Canadian banking system through the eyes of a 12 year old

While we’re on the subject of kids speaking their minds, here’s a great speech by Victoria Grant about the financial system in Canada and the national debt. Come on.  You can follow a 12 year old’s logic…

“Bully” Review

I finally got arouind to seeing Bully, the Lee Hirsch film about children being bullied in American schools. I simply do not comprehend anyone feeling that this film deserves an “R” rating, as it was given in the States, and commend the more mature response that it received in Canada.  The amount of bad language [...]

O Canada

I consider myself to be well left of centre politically, but I have been thinking a lot lately about the extent to which the government imposes decisions and restrictions on us, supposedly for our own good.  I think that restrictions are important.  I think people should be required to wear seat belts.  I think a [...]

Bully

The difference between the American and Canadian ratings for the movie Bully is a strong indicator of what sets the two countries and cultures apart. In the U.S. countless young people are bullied every year for a variety of reasons.  Not all of them have to do with sexual orientation, but sometimes it is the [...]

The Hunger Games

So, where does this appeal for The Hunger Games originate?  Does it come from a cynicism of reality TV?  Does it stem from apocalyptic visions of the future.  Or does it arise from a skepticism surrounding how adults manipulate youth?  I think you could make an argument for any one of these being a significant [...]

Religion, Secular Humanism and Morality

A question pops up frequently on the forums that often discuss religion and atheism.  It’s about whether morality is inevitably tied to religion and the word of God, or whether morality can exist within secular humanism.  Religious people often argue that morality cannot be separated from religion and so a secular world is devoid of [...]

SHADOWS, SEX & DRUGS

I’ve spent a lot of time recently looking at the psychological issue of “Shadow Work”.  The main idea here is that we all bury and disown parts of ourselves that we don’t want to deal with.   It is nicely related to Hal and Sidra Stone’s Voice Dialogue theories and also the Big Mind work directed [...]

What do we know about Rick Santorum?

Well, one thing that we know is that he is totally opposed to public education, calling it “government education”.  He has homeschooled his large brood of children. However, he was not above enrolling his children in a program that provided them with free computers and Internet resources, which was funded by a Penn. school board [...]

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving in Canada is in October, but with the recent Thanksgiving in the U.S. there has been a lot of discussion about giving thanks in a variety of forums. The most interesting comment, which was part of an interview I heard but is corroborated in several news articles, was that some sort of daily act [...]

Montessori Education

This video was sent to me by a friend and former student, asking for my opinion. Well, as usual, the promotional video only tells half of the story.  I’ve worked with many students who have come from Montessori schools, most not because of economic difficulties.  They usually come because they are dissatisfied with the Montessori [...]

Gay Bullying and Teen Suicide

Rick Mercer is a national treasure and is quickly becoming a significant part of the Canadian conscience.  In his rant on gay bullying he calls on gay adults to step forward to act as role models.  I don’t think that is enough.  I think all adults need to step forward in a way that shows [...]

The price of theatre popcorn!!

What do you think theatre popcorn costs compared to other foods?  You might be surprised to find out that it is one of the most expensive foods you can purchase. I visited my old school yesterday to do a lesson with the Gr. 8 students involving finding net weight and calculating unit costs.  We used [...]