With each passing day, we at Ivy have felt that our Tehzeeb, the very foothold of our values and culture, is ebbing away. Even as we teach our children values through gratitude jars and kindness catchers, we feel the need to soul search and dig deeper to ask where these values really come from. The smallest act of adab and adaab in society, the respect for elders, the love for those younger, the way we greet people, how we uphold their honour, how we offer hospitality to our guests, how we treat our domestic help, all is something that comes from our own culture and values.

Play is at the heart of all we do at The Ivy Preschool. Playdates@Ivy provide children with opportunities to practice important social and emotional skills. Our saplings learn to share, take turns and cooperate as they interact with each other. Play dates are also a great way for children to practice manners and learn how to communicate with one another. And what happens when you add a sprinkle of love and a smattering of culture to a playdate?

When you’re part of a community of people who don’t just believe in adopting international best practices but also aligning them within a local context, you know you’re at Ivy! Our Early Childhood setting is inspired by The Curiosity Approach - and we are proud to say we are the first school in South Asia adopting this philosophy.

Urdu Literacy Week just went by and we had a wonderful experience! Mushairas, Bait Baazi, Urdu Skits, and lots of activities were held over the week to familiarise students with our national language. Surprise guest speaker sessions with Amra Alam and Khaled Anam were well-attended by parents and students alike. We also snuck in a quick impromptu Dil Dil Pakistan singing session as our Ivy saplings sang along to Khaled’s guitar.

This week our Equality and Diversity Ambassadors spread the message of diversity in the school. They are working on vision boards for individual students to help them develop a sense of purpose. Good work Ambassadors! We're proud of you!

In 1938 Johan Huizinga a Dutch cultural theorist and major historian of play contended that play in itself is necessary to the generation of culture. That it parallels the social and cultural forms of society.