As the pandemic continues its grip on the world we have to remind ourselves that the days are long but the years are short (Gretchen Rubin). This will pass eventually, and while we're going through it, it's better to go through it together, with our important others. The power of personal relationships - with yourself and others - is such a big deal that we decided to make it our theme of the month for May. We are excited to share great resources with you, and would love to hear what you're doing to get and stay connected; connect with us on Facebook to share.

May Resources

Blogs and Articles

Did you get a chance to enjoy Spring Break and get outside? We're so happy about Spring being here and the warmer temperatures that we decided to make "Get Active" our theme for April. It's not only about the physical benefits - getting outside and moving your body also has mental benefits. We are excited to share great resources with you, and would love to hear what you're doing to get active; connect with us on Facebook to share.

April Resources

Blogs and Articles

March is here and with it, the first signs of Spring, bringing longer days and the hope of warmer weather and more time spent outdoors. While we all continue to follow public health orders and stay home in order to see the end of the pandemic sooner than later, wellness is on everyone's mind and it's our theme this month. We are excited to share great resources with you, and would love to hear about what you're doing to stay well; connect with us on Facebook to share.

March Resources

Blogs and Articles

Our theme this month is Courage and Random Acts of Kindness, but we also want to continue introducing our new teachers to you. Welcome to SCIDES, Corey Hermiston! Let's find out more about one of the newest additions to the SCIDES team.

Thanks for taking the time, Corey. Can you introduce yourself and tell us where you're from?

My name is Corey Hermiston and I am from Kamloops, British Columbia. 

January flew by and just like that the second month of 2021 is here. Our theme for February is Courage and Random Acts of Kindness, and as the pandemic continues its grip on British Columbia and the rest of the world, those things are more important than ever. We are excited to share great resources with you, and would love to hear about your own random acts of kindness; connect with us on Facebook to share.

February Resources

Blogs and Articles

Our theme this month is Planning, but we also want to continue introducing our new teachers to you. Welcome to SCIDES, Jennifer Artibise! Let's find out more about one of the newest additions to the SCIDES team.

Thanks for taking the time, Jennifer. Can you introduce yourself and tell us where you're from?

Jennifer Artibise, and I'm from Merritt, BC!

Happy New Year! 2020 is behind us and we love the hope 2021 brings with it. We are committed to supporting you in your educational journey as always, and planning is a big part of that. It's our theme for January, and we are excited to share great resources with you.

January Resources

Blogs and Articles (and one Vlog)

For this holiday season, the team at the Kengard Learning Centre wants to bring you a bit of cheer and comfort by sharing their favourite holiday recipes.

Download the recipe booklet right here.

We wish you a wonderful holiday season! The Kengard Learning Centre will be closed from December 21 - January 1 and reopen again on January 4th.

December is here and we can't believe that 2020 is almost behind us. What a year it has been! While the pandemic shows no signs of slowing down, we're happy to announce that we've opened up cross-enrollment for grades 10-12, as long as space is available. This month's theme is "A Time of Giving" and we are excited to share great resources with you.

We have a second blog post for you this month, to introduce one of our new teachers. Welcome to SCIDES, Jennifer Deo! Don't forget to also check out our monthly theme, in November it's all about Grit. Now let's jump right in and find out more about one of the newest additions to the SCIDES team.

Thanks for taking the time, Jennifer. Can you introduce yourself and tell us where you're from?

Mrs. Jennifer Deo. I grew up in Vancouver, Washington down in the states. I currently live in Kamloops.

November is here and the pandemic still has a tight grip on all our lives. But we're here for the long haul and we'll get through this together. Even though we're still not able to accept any registrations from students outside of School District 58, we're here for you on our blog to share information and inspiration. This month's theme is "Grit" and we are excited to share great resources with you.

We're into the second month of the new school year and are starting to settle into a new normal. Even though we're not able to accept any registrations from students outside of School District 58, we're here for you on our blog to share information and inspiration. This month's theme is "Master of your Own Destiny" and we have found great content for you.

A new school year is here and in so many ways it’s a fresh start. A new way of doing school (though SCIDES has been offering online support and instruction for over 20 years), a new way of organizing our lives around a pandemic, and a fresh chance to be better citizens of the world who care for and accept others.

The COVID-19 Pandemic has both slowed down and sped up life as we knew it before March of 2020. The last six months have been a challenge for all of us, and we want to start the new school year by offering our support and perspective on what’s to come. Each month will have a different theme and we’ll share our insights as well as some resources for you to dive deeper into the topic.

Our 2020 graduation celebration will look different than usual, during the COVID-19 pandemic. We still want to make sure we celebrate each of our graduates from the Community Learning Centre and SCIDES! We will have our ceremony on Tuesday, June 23rd starting at 10 am at the Kengard Learning Centre (2475 Merritt Avenue, Merritt BC) with a few important adjustments to ensure everyone's health and safety:

Hard to believe the first month of the new year is already over! Time flies when you're learning online. We have one more new team member to introduce to you: Meet Lynn Aubin, and don't forget to check out our Learn & Play Winter Challenge!

1. What’s your name and where are you from? 

My name is Lynn Aubin and I was raised in Penticton and now reside in Merritt.

2. How long have you been a teacher at SCIDES? 

I am new to SCIDES this year.

Happy New Year! It's not only a new year but also a new decade and we wish you all the very best. May 2020 be a fantastic year for you. It's time for the first new staff feature of the year: Meet Brittany Lowe, and don't forget to check out our Learn & Play Winter Challenge!

1. What’s your name and where are you from? 

My name is Brittany Lowe and I am from Kamloops, BC.

2. How long have you been a teacher at SCIDES? 

This is my first year teaching at SCIDES.

We're getting close to our winter break and there is time for one more feature of our new team members before the year is over. Meet Tom Oram, and stay tuned for the Learn & Play Winter Challenge coming soon!

1. What’s your name and where are you from? 

My name is Tom Oram, and I was born and raised in Kelowna, BC.

2. How long have you been a teacher at SCIDES? 

I completed a short stint at SCIDES approximately 5 years ago, and I’ve officially been back since September 15, 2019.

Hard to believe it's already been two months since the school year started! We have several new teachers on our team, and it's time we start introducing them to you. First up - Cory Hart. 

1. What’s your name and where are you from? 

My name is Cory Hart. I was born and raised in southern Alberta before moving out to Victoria where I received my Education Degree.  I recently moved from Quesnel, where I had been teaching math and social studies for the past 19 years.

2. How long have you been a teacher at SCIDES? 

 I started at SCIDES this past August.

The new school year is here! As much as we enjoy summer, it’s always great to get back to a routine, and to learning. For the 2019/2020 school year, we thought it would be fun to introduce a theme, and we’re thrilled to share with you that the SCIDES 2019/2020 school theme will be learn & play. 

We’re inspired by the Play is the Way® movement and want to explore how we can challenge, support, and engage our students to embrace new ways of learning by incorporating play and stretching their comfort zones a bit.

From The BC Government News website, Parents and caregivers in B.C. whose children have anxiety impacting their development and day-to-day happiness at home, school and in the community will soon have access to a new, free intervention program. 

The program includes access to educational videos and weekly telephone coaching sessions and will be available starting April 29, 2019.

Read the full article here.

Did you know that there are over 100 trades you can get certified in, in British Columbia? Working as a certified tradesperson does not only provide a good income, trades careers are often described as a very satisfying type of work, because you are generally working with your hands and can see tangible progress at the end of the day. What is it that you love to do? There’s probably a trade for that!

SCIDES wants to support your journey into trades, and we have two fantastic programs we would like to introduce: the Work in Trades and the Train in Trades programs. Each can be taken independently of each other, and in any order, and both of them will give you a headstart on your career and lots of other benefits.

November is here and while some people are starting to feel festive about the approaching holiday season, others are feeling anxious about the exact same thing. Of course, anxiety is not something that just affects people during the holiday season. It is something that many people - including a lot of school-aged kids and teen - live with all year long. There is help available, and we've compiled a list of resources we want to share with you. 

We're a few weeks into the new school year, the weather is turning colder, and the days are getting longer. After a hot summer and a busy beginning of the new school year, we thought it would be helpful to share some tips on how to get your workspace set up in a way that works best for you, and how to study for learning success. After all, we want the 2018/2019 school year to be your best one yet! Here's what we suggest:

~ A message from Principal Karen Goetz ~

The following is an excerpt from J. Abner Peddiwell’s The Saber-Tooth Curriculum, first published in 1939. Two stone-age philosophers are discussing education and, interestingly, what they say, even by 1939 standards, is not that different than modern discourse on the subject.  

“Schools are educational institutions, aren’t they?”

Summer is here and that means vacation time, family time, sleeping in, and relaxing. All great things, but we think that reading needs to be part of this list as well. Research has shown that you lose some of your reading skills if you don't read over the summer, and there's an easy way to keep that from happening: read! We put together some suggestions for you, and we challenge you to read at least three books over the summer break. Share with us on our Facebook page which books you're reading, we'd love to know! Have a great summer - and remember that SCIDES has teachers and support staff available during the summer months. Get in touch at 1.800.663.3536 or email registrar@365.sd58.bc.ca. 

It's the last month before Summer Break (watch for our Reading Challenge coming your way!) and we're thrilled to talk to the final Educator of the Month for this school year, Mrs. Melissa Cadwaladr.

Mrs. Cadwaladr, thanks for taking the time! Let's get started. Where are you from?

Spring is here in the Nicola Valley and we hope you're enjoying some sunshine as well, where ever you are! We're thrilled to share our next educator of the month with you, Mrs. Kathleen Gunn.

Mrs. Gunn, thank you for taking the time. Let's get started! Where are you from?

We hope you had a fantastic Spring Break! We're thrilled to share our next educator of the month with you, Mrs. Cathy Southwell.

Mrs. Southwell, thank you for taking the time. Let's get started! Where are you from?

We're excited to share the next Educator of the Month with you - Liana Tilt. Here's how she answered our questions (hint: the best advice she ever received is priceless!)

Mrs. Tilt, we're thrilled to have you as our Educator of the Month for March. Tell us a bit about yourself.

My name is Liana Jule Tilt and my maiden name was Greiner but my family calls me L.J.,Geaner, or Mule. I was born in Matsqui, B.C. near Abbotsford and moved around to Loon Lake, Yarrow, and eventually to Summerland in the Okanagan where I spent most of my life.

We're excited to share the next Educator of the Month with you - Liz Moore. Here's how she answered our questions (hint: we love her wit and spirit!)

Mrs. Moore, we're thrilled to have you as our Educator of the Month for February. We look forward to finding out more about you! Please introduce yourself.

My name is Liz Moore, and I have lived in Merritt for nearly twenty years. Before that, I lived in the Eastern and Midwest United States, where I attended high school and university. However, my childhood was spent in BC, and this is where I dreamed of returning. A teaching job brought me back, and I am very glad it did.