12 December 2014 | ISSUE 15

Dates for your diary

IN THIS ISSUE

From: Page

Headteacher 2

MP1 Christmas Production 3

F3 Christmas Production 4

MP3 Speech Competition 5

Music Department 6

Community Service Department 7-8

PSHE - Getting on and Falling out 9

Student Council’s 10

Meet the AP1 Staff 11

Fundinotots - BIS Baby and Toddler Group 12

Lunch Menus 13-14

Contact information

225 Nguyen Van Huong St, District 2, HCMC

Tel: (848) 3744 4551

Fax: (848) 3744 4182

E-mail:

simonhigham@bisvietnam.com

BRITISH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL - HO CHI MINH CITY

AN PHU PRIMARY

Newsletter

14th Community Football Tournament

15th CHQ Term 2 Sign up begins (5.00pm)

16th Christmas Carol Concert (6.00pm)

18th EYFS Skype with Santa

18th Pre FOBISIA Meeting (4.00pm Gym)

19th CHQ Term 2 Sign up ends (12.00pm)

19th Term 1 Ends - 11.30am

From The Headteacher - Mr Simon Higham

Issue 15/Page 2

Scan here to access the

‘AP1 Parent Blog’

AP1 Parent Blog http://ap1parentblog.blogspot.com/

Do you use social media to keep in touch with friends, family and the community?

Why not keep in touch with school events by „liking‟ or

„following‟ BIS on Facebook and Twitter.

Click on the link to the Social Media page

on the AP1 Primary Parent Blog to find out more.

Once again, it has been a very busy week at An Phu Primary Campus, with the focus up-

on challenging children‟s learning and allowing all pupils to gain experiences that they

will find hard to forget.

Thank you to all of the parents who attended the CHQ workshop, in preparation for the

Term 2 club sign up that begins on Monday 15th December. Please be reminded that the

new club booklet can be accessed here and all key dates and information are available on

the introductory letter that was sent to all parents at the end of last month.

Please note that Term 2 clubs will now be allocated randomly by CHQ and not

on a first come, first served basis as in previous sign ups. This allows all club

preferences to be made at any time during the sign up next week.

Well done to all of our F3 children for their sparkling performances in the production „The Snowman at Sunset‟,

and further congratulations to all of our Year 1 and Year 2 children for their fantastic performances in ‟Bertie‟s

Christmas Play‟ this week. For children of such a young age, it was a pleasure seeing their confidence on stage

and overall enjoyment of being part of such special events. More details of these productions can be found on

pages 3 and 4 in today's newsletter.

Congratulations also to the 11 Year 5 and Year 6 finalists that took part in the Milepost 3 Speech Contest on

Thursday. With topics ranging from „Homework‟ to „Minecraft‟, „Rhinos to „Gender Equality‟, the articulation of

these children was a delight to witness. I am certain that there was a future Churchill, Malala or Madela on

the stage that evening. More details of the Speech Contest and the winners can be found on Page 5.

I look forward to welcoming children from

our community partners to school this Sun-

day for the Community Football Tourna-

ment and the timing of this coincides with a

very significant event in history. BIS, in con-

junction with the British Consulate, are sup-

porting a project being run between the Eng-

lish Premier League, the UK Football Asso-

ciation and the British Council called

‘Football Remembers Week’. The aim of

this project is to engage football fans to pay

tribute to what took place in Flanders on

Christmas Day 1914. The Christmas Truce

was a spontaneous ceasefire between those

soldiers fighting on the Western Front in 1914. They met in „no man‟s land‟, buried their dead, sang carols and

exchanged gifts. Some even played football.

From 6-14 December, players at every level of football – from Premier League to primary schools, are invited to

play a match as part of „Football Remembers’ and to take part in a photo tribute. The Community Football

Tournament has been chosen to represent this tribute. We are very honoured to have Mr Douglas Barnes, HM

Consul General HCMC attend and present a plaque to BIS to commemorate the event.

For more information on this initiative please visit:

https://schoolsonline.britishcouncil.org/classroom-resources/football-remembers

Good luck to all of our swimmers that are representing BIS in the International „Feeding Frenzy‟ Swim meet in

Bangkok this weekend - I am looking forward to hearing about all of their achievements next week.

I hope that you enjoy reading through the many articles in this week‟s newsletter. Have a great weekend.

Issue 15/Page 3

MP1 Christmas Production - Bertie’s Christmas Play

The children of Milepost 1 put on a grand performance this holiday season in the stage production of “Bertie‟s

Christmas Play.” Bertie is a dinosaur whose only Christmas wish is to have a part in his school nativity play.

He is cheered on by his friends and family around the world, who chat with him via Skype from places like Ha-

waii, China, Egypt, and Norway. They send their support and encouragement to Bertie as he tries over and

over again to win a role in the show. But try as he might, Bertie just can‟t get it right.

Bertie the dinosaur auditions for such roles as an angel, a shepherd, a wise man, and even a sheep but each

time the part goes to someone else. Bertie perseveres, and finally, when he tries for the role of „star‟… he gets

the part!

Milepost 1 students showed off their singing and dancing skills in an impressive production that put everyone

in the holiday spirit! The festive show was enjoyed by parents, all BIS students, and the Year 1 and Year 2

Community Partners from Thien Phuc Home and Anh Minh School. Well done, boys and girls! You are all

stars!

Ms Samantha Baker

EAL Teacher & Community Service Leader

F3 Christmas Production - Snowman at Sunset The children in F3 put on a fantastic performance today in their Christmas production of a 'Snowman at Sun-

set'. They all looked fantastic in their costumes and sung their hearts out whilst remembering to do their ac-

tions at the same time! We all felt very festive at the end of it and I'm sure you did too. Thank you again for

coming to support your children.

Ms Louise Swift

F3 Teacher and Assistant Milepost Leader

Issue 15/Page 4

MP3 Speech Competition

Issue 15/Page 5

Last night saw the culmination of several weeks

work on writing and delivering speeches in Year 5

and 6. The 11 finalists competed against one

another in an unbelievably exciting finale. Every

child delivered their speeches confidently and the

amount of time spent on them was evident.

The judges had a very difficult job to choose the

winners. In the end Chaiti from 6N was awarded

first place, Matthew from 5V came second and Jung

Min from 6H came third (see right).

Well done to everyone in MP3 for researching,

writing and delivering your own speeches.

Ms Deborah Spencer

Y5 Teacher and Assistant Milepost Leader

Our finalists

Nitika Gupta (5I)

Rosie Battersby (5B)

Jung Min Oh (6H)

Gemma Handscombe (6S)

Nini Pham (5S)

Jonathan Brownrigg (6B)

Naomi Martin (6V)

Matthew Grimshaw (5V)

Sam Johnston (6I)

Haley Nguyen (5N)

Chaiti Maheshwari (6N)

Issue 15/Page 6

Christmas Concert

Issue 15/Page 7

Community Service Department - Clubs

Sign-up for Extra Curricular Activities starts on Monday, and there are some very ex-

citing Community Service Clubs on offer for Term 2. These clubs are a great way to get

involved with the community through making new friends from local schools, trying

new activities, and sharing experiences with other children. You can even make an

impact on the environment!

Club

Day

Year Group

Teacher

Helping Hands with Thien Phuoc

Foster Home

Monday

Years 4-6

Ms Aoife

Ms Louise Short

Community Chess for Begin-

ners with Binh Trieu School

Monday

Years 4-6

Mr David

Community Lego Club with

Binh Trieu School

Monday

Years 2-6

Ms Andrea Dix

Working Together Playing To-

gether Learning Together with

Binh Trieu School

Monday

Years 2-6

Ms Louise Swift

Swimming with Binh Trieu

School

Monday

Years 1-2

Mr Vinh

Mr Triet

Creative Computing with Binh

Trieu School

Wednesday

Years 2-4

Mr Paul

Friendship Club with Binh Tho

School

Thursday

Years 1-3

Ms Melanie

Games Club with Mai Am Shelter

Thursday

Years 5-6

Ms Georgina

Ms Lisa

Keen to be Green with Binh Tho

School

Thursday

Years 4-6

Ms Rachel

Favourite Stories, Favourite

Crafts with Binh Tho School

Thursday

Years 1-3

Ms Samantha

Stretch and Relax with Binh

Tho School

Thursday

Years 4-6

Ms Sahita

Messy Art with Binh Tho School

Thursday

Years 2-4

Ms Charlie

See you there!

Ms Samantha Baker

EAL Teacher and Community Service Leader

Community Service Clubs for Term 2

Did you know that Community Service Clubs are in addition to your free club allocation? That means that

even after your allocation of free clubs, you can ADD a Community Service Club as a extra - every Community

Service Club is FREE!

Take a look at the clubs that are offered for your Year Group, and sign up on CHQ:

Community Service - Football Tournament

Issue 15/Page 8

Getting on and Falling out

Issue 15/Page 9

Social and Emotional Aspects

of Learning (SEAL)

The theme for this half-term‟s work on developing

children‟s social, emotional and behavioural skills has been

‘Getting On and Falling Out’.

Over this half term, the children‟s learning has been

focused on developing the social skills of friendship, working

well with others, managing anger and

resolving conflict.

After the holidays the whole school theme will be

‘Going for Goals’

Family Talk Time

All families have times when they get along together and times

when they tend to fall out. Sometimes we find it hard to make

up or even talk about it. Here are some questions to talk about:

When are the times that you get along best?

When are the times that you fall out the most?

What can you do at the times you fall out most to make every-

one feel better?

(PSHE - Personal, Social, Health Education)

Ms Georgina Cochrane

Year 6 Teacher and PSHE Leader

Student Council - Term 1 Update

Issue 15/Page 10

Words from the Student Council

We have had SO much going on this term! Our first BIG event was Non-Teacher‟s day. We wanted to show our

appreciation to the cleaners, guards, canteen and maintenance staff. So the day after Teachers Day, the Stu-

dent Council organised our very first „CGCM‟ Day, which is short for, cleaners, guards, canteen and mainte-

nance. MP3 children designed special BIS cards that were especially created for the event. The Student Council

also served the staff their lunch and some „Chè‟, a Vietnamese treat to show our appreciation for all that they

do. The staff were overjoyed and putting a smile on someone‟s face really is priceless.

The next major event was our first

ever cross campus Student Council

meeting. The Student Councils from

AP1, BISV and TX campuses met at

TX to discuss and exchange ideas.

We first had some team building ac-

tivities. One of my favourites was the

toilet paper game! We then presented

what we had done at AP1 and had a

delicious lunch that included ba-

guettes, bananas and muffins. Over-

all, we had a great time!

Whilst these are just the big events,

we certainly worked hard over this

term. We made some small adjust-

ments to the lunch menus, such as

adding vegetables to the Deli Bar to

encourage healthy eating and adding

some large things to our lunch, such

as bringing back the pork burger.

We have many more ideas for the

upcoming terms. I can say, I thor-

oughly enjoy my job of being the Stu-

dent Council President!

Chaiti Maheshwari

6N Student and President of the Stu-

dent Council

Issue 15/Page 11

I'm a going back to England

this Christmas to spend the hol-

iday with my family. It has

been a whole year since I was

last there so I cannot wait to

see them all again! I am really

looking forward to being cold

and having to wear a coat, hat

and gloves when I leave the

house. It will also be amazing to

eat some of my mum‟s cooking

again!

Anna Coy

Assistant Mile Post One Leader

My family are going back to London for Christmas. I

cannot wait to show my baby daughter the Christ-

mas lights in Oxford Street and the Winter Wonder-

land in Hyde Park. The best part will be going to

Hamleys which is one of the biggest toy shops in the

world ! I am looking forward to eating mince pies

and drinking hot chocolate .

Graham Tait, Year 2 Teacher

Simon Higham

Head Teacher

It won‟t sound at all exciting to anyone else

but I will be flying back to England to spend

Christmas with my family and close friends.

I will be based at my Dad‟s in Staffordshire

but as usual, I will be rather nomadic during

my time there. My son has a new home

which I am excited to visit and my daughter

is getting married in July so she has a num-

ber of appointments and activities planned

for me, which will no doubt keep me busy. I

am treating myself to a few quiet days on the

beach in Cambodia before returning to Ho

Chi Minh City and school.

I am heading back home to England this Christ-

mas. I cannot wait to see all my friends and fami-

ly, but I am particularly excited to meet my

niece, Harriet, who is now 6 weeks old! I am also

looking forward to the frosty (most likely rainy)

weather, wrapping up warm and sitting by a fire.

We always go for a long walk on Christmas day

with all the family, including the dogs, which

helps to burn off some of the turkey and mince

pies!

Lara Wilkinson

PE Teacher

Here are some more snippits of what our teachers are up to for the holidays. It is lovely to hear the excite-

ment of everyone about their plans. Whoever said Christmas is just for children is sorely mistaken. Christ-

mas is definitely for the grown ups too! We hope that all the families from BIS have a wonderful Christmas

whether you are travelling or staying closer to home.

Deirdre Grimshaw

Deputy Headteacher

I love the spirit of Christmas and I‟m very much

looking forward to spending Christmas Day in Vi-

etnam with my family. Although I love to travel

and sample the delights of different countries and

cultures, I also like spending time here, in Ho Chi

Minh City. The turkey will be on the table, with all

the trimmings (brussel sprouts included) and I will

enjoy eating the Christmas pudding that we forgot

about last year!

Just after school finishes for the holiday, my family

and I will be setting off for a few days in Singapore,

to pick up those last minute treats. Maybe I‟ll see

some of you there! Merry Christmas!

Paula Phipps

Year 1 Teacher

Holiday Destinations - Where Are They Going?

Having moved house to D9 during the

Summer, we are really looking forward

to spending Christmas in our new home.

At 2 year old, my son Oliver is increas-

ingly aware of Christmas and has grow-

ing expectations that a man called

„Farmer Christmas‟ is going to be bring-

ing him lots of toy cars and trucks. The

sound of Jingle Bells from his bedroom

at 5am every morning has certainly re-

placed the need for an alarm clock!

Andy James

Year 5 Teacher

Fundinotots Programme

Issue 15/Page 12

Enrolments for Term 2 Fundinotots are now being received. For more information about our BIS Baby and

Toddler Group, please contact our Main Office. We‟re looking forward to meeting you very soon.

Sarah Bonner

Fundinotots Leader

Issue 15/Page 13

MENU FOR F1 - F2 MENU 1 (WEEK BEGINNING 15 DECEMBER)

DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

MAIN

COURSE CHOOSE 1

Honey Lime Chicken, Sautéed

Potato OR

Braised Tofu with Pork, Rice

Cottage Pie-Beef OR

Chicken & Vegeta-ble Curry, Rice

Pasta with Pork Balls OR

Fish Teriyaki, Rice

Roast Pork, Mashed Potato

OR Chicken Noodle

Soup

Fish Goujons, Potato Wedges

OR Minced Beef & Vegeta-

ble Stew, Rice

VEGETA-

BLES

Choy sum & Car-

rots

Chinese Cabbage

& Carrots

Spinach

Long Beans &

Carrots

Morning Glory

SOUP

Spinach & Melon

Soup

Watercress

Mixed Vegeta-

ble

Spinach

Cabbage & Carrot

FOR VEG-ETARIAN

ONLY

Dhal

Spinach & Melon Soup

Vegetarian Cottage Pie

Chinese Cabbage & Carrots

Pasta Napoli-tana

Chickpeas Salad

Vegetarian Noo-dle Soup

Long Beans & Carrots

Tofu & Vegetable Stew, Rice

Cabbage & Carrot Soup

MENU FOR F3 - YEAR 2 MENU 1 (WEEK BEGINNING 15 DECEMBER)

DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

MAIN COURSE

CHOOSE 1

Honey Lime Chicken, Sau-téed Potato

OR Braised Tofu

with Pork, Rice

Cottage Pie-Beef OR

Chicken & Vege-table Curry, Rice

Pasta with Pork Balls OR

Fish Teriyaki, Rice

Roast Pork, Mashed Potato

OR Chicken Noodle

Soup

Fish Goujons, Potato Wedges

OR Minced Beef &

Vegetable Stew, Rice

VEGETABLES

Choy sum &

Carrots

Chinese Cabbage

& Carrots

Spinach

Long Beans & Car-

rots

Morning Glory

SOUP

Spinach & Mel-

on

Watercress Mixed Vegetable Spinach Cabbage & Car-

rot

FOR VEGETARI-AN ONLY

Dhal

Spinach & Mel-on Soup

Vegetarian Cottage Pie

Chinese Cabbage & Carrots

Pasta Napolitana Chickpeas Salad

Vegetarian Noo-dle Soup

Long Bean & Car-rot

Tofu & Vegeta-ble Stew, Rice

Cabbage & Car-rot Soup

DELI BAR OPTION

Bun filled with Ham

& cheese Served with

Salad

Jacket Potato filled with Baked

Beans & Bacon Served with Salad

Bun filled with cheese

& egg Served with Salad

Jacket Potato filled with Bolo-

gnese Sauce Served with Salad

Bun filled with

Chicken & may-onnaise,

Served with Sal-ad

Fresh Fruits & Salad Bar are available daily

Issue 15/Page 14

MENU FOR YEAR 3 - YEAR 6 MENU 1 (WEEK BEGINNING 15 DECEMBER)

DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

MAIN COURSE

CHOOSE 1

Honey Lime Chick-en, Sautéed Potato

OR Braised Tofu with

Pork, Rice

Cottage Pie-Beef OR

Chicken & Vege-table Curry, Rice

Pasta with Pork Balls OR

Fish Teriyaki, Rice

Roast Pork, Mashed Potato

OR Chicken Noodle

Soup

Fish Goujons, Po-tato Wedges

OR Minced Beef &

Vegetable Stew, Rice

VEGETABLES

Choy sum & Car-rots

Chinese Cabbage & Carrots

Spinach Long Beans & Car-

rots

Morning Glory

SOUP

Spinach & Melon

Watercress

Mixed Vegetable

Spinach

Cabbage & Carrot

FOR VEGE-TARIAN ON-

LY

Dhal

Spinach & Melon Soup

Vegetarian Cottage Pie

Chinese Cabbage & Carrots

Pasta Napolitana Chickpeas Salad

Vegetarian Noo-dle Soup

Long Beans & Car-rots

Tofu & Vegetable Stew, Rice

Cabbage & Carrot Soup

DELI BAR OPTION

Baguette/Jacket Potato

fill with ham, chick-en, cheese, egg,

tuna mayonnaise, baked beans, peas & bolognese sauce Served with Salad

Bun/Jacket Potato filled with ham, chicken, cheese,

egg, tuna mayon-naise, baked

beans, peas & bo-lognese sauce

Served with Salad

Wrap/Jacket Pota-to

filled with bacon, ham, chicken, egg, cheese, tuna may-

onnaise, baked beans, peas & bo-

lognese sauce Served with Salad

Bun/Jacket Potato filled with ham, chicken, cheese,

egg, tuna mayon-naise, baked

beans, peas & bolognese

sauce Served with Salad

Baguette/Jacket Potato

filled with ham, chicken, cheese,

egg, tuna mayon-naise, baked

beans, peas & bolognese sauce

Served with Salad

Fresh Fruits & Salad Bar are available daily