There is an advantage to having a variety of age groups in one school. “The older ones are the role models and younger ones look up to them,” explains Bannockburn teacher Helen Traicus. Whether the Grade 6 class is accompanying the younger kids on a field trip or showing them the ropes in a new classroom, leadership is encouraged. It helps that students at this Toronto school spend three years in the same classroom with the same teachers and peers. “The kids have a familiarity with the tools available to them and feel comfortable in the space,” she explains. “Showing the younger ones how it’s done becomes second nature.”

— Heather Greenwood Davis