January 25, 2016

As part of its effort to support the well-being and resilience of its students, École St-Charles Borromée (St-Charles) is participating in the “Full Awareness School” (École de pleine conscience) initiative. In order to inform parents of the benefits of this initiative, a presentation will take place on Thursday, January 28, at 11:15 a.m., in the school gymnasium (22 Ste-Anne, St-Charles). Members of the media are invited to attend.

Well aware that life has its moments of happiness and its challenges, and that experience includes dealing with various levels of stress, the school staff believes that stress management is an essential part of student development and learning. For this reason, École St-Charles Borromée chose to take part in the “Full Awareness School” pilot project.

École St-Charles Borromée is the first Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario (CSCNO) school to take advantage of this initiative. Through training sessions provided by the CSCNO social work and cultural awareness teams, the school’s staff was trained to lead the full awareness activities during the school day.

The full awareness initiative enables both students and staff to take part in daily breathing, relaxation and visualization activities to “live in the moment” consciously and without making value judgments. The strategies taught during the activities enable students to develop self-regulation skills to manage emotions and daily stress.

“Our students can strengthen their self-confidence, maintain good relationships with others and become more resilient,” explained St-Charles Borromée principal, Mrs. Tammy Séguin. “In addition, the full awareness initiative enables them to become more attentive, focussed and calmer, which will have a positive impact on their academic success. One of the programs most important elements is that students can apply the strategies at school as well as at home,” she concluded.

The Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario offers a French Catholic Educational Program that is recognized for its excellence. With some 7,000 students in 27 elementary and 10 secondary schools, the CSCNO offers a positive learning environment from early childhood to adult education.

INFORMATION:

Tammy Séguin
School Principal
École St-Charles Borromée
705-867-2052

Paul de la Riva
Interim Assistant Director of Communications and Community Development
Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario
(705) 673-5626, ext. 294
(705) 677-8195 – cell phone