Welcome to VSB After the Bell: Live! In this live podcast episode, we are joined by Adrienne Stewardson, District Principal of Early Learning and Child Care.

This conversation discusses what you and your child can expect for kindergarten, ways to support their transition, navigating common concerns, developing independence skills and community support.

Hosted by Jiana Chow!

Additional resources

• Resources: B.C. Early Learning Framework
• Resources: https://www.anxietycanada.com/

• Helping with separation anxiety https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_5eiYIo1XM
  Helping cope with back to school anxiety https://www.anxietycanada.com/articles/helping-your-child-cope-with-back-to-school-anxiety/

• Helping develop social emotional development
• https://statics.teams.cdn.office.net/evergreen-assets/safelinks/1/atp-safelinks.html 
• Helping build health screen habits https://keltymentalhealth.ca/healthy-screen-habits#:~:text=For%20children%20under%20the%20age,of%20school%20work)%20is%20recommended. 
• On our way to Kindergarten https://www.vsb.bc.ca/page/5271/on-our-way-to-kindergarten 
  https://media.vsb.bc.ca/media/Default/fgg/5/On20Our20Way20to20K20-20Welcome20to20School.pdf 

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. 

Mental health is an important, and often difficult, subject to talk about. It’s crucial we have open and honest conversations to end the stigma and create safe, healthy and welcoming environments for everyone.  

Here to talk about mental health in students is child and adolescent physiatrist Dr. Roberto Sassi. Dr. Sassi is Psychiatrist in Chief at B.C Children’s Hospital and B.C. Women’s Hospital, and is Head of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of British Columbia.  

He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UBC and is the inaugural chair holder of the Pediatric Mental Health Endowed Chair at B.C. Children’s Hospital.

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Mental health resources:

• Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre
• Family Smart
• Foundry
• The Ministry of Children and Family Development's Child and Youth Mental Health (CYMH) Services

Today, we're talking about an important and sometimes controversial topic: sexual education.

Joining us is sexual health expert, author and educator, Saleema Noon! Saleema has been a special guest speaker at PAC organized sessions throughout Vancouver as well as across B.C. 

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Have you heard of the term school based teams? One listener did, and asked us to cover this topic on After the Bell. It’s a great question, because as a parent/guardian you may know what it is, but then again, not really?

Today, we invited Maiky Ma and Sheryl Morris, both District Case Managers who work with school based teams.

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Welcome to VSB After the Bell: Live! In this live podcast episode, we are joined by Jeff Spence, District Principal for Learning and Information Technology, and Christina Walker, Digital Literacy Mentor.

This conversation helps families navigate the digital world with their children, and welcomed audience members to submit questions during the broadcast. Hosted by Jiana Chow! 

Check out links to the resources mentioned during today's conversation:

VSB Digital Literacy and Safety Resource Page

https://www.vsb.bc.ca/page/79376/digital-literacy-and-safety 

BC Digital Literacy Framework https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/education-training/k-12/teach/resources-for-teachers/digital-literacy

Digital Landscape Research 

-https://mediasmarts.ca/research-reports 

-https://mediasmarts.ca/teacher-resources/helping-kids-get-healthy-start-phones 

Generative AI Engagement Strategies

-https://www.cnet.com/pictures/ai-or-not-ai-can-you-spot-the-real-photos/

-https://www.cbc.ca/kidsnews/post/fake-ai-generated-images-on-the-rise-heres-how-kids-can-spot-them

-https://britannicaeducation.com/blog/quiz-real-or-ai/

Slide 34 Canadian Centre for Child Protection’s Protect Kids Onlinehttps://protectkidsonline.ca

Phishing game - https://www.phishmeifyoucan.com/

VSB Cell phone Restrictions https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/cellphone-restriction-vsb-1.7236944

VSB Acceptable Use Policy https://Aup.vsb.bc.ca

For this Matter of the Month, we're discussing Pink Shirt Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness against bullying and fostering kindness.  

Back in 2007, two high school students in Nova Scotia, David Shepherd and Travis Price, saw a younger student being bullied with homophobic slurs and threats. These two students responded by giving out 50 pink shirts to classmates, sparking a global movement against bullying. One that VSB sees come alive every year.  

Joining us today is Joel Fleming, a teacher at False Creek Elementary.

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Last month, we discussed a modern approach to learning. Specifically, Universal Design for Learning, or UDL. This month, we are continuing our conversation with David Nicks, district principal of inclusion for secondary schools at VSB and Katie Novak, an internationally renowned education consultant, author and former assistant superintendent of schools in Massachusetts.

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Welcome to our first episode of 2025! Today, we are taking a look at a modern approach to learning. Specifically, Universal Design for Learning, or UDL. On the show to discuss all things UDL is David Nicks, district principal of inclusion for secondary schools at VSB and Katie Novak, an internationally renowned education consultant, author and former assistant superintendent of schools in Massachusetts.  

If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to our podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps us improve and create more content that you'll like. 

It’s been a wonderful year spent with you, After the Bell listeners! Before we head into the winter break, we’re reflecting on a few highlights we’ve shared so far this school year, and what we can look forward to in 2025.

To share these warm winter wishes, we are joined by VSB Superintendent, Helen McGregor!

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Do you remember learning how to read when you were in school? Was picking up a book one of your favourite parts of the day, or did you feel a twist of anxiety in your stomach every time you had to read aloud in class? For some, reading and literacy were enjoyable learning experiences. For many, though, the unfortunate reality is learning to read and write were major challenges that were often stressful.  

In today’s approach to learning, we are addressing the challenges of reading and literacy in a more inclusive, flexible approach. Guided by our Responsive Literacy Framework, VSB’s approach to literacy is holistic, interconnected and considers how to de-colonize the literacy practice. It is also strength-based, to foster a growth mindset reflective of our current curriculum. 

To discuss all things reading and literacy in the District, we are joined by Ria Dolder, Learning and Instruction Literacy Lead and Leslie Hunt, teacher librarian mentor K-12.

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Your feedback helps us improve and create more content that you'll like.