Jenner School connecting with community this year
By Samantha Johnson, Prairie Rose Public Schools Content Writer
Jenner School has been focusing on Commitment to Community this year, which will be the theme of their Exhibition of Learning in June.
“The exhibition has turned into a community-centered recognition day that the teachers have now taken part in,” explained principal of Jenner School Kirby Stensrud. “We did some Christmas and Easter baskets and delivered those to care homes in Medicine Hat and things have spurred off from there that have been fun.”
This banner was a project completed by all students at the school and hangs in the hallway leading to the gymnasium. SUBMITTED PHOTO
Prototypes for the new Welcome to Jenner sign created by junior high students at Jenner School. The sign is currently being manufactured and will be unveiled on the afternoon of the school’s Exhibition of Learning in June. SUBMITTED PHOTO
The young students, K-3, have been interviewing community champions who’ve come into the school to speak with them. The students have a list of questions they ask each presenter(s): What motivates you? If you had one word to describe Jenner, what would it be? Why did you pick your job or career? Additionally, each visitor will tell the students stories about their life or career. Grade 2 student Huntley Stensrud said her one word for Jenner is amazing and she is motivated by friends, family and all animals.
Grade 4-6 students created two large mural art projects, and the post offices in Jenner and Buffalo will each receive one. “Each student chose a symbol that meant something to them about their community. Some chose a silhouette of a farmer, some chose cattle, others 4-H symbols,” stated Stensrud.
Grade 5 student Madison Lessner chose loving as her one word for the school and said, “it was fun (making the murals), it was relaxing to rip the pieces of paper up and glue them onto the page. I ended up doing the Alberta Sweet Potatoes logo because my mom runs that.”
Being in Grade 9, Evangeline Johnson is in her final year at Jenner School and somewhat apprehensive about attending a larger school in Duchess next year for Grade 10. For the Exhibition of Learning, all junior high students at Jenner School wrote a report on the area where they live. Johnson lives in Iddesleigh and she learnt the community used to be bigger and much of what used to be operational when her father was younger is no longer around. In addition, the Grade 7 to 9 students designed a new Welcome to Jenner sign, which is currently being manufactured at a local Hutterite colony.
“I’m excited,” said Johnson, “it’s nice to know what I put work into is coming to life and is happening (the sign). It will bring life to the town and won’t be just a little blink people pass through.”
Lily McLaughlin, who is also in Grade 9, has been friends with Johnson since both began attending the school in kindergarten. Luckily, both will be attending high school in Duchess next year, which will provide some continuity as they move on from Jenner School. Depending on where they live, some Grade 9 students bus to South Central High School in Oyen for Grade 10 through 12.
Her report was on the Tide Lake area and McLaughlin said she already knew most of the history. The 100-year-old Osborne School is right next to her house along with a 100-year-old church that her family still attends occasionally.
“It’s a good community to grow up in, you know everybody so it’s awesome and you are close to a lot of people,” said McLaughlin. Both she and Johnson said their one word for Jenner School would be either family or community.
“What’s really cool for these girls is their parents went to Jenner School. We are at that stage now where parents have gone through and now their children have gone through. The kids are really involved in the history part of the community, so a lot of these places they know of, they’ve seen them, and the community is really connected to the history,” concluded Stensrud.