Alpine Exploration & Alpine Challenge

Alpine Exploration (ages 13-15) and Alpine Challenge students (ages 16-19) attend academic classes in the morning and participate in group activities during the afternoon. The General Program is for students who are not in one of the specialized programs. The specialty programs join the afternoon and evening activities as well as weekend excursions whenever possible. For more information on the optional ESL, Theatre International, SAT/ACT Preparation, Outdoor Leadership Adventure or Program Assistants tracts of the program, visit the Special Programs category.

Accommodations

• Alpine Exploration and Alpine Challenge students live in separate comfortable residence halls that are organized by age, and grouped by SIS Family Groups led by faculty and staff ‘parents.’
• Boys’ and girls’ rooms are located in separate areas.
• 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.

Morning Classes

• Theatre
• Piano, Guitar and Voice
• Mathematics at different levels
• English Literature and creative writing
• Modern Languages, including French and Spanish
• Art, including drawing and painting, ceramics, arts and crafts, and photography
• Computer, and Information Technology
• SAT and TOEFL Preparation
• English-as-a-Second Language I-IV (all levels)
• World Cultures and Religions
• International Baccalaureate (IB) preparation, including IB Math Prep/Algebra 2, IB Creative Writing/Essay Skills, and IB Extended Essay Prep

Afternoon Activities

• Choice of sports, including soccer, parapenting, volleyball, tennis, basketball, floor hockey, skating, strength training, horseback riding, climbing, white-water rafting, mountain biking, ultimate Frisbee, swimming, golf, hiking, and aerobics
• Tennis lessons with a professional coach
• Free period to shop in Leysin
• Arts and crafts
• Cooking and baking

Supervised Afternoon Excursions (SIS Family groups) may include:

• Château de Chillon
• Aqua Parc
• Martigny and its world renowned Foundation Gianadda art museum
• Lausanne Olympic Museum
• Nestlé-Cailler Chocolate Factory

Evening Activities may include:

• Student theatre productions and talent shows
• Visiting guest performers
• Montreux Jazz Festival (first session only)
• Private disco party at a local nightclub
• The SIS-run Red Frog Café, with a large screen satellite TV, DVD and video, pool and foosball tables, and a snack bar

Supervised Weekend Excursions may include:

• Lausanne (Olympic Museum)
• Geneva (European seat of the United Nations)
• Bern (Capital of Switzerland with a thousand year-old medieval city center)
• Lucerne (Picturesque ancient cathedral, monasteries, and the Swiss Museum of Transport and Communications)
• Zermatt (At the foot of the Matterhorn)