The President of Iceland at Hraunvallaskóli

The President was met with warmth and friendliness.

„The most important thing is to dare to be yourself,“ said the President of Iceland, Halla Tómasdóttir, to the children in the hall when she visited Hraunvallaskóli in Völlunum, Hafnarfjörður. Year 3 welcomed Halla in the school's entrance hall. She greeted them with a heart-shaped gesture made with her fingers and then couldn't resist offering a group hug.

The children were smartly dressed, as they had postponed the Sovereignty Day celebrations and were therefore in their Sunday best when the President arrived.

Visited the school and met students

School staff and Year 10 representatives showed Halla around the school. She met children from many year groups and walked through the corridors, receiving a gift from Year 2. She then sat on a panel with pupils in the school hall, where she answered their questions and encouraged the children to watch their words, especially on social media. They had a great impact.

Halla Tómasdóttir has encouraged young people, as well as others, to become Knights of Love, and the children at Hraunvallaskóli took up her challenge. The project focuses on the mental well-being of young people in modern society, aiming to honour the memory of Bryndís Klara, who died following a stabbing attack, by making love the only weapon in Icelandic society. The project was worked on during the school's Friendship Week, and the President was then invited to see the result, which she accepted.

The President signed a friendship treaty

The students told Halla, among other things, about their friendship pact, which she also signed.

„By our signature, we, the students and staff of Hraunvallaskolinn, accept the following friendship charter:

We commit to showing everyone respect and friendship, ALWAYS!

We never use physical or mental violence.

We look out for one another and make sure that no one is excluded.

We help those who are subjected to bullying and harassment.,

Let's not stand idly by.

We help each other to make everyone feel good because it is everyone's right.

We will do our bit to ensure that courtesy prevails in our community.

and respect in all interactions.

We say NO to bullying, Yes to friendship!“

Proud of the students

Guðbjörg Norðfjörð Elíasdóttir, headteacher of Hraunvallaskóli, says the school's pupils work with the friendship pact every year, but it has now been decided to link it to the Knights of Love.

„The children and we, the staff, are very pleased with the President's visit. The children were brilliant. It was lovely how willing they were to take part in the project and how wonderful they were. It was as if they had done nothing else. These are wonderful children; it's a privilege to be among them,“ she says.

„We were, you could say, stunned after the visit. We are proud of our group here at Hraunvallaskóli. Everyone did their best. The pupils were brilliant.“