On Wednesday 7^th December, Year 1 visited the Cultural Park in Keratea as part of their topic on old toys and books. The children had the opportunity to play some ancient style games outdoors, which they thoroughly enjoyed as they learned about playtimes of the past such as spinning tops, clay marbles, paper balls and wooden puzzles. The Tug of War game and the sack race were particularly great fun!

During the third week of November, the junior school hosted a book exhibition with Kidzbooks, a company which has the greatest selection of English children's books in Greece. Teachers took their pupils along and helped them decide from the huge array of titles available, which books they would best enjoy. We thank Ms. Xilas from Kidzbooks for her continuous support through her generous donations to our school library.

On the last day of term, 20th December, Year 6 pupils and staff headed off to Glyfada to go on their annual Fun Day! On the list of fun things to do were bowling, rollerblading and footie in the soft-play area. The claw-grab machine was practically emptied as the children competed with it to win all kinds of goodies. And then the children returned to school full of tales of impossibly fabulous bowling scores, “Miss, I got 8 strik Final es!” “Well, I got 9 strikes and a spare!” they beamed and told anyone who would listen. What a great day they had before heading off for the holidays. 

Merry Christmas everyone! 

Brr, it's cold out there! 19^th December was the perfect time to stay indoors and get creative at Pedopolis! Hence, the children took part in a specially designed programme, to learn about the uniqueness of the Christmas holiday. Each child made a Holiday craft to take home, slime and a delicious cookie. To add to the fun holiday craft making and fun festivities the children explored concepts in a creative and hands-on way. All the children were delighted to share the fun with their reception teachers.

One of the topics examined in the Year 12 syllabus is “Climate change and its impact”. Therefore, on Friday 16^th December the Greek department invited Dr Sevastianos Moirasgentis to talk to our pupils online about the environment and climate change, the issues that arise, the impact it has globally and more importantly its mitigation.

Dr Moirasgentis is a Research Director in the National Observatory and is specialized in Climate Policies. He is also the Lead author in IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change).

During the presentation our Year 12 pupils listened with great interest to the information Dr Moirasgentis conveyed to them and asked relevant questions to satisfy their curiosity in learning about this important issue.

A huge thank you to Dr Moirasgentis for sharing this essential information on Climate change with our pupils.

On Friday 9^th December the Greek department organised a trip for our Year 12 and Year 13 pupils. The pupils visited the Benaki museum in the centre of Athens, which hosts a unique exhibition on Greek culture arranged diachronically from prehistory to the 20th century. The pupils admired the Byzantine and the Ancient Greek exhibits and learned about the traditional architecture in Macedonia during the Ottoman occupation in the 18^th and 19^th centuries.

They also had the opportunity to visit the private art collection of Ioannis Moralis, a famous Greek painter. This collection is located on the 2^nd floor of the museum, and includes not only his paintings but many personal objects such as his diary, his brushes, his palette, etc.

The trip ended with a visit to Thiseio, the beautiful neighbourhood in the city of Athens, surrounded by archaeological sites and pedestrian streets, where the pupils enjoyed a traditional Greek meal with their classmates with a view of the Acropolis.

All the pupils enjoyed this outing, which was a lovely way to end a demanding term full of studying in preparation of their public exams.

On 20^th October 2022 Year 7s visited the castle of Acrocorinth and Stymphalia Environmental Museum. The pupils sketched the surrounding area to identify physical, human and environmental elements and looked at the defences while creating castle sketches to compare these with Norman castle building. These activities were planned in accordance with the Year 7 Geography and History syllabus showcasing how learning outside school is essential for and an integral part of our pupils’ educational development.

I liked the trips because they were lots of fun I couldn't stop laughing with my friends. It was fascinating and very interesting. I learnt many things I didn't know before and enjoyed them very much.

-Vanessa 

Stymphalia Lake

I enjoyed observing the dry Stymphalia Lake and learning about its past history. The fish were so cool especially how they functioned during dry season.

Castle of Acrocorinth

The castle was very interesting because I couldn't believed that where I was standing had been created gradually more than a thousand years ago.

-Carola 

From Thursday the 1^st until Sunday the 4^th of December our over 16 boys and girls football teams took part in the Aegean tournament hosted by Anatolia College in Thessaloniki.  

There were 13 schools taking part in the boy’s tournament. The schools were split into 4 groups. In the group stage our boys faced Ellinogermaniki Agogi on Friday were they comfortably won 3-0. In their next group stage game, our boys faced Campion and despite going 1-0 down, they managed to bring it back winning 3-1 and won their group. In the semi-finals our boys faced Pierce College. Unfortunately, after a tight game our boys lost to the eventual champions 1-0 which meant that our boys managed an amazing 3^rd place finish! 

In the girl’s tournament 8 schools were split into 2 groups. In their first game of the tournament our girls faced host team Anatolia College and after a very close game they lost 1-0. In their second group stage game our girls bounced back beating Athens College 1-0. In their final group stage game, our girls faced American Farm School and easily won 5-0. The girls advanced to the semi-final where they faced St.Catherines. Our girls were losing 1-0 until an incredible late game equaliser which meant they went on to a dramatic penalty shootout. The girls won the penalty shootout 8-7 and advanced to the final where they would face once again host team Anatolia College. It was a storybook ending for the girls who managed to win 1-0 and avenge their only loss in the tournament.  

All the boys and the girls celebrated together the girl’s 1^st place finish as a spectacular trip full of positive energy, fun and passion for the game, came to an end. 

The players were pleasantly surprised by the parents and Mr Holden, who travelled all the way to Thessaloniki as they cheered and showed never ending support from the side lines.  

Congratulations to all the boys and girls who represented our school in such an admirable way and a special thank you the coaches Mr Strzemiecki and Mr Styliatis.   

It’s that time of the year again – and no, I don’t mean Christmas - I’m talking about something far more dear to the English department’s hearts: The Annual Senior School Book Exhibition. Such a reader’s dream come true! The books on offer were not only all the ones on our Extensive Reading Lists, but they also included a wide and eclectic selection of other tomes appealing to everyone ranging from Year 7 right through to A-Level and beyond.  

Yesterday, as the corridors of the C-Block were lined with colourful, enticing paperbacks and hardbacks, the books were flying off the shelves. All the many voracious readers of St Lawrence - both staff and pupils alike – enthusiastically scoured the bookshelves and were not left disappointed. The pleasure and excitement on people’s faces as they browsed, enquired and purchased was truly a joy to behold. Many thanks to everyone involved especially to Ms Xilas and her professional and personable team.

A splendid time was had by all. 

The 32 pupils who have signed-up to the IA Bronze scheme have made an excellent start to the programme. Through the Tuesday after-school club pupils have learnt the essential skills required for the IA expeditions, from erecting tents to learning how to navigate with a compass and map. They have further applied their new knowledge in real-life scenarios, including an overnight expedition to Parnitha and a day of hiking on Hymettos. During the overnight expedition to Parnitha, students showed endeavour whilst navigating in challenging conditions as well as excellent team-work to ensure all members of their groups completed the hike. An overnight stay in the Flambouri refuge was enjoyed by all students, especially the delicious and warming dinner provided by the refuge. Pupils further honed their navigational skills and fitness during a hike around Hymettos, whilst enjoying wonderful views over Athens and the surrounding countryside. With the winter arriving in full force this week, we will now switch to learning more skills essential to the IA in the classroom, before embarking on the final two expeditions in May 2023.

On Monday 21^st and Monday 28^th of November, St Lawrence College hosted friendly football games against DES school. These games were the first interschool games for the junior school since the onset of restrictions due to the pandemic.

With a total of 40 boys and girls playing from year 5 and another 40 playing from year 6, the friendly tournament proved hugely successful. Furthermore, our after-school Cheerleading Club cheered for the year 6 pupils from the side-lines, chanting St. Lawrence and displaying an impressive performance between games.

All pupils involved loved their first taste of friendly interschool competition which was visible by their smiles on their faces in a day which brought back school spirit in a most successful manner.

As the issue of protecting the environment is becoming more and more crucial, the Greek Department invited the author and environmental educator, Mrs. Ioanna Fokou, to our school on Thursday 24^th November 2022 to present her new book “Το παράπονο του πετρελαίου που έγινε κηλίδα” to Years 4, 5 and 6.

Our pupils met the author and participated in an interactive environmental and educational programme about ways to protect the environment through different activities, quizzes, and experiments.

All the pupils that attended the presentation purchased the book signed by the author, who, we should mention, offers all the money earned to “Φλόγα” (floga.org.gr) an organization for families with children that suffer from cancer.

We hope that Mrs Fokou will visit our school again to present another interesting and informative environmental programme.

As part of our Anti-bullying week, the Year 3 children performed the anti-bullying song ‘Don’t be mean’. Through their song they defined bullying and expressed many ways we can be kind to each other.  The importance of REACHING OUT to someone you trust and to someone you know is being bullied was stressed. Lots of positive messages were shared and a wonderful start to our day, full of song and dance!  

During the week leading up to Thanksgiving Day on Thursday 24^th November, the pupils in the junior school reflected on the positive things in their lives and practiced gratitude by sharing with their teachers and classmates something they are thankful for. Their health, homes, good food, family, friends, teachers and school were just a few of the sentiments of gratitude expressed by the children that now fill Our Thankfulness Tree. Each leaf displays our blessings and all that we appreciate in our lives.

On Wednesday 23^rd November the Year 13 Geographers visited the beaches of Agios Nikolaos and Sounio to support their work in the Coastal Environments unit.

The main purpose of the day was to carry out beach profiles. We also investigated longshore drift and studied the waves and their impacts. The beach at Agios Nikolaos gave the group the chance to see a tombolo in real life.

The final stop of the day was a chance to warm up, as we had lunch overlooking the Temple of Poseidon at Sounio.