Thornhill, ON - Students and staff at Rosedale Heights P.S. in Thornhill are showing their gratitude to frontline workers with the Rosedale Heights P.S. Book of Gratitude.
Grade Five Teacher Lorne Rembach, his student Jett, and Jett’s mother Nicolle came up with the idea. They wanted to incorporate mindfulness and gratitude into the everyday lives of students, including in the classroom. When schools closed as a result of the pandemic in mid-March, Nicolle reached out to Rembach and suggested a project to display gratitude to those on the front lines. It was then the Rosedale Heights P.S. Book of Gratitude was created.
Students from every grade participated in the project, from drawing pictures to writing paragraphs of gratitude. Rembach compiled the submissions into a single document, and Nicolle arranged to print the book.
Jett and Nicolle took printed copies of the book to frontline workers across the region, including police and fire stations, Mackenzie Health Centre, residential homes and a local grocery store.
“Jett is the perfect ambassador for this project”, Rembach said. “Jett is a kind and compassionate student. He tries to model kindness every day and this project would not be a success without his interest and leadership.”
“We are so proud of the work, the collaborative accomplishment and the simple fact that this community activity will be something that provides a lasting memory of this difficult time”, said Rosedale Heights P.S. Principal Vincent Anania. “During regular school hours we are always looking for acts of kindness, acts of empathy and acts of gratitude.”
York Region District School Board is the third largest school district in Ontario with over 127,000 students in 180 elementary schools and 33 secondary schools. York Region students consistently perform above average in provincial testing and the Board is one of the top achievers in Ontario. For more information about the York Region District School Board, please visit our website: www.yrdsb.ca and follow us on Twitter: @YRDSB.
For further information:
Jamie Bennett
Corporate Communications
905-727-0022 Ext. 2272