www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, January 18, 2012 · 14 Lifelong learning... A tradition at Dearcroft Learning is truly a lifelong journey and as an Oakville tradition for nearly 45 years, Dearcroft Montessori School has been providing a remarkable setting for lessons in life since 1968. At Dearcroft , we believe children learn best by experiencing curriculum in a warm, nurturing environment where individual attention and a strong community atmosphere prevails. With an enrolment of 170 students, we are an optimally sized neighborhood school with a national reputation for excellence. At Dearcroft, every student is recognized and celebrated for their individual strengths. Our exceptional team of highly experienced and motivated staff, make sure of this every day! Located on a spacious and historic campus on a beautifully wooded estate property near the lake, we are walking distance to downtown Oakville. As one of Canada's oldest and bestrespected Montessori Schools, Dearcroft is unique. Balancing tradition and innovation... at Dearcroft, we enjoy a strong family atmosphere, focused on a thriving, child-centred community. We offer the highest Montessori standards complemented by an incredibly ambitious experiential education program that expands our learning opportunities far beyond the classroom walls. As Oakville's only Montessori school currently offering Preschool to Grade 8, our award winning Expedition Education and West Wind Jr. High program augments a comprehensive learning environment for children aged 3-14. Children who attend our school learn to work collaboratively and with purpose. In addition to the incredibly well balanced internationally acclaimed Montessori curriculum for which we are well known, our school also places a strong emphasis on French, Music, Drama and the Arts. Extensive opportunities in athletics, Winter Trip, extra curricular activities and environmental/natural history based travel round out a globally inspired curriculum. From Model United Nations conferences in New York, to hands on study of the Great Lakes watershed, exploring the ecology of The Florida Keys & Everglades or visiting Canadian treasures like the Yukon... no destination is too ambitious for our extended classroom. At Dearcroft, we believe education is not a race... but a lifelong journey with friends. Come and visit the school you'll wish you'd attended as a kid! Join us Saturday, January 21st (10 a.m.-2 p.m.) at our Winter Open House or call us for an appointment at (905) 844-2114. ...where every single child is valued, supported, encouraged and treasured Bronte Harbour Nursery School OPEN HOUSE AND REGISTRATION Saturday February 4, 2012 10:00 am 12 noon 905-465-3508 RECYCLE LEARN program helps Canadians take control of their future "When you go back to school you will feel nervous, but when you step in and see that you are not alone, that there are other people in this world facing the same situation, you will like it," says Evelyn. Evelyn is one more adult in Canada who decided to take control, upgrade her skills, and become more optimistic about her future. When Evelyn immigrated to Canada she felt her literacy and math skills were not at the level she wanted them to be, and this was preventing her from achieving her goals. She wanted to go back to school to learn what she had missed out on and to improve her self-esteem. "It has helped me a lot," she says. "In the beginning people asked me so many questions that I didn't have the answer to. Now, I do have answers and I can help them too." Evelyn made the call and enrolled in the Literacy and Basic Skills program offered by the Peel District School Board, which serves more than 150,000 students from kindergarten to grade 12, as well as adults who wish to be better prepared for employment purposes, personal development or to further their education and training. Just like Evelyn, thousands of learners find help by visiting LookUnderLearn.ca or by looking under the heading 'LEARN' in the Yellow Pages. This initiative, Canada's first national literacy campaign, was born in 1994 from collaboration between ABC Life Literacy Canada and the Yellow Pages Group. The program enables Canadians to find contact information for their local literacy organizations so they can improve their literacy skills, no matter what their current level. Although there are thousands of Canadians who feel like literacy programs could help them in the long run, research from ABC Life Literacy Canada shows that less than 10 per cent of Canadians who could benefit from literacy upgrading programs actually enroll. Barriers such as job schedules or money problems, lack of childcare, and transportation are some of the reasons that prevent people from enrolling. Problems are bound to occur. Life is not always smooth-sailing and might sometimes drift us away from our goals. But keeping the objective in mind and understanding the importance of literacy for your life and for your family's wellbeing is essential. As Evelyn underlines, "Don't be ashamed of going back to school, be ashamed if you don't do anything about it." www.newscanada.com 2489 Lakeshore Road West (in Walton Church) www.bronteharbournurseryschool.ca THIS NEWSPAPER Education is not a race.... It's a lifelong journey with friends Since 1968 Dearcroft Montessori School Dearcroft Montessori School Pre-School to Grade 8 OPEN HOUSE Sat. Jan. 21 10am - 2pm 1167 Lakeshore Rd. E. Oakville, Ontario L6J 1L3 (905) 844-2114 www.dearcroft.com