Community+Analysis+and+Report

Community Analysis and Report by Melisa Hunter



The School: École Élémentaire South Sahali

École Élémentaire South Sahali is one of two single track French Immersion schools located in the Kamloops/Thompson School District #73, British Columbia. "The district currently has 33 elementary, 10 senior secondary schools, 1 middle school, 2 alternate education programs and 1 distance education school. Enrollment in our schools has been decreasing and is predicted to continue until 2013 when it is projected to level off at around 13,000 students. Declining enrollment has brought significant challenges for the district to address. The district, in consultation with the community, has had some very difficult decisions to make, resulting in a reconfiguring of a number of schools this past year and the closure of 3 schools" (Kamloops/Thompson School District Website, 2011). As a result of this reconfiguration, École Élémentaire South Sahali is entering its second year as single track French Immersion, having been changed from a dual track school in September 2010. The school is K – 7 with a student population of 315. Kindergarten is now full-time as of September 2011, so all students are full time. Since our school is one of only two French Immersion schools in Kamloops, the school’s catchment area is quite large and as a result, approximately 100 students are bus students.

The Community: Kamloops, BC

Kamloops, with a population of 80, 376 (StatsCan 2006 Census), is located in the central interior of British Columbia. We enjoy all four seasons in a sunny, dry, continental climate with relatively cold winters and very hot summers. Kamloops and its outlying areas are very attractive to active, outdoorsy type people. Its geographic location, topography and climate make it a centre for many different outdoor activities such as: mountain biking, hiking, camping, fishing, water sports, dirt biking, in the summer, and downhill and cross country skiing, and snowmobiling in the winter. To get an overall idea of the many activities available in Kamloops, take a minute to visit Tourism Kamloops .

View of Kamloops from the south looking north.

Below is a picture of the hiking trails in Peterson Creek Park that are literally only a few minutes away by foot from École Élémentaire South Sahali. The proximity of these wonderful trails gives the Grade 4 classes the opportunity of going on a field trip to find and examine local indigenous plants. There is the possibility of inviting an expert from the local First Nations Band, or from Thompson Rivers University, to come along on this field trip.

Hiking trails in Peterson Creek Park, Kamloops, BC.





Kamloops is also known as the "Canada's Tournament Capital" and, as such, is home to many different sports tournaments. Most recently, Kamloops played host to the Western Canada Summer Games. Team sports are very popular in Kamloops and many of our students play soccer, hockey, and lacrosse.  You can read more about the different sports facilities we have in Kamloops and the events held in these facilities here: Canada's Tournament Capital: Kamloops, BC  The students' interests in popular activities affect the types of resources that we include in our library collection. The photo to the right shows a weekend soccer game being played on one of many soccer fields maintained by the City of Kamloops and the Kamloops/Thompson School District.

Possible Partnerships and Community Resources

I have identified a number of different organizations as possible community resources for my school library: the BC Wildlife Park located a few kilometres east of Kamloops, the BC Wildlife Federation, Ducks Unlimited, and the Kamloops Indian Band, part of the Secwepemc First Nations. These organizations each have a direct connection to the science curriculum strand that I am focusing on: local habitat and communities.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">The BC Wildlife Park, located in Kamloops, is a park dedicated to educating the public about animals that are indigenous to our region. As a visitor to the park, you can learn how these animals live and how they are an important part of our ecosystem. You can find out more about their mission here: <span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">BC Wildlife Park, Kamloops.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">"<span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The BC Wildlife Federation is British Columbia's largest and oldest conservation organization" (The BC Wildlife Federation, 2011). The federation works hard at educating the public about animal species that make their home in British Columbia and endeavour to let the public know about animal species that are in danger of extinction. It is their hope that, through education, the plight of these animals may be improved.

<span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 170%;">Ducks Unlimited in British Columbia <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">offers programs that "<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">promote awareness and appreciation of waterfowl and wetlands along with their importance to fish, wildlife and people. DUC is teaching young people, our conservationists of tomorrow, through a variety of formal and informal education opportunities" (Ducks Unlimited in British Columbia, 2011). The grade 4 teachers already use the education materials entitled "Project Webfoot" to teach important concepts about habitat and communities in the Grade 4 Life Science strand.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;"><span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">The Secwepemc First Nations museum offers guided tours of their <span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">ethnobotanical gardens where students can learn much about how the First Nations people used plants indigenous to the Kamloops region.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">Forming partnerships with these identified groups will provide me with lists of recommended resources, provide experts that I can contact for input and to give guest lectures, and provide field trip opportunities for my students. Tapping into these specialized and, very often, local resources will add a depth to my collection that I would not be able to do on my own with simple searches on the internet or with book jobbers.

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 160%;">Grade Level and Curriculum Area

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">I am looking to add quality resources to my library collection that support the Grade 4 Life Science Strand: Habitats and Communities. Specifically, I am looking to increase the number of resources that cover local plants and animals, as well as Canadian plants and animals from other regions. Here is a quick glance at the prescribed learning outcomes for this science strand.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**compare the structures and behaviours of local animals and plants in different habitats and communities**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**analyse simple food chains**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**demonstrate awareness of the Aboriginal concept of respect for the Environment**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**determine how personal choices and actions have environmental consequences**

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">The full document for the Grade 4 Science Curriculum can be found <span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">here.

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 160%;">The Teachers and Students Involved:

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">At École South Sahali, we currently have 49 grade 4 students. 30 of these students are in a straight grade 4 class, 12 students are in a grade 4/5 class and 7 are in a grade 3/4 class. The teacher of the straight grade 4 class is very passionate about nature and she is the one who initiated the BC Wildlife Federation workshop for her class. Please see a full description here: <span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> BCWF Wetlands Education Program

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">After working with the teacher on this science research project, I can see myself, as teacher-librarian, working collaboratively with the other two teachers on the same unit. These two teachers are also very enthusiastic about working collaboratively in the library. In this way, the resources would be used by two other classes. Since animals and nature are such popular subjects for primary and lower intermediate students, the new resources in this section of the library will get a lot of casual use. I can see students wanting to borrow these books for their own personal reading pleasure.

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">The Library Program

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">My school's library program is run on a flexible schedule. This means that I book classes in the library for book exchanges, which include booktalks, literacy activities, and lessons on how to use the library, and for whole class research projects. The booking is done on a both a month-to-month basis and a project-to-project basis. Because I am only in the library for 0.4 FTE, classes need to rotate through the library in this way. I like to leave a couple of blocks open in the schedule to allow for last minute bookings. These always fill up with classes who need to use the library to build on a teachable moment. On top of the formal booking system, I allow individual students or small groups of students to come down to the library at any time when I am in the library to take out books or look up information for assignments that they are working on. On the days that the library does not have a teacher-librarian or library assistant, teachers are welcome to bring their classes to use the library. This flexible scheduling and open-door policy means that the library gets a lot of use and also means that our circulation numbers are high.

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">Conclusion

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">Getting to know the community I live in and the school neighbourhood will go far in assisting me in building a collection that best meets the needs of my students, teachers and parents. Seeking out partnerships with local organizations within my community will also enrich my collection. "The location of the community, its climate, and its recreational patterns also make demands on a collection" (Bishop, 2007, p. 20). These factors will influence how I spend my budget on new resources. This knowledge, combined with familiarity with curriculum requirements plays a large part in helping me decide which are the best resources to buy. The most important part of the school analysis for the purpose of improving this section of my collection is indeed "courses of units of study emphasized in the curriculum" (Bishop, 2007, p. 21) This is one of the pieces of information that Bishop (2007) recommends including in a school analysis. Another important factor that I need to take into account is the language of instruction. Since my school is a French Immersion school, I will do my best to purchase good materials that meet these demands in French. However, if none are available on certain important subjects, I will buy good resources in English. Familiarity with my community and school population and a good knowledge of the school curriculum will ensure that I build a collection that will be useful to my students, teachers and school community.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">Works Cited
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 18px;">Bishop, K. (2007). //The collection program in schools: concepts, practices, and information sources// (4. ed.). Westport, Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Board of Education of School District No. 73 (Kamloops/Thompson). (2011). //About SD 73: About Our District.// Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">http://www3.sd73.bc.ca/general/content/about-sd73

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">BC Wildlife Federation, 2011. //BC's First Conservationists: 38,000 Strong//. Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">http://www.bcwf.net/index.php

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 150%;">Ducks Unlimited, 2011. //How We Conserve: Education//. Retrieved from http://www.ducks.ca/province/bc/how/index.html

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Statistics Canada. 2007. Kamloops, British Columbia (Code5933042) (table). 2006 Community Profiles. 2006 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 92-591-XWE. Ottawa. Released March 13, 2007. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">[|http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/92-591/index.cfm?Lang=E]