Darren Solomon, Principal, Little Red River School
Larry Wilke, Director of Education
Little Red River Education Authority, Inc.
SASKATCHEWAN
PROGRAM SUMMARY: Chief Sitting Bull said: “Let us put our minds together to see what kind of life we can build for our children”. This workshop centers on the work of Steve van Bockern and Schools That Matter. Regardless of culture, students have four basic needs – belonging, mastery, independence, generosity. The core of these basic needs is safety, and these basic needs are surrounded by a sense of adventure. Schools that meet these needs will be more successful than schools that do not meet these needs. This workshop will provide a description of these needs and will present basic strategies that address these needs.
Student Voice
The presenters care about “transcending economic and cultural boundaries” to build meaningful lives for children. They advocate paying attention to parents as well, not just students.
We have a question: Are the teachers that are giving rides to students or helping outside of their occupational responsibilities given appropriate salaries and benefits? Students are important, but we need to make sure staff are being taken care of because school staff already tend not to get paid enough for what they do.
We also wonder if rural educators take students on field trips into urban areas so students can get a feel for these places as some of them will be going there in the future.
Audrika and Malaika, Aden Bowman Collegiate, Grade 11
