School Story

General Wolfe Elementary is a vibrant learning community of students supported by passionate educators and engaged families grateful to be located on the unceded, traditional lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

A diverse student population of 387 students is divided into 17 divisions with almost even numbers in primary (K – 3) and intermediate (4-7) grades. Wolfe students include Indigenous children and children with citizenship from 22 different countries. While most students speak English at home, the Wolfe community also speaks 25 other languages. Wolfe welcomes all people and, in particular, has warmly greeted children from homelands immersed in conflict.

As envisioned by the Vancouver School Board Education Plan 2026, goal one (the Vancouver School Board will improve student achievement, physical and mental well-being, and belonging), the Wolfe staff is committed to the development of all learners through active and engaged learning. Student learning is supported both in and outside of the classroom. Up to date library resources, learning through technology, a music program, field studies, and outdoor learning spaces, all support curriculum learning. Students are encouraged to follow their passions and explore their interests in open-ended activities such as choosing their own science fair projects, composing rhythms and melodies in music, deciding how to use their time on Play Days, writing personalized Land Acknowledgements for the daily announcements, and leading monthly school assemblies. Extracurricular sports and clubs, sponsored by staff, provide additional learning opportunities. In the spring of 2023, student initiative led to a Climate Action Fair and the formation of a Newspaper Club. This year, students are engaged in conversations to reimagine a structure for student voice. Ongoing staff professional development, which in recent years have included sessions on outdoor learning, Indigenous art, and math, provide staff with opportunities to enrich their practice to support student learning. Wolfe students take on leadership roles in the school by volunteering as Kindergarten Monitors, PA Announcers, Office Monitors, and Library Monitors. Each division has a buddy class where intermediate and primary students work together to build community bonds throughout the grades. A monthly assembly is student-led and an opportunity for all classes to share their learning with one another.

Student learning is supported by an active and generous parent community. The Parent Advisory Council (PAC) events create a larger sense of community and raise funds for school activities and resources. Recent community events have included Welcome Back Nights in September, Halloween

Dances in October, Walkathons, and Movie Nights. PAC fundraising has supported activities such as skating at Hillcrest for the entire school, school performances, digital literacy presentations for intermediate students and all parents and caregivers, and additional technology resources. The PAC has also sponsored parent education nights focused on anxiety and another on anti-racism. The PAC and Wolfe staff worked together in past years on a plan for outdoor learning spaces to be funded from the PAC Legacy Fund. The spring of 2023 saw the implementation of the plan with the addition of picnic tables, new concrete and wooden benches, and replaced wooden benches in the forest area.

Many Wolfe alumni stay connected to the school and come back to volunteer. Alumni help at Sports Days, provide leadership for special events such as the 2023 Climate Action Fair, and volunteer in classes.

In addition to the PAC, the school community is supported by the Hamber Community Schools Team and Spare Time Child Care Society which provides out of school time care before and after school and during school breaks.

The Wolfe School Code of Conduct is taught as PAWS, which reminds students to be Polite, Accountable, Welcoming and Safe. Direct teaching as well as posters, a school song, a hand sign, and a PAWS pathway outside all support students in understanding and remembering PAWS and the overall behaviour expectations.

The school facility was seismically upgraded between 2019 and 2021. In September 2021, the school community returned to the Ontario Street site after two years at the South Hill swing site.