(rdnewsNOW file photo)

By Adam Ophus

Strong Start

Students adapting well to “new” school year

Sep 21, 2020 | 12:03 PM

The principal at West Central High School in Rocky Mountain House says “students have been great” since the start of the new school year.

Under rules set by the province to limit the spread of COVID-19, all staff and students in Grades 4-12 must wear masks in spaces where physical distancing can’t be met.

Principal Stacey Wigley said she thinks young people are more resilient then they are given credit for.

“Kids were being kids and laughing with each other, just with a mask on,” she shared.

It wasn’t just students excited to get back into school, Wigley noted, as teachers were also elated to no longer teach through a computer screen, though some still are through the at-home learning offered through the Wild Rose School Division.

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The division began the school year with a staggered start where different grades came in on different days to help limit the number of students on campus at one time and help acclimate them and staff with the “new” way of doing things.

Wigley noted that changes and additions that come in from the provincial government can often be brought to them last-minute or over the weekend, but staff have been very professional and flexible.

Teachers had a professional development day on Friday to discuss how things have gone thus far and whetherthey felt prepared to fully begin the school year.

“Absolutely,” Wigley said in that regard.

As an exciting side note, Wigley was happy to reveal that the band program at West Central High School would still be going ahead after the province loosened restrictions performances with wind instruments.