News Update - Education from knowitall.ch

: Published: 02 April 2023

When Jessica Taylor-Hall reached out to knowitall.ch to let us know of her recently launched Fun4Kids, offering flexible childcare solutions for children aged 2-5 during the canton Vaud school breaks, we had to find out more.

Jessica writes, "It is often challenging to find childcare solutions for the 2-5 age group when many childcare places close during the school breaks. We offer bilingual camps and are located in Coppet.

"We are fortunate to be able to use the premises of an existing kindergarden (l’Ile aux Enfants), ideally situated in the prime residential area “Les Perrières” in Coppet. It’s 5 minutes’ walk from the train station and we have parking spots available. It’s also next to the school “Necker”, two playgrounds and we have plenty of green space for the kids to have fun!

Fun4Kids was launched in March 2023, with their first camps during the Easter Break 2023, see details below.

Why did you start? What has been the inspiration?
My husband and I both work full time and are blessed to have two wonderful daughters aged 2½ and 4½. We would sometimes find ourselves in a tricky situation during school breaks as we couldn’t always find adequate childcare solutions, especially because of our kids’ young age. We found that there are quite a few offers for camps and activities during the school breaks for kids aged 5 and up, but nothing much for kids below that age, so I started entertaining the idea of doing something about it and filling that gap, and when the opportunity presented itself I created Fun4Kids.

: Published: 26 January 2023

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The International Institute in Geneva (IIG), previously International University in Geneva, is a Swiss foundation of higher education. The choice to change the name from International University in Geneva (IUN) to International Institute in Geneva (IIG) embodies their long-lasting ambition to expose students to real-life situations, to solve actual problems and to be ready to take on positions of great responsibility by the end of their studies. The institution was founded in 1997 to provide bachelor and master programs:

Business Administration
International Relations
Digital Media
Computer Science
Business Analytics

The International Institute in Geneva has both institutional and program accreditation. The institute has developed a partnership network of over twenty-two higher education institutions around the world allowing for students exchange and double degrees such in the UK and the USA among others.

The multicultural student body, faculty and dynamic environment of the Institute contribute to the creation of a framework in which the students acquire a global education. The use of experiential learning methods including case analysis and business simulations ensure the development of analytical skills which are critical in today’s competitive and rapidly changing world. The programs prepare the students to learn and lead in an increasingly digital environment.

Since 2018 the Institute proposes double degrees at the bachelor level with University of Plymouth (UK) enabling students to graduate, after three years in Geneva, with two degrees from IIG and the University of Plymouth. In 2020 the partnership was expanded to the master level with Boston University (USA) providing the students an opportunity to graduate in 18 months with two graduate degrees.

The Alumni spans over one hundred countries thus representing a unique opportunity for students to participate in a global network. The alumni of the International Institute in Geneva are working for UN agencies such as World Health Organization WHO, United Nations Commission on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) as well as multinationals such as Nestlé, Amazon or Roche. Throughout the academic year alumni are invited to present their organizations and internship opportunities to the student body.

: Published: 21 November 2022

Daniel Littman and Emilie Carrof

The Montessori Seeds of Knowledge school is going from strength to strength. Having relocated from Vich during the summer of 2021, the bilingual school opened the door’s at new premises in Etoy on 30 August 2021, just in time to commemorate the school’s tenth anniversary. Knowitall.ch published an article about this at the following link.

Since then, the numbers of students have continued to grow and the staff have been working hard to constantly develop their program. The age 3-6 classrooms are thriving, and the spacious age 6-12 classroom boasts an amazing 60 students under the guidance of four adults. The 12-15 age section have welcomed new staff as well as developing a permaculture section which allows the 12-15 age students to start a micro-economy programme, where they sell their home grown produce plus artisanal dried fruits to the families in the school community.

New Nido section for children 18-36 months

2023 brings new opportunities for the school, as they will open a ‘Nido’ section for children aged 18-36 months. The Nido room, (which means ‘nest’) offers the child a nurturing and rich environment, with a specialised focus on the five senses, developing skills towards autonomy plus emotional and social development. The rooms have been thoughtfully planned out to allow the children the opportunity to explore and thrive.

: Published: 22 August 2022

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Philippa at her daughter’s graduation in Bath, UK last month

When we heard that Philippa Dobree-Carey had written a book about how to manoeuvre children into a university, we had to know more! We asked her to answer the following questions and she has even offered a great lifetime discount on her membership subscription.

Why did you start? What has been the inspiration?
Having successfully installed my children, who graduated from high school in 2018 and 2020 into their respective universities in the UK and Switzerland, I realized my acquired knowledge could be a help to other parents and students who may be also be confused by what to do, what to buy, and where to even start. With each installation into student accommodation, and then packing them up at the end of the year, I made myself lists, tips and templates to remember for next time, which then turned into a really organized kit that we referred to in terms of inventory, not forgetting things, and remembering what NOT to take next time!

Have you been working on this idea forever, or was it something that came to you recently?
I had started to develop training materials which I pitched to the Ecolint La Chataigneraie campus with the intention of running a summer program for IB graduates, to prepare them with some life skills before going to university. While my children know how to cook, iron, stick to a budget and go food shopping, I was aware that their peers may not have the same knowledge! The school was interested in the project and while I was developing the course further to roll out in 2020, COVID-19 struck, and the school then had to cope with switching to remote learning, which threw a spanner in the works. I therefore switched gears, and started to note my ideas into a book format.

What is the biggest obstacle you have had to overcome?
Timing and Technology! I work full time as a Change Management Coordinator for The Global Fund, therefore this was a personal project outside of working hours and at weekends. Obviously my strength and expertise lies in time and project management so the biggest obstacle was keeping my energy levels up, in addition to managing a household, settling two adult children in UK and Swiss universities, a husband, a puppy and all the organisation that those require! The second obstacle was technology – which has now increased and improved my skillset in terms of knowledge on publishing, website development and social media – although my children would beg to differ on the latter, so I let them handle that side of things! Tiktoks and being in front of a camera are not really my cup of tea!

: Published: 18 August 2022

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As a follow up for our previous article that was very popular with our readers, here is some more fun French knowledge to have under your hat next time you need to sound more "like a local"! This excerpt from Know-it-all passport® 11th edition, pages 461-463, will help you fit in! Click here for part one that we published on the 15th August 2022!

Can you complete these sentences? Choose from these words to fill out the sentences*.

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