Rik Leaf's Blog, page 8

Change the World

Change Your Words You Can Change The World!

I spent four days in École Central Elementary School working with all 360 students to produce this multi media creative literacy project called, Change The World/Change le Monde. Since posting this video online, it has been viewed 9.9K times and was featured on CJDC TV news. 

Words like ‘madhouse’ ‘bedlam’ and ‘creative chaos’ were used on several occasions and some of the more ‘senior staff’ were captured on video covering their ears in a desperate attempt to muffle the deafening cheers. (Though smiles tugged suspiciously at the corners of their mouths at the same time)

The Plan…produce a digital media project that celebrated the community life of the school, highlighting themes like social responsibility and leadership and really set the tone for the school year. When I arrived Monday morning, I was given a schedule that looked like a piece of homework that maybe the dog actually should have eaten. Teacher’s names were scribbled and scrawled…some were crossed out and redirected with curved double-ended arrows indicating a reshuffling of exotic ingredients in some madcap creative recipe. I’m kidding! It actually showed me that the staff were engaged and excited to make this plan work for everyone. Cooperation is key to success!

Day One…I dashed from room to room interviewing all the students. What words did they use to describe their school, their class, teacher and friends? I asked them for personal stories of how someone had made their life better. I wrote everything down.

I compiled word banks and created a cache of stories from these interviews. A big colourful sign in the hallway that said, ‘Change Your Words, Change Your Mindset’ really caught my eye. (and imagination) At the end of Day One I sat down and channeled the day’s inspiration and wrote a song called, Change the World.

Day Two…bright and early I was once again scampering through the hallways, drifting in and out of classrooms like a wandering minstrel, teaching the new song to each class. In between rehearsals we worked out visual components of our project. Ecole Central is a French Immersion school, so language is a big part of their identity. ARTS posters are pinned on every wall spelling out the school’s community values. Acceptance/Accepter, Respect/Respecter, Together/Tous, Security/Sécurité.

Plans emerged for each classroom make giant, colourful posters that spelled out these words. It was a tactile way for the kids to engage with the words that express the values that create a safe, encouraging environment that foster their hopes and dreams.

We covered a huge area in one hallway with paper, creating a ‘School Wall’ where students could write personal iMessages like, ‘I feel safe here’ ‘I respect my friends.’ In the brilliant words of one little dude, ‘this is the most awesomeist graffiti ever!’

I explored the wild side of the playground with my camera, capturing the kid’s energy and enthusiasm in their natural habitat. When you’re in elementary school, the playground is where the real work of respect, acceptance and togetherness is done.

Day Three…flew by in a blur of filming, drawing, colouring and rehearsing as I raced from the highest room in the tallest tower to the deep dark recesses of Central’s WWII era basement. I’m not going to lie, 360 kids keep you hopping. One of things I love about being a facilitator is the energy builds exponentially because everyone is able to be involved in a way that plays to their strengths. I’m not the horse or the wagon…I’m just the wild guy with the guitar having the time of his life playing a melody that lets us sing together at ear-bleeding levels.

Day Four…the momentum continued to build through the day, coming to a deafening ‘world changing’ crescendo at the assembly in the gym, where the mood was electric and the kids sang so loud it felt like an AC/DC concert. I set up my portable recording gear and we proceeded to record and film the song three different times.

I bring 18 years of experience as a professional writer, performer and producer in the music, TV and film industry to each school to help students discover their talents, gifts and abilities so they can tell their story in ways they haven’t before. If this is something that would interest your school or community please contact me! info@rikleaf.com

It is a privilege to be able to invest in the lives of others.

Merci Beaucoup…Change le Monde!

 

 

 

The post Change the World appeared first on Rik Leaf.

Grade 9 Slam Poetry

Collected Teenage Thoughts – Grade 9 Group Slam

A couple of weeks ago I was at Bert Bowes Middle School. In my first slam poetry session with a grade 9 class, I asked them to each write 2-3 lines. Then I asked them to hand their papers in and compiled their individual lines into one group poem, and then slammed it for them.

I asked them to write about what they would say to someone in their school that was going through a hard time, or what they would want someone to say to them. This poem is entirely their words.

We See You

We see you drowning in black and blue

Walking the hallways

Like you’re alone hanging onto lost memories of yellow

We all know what it feels like

Some of us have got chewed up and spit out

And others…ground up and pureed into a melancholy milkshake

Of despair and regret

Where hope is just the sour cherry on top

We see the way that the darkness is changing you

Trapped in the black clouds that spew out of other’s mouths

Locked in a sunless world with little forgiveness

We watch as you fall apart

Trying to hide everything in your heart

But it’s not who you are

We feel your pain

And pray to god the dark clouds bring rain to wash yesterday away

Cause we know how you feel

Watch you wander wearily down the winding road of emotions

Wandering through the wilderness with winter winds whipping at your face

You don’t have to hide your emotions away like unmentionables

We want you to be happy to see a good day

Get back in the yellow

It’s OK if you feel broken for a while

We are here for you…wanna hug?

Slam Poetry is a combination of creative writing and creative performance. Introducing slam poetry in a school setting, gives students an opportunity to approach words in a creative and unexpected way. Where a traditional poet wrote with the expectation that their audience would read their words…a slam poet knows that they only way an audience will ever experience their poem is if they perform it.

This is great for an emerging writer, cause if no one but them is going to read it, then they don’t have to worry about spelling, grammar or punctuation. As long as they know what they’re saying, that’s all that matters.

A Note To Teachers

Starting with a group slam does a couple of things. It provides a really manageable first step for first time writers. There is no expectation to fill an entire page…everyone just has has to write a line or two. It also provides the security of anonymity. As I read each submission out loud and arrange the different lines, no one knows who wrote what. This lets a student see how their words, thoughts and ideas fit and compare with those around them. This usually encourages them because they recognize that they are just as good as anyone else, and as we move into later sessions where they are encouraged to slam their own poetry in front of the class, it provides that initial confidence necessary to take a creative risk and do something for the first time.

For this video, I wandered down their hallway, imagining their words finding the friends who needed to hear them. I included the music from one of my spoken word songs called, Get Up & Start Over, that I initially recorded with Janet Rogers, who was the poet laureate for Victoria, B.C. at the time.

If you’re interested in booking a slam poetry workshop in your school, contact info@rikleaf.com or call 250-896-2572

The post Grade 9 Slam Poetry appeared first on Rik Leaf.

Everything You Need To Know About Slam Poetry

The Sound of a Student Finding Their Voice

“I need your help for this next one” I say, staring into the eyes of every student not looking down at their phone.

“When I put my hand up in the air I need you to yell, ‘What If?'” I say, striding across the front of the classroom. As I raise my hand above my head a few kids in the front say, “what if?”

“Louder than that!” I say, throwing my hand up again. Most of the class responds, but still not with the energy I need.

“LOUDER THAN THAT!” I below, throwing my hand up dramatically.

“WHAT IF!?” the class screams, as I let loose with a barrage of words slammed fast a furious in response to their question.

Slam Poetry is Not Acting or Rap

In less than 10 seconds I’ve established that slam poetry involves approaching words in a new and unexpected way. Slam poetry is creative, it’s original, fun and unlike anything else you might think would be like it. Slam poetry is different than acting, because we don’t use any props or costumes. It’s not like rap or hiphop, because there is no music or beats. Slam is just about words.

I’ve taught slam poetry to thousands of students over the last 1o years, and I’ve seen some come alive in a way no one, (especially them) ever imagined. Slam poetry changed my life and I love bringing slam into schools because I was one of those students, the one that struggled with spelling and could never remember the rules of grammar and punctuation. But slam poetry isn’t about any of those rules. Slam is about personal expression and discovering a creative voice as an individual. That’s what I found so exciting and empowering as a slam poet myself, and what I love to share with students.

A Whole Other World of Words

Traditional poetry was published in books and journals and the audience experienced the work by reading the words of the poet. That’s how it was expressed and received. But slam poetry is a whole other world of words. A slam poet’s writing is never read by anyone but them, and is only experienced by an audience when the poet performs their words, or ‘slams’ them. So if you have students who struggle with the rules of writing and can’t remember a simile from a metaphor and think an onomatopoeia is a mammal from the southern hemisphere, slam poetry might just be the very thing you’re looking for to get them excited in creative writing. Like this slam poem below that an elementary student gave me at the end of the week.

Elementary Slam Poem

If I hadn’t just heard the elementary student slam this poem, I’m not sure I would have been able to even understand what she’d written. I mean she couldn’t even spelling ‘the’ correctly. But it didn’t matter. She wrote all week long. She was always the first one to put her hand up to perform. When I showed this to her teacher, that’s when I found out this little girl had never written anything in class before, and had never volunteered to participate at the front of the class. But when we took the rules away, she was able to approach words in a way that let her express herself. We can always learn to spell ‘the’ and how to use commas and periods, but it takes a safe place to take a risk and try something for the first time. You can hear me read this in a VIDEO HERE.

Irreverent Sense of Humour*Searing Sarcasm & Biting Wit

I’ve spent a lot of time working with teachers trying to engage the students at the back of the room. You know the ones with the ball cap pulled down and hoodie pulled up, slouched over, distracted and disengaged. Well full disclosure…that was me in school. That’s why I keep an eye on them as I introduce slam. When we get to the part of the session where everyone starts to write I make a point of drifting over to their desk where I give a little speech. “Your irreverent sense of humour, your searing sarcasm and biting wit is exactly what will make you an interesting slam poet. If you’re mad, write about being mad. If you’re sad, write about being sad…write about anything at all, just find your voice because it’s an amazing feeling to be able to share your story with the world.”

In every school teachers come up at the end of our session and share what a miracle it was when such-and-such a kid got up and shared. And without knowing anything about the student I know exactly what they’re talking about…cause once upon a time, that kid they’re talking about was me. Slam poetry changed my life.

If you are a teacher looking for ways to get your students excited in creative writing and self expression, slam poetry might be the very thing you’re looking for. I have produced a Slam Poetry in Schools, training course for teachers. There are a series of instructional videos, downloadable lesson plans with learning objectives along with sample slam poems for each lesson. Basically everything you need as a teacher if you’re interested in using slam poetry in your class. The material is adaptable to all grades and learning levels. If this sounds like something you’re interested in, check out my FREE slam poetry email course and learn more.

About This Life, is a slam poem I like to perform for students when I come into a school. I wrote it about the way Disney had taught me to see the world. It’s one of those themes that students can relate to. You can CLICK HERE to watch.

 

Hi, I’m Rik Leaf,

As a performer/producer, published author and slam poet, discovering the value of my own creative talents and abilities has allowed me to tour the world, and participate in some life changing projects with the United Nations and the Foreign Affairs Department of Canada.

I’m the author of, Four Homeless Millionaires – How One Family Found Riches By Leaving Everything Behind, and the Creative Director for Tribe of One, an international collective of indigenous artists, musicians, dancers and slam poets.

Developing the Slam Poetry in Schools training course for teachers, is a passion project 10 years in the making.

The post Everything You Need To Know About Slam Poetry appeared first on Rik Leaf.

Slam Poetry in Schools

Slam Poetry in Schools – Finding Your Voice

I love bringing slam poetry into schools. I was always the student that struggled with spelling and could never remember the rules of grammar and punctuation. But slam poetry isn’t about any of that. Slam is about personal expression and discovering a creative voice as an individual. That’s what I found so exciting and empowering and what I love to share with students.

I spend a lot of time working with teachers in schools across the country who struggle trying to engage the kid at the back of the room with the ball cap pulled down and hoodie pulled up, slouched over, distracted and disengaged. (that was me) So I keep an eye on them as I introduce the subject and slam a few poems. When we get to the part of the session where everyone starts to write I make a point of drifting over to their desk where I give a little speech. “Your irreverent sense of humour, or searing sarcasm or biting wit is exactly what will make you an interesting slam poet. If you’re mad, write about being mad. If you’re sad, write about being sad…write about anything at all, just find your voice because it’s an amazing feeling to be able to share your story with the world.”

In virtually every school I visit, teachers come up to me at the end of our session and share what a miracle it was when such-and-such a kid got up and shared. And without knowing anything about the student I know exactly what they’re talking about…cause once upon a time, that kid they’re talking about was me.

A Note To Teachers

Slam Poetry is a combination of creative writing and creative performance. Introducing slam poetry in a school setting, gives students an opportunity to approach words in a creative and unexpected way. Where a traditional poet wrote with the expectation that their audience would read their words…a slam poet knows that they only way an audience will ever experience their poem is if they perform it. This is great for an emerging writer, cause if no one but them is going to read it, then they don’t have to worry about spelling, grammar or punctuation. As long as they know what they’re saying, that’s all that matters.

If you’re interested in bringing slam poetry to your school, contact info@rikleaf.com or call 250-896-2572.

The post Slam Poetry in Schools appeared first on Rik Leaf.

Poetry Slam in Schools

Slam Poetry in Schools – Finding Our Voice

I absolutely love bringing slam poetry into schools. See, I was always the student that struggled with spelling and could never remember the rules of grammar and punctuation. But slam poetry isn’t about any of that. Slam is about personal expression and discovering a creative voice as an individual. That’s what I found so exciting and empowering.

I spend a lot of time working with teachers in schools across the country. I know the struggles to engage the kid at the back of the room with the ball cap pulled down and hoodie pulled up, slouched over, distracted and disengaged. I usually keep an eye on them as I introduce the subject and slam the first few poems.

When we get to the part of session where everyone starts to write I make a point of drifting over to their desk where I give a little speech. “Your irreverent sense of humour, searing sarcasm or biting wit is exactly what will make you an interesting slam poet. If you’re mad, write about being mad. If you’re sad, write about being sad. You can write about anything at all, just find your voice and you’ll be amazed at how it feels to be able to share your story with the world.”

In virtually every school I visit, teachers come up to me at the end of our session and share what a miracle it was when such-and-such a kid got up and shared. And without knowing anything about the student I know exactly what they’re talking about…cause once upon a time, that kid they’re talking about was me.

If you’re interested in bringing slam poetry to your school, contact info@rikleaf.com or call 250-896-2572.

The post Poetry Slam in Schools appeared first on Rik Leaf.

How To Travel The World When You Can’t Afford It

Two Kinds of Travellers – Which One Are You?

In my experience, there are two kinds of travelers. Some have money and no time. These are the travelers who typically book all-inclusive resorts and cruises, where they can just pay a bill and have everything worked out for them. Other travelers have time and no money, and when you’re in that situation you need to get creative. Our family certainly approached our year traveling around the world with a wild sense of monetarily-challenged creative innovation. Here are some of the ways we traveled the world when we couldn’t afford to.

Accommodations are a huge expense when traveling. Depending on where you are in the world and what time of year, even an economy hotel can cost $150.00 a night or more. That’s a $1050.00 a week or $4200.00 a month. If you traveled for a year like we did, you’d spend over 50K just on accommodations. That’s more than our family of four spent the entire year we traveled for accommodations, meals, airfare, vehicle rentals, food, etc.

Friends, Family and Distant Relations

We have a very social house and lifestyle. We like it when friends and family come to stay with us, and we enjoy staying with others. So if you’re like us, then tapping into your social network is a huge resource. Zara reached out to a friend in Hawaii she hadn’t seen in almost 20 years. We ended up staying with Sean and Alice in their condo in Mililani for two weeks. Packing two families into a three-bedroom condo for two weeks could have been a recipe for disaster. But if you can be respectful, considerate and FUN, you can avoid most conflict and create an awesome experience for everyone. Our time in Hawaii was a highlight for our entire family and our hosts.

In Malaysia, we jumped onboard the wedding celebration for one of Zara’s cousins. This let us focus on just getting ourselves to Penang. Once we were there, we were able to enjoy three weeks of plans made by someone else, including staying in apartments they’d secured outside of the tourist zone, saving us a bundle.

We spent our first week in Australia with relatives in Sydney. One of their family friends invited us to stay at his sheep farm in the Outback. We accepted his invitation too. Not only did these invitations save us money, they provided us with experiences we simply wouldn’t have been able to have on our own.

We booked hostels more than hotels. Not only we were able to rent private family rooms for around $70.00 a night, they also provided us access to a kitchen, which meant we could avoid restaurants and the high costs of eating out. And you never know what will happen…like one night we met a family from England at a hostel in Australia who invited us to stay with them when we made it to the UK. Which we did for a week six months later.

Hospitality Networks

There are many different organizations that provide alternative ways to budget travel like COUCHSURFING, TRUSTED HOUSESITTERS and WORK AWAY. Just before we left Canada, we discovered SERVAS, an international hospitality network of hosts and travelers. After a brief interview and one-time payment of $70.00, we were able to access a list of all the Servas hosts in any country we visited. Servas hosts provide two nights accommodation for free, along with supper and breakfast. All they ask in return is that you share an hour or two a day hanging out and sharing stories with each other. We used this network extensively in Australia and New Zealand. Win-win!

In Rome, we stayed with Zara’s godmother for four days. In Arona, we housesat for friends of a friend for 10 days over Easter while they were away. The only thing they asked in exchange was for us to puppy-sit while we were there. We were in Italy for over two weeks and only paid for one night when we hiked Cinque Terre.

A great guest can break up the monotony of a schedule and make a Monday night feel like the weekend. It works if you like staying with people, and people staying with you. We knew we were going to do this, so we brought prints of Zara’s artwork and my CDs to give away as presents. When a band goes on tour or plays a festival, the cast and crew wear ‘All Access’ passes during the show. We made ‘Leaf World Tour’ All Access Passes, and gave them to every host we stayed with. On the front, we’d arranged our luggage in the shape of an Inukshuk, which is a human figure traditionally built out of rocks by the Inuit people of northern Canada to signify a place of shelter, food, water or to mark the way for others. We wanted to honour everyone who had provided us a place to stay and made our tour possible.

Samurai Beach Bungalows, hostel, Port Stephens, Australia http://www.samuraiportstephens.com.au/

Eating Out vs. Eating In

When we’re traveling, just like when we’re at home, we rarely eat in restaurants. Prices are high, our satisfaction is low…so at the end of the meal it usually seems like we’ve spent a lot of money to be vaguely dissatisfied. When traveling, we choose to eat simple fare in the most exotic locations possible.

Our ‘world tour meal’ involved a baguette, Brie, spicy meats, olives, fruits, chips, crackers, hummus, wine, juice, chocolate. We ate some version of this meal on beaches, mountaintops, coastal cliffs and under tropical sunsets…it never felt like roughing it.

Transportation

Traveling on a budget as a family forced us to make some specific decisions for transportation. Our kids were 13 and 9 years old at the time. They were carrying their own backpacks, but it wasn’t realistic to expect them to endure (and enjoy) full days of planes, trains, and buses with all their stuff. So we rented cars. It gave us maximum flexibility when scheduling day trips and where and when we wanted to go. It also gave us a place to leave our stuff so we didn’t always have to carry everything all the time.

This worked great in Australia as we drove from Sydney to Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road and all the way up to Coonamble and the Australian Outback. In New Zealand, we chose JUICY RENTALS. They have a service called, El CheapO, where they rent older cars. (I admit I commonly referred to it as El CrapO) We flew into Christchurch and the Juicy shuttle picked us up at our hotel the next day. We drove all over the south Island, including some pretty spectacular off-road goat trails! Included in the rental, Juicy arranged our ferry to the north island where we toured for another three weeks, eventually dropping the car off in Auckland when we flew to Europe. It was perfect. 

Another cool option that just might work for you is a service called, Campervan Relocation. The company rents campervans, and from time to time have too many vehicles in one depot or the other. If they need a campervan moved from Auckland to Christchurch or visa versa, and that’s a direction you’d like to travel, you can drive one of their campervans for them. 

They describe it this way on their website, “Campervan relocation is an extremely cost effective and fun way to check out parts of New Zealand and visit friends that you struggle to see and catch up with. If you get your timing right, we have deals going from as low as $1 per day for a campervan relocation! Sometimes we will even pay for the vehicle on the ferry and if it’s your lucky day we will even pay for your ticket on the ferry too! If you have not explored much of New Zealand, then this is a fantastic way to get out there and experience it.”

For our time in Europe, we rented a super economical diesel car from EUROPCAR in France because they have a great tourism incentive if you pick up and drop off in France. For around $1500.00 we had a car for the two months we toured Europe. With unlimited mileage we picked up in Nice and drove from the south of France to Stockholm and all points in between, dropping it off at Charles du Gaulle in Paris the day we flew to the UK. It was by far the cheapest and most convenient transportation option.

 

The trick to traveling the world when you can’t afford it is finding out what works for you. If you’ve got time but not money, and you’re willing to explore unconventional options, you’ll be amazed at ways you can travel the world feeling like a millionaire without actually having to be one.

Got tips, tricks or stories of your own? Please share in the comments!

Rik, Zara, Zion & Riel are world travelers…you can read about their hilarious adventures in Four Homeless Millionaires – How One Family Found Riches By Leaving Everything Behind. 

The post How To Travel The World When You Can’t Afford It appeared first on Creative Leadership.

Creative Literacy Project

Change Your Words You Can Change The World – Creative Literacy Project!

For my first Artist Residency of the 2015/16 school year, I got to work with 360 students to produce a multi media creative literacy project called, Change The World/Change le Monde.

Words like ‘madhouse’ ‘bedlam’ and ‘creative chaos’ were used on several occasions and some of the more ‘senior staff’ were captured on video covering their ears in a desperate attempt to muffle the deafening cheers. (Though smiles tugged suspiciously at the corners of their mouths at the same time)

The Plan…produce a digital media project that celebrated the community life of the school, highlighting themes like social responsibility and leadership and really set the tone for the school year. When I arrived Monday morning, I was given a schedule that looked like a piece of homework that maybe the dog actually should have eaten. Teacher’s names were scribbled and scrawled…some were crossed out and redirected with curved double-ended arrows indicating a reshuffling of exotic ingredients in some madcap creative recipe. I’m kidding! It actually showed me that the staff were engaged and excited to make this plan work for everyone. Cooperation is key to success!

Day One…I dashed from room to room interviewing all the students. What words did they use to describe their school, their class, teacher and friends? I asked them for personal stories of how someone had made their life better. I wrote everything down.

I compiled word banks and created a cache of stories from these interviews. A big colourful sign in the hallway that said, ‘Change Your Words, Change Your Mindset’ really caught my eye. (and imagination) At the end of Day One I sat down and channeled the day’s inspiration and wrote a song called, Change the World.

Day Two…bright and early I was once again scampering through the hallways, drifting in and out of classrooms like a wandering minstrel, teaching the new song to each class. In between rehearsals we worked out visual components of our project. Ecole Central is a French Immersion school, so language is a big part of their identity. ARTS posters are pinned on every wall spelling out the school’s community values. Acceptance/Accepter, Respect/Respecter, Together/Tous, Security/Sécurité.

Plans emerged for each classroom make giant, colourful posters that spelled out these words. It was a tactile way for the kids to engage with the words that express the values that create a safe, encouraging environment that foster their hopes and dreams.

We covered a huge area in one hallway with paper, creating a ‘School Wall’ where students could write personal iMessages like, ‘I feel safe here’ ‘I respect my friends.’ In the brilliant words of one little dude, ‘this is the most awesomeist graffiti ever!’

I explored the wild side of the playground with my camera, capturing the kid’s energy and enthusiasm in their natural habitat. When you’re in elementary school, the playground is where the real work of respect, acceptance and togetherness is done.

Day Three…flew by in a blur of filming, drawing, colouring and rehearsing as I raced from the highest room in the tallest tower to the deep dark recesses of Central’s WWII era basement. I’m not going to lie, 360 kids keep you hopping. One of things I love about being a facilitator is the energy builds exponentially because everyone is able to be involved in a way that plays to their strengths. I’m not the horse or the wagon…I’m just the wild guy with the guitar having the time of his life playing a melody that lets us sing together at ear-bleeding levels.

Day Four…the momentum continued to build through the day, coming to a deafening ‘world changing’ crescendo at the assembly in the gym, where the mood was electric and the kids sang so loud it felt like an AC/DC concert.

I set up my portable recording gear, set a stationary camera at the back of the room and gave my handheld to a volunteer and we proceeded to record and film the song three different times. Watching the footage close to a gazillion times as I edited the video, I was blown away by the power of community and creativity to change our lives and the world around us.

I love being part of a great story and happily offer my 18 years of experience as a professional writer, performer and producer in the music, TV and film industry to each school to help students discover their talents, gifts and abilities so they can tell their story in ways they haven’t before. If this is something that would interest your school or community, you are 100% free (and encouraged) to contact me anytime! info@rikleaf.com

It is a privilege to be able to invest in the lives of others.

Merci Beaucoup…Change le Monde!

 

 

 

The post Creative Literacy Project appeared first on Rik Leaf.

Change Your Words

Change Your Words You Can Change The World

An Artist Residency is one of my favourite things in the world. It gives me the opportunity to spend quality time in a school investing in the lives of the students and staff. This week I got to work with 360 students to produce a multi media production called, Change The World/Change le Monde.

Words like ‘madhouse’ ‘bedlam’ and ‘creative chaos’ were used on several occasions and some of the more ‘senior staff’ were captured on video covering their ears in a desperate attempt to muffle the deafening cheers. (Though smiles tugged suspiciously at the corners of their mouths at the same time)

The Plan…produce a digital media project that celebrated the community life of the school, highlighting themes like social responsibility and leadership and really set the tone for the school year. When I arrived Monday morning, I was given a schedule that looked like a piece of homework that maybe the dog actually should have eaten. Teacher’s names were scribbled and scrawled…some were crossed out and redirected with curved double-ended arrows indicating a reshuffling of exotic ingredients in some madcap creative recipe. I kid…it showed me immediately that the staff were engaged and accommodating to making this plan work for everyone. Cooperation is key to success!

Day One…I spent the first day dashing from room to room, interviewing all the students. What words did they use to describe their school, their class, teacher and friends? I asked them for personal stories of how someone had made their life better, and how they had made someone else’s life better and wrote it all down.

I compiled word banks and created a cache of stories from these interviews. A big colourful sign in the hallway that said, ‘Change Your Words, Change Your Mindset’ really caught my eye. (and imagination) At the end of Day One I sat down and channeled all the inspiration to write a song called, Change the World.

Day Two…bright and early I was once again scampering through the hallways, drifting in and out of classrooms like a wandering minstrel, teaching the new song to each class. In between rehearsals we worked out visual components of our project. Central is a French Immersion school, so language is a big part of their identity. ARTS posters are pinned on every wall spelling out the school’s community values. Acceptance/Accepter, Respect/Respecter, Together/Tous, Security/Sécurité.

Plans emerged for each classroom make giant, colourful posters that spelled out these words. It was a tactile way for the kids to engage with the words that express the values that create a safe, encouraging environment that foster their hopes and dreams.

 

We covered a huge area in one hallway with paper, creating a ‘School Wall’ where students could write personal iMessages like, ‘I feel safe here’ ‘I respect my friends.’ In the brilliant words of one little dude, ‘this is the most awesomeist graffiti ever!’

I explored the wild side of the playground with my camera, capturing the kid’s energy and enthusiasm in their natural habitat. When you’re in elementary school, the playground is where the real work of respect, acceptance and togetherness is done.

I also found time to marvel that at some point in my life I too had been able to swing on monkey bars without pulling my limbs from their sockets.                        (those days are long past)

Day Three…flew by in a blur of filming, drawing, colouring and rehearsing as I raced from the highest room in the tallest tower to the deep dark recesses of Central’s WWII era basement. I’m not going to lie, 360 kids keep you hopping. One of things I love about being a facilitator is the energy builds exponentially because everyone is able to be involved in a way that plays to their strengths. I’m not the horse or the wagon…I’m just the wild guy with the guitar having the time of his life playing a melody that lets us sing together at ear-bleeding levels.

Day Four…the momentum continued to build through the day, coming to a deafening ‘world changing’ crescendo at the assembly in the gym, where the mood was electric and the kids sang so loud it felt like an AC/DC concert.

I set up my portable recording gear, set a stationary camera at the back of the room and gave my handheld to a volunteer and we proceeded to record and film the song three different times. Watching the footage close to a gazillion times as I edited the video, I was blown away by the power of community and creativity to change our lives and the world around us.

I love being part of a great story and happily offer my 18 years of experience as a professional writer, performer and producer in the music, TV and film industry to each school to help students discover their talents, gifts and abilities so they can tell their story in ways they haven’t before. If this is something that would interest your school or community, you are 100% free (and encouraged) to contact me anytime! info@rikleaf.com

It is a privilege to be able to invest in the lives of others.

Merci Beaucoup…Change le Monde!

 

 

 

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École Central

School of the Arts – Every child is an artist!

Wow. I just had the most amazing 14 hour drive from Victoria to Fort St John. The Peace Country is gorgeous at this time of year!

I am super excited to be back at École Central again. This year instead of slam poetry workshops, we are producing a multi media video project, highlighting the incredibly diverse and artistic community at Central.

Everyone loves a great story, and one of the things I love the most is helping people find creative ways to tell and share their stories. In my experience, what seems normal to us is often amazing to someone else. So when we share our stories, we encourage others to do the same. That’s one of the reasons I love working in schools and having the opportunity to invest in the lives of students across the country.

Over the last 18 years I’ve told my own stories in a number of different ways. I’ve produced CDs, TV shows, travel videos and published a book called FOUR HOMELESS MILLIONAIRES, a hilarious tale of the adventures my wife and I and our two kids had traveling around the world for a year.

I bring my CDs and books along and would be happy to sign a copy for your child or family if you’d like to purchase one. My very special school rate is $5.00 for CDs and $15.00 for books, available at the office. LISTEN HERE

If you see me in the hallways with a guitar or running around the playground with video cameras, please say hi…as always, it is a privilege to have the opportunity to invest in the students at Central!

This was a recent Anti Bullying Project I did a few months ago with a group of JK-Grade 1 students in the NWT.

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An Inspiring Story

Be Inspired By This Young Girl Transformed Through Travel

Like every parent, I want my kids to have a great life. I hope they discover what they’re passionate about and pursue their dreams and build lives that are filled with love and laughter. And while it’s easy to share these parental hopes with other parents, I’ve discovered that how we as parents, teach our kids about values and beliefs are very different from each other…and we need to be OK with that. In fact we need to celebrate that. This is an inspiring story of how my daughter was transformed through her experiences traveling the world.

In the initial rush of excitement, just days away from hitting the open road for a year with our kids, a fellow parent and professional colleague asked what had brought us to the point where we would willingly destabilize our lives to such a terrible degree. In a million years, I never would have thought anyone would look at it that way. I certainly hadn’t.

It was a light bulb moment for me. We don’t all think the same way about everything. We don’t all learn the same way. We may share certain values…like honesty and integrity, but our beliefs in how we walk those out can be vastly different. My adventure of a lifetime, would be my colleague’s biggest nightmare.

When we started traveling our son Zion was 13 and our daughter Riel was 9 years old. Riel was a quiet and shy homebody. She loved her room, her bed, her stuffies, Barbies and Polly Pockets. She had one friend, just as quiet and shy as she was. It was impossible to imagine how Riel was going to react to a nomadic lifestyle for a year. 

I interviewed her recently, and it was so exciting for both of us, to hear her observations as she looked back on her experiences and how they changed her, and empowered her to face the future.

I interviewed Riel as part of my submission to a World Nomads contest, to travel to Columbia and work with a professional documentary filmmaker. Regardless of the outcome of the submission, I felt like I’d won the lottery as I sat listening to this young woman, describing the way travel had transformed her life.

If you would like to read more, Four Homeless Millionaires How One Family Found Riches By Leaving Everything Behind is available In Stores Now or can be Ordered Online. If you are interested in booking Rik as a speaker or facilitator for your literary event or conference, please contact info@rikleaf.com or call 250-896-2572.

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