Select a link to jump to an article.

Dear Prep Families,

Learning, celebration and community abound at the Prep this week.  

Unbelievably, last week was the 100th day of school!  Our youngest learners celebrated this milestone with excitement. SK students are generating a list of 100 things that make them happy!  Which ones resonate with you?

This week was also World Languages Week at UCC. In the Prep, this allows us to highlight the French language and Francophone culture with special guests, presentations and events. One highlight was the Primary Assembly with Fana Soro, a talented musician and dancer from Côte d’Ivoire. Students experience traditional West African music and storytelling — and he even got all the teachers on stage! Thank you to the French team for their work organizing this incredible week.  

Yesterday we celebrated Pink Shirt Day, using it as an opportunity to think about the prevention of bullying and promoting kindness and inclusion.

On Tuesday after school, we hosted our first Family Design Challenge in the Chen Innovation Lab!  This event was for SK–Year 2 families and we look forward to offering more opportunities for families to come together to experience the design cycle together.  

It is also a big week in Arts and Athletics as the Winter Term ends. After months of hard work and preparation, we look forward to seeing our Year 7 UCC and BSS student cast and crew present the 2025 Prep winter musical, Shrek Jr., on Thursday and Friday. We will be celebrating this with a Shrek-themed spirit day on Friday, where students can wear green-coloured clothing, dress up as a character from Shrek, or wear their UCC spirit wear! Our UCC swimmers also made a splash in the pool at the CISAA Junior Finals where they won the overall boys championship! We also had silver medals for our U13 DI Basketball and Alpine teams. Go blues!  

Next week promises to be equally exciting as our Year 6 and 7 students begin Project Week and a special off-timetable exploration of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. All of this ahead of the March Break that we know is much anticipated by all!

Sarah Fleming, David Girard and Gareth Evans

The Prep Leadership Team

Update | Year 1

Last week, we celebrated the 100th day of school with the SK class, engaging in various activities centred around the number 100. From exercise and building challenges to art activities, students proudly celebrated 100 days of Year 1 and relished the opportunity to visit their old stomping ground, the SK classroom. 

We are currently engrossed in our fourth unit of inquiry: The Earth and Sun. We have over 60 student questions to answer, and the buzz of learning is alive as we inquire further. 

We have started our study of cycles produced by orbit and daily revolutions. This connection will allow us to better understand how the Earth’s position can impact climate, time zones and seasons depending on where you are located. If this is applicable to your March Break plans, please point it out to your learner! 

In math, students have been working on Addition and Subtraction to 20, exploring the many ways that we can build and take apart “teen” numbers. This learning has built upon their understanding of number bonds and addition stories. For further practice of these skills beyond the classroom, ask your learner how they can build addition and subtraction stories, with numbers to 20, in the world around them. 

The Year 1 writers have officially entered the publishing phase of the writing process. The writers are working with commendable focus to publish their fairytale stories. We look forward to sharing our stories with you during student-led conferences in April.

It has been a pleasure to learn alongside the wonderful group of Year 1s. A special thank you to the 1M families for their collaboration and support this year.

With gratitude,

Anna Marshall

Year 1 Form Adviser

Years 6 and 7 Project Week | March 4–7

The Prep School MYP Project Week will take place from Tuesday, March 4 to Friday, March 7 and offers students in Years 6 and 7 the opportunity to participate in an interdisciplinary unit examining important global topics. Year 6 students are exploring the topic of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 13, Climate Action, and Year 7 students are examining the topic of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 3, Good Health and Wellbeing, through a series of speakers, special guests, field trips and group activities.

Teachers and team leaders have prepared extensively for this dynamic learning experience and will continue to set students up for success by introducing key topics, terms and skills. Everyone is excited about this unique educational and collaborative event.  

The regular school day timing will not change, and drop-off and pick-up will not be impacted. Student attendance is very important during this immersive experience.

Please note that whether students are away for a portion of the week, they will still be responsible for producing and sharing a culminating activity with their Form Adviser so that it can be assessed and included on their June report card.

Parents are encouraged to be on the lookout for a Project Week permission form arriving in their inbox.

Sincerely,

Gareth Evans

Assistant Head of the Preparatory School: Middle Division

PYP Exhibition | Information for families

Year 5 is the last year of the Primary Years Programme (PYP) and, as such, students engage in the PYP Exhibition. The PYP Exhibition project is a collaborative, student-directed, research-based, and action-oriented culminating learning experience in the final year of the PYP.  Students lead their inquiry, connected to a local or global issue they care about. Students have been focusing on issues related to the United Nations Goals for Sustainable Development and the IB transdisciplinary theme SHARING THE PLANET. 

At the completion of the PYP Exhibition project, we showcase projects and celebrate with our community. This year’s PYP Exhibition Day will be held in the afternoon of  Friday, May 9. Families, please mark your calendars. Details of Exhibition Day will be forthcoming.

To learn more about the PYP Exhibition process, parents are invited to attend a Parent Information Session which will happen via Zoom. No RSVP is required. Please access the meeting via the Zoom link below.

• Tuesday, March 4 from 1–2 p.m. Zoom link 

Year 5 students have been talking about the PYP Exhibition since early this school year. Students have been digging into the IB concepts and using them to write questions in units of inquiry and during exhibition periods. They have been exploring “good news” stories of innovation and optimism in pursuit of taking action to help meet the United Nations goals. They have discussed “stakeholders” — other people or groups who also care about the issues they are curious about. Students have begun their “pre-search” phase of our research, reviewing resources in advance of choosing topics, both in the library and via LibGuides online. 

The PYP Exhibition project is a collaborative project, completed mostly at school between March Break and Exhibition Day. Please keep non-essential absences to a minimum during this time.

Should you have any questions about the PYP Exhibition, please speak to your child’s form adviser or Dianne Jojic and plan to attend the PYP Exhibition Parent Information session on March 4. A recording of this meeting will be shared.

Dianne Jojic

PYP Coordinator

Year 7 | Graduation and House placement 

Dear Year 7 families,

A gentle reminder that families must complete the Graduation Name and UCC Legacy Information Google form —  shared by email this morning. This marks the beginning of our planning for the Year 7 transition to the Upper School and their graduation in June. The form emailed to you this morning is to be completed by Thursday, March 6.

Thank you for your support.

Gareth Evans

Assistant Head of the Preparatory School: Middle Division

Locker clean-out by March 7

To allow for proper cleaning and maintenance of College facilities, all Prep athletic lockers need to be emptied by Friday, March 7. Depending on when boys have their last Games/PE period, they will empty their athletic locker and have it inspected during the week of March 3. If your child is leaving early, please have them make arrangements to empty their athletic locker with their form adviser. We will notify and remind the students of this arrangement. It’s a good idea to send your child to school with an extra bag for carrying home the contents of his athletic locker.

To ensure that students don’t mistake each other’s lockers upon their return after March Break, we ask each student to secure their lock to the latch of his athletic locker, with the locker door in the open position to allow access by our housekeeping staff.

Book lockers will be inspected by form advisers to ensure only books are left over the break and no lunches. Any athletic lockers that are still locked shut by the end-of-day on Friday, March 7, will have their locks cut off and the contents removed.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Spirit Day to celebrate Shrek Jr. production

Tonight and tomorrow in Weston Hall, 50 students in Year 5, 6 and 7 from UCC and BSS will present Shrek Jr., a classic fairytale showcasing that everyone belongs, can find friendship, and love all, mixed in with humour and a dragon. Shrek Jr. is sure to entertain the whole family! 

In celebration, the Prep will host a spirit dress day tomorrow. Students are encouraged to follow these guidelines:

• UCC spirit wear or

• Green-coloured clothing or

• Fairytale characters from Shrek (e.g., Gingerbread Man, 3 Little Pigs, Big Bad Wolf, Pinocchio, Ugly Duckling, Peter Pan)

Campus uniform sale

DGN-Kilters will be stationed on campus with their mobile sales van outside the William P. Wilder ’40 Arena & Sports Complex on Friday, Feb. 28 from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Upper and Prep families may purchase Spring Dress uniforms and facilitate exchanges or returns. 

Spring dress starts Monday, March 24.

Patti Cawker-Chiang

Blues Shop Manager

Sign up | 2025–26 PPO Advisory Committee

Dear Prep Parents,

The self-nomination process for the 2025-26 Prep Parent’s Organization (PPO) is now open!

Do you like to connect with other parents and feel part of a community? Maybe you love coming up with new ways to fundraise? Do you just want to be more involved in the school or have ideas about how we can make the Prep more sustainable? Join the PPO!  

Whether it’s a one-off event or a more consistent commitment you’re looking for, there's something for everyone on our committee. Please have a look through our advisory positions here.

PPO self-nominations will be open from Thursday, Jan. 30 to Friday, Feb. 27 at 5 p.m. 

Get involved and nominate yourself by completing this form. If you have any questions, please reach out to pastpresident@uccprepparents.ca.