Testimonials
Banbury Crossroads
25th Anniversary
Twenty-five years ago, when we transplanted our family from Ontario to a newer community here in Calgary, we were confronted with a crowded, unsympathetic education system that offered our children a long bus ride to a distant school in a mundane curriculum with no challenges. Ron and I started searching for alternatives to this dilemma, and became acquainted with Diane’s Banbury Crossroads Private School. We instantly liked her, and agreed with the methods she employed to instill values, self-esteem and a genuine love of information gathering into each of her charges. In the open-concept schoolroom, she made learning fun, by introducing the children to first-hand experiential situations. Apart from learning the compulsory ABC’s, they went camping in the wilderness, traipsed over the hoodoos in dinosaur country, spent a day at a farm, made menus from scratch, learned ballroom dancing, wrote, directed and acted in plays, produced woodworking marvels, and had a hand in animal husbandry right in the classroom, caring for rabbits and guinea pigs. The kids were encouraged to investigate, plan, execute and evaluate the ideas they wanted to explore. Nothing in their imaginations was too weird or out of reach. The varied experiences offered at BC made our two girls eager to go to school, and confident in their learning capabilities.
Diane’s teaching methods encouraged children to think and grow outside the ordinary parameters of grades and other measured standards. Students were allowed to progress at their own speed of comprehension, employ critical-thinking skills, and follow their internal drives and desires, and were not kept back because of age restrictions. The low teacher-to-student ratios meant that instructors were always accessible and available for questions and individual attention. As an extra bonus, the younger kids were helped and tutored along by the older classmates.
The vast majority of Diane’s graduates have emerged as confident, well-adjusted adults who place a high value on the importance of education, and early introduction to real-life experiences and adventures. Our own girls, Delaney and Rhiannon, are examples of successful individuals who possess high personal standards, confidence, integrity, manners, and are goal-oriented, all attributes of a combination of good parenting and exceptional education.
On behalf of our children, we are grateful to Diane and her staff for their generosity of spirit, and for exposing the Banbury students to a safe learning environment of love, sharing and caring.
Ron and Joy
May 2005
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