Senior School News

On Tuesday December 5th, Senior School students will be participating in student-run  presentations focusing on student questions around the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Subsequently, we will be receiving donations for Doctors Without Borders from Upper School students.  Doctors WIthout Borders is an “independent and impartial humanitarian organization” that delivers emergency medical care in places that need it.  While the organization does not currently run medical programs in Israel — citing its strong emergency and health systems — it has offered support to Israeli hospitals treating a high number of casualties.  It, as of November 28th, is focused on providing medical care and meeting the immediate needs of those in the Gaza strip. Donations can be made from Wednesday the 6th to Friday the 8th of December, in person or through the Mulgrave Students Give code.

A reminder to families that in January our Grade 10 students will need to sit one Science exam in February:

• Grade 10 Sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Biology or ESS): Friday, February 2nd from 9:00 - 11:00 am

Students are expected to review their Sciences material before and after the holidays, and their teachers will provide revision resources and help sessions. While these exams are important, we strongly encourage all our Grade 10 students to view them primarily as opportunities to check their own understanding of course material, and the extent to which they have developed key AtL skills in both subject areas. While their exam performance will of course contribute to their Term 1 level in these subjects, it will by no means be the sole contributing factor, and all the work students have completed, in class and at home, during these courses will also play an important role towards their Term 1 report. Students are NOT expected to spend their holidays reviewing for these exams, and we continue to encourage a balanced approach to their studies. For additional information or any clarification, please do not hesitate to contact Chiara Tabet or Aziz Batada. Thank you.

January 22 - 30, 2024

The mock exams play a critical role in preparing students to achieve their personal best as they approach the official IB May Exams. To ensure that students have a solid understanding of what they may expect on their final IB exams, subject teachers prepare sample exam papers based on actual IB exams from past years.

The exam schedule below is for your reference and to assist students in their preparation during the Winter Break. Teachers will also provide exam outlines to their students by December 9th for use in their studies.

G12 Mock Examination Schedule

In preparation for the Mock exams, students are encouraged to create a revision and review schedule that is effective for their personal and co-curricular schedule. Please reinforce this agenda by asking to see your child’s plan for review for each of the papers they have to sit. 

The exams will take place in the new gymnasium at Mulgrave. Please note: the morning exam will start at 8:30 and the afternoon exam will start at 12:45. This is because of new IB regulations mandating an earlier start - we will need to implement these regulations in May and so we want to give our students a chance to practice with this arrangements during mock exams as well. Students who normally take the bus will be able to arrive well before the morning exams start - however, Tuesday 23rd and Tuesday 30th January will be an issue for students who take the bus due to the later bus schedule. It is imperative that students and families let us know in advance if they are unable to make their way to school independently on these two days, so that we can support as needed. Please contact Aziz Batada, Chiara Tabet, Jack McKillop or Kim Li if this is the case. Thank you.

These exams are a mandatory Graduation requirement for G10 and G11. They will take place on the following days:

January 18, 9-12: Literacy 12 provincial exam (G11 students)

January 18, 1-4 : Literacy 10 provincial exam (G10 students)

January 19, 9-12: Numeracy 10 provincial exam (G10 students)

A reminder that our next Grade 12 coffee morning, organised by the Senior School’s leadership team, will take place on Friday, December 8th at 9:00 AM in SSAC. This will be a great opportunity to connect informally with other G12 parents and with the Senior School leadership team, and ask any questions you may have about the year. We look forward to seeing you soon! Please note the time change, at the request of our families: we will start at 9 AM rather than at 10 AM.

The late work policy for Senior School students can be found here. All deadlines and assessments are on SEQTA as well as on the SS assessment (Google) calendars.

We trust that this new policy will help us better support our students in the development of their executive functioning skills, thus increasing their self-confidence and decreasing levels of stress associated with procrastination. Please support us in focusing on personal (rather than absolute) best in our messaging to students, and in encouraging a balanced approach to studying. For any questions or clarification please do not hesitate to contact Chiara Tabet, Aziz Batada or Jack McKillop.

With the Winter Break quickly approaching, it is important to note that all students are expected to attend school until the last day (Friday, December 22nd) and return on the first day back after the break (Monday, January 15th).

Our curriculum and lessons are developed with this in mind so students missing additional time away will be hindered in their progress and learning. Missing days will also be reported as "unexcused absence" on the student's file.

We are hopeful that families will ensure that holidays are arranged in a way that avoids additional absences.
 

As we near the holiday period, we would like to remind parents about the staff gift policy. Gifts to staff at any time of the year are neither required nor expected. However, we do understand that parents may want to show their appreciation from time to time. This is best done in the form of a short note or card expressing your thanks. If parents do want to buy a small personal gift for staff, we have a strict $100 limit on the value of gifts. Staff gifts in excess of this value must be donated by the staff member to the school and will be used as raffles or prizes at school events. If the gift is in cash or equivalent form, this will be donated to the capital campaign fund. Thank you for your understanding in this matter.

Please be reminded that these deadlines are as important as any external academic deadlines and designed to protect students from the domino effect of letting this process drag through the Winter break. Additionally, having our deadline in early December allows us to deal promptly and swiftly with any issues that may arise for any application. If students wait until the break to submit their applications, they will not be able to benefit from the support of our counsellors and of post-secondary admission officers to resolve potential issues - the latter in particular will not be reachable during the break, and it is therefore very important that any potential issue is resolved while the school and universities are still in session.

Additionally, during the break Grade 12 students need to be focused on preparing for their mock examinations in January and remember the marks they gain for these mocks will be reported on to universities in February by their request (e.g. UBC and US universities), so they are very important in the application process itself. In addition to playing this role, the mock exams will provide a clear indication of strengths, areas for development and effective revision strategies: it is key that all our students focus on doing their very best. Grade 12 students will be going over their mock exam review and revision schedules before the winter break. It is very important that we are all supportive of this endeavour and ensure our students are fully prepared - while at the same time ensuring that they get some very well deserved rest during the holidays. The mock will start in the second week back from the Winter Break. 

Thursday, December 14th, 5:00-6:30 - English Suite

G10 Parent Q&A: Routes to Graduation and Winter Programming - MANDATORY WORKSHOP

This is a very important (and mandatory) meeting for all G10 families; students are, as always, very welcome and encouraged to attend. We will go through the expectations, structure and planning process for the upcoming Winter Camp (January 23rd-26th), which is a key part of the G10 curriculum and in which all G10 students must participate. As well, Current G10 students are starting to look ahead to their transition to next year's IB curriculum. We are asking both students and families to begin the discussion around which graduation path and  courses are most suitable for each individual, and Senior School teachers in every subject can begin to answer questions that may rise over the coming weeks. At this meeting, we will begin to discuss the IBDP Programme of Studies as well as Enriched Pathways (EP) to graduation at Mulgrave. Furthermore, after the winter break we will hold G11-G12 taster lessons and an IB Course Fair for G10 students (details to be confirmed soon). Students will have the opportunity to meet the G11 and G12 faculty in each subject area and familiarize themselves with the curriculum and course outline as a means of furthering their decisions for the selection process. 

Please note: we will share a video about routes to graduation with all G10 families next week in Connexions. It is essential that students and families watch this video before our session on the 14th. This will allow the workshop to be more interactive, and based on a Q&A rather than a full formal presentation. Thank you.

This year the Grad class of 2024 is hosting a Winter Fest sale, where we will be selling festive tabletop greenery and wreaths, from November 16th until December 8th.  Pickup for the plants will be after school on Friday, December 8th, where we will also be hosting festive winter activities as a way for our Grad class to bring holiday spirit to our community. Activities will be open to all, and include a hot chocolate station, karaoke, and pictures with Santa. The profits from our Winter Fest sale will be going towards this year's Grad gift and will help fund other Grad events. We greatly appreciate your support!

This is a friendly reminder that classes start at 9am, so students must be in the building by 8:55am to ensure they are ready to begin their lessons on time. On Tuesdays, classes start at 9:40am so students must be in the building by 9:35am. Time management is an important life skill, and students should also keep in mind that late arrivals disrupt the learning of others. Please review the attached Senior School Attendance and Late Policy for clarity on the expectations and consequences. Please remember that if your child is ill, or if there is a very good reason for their lateness, the expectation is that an email is sent by the parents to our attendance officer. Thank you for your understanding and, as always, please don't hesitate to contact the Senior School's leadership team for any question or clarification.

G11 Coffee morning (In-Person): Friday, November 24⋅10:00 – 11:00am

G12 Coffee Morning (In-Person): Friday, December 8⋅10:00 – 11:00am

Please join us for these informal opportunities to ask questions about life and work in the Senior School! We hope to see you there.