GIST Grades 5 – 8

grades 5-8 in toronto

“A curriculum featuring the best of Germany and Canada – competency-oriented and content enriched.”

Highlights of our Middle School Program

  • Students are provided with the opportunity to develop into well-rounded students who can interact proficiently with others on a local, national, and international stage in more than one language.
  • Students learn to think critically, to debate, to exercise independence and initiative, while taking responsibility for themselves and their studies through discovery, projects and problem solving; in turn, they enjoy academically challenging programs.
  • Within our small classes and due to the individualized and differentiated learning atmosphere, students can excel beyond their peers.
  • When transitioning to a Canadian school or a German school (in Germany or another German School Abroad), our students have had nothing but seamless and successful experiences.

The curriculum in Middle School

  • Rather than just ‘Science’, we offer an entire school STEAM_MINT@GIST program. STEAM is the acronym combining the learning areas of S Science, T Technology, E Engineering, A Arts, and M Math
  • STEAM_MINT follows the teaching principle of inquiry-based learning and offers the opportunity to ask questions, gather ideas and conjectures, try things out and conduct experiments, observe and describe, record and discuss results. In doing so, students receive a comprehensive education in a learning environment that links scientific work with knowledge in the natural sciences and humanities.
  • Beginning in elementary school, students use our iPads as a supplement for practice, visualization, and research. Starting in fifth grade, students have their own laptop or tablet to support a variety of projects. They learn 10 finger touch typing as well as how to use various apps and programs for documentation, research and presentation.
  • All our teachers, in their designated courses, have degrees in those subjects and can offer their unique expertise, all within the best pedagogical practices.
  • Our courses are set at 50% German instruction and 50% English instruction, bilingual (German and English), and French.
  • Language support for both German and English continues until Grade 10.
  • What is commonly referred to as β€œSocial Studies” in Ontario schools is divided into History and Geography (both subjects following the curriculum of Thuringia), and Social Studies (a curriculum addressing the socio-cultural History of Canada, Ontario, and Toronto.)

Quality Management

It is our priority to ensure that every student can prosper and reach their full potential. All our students are encouraged to participate in standardized third party testing.

  • Thuringia Competency Tests in Grades 6 and 8
  • Grade 6 EQAO
    Ontario’s competency test for English (reading and writing) and Mathematics

Additional Resources