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Free English class helps newcomers reach their goals

An English class meant to help newcomers adjust to life in Yellowknife takes place at the Yellowknife Public Library every Thursday evening.
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Instructor Rochelle Hilderman reviews examples for students on a whiteboard at the weekly Teach to Reach program, held at the Yellowknife Public Library on Thursday evenings. Kaicheng Xin/NNSL photo

An English class meant to help newcomers adjust to life in Yellowknife takes place at the Yellowknife Public Library (YPL) every Thursday evening.

Named Teach to Reach, the program started in 2018 when teacher Rochelle Hilderman moved back to Yellowknife. She said there were few options in the city for English classes, especially ones that did not involve a fee, so she decided to fill the gap.

Teach to Reach allows anyone in the community to participate in learning and focuses on reading, writing, listening, and speaking English.

Hilderman taught for six months at a private language school in Ottawa before moving back to Yellowknife during fall of 2018. In 2019 and 2020, she delivered the federally-funded Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) program at Aurora College.

“I love teaching English and it brings me a lot of joy,” she said. “I started in 2018 in Montreal and fell in love with everything about it. A classroom full of culture, languages and differing experiences is a beautiful place to be, and the connections that occur in that space are something truly special.”

Students who attend Teach to Reach come from all over the world, bringing and sharing their own culture, languages and traditions.

Hilderman believes that cultural sensitivity is very important, and everyone has a great deal to learn from each other.

“I walk away from my classes most days feeling that I have also learned much from my students, which I am really touched by,” she said.

She came to realize that a lot of the people who moved to Yellowknife had to leave behind family and friends to start a new life, which can be incredibly challenging and stressful. Some of these individuals work two or three jobs.

“I love making the students laugh, and seeing them let go of the regular stresses of the day or week,” said Hilderman. “I often pause class to ask if something I have said is a new word or phrase for them. I often use synonyms and examples in sentences to help explain a new word, and, of course, a bit of acting skills. It’s all about finding laughter in learning.”

Hilderman said she was really grateful thatYPL can provide a space for her to use for free, so she can be helping more people and keep the program running.