Last night, the culminating event of the Village School program took place for Grade 5 students: the Primary Years Programme Exhibition (PYPx). Together, the 105 students in Grade 5 explored 34 topics covering a variety of issues such as pollution, discrimination, the war in Ukraine, COVID-19, health and wellness, and gender inequality. This year, PYPx was hosted as a live virtual event where students presented their projects and answered questions from the audience.
Students have been inquiring into an area of passion, and they have immersed themselves in their projects for the past eight weeks. But really, their educational experiences have been building toward this moment since they walked through Chadwick’s doors. As they have prepared their student-initiated PYPx projects, students have drawn upon all of the research, communication, social and self-management skills that they have been developing throughout their Village School careers.
In addition to preparing, rehearsing and fine-tuning their presentations, students have inquired more deeply into their topics in their specialist classes. Students drew upon their drama experience to create a still image designed to express the ideas and feelings behind their exhibition topic, a drama form known as a tableau. Through the world language program, students published a book that included a piece of writing about themselves and their topic in Korean or Mandarin. Finally, the exhibition included a musical montage as part of the Opening Ceremony. The process of creating these additional collective works drew upon their leadership skills and deepened their sense of community.
Congratulations to our Grade 5 students on all they have learned and accomplished through the PYPx and their Village School careers.