This week, our Year 9 students of Spanish have had the rare chance to step onto a real Spanish naval ship! To commemorate the 500^th anniversary of the first circumnavigation of the world, the Juan Sebastián de Elcano training ship has been visiting Piraeus and has let members of the public and our school onboard to see the workings of the modern Spanish Navy. The tours given by the crew were not only a valuable Spanish language experience, but also gave us insight into the features of the ship, history of the Spanish Navy, and life at sea.

The last week of February 2022 in Early Years classes saw life on the high seas take over. Sea life comes in all shapes and sizes. The children learned all about drama, dressing up and how to spot far off lands from on board their pirate ship too. 

Learning through play is what they do best in FS1! 

As part of British Science Week, we are planning a very special Science Day for our pupils. On Friday 18th March, Reception to Year 6 classes will enjoy a fun-filled day of experiments and STEM activities! We are looking forward to seeing them use their creativity and knowledge to tackle the challenges they will be faced with.

On Friday 4^th March, inspired by the Rio Carnival, the Early Years and Junior School will celebrate the festivities by having class parties, parading in costumes and dancing to music.

Every year, the Council of British International Schools (COBIS) hosts an international art competition which gives pupils the opportunity to showcase their creative skills.

Pupils of St. Lawrence College were encouraged to participate, and we were very pleased to receive many inspiring entries.

As there is a limit on how many pieces of art can be submitted per school, there was a selection process, and we are pleased to be able to share the finalists’ work with you.

Thank you to Ms. Poulimenakos for organising this prestigious event and congratulations to all pupils who took part in the competition; the works submitted were fantastic.

The winners will be announced in April 2022, and we wish them the best of luck.

Who is my secret admirer?

Who sent a Valentine’s card to who?

EAL pupils (who each had assumed a different role) had to go around, investigate and find out by asking each other questions and gathering clues! Who was eating cookies while writing their card? Who wrote their card together with their pet parrot? And who received a card with stains on it? EAL pupils had great fun while practising their speaking skills! No one could get out of this as this mystery would be impossible to solve without every character’s clues.     

Our young learners in FS2 have been learning how to write their names – short or long, big or small! 
By creating huge colourful images of the letters in their names, the children express themselves through their colour choices and the stroke of a brush, with productive learning and creativity the final result. It's heart warming to see their accomplishments.

Today was the 100^th anniversary of the publication of James Joyce’s Ulysses, and A-Level Literature pupils enjoyed a special lesson, led by Headmaster Phil Holden, marking the anniversary. The pupils were given an introduction to James Joyce, listened to recordings of readings from the book, discussed the modernist style Joyce used, and studied the publishing history of Ulysses. The pupils were able to examine various editions of the book, including a first edition that was 100 years old today!

With the reopening of schools anticipated for Monday 31^st January, pupils and parents should be aware of covid self-testing requirements for the coming week.

Pupils will need to bring evidence of a negative covid self-test on Monday, Tuesday and Friday mornings. This means pupils should take a self-test on the afternoon/evening of Sunday, Monday and Thursday. School staff are following the same schedule of self-testing.

The Greek authorities have announced that all schools in the region of Attica, including St. Lawrence College, must remain closed on Friday 28^th January, following the extreme weather conditions this week.

Online classes will take place for all our pupils, so that a normal Friday timetable will operate from 08.50am through the Microsoft Teams platform.

Parents will be emailed when the requirements for pupils’ covid self-testing for school attendance next week is made known.

The Greek authorities have today extended the closure of schools across Attica to include tomorrow, Thursday 27^th January. However, the authorities have given the green light for online learning to restart.

For the pupils of St. Lawrence College, online learning recommences on Thursday, at 08.50am, through the Teams platform.

Any decision from the Greek authorities relating to the operation of schools on Friday 28^th January will be communicated to pupils’ parents by email, and posted on the school website and Facebook page. Pupils and parents should be aware that if schools do operate on Friday, pupils will need to take a covid self-test on Thursday evening and bring the documentation of their negative result to school on Friday morning.

The Greek authorities have today, Tuesday 25^th January, extended the ongoing public holiday to include Wednesday 26^th January.

This directive, taken for safety precautions amid the extreme weather Greece has experienced in recent days, specifically states that all schools must remain closed, and that online learning cannot take place on Wednesday 26^th January. St. Lawrence College, along with all schools, must comply with this order.

For this reason, St. Lawrence College must remain closed on Wednesday 26^th January, and cannot operate online classes.

An announcement was made at 8.30pm on Monday 24^th January, that all work activity would stop across Attica on Tuesday 25^th January, as a consequence of the severe weather affecting the region.

This announcement specified that online learning as provided by all public and private schools also has to cease for Tuesday 25^th January.

For this reason, in line with all other schools in Attica, St. Lawrence College will not be operating online classes on Tuesday 25^th January.

Further communication will follow concerning operations on Wednesday 26^th when government authorities make their decisions (likely during Tuesday 25^th).

All schools in Attica have been ordered to remain closed on Monday 24^th and Tuesday 25^th January 2022. This directive, issued by the Greek authorities late on Sunday 23^rd January, also applies to St. Lawrence College.

Parents of pupils have been emailed with details on how their children will receive full lessons online through the Microsoft Teams platform. Headmaster Phil Holden commented “The familiarity with online learning that teachers and pupils have acquired through the experience of covid lockdowns allows us to meet these brief closures caused by extreme weather. I am confident that whatever the cause of a school closure, we can now meet our pupils’ needs online”. It remains to be seen whether the closure will be extended to Wednesday 26^th January and parents are asked to monitor their emails for updates as further announcements are made.

On Wednesdays, our Early Years tennis enthusiasts can take part in a lunchtime club we offer: Mini-tennis. The children may be small but it’s never too early to start learning how to control a ball with a lob over the net, to perfect your forehand smash or to serve an Ace!  

Well, they may be some way off that level of skills yet, but aren’t they having fun!