The TOPS Program, located at Marc Garneau C.I. (Toronto, ON), is a special high school program for students interested in enrichment in the maths, sciences, and language arts. TOPS offers a strong leadership program and encourages students to reach their utmost ability.
The grade 10 science students split up into training specialization groups in preparation for their Algonquin Park expedition in May. Over the next week, they will undergo rigorous training in one of the three specializations to ensure that they are well prepared for their training test at the end of the unit.
The grade 12 data management class began their combinations counting unit with card game questions. Students both created and answered questions regarding situations where order does not matter. Next week, they will be tested on their counting abilities with an in-class assignment and unit test before beginning a creative project that incorporates all counting principles.
The grade 11 English class read and analyzed the Greek tragedy of Antigone. The students also read in parallel the story of Antigonick, an ambiguous adaptation of the Greek play. Groups of two were assigned an image from Antigonick and were required to facilitate discussions on the expressionistic artwork.
This week, the grade 9 math class continued their study of money, exploring the intricacies of compound interest. Students learned about converting between nominal and effective interest rates, calculating changing compounding periods, as well as instantaneous compounding. They will soon go on to study logarithms.
This week, the grade 10 history students began their journey into the 1960s. They studied various political cartoons from the sixties and examined how they reflect the general perceptions of the world that were held at the time. Students also analyzed themes within the cartoons such as civil rights and the Cold War.
The grade 12 chemistry students experimented with aqueous and varsol solutions. They examined equilibrium reactions by applying stresses to the solution and measuring the resulting distribution of liquids. The observations from this experiment were then explained using knowledge of Le Chatelier’s principle.
