Sep
08
2021

Happy Jeûne Genevois !! Swiss Tradition

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The Jeûne Genevois is a public holiday specific to Geneva. It falls on the Thursday after the first Sunday in September. On this special day, the people of Geneva traditionally eat prune tart.

 Tarte aux pruneaux (plum pie)  is often served as dessert in Geneva homes on Jeûne genevois. Any knowledge as to how this tradition began seems to have been lost, although it may have come about as a means to allow women and housekeepers a way to spend the day in prayer, having cooked plum pies the day before (area plums being in season).

The practice of fasting could be observed in the. Swiss cantons as far back as the 15th century. The Diet, an assembly of the representatives of the cantons in place until 1848, organised penance and thanksgiving days. Each canton could decide what form these fasts would take.

The origin of the Jeûne Genevois dates back to the first fast recorded in Geneva, at the beginning of October 1567, following the repression of Protestants from Lyon. From 1640, fasting was seen as a moral and religious act and became an annual practice at the initiative of reformed cantons. It was seen as an act of humility and solidarity with the poorest members of society.

Our “ J.B. Terray 27 ” Boarding House is ready to celebrate a holiday! And since we don’t have to go to school tomorrow, we are all looking forward to the trip to Lausanne to visit the Olympic Museum. This excursion is going to be organized thanks to our great Boarding Activity Managers! !!  You will be able to see the beautiful pictures of these trips tomorrow.

Sep
01
2021

Wellbeing First Pillar, Nurturing healthy bodies and minds.

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As a new school year begins, J.B. Terray 27 and the whole boarding community will be focusing on looking after ourselves and others around us. We will be spending an hour a week together concentrating on what it means to have a positive attitude towards our own wellbeing and the benefits it can bring us both academically, socially, and personally. This will be a 5 pillar program carried out over the year, focusing on different areas of our lives. Tonight we had a special guest, Mrs Jody our boarding counselor. The girls were happy to get to know Mrs Jody and very grateful for her visit and support.

 

The first pillar we are building is Nurturing healthy bodies and minds. This first Pillar will accompany our girls through these first weeks of the school year, and it will offer them the opportunity to work on a range of many different projects and activities until the October Break. During the next weeks, we will cover crucial topics such as sleep, nutrition, exercise, and emotional regulation which will be the main focus of this Pillar.  

We strongly believe in the importance of sport and activities and the extensive benefits they have on both our physical and emotional well-being. We think it’s very important that where we work hard, rest and relaxation are also vital. This can be provided by sports also, but other constructive ways to look after ourselves emotionally can be reading, listening to music, meditating, making things or yoga. 

   Throughout this school year, students will be encouraged to complete an individual project and a community project for each pillar of well-being. Our community project will involve the whole Boarding House.