Grade 12 Trip

By now, four TOPS years have gone by. Four years of working the coal mines, but also four years of living an experience of a lifetime. TOPS does not offer its students simply a high school experience; it offers more. After spending time together mostly working, it's about time for a little break. It can be considered a period to reconnect with everyone and reflect on the past several years.

It used to be that along with the Grade 9s, 11s, and 12s went to Pinecrest as well. But now the Grade 11's go to Wanakita instead, and the Grade 10's go off to Algonquin Park. It was therefore decided that the Grade 9's should go to Pinecrest by themselves, save for teachers and a few senior students. Thus came up the question: "What will the grade 12's do?" It was determined that for their last trip together, the style should become more of an urban experience. The Grade 12 Trip is an outing about experiencing culture in an unfamiliar urban environment while studying architecture, a combination of art and science.

Last June, the Grade 12's headed to Chicago for several days. The long bus ride took them for a stopover at Detroit's Ford Museum and eventually, the exhausted group reached their hotel. While in Chicago the TOPS batch went on a river cruise touring the local architecture. The Windy City is well known for the architectural footprints left by Frank Lloyd Wright, one of the most renown modern architects who reshaped the way we look at today's buildings entirely.

While in Chicago, the trip would not be complete without a visit to the Sears Tower. It was a great opportunity to see the city and what lies beyond it. The trip also included a visit to the Shedd Aquarium.

Grade 12 students also have the option to visit New York City. Students have the opportunity to explore the wonders of the city from museums and cultural centers such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Little Italy. And who can forget the ever famous Times Square and the Empire States Building? Architecture is also an important theme to the New York trip. Students explore Greenwich Village & SoHo, fascinating neighbourhoods resembling small 19th century towns, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum—a masterpiece of modern architecture by Frank Lloyd Wright.

For the 2007 Grade 12 Chicago Trip itinerary, click here.