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Every school tells its own story. We all talk about it – kids, parents, colleagues, and even people who have a limited view from the outside. All of these narratives combine to form the story of The École. I hear that story just as often as I contribute to writing it, and I add to it just as much as it informs my decisions.

After a record number of reactions and responses to my letter last week, I intend to keep things a little lighter today! For example, I plan to talk about the trip to France I am about to embark on (I am literally on the plane as you read this). My destination is Reims, the unofficial capital of the Champagne growing region. And although I’m headed there for the annual MLF Congress for heads of French schools throughout the world, I expect I’ll be holding a glass of bubbly in all the photos!

It is a little hard to believe considering the weather outside, but the end of the school year is coming hard and fast! It’s a festive moment when we get to celebrate everything that’s been learned all year long. It’s also a bittersweet moment because we’ll be saying goodbye to some of our current students, and our new students – those who are waiting to join us – are probably feeling a little anxious right now at the idea of starting in a new school and finding their place among new classmates.

I know it’s going to make some of you envious, but I’ve been invited to the Middle School Dance tonight. As I grew up in France in the 80s, memories of the movie La Boum are rushing back. It’s going to be a cold and rainy weekend, so if you’re tempted by this extract you could check it out. It’s by no means a cinematic masterpiece, and certain scenes will definitely make you cringe in 2023, but in my opinion, no other film comes as close to capturing what it means to be 13 years old.

When Andria was a 1st Grade teacher in Taiwan (AND Communication Officer AND English Coordinator AND Assistant Director of Primary school AND something else I am surely forgetting), I used to stop by her classroom quite a lot. I have a very clear memory of one little girl who was working on math while simultaneously doing cartwheels during one of my visits. That mini-event sparked a flexible learning spaces project that ignited our entire team for several years—I left just before it was completed in every classroom.