Treaty 9 TerritoryMarten Falls First Nation

The Heart of Marten Falls Resides In The Hearts of Its Members

Presented by Principal Tom and Education Director Susanna Baxter

We are honoured to serve the families, students, and community of Marten Falls First Nation — the heart of everything we do at Henry Coaster Memorial School.

With Gratitude & Respect

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All Members of Marten Falls First Nation

Elders, families, grandfathers, grandmothers, parents, brothers, sisters, aunties, uncles, cousins, students and community youth.

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Chief Bruce Achneepineskum

Chief, Marten Falls First Nation

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Band Council & Education Councillors

All Council Members — Marten Falls First Nation Band Council. Darren Spence & Shane Baxter — Education Councillors and Linda Moonias Band Manager

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Elder Russell Achneepineskum

Choose Life Portfolio Holder, Mentor and Guide

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School & Community Staff

Susanna Baxter — Education Director · Joe Moonias — Traditional Hunter, Knowledge Keeper, Bus Driver and Friend · Andy Coster — Chief of Maintenance · Trisha Moonias — HCMS Classroom Assistant

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Caretakers & Kitchen Team

Janet Coaster & Veronica Coaster — Caretakers · Jordan Loon & Perry — The Mightiest Kitchen Team in the North


Elder Russell and Elder Paul both value their work of service and acknowledge the foundational role of education, training and prosperity in building strong futures for families and students.

Welcome to the New School Year

A fresh start for every student and staff member at Henry Coaster Memorial School. Together, we build a community rooted in shared vision, academic excellence, and personal growth.

🌱 Build Community

Strengthening relationships between staff, students, families and community

🎯 Shared Vision

Aligning on goals for academic excellence and holistic growth

✨ New Beginnings

Setting the tone for a purposeful and energized school year

This Week's Focus

Meetings

Staff meetings, division planning sessions, and key conversations to kick off the year with clarity and purpose, including document reviews in student OSRs.

Workshops

Professional learning sessions and collaborative training to sharpen skills and energize every member of our staff. Key wokshops this week Tikinagan's duty to report, HR onboarding, Dadavan Reporting Wokshop, Connected North and ABA Training with a focus on safety plans and writing expctation driven IEPs that support student learning and well-being.

Classroom Setup

Dedicated time to create welcoming, organized, print-rich learning environments ready for day one.

School Setup

Atrium, hallways, and shared spaces prepared to reflect our school identity, culture, and values.

Team Introductions

Celebrating new faces and welcoming back familiar colleagues — our greatest asset is each other.

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Meet the Team

New staff spotlight and a warm welcome from returning members

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Summer Highlight Round

Quick-fire sharing to reconnect and build authentic rapport

Our Vision & Mission

Walking in Balance — HCMS Pillars

🌿 Land-Based Learning

Connecting curriculum to the land and environment as a living classroom

🗣️ Ojicree Language

Honoring and revitalizing Ojicree language as a pillar of identity

🥁 Culture & Tradition

Embedding cultural knowledge, ceremony, and practices into daily school life

Classroom Schedules

Structure That Supports Learning

Consistent daily blocks create predictability for students and staff alike. A well-communicated schedule is the backbone of effective instruction.

  • Core blocks: Protected time for OjiCree Learning, land based eduction, music, art, drumming, literacy, math, gym, social studies, science, wellness
  • Flexible periods: Space for enrichment and differentiated support
  • Visibility: Schedules posted and shared with all stakeholders
  • Transitions: Planned and practiced from day one


Classroom Setup & Display Spaces

🏫 Classroom Setup

  • Organized: Clear, labeled spaces for materials and student belongings
  • Welcoming: Warm, inclusive environments where all students feel seen
  • Print-rich: Word walls, anchor charts, and student-created text displayed purposefully
  • Culturally responsive: Indigenous art, language, and imagery woven throughout

📌 Bulletin Boards

  • Current student work: Displays updated regularly to reflect active learning
  • Learning goals visible: Curriculum expectations and success criteria posted clearly
  • Culturally relevant: Displays honor Ojicree identity, land, and community voices
  • Interactive: Boards that invite student engagement and reflection

🏛️ Atrium & Hallways

  • Organized by teams: Three staff teams (A, B, C) rotate responsibility for planning, installing, and taking down the atrium board each month
  • Whole-school contributions: Every classroom — including Ojicree language, music, and drumming — submits student work to the organizing team monthly
  • Seasonal whole-school boards: All teams collaborate in September, December, March, and June for school-wide themed displays
  • Cultural pride: Permanent and seasonal displays honouring Cree and Ojibwe heritage

View Full Classroom Schedule

Atrium Bulletin Board Schedule

September to June · SCHOOL Teams organize the board; all staff contribute student work.

Team A:

Shun Villegas — Kindergarten

Ranjeet Kaur — Grade 1/2

Sam Recke-Smith — Grade 5/6

Ankush Thakur — Grade 7/8

Team B:

Lauren Moreau — Kindergarten

Levita Morados — Grade 1/2

Avtar Singh — Grade 5/6

Team C:

Lyracel Sabado — Grade 1/2

Meagan Washburn — Grade 3/4

Madison Leighton — Grade 7/8

Trisha Moonias - Classroom Assistant

Achievement: Music, Gym & Ojicree Language

Music

Artistic expression and creative development integrated into the weekly schedule with dedicated specialist time. This is a mandatory, teacher-driven program — not optional. Classroom teachers team teach alongside the music specialist. Contact Felipe for music planning and scheduling.

Gym / Physical Education & Health

Physical health and wellness supported through structured movement and active play — consistent scheduling across divisions. Grounded in the Ontario Physical Education curriculum, instruction addresses movement competence, healthy active living, and social-emotional learning alongside Ontario curriculum expectations. Health education is also embedded throughout, covering important topics such as personal safety, mental health, and healthy relationships.

Ojicree Language

Dedicated language instruction time — collaborative teaching with Ojicree language specialists to support cultural literacy. This is a mandatory, teacher-driven program — not optional. Classroom teachers team teach alongside the Ojicree language specialist. Contact Brenda for Ojicree language planning and scheduling.

Traditional Drumming with Orville

Weekly sessions with Orville — traditional drumming and cultural teachings woven into the school experience. Contact Orville for traditional drumming planning and scheduling.

Lexia

Literacy intervention program supporting reading development through structured, personalized learning pathways. Contact Rebecca for Lexia support and setup. For in-school support, you can also contact Sam.

Symphony Math

Math intervention program building number sense and problem solving through adaptive, skill-based practice. Contact Rebecca for Symphony Math support and setup. For in-school support, you can also contact Sam.

Connected North

Technology-enabled experiential learning program connecting students to broader educational experiences beyond the classroom. Contact Waukomaun Pawis for support.

Homework & Tutoring Club

After-school homework support and tutoring club launching end of September — a dedicated space for students to get extra help and build confidence in their learning.

Elder Brunch

3rd Saturday · Every Alternate Month Starting October · 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM

A dedicated time to gather with Elders, share stories, and deepen our connection to language, land, and culture. Attendance and participation are expected from all staff.

When

  • Held on the third Saturday of every alternate month
  • Starting October, then December, February, April, June
  • 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM

Focus

Sharing stories and Elder knowledge

Ojicree language learning

Land-based teachings and culture

Community connection

Expectations

  • All staff are expected to attend
  • Each staff member prepares a short presentation or contribution if called upon
  • Come ready to listen, learn, and engage respectfully
  • All school teams coordinate and organize each Elder Brunch together

Family Engagement Night

Once Per Term · Building Family-School Relationships

Strengthening the connection between families and school is essential to student success. Family Engagement Nights are held once per term and designed to be welcoming, fun, and community-centred.

Purpose

  • Build warm, trusting relationships between families and school staff
  • Create a welcoming space where families feel valued and connected
  • Celebrate student learning and community pride
  • Increase family involvement in school life

Format Ideas

  • 🎬 Movie Night — family-friendly film with popcorn and community time
  • 🎱 Bingo Night — fun for all ages, prizes, and laughter

When & How

  • Held once per term (Fall, Winter, Spring)
  • Evening format to accommodate working families
  • All families and community members welcome
  • Staff attendance expected and encouraged
  • All school teams organize and coordinate each Family Engagement Night together

Family Communication

Staying Connected · Celebrating Students · Keeping Families Informed

Communication with families is one of the most important responsibilities of every staff member. Consistent, warm, and timely communication builds trust, strengthens the home-school relationship, and ensures families feel like true partners in their child's education.

Regular Communication Home

  • Send regular messages home celebrating student achievements, growth, and positive moments — families need to hear the good news
  • Distribute a monthly newsletter keeping families informed of upcoming events, learning highlights, and school news
  • Relay important information to families in a timely manner — do not let concerns or updates sit; communicate promptly and clearly
  • Use a warm, respectful tone in all family communication

INCIDENT REPORTING PROTOCOLS

Required Steps — Follow in Order

  1. Fill out an Incident Report form completely and accurately
  1. Send the completed report home electronically to the family
  1. File the report in the student's OSR (Ontario Student Record)
  1. Notify the Principal promptly

Ceremony Protocols

Smudging & Funeral Protocols · Honouring Culture and Community

As a school rooted in Marten Falls First Nation, we honour ceremony as an essential part of school life. All staff are expected to understand and respect the following protocols.

🌿 Smudging with Russell, Orville and Community Knowledge Keepers

  • Smudging is a sacred cultural and spiritual practice and is welcomed in our school
  • Orville leads smudging in classrooms and school spaces
  • Speak to leadership if you need helpy to arrange smudging for your classroom or for school events
  • Staff and students may participate or respectfully step aside — no one is required to participate but all must show respect
  • Smudging takes priority over regular scheduling when arranged

⚫ Funeral Protocols

  • When a community member passes, the school responds with care and cultural sensitivity
  • Funerals may result in significant student and staff absences — this is expected and respected
  • Staff are expected to attend funerals of community members where appropriate and are expected to support and facilitate
  • Classes may be cancelled or consolidated during funeral periods
  • The principal will communicate plans to staff as soon as possible
  • Grief support and cultural practices take precedence during these times
  • Follow the principal's and Ed. Director's lead on scheduling and coverage

Key Dates & School Events In First Term

2026–2027 School Year

September 18

Celebrate New School Year BBQ

Back-to-school celebration welcoming students, families, and staff to the new year.

Hand out your LRPS to families.

September 30

Orange Shirt Day

Every Child Matters. March through the community to honour residential school survivors and those who never came home. All staff and students participate.

October 30

Halloween Parade at HCMS

School Halloween parade — a fun, community celebration for students.

October 31

Halloween Dance at HCMS

School Halloween dance — an evening celebration for students and community.

November 8

Indigenous Veterans Day Assembly

A school assembly honouring Indigenous veterans and their service and sacrifice.

December 17

Christmas Concert

Annual Christmas concert celebrating student talent and community spirit

Supervision: Lunch, Bus & After School

Lunch Supervision

Active engagement, safe routines, respectful environment

Bus Supervision

Clear expectations. Safety protocols

After School 3:30–5:00

Clubs, academic supports, safe hand-off protocols for staff and parents

Attendance Protocol: Ensuring Every Student Counts

Streamlined Process

Daily Check-in

Homeroom teachers record attendance each morning and afternoon.

Report Absences

Teachers must report and follow up on absences weekly. Detailed weekly reports are to be emailed to Principal Tom and Education Director Susanna Baxter.

System Entry

All attendance data must be entered into the system by end of day.

Chronic Absenteeism

Report concerns to Tikinaggan

Achievement, Curriculum & Expectations

General Expectations

  • High expectations for every student, every day
  • Closing achievement gaps through targeted, data-informed instruction
  • Consistent classroom management aligned to school-wide norms
  • LRP (Long Range Plans) due by the end of Week 2
  • Daily lesson plans on desk always ready for review, inluding your speciific expectations, your success criteria and your activities to demonstrate student success. Please come see me for support if you require it.

Specific Expectations

  • Curriculum alignment to provincial standards and cultural integration
  • Differentiated instruction to meet IEP and accommodation needs
  • Assessment practices that reflect both academic and holistic growth
  • Regular documentation — lesson plans reflect actual daily delivery

Trauma-Informed Teaching

Heather Forbes · Good Teaching Begins at Home

Good teaching begins at home — within ourselves. Before we can support our students, we must develop the empathetic and supportive mindsets needed to face challenges in ways that uplift our community rather than create new problems. We are in an environment of complex social themes, and we must be mindful and trauma-informed in everything we do.

The Heather Forbes Lens

  • Trauma-informed teaching starts with self-awareness and relational safety
  • Students who have experienced trauma need connection before correction
  • Regulation before learning: a dysregulated student cannot access instruction
  • Our role is to be a co-regulator — calm, consistent, and compassionate
  • Behaviour is communication — always ask "what happened to this child?" not "what is wrong with this child?"

Our Guiding Questions

  1. Does this approach make me a better teacher?
  1. Does it support the relationships I want to create in this new community?
  1. Or does it problematize my being here?

Keep Things in Perspective

Privilege Check · Pedagogy of Place

Teaching in Marten Falls is a privilege. Before we problem-solve, before we assess, before we plan — we must first locate ourselves. Who are we in this place? What do we carry with us, and what do we need to set down?

Do a Privilege Check

Pause and ask yourself what assumptions, biases, or advantages you bring into this space. Your education, your background, your culture — these shape how you see the world. They are not wrong, but they are not universal. Recognizing your privilege is not about guilt — it is about clarity. It makes you a more honest and effective teacher.

Pedagogy of Place

Teaching here means teaching from this land, this community, this history. Pedagogy of Place asks us to root our instruction in the lived reality of where we are — not to import a curriculum that ignores it. The land, the language, the Elders, the seasons — these are not add-ons. They are the curriculum.

Keep Perspective

There will be hard days. Things will feel unfamiliar, uncomfortable, or complex. In those moments, zoom out. You are part of something much larger than a lesson plan. You are in relationship with a community that has survived and thrived for generations. Your role is to serve that — not to fix it.

A Teaching Held in the Circle

Chief Bruce's Artwork · Sacred Atrium · A Reflection for Educators

"This artwork graces the sacred space of our atrium. Before you teach, let it teach you."

The Sacred Circle: Balance

The circular form holds four directions equally and reprsents clusters of teachings focusing on balance. No direction is complete on its own. No single perspective dominates. For teachers, this can be the call to hold the academic, emotional, cultural, and spiritual dimensions of every child in equal regard. Balance is not a destination. It is a daily practice.

The Sky Bird Rising: Perspective

The winged spirit at the top of the circle invites us to see from above — to rise above the immediate frustration or confusion of a hard day and see the child, the family, the community, the history, all at once. Sky birds carry prayers upward. On difficult days, let this image remind you to do the same.

The Four Beings: Pedagogy of Place

The four and two legged beings shown are not decorative. They are of this land. They encode the relationships between living beings that have sustained this community for generations. The land, the language, the Elders, the seasons — they are not supplementary. They are the curriculum.

The Red Direction Markings at the Centre: This can be the poistion where you can learn the most as a teacher. The invitation is not to bring your world into this circle, but to stand at the centre of Marten Falls First Nation, with humility and openness - in balance, learning about the world you have been invited to serve and support.

Team Approach & Professional Learning

Collaboration is our instructional superpower. Whether co-teaching in the classroom, planning within your division, or contributing to school-wide initiatives — every teacher is a leader and a learner.

Mentor Program

Experienced staff are paired with newer teachers to provide ongoing coaching, professional dialogue, and collegial support throughout the year.

  • Regular classroom visits and instructional feedback
  • Collaborative goal-setting and reflective practice
  • A trusted partner for navigating school culture and expectations

Lakehead Teacher Program

We are proud partners with Lakehead University, hosting teacher candidates and student teachers who bring fresh energy and perspectives to our school community.

  • Supporting the growth of the next generation of educators
  • Teacher candidates enrich classrooms with innovative approaches
  • A reciprocal relationship that benefits students, staff, and candidates alike
Faculty of Education · Teacher Candidates at HCMS

Lakehead Teaching Program

Henry Coaster Memorial School is proud to host teacher candidates from Lakehead University's Faculty of Education for Indigenous Members and Non Members endorsed by First Nation communities. This is a meaningful opportunity to create equity in teaching by recognizing skilled educators who teach in the North by providing them while they work in schools with formal certification and to share our teaching practice to shape the future of education in the North.

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Desiree

Lakehead Teacher Candidate

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Sam

Lakehead Teacher Candidate

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Patty

Lakehead Teacher Candidate

A Message to Our Staff

Please celebrate and embrace Desiree, Sam, and Patti as valued members of our school community. They are here to learn alongside us — and we look forward to sharing our learning and teaching practice for the betterment of our community and nation.

Weekly Check-Ins & Teacher Profiles

Weekly Check-Ins with the Principal

Structured brief meetings to support your growth and address any concerns early. These are a space for celebration, coaching, and collaboration — not evaluation.

  • Schedule shared digitally
  • 15-minute individual slots — come prepared with one win and one challenge
  • Ad hoc support always available — open door policy

Teacher Profiles

Each teacher completed a brief profile over summer as a form of introduction to school, staff and community. Keep these profiles in mind as you begin your journey this school year. support differentiated leadership and personalized professional development.

  • Strengths, interests, and areas for growth
  • Your background as a reflection of your self as a source to build community connections
  • Goals for the school year aligned to school pillars

A Foundation for Success

"We rise by lifting others. This year, let's lift every student, every day."

📋 Our Routines

Schedules, supervision, and structures that protect learning time

🤝 Our Team

Collaboration, check-ins, and shared accountability at every level

🌟 Our Students

Every decision, every day — centered on student belonging and achievement

Let's make this the best year yet. 🎉