EIS "HeadsUp!"

May Edition 2025

Artūrs Piļkēvičs

Every other month, the Books that Spark Global-Mindedness event—led by Ms. Līga Grundšteine—brings students and teachers together to share books that open minds and connect us all. During a morning assembly for the whole Middle and High School, teachers, students, and staff are invited to share books they are reading and how it relates to global mindedness and intercultural learning. What an amazing initiative to remind us how books shape our perspectives, help us understand the world, and fuel our passions What book has changed the way you see the world?

Physics - Suhani and Mati from Grade 11 secured 3rd place, while Artsiom from Grade 10 earned an Honorable Mention.

Chemistry - Arseniy from Grade 11 and Artsiom from Grade 10 both secured 1st place in the Chemistry Olympiad!

Chess - Our Grade 4 student Vlad won 2nd place in the Latvian Chess Championship in the U10 category! We’re proud to see our students making such impressive moves.

Economics – Our Grade 12 students put their skills to the test at the Economics Olympiad—and the results speak for themselves.

Aleksandrs took 1st place, Andrejs earned 2nd, Marks and Anna Marija both claimed 3rd, and Nelli received an Honorable Mention for her outstanding performance.

A huge thank you to our teachers for their guidance and encouragement. And to all our Olympiad participants—you have made us incredibly proud!

If there were a competition for the best team at the Skola 2025 educational fair, we would definitely win! We rocked the show and even ran out of a variety of promotional materials. But the real highlight was the teamwork. Teachers from all divisions, high school students, academic leadership, and the marketing and admissions teams all took shifts to make this fair a true showcase of collaboration. A big thank you to everyone who came out to represent our school over the weekend, and to all the visitors who stopped by!

Our Spring Festival was a vibrant celebration of how different cultures—from Germany to China—welcome the season. With eight interactive stations, fun activities, a live band, a lottery, and fresh pancakes, it was truly an event to remember! A big thank you to our organizing team, led by IB Russian Language Teacher Jekaterīna Pavlova, and a special shout-out to our Grade 8 students for planning and running the event, as well as raising funds for souvenirs!

Eco Project Shark Tank
As part of their inquiry into sustainability, Grade 5 students took on the challenge of pitching innovative, school-focused solutions in a ‘Shark Tank’-style experience. Guided by the central idea of promoting sustainable practices, they developed and presented actionable ideas to reduce the school’s environmental footprint to a panel of esteemed jury members—or ‘investors’—including our Head of School and educators.

Participating in ‘Shark Tank’ empowered students to take ownership of their learning, think critically about environmental challenges, collaborate on solutions, and strengthen their presentation skills—all while preparing for their upcoming PYP Exhibition.


Sustainable Housing Fair
Our Grade 4 students explored how to make buildings more environmentally responsible as part of their “How the World Works” unit. They applied their knowledge of sustainable architecture to design eco-friendly homes.

During the event, students showcased their designs and visited each other’s groups to learn more about the different prototypes. They created detailed blueprints using area and perimeter, constructed models in art class, and prepared posters explaining various aspects of their homes.


Becoming an Eco-School: Challenge Accepted!
At EIS, we’re always looking for ways to grow and improve. That’s why the Eco-Schools programme caught our attention—its mission and vision align closely with our goals of fostering responsibility, awareness, and care for the environment. What makes it even more special is that it requires active student participation, turning environmental responsibility into a real, hands-on experience.

To learn more, we invited colleagues from Tukuma 3. pamatskola—a dedicated participant in the programme for the past five years—to share their journey with us.

Our guests offered valuable insights into this global initiative, which connects over 48,700 schools and 20 million students across 73 countries, and delivered an inspiring presentation on their experience. In return, we were happy to give them a tour of EIS!

What an incredible day it was, exploring the fascinating world of brain-based teaching and learning! Educators came together to debunk brain myths, deepen their understanding of how the brain works, and discover practical, inclusive strategies to support every student’s unique learning journey.

We covered key topics such as metacognition, early childhood brain development, adolescent brains, trauma-informed teaching, game-based learning, and memory strategies. Special thanks went to all the amazing presenters who shared their expertise!

A huge thank-you also went to everyone who attended and made the conference such a success. We hope you left feeling inspired and equipped to transform your teaching practices. Together, we used neuroscience to help unlock the full potential of our students!

We're proud to say that EIS hosted its first-ever Model United Nations (MUN) Conference, welcoming students from the International School of Latvia (ISL) and King’s College. Around 25 students from G6–G11 gathered to debate real-world issues under the theme “Fostering Peace and Security Through Collaboration and Cooperation.”

The event was student-led, with Valery (G11) as Secretary General, Aleksandrs (G11) as Deputy Secretary General, Arseniy (G11) as Technical Manager, and Liubov (G11) as Conference Manager, supported by MUN sponsor Mr. Stephen Walker.

Two committees tackled global topics: the Security Council debated proxy wars, while SOCHUM focused on human trafficking in conflict zones. Louis (G9) was named Best Delegate in Committee, and Kristians (G12) earned Best Delegate of the Conference.

A big thank you to everyone who participated—we’re already looking forward to the next one!