Classroom Perspectives

Many 21st-century employers argue that empathy is at the heart of success. But how do we teach students to master a skill that’s rooted in emotion instead of fact?

Musicals form an important part of the arts, serving as powerful resources for student learning, engagement, and motivation.

As curriculums move away from an emphasis on content to skills, the time is right to use that move as an opportunity to better serve introverts in school.

As soon as I utter the words “writing assignment,” looks of panic appear on my students’ faces. Their hands shoot up like rockets and the questions immediately start.

When I first created the reading test, it was supposed to simply track student progress. But I quickly discovered that sharing the results of my personal tracking system with students has completely changed their engagement and motivation levels.

It began on a lovely spring afternoon in 2015, when a Grade 7 student came up to me during recess: Student: “Do you know Rick Mercer?” Me: “Yup.” Student: “Do you know about his Spread the Net?” Me: “Yup.” Student: “Could we do that?” And with that brief exchange, a seed was planted, one that would eventually grow into one of Macville Public School’s most powerful and positive experiences.

Certain buzz words and topics come and go in the arena of education. Currently, the word to know is STEM, the acronym for science, technology, engineering, and math.

I have gleaned three wise teachings from King Lear's fool and each one informs my practice in the classroom more and more each day.