ISS International School
Our daughter Sasithon (Sasi) is currently in 7th grade at ISS. The school stood out among the others we looked into; some of the words used to describe it were “multicultural” and “nurturing”. When Ta and I met the school administration, we mentioned Sasi’s lack of English and were assured that ISS was well prepared for students who have English as their second language. By the end of K2, her first year at ISS, she was already using English as her primary language!
At ISS, class sizes are small. By middle school, the curriculum is project- oriented, often crossing disciplines. For instance, design and mathematics learning might jointly see them working on building a model of a shophouse, while for humanities and language arts, they’ll look at Greek history and mythology. For maths, they had to design their own yards, including gardens, paths and pools with decks, gazebos and fences. The school also starts the kids on overnight trips from second grade. That year, Sasi’s class spent the night in the aquarium with fish swimming above them; the following year, it was two nights at the zoo! This past autumn, the 7th and 8th graders had the choice of day trips to places of interest in Singapore, a camp in Indonesia or a service trip to Cambodia. I’m proud that Sasi chose the trip to Cambodia to work with children in a shelter. They also had the chance to visit some places of interest in Phnom Penh.
At ISS, multiculturalism is promised from the beginning. Most years, the small student body comprises 45 or 50 nationalities, and the school celebrates International Day each year.
• 25 Paterson Road (Elementary & Middle School) • 21 Preston Road (High School) iss.edu.sg