A B.C. teacher has been suspended after showing students a series of short films that the kids found "weird, creepy and inappropriate," according to a disciplinary decision.
One of the shorts was a surreal British cartoon called "Salad Fingers," in which a lanky green man is seen caressing a rusty spoon and describing the act as "almost orgasmic."
According to the B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation, James Douglas Thwaites showed the films to a class of Grade 7 and 8 students while working as a teacher on call in the Nechako Lakes area back in January 2018.
Another of the shorts was called "Don't Hug Me I'm Scared." The decision described it as a puppet show that depicted characters "trying to glue glitter on an anatomical heart, cutting a pie comprised of bloody meat and writing out the word 'death.'"
The final short, "ASDFmovie," used stick figures to depict a number of dead children.
Thwaite also shared inappropriate personal information with the class, according to the disciplinary decision, telling them about his divorce, the related costs, and the fact that he was already dating a "woman from overseas."
During a separate incident the following month, Thwaite discussed having "crushes" with a group of younger students from a Grade 3 and 4 class, and told one of the kids, "Oh, you're such a player."
The B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation said Thwaite did so despite having been issued two separate letters of expectation in the previous two years.
Among other things, the letters advised him to "speak and act with courtesy, respect and dignity at all times," and respect students' right to have "an educational environment that is safe and healthy."
Thwaites resigned from the Nechako Lakes school district in March 2018, and has since moved into a teaching positiong in a remote community.
For his conduct, the commissioner handed Thwaites a two-day suspension, which was administered retroactively to minimize the impact on the small school where he's currently employed.
