drvan
218 Followers
Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
About the store
I have over 20 years teaching experience in high schools, adult ed, university and private tutoring. I have also taught at learning centres for middle school and high school-aged students.
My background is in English Language Arts and Art History, incorporating cultural studies and literary theory. Like many English teachers, I teach short stories, novels, Shakespeare, poetry, grammar, essay writing, media studies, and career preparation and planning.
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Know Your Country: Map of Canada Assignment (& Accompanying Quiz)
This resource is now a Google Doc and therefore editable, should you need to, to meet your specific teaching needs!This four-page mapping activity is one I use for all my junior Social Studies classes. With this mini-project, students become more familiar with the geographic boundaries of Canada, its provinces and territories, and significant bodies of water within and around our country. Students also learn the capital cities and where they are located. Finally, in completing this project, s
5th - 10th
Canadian History, Geography, Social Studies
Alexander Beetle (song / poem by Melanie Safka) - Activities & Questions
Growing up, I loved " Alexander Beetle" song by Melanie (which is based on the A. A. Milne original poem, "Forgiven.") I used to play the record most every day, but " Alexander Beetle" was my favourite song, by far. I have long wanted to turn it into a resource for primary grades so a whole new generation of students could enjoy (and learn) from this wonderful poem, as well. This is a Google Document that is ready to go, with two formats so that you will have to make no (or very few) edits
1st - 6th
English Language Arts, Music, Poetry
DBT for Schools (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy) using A.C.C.E.P.T.S. & T.I.P.P.
For students who struggle with anxiety, depression, or suicidal ideation Dialectical Behaviour Therapy has proven useful and effective. DBT was originally developed to treat BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder), and developed out of CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy), yet it has been similarly effective with generalized anxiety, depression, and suicidality. Presented here is an easy-to-use, one-page handout that proves effective with children. Designed for in-school use, this DBT handout work
4th - 12th, Adult Education, Higher Education
School Counseling, School Psychology
Poetry Jumble Activity: "The Farmer and the Queen" by Shel Silverstein
This is a fun and engaging group (or individual) poetry activity for students to explore and play with how poetry is created. They will work on how sounds go together, how rhymes work, and how rhythm patterns are established. Contained herein are a variety of activities, all based off of Shel Silverstein’s poem, “The Farmer and the Queen” from his classic, Where the Sidewalk Ends. In these activities, students solve either (a) jumbled lines of poetry, or (b) missing words, by analyzing poetic
4th - 9th
Close Reading, English Language Arts, Poetry
Coping with COVID: A Counsellors' Handout to Parents & Students
SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED RESOURCE WITH COVID19 IN MIND & DISTANCE LEARNINGAs school counsellors, it is difficult to not be there face-to-face to support our students as they are used to. In reaction their current social-emotional needs during this pandemic, I have developed this handout for students and parents that do the following: Let both students and parents know that they are not alone and that the school (counsellors, teachers, and admin) are still there to support them.Provide them with ef
5th - 12th, Adult Education, Higher Education
School Counseling, School Psychology
Meditation Student Self-Reflection Sheet
If you practice any type of meditation with your students, this resource is for you. This is a simple, easy-to-use, one-page worksheet which asks students to pause and reflect up the meditation they just completed. How was it for them in terms of mind, body, and heart. This activity can help make the unconscious conscious and the purposeless more purposeful. Moreover, student collect these worksheets over time, and are able to track how meditation has affected them. I designed this, in parti
4th - 12th
School Counseling, School Psychology
Mediation 101 for School Counsellors: Easy-to-Follow Instructions & Handouts
Formal Mediation is skill and process that can be useful to resolve conflicts between students when more informal and casual means have been unsuccessful, or when the conflict is of a more serious nature. As a high school school counsellor, I use this formal mediation method when I need to bring a certain gravity to the situation and impress upon the students the benefit of coming to a resolution. As I casually refer to it amongst colleagues, "Formal Mediation is a last stop before I pass a mat
5th - 12th
School Counseling, School Psychology
The Calm Equation: Helping Students Take Control of their Anger & Anxiety
This is something simple, but effective that I have used with high school students from Grades 8 through 12. A clear and easy way to keep calm in stressful situations, whether in anger or in fear. Talking about this three-step strategy and practicing it beforehand, gives students more power and agency over their emotions and responses in stressful situations. Contained herein are both wallet-sized, poster-sized, and an in-between sized (what I call office-sized [used when working with the stud
5th - 12th
For All Subjects, School Counseling, School Psychology
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About the store
Experience
I have over 20 years teaching experience in high schools, adult ed, university and private tutoring. I have also taught at learning centres for middle school and high school-aged students.
My background is in English Language Arts and Art History, incorporating cultural studies and literary theory. Like many English teachers, I teach short stories, novels, Shakespeare, poetry, grammar, essay writing, media studies, and career preparation and planning.
Teaching style
My philosophy of education centres on interdisciplinary studies and the development of critical reasoning skills. I believe that as modern life becomes increasingly complex and interconnected the need to teach how all subject areas interact is ever more important. As such, I habitually infuse my lessons with visual and popular culture, demonstrating how the material is relevant to students’ lives and thereby making it more accessible. Similarly, I contextualize the source material to its socio-political milieu to facilitate learning while students uncover how a text’s meaning changes over time.
Awards & shining teacher moments
Outstanding Teaching Practicum Award
My own education history
B.Ed., B.A., and M.Ed in School Counselling.
Additional biographical information
I'm a nineteenth-century boy, stuck in a twenty-first-century body.
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