Semester 2 in Full Swing!
A typical week at ISKL is filled with an amazing variety of activities involving every part of our community. This week has been no exception – Elementary School (ES) students celebrated their 100th day of school with mathematically themed t-shirts, the High School band delighted Early Childhood students with a virtual concert, and Grade 12 parents found a way to continue the tradition of Senior Treats with drop off deliveries. Whether on campus or online, ISKL is in full swing!
In the middle of the week, we had the honor of listening to Middle School (MS) Greta B. (Grade 6), Zy K. (Grade 8), Zhi Hong C. (Grade 7), and Rika S. (Grade 9) who joined us as guest speakers at our online MS Future-Ready Forum for ISKL families and the wider community. Hearing our students share their personal experiences about what makes MS so special and how they’ve grown as a result was truly inspiring and I was deeply impressed as they explained how they have learned self-advocacy, self-direction, resilience, how to overcome setbacks, set themselves goals, and reflect on feedback.
An important part of MS is providing opportunities for students to develop these skills, explore their passions and understand who they are which will shape who they become in the future. I loved the way one of our speakers related the benefit of this experience, “having the chance to explore and understand myself in MS has given me the courage to discover myself out of school”. This is exactly the learning and self-discovery we want our students to experience. As Peter Casey, our MS Principal said, “Students join Middle School as children and transition to High School as young adults. It is amazing to play a role in one of the greatest learning and growth phases in their lives.” It is indeed an honor to be a part of this learning journey not just for MS, but for all our students.
If you would like to hear more from our MS students themselves please click here to watch the video of the forum.
The learning journey also continues for our Board with a change of leadership. Board Chair, Laura Stubblefield and her family have relocated back to the US and we welcome Toshihiko Saito as our new Board Chair. We have deeply appreciated Laura’s leadership, support, and commitment to ISKL as both Board Chair and Vice-Chair of the Governance Committee. The work of the Board is often behind the scenes at a strategic level and Laura’s commitment and support has been truly valued. We thank Laura, Toshi, and our Board members for all they do for our school – as parent volunteers who are elected by parents, our Board is such a defining aspect of ISKL and is pivotal in enabling us to keep our students at the center of our decision-making. I look forward to working with Toshi over the coming years as we continue to celebrate ISKL’s success and vision for the future.
I would like to end HoS News with an extract from the message included with each Senior Treat created with love by our Grade 12 parents for our Seniors earlier week, “Stay focused on your goals, resilient in the face of obstacles, optimistic about your future and the future of our world. And when you’re feeling overwhelmed, we who care about you encourage you to adjust your perspective, rise up, and become what you’ve dreamed of becoming.” As I reflect the learning and commitment of our students, I am confident we have 1,700 wonderful reasons to be extremely optimistic about the future.
With the Federal Territory Day public holiday on Monday, I wish everyone a relaxing and enjoyable long weekend.
In partnership,
Rami Madani
Head of School
