Extracurriculars
Activities, Sports, Music & Languages
Activities & Sports
ISA offers a programme of after school activities to add diversity to the learning experience and an important social element to the lives of the students from Pre-School to grade 12.
The programme itself is non-competitive, meaning that the emphasis is on enjoyment, participation and improvement. The various activities offer students the opportunity to be physically active and develop skills and knowledge in their chosen area of interest.
Extra-curricular activities for the younger students (PS-Grade 3) generally start directly after school. Depending on the activity, start times for older students may begin later. It is the parents’ responsibility to supervise, bring and pick up their child(ren) for any chosen extracurricular activity.
Pre-School, Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students are limited to one activity per trimester.
Overviews of some of the activities and sports offered:
Art Classes (Kindergarten - Adult)
Our art classes are run by a trained instructor, who has studied at the Rietveld Academy and the Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten. The classes are open for everyone in the community – from Kindergarten to adults and there are a variety of different lessons (painting, printmaking, collages, clay modeling and drawing) depending on the age group of the students involved.
Ballet: Vaganova (Beginners, Advanced & Pointe)
ISA’s extra curricular ballet classes, are open to aspiring dancers from offering ages 3 – 18 as well as for adults who are looking for a beginning ballet class. The instructor is a professional ballerina, who received her dance education at the “Nel Roos Balletacademie” at the Theatre School Amsterdam and has dances with the professional the Nederlandse Opera and various others, giving her a wealth of experience.
She teaches according to the Russian Vaganova techniques, which fuses elements of traditional French styles from the romantic era with the athleticism and virtuosity of Italian technique. This training style focuses on using the whole body in every movement, developing increased consciousness of the body and harmony of movement.
Basketball Skills Training (Grades 1-12)
These skills training sessions aim to develop skills and tactics for success on the basketball court. Younger students can get a better grasp of the fundamentals, whilst older students can improve on skills needed for the ISA basketball season. These lessons are available for students at all levels (Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced).
Chess Club (Grades 1-12)
Our weekly chess lessons and meetings are fun for students, allowing them to combine playing a game with friends, logical thinking, and creativity… all pillars of success. Moreover, this chess class will improve calculation skills, concentration and sportsmanship.
Do you already know how to play? Would you like to learn more? Or would you like to learn a new, inspirational game? Then come and join ISA’s weekly chess club, and improve your chess with a professional chess trainer!
Dance Mix Club (Kindergarten - Grade 6)
Our dance classes are led by a professional dance mix teacher, who graduated from the Dance Academy of Amsterdam and who specialises in jazz, show, video, and modern dancing. The classes are open for students from Kindergarten to grade 6. The teacher, has experience in choreographing school theatre productions and has been working with lower school children, children with disabilities and for the ISA Academy for the past 5 years.
Drama Club - Lower School (Grades 4-5)
The Lower School Drama Club is open to students in Grades 4 and 5 looking to develop their creativity, performing skills, and develop their confidence in speaking and social skills. In this club, you will get the opportunity to:
- Be creative and use your imagination!
- Enhance your drama skills, and learn new drama specific techniques for creating and performing
- Develop your confidence and social skills by working and interacting with new people, sharing ideas, and problem solving
- Create original pieces of drama!
- Prepare and perform a play script
Forest Club (Grades 2-4)
This club is aimed at children aged 7‐10 years old, and will offer an outdoor approach to delivering an enriched language curriculum. Over the weeks, the children will engage in a wide variety of language rich activities, from solving clues on a scavenger hunt, to storytelling around the fire they will help to build.
The sessions will be held in the Amsterdamse Bos and led by trained Forest School Practitioners (Level 3), with a current First Aid certificate.
Judo (Grades 1-12)
Judo (gentle-way) helps to develop gross motor skills, spatial awareness and confidence. This course will allow students to advance through the stages of Judo and to participate in an official Judo exam at the end of each trimester and to receive diplomas.
Language Academy (Kindergarten - Grade 5)
A child’s mother-tongue language plays a critical role in their development. In the Lower School, the Language Academy provides an opportunity for children to maintain and further develop their mother-tongue in a fun, stimulating environment.
Language Academy classes take place once a week for one hour. The classes strive to be fun learning experiences, nurturing a child’s mother-tongue development.
Yoga (Grades 4-12)
These fun, relaxing and inspiring yoga classes for children and adolescents are run by a professional yoga instructor and are great for:
- Expression
- Learning about one’s own body in a fun way
- Enhancing the ability to focus
- Finding comfort in discomfort
- Promoting good posture, balance, and breathing
For Upper School students, the classes are set up in 3 parts: yoga postures (building up strength and creating better alignment), breathing exercises (calms, and brings plenty of oxygen into, the body), and meditation/visualisation (to relax and regenerate the body). This setup is particularly helpful for IB students, as it calms the mind and body during demanding periods.
Music
ISA also provides students with the opportunity to learn and/or improve their musical talents by participating in our Ensemble, Lower or Upper School Choir, our Percussion groups or our ISA Music Academy (instrument and vocal lessons). Sign ups for these activities must be done directly through the group organiser.
Choir (Lower School)
The ISA Choir programmes allow students to find “their voice”, strengthen their vocal skills and learn about various musical styles from around the world.
For the Lower School Choir members must be in grades 3 – 5 and willing to practice two times a week during a recess period. Students perform for their classmates and the larger ISA community.
Choir (Upper School)
The ISA Choir programmes allow students to find “their voice”, strengthen their vocal skills and learn about various musical styles from around the world.
Upper School Choir students, grades 9-12, train for and participate in international choirs and competitions as well as create and perform productions for the ISA community.
Upper School Ensemble (Grades 6-12)
The Upper School Ensemble is an after-school activity for students grades 6-12 who play non-amplified instruments such as strings, winds, percussion and piano. The group is taught and conducted by Frans Moussault, a professional music performer and instructor.
Percussion (Grades 3-8)
The ISA Percussion groups allow students to explore world music through percussion instruments. Students train with leading world music experts and perform concerts and performances for the ISA community and public.
Music Academy (Kindergarten - Grade 12)
ISA is very proud to offer a rich after-school programme of music lessons run by a team of 18 qualified conservatory-trained and professional teaching musicians. The ISA Music Academy offers private piano, violin, viola, cello, harp, guitar, electric guitar, bass, recorder, flute, clarinet, saxophone, keyboard, voice, drums and percussion for the ISA community.
Sign-up Information
- Online signups for ISA extracurricular activities and sports occur each season. Families will receive an email when registration opens.
- Sign-ups for Music-related activities (Ensemble, Choirs, Percussion and Music Academy) are done directly with each instructor.
- Sign-ups for Lower School Language Academy classes are done directly through the ISA Lower School Language Academy Coordinator.