In mid-March, I had the opportunity to travel with Paul to Sofia to get a head start on the planning and networking required for the Athletics and Activities at IICS. The meetings were productive and involved a lot of discussion regarding the appropriateness of home stays and giving choice in terms of competition and sites for CEESA tournaments. It was also a great opportunity to get to know some of our Turkish counterparts in Ankara (BLIS) to start planning on how we can collaborate more with them and others in our host country as a way to have more competitions and experiences for our students.   Afterward, the conference itself also offered a range of workshops related to coaching and advising. Specifically, Lynn Kachmarik ran sessions that got at the heart of what we teach in our co-curriculars: resiliency and grit. While her workshops were focused on athletics, her ideas were easily translatable to the classroom and any competitive environment. The focus on holistic teaching and learning, or how to instil the values of hard-work, humility, and teamwork (not just athletic skills!) addressed a lot of what we’re trying to do at IICS. It was easy to make connections to how all of this fits with our Approaches to Learning and Learner Profile as an IB school.