Coverage for August 1, 2026

Hello, colleagues, and happy August long weekend!

If the turning of the calendar page brings with it a bit of a nudge on planning and prepping on the horizon, fear not, as we’ve been busy assembling ideas and topics to make the next few weeks easier.

ELA teachers will appreciate our examples of persuasive writing and satire, and math teachers of all levels can set their students upon this article with graphs and comparisons about relative garbage in our streets before and after youth clean-up crews come through.

This week also brings some fantastic stories for Career Development students, including the implications of an AI-written resumé and the increased array of available careers in the Canadian Air Force.

Our Human Ecology topics this week centre on Family Studies, with practical application of curricular topics in parent-child separation and holistic support for children who have endured abuse.

Finally, it woudn’t be summer without ice cream! Check out our list of locations and flavours, and add your own!

Now get back in the hammock and enjoy this gorgeous weekend.

—Rebecca Chambers

For the youngest learners

You can be a Winnipeg Free Press book reviewer, just like these kids! Check out the Summer Reading Challenge website for details:

Star-studded stories

First batch of Summer Reading Challenge for Kids sees young readers weighing in Read More

When new people arrive to Winnipeg, these volunteers help them feel at home. If a new student arrived at your school, how could you help them like these volunteers do?

AV Kitching:

Together Project helps newcomers feel at home

When refugee families first arrive in Winnipeg they are plunged into an alien culture.

Often fleeing dangerous circumstances, discrimination or war, displaced families are forced to navigate bewild… Read More

See our full collection of news for young children here.

News for debate and discussion

Should the entertainment value of rodeos be questioned in light of their treatment of animals?

Danae Tonge:

What are we teaching children at the rodeo?

Every summer in Manitoba, rodeo season brings thousands of children to local rodeos and the Manitoba Stampede. They arrive with cowboy hats and cotton candy in hand, excitement in their eyes.

Yet, … Read More

Should Canada Post take responsibility for the closure of many community newspapers?

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press:

‘Existential’: Community papers struggling to survive amid Canada Post flyer delivery

MONTREAL – Community newspaper owners claim Canada Post is helping to drive some of them out of business thanks to an expanded partnership it forged with the country’s largest printing firm.

Last m… Read More

Should the federal government renew a policy that allows temporary foreign workers to remain in Canada?

Carol Sanders:

Temporary foreign workers rally to stay

Many say they’ve put down roots and Manitoba is their home Read More

See our full collection of topics for debate and discussion here.

News by school subject

A round-up of the latest Free Press news articles, with suggestions for use in the classroom. Click on any subject name below to access our full online archive of stories related to that subject.

APPLIED COMMERCE

How location and social realities influence business success:

Scott Billeck:

Human toll of drug crisis hurts everyday citizens, too: biz leader

Chamber of commerce praises recent Winnipeg police drug crackdown Read More

One entrepreneur is buying up empty mall space to create alternative experiences:

Gabrielle Piche:

‘We want to create an experience’

St. Vital Centre owner says vacant Bay store on road to redevelopment Read More

ARTS

How the power of public art brings communities together:

Holly Ramer And Robert F. Bukaty, The Associated Press:

Giant metal roosters spread autism acceptance in Maine after town zoning spat

OGUNQUIT, Maine (AP) — Giant metal roosters are popping up on lawns in and around a community in southern Maine and as far away as New Zealand in support of a 6-year-old autistic girl and her love of … Read More

One Winnipegger’s collection of local artwork:

Conrad Sweatman:

Winnipegger’s crib a creative cache

In an apartment above the Sherbie, famous local artists line the walls Read More

CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Some of the many, many available careers in the Air Force:

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press:

‘Bright’ future: RCAF chief says spike in defence spending is boosting flight times

OTTAWA – One year into her new job as commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force, Lt.-Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet said she could see an immediate effect of the federal government’s defence spending boo… Read More

Using AI to write your resume that will be read by AI: some considerations:

Gabrielle Piché:

Job lifeline in ‘sea of AI-generated content’

Manitoba Innovates seeks to pump up in-person networking as artificial intelligence-created resumés become norm Read More

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

Persuasive writing – form an opinion and justify it:

Tory McNally:

Great workplace shorts debate: time to free knees

We’ve reached the point where employers need to reconsider what “professional appearance” means. Spoiler alert: it has very little to do with the amount of fabric covering your shins. Read More

Satire – one Winnipeg teacher’s Youtube channel lovingly skewers Mennonite culture:

David Sanderson:

Sect appeal

For unique Menno-centric take on Free Press, satirist mines her jibes between the lines Read More

A portrait of a problem – Melissa Martin’s writing shows care and compassion while illuminating persistent problems in Winnipeg:

Melissa Martin:

Complex crisis confounds

While Village hub has transitioned from church to community space, entrenched issues persist Read More

FRENCH COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE

A Franco-manitobain podcast about the role and journey of parents of transgender children:

Chelsea Howgate:

Familles en transition: une réflexion sur une transition cruciale

À travers six épisodes et des conversations avec plusieurs parents et experts, France Adams en est venue à mieux se comprendre — et à mieux comprendre sa fille transgenre. Maintenant, elle revient sur… Read More

One young Quebecer’s journey to sailing success:

Audrey Sanikopoulos, The Canadian Press:

Young Quebec sailor, 17, aims to challenge gender stereotypes in sailing

MONTREAL – At 17, Jasmine Pernot is set to become the youngest skipper and one of only three women leading crews in Quebec’s new offshore sailing race, hoping to show other young women they belong at … Read More

HUMAN ECOLOGY

A family-centred care model for children who have suffered maltreatment or abuse:

Janine LeGal:

A place of safety and calm

Toba Centre here to help kids who’ve suffered the unimaginable Read More

The lasting effects of forced parent-child separation:

Sharif Hassan, The Canadian Press:

Ottawa acknowledges “lasting impact” of forced adoptions but offers no apology

TORONTO – The federal government acknowledged this week that forced adoptions had a lasting impact on people and families in Canada after the Second World War but stopped short of offering the public … Read More

INDIGENOUS EDUCATION

Reconciliation is a two-way agreement: one example of how that can work:

Malak Abas:

Cab companies hailed for improved Indigenous relations

Three taxi drivers have been fired and others suspended without pay since a zero-tolerance policy for mistreatment of Indigenous passengers was implemented by Winnipeg’s two largest cab companies. Read More

Evacuated from their home communities due to wildfire, members of First Nations face increased danger in cities:

Kathryn Mannie, The Canadian Press:

First Nation evacuees fleeing wildfire face safety risks in Toronto, leaders say

TORONTO – In a Toronto hotel off Highway 401, a bag check station screening for alcohol greets people in the lobby.

Cat Lake First Nation operations manager Derek Spence said it’s to limit drinking… Read More

MATH

Before-and-after comparison graphs, statistics and numbers of how much garbage is in our streets, and the impact a team of young people have on reducing it:

Zoe Pierce:

Cleanup squad makes positive waves across city

The period after the snow melts isn’t when Winnipeg is at its most attractive.

As months of hidden trash and accumulated waste emerge, streets and sidewalks across the city quickly become covered i… Read More

A quick primer on “bracket creep”, to support personal financial literacy:

Gage Haubrich:

Bracket creep: A stealthy tax increase

About $2,100. That’s how much Premier Wab Kinew’s bracket creep tax hike could cost your family by 2030, depending on how much you make.

Bracket creep is an income tax hike that happens when the go… Read More

PHYSICAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION

More bike trails are opening in the Northwest corner of Winnipeg, encouraging active transportation:

Zoe Pierce:

Ceremony heralds growth of active transportation network in city’s north

North Winnipeg’s active transportation network is set to grow, with construction planned for a nearly two-kilometre extension of the Northwest Hydro Corridor Multi-Use Path later this summer.

A few… Read More

SOCIAL STUDIES

How grassroots action and social enterprise can be leveraged to revitalize struggling urban communities:

Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press:

An eroding Winnipeg neighbourhood looks to new foundations

The lot Jesse Bettcher lives on in Winnipeg’s North End used to be a pile of burnt rubble. Same with the one next door. And the one across the street. But he’s now the proud owner of a two-storey house with blue-grey siding and white trim. Read More

Why temporary foreign workers believe they should be allowed to stay in Canada:

Carol Sanders:

Temporary foreign workers rally to stay

Many say they’ve put down roots and Manitoba is their home Read More

TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION

The burgeoning field of tech-enhanced agricultural management:

Laura Rance-Unger:

Automation reaches new heights on farm

LANGHAM, Sask. — The thousands of farmers from across the Prairies who flock to the annual Ag in Motion show every July seem oblivious to the possibility the technology on display could one day replac… Read More