My name is Raine Madison Chornomitz and I am 18 years old. I have lived all my life on an acreage just outside of Annaheim, SK (two and a half hours north of Regina) with my mom, dad, and older sister. Annaheim is a small village with around 200 people–around 90 of these people go to Annaheim School (K-12). Growing up, I was always taught to treat everyone with kindness as you never know what individuals are going through. This is a message that has always stuck with me as I have experienced some of the exact opposite treatment from others.
My earliest memory from school was my first day of kindergarten. I could read quite well throughout elementary. In fact, I always advanced to the harder level of books before everyone else. We had the same schedule everyday except for two classes that alternated throughout the week: gym and reading buddies. I loved gym class. Reading buddies was a different story. Students from grades six to eight would come into our classroom, and would listen to us read. My reading buddy was a tall boy who liked to pick on the little kids. I was so scared and held back my tears until I got home. For the rest of the year, I would cry whenever we had reading buddies. The worst part is that my kindergarten teacher would yell at me and say, “Stop crying Raine!” Looking back, I realize that my teacher did not handle the situation very well. I was just a kid, and I was scared and vulnerable! From this experience, I know that when my students are scared, I should talk with, and comfort them–what I would have wanted from my teacher instead of being yelled at making me cry even more.
Throughout my elementary and middle school years, there were many incidents where I felt singled out, and even bullied. Minor incidents where some girls wouldn’t let me hang out with them as they were too “cool” affected me back then, but not so much today. However, there was an ongoing incident in grade six that affected me the most, and still does to this day. I had just got glasses, and I really liked them. I noticed, however, that there were subtle snickers and laughs coming from the boys across the room in class. I would look at them and they would look away and try to hide their smiles. I knew they were laughing at me. I felt insecure, and I stopped wearing my glasses in school because I thought that’s what they were laughing at. For weeks, I struggled to see the board at the back of the class. When taking notes, I would always ask my friend, Kelly, or my sister, Kortney, “What does that say?” My sister would always answer with, “Put your glasses on,” and I’d feel embarrassed. Months later, I found out the boys were laughing at me because I would take notes and be attentive with my mouth open. I truly believe that this is where my self-consciousness, insecurity, and anxiety rooted from, and I still struggle with these factors immensely today. From this experience, I know that I never want any of my students to go through this. I will teach them that we all need to be loving, kind, and considerate to each other. I will not tolerate bullying under any circumstances as it can really damage a person in the long run.
Sports have always had a special place in my heart–especially volleyball. I have taken dance since kindergarten, and I took several different sports in school like volleyball, basketball, badminton, and track and field. I started to realize that I was really good at sports. I felt confident on the court. Volleyball was my happy place where I could forget about everything else that was going on in life, and focus on the sport. My hard work and passion for volleyball, and all sports in general, must have been evident as I had been awarded with the Jr. Athlete of the Year Award in 2017, and the Sr. Athlete of the Year Award in 2021 which gave me a sense of pride.
Looking back in my early years of school, my favorite teacher was my grade three teacher: Mrs. Baumann. She made learning fun for everyone! The best memories were with this teacher. We built tents out of blankets and chairs and camped out all day and had s’mores after reading ‘Arthur’s Camp Day,’ had an Oktoberfest, had a Chinese new year, and experienced so many more fun activities. These are the things that we remember growing up: the good times, and the bad times, and I want to make sure I give my students many opportunities to make great memories.
In my grade 12 year, I originally applied to Saskatchewan Polytechnic for a CLXT. I didn’t really know what I wanted to be, so I thought that a CLXT would be a good fit as they made a good amount of money, and Health Science was a favorite class of mine in school. It wasn’t until after I talked with my mom and sister when I started to question whether this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. The answer was no. I needed to find something that I had a passion for.
Miss Chorney was a teacher from the University of Regina. She taught with care, compassion, and understanding. She could relate to us students and make us laugh. She handled every situation, good or bad, calmly and with kindness. Not only her ways of teaching, but also her personality and morals inspired, and still inspire, me. I knew that I wanted to be a teacher after meeting her. I knew I wanted to help students succeed in school while feeling cared for and accepted like Miss Chorney did to us… and here I am.