by Karlena Koot I wasn’t prepared to eat boiled octopus. Even after months of preparation, language classes, cultural lessons, packing, watching anime online, and praying, nothing could have prepared me for that. We were, however, warned about the copious amounts of rice and seafood. We were told that the language would be a barrier, that [...]
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 [...]
Sadly, one of the most enjoyable, meaningful and challenging learning opportunities I had did not take place in a classroom. It took place in my backyard, during summer break, when I finally responded in the positive, to enough prodding from my wife and begging from my then three young girls to build the girls a [...]
The memory of our first visit to Abbotsford comes back to me at this time of year. It's open enrolment time right now and the principals (especially Roy Van Eerden) are spending large amounts of time touring families through our school. They are walking new and prospective families through our hallways into the classrooms and [...]
"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 [...]
I've been connected with Abbotsford Christian School (ACS) for a long time. My student teaching placement was in grade three at the Heritage Campus back when Steve and I were still dating. Soon after I graduated and got married, I was hired on to teach grade five for the next three years. Even after I quit [...]
I never learned as much as when I became a pigeon farmer. I remember walking to the barns on the day of possession, wondering what I had gotten myself into. I was overwhelmed with the responsibility, and with my ignorance as to how to produce the young pigeons (squab) that were so coveted by the [...]
I just had a conversation with an ancient Egyptian grave robber. Seriously, he was hiding out in the tomb of a recently buried Pharaoh. Our big Presentation of Learning Night happened last week. For those of you who have never been to one of our Presentation of Learning Nights, they are a big deal. Our [...]
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