Tandem Blog
  • Unlocking Success: The Secrets Behind Our Pupils' Outstanding Test Results

    At our school, we take immense pride in the remarkable success of our pupils in a range of standardised tests and assessments. It is a testament to the commitment and dedication of our students, teachers, and parents, who work together to foster a culture of excellence. In this blog, we will delve into the strategies and factors that contribute to our pupils' outstanding achievements in tests across various subjects.

  • Digital Education - a Challenge for Parents and Schools

    Digitalisation has found its way into our everyday lives and does not stop at children's rooms and classrooms. It offers great opportunities but also carries some risks. Therefore, it is crucial to teach children responsible use of digital devices and platforms. This requires a strong collaboration between parents and schools to provide children with a solid guideline to navigate and learn to use digital devices and software safely and effectively.

  • Exploring Zurich: The Power of Creativity for Learning

    Our approach to learning at Tandem IMS recognises that children learn best when actively engaged in building their skills, knowledge and understandings. Multilingual and enquiry-based, we embrace the notion that students thrive when they have a sense of agency in their learning. Topics are explored through broad and conceptual central ideas with specific learning goals, however it is the children who guide investigations through their questioning, investigating and theory building. It is the teacher’s job to create conditions, resources and opportunities for learning as well as to support the children with making connections, developing understanding and cultivating a curious learning community.

  • Navigating Bilingual Parenting

    Do you know couples who speak different languages? As the world becomes increasingly globalised, many families find themselves in situations where parents speak different languages. This can create unique challenges when it comes to raising children and communicating effectively as a family. Yes, challenges - absolutely worthwhile challenges! In this blog, we share some tips so that you and your partner can have many positive experiences and gain valuable insights in bilingual parenting. Your child will benefit from the advantages of growing up bilingual and, most importantly, find joy in being able to communicate in two languages.

  • Schools and Parents – Collaborating to Best Support Children

     «…no school can work well for children if parents and teachers do not act in partnership on behalf of the children’s best interests. Parents have every right to understand what is happening to their children at school, and teachers have the responsibility to share that information without prejudicial judgment…. Such communication, which can only be in a child’s interest, is not possible without mutual trust between parent and teacher.» - Dorothy H. Cohen

  • Meet our new team member «Nala», School Dog at Pre-School

    Have you ever heard of a school having a dog to help children concentrate better, to strengthen self-esteem, improve social competencies, learn empathy and encourage motivation to participate and learn? Our Pre-School teacher, Michaela, presented her concept for a «school dog» in 2021. Two years later, Nala, our Australian labradoodle school dog, has become the favourite companion in our Pre-School class.

    During this interview, Michaela gives us some insight into this adventure and the experience they have had in Pre-School.

  • Tips to prepare for the «Gymi» entrance exam: How do I support my child?

    Another school year begins in 6th grade, and everyone involved knows that this will be a different experience for the child, since the thought of possibly entering the Gymi afterwards is just around the corner. The expectations for 6th grade are rising as it is, but on top of that, in about half a year, the child who wishes to take the Gymi test should not only be working on the highest level in 6th grade - he/she should start understanding 7th-grade materials too. This means a lot of learning materials need to be covered under immense time pressure if a child wishes to be ready for the Gymi entrance exam.

  • Ready for primary school? Some tips for an ideal start!

    Do you remember your first day at school? What feelings rise up in you when you think back to it? Many people still remember this moment years later, because it is a big step for every child. A step on the way to growing up. As parents, it is important to make this day and the transition from kindergarten to primary school as smooth as possible for your child. In our Tandem IMS kindergarten, children are trained in their social and academic skills at a young age so that after those two years they are ready for the challenges of the first grade of primary school. Self-awareness, confidence in their own abilities as well as a good academic foundation for reading and writing in both English and German are part of our curriculum.

  • multilingual primary school - a great approach to learning!

    As the students at Tandem IMS' Primary School shuffle in from their break, there is a buzz of energy that moves with them. They are still chatting about their lives, what has happened during their outdoor break time and what their plans are for the weekend. Listening closer to their words, they are flipping seamlessly between different languages as they speak to different friends or as various friends join in the conversation. Once they enter the classroom, the buzz dies down as they then get ready for the next lesson.

  • The importance of an Early Years and Pre-School Curriculum

    Our curriculum for Early Years and Pre-School is a strong partnership between two important ideals within a child’s development: Social and emotional growth, a strong component of the Swiss «Krippenmodell», is combined with the need for learning through discovery and exploration. These areas of development are not mutually exclusive, but coexist and flow naturally throughout our daily routines with our children. Much like the simultaneous presence of the two languages (German and English), we believe the presence of these two ideals enriches a child’s early years.

  • Taking the best from both worlds – Tandem IMS Kindergarten

    Are you aware of the difference in the curriculum between a Swiss and English Kindergarten? When one thinks of the word «Kindergarten», different images come to mind for people in different parts of the world. For those coming from a Swiss background, Kindergarten is a very social time. Teachers create experiences over the course of two years to develop and strengthen each child’s personal, social, and emotional development. They work hard to ensure that each child in their care is confident and secure in themselves and their abilities both socially and physically. By the end of Kindergarten, the children are aware of the social dynamics within their peer group and their place within it.

  • No need to worry when multilingual children are mixing languages

    First things first: every child is unique and language acquisition proceeds at varying speeds and in different ways for each child - regardless of whether the child acquires one or more languages at the same time. However, regarding multilingual education, there is a persistent prejudice that the brain (and thus the child) would be overburdened with more than one language. Those who defend this theory see proof for it in situations where children seem to switch back and forth between languages randomly. Actually, this phenomenon is quite harmless, since it also happens in monolingual language acquisition, for example between dialect and standard language - only there, it is not noticed. In order to understand how these blends occur during speaking and how to actively support bilingual or multilingual acquisition (we basically refer to two and more languages at Tandem IMS), we take a look at the language centre of the brain and focus on the linguistic characteristics of multilingual children.

  • Learning a language is a real treasure

    Our French teacher Amaia Areitio writes about her experiences in language teaching - from the children's first contact with a new foreign language to the first language exam DELF Prim. She explains what such an early exam experience means for the children's personality development, for their school career and above all for their motivation. Would you prefer to read the blog in the original language - French? Then please continue reading here.