Monthly Newsletter

Dear Parents/Guardians:

Happy new year! Hope you are doing well. In this newsletter, you will find some relevant information and updates about our IB program at AMHS. 

End of semester evaluations:

Just a reminder that the exam schedule for the end-of-January exams is as follows:

All exams start at 8:30 a.m. Exam Review Day is on January 29. This is also the inclement weather exam day if needed. Students can take advantage of the Exam Review Day to discuss and review the overall achievements with classroom teachers. 

Here is the schedule for the Exam Review Day (January 29):

January 30th is a PA day. Semester 2 will start on February 2nd. 

We understand that pressure and anxiety may build up as exams are approaching. Please reach out to school staff if you need support identifying and dealing with such potential issues with your child. Here is a document outlining some tips to prepare for exams.

Course selection for 2026-2027 School Year:  

Students will begin selecting their courses for next year soon. This year the course selection for school year 2026-2027 is from February 12th to 20th, 2026. Please refer to the December 2025 newsletter for more information. 

Please encourage your child to reach out to me or the guidance counselor if they have any questions about course selection. 

DP1 (Gr. 11)

Students were introduced to the Extended Essay (EE) in early December. This Extended Essay process will take about 12 months, which ends in December 2026. Students are expected to follow the specific timeline given to them. 

For Gr. 11 (DP1) IB students, they will need to submit a EE subject / topic by January 8. Please have a quick conversation with your child and remind them to follow the EE timeline on the corresponding Google Classroom. 

Thank you for your attention and continued support of the IB Programme at AMHS. If there are any specific questions about the IB program, please contact me directly by phone or Email. 

Benjamin Law (benjamin.law@yrdsb.ca)

IB Coordinator, Alexander Mackenzie High School, York Region District School Board

905-884-0554 ext 419

IB Newsletter - Alexander Mackenzie High School December 2025

Dear Parents/Guardians:

Hope you are doing well. In this newsletter, you will find some relevant information and updates about our IB program at AMHS. 

End of semester evaluations:

The winter break is coming soon, and shortly after the break students will be in the mode of exam preparation. Please note that some courses may have culminating activities instead of Exam. Please check with your child and the corresponding teachers if you want to make sure. 

Culminating Activities / Exams are on January 22,23, 26, 27 and 28. 

January 29 is the Exam Review Day. Students will spend about 37 minutes for each period in reviewing the exam and overall achievements with the teacher. Students will be dismissed at around noon. 

More details about the Exam Schedule will be shared soon. 

Just a heads-up:  For Grade 9 and 10, students will also write the in-school exams / culminating activities in June. 

For DP1 students, they will write Math and Group 6 IB Exams in May, but NOT the in-school exams in June.

For DP2 students, they will write the 4 IB exams in May, they do NOT need to write the in-school exams in June. 

Final Summative Assessment (Exam/Culminating activities) may take up to 30% of the entire course mark. Most courses have multiple final summative tasks such that the 30% is not entirely dependent on the “Exam”. Other components of the final summative would occur before the exam schedule starts. Please check with your child or the teachers if you want to make sure the composition of the final summatives. 

For DP1 and DP2 students: Here is the IB Exam Schedule for this year

Course selection:  Students will begin selecting their courses for next year soon. This year the course selection for school year 2026-2027 is from February 12th to 20th, 2026.. 

Current Gr. 9 students will need to choose the following courses including 1 elective. If your child is going to take Civics/Career through summer school, your child can choose 2 electives for next year. \

Current Gr. 10 students will have to pick the courses for DP1 during course section period. Overall, students in the Diploma Program will take 3 HL and 3 SL courses in 2 years. While we are offering both History HL and Psychology HL, students who are not STEM focused can choose English HL, History HL and Psychology HL without taking Chemistry HL. Students who choose this route will still need to take 1 SL course in Science (Physics or Biology). 

Students who are more STEM focused are strongly encouraged to choose Chemistry HL as one of their HL courses. 

AMHS will plan for next school year based on the data from course selection. The number of sections in each course, the number of teachers needed in the program, are all dependent on the course selection data. 

Please have a discussion with your child during this Holiday break. Once the courses are chosen, it will be very difficult to make changes later on. Please reach out to me if you have any questions. 

Alumni shaping the future

I would like to share this link with you, from which you can find videos about impacts made by some former IB program alumni. As an amateur astronomer and astrophotographer, I personally resonate with Akihiko Hoshide who is a Japanese astronaut.  "(The astronaut training program)...... it is a tough training period. But during that time I was looking back and said: I did this before, during the International Baccalaureate. It (IB) is a tough programme, and it requires a lot of hard work, but once you overcome that, and experience that, I think the rest down the road will be maybe a little easier." (Akihiko Hoshide)

✨❄ As the Holiday break is coming soon, let me take this opportunity to wish all of you a relaxing Holiday break and Happy New Year. ❄✨

Thank you for your attention and continued support of the IB Programme at AMHS. If there are any specific questions about the IB program, please contact me directly by phone or Email. 

Benjamin Law (benjamin.law@yrdsb.ca)

IB Coordinator, Alexander Mackenzie High School, York Region District School Board

905-884-0554 ext 419

IB Information Night 2025

Our IB Information Night took place on October 16th, and both the cafeteria and library were filled with enthusiastic families interested in learning about our program. Key details about the application process were shared that evening.

A heartfelt thank-you goes out to all the teachers and staff who volunteered their time and helped make this event such a success!

     (IB info night 2025)

AMHS is proud to be the only school in York Region that offers both a specialized Arts program and the IB Programme. Each program has its own unique application process.

Internal Assessments (IA)

An IB Internal Assessment (IA) is a required coursework component for most IB courses. It is graded by the student’s teacher and then moderated externally by the IB to ensure consistency.

These personalized assignments—which can take the form of essays, projects, scientific investigations, or oral presentations—allow students to apply their learning, explore topics of personal interest, and develop essential research and analytical skills. The IA typically contributes 20–30% toward a student’s final grade in that subject.

• DP1 students will work on IAs in Mathematics and in Physics, Biology, or Music during this school year. Departments will coordinate timelines to ensure that students’ workloads remain balanced.
• DP2 students will continue to work on IAs in History, English, French, and Chemistry.

CAS Lunch and Learn

On October 23, a CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service) “Lunch and Learn” session was held for DP1 students. Our CAS Coordinator and Head of Guidance, Mr. Daides, introduced students to the CAS requirements and shared helpful tips on how to meet them effectively.

CAS provides students with structured opportunities to develop leadership, interpersonal, and communication skills—competencies that are just as vital as academic excellence for success in post-secondary education.

Introduction to the Diploma Programme and Alumni Sharing

On October 30, the IB Council met with DP1 students to provide an overview of the Diploma Programme. A former IB graduate also joined the session to share insights about university life and studying Engineering, offering valuable advice and inspiration to our current students.

Grade 12 Equivalent IB courses

As many of you know, DP1 and DP2 students write IB exams each May.

• DP1 students will complete Mathematics SL and Physics/Biology SL exams in May, with each subject exam spread over two days.

In our program model, by the end of Grade 11 (DP1), students will have earned three Grade 12–equivalent credits:

• MHF4U – Advanced Functions
• MCV4U – Calculus and Vectors
• SPH4U (or SBI4U or AMU4M) – Physics, Biology, or Music

In addition to the regular mark alignment process, final marks for these Grade 12–equivalent courses are re-aligned after IB exam results are released in July, using this conversion chart. The left column indicates the aligned report card mark, and the corresponding final level (from the IB exam) determines the final re-aligned mark for each Grade 12 credit.

Thank you for your attention and continued support of the IB Programme at AMHS. If there are any specific questions about the IB program, please contact me directly by phone or Email. 

Benjamin Law (benjamin.law@yrdsb.ca)

IB Coordinator, Alexander Mackenzie High School, York Region District School Board

905-884-0554 ext 419

IB info night

Our IB Information Night will be held on the evening of Thursday, October 16, 2025. This event is designed for Grade 8 students and their families to learn more about the IB program and the application process for the upcoming school year.

The evening program will begin at 7:00 p.m. As in previous years, we are also offering families the opportunity to explore our school and connect with IB subject teachers who will be available to answer specific questions about their courses. This optional, self-paced tour will take place from 6:00 to 6:45 p.m.

DP1 - CAS and Extended Essay Introduction workshop

On Thursday, October 23rd, DP1 students will participate in a workshop during lunch (Period 3) in the library. Pizza will be provided.

During this session, students will be introduced to the Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS) and Extended Essay (EE) components of the IB program. These are mandatory requirements for earning the IB Diploma, in addition to the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD).

We encourage parents/guardians to engage in regular conversations with their child about their progress in CAS and EE once they have begun these important components.

May 2025 IB Exam Statistics

This newsletter includes some general information about the May 2025 IB Exam Results. During May of last school year, students completed IB exams across all subject areas.

As always, our IB students performed very well in the exam session. Each of the six subjects is graded on a scale of 1 to 7 points, and up to 3 additional points can be earned through Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and the Extended Essay (EE). The maximum possible score for the IB Diploma is 45 points.

Global statistic (May 2025) - Out of 128,401 students in the Diploma Program world-wide (from 3242 schools)

AMHS statistic (May 2025):

AMHS Pass rate (Class of 2025) is 100%. 

Percentage breakdown by course and level earned

IB Q&A virtual meeting

We are pleased to share that there will be a virtual Q&A meeting about the IB program at AMHS. During this session, we will review the structure of the IB program and address some of the most common questions we receive from families.

To help us prepare, we kindly ask that you submit your questions by October 17th so that we can address them effectively during the meeting.

Date: Tuesday October 21st, 2025

Time: 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Microsoft Teams - meeting link   Meeting ID: 243 993 949 754 5    Passcode: h2DP9Vg6

Thank you for your attention and continued support of the IB Programme at AMHS. If there are any specific questions about the IB program, please contact me directly by phone or Email. 

Benjamin Law (benjamin.law@yrdsb.ca)

IB Coordinator, Alexander Mackenzie High School, York Region District School Board 905-884-0554 ext 419

Dear Parents/Guardians:

I hope you and your child are doing well. This is our first monthly newsletter for IB families. My name is Benjamin Law, and I serve as the IB Programme Coordinator and one of the IB Physics teachers at AMHS.

First and foremost, welcome to our IB community at AMHS! I truly believe that open, honest, and transparent communication between home and school is one of the key ingredients for student success.

For families who are new to the IB Programme, below you will find a brief introduction to the IB Programme to help you become more familiar with its structure and philosophy.

What is the IB Programme?

The IB Programme is a globally recognized education framework. Its goal is to provide students with a well-rounded education that not only helps them understand the complexities of the world around them but also equips them with the skills, values, and dispositions needed to take responsible action for the future.

For more detailed information including a list of universities and countries that recognize the IB Programme, click this link.

To read more information about the IB Diploma Programme, click this link.

How is the IB Programme structured at AMHS?

At AMHS, we are authorized to offer the IB Diploma Programme (DP) in Grades 11 and 12. Students in Grade 11 are part of DP 1. This means the formal IB Diploma experience begins in Grade 11 for your child. Students in Grade 12 are part of DP 2. 

In Grades 9 and 10, students are enrolled in what we call the Preparatory Years. During these years, students take IB-streamed courses that are very similar to our regular programme, but include enriched content and a stronger focus on developing the skills needed to transition successfully into the IB Diploma Programme.

One of the key goals of our IB Programme is to provide students with opportunities to build both resilience and the capacity to face challenges with confidence—skills that will serve them well not only in the DP, but also in their future academic and personal endeavours.

We hope your child has had a smooth start in their courses with their teachers. Each course comes with important tasks and tight deadlines, so please encourage your child to reach out directly to their classroom teachers if they need clarification on expectations or timelines.

At AMHS, we are fortunate to have a strong team of staff who can provide support in many different ways. This team includes classroom teachers, guidance counsellors, programme coordinators, and administrators—all working together to ensure student success.

If your child ever needs additional support, please encourage them to come see me directly at school. I will be happy to guide them in the right direction and connect them with the appropriate resources.

We are delighted to welcome Ms. Aline Daniel as our new Principal and Head of School for the IB Programme. Ms. Daniel brings with her many years of diverse experience within our school system, and she will provide strong leadership and support to further enrich our IB community.

Thank you for your attention and continued support of the IB Programme at AMHS. If there are any specific questions about the IB Programme, please contact me directly by phone or email. 

Benjamin Law (benjamin.law@yrdsb.ca)

IB Coordinator, Alexander Mackenzie High School, York Region District School Board

905-884-0554 ext 419