Message from Ms Matillon, Director General
Dear Parents,
Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Parent Representatives of all year groups in separate meetings at Primary and Secondary. As is always the case, but particularly in our first session of the year, a range of thought-provoking questions were raised and discussed at length, some reflecting campus-specific concerns, and others bridging the whole school. Minutes of these meetings, as well as of recent Parents’ Association AGM, will shortly be shared with our parent community.
A key point raised in each of these meetings, as one requiring urgent and rigorous attention, is digital safety and social media use amongst our children. Our leadership team and I have made a commitment to devoting time to this very important topic, and further communication will be forthcoming on this project, too.
Next week is our last week in school before our half-term break, and the coming days are jam-packed with activities across both campuses.
As part of our Duke of Edinburgh International Award programme, our Year 9 students left this morning for an overnight adventure in Brigerbad in the Valais, which will include a hike, camping, and a well-earned dip in the thermal baths. The DofE programme consists of ever-increasing levels of challenge and, next week, Year 13 students will earn their Gold Award by completing an assessed expedition in Santorini. Our most senior students themselves chose the Greek island as the destination for their final expedition. After two days of acclimatisation and preparation, they will undertake a four-day hike, experiencing local culture along the way.
Two trips are planned for Primary school children as the Year 2 class will summit the Salève on the téléphérique, and Year 5 will visit the Musée Romain in Nyon. On Tuesday, we will be treated to the House Singing Competition in Primary and, on Wednesday, runners across year groups will take part in our annual Cross-country and Fun Run, followed by a bake sale.
In support of the Gift Box Appeal, several students from our Secondary school will dedicate their time to helping prepare packages for donation, mentoring our younger students as they work together for this very worthy cause. We will gratefully accept donations at Primary on Wednesday 15th October, the day of the Cross-country and Fun Run (please refer to guidelines below), and my personal thanks go, especially, to the principal organisers of GES’ contribution to the appeal and to our staff who have been facilitating their efforts.
All the best,
Christina Matillon
Year 12 Hike to Rochers-de-Naye
Our Year 12 students took part in a great outdoor expedition up the Rochers-de-Naye near Montreux. Hiking up to the Buvette de Jaman, a rest stop located at 1’742m, they enjoyed some breathtaking views of Lac Léman and the nearby Alps before tucking into a well-deserved fondue.
This outing was a wonderful bonding moment for our students which enabled them to experience Swiss mountain life and traditions while putting their physical fitness and endurance to the test. For students preparing the Gold Duke of Edinburgh International Award, this adventure was especially useful as a practice-run for their assessed expedition in June.
This week in class
Pre-school explored the forest, discovering leaves of all shapes and colours, collecting conkers, and listening to the crunch of leaves as they walked. In awe of how autumn transforms the world around us, they are all looking forward to observing more seasonal changes together. What a wonderful autumn adventure!
Our Year 1 students embarked on their musical “round-the-world” tour of different styles this week! Today, they visited the land of techno music, using gestures and body movements to explore tempo and learn about rests. They then applied their understanding by performing on beats 1, 2, and 3, and resting on 4 using the glockenspiels.
A rhythmic start to a fun unit of learning!
This week in Year 3, our students received individual feedback on their independent writing. An invaluable exercise for our learners, each pupil was guided through the success criteria, helping them highlight which skills they had achieved. This focused feedback allows the children to edit and improve their work thoughtfully, and get them thinking about future targets.
Year 5 enjoyed a visit from Bo Lush (James’ Mum), who shared the history of the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, an ancient cultural event dating back to the Shang Dynasty (2nd millennium BC). Students heard the legend of Chang’é or goddess of the Moon, tasted mooncakes, and learned how James’ family celebrates the harvest festival!
In our Year 5 and 6 Art lessons, our students are nearing the end of their unit on typography and visual maps.
The Art Room is a hive of activity as the artists consult atlases, reference photos, sketches and typefaces to complete their visual maps of Africa (Year 6) and Roman Switzerland (Year 5). Some have been inspired by Paula Scher, a New York-based graphic designer; others by Sir Grayson Perry’s Map of Days (2013) and yet others by imaginary maps such as the Marauder’s Map from the Harry Potter series.
Building on their analysis of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Year 8 practised their interviewing and public speaking skills by role-playing as interviewers and ‘Liesel’, a 65-year-old woman reflecting on her life and experience as a child in Nazi Germany. Each group contributed their own unique and thoughtful insights to the task!
In Science, our Year 8 students carried out experiments on various foods to test for different nutrients. Using chemical indicators to check for starch, protein, sugar and fat, they enjoyed seeing the colour changes that revealed which nutrients were present!
For Year 10 physicists, their weekly investigation involved a deep dive into insulation materials to determine which retained heat most effectively. Testing such materials as plastic and polystyrene, they were able to consider the various ways that heat can be lost, for example through convection, evaporation or conduction.
Our Year 11 students were excited to investigate how the temperature of a reaction mixture changes, using a neutralisation reaction involving hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide. By gaining an understanding of the exothermic or endothermic reactions that can be produced when an acid and a base are mixed, they will be able to explore how neutralisation reactions can be applied in daily life, for example in wastewater treatment, fertilisers and in antacid tablets!
Beyond the Classroom
A Number Crunching Challenge
Students in Years 7 to 13 took part in the Senior Mathematical Challenge, a competition organised by the UK Maths Trust and designed to make students think through stimulating problems for both beginners and experienced problem-solvers.
During 90 minutes, our competitors worked on the 25 multiple choice questions as part of the first round of this challenge, including such questions as:
Sonia writes down three 2-digit numbers whose sum is 46. The first number is prime, the second is square and the third is even. What is the even number?
A) 10
B) 12
C) 14
D) 16
E) 18
We look forward to receiving the results of this challenge, which will be announced after half-term.
Visual Storytelling Brought to Life
Following on from last week’s Sequential Art Workshops, this week our Year 12 students dove deeper into the craft of visual storytelling, exploring how composition, movement and focal points shape the reader’s journey through a page. John Hutcheson took students behind the scenes, showing how layout choices like a left-to-right flow or circular compositions guide the eye and control pacing, determining how long a reader lingers in each panel. The session also explored how strong ‘camera’ angles, clever framing, and the use of timescapes – those visual stretches of time across a single panel – combine to create rhythm, drama and meaning in sequential art.
John brought in a fascinating piece of comic book history: an original Uncanny Tales comic from the mid-20th century, along with the original metal printing plate used in its production. The students were given a glimpse into how comics were once printed using letterpress and offset lithography techniques. In this process, artwork was transferred to metal plates, inked and then printed onto paper, a method used for mass-producing comics before the advent of digital technology and drawing tablets revolutionised the industry.
Christmas Gift Box Initiative
Our Primary students welcomed representatives from the Mission Chrétienne pour les pays de l’Est this week for a presentation during Assembly about the Christmas Gift Box initiative (or Action Paquets de Noël).
Each year, this initiative delivers over 100,000 gift boxes to people in need across Eastern and Southeastern Europe during the winter and Christmas period. These boxes go to individuals and families living in extreme poverty or difficult circumstances — vulnerable elderly people, school children, children in care, and those facing health challenges or disabilities.
Encouraged to think about how they contribute to communities beyond their own, our students reflected on their place in the world and how they can positively impact and shape the world they live in by contributing to initiatives such as the Action Paquets de Noël.
With the support of our Parents’ Association, our House leaders in Primary and Secondary will coordinate their peers’ participation in this initiative. Families are invited to donate whatever they feel able to contribute from the list below:
- School supplies: Pens, pencils, coloured pencils, felt-tip pens, erasers, sharpeners, notebooks, drawing paper, colouring books, rulers, geometry sets
- Toiletries: Unused toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, shower gel, combs, brushes
- Toys (no batteries): cars, soft toys, collectibles, complete small puzzles, jumping ropes, balls, lego, bubbles, dominos
- Clothing: hats, caps, gloves, scarves, socks
- Treats (no nuts please): chocolate bars, sweets, biscuits, dried fruit
- To make the boxes: wrapping paper, rucksacks, school bags, big shoe boxes, reusable bags
Secondary students can also take part by bringing donations to our Primary campus prior to the start of next week’s whole school cross-country race on the morning of Wednesday 15 October.
Extra-Curricular Activities
GES Tops the Podium
Our Year 3 and 4 footballers had an absolutely fantastic day at the SGIS Category F Indoor Football tournament.
GES girls were unbeaten all day and won the final to take home first place!
GES boys Team 1 were unbeaten all day too, losing the closest of finals on penalties but coming in at a very laudable second place!
GES boys Team 2 played outstanding football, falling short of the final by losing to GES 1! However they picked themselves up and won third place!
Enzo came away with the player of the tournament award for the boys after a unanimous vote by referees and organisers.
Well done, Enzo! Well done, everybody!
A Gourd Day at Art Club
Inspired by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama’s pumpkin painting and sculptures featuring brightly coloured polka dots, the Year 5 and 6 Art Club had a distinctly autumnal feel as our artists focused on their still-life drawing and painting skills to create their very own pumpkin art from the many differently shaped, sized and coloured squashes available.
Expert Coaching for GES Netballers
Our Year 5 and 6 netballers welcomed Sarah Bugeja, former Team Switzerland Wing Attack, to their Monday training. She shared her experience of playing elite netball, answered our athletes’ many questions, and taught advanced skills through fun, competitive drills.
A fantastic experience for all!
Community News
Two Silver Medals for our Primary Runners
Alexandra (Year 3) and Austin (Year 5) participated in the Founex Run last Sunday!
They did brilliantly and came in second in their categories, each receiving a silver medal for their terrific efforts. Bravo to both of them!
Tennis Champion News
Our very own Year 5 student, Danny, is taking part in Vaud’s Circuit filles et garçons tennis tournament, winning the final game of the first round.
Well done, Danny!
First Series of Book Looks at Secondary
Our Secondary School opened its doors to parents this week for three Book Look sessions.
Welcoming parents into school first thing in the morning, our Year 7, 8 and 9 students were able to show their families the work they have accomplished so far this year and where their learning will take them next.
These events enable our students to take ownership of their learning and present it in their own words to their parents. It gives them a sense of pride in their accomplishments, drives them to work hard and brings meaning to their school experience.
International School Parent Magazine
Our school is featured in the latest edition of the International School Parent Magazine!
Our Director General, Christina Matillon, sat down for an exchange with International School Parent Magazine to present our high-quality educational provision and welcoming school environment and to share her vision for GES.
