As we head towards March Break, wrapping-up our exclusively indoor programme, thoughts turn to spring and our emergence onto green fields and beautiful weather when we return to school. That’s the dream, at least!

Weather permitting, much of the Physical Education programme moves outside for the rest of the year, with a few exceptions. Among a variety of opportunities outside, students will engage in various modified striking and fielding games (Years 3 to 6), some target games (Years 1-7), and some more traditional Track and Field units (Years 4 and 5).

One of the activities taking place indoors is the Year 7 Pickleball unit. Using our tennis bubble as a venue, this unit is based on the sport education model, which aims to “help players develop as competent, literate, enthusiastic sports participants” (Daryl Siedentorp). Students will peer-teach within teams, with more experienced players helping to develop their less experienced counterparts, and will engage in regular league play against opponents of similar ability. These games will also be officiated by students and will culminate in a playoff or finals day at the end of the unit. 

Mark Baxter

PE Teacher

2C has made great strides recently, and the upcoming break is a perfect time to recharge. 

Update in Inquiry

We have officially wrapped up our mapping unit, which students met with great enthusiasm. Throughout the lessons, the boys explored essential map features, including scale, coordinates, and landmarks. They showed a deep interest in global geography, specifically while identifying various continents and the countries within them. For their summative project, students chose to work either independently or with a partner to create a large-scale map. This final task allowed them to showcase both their technical understanding and their creativity in a hands-on way. It was impressive to see the level of detail and care they poured into their final designs.

Our new unit, “Giggles are Contagious,” has been a hit with the boys as they dive into the playful worlds of jokes and poetry. To support their creative writing, we have been exploring several parts of speech, including proper nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs. The students have already experimented with various poetic forms such as acrostic poems, tongue twisters, Mad Libs, and diamante poems. Moving forward, we look forward to exploring humour further through the personification of inanimate objects and the structure of simple jokes. Crucially, we will also examine the social side of humour to ensure the boys understand how to be funny without hurting anyone’s feelings. This unit beautifully blends technical grammar with creative expression and essential social-emotional learning.

Math Update

We have officially completed our unit on multiplication and division. While the core concepts have been covered, the boys will continue practicing their times tables for the remainder of the year to build fluency. Our focus has now shifted to telling time, as we investigate both analogue and digital formats to five-minute intervals. For their upcoming summative assignment, students will use digital technology to document and discuss the passage of time through a "typical" day. This hands-on project allows them to apply their mathematical skills to their own daily routines in a meaningful way. We look forward to seeing how they demonstrate their progress with this essential life skill.

I thank you for your continued support of all things big and small in 2C!

All the best, 

Carly Crippin

Feeling like you're wearing insufficient armour? Almost tempted to visit a bathhouse? Or are you overanalyzing our roads and wondering why they're just not made properly? You're not alone. One might wonder what is going on at UCC, as you wander the hallways and bump into Ancient Roman citizens. As it turns out, various students have been experimenting with time machines. The entire Year 6 cohort stumbled into Rome recently to interview plebeians and patricians from 509 BCE to 274 BCE, even the odd consul or senator. They scripted, narrated, and added sound effects to create podcasts on the Conflict of Order, analyzing whether conflict is a necessary change agent to achieve fairness. Please click on this link to enjoy their podcasts. 

Post podcasts, we learned about the expansion of Rome during the Punic Wars. Once Rome reaches its end as a republic, students will explore its heights and then unravel as an empire. This will lead to our final summative task: Roman Speeches. Each student will argue how a value in Ancient Roman times led to either its rise or fall. They are then tasked to compare that value to current events. Does current society still make ancient mistakes? Or have we learned from the past? Please stay tuned for their speeches in late April. 

In the meantime, take a moment to scroll through I&S on Brightspace with your Year 6 students. Reflect on their current event and notebook checks. Take a look at the feedback on their assignments. If you have time, grab some popcorn and watch the epic Hannibal documentary in the class slideshow. 

Jennifer Harper

Year 6 Form Advisor

 From late March to mid-May, students in Years 4 to 7 will begin their Human Development and Sexual Health unit in Health and Life Skills. 

In Year 4 we will introduce the idea of puberty and talk about the basic physical changes that occur during this time. We'll discuss the potential changes in emotions (e.g. feeling uncomfortable because you’re taller or smaller than all your peers) and social relationships (e.g. friendships change as people develop different interests) that may be experienced during this developmental stage. Personal care and hygiene practices associated with the onset of puberty (e.g. regular bathing, wearing deodorant) will also be reviewed.

In Year 5, topics to be discussed include how the body changes during puberty, specifically with respect to the reproductive system, menstruation and spermatogenesis. We'll look at how the changes during puberty might be stressful for some and how that stress can be managed in a healthy way. 

In Year 6, we will review the social, emotional and physical changes that may occur in puberty and discuss the characteristics of healthy relationships. The impact of viewing sexually explicit media will also be addressed. 

In Year 7 we will begin with a review of the typical physical, social and emotional changes that can occur during puberty. We'll then discuss how these changes might affect our relationships and interactions with others. This will include talking about sexting and the importance of communication and consent when making decisions about relationships and sexual activity. We'll end the unit learning about sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI's), covering what they are and how they can be prevented. 

Accurate sources of information related to human development is something we discuss at all grades, and the Prep library has a number of books for students and/or parents to borrow on the topic. The website ‘Teaching Sexual Health’ is another source of information for parents around talking to children about sexual health as are the resources found on this website from sexual health educator Saleema Noon.  

Should you have any questions, please contact Martha Boyce or your child’s HLS teacher.

The Health & Life Skills Team

Kayla Gosse , Dianne Jojic, David Girard, Max Perren, Martha Boyce 

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 8. Families, please mark your calendars. Details of Exhibition Day will be forthcoming.

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

Please find the Parent Guide to the PYP Exhibition and the Exhibition 2026 Calendar, which outline the project flow and transdisciplinary connections for this year. Should you have any questions about the PYP Exhibition, please speak to your child’s form adviser or Jordan Small at jsmall@ucc.on.ca. Mark May 8 on your calendars and keep your eye on Heads Up for project updates.

Dianne Jojic
PYP Coordinator

To allow for proper cleaning and maintenance of College facilities, all Prep athletic lockers need to be emptied by tomorrow, Friday, March 6. Depending on when boys have their last Games/PE period, they will have emptied their athletic lockers and had them inspected during the week of March 2. We will notify and remind the students of this arrangement. It’s a good idea to send your child to school tomorrow with an extra bag for carrying home the contents.

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 their 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 nothing perishable). Any athletic lockers that are still locked shut by the end-of-day on Friday, March 6, will have their locks cut off and the contents removed.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Colour House on Vacation is one of many House competitions that occur throughout the school year. In this competition, students are encouraged to bring in pictures of themselves wearing their House colours during their holiday. If you are going away over the March Break or enjoying a stay-cation, take a picture of your son while he is wearing his House colours (maximum of 2 pictures in different locations). The House with the most pictures on the board will receive 1000 points. Please email all pictures to Mr. Hustler.

Michael Bushey

Colour House Coordinator 

The spring session of the hot lunch program will begin after the March Break. Please email Janet Brock by Thursday, March 19 to opt in or out of the lunch program.

There is no action necessary if you are already signed up and will continue participating in the hot lunch program.

Join the PPO for coffee, connection, and conversation with an exceptional speaker and fellow parents on Monday, April 13 from 8:30 to 10 a.m.

Speaker Dr. Stella Dentakos, a registered psychologist with SickKids and a private practice, will explore timely themes of technology, wellness, and modern parenting. Today’s parents face an ever-changing challenge: how to raise resilient, responsible, and emotionally healthy children in a digital world. Dr. Dentakos will share practical strategies to help families set healthy boundaries, create balance, and strengthen real-world connections amid online distractions.

We hope that you will join us! Please register here.

Please mark off the following dates in your calendars for upcoming Spring PPO events:

Monday, April 13 - Parent Coffee Morning

Monday, April 20 - Community Reads Book Club 

Tuesday, April 21 - Blue Ties Breakfast (registration link to come soon)

Friday, May 15 -  Generation’s Day

Friday May 29 - Blue Bash 

We hope you all have a happy and healthy March Break!

Prep Parents’ Organization

Over the years, your donations have brought joy and hope to moms and their children who are celebrating Mother's Day in shelters. Every night across Canada, thousands of women and children bravely seek refuge in shelters.

We'll once again be creating gift bags for children in shelters to give to their moms on Mother’s Day, and are gratefully collecting the following full and travel/hotel-sized toiletries: 

• soap and body wash

• shampoo and conditioner 

• body lotion and skin care 

• unused cosmetics and nail polish

• hair care products

• toothbrushes and toothpaste

• antiperspirant and sanitary products

• beauty samples/perfumes

• small gift sets 

All donations will be packed with care by UCC's Helping Hands Club.

Donations can be dropped off at the reception desk in the Upper School or main office of the Prep. Please contact Linda Carvalho if you have any questions about drop off, or Samantha Dugas if you have questions about donations.  

Thank you for helping to transform lives this Mother's Day.