Blog
Updates and Discussion Topics from Oak LearnersNews & Announcements
Catch up on news, events and trending topics at Oak Learners.
Benefits of Risky Play and Outdoor Education
Risky play can sound intimidating and many parents feel the same way. In fact, these concerns are natural, but they also often limit our ability to allow children to fully explore their surroundings and be exposed to new opportunities. Although risky play can sound dangerous and sometimes scary, it is important to remember that it is an essential part of development in several domains.
Learning about Diwali through cross-curricular experiences
Our day school students enjoy exploring different traditions around the world. This year we learned about Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights.
Supporting Your Preschool Child’s Growth is A Joint Effort
Finding a great preschool or kindergarten readiness program is half the battle. Your child will still need support at home to continue their development.
3 Ways Preschool Class Benefits Kids
A good pre-kindergarten program offers important skills development such as social interaction, school readiness, and improved executive function. Let’s look at them further:
Stunning Mural “Tangled Geese” Comes To Life in Mimico Village
The Mimico Village BIA and Oak Learners commissioned an innovative and inspirational mural for the community in September 2023. The mural was unveiled in a community event on October 28, 2023 and brought to life with an interactive video projection.
Our Middle School Students Want YOU to Choose Our Next Class Pet
For the month of September, our Middle School class at the Oak Learners Lake Shore Campus has been engaged in an inquiry-based learning project to choose a class pet. The students have learned about the importance of responsible animal caretaking while also investigating the pros and cons of having a class pet.
Mimico Village BIA Mural Project at Oak Learners
Together with Oak Learners, the Mimico Village BIA has undertaken the commission of an innovative and inspirational for the community.
NEW Mural welcomes students at the Oak Learners Lake Shore Campus
Designed, illustrated and painted by Julia Taylor. Julia taught at Oak Learners from 2020 through 2023 and helped lead the launch of the Lake Shore Campus Location in September 2022.
Oak Learners named “Best in Arts & Culture” for 2023 in the annual GEMS of Etobicoke-Lakeshore Awards
Oak Learners was the distinguished recipient of the 2023 GEMS of Etobicoke-Lakeshore Award in the category of Best Arts & Culture. The GEMS are small business and service organization awards that are presented each year by James Maloney, Minister of Parliament for Etobicoke-Lakeshore.
Food & Gardening at Summer Camp with Oak Learners
At Summer Camps, sometimes we really do get to live out our childhood dreams and play with our food! Our very own garden was the classroom for this week! Campers explored how to plant & grow their own food and then prepare it for themselves, friends and family.
Travelling Around the World at Oak Learners Summer Camps!
Two weeks of Summer Camp just flew by! And we aren’t just saying that because we took a trip around the world! We learned about different cultures and their structures! We made art such as the Chinese Dragon, a Traditional African neckpiece & a Dasara Elephant craft! Our specialty campers learned all about Environmental science with our resident scientist, Richard! We learned about water pollution & experimented with storms in a jar!
Summer Camp is for Art and Adventure at Oak Learners
What an exciting two weeks. Our themes these past two weeks were “Art Attack/Summer in the City” & our speciality camp was “Visual Art & Nature”
Resources & Activities
Learn at home with ideas, activities and helpful content from Oak Learners.
Snowflake Cooking Coleslaw
The versatility of cabbage when cooking with kids cannot be emphasized enough. Whether you’re lightly roasting or sautéing the leaves to introduce some oil and salt tastes, searing cabbage-steaks to absorb some Dijon and maple flavours, or munching on it raw in this egg-free coleslaw recipe, kids have ample opportunities to focus on the many ways it can be prepared and their reaction to the variations, rather than deciding the foods merit based on one flavour profile.
Music Lessons – Oak Learners Class Showcase
Oak Learners is dedicated to inspiring minds through Arts Education and our Love of Music! We offer a supportive learning atmosphere, working with your child’s unique learning style to inspire their strengths and interests.
Private music lessons are available to learners of all ages from young to old in a variety of disciplines, including Piano, Guitar, Voice, Ukulele, Drums, Percussion, and Composition.
Oak Learners Classroom Teacher Interview – Maggie Robertson
At the heart of Oak Learners are the teachers that work with students every day to create an environment for the learners to excel with every project, task, and endeavor they complete. We wanted to interview some of our teachers to see their perspectives on their teaching field, get to know them better, and see what inspired them to become a teacher. The first interview we did is with Maggie Robertson, a teacher at Oak Learners wanting to share her experiences! Enjoy!
Oak Learners Before & After-Care Showcase
Oak Learners offers a before and after-care program that has all kinds of exciting activities for your children to be a part of! Before-care starts inside the Oak Learners school between 7:30 AM-9 AM. After-care starts inside the Oak Learners school between 3 PM-6 PM.
Importance of Matching Students with the Right Teacher
The concept of teaching and learning matching is that it impacts learning in a way that encourages students to respond more positively to instructional methods while informing faculty about effective teaching practices. This encourages collaboration between the teacher and student which in turn reduces classroom management issues.
Recent research has shown that it is not as effective for a teacher to change their teaching preferences to suit the students in their classroom because they may not be as comfortable teaching in that manner.
Exploring colourful salads in Urban Farming & Cooking Class
Exploring watermelon radish, colourful carrots and red kale, How many of your favourite colours can you see in this meal?! We loved making this...
Art Class (Ages 6+) – Oak Learners Class Showcase
Oak Learners is hosting an Art Class for ages 6 and up every Saturday from 12:45pm-1:30pm! If you’re looking for an art class for your child, look no further! Our art teachers are passionate, enthusiastic, and knowledgable. Oak Learners provides a safe environment for the kids and allow them to experience the satisfaction that comes from guided self-expression. The focus of our art classes is exploring artistic skills, exploring creativity, and so much more!
The Power of Ketchup
There’s no shortage of ketchup varieties available, but no matter what brand name or homemade option you’re reaching for, all bottles provide a perfect introduction to the five core tastes; sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami.
Eggplant Exploration
This or that? Exploring new foods with deeper questions around why one is tastier than another allows you the ability to prompt more descriptive answers when discussing food, rather than giving kids the intimidating “yes or no” options only.
Oak Learners Summer Camp 2022
Oak Learners Summer Camp overview. Spots are filling up quickly for our Summer Camps and the time to act is now! We offer a unique summer camp experience designed to engage children and make them want to return year after year.
How To Keep Your Child Safe While On The Internet
The internet is a great place for younger kids to get extremely valuable resources and can be a great source of knowledge. However, there are parts of the internet that can be quite dangerous for younger kids to be. In this blog, we’ll talk about some of the steps you can take including setting parental controls, monitoring your children, and keeping them safe on the internet.
Take a peek inside our Brussel Sprouts exploration!
We start every cooking and urban farming class with asking exploratory questions about our main vegetable of the day. For brussel sprouts, we were curious about if they grow from the inside-out, or the outside-in. We also tried to think of other vegetables that seem similar, and our students were right to think they were similar to cabbages as they are both members of the brassica family!