Just prior to Victoria Day each year, Balmoral Hall students participate in student-led conferences. For many BH girls, this is an opportunity to participate in time-honoured traditions such as Grade 5 Exhibition, Grade 10 Passion Projects, and Grade 11/12 Panel Interviews. These are important milestones in a BH girl’s academic journey.
What they all have in common is their evidence of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) inquiry.
Grade 5 themes of inquiry included explorations of basic rights, how those rights are denied or enforced, and actions that promote or deny equality of rights. Students considered the following central idea – negotiating rights when sharing resources impacts behaviour – in preparation for their Exhibition, “Doing the Right Thing,” which occurred May 16. Also, on that date, they organized Learn with a Stuffie Day; whereby donating a minimum of $1, Junior School students supported a Canadian charity, Sleeping Children Around the World. In addition to a multimedia presentation in Sifton Family Theatre, the Exhibition included a solutions symposium of interactive displays, as well as a glow-in-the-dark museum within the dance studio.
Meanwhile, over the course of several months, empowered to explore lifelong interests, educational programs, and career goals, each Grade 10 student creates an individual Passion Project. To share the students’ findings with peers, staff, and parents, BH university guidance faculty coordinate an annual exhibition of Passion Projects. Transforming the atrium into a laboratory, a gallery, and an auditorium, students showcased their work May 16-17.
Also, May 16-17, as part of a culminating activity for grades 11 and 12, we engaged professionals from the school community to sit on a panel to hold mock interviews with students in their careers of interest. Panel Interviews allow students to demonstrate their skills at communicating interests and abilities independently. This is a terrific opportunity for students to showcase their skills, growth, and qualities of a Balmoral Hall graduate.