To Help a Bear, or To Not?

Earlier this month, a B.C. man in Anmore got in trouble for helping an injured/sick bear. Why? Because by helping the bear he violated the Wildlife Act. So what happened exactly? A nice neighbour, Mike Robson, took an emaciated bear to a local wildlife centre. The bear had been outside on their neighbour’s porch for 16 hours. Frustrated by seeing that this injured bear cub received no care, or that the Mother bear did not come, Mrs. Robson called the BC Conservation Officer Services who refused to help the bear cub. The officer said to call back in another day. Additionally, the cub was the size of a dog who did not have anything to eat and endured -2 conditions. Due to his actions, Robson is now being investigated and may face serious consequences for violating the Wildlife Act. 

There are reasons why humans should not interfere with wildlife, which are detrimental to the well-being of animals. Sounds bizarre, but true! 

Please read the full article here: https://bc.ctvnews.ca/b-c-man-under-investigation-for-taking-emaciated-bear-cub-to-wildlife-centre-1.4761227

Image result for anmore bc

Please read the articles below for some reasons why humans should not intervene with nature. 

http://www.wildlifelandtrust.org/wildlife/living-with-wildlife/four-reasons-not-to-feed.html

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2016/05/160523-when-to-rescue-wild-animals/ (grade 6, harder reading)

Image result for anmore man helps bear cubImage result for anmore man helps bear cub

Now is your turn to weigh in on this. What do you think about this whole ordeal? Would you have done the same thing that Mr. Robson did or would you have gone another route- if you did, what would it be? Knowing that you would be violating the Act, would this stop you from helping the bear cub? What are some reasons why you should not help / feed wildlife? Grade 5’s 20 sentences, Grade 6’s 25 sentences! Do not forget your details!!

Haircut, anyone?

No, I am not becoming a hair dresser, in case you were wondering! But, I mean, I guess I could always learn a new skill. Anyone want to volunteer for me? 

As I look around the classroom, yes, creepy isn’t it? But as I look around, I see that most of the girls in our classroom have long hair. I see that all of the boys have short hair. But what happens if a girl wanted to get a short haircut? Well, she can… but be prepared to pay more for the exact same haircut as a guy would get! Whatttttt! 

 

Image result for women pay more for short haircuts

Related image

According to a BBC article, a few reasons are given. Salon owner and hairdresser, Susannah Jones says: “Historically, in our industry there has been a gap between the price charged for men and women. This was based on the belief that men have short hair, which is quick and simple to style, and women have long hair, which takes more time and skill. This is simply not the case. Short haircuts can actually be more technical and often take longer, so time wasn’t even a factor when we used to charge less for men – it was purely because they were male…”

Image result for women pay more for short haircuts

To make matters worse, many men’s barber shops will not allow women to come in. Why? Well, research consultant, Devon Magliozzi states: “I called the barber-shop. I asked if they could just do a clipper cut on the back and sides but they reiterated that they couldn’t do a woman’s haircut. I understand that barbers might not have training to cut long hair, or might charge extra for cuts that take extra time, but gender is an arbitrary way to define services and set prices.”

Please read the full article here: 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-50691249

You can look at this opinion piece for some price differences: 

https://metro.co.uk/2017/06/27/why-do-women-have-to-pay-so-much-more-than-men-for-their-haircuts-6737965/

Image result for women pay more for short haircuts

So now is your time to weigh in on this. What are your thoughts about what you have read about? Did you ever notice this when you went to a barber/hairdresser? Do you think that all hair salons should be unisex (for all people) ? Or, do you think that they should be kept separate? Maybe women’s hair requires more skill, like layering and hair dye in different layers. How would you react if you noticed that a haircut you wanted was much cheaper for the other sex? What would you say to the salon? Grade 5’s: 15 sentences, Grade 6’s, 20 sentences.  

Don Cherry: You People vs We People

Okay, so I know Teran plays lacrosse and soccer, Marco plays water polo at SFU, Ella plays tennis, Landon plays soccer and Marina plays volleyball… is anyone on a hockey team? I ask about hockey because a hockey related incident happened recently which needs a discussion!

Image result for don cherry racist rant

On November 12th, the infamous and outspoken commentator, Don Cherry made some remarks that got him axed, well, fired! (Please don’t think of Vincent and his protactor-otine)! 

For those of us who don’t know who Don Cherry is, I’ll quickly fill you in.  Cherry  was born in Kingston, Ontario. He is currently 85 years old. He is a sports commentator/writer and a retired professional hockey, he even played for the Canucks at one point in his career. Since 1986, he has been the host of Coach’s Corner. He’s generally known for his overly-enthusiastic rants and his colourful attire (shirts, suits and ties). 

This is not the first time that Cherry has made some harsh remarks and come under fire numerous times. Unfortunately for him, this time, his remarks cost him his job. He was given the opportunity to apologise but refused to. Had he apologised, he most likely would have kept his job as the host on Coach’s Corner. This time he spoke about veterans and how ‘immigrants’ come to Canada because they like the way of life here but do not contribute to the soldiers who gave their life to make Canada the country it is today. He said: “You people that come here … whatever it is, you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey, at least you could pay a couple of bucks for a poppy.” 

Some people are upset about his use of ‘you people.’ They have questioned his use of these words as not just a reference to the immigrant population…which would be all of us except our First People…but to people of colour. Interestingly, as was discussed in class, many soldiers who fought for Canada were ‘coloured’ immigrants like, Indigenous, Indian, Chinese, Japanese and Black soldiers.   

Read the articles and watch the videos below: 

https://globalnews.ca/news/6157812/don-cherry-you-people-rant-impact/ 

https://www.ctvnews.ca/sports/don-cherry-s-history-of-controversial-comments-1.4680505

https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/ron-maclean-coachs-corner-sportnet-nov-16-1.5362580

So now it is your turn to weigh in! What do you think of what Don Cherry said – did he have a point to his rant, should all Canadians wear poppies for our soldiers ? Is his rant racist and he meant what he said as he has made many controversial remarks before or was he being truthful by saying that he should have changed ‘you people’ to ‘everyone.’ Do you think firing him was the correct call to action or should something deeper have happened? What would you suggest for him to do to rectify his words? I would also like for you to do some independent research. Please check in with your parent/s/guardian/s and ask if you had any family members who fought/were a part of a war.  Grade 6’s 25 sentences, Grade 5 20 sentences, please! 

Random Posts (Since Maya and Vincent Asked)

Hi, feel free to post your random posts. Make sure they are not spam or offensive… 

Have fun 🙂 

P.S. Do not ever forget that exercise routine that Mr. Wall taught you today lol 🙂 

(I can’t write anything else because Salina is currently on my shoulder. Ella and Tiana are staring and talking about politics. Now, I have Bernice on the other shoulder, doing what she does best. Marina is distracting by drawing on the board. Maya and Sally are playing the most annoying noise ever…)

Election Results Are In!

This post is more easy breezy and dedicated to  Vincent The Giggles Toews, who wanted one for the election! 

What are you thoughts on the election, the election results, etc.  If you were to vote for a candidate in your riding (area), who would you have voted for and why? 

Image result for canadian election results

 

Here are some links for more info: 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/federal-election-results-2019-cbc-leaders-1.5329485

https://globalnews.ca/news/6038572/watch-live-2019-canada-election/

https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/election-2019/canadian-federal-election-live-riding-map-results

And the student vote results:

https://www.cheknews.ca/student-vote-canada-2019-elects-liberal-minority-in-parallel-election-614895/

Any thoughts, comments or questions are welcome!!  Have fun 🙂 

Student Vote!

On Friday afternoon, Division 5 took to the ballot box! They had fun while also learning about how to vote and the overall process. In some pictures, maybe a little tooooooo much fun! 

P.S. I was coerced into the selfie, totally against my free will. I blame Ella, Tiana, Sally, Althea and Noah 🙂

!

Sally, Tiana and Ella Have Lunch!

Sally won lunch with Mr. Wall! I was pretty jealous that I didn’t get an invite… gosh!!

From afar though, it looked super fun and smelt delicious!! These lucky ladies were certainly wined and dined by the fantastic waiter, Mr. Heard!! 

P.S. Ms. Dunnett, George and Tanner slightly photobombed a couple of pictures!

First, Trudeau. Then, the Voter… and Don’t Forget Bill 21!

Somehow, just somehow, I am imagining someone in our class saying aloud: What? We are getting a new 21 dollar bill? No, we are not getting a new 21 dollar bill. So what is Bill 21 then? 

Image result for francois legault bill 21

Well, in June this year, Quebec Premier, Francois Legault, and his Coalition Avenir Quebec government passed the heavily criticised and controversial, Bill 21. At roughly 10:30 P.M. this bill was passed with 73 in favour and only 35 against. This bill bans public servants who are in positions of authority from wearing any religious ‘symbols.’ So if you are a judge, police officer, government lawyer, school teacher or principal you are not allowed to wear religious ‘symbols’ like a hijab, crucifix, turban or kippah.

Image result for hijab

A Muslim woman wearing a hijab.

 

pendentif-grande-croix-christ-jesus-crucifix-plaque-or-750-article-15598-base

A Christian crucifix or cross.

Image result for sikh turban

A Sikh turban.

Image result for kippah cartoon

A Jewish kippah.

Why did they do this? Well, the party says that they would like Quebec to remain truly secular. This means that there is no interference of religion in the public space. If you were wondering what happens to the the people who have these jobs and wear symbols, well the answer is this: employees can keep them as long as they do not change the school they are working at or take a promotion.  Image result for bill 21 protest

Some people argue that this is racist and that in Canada we have the freedom to dress however we would like to. We also have religious freedom and are allowed to peacefully practice any religion we choose to. This law would jeopardise people’s relationship with their religion as well as their job if they were a public servant. 

The below link is Legault’s reasoning behind the bill: 

https://www.iheartradio.ca/cjad/news/premier-francois-legault-defends-secularism-bill-as-moderate-1.9044425

This article speaks about the impact that Bill 21 is having on Muslim women as well as a young lady named Amrit Kaur. She just graduated from university and wants to become a teacher… but she has a turban. 

https://www.macleans.ca/opinion/quebecs-unthinkable-bill-21/

This article shows the protest rallies that are occurring in Montreal because of Bill 21.

https://globalnews.ca/news/5997737/protest-bill-21/ 

So now it is your turn to weigh in on this Bill. What are your thoughts on Bill 21? Do you think that it is a racist bill which goes against our rights as Canadians? Or, does it help Canadians keep religion out of the public sector. After all, Canada is made up of many religions so what happens if someone wishes to do something in the name of their religion but it goes against Canadian laws? Remember to treat this issue with the respect and compassion that it deserves. Grade 5 a response of 20 sentences and Grade 6 a submission of 25 sentences, please. Try to go as deep with your critical thinking as you can!  

It’s Not Just Trudeau…

Our previous post mentioned Justin Trudeau and some acts that he had done in his past. Sadly, racism in politics has hardly come to an end. On Wednesday, Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the Federal NDP, was out at Atwater Market in Montreal. While being at this market, Singh was out speaking to citizens about the NDP, the election and voting. Unfortunately, he was met by a man who told him to ‘cut off his turban.’ 

Let’s backtrack. Singh is a Canadian Sikh. Sikhs are people who practice the Sikhism religion. They originally came / come from Punjab, India. As a result, many Sikhs speak Punjabi and are ethnically called Punjabi. This means that their culture is Punjabi. Like other religions, Sikhs can either be baptised or not. Sikhs who are baptised (and a small chunk who are not) wear a turban- men and women. Generally speaking, a turban is worn to showcase the Sikh faith. Underneath the turban, is long, uncut hair. Sikhs who are baptised are not allowed to cut their hair as it is thought that the human body does not need to be altered. I should note, which we will learn about later, that Sikhs are not the only religious group who wear turbans. 

Now, this man, told Singh to ‘cut off his turban’ which as we know would be a complete removal of his faith and identity as a Sikh. Similarly, his ‘advice’ to Singh was highly racist. 

Read the article here: 

https://globalnews.ca/news/5980241/jagmeet-singh-confronted-over-turban-montreal/

and watch Singh showcase his hair and speak about his turban: 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/singh-list-turban-questions-ndp-1.5284388

Now is your time to weigh in. What are your thoughts on what this man says to Singh? Do you think it is racist, or is he just ignorant/unknowing and doesn’t know the impact that his words will have? How do you think that Singh handled the situation?  What are your thoughts now learning about Sikhs and Sikh turbans- did you learn anything that you did not know before? Please write your responses in detailed, complete sentences. Again, please treat this matter with respect and compassion. Grade 5’s, your response should be roughly 20 sentences, grade 6’s yours should be roughly 25 sentences. 

Image result for jagmeet singh turban