Party, Party, Party: Classroom Canada Celebrates 2 Years of Helping Teachers Work in London, England

Preparations are under way for this Sunday's virtual birthday party for Classroom Canada. Participants will swing by this blog, leave a comment to say "Happy Birthday!" and be entered to win some amazing prizes, offered by our friends at Flight Centre, Topdeck, Lloyds, Educator.com and SUMS Online.

We'll be giving away lots of great teacher stuff including, but not limited to:

• $100 from Flight Centre towards your next flight purchase for an international flight
• Luggage from Flight Centre
• 4 X $50 vouchers from Topdeck towards your next travel adventure with them. See thispost to see an example from our teachers from last year's Classroom Canada Scavenger Hunt prizes.
• Umbrellas from Lloyds - perfect for anyone moving to teach in London.
• Memberships from Educator.com
• SUMS PSP Math games
• My ebook- Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians

I will be thanking everyone involved in our success over the past two years, including our teachers, Classroom Ltd in London, our business friends and contacts who help us do what we do best, our blogger friends and so many more. It will be like an Academy Awards speech - cheesy, long-winded, and awesome!

I will literally be on this blog from the moment I wake up on Sunday until the time I go to bed. So swing by, leave comments, participate in discussions, ask questions, etc. I hope you can make it.

Just think: you can wear whatever you want to this party! How many birthday parties let you wear whatever you like? Okay, don't answer that...

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians to help you understand everything you need to know about teaching in London.

Canadians in London: Not Just Teachers!

Network Canada is a non-profit organization that helps Canadians to mix & mingle in London through their various social events. They have a book that helps Canadians move to London and I highly recommend that any Canadian considering the move across the pond purchase it and read it over a few times. It really does answer every question you could possibly have about moving to the UK.

They hold the London Vandoos, which are socials that happen on the 22nd of every month. Canadians of all backgrounds attend, including some of our teachers of course. The events are a great opportunity to meet the other types of Canadians who live in London - lawyers, bankers, doctors, accountants, bartenders, servers...you get the idea.

One of the many events that happened this year for Canada Day in London was the Canada Cruz, a boat ride that happens every year along the Thames to celebrate Canada Day. Dave Mathews put this video together of the most recent Canada Cruz that he and Matt Glynn organize and run each year. Some of our teachers are there, celebrating in style!

This Sunday, Classroom Canada is holding a virtual party for teachers across Canada, the UK, America, and the world over to celebrate our 2nd birthday. Swing by this blog on Sunday, July 19th at any time and wish us a Happy Birthday. Win prizes just for stopping by - including flights, tours, luggage, umbrellas, teacher-stuff...

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians to help you understand everything you need to know about teaching in London.

Classroom Canada Turns 2: Party Plans in Progress...

You're all invited to a party!

Our 2nd birthday party is this Sunday, July 19th in this virtual world of ours. It's the anniversary of the day that I flew back to Canada from London, England to open the Classroom Canada office. I can't believe it's been 2 years already!

So, to celebrate, we're inviting you to participate in a virtual party on this little blog of ours. I'll be online all day, having conversations, discussions, drinking virtual cocktails and giving away awesome free stuff to random visitors who pop by, leave a comment and wish us a Happy Birthday. I was inspired to throw this virtual party by another blogger who turned 96 and threw herself a virtual party a few years ago. I wish I could remember her name, but anyway, it was a lot of fun.

We'll be giving away lots of great teacher stuff including, but not limited to:

• $100 from Flight Centre towards your next flight purchase
• 4 X $50 vouchers from Topdeck towards your next travel adventure with them. See this post to see an example from our teachers from last year's Classroom Canada Scavenger Hunt prizes.
• Umbrellas from Lloyds - perfect for anyone moving to teach in London.
• Memberships from Educator.com
• SUMS PSP Math games
• My ebook- Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians

If anyone wants to throw in any other prizes, please contact me (victoria at classroomcanada dot com) and I'll be happy to share the love.

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians to help you understand everything you need to know about teaching in London.

Socials & Parties for Teachers in London & Abroad

Our teachers in London are finishing up their last week of school for the 2009/2010 school year. My facebook friends who are teachers are a'flutter with the countdown - "4 more days of teaching!" and "4 more days with my first real class ever!"

Some of our teachers are off to interviews and trial days at schools for jobs that start September 1st, and plenty already know where and what they will be teaching. We also have a handful of teachers who are returning "home" this weekend after being in London for 2 years already.

Classroom London had their end of the year party last weekend and started a facebook group just yesterday where they posted photos for us all to see. The images are not the best quality as they were taken on Richard's camera-phone (someone stole the Classroom digital camera last week - argh!). I'm posting them here anyway since they show that we do indeed throw awesome parties in London.

Classroom Canada is throwing a virtual party this Sunday on July 19th on this very blog for our 2nd birthday. Swing by, win free stuff (travel vouchers, possibly even free flights, teacher-stuff...) and have fun online. All you have to do is come to this blog and wish us a Happy Birthday at some point on July 19th. You don't even have to get dressed up. That's my kind of party!

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians to help you understand everything you need to know about teaching in London.

Teacher Jobs in London: Male Primary Teachers Needed

The TDAS (Training & Development Agency for Schools) is launching a push to increase the number of male teachers in primary schools in the UK this week. It's about time!

I work with about 80% female teachers, not because I choose to, but because of the application ratio of female to male teacher applicants. Traditionally, there are more male applicants for secondary school teacher positions than female. And for primary schools, we have more female teacher applicants than male. Many more.

I really noticed the gender gap when I was in teacher's college at Queen's. Why do so many more women go into elementary teaching than men? What do you think?

I believe our children need both male & female role models. While teaching in London schools really showed this to me, I believe we also have the same issue at play here in Canada.

To read more about male primary teachers, please see these articles:

Schools Launch Drive to Recruit Male Teachers by Anushka Asthana, the Guardian

Boys Need Male Primary Teachers, by Sky News

Male Primary Trainee's in a Woman's World by TES connect

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians.

American Teacher Bloggers

A new education blogger is on the scene from Ottawa University - Mr. Ben Crawshaw. No, not the University of Ottawa, our Canadian university in Ottawa, Ontario. Rather, Ben goes to Ottawa University in Kansas, USA.

I always find it funny when I make assumptions about where people are in the world - I just assumed he meant our university up north. I suppose that is partly because I'm from Ottawa, Canada's national capital - and I've honestly never really heard anything about Ottawa, Kansas.

So even though Ben is writing from an American teachers perspective and not about teaching in London, please visit his blog anyway & welcome him to the world of blogging about teaching, teachers college and education issues in general.

To read more about Canadian & American Teachers Colleges, please see:

Teacher Training in Canada: How Do Teacher's Colleges Compare?

Distance Learning

American Teacher Recruitment

The Do's and Don'ts of Teacher Career Fairs

I'm in Vancouver meeting with teachers and Lloyd's so I won't likely post tomorrow. Have a great weekend everyone!

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians.

More Resources for Teaching: Comics in the Classroom

I'm all for using a variety of teaching methods and have written before about Interactive Whiteboards in London schools and just how awesome I think they are. So, I was excited to read Mister Teacher's blog this week as he points out another great resource to use in teaching: Comics!

Remember when you were a student and one of your teachers used a Calvin & Hobbes cartoon, or even Charlie Brown in their hand-outs? I always loved that idea. I had a teacher who always included a cartoon at the end of their science tests, so when you finally finished you knew there would at least be something to look forward to.

Thanks to Mister Teacher for pointing us to this amazing resource: Comics in the Classroom: 100 Tips, Tools and Resources for Teachers.

My favourite in the list is Pixton - students can create their own comic strips using this online tool. I can see it being used in all subject areas, and the students will certainly enjoy it.

What about you? Do you use comics in your teaching? Would you?

More Resources for Teachers:

Teaching in London: Interactive Whiteboards

Technology in the Classroom: Wordle

Teachers & Twitter

200 Great Resources for Teachers

If you'd like to become part of the Classroom Canada team, please sign up for our newsletters & apply through our website. Be sure to read the Guide to Teaching in London: A Survival Guide for Canadians.