January 2018
Right from the Start
Mental Heath Capacity Building
Project
' Snuggle up and READ' seems to be a buzz line these days. With the cold dark months upon us there is no better way to spend some moments then with your child and some 'new' books from the library, a warm drink and a cozy blanket. Some of childrens favorite moments are spending time with loved ones in this way. As one child in grade 2 said to me the other day "my warmest and coziest times are when I snuggle up and read with my family". Beyond all of the amazing learning and academic benefits there are also the benfits of physical closeness, slowing down, focused attention on your child and the chance to enjoy a quiet moment.

January 27th is Literacy Day in Alberta!!
Elizabeth Rummel School

We all love Bucket Filling at ERS. In every class and around the school it's about to grow. At the end of the month ask your kids how? The Bucket Filling Count is ON!

Also at ERS, the Grade 3's will be having some good conversations with their 'Worry Monsters' and coming up with a few strategies on how to deal with their anxiety when it comes up. Practice at home, especially for those that need it, would be much appreciated. 

There will even be some lessons from Super Heroes, what they do (and don't do!) when they are having a bad day. Hopefully we can all, children and adults alike, take a few hints from these powerful beings and become SUPER at handling our not-so-super moments.  

The New Year also welcomes in Literacy Week, where there will be plenty of books to read. 
Literacy Week at ERS: January 22-25th

Parents - are you looking to create more ease and harmony in your home? Take us up on Parent Coaching.

Parent Coaching helps us to be open-hearted, vulnerable and honest in our relationships with others, with ourselves and especially with our children. Contact RFTS Success Coach, Kate Rive to take us up on this offer of four 1-1 Parent Coaching sessions. This process will help you clarify your vision for your family, move toward more ease and harmony in your home, develop a higher degree of self-care and assist you in getting in touch with what matters most for your family. Things do not need to be rough in order to take advantage of this opportunity; we want to support you in enhancing the good! When you come from a place of connection to your values and vision for your family, you are able to be more effective, flexible, strong and resilient as a parent. Get in touch to grab one of the remaining 2 spaces available for a January start:  kate.rive@crps.ca 


Alpenglow School

Kindergardten kids are being introduced to the Zones of Regulation by Adrienne Lawlor (OT) from Alberta Health Services. With stories, felted animals and some imagination you can ask your child about the story of the animals, colors and pippa the elf....stay tuned for more on this...

Grades 1 and 2 are working with RFTS and how they can support their minds, bodies and spirit by paying attention to their bodies. What makes thier bodies are 'tense' and 'rigid'? What happens when they relax and notice their bodies being 'happy' and 'calm'? We are using mindmasters as a guide to support this classroom work!
Click on the link to read more about this and get access to the mindmasters audio files.

http://www.cheo.on.ca/en/MindMasters

Grades 3/4 and 5/6 at Alpenglow are working on the toolbox and team building activities to support classroom culture, support one another and work at problem solving and conflict resolution.
Banff Elementary School

Mental health for BES students is being supported by regular class visits. The older grades participated in team building and classroom cooperation activities. Before Christmas students were challenged to think of how to be kind to each other, as well as to think of something special to do for their families for Christmas. Walks of Wow were taken where students looked for something in nature that inspired them and made them go, Wow!

The Right from the Start offices are open every day for student and parent drop ins, and open for a variety of clubs and groups during lunch hours. Gilly the therapy dog is everyone's favourites, and over some time all classes at BES will have a visit with Gilly, his owner Mark, and the special Gilly Group.

In January Soulwarmers start rehearsing for the annual Earth Day performance so please stay tuned for that date in April. 
Lawrence Grassi Middle School

"Health Days" have come to LGMS. The Grade 4's and 5's will be spending some time in January doing a variety activities related to health from Yoga to drumming and running to dancing. There will also be some good discussions on body image and how media can influence this. MR D, Mrs Kat and teachers alike are presently being educated by the students on what visual forms of entertainment students appreciate (ie youtube, movies, video games etc). Now it will be the adults turn to take some images from that entertainment and let kids discover how this might be influencing their perspective on body image.  

The Grade 4, 5, and 6's will be getting their laminated Animated Anxiety Animals back, and will learn how to externalize and address these Worry Monsters whenever they show up. The Grade 8 boys will continue meeting with MR. D and Ali to help support healthy relationships through diverse experiential games and discussions. Small groups of all ages at LGMS will also continue to see Mr D to help foster friendships and internalize respect for one another. The grandpal writing exchange still holds strong for two of the Grade 4's classes to build on the cross generational connections in our Canmore community.  

Right from the Start
Project Coordinator - Mary Weighell
mary.weighell@crps.ca