2020/21 Head's Report Stories

To document their journey, our Grade 12 students presented their work, including the Extended Essay, CAS projects, and volunteer and work experience. This is a celebration of their educational journey at Meadowridge and encouraged students to reflect on their strengths and acknowledge those who have helped them succeed.

The personal project encourages students to practice and strengthen their approaches to learning (ATL) skills, to consolidate prior and subject-specific learning, and to develop an area of personal interest. The personal project provides an excellent opportunity for students to produce a truly personal and often creative product/outcome and to demonstrate a consolidation of their learning in the MYP.

The Grade 5 Exhibition is the culminating, collaborative experience in the final year of the IB (International Baccalaureate) Primary Years Programme. Students explore, document, and share their understanding of an issue or opportunity of personal significance to themselves.

Location: Toronto, ON

Where is she now: Founder and CEO of Awake Labs

"My teachers at Meadowridge pushed and challenged me to reach my goals and gave me the confidence to realize that there were no limits to my potential"

Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Where is he now: Senior Strategy and Planning Associate at Uber Europe, Middle East and Africa

“Meadowridge was like a second home to me. It’s where I met so many great people that are still some of my closest friends to this day. Not a lot of people can say that they had that kind of experience for 13 years.”

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Where is he now: Policy Director, Institute of Public Policy and Economy, StrategyCorp

“Meadowridge taught me to take risks. To speak up, share ideas, and engage in debate. The confidence to have my voice heard and, more importantly, hear others’ voices, is a skill I use every day.”

The school community has done so much for our family, so donating the MEID has always been in the back of my mind. The school finished the expansion of the Theatre and Gym when we started, and the DP addition was completed just in time for Noah to experience. I believe we need to pay it forward, no matter how small the contribution, for the next generation of students.

Our family wants to support Meadowridge to become the best school. We hope to grow the school’s facilities so that more children can benefit from it. Meadowridge School is a competitive, well-known independent school and we hope our donation will help it become the first choice for families and attract and retain great talents.

 On December 1, 2020, Meadowridge hosted its first-ever Giving Day, joining the global Giving Tuesday movement, which inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity. In celebration of the school’s 35-year anniversary, Meadowridge Giving Day ran for 35 consecutive hours and raised a total of $152,287 from 154 donors.

Food is an essential part of our lives. Food connects us, nourishes us, and brings us joy. It is the fuel for not only our bodies and minds, but also our celebrations, our gatherings, and our traditions.

“We go outside because it’s good for us,” Outdoor, Experiential, Ecological Education (OE3) Coordinator Mr. James Willms nods, “it’s where we play, learn and explore.” This belief has shaped the culture and curriculum of our school, and it has shaped our students, too. Through education and through experience, students’ awareness, preparedness, and outdoor skills grow steadily over time. Daily outdoor recess and classes and clubs teach students to watch the weather and come prepared, tasks which are now much easier and more visible thanks to a new, on-campus resource – a weather station!

Mr. Spurgeon earned NIAAA Certified International Athletic Administrator certification, demonstrating the highest level of knowledge and expertise in the field of international interscholastic athletic administration. The voluntary certification process includes a thorough evaluation of the candidate's educational background, experience, and professional contributions, as well as a rigorous, comprehensive written examination.

Council projects can be both fun and frivolous as well as extremely serious and important. As council members, we get the opportunity to shape a part of the culture of the school and make a difference, from bringing a smile to people’s faces, planning events for students to let off steam, or informing and educating our peers about serious, contemporary issues. I have a sincere interest in the welfare of others and believe in the importance of fun. I like being a part of planning those events and helping shape the student experience at our school.

To celebrate the Meadowridge Class of 2021, students and teachers, families and friends tuned in to watch the live Graduation Assembly. Teachers shared their memories and best wishes, while a compilation video celebrated each of our graduate’s unique characteristics and strengths.

The library is one of my favourite spots in the school. I’ve attended Meadowridge since Grade 8, but it wasn’t until Grade 11 that it became a place I visited every day. The library and its resources were especially helpful during the Extended Essay (EE). The library provided a physical place to meet with our supervisors, while the librarians helped with a research workshop that became the backbone of 
our 4,000-word papers.

I find that if I figure out a chord progression, I can usually pair it with a fun concept and the songwriting process goes really fast from there. I never plan any of my songs; I just play chords on my guitar and sing what comes to mind, write it down, and edit as I go. When I finish a significant chunk of a song, I record it in my voice memos app – which currently holds 230 different voice memos! – so that I don’t forget how the song goes.

A culmination of two years of work, the Diploma Programme Art Exhibition is a showcase of creation and inquiry in multiple mediums. Hear from the artists, see their works, and read their statements. Here are six of our eight Grade 12 student art exhibitions, presented online.

The Digital Music was established after significant research, planning, and investment ($22,829 invested and purchased through the Annual Fund). With new audio equipment and software, students wrote, arranged, recorded, edited, mixed, and mastered 39 different songs and released the three-volume Kaleidoscope. 

See the Elementary School virtual music showcases.

After moving back to British Columbia, I began volunteering at my local library where, by complete chance, I befriended a few Meadowridge students and together we started a science club. The challenging curriculum, plethora of extracurricular offerings, and countless hours of working with passionate and creative students at the library convinced me to attend the school. It’s quite funny – in my case, I was the one pressuring my parents to apply to this school!