Boarding schools are unique environments that offer students the opportunity to live, learn, and grow alongside their peers from all over the world. This diversity of backgrounds and cultures can be incredibly enriching for students, as it exposes them to new perspectives, ideas, and ways of life. However, in order for students to truly benefit from this diversity, it is important for them to actively seek out and form international friendships.

One of the most obvious benefits of international friendships is the opportunity to learn about different cultures. When students form friendships with peers from other countries, they have the opportunity to learn about their customs, traditions, and way of life. This can be especially valuable for students who may not have the opportunity to travel abroad or experience different cultures in their own communities.

Additionally, international friendships can help students develop important skills such as communication, empathy, and understanding. In order to form and maintain friendships with people from other cultures, students must learn to navigate linguistic and cultural differences. This can be challenging, but it can also be incredibly rewarding as it helps students develop the ability to communicate effectively with people from all over the world.

Furthermore, forming international friendships can also help students build a sense of global citizenship. When students form friendships with people from other cultures, they begin to see themselves as part of a larger global community. This can help them develop a sense of responsibility and empathy towards people from other cultures, which can be a powerful force for positive change in the world.

In conclusion, boarding school is a unique opportunity for students to live, learn and grow alongside their peers from all over the world. Making international friendships is a great way for students to benefit from this diversity and learn about different cultures, develop important skills and build a sense of global citizenship. Encourage students to actively seek out and form international friendships and make the most of this unique opportunity.

As we dive into Semester 2 we are all excited about what is to come. This week in our Welcome Back assembly we shared with the students all the opportunities open to them this upcoming semester. With everyone refreshed after the holidays, many have come back with new motivations and ambitions. We want to capitalise on this and help the students achieve their goals.

Every weekend we will of course have our normal multitude of activities available for the boys to choose from and we will continue to share this schedule with you each week so you can help motivate them.

We will also be having our two Mountain Weekends in Fiesch which is a new location for us and the weather promises some good snowfall before our arrival.

We had another House Dinner this week in which we got to enjoy some Indian food and ate together in Olympus.

Each week we will also continue to have our International Dinner to celebrate a different country and the diversity in our community.

We also have the trips to Barcelona and Rome this month and next.

This week also started us on Pillar 3  of the Wellbeing Programme where we will be focusing on Positive Friendships.

There is plenty to keep everyone entertained and active and we look forward to 2023.

This week Olympus came together to make a video on Pillar 2. There is a lot of diversity among us in the House. We come from a range of different countries and backgrounds. This gives us a variety of different beliefs, morals and values. At the beginning of the year, sometimes the differences between us are what are the most obvious. It takes time for us to get to know each other, show tolerance and openness. Once we do, we see we have similarities and things in common despite our differences.

We wanted to demonstrate this in a video to highlight how among Olympus there are still things we share in common and shared goals.

We continued the fun of the House Competitions with a Ginger Bread House Build.

From Olympus we had Nikita, Boris and Adam constructing ours. While all the other houses went for the traditional cottage build we wanted to go above and beyond and created a Mansion.

@thatboardingvibe Ginger Bread House Competition #thatboardingvibe #gingerbreadhouse #gingerbreadman #gingerbreadhousechallenge #boardingcompetition ♬ The Gingerbread House – Teresa Brewer

This week we had our Boarding Award Ceremony to celebrate some of the achievements made during 1st Semester. We acknowledged those in each House who showed outstanding enthusiasm, motivation, and involvement in the Boarding Activity program. We also had an award for Boarding Life, for those who exhibited all the qualities we would wish for in a global citizen and who are good role models through their actions within the boarding community.

Winning the Boarding Life award were James, Louis, Billy and Otabek. These boys are polite, respectful, and courteous to both their peers and staff. They are held in high regards within the House. They are happy and willing to assist the House Parents and often take on extra responsibilities within the house. They also willingly volunteer their time to help others and to participate in the Boarding House events.

From Olympus, winning the Activity Awards were Tim, Alexandre, Temur and Maksim. These boys enthusiastically participate in the afternoon activity schedule along with enjoying the sports facilities on offer during social time in the evenings. They also eagerly participate in the weekend program, taking advantage of the trips on offer or the activities offered.

We also acknowledged those boys who have done well academically this year and were proud that so many from Olympus were represented. Well done to Wenyan, Kaishu, Guanchen, Bruno and Adi

This week the students were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to go to Europa Park. It is a very fun and magical place but even more so when decorated for Christmas.

The 2nd takeaway point for this Pillar is;

Noticing differences is normal but there are many ways to be an ally.

When we first meet someone it is very easy to first focus on the differences – their ethnicity, what they are wearing, how animated they are, their speech, their physicality, their presence etc. We all have an unconscious bias that then forms an unfair first impression. This can be a positive or negative preconception.

It is only when we get to know the person, that we truly understand the similarities between us. Whether that is liking the same music, or sports club, or food or views.

Starting from the basics we are all human, all want to be loved and all want to be treated kindly. We should start with the thought that we should treat others how we wish to be treated, irrelative of first impressions or prejudgements.

This week we started the second pillar of our Wellbeing Programme.

This pillar is led by Mr Antonio who is guiding us down this important journey.

Wouldn’t it be a boring world if everyone was exactly the same? If we all looked identical, dressed alike, ate the same foods, spoke the same language, the world would be pretty uninteresting! What makes the world exciting is that we’re all different. Diversity simply means differences.

At CDL we like to celebrate the diverse range of differences that our community brings together. It is important we show tolerance and understanding to those who at first appear different to our own normals. And through showing acceptance to all and kindness to each other, we in turn reduce any worry of bullying within our community.

The first takeaway point of this pillar is;

Integration and diversity are part of the international agenda of the world’s most important institutions. 

When we think of many big companies such as Google, Facebook, Walmart, and Mcdonald’s – we do not think of them as representing one specific person. They represent all and therefore employ a diverse range of staff in order to ensure there is a good representation of all cultures, values and lifestyles.

Globally what we want to achieve with this point is that students understand that Diversity and Integration are present far beyond the school environment or our individual background and that it’s a top priority in the world today. Sometimes, this might be overlooked, and we believe it’s important they acknowledge that the work and reflection being done here is echoed in the World Leading Institutions.