Berlin Cosmopolitan School

🏃‍♀️ What Sports Day Teaches Children About Life

Sports Day is not really about running fast.
It is about learning how to win.
And how to lose.
Every child will experience both throughout life.
The question is not whether children will face disappointment. The question is whether they will learn that disappointment is survivable.
When your child loses:
❌ Do not rush to fix it.
❌ Do not tell them it does not matter.
Instead try:
💛 „I can see you are disappointed.“
💛 „You really wanted that.“
💛 „I am proud of how you kept trying.“
Resilience grows when children experience manageable setbacks and discover they can recover.
Winning builds confidence.
Losing builds character.
Both are important.
The goal is not to raise children who always come first.
The goal is to raise children who can try again.

🌍 Integration beginnt mit Begegnung.

Wie können Schulen, Kitas und Gemeinden Kinder mit Migrationsgeschichte bestmöglich unterstützen?
Kommen Sie zu unserem kostenlosen Online-Webinar und lernen Sie innovative europäische Ansätze kennen.

📅 02.07.2026
🕜 13:30–14:30 Uhr
💻 Online

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inklusion migration

🎶 Some trips are measured in kilometres. Others are measured in moments.

As our music ensemble journey comes to an end, a few memories continue to resonate like the final notes of a beautiful concert.
One evening, our planned transport suddenly disappeared. Without missing a beat, our Grade 10 students and Colin took the lead. Together they found a public transport solution, navigated the city in Spanish, located an underground bus station, and embraced the extra walking without a single complaint. In fact, all I had to do was follow the back of the line. The rhythm of teamwork carried us forward.
Music itself became a story of courage and creativity. We added Mission Impossible at the last minute, and our musicians immediately rose to the challenge. One Grade 10 student was so inspired that she composed her own piece on the flight home.
Our community shone throughout the trip. Colin Lloyd kept spirits high, negotiated priority boarding with airline staff, earned a shout-out from a pilot, stepped in on drum kit when needed, and welcomed SEK students into the jazz ensemble. Benjamin Salsbury, although not travelling with us, supported the entire journey behind the scenes by covering lessons and solving countless planning challenges. Joey Ryan prepared guitars and shared invaluable wisdom from previous tours.
And then there were the performances themselves: CY (Grade 9) stepped up to perform the solo in Vivaldi’s Spring, while D. and G. (Grade 10) lent their voices as jazz soloists with confidence and grace.
In music, every voice matters. Every instrument contributes. Every person helps create the harmony. This trip reminded us that the same is true for a school community.
Bravo to all our musicians, teachers, supporters, and families. The music may have ended, but the memories will continue to play on.

🎓 Kathrin Röschel Live from the German University of Digital Science Conference in Potsdam
Today was a special day. Not only because of the inspiring conversations about the future of learning, artificial intelligence, and digital transformation, but because two students from Berlin Cosmopolitan School were part of the conversation.
Jakob Poorhosaini and Arseniy Cherednichenko, both Grade 11 students, were the only school students among researchers, university leaders, innovators, and experts. Their presence immediately caught attention. During the panel discussion, Steven Ney turned directly to them and asked a simple but profound question:
„What do you need for your future?“

The answers from the panel resonated deeply with me and reached far beyond technology itself:
💡 Nihel Chabrak: “Enjoy learning. And keep knowing what is behind – our capacity to think, to judge, to decide.”
💡 Johanna Heise: “Learn the foundations – not of a subject, but of learning itself. Once you understand how to learn, you can understand any complex problem.”
💡 Jürgen Schulze: “Focus on your strengths. Learning is preparation for everything.”
💡 Steven Ney: “Focus on the discipline of thinking.”
As an educational leader, I left with a strong sense of confirmation. The future of education is not about making schools more efficient. It is about making them more human. We need to create spaces for thinking, protect curiosity, encourage questioning, and help young people develop the confidence to navigate an increasingly complex world.
A heartfelt thank you to Jakob and Arseniy for representing student voice so thoughtfully today, and to Yvonne Wende for sharing this experience. Young people are not only preparing for the future—they are already shaping it.

🌍✨ The PYP Exhibition (PYPx) is much more than a school project — it is a rite of passage.
In the final year of the IB Primary Years Programme, children become researchers, thinkers, designers, speakers and changemakers. They investigate real-world issues, interview experts, collaborate in teams and take meaningful action connected to topics they truly care about.
Why is the PYPx so important in modern, innovative and values-based schools?
Because the world no longer only needs children who can memorise facts.
It needs young people who can:
💡 think critically
🤝 collaborate respectfully
🌱 act with empathy
🎤 communicate confidently
🌍 understand global challenges
The PYPx celebrates agency, curiosity and courage. It shows children that their ideas matter and that learning can create real impact in the world around them.
This is why the exhibition often feels emotional for families and teachers alike: it marks the moment children begin stepping into their own voice, identity and responsibility as learners and citizens of the world. 🌟

Mud, swamp water, and an absolute ton of trash bags—not a bad way to spend Earth Day.
3B started out just exploring the swamplands (mostly trying not to fall in), but then the students got to helping out. They cleared out a massive amount of trash from the forest and completely transformed the area. Swipe to see the final haul of trash bags at the end! 🪵💪🌍

Our orchestra students are in Madrid.

Grade 8 English buddies enjoy reading with Grade 1

Since September, 8a have been reading stories to and with Ms. Malenfant’s grade 1s. 

Students choose a book, find a comfortable spot, then settle down to explore words, characters, and actions in the story. They chat together, making predictions and connections - guessing what words might mean, and sounding them out. 

The grade 1s love their storytellers! Here is what they have said:

„It was really scary at first, but then it was really fun...“
„I saw one of them in the hallway today and said hi!“
„It was so much fun, they read to us and I could read to them too“

In fact, as their fluency grows, many are now reading their books back to the grade 8s.

Over the course of the year, the students have got to know each other better through storytelling, and grade 1 really looks forward to their reading buddies calling by on Mondays.

Mini PYP Exhibition
What if children were trusted not only to learn about problems — but to design solutions for them?
As preparation for the Grade 6 PYP Exhibition, students investigated real everyday challenges and developed innovative products to address them. Through visual models, presentations, and marketing pitches, they learned how ideas can move from imagination into action.
This is exactly the kind of future-oriented education young people need:
🚀 creative thinking
🧠 inquiry and research
🗣 communication
🤝 collaboration
🌍 problem solving with purpose
Students experienced that learning is not passive. Learning can create meaningful change.
The central idea:
Technology impacts us and the environment.
At BCS, we believe critical thinking grows when children are encouraged to ask:
* What problem am I trying to solve?
* Who does this help?
* What impact could this have on people and the planet?
🏡 How families can extend this learning at home:
* Invite children to improve an everyday object at home
* Discuss inventions that changed the world
* Encourage children to pitch creative ideas to the family
* Explore sustainable alternatives to common products together