English Version

 

Matriculations

 

An event that occurs once in a lifetime. It’s meant as a welcoming to the high-school life for new students. Everyone would do well to participate. After all, it’s a tradition.

It starts off ordinarily, with a dinner. After dinner, all students and teachers sit down in the meeting hall. Then, you are introduced to the organizers (juniors) and the theme of this event. The organizers go on to explain the program and you quickly realize just what you got yourself into.

Embarrassing dares, dancing, singing, quizzes. It’s all set up to make you look like a dummy. Of course, there is a reason why. In the upcoming years of high-school you will probably face many difficult and upsetting situations. This matriculation, although in an unconventional way, is supposed to prepare you for exactly that. So strap in and get ready for the ride! For each challenge, a few people are picked. At first, you wish they wouldn’t pick you. Later, as the night goes on, you start getting into it. You want to join in too. Your mood goes up as the time passes. At least it was like that for me.

When the challenges are done, it’s time for disco to come. Get on the dance floor and show your moves! And don’t you dare slouch off! Your seniors are there to bring you right back. If they do so, you should be thankful. They just made you some memories you won’t forget that easily. Well, are you dancing, laughing and having fun with your peers? Congratulations, you just fulfilled the objective of matriculation.

Unfortunately, there’s a time limit to this fun. But don’t worry, you can leave knowing you gave it your all. The matriculation will continue to be the main topic of conversations for many days to come. Whether you just enjoyed the show, or were a part of making it, you will always have something to talk about. And so, I would like to end this brief summary with a quote:

“We didn’t realize we were making memories, we just knew we were having fun.” – Winnie the Pooh.

Marek Vatrt, junior student of the 4-year program

 

   

 

Student's Ball

 

Our gymnasium's student counsel is active in creating a friendly and unique atmosphere by organizing dozens of events throughout the school year. The most anticipated one of them is undoubtedly the Student Ball.

As one of the initiators of the first ever Ball in 2019, I must say I am truly pleased with the success of this wonderful event. A little of inspiration from abroad combined with great enthusiasm and devotion from all the organizers created a special, memorable night for nearly a hundred and fifty students and teachers. It was charming to see so many high school students enjoying ballroom dancing alongside their teachers on the dance floor. Besides dancing, our guests were entertained by our one of a kind program. The whole evening felt very noble, as everyone kept great manners, even when the party began later at night.

Even though due to the pandemic, the 2021 Student's Ball wasn't able to take place, I envision the Ball to become a tradition at our school as it is a great enrichment for the gymnasium and its students especially.

Andrej Beňačka (alumni)

 

  

 

Volunteering in Our School

 

The values of helping others, solidarity and sympathy are one of the pillars of our school spirit. The school board and student body as a whole organise many charity events. Lots of students volunteer their free time in smaller self-organized groups. Volunteering plays a big role in shaping the school’s atmosphere. These activities keep us, the students, active and humble. They remind us to keep our eyes and ears open and offer a helping hand as often as we can. The interest in volunteering is growing, which we’re all very happy about - the more, the merrier. It’s a great way to bring light into your life and that of others’, even in the most trying times.

I’ve taken part in many volunteering events and activities. I’ve had nothing but amazing experiences. There’s a variety of events to choose from. The most common would be fundraising. There are many charities that our school raises money for, on and off school grounds. Every cent of pocket money can help. It’s refreshing to see my classmates give up their daily coffee or snack bar and put the money towards a good cause instead. Volunteers also go out in the streets and approach bystanders, explain the cause and ask if they would like to contribute.

Another big part of volunteering are environmental causes and activities. Our students have organized big clean-ups of the local forests, the park and other green areas. My favourite activity of this sort is carrying and guiding frogs at the nearby Striebornica lake. Their journey usually happens in the spring. The frogs travel from the forest to the lake to mate, which requires crossing a local road. Volunteers build barriers about 700 meters from the lake and gather at sunset to help the frogs cross safely. It’s an adorable activity that can also teach you a lot about the animals.

A lot of active students like to take part in helping with organizing sporting events in cooperation with our local Olympic or sports clubs. These are usually events held for smaller children, designed to introduce them to sports. Our school puts emphasis on the Olympic spirit, so it’s not surprising that these events are popular and close to our hearts. These events are very fun to do, because some form of entertainment is usually part of them. And what entertains small children also entertains teenagers – even if we don’t admit it.

Volunteering in culture and the arts is also an option. Maybe you want to help the town council unveil a new statue or take part in a fairy-tale carnival event for children – there’s something for everyone. Creative students will definitely find something that sparks enthusiasm in them.

Last but definitely not least comes volunteering in the medical field. Students who are 18 and older donate blood at the local hospital. Blood donation events are also organized with the support of our school. In the past, students of our school were in acute need of blood – and the older students didn’t hesitate for a second. Many people with the right blood type took on the challenge and donated blood to help their fellow student. In the COVID-19 pandemic, our school had turned into a testing unit many times. The teachers, older students and former students all came together to help test the residents of our town.

Volunteering is an amazing example of how well we, the students, are able to come together. The tightly knit group of wonderful people at our school showed me that the saying “There’s strength in unity” is true. Activities like this show that the students at our school are not only here for their own good, but to improve the world piece by piece. There’s no better feeling than the sense of being part of something bigger & better than yourself. Helping others and sticking together is a great way of passing on the message of Pierre de Coubertin. I am very thankful for these experiences. I can proudly say I chose the right school.

Elise Mária Ábelová, grade 5 student of the 8-year program

 

    

 

Open Door Day

 

Open House is an event that happens once a year. Our future students and their parents are given a tour around the school and an opportunity to learn about it.  It is our junior students who generally get to show the visitors around their classrooms, informing them proudly of activities, projects, and assignments they have completed, so it shows how successful our learning institution is. It always pushes students to be the best version of themselves.

Our tour starts in hallway but we move quickly outside through sport grounds to the new sports hall where you will be given a speech about its history, usage or accomplishment of our students.

The next stop will be the new building where are mainly classrooms for our school seniors, but you can also see the new library which consists of book written in English. Back to our main building where we walk up the stairs to the 2^nd floor. There, our students have prepared programs for you. Those programs are orientated around specific school subjects like social studies with presentations on various social studies projects and the many successes achieved, biology where students have brought multiple insects for observation as in the laboratory there are microscopes waiting for you to look in them! On the 1^st floor you can see our students in white coats doing chemistry experiments in which you can also participate. Our physics lab is definitely worth checking out - magnets, power and way more is explained in that room.

On the ground floor, there are classrooms where our students present various extra-curricular activities of our school and talk about all other opportunities the school has to offer. In another classroom there are teachers presenting our school programs - you can choose to study here for 8, 5 of 4 years. You can also try simulated test that has similar questions to the acceptance test. Here is also the best place to ask questions. Parents can ask teachers about what the students will be learning throughout the year. Any other questions regarding the class as a whole or learning in general or the school are most welcome as the school administrators are also readily available.

Mária Ježková, senior student of the 4-year program