kids – Page 2 – BGCBigs

Pink Shirt Day 2018

February 15, 2018

What is Pink Shirt Day? Pink Shirt Day started in 2007 when two grade 12 boys noticed another boy being bullied for wearing a pink shirt. Their response was to go out and buy 50 pink shirts to distribute and wear to school to support the boy who was being bullied. Pink Shirt Day is…

Removing Labels – Building Capacity

January 17, 2018

Walking through the halls of this particular elementary school, it wasn’t uncommon to see Justin* sitting outside the classroom he’d just been put out of for one negative behavior or another. Just starting out – in second grade – with so much ahead of him, this boy was labeled as a “Behavior Student”, an unfortunate…

The Right Program Makes All The Difference

December 3, 2017

Every week at John A. MacDougall School (JAM), there’s a team huddle. The principal, three teachers, and the All In For Youth team all get together to see if anyone has noticed if any of their students could use extra support. Last school year, a sweet girl in Grade 2 named Sophie* came up in…

Summer Programs Help Kids Dream Big

October 31, 2017

Summer programs are so important for kids. Not only do they give them something constructive to do with their free time in the warmer months, they also provide valuable opportunities for continued learning. For kids who are new to Canada, these programs help give them a hand up before they start school, sometimes for the…

Putting Our Children First

July 18, 2017

With our annual Golf Tournament just a month away, we have been reflecting on the impact our sponsors, donors, and golfers have made on the children in our community. Our focus has always been ensuring that all children have the tools they need to succeed, to receive a good education, to develop positive friendships, and…

“Building” Brighter Futures – One Roof at a Time

June 26, 2017

February in Edmonton brought unseasonably warm weather. With the sun, came the thaw and with the thaw, came a quick realization that the home away from home for so many of our community’s kids, was no longer sound. As the dripping, and sometimes streaming, began, our team scrambled. Rain barrels caught what they could, furniture…

Celebrate Canada150!

June 19, 2017

Boys & Girls Clubs Big Brothers Big Sisters of Edmonton & Area (BGCBigs) is proud to launch #MyBGCBigsStory in celebration of #Canada150. We’ll share the stories of the people who helped create the fabric of our country. All individuals connected now or in the past to BGCBigs are invited to submit stories, photos, videos, or…

Harvard, Here I Come

May 26, 2017

When Rafael was just 7 years old, his family moved from the Philippines to Canada. They landed in Edmonton and Rafael started Grade 2 in September at McKee Elementary only knowing a few words of English. He struggled to keep up in class, and his reading and writing skills were understandably well below his grade…

Teammates Floor Hockey Camp

February 28, 2017

The excitement in the air was palpable. It was early in the morning on Saturday, February 18th and we expected our kids to still be struggling to keep their sleepiness at bay. It turns out that if you give them something as unique as a floor hockey camp with a famous former Edmonton Oiler sleep…

BGCBigs Staff Highlight: Match Facilitators

January 19, 2017

We spend a lot of time talking about the importance of our 3,000 volunteers, and rightly so. They are the ones on the ground spending time with kids and youth and their families to make a positive difference in our community. We are so proud of each and every volunteer and we truly cherish the…