Congratulations, graduates! Today we celebrate how much you’ve grown and all you’ve accomplished at Bishop Hamilton Montessori School. We’re proud of the curiosity, courage, and care you’ve brought to our school community.
As you take your next steps, keep asking big questions, trying new things, and looking out for one another. Wherever you go from here, your BHMS family will be cheering you on.
Yellow everybody!
As someone who attended BHMS for my entire life, starting from toddler to Junior High, I can confidently say that BHMS has made me proud of the person I am today. I have learned many things throughout my time here at BHMS.
In Casa, I was taught independence, becoming familiar with things on my own, and using what I learned to try new things. In Willow, with the help of the supportive Junior Elementary teachers, I was introduced to many new materials to work with and learned at my own pace instead of moving on to the next level without fully feeling comfortable with them. I remember in Casa, Willow, and Red Oak, every time I saw a Junior High student walking by, it felt as if a celebrity had entered our school. I always told myself, “It’s going to take forever to be as cool as them,” or “I hope I can be like them one day.” That’s a promise I made to myself.
Grade by grade, I experienced and learned so much about perseverance, courage, innovation, and looking out for others. The older I got, the more I realized how much this school had taught me and how supportive this community had been throughout my life. When I finally got to Junior High, I had the impression that everything would be much more intimidating and scary, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Everyone there was reassuring and welcoming, each subject was guided through carefully, and I knew that this place was like a second home.
All of Junior High’s iconic trips were adventurous and memorable experiences, such as the canoe trip, where we spent time outdoors and learned about nature, the French trip, where we explored Quebec City, created funny memories, and put our French knowledge to the test, and the bike trip, where we practiced physical exercise, developed determination, and created highlights we would always remember. All of the other trips also gave us opportunities to gain independence and develop critical thinking skills in everyday life outside of school.
To all of you who are actually reading this, my advice is to push through hardships, find people and opportunities that support and make you happy, and try new things! I’d like to show my gratitude to my friends in all classes, my Casa teachers, Ms. Armand and Ms. Francine from Willow, Mrs. Dalpra and the other Red Oak directors, Ms. Flindall, Mr. Mackay, and the Junior High educators, as well as my parents, who chose this school and guided me through everything I faced in life.
Thanks to BHMS, I am able to try new things without feeling scared or anxious, especially because of the classroom environments, the encouraging educators who have supported me through every stage, and the BHMS community for letting me experience joyful adventures, create special moments that I will treasure forever, and thank you BHMS for helping me fulfill my promise to become a cool Junior High student for younger kids to look up to.
Vous voyez ? Ce n'était pas si long. Merci beaucoup de m'avoir écouté !
Je serai bref, en raison de contraintes budgétaires. Hello, my name is Ben, but many of you know me as Ben M. This is because there are 2 Bens and I’m leaving, so I'm taking him out with me. For legal reasons, that was a joke. When I joined this school in grade 1. It was very scary, because I was 5.
Anyway, fast forward a couple of years to grade 6, on the Red Oak third year trip. I don’t remember it too well, but I do remember the reason why it was the first every third year trip that we didn’t stay overnight at the school. (stare at Jacob) Again for legal reasons I cannot name what or who happened but I still had fun regardless. By far the best part of it was going to the bike pump track, after learning to bike just months earlier. And now, I’m in Junior High, completed 2 bike trips, have biked many kelomemeters, and now it's all done.
I have spent more than half of my life attending this school and by far my greatest supporter, is of course Milo; Ms Andrea’s dog. I strive to be just as big of a supporter to people, as he is to me.
The days are long, but the years are short. In case I don’t see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night.
Parents, Junior Highs and others, invited or not.
As most of you know, my name is Tife, and I am a Grade 8, who is about to graduate. However, before I do so, I would like to share my story and some of my experiences at BHMS. When I first came to BHMS, I honestly didn’t expect much from it. After all, I had gone to 2 other schools before it, and they had been quite underwhelming for me. The things they were teaching were things I had already learnt years ago in England, and it was all just so boring. That all changed when I came to BHMS.
Things got off to a rocky start, however, as I would constantly reminisce about my friends in the UK, think thoughts that should never have appeared in my head and even got into a fight with a certain classmate over a petty thing. I thought my social life was over. But, thanks to the help of Mrs. Andrea, the previous Red Oak teachers, Mrs Dalpra, Mrs Macdonald, Mrs Katie, Leo, Orsen, Ben.M, and my parents, I slowly became more and more comfortable with Canada and its people.
At events, I became more talkative, more joyful, less depressed. Some of my best memories were from events like the Terry Fox Run, Grandparents’ Tea and the Culture Bazaar. And as I went into Junior High, things only got better. Mr. McKay and Mrs. Flindall were great teachers who helped pushed me to greater heights, the Canoe and Bike Trips were some of the hardest, but most exciting trips I’ve ever been on, and the French trip was just, as les francais would say it, une expérience linguistique incroyable et complexe que je n'oublierai jamais.
All in all, I think BHMS has been the most valuable life experience that I’ve ever experienced. It’s taught me to step outside of my comfort zone, push myself to my absolute boundaries, and learn to adapt. And I wouldn’t be the person I am without the help of all my teachers, friends and family. Thank you.
I joined BHMS in grade 5. I liked the hands-on learning that we did in red oak like racks and tubes as a way to learn division and checkerboard for multiplication. I also learned how to play an instrument. I liked the freedom that we had compared to being confined to a desk all day. My favourite parts of junior high were the trips and experiences. The canoe trip and bike trip were a great adventure. I made a lot of friends and great memories that I will remember for the rest of my life thank you BHMS
They always say middle school is the worst two years of your life. They say that it’s all awkward growth spurts, bad haircuts, and endless drama. So, I have a confession: I actually liked it here. Not only did I like it, I mean I loved it here. Between the chaos and the learning, there were great memories, memories I will remember for the rest of my life.That will haunt me for the rest of my life. (Damn this sounds really corny bro.)
Baby: So, when I was a baby apparently I had a lot of attitude. I don't think I have it now but the teachers and Angela and Lainey will probably disagree with my opinion. I used to get in trouble a lot too…….. I haven't changed though. And a completely unrelated thing, I used to hog washing chairs as a child, I honestly don't know why.
All throughout this school I've had two people with me the whole time Angela and Orsen.
Honestly, I have made so many memories that I can't remember one to say in this speech.
Junior high was definitely the highlight of my experience at this school.
Babble about people man
Good evening, families, friends, teachers, and my fellow graduates.
My name is Leo Sun, and it is quite an honour to speak to you all today as we celebrate this important milestone known as graduation.
First of all, I never expected to reach this milestone so quickly. I have only been at BHMS for about three and a half years, starting in my second year of Red Oak. However, in that relatively short amount of time, I have made many wonderful memories with everyone here. Those experiences have helped me grow both personally and academically. More importantly, my friends and teachers helped me discover strengths and qualities in myself that I did not fully recognize before, allowing me to continue growing and preparing for the future.
There are many things that I will never forget. For example, the unexpected amount of fun I had on both bike trips, or how much I enjoyed running a business with my friend Tife. Even the French trip was a great experience because of all the exciting activities we did. All of these trips, challenges, and accomplishments taught me that almost anything can be fun if you are willing to make the most of it.
As for advice I would give to younger BHMS students, I would encourage them not to simply follow the path others expect them to take. Instead, try creating and following a path that helps you grow, improve, and become a stronger version of yourself. I would also encourage you to learn more about the people around you because understanding others can help you in ways you may not realize until later. Most importantly, do things that you find fun and exciting, and don't be afraid to challenge yourself, stretch your imagination, and try new things.
I would like to thank everyone who has helped me along the way, but especially Ms. Flindall and Mr. MacKay for helping my parents better understand my challenges and difficulties. I would also like to thank Ms. Andrea, who helped me a lot during my time in Red Oak by supporting me through challenges and keeping my parents informed when I needed extra help.
I would also like to thank my exceptional friend Tife, who has been by my side throughout my entire time at BHMS. Tife has helped me through many of my struggles and has taught me how to be a better friend.
J’aimerais également remercier Mme Robard pour tout le soutien qu’elle m’a apporté dans mes cours de français. Elle m’a aidé à prendre confiance en mes capacités et m’a montré que le français n’était pas aussi difficile que je l’avais imaginé.
All of these people have helped me so much during my time at BHMS that I do not even know how to repay them. I know I have probably missed a few teachers and friends, but if I continued describing everyone who has made a difference in my life, this speech would probably last half an hour.
Thank you all for being part of this journey. I wish everyone here a wonderful evening.
Cheers!
My name is Orsen and I have been at BHMS for my whole life. This school has taught me to be independent and kind. In every class I attended, there was always some interactive, hands on work to do which greatly improved my hand eye coordination and pretty much all the skills I will need for the future.
Throughout my years at this school, I have made many amazing friends who I will never forget and I learned a lot from the wonderful teachers, but I think my favourite class was Junior High, Junior High gave me a whole new perspective of the world and taught me many things to prepare for high school but the trips were my favourite, because of the trips and the events there was always something to look forward to. I remember when I was in grade 7, I was terrified of going on the bike trip. But now I would do it a hundred times if I could, it is definitely one of the biggest highlights in Junior High and it really strengthened my personality and resilience .
I will be eternally grateful for the opportunity to meet so many people and attend this fantastic school.
Merci beaucoup.
Bishop Hamilton Graduate (2026)
Bishop Hamilton Graduate (2026)
