At EIS it is Anti-Bullying Week (Mon 14th to Friday 18th November), which is a very important week-long event for our students and others around the world. As we are all aware, the effects of bullying can be unspeakable and can, literally, last a life time. Therefore, schools have a duty of care and a huge responsibility to prohibit any such behaviour - EIS has a zero-tolerance policy to bullying and takes the matter very seriously.
The good news is that because of stringent school policies, home-school support and the professionalism of our teachers, we have very few occurrences here. If they do occur, we act as a unit and stamp it out before it escalates. Consequently, the family-friendly and peer-on-peer atmosphere of the school is second-to-none.
So, what are we getting up to? Well, we are pinning large cut out leaves on our tree outside and each leaf has positive words written on them so they can be on display outside. With regards to display, we have set up an excellent double-board called 'Bee Safe', honeycomb artwork and some amazing posters from students in the lunch hall and around the school. Students of all ages have been involved in contextual learning by sharing personal stories, dramatic renacment, discussions and debates. Ultimately, the students need to learn what behaviour is the opposite of bullying so we can act that way and what to do if there is any bullying at school.
For parents, the following link from the very good Anti-Bullying Alliance will, hopefully, prove useful for additional information and support purposes: https://anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/
We will finish the week with Pyjamas Day as we pay homage to Children in Need, a major UK charity for children. In our case, we will be donating our proceeds to Speransky Hospital here in Moscow. The wonderful hospital cares for children who have suffered from burns injuries. Many of our Student Council members have created posters to highlight the purpose and goal of the event. This is why we ask for donation per student to wear our pyjamas for the day. It's great fun, but a great cause and opportunity to reinforce fire safety.
EIS says no to bullying!
