5 Reasons to Focus on Friendship!
Friendships are essential to everyone’s well-being, and for young people, developing healthy relationship skills helps them feel supported, connected and valued. Finding common ground through shared experiences builds strong connections, while respecting differences fosters appreciation for diversity and the unique qualities that each person brings. This school year, embracing the theme ‘Friendship – celebrate similarities […]
Nine Ways to Stay Engaged This Summer!
Summer break is (almost) here so we’ve compiled a selection of documentaries, podcasts, books and courses for you to explore during your well-deserved time off. These recommendations cover a variety of topics related to humane education, including the human-animal bond, animal cognition and behaviour, social and emotional learning, Indigenous perspectives and reconciliation. Do you have […]
T-Shirt Design Contest: Artist Spotlight!
This spring the Alberta SPCA is holding a T-Shirt Design Contest for students across Alberta. Three entries will be selected and featured on Alberta SPCA t-shirts that will be made available to purchase. Proceeds from t-shirt sales will go towards helping animals across the province. The entries will be reviewed by three talented Alberta artists […]
Six Ways to Stay Engaged This Summer
With summer break right around the corner, we have a selection of podcasts, documentaries, courses, websites and more for you to explore during your much deserved time off. These recommendations touch on a variety of topics related to humane education including social-emotional learning, animal cognition and behaviour, empathy, Indigenous perspectives! Do you have a resource […]
Hares and Geese and Skunks, Oh My! Cohabiting with wildlife this spring
Spring is the time of year when grass turns green, flowers begin to bloom, and plants start to sprout. It is also a time of year when many wild animals in Alberta have their offspring. Cohabiting with wildlife is a reality for Albertans throughout the year, but spring presents some unique challenges for people and […]
Humane Education Across Alberta
There are a number of humane societies and SPCAs across Alberta that provide humane education programs and opportunities for teachers and students. Opportunities, such as field trips and classroom presentations, give students the chance to see the impact these organizations have in their communities, while learning from local experts. Read the brief descriptions below to […]
Teacher Highlight: Susan Guba
Alberta teacher and human education advocate: Susan Guba, a recently retired teacher, believes humane education plays a vital role in the classroom. Susan has been a long time champion of Alberta SPCA education programs, particularly the book lending program AnimalTales, which helps to build empathy and literacy. Throughout her 15-year teaching career, Susan has taught […]
Practising Empathy Using Picture Books
Empathy is a critical life skill that helps us to share, understand and care about the emotions of others. It is also a precursor for compassion – through understanding the perspective and feelings of others, we are more likely to take action to help. Empathy is the theme for this school year, and the seventh […]
Humane Education Professional Development Opportunities
As summer approaches and another school year winds down, we wanted to not only congratulate teachers for making it through this challenging year, but also thank them for all they did to help students grow, learn and adapt over these past nine months. Summer is a time for teachers to take a much needed break, […]
The Benefits of Humane Education
Humane education is an approach to teaching that fosters empathy and compassions towards animals, people, and the environment. When we teach students to be kind, to show compassion and to be respectful to animals, not only does it have a positive impact on animals, it can improve society as a whole. Students can apply these […]