When a friend asked about start-of-school teacher gifts on Facebook this week I was surprised. I mean, is this even a thing? Well, I Googled it and unfortunately, yes, first-day teacher gifts are a thing. A big thing (if you don't believe me, check Pinterest). I'm not sure what the purpose of a … [Read more...]
Summer Came Early And I’m Barely Hanging On
I live in BC where the all the teachers in the province went on strike last week, bringing summer holidays a full two weeks earlier than I was emotionally prepared for. Social media is abuzz with photos of kids at the beach, and moms firing out hashtags like #bestdayever, #ilovesummer, and … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Best Teacher Gift Guide
The end of the school year is fast approaching, and along with all the planning for activities, camps, family vacation, childcare or just coping with your kids full-time for two months, now you have to get a gift (or maybe two or three or four or - gulp - more...depending on your past fertility) … [Read more...]
Oh The Places They’ll Go…Without Me: A Teacher’s Year-End Lament
We all feel stressed and anxious, but not for the reasons you might expect. Spring is in the air and kids, parents and teachers alike are counting down the days until summer holidays. But you may be surprised to learn that most teachers don't wait with bated breath for the last day of school just … [Read more...]
Meet the Parents
No, not that meet the parents (although I will admit it is one of my favourite funny movies). No, this is about an altogether different kind of Meet the Parents. It's the time of year when school boards across the country organize the first Parent-Teacher Conference of the year, formerly … [Read more...]
Hangin’ With Mr. D (How A Working Dad Supports His Family)
Before Gerry Dee became one of the country's hottest comedians, he was a teacher. So when I sit down with him, my first question is about schools. Private or public? "This is my theory: there's great kids at public schools and there's great kids at private. There's bad kid at … [Read more...]
Dealing with Teacher
"Mommy, Mrs. Smith* says I'm struggling with my reading..."Well now. That wasn't exactly the phrase I expected to hear from my daughter (who was in grade one at the time). It's not that I was surprised at the assessment: I knew she wasn't a natural reader like her older sister had been, but I was … [Read more...]
Five Things Teachers Wish Your Young Child Knew How to Do
As a parent with children in elementary school, you probably often wonder, "how is my child doing?" Report cards only come out three times a year and the 15 minute interview that follows never seems long enough. You probably communicate regularly with your child's teacher through his/her agenda, … [Read more...]
I Don’t Want To
You know, I've been around the block enough times that I shouldn't have been quite so shocked the first time I heard those four words come from a young student's lips. Maybe it was because I genuinely saw the proferred activity as a reward, a break, a fun time-out from the regular classroom routine. … [Read more...]
FotoFriday – Twins
One day last year Cuyler realized that he had the same t-shirt as his teacher. Several times they wore their shirts on different days and that greatly upset Cuyler so we picked a Friday. Now every Friday they wear it, along with their jeans and every Friday Cuyler excitedly proclaims … [Read more...]