EIS "Heads Up!"

Dear EIS Community, welcome the last edition of this year's HeadsUp! Newsletter Series.

What an amazing year it has been and what an exciting and vibrant closure in the last couple of months. I want to thank you for your continuous support and being such an incredible community.

To all who are leaving us I want to wish you all the best on your journey! To the rest I say - have a great summer break and see you in August!

May-June Edition 2024

Artūrs Piļkēvičs

arturs.pilkevics@exupery.lv

This is our eighth HeadsUp Newsletter video featuring Artūrs Piļkēvičs.

The Great Clean Up Day

Committed to living in a sustainable and clean environment, the Exupery International School community proudly participated in the nationwide initiative "Lielā Talka," a.k.a. "The Great Clean-up." It is an annual volunteer event that aims to recover and improve the environment while fostering unity, positivity, and a sense of care for wildlife. First organized in 2008, Lielā Talka has attracted around 500,000 participants locally and has significantly reduced trash in the area. This year's theme was "tīri-zaļi-ilgi," translating to “clean-green-sustainable".

The designated area for the EIS team to clean up was the Babīte polder, near the Ventspils highway. The good cause brought together 13 enthusiastic participants, including the members of administration, teachers, and students from all school divisions. We thank everyone who joined and contributed to making our environment cleaner and greener. Your dedication and hard work truly make a significant difference, and we are immensely proud of you!

Committed to living in a sustainable and clean environment, the Exupery International School community proudly participated in the nationwide initiative "Lielā Talka," a.k.a. "The Great Clean-up." It is an annual volunteer event that aims to recover and improve the environment while fostering unity, positivity, and a sense of care for wildlife.

The designated area for the EIS team to clean up was the Babīte polder, near the Ventspils highway. The good cause brought together 13 enthusiastic participants, including the members of administration, teachers, and students from all school divisions.

We thank everyone who joined and contributed to making our environment cleaner and greener. Your dedication and hard work truly make a significant difference, and we are immensely proud of you!

First organized in 2008, Lielā Talka has attracted around 500,000 participants locally and has significantly reduced trash in the area. This year's theme was "tīri-zaļi-ilgi," translating to “clean-green-sustainable".

Spelling Bee in Primary

On May 29th, we had another exciting event— a spelling Bee competition. Launched last year by our primary school homeroom teacher, Ms Kseniia Begma, this event aims to enhance students' spelling skills and enrich their vocabulary in a fun way. Well, how did it all go? Open to students from grades 1 to 5, the Spelling Bee included two rounds: an in-class dictation and an oral spelling round. Participants had to spell each word correctly to stay in the competition, with the last participant standing in each round crowned the winner! The final round was followed by an award ceremony, during which winners received certificates and prizes, and all participants were acknowledged for their efforts. Each student stood before the audience and was fearless! We thank them all and thank our dedicated Head of Primary School and PYP Coordinator, Kristine Atrens, who supported the competition and even took on its host role in Grades 4 and 5. Shout out to all our great teachers who make events like this possible!

Radial Symmetry in Primary Art

One of the fascinating aspects of Primary Years Programme is seeing learning is an interconnected process. So, since our brain is so interconnected, compartmentalizing learning does not make any sense. The system of sitting in various classes that are not linked to each other is outdated. Therefore, there is a concept of integration in which all grade-level teachers work together to ensure the activities are linked to the central idea and a common topic. This time, let us look at one great example of such integration in Grade 4.

During the unit of inquiry "How the World Works," the grade 4 explored the concept of radial symmetry in their Art class, examining examples in nature and architecture.

To solidify their understanding, students created two examples focusing on aspects of concentric and radial composition. Concentric composition demonstrates that the objects depicted share the same center. Radial composition, as the name suggests, shows that the objects in the artwork start from the center and radiate outwards. Radial symmetry organizes the objects by repeating the same line, shape, and color in all directions. Much like in architecture, where cathedral vaults use this concept to keep grandiose structures standing for centuries, radial symmetry was applied in the students' artwork.

VLIPO Project Competition in Vilnius

Two of Grade 10 students have participated and won a gold medal at Vilnius International Project Olympiad with their project in the Energy category! VILIPO serves as a global platform where students from diverse backgrounds showcase their innovative projects aimed at preserving our environment. The event unfolds in two stages: initial project submissions, followed by in-person presentations for the top contenders. The event saw 100 participants from 40 teams worldwide this year.

In this pool of inspiring projects, our student's creation 'Fuji', named after the god of wind in Japan, was aimed to create a prototype of an airship that harvests wind energy. The success of winning the gold medal is a testament to the relentless dedication and hard work of our students and their teachers beyond the regular class time.

Two of Grade 10 students have participated and won a gold medal at Vilnius International Project Olympiad with their project in the Energy category! VILIPO serves as a global platform where students from diverse backgrounds showcase their innovative projects aimed at preserving our environment. The event unfolds in two stages: initial project submissions, followed by in-person presentations for the top contenders. The event saw 100 participants from 40 teams worldwide this year.

In this pool of inspiring projects, our student's creation 'Fuji', named after the god of wind in Japan, was aimed to create a prototype of an airship that harvests wind energy. The success of winning the gold medal is a testament to the relentless dedication and hard work of our students and their teachers beyond the regular class time. From mastering skills like ARDUINO coding, 3D printing, and engineering, their journey was marked by continuous growth and innovation. This accomplishment shows commitment to sustainability and signals a promising future where renewable energy sources like wind power play a pivotal role in shaping a greener, more resilient world.

From mastering skills like ARDUINO coding, 3D printing, and engineering, their journey was marked by continuous growth and innovation. This accomplishment shows commitment to sustainability and signals a promising future where renewable energy sources like wind power play a pivotal role in shaping a greener, more resilient world.

Two of Grade 10 students have participated and won a gold medal at Vilnius International Project Olympiad with their project in the Energy category! VILIPO serves as a global platform where students from diverse backgrounds showcase their innovative projects aimed at preserving our environment. The event unfolds in two stages: initial project submissions, followed by in-person presentations for the top contenders. The event saw 100 participants from 40 teams worldwide this year.

In this pool of inspiring projects, our student's creation 'Fuji', named after the god of wind in Japan, was aimed to create a prototype of an airship that harvests wind energy. The success of winning the gold medal is a testament to the relentless dedication and hard work of our students and their teachers beyond the regular class time.

Math Competition

We are delighted to share the impressive achievements of our Grade 6 and 7 students in the recent Junior UKMT (UK Math Trust). Their hard work and our collaborative efforts have truly paid off!

Grade 6 Achievements: Maya M: GOLD, Vasilisa T: Silver, Mariia B: Bronze, Liga R: Bronze;
Grade 7 Achievements: Romans S: SILVER - Best in class, Diana M: Silver, Serafima F: Bronze.

A special shout-out to our Middle School Math Teacher, Christopher Ody for his guidance, our Math Department Head, Zane Latve, for organizing this enriching opportunity at Exupery. It's heartwarming to see the fruits of our collective work. Let's continue to support and inspire our students toward even greater successes.

Class of 2024 Graduation

The culmination, the grand finale, the happy ending — sweet but with a bitter nuance, as it is always sad to let go of someone you've journeyed with for so long! This is how our G12 Graduation ceremony at Exupery International School went.

We are immensely proud of our Grade 12 students, who have ventured on their unique journeys, overcoming many challenges and fostering a close-knit community that will forever be a part of our school's history.

It was a wonderful time filled with smiles of joy, tears of happiness, and nostalgia as we bid farewell to this remarkable group of young individuals. They have just completed a crucial stage of their lives and are now ready to start on the next—an equally important one.

Undoubtedly, they will continue to shine brightly and make significant contributions to the world as responsible global citizens. Congratulations, graduates! May your future be filled with endless opportunities, adventures, and success! We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the fantastic teachers, school staff, and parents for making the school experience truly meaningful and exciting!

Grade 5 Exhibition

If you have ever wondered what connects plants, spaceships, programming, animals, recycling, metal music, and Korean food, our G5 students have the answer. Throughout their final year in the PYP, they dedicated themselves to these diverse topics, tirelessly preparing for their PYP exhibition project.

The Primary Years Programme (PYP) exhibition is a significant event in the life of our Primary school as it brings together the essential elements of the PYP programme and shares them with the entire EIS community.

We thank our Primary school homeroom teachers, Michael Slaughter and Keith MacLaren, for organizing this exciting event. We also cannot imagine what it would be like without the thirteen fantastic mentor teachers who helped to prepare our students for the exhibition. And, of course, we thank every student who participated in it. You all did a wonderful job and acted like true professionals!

Concert in Preschool May 16

To honor all the fantastic parents, we held our annual Family Day Concert in Preschool. Our youngest learners sang and recited poems in English, Latvian, French, and Russian, performed beautiful dances, and even made handmade gifts for their families! We also prepared some very touching videos in which our preschoolers spoke about their moms and dads and their favourite things to do together.

We thank all the Preschool artists for their performances; the Head of Preschool, Julia Kovalova, for organizing the concert; our Music Teacher, Barbara Henry, for the narration and musical accompaniment; as well as our Art and Latvian Studies Teacher, Linda Lūsiņa; French Language Teacher, Mathieu Chazel; Russian Language Teacher, Nataļja Pohomova, and all the Preschool teachers, assistants, and nannies for their dedication and involvement in the event!

Marathon 2024

What would school be like without team spirit? With this thought in mind, we not only build a stronger EIS community but also participate in various events outside the school. This time, it was the Rimi Riga Marathon. Our fantastic team members — Keith Maclaren, Niks Lemeševskis, Bridget Clyma, Fleur Serrière, Linda Kande, Ginta Strode, and Daniela Anda Postņikova — took a deep breath and ran their distances. Some ran 5 km, others 10 km, and a few even tackled 21 km. But it does not matter about the length of their run; in our eyes, they are all heroes!

CIS Accreditation

We want to share our genuine pride and joy with you as we have achieved an important milestone! On Friday, May 24, we received the Council of International Schools (CIS) Accreditation.

CIS is one of the world's largest and well-established accrediting bodies for international schools. Ministries, departments of education, and universities worldwide recognize CIS International Accreditation as a sign of the highest quality of education.

exupery school received the council of international schools accreditation

For EIS, this achievement is the culmination of a five-year process that has been a true community effort! We thank all our community members for their contributions and countless hours of work in our joint effort to make EIS one of the best schools in the world.

To be CIS-accredited, a school must have a clear purpose and direction, ensure outstanding teaching and learning, prioritize student safeguarding, and show a clear commitment to global citizenship.

council of international schools logotype

To be CIS-accredited, a school must have a clear purpose and direction, ensure outstanding teaching and learning, prioritize student safeguarding, and show a clear commitment to global citizenship.

For EIS, this achievement is the culmination of a five-year process that has been a true community effort! We thank all our community members for their contributions and countless hours of work in our joint effort to make EIS one of the best schools in the world.