This day used to be called the "Journée nationale des filles" but has since been renamed in Geneva: Futur en tous genres and in Vaud: Osée tous les métiers. In the canton of Geneva it is for those in grade 7 HarmoS (5th grade) and in Vaud for 7-9 HarmoS (5-7th grades). The idea is to have your daughter go to the workplace of a man (father, uncle, grandparent) and the son to go with a woman (mother, aunt, grandmother).
During this day, parents can show their children where they work, what they do, and how a normal work day is presented. Not only do they go with them to work, but they should dress appropriately according to the job at hand. If the mother is a banker, then the son should dress as professionally as possible. If the father is a garage mechanic, then the daughter must dress in jeans and then coveralls. The idea to cross the genders is to eliminate the stereotyping of jobs that are perceived as feminine or masculine.
A new website has just been launched, designed to help families connect quickly and easily with providers of special needs support.
Called atypicalsmile.com, the website was created by Stephanie Durrleman, a university researcher specializing in autism, and Michal Starke, a university professor with a talent for programming and creating organizations that bring people together.
Asked why she and Michal decided to set up the website, Stephanie told knowitall.ch,”For personal reasons, I have had to to face the challenge of finding appropriate carers and activities for a child with autism. When people found out I was doing this, they asked me for help because they were struggling with the same task. I ended up hiring caregivers for various children on the autistic spectrum for years. If I hadn't been a researcher, this procedure would have taken much longer than it did and the kids would have lost precious time during their critical period for language acquisition (early intervention is scientifically proven to be more effective than late intervention), while now they are verbal and bilingual today.
The Ecole Mésanges bilingual Montessori school has just moved to spacious new premises near the French/ Swiss border at Veigy.
Currently the only bilingual Montessori school in France on the Rive Gauche, Ecole Mésanges not only follows the Montessori pedagogy, but also has a strong holistic approach to the education of its children. It welcomes children from the age of 2 ½ to 12 years old.
Founded in 2009 by the headmistress, Chantal Detournay, the school has become increasingly popular in the region over recent years. Having outgrown its former premises, Chantal was fortunate to find larger premises in the same village of Veigy, which would allow her to take the school forward to the next stage in its development. The new campus comprises a bright and airy 500 square meter villa with a huge garden outdoors for the children to play in.
Following the recent Independent Schools Show in Geneva, there has been much discussion between parents about the merits of sending children abroad to study at boarding schools in the UK.
Walhampton School near Lymington in Hampshire, is one of many UK schools now offering boarding places for children living overseas. Catering for children between the ages of 2 and 13, the school provides full-time, weekly and flexi-boarding from the age of 7.
Recommended to us recently by a former parent of the school, Walhampton was founded in 1947 and welcomes families who are looking for the ultimate prep school education for their child. Local families enjoy all the benefits that the school has to offer, as well as families from London, the home counties and overseas.
Ten years after its initial conception, a new eco-campus has just been opened at St. Légier in Vaud for the primary and infant section students of Haut-Lac International Bilingual School. More than just a “school building”, the new campus is on four levels with a working surface of 7,500m2, and incorporates a host of environmentally-friendly features designed to encourage children to think about sustainable development from a very early age.
Costing approximately CHF 32 million, the new Praz Dagoud campus now provides state-of-the-art learning facilities for over 650 students, including specially equipped classrooms for art, music, science, and individual needs, as well as a technology laboratory and enormous 8m high triple gym with spectator seating, catering for every imaginable sport. A light and airy dining room also doubles up as a large multi-function space, which can be used as a theatre or conference room with 300 seats, providing for large school gatherings and performances by the children.
