Should I attend a School Fair?

I attend a number of school fairs every year in Canada and around the world. They serve a very important purpose but you must take in what you learn and afterward evaluate all that you have been told. Yesterday, in Mexico, a woman arrived at my table and said "every school I have visited so far has told me they are the best, are you the best too?" My reply was, "that depends on what you are looking for." Was it an ESL program? No, we offer ESL support instead of full classes. Was it the best boarding program? Maybe, tell me more about your child... Remember, it is all about finding the right fit and the 'best' program for your child. At this fair, there were public school home stay programs for $20,000, private for profit boarding schools with almost entirely international student populations for $36,000, then there were…

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Choosing an independent school – respect deadlines but don’t feel you need to jump the gun

While searching for a boarding or day school, many parents and students get anxious and cloud their judgement by perceiving pressure or a need to conclude a process as quickly as possible (maybe just to be done with the stress of the search). My advice would be to remember that ultimately, the choice rests with a family over which school to attend.Ideally, a family should try to manage their various admission processes to coincide with one another. If say you have decided to apply to three schools, try to end up sitting with all three of your decisions at the same time so that you can make a decision without the pressure of conflicting response times.Toronto Day Schools/USA Common Offer DatesToronto day schools and many US boarding schools coordinate their offer dates to coincide with one another to help them manage their admission process. It also helps families to end…

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Boarding school is a privilege, not just for the privileged.

By definition, I suppose I grew up privileged. Sitting in Manila, a little closer than most to the recent devastation of Typhoon Haiyan or Yolanda as it is called here, I cannot help but reflect on the many blessings I have enjoyed in my lifetime. Manila was spared so today it is mostly life as usual, not so obviously for the hundreds of thousands left homeless and the thousands dead to the Southeast here in the Philippines. As we see the photos and read the newspaper accounts it is heartbreaking. We are very fortunate living in Canada. Next to my family, one of the blessings I am counting was the opportunity to attend a boarding school from Grade 9 to 13 (yes, prior to 2001 Ontario had a 13 year system instead of 12). I had attended camp every summer from the time I was eight so I jumped at…

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