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About Us

 

SCHOOL STORY

With deep gratitude and respect, Sir Sandford Fleming Elementary School is honoured to be learning and unlearning on the ancestral and unceded lands of the xwməθkwəy̓əm(Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7meshÚxwumixw (Squamish Nation) & səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation). We are dedicated to providing education for 428 students from Kindergarten to grade 7. Approximately 50% of students speak one of over 30 languages as their first language, with Cantonese, Punjabi, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Spanish being the more dominant languages. The Fleming community is proud and diverse in cultural identity. We actively work towards decolonizing our schooling practices to create an inclusive environment for all students.

At Fleming, we prioritize supporting learners by fostering a sense of belonging, generosity, independence, and mastery. By helping students develop these tenets, students develop into developing kind, empathetic, and hardworking individuals, who are encouraged to choose courage over comfort. As Fleming Wolves, students strive to HOWL (Help Ourselves and Others With Learning and Living) on a daily basis. Fleming has a dedicated team of approximately 50 staff members who work diligently to inspire students to thrive both inside and outside the classroom. We are grateful for the support of our various community partners who offer out-of-school programs, literacy support, snacks, and childcare services. These partnerships allow us to extend athletic, cultural, and daycare programming to our families.

The Fleming community cares about students and work to provide a space that is inclusive of neurodiverse, gender, cultural, racial, and ethnic identities.

Teamwork is at the core of our school culture. The school is organized into five learning communities named Maple (Kindergarten), Willow (Grades 1/2), Cedar (Grade 3), Sitka Spruce (Grades 4/5), and Arbutus (Grades 6/7). Each learning community consists of four classroom teachers and support staff who collaborate, share spaces, and sometimes teach together to meet the diverse needs of our learners. Working together towards our collective goals is our strength.

In addition to our learning communities structure, Fleming boasts numerous outdoor learning spaces designed to incorporate land-based learning opportunities that allow students to engage with and learn from the land.

In line with our commitment to student success, we place a strong emphasis on literacy. Sir Sandford Fleming Elementary School is a Collaborative Early Literacy Intervention (CELI) school that prioritizes one-on-one and small group interventions. Our dedicated staff members work collaboratively and engage in shared decision-making within their learning pods, employing a collaborative inquiry approach. By focusing on early literacy intervention, we aim to ensure that all learners become strong readers.

We take great pride in our school community and are committed to providing a supportive and culturally responsive learning environment for all students where they are challenged to do their very best and have a strong sense of community and belonging.


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