“There is not any language that can stop a friendship. What is worthy is the interest and willingness we all put in it.” Elimilieth, grade 11 student at Centro de Fe Vida Nueva, Managua, Nicaragua. The words above were written in a card I received from a student, on the day the Nicaragua [...]
The forecast said rain…all week…and the boys had just begun two weeks of spring break. We were spoiled with the most beautiful, sunny weather for weeks but wouldn't you know it, the kids were out of school and cooped up in my house. Oh sure, that's fun for a day or two, but active kids need [...]
To the educational assistant who shares this classroom with me: I know you've heard me say thank-you to the students in the class, maybe for excellent behaviour or for doing great work, for sharing their thoughts on a topic or helping out a peer, perhaps for all the pictures, cards, paintings, and notes that cover [...]
I couldn’t believe he belched in my class—and it was on purpose. This was my first year as a teacher, teaching grade 7. This guy was full of energy, and a bit of a stinker too, so I had my hands full. Being so new to the profession, I hadn't developed the instincts for dealing [...]
If you give a middle school teacher a minute, She might want to grab a fresh cup of coffee. As she’s heading out to the staff room, A student might beg her to stay and supervise while he microwaves his popcorn. While they are waiting, they’ll get into a conversation about his castle design and [...]
Every time our school gets hit with vandalism, my response and, that of the students is, “it was probably teenagers.” Sad, but, most likely true. No doubt much could be said about why that is and what could be done about it. I’ll leave that for another article by someone who knows more about it [...]
"How are you today? What did you do this weekend?" "Who are you playing with today? What are you playing?" "So, what's new in school today? What are you learning about?" Those are the questions I usually have to ask to get one of them talking. Small repertoire on my part. After all, my job wasn’t that big—it [...]
My mother-in-law passed away the Monday before Christmas holidays and so I was in Edmonton the last three days of school. She was 99 years old. Up to the last week of her life my brother-in-law said he still couldn’t put anything over on her. She died peacefully and relatively free of pain, and had expressed a [...]
The Grade one classes spend the month of December focusing on the different Christmas traditions each family celebrates. Over the years, I have witnessed many of these mini-celebrations with numerous ACES families. A question that has often come up is, “What about you? How do you celebrate Christmas?” So here are three of our best [...]
Heidi and I decided to get married in a vineyard—an active winery that makes quality wine. The sermon of the wedding ceremony included some messaging around Jesus’ very first miracle of turning water into wine and we participated in our very first communion together as a married couple—in front of a whole "host of witnesses." [...]
