Category: Focus

By Craig Babstock

Marino Sani of the Ottawa-Carleton Regional Police says the only violent act he hasn’t seen in a schoolyard is a shootout.

And that may not be too far off, because he says many guns are confiscated along with all the knives he finds on students. read more

By Lindsey Parry

When Suzanne Banks’ nine-year-old son was paired with a Big Brother, she quickly noticed changes in his self-esteem.

“Right away, he thrived on it,” she says. “He’d never had a confident male role model. He really wanted to find his male identity. Now, that’s not an issue.” read more

Lily Nguyen

“You can’t guarantee a child is safe anywhere.”

For Barbara Wright, principal of Cambridge Street Community Public School, that’s why it’s important to teach children about adults who wish to harm them. From as young as kindergarten age, the children are taught a few simple phrases in case someone tries to touch them in a way that makes them feel uncomfortable: “Feeling yes, feeling no.” “No, go tell.” read more

Focus on Education

By Maria Babbage

All right class, pull out your pencils and a piece of paper — we’re going to do some quick math.
Now, I know you all had to learn your long division last week, but we’re going to scrap that for now. The provincial government has come up with this new math and we’ve got to learn it as a part of the brand new curriculum. read more