Primary Newsletter 08/05/2026

8 / May

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Primary Newsletter 08/05/2026

Dear Parents,

Term Three has started with several significant events that I am very proud to share with you.

From 4th to 8th May, the International School of Belgium had the privilege of hosting four international teachers from Novoshkola School in Kyiv, Ukraine. These teachers have been working under extremely difficult conditions for the past four years, living with the constant threat of ballistic missile and drone attacks. Despite this, they remain committed to supporting the students in their care.

They chose to visit the International School of Belgium to observe the systems, approaches, and pedagogy we use in order to help develop their own school’s methodology. During their visit, they also took part in in-depth discussions with me, Mrs Short, to further strengthen various aspects of their practice before sharing these ideas with colleagues back home.

The four teachers — Ms Olena, Ms Yuliia, Ms Anna, and Ms Anastasiia — were extremely appreciative of the welcome they received. They were also highly impressed by the behaviour and attitude of our students, as well as by all that our teachers achieve each day. We were honoured to host them and to hear their stories, and we hope to maintain contact and welcome them again in the future.

In the meantime, Primary celebrated Earth Day on 22nd April with a variety of activities. EY planted seeds, began renewing their raised beds, and carried out eco-friendly projects, including making their own paper. Other classes also worked on their raised beds, planting a range of plants while learning about the importance of keeping our planet safe and healthy.

During the week beginning 27th April, we welcomed Sharon West from the International Curriculum Association. She visited to review our international curricula and support the ongoing development of our learning programmes. We look forward to hearing and implementing some of her suggestions over the coming weeks.

On 5th May, we enjoyed the entertaining and impressive Early Years Show, based on their unit Ocean Treasures. Thank you to the parents who created such wonderful costumes for their children. The students looked colourful and inspiring as they danced and sang their way through a selection of catchy sea-themed songs. They even invited the audience to join in for the final number, which everyone did enthusiastically. Well done to the EY team for such a lovely presentation.

We have also enjoyed some fun during the Dragons event. Students carried water in cups over a short distance as quickly as possible, trying to fill a container. As always, the competition was intense, and students cheered enthusiastically for their houses.

Today, Class 5 shared their learning so far in an assembly linked to their IPC unit AD 900. They taught us about the Mayan civilisation, explaining how the Mayans lived and exploring the mystery of their disappearance. The students created beautiful costumes, wrote a playscript as part of their English work, played drums, and presented the information in an entertaining and informative way. Congratulations to the students, and thank you to Ms G for supporting and guiding them throughout the process.

As a special bonus, Class 5 and Class 3 also shared the podcasts they created to celebrate Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday. (If you do not know who he is, please see the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o-9h_hGpn8.) The students worked in mixed-class teams to create and present their own naturalist-style podcasts inspired by his work. They were extremely well done, and we would like to thank Ms G and Ms Jenny for their support and input.

There is never a dull moment at ISBe, and we are all looking forward to the exciting events coming up over the next few weeks. On 27th May, the Primary Choir, led by Ms Nichols, will take part in the Choir Festival. On 29th May, Mr Gabor will take students from Classes 4 and 5 to a Primary football tournament. We also have the Primary Sports Morning on 2nd June and the Primary Student Voice Colour Run on 3rd June. Please keep an eye out for further information about these events.

Please read the Primary Student Voice Update below:

Dear Parents,

We wanted to let you know about the Primary Student Voice big event that is coming up.

On June 3rd in the afternoon, the Primary Student Voice is holding a sponsored colour run in school. Our goal is to raise enough money to buy picnic benches for the playground and a bouncy castle and blower for events in school.

As well as the sponsored colour run we will have a homemade cake stall and a drink stall. We are going to shut the front school gates and open the side ones so that students can run (or walk) all the way around the building for their laps. Families (or friends and neighbours if well known) can sponsor their children for each lap they do, or make a donation. The student with the most sponsors will get a special prize. En route students will be sprayed with water from time to time and have coloured powder sprinkled over them. Students can also buy small bags of powder for 1 euro to sprinkle on each other. Before or after all of this energetic activity students will be able to buy cakes and drinks. Cakes will be 2 euros and drinks 1 euro.

Students will need:

A sponsor form signed by parents. (Which we will send out)

Swimming goggles or similar to protect their eyes.

Old light coloured clothes to do the run in.

An old dark towel

A change of clothes so they can be clean to travel home

We think this event will be a lot of fun for everyone and we can’t wait to see the photos. Thank you for your support with this.