Community | justinlowe

Volleyball

I have never been much of a volleyball player or fanatic. I wasn't given the size or agility, but I have always enjoyed the sport. I was quite pleased when I was asked to be teacher rep and to help out coaching this year's Celtics boys team. Volleyball starts early in the school year so it was a great way to get to know students in the school, memberes in the Grande Prairie volleyball community, and perhaps greatest, a great way to enjoy the greater Northern Alberta area. Our team took trips to Peace River, Beaverlodge, and to the Provincial tournament at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. The boys won their Provincial division last year and were really hoping for a repeat, but fell to a very competitive Barrhead team in the semi-finals, only to win the Bronze medal and place thrid in the province.

Rugby

At Listowel District Secondary School I had attempted twice to get a successful and committed Rugby program off the ground only to see a great student interest wane as the time came to submit a final roster before the season began. We have once again treaded down this same path at St. Joe's Catholic High School, but this time have found some success. Interest was there and interest has been maintain enough to finalize a roster and order uniforms. There will be a Rugby club and season at St. Joe's this year!

Student Success

This year I was the only Grade 9 teacher without a FOCUS block (a daily school community block encouraging relationship building between students and teachers). Wanting to use this time to the benefit of students I proposed the idea of a "Student Success" room during this block. I had supervised a similar project in my previous work at LDSS and thought maybe it could be advantageous to St. Joe's students. So far it is a success as students are encouraged to come to my classroom during this block to work on group assignments, catch up on missed work, recover test and exams, or to simply take a mental break from the "mainstream" classroom.

Grade 9 Families

Grade 9 families was originally implemented to benefit the students but has generated one amazing and unique by-product; a core group of young, energetic, and risk-taking junior high teachers. St. Joe's grade 9 staff have created a sense of community that I have never witnessed in any previous positions. This community has led to a sense of collaboration that I would imagine you would be hardpressed to find elsewhere. This professional community has made 'work' that much more enjoyable and has fostered a positive learning environment that trickles from teachers to students.

St. Joseph Parish

My wife and I were brought up in the Cathoilc church but didn't take an active role in the church community for no reason other than we just didn't. However, with solidifying a job in the Catholic system we decided that this was an area that we had to improve upon. We now regularly attend weekend mass, have taken our turns participating in the mass service delivering the gifts, and most recently volunteered to assist with preparing and serving the Feast of St. Joe's a few weeks ago. Being a part of the Catholic community outside of the church walls has given my wife and I a sense of belonging and helped us build positive relationships as newcomers in a city far away from where we grew up.

Celtic/Ceinah Spirit

I have only taught for almost three years now and throughout this time I have come to learn that there are a few things that you just simply do as a teacher to foster a great sense of classroom, school, and learning community. Here is a list of what I would advise other teachers as 'must do's" if you want to encourage community, from my own experiences.