I also visited class 4A, for two reasons. Firstly, to commend Ellie B. for her kindness and care towards support staff at GIS. Ellie took it upon herself, unprompted, to provide our ancillary staff with juice and water, while they were outside in the hot months earlier in the term. Ellie distributed drinks with a smile, and always has a positive approach, worthy of a Head of School’s commendation! The second reason was a personal invitation from the students. They had been reading an extraordinary book, ‘A Long Walk to Water’, for their unit on migration. This book details the life of a child in South Sudan and is a heartwarming account of resilience, determination and selflessness. The children in 4A had passed me a copy and asked me to read it. I came back to the class on Monday and was able to hear the students discuss the deeper themes within the book. Hearing these young people talk about such complex issues really made me realise, once again, the value of an IB education, which is so much more than memorization and repetition of facts.

Last week saw the staff versus students basketball. Ms. Victoria encouraged us to join the squad and despite my lack of knowledge of the game, I relished playing alongside a keen staff team! Mr Cameron was dynamic up front, or ‘in offense’ as our US friends would say, and Mr Keith was a particularly unstoppable force. However, it was the students who really showed their resilience and unflappability, coming back from a 10-point deficit to draw the game 36-36. A lovely result which ensured there were no hard feelings! Thank you to Ms. Victoria for organizing.

Events have been at the forefront recently, beginning with ‘Blue Day’ to express support for men’s health through the month of November. My thanks to GISPA for organizing and promoting this.

The highlight of the week, of course, was National Day. Please enjoy the photos and videos below. The day was a wonderful tribute to our host country’s fiftieth anniversary and the school celebrated in style. We had decorations galore, music, food, drama, speeches and an awareness on the part of all our students of just what an incredible journey this country has undergone in such a short space of time. I would like to thank all our Emirati parents for their contribution to the day, along with our Arabic and Islamic leaders and teachers, our music departments, our support staff, GISPA and particularly Ms. Raquel Nahas, Assistant Head Primary, for her dedication to making this a memorable occasion!

GIS Community Calendar 21/22

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