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Later on this week or month, you will perhaps receive and then open an envelope containing your child's tri-annual report card, an account informing you of their academic progress in school so far this year. But you might find that not everything your child has learned will be part of that running commentary.

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Infertility is a severe life challenge that absolutely flattens people. Look at it this way: procreating is an innate primal instinct, just like breathing air, drinking water and eating food. Imagine how frantic you get if you are denied access to oxygen, water or food?

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What happened in Halifax is but an example of what's wrong with our criminal justice system - it turns "sexual assault" into "sex" and debates consent the entire trial while not once stopping to ask, "Does it make sense to anyone that this woman, in this state, would consent to having sex with anyone, let alone a total stranger?" Judge Gregory Lenehan believed it made sense and, in essence, gave consent on a young woman's behalf to something she doesn't even remember.

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My thoughts were always about how I couldn't do it anymore, how I sucked at being a parent or how my children hated me. "Can't," "won't" and "don't" were all constants in my vocabulary. I woke up and realized I didn't like who I had become or the road I was going down. But most importantly, I forgave myself.

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Our government has set aside $200-million this year to end discrimination against First Nations children in our child welfare system -- and Budget 2016 committed to increasing that amount for the next five years. Next year we are investing almost $250-million to end discrimination. But putting more money into the existing system simply isn't enough.

Jen Arron

I'm a professional family photographer and I have one beautiful son. But I've been pregnant three times. Last year I endured two miscarriages in the span of 10 months. My weariness was palpable. It lay on me like a thick heavy blanket. So many questions arose. So much soul-searching. It felt like a crisis of my spirit.

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Another pregnancy. A miracle. This was right. This was how things were supposed to be. I was on track. I thought. And then cancer. Cancer and a baby. At the same time. Those things aren't supposed to happen at the same time.

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Recently, with rising Islamophobia, a Muslim child was threatened on school grounds by someone wearing a mask. Though schools may see themselves as "neutral," the sense of safety and well-being of many children continues to be hijacked with the ongoing rhetoric of political leaders and increasing hate incidents and crimes.

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As a mother and as a teacher, I am saddened that the vast majority of members of the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario voted to ratify the 2017-2019 extension agreement instead of fighting for truly smaller class sizes.

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If you're like me and you want to be able to cut the financial umbilical cord with your kids, start when they're young. Help them procure a part time job -- even if it's just one shift a week at first. Have them open their own bank account, and teach them how to balance their account.

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Calling out rudeness, a lack of etiquette or a complete absence of compassion or empathy in public should never have to happen -- but it MUST. The recent examples that made the headlines -- of a woman allegedly sitting on the feet of a passenger whose feet dangled over an empty seat on public transit -- is a case in point.

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It all started when Eve was fairly young and I became more social with her by taking her to playgroups. While the other kids were running around, Eve was attached to my side. She wanted to play with me, not with the other kids.

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The Liberal Party campaigned on the promise that if elected, they would enact a federal children's commissioner. A year and half into the government's mandate, there has been no public announcement about the appointment process.

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Currently, the public education system in Ontario seems more focused on looking good to the public than actually being the best it can be for the children. Ontario should look to Finland. They are now doing something right, but they weren't always #1 in education. In the 1970s they made a conscious systemic decision to focus on learning rather than performance.

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As I did, you are likely to experience some eye rolls or even lack of eye contact when you're having the "talk" with your teens about this tough issue. But stay on course and keep a fact-filled conversation going. It's critical for the safety of our kids.

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With Family Day fresh in my mind, I've been thinking about the way some teenagers are growing up these days. I see these kids all over. They're angry and frustrated, miserable and lost, and it's mainly the fault of their parents who've been letting them down.

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I don't want a four per cent raise. I want better learning conditions for our students and better working conditions for us. Most of all, I want to work on regaining the trust of the public again. Ontario has the greatest sub sovereign debt in the world. I don't want to leave that legacy for my own children or for my students.