Top word of 2022

Merriam-Webster.com is an online dictionary. Every year, the dictionary chooses a top word of the year. Gaslighting was the top word of 2022. The number of times a word is looked up in the dictionary helps decide the word of the year. Searches for ’gaslighting’ increased 1,740 per cent in 2022. What is gaslighting? Gaslighting…

Black Shirt Day

On January 15, students and teachers in BC wore black shirts to school. They wore black shirts to raise awareness about racism. Why January 15? January 15 was Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. Martin Luther King Junior fought for the rights of African Americans in the 1950s and 1960s. He raised awareness about racism against…

Study tips

Here are some ideas to help you study: Stay organized It can be hard to know where to begin. You may have many things to study at once. Make a list to help you stay organized. Write down what you need to study. Add important dates to your calendar. Break it up Learning information in…

Preparing for a job interview

Job interviews can be stressful. If you prepare for your job interview, you will be more confident and relaxed. There are many ways to prepare for a job interview. Practise your answers before going to the interview Many interviewers ask the same questions. They will ask about your work experience. They might ask you about…

Fun activities to help children learn

Level 2 Literacy begins at home Are you a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, older brother or sister? Here are fun activities to do with young children. These activities can help them become successful learners. You can find more activities to do with young children in the Learning Together Every Day series of booklets. Get started…

Tips to keep your brain healthy

Story adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Patty Bossort LEVEL 1 You can keep your brain healthy. Five simple ways to keep your brain healthy: Reading by: Patty Bossort Listen “Tips to keep your brain healthy

Education First Nations style

LEVEL 3 Eighty children go to a special school in Vancouver. They learn in First Nations style. The Aboriginal Focus School is the only one in Vancouver. Seventy of the students are aboriginal and 10 are not aboriginal. They have room for more students. The school helps students develop cultural pride. Students learn about the…

The Word of the Year

The Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year is a pictograph: 😂. This is the first time Oxford chose a pictograph as the Word of the Year. The ‘Face with Tears of Joy’ is the name of the emoji. In 2015, this emoji was used more than other emoji in the U.K and in the U.S. The word emoji comes from…

Bike education

Bike education Story by Jafar Eshraghi, LINC student Illustrations by Nola Johnston Windsor Neighbourhood Learning Centre, in collaboration with HUB Cycling, http://www.bikehub.ca, organized two biking events this past summer. All LINC students and their families were eligible, so my wife, my daughter and I decided to join the “How to Ride Safely on the Road”…

The youngest teachers in B.C.

Information adapted from Roots of Empathy Program by Nancy Carson Level 3 Roots of Empathy (ROE)  is a school program. It educates the mind and the heart. The program is for children from Kindergarten to Grade Eight. ROE is about “emotional literacy”.  It teaches important life skills. Watch a video on the program. Roots of Empathy:  Introduction

Too much homework?

Too much homework? Adapted from The Province by Nila Gopaul Level 2 Listen to “Too much homework?”– Level 2 Reading by Nila Gopaul Last year, Arieanna Shaughnessy was in grade 4. She was nine years old. Each week, Arieanna got 10 hours of homework. Arieanna’s mother said her daughter was very tired and stressed. “She can’t sleep…

Bernice Gordon, a crossword pioneer

Bernice Gordon, a crossword pioneer (January 11, 1914 – January 29, 2015) Adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Bernice Gordon loved to make crossword puzzles. Her first crossword was published in 1952. It was published in a U.S. newspaper, The New York Times. For over 60 years, Bernice made one crossword puzzle each day. Her crosswords went…

Every voice matters

Every voice matters Deaf and hard of hearing children find their voices. Adapted from the Children’s Hearing and Speech Centre of BC by Nancy Carson Level 2 In 1968, a mother visits a doctor. Her tiny son cannot hear well. The doctor says the boy will never speak clearly. At 14 months old, the child…

Vancouver students climb highest African mountain

Vancouver students climb highest African mountain Adapted from cbc.ca by Nancy Carson Level 3 Some students in East Vancouver are in a special school at Britannia Secondary School. This school is called Streetfront. Students take classes in math, science, Social Studies and English. They also go camping and hiking. They must be in a running…

Teacher dances with his students

Teacher dances with students Ray Brendzy encourages square dancing Adapted from The Vancouver Courier by Nancy Carson Level 2 Ray Brendzy likes to be active. He says this leads to a healthy life. Brendzy is a teacher in a Vancouver elementary school. He wants all students to be active. He says kids need to try…

Afghan refugee wins scholarship

Afghan refugee wins university scholarship Adapted from The Vancouver Courier by Nancy Carson Level 1 It is over three years ago. A young girl comes to Vancouver. She and her parents are refugees. Her name is Somaya Amiri. She cannot write English. She can only write Dari. She can only say two words: “Hi” and…

Write to Read

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Level one Listen to “Write to Read”– Level 1 Reading by Jessica Heafey Look on a B.C. map. Can you find Old Masset* or Toosey** ? They are very small places. *Say:  ma-sut     **Say: too-see About 300 people live in Toosey. About 600 people live in Old Masset. These…

Word of the Year – 2014

Oxford Dictionary’s Word of the Year is … vape. Vape means to inhale and exhale the vapour from an electronic cigarette (e-cig). Vape is short for vapour (noun) or vaporize (verb). People also use vape as an adjective, such as a vape pen and a vape shop. Why vape? E-cigs have become more common in the world. E-cigs give off vapour, not smoke. People used the word twice as…

Legal Aid BC: Sally goes to court – Part 4

Submitted by Nate Prosser and Alex Peel, Legal Aid BC, Edited by Nila Gopaul • Illustrations by Danette Byatt Going to court, Part 4/6 WCR and Legal Aid BC co-publish a series offering readers information about their legal rights in Canada. Sally was in an abusive relationship. Her husband hit her. She took her kids and left…

Chris Hadfield is a Canadian astronaut

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Patty Bossort. Level 2 Chris Hadfield is an astronaut. He is the first Canadian to walk in space. He flew into space three times. He commanded the International Space Station for five months. He orbited the earth 16 times every day. He watched the earth during the day and at night….

Mini-farms sprouting at Delta schools

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 3 Students in Delta schools are learning about farming. They grow, harvest, cook, preserve and distribute their own produce. Project Pickle makes pickles. Project Pickle started at Pebble Hill Elementary School in 2012. Their mini-farm was five raised garden beds. Students planted 200 cucumber plants in June. They harvested 35…

International students come to BC

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 3 Students come to British Columbia from many countries. They are called international students. They go to schools all over BC. They like Vancouver. Vancouver is a multicultural city. The city values its environment. These students spend $2billion every year in BC. This income supports more than 23,400 jobs in…

Family literacy

Adapted from ABC Life Literacy of Canada and Decoda Literacy Solutions Level 3 Taking time every day to read or do a learning activity with children is important. Children learn and develop through fun family activities that include reading and learning. For the entire month of January, families in BC are encouraged to learn together. Read…

In praise of Alice Munro

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 2 Alice Munro is a writer. She won the 2013 Nobel Prize for Literature. Canadians are very proud of her. She is the first Canadian to win the prize. Read the PDF and do the exercise Alice Munro Wins Nobel Prize Visit the links Meet Alice Munro on Facebook. Watch the…

Baby sign language

Level 2 April 2011 Special thanks to Sheri Kauhausen of Intoyoga.ca and the mothers at Kerrisdale Community Centre Sheri Kauhausen teaches sign language to parents and to babies who hear. She uses American Sign Language in her classes. Sheri says babies can communicate before they can speak. Read the PDF. Baby sign language-PDF Babies (8–12…

Grade 4 kids in B.C. are top readers

Adapted from The Vancouver Courier by Nancy Carson Level 2 Grade 4 students in B.C. are very good readers. Nine provinces in Canada were in a reading study. There were 45 countries in the same study. Visit the link: Vancouver Sun’s Raise-a-Reader program with videos of local children’s authors Video: Read for the Top Canadian Reading…

Shopper safety tips

Adapted from the City of Richmond and RCMP Crime Prevention Level 2 The Christmas season is a busy time for shoppers. The malls and grocery stores are full of people. December is also a busy time for thieves. Read the PDF.

Winter driving

Adapted from ICBC Level 2 In B.C., heavy rain, fog, snow and ice can make driving difficult. Here are some ideas for driving in the winter: Buy good wipers, so you can see well. Fill fluids such as antifreeze and wiper fluid. Make sure that you have good winter tires if you are driving on roads…