About
Our History
The Knights in the Classroom is the creation of the husband and wife team of Matthew and Andrea Lawrence. Andrea is a retired elementary school teacher with over 30 years classroom experience and her Masters degree in Education and Matthew is an actor, historian, fencer and historical martial artist with over 20 years of experience offering educational workshops. Together they wanted to bring history and the curriculum to life for schools, camps, community groups and seniors facilities by offering engaging, interactive and memorable programming that classroom teachers could not do and no one else was offering. The Knights in the Classroom started offering programming in 2010 and have visited more than 1000 schools since then, many of which they have visited on multiple occasions. In 2016 they joined O.E.I. Onsite Education Inc. (of which they are both board members) a registered educational charity, which allows them to pursue grant funding, donations and sponsorships to bring their workshops and demonstrations to an even greater audience.
Instructors
Lady Andrea
Lady Andrea is behind the creation of the Knights in the Classroom and is excited to be an active instructor following her retirement from teaching in York Region after more than 30 years in the classroom. She graduated from York University with a Bachelor of Education and a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. She received her Masters of Education from the University of Toronto (O.I.S.E.).
As a teenager her first summer job was as a tour guide at the Historic Sharon Temple. It was there that she learned that making history come alive was something special.
Lady Andrea began her training in historical martial arts a few years ago and is now thrilled to represent historical "girl power" for the benefit of students across Ontario. She has recently taken up Olympic fencing and is thoroughly enjoying herself and all the benefits the sport has to offer.
Sir Matthew
Matthew has been conducting educational workshops for over 20 years. He started teaching as the founder of the Canadian Improv Showcase and still conducts workshops with them today.
He has an Honours Diploma in Marketing and Advertising from Georgian College and a Technical Certificate in Radio and Television Broadcasting from the National Institute of Broadcasting. He is a self-taught historian.
Matthew started archery at the age of 8 and would go on to compete in high school and become the York Region Champion, setting a record that still stands today.
He took up Olympic-style epee fencing following a horrific leg injury. It proved to be a great passion for him and he now also coaches as part of the Newmarket Fencing Club. He began studying historical martial arts in 2009, training with the Academy of European Medieval Martial Arts.
Lady Carmen
There is a certain kind of magic about Carmen: kids talk to her. Not just at school workshops, but in the mall, at the playground, in book shops, on the street, at the grocery store. From being a popular babysitter and day-camp counsellor, to kid-wrangler and junior-cast favourite for several musicals, to children's theatre and numerous improv workshops with the Canadian Improv Showcase, Carmen loves seeing a kid light up.
Knights in the Classroom gave Carmen the opportunity to share some of her Medieval passion with kids. The old legends of Robin Hood and the times around them have always been her favourite, and learning to fight with a sword has been a boldly exciting addition to her acting resume.
Her husband has been a historical researcher for a number of novels, and that skill must have come to Carmen through osmosis. She's always finding new information, cramming her shelves with books. Now she gets the chance to further explore her interests in other ancient civilizations and their fascinating stories, to share with you as well.
Sir Adam
Starting out as a squire to Sir Matthew, through practice and hard work, Adam has now been knighted.
An accomplished musician, Sir Adam joined Knights in the Classroom by supporting his mom, Lady Tamara, during our virtually drumming presentations. He was so well received by students, that he was invited to join the team and start historical martial arts training as well. Strategically fighting in full armour with real swords was something young Adam took to naturally. Although this new knight has a lot to learn from his mentors, he is an eager student with a keen interest in history and historical martial arts.
Adam has been drumming in a variety of contexts since he was a very young child. He currently is a musician in two rock bands and plays snare drum with a pipe and drum band as well. His big smile and his ability to play rhythms on any surface, as if he has eight arms, has earned him the nickname "Octo-god" by students.
Lady Tamara
A graduate of Trent and Queens Universities, Lady Tamara has extensive experience developing and adapting programs in the Arts. After retiring from 25 years as a secondary school Arts department leader, Lady Tamara is building her own business in the entertainment industry and conducting student leadership workshops.
Her background as an actor and musician allow her to bring a different point of view to the stories and cultures of our time. Her passion for working with children and watching them learn in hands-on and meaningful ways make her an asset to the Knights in the Classroom programming.
And if you ask her nicely, she will bring her bagpipes to open the battle at your Knights in the Classroom Festival experience.
Sir Archibald
Archie has been performing onstage for over 12 years. With stage combat experience in both hand-to-hand and longsword, he was eager to join and learn from the masters!
Archie has always had an obsession with
fantasy and medieval books, films and documentaries (ask him about anything
Tolkien related... or don't because it may be a conversation you can't get out of). Because of this, he has always had a keen interest in medieval, Celtic and
Viking age armour and weaponry. Whether his Celtic ancestry has anything to do
with it he can't say. But when the chance came up to train with the group he
couldn't say no.
Archie loves to train and learn more about the craft and is so
eager to share that knowledge through all the various workshops Knights in the
Classroom provides!
Skål!
Lady Alyssa
Hailing from the misty shores of Georgian Bay, Lady Alyssa is a troubadour of modern times. She has a Bachelor of Music degree from Humber College.
A Toronto-based singer/songwriter whose journey began at the age of seven, when she first discovered the magic of the stage. Starting out as a street performer in and around her hometown, Alyssa has spent years fine-tuning her craft and serenading passersby with her catchy and heartfelt, original melodies.
Alyssa proudly joins the noble team behind Knights in the Classroom, to bring her passion for music, community and lifelong learning together!
Sir Geraden
Geraden Smith is a guitarist, composer and music educator from Toronto, Ontario. He completed his Bachelor of Music degree from the internationally recognized Humber College music program where he studied under some of the top names in Canadian jazz music.
With the help of his guitar and mandolin, Geraden enjoys offering his stringed instrument expertise through the accompanying of sea shanties, improv games and musical entertainment at festivals.
Studying Historical European Martial arts under Sir Matthew has been a fun and educational adventure for Geraden. He enjoys learning about the comparisons between pop-culture and history and how it pertains to battle.
Geraden’s fascination for the Middle Ages and his passion for music have made Knights in The Classroom a natural fit. If you catch him with one of his instruments, ask him to play one of his favourite movie themes!
Pricing
The Knights in the Classroom employ a time of year pricing policy. This offers significant discounts for bookings during off-peak months of July through December. Please contact us to receive our exact pricing.
The Knights in the Classroom are willing to travel anywhere to conduct programming. For areas outside the expanded G.T.A. there is a travel fee associated with the extra cost. See the graphic below for details. If you are outside of Ontario, please communicate through the Contact page and someone will provide you with a customized quote. They do not want the travel fee to be the deciding factor in regards to the confirmation of a booking. Should there be a concern, please contact us. There are ways of dispersing the travel fees depending on the situation. You can also explore local sponsorship to cover your costs.
Cancellation Policy
The Knights in the Classroom has a zero-penalty cancellation policy.
This means no one who books our programming will be charged or penalized for having to postpone, reschedule or cancel a booking. We wish to operate with the utmost understanding and as long as this policy is not abused it will remain in place.
We hope to always be able to reschedule or postpone but we understand circumstances are sometimes out of control. Please rest assured that you can book with confidence knowing this policy is in place.
When booking our services an invoice will be generated. We take payments via cheque or e-transfer. All important details are on the invoice provided. We do not require payment prior to the event date. No deposit is required at this time. We do ask for prompt payment no later than the end of the event on the given day.
If you have any questions please use the Contact link to communicate directly. Thank you.