From the Principal’s Desk – 17 May, 2018

Dear Parents,

What an incredibly busy week it has been at HBIS again. With another very successful Book Week behind us it is awesome to see that Reading can still be exciting and “cool”. The PS students had an absolute ball and once again our wonderful parents stepped up in a huge way to make each classroom extra special with the themed decorations. Thank you to everyone for making this year’s event the most amazing one yet.

This past Tuesday saw the MYC2 students actually recite individual poems written in their English class this term. Along the theme of Diversity I was truly amazed to sit and hear how personal each of these poems were. Topics ranged from rumours, adoption, gender, race, faith and of course personal identities and so forth – each poem no doubt had some element of truth and I (and the parents who attended) felt incredibly humbled and honoured at how open and honest our students were. It takes a great deal of courage to actually stand up in front of a crowd ordinarily but to actually stand up and be open about topics that matter is incredible. Thank you for allowing “us” into your world and showing us how you view diversity in the world.

And tonight is the annual Soiree, where our musically talented students get a chance to showcase their abilities and skills. From singing to playing a musical instrument, students will have the opportunity to again perform publicly. This in itself is a powerful reminder of the importance of learning how to behave in front of a crowd, to experience and handle the nerves associated with performing and to be able to receive valuable instant feedback from the audience. My sincere hope is that the students participating tonight will not only get a sense of achievement but also see growth in their self-confidence.

Looking forward to seeing you all there.

Kind regards,

Grant Ruskovich