Ideas of Activities

The municipal council makes a commitment to become concretely involved in supporting school perseverance in its community by adopting a policy to encourage school perseverance or establishing a bursary program. It thus emphasizes the importance of encouraging the young adults of tomorrow to continue in school and obtain a diploma or a qualification, thus ensuring they have a better future.

Elected officials of the municipality of Piopolis encourage their young citizens!
The members of the council of the municipality of Piopolis decided to recognize the efforts of their youth by sending them a certificate of school perseverance by mail. Each of the elementary and high school students of the town were encouraged to persevere during their time at school.

Stanstead students received certificates, recognizing their educational success
The City of Stanstead took the time to congratulate its youth who qualified and graduated. It wanted to highlight that being a graduate opens many doors for future studies and employment opportunities. A $ 200.00 scholarship is also awarded by the Town of Stanstead to one of the graduates drawn at random.

Ideas of activities
•    Wear the school perseverance ribbon (mayor, municipal councillors, and employees).
•    Present bursaries to all students in the municipality depending on the number and choose a time of year to do a ceremony.
•    Underline the names of your graduates in the local newspaper.
•    Put the school perseverane static window sticker at the entrance of your town hall or on your car window.
•    Adopt a resolution declaring Hooked on School Days in your municipality or MRC.
•     Include columns on school perseverance in the municipal newsletter.
•    Adopt motions of congratulations to youth who stand out due to their perseverance and their efforts.
•    Organize a joint activity with your municipality’s school during Hooked on School Days.
•    Send Hooked on School postcards to elementary and high school students.
 

Balancing school and work is a reality that is gaining momentum among students at the high school, adult education, vocational education, college, and university levels. Effectively balancing one’s time and paid work hours is an important factor in educational success.

Examples of actions and gestures that can make a difference in the decision whether or not to continue one’s education:
•    Wear the ribbon for school perseverance
•    Put the school perseverane static window sticker at the entrance of your business or on your car window
•    Encourage your student employees daily
•    Take a few minutes to ask how school is going and about academic achievements
•    Discuss with your student employees’ career aspirations
•    Offer a scholarship when a student employee obtains a diploma or qualification
•    Reimburse part of the academic fees when a student employee continues studies
•    Give out Hooked on School postcards or award perseverance certificates
•    Implement measures promoting school-work balance within your business
•    Join your MRC’s school-work balance program

Explore various aspects of staying in school and above all… have fun!

Staying in school is contagious! 
Improv presentation type: Mixed tea
Style: Singing, hip hop
Number of players: 2 players per team
Team consultation: 15 seconds
Length: 1 min. 30 seconds

I work hard in Math!
Improv presentation type: Mixed team
Style: Theatrical
Number of players: Unlimited
Team consultation: 15 seconds
Length: 2 min.

Educational success is everyone’s business! 
Improv presentation type: Mixed team
Style: Singing
Number of players: 3 players per team
Team consultation: 30 seconds
Length: 3 min.

When it gets difficult, I persevere!
Improv presentation type: Mixed team
Style: Like a child
Number of players: Unlimited
Team consultation: 15 seconds
Length: 2 min.

Dropping out, isn’t my thing!
Improv presentation type: Solo team
Style: Freestyle
Number of players: 4 players
Team consultation: 15 seconds
Length: 2 min.

Source: Réussite Montérégie

Enhance a writing project or the watching of a video by organizing a discussion group. Take advantage of Hooked on School Days to have youth express their views on dropping out and perseverance.

The Castors de l’Aventure du 22e Groupe Harfang des neiges discuss perseverance!
Young boy scouts from Sherbrooke discussed what encourages them to persevere.

«At the heart of perseverance» workshop at the Centre d’éducation des adultes of Lac-Mégantic
Students from the Adult Education Centre attended a discussion workshop on perseverance, an activity initiated and led by the Carrefour Jeunesse-emploi du Granit. The video «Le round de la persévérance”  was presented to them. Split-up into groups, they discussed the main factors for perseverance. After that, the participants wrote a personal message related to their own potential for success.

Through your organization’s newsletter, or the local paper of your municipality or MRC, provide information on school perseverance. Be reporters and spread the word on how staying in school is everyone’s business, every day!

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Plan theme suppers as a family or group; prepare and cook the meal together, and encourage lively discussions. When supper’s over, ask for suggestions for the theme of the next supper. Hooked on School Days can be the starting point for a series of captivating theme suppers.

Dinner meeting on school/work balance
The Carrefour Jeunesse Emploi de Coaticook organized a dinner-talk concerning the importance of keeping a balance between school and work. The students’ primary job is to study!

Cooking and awareness!
The Bouchée Double Memphrémagog community kitchen cooked with first-cycle high school students. They took the opportunity to discuss healthy lifestyle habits and their impact on the students’ achievements in school.

Put messages of encouragement, congratulations, and pride inside fortune cookies to tell youth that they are not alone in their pursuit of success. Give them to all students in the school during an activity, recess, or at lunch time.

Green and white cookies at the École des Monts-Blancs of Saint-Augustin-de-Woburn
Parents baked “school perseverance” cookies with green and white icing for each child. The meaning of the colours was explained to the students.

Start a new tradition by writing Hooked on School postcards as a family. Address cards to members of your family (parents, grandparents, cousins, etc.) and significant people, and experience a writing session that can be repeated at various times of the year.

Become a sponsor of one or several youngsters by writing a letter in which you send a message of encouragement and perseverance. This type of correspondence between youth and significant persons can be enhanced by sending a certificate of congratulations for their success and perseverance. Conversely, suggest to the students to write to a significant person to emphasize the importance that this individual has had for their perseverance in school.

A message mailed to parents of students at École primaire de la Passerelle in Asbestos
The preschool students wrote a card to their parents to express what they feel when they do things that encourage them. They participated in all the stages of the mailing: writing the card, addressing the envelope and mailing it.

«We believe in you» at École primaire de la Passerelle in Asbestos
The students had a nice surprise. Teachers, parents and significant others secretly created a card on which everyone took the time to write the child’s qualities

Cards for the children at the Maison des Grand-Parents de Sherbrooke
Grandparents who help with homework in schools handed out cards to support the children in their academic efforts.

The pleasure of reading starts well before the first day of school. Telling stories – what a pleasant way to stimulate language development and instil a child’s interest in reading!

Somes examples of activities :
• Make up a story based on the pictures in a book, flyer, or magazine.
• Why not get out a photo album and tell a child a story that happened  (a story that happened at daycare, about grandparents, etc.).
• Play with letter magnets on the refrigerator.
• Act out stories with puppets or by dressing up as a character from a book.
• Choose short and entertaining stories.

Download and print the brochure: The discovery of reading and writing “A family affair” produced by the Projet PRÉE and enjoy special times together.

Transform public space or the student lounge into the “Perseverance Cafe.” Place Hooked on School postcards on the tables (10 factors of perseverance) and spontaneously invite the people present to relate short personal accounts, ask them to talk about “tricks” they have developed to stay motivated, tools they use to manage their budgets, agendas, and note-taking, etc.

Select students who have really shown perseverance. Offer to take them to lunch or give them the opportunity to enjoy a special activity by giving them a movie ticket or something else. The students could also be chosen by the students themselves.

More and more students are working while they study. Some work only a few hours a week while others have close to a full-time job. Why are they working? Does their job have an impact on their marks? What does it mean to be a well-balanced student employee, an employer who promotes a good balance, etc.? Become a reporter for a day and issue a “breaking news bulletin” presenting the key points, the hidden side of school-work balance, etc.

Visit the site: jechoisismonemployeur.com

Following a lecture on perseverance, lead a forum, debate or discussion that makes everyone think about how to boost educational motivation among students.

School dropout: Do you have any solutions?
A mid-day Action Discussion, organized by the students of the Faculty of Education of the Université de Sherbrooke, to collectively reflect on conceivable solutions to prevent school dropout.

People (youth, teachers, parents, employers, public figures and other significant people) talk about their work, career paths, the difficulties they overcame, and their successes. Foster discussions with youth about their specific situations. Broadcast personal accounts on student radio, the school’s intercom system, or community radio, or have young people introduce someone who inspires school perseverance.

From the University to the Elementary School! Bishop’s University visits Princess Elizabeth Elementary School in Magog
Fifty students from Bishop’sUniversity went to give workshops on the importance of education. The elementary school students had the opportunity to chat with them. A video of this day was produced.
 

Testimonials from former persevering students at the École secondaire de l’Escale of Asbestos
A student teacher prepared a video of testimonials from students who attended the École secondaire de l’Escale. Everyone gave testimony about their time in school, the difficulties that were encountered and the perseverance that had to be mustered. This video was shown to the students during the 2012 Hooked on School Days.

Bring together a small group of people focusing on boys who are having problems staying motivated or persevering. Since not all boys experience difficulties in school – on the contrary, many of them succeed1 – why not encourage mutual help among boys. As an example, the “older” boys could become “mentors” for younger ones. Or ask them to choose someone who is significant or positive in their mind, someone who inspires them. Source : St-Amant, Jean-Claude. Les garçons et l’école, Montréal, Éditions Sisyphe, 120p, 2007. (Sherbrooke).

Incorporating the theme of perseverance in various pedagogical contexts: oral presentations, dictations, exams, writing, reading, research, comic strips, murals, songs, slogans, advertising, multimedia presentations, etc.

A pertinent question…
An elementary school student asked a very pertinent question : "Does one have to wait to be a grown-up to perservere?" In response, the school organized a brainstroming group.

Organize poster contests, question and answer games, writing contests on passions and dreams, drawing contests, crosswords, word searches, question of the day with answers deposited in boxes and prize draws.

Art competition at Richmond Regional High School
Students were invited to paint a portrait, a positive image representing an aspect of school or education with the theme of school perseverance.

Be dynamic and creative by proposing testimonials, popular slogans or thoughts. Propose various broadcast media (blogs, videos, radio, intercom capsules, websites, etc..). Give perseverance lots of visibility!

A blog on Perseverance at École Sylvestre in Sherbrooke
A blog about perseverance has been developed. One can find testimonials and discussions there.

The intercom, still useful!
The student councils of École La Maissonnée and École Carillon in Sherbrooke have prepared and broadcasted capsules via the intercom on the theme of school perseverance.

Choose a symbol that is representative of perseverance, such as a tree, a wall or a banner, etc. and animate activities based on this symbol. It will represent the importance of perseverance as it relates to the success of young people throughout the school year.

At École Saint-Camille in Cookshire “On se tient et on s’accroche”
Each child printed their name on a piece of paper creating a giant banner showing all the students’ names. Then, the banner was hung in the gym where the director of the school launched the Hooked on School Days.