My Family
On the West Coast Trail with Amber.
I love my family to bits! My wife Amber and I met in Tokyo in 2004. She grew up on a farm in the wide open prairies of Saskatchewan, a long way from north coast of Anglesey where I was raised. She is friendly, open and gregarious, and it's been easy being her best friend and partner for the last nineteen years. We spend our holidays in the UK and Western Canada and are happy raising our family as internationally-minded citizens who benefit from more than one culture.
Amber is a team leader and Pre-K teacher who advocates for play-based and outdoor learning. She is a forest school practitioner (level 3) and has visited Reggio Emilia on three occasions. She has taught me a lot about early childhood work and I am inspired by the way she views children as citizens who flourish when given choice and a voice. As an educator she has been a huge influence on me, especially in the way she negotiates curriculum and allows children to create meaning through play. I am a firm believer that all students can learn through "play", and I have adapted my teaching to reflect this.
Amber is a team leader and Pre-K teacher who advocates for play-based and outdoor learning. She is a forest school practitioner (level 3) and has visited Reggio Emilia on three occasions. She has taught me a lot about early childhood work and I am inspired by the way she views children as citizens who flourish when given choice and a voice. As an educator she has been a huge influence on me, especially in the way she negotiates curriculum and allows children to create meaning through play. I am a firm believer that all students can learn through "play", and I have adapted my teaching to reflect this.
Our boys
John on the paddle board.
John is now a High School student who loves to read, climb, drum, play guitar and listen to music. He is polite and kind and loves to perform. Being John's parent has taught me more about education than any other experience I have had as a teacher. Like all parents, my primary concern is that he is safe and happy.
Ben ready to portage on Vancouver Island
Ben is ten years old and growing fast. He is very active and sociable and loves to play on his bike or swim in the pool. He plays football for the school team and works hard at everything he attempts.
A life beyond the classroom
Scared silly on the Kananaskis River in Alberta.
I enjoy sport and love to be in the outdoors. I have always played football and still stagger round the field in a seniors league here in Bangkok. I was also lucky enough to grow up climbing, kayaking, sailing and hiking in the wonderful scenery of North Wales. My first teaching experiences were in outdoor pursuit centres, and I am always conscious of how animated and engaged young people are when confronted with the challenges and rewards of this environment.
Dropping into a new adventure in the back-country of Aomori, Japan.
Like many international school teachers, I got the travel bug when I was young and took on my first international job as a volunteer on a French work-camp in 1986. Since then, I have worked in seven countries and travelled through many more. These experiences have taught me to be open-minded and reserve judgement until the culture shock has worn off. I am now at home in the international world but am conscious of my children's need for stability and a place to call home, which is what we are hoping to find in our next school.