Message from Ms Matillon, Director General
Dear Parents,
Despite the normal buzz in our Primary school – and, no, I am not referring to our new Bug Hotel newly installed near our entrance – this seems like such a quiet Friday compared to last week at this time. A very heartfelt thank you once again to all the parents and staff who pulled out all the stops to make our International Carnival the most successful in recent memory (according to people who have been at GES much longer than I have)! All who attended had a wonderful time – particularly the children who are the main reasons we do this! – and surely skipped dinner when they got home in the evening. The food was absolutely epic and I am personally and professionally grateful for the enormous effort people made in donating such beautifully prepared delights. We are very lucky to have Susie and Zita in our midst, and, of course, Ludo who stayed late to make sure that the school he has adopted as his own was clean and tidy for Monday morning.
This has been a busy week in both Primary and Secondary with outings, rehearsals, tournaments and exams, much of which you will read about below. I would like, however, to mention two extraordinary happenings that have made me proud.
In Primary, our Year 5 and 6 classes went on a trip to Château-d’Oex (see full details in Madame Durey’s article, and some of the photos are absolutely priceless!). Every participant with whom I have spoken since their return yesterday has told me that they spent a remarkable four days in the mountains enjoying an exciting range of activities, each more fun than the last, and that the memories will last a lifetime. Best of all, the children and teachers were immersed in true Swiss life and everyone learned a lot whilst practising their French. To quote one mum who sent a lovely and much appreciated email of thanks, “From chocolate making and the cheese farm to the aquarium lab work, nature walks, campfires and good old bingo, it all sounded absolutely brilliant…especially the truly impressive dance moves displayed by certain teachers to the latest Eurovision classic”. It sounds like the evening disco alone made the trip worthwhile! Un grand merci à Madame Durey pour avoir organisé ce voyage avec tant de soin et de créativité, comme tout ce qu’elle fait pour nous à l’école.
Finally, I would like to share with you another quiet success achieved this week in Secondary – the sort of thing that can go unacknowledged, but which could have terrible consequences if it were to go wrong. On Wednesday, we were inspected by one of our two exam boards – this time, AQA – as they can do anytime during an exam series, to ensure compliance with their regulations and to maintain the integrity of the examination system. These inspections may focus on various topics, including security procedures, fairness and integrity, malpractice prevention and protecting students’ interests. Our inspector questioned our Exams Officer, Shruti Nigam, and our Head of Senior School, Daniel Crabtree, for 90 minutes on aspects of our exams administration, and I observed with complete confidence that they had everything in hand. We will receive a full report from AQA in a few days, but I know that the inspection will have gone very well.
We end this week in school with happy, successful children and the sun shining. What more could we ask?
All the best,
Christina Matillon
Year 7 and 8 Outdoor Trip to Lac d'Annecy
Our Year 7 and 8 Outdoor Expedition to Lac d’Annecy was up there among the best school trips! Enjoying perfect weather conditions at the beautiful, quiet Lac Bleu campsite, our campers were treated to swimming sessions both in the lake and the campsite pool, as well as the exhilarating fun of dashing down the slides.
Accompanied by Mr Pearce, Mr Dupont-Panon and Ms Magowan, students also went for a walk around the local nature reserve, learning about how the site’s beavers shape the landscape and ecosystem. Watching the sunset over the lake was a particular highlight of the trip, as was the team building and bonding that came out of the excursion.
Delighted with the outcome of the trip for her children, parent Natalia shared with us her impressions:
“We are really grateful and impressed how you manage this group of kids — they seem to learn so much on these trips: how to be together, how to function in a group, and have fun along the way… Mobile phone free and in nature seems to be a winning formula. Having just joined the school, the trip gave our daughter a boost of confidence and made her feel part of the gang. Both my children commented on how much effort the teachers put into it — they really don’t take it for granted! “
This week in class
Our Year 4 mathematicians have been enjoying group work (in English and French!) to solve a flurry of maths challenges this week. From number games to sequencing investigations, from measuring tasks to logic puzzles, our students pooled their analytical skills to undertake the many different maths problems they were tasked with resolving.
Our Year 7 students have started learning about light and its properties, one of which being that light travels in a straight line.
To put this into practice, they made their own pinhole cameras using empty Pringles cans, tracing paper and aluminium foil. They then went outside to the school gardens, where they enthusiastically tested their creations.
Meanwhile, our Year 8 physicists have been learning about electricity and magnetism. What better way to put that into practice than by making their own electromagnet !
Students observed how passing electricity through an iron nail with a copper wire coil induced a magnetic effect. They were able to stick paper clips to their DIY electromagnet, investigating how many can be stuck depending on voltage.
Year 8 stepped into the spotlight last week, pitching their dream productions to the notorious, and very wealthy theatre producer, Ms. Empson. They discovered that bringing a theatre production to life involves more than just applause – there’s staging, storytelling, and most importantly, selling! Bravo to our future GES theatre impresarios!
Sports are a fantastic way of reducing stress, boosting energy levels and strengthening bonds between peers, and at GES, we encourage our community to be physically active as much as possible during their free time. Leading by example, Mr MacLean and Mr Pearce took to the great outdoors at lunchtime to enjoy some netball, football and volleyball fun with their Key Stage 3 students!
Beyond the Classroom
A Week of Discovery, Adventure and French in Action!
Year 5 and 6 students kicked off their residential week with energy and enthusiasm, diving into a range of exciting activities that blended cultural discovery, outdoor exploration and hands-on learning — all while using their French skills in real-world settings.
The adventure began with a visit to Aquatis Aquarium, where our young scientists explored the exhibits with a bilingual guide and took part in a workshop about Swiss river ecosystems and the fascinating species they support.
From there, the group headed to their home for the week: “Le Vieux Chalet” in the charming village of Château-d’Oex. After settling into their en-suite rooms and checking out the games area, they laced up their hiking boots for a two-hour trek in the surrounding alpine beauty—an experience filled with fresh air, laughter and scenic views.
An orienteering course the next morning had students navigating the village using maps—and their French—to complete the quizz. Mini-golf followed, offering a relaxed way to unwind.
One highlight was the visit to the Cave de l’Etivaz, where children discovered the traditional art of alpine cheese-making. While the smell raised a few eyebrows, smiles quickly returned during the cheese tasting—and even more so when it was time to “say cheese” for photos!
On their third day, the children enjoyed some free time in the wonderful chalet, followed by a lively game of bingo in French—complete with plenty of prizes! At the Musée du Ballon, students took to the skies—virtually!—with a 4D hot air balloon experience and a bilingual guided tour. This was followed by a nature walk across a thrilling suspension bridge.
Evenings were just as memorable—from sharing their best memories of the day around a marshmallow campfire to a fun bowling night and our traditional disco, the fun never stopped.
The grand finale? A sweet trip to a chocolate factory, where pupils learned about the origins of chocolate and how it is made, tasted different varieties, and even crafted their own chocolate bars to take home!
Throughout the week, the students confidently used French to speak with chalet staff, museum guides, and each other—making this residential not only fun and memorable but a true immersive language experience.
Geography Field Class Trip
Our Year 10 students participated in an educational visit to Nant du Braille river as part of their iGCSE Geography field class investigating river processes. Donning their wellies for the occasion, they waded through the upper, middle and lower stretches of the river to collect data on channel depth, width, velocity, and gradient, as well as to complete field sketches. The students performed brilliantly and have since been analysing and presenting their data using a variety of statistical and graphical methods.
Great job all round, and thank you to Miss Magowan for helping out!
Extra-Curricular Activities
An Artistic Week at ASC
Our After School Care Club has had a creative week, with arts and crafts and cooking sessions galore!
Starting the week with artistic workshops designing and making some cute orange bunnies, they later donned their chef’s hats to bake some delicious vanilla biscuits topped with all kinds of delicious decorations!
ADISR Year 3-4 Netball Tournament
Our Benjamines Year 3-4 Netball team had a fantastic afternoon at their tournament at La Grande Boissière on Wednesday 14 May, representing GES with great spirit and enthusiasm.
The girls grew in confidence and teamwork with each match they played, showing an increasing understanding not only of their opponents’ tactics but, more importantly, of how to work effectively together as a team.
They embraced the opportunity to try out new positions, adapted brilliantly to challenges, and learned valuable lessons in managing both excitement and pressure during competitive play.
Their efforts paid off with a well-deserved 3rd place finish out of 6 schools.
A huge well done to all the girls who took part. We are so proud of your progress, sportsmanship, and the positive energy you brought to the court!
A Day of Sport, Spirit, and at times... Sunshine
On Thursday, Geneva English School proudly hosted the Year 3 and 4 SGIS Football Tournament, welcoming over 160 children from 7 schools, forming 22 teams in total. With more than 70 matches played across the day, the event was a vibrant celebration of teamwork, perseverance and sportsmanship – all under the unpredictable Swiss skies of rain, wind, and sunshine!
GES entered four teams: two girls’ teams and two boys’ teams. Each team played over six matches, demonstrating impressive collaboration, determination and resilience – especially as they dashed for cover during sudden showers and returned to the pitch when the sun broke through.
A huge thank you to all the players, staff, parents and visiting schools for making the day such a success. The energy, enthusiasm, and love for the game were truly inspiring. Well done, everyone!
Practice Makes Perfect
Our extra-curricular golfers have been making some tremendous progress in their after school Golf Club!
Working on their swing techniques, accuracy and posture, they have enjoyed perfect weather conditions during practice and are looking more and more like pros!
LAMDA Examinees Take to the Stage
The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) exams took place last Friday and Saturday for our budding thespians.
LAMDA acting exams are recognised performance assessments that develop confidence and communication skills while enabling young actors to delve into characters and explore the background of dramatic texts. Five of our Year 8 students (Guillermo, Mariana, Tim, Aria and James) and Nia in Year 11 took their exams.
We are confident that they did brilliantly and that this experience contributed to their love for the stage!
Community News
Silver Medal for our Young Water Polo Player
Congratulations to our young swimmer Leonard in Year 5 and his team, the Cercle des nageurs de Nyon, for their terrific performance in last weekend’s Swiss Aquatics final U10 water polo competition in Schaffhausen.
Arriving in second place of the Swiss national water polo league (category U10), these silver medallists deservedly drew the attention and accolades of the La Côte journalists !
A Maths Prodigy in our Midst
Our very own Year 7 student, Arun, participated in the Swiss final of the 39e Championnat international des jeux mathématiques et logiques organised by the Swiss Federation of Mathematical Games at ETH Zurich last weekend. Having qualified after the Geneva round in March, Arun came in 32nd out of 170 children from all over Switzerland.
We are very proud of Arun for his efforts and dedication, and delighted to celebrate his talent as a hardworking mathematician and competitor! Bravo!
International Carnival
Flashback to our International Carnival last Friday as students, staff and families came together to celebrate the incredible diversity of our school community under a beautiful, warm spring sun. With stalls offering all kinds of sweet and savoury delicacies to games, arts and crafts representing cultures from across the world, this event was a truly magical moment during which young and old, newcomers and long-timers joined in the fun, laughter and merriment.
Thank you to our wonderful Parent Association for organising another fantastic International Carnival, and to all the families who contributed to making it such a resounding success!
New Podcast with World Radio Switzerland
GES is back on the airwaves this week with an exchange between our very own Victoria Newbury, Head of Middle School, and World Radio Switzerland’s Katt Cullen.
Tune in to this podcast and discover our school’s personalised approach to education through a flexible balance between academic rigour and students’ own aspirations and achievements. By fostering engagement and independence, our approach enables students to flourish academically and personally.
Final Reminder | Secondary Sports Day
Our Secondary Sports Day will take place on Monday 26 May at the Centre sportif de Versoix (Rte de l’Etraz 201, Versoix) from 8:00 until 13:00*.
Throughout the morning, our athletes, divided into their Houses, will take part in a range of track and field events, including high and long jump, shot put, individual and relay races (which includes both students and teachers!).
Parents are invited to join us and cheer our students in this convivial, community event celebrating sportsmanship, teamwork and collaboration.
Save the date!
*Please note that free parking is available only for the first two hours at the Centre sportif de Versoix.
Final Reminder | SEND Coffee Morning
Join us at our Secondary campus on Tuesday 27 May for a Coffee Morning led by our Director of Inclusion, Jodie Noble, on Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
In this meeting, Ms Noble will deliver a presentation about her role as Director of Inclusion and SEND Coordinator, including our school processes for identifying additional needs, how we monitor students’ progress, our SEND educational ethos and the different ways in which we support our students at the Primary and Secondary sites.
Parents of all students are invited to come along and learn more about the ever-changing world of special needs provision and how GES is keeping up with these developments. Parents are invited to arrive at the Secondary Grand Café/Chaplin Room from 8:15 to share a coffee and the presentation will begin at 8:30. There will also be an opportunity for general questions and to discuss school life afterwards.
If you wish to attend, please email Gaël at [email protected] to confirm your attendance.
In the meantime, if you have any individual concerns or questions and would like to contact Jodie Noble, please do so by email to [email protected].
Faces of GES
Today, our Faces of GES series takes a close examination of Shruti Nigam, our Exams Officer over at Secondary who joined our school in January.
Shruti takes immense pleasure and pride in her role, which is so central to that final stretch of a student’s educational journey at school before their transition to university, and she especially enjoys contributing to making the examination process smooth for GES students. Touched by the respectful attitude of all our students, both towards each other and towards their teachers and other school staff, she loves that all of them know each other so well. Her greatest hope for them? That their exams experience enables them to feel ready to face the world, be it in their further studies or beyond.
Born in India and having lived in the UK, where she trained as an engineer, Shruti was formerly Head of Engineering for the construction company Saint-Gobain, near Manchester. In love with the freedom that the feeling of flight provides, she is currently working towards obtaining her pilot license. Shruti is also an accomplished acrylics and oil painter, and often jokes that she has found her artistic niche when remembering fondly that her first painting when arriving in Switzerland was that of a cow, followed by that of a yak after a holiday in Nepal. The proud Mum of a son in Year 2, Shruti has come to find that the same close community feel and caring atmosphere that she experienced as a GES parents also exists as a staff member.
