School Life

Well-being

At BFIS student well-being is highly valued and supported. The school plays an important role in helping students to make healthy lifestyle choices for them to thrive both academically and socially.

Developing well-being

Developing wellbeing means supporting the whole child, not only an academic achievement, but cognitive, social, emotional and physical well-being. Growing evidence shows that student well-being is an integral part of student success. Elevating student happiness and well-being is at the core of our mission to provide the very best 21st Century education.

All of our teachers and counselors at Early Childhood, Elementary, Middle and High School help students develop understanding, knowledge and skills that support self awareness, promote respectful relationships and build students capacity to recognize and manage their emotions.

Well-being program in Middle and High School

Our well-being program throughout Middle and High school is based on the following:

Mental Health

Understanding how the brain develops. Inside that unit we also ran a Mindfulness Program, so that students not only gain knowledge about how the brain is developing but also learned and experienced practical tools that helped them to manage their emotions, stress and anxiety.

Nutrition

Next unit we focused on nourishing the body and the brain at this age of growth and development. We talked about nutrition specifically related to teenagers, to make it relevant and relatable for them.

Substance Abuse Prevention

We invited online speakers from FCD (Freedom from Chemical Dependency) to talk with the students, teachers and parents about this important topic.

Sexual Education

In our next unit we focused on sexual education, with age-related content from Grade 6 to Grade 10. As we moved into Spring we began talking about relationships and social-emotional learning.

Spiritual Beliefs

Towards the end of the school year we have open, non-judgemental conversations about more spiritual topics such as personal beliefs and different beliefs from different cultures, with a focus on understanding differences and finding common values such as kindness, love, and service to others.

Safeguarding and Child Protection

At BFIS we take safeguarding and child protection very seriously. The safety and well-being of our students is our highest priority. In accordance with our values and vision statement, BFIS has developed a Child Protection Policy to guide our staff and families in matters related to the health, safety and care of children at BFIS.

Our counseling team delivers the student protection and safeguarding program to all divisions. These sessions with students include understanding safe and unsafe situations, identifying trusted people and what actions can be taken to keep students safe. Counselors also provide parent information sessions regarding safeguarding and child protection to foster awareness and encourage healthy conversarions at home.