Last day of school, last day of boarding school, last moments of community life, last closing passages of a year rich in meaningful educational and academic experiences.
First of all, thank you, GSO students: Sithis, Farah, Oliveira, Natalia, Sara, Elisabetta, for teaching us how to face life with curiosity, joy, patience, respect, exuberance, and even a hint of sound youth unconsciousness.
Thank you, GSO teachers and educators: Kim, Andrea, Andre, Elisa, Carlo, Matija, Sara, Alessia, Paul, Silvia, Valentina and Giorgia. You have been our educational community during each and every moment of school life — during daily classes, during creative activities, during boarding life, during class preparation, during weekly meetings on educational themes held for our students.
Thank you, dear educational collaborators: Camilla, Elettra, Nicoletta, Paolo, for having worked hard and with commitment, on administrative and legal issues, on daily-life issues, and much more than this.
So, the last day of school made me think about what I could perceive during this year, in every single activity that took place: the family spirit.
Yes, GSO has been indeed enliven by people rich in family spirit — everyone has always tried their best in each task accomplished, exactly like you do in a family. Problems have been overcome by virtue of a deep collaborative spirit. And joy too, has been shared like in a big family, among us and with both near and far families.
Those conversations we had with families from India, Mozambique, Cambodia, Peru, and, of course, Italy, taught us that loving people far and close, acknowledging diversity to appreciate it, asking oneself the fundamental questions of life — who am I? Where do I come from? Where do I want to go? With whom do I want to make my life journey? — from different countries in the world, may help us find the answers in a new way, more conscious of our journey towards our identity.
The identity as citizens of the world, by virtue of the learner-profile approach which encourages us to be open-minded.
The identity of world peace, which is feasible thanks to the school helping students be principled.
The love for one’s fellow, through all the little daily service actions, thanks to the work in order to be caring.
The identity of being prepared on the subjects of study, in order to be knowledgeable.
The identity that requires us to work more on being reflective, risk-takers, communicators, balanced, inquirers, thinkers.
Our identity as a school nurturing talent, moreover, has been further implemented by the several activities supporting education, proposed during the school year.
There is something still echoing inside the school buildings, and it’s the emblem of our family: it’s the joyful memory of the thanksgiving party the students organised for their teachers. Our kids in person cooked their traditional dishes, making them the symbol of their thanks. I feel like saying that gratitude and celebration enrich GSO identity even more.
Thank you all for giving us the joy of this past year. We are ready to celebrate and prepare the new school year: there will be no shortage of surprises and…some will be also given by us. Dear students, you will find it out in September!
Yours truly.
Giordano Casonato
Head of GSO School