OTTAWA -- With his stuffed elephant named Dex and his pet cat named Puppy, Steve Massa is going the extra mile to make sure his students have fun while learning French while away from the classroom.
As schools closed for in-person learning last spring, the Grade 3 teacher with the Toronto District School Board decided to get creative to keep his students engaged while learning the French language, so “Monsieur Steve” was born.
"I honestly had no idea what I was doing," Massa told CTV News.
Massa’s Monsieur Steve YouTube channel uses fun videos to teach children how to speak French. Sometimes he takes his viewers to certain landmarks in Toronto or parts of Ontario, while other times he records grammar lessons from his home.
Some of his recent videos include a trip to Sudbury, Ont., and informative videos about New Year’s Eve and the holiday season.
"I think it keeps the kids engaged and wanting more,” Massa said. “That's the whole point is to make them excited and happy to be learning.”
Massa also wears costumes -- from Harry Potter, Pokemon characters and a slice of pizza to name a few – while also incorporating his stuffed elephant and pet cat into the videos. The videos are posted to his 4,100 subscribers every Sunday.
"I didn't think this was something I was going to enjoy doing and turns out I actually love it," he said
Massa said some other teachers even use the videos for their classes, while his own students have also enjoyed what he’s been able to put together.
“He is a very unique teacher, in my experience,” said Steven Keizer, whose daughter Claire is in Massa’s class. “We're lucky to have him."
Massa said he initially needed to watch video editing tutorials on to make the clips, but says anyone can join in on the fun.
“If a teacher out there is thinking about doing this, absolutely try it," he said.
