Our Kids Blog

Changing the Brain to Overcome Learning Disabilities

There is no doubt that learning disabilities can be extraordinarily challenging and frustrating for both students and parents, so it’s no surprise that there are lots of people investigating ways to overcome them. Earlier this week researchers out of Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children published research suggesting there may be a pharmaceutical remedy – as easy as being prescribed a pill – to learning disabilities (journal article). The researchers’ idea is that they can improve communication between neurons, but of course not all parents are going to jump at medicating their children.

The problem, of course, with more traditional techniques centering around behaviour and alternative ways of learning have had mixed success. But it is in this spectrum that Toronto’s Arrowsmith School operates. While any school will have special programs or options for students with learning disabilities, the Arrowsmith program is making news for its unique approach, attempting to change the brain not through pills but through special activities.

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British Columbia Reports on Class Size

One of the key pieces of information about a school parents want is class size. In fact, one of the top reasons parents look at private or independent schools is to enrol their children in schools with smaller classes. There are all sorts of important insights to be gleaned from class size data, though, so it is worth pointing out that for the fourth straight year, the B.C. Ministry of Education has released their report on class size.

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School’s Out: Considering Camps

With summer fast approaching, and March break arriving even sooner, it’s a good time to think about what our kids are going to be doing when school is not in session. Camps are often a good answer because of the many great experiences – both social and educational – that are on offer.

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What’s On: Week of February 23, 2009

Welcome to What’s On, the Our Kids Blog weekly roundup of interesting and exciting events on tap for the week. To help make sure we know about all the best events be sure to leave a comment below or send an email to agnes[at]ourkids[dot]net. Now on with the week ahead!

Monday, 23 February 2009
Special Event | LA SEMAINE DE LA FRANCOPHONIE
A week long event for staff and students celebrating French heritage and culture.
Hosted by: Ottawa Montessori School | Profile

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Innovation in Schools

Futurelab, a UK-based organization focused on innovation in education, released the handbook “Promoting transformative innovation in schools.” The intent of the document is to provide insight into and illustrate the value of transformative innovation, as well as to provide recommendations of how to create a culture of innovation in schools.

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Shaping Healthy Schools Today

The term “healthy schools” usually brings to mind the topic of Health and Wellness Centres with their attendant ministrations to our students as they arrive with various and sundry ailments.  However, Patrick Bassett, President of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), takes a different view when he writes:

Schools are, like greenhouses, controlled environments that protect the life within them from noxious elements that could harm or dwarf growth. Schools are also highly nourishing environments that enable the young to grow deep and strong roots and healthy leaves. At the same time, students are pushed and challenged and offered controlled exposure to the outside world so that, as with greenhouse plants, once transplanted in the outside world, they will not only survive but flourish. This analogy sounds right to folks, confirming their intuitive belief about independent schools and reminding them of one of the main reasons why they choose independent schools — which, according to an NAIS survey, is because schools provide “a safe environment.” But we also need to acknowledge that noxious elements can breach the greenhouse door.  

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Communities Keeping Kids in School

Yesterday I wrote about a program starting up in Montreal that utilizes the community to keep kids in school. That program, Pathways to Education, has been wildly successful in Toronto. Today I came across parent Cheryl Jackson’s blog entry discussing the important role of the community in keeping aboriginal children in school.

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Community Programs Keep Kids in School

Sometimes school itself is not enough to keep kids in school, and despite their best efforts or intentions, parents can’t always prevent their children from dropping out. That’s when the famous line that it “takes a village” to raise a child rings true and organizations like Pathways to Education can make a big difference.

The Verdun neighbourhood of Montreal has their eyes on the success of community involvement – through Pathways to Education – in one of Toronto’s poorest neighbourhoods. Yes, in Regent Park, where the dropout rate plummeted from 56% in 2001 to 10% today.

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