TFS - Canada's International School

"It's a tool; the English language brings students into other cultures and connects them to other people," says Marisa Petersen, a Grade 3 English teacher at the Junior School. While English is largely spoken worldwide, LWLVDOVROD\HUHGZLWKFXOWXUDOO\VSHFLÀF meaning. It is for this reason that Ms. Petersen asks her students to read purposefully, to put on their writer's hats and ask themselves, "Why did the writer start the story this way?" Says Ms. Petersen, "It opens them to different people with different perspectives." When it comes to writing, she contextualizes for her students the many reasons people put SHQWRSDSHURUÀQJHUVRQWKHNH\ERDUGWR persuade, inform, entertain or evaluate. One recent example was an information paragraph on a machine written by her students. It had to include real information and demonstrate students' knowledge of paragraph structure, note-taking and research. Another goal of the assignment was to further develop students' skills in the areas of discernment, critical thinking and quality of self-expression, all key to being an effective citizen. "I want them to develop sophistication in their ways of thinking and, subsequently, know how to eloquently explain and give or refute an opinion," she says. "This is truly the best purpose for language; to be able to bring your values into it for the betterment of humankind." English Marisa Petersen, teacher Isobel F., student "I like fiction the best because it is so exciting; I always want to go to the places I read about," says Isobel F., one of Ms. Petersen's students. The thrill of being WUDQVSRUWHGWRRWKHUZRUOGVÀOOHGZLWK people who have very different views, motivated Isobel to read through some of the books in the Harry Potter series – the rest will have to wait until she's a bit older – and the entire Percy Jackson series, by Rick Riordan. Through Percy's journey she learned about Camp Half-Blood, home to the series' demigods – half-human, half-descendants of Greek gods – that, like Hogwarts, opened up another imaginary world set within our own. As for that exercise on writing an information paragraph, Isobel had to answer the question of what she thought about the machine she chose, the inclined plane. After learning how helpful it is in building ramps, especially for those with mobility issues, she says, "I liked it because it helps people get around," and was excited to include her opinion in her information paragraph. 12 TFS ENTRE NOUS 2018

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