Healthy Schools BC Newsletter

April 2014

Join the Healthy Schools BC Mailing List

Stay Connected to the Healthy Schools Movement in BC

There are plenty of ways to stay connected to the healthy schools movement! Follow DASH on social media for all your healthy schools news and happenings.

School Grant Opportunities

To check out the following grant opportunities and many more, visit the Healthy Schools BC website here.

RBC-Evergreen Watershed Champions Award

Deadline: Apr. 18

Toyota Evergreen School Ground Greening Grant

Deadline: May 2

MusiCounts TD Community Music Grant

Deadline: May 9

RBC Learn to Play Program Grant

Deadline: May 16

Artists in Education Grant

Deadline: May 23

Artists in the Classroom Grant

Deadline: May 30

Vancouver Foundation Education Grants

Year-Round Intake

Computers for Schools BC

Year-Round Intake

BC Hydro Sponsorship

Year-Round Intake

RBC After School Project Grants

Year-Round Intake

Have a Great Story? We Want to Hear It!

We want to hear your healthy schools story! Teachers, students and community members across the province are working hard to create healthier schools. Sharing your stories can help support and inspire others, and viewing stories from other schools can do the same for you. Check out the Healthy Schools Stories Map today!

Video of the Month:

How Brains Are Built: The Core Story of Brain Development.

This video from the Alberta Family Wellness Initiative (AFWI) presents the core story of brain development in an accessible and visually engaging format for public audiences. View the video here.

Save the Date!

Stories of Change: Pictures of Possibility - Innovative Leadership in BC and Beyond. Networks of Inquiry and Innovation (NOII) Symposium on May 2nd and May 3rd, 2014. Click here for more information

The annual Healthy Schools Leadership Symposium will take place Monday, May 5th, 2014. Registration is now open. Click here to read more.

Today's Children and Youth, Tomorrow's Families: 2014 Youth and Family Consensus Conference, May 2nd and May 3rd, 2014. Click here to read more.

DASH is excited to present our upcoming walk to school initiative as part of iWalk (International Walk to School Week) in fall 2014! Registration will open in early May, so stayed tuned for more information!

Submitting an Article for the Newsletter

How would you like to promote your organization's message to members of the health and education sectors across BC? To learn how to submit an article for the Healthy Schools BC Newsletter, please visit the Healthy Schools BC website here for submission dates and guidelines.

About DASH BC

The Healthy Schools BC Newsletter is brought to you by DASH BC. Our vision is that ALL learners in BC will realize their full potential as healthy learners who feel connected and engaged in their community.

We are a non-profit society that inspires our partners and stakeholders to improve the health and learning of students in BC by promoting, supporting and facilitating a healthy schools approach. Visit our website for more information.

DASH BC

#1055 - 409 Granville St.

Vancouver, BC

V6C 1T2

www.dashbc.ca

info@dashbc.ca

phone: 604-681-0600

fax: 604-681-0602

Featured Articles

Staying After School? Yes, Please!

Reflection on DASH's 3rd Annual After School Sport and Arts Initiative Community Forum

For two days at the end of February, DASH hosted the third annual After School Sport and Arts Initiative (ASSAI) Community Forum in Richmond, BC. Representatives from eleven school districts across BC came together to share their knowledge and learn about resources and strategies for their after school programs. Click here to read more about the ASSAI and the Community Forum.

For Youth, By Youth

Healthy Living Youth Council mid-year retreat

The momentum of student engagement has been building, especially in the second year of the Healthy Living Youth Council (HLYC). Thirteen students from across the province comprise this year's HLYC. The council members, along with two HLYC alumni members, recently returned from the mid-year retreat at Camp Squeah in Hope. Click here to read more and see pictures from the retreat.

Healthy Schools Stories

Engaging Students to Become Healthy School Leaders

Partnerships in action in school district #67

DASH recently had the opportunity to chat with public health nurse Christine Davidson from Penticton, BC, in school district #67, who shared how she is using the Healthy Schools Process to support students at Holy Cross Elementary School to explore ways to improve student health and learning outcomes. Click here to read the story.

DASH Update

Healthy Schools Leadership Symposium

Working together for collective impact

The 8th annual Healthy Schools Leadership Symposium will be taking place on May 5th and 6th this year! This event brings together educators, health professionals, students, parents and community organizations from across BC to share and learn about healthy school initiatives from around the province. The theme for this year's event will, therefore, focus on collective impact. Click here to read more and register for the event!

Healthy Schools BC Website Updates

Enhanced usability to search for healthy schools programs and resources

The Healthy Schools BC website is a "one-stop" access point for healthy schools programs and resources across the province and is a collaboration between DASH and the Ministries of Health and Education. The Programs and Supports tab has now been updated to enhance usability. Read more about the updates here.

Projecting Change Film Festival

Register your students for youth days

The Projecting Change Film Festival is back and celebrating seven years of sparked curiosity. Reaching beyond themes of environment and social change, Projecting Change explores concepts such as empowerment, identity, culture, and global connection. This year, Youth Days are on Thursday, April 24th and Friday, April 25th, 2014. Click here to read more.

Teacher Resources

Connecting Health and Learning in the Classroom

Inquiry approach can improve student achievement

DASH is committed to staying at the forefront of leading edge learning theory and evidence to support BC students to thrive in their communities. Inquiry is used by many BC educators as a way to enhance learning. What exactly is inquiry? In the simplest of terms, inquiry is the act of posing a question and then exploring ways to answer it. Click here to read more.

Are Your Students Good to Go?

CARBC presents a safe driving resource about 'drugging and driving'

We all want to do our part to help youth understand and enjoy the privileges of safe driving. When it comes to discouraging 'drugging and driving', we may be tempted to think scare tactics work best. But research tells us that reaching youth in a meaningful way takes more than gruesome car crash photos, statistics or stories from guest speakers. Click here to read more about the Drugs and Driving resource.

Does Nutrition Education Work? YES!

Food For Us! nutrition program develops healthier eaters

In a recent evaluation study completed for the BC Dairy Association, Food For Us! demonstrated that nutrition education works. Results of the evaluation study showed improved student knowledge and food choices-sustained even 6-9 weeks after the program was completed. Click here to read more.

COOK...FILM...and WIN!

Hands-on Cook-off Contest Alert!

The Better Together fifth annual Hands-on Cook-off contest is coming to schools across BC again this year with a special category for youth. Anyone in BC can enter between April 15^th and May 15^th, 2014. Read more about the contest here.

Healthy Living Performance Standards

An assessment tool for learning progression

The Healthy Living Performance Standards (HLPS) have been developed by BC educators and can be used as an assessment tool to support learning progression for students' healthy living knowledge and skills. The standards are available for all grade levels and there are four aspects of the HLPS: Healthy Eating, Active Living, Healthy Relationships, and Healthy Practices. To learn more about these standards and how you can use them, click here.

Action Schools! BC Updates

What's new for spring 2014?

Read about the latest Action Schools! BC updates including Outdoor Traditional Games Student Leadership Training, new DPA Pages! focusing on self-regulation, and the top 10 ideas for celebrating Move for Health Day. Click here to read more.