Climate strikes: Why students around the world are getting involved

Climate change education Education is one of the most essential keys in the global response to climate change. Different institutions have allowed students to explore climate change through the use of interactive activities such as Eco-friendly transport options. Please view these two videos to see the progress we have been making with our students at LVIS. https://youtu.be/x755DBm2shM The Eco-friendly transport options include travelling activities without using cars. Walking and riding bikes or scooters are one of the ways students can travel without using cars. Playing hockey on the side of the road and skiing all the way to school is also a fun way to travel.  These options suggested by students are designed to combat climatic change. Climate change has gained a lot of popularity in the world and a lot of progress has been made by including climate change education into school curriculums. Lecturers and students as well also use social media as a useful tool encouraging greater knowledge of climate change. https://youtu.be/Q3bivppu1Xo The Earth is at a tipping point The students were lucky enough to meet with Johan Rockstrom along with a team of other scientists. Johan and team have corroborated extensive natural feedback processes and many of them can serve as “tipping elements.” Nature is known to have feedback mechanisms, such as the rainforest’s ability to create its own humidity and rain. This successfully keeps the ecosystem in equilibrium. Rockstrom says, if the rainforest is subjected to an intense increase in warming and deforestation, the feedback mechanism will slowly get weaker. When the tipping point is crossed the feedback mechanism changes direction. The rainforest will eventually morph from a moisture engine into a self-dryer. Soon enough the rainforest will change into a savanna and in the process, it will release carbon. This is the tipping point that will begin a series of climatic disasters such as El Nino events, forest fires, loss of coral reefs, Arctic summer sea ice. To ensure that we stay away from the tipping point, a global call to stop carbon emissions should be initiated. The whole world must adopt major projects to become sustainable across all sectors. While teaching on climate change in secondary education, students should also be educated on creating investment funds that can support poorer nations that don’t have as much capacity to reduce carbon emissions as the richer countries do. Every 100,000 years, the earth has always naturally cycled in and out of an ice age. According to research, the planet progressively left the last ice age around 12,000 years ago. Currently, Earth is in an interglacial cycle known as the Holocene epoch. The Holocene epoch began just as the Earth entered a warming trend. The glaciers retreated and the climate gave way to the growth of extensive forests. As the climate changed, the very large mammals that had adapted to extremely cold weather, like mammoths and wooly rhinoceros eventually became extinct. In the Holocene epoch the Earth has adopted natural systems that help keep the Earth’s surface cool, even during the hotter interglacial periods. Many scientists, however, state that because of the immense pressure and impact of humans on the environment, the Earth’s climatic temperatures are nearly as hot as the maximum historical temperature during an interglacial cycle. Today industrial activities that require the burning of fossil fuels along with thousands of other human activities emit 40 billion tons of carbon dioxide a year. Roughly, half of the missions are taken up and stored by the oceans, trees, plants, and soil. However, humans are now pushing the system to the limit by occasionally cutting down trees, degrading too much soil, wasting a lot of fresh water and continuously emitting large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Soon enough with continued pressure to the earth’s system. Forests, soil, and water will begin to release the carbon dioxide that they have been storing. Scientists fear that if carbon emissions continue and humans continue to apply pressure to the system the planet will leave the glacial-interglacial cycle and will become a self-heater. The Earth will be thrust into a new age of the “hothouse Earth.” In our natural world, there are a large number of people who still do not pay attention or care about the world’s current climatic catastrophe and species extinction. This has actually led to a rise in the number of students who have chosen to start a movement encouraging leaders, industries, and citizens from all over the world to prioritize on caring for the environment. At this pivotal time for our species and the earth, the climate change secondary education students are determined to inform the world about threats, consequences and different solutions that we should adopt to save the planet. In this article, we will go through some of the different reasons why students are getting involved and how these students are making a difference globally. Greta Thunberg’s lonely start as an activist for climate change Greta Thunberg, a Swedish teenager, decided to cut class and protest drawing attention to the perilous state of the climate. Greta was a solitary protestor, sitting before her country’s parliament armed with fliers that stated that she was refusing to attend school in protest because of adults and leaders lack of concern for her future. Every day for over two weeks, Greta sat quietly on the cobblestones outside parliament in central Stockholm, handing out leaflets and speaking on the cause of her protest. Greta is not the stereotypical leader for climate revolution. She is a simple teenager with a goal and a purpose. “I am doing this because nobody else is doing anything. It is my moral responsibility to do what I can,” says Greta. “I want the politicians to prioritize the climate question, focus on the climate and treat it like a crisis,” she added. Greta mentioned that she was often mocked, with many telling her that she should first focus on her education and the rest will follow.  Her parents wanted her to give up the protest and go back to school. Her teachers, on the other hand, are divided. “As people, they think what I am doing is good, but as teachers, they say I should stop.” Greta was labeled a troublemaker. When people approached her telling her that she should be at school, she would point to the textbooks in her bag saying, “I have my books here, but I’m asking myself: what am I missing? What am I going to learn in school? Facts don’t matter anymore, politicians aren’t listening to the scientists, so why should I learn?” Thousands of students walk out of class for a global day of climate action Ms. Thunberg’s protest eventually caught the attention of thousands of adults and students with others joining in. After the Swedish elections in September 2018, she made her protest on climate change Switzerland a weekly event mostly on Fridays. The news of a Swedish teenager protesting for climate change quickly spread online under the hashtags #climatestrike and #FridaysForFuture. What began as one teenager’s vigil calling for action on climate change has gone global, with different schools taking part in the protest. Thousands of students took to the streets in the Fridays for Future protest. School children from all over the world ditched classes as a symbol of dedication demanding global leaders take action on climate change. The students view ditching class as a symbol of dedication: We’re sacrificing our education so that we can have a future. The eastern Australian city of Melbourne witnessed one of the largest protests in the country. “Our weather is already getting increasingly unpredictable and intense. Last year, just after a drought, there was severe flooding and thousands of people had to be evacuated.” said one of the students.  “In other parts of the country, rainforests that had never seen fire were suddenly burning. There was nothing, it was all dead. Kangaroo skeletons were everywhere.” In New Zealand, one of the other countries where the protests kicked off, strike organizers mentioned that they were happy after a meeting with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Climate Change Minister James Shaw. The government officials promised to take positive steps. The German Chancellor Angela Merkel also voiced her support for the weekly protests by school students. Merkle mentioned that it was a great initiative and she was supportive of the fact that “students can take to the street in the cause of climate change.” On Thunberg’s Fridays For Future Website, students continued to urge their parents to join the global strike. “We’re asking adults to step up alongside us. Today, so many of our parents are busy discussing whether our grades are good, or a new diet or the Game of Thrones finale, while the planet burns.” they write, “To change everything, we need everyone, it is time for us to unleash mass resistance. If we demand change in numbers, we have a chance.” Greta Thunberg nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize Greta Thunberg has been nominated by three Norwegian MPs. If she is to win, she will be the youngest recipient since Pakistan’s Malala Yousafzai, who was 17 when she received the prize. “We have proposed Ms. Thunberg because if we do nothing to halt climate change, it will be the cause of wars conflict and refugees,” Norwegian socialist MP Freddy Andre said. “Greta Thunberg has launched a mass movement which I see major contribution to peace,” he added. Thunberg, who scratched her way to global prominence by staging a school strike to protest about lack of action from the nation’s leaders to deal with climate change, is favored to win the prestigious award. Greta has Asperger’s syndrome, which in the past has affected her health. However, she does not view her condition as a disability but as a gift which has allowed her to open her eyes to the climate crisis. “The best thing about my protest has been to see how more and more people have been coming and getting involved” says Greta. Of course, the most impressive thing about Greta is that she's not a world leader, but a 'simple' student from Sweden. It just goes to show you how much of a difference one determined student can make on the world stage, and how important our youths can be in the fight against this world wide crises.

Class E and G Urban Art Academy trip

Class E and G enjoyed graffiti practice, yesterday! Here are some results... They made and cut their own stencils to help transfer an image to a cap, which they got to take home afterwards. This visit relates to what they’re doing in class this term, which is Urban and Rural Landscapes. They learned new and exciting graffiti techniques. They also learned the important facts about where this style came from and how it has become what it is today. This is our first Urban Arts Academy visit but it won’t be the last! Well done Classes E and G!! To find out more about the Academy please visit http://urban-art.academy/.    

Ski School Verbier

It was race day last week. And boy did we have fun. It's getting to be that time of year. The ski season is winding down, the sun is out, the snow is soft. It was a fantastic day to be out with your friends, your child, other parents, and teachers. Today was the first time one of our students actually won the race. That was a great feat in deed considering we have some strong skiers in the parents group, including our own headmaster, Thibaut. But, mostly it's about fun and judging by the smiles, there was fun to be had by all. The good news for the 2019-2020 season is that we plan on expanding upon our racing program. Students will have added sessions during the competitive race season. Our other areas of skiing will also be added upon to make sure we really are the best ski school in Verbier, actually, all of Switzerland.

Teaching Assistants From Liverpool

Last week Verbier International Schools was fortunate enough to be visited by 6 students from Liverpool Hope University. Here's what they had to say about their visit. We wish them luck in their studies, and hope they can come back again soon. We are six students from Liverpool Hope University. We have had the pleasure of spending the week with class C and D teaching a project on resilience. Throughout the week we’ve progressed the classes learning from talking about never giving up and persevering in situations, to learning the rights, needs and wants of a child. We have applied our learning to familiar situations alongside the lessons to ensure the ability to apply the knowledge. It has been amazing to listen to the children work in teams and discuss topics surrounding resilience with their peers and work on how to be more resilient individuals, whilst supporting their friends to be resilient as well. We have thoroughly enjoyed our week, especially the quick ski on Wednesday, a first for two of us! We hope the children have really benefitted from our teaching and hope we can return soon! Thank you from (Class C) Sarah Robson Shannon O’Donnell James Nugent (Class D) Niamh Gallagher Rebecca Hawthorne Joshua Evans Liverpool Hope University second year primary education students.       

Verbier International School

We are extremely pleased to share the following new announcement from our board of directors. Should you have any questions about this communication, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. To parents of the students: Verbier, February 2019 Dear Parents, Verbier International School merged with the Lemania Group from Lausanne at the start of the 2013/2014 school year. Since its inception, it has continued to grow thanks to the excellence of the work provided daily by its professors and its Managing Director, as well as his wife Vanessa. Their dedication, alongside support from many parents and friends of the school, will not have escaped you. Throughout 2018, the Lemania Group reflected on the future of its participation in the Verbier school. None of the projects put forward by various potential partners ensured the continuity of the excellence of the educational project carried out by its director, Mr. Thibaut Descoeudres. Indeed, the field of private education is no exception in the world of "business." The pursuit of short-term profit, combined with the exceptional real estate market of Verbier, could have led to the takeover of the school by shareholders with little genuine interest in its educational future. Therefore, what better guarantee to ensure the continuity of the ambitious project developed by Mr. Descoeudres then allowing him to become one of the owners of the school? I am particularly grateful to the Lemania Group, which remains our privileged partner, for promoting a solution guaranteeing the future of the school. I look forward to your continued loyalty and support. Thank you, Yours faithfully, Jean-Jacques Roh President of the Board

New Art Studio in full action!

We are pleased to announce that the new Art room at LVIS is now in full swing! Last week, students loved the varied activities in their new bright and spacious studio: Monday: Class F and G studying Pop Art. They carefully painted, using bright colours in a Andy Warhol style. Tuesday: Class D have been working on a new ride for Europa Park, which they have designed themselves and built out of wire and Mod Roc. They are now adding the finishing touches, using acrylic paint. Wednesday: Class A try abstract expressionism by learning about Jackson Pollock. As you can see, they really used the space well, as they enjoyed splattering paint onto A2 card and floor! Thursday: Class C are proud of their fairy village, made from card and Mod Roc. This week, they finish the last touch of paint before taking their fairy house home. Friday: Class E are in the middle of their challenge. They are creating super bug sculptures based from a study on the artist Christopher Marley.  

Horseback Riding Lessons Near Me

People are searching for the term, where are horseback riding lessons near me. Imagine if you could ride a horse in the beautiful snowy Alps? Whether you want your child to ride a horse, or you dream about sending your child to an International School in Switzerland, the view from the Lemania-Verbier International school can't be beat. Our children are brought to horseback ride year round, all with sensible adult supervision. The outdoor activity gives the children a break from being in the class during a rigorous bi-lingual education. Nearly all of the children love the excuse to bond with the horse, get the interaction with the animals, and find out how easy it is to ride on horseback. These pictures prove it.

Classes E and F take a stand: School Strikes 4 Climate movement

After learning about Greta Thunberg, the youth environmental activist behind the growing School Strikes 4 Climate movement, Classes E and F walked through Verbier last Friday to spread awareness about this initiative, and to learn how to peacefully protest an important cause. Many townsfolk responded by giving us the 'thumbs up' and honking their horns in approval. Well done!

Affordable Boarding School Europe

LVIS is proud to present a new Swiss Dream Starter package especially aimed at parents who would love their children to attend an affordable boarding school Europe option, but don’t want to commit for a full year. The French Host Family package will allow your child to stay in Switzerland, go to school, learn french and enjoy a dream 90 day minimum stay in Europe. Your child can of course stay longer, there are no limits on length. The idea for this program came from speaking to dozens and dozens of parents that were curious about the idea of living in Switzerland themselves for a year, but couldn’t possibly afford the time away from their current living situations. Some parents we speak to have had the dream of sending their children away to a private education in Europe or Switzerland, but just aren’t sure about the length of commitment. I mean let’s face it. A year abroad is a pretty life changing commitment, and we understand that. There are also visa requirements that make it challenging for countries outside Europe, like the US, Canada, or Australia to stay for longer than 6 months. The current Schengen Visa also non Europeans for a maximum of 6 months, and it’s challenging for those families that would like to stay longer than a year. The good news about our program is that LVIS can take of ALL of the immigration details for you. It is much easier for LVIS to apply for a single student visa from inside of Switzerland than having you fumble around in a foreign language, wondering who the right person is to speak with at the canton. Basically, the sounds of this task is so daunting as to stop even the most intrepid mum dead in her tracks. So, cross that one mommy’s to do list, and trust me, this is a big one. We can expedite the visa for you child usually within 30 days from the time you submit your application. The other big thing that you can not worry about is room and board. With our exciting new French Family host program, we can place your child with a french speaking host family to make sure that your child is as comfortable and well taken care of as possible. We have English, Spanish and Swedish speaking families available as well for parents that want their child to learn another language, or speak in their native tongue. When your child lives with a french speaking family, they’ll really be able to get the full immersion experience. Can you imagine how much your child will learn by forcing him or herself to speak french after coming home from school each day and speaking only french at home? The effect will catapult their language confidence abilities to something that will change them for the course of their lives. French is still considered one of the most sophisticated diplomatic languages spoken today, and will be sure to shape and enhance your child’s eligibility when under the admissions officers’ lens while applying for Universities a few years down the road. Now for the most important element of the Swiss Dream Starter Package, the actual school environment. LVIS is located in Verbier, Switzerland which was just voted the best Ski Resort in all of Switzerland, which really means the rest of the world. Everyone knows that Switzerland has some of the oldest and most elegant resorts on the planet. Verbier is nuzzled in between the French and Italian borders, a stone’s throw from legendary mountain town of Chamonix, France. The school currently houses between 100 and 150 students from foundation stage or preschool through to year 11 and beyond. The course work follow the well documented and widely accepted University of Cambridge’s General Certificate of Secondary Education. The course work that is accepted around the world follow the University of Cambridge’s accepted testing qualifications that allow children’s marks to transfer to most any generally accepted international program around the world. Your child will be taught all of the classic subjects that they’d learn at home. History, Social Sciences, Mathematics according to the level accept by the University of Cambridge, Geography, Science, English, and of course French. The format is generally 60% English, and 40% in French with French being the primary language spoken in the town and surrounding area. Many of our alumni are very happy with the standards that they are taught during their time at LVIS, and nearly always end up ahead when they head back to their home districts. Generally, the amount of homework that LVIS teachers send their students home with each night ranges from 30 minutes in the lower grades to 1 or 2 hours in the higher grades. We don’t want your child to be completely swamped with school work, and realise that part of the experience should also be to enjoy their time in Switzerland. After all, this could be a once in a lifetime experience, and it should be treated as such. It’s not all just about work. Of course, sports is also taken very seriously at LVIS. Being in one of the best ski resorts in the world means that the access to skiing is right out the front door. The ski lifts giving access to hundreds of kilometers of ski trails and 5 massive mountain networks are located in the heart of the town. Skiing is literally a way of life in Verbier, and as such, we take it seriously. Ski classes and training are incorporated into the curriculum during the winter semesters during the months of January, February, March and April. During these months your child will be able to take Wednesdays and Friday afternoons off to ski, as part of their course work. How great is that? The ski training focuses primarily on traditional alpine racing, freeride skiing and freestyle skiing. The Swiss coaching level is world class for all three of these skiing activities but it doesn’t mean that your child needs to be at an advanced level. We have ski classes and training for all levels, from beginner to expert. There are also many other sports asides from skiing. There’s triple A hockey, horseback riding, climbing, swimming, squash, and football/soccer, tennis and golf in the spring. Another added bonus of having your child spend time is Europe are the cultural excursions that they can expect to do on a monthly basis. We bring your child and try and show them as much of the surrounding area as possible. Places likes A’osta Italy, Chamonix France, Geneva, Gruyere, Interlaken, Lucern and many other places in the nearby area. While the program is called the Swiss Dream Starter Package and starts at 90 days, you are more than welcome to have your child stay longer than that. Up to a full year in fact is normal for most of our host family students. If you still have questions about how this program works, or the costs to send your child to Switzerland under this excellent starter program, feel free to contact us at info@lvis.ch, or hit the apply button below. By now, I am sure that you have a whole host of questions, and we will be more than happy to walk you through your particular child’s situation. We know that each and every child has their own set of special circumstances and we are experts in handling those as we are used to doing so on a daily basis.

Christmas In Switzerland

The LVIS staff and administration would like to wish you the most joyful holiday wish. From the very bottom of our hearts, we wish you the best. This is Christmas in Switzerland. As you can see, we were lucky enough to catch Saint Nicholas himself as he was passing through making his rounds. The children were thrilled to be able to spend some time with him, and also make the most of the precious short time he had before he was whisked off in his sleigh to his next stop. It's not easy being St. Nick this time of year, so we were all thankful to catch a glimpse of him. And so, until next year, we wish you a most joyous holiday season.

Santa’s surprise visit to LVIS!

We were lucky to be able to welcome Santa on his sledge yesterday and it was a nice surprise for all students who received a little hamper for Christmas before setting off on their holidays. Thank you Santa!

House System

Clash of the colours! On Monday the 12th of November all children from LVIS gathered together to compete against each other in the first annual House Afternoon! There were 6 fun stations where children had challenges to complete, some easy and some difficult! Children were challenged to work as a team - the Blue house team versus Red house team. The winning team will be revealed at the end of term in tandem with the winning number of stars collected. The groups were composed of mixed aged children, so there were the youngest children working together with the oldest, and everyone in between!     Why does LVIS have a house system? We were so impressed with the wonderful team spirit, support and encouragement we saw from all children. For those that don't know, the House system originates from England and is commonly known through the Commonwealth. Many countries outside of England still use this grouping tradition. Originally, the House referred to the houses where children liven in boarding schools. This became especially popular during the 19th and 20th centuries in British boarding schools, but many schools through the commonwealth and throughout the world adapted the same house system to encourage some friendly competition between the children. 1) Children are separate into their respective houses at the start of the school year. 2) There are a few fun houses events such as the one hosted on November 12th for the House Afternoon. 3) Other aspects of the house system will be incorporated into the activity of the children's day to day school life to encourage a team spirit. Asides from tradition, the house system promotes aspects and opportunities of team learning. The children are taught to work together in teams in a friendly and fun atmosphere while also respecting one another regardless of age or class. The house system is thought to promote fair play and team work, skills that are useful and relevant for later on in life working in team environments on projects in professional career path. It also encourages the younger children to mix with the older children, something that they don't ordinarily get to do since LVIS has now separated into two school buildings. Some of the other advantages include, promoting team leadership opportunities, quickly adapting new students, enhancing school spirit, raising awareness of school traditions, building a sense of school community. These are the reasons at least that the house system has lasted through the ages, and spread from England boarding schools to day schools across the world. The house system is common in the UK but in Europe much less so. LVIS is proud to be one of the few schools in Switzerland that follows the house system. It's a fun way for the children to get to work together as a team to achieve a common end goal. There are aspects of the classroom that are also added, and points are kept on a board in the school so the children may know which team is winning. Currently, LVIS has a red and blue house. Once the children are selected into their house as early as foundation stage 1, or kindergarten, they stay in that house. As much as possible, siblings are also kept in the same house as well so there can be a sense of family tradition and pride among the houses. The children, especially the younger ones, are quite familiar with the concept as it was made popular through the Harry Potter series. The famous matches between Gryffindore and Slytherin in Quidditch, and the selecting of the names from Dumbledore's hat. The children are all very well aware of the house system and have well conceived ideas of the fun competition between the houses. LVIS has several other house competitions planned for later in the ski season, and for a sports and field day which one be in the spring. Throughout the school year there will be a competition score board based on fun and simple tasks like completing homework on time, finishing art work, or reading. So far the team spirit has been well received by the entire school body, and the little children are especially excited to have a chance to mingle with the older children. Keep your eyes open for further updates to how your child can take part in helping his or her house become the winner at the end of the year.

Secondary overnight trip to Geneva

Last week, our pupils went on an overnight trip to Geneva. We visited many sights, including the Natural History Museum, the Museum of Ethnography and the Cathédrale Saint Pierre. More importantly, we got a chance to bond as a community and get to know each other better. LVIS was also invited to a special event at the United Nations to award a prize to the winner of a competition looking for solutions to the WHO (World Health Organisation) SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). These goals focus on bettering the planet and humanity, according to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) While the judges were deliberating, LVIS got a chance to stand centre stage to share our ideas. What an excellent opportunity, speaking at the UN! By: Max, Olivia and Gabin  

New! Coding Club at LVIS

The Secondary School pupils of LVIS participated in a coding workshop, which took place over 4 sessions. They created their own cloud storage similar to Google Drive and learned about values, variables and inputs. Then, they learned a new coding language called Python, and they were able to use this code to make a calculator. As Max said, “ Learning all of this made me feel confident about taking on the world on computing!

What Is Forest School?

The first thing I was thinking during my conversation with Pam Gawith was - Wow, I wish they had the Forest School when I was growing up! But, before we get into that. What is the Forest School? To help understand the Forest School concept better, I organised an interview with Pam. She is one of the qualified Forest School teachers or practitioners at the Lemania International School in Verbier (LVIS), Switzerland. She’s currently involved in helping LVIS launch this new and exciting program generally aimed at Foundation Stage 1 (FS1) and Foundation Stage 2 (FS2) aged youngsters. For those of you not familiar with what age that is, like me, the ages between 3 and 5 years old. Pre-school, kindergarten, creche, that sort of age. Really little guys. Imagine a school where the little ones throw on a pair of wellies, a rain smock, and head out and do their school day in the forest. It’s basically experiential learning at its best. Pam describes an example day, although it sounds like by design no two days are the same. “They make fires and can cook in the class if the teacher feels up to it and the children want for that day’s lesson. They can climb trees, and jump in mud puddles if they want.  Another example of a day could be finding pine cones and talking about what they do, and how they help trees reproduce. Then, you might take those pine cones and make them into an owl, or use them in a counting lesson, or even a French/English lesson.” Of course, safety is of top concern but the children are taught to use their own common sense when it comes to what is safe or not. If they are climbing a tree and they start leaving their comfort zone, the teacher watching will guide them through their decision-making process while also making sure the children are safe and in no way could get hurt. This may make some overprotective parents shudder but as Pam explains, “Really, children have been playing outside for thousands of years. It’s the way they learn about their natural environment, and this is core to the ethos of the Forest School concept. It just works.” While the teachers may have a loose plan when they head into the forest for that day’s session,  the children are encouraged to lead the lesson. If for example while walking through the woods the group see a fox, the teacher may pivot and start giving a lesson about wildlife in the area. Another lesson could be about how the leaves change during the Autumn, the children could collect the leaves and this could be turned into a maths lesson or an art project as they take the leaves back to the class and incorporate them into a piece of art. Recently or maybe all the time, I had been thinking about how prevalent iPhones, iPads, TV’s and all the other digital devices are in my own children’s lives these days. Yes, in today’s age of digital natives the forest school sounds like an essential educational tool for all youngsters. Digital devices are far too prevalent, we’ve all seen examples of this too. The 2-year-old sitting at a restaurant watching an iPad while the family is eating together. For better or worse, these devices are everywhere in children’s lives. However, as the parents know, it wasn't always like that. We all remember growing up being outside nearly all the time. Video games? What were those? Computers were some ugly, plastic boxes that scientists or academics used, not us. The thought of getting the children outside in this day and age sounds glorious. So tell me, why have I never heard of this? I asked Pam. Why aren’t all parents clamouring for this? It sounds brilliant.   Well, the northern Europeans have definitely heard of it. The Forest School concept originated in Scandinavia. The approach to young education was widely adopted in Denmark in the 1980's as a solution to the lack of indoor facilities for preschool children. The idea is basically poverty proof too, meaning that any town can incorporate the idea as no classrooms are needed, only a nearby forest or park.  By the early ‘90s a group of education specialists and lecturers visited some Forest Schools in Sweden and witnessed the benefits, soon the idea started to take off all around northern Europe. Due to some recent publicity in the UK, the concept is also starting to gain popularity. A quick Google search for the term Forest School has the Guardian with quite a few articles going back since at least the early 2000’s. When will this program start at LVIS? “Well, basically, we are getting it going now. We have Celine who is actually just coming back from her leadership program in the UK. Once she’s brings back all of her knowledge, we’ll be rolling out the program. The program is bilingual and can go all year long. We’ve already been doing some sessions with the children now and it’s been met with tremendous success. Both with the parents and children.” The vision for LVIS is for the younger children to go out twice a week, and will be certain days of the week. There are some things that the children will need, like extra uniforms that would be required, outdoor wellington boots, perhaps a warmer jacket or rain jacket.  It will probably be set days per week," Pam explains. Some Essential Forest School Supplies Currently, there are 4 teachers at LVIS that have their certifications including one leader certification. In Switzerland, there are no qualifications necessary, but LVIS has these in place. As far as Pam knows, “we are one of the only Forest Schools in Switzerland that has fully qualified forest school practitioners, so it’s quite a big deal.” Having your young children take part in LVIS forest school is perfect if you’re in London and want to take a year off or so in Switzerland. The length of time you keep your child in the program is open, so it doesn’t have to be a full year but needs to be at least a full semester. Each session should be slightly different. As you can imagine, in Verbier you can basically pick a direction and you’ll find a new patch of forest to explore. For example, in the winter we obviously wouldn’t take the children up near the mountain or expose them to any dangerous avalanche-like terrain. On those days, we can simply load up the school van and have a lesson down in the valley where the temperature can be as much as 10 degrees warmer. So, how can you as a parent find out more about getting your young children involved in one of Switzerland’s leading Forest School programs? Currently, the only way to have your young ones take part in this exciting program is by enrolling at LVIS. To find out more information about this contact us at the school by hitting the Apply Now button just below this page. If you’re already enrolled, or live in Verbier, just email us at the school (info@lvis.ch) and we will be happy to provide more information. Help join us in educating our children about the beautiful world we all live in, and what better place to do that than in the stunning Swiss Alps around Verbier.

Secondary students visit the Gianadda museum in Martigny

On Wednesday the October 10th and Wednesday November 7th, Classes E, F and G went to visit the Foundation Pierre Gianadda Museum, in Martigny.  The gallery featured paintings by Pierre Soulages, a French artist who described his style as « Outrenoir » meaning beyond black.  The students were to freely explore the gallery and find at least one painting of inspirational interest, which they needed to recreate by sketching and answer various questions about their chosen piece.  This was firstly, so that they may discover the different shades of black and reflected light within the painting.  Secondly, sketching artwork may help students better understanding what mindset the artist was in when he was painting.  Abstract expressionism, using mainly black could be challenging for one to appreciate at first.  The challenge never fazed them at all!  It was a great visit and the students are already looking forward to the next exhibition.

International Week

We have welcomed visitors from Costa Rica, Brazil, Sweden, Australia, Greece, Morocco, Austria and Switzerland. We have learnt about all the dangerous creatures that live in the Costa Rican jungle, the Australian outback and made wonderful aboriginal paintings. We have tried Swedish herring and danced like Swedish frogs! We have smelled delicious Moroccan spices and learnt about the country. We have learnt about wild Mustang horses and silver mining. We have made and enjoyed fondue and gathered chestnuts in a beautiful autumn forest. What a busy week! Thank you to all the LVIS Parents who participated in this international celebration!

Forest School

The following was taken from Class A's introduction to the Forest School or Forest Kindergarten. The nature of education is to offer an environment fit for a child to develop their skills based on their needs. It offers them a space where they can exercise their motor, social, cognitive, and creative skills. The outdoor experience offers children a rich and diversified learning area. It lets them exercise physically, making them calmer and more focused when learning new things. It develops children's sense of community and teamwork. It also boosts their resilience and self-confidence. Being outdoors promotes their independence as well as their imagination. Children learn to discover nature and the living world through their different senses. This awareness will help establish a connection to this environment that they will want to preserve and protect. If you want to find out more about the Forest School or anything else about LVIS please feel free to leave a comment below, or hit the contact us form and let us know your questions.

International School In The French Swiss Alps

“Uggg!”  My eldest son Finn exclaims as we drive him down for his first day of  International school in the French Swiss Alps. “Do we really have to go to this new school?” he mutters more to himself than to us.  Because we already know. We’ve been apologising, profusely, for the rapidity we left our last International school located in the canton of Ticino, the Italian part of Switzerland. “Listen Finn, you know you can do this. You’re getting to be an old pro at being the new child at school.“ We try and reassure ourselves as much as him. Because frankly, he’s right, going to a new school is a frightening prospect when you’re 13 years old. Two new schools in as many years makes that even more terrifying.  Part of the “problem” is that I’m an online entrepreneur and due to the flexibility on where I can work, we’ve had our fair share of moving. We are a Bermudian family, both children born on the islands with strong family connections, 16 generations of roots.  After 8 years of living in Bermuda, we decided we wanted our children to grow up speaking more than just English and moved to Mexico. We stayed there for five years until our two sons became fluent in Spanish.  While Mexico is beautiful and a wonderful country, we noticed that things were just a bit too wild, especially for two already boisterous boys approaching their teenage years.  After living in Lugano for a year, the schools in Ticino were excellent, but we were less than thrilled with the unfamiliarity of living in an urban environment.  Traffic jams, no parking, and no real social connections, Ticino wasn’t feeling like the place to settle down for the next decade. We even toyed with the idea of moving back to Bermuda but as it had been a dream of ours to live in Europe, actually, a dream of almost every single North American friend we had. And we were here, in Europe. Our immigration visas already worked out, we owned a car. To leave after 8 or 9 months, it seemed drastic. In fact, it would be insane to leave at this point. We knew we loved the Swiss mountain life, because we’d been driving an hour each way to ski at Andermatt ski resort, and during our research we came upon Lemania-Verbier International School. So what does one do when searching for a school in Switzerland? Head on over to google and type in - "International Ski School in the french swiss alps". And up pops up Lemania, or LVIS. Why not visit? What we found in the stunning Swiss alpine scenery of the Valais canton was a lovely, familial school for children from years one through year nine, and with plans to continue to the pre-University level. After a weekend trip in February to visit, accompanied by some 30 centimeters of fluffy new snow, high alpine chutes and gritty tree skiing, we were done. It didn’t hurt that the French Swiss headmaster, Thibaut Descoeudres and his team ran the school like… well, in Switzerland, you can say it. A Swiss Watch. What we found was a fun, diverse and international staff of teachers, not to mention an international student body.  We knew we had finally found the right place. It’s now some months later and Finn, with his younger brother Somers, are thriving at the school. The memory of that gruesome first day all but distant for them both, as they take every Wednesday and Friday afternoon off to go ski with their classmates. As a part of their schooling!  The boys are now comfortable taking the free bus around town to and from school, to go skiing with their classmates, and to meet up in the terrain park and practices their 360’s and back flips. Simply put. They love the school, we love the school, and the decision to move to Verbier and LVIS ended up being one of the best decisions we have made in our lives. What’s not to love about a small school with a professionally backed team, following the IGSE British school system? They go to school laughing every day as they meet up with their mates from nationalities; Chinese, Swedish, British, French, Swiss, Dutch, Norwegian, Australian & Italian, to name but a few. For a school the size of Lemania, it’s surprisingly well represented globally. The fact that they’re now on their way to learning their 3rd language with smatterings in 2 or 3 others also solidifies our very tough decision to leave Bermuda all those years ago. Thank you Lemania family for all you have done for us.

Class B trip to the Château de Valère in Sion

Class B trip to the Sion chateau de Valere today was great. They enjoyed discovering what it was like to be alive in medieval times and loved the little rooms, staircases and passageways. Inside the building is the museum of Valais history, it is worth a visit! It covers pre-historic to present day history.

World Clean Up Day

On September 15th was World Clean-Up-Day and we opened our doors to the public to raise awareness about recycling, up-cycling, reusing and sustainability. External experts came in to hold workshops and students prepared displays and presentations to talk about our planet and our oceans:      To find out more about World Clean-Up-Day please visit http://www.igsu.ch/fr/clean-up-day/accueil/

Welcome back!

We were please to have the classrooms fill up again after the summer holiday and wish all our students a great 2018-10 school year! To kick start the year we went on a school hike to enjoy the beautiful mountain setting we are luck to call home.  

Music and French camp this summer!

Lemania-Verbier International School will be collaborating with the Académie de Musique des Combins this summer offering a week's Music and French course for all levels, for children aged 8 to 15. We are thrilled to be supporting this summer camp in Verbier run by violinist Justin Lamy and LVIS French teachers. Students will be introduced to a variety of instruments and have the opportunity to work on their instrument of choice. They will also make the most of Verbier and its surroundings through different outdoor activities during the week.

Camping trip for Class B

Class B students couldn't hide their excitement about their first camping trip together, and the spot was nowhere else but in a tipi in the stunning Swiss Alps!          

Mini Olympics day for Class C and D at Les Elfes

Classes C and D were invited to take part in a mini Olympics day with Les Elfes students in Verbier today, Each team had to create their own country and then participated in lots of fun activities despite the rain! The sun came out for the prize giving at the end of the day and students had a great afternoon!    

A visit to Torino

Torino is an interesting and beautiful city to visit, and only a few hours away from us. Year 7 and8 students had a great day out visiting the National Cinema Museum, while Year 3 to 6 ventured off to the Egyptian Museum. Not to mention the delicious Italian pizza and ice cream students were treated to!         

UBS Kids Cup 2018

Students travelled down to Martigny  today to once again participate in the UBS Kids Cup, a great sports day with local schools involving a 60m sprint, a 200g ball throw and a long jump. Goood effort!           

Football training in the mountains

Every Friday, boys and girls from Classes E and F join Coach Carter for a football practice. They work on dribbling, headers, chest bumps and agility training, ending with a friendly match. All this with our stunning mountain background.

Celebrating World Book Day 2018

Thanks everyone for making an effort to celebrate all kinds of books on World Book Day today! Students and teachers dressed up in their favourite character, and shared their fsvourite book with their classmates. It was great to have so many books shared in class and students had a great day exploring them, making art and bookmarks.      

Classes E and F get a visit from renowned artist in Verbier, Rosalind Monks

Year 7 to 10 students gain awareness of how art, design and craft is all around us thanks to a visit from renowned artist in Verbier, Rosalind Monks, during their weekley Art class. The visit really opened their minds to the different job possibilities there are as an artist, and they were intrigued by Rosalind's work as an illustrator, especially the way in which she gives objects another life. Rosalind's work is inspired by the natural world and many of her patterns are influenced by jewellery, textiles and tribal designs from around the world. To find out more about Rosalind, visit http://rosalindmonks.com/   

A visit to the Maison Cailler

Students explore Cailler's chocolate world from Aztec cocoa ceremonies to today's chocolate innovations...great day out at the Maison Cailler in Broc!

Artemis Interschool Ski Challenge 2018

Congratulations to our LVIS Ski Team who participated in the Artemis Interschool Ski Challenge in Pila, Italy, and came 4th! This competition is a challenge to Schools in Britain and internationnaly based school to compete for the Artemis Champion School Cup. Juniors, Children and U12/U10 can take part, and the points system ensures that they all compete against each other. The races are open to individual entrants and are run under British competition rules in order to qualify for British Alpine Seeding System (BASS) national seedpoints.  

Class B students learn about composting and kitchen waste

Today Class B had a visit from Eloise Vestberg, who runs Aventerre, based in Volleges. She is an expert gardener and came to us today to discuss composting and how we can turn our kitchen waste into something useful for the garden. Even if you don't have a garden you can buy composting products that you can use on a balcony. Some children already knew a little about this, but they were all amazed to discover the different minibeasts (insects and worms) that live in the end product and break down the food waste into nutrient rich compost. As you can see from the photos they were very engaged!    

We celebrate the opening of the Mountain Thyme Cookery School

Students are now having their cooking lessons in the newly opened Mountain Thyme Cookery School just next door to our LVIS. Children are learning how to cook healthy food ranging from easy suppers, healthy snacks and the odd sweet treat. We are lucky to have such a great spot nearby!  

Preparations for Mountain Day celebrations

Class E & F have been preparing with Elaine France for our Mountain Day celebrations. In class they have been preparing a short survey to ask people. Yesterday afternoon they went out to practise asking the questions and test the survey on obliging shoppers at Migros Verbier.   

International Mountain Day – Please join us!

On Saturday 9th December LVIS students will be celebrating International Mountain Day. Our message is PROTECT OUR MOUNTAINS. We all need to care for our mountains as the source of our water and biodiversity. At the current rate of melt, all glaciers in our local mountain community, will have disappeared in the next 80-100 years. We need to take action now! Come and find out how to do your bit to protect our mountains.

Students learn how to make cheese

LVIS students have fun learning about the cheese making process in the Verbier laiterie. The cheeses will be ready in 3 weeks!         

Jungle Trek with Classes C and D

Classes C and D had a brilliant trip to Kerzers last Friday where they walked through Papilioramas Nature Reserve in Central America thanks to Jungle Trek, an exact copy of the 8'800 hectares of the protected area of Shipstern in Belize. They met lots of different animals amidst tropical dry forests, mangroves and orchid ponds.            

LVIS students at the United Nations in Geneva

Year 7 to 10 students spent the day at the UN as part of a Global Entrepreneurship Week event. Young entrepreneurs from around the world were invited to pitch business ideas contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and selected panel of impact investors and experts provided feedback to young start-ups on how to promote sustainable and inclusive growth through Entrepreneurship. LVIS students participated brilliantly in the Ideathon audience session at the event. They went up to the stage to present their ideas with great style and confidence in front of 150 business leaders, impact investors, an Ambassador, team members from the UN and the entrepreneurs pitching at the event. Well done!  

Trip to the Aquarium with Class B

We had a great trip today to the aquarium in Lausanne today, and saw a wide variety of freshwater and salt water fish, as well as some amazing reptiles and amphibians. It looks like we are looking at empty tanks in the photos! This was not the case! The children will get photos of their favourite creatures printed out to use in our science and literacy lessons. A major science learning objective this half term is to identify and use the terms fish, reptiles and amphibians correctly. This trip provides a great introduction.      

Sign up to the LVIS Ski Cub!

LVIS Ski Club will once again be taking place every Saturday from January 13th to March 30th, open both to LVIS and non-LVIS students aged 4 and up. This is an exclusive club for skiers of all levels, with only five children per class to one ski teacher. With only 50 spots available at 400 CHF per child, sign up by contacting us via email on info@lvis.ch or by phone on (+41) 27 565 26 56.

LVIS students explore sustainability

At LVIS, we connect academic learning to real-world challenges, empowering our students to know how to be problem-solvers in the 21st Century. As a school in the mountains, exploring sustainability as a community is a key theme for each class: to celebrate and protect our incredible environment. From this sustainability perspective, each class is making the link to their learning in the classroom and on trips, enabling each student to use and develop their creativity and thinking skills. #creativity #thinkingskills #resilience #grit #sustainability #agentsofchange #mountainschool #youngleaders

Verbier Dragon’s Den

In English, Class D have been inventing futuristic modes of transport and writing instructions for them.  They worked in groups to draw and design them and today they presented and explained their products to the "Verbier Dragons' Den."  They were confident at speaking in front of an audience and received 'special cheques' for all their hard work!  Well done!!      

37th Olympic Week

Great day out trying out new sports at the 37th Olympic Week in Lausanne.

Agents of Change at LVIS

In September, Class E & F started their Agents of Change Programme with Flow In Action Founder, Elaine France. This programme is designed to connect each student to their strengths and creativity, embedding leadership and life-skills, as well as encouraging wellbeing. Students learn how to take action to make positive impact in the community through research and raising awareness. This term, the students are working towards celebrating International Mountain Day on 9th December at Medran. They have been developing innovative ideas for saving the glaciers, understanding who is part of the community and the key messages to share with that community to encourage them to care for our mountain environment. At the LVIS event on Mountain Day, supported by Elaine, Class E & F will be creating an ‘innovation ideas wall’ in French and English, by asking people heading up the mountain for their big ideas on how to save our glaciers. #agentsofchange #mountainschool #creativity #resilience #grit #thinkingskills #lifeskills #wellbeing #servicelearning #positiveeducation

Learning about recycling in Eco Club

Students are learning about the environment in Eco Club this year. First stop: the local recycling center!          

Studying leaves and photosynthesis in Class F

Class F have been studying leaves and photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is the chemical reaction that plants use to transform carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen.                        Sunlight energy 6CO2  + 6H2O ------------> C6H12O6  + 6O2 Chlorophyll (the green pigment in plants) transforms the Sun's energy into chemical energy which powers this chemical reaction. If the glucose produced by the plant is not used immediately, it is transformed into starch and stored in the leaves. Class F tested leaves for photosynthesis using iodine which undergoes a colour change in the presence of starch. The black parts in the leaves show that starch is present, therefore the leaf has been photosynthesising in the past 24 hours. Students also looked at the underside of leaves to see if we could identify the stomata (pores) of the leaf. This is where carbon dioxide enters the leaf and also where oxygen leaves the leaf. Using our microscope with the USB camera, we were able to take a photo of the stomata. We were able to clearly identify the stomata and the guard cells around them which control whether the stomata are open or closed. This is part of the ecosystem processes topic.

Billy McCoo inspired art by Class C

Class C drew and then coloured with water colour pastels in the style of Billy McCoo.  Well done!

Our literary year is off to a great start!

Our literary year is off to a great start! The pupils from Classes E and F have been reading two engaging science fiction novels: The Giver and Ender's Game.   The Giver by Lois Lowry portrays a futuristic, seemingly utopian society with no pain, suffering, or violence. Over the course of the book, however, the community's dark side is revealed... Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card is a high-energy read that makes it difficult to put down. It's packed full of many of the classic features of science fiction: alien invasions, predicting advanced technologies, a moral lesson which serves as a warning to humans today... Through this genre, the pupils are honing their analytical skills in literacy class by reading a variety of texts from this genre and by experimenting with tension and suspense writing using imagery. Debating and presentational skills are also practised as they consider ethical dilemmas and current issues such as cloning and climate change. #mountainschool #lvis #verbier #positiveeducation #creativeleaders #creativity #grit #findyourvoice #happiness #lovelearning #imagination #globalcitizens

Ozobot Robot programming at LVIS

Class C are starting to learn about computer programming by using Ozobot Robots, they are creating maps, with coding symbols to make the robots move in the correct direction. https://youtu.be/1HEqr7QZ65k

We are pleased to present our new LVIS school bus!

Happy Roald Dahl Day everyone!

Students dress up in their facourite book characters to celebrate Roald Dahl's birthday today, September 13th, and have a lot of fun in the process!     

First week back to school! (from our secondary school students)

"What a great first week at school. I'm very excited because it is a new year in a new building. I am happy to meet new friends and to learn new subjects like economics and music. I am especially happy to be one year closer to university. This week passed by very quickly and I am looking forward to the rest of the year. " - Thomas, Year 8 "Je suis arrivé cette année dans l'école, cela fait une semaine et je me suis bien adapté. La nouvelle école est magnifque, les professeurs sont cool et à ton écoute. J'ai hâte de continuer d'apprendre dans ce milieu." - Alexandre, Year 10 "When I walked into the  new building I felt inspired and I was ready to learn new things and have new experiences. We had new teachers that were really motivating and I was so excited to start a new school year. When we went to lunch there were so many choices  of wonderful foods. Break time is when you can relax and have fun with your friends too." Somers Wardman - Year 9

Kick starting the school year with our annual hike

Today we enjoyed a great day out hiking in the Verbier surroundings. It was a beautiful sunny day and a nice way to kick start the school year!                  

Our new Secondary School premises

We're proud to present our new Secondary School premises for Year 7 to 10 students and wish them all the best for the 2017-18 school year!

LVIS at UBS Kids Cup

Great day wat the UBS Kids Cup in Martigny. LVIS will once again participated in the UBS Kids Cup in Martigny, where they were able to compete against many different schools from the Valais region in three disciplines: a 60m sprint, throwing of a 200g ball, and a long jump. For more information: www.ubs-kidscup.ch/fr/    

Dragons with Kiki Thompson

Take a listen to Mountain Radio reporting at school with the students making their dragons. https://audioboom.com/boos/ 2540709-dragons-at-verbier- international-school

Radio LVIS with Class B

For your listening pleasure, the students of LVIS in Class B recorded with Mountain Radio Verbier today. Some great topics to listen to. https://audioboom.com/boo /2781513-the-first-radio-lvis-show

Open Day 2017

Open Day 2017. We look forward to the next!