Bernard Walter

Tag: School

  • January 6, 2025

    After falling asleep early last night, I found myself tossing and turning throughout most of the night. For two weeks, I slept well, waking up rested. In one night, it was undone.

    My students didn’t seem to sleep any better than I had. Eyes were bloodshot, half-closed, and fully-closed. Feet were dragging across floors and heads were resting on desks.

    The most common response to any question I ask is, “I don’t know.” Today, it was said with an indifference that intimated a complete lack of awareness or concern. Nothing could have roused them from the latent slumber of a winter break spent playing videos games, staying up late, and eating junk food.

    Of course, my break included much the same. I didn’t fair too well, either. My only goal for today was to get to the other end of it and I did. Tomorrow, I’ll introduce a little bit more work, as I will on Wednesday and the day after that, ad infinitum.

    Even still, I must remain steadfast in my commitment to ensure that I have the time and energy to do the things for myself that I enjoy.

  • June 18, 2024

    I gave my grade eight class some pencil boxes today. I often feel like giving gifts to my students at the end of the year, so I do.

    It was amazing to watch them try to put them together. For the most part, they struggled, providing every reason for more STEAM programming. I was shocked at how long it took some of them to figure out. Then, too, why they put the lid on top of the rails instead of between them.

    I made some smaller gifts for my grade seven class tonight, which I’ll give them tomorrow. Students are starting to leave for the summer and I don’t want to miss them.

  • May 1, 2024

    I donated a pen to our school’s biggest fundraiser of the year, Falcon Fest. Earlier this year, I ran the book fair. Just last week, a popcorn sale took place to support one of the clubs. Since the fall, two fundraising lunches have taken place during the week – Subway sandwiches and PizzaPizza pizza. Then, too, there were candy grams, bake sales, and dance-a-thons. There is always someone asking for money.

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  • March 7, 2024

    Only one more sleep until March Break.

  • March 6, 2024

    Noises are muffled on the left side of my head. It feels like there’s cotton wool jammed into my left ear. I think I’m getting sick. With March Break only two sleeps away, my body might be preparing for the slow down. This has happened in the past, me getting sick at the beginning of a break, but it hasn’t happened in a while.

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  • March 6, 2024

    Noises are muffled on the left side of my head. It feels like there’s cotton wool jammed into my left ear. I think I’m getting sick. With March Break only two sleeps away, my body might be preparing for the slow down. This has happened in the past, me getting sick at the beginning of a break, but it hasn’t happened in a while.

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  • January 3, 2024

    What colleges have you attended?

    Listing off the schools that I’ve attended probably won’t be all that interesting to read. Well, I guess, it might be more interesting than what you’re about to read if what I write next is not of interest to you.

    The most interesting schooling experience that I’ve had was when I was attending a photography class in Finland. I don’t speak Finnish. The instructor didn’t speak English. We were developing film in a dark room. I didn’t fully appreciate just how interesting my life was at the time.

    I stole a book on photography from a classmate. Accidentally, of course, but I did take it. She lent it to me because it was in English. I lost it the following year, somewhere in my dorm. There were negatives tucked into the back of that book that’ll never get processed. I remember there being pictures of boats being stored in a wooded area behind the house of my host family.

    Photography was important to me during my experience as an exchange student. Given the language barrier, it was the most effective way I found to express myself. People were able to read into my photographs. They saw something that I didn’t, perhaps because they were looking at a piece of me.

  • October 10, 2023

    I learned something about myself today that I already knew. See, I was given the day to clean a room of the library. Just the one room. It was a mess, filled with loose cables and broken computers. Spending the day working on just the one task reminded me of how I work best when I’m given time to focus.

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  • October 3, 2023

    I gave my students “toilet tokens” today. Last night, I printed off some miniature toilets on my 3D printer and each of my students in one of my classes one. I’ve had enough of them leaving class every single day.

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  • September 22, 2023

    One of my students asked me how I’m doing this afternoon. I told him, and the rest of the class, that I’ve been in a terrible mood for the last couple of weeks and can’t figure out why. We joked about how it was probably because of school and them, the class. Truthfully, I don’t know why I’ve been so sour lately.

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  • September 12, 2023

    Just outside the school, there are two bus stops. It’s really annoying to have to stop at the south end of the school yard and then again at the north end when following a city bus that’s dropping off students. The staff parking lot is a right turn after the bus stop to the north. How come students can’t walk those 150 metres? I’m probably getting late for work…to teach them.

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  • August 31, 2023

    I’m not ready for the new school year to begin. I went to school today for a few hours but didn’t get enough done. Going in tomorrow is going to be a pain. After work, I went to the workshop, where I managed to finish an order that I’ve been working on.

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