Three chapters that shaped how Speaktionary helps children learn words.
Speaktionary was created by a retired Ontario educator with 37 years of experience. She taught French with the Toronto District School Board and later taught Core French and French Immersion with the York Region District School Board.
Her classroom experience helped her understand how children acquire language, build vocabulary and develop the confidence to express themselves. She also spent nine years as a course leader for YRDSB’s Great Beginnings program, supporting and mentoring new teachers.
Throughout her career, she saw children struggle with unfamiliar words—not because they lacked ability, but because the right tools were not always accessible. She created Speaktionary to combine voice, pictures, written language and audio in one welcoming place where children can learn independently.
Throughout her 37-year career in education, Gilou Cowan’s passion for French-language learning extended beyond the classroom into educational publishing.
Gilou Cowan was credited as working ‘in collaboration with’ the author of the Teacher Resource Guide for Sous un soleil imaginaire, part of the Tout Ados French-language learning series developed for Gage Learning. The guide supported educators in teaching folklore, storytelling and Francophone culture through engaging classroom activities.
She also collaborated with a team of educators on the Tout Ados Ontario Curriculum Correlation, helping align educational resources with Ontario’s Grade 7 and 8 Core French curriculum.
Gilou also participated in the piloting and evaluation of the Tout Ados Grade 7 Core French program. Her contributions were formally acknowledged in June 2001 by Gage Educational Publishing Company and the York Region District School Board, which recognized the value of her feedback and recommendations in evaluating educational resources.
These experiences reinforced her belief that language learning should be meaningful, engaging and connected to students’ interests—a philosophy that continues today through Speaktionary.
“After 37 years in the classroom, I never stopped loving the moment when a child’s face lights up because a word finally clicks. Speaktionary was built to bring that moment to every child—one word at a time.”
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