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School has taught us valuable lessons

By Greg Maxwell and Ethan McCrae

Village Union is a good school because of highly skilled teachers with strong beliefs that students should be taught and treated with respect. Our teacher, among many others in the school, goes above and beyond what is asked to make sure learning activities are planned to meet the needs of each student. Once a month we have incentives like dances to look forward to, if we qualify with good behaviour and finished work. Our lunch-time supervisors are easy-going and fun to be around.

We are a school with a wide range of learning abilities, races and religions and everyone is treated equally. All students at Village Union get the chance to interact with our specialty classes which helps us to realize we are all different but we are special in our own ways.

Our music program is amazing. Our art teacher plans lots of exciting extras at Village Union from choirs to drama programs. We did one play called Rocking Reindeer. The performance was enjoyed by all.

There were a couple of teachers who inspired us to do our best in school. The first is our art teacher who always encourages us and believes in us. The second is our Grade 3 teacher who was always kind and helpful. There are only two of the many teachers at Village Union who have made our years here such a success. We will never forget what they did for us, even years after we have finished high school and made our own way in the world.

Greg Maxwell and Ethan McCrae are Grade 8 students at Village Union Public School.

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Village Union raises readers

Mar 7, 2008 By: Moya Dillon

Originally published Feb. 22, 2008)

OSHAWA -- Ask any teacher at Village Union Public School what the most important skill they teach their students is and they’ll all have the same answer: literacy, literacy, literacy.

“We look at literacy as a ticket to success for our students,” said principal Ken Cregg, who’s been at Village Union for seven years. “It’s infused in everything we do and our teaching staff is second to none in terms of literacy training. Our library as well is a real key. It’s the hub not only of the literacy program but also of the school.”

The school’s literacy program works in close partnership with the Westmount Kiwanis Club, whose members come in every Tuesday morning to read with Grade 1 students who need extra help. The club pays for books for the library’s book awards program and it sponsors authors and other speakers to visit the school.

The school also fosters literacy by encouraging students to write. Each month librarian Sandra Thomas hosts an author party at the library. One child from each primary class is chosen as that month’s best author and invited to attend the party, where they can enjoy snacks and fun activities. Their work is put on display in the library.

“It really puts the focus on the importance of writing skills across the school,” vice-principal Alison Gilmour said of the parties. “And the kids absolutely love it when they find out they’ve been invited. They’re so excited to see their work on display.”

Another creative way Village Union’s 450 students are encouraged to write is with a school-wide mail system. A special mail box is set up in the main office where students can deposit letters written to fellow students. There are even special Village Union postage stamps. The mail is delivered to each classroom once a week by students from the school’s special needs programs.

As the site of Durham Region’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing program, Village Union’s special needs programs are especially large. Mr. Cregg and Mrs. Gilmour believe these programs help foster a more inclusive environment within the school, since students are always eager to participate and help out with special needs classes.

“Everyone is accepted and valued here, because we don’t even think about it anymore,” Mrs. Gilmour said of the school’s special needs students. “All our students intermingle and that creates a really supportive environment.”

The school rewards this supportive behaviour with the School Tree, which is actually a painting on a library wall. Every day the staff nominates one student who has shown exceptional behaviour in any area, whether it’s kindness, honesty, courage or any other positive action, and awards them with a decoration on the tree. The decorations vary according to the seasons, with snowflakes adorning the tree during the winter. The chosen student’s name is read on the morning announcements and a snowflake with their name and good deed is hung on the tree for the rest of the season.

“There really is a positive energy that goes into learning here,” Mr. Cregg says of the school. “All that energy gets directed to skill development, which translates to success.”