School wide access to the homework room - students are able to receive additional support over the noon hour on assignments and tasks that are outstanding or require additional support.

The YCS team will work diligently this year to ensure Edsby gradebooks are up to date to allow parents and students access to all information and feedback regarding their work. 

The child study team will meet regularly (every day 2) to discuss students brought forward that require additional support and resources. The child study team aims to take a wrap around approach where we actively seek out and utilize as many supports as possible to improve outcomes for our students.

Student services touch point meetings - SSTs will schedule and meet with all classroom teachers each term to reevaluate intervention plans, records of adaptation, inclusion and intervention plans, and student programming.

Adoption of structured literacy in conjunction with the science of reading. K - 3 instruction and intervention teams will attend professional development to learn about the science of reading and structured literacy. Our K -3 teams will implement structured literacy as tier 1 instruction and our SST team will adopt it as an intervention program for students needing additional literacy support beyond tier 1 classroom instruction.  Intervention with the grades 1, 2, 3 teachers will continue. Interventionists will support with co-teaching, as well as take small groups (plan, prepare, and assess) in the classroom for tier 2 support based on collected data. 

The YCS team commit to utilizing the centralized library and portal to supplement and enhance the resources being utilized in their classrooms by using the most up to date and relevant resources that align with indicators of responsive teaching practices.

YCS Reconciliation Gardens - this is an ongoing project supported by consultation with knowledge keepers, elders, local agrologists, community partners and our GSSD Indigenous student success consultant. A number of garden boxes have been constructed in the Yorkdale Courtyard in which we will grow both western crops and traditional Indigenous plants and medicines. Throughout the year we will invite community partners to teach about the land and to participate in the care of the garden. It is our intention that the learning that takes place in the garden will pave a pathway to reconciliation through agriculture and Indigenous ways of knowing.

YCS Drum Group - YCS will continue to have a drum group led and supported by Mr. Robert Severight. The drum group will meet on Monday afternoons and perform at various functions throughout the year. Mr. Severight provides excellent instruction, cultural guidance, and leadership to students in his time with the group.

Mentorship - The YCS Mentorship program matches senior students with younger students to build relationships and make connections with students who could benefit from being matched. This provides an opportunity for senior students to demonstrate leadership both in the school and in the lives of the student they are matched with.

Safety Patrol - YCS safety patrol is an opportunity for grade 6-8 students to develop skills as it relates to leadership and give back to their school community.

Grade 6 Lunch Helpers - is an opportunity for grade 6 students to develop skills as it relates to leadership and give back to their school community.

Participate in division wide training opportunities as they arise such as FRIENDS training.

Teachers will meet on a regular basis to collaborate on grade alike planning and to ensure assessment practices align with GSSD rubrics and criteria for success.

YCS maintains a commitment to providing chromebooks to grade 5-8 classrooms on a 1:1 basis and sufficient ipads to our primary classrooms.

The GSSD Yorkton and Area Band Program will incorporate Indigenous content into the list of chosen repertoire. The goal is to focus on incorporating authentic Indigenous concert band music into the classroom, as well as exploring avenues to contribute to expanding the repertoire, and particularly access to music from Indigenous nations from Treaty 4 territory.

Teachers are working towards incorporating AI into their classrooms to enhance student learning and grow technological literacy in accordance with GSSD's AI Beliefs and Responsibilities Document.

Teachers are integrating MathUP Student as a resource in their classrooms to promote student engagement and understanding in math. Teachers also continue to incorporate Building Thinking Classrooms practices, alongside MathUP, where appropriate.

YCS Sensory Motor Space - This space was new in the 2023-2024 school year. The room is equipped to offer an alternate space to support students needing to regulate and interact with a wide range of sensory and motor tools.

FRIENDS program - All grade 1, 4, and 6 classrooms will receive FRIENDS training to support students by giving them tools to utilize as they encounter conflict in their lives among peers. By having the skills and tools needed to work through peer relationships and conflict student mental health and well being are being improved.

YCS Fitness Room

Occupational Health and Safety Committee - OHC will meet throughout the year to address safety concerns. Four dates have been set for the 2025 -2026 school year, and the committee continues to be responsive to issues as they arise.

Facility walk - administration and facilities will meet and walk the premises annually to discuss and address issues that arise with the facility and make plans for improvements to enhance the safety and atmosphere of the space. 

YCS staff participated in professional development around being “trauma informed.” YCS staff will be mindful of this PD in all interactions with students in and out of the classroom. We understand that the way we approach students in a trauma informed manner has a big impact on the success of our YCS Royals. We will be revisiting this concept at each staff meeting and working towards creating actionable goals to make Yorkdale Central School a more trauma sensitive space. 

The Royal Code - YCS is committed to using the Royal Code as a school wide behaviour plan. When students act in a manner that is unsafe or harms others socially, emotionally, or physically, staff will address it in a timely manner using the Royal Code as our benchmark for desired behaviour. Administration will be actively involved in student discipline on an ongoing basis.

YCS Tie Dye shirts - Ms. Corson will organize an opportunity for new Royals to create (and returning Royals who want to update/redo) their own YCS tie dye shirt. This is to help remove barriers surrounding owning "school gear" and provide everyone an opportunity to belong. 

Hides & Heartbeats - YCS hosted a land-based learning project in 2024-25 where students had the opportunity to work with hides in a traditional way to process them into rawhide, and then made them into hand drums. Columbia and Dr. Brass students also took part.  We will look for more opportunities like this.

The YCS library will continue to work towards weeding outdated and potentially harmful texts throughout the school year.

The YCS library will ensure that resources are pulled and displayed in a timely manner for all cultural awareness events and days of recognition.

Royal Advocacy Club - the RAC is a club that provides a safe space for students to meet and discuss GSA topics. They also discuss advocacy within the community and work to provide a voice and raise awareness for many social justice causes.

Grade 6 students will help supervise K - 4 classrooms during lunch hour. This is to help keep younger students safe and supported over the noon hour, while also developing leadership skills.

K - 3 sports day, 4 - 5 track and field, 6 - 8 track and field

Ice Fishing 

Basketball 

YCS offers students a variety of noon hour intramurals 

YCS Spelling Bee program for students from grades 3-8.

Recess Champions Program - This is a schoolwide program that trains and equips students from grades 4 and up to become leaders within their school. It teaches physical literacy skills and fair play by training “Recess Champions” who will be able to confidently and effectively lead organized games and activities during recess. Each small group of leaders will have a supervising teacher to help them plan and implement their activities. A two-year plan for full school roll-out of the program is scheduled to begin during the Fall of 2025.

Cardic Crash 

The YCS library will explore noon hour recess activities for students to interact in group setting, playing games, building puzzles, lego building, crafts.

Monday Mashup with Superintendent - YCS Administration will meet on a weekly basis with superintendent Mick Parmar to ensure that decisions being made regarding the daily operations of the school are in line with GSSD Board of Education Policies.

All staff are responsible for ensuring that the GSSD Administrative Procedures are being followed. The APs are posted on the GSSD website for reference. Administration is responsible for holding all staff accountable to GSSD Administrative Procedures.

Professional Growth Plans - YCS teachers are committed to refinement and innovation using “indicators of responsive teaching.” Staff will complete yearly self-assessment to identify areas that have room for growth and create goals in collaboration with school administration. Teachers will meet with administration throughout the year to stay on track with their goals.

YCS is committed to implementing all GSSD sanctioned "best practices" as it relates to educational approaches. These include both instructional and testing practices to inform instruction and measure growth.

• EYE Assessment
• ASQ Screener
• WJ assessments
• Essential Learning Experiences
• Early Literacy Assessments
• CC3
• Lens
• SPARKS
• UFLI
• Core Phonics 
• RTI
• Structured Literacy
• Small Groups
• Sask READS
• Math Screener
• MATH Saskatchewan Common Assessments
• Knowledgehook
• Mathology
• MathUP

SSTs and administration will ensure that all educational assistants are scheduled effectively to support as many students as possible in an impactful and efficient manner.

Admin will meet regularly to investigate the budget and make fiscal decisions based on the feedback and requests of the school community. When making fiscal decisions, admin will work towards allocating resources equitably with student success and impact at the core of decision making.

YCS Breakfast Program - The YCS breakfast program will be run out of the grade ⅔ boot room/entrance this year. This year, schools are receiving federal funding to support nutrition programs.  Yorkdale is working with Yorkton Regional High School's Cafeteria to access healthy food choices throughout the year. There is a definite need for many students to access high-quality nutrition throughout the day in a discreet and dignified way.

Implementation of YCS New Student Form - form is used to ensure all stakeholders past and present are connected to support the transition of new students to YCS. This allows for adequate supports to be in place for students and promote success.

Transition meetings - the YCS team engages and participates in a variety of transition meetings. This can include A-Z meetings for all grade 8 students heading to YRHS, meetings between schools when a student transfers, or individual transition meetings for students on IIPs or individual success plans.

Increased School Community Council enrollment - YCS school has a well established and involved SCC. This year, our goal is to provide child care for parents wanting to participate as a way to remove barriers. We want to ensure that any families wanting to be engaged in the SCC are able to.

Student Leadership Council - The YCS SLC is a student group of volunteers that works together to promote engagement and school spirit. SLC members play an active role in organizing and implementing events held throughout the year, such as monthly spirit days and our annual YCS Street Market. The SLC also prepares a report for presentation at monthly SCC meetings.

YCS methods of communication - all teachers and school staff will use EDSBY as their primary communication tool. Facebook will also be used to interact with the community at large.

YCS is proud to be in partnership with the following organizations: SIGN, Yorkton Tribal Council, The Soup Haven, RCMP, Painted Hand CDC, YCS SCC, Family Support Program, Mental Health and Addiction Services. 

YCS students participate in many co curricular trips that aim to build partnerships within the community.

The most important partnership we have as a school team is the one created between home and school to support the development of the whole child. This year, YCS is setting out to complete a variety of family engagement events from Kindergarten to Grade 8!

Grade 6 classrooms will be developing a relationship with the nursing home across the street throughout this year. These ongoing visits will help develop meaningful relationships between our Royals and the residence which, in turn, will enhance the learning and wellbeing of everyone involved.

Mr. Neibrandt and Mr. Edgar have worked together in developing an Adventure Education continuum for students at YCS. The goal of the program is to support Grade 8 students in getting active in different ways outside of the school. Experiences and opportunities in the community support the development of life long habits such as staying healthy and active.

YCS Grade 7 and 8 students will have the opportunity to participate in the Experiences Canada exchange which seeks to support students in exploring their country in a hands on experiential way. This program supports students in making connections to the world around them and developing skills and relationships that are ongoing and have a positive affect on them.

The One School One Book Committee will once again organize and deliver One School One Book, a school-wide activity in which every student in the school is engaged in reading the same book at the same time. This year, the book will be Maya and the Robot.