A Dread of Many; A Passion of Momsey

Becoming a parent seemed to open up a new vista for me: public speaking. While our children attended elementary school, I began to volunteer in the kindergarten classroom and the school, familiar environments for me. ... Having been a former secondary school teacher, I felt right at home in the classroom. It made sense to me. ...Years  later, I was nominated for the region's teacher elementary school award, then chosen out of more than 1,000, to be given this prestigious honour. I wrestled with what to say on stage. To simply say thank you and leave seemed empty. Thanking everyone who helped get me to this place of honour was the right thing to do. After all, success is a team sport! My foray into public speaking had begun.

When our oldest graduated from grade 8, I was asked to give the parent address... Many had declined the offer, in previous years, for a host of reasons. I accepted, afraid to say no... If you have something important to say, you must say it. Fear can impede progress. With title in hand, I kept the speech brief, 3-5 minutes in length while keeping the audience awake!... My speech had to enlighten, educate or entertain or I had failed.... The speech was a success... References to the Canadian military leader, who had been on a speaking tour, at that time, were made in connection to my speech by our sons' male teacher. ... I was humbled by his words and the whole experience. ... In the audience that evening was ‘Mary’ who later asked me to join her in September to volunteer in her primary intensive language classroom. More opportunities to speak - on behalf of special needs children - would follow.

After two years of working in Mary’s class, I was asked to participate in a Professional Development Day conference for teachers of the region north of Toronto, one of the largest in Canada. I spoke at length about my ‘anecdotal’ evidence of the power of yeast dough in the special needs classroom, while Mary spoke about her testing methods. ... (Mary was the school's primary lead teacher as well as the primary intensive language teacher of the school our sons had attended)... Two sessions that day - each with 22 teachers in attendance - told me I had something important to communicate. Mary believed in 'us'. Mary noted how attentive the teachers had been as I spoke. She had rarely seen such concentration, having been both participant and presenter on many other occasions. ... Later, I learned, we had been asked to be presenters at a province wide conference (Ontario) towards the end of summer  but Mary had a prior commitment. ..  Sadly, we could not participate.... 

Public speaking, I soon realized, became something I enjoyed doing.... (There was a reason behind this madness)... In order to tell my story of yeast dough and its  affect on 'higher order' thinking and language in the hands and mind of the special  needs child, I had to get over any fear or anxiety I might have speaking to large audiences. ... The message was too important to keep to myself. ... The world of special education required that I tell the story of primal academic transformation. ... It was a simple story, with a simple strategy that worked, inspiring children and helping them reach the top of their ‘game’ in a easy transferable manner in a structured, formalized setting called school... The world of special education is my passion....  Public speaking is simply a tool in its delivery....Next week:  The pharmaceutical giant in the kitchen.