The Alberta Teachers’ Association

Athabasca Delta Community School

Fort Chipewyan
K–12, 220 students

Fort Chipewyan is a fly-in community that is also accessible by ice road from Fort Smith and Fort McMurray between January and March.

For teachers who are newly hired to begin work in the fall, the first must-do is to figure out how to get themselves and their belongings into the community. This typically involves packing essential personal items into plastic containers and shipping them by air or barge, then booking a plane ticket. Upon arrival, one of the first tasks to complete is planning outbound trips for the upcoming year, such as for teachers’ convention and holidays.

The northernmost school in Alberta, Athabasca Delta is the only school in the community. It has 17 teachers, three assistants and a mental health worker. This setting requires teachers who exhibit a lot of patience, flexibility and a sense of humour. Not just any teacher can enjoy working in this environment.

The school board owns housing for teachers to rent, but the cost is high. Last year the local First Nation opened a grocery store whose prices are much less than the previous longstanding store that had been operating as a monopoly. The community has a beautiful swimming pool, and also a great gym that is free for anyone to use. The lone restaurant serves pizza, donairs, fries and burgers.

To do well here, teachers need to really love teaching and the quietness of nature. 

— Elia Haydon, principal

Banded Peak School

Bragg Creek
K–8, 318 Students

Last year the Alberta Teachers’ Association began a three-year partnership with Iceland during which principals, teachers and students from three rural Alberta schools visited three partner schools in rural and remote parts of Iceland.

In year one (2018/19), the respective partners identified a need to address growing mental health and anxiety issues within their student populations through deeper connections with nature and sport. The second year of this project now involves ongoing reflection and action research on the impact these initiatives are having on life in the rural school community. The third year will involve a discussion of the next steps.

Exploring Nature in Bragg Creek

Upon returning from our first trip to Iceland in the fall of 2018, Banded Peak created CONNEX, which stands for Community, Outdoor, Nature, Nurture, Education and Exchange. The project is focused on reimagining our school’s connection with community and enhancing our passion for the outdoors. 

Through CONNEX, Banded Peak has reached into the community to engage our seniors, foster meaningful connections with the nearby Tsuut’ina Nation, open the “back 40” to the community via community walks, nurture students through food programs, and share promising practices with our international colleagues.

During our return trip to Iceland in November 2019, teachers and school leaders were accompanied by four Grade 8 students, some of whom had never travelled internationally. Their experience overseas, billeting with Icelandic students and immersing themselves in school culture, fundamentally changed the way they perceive school. 

From these experiences, students shared the importance of working toward the establishment of nutrition programs that reflect those of many Scandinavian countries, where students are provided government-sponsored breakfast and lunch. They also referenced the importance of “the house” or the school being a place where students can enjoy unstructured time with one another playing games, doing homework, or as Grade 8 students do, lounge.

Finally, they shared the importance of teachers providing challenging, creative and thought-provoking lessons designed to engage students in their learning. 

— Simon Pols, principal

Hutterite Colony within Rocky View Schools*

K–9, 21 students

This is my second year teaching on a Hutterite colony, and I’ve discovered many joys.

I teach 21 students from kindergarten to Grade 9, with one to three students in each grade, and only one assistant. My students attend school until they’re at least 15 years old and may go further if they wish.

There are challenges with this many grade levels in one room, but I’ve learned a few key strategies that make it doable. One key strategy is grouping students by ability. Another key is to annually rotate content area curriculum. It’s also essential to teach and equip students to work independently. In some areas, I teach the same content to everyone, while differentiating the expected response. And there are many things—music, visual art, drama, phys-ed—that we all do together.

One of the many rewards of a many-graded class is that, as they learn, work, play and celebrate with children both older and younger, my students grow up knowing how to value, respect and care for people of all ages. 

— Laureen Guenther, teacher

* The name of the colony has been withheld to respect the community’s desire for privacy.

Sheldon Coates Elementary School

Grande Cache
Pre-K–3, 180 students

Our newly installed playground backs on to a large forest and rolling mountains. All grades take advantage of the land surrounding the school; students build forts, take hikes, climb trees and explore the forest. Staff at Sheldon Coates value outdoor learning and learning through play, which help to build connections and relationships with students that go beyond academics.

Being in a remote area, we struggle to find certified substitutes and to recruit new teachers. We also have to travel on mountain highways frequently to attend meetings and professional development. While we have many services available to us, they are mainly contracted services that are based in other communities, making it difficult to achieve consistency. 

— Michelle Bolay, principal