A Voice in the Wilderness Archive
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2024
2024
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November
Isivivane stones and the Shawnigan Journey
Read MoreOver the course of the 2024-25 school year, a series of Chapel services will focus on the First Peoples Principles of Learning that are being incorporated into the BC Curriculum. The service on October 19 focused on the principle that learning is holistic, reflexive, reflective, experiential and relational. Dr. Alexei du Bois, Shawnigan’s Heimbecker Inspiration Chair for Experiential Learning for 2023-24 spoke during the service about aspects of experiential learning at Shawnigan and at Hilton College in South Africa. -
October
Reflections from the backcountry
Read MoreDuring the Beyond the Gates backcountry expeditions in late September – either hiking on the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail or kayaking to and around Portland Island – Shawnigan Grade 9 students kept journals, writing reflections or descriptive pieces about their experiences in the wilds of Vancouver Island and the Salish Sea. Here are a few selections from their journal entries. -
August
Beyond the Gates – An Opportunity Not to Be Missed
Read MoreBeyond the Gates is a dynamic year-long program that takes our Grade 9 students out of the classroom and into the beautiful and diverse wilderness of Vancouver Island and beyond. Each year closes out with a 10-day Capstone Expedition, a hiking and kayaking adventure on the west coast of Vancouver Island that is optional for students, although they are strongly encouraged to sign up. Dora Andrew had reservations about participating in the trip, but came away with memories that will last a lifetime and immense gratitude that she signed up. -
April
A Life-Changing Experience on the EDGE
Read MoreOver Spring Break 2024, Shawnigan fanned out across the globe. One of our many Spring Break programs was the annual EDGE (Engagement, Development, Gratitude and Experience) trip to Jamaica, where seven students and two staff members visited the SOS Children’s Village, a shelter for children who have been separated from their parents, and Hammersmith Preparatory School, a school for kids from preschool to Grade 6, doing some maintenance work at SOS and interacting with children at both locations. Grade 11 student Emma Hill writes here about the lasting impact the experience will have on her. -
The Journey of a Drop of Water
Read MoreEnvironmental lead and horticulturalist Patricia Hanbidge has created a unique program at Shawnigan designed to get students thinking about water on the School campus in its many functions – potable water, irrigation, wastewater – and how that relates to the issue of climate change. As the program launches, Ms. Hanbidge explains the motivation behind this program and what she hopes to accomplish. -
February
Experiential Education: In AWE of Itadakimasu
Read MoreShawnigan Lake School staff members Mr. Galen Loiselle and Ms. Jessica Dick immersed themselves in experiential education at the 19th annual ISEEN (Independent Schools Experiential Education Network) Winter Institute hosted by the Athenian School in Dublin, California in January 2024. The conference’s theme, Rooted in Experiential Education: Finding our Places to Flourish, sought to engage participants in a week of authentic place-based learning.
We acknowledge with respect the Coast Salish Peoples on whose traditional lands and waterways we live, learn and play. We are grateful for the opportunity to share in this beautiful region, and we aspire to healthy and respectful relationships with those who have lived on and cared for these lands for millennia.
Shawnigan Lake School is an independent co-educational boarding school for ages 13 –18 on Canada’s beautiful West Coast. Our diverse, interdisciplinary and innovative programming helps shape the next generation of global leaders.
