How do these December spirit days sound to you?
- December 2nd: Be Festive!
- December 9th: Sweater Day
- December 16th: Character Day
- December 23rd: Be Cozy!
Our Student Council is a group of grade 6, 7, and 8 students led by my colleague Lisa Flanagan. Lisa and the students have created inclusive spirit days and activities. For this blog post, I interviewed Lisa and the executive committee, hoping that you will be as inspired by them as I am.
How was the Student Council Created?
Executive– At the first meeting, anyone in grades 6, 7, or 8 was welcome to sign up. We created a grade 7- 8 executive committee, which includes people with previous experience. There are a bunch of committees: decorating, announcements, fundraising, Tilley TV, yearbook, Audio/Visual, General Helpers, and Spirit. There are executive members on each committee.
James – We stress teamwork. The different committees collaborate on the activities we are doing with the school. Like when it was time for fall door decorating and the photo scavenger hunt, we all worked together. (everyone nods in agreement)
How did your spirit days come about? We used to call the spirit days by other names.
Coral: You mean like Crazy Hair Day? No, we don’t use “crazy” like that anymore. You have to use the right language. Like we don’t have March Madness spirit month, we have March Moments.
Franklin – Also, you can’t imitate someone’s hairstyle from their culture and call it crazy. That’s not ok.
Lisa – We want to shift the focus more on how to be rather than specifically what to wear. It gives more room for creativity and self-expression. The March Moments spirit month includes: Be a Fan, Be a Star, Retro Day, and Titans Day (school colours). On Be a Fan day, you can choose anything you’re a fan of; it doesn’t have to be sports. Also, when decorating, we focus on the seasons rather than the specific holidays.
What other opportunities have you enjoyed with the student council?
James – Right now, we have the fundraiser and donations for Bethesda House (a local agency that supports people dealing with abuse and gender-based violence). It’s been really successful with donations of food and gift cards. It’s great when we work together, and you see the payoff.
Destiny – I presented our plans to the parents on the school council. I was nervous, but they really liked our ideas and were happy I was there.
Rose – We also have grade 7 students who help on grad night. They are really important, and grad wouldn’t happen without them!
Leslie – We have fun! We are building independence and handling new responsibilities too.
Years ago, we used to have an elected student council. The nominees would have to give a speech to the class, and then the class would vote for two representatives. What do you think of that?
Franklin – Honestly, it would just be a popularity contest, and people would be left out. The way we do it gets more people involved.
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I’m so proud of our student council and their work with Lisa. They are terrific role models! They help on pizza day, run the music station at special events like the Terry Fox run, and are on the daily announcements. I’m looking forward to seeing how they develop as leaders at our school. If you have suggestions for our student council, please leave a comment.
*Students’ names have been changed.
