Country Hills PS student becomes Apple employee for a day

June 12th, 2015

An SK student from Country Hills Public School added another item to the experience section of his resume – Apple employee for a day!

Jack, a 5-year-old with a real passion for technology, has always dreamed about working for Apple. His level of engagement with the use of technology, especially the iOS platform (iPad, iPhone, Mac, etc.), is through the roof and his ability to understand these devices, at his age, is a rarity. He shared this aspiration with his teacher, Mr. Fewkes, an innovative, growth-minded, tech savvy educator, who gave his student the advice to turn his dream into a reality. So Jack took matters into his own hands.

With the help of Mr. Fewkes, this ambitious student typed up his ‘resume’, brainstorming what his skills were and what made him unique. With the approval from Jack’s family, Mr. Fewkes dropped off the resume to the Apple store at Conestoga Mall. A few days later, he received an email from the store inviting Jack to come in! Jack’s dream came true.

The Apple store employees were amazing and so accommodating. As soon as Jack arrived with his mother, the staff gave him the big Apple welcome that every new employee gets on their first day. Next, two managers sat down with Jack to talk about his resume; they were thoroughly impressed! But before his store tour could begin, the staff needed to equip their newest team member with the latest and greatest gadgets. To Jack’s surprise, they lent him an iPhone 6 and shiny new Apple Watch to use and wear during the visit – what a lucky kid!

At each product station, Jack had the opportunity to share his knowledge. From the iTouch, to the Apple TV, right down to the MacBooks, Jack spoke about what each device does, what some of his favourite features are, and a thought about what he’d change to make it ‘better.’ Not only did he get to use the gadgets on the store floor, he was able to tour a place only Apple employees get the privilege of seeing – the back room! That’s where repairs take place and products are kept to restock the stores shelves. Jack was like a kid in a candy store, except this was much better!

Just before the day ended, Jack and Mr. Fewkes skyped with his class. Jack gave them a virtual tour of the store, and answered some questions from classmates, but before he could say goodbye he had an announcement for them – they were all getting Apple t-shirts, just like the one he was wearing! The class was overjoyed. To conclude his visit, he sat down with his teacher and an Apple employee to create an iMovie of his day. Jack took the reigns on the project, but had assistance beside him IF he needed it – this was collaboration at its finest.

Jack couldn’t have been more happy with how his day went and looked forward to going to school the next day to share all about his experience. We are so proud of you Jack, for following your dreams and making them a reality!

On behalf of the WRDSB, we would like to thank Jack’s family for allowing us to be a part of his day and to experience this learning moment beyond the classroom. To Mr. Feweks: your dedication and commitment to teaching and believing in your students is incredible – thank you! Jack is lucky to have you as a teacher! And last, but certainly not least, to the Apple store employees at Conestoga Mall: thank you for creating such an awesome and unique experience for this 5-year-old! Your staff was extremely friendly and helpful, we had such a great time. We can’t thank you enough for welcoming all of us into your store.

In Jack’s words: “This [was] the best day of my life!”

To see more about Jack’s day, check out Jack’s Big Day iMovie or search #JacksBigDay in Twitter.