¡Tenemos noticas grandes! Big News!

A Student Centred – Learning Commons Redesign is Coming!

It is my absolute pleasure to share with you that during last night’s School Council and Eugene Coste Enrichment Society Meetings, our request to purchase new furniture for our Learning Commons has been approved.

Our school team has spent time considering how to best utilize the beautiful space that we are lucky to call our Learning Commons and Library. When Eugene Coste was re-opened in the 2014-15 school year to house the Spanish Bilingual program, the school was not provided additional funding for extras such as designing a true Learning Commons space. Thanks to our collaboration with our parent fundraising group, the EC Enrichment Society, our proposal to redesign the space using a budget of $23,000.00 was approved. This will allow us to create a learning environment that improves our ability to activate creativity, collaboration and problem-solving.

We will keep our existing round tables, most kidney tables and thick plastic chairs. We will remove the heavy boardroom tables and heavy wood chairs.  While these are beautiful materials, they are not very flexible and difficult to rearrange.

In the design rendering, we will add a second half-circle sofa arrangement, additional groupings of “poufs” or round ottomans as well as rectangular tables that can easily be flipped vertically for quick storage and rearrangement.

Congratulations to our grade 4 and grade 5 students & teachers for another successful Mercado! This interdisciplinary project involved learning in Spanish (vocabulary, “market” communication), mathematics (computation) and PE & Wellness (personal finance).

 

Each year seems to get better and better! This year, parents were invited to a special viewing during a 1 hour block on Thursday Jan 18. Parents were invited to buy tickets (each worth

$0.25) which allowed them to purchase items that students designed and created, as well as play games for prizes. Students encouraged parents to speak Spanish and coached them to use appropriate vocabulary and phrases.

 

Every dollar raised will be donated to a charity of choice; students will engage in persuasive writing and debates to decide to which organization the funds will be directed.

 

Students’ buddy classes then had the opportunity to purchase items using simulated money. Each buddy class was provided a set amount which was divided equitably among the students. Students then continued to practice their oral Spanish with their buddies who enjoyed their own market experience.