Extracurricular Activities

• Meets every Monday, 15.30-16.30, Begins: 20 January
• Cost: Free
• Interested? Contact Susanna Edixhoven s.edixhoven@eshthehague.nl

The ESH student choir performs on several occasions throughout the school year. The choir has performed at events like the Winter Concert, the joint ISH-ESH concert and participated in the International Choir Day at the British School. Their repertoire is a mixture of jazz and pop but also light classical songs. Students can choose their own songs. Motivated singers who like to rehearse singing, performance skills and listening skills are invited to join.

Susanna Edixhoven is a professional flute player who has been working as a freelance musician for more than 20 years in the Dutch orchestras; the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Residentie Orchestra, Metropole Orchestra, Radio Orchestra’s and more. She also teaches flute, plays chamber music and sings in different project choirs.

• Begins on request, frequency depends on interest
• Cost: TBC
• Interested? Contact Contact Iris Fetter: fetter.iris@gmail.com

Secondary students of any age or skill level are welcome to participate in vocal coaching. Every voice is different. During the singing lessons we will pay attention to vocal techniques and exercises, range, building confidence and most importantly, how to sing in a relaxed and fun way. Lessons will be adjusted to your preference and goals.

• Meets every Tuesday, 16.00-17.00, Begins: 13 January
• Cost: Free
• Interested? Contact Ilein Bermudez i.bermudez@eshthehague.nl

Secondary students are invited to join the orchestra if you want to play with the most motivated musicians of the school and work on your ensemble skills. The orchestra performs at various school events throughout the school year.

• Begins: On request. Frequency: To be arranged with Alba.
• Cost: Individuals €20 / 30 minutes. Groups €12 / 60 minutes. It is possible to rent a violin for €16 / month
• Interested? Contact Alba Conejo Mangas albaconejomangas@gmail.com

The study of an instrument can contribute to the acquisition of habits in individual study, improving attention, language and memory. There is also a psychosocial benefit in musical practice, fighting stress and generating a feeling of satisfaction. The meaning of this course is the use of different technical and musical resources, expanding the capacity for expression and personal autonomy. With this subject the student will experience the approach to classical music by learning the violin. Secondary students of any age or ability are welcome to take violin lessons. If you want to learn with your friends, group lessons are also possible. In groups of 6-12 students, you can have a 1 hour lesson, once a week. Group lessons will be taught by Alba and her sister Angela.

“Teaching is one of my passions, I really enjoy doing it, sharing important values which everybody can apply daily; I offer you hard work, responsibility, love for what I do, respect, empathy.... Come and join, you will love the violin!” - Alba Conejo Mangas

• Begins: On request. Frequency: To be arranged with Harry (Mon, Tues, Wed)
• Cost: €25 / 30 minutes, €35 / 45 minutes, €45 / 60 minutes
• Interested? Contact Harry Cherrin harrycherrin@hotmail.com

Saxophone lessons focus on developing instrumental technique and musical expression, exploring a variety of musical styles, and can also focus other aspects such as improvisation, composition, and theory. Secondary students of any age or ability are welcome to take saxophone lessons.

Harry Cherrin is an American saxophone player based in the Netherlands since 2006. He is currently baritone saxophonist of the acclaimed Amstel Quartet, with whom he has toured Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, along with performing in some of the Netherlands renowned concert halls such as Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw and Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ, and Tivoli Vredenburg Utrecht. Although classically trained at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Harry’s other musical projects have also included jazz, rock, pop music, musical theatre, improvisation, and electronics.

• Begins: On request. Frequency: To be arranged with Rene (Mon-Fri)
• Cost: €25 / 30 minutes, €35 / 45 minutes; €45 / 60 minutes
• Interested? Contact Rene Sommer renesommermusic@gmail.com

Brass instrument lessons: Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Cornet, Trombone, Baritone, French Horn or Tuba. Secondary students of any age or ability are welcome to take brass lessons.

René Sommer studied at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague with Jarmo Hoogendijk, Eric Vloeimans, Beatrijs Korevaer and Gertjan Loot, and at the Fontys Conservatory with Martijn de Laat, Toon de Gouw and Willem van der Vliet. René has played with the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw (featuring Benny Golson and Jimmy Heath); Denmark’s Tiptoe Bigband, DJ Maestro, Jon Tarifa, Jayh Jawson, Afro Bros, the Big Band, The Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts, Southern Denmark (AMDA) and the Royal Conservatory Big Band of The Hague (featuring Branford Marsalis, Bert Joris, Jim McNeely, Peter Erskine, Ack van Rooyen and others). René currently works as a brass teacher, producer and live and recording artist.

• Begins: On request. Frequency: To be arranged with Rani (Wed/ Thurs)
• Cost: €25 / 30 minutes, €35 / 45 minutes, €45 / 60 minutes
• Interested? Contact Rani Heymann 0645 740 980 ranihey@yahoo.com

The lessons are given individually in a relaxed and positive atmosphere, the emphasis is on the student’s individual progress and needs. In their lessons the students learns how to produce a beautiful tone and general clarinet technique as well as playing various music styles. Secondary students of any age or ability are welcome to take clarinet lessons.

Rani Heymann is a professional clarinet player and a clarinet teacher. Rani has been teaching since the year 1990. His teaching experience includes individual clarinet lessons, chamber music and ensemble instruction. Rani performs a variety of styles, ranging from classical to contemporary. He performed in Europe, Brazil, the USA, and Israel. Rani performs frequently with various chamber music ensembles and continually works with his brother - the pianist Uzi Heymann. Together they perform the mainstream clarinet repertoire, and collaborate with various musicians in chamber music recitals.

• Begins: On request. Frequency: Series of 10 lessons to be arranged with Jean-Clair
• Cost: 10x30min: €250, 10x45min: €379, 10x60min: €487
• Interested? Contact: www.jeanclairderuwe.nl

Lessons are mostly designed on developing, technique, sight reading, coordination, recognize styles and applying that to the drums, or snare drum playing. For more advanced players who are interested in jazz drumming. The focus might be on analyses on vocabulary of the masters of jazz drumming. My lessons are suitable for every level, from beginner to advanced and for all ages. It is my task to help you find your talent and to develop it without losing the pleasure of playing the instrument. My lessons are in Dutch or English.

Drummer Jean-Clair de Ruwe took his first drum lessons when he was 10 years old and played in a local marching band. In his early teens he began to practice seriously and he played in several orchestras. Jean-Clair shared the stage with: Roy Hargrove, Joe Cohn, Charles McPherson, John Marshall, Howard Alden, Philip Harper, Bert Joris, And orchestral collaborations: Millenium Jazz Orchestra, Jazz Art Orchestra, JWF Johan Willem Friso Kapel JWF (Army orchestra).

• Begins: On request. Frequency: To be arranged with Willem, (Mon-Fri)
• Cost: €35 / 45 mins, €50 / 60 mins. You pay for my time, so if you want to play with a friend, or rehearse as a band, you can all attend and split the cost.
• Interested? Contact: Willem Niehorster willemniehorster@icloud.com

I first teach my pupils the most important guitar chords, the basic scales and the proper technique to be able to play better. A beginner is able to play some songs after a few months. I also like teaching them songs they want to learn, that way they’ll be more interested in learning. I also recommend playing in a band or with other persons. That way you can learn how to play together and listen to what the others are doing. I have been coaching bands for many years, something I really like doing and a good way to keep pupils interested in music. I can teach electric and acoustic guitar in English, Spanish, Dutch or Italian. The level of my pupils varies a lot, from beginners to advanced.

Willem Niehorster was born in Mexico City, his father was Dutch, his mother German. He went to USA to study music for five years. In 1986, he came to Holland to study at the Royal Dutch Academy of Fine and Applied Arts here in The Hague. He has been teaching guitar and bass guitar since 1988.

• Meets every Wednesday, 16.00-17.00
• Cost: 7-12 students: €75 per period/per student. More than 12 students: €50 per period/per student.
• Interested? Contact: Jose Cervera, 0638486682, josesax95@gmail.com

A weekly lesson of one hour where you will have the chance to play music based on the jazz tradition, other improvised music, etc. The project is led by saxophonist Jose Cervera, who will personally arrange and prepare the music according to the band characteristics. Students who already have some experience playing instruments will experience the opportunity of playing in a big group/band and learn both about playing arrangements together (sight reading, rehearsal routines, music theory, etc.) and improvisation.

Jose Cervera started music lessons at the age of 7 and saxophone lessons at the age of 10 in the music school of his hometown. At the age of 13, he started his studies on classical saxophone in the Conservatory of Lliria (Valencia) with the teacher Jose Vte. Catalá and the Conservatory of Velluters(Valencia) with the teacher Angel Gimeno. On 2014, he started his jazz studies in Sedajazz with the teachers Joan Benavent, Alexey Leon and Francisco Blanco “Latino”. Graduated in Jazz Saxophone in the Conservatory of the Hague in 2019 with the teachers John Ruocco, Rolf Delfos and Toon Roos. He’s currently studying the master in Jazz Saxophone at the Amsterdam Conservatory.

• Advanced lessons meet Tuesdays 15.30-16.30, beginners meet Wednesdays 15.30-16.30. Minimum 5, maximum 15 students per class
• Cost: €15 per lesson. Materials: Everybody will receive a professional deck of playing cards, some rubber-bands and a wealth of knowledge about the Art of Magic
• Interested? Contact Aljaž Šon http://aljazson.com

Studying the Art of Magic teaches us a lot of different skills. Problem solving, basics of psychology, tackling motor skills at a high level, public speaking and presentation, acting, hand eye co-ordination, focus, persistence in achieving the desired outcome and many more. In the Magic Club we’ll be learning and studying the basics of Magic, which includes prestidigitation (sleight of hand), mentalism (tricks of the mind), gimmick AND gaff magic. We will also take time to briefly learn about the history, psychology and different types/genres of Magic such as Close-Up, Mentalism, Comedy Magic, Parlor Magic, Stage Magic, etc.

Aljaž Šon is a world renowned Magic performer, creator and author with over 10 years of professional experience. In August 2011 Coin On Call his first original magic routine, was published in MAGIC Magazine ́s Talk About Tricks column, written by Joshua Jay. In the same month, he moved to Holland with his wife and two sons. He has published some more tricks in other magic publications and released one commercial release with Penguin Magic P3 Productions. For the last 3 years he’s been performing as the resident Close-Up and Parlour Magician of Amsterdam Magic Show. While regularly performing Close-Up and Parlour Magic, he is also busy inventing and perfecting his own tricks, routines and techniques, mostly for Close-Up Sleight of Hand Magic, which he shares at his lecture for magicians either for magic conventions or magic clubs around the world.

• Begins Monday 2 March. Meets every Monday 16.30-17.30
• Cost: €12.50 per lesson. Materials: A camera is required to participate (DSLR, point and shoot or a smartphone)
• Interested? Contact photography teacher Anne-Laure Autin annelaure@annelaureautin.com

At first we will work towards helping you choose what interests you for your portfolio building. Maybe you want to take nature photographs, or a fashion book using your friends as models, or a street photography series, or even some conceptual work on a current issue that you’re passionate about. In between classes, you will go out and shoot your own photographs, your own ideas, and you will work on them. We will then share together what you all achieved that week. I will provide technical guidance where appropriate, on your image taking skills, on your editing style (photoshop and alike) or on how successful you are at translating your ideas. I will recommend artists you could look up and be inspired by. You will also learn from the feedback other students might have, and from the feedback they get. The group is kept to a small size so that each of you gets individual attention. As time passes, you will have more and more photographs you are happy with. We will then look more into editing and curating - choosing what photographs belong together in a portfolio, and knowing which ones not to include. This won’t be a group where you sit and listen passively, it will be a place where you can ask for guidance and be inspired - the idea is for you to be active participants.

• Begins Wednesday 15 January, meets every Wednesday 16.00-16.45
• Cost: Price of materials to be confirmed
• Interested? Contact Nicolet Teunissen n.teunissen@eshthehague.nl

The Art department is very happy to announce the second semester of the Art Passion Club! In the Art Passion Club students are offered the opportunity to get acquainted with materials and techniques they do not have space for in the official curriculum.

You can expect fun activities such as: painting with oil paint, etching and engraving, knitting and sewing, lithography, monotype printing, mixed media, and new media techniques (in cooperation with the ICT teacher if possible). So if you want to explore your artistic talents further, sign up for this fun club with your Art teacher. The Art Passion Club will come together once every week. The exact time will be discussed with the participants. Costs (for materials) will of course be communicated in advance.

• Begins Tuesday 14 January, meets every Tuesday 16.00-17.00
• Cost: €15 per lesson
• Interested? Contact Maria, dian_tre@yahoo.fr

This course is not about being the next Hollywood star. It is about having fun, making friends, expanding our cultural awareness, increasing confidence, developing creativity, improving communication and growing tons of other skills in an active and open manner. During this course you will be encouraged to be curious, honest, present, inquisitive and funny (or not!). Through improv exercises we will get to know each other and free up our minds so as to be more creative with choices and instincts. We will at a later stage and at our own pace focus on scripted drama techniques, such as emotional connection, character work or script interpretation. At the end of the course, we shall proudly raise the curtain on the result of our adventures and discoveries. Break a leg! No experience necessary.

• Begins on request
• Cost: free
• Interested? Contact Katja Sečen k.secen@eshthehague.nl

I am Katja Sečen, a professor of Slovenian language and literature. I work as Slovene teacher at both European Schools of the Netherlands. My whole life I've been in love with dance, literature and language and therefore the stage was where I felt at home since my early age. While dancing my whole life, I also directed, corrected and wrote some dramas, as well as hosted and (co)organized many events. During my studies at University of Ljubljana I deepened my literature knowledge in all fields, including Dramatics. During my internship at Gymnasium Brežice I co-mentored a Drama Club which I later took over for the next two years. I worked with the pupils and during three years of our collaboration we have had some successful school performances that were also performed outside the school. After that I moved to the Netherlands where I want to continue mentoring pupils and directing the drama performances. I would like to combine my theoretical knowledge that I gained during my literature studies, with experiences in drama, dance and cabaret. I was also a part of the Croatian movie industry scene for three summers as a VIP member of Pula Film Festival, where I connected with the professionals and learned a lot from them. I am looking forward to creating a wonderful school play together with the S5-S7 pupils of the ESH!

• Begins Friday 10 January, meets every second Friday 15.15-16.30
• Cost: free
• Interested? Contact Raquel Ruiz-Cecconello r.ruizcecconello@eshthehague.nl

Find a space to talk about books, your favorite fiction characters, fantasy worlds... As a group, we will read something at the same time and then we will meet regularly to discuss about it. It can be a book, a short story, an article, anything interesting to read! Members can make suggestions for books to read in the next session and prepare small presentations about them. Find other students who share the same love for reading and discover new books and stories in a fun way. All language sections welcome!

• Meets once a month on a Thursday afternoon, 16.00-17.00
• Cost: free
• Interested? Contact Alice Eekman a.eekman@eshthehague.nl

At the end of each year the school creates a yearbook, full of photos and reflections from all of the activities completed over the year. Yearbooks are a great memento from your years in Secondary school, and we want your help to create the next one. We are looking for students who are interested in writing about their trips and school activities, taking photos of school events and helping to design the pages.

• Meets every second Thursday, 16.00-17.00
• Cost: free
• Interested? Contact the ESH Today editing team eshtodaynews@gmail.com

The students at ESH have created a student newspaper called ESH Today, and are looking for contributors. Passionate about something? Write an article. Love photography? Submit your photographs. Created some artwork? Share it with us. All content, design and editing decisions are made by the students. The students have the freedom to decide which topics their articles cover and which languages they write in. Students are invited to join the editing team meetings, or email their contributions in.

Green Club ESH is a student-run initiative, aiming to go down a path of eco-friendly sustainability and recycling for our school. Led by 9 highly-motivated students, this ambitious project has the potential to transform our school environment, and stimulate a cultural change at the school. The club has already created a website and released a survey for staff and students to gather feedback and ideas on what actions can be taken to achieve their goal. Contact the student members in the club to see how you can get involved. https://clubgreenesh.com/

• Meets every Thursday, 15.30-16.30
• Cost: Free
• Interested? Contact Aggeliki Karsinou a.karsinou@eshthehague.nl, and Sofia Iakovidou s.iakovidou@eshthehague.nl

This year we offer the opportunity to apply your Science/technical, Maths and ICT skills in a team to research and find solutions to real-world problems, such as food safety, recycling and energy. Your team will also design and program a robot that is supposed to solve a set of missions. It all adds up to tons of fun while you learn to apply science, technology, engineering, and math concepts, plus a big dose of imagination, to solve a problem. Moreover, our aim is to participate every year in the First Lego League which is the most accessible global robotics competition.

Are you a student in S1, S2, S3? Do you like to use your imagination and creativity in Sciences? Do you want to further develop your soft-skills such as teamwork? Do you want to work in a team to develop a solution to a real-world problem? Do you think you would enjoy designing, building and programming a robot using LEGO MIND STORMS technology?

• Meets every Wednesday 15.30-16.30, begins Wednesday 15 January
• Cost: Free. Places limited to 10 students. Runs for 10 weeks.
• Interested? Contact Christien Brouwer c.brouwer@eshthehague.nl

How can nature help us to survive in the future? And how can we help nature survive in the future? We could build an insect hotel and think about the function of insects in the school environment. We could measure the water quality of the ditch around the school by catching water organisms that indicate for quality. We could even experiment with growing plants under different circumstances. We could also pay attention to the rubbish that is left behind in nature: how long does it take before it is decomposed? In this club we will combine fun with scientific skills and knowledge. S1 and S2 students who are interested in science and the environment are invited to sign up. Participants should wear boots, trousers and shirts with long sleeves for our outdoor experiments.

• Teams meet every Wednesday (girls S3-S7) and Thursday (boys), 16.00-17.00
• Cost: Free
• Interested? Contact Stephen Osborne s.osborne@eshthehague.nl

Love football? We are looking for students who want to participate in football training. We can conduct regular training sessions, focused on developing skills and improving technique, with the aim of building strong ESH teams who can play competitively. Boys and girls of all skill levels are welcome to participate, and we’ll train in groups S1-S3 and S4-S7.

The aim of this course is to help you to learn strategies to cope with any fear of failure you may experience so that it doesn’t stop you from doing things that you would like to do. In the 7 sessions of this course, you’re going to learn how to be the boss of your nerves.

When you are at school, a restaurant, or a party, do you worry that people might think something you do is stupid or dumb? Do you think that people might laugh at you? Do you worry that you might do something that will make you feel ashamed or embarrassed? Being concerned about being observed by others and negatively judged is normal for teenagers. Mostly everybody has experiences feeling nervous, scared, panicky, insecure, embarrassed, or ashamed in social or performance situations. This course will help you learn to handle awkward social situations with grace and confidence, so you can make real connections with people you want to get to know.

Losing someone important to you is one of the hardest things to experience in life. If you’re young, bereavement can be even more difficult. But support and advice are available to help you get through it. Your teenage years can be a lot of fun, but they are also often an emotional time. If someone close to you dies, your parents are getting a divorce, or someone you love leaves, it can be incredibly hard. Your world may feel as though it has crashed around you. It can make you feel very alone, especially as a young person, because you might find that none of your friends have gone through anything similar and won’t understand or know what to say. There are several things that can help you start to feel better. Looking after your health and talking to someone will help you get through this difficult time. This course will help you understand that you are not alone, many other experience the same feelings that you have. Through talking to each other and sharing what you are going through, will help you to go further

Previously known as the Gay-Straight Alliance, the GSA is a student-led group focused on promoting equality for sexual and gender minority students. They help create a safe, caring and inclusive space for all students. Together with others in the school they work to strengthen a healthy, respectful environment to prevent or eliminate bullying and discrimination. Since ESH currently has no GSA, we are going to start with this initiative to launch one. Our GSA would help LGBTQ+ students overcome feelings of isolation and alienation that are the result of homophobic or transphobic behavior. The GSA is comprised of students who feel strongly about equality, regardless of their own orientation. We look forward to meeting you there!