STEIN VALLEY NLAKAPAMUX SCHOOL
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Welcome from the School Administrator, Edith Loring-Kuhanga

I can’t believe that I have already been at SVNS for three full years! I have
thoroughly enjoyed my time here and look forward to the 2020-21 school year.
Welcome Back to our returning students and families and welcome to our new
students and their families. We are excited to have all of you here at SVNS!

As we all know, COVID-19 has changed our lives in so many ways, including how
and when we operate our schools. Our staff and Board have been very diligent in
getting educated about what COVID-19 is, how it can spread and what each of us
can do to prevent spreading the virus. In addition to our regular school, personnel
and finance policies, we have developed an additional eleven (11) health and safety
policies and procedures that directly relate to COVID-19. All of these additional
policies that relate to students and parents are included at the end of this handbook.

The three most important actions and practices that we can follow to prevent the
spread of the virus is to wash our hands, keep six (6) feet distance between us and
others and not to touch our face. We will reinforce this on a regular and consistent
basis. In addition to those measures, we have taken additional steps such as
having you screen your child before s/he leaves the house to catch the bus, limiting
the number of students in each class (12 with one exception) by hiring three
additional teachers, grouping students from the same family together on the bus,
minimizing movement of students (breakfast and lunch will be brought to the
students in the classrooms, NlakapamuxchEEn and music teachers will go to
students), de-cluttering of all the classrooms, all soft and fluffy things removed from
the school. We are asking parents/guardians who can drive their child (ren) to
school to please do so. This will limit the number of students riding the bus.

We ask that you please label all of your children’s school supplies as students will
not be allowed to share or borrow from others. If your child has any cold like
symptoms, you must keep your child at home. If you have other children attending
the school, we ask that you please keep all of them at home. Please contact 811 to
get a diagnosis and they will determine whether or not your family should self-isolate
for 14 days. This is absolutely critical if we are going to prevent COVID-19 from
entering our school.

The Ministry of Education has encouraged schools to do outdoor education as much
as possible. Over the next few months, our students will participate in outdoor
education, including field trips. Since the virus is more likely to spread in closed in
spaces, all outside bathroom doors will remain open.

A camera has been installed at the front door and all entrance doors will be locked.
Parents/guardians and visitors will not be allowed to enter the school. We ask that
you please call the school to speak to your teacher or the Principal if you have any
Stein Valley Nlakapamux School | Parent-Student Handbook 5
concerns. This is one more measure that we are taking to limit COVID-19 from
entering our school.

It is all of our responsibility to prevent COVID-19 from impacting our school. Should
we get a case of COVID-19 in our school, we will have to close our school. This is
why this is so critical. So this is dependent on all of us working together to keep our
school healthy and safe!

Because school is going to be different for our students and staff, we have
implemented a Gradual Entry for our students from K to Grade 5 from July 27th to
August 21, 2020. This means that each class will be divided into two groups: Group
A and Group B and each group will attend two days per week. This will give
students and staff time to learn and practice the strict health and safety guidelines
that we have to adhere to. Students will have homework on the days that they are
not in school. Students from Grade 6 to 12 will attend four days per week and will
be assigned homework on the fifth day. We ask that you please ensure your child
(ren) completes their homework. Starting on August 24th, our plan is to have all of
our students attending in class instruction full-time.

Due to the popular demand of the NlakapmuxchEEn K4 immersion program, we will
continue it. However, the K4 program will not start until Tuesday September 8,
2020. The K4 program will also have a Gradual Entry for the first two weeks. In
addition, we will be providing the K5 students with immersion in the afternoons so
that they can build on their proficiency of NlakapamuxchEEn.

We will be continuing our Adult Diploma Program with core subjects such as
English, Math, Science and electives. Please contact the Mac Cassia, Adult
Instructor/Coordinator if you want to register for the program.

Unfortunately, our elementary classes are completely full. Any students who haven’t
already registered and are interested in attending SVNS will be put on a waitlist.
However, we do have a few spaces available for the high school. Please contact
our school secretary to get the registration from sent to you if you are interested in
wait-listing your child.

Although we know that this school year is going to look very different than what we
are accustomed to, we are committed to ensuring that we meet the health and safety
standards as established by the BCCDC, Ministry of Health and the Ministry of
Education. Our current Return to School plans are based on the current statistics of
COVID-19 in BC. Should the number of COVID-19 cases increase rapidly in our
area and/or within BC, we may have to readjust our return to school plans. Please
make sure and provide your up to date contact information to the secretary. As Dr.
Bonnie Henry says, Be Kind, Be Calm, Be Safe! Or in NlakapamuxchEEn,

yEmyemthha, TLEETLeethha, yhEmhha!
Wuhee. hhA.a choonwA-ntm hh.a!
  • Home
  • About our school
    • Overview
    • School Board Message
    • Administrator's Message
    • Principals Message
  • School Calendar
    • 2021-2022 Calendar
  • Annual report
    • Annual Report 2020-2021
    • Annual Report 2019-2020
  • Student Handbook
  • News & Notices
  • Agriculture
    • Overview
    • Cameras
    • Garden
    • Farm Animals
  • Job Posting
  • Teaching at SVNS
    • Why SVNS
    • Video
    • Gallery
    • Language & Culture
    • Teacher Housing
    • Local Sites
  • Contact Us
  • Support Links
    • Mental Health Supports
    • Lytton Creek Fire - Support
    • Williams Lake First Nations
  • COVID - 19