SETTLEMENT

| LIFE LESSONS | Jump start

Sometimes all it takes is a leap of faith

I’ve often heard of leaps of faith. When you just have to trust — your instincts, your destiny, the universe — that things will fall into place and work out for the best. It’s a nice romantic notion and the often-promised “happily ever after” is a tempting payoff. But when faced with the prospect of actually taking said jump, a sudden and paralyzing fear of gravity sets in.

I was freelancing as a television editor on weekends and some evenings after an eight-hour day at my full-time job. The wheels in my head had started turning. I was just about ready to quit the job I wasn’t quite suited for in favour of occasional shifts at one I loved.

While my own apprehension about the lack of stability that might follow was already overwhelming, the people surrounding me were chiming in with their own fears. With each “How will you pay the rent?” I began to let doubts scare me. With every “A paycheque is a paycheque,” I took two steps back.

I decided to stick it out for a while longer.

I have talked myself hoarse about approaching everything with a blind optimism — how positivity has given me the strength to achieve things I never dreamed of. And yet there I was letting fear get the best of me. And not even my own fear — but those of others who had completely separate life experiences from my own. Their reasons were based on their own struggles and insecurities. There was no reason to believe my life would have a similar outcome. Internalizing the anxieties of others had made me panic and clamber back onto stable but otherwise barren land.

Several longdistance phone calls followed. My wise and supportive mother and siblings talked me through some basic financial planning. In the meantime, the television station I worked freelance for came through with a promise of two months’ worth of shifts during the spring and summer seasons when the fulltime editors take their vacations. A sabbatical from my full-time job was not an option and so there I was, on the edge again, but this time I went for it.

With a grand total of $1,000 in my bank, which included all available credit, I gave my two weeks’ notice.

Combining a little bit of calculation, a whole lot of belief and a generous amount of bravado was all it took. Two months of freelancing turned into two years and the several wondrous opportunities that followed. All because I chose to go ahead and take that storied leap.

Life lesson no. 6 — fear of the unknown may or may not protect you from failure. But it will most certainly keep you from success. You might as well jump.

Indian-born Dilshad Burman came to Canada as an international student and is now the host of Omni Television’s V-Mix. She has plenty of life lessons to share with other young immigrants. See all her “Life Lessons” at canadianimmigrant.ca.

WWW.ACCOUNTS4U.CA

Accounting * Investments * Insurance

☛ Assistance to new immigrants - Guidance in nding jobs, assistance

to qualify for Govt. grants**

☛ Initial consultation at “No-Charge” for corporation, Self employed &

individuals.

☛ Emergency Medical Insurance for rst 90 days for new immigrants

(OHIP eligibility wait period) **Get a "FREE" $ 25 dollar Gift card, as "Welcome to Canada" from us.

ASHU (Ash) OHRI

Professional Advisor-Financial Security

416.930.2300 ABHISHEK DUA

Certi ed General Accountant

416.319.2300 Call us today toll 1.877.893.3059

The ABCs of starting school

And how parents can help transition their children successfully to kindergarten and beyond

By Farah Kazim

September is marked on our calendars as a time to leave the carefree days of summer behind and embrace the start of a new academic year. It is truly a time of change, as students, parents and teachers are encouraged to start with a clean slate and open a new page in their books.

Transitions are not always easy, yet they are essential for the growth of human development. How do these transitions impact the development of our youngest students, specifically newcomers who may have recently arrived from another country?

Children will experience numerous transitions in their life, arguably the most significant of which is the transition from their home environment to preschool or kindergarten, according to the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Successful transitions With this in mind, it is important that parents and teachers work collaboratively to support student success in their new environment. Smooth transitions are achievable through the love, support and understanding of caregivers, the encouragement and guidance from teachers, and the trust, acceptance and inclusion from their peers.

Language is key The ability to communicate is one of the main tenets of a high-quality, early childhood program within the Canadian educational system. However, this is easier said than done, as newcomer students differ in the rate at which they acquire basic English skills.

To help their children, parents can act as partners in the language learning process by playing games such as Pictionary, in which players try to identify words in English from various drawings and visual cues. They can also use a translation dictionary as a tool of reference for children to discover the meaning of new words. Your local library may also have bilingual books and audio-visual CDs to further enhance literacy development. These materials will help young readers decode unfamiliar words and phrases, especially idiomatic expressions.

Playing English songs and nursery rhymes will also help newcomer children learn through repeated phrases and sequencing of words.

Newcomer students should also be encouraged to join extracurricular after-school activities and clubs that appeal to their interests. This will, in turn, enhance their language ability, skillset and instill a sense of community.

School strategies Parents should also be open to strategies the teacher might employ. The elementary teacher is often charged with the responsibility to make judicious choices regarding the pairing of students, whereby a less fluent learner is matched with one who is more familiar with English. Research supports that when this system is used appropriately, the power of observational learning is limitless.

Finally, to facilitate the optimal transition, newcomer parents should volunteer their time in the classroom and school, understanding that learning is a joint venture between the parent, child and teacher.

Ltitikfifiti fiti titifik fifi fitifi fifififififififi fifififififififi fififi fififififififififi fififififififififififi titititi tiAN HtiLP!

Gfifi fififififififi titi fifikfifiti fitifi fitifififififi titifi fifififiti Vfifififi fifi fifi titititifitififitififi fitififititi

tititititititititififi tifififi 1-888-865-2437

*titititi tififitififififi titititititi fifi fi fifififififififi fififififififiti fififififititifi fififitififififi tititififiti titifififi titi fitifi tifififififitifififi tififififi tififitififififi titi tifififififi tititititititi