This morning when I was reading the news this article from the Sydney Morning Herald caught my eye: "Birthday cakes banned at Only About Sydney childcare centre in Surry Hills".

There are, without a doubt, people who will have the opinion that this is unAustralian and ridiculous and then there will be those who will be thinking "Hooray!". Most of you are unfamiliar with the fact that I am not afraid to weigh in with my own opinion, so here it is...

Having grown up in a very religious family who didn't celebrate birthdays or other occasions from the age of 4 I used to dread birthday parties at school in particular. Often I would be asked to leave the room and go to the library. It was very isolating as I felt as though I was being punished.

As term four looms ahead many thoughts turn to Sports Day (the equivalent of Fields Day in the USA). While many schools have theirs in term 1 while summer is still in full swing many other schools choose term 4.

I remember practising endlessly with PE teachers in preparation for Sports Day. The enthusiasm of students when they saw the groundsman had marked out the running and hurdle tracks was overwhelming. All students would be out there at recess and lunch practising with friends. Does this still happen?

7 Wonders clipart (c) Phillip Martin

I have blogged before about my love of ancient civilisations. I love history and love to teach about it.

While digging through an old file (as I slow organise and burn them to CD) I came across some photos from a few years ago.

I taught in this particular composite 6/7 class for one term. They were a fairly sheltered bunch in the sense they attended a very small school and had limited exposure to different teachers - including teaching technique, style and expectations. I never apologise for the fact I have high expectations of students - how else will they challenge themselves?