Dear ISB Families, Friends and Colleagues,

The end of this school year is fast approaching, but we still have a lot of “Hard Work, Respect and Fun” to do in June. However, we are advancing towards our summer closure, and already planning and setting up for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year.

Regarding the latest activities at school, I would really like to highlight that after four years, we have our Colors and Flavors festival back! It was such a pleasure to see the ISB community back together, on a sunny day, with everyone having fun, good food, and chats…

It also confirmed an important aspect of our school. Since its opening in 2008, ISB has been playing an important role in bringing cultures, colors and flavors together.

A couple weeks ago, we (ISB staff members) were asked by students a simple question for a Year 5 student project. “Why is it important to have diverse cultures at ISB?” One idea shone through as a common response. It’s important to have diverse cultures because it helps us to understand each other better, and to understand how the world works.

The Colors and Flavors festival at ISB was and still is the most significant symbol and celebration of this mindset. At ISB, we believe that understanding and celebrating diversity is one of the basic skills for 21st century education.

Jan Švihálek - Head of School

The Primary Years Programme focuses on Conceptual Learning approaches which encourages students to develop basic and varied critical thinking skills, as well as to begin to make connections between subjects. These little learners have been learning about insects in their Science Lessons, but here you can see them practicing their mathematics skills, by measuring insects using non-standard measuring tools.

Early Years students have been inquiring into all of their 5 senses and at the end of their unit it was time to showcase their learning through a Summative Share. During the Summative Share, parents had the opportunity to dive deeper into the learning with their children being the teachers!  Parents participated in a bunch of different learning engagements that their children have been learning throughout the unit. 

Year 6 students showcased the end of their journey through the Primary Years Programme to the ISB community, by presenting their Exhibition projects on Space, Endangered Animals, Agriculture & Health and War & Conflict. Students demonstrated the knowledge they had acquired and how their chosen topics related to very real problems our world is facing today. Their passion for their chosen subjects was evident as they shared their findings and challenged their audiences to take action themselves.

Near the end of May, Primary and Early Years families had the opportunity to participate in Student Led Conferences. Parents visited their child's classrooms to learn more about the teaching and learning that occurs on a daily basis. Some children had the opportunity to even teach their parents new skills! It’s an excellent event to get the whole family involved in the learning process within each year level. 

A huge number of letters were sent to and from the frontlines over the course of the Great War. The Year 8 students put themselves in the place of those soldiers to produce letters home. These handwritten and coffee-stained pages, stamps and photographs, let students truly walk in the muddy boots of those brave soldiers.

Science is an adventure. There’s so much mystery in the world and it’s important to be able to use logic and critical thinking to draw the right conclusion. The Year 7 students recently did a lab where they had to use their knowledge and skills to identify mystery - regular household - powders.

Congratulations to our class of 2023! We are incredibly proud of all their hard work and dedication. This amazing group of graduates are now heading out into the world for their next adventure.

The Year 12 students are currently reading Hamlet. In order to get the most out of the rich text, the study of Shakespeare always requires not only reading, but also having to listen and speak. After watching the Royal Shakespeare Company's Hamlet, they 
reimagined Act 1, Scene 2 with the cast being a gang of mobile-obsessed Gen Z kids.

June 1st ~ International World Children’s Day
June 6th ~ ISB Bands at Metro Club
June 7th ~ Primary and Early Years Coffee Hour with Ms. Berry
June 13th ~ ISB Spring Music Concert
June 19th ~ Year 9 Graduation
June 26th ~ Year 6 Graduation
June 29th ~ Term 2 Report Cards and Last Day of School