School Name: Mapes Elementary

School District: SD#91 Nechako Lakes

Inquiry Team Members: Kira Watson- kwatson@sd91.bc.ca
Candace Lawrence- clawrence@sd91.bc.ca
Jennifer MacDonald- jtmacdonald@sd91.bc.ca

Inquiry Team Contact Email: sdargis@sd91.bc.ca

II. Inquiry Project Information

Type of Inquiry: SRL Case Study

Grade Levels Addressed Through Inquiry: Primary (K-3), Intermediate (4-7)

Curricular Areas Addressed: Not applicable

Focus Addressed: Core competencies (for example, thinking, communication, personal and social), Self-regulation

In one sentence, what was your focus for the year? We worked in multi-age groupings to assist self-regulated learning through building strong personal and social relationships.

III. Spirals of Inquiry Details

Scanning: This will be our third year using our multi-aged groupings. We started our process by identifying that our learners could benefit from building their communication and collaboration skills. We conducted a school-wide project of making 4 multi-aged groupings to build these skills. Through these groups, we looked at local animals and completed skill-building activities in the forest. Last year, we were able to build on our communication and collaboration skills. We focused on building critical and creative thinking skills. We centered our activities around these skills. This year, we determined that the third layer was to build personal and social relationships using the skills we have been growing from the previous two years.

Focus: We wanted learners to develop a deeper understanding of one another. Our goal was for students to apply the skills they had built over the previous two years to form meaningful relationships with peers beyond their established friend groups. By expanding their connections, we hoped to foster a stronger sense of community, empathy, and belonging across the school.

Hunch: We noticed a growing sense of negativity toward the colour groups among some of our older students. As educators, we could see the significant progress learners had made over the previous two years. Communication skills were strengthened not only within the colour groups but also in other settings. We observed meaningful growth during playground interactions and transition times. This led us to wonder whether, although students may not have recognized their own growth as clearly as the adults did, they would still benefit from continued opportunities to develop and strengthen these skills.

New Professional Learning: Monthly Teacher collaboration planning sessions. This was a great time for our staff to reflect on how things were going and decide on the necessary steps to move forward. We used these times to plan and coordinate the coming group activities.

• Coyote’s Guide to Connecting with Nature – John Young. We used this for our forest activities.
• John Muir Laws Virtual Workshops – Learning in Nature. These were used for reflection activities.
• 4 Seasons of Indigenous Learning – Virtual Sessions and Season 1 – Foundational Knowledge.

Taking Action: We used two different approaches to help build relationships among our learners. Through conversations with our older students, we learned that it could be challenging to create activities that were engaging for all grade levels. As a result, we explored activities with our full Kindergarten–Grade 6 groups, as well as activities involving only the Grade 3–6 learners.

In our whole-school groups, we participated in activities such as morning forest walks followed by a school-wide pancake breakfast. During these walks, learners completed letter-unscrambling challenges as they travelled through the forest. Once finished, groups returned to the school and continued spending time together while sharing breakfast.

Within our K–6 groupings, we also completed seasonal STEAM-focused activities. During Halloween, the winter holidays, and Jump Rope for Heart, learners rotated through activity stations with their groups while teachers remained at designated stations. We noticed that this structure encouraged learners to build relationships by looking out for one another and helping each other complete the activities.

Our groups also constructed birdhouses. The Grade 4–6 class built their birdhouses first, which allowed them to develop an understanding of the necessary steps. Later, during our multi-aged groupings, the older buddies worked alongside their younger buddies to build one or two birdhouses together. This provided meaningful opportunities for leadership, mentorship, and collaboration.

In addition to these activities, we wanted to create opportunities for learners to contribute ideas based on their own understanding. To support this goal, we designed a collaborative project around the book Thomas’ Snowsuit. Each of our three classes read the same story but focused on different elements. The Kindergarten–Grade 2 class explored characters, with each learner selecting and colouring a character from the story. The Grade 2–3 class focused on setting, with learners recreating one of the story’s settings through drawing. Finally, the Grade 4–6 class examined the themes and underlying messages within the text.

With each learner holding a different piece of the story, we used cards to create random groups that included students from each classroom. Each group had a character, a setting, and a collection of themes. Using these pieces of the puzzle, learners were challenged to create an original story together.

When we first attempted this activity, many learners experienced frustration and confusion. There were too many unknown variables at once—the task itself and the new groupings. While some groups found success, many struggled to understand what was being asked of them.

We revisited the activity later using a different story. Although we continued to use random groups of three, the task was now more familiar. This time, we saw exciting growth in both understanding and engagement. Learners were able to contribute their own ideas with greater confidence and collaborate more effectively.

We then adapted the activity for our colour groups. After reading a new story together, each group worked collaboratively to create a beginning, middle, and end using elements from the text. They developed three settings and incorporated characters from the book into their new story. Every learner could proudly say they had contributed to the final product, creating a strong sense of ownership and accomplishment.

Our most recent collaboration was with the Grade 8s from NVSS. Throughout the spring, our Grade 2/3 class collaborated with the Grade 8s on three different occasions. Each session, a new class of Grade 8s came to collaborate. The schedule for each session remained consistent. We met as a whole group to discuss the plan and safety. Using cards to make random partnerships, a Grade 8 buddy was partnered with a Grade 2/3 buddy. We then walked into our forest to clear the area for a learning centre. Once the spot was cleared, we completed a sit spot activity with our partners. The last activity was some form of creation activity that rotated throughout the sessions. Over the three sessions, we built animal sculptures, natural mandalas and gave trees clay faces. When the sessions were over, the entire group enjoyed a cool, sweet treat together.

Checking: Through our various activities, we observed exciting growth in our learners. They were excited to take on leadership roles and share personal experiences and ideas. In our colour groups, learners became quite comfortable working together and listening to one another’s ideas. We observed growth in learners of all ages sharing personal experiences with multi-aged peers in our organized groups and in moments such as recess. Our group as a whole has also demonstrated more patience and understanding for peers of all ages.

Reflections/Advice: Through this inquiry, we learned the importance of predictability when working to foster relationships. Through each of our collaborations and activities, we learned that if there are too many unpredictable variables, unknown groups, unknown activities, etc., groups demonstrated difficulty building relationships and sharing activities. We learned that if we have a variable that is predictable, learners demonstrated a stronger ability to build relationships and were more comfortable sharing their ideas. This can be a new activity, but with familiar groupings or familiar activities with unknown groupings sets our learners up for greater success to build relationships and use their communication skills.

School Name: Brooklyn Elementary School

School District: SD#71 Comox Valley

Inquiry Team Members: Naomi Radawiec: naomi.radawiec@sd71.bc.ca, Deborah Koehn: deborahkoehn@gmail.com

Inquiry Team Contact Email: naomi.radawiec@sd71.bc.ca

II. Inquiry Project Information

Type of Inquiry: SRL Case Study

Grade Levels Addressed Through Inquiry: Intermediate (4-7)

Curricular Areas Addressed: Other: Core Competencies

Focus Addressed: Core competencies (for example, thinking, communication, personal and social), Self-regulation

In one sentence, what was your focus for the year? Developing self-regulation and independence in a classroom that values and responds to learner diversity.

III. Spirals of Inquiry Details

Scanning: We have a class of 26 grade ⅚ students who are very diverse in the way they think, act, and their academic abilities. While roughly 13 (half the class) of the learners struggle with focus, attention and following instructions, about one third of them are very strong academically and are in need of a challenge. We noticed the need to help students develop a sense of agency and ownership over their learning, no matter where they are at and what their strengths/challenges are.

Focus: We chose to focus on metacognition, self-regulation, and learner ownership because we wanted students to better understand their strengths, challenges, and learning needs. Our goal was to help students develop greater agency and confidence so they could take risks, persevere through challenges, and see themselves as capable learners. We also wanted to deepen our understanding of neurodiversity, particularly ADHD, and explore strategies that support students with attention and focus challenges so that all learners could experience success and engagement in the classroom.

We focused on the First Peoples Principle of learning: Learning requires exploration of one’s identity.

Hunch: We wondered if accommodating these students had led to a dependence on their teacher? If we help them too much, that enables them to keep relying on adults throughout their days at school.

New Professional Learning: We learned more about neurodiversity, specifically ADHD, and how to support students with focus/attention challenges. We also learned more about meeting the needs of students who need a challenge. We did research into these two areas (reading literature), as well as talking with mentors and colleagues about how they have met the needs of diverse learners. We invited our school OT to collaborate with us and teach several lessons related to attention, focus and metacognition (awareness of thinking and behaviour).

We also continued to do research into developing personal self regulation strategies as a teacher so that we could stay regulated and well, while teaching a very complex class and experiencing many stressors on a daily basis.

We read the book “The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen Year Old Boy with Autism” by David Mitchell (who wrote it when he was 13 years old!). This book was incredibly eye-opening, as it helped us better understand the experiences, perspectives, and challenges that some neurodivergent learners may face. It challenged assumptions about communication, behaviour, and engagement, and encouraged us to look beyond what we observe on the surface to better understand students’ needs.

We read the book “Dive Into Deep Learning: Tools for Engagement” and used the Deep Learning progressions, to help students build ownership and reflect on the core competencies.

Taking Action: We invited our school Occupational Therapist Andrea Wilson into our class to teach lessons related to self regulation, paying attention, and neurodiversity.

Lesson One was about focusing and paying attention. We learned lots of interesting facts from Ms. Wilson, then discussed some common distractions, and solutions for dealing with those distractions (deep breathing, focusing on something else, asking someone to stop, using earmuffs/headphones, brain breaks, turning off background extra noises, stretch breaks, chair pushups, advocating for yourself by asking for help with the distraction, adjusting clothing so body temp is not distracting). She said that the solution should be something that quickly helps you get back on task. The solution should not distract others (e.g. loud fidget tools), and should not just be a further distraction (like video games). We learned about how writing down your thinking can help with worry. We also learned about the importance of taking short brain breaks after about 10 minutes of steady focused work. The longer you work, the bigger the break needed. Ms. Wilson talked about building our “Focus Muscle.”

Lesson Two: Andrea Wilson introduced a diagram called the “Autonomic Nervous System Scale” that explains the different modes that we can be in, ranging from peaceful, happy, alert…to fight flight freeze.

Lesson Three: Andrea Wilson came back to our class to teach a lesson on Neurodiversity, and specifically ADHD. She helped students understand the terms neurodiversity, neurodivergent, neurotypical, masking, neuroaffirming. Neurodivergent describes people whose brains function, learn, and process information differently than what is considered typical. Common examples include Autism (ASD), ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, and Tourette’s syndrome. Ms. Wilson encouraged students to be curious about differences, rather than thinking that differences are bad. She talked about how every brain is different and beautiful.

Inviting the OT into our class for focused lessons on self-regulation helped us as a class because we were able to regularly refer back to what she taught us, and reflect on how that knowledge impacts how we approach our work, breaks and daily routines.

Student Friendly Deep Learning Progressions from the book “Dive into Deep learning,” also helped our students learn to work together more effectively and appreciate each other’s differences. We focused on the Collaboration Learning progression. Students focused on working together to use each other’s strengths, and infuse each person’s perspectives to make decisions, complete tasks, and solve problems.

Using the Student Friendly Deep Learning progressions helped students to better understand what effective collaboration looks like, and this boosted their ability to collaborate! We noticed a huge difference!

Picture Book and Video
We read the book “It’s my Brain” by Elise Gravel and then watched a short video about neurodiversity. Students reflected on what they have learned this year about neurodiversity and neurodivergence.

Checking: Through lessons on self-regulation, attention, and neurodiversity, students developed a better understanding of how their brains work and learned practical strategies to help them focus, manage distractions, and advocate for their needs. Students also gained a greater appreciation for neurodiversity and learned to view differences with curiosity, empathy, and respect. As a result, students became more aware of their own learning needs, collaborated more effectively with others, and demonstrated increased confidence and independence in the classroom.

Learning about Neurodiversity as a class was especially powerful. Students spoke up and said, “that’s me!” They felt seen and understood a little more. The understanding we shared as a class helped students be more patient with each other, and they began to appreciate their differences a little more.

We asked students: Why is it important to understand that our brains work differently and each person is unique? How does this impact the way in which we treat each other?

Student quotes:
“If nobody was unique then the world would be so boring! If someone that has ADHD has a hard time listening in class you nicely remind them instead of being rude!”
“It is important to recognize that all of our brains work a little differently and we need to help and support those who need something a certain way in order to be successful. We need to treat everyone with kindness no matter how their brains work.”
“Everyone needs different things to make them feel safe and comfortable.”
“It’s important so we know and understand how everyone learns differently and that their learning is as important as our own.”
“It is important because if someone tells you that they are neurodivergent, you can know what it means and learn more about it and be supportive.”
“It is important to know this because if someone is having a hard time you shouldn’t judge them because they might have ADHD or OCD. Don’t put down others and never wish to have somebody else’s brain because they have their struggles too (we all do!).”
“It’s important so that we can help others succeed and make them comfortable.”
“No brain works the same and people need to recognize that and don’t bully them because some can be highly sensitive.”
“It’s important because people like my sister have different ways of thinking and if you understand that you can understand more of what they are thinking.”
“If we don’t learn about neurodivergent people then we might think that something is wrong with them.”
“It is important because we must take care of each other so the world can live in peace and harmony.”
“It’s important so we can make everyone feel safe and comfortable at school.”

Reflections/Advice: Neurodiversity is the norm, not the exception. Just as there is no single way a person should look, there is no single way a brain should work. Every person has their own unique “brain blueprint” that shapes how they think, learn, process information, and experience the world. Schools and society were often designed around a narrow definition of what is considered “normal,” which can create barriers for many people.

We look forward to continuing our learning on how to better support the needs of diverse learners and how to build a classroom community that values and respects each other’s differences.

School Name: Nechako Valley Secondary School

School District: SD#91 Nechako Lakes

Inquiry Team Members: Marilou Nightingale: mnightingale@sd91.bc.ca
Travis Himmelright: thimmelright@sd91.bc.ca

Inquiry Team Contact Email: dphilipenko@sd91.bc.ca

II. Inquiry Project Information

Type of Inquiry: SRL Case Study

Grade Levels Addressed Through Inquiry: Secondary (8-12)

Curricular Areas Addressed: Arts Education, Language Arts – Oral Language, Physical & Health Education, Social Studies

Focus Addressed: Self-regulation

In one sentence, what was your focus for the year? Self-regulation through outdoor learning.

III. Spirals of Inquiry Details

Scanning: Many of our Grade 8 students in the North Central region struggle to learn within the four walls of a classroom. They feel the content is not relevant or applicable to their current and future lives. As many of them are comfortable and skilled in outdoor environments, we recognized the need for more hands-on learning opportunities and a shift in scenery. We wanted to use a more holistic approach and focus not only on curricular goals, but significant attention to the core competencies.

Focus: We wanted our learners to become more self-regulated in the following areas:
-Recognizing what supports they needed, when they needed them, and how to advocate for themselves.
-The ability to effectively interact with peers within and outside of their friend groups.
-Increased emotional awareness of themselves and others.
-Ability to take on and feel like they had more responsibility, and that this responsibility was important.

Hunch: We felt the Grade 8’s were not getting enough hands-on learning or the ability to share their findings orally. Classwork was almost entirely done with pen to paper or computers. We needed to bring in outdoor learning as a form of differentiation.

New Professional Learning: The resources that proved most effective in my professional learning were my colleagues themselves. I reached out to the most experienced outdoor learning educators in the district (as well as a few outside our district) and asked them what/how/why they are taking students outside. I was able to glean valuable information from these experts. I also utilized professional reading (“Mentorship in the Wild” by Court Rustemeyer, “The 175 Best Camp Games” by Kathleen, Laura, and May Fraser, “Agency to Zest” by Kath Murdoch, “Learning with the Land” by Lauren MacLean and April Pikkarainen).

Taking Action: The goal was to engage the learners in multiple “Legacy Projects” throughout the district. We have two large outdoor learning sites that students and teachers can access. We took the students out and discussed questions such as “How do you want to be remembered? How can what we do today affect those who come tomorrow? What work can we do to improve the lives of others who come after us?” We then brainstormed ways we could improve and contribute to the outdoor learning sites. This year it manifested in clearing safety concerns from a large area for capture the flag, creating two fire pits, and clearing out three areas to use as outdoor classrooms. Once we had these goals set out, we designed activities that focused on teamwork and personal and social responsibility. The culmination of the projects occurred in three collaborative sessions with a Grade 2/3 class. Students were randomly assigned “little/big buddies” and went through several activities together. The partnership was powerful as the Grade 8’s were put in a position of leadership and had to act as supports and role models for their little buddies.

Checking: Our evidence was qualitative discussions and observations of the Grade 8 students. When asked what their favourite part of outdoor learning was this year, many of them described positive experiences working with the Grade 2/3 class. They felt proud of the work they accomplished and the conversations they had with their little buddies. The Grade 8’s also became more cohesive as a learning community. They seemed to gain the ability to recognize when someone was struggling and try to support them through it. Overall, seeing the Grade 8’s come together and show a genuine care for their peers was satisfying for everyone involved.

Reflections/Advice:

My biggest pieces of learning:
-Nature is the best self-regulator
-Grade 8’s need agency and responsibility, and multi-age grouping is a great way to do this
-Improvement in the core competencies seep into every aspect of the school environment

Where I will go next:
-Keep building my skillset and getting students outside as much as possible!

Advice I’d give others:
-Find like-minded colleagues, ask questions, and take calculated risks. Starting is the hardest part.

School Name: Garibaldi Highlands Elementary School

School District: SD#48 Sea to Sky

Inquiry Team Members: Katrina Lowe: klowe@sd48.bc.ca

Inquiry Team Contact Email: klowe@sd48.bc.ca

II. Inquiry Project Information

Type of Inquiry: SRL Case Study

Grade Levels Addressed Through Inquiry: Primary (K-3), Intermediate (4-7)

Curricular Areas Addressed: Applied Design, skills & Technology, Arts Education, Career Education, Language Arts – Literacy, Language Arts – Oral Language, Language Arts – Reading, Language Arts – Writing, Mathematics / Numeracy, Physical & Health Education, Science, Social Studies

Focus Addressed: Core competencies (for example, thinking, communication, personal and social), Self-regulation

In one sentence, what was your focus for the year? Strengthening Self-Regulated Learning through a school-wide Spiral of Inquiry approach, grounded in Indigenous Ways of Being, in order to increase student agency, independence, engagement, and depth of thinking.

III. Spirals of Inquiry Details

Scanning: Our staff engaged in a collaborative scanning process using multiple sources of evidence including classroom observations, student work samples, assessment data, student interviews, MDI and Student Learning Survey data, staff observations, and professional dialogue during staff meetings and collaborative inquiry sessions. We intentionally used the two key Spiral questions—”What is going on for our learners?” and “How do we know?”—to move beyond assumptions and examine patterns across classrooms. Student voice revealed that many learners were highly engaged when tasks were structured or supported but often struggled to independently initiate, sustain, or extend their learning. Students also demonstrated varying levels of confidence, perseverance, and ability to articulate their learning goals and next steps. Guided by both the OECD Principles of Learning and the First Peoples Principles of Learning, staff examined learning as relational, social, and deeply connected to identity, place, and community. This helped us recognize that supporting self-regulation required not only instructional changes but also attention to relationships, belonging, and shared responsibility for learning.

Focus: Through our scanning process, staff identified a need to strengthen student independence, perseverance, agency, and depth of thinking. Although many students were successful when expectations were clearly defined, they frequently relied on adult prompting rather than self-direction. We also noticed inconsistencies across classrooms in how Self-Regulated Learning was understood and enacted. As a result, we chose to focus on strengthening Self-Regulated Learning through inquiry while grounding our work in Indigenous Ways of Being. We hoped to see students become increasingly independent, reflective, and responsible for their learning while deepening staff understanding of inquiry as a stance rather than a process to complete.

Hunch: Our hunch was that some of the learner behaviours we were observing were being unintentionally reinforced by our own practices. We wondered whether adults were over-scaffolding learning, providing too much direction, and moving too quickly to rescue students when they experienced challenge. We also recognized that while teachers were highly reflective and committed, many lacked a shared framework for sustained professional learning. We hypothesized that if educators engaged in inquiry as learners themselves and explicitly modelled goal setting, reflection, monitoring, and adaptation, students would develop greater agency and ownership over their learning. We also suspected that inconsistent understanding of Self-Regulated Learning across classrooms was contributing to uneven experiences for students.

New Professional Learning: This year, staff deepened their understanding of Self-Regulated Learning, the Spiral of Inquiry, Indigenous Ways of Being, restorative practices, and relational approaches to teaching and learning. Professional learning was supported through ongoing collaboration with Kimberly Sinclair, district inquiry supports, Indigenous Support Workers, NOIIE resources, and professional texts related to Self-Regulated Learning and inquiry. Collaborative inquiry groups met throughout the year, using the Spiral of Inquiry as a shared framework for professional learning. Staff engaged in structured scanning, collaborative analysis of evidence, learning rounds, professional dialogue, reflection protocols, and inquiry team meetings. Shared planning templates, reflection tools, and inquiry walls were used to make both adult and student learning visible. School leaders intentionally protected time for collaborative inquiry and modelled inquiry as a stance through ongoing reflection and responsiveness.

Taking Action: Our school implemented a number of interconnected strategies to strengthen Self-Regulated Learning. All staff participated in collaborative inquiry groups and used the Spiral of Inquiry as the primary framework for professional learning. Teachers explicitly taught and modelled goal setting, reflection, perseverance, and learning strategies within classrooms. Staff co-constructed learning goals and success criteria with students and increasingly used student voice to inform instructional decisions. Common language around our PACK values and PBIS structures was established school-wide to build coherence across classrooms. We intentionally partnered with Indigenous Support Workers and community members to co-plan and facilitate learning experiences grounded in Indigenous Ways of Being. This included drumming, storytelling, land-based experiences, and collaborative arts projects. Staff also engaged in learning rounds, regular reflection during staff meetings, and ongoing cycles of evidence collection, analysis, and refinement. Throughout the year, leadership prioritized protecting collaborative time and fostering a culture where inquiry was viewed as collective, relational, and ongoing.

Checking: Evidence suggests that we made a meaningful difference for both students and staff. Teachers reported increasingly viewing inquiry as a natural part of their professional practice rather than an additional initiative. Across classrooms, staff observed increases in student independence, perseverance, engagement, and ability to articulate their learning goals. Students demonstrated greater stamina and ownership when provided with explicit structures and opportunities for reflection. Evidence was gathered through classroom observations, student work samples, staff reflections, student voice, collaborative inquiry discussions, and school and district assessment data. While we are encouraged by the progress made, we recognize that this work is ongoing. Developing self-regulated learners and sustaining inquiry as a stance requires continued attention, coherence, and collective commitment over time.

Reflections/Advice: This inquiry reinforced our belief that Self-Regulated Learning and inquiry are inseparable and that meaningful change for students begins with adult learning. We learned that when educators experience goal setting, reflection, adaptation, and evidence-informed decision making as learners themselves, they are better positioned to create conditions that foster agency in students. We also learned that inquiry is most powerful when grounded in relationships and Indigenous Ways of Being that honour reflection, relationality, and collective responsibility.

Our next area of inquiry will build on this foundation by exploring how a stronger sense of belonging can support accountability, participation, and well-being. Drawing on Disability Justice, restorative practices, and the First Peoples Principles of Learning, we are interested in understanding how creating communities where every learner experiences genuine belonging can become the foundation from which accountability and growth emerge.

My advice to other schools would be to treat inquiry as a stance rather than a project, to begin with adult learning, and to make time for educators to learn collaboratively. Sustainable change happens when learning is collective, relational, and grounded in the lived experiences and voices of learners.