This year, the English department strived to deliver diverse learning experiences to the students of West Kildonan Collegiate. Here are some snapshots of the year in passing.

As part of the Reconciliaction English course in Grade 9, Ms. Erickson took her students to the Manitoba Museum. They were the first high school class to participate in the Treaty One exhibit for educational purposes developed by the Treaty Relations Commission of Manitoba. In the Reconciliaction course, students learn the importance of Manitoba history and making sure that Indigenous perspectives are recognized. The kids read literature written by Indigenous/POC authors.

On the other hand, Ms. Odaguchi and Mr. Jimenez’s Grade 9 classes participated in seminars about storytelling activities and drama based activities during Period Days. The students performed read alouds of children’s stories and Shakespearean plays in order to practice their public speaking skills and understand the intricacies of storyelling. The seminars were facilitated by Dora from MTYP and Nan Fewchuk.

There were many other learning experiences this year. The Grade 10s this year wrote in a plethora of genres; they wrote science fiction for Mr. Cousins and magical realism for Ms. Hart. In addition, Ms. Hart explored memoir writing in her Grade 11 class; together, they read Ivan Coyote’s memoirs as exemplars for excellent writing. Mr. Jimenez’s class read The Hate U Give, a recent novel that examines the ongoing police brutality in the United States. Ms. Moss, Ms. Henry and Mr. Burton continued to regale the students with their expertise on classic novels such as Of Mice and Men and Shakespearean plays. And Mr. Pinder guided students on a deep dive of novels that examine societal issues such as 1984, Brave New World, and A Long Way Gone.

This was a wonderful and productive year for the English department, and the next year only holds so much more possibilities!