In the news

To the Premier: "Act now to implement a blueprint for major educational reform that will make Ontario the best place there is to raise a child," say the province's leading early learning experts and champions of publicly funded education.

→ Read the declaration, Sept. 22/09

"Libraries are back big-time, they're having a renaissance. Circulation was up 27 per cent this summer across Ontario's 330 systems and 1,000 branches."

Read this article about the future of libraries - Toronto Star, Sept 20/09

This high school starts at 10am!

Part of a pilot project to determine if getting some extra sleep actually improves not just students' attendance, but their grades.

The 21st century world demands learners to DO their own thinking, rather than relying on someone else to think for them.Read this article about learning in the 21st century.

Cutting-edge practices are part of an overall push by the Simcoe County District School Board to focus on 21st century learning and teaching. Read about it in the Toronto Star Sept.8/09.

Read Obama's speech to kids on the first day of school

The speech is great, and worth a quick read "...no matter what you want to do with your life, I guarantee that you'll need an education to do it. " click here to read the whole speech.

Library's secret: Volume! Volume! Volume! Bitten by the reading bug, Scarborough high school students borrow up to 100 books for summer... Read about this amazing teacher-librarian.

In praise of the trades, crafts worthy of your head, your hands, and your heart. Matthew B. Crawford's new book, Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work. Read Jim Coyle's article.

Teens become pro musicians faster nowadays says jazz icon Benny Golson. They have so much material upon which to draw, schools and all kinds of places to learn to play and write. At college, they told him if he got caught playing jazz he'd be expelled; that's how bad it was. Read more.

A study from UBC found that kids who live in more economically diverse neighbourhoods are better prepared for Kindergarten than those in wealthier areas. Read the article in the Globe and Mail.