Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Zarand
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Zarand
Friday, 29 January 2021
This week, we spotlight our committed Seven-Grader Zarand who joined ISR in Grade 5. Zarand feels incredibly comfortable at ISR and embodies ISR’s motto, “It’s Cool to be Good.” He gets along very well with his classmates and is an open-minded young man. He is extremely hard working in class, his expectations of himself are high, and he lives up to them. “He is the type of student teachers pray for!” says his teacher Mr. Lillywhite.
In addition to his schooling at ISR, Zarand also does distance learning at a Hungarian school. For him, education is very important and also a connection to his origins. Despite two different school systems and a large amount of work, Zarand masters his academic achievements to a high level. Only recently, the education law in Hungary changed, so that instead of 6 exams in major subjects, he now has to take online 13 mid-year exams! Zarand, outstandingly, scored 100% in 12 exams and 84% in the 13th exam and that without neglecting his academic performance at ISR!
His teachers praise him and are thrilled with his dedication. Zarand has made great academic progress in a very short time. His teacher, Ms. Horvath, says about him, “Not very often you can meet a student who constantly works with such an interest, diligence and power. He never misses a class or homework, he participates in each lesson with passion and shows his well-founded knowledge every time – and this in a very calm without being loud or focused only on himself. He is definitely one of my best students ever. He is an enrichment not only for my class but also for our ISR school. If I could, I would give him the award of the year – what a great achievement!”
We are very proud to spotlight Zarand one of ISR’s many outstanding students!
Every Friday, our Student Spotlight Project aims to highlight one of our outstanding students who represent our school motto, “we enable great minds and strong characters”. No matter if it is academic success, special commitment or outstanding character traits – we look forward to sharing each of these success stories.
Our Student Spotlights
International Day of Education
International Day of Education
Sunday, 24 January 2021
Is there a deeper purpose to education, beyond simply a degree or a grade?
Not only students seek to answer this century-old question – also educators, school staff, and parents consider the purpose of their efforts. Given that today is “International Day of Education”, we posed this question to members of the ISR staff. Over the past 20 years, our team at ISR continues to be dedicated to providing the best possible education, to challenge and encourage our students, and to pave the way for a successful and happy future. For each of us, education means something different – but we all agree on one thing: education is the most important asset we have, it is our drive, and our passion at ISR.
As Ms. McGee says: “A good school will give students knowledge, a great school will make students lifelong learners”
And this is the education that we strive for at ISR.
Expats Welcome!
Expats Welcome!
Thursday, 21 January 2021
In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Gian
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Gian
Friday, 22 January 2021
This week, we spotlight our Fifth-Grader Gian, who joined ISR in Kindergarten. Gian is a very polite student who is always there for his classmates. He is characterized by his helpful and friendly nature. In the academic area he shows excellent performance and is also highly praised by his Academic Coordinator, Ms. Brand. “Gian is an exceptional student who is always eager to help. A great example of this is during the virtual lessons: Gian has been taking the class attendance using Excel and sending it to his teachers! He is a whizz when it comes to using technology and Gian is happy to share his knowledge with others. It is such a pleasure to teach Gian”.
Also his Math teacher, Mr. Hammad, describes him as a very organized, passionate and attentive student, who is willing to help his classmates. “Gian is one of the best students in the class, not only academically but in every other aspect that a student can be.” Besides his academic success, Gian also shows great interest in the musical field and shows great talent there as well. He is a hardworking musician and very well-organized, as well as great at creative problem-solving. His Music teachers, Ms. Bucher, finally adds “he is very helpful to fellow students and to me, and hungry for knowledge and challenges. He shows terrific initiative and is talented”.
We are very proud to spotlight Gian one of ISR’s many outstanding students!
Every Friday, our Student Spotlight Project aims to highlight one of our outstanding students who represent our school motto, “we enable great minds and strong characters”. No matter if it is academic success, special commitment or outstanding character traits – we look forward to sharing each of these success stories.
Our Student Spotlights
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Riko
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Riko
Friday, 15 January 2021
This week, we spotlight our dedicated Eleven-Grader Riko, who joined ISR in Grade 10 last year. Riko is an incredibly focused and determined student, who implements every piece of feedback in order to improve her work. She enthusiastically contributes to class discussions and has been able to settle in the ISR community really quickly.
In addition, Riko is actively involved in school life and engaged in several CAS projects. Social commitment is very important to Riko, and so she is not only part of the Big Sister/Big Brother project, where she supports Japanese students in Middle School, but is also part of the “Music Boxes” project. This involves refurbishing old music boxes and donating them to the residents of the St. Augustine Dementia Center. Music is an important component and especially for dementia patients, as repeated listening helps with recognition. Her CAS teacher, Mr. Urban, is thrilled with Riko’s dedication and personality, “Riko’s friendly and open character is a great asset to my homeroom. Every morning she greets me and her classmates with a smile that is contagious. It is an absolute pleasure to work with her.”
Riko is very determined in academics, which her biology teacher, Ms. Knight, attests to, “Riko is a hardworking, motivated, and dedicated student in Biology with a great passion for the environment and sustainability issues. She is trialing an interesting IA topic regarding the use of microplastics in commercial toothpaste brands!” Among her interests are sports and music. Riko likes being active and does a lot of sports with her friends. She also shows great musical talent with instruments including piano and clarinet.
We are very proud to spotlight Riko one of ISR’s many outstanding students!
Every Friday, our Student Spotlight Project aims to highlight one of our outstanding students who represent our school motto, “we enable great minds and strong characters”. No matter if it is academic success, special commitment or outstanding character traits – we look forward to sharing each of these success stories.
Our Student Spotlights
Our ISR Community: Strong cohesion despite physical distance
Our ISR Community: Strong cohesion despite physical distance
Tuesday, 12 January 2021
At ISR, we are especially proud of the strong parent community that helps shape and enrich our school life. During these times, it is especially important to maintain a constant exchange with our ISR Parent Network! For this reason, all Parent Network meetings with our ISR Management Team take place virtually. This allows families to interact with school leadership, exchange ideas, and for the ISR community to come together virtually. We thank all Class Reps for their participation and are grateful for the positive meeting yesterday.
Face-to-face contact with students is also especially important during this time. In addition to our virtual meetings as well as virtual classes at ISR, our committed Academic Coordinators offer a Zoom Session each day where parents or students can dial in to discuss questions, exchange thoughts, make appointments with class teachers, or simply to meet again virtually after the long time.
All this to say – we miss our parents and students, but we are happy and thankful to be able to keep up the communication virtually!
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Yeva
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Yeva
Friday, 8 January 2021
This week, we spotlight our fourth grader Yeva, who has been with ISR since she was in First Grade. Yeva is a caring and empathetic student who often puts the needs of others before herself.
She recently decided that she wanted to raise money for people in need and, with a little help from the primary students, collected cards that she sold to raise money for the Neusser Tafel. Yeva has raised over 300 Euro to donate to this project! “She is such a wonderful student and she truly cares deeply for others,” says Ms. Morris, Head of Primary.
Her advising teacher, Ms. Ghica, says, “I have known Yeva since she started at ISR in Grade 1. Throughout the years she has shown her Homeroom Teachers how helpful and selfless she is. She always looks at the big picture and takes into consideration everyone’s opinion. Yeva is an integral part of our community of students in the Primary school.” Well done, dear Yeva!
We are very proud to spotlight Yeva one of ISR’s many outstanding students!
Every Friday, our Student Spotlight Project aims to highlight one of our outstanding students who represent our school motto, “we enable great minds and strong characters”. No matter if it is academic success, special commitment or outstanding character traits – we look forward to sharing each of these success stories.
Our Student Spotlights
ZDF Interview
ZDF Interview with Mr. Soliman, Mr. Vrem and Ms. McGee
Donnerstag, 7. Januar 2021
Today, ZDF visited us to interview three of our American staff members about yesterday’s riots in Washington D.C.
ZDF is the main program of the broadcasting company Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen and the second public national television program in Germany.
The interviewees included our Executive Director Peter Soliman, our Head of Kindergarten Alex Vrem, and our Upper School Director Samatha McGee. “It’s a shame, a sad day for the U.S.,” Peter Soliman said of the events in Washington. “It is very right that the Senate and Congress came back to the Capitol to finish their work. That was highly professional.”
Dr. Alexander Schröder-Frerkes, a member of ISR’s Advisory Board and Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in NRW, was also interviewed in this context. As a representative of American interests in Germany, Dr. Schröder-Frerkes is an indispensable advisor at our international school. In 2010, he received the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany for his services to the development of German-American relations. The interview was broadcast this afternoon on the Mittagsmagazin.
ZDF Interview with Mr. Soliman, Ms. Vrem and Ms. McGee
ZDF Interview with Mr. Soliman, Ms. Vrem and Ms. McGee
Thursday, 7 January 2021
Today, ZDF visited us to interview three of our American staff members about yesterday’s riots in Washington D.C.
ZDF is the main program of the broadcasting company Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen and the second public national television program in Germany.
The interviewees included our Executive Director Peter Soliman, our Head of Kindergarten Alex Vrem, and our Upper School Director Samatha McGee. “It’s a shame, a sad day for the U.S.,” Peter Soliman said of the events in Washington. “It is very right that the Senate and Congress came back to the Capitol to finish their work. That was highly professional.”
Dr. Alexander Schröder-Frerkes, a member of ISR’s Advisory Board and Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in NRW, was also interviewed in this context. As a representative of American interests in Germany, Dr. Schröder-Frerkes is an indispensable advisor at our international school. In 2010, he received the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany for his services to the development of German-American relations. The interview was broadcast this afternoon on the Mittagsmagazin.
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Tomoya
Student Spotlights: Spotlight On Our Student Tomoya
Friday, 1 January 2021
This week, we spotlight our Kindergarten Niederkassel student Tomoya, who started in KG2 in October 2020. Very quickly he made a lot of friends and can often be found building Lego or playing catch with the other children in the group and across the whole Kindergarten.
Right from the beginning he was super confident in Japanese, but initially found it more difficult to communicate in English. Since then he has surpassed all expectations and has not only supported his friends by translating for them, but also continuously contributes during lessons and has made an incredible academic progress. Every day he enters the Kindergarten with a big smile and when you ask him how he feels, he answers “happy”!
He has become a great role model for all children in the group and is always going one step further than expected. Ms. Puchta, his Early Years Educator, adds: “I’m personally immensely proud of what Tomoya has achieved. We look forward to seeing where his path takes him and are excited about his future. We are grateful that he is part of our ISR Community. “
We are very proud to spotlight Tomoya one of ISR’s many outstanding students!
Every Friday, our Student Spotlight Project aims to highlight one of our outstanding students who represent our school motto, “we enable great minds and strong characters”. No matter if it is academic success, special commitment or outstanding character traits – we look forward to sharing each of these success stories.
Our Student Spotlights
