Message from Ms Matillon, Director General
Dear Parents,
This has been a busy week, both in and outside our classrooms.
On the sporting front, our children have participated in the Aiglon Cup ski races for students in Years 3-13, and in a netball tournament for girls in Years 3 and 4. Our athletes have, once more, made us proud of their achievements, their effort and their good sportsmanship. Well done, too, to Key Stage 3 students who earned their swimming certificates today in preparation for their end-of-year water-themed trip to Bordeaux.
On Wednesday evening in Chaplin, we were treated to a musical recital by students of all ages. Once again, I was struck by the commitment, talent and joyful spirit of our young performers. The children and their dedicated music teachers gave us the gift of smiles on our faces and a swing in our steps.
Our annual Secondary school Careers Day was held on Wednesday, and students appreciated the day spent looking beyond the here and now, to how they can shape their futures. My thanks go to Ms Newbury for organising this event, and to our teachers and guest speakers who shared their experiences and guidance. On the topic of inspiring young minds, thanks also to the fathers of Théa, Leo and Arnaud who spoke to our Year 3 class this week about the use of magnets at CERN.
We have much to look forward to next week, including a Secondary Maths Competition on Monday at lunchtime, and Francophonie Day in Primary on Friday. I am particularly excited for the latter as I have been tapped to answer questions about Québec and how the French language is spoken differently there than it is here. Ça sera le fun !
Until then, I wish everyone an excellent weekend.
All the best,
Christina Matillon
Careers Day at Secondary
We had the fifth of our Personal, Social, Health and Economics (PSHE) days at Secondary this week!
Centred on the theme of “Careers”, the day served to broaden horizons, build confidence and help students begin thinking positively and ambitiously about their future pathways through presentations by guest speakers about their own careers and professional experiences:
· Presenting the exciting world of game design, Dylan Moon explained the different roles that are involved in this process, from artists to programmers and data analysts, and the wide range of tools and software used by these creators.
· Our very own Lucie Goater, Music Administrator, musician and opera singer, invited students to explore musical careers, providing them with top tips on how to launch into a career in music and explaining the steps she took during her higher education journey – such as auditioning, coach work and making the right university choices – towards becoming the accomplished musician she is today.
· An event management specialist, Lucy Irwin presented her academic and professional journey, which took her from a Theatre Stage Management degree, during which she developed strong problem-solving, project management, communications, negotiations and leadership skills, to working in event management for such diverse organisations as Oracle, MacLaren and the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Our learners also took part in a range of workshops to develop the 21st century skills and understanding that their future professions will require. Students in Years 7 and 8 participated in a financial literacy workshop about salaries, budgeting and taxation through the prism of the aviation industry, and completed a guided research project to explore a career that interests them.
In parallel to investigating alternative pathways in sports careers, Year 10 students participated in a group project to examine the careers involved in a country’s bid to host a major sporting event. Tasked with heading up the Swiss bid for the 2038 Winter Olympics, they set out to collaborate across industry areas to put together a strong bid to host the Games. Starting with a very Swiss, true democratic vote, they chose their Tournament Director/CEO, Katrina. Katrina then headed the Executive team of Matt and Vivaan to oversee the micro teams in producing their proposal. The micro teams were made up of, the Marketing, Media and Sponsorship Team, the Financial and Commercial Team, the Fan Engagement Team, the Sport and Athlete Relations Team and the Operations and Logistics Team. Each team was responsible for developing their area of the bid, in line with the bid theme. They worked extremely hard, engaging with their industries to research and create exciting proposals. Click here to see the bid presentation they created.
Year 9 students took their PSHE day beyond the classroom with a visit to the University of Geneva’s Scienscope for a series of workshops. At the Chimiscope, they explored chameleon-like molecules that change colour at the touch of a finger, substances that produce their own light, and chemical reactions that colour our daily lives – a fascinating introduction for students considering a pathway in chemistry, the biomedical or materials sciences fields. In the Lifescope, they investigated the species living in Lac Léman, the challenges they face, and the vital role plankton play in maintaining ecosystems and life on Earth, an ideal workshop for those considering work in the life sciences, geography or environmental fields. Lastly, in the Infoscope, students interested in a career in computing, programming, AI or cyber security looked at machine learning, a branch of artificial intelligence that allows computers to learn from data without being explicitly programmed.
This week in class
Our Primary community’s week has been about all things scientific with the celebration of Science Week, organised by our very own Aaron Bradley. Across the year groups, students have been taking part in exciting experiments to explore all kinds of phenomena. Parents joined in the fun, answering some tricky questions from the Primary Science curriculum and earning precious points for their children’s Houses.
Click here to watch some videos from the week of Primary students answering questions put to them by their peers from Reception class.
Science Week was so much fun for our Pre-school students!
Inspired by the story The Three Little Pigs, our learners carried out a “Can You Huff and Puff It?” experiment. First, they explored a variety of objects and made predictions about whether they would move when air was blown at them. They discussed what makes a fair test and decided they needed to blow the objects on the same surface, use the same blowing power and blow from the same distance.
Our little scientists loved testing their hypotheses and discovering whether their predictions were correct! They have tracked their results and will combine these into a table to see what deductions can be made.
This week in class
Year 1 had an incredibly exciting opportunity to connect with a real-life astronaut, Bernard Harris! Through a special video message, Bernard shared stories about his two journeys into space — first as a Mission Specialist on STS-55, and later as the Payload Commander on STS-63. He spoke about his journey to becoming an astronaut and highlighted the importance of STEM education in helping young people achieve their dreams.
Our very own Regina, who had met Bernard when she was younger, brought along something truly special: his actual mission patch, the very one he wore in space! Bernard explained the meaning behind the symbols on the patch, making the moment even more memorable. Our students were absolutely captivated by the experience and fascinated by everything Bernard had to share. A huge thank you to Regina and her parents for organising this truly amazing opportunity for our budding scientists — and perhaps even some future astronauts! What a great finale to Science Week for us!
What a fabulous session about static electricity our Key Stage 1 students had with Mr MacLean and Ms Lanfranco from Secondary this week! Well done to Mrs Vavrecka and all our scientists who volunteered to test the effects of static electricity on their hair! Science Club certainly has some early interest ready for when our students get to Year 6!
Year 2 loved answering Mannie’s curiosity question “Why does it rain?”. Stepping into the shoes of scientific investigators, our students conducted an experiment using hot water and ice to create a water cycle and learned new scientific vocabulary, including the terms: water vapour, evaporation, condensation and precipitation.
They also made a little video for their peers in Reception class to explain the process and show that they made their own rain!
As part of Science Week, Year 3 were treated to an amazing presentation by two of our CERN parents!
Students and teachers alike were thrilled to expand their knowledge and understanding of magnets, particles and the incredible advancement of science that is happening right on our doorstep (or should we say, below our feet)!
Our budding scientists demonstrated their curiosity with interesting questions such as: How fast do particles travel? Is the LHC colder than space? And how much did the Large Hadron Collider cost?
Year 5 had a hilarious Science lesson investigating Murphy’s Law by looking at the question “Does toast always fall butter side down?”
Conducting the experiment in pairs, students recorded their results in a tally chart and extended their investigations by asking further “What if?” questions: What if I drop it from a different height? What if we flip it like a pancake? What if we add more or less butter? They then analysed their results as a class and discovered that these raised more questions than they answered! Mrs Cryer wondered “What if I added jam?”…
Year 6 engineers took on the challenge to investigate which shapes create the strongest load-bearing structures. Using their research findings, they designed and built their own bridges.
The winning bridge proved especially impressive, successfully supporting a weight of 3 kg!
Our Year 8 chemists have been investigating the effects produced when different metals are reacted with hydrochloric acid and water. By carrying out this experiment, students learned about exothermic displacement reactions which produce a metal chloride salt and hydrogen gas.
Beyond the Classroom
A Sunny Outing to the Olympic Museum
Year 4 had a brilliant day at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne this week. Enjoying the sunny skies, students had their first stop at the outdoor sprint track, where they raced the 100 metres and compared their times with Usain Bolt’s.
The workshop on the origins of the Olympic Games was a definite highlight. It tied in perfectly with our learners’ topic on Ancient Greece, and all threw themselves into it – literally – by trying out spear throwing, discus and boxing.
Inside the museum, students moved through the exhibits with real curiosity, particularly enjoying how medals and athletes’ kit have evolved over the years.
After having lunch in the sunshine, students took part in a final round of outdoor challenges — lifting the shot put, marvelling at record-breaking high jumping heights, and taking in the staggering distances of Olympic throws.
A wonderful day all round!
Budding Journalists in Year 5
This half-term, students in Year 5 have been developing their journalistic writing skills in a lead up to writing an article on Ernest Shackleton’s thwarted 1914 expedition to cross the vast Antarctic continent from sea to sea.
As a cold task, they were challenged to demonstrate their prior knowledge of journalistic writing by creating an article about World Book Day for the GES newsletter. They were immersed in the role by working to a publishing deadline, just like real journalists!
A Sledging Trip to Leukerbad
Students in Years 7 to 9 had a fantastic trip to the Gemmi Lodge near Leukerbad last weekend! Travelling by train, bus and cable car, they hiked up to this unique site located at 2350m in the Swiss Alps for an afternoon of sledging on two of the nearby pistes.
After a restful overnight stay at the Lodge, they descended to the local thermal baths in Leukerbad to experience no fewer than 10 relaxing basins heated to a balmy 36°C before returning by train to Geneva.
Thank you to our accompanying adults, Mr Pearce, Ms Lanfranco and Mr Dupont-Panon, and well done to all our students for making the most of this Outdoor Education experience.
An Urban Study of Geneva
Our Year 11 IGCSE Geography students went on a data collection trip this week as part of their unit on urban processes. They collected various types of primary data including questionnaires, environmental quality surveys, traffic counts and noise pollution measurements to investigate the extent of regeneration between the areas of Sécheron and Cornavin.
With this raw data in hand, they will be able to take their research further into the processes of urbanisation, urban sprawl and economic development.
Extra-curricular Activities
A Mid-Week Musical Interlude
On Wednesday we had a superb showcase of our students’ musical talents with the much-awaited Music Recital!
Held in our Secondary Chaplin Room, this event had musicians in Years 1 to 13 perform on the violin, piano or in song, transporting the audience of family and friends on a delightful tour of the music repertoire, from modern hits to classical favourites, culminating into a unique comedy act by Eddie and Bryan.
A fantastic opportunity for students learning instruments under the guidance of our visiting music teachers to demonstrate their resilience and leadership skills by performing in front of an audience and for us to share and celebrate their progress.
Aiglon Cup Ski Race Success
Our school proudly took part in the 12th annual Aiglon Cup Ski Race this week!
Two of our top skiers, Cosmo and Artémis, were up on the slopes of Villars-sur-Ollon alongside 470 representatives from other schools in Switzerland and competing in the U10 Combi and U10 Grand Slalom categories against some tough opponents.
In addition to gaining some great race experience, they made some new friends with whom they share their passion for winter sports.
Well done, Cosmo and Artémis. Go, Team GES!
Year 3-4 Netball Tournament
Fifteen enthusiastic students from Years 3 and 4 took part in their first netball tournament of the academic year. For several of them, this was also their first ever competitive netball match, making the occasion even more special.
As the tournament progressed, the children grew in confidence and demonstrated fantastic teamwork. Their attacking play became more fluid, their defensive marking more assertive, and there were some truly brilliant interceptions throughout the day. The improvement from game to game was noticeable and a real credit to their focus and determination.
A huge well done to all participants for their effort, energy, and sportsmanship. Players of the matches were nominated across the tournament and were awarded to: Aidan, Finn, Joni (twice), Enzo, Jojo, Elenna, and Leo. Each of these players stood out for their resilience, decision-making, and contribution on court.
It was a wonderful afternoon of netball, with all students representing the school proudly and showing great promise for the season ahead.
Running Through the Woods
Our extra-curricular Primary Running Club enjoyed the glorious spring sunshine this week during their training session, which took them into Versoix’s Bois des Douvres.
How lucky we are to have such beautiful and accessible sports areas on our doorstep!
International Awards Galore
Congratulations to all the students who received their certificates for successfully completing their Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award!
Shout out goes to:
· Isobel, Mia, Levin, Rose, Kayula, George, Nia, Katrina and Stella for receiving their Bronze awards.
· Ona and Mitra for receiving their Silver awards.
Open to all youngsters aged 14 to 24 years old, the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award is the world’s leading youth achievement award. It equips young people for life regardless of their background, culture, physical ability, skills and interests. It is comprised of four sections, all of which must be completed to gain the Award:
· Service to encourage a sense of responsibility to the community
· Skills to encourage the development of cultural, vocational or practical skills
· Physical recreation to encourage improved performance and physical fitness
· A 2, 3 or 4 day Adventurous journey to encourage a spirit of adventure and discovery
· A Residential project to broaden experience through involvement with others in a residential setting (only mandatory for the Gold Award).
Community News
Book Look Season in Full Swing
We’ve been delighted to have so many parents in school as part of our Book Look series.
In Primary, our Early Years students had a fantastic Stay and Play this week during which parents engaged in play with their children and looked through the work they have been doing in their books.
For our learners in Year 1 to 6, this week’s Book Looks were a great opportunity to explain their learning and showcase all the hard work and progress they have made throughout the year.
For our older students in Secondary, Book Looks are an ideal occasion for parents to review progress in individual subjects and prompt a discussion with their children about the sequence of learning that has taken place since they last took part in a Book Look session.
