Grade 10 student Brett Pilon stands in a large music classroom beside a bike.
Last week, he was fidgeting with brakes and learning how to change tires and fix gears as part of a quick course offered at the Centre for Learning Alternatives, housed at the John McInnis Centre.
As the school year wound down, J-Mac, as Pilon calls the school, gave students a chance to take "mini electives" and get a taste for next year's courses or a snapshot of some other skill.
And it was a rare opportunity for hands-on learning that was easier for Pilon to pick up.
"It just goes right into your brain. It's easier to learn," says Pilon, who has been at the CLA for two years. He says the school does a good job of letting kids work at their own pace and on their own, with fewer distractions.
The brainchild of cycling enthusiast and teacher Tom Skinner, the program was fairly easy for him to pull together with his extensive background working at bike shops and racing competitively.
"The idea was to give them a practical skill but it was also to keep students involved in school and get them hooked on the idea of learning," says Skinner from the music room that doubled as a bike shop for three weeks.
Guitars line the wall and a sofa sits in the middle of the room, but for six students bikes took centre stage. Skinner brought in his own bikes and tools for students to use and one student brought their own in to learn on.
"They were a little more engaged and it was an opportunity to connect with the students in a more relaxed environment," Skinner says.
At age 17, Skinner joined his high school's bike club, a choice he credits for so many of his experiences.
"It's one of the greatest positive influences on my life. I'm not exaggerating that experience. Through biking I've got to travel places," said Skinner, a competitive national and international racer.
If he can pass on some of that passion for a skill or sport to his students, all the better.
"I realized it was something that was big for me in high school. I realize that kids need something - even if it's not bikes, whether it's basketball or it's skateboarding or whatever it is - those things are really really beneficial for students, having a hobby."
Pilon and a buddy signed up because they liked bikes "and we thought it would be a positive thing to do."
The 15-year-old dreams of working with his hands like his father, a heavy duty car mechanic, so it was nice to have a course that tied in with his interests.
"It gets the kids doing outdoor activities, something that's going to help them out in the real world," says Pilon.
A few months before Pilon took the course, he could have used some of the skills. After having several bikes stolen, Pilon has been using his grandpa's old bikes - easy rider types probably built in the 1970s - that could use a little work.
He blew a tire on one and replaced it completely.
"I did it the lazy way," he explains, by taking a tire off another bike and now he knows he can just switch the tube.
He's also been working off of one gear for the last little while, so he was excited about learning how to fix gears from Skinner.
"For me it was cool when I saw how much the kids already knew about bikes," adds Skinner. "It's a chance where they can be in a class where they can teach others students. They could be confident in something. They could be empowered."
