February 6, 2026 - Secondary School Principal Blog
Mr Mike Simpson
Dear Secondary School Families,
| 🏮 Happy Lunar New Year! |
Today, we gathered as a school to celebrate the Lunar New Year. We were treated to some amazing performances, including a lion dance, martial arts, guzheng performances, face-changing, and our very talented Chinese Mom’s dance. A huge thank you to our Parent Association and Chinese Parent group for arranging the performances, hong bao, and special treats for all ISY students.
While we all gather under the same new moon, the Lunar New Year, often called Chunjie in China, Seollal in Korea, and Tết in Vietnam, is celebrated with distinct and beautiful customs:
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🇨🇳 China (Chunjie): Known as the Spring Festival, it is a season of vibrant red and gold. Families gather for a "reunion dinner," exchange red envelopes (hongbao or lai see) for luck, and enjoy lion dances to ward off old energy and welcome a prosperous year. We are moving into the Year of the Horse.
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🇰🇷 Korea (Seollal): This is a time centered on family heritage and respect. Many dress in traditional hanbok, perform ancestral rites, and eat tteokguk (rice cake soup). It is said that finishing your bowl of soup signifies officially turning one year older!
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🇻🇳 Vietnam (Tết Nguyên Đán): Tết celebrates the arrival of Spring and a fresh start. Homes are decorated with peach blossoms or apricot flowers. A central tradition is enjoying bánh chưng (sticky rice cakes), and much like the other cultures, elders pass out red envelopes (lì xì) to children to spread joy and luck.
| 🚫 ISY is a Smokefree School |
ISY is a smoke-free school for everyone - students and adults. We have reminded students that vaping or smoking at school, or being in possession of vaping equipment or cigarettes on campus, is a serious breach of school rules and may result in suspension. Thank you for your continued support in reinforcing this message and in modelling healthy habits that contribute to the well-being of our whole community.
| 👨🎓 Graduation in sight for our seniors |
We are very proud of our Seniors, and we are 100% behind them as they complete their internal assessment requirements and begin preparing for final examinations.
It is early in the year to hear back from universities, but our Seniors continue to be offered places at some very prestigious institutions. We are excited to celebrate these achievements with our community, so look out for more information from our communications team in the coming weeks.
Roll on Graduation!
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🗞 Junior University Night #2 Tuesday, February 10 2026 | 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM | 💻 ONLINE: Zoom Link |
On Tuesday, February 10, we will have our second Junior University Night. This will be a more advanced introduction to the university admissions process for our Grade 11 parents and students. This event will now be online to make it easier for parents and students to join around their busy schedules.
While it is our Juniors (Grade 11 students) who are the ones ready to begin the university admissions process, all ISY students and parents are welcome to attend.
The Junior University Night will be followed by weekly Tuesday workshops that focus on a specific part of the world (e.g., Europe) or discipline (e.g., Engineering). The first Tuesday workshop will be on Tuesday, February 24. These workshops will also be online. Look out for more information on these events in this blog and from our communications team.
Kind Regards,
Mr. Mike Simpson
Secondary School Principal
| 🏅 Sports at ISY: Personalized pathways to excellence |
Season 2 continues for High School Basketball and Middle School Football.
✨ What’s On:
