About KIS
KIS is a small, vibrant K-7 Independent school, tucked into the heart of the Rocky Mountain Trench. We pride ourselves in a loving and caring environment where children feel safe and heard. Parents are welcome and encouraged to contribute to the programs that we offer.
Small class sizes are important to us, enabling one-to-one support and small group interaction between the teacher and students. Teachers are able to meet children's individual needs and accommodate multiple learning styles with this ratio. Children are able to create lasting and meaningful relationships with their teachers which contributes to our positive nurturing environment.
Our school follows the BC Ministry of Education Curriculum and exceeds its programming requirements through project based, hands-on and experiential approaches to learning. This approach is reinforced through multiple field trips throughout the year in which children engage with and experience the learning first hand. Learning is fun, exciting and diverse and this can be seen on the faces of the children through the halls, in the playground and in the community at large.
All of the children at KIS are exposed to daily conversational French using the AIM program. This curriculum was developed to maximize on learning potential through gestures, drama, song and dialogue. The Arts are an important aspect to the children and they are engaged in crafts such as felting, pottery and musical instruments including guitar and djembe drums.
Physical Education is a priority at KIS. In addition to regular time blocks in the gym, each class has the opportunity to advance their skills during extended blocks of weekly activities that include swimming, gymnastics, rock climbing and skating. Small class sizes, access to buses, and energetic staff make these unique activities part of their learning. Through numerous field trip opportunities we are committed and uniquely positioned to embrace regular outdoor educational opportunities.
A great attribute to KIS is Flex Fridays. These special learning sessions allow children to choose from a variety of extra-curricular topics such as skiing, outdoor education, drama/dance, sewing, art, cooking and build-it. These sessions fun in four week blocks and are an opportunity to further enrich our students.
Come join us at KIS for a rich and meaningful learning experience for your child. It is a fresh approach to learning!
Academics
Kimberley Independent School has the freedom to create educational experiences that meet each individual child’s needs, while adhering to the BC curriculum. Our school nurtures intellectual curiosity, stimulates personal growth, encourages critical thinking, and promotes a lifelong love of learning. Small class sizes of 16 maximum, allow for individual attention. A low student-teacher ratio encourages close connections between staff, students and families. KIS teachers, who are BC certified, usually teach in their areas of expertise and strive to develop a full understanding of each student’s learning style, interests, and motivation.
Extra-Curricular
KIS students participate in multiple different activities, allowing them to get the opportunity to explore a range of interests and unlock passions that they never knew they had! One of the greatest advantages extracurricular activities offer is giving our students “real world” skills. These skills include (but are not limited to):
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Goal setting
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Teamwork
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Time management
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Prioritisation
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Problem solving
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Analytical thinking
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Leadership
In addition to encouraging our students to participate in activities outside of academics, we are giving them a route to make new friends, develop new interests, and deepen their social and intellectual growth.
Kimberley Independent School offers many extra-curricular activities during and after the school day, at no additional cost to families. Activities include rock climbing, mountain biking, swimming, skiing, and hiking. We also utilise staffs qualifications, skills and interests, to offer many clubs such as school sports, drama, painting, design, gardening and cooking. We also listen to the requests of the students each year and run clubs based on student’s interests for instance, Pokémon, crocheting, Lego and chess.
Outdoor Education
Serious and deep learning can happen outside with all subjects, be it math, science, geography, or social studies. While a controlled environment like an indoor classroom is sometimes necessary, there are so many opportunities to taking lessons outside of those four walls while still meeting curriculum requirements. KIS is a school of place based learning and takes the student outside the 4 walls of the classroom at every opportunity and believe that children greatly benefit developmentally from being outdoors. Outdoor education supports emotional, behavioral and intellectual development. Through outdoor education such as weekly Camp Stone Days in the fall and spring, students develop a sense of self, independence, confidence, creativity, empathy towards others and motor skills. Outdoor experiences help our students increase their understanding of their natural and human communities which leads to a sense of place. Through connection to place, students develop stronger environmental attitudes and civic behaviors. Outdoor learning experiences are the foundation of raising the next generation of active citizens. Outdoor classrooms provide natural entry points for families and community members to get involved with student learning.
The Arts
At KIS the arts are an important part of our school curriculum. The positive impact of the arts on academic achievement is worthwhile in itself; it's also the tip of the iceberg when looking at the whole child. Through the arts, students develop skills like resilience, grit, and a growth mindset to help them master their craft, and do well academically, By setting clear expectations and goals for students and then drawing the correlation between the work done and the results, students can begin to shift their motivation, resulting in a much healthier and more sustainable learning environment. By immersing students in arts education, our staff draw them into an incredibly complex and multifaceted endeavor that combines many subject matters (like mathematics, history, language, and science) while being uniquely tied to cultures. Learning art goes beyond creating more successful students. We believe that it creates more successful human beings.
Character Driven
KIS fosters ethical, responsible, and caring young people by modeling and teaching good character through emphasis on universal values. Kimberley Independent School teaches children about basic human values including honesty, kindness, generosity, courage, freedom, equality and respect. Our goal is for our students to become morally responsible, self-disciplined citizens. Keeping the communication lines open ensure everyone is working toward the same goals.
Community Connections.
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KIS nurture students’ personal and social growth and community conscience. Students are involved in experiential learning, within the community through local external educational and sports programs.
Learning in our community provides a hands-on approach to learning from professionals in their individual area of expertise. This makes learning an experience that moves beyond the classroom and brings a more involved way of learning.