No matter where he goes, Kevin Finlayson is always surrounded by a group of students vying for his attention.
Over three decades of teaching, Finlayson has changed thousands of lives. Past students still visit him to reminisce about his classes and how he impacted them.
“I’ve known him now for 13 years, and every day he seems to amaze me in what he can do,” Michael Facchinelli, a close friend and colleague, told Global News.
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To Finlayson, who currently teaches drama, literature and dance, it comes down to the most important thing teachers give their students — experiences.
“I love what I do. And I wake up, and I’m excited to go to where I go,” Finlayson told Global News. “I just wish that everybody could feel that way in their life.”
Lessons from his own childhood
Finlayson’s teaching philosophy – responsibility, sensitivity, acceptance and hard work – are the same values that he learned as a child.
The 57-year-old grew up in a housing project in northwest Toronto. It was known as “the Jungle” and Finlayson remembers “terrible things happening,” but he focuses on the lessons his parents taught him about education. He witnessed how hard they worked to move out of public housing.
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“They really, really instilled in us the value of education as a way of having a better life and getting out of there,” he said.
With his parents’ encouragement, Finlayson said he found a profession he adores. His passion for the job is palpable in everything he does.
At Palmerston Avenue Junior Public School in Toronto, Finlayson has a hand in everything, from organizing the yearbook to coaching basketball. One of his greatest legacies is the annual school play.
‘No one gets turned away’
He writes his own interpretations of Shakespearean plays, revamping them to help students connect with literature. Then he casts and directs the play in a labour of love that consumes his life for six months each year.
“He’s here until 5, 6, 7 o’clock every single night. He’s rehearsed for hours and hours starting in January with groups and groups and groups of kids,” said Matthew Reid, principal of Palmerston Public School.
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A record 120 students auditioned for his play last year, and – in the true spirit of inclusiveness – Finlayson gave a role to every single one of them. By dividing the play into 10 scenes and rotating lead roles, he made sure every student got a part specifically created for them.
“It’s amazing how no one gets turned away,” Facchinelli told Global News.
While some of Finlayson’s friends questioned his approach, he said the point was not to simulate a “real world” audition. Rather, he intended to give every student a chance to have the experience.
Removing barriers
For many students, being part of the play gave them a much needed boost in self-esteem.
Ten-year-old Lucille Gilliand was one of those students. With Finlayson as her teacher for three years, she said she learned to be confident even when things didn’t go as planned.
“He’s taught me … if you mess up, you can’t just be upset about it … You just have to continue and just be happy that you did it,” Gilliand said.
Finlayson finds opportunities to model that message of confidence and acceptance all year round.
At Halloween, he goes all out. His costumes are the stuff of legend among students. This year he dressed up as a fairy godmother, wrote and acted in a short play with other staff, and even departed in a horse-drawn carriage.
“We can show children that there are no barriers – academic barriers but also, more importantly, emotional and social barriers as well,” he said.
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Students aren’t the only ones learning from him. Palmerston principal Matthew Reid said teachers are also inspired and often drop in on Finlayson’s classes to see what they can learn and apply in their own lessons.
WATCH: Principal Matthew Reid explains how Kevin Finlayson has inspired students and fellow staff
“As educators, we get into this profession for the kids, and Kevin’s life is the kids,” Facchinelli said.
Time to move on
As much as Finlayson loves his job and the students he’s inspired over the years, he says it’s time to “evolve some more” and move on to new experiences.
When he retires at the end of the school year, Finlayson says he will miss spending time with children – the joy of reading to them and the excitement of teaching them something new.
“You have to know when to leave a party,” he said.
“I adore it. It’s – it’s a part of who I am. It’s going to be kind of weird not to be Kevin Finlayson the teacher next year.”
His departure will be even more difficult for his colleagues and students.
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