From April 12 to 15, 2021, option classes are cancelled;
• Monday to Thursday, period 5 tutorial class will allow students and teachers to connect if additional support is needed.  Teachers will connect with students in a Google Meet at least once during this time;
• Please contact the school if a student, who is not in quarantine or isolation, needs to come to pick up an item or resource;
• Tuesday, April 13, is the date for Spring School Pictures.  We plan to continue this event for our elementary classes, and we hope to reschedule them for our Jr. High classes.

We look forward to having all our Jr. High students back on-site on April 19, 2021.

Greg Kostiuk

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback about our Balanced School Day pilot in our elementary grades.  Please see this link for the reasons we did the pilot: https://gregkostiuk.com/2020/06/02/balanced-school-day-2020-21/

Here are the results from the various stakeholders in our community:

– January 2021 Parent Survey: 80% of parents support the Balanced School Day approach;

– January 2021 Staff Survey: 82% of teachers support the Balanced School Day approach;

– March 2021 Student Survey: 86% of students support continuing the Balanced School approach for the 2021-22 school year;

– March 2021 Elementary Teachers: 92% of teachers’ support continuing the Balanced School Day approach for the next school year;

– March 2021 Elementary Parent Survey: 94% of parents support the Balanced School Day approach for the 2021-22 school year.

Thank you to all the parents, students, and teachers that suggested ideas on how we may improve the Balanced School Day approach. Given the strong support from all community members, we have decided to continue to follow the Balanced School Day approach in our Grades 1 to 6 classes.  Unfortunately, we cannot share any draft bell times as we are still awaiting information regarding bus transportation for next year.  Once we have draft bell times, we will share them with our school community.

Thank you again for your feedback and support.