Enjoy video highlights from Graduation 2025
Dear Brookes Westshore families and friends,
This week has been full of excitement on campus! Our Grade 4/5 students wowed us with their curiosity and creativity in the Science Fair. Our DP1 students impressed us with their collaborative science project presentations and Theory of Knowledge (TOK) Exhibition. A big thank you to all our teachers and parents for guiding and supporting the students in making these events a success!
On Thursday afternoon, our community was filled with energy, teamwork, and sportsmanship as we celebrated Sports Day. It was amazing to see everyone cheering their Houses with so much pride and enthusiasm. A huge thank you to our staff and student volunteers who made the day run smoothly and memorably!
Congratulations also to Eagle House for winning the House Cup this year! I hope you enjoy the pizzas on Monday!
As we head into the weekend, we would like to wish a very Happy Father’s Day to all the wonderful dads and father figures in our community!
A reminder that there will be no ASAs next week. Friday, June 20th, is the last day of this school year and is a noon dismissal. I look forward to seeing you all at the Celebration of Learning ceremonies next week:
- Grades 4 and 5 on Thursday, June 19th at 2.15 pm
- MYP 4 to DP1 on Friday, June 20th at 9 am
- MYP 1 to MYP 3 on Friday, June 20th at 10.35 am
With gratitude,
Dr. Rui Li
Principal
ASAs in the Fall
We’re already looking ahead to Fall and would love your feedback to help us plan. Please take a few minutes to complete our ASA Feedback Survey: ASA Feedback Survey
Thank you for a fantastic term—we can’t wait to see what the next one brings!
MYP1 and MYP2 Drama Performances
We would like to invite you to the school on Tuesday, June 17th from 3:45 - 5:45pm for an afternoon of entertainment! The MYP1 and MYP2 students have been working hard and are looking forward to having the opportunity to share their work with you.
On the 17th students will report directly to the dining hall at 3:20pm where they will complete final preparations for their performances.
Seating for guests will commence at 3:35pm. If you arrive earlier, you are welcome to wait in the courtyard.
Lost and Found: items in the lost and found bins will be donated to charity at the end of term. Please take a moment to check if something of yours isn't about to be someone else's!
Grade 4 and 5 Science Fair
The young scientists of Grades 4 and 5 showed off their knowledge and skills at the Science Fair on Wednesday. Thanks to all the families who made the time to come along and learn about the amazing projects the students have been working on. The Dining Hall was abuzz with curiosity and community!
Theory of Knowledge Exhibition
Theory of Knowledge (TOK) is a challenging and required component at the core of the Diploma Programme within the IB Framework. TOK provides an open environment for students to explore both historical and contemporary ideas related to our pursuit and understanding of knowledge. A common theme in our class discussions is “How do we know what we claim to know?” We explore this central idea from a number of diverse perspectives, comparing and contrasting ways of knowing through a variety of different lenses. We argue, we consider, we debate, and we deliberate in an effort to better comprehend what it means to “know”. While this course should be much greater than the sum of its parts, ultimately students are evaluated on two final assessment tasks, the TOK Exhibition in DP1 (Grade 11) worth 33.3% of their final grade and the TOK Essay in DP2 (Grade 12) worth 66.6%.
The TOK Exhibition itself is an empowering and introspective assessment task, that allows students a large amount of freedom to express their understanding of a year of learned concepts and content. The theme of this summative assessment is for the students to demonstrate “How TOK manifests in the world around us.” Students choose a prompt from a list of 35 knowledge questions provided by the IB, and then they explicitly connect three objects from their own lives to this prompt, while relating both the prompt and objects to our TOK learning.
This year's TOK Exhibition provided our students with a platform to share their heightened insight into the incredibly diverse concept of “knowledge in the real world.”
DP1 chemistry
The DP1 chemistry class has been learning about factors that affect rate of reactions. For this experiment, they collected empirical data for the reaction between sodium thiosulfate and hydrochloride acid by changing the concentration of sodium thiosulfate solution. The reaction would form a pale-yellow precipitate that turns the solution from clear to cloudy!
Collaborative Science Project
All students who take any IB Science classes are required to participate in the Collaborative Science Project (CSP).
The CSP is a 10-hour required component for the IB Sciences (Group 4) program, designed to foster interdisciplinary collaboration among first year (DP1) students. This initiative encourages students to consider three scientific disciplines—Biology, Chemistry, Physics—to work together to solve real-world problems.
This year’s theme was SURVIVOR! Groups of students were given local coordinates where their geocache was hidden. Inside the geocache were the coordinates of a remote location and a list of tools available to them. Together, student groups needed to come up with a plan to either survive for 60 days until their rescue, or escape, and include the scientific reasoning behind each of their decisions. Their plans needed to be realistic, creative, and include evidence of collaborative efforts during the process. Students did a wonderful job including all three scientific disciplines and utilizing their approaches to learning (ATLs) in the completion of this project. Well done, DP1!
From Linda Bayes, DP Coordinator:
The Diploma students have been very busy this week completing their Collaborative Science Project and TOK exhibitions. The students had the opportunity to display these projects and present to their peers and teachers. It was a very impressive display of learning and I feel they are the best I have ever seen in all my years as an IB Coordinator. They were so engaged in the learning process and so excited to share their learning with others. I am very proud of their accomplishments.
MYP 3 Art
MYP 3 have completed their challenge of creating an oil pastel parody of Casper Frederich's "The Wanderer above the Sea of Fog" - a quintessential Romantic painting, depicting a man gazing out over a vast, misty landscape. There were many interesting and fun interpretations!
Great fun last Friday at the Glow Party!
A shout out to Ewen MYP 3 for being selected to the Best of BC Performance U15 Hockey Camp!
ASA Term 3 Wrap-Up – Thank You!
As our After School Activities (ASA) program wraps up today, we want to take a moment to celebrate all the amazing experiences and lasting memories made this term.
Through a wide range of activities rooted in the IB’s Creativity, Activity, and Service (CAS) framework, our students demonstrated talent, passion, and commitment in so many meaningful ways:
Our Model Builders showcased some incredible pieces this week—what talent!
The Blacksmithing group forged everything from leaves and fish to beautifully crafted coat hooks.
Our Archers stayed focused and hit their targets with skill and determination.
The Sign Language group impressed us with full, flowing conversations.
F.A.M.E. brought the energy, enthusiasm, and performances to remember, while our Marimba players mastered new rhythms and songs.
Our Paddle Boarders embraced adventure as they explored Thetis Lake.
In Japanese Cooking, students learned new recipes and techniques while making delicious dishes together.
These are just a few highlights—we’re proud of every student who took part and grateful to the instructors and staff who helped bring our ASA program to life.
Blacksmithing and Japanese Cooking Club.
If you are looking for an outdoor programme over the summer, this might be of interest:
Lunch Menu
If you would like to know what is on the menu next week for our delicious lunches, please click here.
Follow our dining team on @brookesdiningwestshore for mouthwatering images of our breakfasts, lunches, and dinners!
Term Two Events and Activities
- MYP1 and MYP2 Drama Performances - Tuesday, June 17th from 3:45 - 5:45pm
- Celebration of Learning Ceremonies
- Grades 4 and 5 on Thursday, June 19th at 2.15 pm
- MYP 4 to DP1 on Friday, June 20th at 9 am
- MYP 1 to MYP 3 on Friday, June 20th at 10.35 am
- June 20th: Last day of school - noon dismissal
Please find our School Accessibility questionnaire here.
Safer Schools information: erase Family Sessions (saferschoolstogether.com)
Your comments and feedback are welcome! Please click here to leave a comment, ask a question, or raise an issue. Thank you!
Do you have questions or concerns?
If you have a question about the school or just something on your mind, please feel free to contact our leadership team:
- Rui Li - Principal
- Andrea Salvador - School Manager
- Jacob Baumgartner - School Culture Director
- Melanie Moroz - Academic Director
- Linda Bayes - DP Coordinator & University Counsellor
- Martin Staffolani - Executive Director of Recruitment
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Brookes Westshore acknowledges that our school is on the traditional lands of the Xwsepsum (Esquimalt) and Lekwungen (Songhees) ancestors and families.
With gratitude, we live, work and learn here where the past, present, and future of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, faculty and staff come together.
