Yesterday was Pink Shirt Day. The initiative started in 2007 in Nova Scotia when, “David Shepherd, Travis Price and their teenage friends organized a high-school protest to wear pink in sympathy with a Grade 9 boy who was being bullied [for wearing a pink shirt]…[They] took a stand against bullying when they protested against the […]
Category: compassion
Faith in Humanity
One of the most beautiful quotes on religion, that resonates with me, comes from the movie ‘The Last Temptation of Christ’: “What do you think heaven’s like?” It’s like a wedding. God’s the bridegroom and man’s spirit’s the bride. The wedding takes place in heaven… …and everyone’s invited. God’s world is big enough for everyone. […]
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Teaching comes with great power
Many attribute the quote: “With great power comes great responsibility” to Spiderman or more specifically his Uncle Ben. Stan Lee wrote the comic, and originally it showed up in a narrative caption. Actually before that, Winston Churchill said, “Where there is great power there is great responsibility…” and even before that: In 1817, member of British parliament […]
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If They Can
One of my favourite quotes in education is from Ross Greene, “Kids do well if they can”. I’ve shared this video many times and have reached the point where I don’t remember who I have and have not shared it with. (I’ve probably shared it on this blog before.) Kids Do Well if They Can […]
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Tribute to Dino
When I moved into a predominately Greek and Italian suburb of Toronto, from the small tropical island of Barbados, one thing was obvious… I didn’t fit in. The Greeks thought I was Italian, the Italians thought I was Greek. I spoke English, but my accent was so strong that I actually had to change my […]
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Lessons on living life
Two days ago Zach Sobiech died. He was 18. It was expected. I just sat with my wife and oldest child watching this 22 minute video. It says more about how to live your life than anything else that I’ve seen. Watch it now. Here is Zach’s full song “Clouds“. Here is the celebrity lip […]
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6 key ingredients to the art of storytelling
It seems to me that storytelling should be an intricate part of what we do, and what we teach in schools. In my first year at university I had the privilege of taking history with proffesor Gunnar Beonhart. He was one of the reasons why former Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Trudeau, brought the 1983 […]
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The Teachings of Roy Henry Vickers
Roy Henry Vickers (Tlakwagila Copperman) – Artist Biography, LinkedIn, @RHVickers —– It was the morning after Titia and Servaas’ wedding and I was flying home from Smithers, BC to Vancouver later that afternoon. The newlyweds were at the hotel (with two cars), helping other guests get to the airport for their respective flights. Titia said, “Dave, you […]
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A new tragedy of the commons
The Tragedy of the Commons: In economics, the tragedy of the commons is the depletion of a shared resource by individuals, acting independently and rationally according to each one’s self-interest, despite their understanding that depleting the common resource is contrary to their long-term best interests. ~ Wikipedia Have you ever been on a highway and […]
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The Stickiness Factor
Stickiness Part I – The Lesson “Do you remember me?” “Yes, you taught me Math.” (Actually I was his Vice Principal that taught him ONE grade 8 Math integers lesson.) “What grade are you in now?” “I’m in my final semester of Grade 12” “That’s great! What are your plans for next year?” “UBC for […]
