INNISFAIL –As Dana Lacombe went through her sixth Back to School preparations, she had an inspiration.
And it was all for the kids entering her Grade 4 class and a new school year at St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Catholic School.
Some parts of this annual momentous day have become easier, some harder.
“There's always the preliminary stuff we have to do; our times tables, our yearly plans for all subjects, and our welcome back newsletters and emails to the families and just different teacher documents that we have to get organized and done before the year starts,” said Lacombe in the days leading up to the first day of the 2024-25 school year on Tuesday, Sept. 3.
She added the energy level for students is always “very high” coming back to school, and the teachers’ job is just to make sure it's a good experience for them.
In the past Lacombe transformed her classroom into Hogwarts, the fictional boarding school of magic for young wizards that was the primary setting for the first six novels in the Harry Potter series.
For the 2024-25 school year she was inspired to introduce another novel way of learning, something a bit old-fashioned perhaps but fun and potentially transformative.
Lacombe’s base theme for her Grade 4 class this school year is camping, complete with a tent and even camping chairs set up strategically in the classroom.
It will be a place where kids can seize a comforting bit of solitude and the magic of reading and learning.
“I think kids love camping; those who have experienced camping and those who have never experienced camping will get a little taste of what it could be like, and get to do some of the things they've never got to do before,” said Lacombe.
“They'll be able to go in there (tent) and read,” she said. “There will have to be some organization to it. So, I'll probably assign specific kids for the week, and they'll be allowed to read in the tent, otherwise it kind of turns into chaos.
“It'll be the reading corner, and it might be a good incentive for kids to want to read, to take the time out of our day to read,” added Lacombe. “We'll try and do novel studies that are kind of camp themed.”
The joy, excitement and wonder of back to school day is never lost to any of the staff at St. Marguerite.
School principal Stefan Labrecque said there's lots of organization and sharing a vision for the school year among the 27 staff members who are dedicated to serve the institution’s 310 students from kindergarten to Grade 9.
“It's just kind of like shining up our objectives and our pathways and journey. It's also exciting because we come back, and everyone's excited to be back and rejuvenated,” said Labrecque, adding his staff was back to school Aug. 27 to prepare for the new school year. “There are some long hours and some long days, but those things are always rewarded when kids come back on that first day.
“There's also that anxiousness because sometimes you have new classes and don't always know the kids and the families,” added Labrecque. “But once the kids roll in and we see their smiles, everything just starts to roll and everybody gets into a groove.
“So, it's really good.”
