October 2011

  • Classroom Jack-O-Lanterns

    Here’s one of the pumpkins we carved for my class. One of my students drew the silhouetted cat using a black permanent marker. I was really surprised to find out that we didn’t need a sharp knife to carve our pumpkins. We used a common butter knife and it worked perfectly, even for such a […]


  • A Photographic Tour of Pinafore Park

    Pinafore Park is one of the jewels of St. Thomas, Ontario. It is also the focus of today’s Visual Running Tour. I didn’t know where this trail would lead, how long it was, or how great a run it would be. But sometimes it’s just fun to take off and run into the unknown. The trail […]


  • Tackling NaNoWriMo – Am I Crazy?

    I must be crazy. I’m thinking of participating in National Novel Writing Month this year. The goal is simple – write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. It sounds simple, but that’s 1,700 words a day for each day of the month. I’m pretty busy with my teaching career, family commitments, and […]


  • Why Are You Learning?

    We have a special treat for you today, a guest post from Hilary Melton-Butcher. She shares all sorts of interesting stories on her amazing blog Positive Letters . . . Inspirational Stories.  Today, she contributes a guest post for our Teaching Tip Tuesday series, and she addresses our students directly. So please share this with your […]


  • Avril Lavigne Rocks London, Ontario!

    Avril Lavigne knows how to put on a live show. She has energy and enthusiasm and it is clear that she really loves rocking out. The crowd definitely was on her side this weekend. The uproar was deafening as she took to the stage at the John Labatt Centre. She worked through her extensive catalog […]


  • Guess Where I’m Going Tonight?

    That’s right! I’m going to the Avril Lavigne concert. I can’t wait! I’ve seen Avril in concert before. It was 2004 and she was touring to support her second album. I was impressed how she played several different instruments in the show; guitar, piano, and even the drums. The crowd was really hyped and sang […]


  • The Manhattans Still Relevant (5 Decades In)

    I really enjoyed interviewing The Manhattans and catching their amazing live show earlier this summer.  I hope you enjoy it as well. Read the transcript from the very start , download the podcast, or just continue reading.  Today, we conclude our coverage for Silent Cacophony and DOPEfm.  Chase: “Are any of you involved in side projects or […]


  • The Manhattans Interview Part 2

    Let’s continue our interview with legendary R&B group The Manhattans as recorded from the green room of the bandshell at the Canadian National Exhibition earlier this year. If you missed Part 1, you can go back and read it now, you can download the entire show for free, stream it with the player below, or […]


  • The Manhattans Interview

    Today, we have a special treat for all of you. An interview with legendary R&B group The Manhattans. You can download the podcast for free, stream it with the player below, or just continue reading. Chase: “All right everybody, this is Chase March. Daddy J and I are here at the CNE with three members […]


  • A Blogging Milestone – 100,000 Page Views

    Silent Cacophony has hit a milestone. This humble little blog now has over 100,000 page views.   That feels like reason to celebrate. Bring on the fireworks! For some reason, my numbers fluctuate each week. This is what traffic looked like over the past week. I know that I don’t have a superstar blog. But […]