Dear Parents,

Welcome back to the second half of this term, especially to those families whose travel plans have been complicated by recent world events. We hope that everyone is able to return home safely very quickly and get settled back into the rhythm of school life.

Our Primary students enjoyed a wonderful celebration of reading for World Book Day yesterday. The day was enriched by a visit from author Lisa Alfrey, who inspired students with insights into the writing process and the power of storytelling. We were also delighted to welcome illustrator and artist John Hutcheson, who shared his experiences and enthusiasm for visual storytelling with our younger learners. Events like these help foster a love of reading that we hope will last a lifetime.

Thank you to the many parents who joined the online presentation on Wednesday about Inspired’s Global Exchanges Programme. These opportunities allow students to experience different cultures, collaborate with peers from other schools, and broaden their global perspectives. Your engagement and interest in these programmes are greatly appreciated and we hope many of you will consider enrolling your children.

Our Key Stage 3 students are currently enjoying an exciting recreational trip to Leukerbad. Having travelled up to the Gemmi Lodge by train and cable car this morning, they have spent this afternoon sledging. Tomorrow, they will spend the morning relaxing in the thermal baths — a truly memorable way to experience one of Switzerland’s unique alpine destinations.

Next week promises to be another busy one across the school. Students from Years 3–13 will be competing in the Aiglon Ski Cup races on Monday and Tuesday, and we wish them all the best of luck. On Wednesday our Secondary students will have the opportunity to explore different career and academic pathways as part of their Careers Day, and on Wednesday evening we look forward to a recital in Chaplin featuring performers from Reception through to Year 13. It promises, as always, to be a wonderful showcase of musical talent, and we look forward to seeing many of you there.

Finally, a couple of important bits of information:

· Firstly, should you not be planning for your children to return to GES next year, the deadline for withdrawals is Thursday 2nd April. Even if your plans are still provisional, we would be grateful if you could inform the school as soon as possible if there is a chance that you may be leaving, to assist us with planning.
· Secondly, please keep an eye on your inboxes for our parent survey which will be launching next week, and will provide you the opportunity to share your views and help us continue improving the experience we provide for our students and families.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. We look forward to another productive and enjoyable half term together.

All the best,

Christina Matillon

Yesterday was about all things literary at our Primary campus as our community celebrated World Book Day!

The highlight of the day was most certainly the various workshops organised with real-life authors! Students in Years 1 and 2 welcomed Dr. Lisa Alfrey, author of Baku: The Not So Angry Dragon and mother of our very own Lucas and Alexander. A chartered counselling psychologist with a passion for making psychology education fun and creative, Lisa led story time in class, explaining to her young audience the story’s themes of courage and resilience and how taking small, manageable steps is the surest way to overcome one’s fears. She also introduced students to “dragon breathing” – slow, deep breaths that help calm the mind and body when feeling worried or afraid – and concluded the session with some yoga and mindfulness exercises, all practical strategies that our students can use to feel centred, focused and brave when facing challenges.

Our Year 3 and 4 students were thrilled to exchange with award-winning author Kyla Zhao, who shared with them her creative process when writing a book, the many drafts and edits that an author goes through before they reach their final story and how she goes about finding inspiration. Kyla reminded students how story ideas are all around and that everyone can find inspiration to be a storyteller.

Year 5 and 6 students welcomed comic author and artist John Hutcheson who took them on an inspiring tour through the history of comics, from Ancient Egypt to manga! Our BD enthusiasts had the chance to see John’s original artwork from pencil drafts to the finished product, discovering the many stages involved in creating each page and how technology has revolutionised this process.

In their French lessons, students explored the power of translation. After reading two versions of the same book (a French edition titled Groarr! and a French-Canadian edition titled La souris qui rugit), our students explored how the publication of the same story in two different countries can lead to the use of different vocabulary or register.

Looking beyond just words, students celebrated the illustrators whose creations make stories so memorable with a World Book Day inspired Art lesson during which they used all the skills they have been developing this year to create terrific pictures of the Lion and the Mouse from our whole-school text The Lion Inside.

To mark the day and in faithful GES tradition, our Primary community decked itself out magnificently to bring to life all the beloved characters that fill the pages of our favourite books, and our wonderful Parents’ Association made the day even more special by organising a book and bake sale!

Our Secondary scientists launched into a series of practical experiments this week!

For Year 8 students, investigations have led them to test the reactivity of various metals, such as magnesium, zinc and iron, in water and acid as part of their new topic on chemical reactions.

In the Year 9 experiment, students took a close look at displacement reactions by observing how a more reactive element displaces a less reactive one from a compound, forming a new compound and an uncombined element. They then linked their observations to the reactivity series.

Our Year 12 and 13 chemists visited the University of Geneva’s Chimiscope this week for a workshop on drug design.

Taking their studies in A Level Chemistry a step further, students investigated, using computer modelling, how functional groups affect drug affinity in the body. A great opportunity for students interested in pharmacology, biochemistry and medicine to explore modern approaches to effective drug design.

View photos here.

A Week of Questions and Discovery

Science Week is back at GES and will run next week, from 9 to 13 March. This year’s theme is Curiosity, and students will spend the week asking questions, exploring ideas, and taking part in a range of fun science investigations and morning challenges.

Questions from Our Youngest Scientists

One highlight will see each class working in small groups to answer a question sent in by video from one of our Reception children. For example: “How do waves crash in the sea?” Students will research the question and work together to explain the science behind it before sharing their answers with the Reception class.

Special Experiments
We are also delighted that Mr Maclean, Head of Science at Secondary, will be visiting Primary during the week to lead exciting experiments with every class, from Pre-school through to Year 6.

Optional Science Video Challenge
Students will also have the opportunity to take part in an optional homework challenge, creating a short science video exploring a question they are curious about. We will watch all the videos entered together during a whole-school assembly.

Parents’ Science Challenge
Parents, you’re back too! After last year’s success, you can once again earn House points for your child’s House by answering the daily Science question in the bench area (near the snake). Each day’s question will come from a different part of the Primary Science curriculum, linked to a different year group.

If you don’t do morning drop-off but would still like to take part, simply email Mr Bradley ([email protected]) and he will send you the question each day. Your child’s House will be counting on you to bring home those extra points!