Midway through the trip, we are pleased to see so many students improving their skiing and enjoying time with friends. Besides the many teachers and administrators who have come on the trip, we are very thankful to have three former JFKS students volunteer their time to join us: their professional ski and medical expertise make this trip so much better for the 130 students. 

Please see the list below are some of the students’ observations about the ski trip. They were collected Saturday morning during breakfast.  

Mr. Lang

Student Observations

The walk to swim was super long. The mountains are beautiful. – Giselle

They are weird couple dynamics. ­– Benjamin

Tissues are not an effective weapon to throw at my roommates. – Nicolas

It smells like cow poop. – Declan

There is no clock in the room. – Constantine

We need more sleep and coffee. We are sleep deprived. – Susannah & Kayla

We like our room teacher, “Old Great Felty Boy”. – Clemens

Like, we know how the cleaning [room] critics were joking, but it hurt our egos. – Julian & Hamilton

I do 100 push-ups every morning – Sebastian

One of the staff members or guest house owners smokes. – Adam

Playing Werewolf is fun. – Frida

The Nutella tastes good.  – Anselm & Yevheniya

Icy and slushy snow was terrible on Friday. – Iona & Mia

It was really fun to ski from the top to the bottom of the mountain [for the first time]. – Ava

I almost had a heart attack on the slopes because I was afraid of falling.  I crashed straight into Hr. Nagel. – Jordan

We started a fight club. – James

I liked skiing the hill for the first time rather than walking to lunch. – Sienna

The bathroom door scares me and keeps crashing on my fingers. – Violet

One person in our room gives us a kiss good night. – Jack

Don’t go down the wrong slope or the rest of the group will have to wait two hours. – Calvin

The weather reports have been inaccurate. – Miguel

The ski-boot-room STINKS. – Myllah

The water tastes good. – Melissa

The view from the balcony is beautiful. – Jordis.

I think my shoulder is discombobulated. – Pepper

The snow at the top is awesome (perfect powder) – Leopold

I like the design of the guesthouse with its flowers and a lot of natural wood. –Jewel

The beds are hard. – Ella

I’m laughing a lot with my friends. – Nina

The ski trip is fun. – Jacob

Joined by other schools in the Hessen region, the JFKS Jr. MUN students traveled to Frankfurt to participate in the Frankfurt International School Model United Nations (FISMUN) conference. The students were assigned a country delegation which they represented Model UN simulation event.

They debated world impacting issues such as preventing natural disasters, obtaining zero hunger through sustainable farming, and achieving world-wide nuclear disarmament. In collaboration with the other delegates, the students presented solutions to the topics and gave persuasive speeches in front of large audiences.

With great pride, we congratulate all the JFKS Jr. MUN students for not only representing the John F. Kennedy school well, but also for demonstrating what it means to be an active global citizen, ready and able to make a positive impact on the world.

What would a Ski Trip be without… a spirited poetry slam before even reaching the slopes??!! In a tradition dating back several years now, students on buses one and two have gone head-to-head – with increasing literary dexterity – at our rest stops en route to Zillertal. In what could be considered a sensational upset (not to mention a devastating throwdown of an English teacher: no names will be mentioned, but if you do your HW you’ll learn just how many English teachers are ski team members), Mr. Lang’s bus two swayed the judges with their impressive performance. Naturally trash-talking ensued, nearly all above-board, and rumors of a rematch on the return buses remain constant.

We arrived ahead of schedule and soon the excitement of new rooms, fun roommates and the stunning alpine scenery provided reason for exhilaration. A three-course dinner was served soon thereafter, with the teachers’ dreaded anticipation of the jet engine roar of 135 8th grade voices in the dining room. We were not disappointed. HOWEVER… this particular ski team member was delighted to be seated with students graciously serving other students, patiently waiting for their food before inviting the table to hold hands for “Piep-Piep-Piep, wir hab’n uns alle lieb, guten Appetit!” Classic. We’ll see if they can maintain that…

We were especially proud of the patience of our students in several ways on our “opening day.” It is not fun to stand in the long line at the ski rental place, finding that “perfect fit” of a ski boot and the right size skis. Nevertheless, the process was the smoothest in many years with our digital registration and all were pleased to hear Herr Mueller report at dinner that the ski rental place had praised our students for their cooperation and good behavior – what a tribute! 

But skiing! Skiing is the Hauptsache, and the early reports are very good. Skilled skiers on the one hand, ambitious beginners on the other, the latter for which something needs to be said. While polished skiers have enjoyed exploring the various challenges of Hochfuegen, newbies experience an entire range of emotions including fear, (those mountains are SO high!) pain, (why do the boots hurt so much?!) frustration, (I can’t get up – I hate this!), etc. which is why it is so rewarding when Hr. Mueller announces “we have a new large group of students who used their first lift today and are no longer ski beginners,” followed by huge applause. Their grit was worth it, and the reward is when the complaints turn into “This is so awesome! Can we go down one more time?!”  

In the meantime, your children have entertained themselves with card games, chess matches, table tennis (using their phones as paddles), karaoke and tonight’s current activity of “Werewolf.” They quiz each other and solve riddles on the bus rides, talk about topics from the Latin language or the pronunciation of Yosemite, discuss movies that make them cry and ask questions regarding Mr. Mandell’s life story. Not a bad day.           

Mr. Felt  

Congratulations to our 17 students in grades 10-12 who participated in the 2023 AMIS International Honor Choir Festival in Muscat, Oman.

JFKS is the only public school in the organization, and we had the second largest contingent at the festival. In case you missed the livestream, you can watch the concert recording here. Enjoy the songs and mentioning of JFKS participants at 2:08:10!

A special thank you to Dr. Curtis for organizing the trip and preparing our students to participate in this event.

We received word from the teachers that the busses have arrived and the students are now settling into their rooms!

Check the JFKS website regularly in the next couple weeks for more updates.

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Wir haben von den Lehrern erfahren, dass die Busse angekommen sind und die Schüler nun ihre Zimmer beziehen!

Schauen Sie in den nächsten Wochen regelmäßig auf der JFKS-Website nach, um weitere Informationen zu erhalten.

Das wohl traditionsreichste Hallenhockey-Turnier für Grundschüler in Berlin fand zum 34. Mal in der Möwensee-Grundschule in Berlin Wedding statt. Wie schon das aller erste Turnier Mitte der 80iger Jahre hatte Harald Refle wieder alles perfekt organisiert. Neben seiner eigenen Möwensee-Schule waren diesmal die BIS aus Charlottenburg, die Fritz-Karsen Schule und die Grundschule am Sandsteinweg aus Neukölln sowie die Grundschule am Windmühlenberg aus Spandau und erstmals auch die JFKS am Start.

Das bunt zusammengewürfelte Team der JFKS hatte sich im Vorfeld schon bei den Berliner Grundschulmeisterschaften (dazu später mehr) und bei einem gemeinsamen Training im Old-Gym kennenlernen dürfen. Das Trainer- und Betreuerteam aus Mr. Mandel und Hr. Pörksen konnte an diesem Freitag aus dem Vollen schöpfen. Einzig Leo musste passen und so stand mit Karolina im Tor, Lasse, Mats, Konstantin und Lily in der Abwehr sowie Antonia, Carlotta, Emil, Julius, Rufus und Maxi im Sturm ein wirklich starkes Team auf dem Feld.

Das erste Spiel gegen das Team der Fritz-Karsen-Schule zeigte, was sich unsere 4.-6. Klässler an diesem Freitagvormittag vorgenommen hatten. Mit teilweise beeindruckenden Spielzügen gewannen sie 6:0. Und auch in den folgenden Spielen zeigte die Mädchen und Jungs was sie können. Die weiteren Ergebnisse lauteten 6:0, 3:0, 6:0 und 3:0. Damit standen nach fünf Spielen beeindruckende fünf zu null Siege, 24 geschossene Tore mit keinem einzigen Gegentor auf dem Konto. Der 34. Möwensee-Pokal geht damit an die JFKS. Herzlichen Glückwunsch!

Ein weiteres Highlight steht dem Hockeyteam der JFKS am 30. März bevor. Dank eines starken Auftritts zu Beginn des Jahres in der Vorrunde der Berliner Grundschulmeisterschaften, steht unser Team im Finale um den Titel. Dieses findet am Tag des Schulhockey statt, der im Rahmen von Jugend trainiert für Olympia ausgetragen wird. Gegen das Graue Kloster wünschen wir dem Team viel Spaß und Erfolg!

The March School Bulletin has been sent out to all parents via email to the addresses we have on file. If you have not received the message and attachment and would like to be added to the mailing list, please contact the secretaries at:

Today marks the last week of Black History Month. Although the month is over, we should never stop learning about black history. One month will never be enough to learn about history, let alone learn and honor Black leaders, but we encourage you all to use the rest of this month to dig into history and the present and reflect on where your own powers and privileges intersect and interlock. 

These resources are not all-inclusive and Black history is not a monolith. Below are some daily actions as well as people to follow, educational resources, and organizations to support. 

IDEAS challenges our school community to use this opportunity to learn about Black leaders in both German & American histories (including the present) to further cultivate empathy and accountability with these histories, and to participate in conversations that can make our communities more dynamic. 

JFKS IDEAS – https://linktr.ee/JFKS_IDEAS