Vice PrincipalMessage from the

In another whole school event, we celebrated Literacy Week, designed to inspire our school community to make reading a part of our daily life.

“Books are mirrors when readers see their own lives reflected in the pages. Books are windows when they allow readers a view of lives and stories that are different from their own. Books become sliding glass doors when readers feel transported into the world of the story and when they feel empathy for the characters.” (Rudine Sims Bishop, Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors)

Our Primary students enjoyed listening to stories in a variety of languages (Korean, Japanese, Hindi, Italian) read by our teachers, parents and Secondary students, as well as through an online session where our second and fifth year students met with second graders and listened to a story read by an Australian and a Turkish librarian from a school in Turkey.

Such international and intercultural collaborations help us develop empathy as we get a glimpse of life through others’ eyes.

When I first arrived at the school in October 2022, I asked my Year 2 ELS students their suggestions for best places to visit in Jakarta. I asked them where they spent their weekends, and several of them said “The Mall’. That’s the legacy of the past few years we all had to spend inside the safety of our homes, going out only for essential purposes.

As pandemic restrictions are eased in Indonesia, throughout February, several classes went on half-day excursions to continue learning beyond our school borders. As part of their units of inquiry, our KG students explored their interests in the culinary field in an edutainment centre. Year 2 and Year 6 students enjoyed a joint field trip to an aquarium to explore life below water, and Year 1 and Year 4 students viewed architecture in Indonesia from high above, on Skylifts in Taman Mini. We are now planning such short trips to Science and Art Museums for other year levels for the coming weeks, as well as longer trips for the next academic year.