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The pandemic has forced us to be more creative with our time. We've found ways to make the most of “stay-at-home” orders and working and learning remotely. We're even teaching differently, adopting methods such as the flipped classroom where students do their assigned reading and work at home before coming to class so teachers can devote class time to answering questions and working through topics where students feel stuck. These types of strategies are all about freeing up classroom time for teachers, and making it more productive for them and their students. Now that we are beginning to see clear of the pandemic, the question facing educators is which of those strategies should be continued? How can we take advantage of all we’ve learned, and how can we find the time to do so? In this episode of Connect Canyons, we pose some of these questions to author and educational transformation expert Eric Sheninger.

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The origin story of Canyons School District — a school system created in 2007 by a vote of the people — is as familiar, by now, as our track record in prioritizing college- and career-readiness, student achievement, innovation, community engagement, customer service and fiscal accountability. It’s time to start writing the next chapter. In a bid to keep student achievement and innovation at the forefront of its mission and vision, the Canyons Board of Education has hired the consulting firm Education Elements to assist the Board and Administration with creating and implementing a new strategic plan to carry us forward into the next decade. What is a strategic plan, and why is it important? In this episode of Connect Canyons we explore these questions, and more, with Shelby McIntosh from Education Elements.

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Canyons’ schools are reopening to volunteers. With vaccination rates picking up, and the availability of rapid COVID tests, we are able to safely welcome parents, grandparents, and other volunteers back into our classrooms — and it couldn’t happen at a more opportune time. As schools look to finish the year strong and make the most out of the last few months of instructional time, teachers could use the extra hands and students could use the extra encouragement. Here to explain the how’s and why’s behind our call for community helpers are Canyons Superintendent Dr. Rick Robins, our Public Engagement Coordinator Susan Edwards, and Tonya Rhodes, Region 17 Director for the PTA.

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Try imagining life without computers. Impossible, right? Technology has changed how we consume news and entertainment, make travel plans, stay in touch with our friends, shop, and even learn. Yet, a surprising number — 10 to 15 percent — of Canyons District students have no access to a computer or reliable Internet at home. In a pandemic, bridging this digital divide became an imperative. But it’s not a one-year problem. In this episode of Connect Canyons we talk with Canyons IT Director Scot McCombs and Canyons Education Foundation Officer Denise Haycock about steps schools are taking to more permanently bridge the divide, why it’s a moral imperative, and how families and businesses can help.

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If you live in Utah and are the parent of a high school student, chances are you’ve heard of Test to Play, the bi-monthly rapid COVID testing that athletes and performing arts groups undergo so they can safely continue to practice, perform, and compete. The test-to-play program has helped preserve the spirit-building activities that make high school so memorable. Now, those same testing tools are being put to use to keep students in the classroom through a new Utah Department of Health program called Test to Stay. What exactly is Test to Stay and why did a Utah Legislative Audit recently recommend it as a “primary COVID mitigation strategy” for schools? In this episode, we hear from Canyons Superintendent Dr. Rick Robins and Jordan High Principal Wendy Dau who help explain how Test to Stay, along with other recent changes in protocols, may put an end to entire schools having to go online.

School COVID Testing Registration Form 

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The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to look ahead and make some plans for the future. If you have a child who will be five years old on or before Sept. 1, 2021, kindergarten is one of the things that’s helpful to start thinking about now. Even if it seems your little one couldn’t possibly have grown this fast, now is the time to begin thinking about what kind of kindergarten program you’d like your student to attend. This is the time of year schools start gathering information for regular kindergarten classes, and the application for Supplemental Hours of Instruction kindergarten classes opens on Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. Not sure which option you prefer? In this episode of Connect Canyons we sit down with Instructional Supports administrator Kenna Sorensen and teacher specialist Leigh Ann Fisher to find answers to your questions, learn more about what steps you need to take, and discover what’s next.

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It seems counterintuitive that the pandemic — a time of lockdowns, quarantines and physical distancing — could bring us closer together. But we crave human connection, especially in times of crisis, and technology, from catch-up sessions over Facebook to Zoom calls, has made it possible to keep those connections alive. Teachers have wrestled with how to harness technology to meaningfully connect with students from a distance. In this episode of Connect Canyons we meet the architects of a live-streaming innovation that is helping them do just that. We’ll hear from a teacher who is putting it to use, and learn about the community partners who are making it possible to deliver the solution to classrooms all across Canyons.

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For some students, knowing what’s on the lunch menu might not be the most important part of the day. But for Canyons Nutrition Services Department, it’s everything. From taste tests to strict health requirements, locally sourcing ingredients and analyzing what’s a popular meal and what’s not, Canyons goes to great lengths to make sure students have healthy, delicious food choices every day at school. This year, the meals are provided to students for free through exemptions allowed by the USDA. In this mouth-watering episode of Connect Canyons, we will take you behind the scenes of Canyons’ Nutrition Services Department and learn how these all-important nutrition decisions are made.

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What is Utah’s Permanent State School Fund? That’s a jargony name that may not mean much to some of our listeners. But this fund is special. It has a special place in Utah’s history, it plays a vital role in fueling school improvement, and to understand its origins and purpose, we went straight to the source: The custodian of the school fund, Utah’s State Treasurer Dave Damschen. In this episode of Connect Canyons we talk to Mr. Damschen about the role of locally-elected School Community Councils in determining how the funds are spent. We also talk about how the fund will be making its largest-ever distribution to Utah’s schools in July.

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Created by a vote of the people, Canyons District has always enjoyed uncommon levels of community support, and this year — when parents, grandparents and patrons ask what they can do to help — invariably, the answer is substitute teach. More do-gooders have signed up to cover classrooms this year than ever. Even so, COVID-related health and safety precautions have heightened demand for substitutes as teachers are placed on quarantine or, out of abundance of caution, asked to stay home with a sore throat, a cough or the sniffles. Learn why schools are still on the hunt for helping hands, who’s stepping in, and how you, too, can be a classroom hero.