Throughout the academic year, Melinda Giampietro, Options Founder/President, will share some of her favourite things. Melinda loves reading, data, research, and following academic and adolescent news around the world.
Welcome to fall (although it still feels like summer in Vancouver!).
October’s Featured Recipes:
We have many fall traditions at Options Solutions. It is our busiest season, so we have lots of team building/bonding events. It is a tradition that I bake something for each of these. I look to the blog Sally’s Baking Recipes for full-proof seasonal recipes that are easy to follow.
Team Options two favourite recipes of 22-23 so far have been: Pumpkin Crumb Cake Muffins and Apple Cinnamon Bread
October’s Featured Podcast:
Teenage Therapy
This is the best. One of my students (thanks, VV!) turned me on to this. Spotify describes it as: Five stressed, sleep-deprived, yet energetic teens sit down and talk about the struggles that come with being a teenager. A podcast that’s a coming-of-age story portrayed in real-time. A culmination of mistakes and growth and a reminder you’re not alone.
It covers everything from Feeling Misunderstood, Is this Considered Cheating, Immigrant Parents, and How to Throw a House Party. I find the five teens honest, open, hysterical, and genuine in reflecting on their world and their places within it.
October’s Featured Article:
We take writing and reading seriously at Options. I enjoy following the research around reading and post-secondary success. I also know that high school students need more varied study strategies. You can’t cue card everything. Strong readers can handle a variety of academic disciplines with ease. I found this article valuable in its clarity and simplicity to improve reading skills. Number three: Link reading to real life is something more high school students would benefit from.
October’s Featured Instagram
@terasumpter_slp
I, honestly, don’t know how I stumbled on this. But it is one of my favourite follows. Tera is an author, Speech-Language Pathologist, and executive function expert. Her content is research-based, insightful, and able to be applied almost immediately. I find it fascinating to track how a student acquires (from birth) executive function habits. One of her recent posts on Gauging (what resources will be needed for a future task) was great to help me consider the new language I needed to coach my students through the pre-thinking stages
October’s Vancouver Favourite Find
Meet Sculpt Studio!
Located at 1083 Cambie and owned by Jade Lipton, Sculpt Studio is an incredible new workout option in Yaletown. Jade has been my virtual trainer since March 2020, when the writing was on the wall that there would be no more in-person fitness classes. She is a powerhouse motivator, a pump-up playlist master, and a stickler for proper form. She features a variety of classes; Sculpt Strength, which uses a barbell, is my favourite. Her new spot is clean, bright, and motivating. Come join me for a class.
October’s Featured Book
Many, many, many moons ago, I started my career as an AP English and AP American Government teacher. I miss it often in the fall. I loved creating a safe space and having a classroom bubbling with discussion. I especially enjoyed exploring the universal themes of humanity through literature and introducing students to contemporary classics. My two favourite books to teach were Crime and Punishment (with all of its moral dilemmas) and All the Pretty Horses (with its lack of traditional punctuation). I am re-reading both this fall to reminisce in the glory days of classroom teaching.
