Would you like to spend your summer making friends from all over the world—or learning a new language—or having fun in the adventure program—or singing in a musical—or even making a rocket?
Summer in Switzerland offers you the opportunity to do all of this and much more, including taking a trip to a major tourist destination such as Florence, Venice, or Paris.
Participating in our summer school program for three weeks offers a range of exciting activities. All participants experience a summer of a lifetime, and they often come back for another one the following year.
International Friends
Students from all over the world meet in Leysin to share their cultures and lifestyles for a few weeks. Sharing experiences and participating in excursions with new friends will build bonds that last much longer than the summer and will give you a new way of looking at the world.
Switzerland and Leysin
Switzerland offers the safety, security and outstanding natural beauty that can be found in few other places. Leysin is a mountain resort with summer and winter sports and activities. Summer in Switzerland students are an important part of the summer season in Leysin.
Experienced, Talented Staff
With more than 50 years of experience organizing summer programs under the guidance of three generations of the Ott family, LAS has the experience and tradition of welcoming students to Leysin. Our instructors and staff members come from all over the world, and they have vast experience in working with children and adolescents. Many of the staff return each year, creating a homecoming atmosphere that welcomes students back to their summer home.
What Can You Do at SIS?
The daily schedule at SIS is packed with morning academic enrichment classes, afternoon activities and evening social programs. While it may seem like a lot, you have to remember that time flies when you’re having fun!
Students in our Alpine Exploration (ages 12-14) and Alpine Challenge (ages 15-18) programs will choose classes in or across our five streams – Arts & Creativity, S.T.E.M., Language, Liberal Arts or Entrepreneurship.
At the start of each week, students will also choose their afternoon activities. Those could include – tennis, basketball, hiking, football/soccer, cooking, art & crafts or stand-up paddle boarding.
Arts & Creativity
- 2D and 3D Art
- Guitar / Ukulele
- Piano
- Theater
- Photography
Language
- Beginner French
- Intermediate/Advanced French
- French Immersion
- ESL 1, ESL 2, ESL 3
STEM
- Science Experiments
- Math/Engineering Challenge
- Visual Programming
- Astronomy
Entrepreneurship
- Business Math
- A Walk throug Kickstarter
- Everything is Negotiable!
Liberal Arts
- Superheros in Debate
- What’s cool about my country?
- Global Leadership
- Spies & Secret Operations
Alpine Adventure
SIS Alpine Adventure is geared specifically for ages 7-11. The program encourages active participation, hands on learning, and self-discovery.
This safe location provides many amenities for students, including Internet-wired classrooms, a complete health center with full-time health professionals, a visual arts center, a multipurpose gym and a theater. The village of Leysin offers a sunny summer climate, great restaurants and fantastic recreational opportunities, all atop a soaring plateau overlooking the Rhone Valley and Lake Geneva. Because it is located in the heart of Europe, Leysin is close to popular destinations in Italy, France, Germany —and Switzerland, of course.
Residence
Boys and girls in the Alpine Adventure program live in separate areas of their own comfortable residence hall with SIS teachers and staff. Each room includes a private bathroom and accommodates two to four students. Whenever possible, roommates are assigned to create diversity in student nationalities and native languages. Our caring staff provides 24-hour supervision and a safe, family-like community that facilitates enrichment and personal achievement.
Faculty Families
Students at SIS are grouped in families, created by age level, with boys and girls adopting one or two faculty parents. Families meet for games and snacks on some evenings and some of our programming is in small groups by family. Whenever possible, families are intentionally very diverse, bringing together brothers and sisters from a variety of language and cultural backgrounds.
Sessions
SIS offers two sessions of three consecutive weeks. For session one, students arrive on Saturday, June 25, and depart on Thursday, July 14. For session two, students arrive on Saturday, July 23, and depart on Wednesday, August 10.
Classes, Activities and Excursions
Students attend classes in the mornings and participate in group activities during the afternoon, learning about the world and themselves while meeting other students from diverse cultures. On weekends, students embark on fully supervised half- and full-day excursions in nearby Swiss cities and visit cultural and recreational landmarks.
At Summer in Switzerland (SIS), you’ll find a lot to learn and tons to explore. If you are between 12 and 14 years old, you’ll fit right into the Alpine Exploration (AE) program. For older teens, ages 15 to 18, there’s the Alpine Challenge (AC) program.
SIS offers two sessions of three consecutive weeks, with an optional Cultural Tour at the end of each sessions. Students in the Alpine Challenge and Alpine Exploration programs have the option to participate in the Core Program or may choose one of the Special Programs—English as a Second Language (ESL), French Immersion, Mountaineering, or our Art Immersion Program in coordination with the Paris College of Art.
Core Program:
Our Core Program consists of five streams of courses. Those streams are: Arts & Creativity, Language, S.T.E.M., Liberal Arts & Entrepreneurship. Students who wish to focus may take classes from only one stream. Students with varied interest may choose classes across multiple streams.
Specialty Programs:
Our Specialty Programs offer a more intensive learning opportunity for students who have specific learning goals. Students who enrool in a Specialty Program will study their program subject for either a two-period block, for two of the four morning periods or for all four morning periods.
For summer 2016 we are offering Specialty Program opportunities in the following areas:
- ESL (English as a Second Language) – two periods
- French Immersion – four periods
- Mountaineering – two periods
- Theater – two periods
- Art Studio – two periods
French Immersion
- Learn through French with a focus on excursions into the local community each morning
- Participate in regularly scheduled afternoon activities
- Participate in the group activities in the evening
- Go on all-day excursions on the weekend
Mountaineering
- Learn the skills necessary for enjoying Alpine activities
- Learn about equipment needs, wilderness first-aid, diet and nutrition, and weather
- Participate in extended and overnight hiking trips
- Gain experience in climbing, orienteering, and outdoor risk management
Art Immersion (15-18 year olds; first session only)
- Focus on IB Preparation while assembling an Art Portfolio
- Participate in regularly scheduled afternoon activities
- Participate in the group activities in the evening
- Go on all-day excursions on the weekend
