Club d'Ours Polaire

What is a Polar Bear Club?
It is a club to embrace our coldest days, to get fresh air with outside recess every day, superseding most aspects of school weather policies such as temperature and wind chill. Children need to move their bodies, especially through play. Active outdoor play has been shown to improve physical and mental health, as well as facilitate learning by increasing the duration of students' ability to concentrate.

The "Polar Bear Club" would allow students to go outside during recess time when the temperature falls below -27°C. As you are likely aware, the Winnipeg School Division's current policy states that when the temperature falls below -27°C, students and staff are to remain indoors during recess periods. Accordingly, participation in the Polar Bear Club is completely optional and will only be allowed for students that have received parental/guardian permission.

Please see the following link for more information about a Polar Bear Club: activeforlife.com/polar-bear-clubs/. Students will not be eligible to participate without permission from their parents/guardians. Once permission has been granted, students will still have the option - at each recess break - to remain inside the school on days when “Indoor Recess” is occurring. Before heading outside, Polar Bear Club members will be expected to check in with a designated playground supervisor to ensure that they have permission and are appropriately dressed. (Dress in layers of warm clothing, with an outer layer that is wind resistant. Cover all exposed skin. Wear a hat, mittens or insulated gloves, neck tube or face mask and insulated, waterproof footwear.) If a student elects to head outside and then changes their mind, that student will be permitted to return inside. When the wind chill exposure becomes “Very High Risk” (-40°C and colder as outlined by Environment Canada), the Polar Bear Club will be cancelled. For further information about cold weather, we encourage parents to refer to Environment Canada’s Wind Chill guidelines at https://weather.gc.ca/city/pages/mb-36_metric_e.html

Please discuss this opportunity with your child to determine whether or not it is something that they are interested in. If you would like to grant your child permission to participate in our Polar Bear Club, please complete the permission slip in your emails.

M. Carter will be supervising the students.