Torch - Fall 2017

Student Experience

At Havergal, experiential learning allows our students and faculty to rethink when and where learning occurs, how it happens and how deep and personal the learning can be. As we focus on the question What will you do? , experiential learning allows us to think about what it is that we are doing that prepares us to make a difference. Our faculty and students are prepared to take on this challenge because our classrooms provide incredibly strong academic and critical thinking foundations from which to launch experiential learning opportunities. In Tamara Curtis’ Grade 10 Careers class, a 0.5 mandatory credit, students take a deep dive into professional skills through micro- internships. These are self-directed, brief internships that are based on passions and interests in various careers. As a part of the course, students have to set up the internships on their own, which helps them develop networking skills. When they take part in these opportunities, they are to ask themselves if this is what they thought it would be like. The followup to this is reflecting and answering any further questions they may have about whether or not this career is the right choice for them. Through micro-internships, students gain cultural awareness of various career worlds. For a course called Careers, this is truly experiential teaching. Experiential Learning at Havergal By Garth Nichols “ “ We do not learn from experience...we learn from reflecting on experience. —John Dewey

New this year are Day 9 opportunities, allowing our students to dip their toes in the water of many adventures. There are four of these non-timetable days throughout the year (in 2017–18, they are scheduled on the following dates: Tuesday, October 10; Tuesday, November 28; Thursday, February 15; and Tuesday, April 24), providing our students with curated, co-created experiences designed to deepen and extend our learning outside of the traditional classroom routine. Our first Day 9 was on Tuesday, October 10, which saw more than 30 experts in their fields engage with our students in different ways. I was excited to see more than 300 girls from Grades 1 to 12 leave the building to interact and inquire in various ways with the world around them. Day 9 events are tailored for our students through the three strands of the strategic plan: Breaking the Marble Spell (Junior Kindergarten to Grade 4), Minds Set Free (Grades 5 to 8) and Exploring the Brink of the Known (Grades 9 to 12). Under the umbrella of Breaking the Marble Spell , we have designed programs that are meaningful to the character development of this age group, as well as their appreciation for the world around them. In Kindergarten, students are conducting an exploration of Havergal’s natural environment and various outdoor spaces. Students in Grades 1 and 2 are going to High Park on each Day 9 this school year, giving them the opportunity to explore the changes of each season. They will also participate in a variety of community-building activities to strengthen their peer relationships. Students in Grade 3 are exploring a different community in the GTA on each Day 9, from the north, south, east and west. On October 10, they engaged in community-building activities that asked them to consider the needs of others as they reflect on how they contribute to their community. Students in Grade 4 are visiting Young People’s Theatre to participate in drama workshops and see various plays. Students will be challenged to consider their own values, as well as how to develop the confidence and skills that can allow our students to stick to their values. Our students in Grades 5 to 8 are learning about the passions, purposes and skills of more than 20 guest speakers from our alumnae and parent community as a part of Minds Set Free . Students self-select into sessions that match their own passions and interests. In the afternoon, Future Design School facilitates

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