Recently, I observed an interaction between my nephew and his young daughter who just (very proudly) turned 3-years-old. She was playing outside with great glee when she tripped and bumped her head. Her father and I were standing close by and turned just in time to see her topple over. When she landed, I immediately […]

This week, millions of people around the world celebrated Diwali, the Festival of Lights. Five days of meaningful reflection and time with family. Five days of food, flowers and traditional dress, all radiant with splendescent colour to mark the celebration. The story of Diwali is interpreted differently in different regions but its universal theme of […]

After three consecutive school years of COVID-impacted learning, many teachers, students and parents across Ontario are breathing a sigh of relief, thankful that summer has finally arrived. Memories of online learning, hybrid classes and lessons via zoom are quickly fading into the distance, replaced by family vacations, summer camp and blessed downtime. I’d like to […]

Graduates, Parents, Families and honoured guests. It is with a joyful heart that I welcome you here today in person to celebrate the Class of 2022. I don’t know if this is the Class that will see the end of the pandemic but it is certainly the class that has brought us together again. Artist, […]

Monday was an interesting day at the Castle as we encountered a small group of anti-mask and anti-vaccine protesters determined to share their opinion about our school policies. To quote one insightful Grade 5 student: “Why do they care what we do?”  Thankfully, it was an uneventful protest but as I explained to students when […]

The social upheaval experienced around the world over the past two years has been difficult to fathom and overwhelming to process. At times, we’ve felt numb to the sheer enormity of suffering we’ve seen and have struggled sorely to help our children make sense of the senselessness just as we, ourselves, have struggled. COVID seems […]

It’s been a couple of decades since my own graduate work in sociology and education had me analyzing the world around us.  This past weekend’s events almost caused me to pull out the old textbooks to read up on social change theory. I didn’t (to the great relief of my family) so let’s just agree […]

It’s complicated. That’s what the Toronto District School Board failed to appreciate when it made a pro forma decision to remove two books from a TDSB supported book club for girls, thereby setting off a spectacular social media firestorm of debate. I find it ironic that a public board that talks a good equity game […]

Edgar Degas once said, “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” That makes sense to me. I often find myself learning through art. It was music in the early 1980s that revealed the brutal injustice of apartheid, prompting me to learn more about the history of South Africa, of activists […]

If I’ve learned anything from the past 18 months of COVID living, it’s the importance of being adaptable and self-aware. Just when I think we’ve turned a corner, another pot hole (or sink hole) appears in the road. It’s been frustrating to say the least, but it’s also reminded me of the need to be […]