On Wednesday, the English as an Additional Language (EAL) classes in elementary school gave an assembly to talk about International Language Day.  For many of the students it was the first time they had ever spoken in front of a large crowd. They explained that it is important to be proud of where you come from and feel good about being able to speak other languages. This assembly was an opportunity for the students who are in the beginning stages of learning English to show their linguistic talents and share them with the audience.  First they introduced themselves in their … Continue reading Celebrating International Language Day

Students in grade 8 art class are carefully examining the shape of plants we eat. By looking at peppers, tomatoes, pumpkins and apples, they notice and learn about natural shapes, patterns, textures and colours. Students have the choice to work in any of three media; normal pencils, aquarelle colour pencils or pen-and- ink. Their observational work on plants include the exploration and drawings of leaves, stalks, branches, flowers and roots. The hidden geometry in plants teaches us about living rhythms, form and number. Making connections between Fibonacci numbers and plants proves once again that art classes add to our appreciation … Continue reading The shape of things we eat

Before the February break, Mr. Johnston’s 11th Grade Theory of Knowledge class took advantage of the visiting photo exhibit “Wind of Change” in the Greene Gallery. The students, who were exploring language as a Way of Knowing, spent some time looking at the pictures without reading any of the captions.  They each identified several photographs that grabbed their attention most strongly and went back to read the associated text, both in French and in English.  This exercise led to insightful reflections and discussions about what kinds of knowledge we can attain without language and what we are able to know … Continue reading Exploring language as a way of knowing

Tuesday morning we had a special visitor. His name was Michael Beal. Mr. Beal is the CEO of Microsoft Belux (Belgium and Luxemburg.) Mr. Beal came to talk to us about internet safety. He also talked about passwords and how they should include capital and lowercase letters, characters, and numbers. Mr. Beal told us that not everything on the computer is true, and that you should never send personal information to people you don’t know. He said that if something sounds too good to be true it probably is. If something upsets you on the internet always tell someone like a … Continue reading Safer Internet Day through the eyes of 5th grade students

What a fun way to learn!  The Greene Gallery housed in the Art Studios is our very own museum gallery of learning. The current exposition features a selection of photographic portraits by Belgian photographer Fabrice Monteiro.  The portraits are fascinating representations of “Maggy’s Children”; Burundian orphans who found safety and hope through the community of Maison Shalom. Our students were able to spend time during art lessons to explore the exposition. What are the skills we teach for successful museum visits? We ask students to look for, to look at, to think, to wonder, to imagine and to possibly interpret. … Continue reading Learning to look and see

The High School lunchtime Model United Nations activity encourages students to learn parliamentary procedure for debate and,  learn how to write United Nations style resolutions on UN topics with a focus on The Hague Model United Nations ( THIMUN) theme. This year the focus for the THIMUN 5-day conference at the end of January was “ Millenium Goals “  and we were allocated the non – member delegation of African Union/ NEPAD which was a huge privilege as they are so involved in many of the issues. http://www.thimun.org Our students had to work very hard to prepare and a selected … Continue reading HS students participate in successful and challenging Model United Nations Conference

St. John’s is now able to offer boarding through a partnership with Berlaymont School in Waterloo. Boys up to age 14 and girls up to age 18 can apply for a boarding place from Monday morning through Friday afternoon. Berlaymont is located less than 2 km from St. John’s and a safe walking route is available between the two locations. All invoicing and coordination is done directly with Berlaymont. Please contact admissions@stjohns.be for more information. Continue reading St. John’s now offers boarding