COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on March 11. The announcement was made by the World Health Organization (WHO). What is a pandemic? A pandemic is the “worldwide spread of a new disease,” said the WHO. COVID-19 is a  new virus and disease. It spread to many countries around the world at the same time. After…

Pat builds a boat

Pat Calihou is a Métis carver. The Métis are Indigenous Canadians. York boats were used by Métis fur traders during the 1700s. Pat’s ancestors used York boats. Pat started to build a York boat in December 2019. A blacksmith made special nails to build the boat. The wood for the keel is the roof beam of an old house. Pat shares his history The boat will help Pat share his family history. “My family were…

Get out in the community

What can you do with your family during spring break? Here are some ideas. Visit a museum Some museums have free entry for children or families during spring break. They might also have special activities for young children. Go to the library Many public libraries have free programs for children or families during spring break. Visit…

Pink Shirt Day

Pink Shirt Day is on the last Wednesday in February. On this day, people from around the world wear pink clothing to school and work. Why do we wear pink? In 2007, a boy wore a pink shirt on his first day of school in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The other students made fun of him….

Landlord rights

Mei is a landlord. She rents out her parents’ old house. One day, Mei does a routine inspection of the house. It is very dirty. There is a hole in the wall. The cabinets are broken. There is water leaking on the floor. Her tenant has a cat. The lease says “no pets allowed.” Mei…

Tenant rights

Amare and Stephanie rent an apartment. The rent is affordable. They are happy. One day, their landlord visits. He tells them he will raise their rent by $200 per month. Amare and Stephanie are worried. They check their bank accounts. They look at their bills. They cannot afford the rent increase. The landlord says that…

Scam messages

Have you ever received an email saying you won some money? If so, you might have received a scam message. What is a scam message? In a scam message, someone asks you for personal information, like your name, credit card number, passwords, or address. They use that information to take money from your bank accounts…

Sophie had a money problem

Sophie is a new Canadian. Her husband handled all their banking. He paid the bills. He gave Sophie cash to buy groceries. Then, Sophie’s husband died.   Sophie was frightened Sophie didn’t know how much money was in the bank. Everything was in her husband’s name. Sophie worked part-time. She didn’t know how she would…

Backpack the right way

Choose the right fit of backpack for your child. Do not make the backpack too heavy. The wrong fit and a heavy backpack can give your child “back pain, neck pain and headaches,” says Julia Brooks. Brooks is a physiotherapist at Alberta Children’s Hospital.  The right fit   The right backpack for your child should:   be a size that is…

BC Day is the first Monday in August

BC Day is the first Monday in August. On this public holiday, British Columbians relax with family and friends. Many people travel on this long weekend or camp and enjoy nature. According to the United Nations, “BC is the best place in the world to learn, live and play.” A few facts about B.C. 1. Aboriginal people have lived in the…

Summer outdoor markets are open in BC

  This summer visit a farmers’ market. Some markets are night markets. Some are only open during the day. For a list of farmers’ markets in BC, visit the BC Farmers Market website.

Summer sun safety

Summer sun safety Story adapted from HealthLink BC by Patti-Lea Ryan Edited by Nila Gopaul Level 2 It is fun to sit or play in the sun. But, too much sun can be harmful. We can get sunburned on cloudy days, too. Too much heat can lead to health problems. People can get stroke, heat exhaustion, skin…

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

Level 2 Written by Nila Gopaul. Originally posted to The Westcoast Reader, March 2015 St. Patrick’s Day is an Irish holiday. On this day, people celebrate the life of St. Patrick. St. Patrick was born in the year 387. He brought Christianity to Ireland. Experts believe St. Patrick died on March 17, 461. So this is the day…

Popular baby names

Level 2 What did parents in British Columbia name their babies in 2015? Find out more. Read the whole story. Try the exercise Popular baby names Listen and read with Global News: The world’s most popular baby names for 2016   Story reprinted from The Westcoast Reader newspaper,  November 2016  

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…

LINC students help the people of Fort McMurray

LEVEL 2 Carolyn Moi was sad. She watched the news. In May, a huge wildfire burned Fort McMurray. People lost their homes. Carolyn had an idea Carolyn is a teacher for the Burnaby School District. She teaches an adult LINC 1 class. Carolyn’s class wanted to help the people from Fort McMurray. At the same…

Fun things to do with your children outdoors

LEVEL 2 It’s healthy for children to spend time outdoors. It’s good for their physical and mental health. They get better at: thinking moving creating Children need help learning how to play outdoors. What do you need to do? Stay nearby and keep the children safe. Let the children play on their own. Play with them…

Fort McMurray is on fire

Level 2 The forest around Ft. McMurray is on fire. Large parts of the city are on fire. Ft. McMurray is Alberta’s fifth largest city. This is the largest wild fire in Alberta history. This is the largest evacuation in Alberta history. Map of the fire zone It all happened in a few days. The…

2016 Canada Census

Level 2 What is the census? The census is information about who lives in Canada. The information is gathered by Statistics Canada. What do I have to do? You will get an envelope in the mail. Follow the directions in the envelope. You can answer the census questions in two ways: You can fill in…

Surprise! We saw bears

LEVEL 2 Newcomers to Canada enjoy learning about camping and wildlife. Last year we went camping. We camped in a national park. We woke up very early. We went bird watching. We didn’t see any birds. We saw a black bear and her cubs! We were very surprised. The bears were far away from us….

Brother and sister cook up sauce

Level 2 Story adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Patty Bossort Skylar and Chloe Sinow run their own business. They make and sell pasta sauces. They wrote a cookbook. Their business is called Kids Can Cook Gourmet. The sauces They make three kinds of sauces. One hundred and thirty stores in Alberta and B.C. sell…

Ducklings need help

Adapted from The Province Level 2 Sometimes baby ducks are orphans. An orphan is a child without a parent. A baby duck is called a duckling. People find the orphaned ducklings. They take the ducklings to the Wildlife Rescue Association. The Association takes care of them. Read the PDF and do the exercise Ducklings need help…

April Fools’ Day is fun

Many countries celebrate April Fools’ Day on April 1. Sometimes the day is called All Fools’ Day. On this day people play harmless tricks or pranks. The tricks can be played on friends, family, or coworkers. Often newspapers, TV stations and websites play tricks. No one knows the exact date of the first April Fools’…

Wildlife returning to the city

Story adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Patty Bossort LEVEL 2 Black-tailed deer left Vancouver 30 years ago. Elk disappeared from the False Creek area a century ago. The last cougar in Vancouver was shot in Stanley Park in 1911. People in Vancouver did not want large wild animals to live in town. Parts of…

New country, new babies

LEVEL 2 2016 is a year of new beginnings for many Syrian families in Canada. The Ktifan family is from Syria. They arrived in Vancouver on January 7, 2016. Amjad and Wadaa Ktifan left Syria with their children. They fled to Jordan. Now they are in Canada. They are refugees. New babies On February 29…

Raise Your Hands Against Racism

LEVEL 2 Spice Radio Vancouver 1200 AM is asking people around the world to raise their hands. They want you to show your hands in colour. They want to show that skin colour should not define or separate us. Shushma Datt started it Shushma Datt and friends started the event in 2015. The Hindu festival…

Eagles flock to the dump

Level 2 “They are all over the place. I don’t think you’re going to see any other place with this many,” says Albert Shamess. Shamess is the director of waste management for the City of Vancouver. “Anything that sticks out of the ground has an eagle on top of it.” Sometimes a dozen or more…

The Great Bear Rainforest becomes a park!

Story adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Patty Bossort LEVEL 2 The Great Bear Rainforest will become a park in the spring of 2016. People fought to make this area a park for over 20 years. It took 10 years to make a deal. The deal will protect the environment. It allows some logging and…

Puppets Casey and Finnegan

Puppets Casey and Finnegan alive and well on Hornby Island Adapted by cbc.ca by Nancy Carson Level 2 Listen to Casey and Finnegan– Level 2 Reading by Jessica Heafey For 27 years, a little child and a dog made many Canadian children very happy. Casey, the child, and Finnegan, the dog, were puppets. They were part of…

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…

A bouquet you can eat

Adapted from WE Vancouver by Nancy Carson Level 2 We often visit friends or family for a meal. Sometimes we take flowers as a gift for the host. Flowers are nice but they last about a week. Sometimes we take chocolates. However, some people do not want to eat candy. They don’t want their children to…

Solly’s cinnamon buns go around the world

Adapted from WEVancouver by Nancy Carson Level 2 Leah Markovitch owns Solly’s in Vancouver. Solly’s is a bakery and deli. The bakery makes Jewish baking. They serve soup and sandwiches, too. You can sit down. You can have a snack. Or you can eat a nice lunch. Visit the link ]Watch bagels being made in Seattle…

Buy a poppy

People honour soldiers and veterans Adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Remembrance Day is on November 11. Every November, plastic poppies are made and sold. Canadians wear these poppies on their left lapels, close to their hearts. They wear poppies to remember Canadians who died in wars. Poppies are a symbol of Remembrance Day.

Diamond Poems

We are a class of LINC 4 students with the Immigrant Welcome Centre in Nanaimo B.C. Every month we study The Westcoast Reader, and we noticed that there was a poetry contest last month. We would like to submit some poetry of our own done in the ‘diamante format’. These poems are in the shape of…

Movember is here!

Story adapted from The Province by Nila Gopaul In November, men and women join together. They talk about men’s health. They call November “Movember”. Mo means moustache. Many men do not talk about health issues. Movember encourages* men to talk about issues, such as prostate cancer and depression. *encourages (en-KER-re-jez) – gives hope to someone

Halloween is on October 31

Halloween safety tips Adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Listen to “Halloween safety tips” Reading by Nila Gopaul Halloween is on October 31. Trick-or-treating is a Halloween custom in Canada. On this day, many children dress in costumes. In the evening, children go to houses.* They knock on doors or ring bells. Children say “trick or…

A good business

A good business Adapted from The Province by Nila Gopaul Level one Listen to “A Good Business”– Level 1 Reading by Jessica Heafey Jason Vanderveen has a very good business. Vanderveen Hay Sales is in Surrey, B.C. Every day, it gets many calls. Farmers call to buy hay. They use the hay to feed their…

Harvest time is the right time for giving thanks

Harvest time is the right time for giving thanks Adapted from Canadian Living: “How to cook a turkey” and BC Turkey Growers by Patti-Lea Ryan Level 2 What better time to give thanks? Farmer’s markets and stores are filled with fresh vegetables. The vegetables are fresh and colourful. Carrots, brussels sprouts, broccoli, yams and corn, to…

October is National Anti-bullying Awareness Month

Bullying Adapted from bullyingcanada.ca; thebullyproject.com; and The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Level 2 Bullying happens when a person or people hurt or scare another person, again and again. Bullying is wrong. Bullies want to make a person feel small and powerless. Here are four examples of bullying:

Father of Haida manga

Story adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Level 2 March 2010 Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas is a Haida artist. He was born in Prince Rupert, B.C. in 1954. But Michael was raised in Haida Gwaii The old name for Haida Gwaii is Queen Charlotte Islands*. Why did Michael start drawing manga? One day, some Japanese…

Two paws in the ocean, and two paws on the land

Two paws in the ocean, and two paws on the land The fish-eating gray wolves of B.C.’s coastal islands Adapted from CBC News by Nancy Carson Level 2 The Heiltsuk* people of Bella Bella knew something special about B.C.’s gray wolves. For 6,000 years the Heiltsuk have lived in that area. They have always known…

Rosh Hashanah begins

We wish a happy Rosh Hashanah to our readers and their families! Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of the Jewish New Year. It is a special occasion for prayer and reflection. It is also a day of celebration. Links: Learn more about Rosh Hashanah here. Read about how Rosh Hashanah is celebrated in Canada.

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…

Digital Storytelling: A pleasant experience

Digital storytelling: A pleasant experience Story by Heng Bian, LINC student at Collège Éducacentre College Last month our class did digital story presentations using a program called Brainshark. Do you know Brainshark? It not only has a cool name, but it is a software program. It lets you tell a story using pictures and audio.

Chores

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun Level 2 November 2010 Chores are small jobs around the house, such as washing dishes and doing laundry. Chores are part of family life. Studies show that doing chores helps children to become more successful adults. Read the PDF. Try the Exercise. Chores-PDF What parents can do:

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…

B.C. Subway opens 400th restaurant

B.C. Subway opens 400th restaurant Adapted from The Vancouver Sun and www.wikipedia.org by Nila Gopaul, 2013, Level 2 Subway restaurants are successful in B.C. Recently, the 400th Subway store opened in Vancouver. The restaurant is near Rogers Arena. An arena is an indoor sports place. The Vancouver Canucks hockey team plays there. It is a good…

From housewife to queen: Cindy Lee sells T&T* Supermarkets for $225 Million

Adapted from The Vancouver Sun and T&T Supermarket company website Level 2 October 2009 Cindy Lee came to Vancouver from Taiwan in 1972. She just wanted to have a simple life. Lee shopped in Chinatown in the rain with her three children. Shopping in Chinatown was not convenient (con-vee-nyint). There were no shopping carts. There…

Two heroes save four

Two heroes save four Adapted from The Province by Nila Gopaul Level 2 June 2010 Last June, Matt and Tyler were driving on the Trans-Canada Highway to Revelstoke, B.C. A van swerves Suddenly, a van in front of them swerved (turned direction quickly). The van rolled down 20 metres into Griffin Lake. The van began to…

Killer whale rescued from rocks

Killer whale rescued from rocks Adapted from The Vancouver Sun by Nila Gopaul Level 2 On July 22, 2015, cries came from a young killer whale. The calf was caught on some rocks. She could not move. She was crying in pain. It was a hot day in Hartley Bay, B.C., a First Nations community 145 kilometres south of…