St. John’s is excited to welcome back to campus Dr. Nora Gietz, art historian (class of 2004), and Dr. Mark Blunk, mathematician, (class of 1999), on October 2 and 3 for legacy lectures and to work with High School students. Dr. Gietz will give a special legacy lecture on Thursday evening at 19:30 to an invited audience of parents, students and VIPs,  diplomats and the general public. This lecture will be specifically about her Doctoral Thesis “The Effects of Napoleonic Rule on Venice’s Artistic Patrimony (1797 – 1806)” in this 200th anniversary year of the battle of Waterloo. Dr. Blunk will be teaching mathematics … Continue reading Two St. John’s alumni return for lectures and work with students

St. John’s student Stephane and his brother Alexandre are promoting honey (the nectar of the Gods) from one of their two homelands, the peninsula of Halkidiki-Greece, to help the Association PRAKSIS (http://www.praksis.gr/en/about-praksis), an independent NGO organisation with the goal to eliminate social and economic exclusion of vulnerable social groups and defend their personal and social rights. Stephane, a 10th grade student at St. John’s, volunteered last summer at Praksis, a center for homeless people in Thessaloniki. The product is organic honey from pine forests (rich in minerals and texture – a rare product) prepared by  a small producer who won Silver Medal … Continue reading Student sells honey to help homeless center in Greece

On Thursday, 11 September, the St. John’s student council held the second annual High School Activity Fair. Representatives from all of the different clubs and activities around the school set up displays on C-level during the high school lunch period and had an opportunity to share what they are all about with the entire student body. The displays were informative, and we had an excellent turnout of students passing through, sharing interests with each other, signing up to get involved in new activities, and even playing darts to test their interest in the new Varsity Darts Team. In a new … Continue reading Activity fair showcases the many options available to HS students

What is happening in the Elementary School assembly on Wednesday afternoons in the PAC Theater? This week some Elementary Choir students performed “Duck Dance” and “Wade in the Water” and taught the other students their new songs.  Some Grade 5 students performed in groups to the Welsh folksong “All through the night.” Mrs. Anderson shared her favourite story “You are Special” by Max Lucado. Students you can share the story with your parents at home. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15QuHygLwFU Don’t miss the Math Assembly next week with Mr. Motwani 14:45-15:30 in the PAC. By Sarah Knauf, ES music teacher Continue reading Fun with songs and stories in the ES assembly

How great would be it be if there was a bench where you could just sit down and a friend would magically appear? Well, there is such a thing… At St. John’s, in the courtyard for the 6 to 8 year old students, there is a so-called “Friendship Bench”. Any child who does not have a friend to play with at a certain moment can sit down on the bench. “Students can sit on the Friendship Bench if they don’t have someone to play with, and so other students can come and ask if they want to play together” says a student. The … Continue reading The “Friendship Bench” at St. John’s

You are cordially invite to a lecture by art historian and St. John’s alumnae Dr. Nora Gietz on Thursday, October 2 at 19:30, with a reception from 18:30, in the Performing Arts Center theater at St. John’s. Dr. Gietz will speak about her doctoral thesis “The Effects of Napoleonic Rule on Venice’s Artistic Patrimony (1797 and 1806-14)”, in honor of the 200th anniversary year of the battle of Waterloo and the 50th anniversary of St. John’s. Admission to the event is free.   Continue reading Join us for the first legacy lecture on October 2!

During our 50th birthday celebration assembly last Monday, sixteen of our grade 7 students presented their detailed description of what St. John’s is all about. They constructed 25 decorated puzzle pieces and explained, very articulately, who we are and what we stand for at our school. Not only do we excel in the area of  academics; we are an engaged community and we function with a certain strong ethos based on the values of companionship, integrity and respect. We celebrate our diversity. Our school size allows for real personal attention and facilitates the building of strong relationships between teachers and students. … Continue reading What makes St. John’s great?

The Elementary Choir got started this week. We have students from Kindergarten through Grade 5 singing in the choir. We practice every Tuesday, right after school. We will be performing at assemblies, school concerts and at the Brussels Carol Concert. Students will have the opportunity to perform on stage at the Brussels Conservatory for the Brussels Carol Concert: www.brusselscarolconcert.com There are still spaces available in choir, please sign up on the academy website if interested. By Sarah Knauf, ES Music Teacher Continue reading The Elementary School choir is getting ready to perform!

The 7th grade students are studying interactions in the environment in science. As part of this unit each child is making a model ecosystem in a bottle which they will observe for changes over the next few weeks. In class we will be identifying the different parts of ecosystems and learning how they interact. Students will be able to relate the classroom back to their own ecosystem and to ecosystems in nature and will be investigating what happens when part of the ecosystem is changed in some way. By Maggie Adams, MS science teacher Continue reading “Interactions in the environment” in 7th grade science

We are getting ready for one of the highlights of the St. John’s school year, a day that students, parents and teachers always look forward to: International Festival! This year’s International Festival takes place on Friday, October 10. During the school day, all Elementary School students will visit the country booths set up in the sports hall, where they will get a stamp in their “passports”. We will have a daytime as well as an evening parade in the Arena, whereby students and parents from each country participate in a parade in national clothing and to a song that has … Continue reading Get ready for International Festival on October 10!

Monday September 8 marks the anniversary of the founding of St. John’s International School in 1964. Students will enjoy a full day of activities to celebrate our 50th anniversary. The students and the entire faculty will come together for a special assembly in the morning and then fun activities have been organized across the school for the day. All students, from our younger students to our 12th graders, as well as the teachers, will be grouped into 50 teams (one for each of the 50 years). Lunch and snacks will be provided so students do not need to bring a lunch to … Continue reading St. John’s turns 50 on Monday, September 8!

We will be starting a St. John’s parent and staff choir this month. No experience is needed, just come and join us for a great time. We hope to perform at the 50th anniversary Commemorative Concert, which will be all 60’s music. Here is the choir rehearsal schedule until Christmas: September 25, October 9 and 23, November 6 and 20, and December 11 from 19:00-20:30 in the High School music room in the Performing Arts Center. If you are interested in joining, please e-mail mdewolf@stjohns.be. Also, if you know any other St. John’s parents or staff that might enjoy the choir, … Continue reading Join the new St. John’s parent and staff choir!