Holiday Message from the Principal

Dear Parents,

We have had a wonderful time during the last few weeks of term, working with the students both in school and through Zoom to create some very special projects, productions and activities.

I'd like to note that we have amazing students and it is a real pleasure to see their confidence grow through their participation in competitions, projects, music videos and events. Seeing how engaged and inspired they have been has made me incredibly proud of the hard work from the entire community.

I hope you all have plans to relax and spend time with family and friends during the Christmas break. It has been a challenging term but overall we have shared excellent moments, celebrations of what the students have achieved and lots of quality lessons, learning experiences and fun. After a few days next week, I myself look forward to having a rest during the break and hope to spend some time walking the dogs, spending time with family and relaxing. Slovenia is such a beautiful place to live and I am very grateful to enjoy the wonderful countryside, mountains and rivers that it has to offer. A real privilege for us all to live and work here.

Thank you to all parents for the Christmas cards, gifts and kind emails. We all really appreciate your continued support.

If you haven't had a chance to watch our fantastic whole-school holiday collaboration, please do so, it is indeed brilliant and will immediately put you in a festive mood.

You'll never believe who dropped by for a visit this week! It was Santa himself, making a quick pit stop here at BISL to answer some of our students' excellent questions, refuel on delicious treats, and spread some holiday cheer.

This year our Year 1 students put on a playful performance of their favourite Disney song from the Lion King for us all to enjoy - take a look:

Our Year 2s have put on a very zoomy Christmas production earlier this week, complete with singing and dancing, and to add to the festivities, Santa stopped by to answer some important questions too!

A huge thank you to our community for your support of this year's C4C & PTA Christmas Action project with Trije Zimski Botri, and a special thanks to the PTA and our C4C Team for organising this year's drive once again! Over 150 letters were distributed and so many presents have already been delivered to the charity awaiting their final destinations. Thank you!

The quality of work our students produce on a regular basis is outstanding. Here are a few examples that have been shared recently:

We are also very proud of the work that our Student Council have been doing, with our Head Boy and Girl in Secondary doing regular check-ins with their peers on Zoom, and contributing to the Secondary newsletter each week with messages of encouragement throughout the online learning period, while our Primary Student Council have organised yet another excellent virtual event for everyone to enjoy in the form of this week's Christmas Story Day.

Meanwhile, the Chair of our Secondary Student Council, Julia K from Year 10, has taken the initiative to launch the BISL Student Magazine, a fully student-led initiative, with interesting and relevant content, from students, for students. Her effort is truly commendable and I hope you enjoy reading the first edition of our BISL Student Magazine as much as I have.

It is a privilege to be working with such fantastic students.

We have received some fantastic entries for this year's COBIS Art Competition, through which students from around the world are invited to produce a piece of art that reflects this year's competition theme, 'Connections'. This competition is a fantastic opportunity for our young artists to showcase their talents internationally. Entries are grouped in three categories: Key Stage 3, Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 1.

We aim to be back in the building for Tuesday 5th January and will send out information of a return to school or the plan to have a 'staggered start' via email after Christmas. We await guidance to be sent out and hope for a drop in the number of cases across the country. Our thoughts are always with those families and friends affected by the pandemic.

All urgent updates continue to be sent via email.

Please monitor your emails for future updates as this continues to be the best way to send out clear and consistent communication to all parents. Check that you are receiving emails, have enough space in your email folder, that they do not go to your 'junk' folder and if you are unsure, please contact reception@britishschool.si to check your contact email and phone number on record. If you change any contact details, please inform the school immediately.

As we finish our term and head into the Christmas Holidays, we also think about those who are not as fortunate during this time. A moment to reflect about others, to take joy in giving and caring for everyone in our local community and globally. As an international school, I am very proud to see so many examples of this daily and continued throughout the year. Thank you for your kindness and support, not just towards our teachers and school, but towards everyone at this time.

I wish you, your family and friends a wonderful Christmas and a very happy New Year!

Have a restful, relaxing and recharging break.

Kind regards,

Paul Walton

Principal