Help develop a vision for Balaclava elementary

October, 2020

Dear Families,

We are using Thoughtexchange this school year to help us develop a vision for Balaclava Elementary School. Over the next five weeks, we will be asking a series of questions about how we can improve our school environment. Your feedback will help us guide our decisions as we move forward. Your participation and your child(ren)’s participation is completely voluntary.

Thoughtexchange is an online engagement tool that can crowdsource a community’s answers to one question, in real time. HWDSB is using Thoughtexchange to improve the way it delivers student learning, supports and safety protocols during the pandemic.

Student and Parent/Guardian/Caregiver Thoughtexchange

Starting today, and over the next four weeks, we will be asking a series of questions about how we can improve our school environment. Each Thoughtexchange will be open for one week. This week, Balaclava Elementary School is excited to offer an exchange for all of our parents on the following question: When fully implemented what would an accessible and well-equipped school environment look like, sound like, feel like? We are also excited to offer an exchange for all our students on the following question: When fully implemented what would a welcoming and fun school environment look like, sound like, feel like?

In the upcoming weeks, we will offer an exchange on the topics of inclusivenes, acceptance, diversity, engagement, and communication. There will be a student from the Faculty of Education at Wilfrid Laurier University who will assist in collating the thoughts.

Families, if you consent to your child participating, please share the link at the bottom of this message with them so that we can hear directly from students as well as from parents/guardians and caregivers. Here are some things to consider:

What are the risks?

Your child will see comments written by other students. The Thoughtexchange is moderated so that statements identifying people or inappropriate statements are removed. But we cannot guarantee that this will always happen before a statement is seen. Your child may see comments from others who are upset or struggling. Your child may find this upsetting.

What are the benefits?

Your child will be part of a conversation with other students where they can collectively share their experiences. They may experience some joy or connectedness by reading what other students are thinking. If you consent to their participation, please share the link below with them.

We remind everyone to:

• Be respectful and kind;
• Do not share anything that you don’t want other people to read. Once you submit a thought it can be seen by anyone in the exchange;
• Do not include any names of people or schools, or inappropriate words.

If your children are too young to manage Thoughtexchange on their own, and you consent to their participation, please help them do so. If you have questions, please contact our Research & Analytics Department at [email protected].

Parents, please use this link to participate: https://my.thoughtexchange.com/123651485

Parents, please check your e-mail for a link to a Thoughtexchange for your student(s).

Thank you for your interest and continued support.

K. Rizzo
Principal