This London teacher is using his love for the Toronto Blue Jays to teach his students

London, Ont., elementary teacher Rui Castelhano walked into his school with a big smile on Thursday morning after the Toronto Blue Jays beat the New York Yankees in a 3-1 series victory in the American League Division Series.

Sporting a Blue Jays-branded jacket, a matching team shirt underneath, and Blue Jays lanyard hanging out of his pocket, Castelhano was beaming.

“I like the kids to know that I’m a Jays fan," he said. "Sometimes kids don’t think you’re human because you’re a teacher.”

Castelhano, who teaches Grade 6 at Saint Marguerite D'Youville Catholic Elementary School, said he likes to share his passion for the Jays and sports with the class.

Behind his desk, Castelhano keeps a wall of posters and newspaper clippings about the Jays. Bobblehead figures of Josh Donaldson and Mark Buehrle peer out at his students from the top of a bookshelf. Gifts from former students posted around the room include drawings, paintings and letters with the team’s logo somewhere on the page.

However, Castelhano’s passion for baseball goes beyond his clothes and decorations, it’s also an important part of his teaching.

“The kids are more engaged. They’re enjoying the class, they’re asking more questions, they want to know more, and they actually want to learn more,” Castelhano said.

Castelhano said teaching statistics is one example of using the Jays in the classroom. He brings in baseball cards for students to analyze the information, learn about percentages and calculate averages.

“Sports is math and they can actually apply it in their regular days,” he said. “I’ve been at this so long that you can make anything a little bit cool. You’ve got to look at it in many different ways.”

While this is Castelhano’s first year teaching at Saint Marguerite D'Youville, he has been using the “Blue Jays experience” to connect with his students for nearly two decades. He's also taken former classes on field trips to Jays games.

Principal Alisha Gingerich said Castelhano’s method is especially important when it comes to connecting with other sports fans and athletically-inclined students.

“When he can engage with those students, he can get them interested in the academics and make that relationship and connection with them,” Gingerich said. “If you have a good relationship with your students, then they are going to learn more effectively from you.”

Castelhano has been a fan of the Blue Jays since he was in Grade 6 himself, collecting baseball cards and going to games back when the Rogers Centre first opened as the Skydome.

His love for the team has only grown, he said, adding that he has been to every single home opener game for the last 15 years. His memorabilia collection at home is even bigger than the one in his classroom, and includes posters, old team photos and jerseys in all colours.

“I’m working on building my whole room – my man cave,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of Jays stuff around and it just keeps growing.”

As the Jays move on to play either the Detroit Tigers or Seattle Mariners in the American League Championship Series this weekend, Castelhano said he is feeling hopeful.

“I think they’re such an unpredictable team and everyone produces so well that I think they can go all the way,” Castelhano said. “If they can beat the Yankees the way they did … I think they could beat anybody.”

The first home game at Toronto’s Rogers Centre will be on Sunday, Oct. 12. The winner of that series will then move on to the World Series.