Morrisburg Lions make a final big splash, Splash Pad build ready to start

When the Leader spoke to Kelty Grant, the principal of Iroquois Public School, Thursday, August 30, plumbing and construction work was still undergoing a few last minute tweaks in the school’s three newly renovated kindergarten classrooms, but “everything is going to be finished, everything set up in time for our opening day on September 4. This is going to be a very exciting time here at IPS.”

Tuesday, September 4, Iroquois Public School joins other area elementary schools in offering full day kindergarten every day.

Morrisburg Public School and Nationview already have full day kindergarten. Timothy Christian offers full day kindergarten on alternate days. St.Mary-St.Cecelia’s has two full day programs, kindergarten and their Ready to Learn program, which alternate.

 There are currently 25 children registered for each of the three classes at Iroquois Public School. There is a full time qualified teacher and a full time early childhood educator in each classroom.

The teacher and the ECE work in partnership. They plan lessons and do assessments together, combining their skills and areas of expertise. Teachers tend to be more trained in curriculum literacy and numeracy, while childhood educators are experienced in building play based learning and the creation of centres. 

“The combination is a powerful and dynamic one,” Grant said, “and the children reap the benefits.”

Additional specialized training was provided for every teacher and the school’s administrator.

“Our teachers and I received several days of fantastic training for the kindergarten program this spring, at Morrisburg Public school,” Grant said. “Our trainer was from the Upper Canada District School Board, but had himself been trained by the Ministry of Education. We all walked away feeling energized and positive.”

How do teachers approach the challenges of full day learning in kindergarten? 

“The key thing is that each teacher has to know the curriculum for kindergarten inside out and backwards and forwards,” Grant explained. “Children this age learn, not by sitting in place, but by moving, working at special centres. There can be several activities happening in the class room at once. Some whole group instruction will happen, perhaps in the form of an opening song, or a circle, but then the children are off to various, exciting activities.” 

In these situations, thorough knowledge of the curriculum allows the teacher to adapt to whatever activities seem to most engage the small children. Open ended questions such as “What if…?” or “What would happen if…” demand ongoing teacher  flexibility. 

The emphasis is on hands-on skills.

How does assessment work in the kindergarten curriculum? 

“Traditional evaluation me-thods, which require reading and writing skills, are just not possible in kindergarten,” Grant laughed. 

Instead, the Ministry has provided teachers with individual Ipads. 

Teachers video tape the children’s daily activities, then show the tapes later to allow them to reflect on what they were doing and learning.

“This kind of assessment is visible and learning apparent,” Grant explained. “We are documenting, and assessing the progress of the children’s problem solving skills, and how they are understanding new knowledge. This helps us to know where to go next to build on those growing strengths. The taping also allows us to share with parents.” 

The three new classrooms (four old rooms were combined) are self-contained. Each has its own washroom, and cubby areas. There are areas set up for naps for children who need them. Walls in the classrooms currently look a little bare, but that is deliberate. 

“The intent is that everything on the walls must be child activity centred,” Grant said. “Teachers will take photos of the children, and these will decorate the walls. Children will be able to look at  these displays and make connections with learning activities and their part in the creation of every picture.”

Are there likely to be some tears on Tuesday morning, the first day of school?

“We’re ready for some tears,” Kelty Grant laughed, “maybe even from our parents. The kids will recover fast. They may even find the routine of every day school easier to cope with than the every other day approach of the past. The children are certainly going to find school a very exciting place to be.”

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Santa, Mrs. Claus and all their helpers are ready to ring in the festive season this Saturday, December 7, with the annual Morrisburg Santa Parade. 

This is the 20th year that Santa’s local right hand man, George Davies, has organized the parade, which year after year delights all who attend.

Davies expects to see about four dozen floats, six bands and 40 walkers participate in this year’s event. 

“That’s a little bigger than last year,” said Davies. 

This year the participating bands are coming from Brockville, Ottawa, Montreal West, Kemptville and two from Cornwall.

He also mentioned that Morrisburg Public School will have students travelling the parade route with shopping carts collecting food donations for the Dundas County Food Bank. 

He urges everyone to support their efforts by bringing a food item for the collection. (The Morrisburg location of the food bank is especially in need of cold cereal, crackers and vegetables.)

The floats will gather in the Canadian Tire and Upper Canada Playhouse parking lots around 10:30 a.m. The parade sets off along the route promptly at 11 a.m.

The route winds through town along St. Lawrence, to Fifth, to Augusta, to First, to Ottawa, to Maud, to Sir James Morris to Fifth and then along Dairy to Main Street, where it travels the length of the Morrisburg Village Plaza and then on to the Morrisburg Fire Station, where it ends up. There kids can have a snack and greet Santa after the parade.

“I’m hoping to get a really good crowd of spectators out this year,” said Davies. 

“More support allows us to increase the calibre of the parade next year,” said Davies who is working to get a special entry from the Toronto area to join next year’s event.    

While George and his wife look after organizing the event themselves, on the big day George has many “elves” who come out to help him ensure that everything runs smoothly. He is very appreciative of the efforts of the elves who include both family and friends.

This year, Davies has been a little more worried about the parade logistics than other years, because he has lost one of the parking lots always used as a staging area to construction. On top of that,  First Street has been under construction, but Davies said Monday, that the road patch work is supposed to be finished this week, allowing the parade to stick to its traditional route.

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MORRISBURG – The worlds created in Norm Foster plays are never black and white. They are always in Technicolour. Foster brings his audiences colourful, fascinating and endlessly entertaining characters: he offers them clever, insightful dialogue, […]