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Author: GNS

Giving Back and Paying It Forward

On a winter’s day in February 2023, we welcomed Amelia Gao back to the Beach Drive Campus to represent her family Johnson, daughter Angela and son Samuel. When Angela graduated in 2018 the family moved back to Beijing. Before they left they honoured the school with a donation to help restore and rebuild the Beach Drive Campus.

What is the Extended Essay?

IB Diploma candidates have a lot to look forward to in the coming months. Next term, starting in May, Grade 11 full IB Diploma students will begin working on their Extended Essay, a 4000-word paper that will be completed in mid-October of their Grade 12 year.

Round Square Ongoing Initiatives

The month of October is not only full of school projects, formatives and summatives, but it is also packed with initiatives from Senior School Round Square. Currently, there are five initiatives being planned and organized at once!

Arrive in Five Walk and Roll Zones

In early September, the City of Victoria’s Transportation Coordinator, informed us that the Pemberton Woods campus of GNS would be one of three schools where they planned to institute measures to help address periodic high traffic areas for the coming year.

Summer Adventures from Our Faculty

Curious to know how our faculty and staff spent their summer vacations? So were we! Some travelled across Canada, while others travelled farther away. Many had some encounters with wildlife, and some welcomed a new addition to their family. 

What We Like About Kindergarten

Life at the Beach Drive Campus is full of wonderful adventures, and the Kindergarten students know that best. We checked in with Ms. Sullivan’s and Ms. Bird’s classes to see what they like most about being in Kindergarten after 140 days! 

Meet the Team: Elaine Kao, Visual Arts Teacher

Learn about Ms. Elaine Kao, who has been part of the GNS community since she began TOC-ing in art classes in November of last year. This year, she has moved to teaching Grade 6, 7 and 10 Visual Arts. Ms. Kao tells us about her interests in art, music and language and talks about her recently finished Masters! 

Grade 4s Take the Lead with Beach Cleanup

At GNS, recognizing that we are part of a larger community is an essential aspect of education and of life. Our Grade 4 students have taken this to heart as they have already been busy helping the local environment by cleaning up the beach. Read all about their initiative below.

Happy Holidays from GNS!

There’s been no shortage of holiday spirit at GNS this month! We kicked things off with a stellar performance by the Junior School choir at Berwick Retirement Community in Royal Oak. The students sang festive Christmas carols and Chanukah songs, entertaining the Berwick residents before putting on a show to friends and family. And in keeping with GNS tradition, they also had a special guest—Santa Clause himself!

PHOTO GALLERY Then came the Winter Wonderland concert, a spectacular showcase of GNS musical talent that was a perfect way to complete our celebration of the rededication of Denford Hall.

PHOTO GALLERY The Grade 4/5 Choir also made an appearance at city hall…

PHOTO GALLERY And last Friday, the Junior School came together for the annual Jingle Bell Jog, led by Gavin Bowers.

PHOTO GALLERY This week, the festivities continued with the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols on Tuesday.

PHOTO GALLERY There was also Gingerbread House competition between Senior School homeforms. The houses were voted on by Senior School staff and students, and the top prize went to Ms. Nielson’s homeform. Congratulations!

PHOTO GALLERY The Senior School ended the week with a pancake brunch and pyjama mufti, while the Junior and Middle Schools held festive muftis, and all three campuses enjoyed some very festive assemblies! From all the staff and students at GNS, Happy Holidays!

Keeping a Good Thing Going

Bob Eagle has fond memories of his 25 years teaching Kindergarten at Beach Drive, and it’s clear that the feeling is mutual: soon after his retirement in 2016, the family of a former student purchased a seat in Denford Hall in his name.