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This article was published 11/02/2019 (2451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Aside from the ice and the hockey skates, Jordan Sobkowicz’s classroom is like any other in the St. James-Assiniboia School Division.
He is one of the teachers behind the St. James Assiniboia Hockey Academy (SJAHA), which teaches hockey skills in a non-competitive environment to middle and high school students across the division.
“We’re just working on skills, getting them lots of repetitions and putting them in a good learning environment,” Sobkowicz said.
The SJAHA was one of the first programs in the country to be licensed by Hockey Canada in 2001. Since then, more than 3,000 students have gone through the academy.
The program requires a registration fee and is open to male and female students. Some have never played the game before and others are involved in teams outside of school.
Grade 8 Hedges Middle School student Ron Cailo started playing hockey for the first time three years ago and has proven to be a natural in net. Thanks to the training he’s received through the SJAHA he’s moved from A3 to A1 in the St. James Canucks’ minor hockey league.
“I wanted to take part in this because I wanted to develop my hockey skills and get higher in the league,” Cailo said. “The coaches are great, the teammates are great — I like everything about it.”
Cailo and his hockey academy classmates get bussed out to the Bell MTS Iceplex every morning during the school week.
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During their ice time, Sobkowicz and a team of other teachers run the students through hockey drills and skill-building games before sending them back to school for the rest of their classes.
“It’s a huge responsibility to have your hockey bag ready and to bring it to the rink,” Sobkowicz said. “I think it’s a real good way for them to have some life experience and planning their week.”
Cody Grimstrup is also in Grade 8 at Hedges and says he’s learned to balance his school and hockey commitments during his last three years in the SJAHA.
“School comes first before everything else; if I’m not done any school work I’ll stay off the ice,” Grimstrup said, adding that his favourite thing about the academy is “just getting to be with all my friends and play hockey for an hour.”
Ella Speechley is a Grade 6 student at George Waters Middle School. She’s in her first year with the hockey academy and has already picked up some helpful skills.
“I was struggling to chip the puck off the boards before we started,” she said. “We constantly worked on it until I got it.”
Speechley plays in the Assiniboine Park Hockey Association and says practising with boys and girls has given her more confidence on the ice.
“When you’re getting pushed it feels like you’re getting better and then you can compete with almost anybody,” she said.
For Sobkowicz, seeing students improve their game is what it’s all about.
“When you see a kid grow from the start of the school year to the end of the school year, in math or science or things like that, as a teacher that makes you feel pretty good,” he said.
This summer, the SJAHA is hosting the Hockey Canada Skills Academy National Conference for teachers from accross the country. This is the first time Hockey Canada will hold the event in Winnipeg.
Aside from the ice and the hockey skates, Jordan Sobkowicz’s classroom is like any other in the St. James-Assiniboia School Division.
He is one of the teachers behind the St. James Assiniboia Hockey Academy (SJAHA), which teaches hockey skills in a non-competitive environment to middle and high school students across the division.
Eva Wasney
Hedges Middle School students Ron Cailo and Cody Grimstrup pose for a photo after a practice with the St. James Assiniboia Hockey Academy.
“We’re just working on skills, getting them lots of repetitions and putting them in a good learning environment,” Sobkowicz said.
The SJAHA was one of the first programs in the country to be licensed by Hockey Canada in 2001. Since then, more than 3,000 students have gone through the academy.
The program requires a registration fee and is open to male and female students. Some have never played the game before and others are involved in teams outside of school.
Grade 8 Hedges Middle School student Ron Cailo started playing hockey for the first time three years ago and has proven to be a natural in net. Thanks to the training he’s received through the SJAHA he’s moved from A3 to A1 in the St. James Canucks’ minor hockey league.
“I wanted to take part in this because I wanted to develop my hockey skills and get higher in the league,” Cailo said. “The coaches are great, the teammates are great — I like everything about it.”
Cailo and his hockey academy classmates get bussed out to the Bell MTS Iceplex every morning during the school week.
During their ice time, Sobkowicz and a team of other teachers run the students through hockey drills and skill-building games before sending them back to school for the rest of their classes.
Eva Wasney
Grade 6 George Waters Middle School student Ella Speechley is in her first year with the St. James Assiniboia Hockey Academy.
“It’s a huge responsibility to have your hockey bag ready and to bring it to the rink,” Sobkowicz said. “I think it’s a real good way for them to have some life experience and planning their week.”
Cody Grimstrup is also in Grade 8 at Hedges and says he’s learned to balance his school and hockey commitments during his last three years in the SJAHA.
“School comes first before everything else; if I’m not done any school work I’ll stay off the ice,” Grimstrup said, adding that his favourite thing about the academy is “just getting to be with all my friends and play hockey for an hour.”
Ella Speechley is a Grade 6 student at George Waters Middle School. She’s in her first year with the hockey academy and has already picked up some helpful skills.
“I was struggling to chip the puck off the boards before we started,” she said. “We constantly worked on it until I got it.”
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Speechley plays in the Assiniboine Park Hockey Association and says practising with boys and girls has given her more confidence on the ice.
“When you’re getting pushed it feels like you’re getting better and then you can compete with almost anybody,” she said.
St. James Assiniboia Hockey Academy teacher Jordan Sobkowicz (right) instructs a group of students from George Waters Middle School at a recent practice.
For Sobkowicz, seeing students improve their game is what it’s all about.
“When you see a kid grow from the start of the school year to the end of the school year, in math or science or things like that, as a teacher that makes you feel pretty good,” he said.
This summer, the SJAHA is hosting the Hockey Canada Skills Academy National Conference for teachers from accross the country. This is the first time Hockey Canada will hold the event in Winnipeg.
