TEACH Magazine

My journey began in Vancouver 30 years ago, as an aid with Trainable Mentally Handicapped students. Designated as ‘uneducable,’ these students were relegated to gaining work experience. Noticing they easily recounted movie plots and the artists and lyrics Top 40 songs, it occurred to me that the real handicap might be a teaching methodology that was incompatible with their learning styles.

Prepare your students for the next National Aboriginal Day with a visit to a First Nations culture centre. Students learn about the culture of Canada’s various Aboriginal peoples. Many offer games, crafts, and outdoor activities—perfect for releasing some end-of-the-year energy.

It's nice to think of the Internet as a wonderful invention that has made our lives both richer and more efficient. It's a nice notion and it's an accurate one—the Internet has changed our lives for the better. We can now communicate with people from all four corners of the globe. We can share, swap, and gain as much knowledge as we could ever want or need. There are no negatives associated with instant knowledge—or are there?

I avidly recall a second grade class that would excitedly huddle around my rocking chair for story time. Students scrambled around sliding chairs to the carpet where I read heartwarming and sometimes zany tales, they reminded me that story time was counted among the most meaningful and cherished moments of a child’s day. Story time is a child’s portal into endless worlds, kingdoms, and dimensions.

As the assistant head of special education at Vaughan Secondary School in the Toronto area, Tim Wesson describes his professional learning journey as one driven by the desire to improve the standard of living for autistic students and to seek ways to build partnerships in the school community.

Under the umbrella of Digital Citizenship (DC) are some complex concepts. Netiquette, Internet safety, information usage and cyber bullying are just a few of the topics that teachers explore as they help students unpack what it means to use technology responsibly. Our school went wireless this past January.

Food allergy is a growing health concern in North America and for good reason. Too many kids are having allergic reactions and going into anaphylactic shock while at school.

Can unicycles serve an important educational purpose? Are there good pedagogical reasons for learning to ride them?