BRITISH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL - HANOI

NEWSLETTERApril 3 2015| ISSUE 26

IN THIS ISSUE

From Mr. Anthony RowlandsFrom Mr. Christopher ShortFrom Mrs. Karen HanrattySri Lankan New YearSecondary HistoryYear 5 Cuc Phuong ExpeditionThe Dracula Rock ShowLunch MenuContacts

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UPCOMING EVENTS

6th KS4/5 Mixed Football vs Concordia7th KS3 Mixed Volleyball vs UNIS7th - 8th Primary Shared Learning Meetings9th Year 2 to visit Quang An Flower Market, Flower Garden KS4/5 Mixed Football vs SIS11th-12th Bronze DoEIA Qualifying trip15th KS4 Boys Football16th KS2 Production17th Secondary House Sports Whole School Assembly – End of Term 2 – Students finish school and depart at 12.25pm20th April to 1st May: School closed (Holiday)4th May All students back to school – Term 3.

APRIL

From Mr Anthony Rowlands - Principal of BIS Hanoi

I often talk to our school community about the importance of a holistic education where our students are exposed to quality academics, sport, music, art, community service and other areas. However, important as that is, formal examinations continue to play a vital role in how success is

measured in schools. Students are held accountable for how they perform in examinations and their future career paths depend on the level of their success. A student’s success in an examination helps universities, employers and others to assess his/her mental or general ability. Additionally, the school’s own success is often measured by the quality of its examination results. Life today has become so complex that examinations have come to play an important part in a person’s educational and working career. Examinations are considered so important that some students are afraid of them. At BIS Hanoi we work hard to ensure that our students have the necessary skills, attitude and perseverance to not be afraid of the challenge of sitting an examination.The ability to pass these tests is, in itself, a valuable quality. It shows that the student is able to express their thoughts and ideas in a manner others can understand. It also shows that the student has acquired a certain amount of knowledge in a specific branch of study.

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Over the next few months our Year 11 and Year 12 students, along with a sprinkling of Year 10 students, will be undertaking important external examinations. A small cohort of Year 10 and all Year 11 students will face the challenge of their IGCSE examinations. Year 12 students will be undertaking their AS Level examinations. The teachers and senior staff have worked hard to ensure that they are up to the challenges that they face in these examinations. However, in the end much will depend on each individual student as to whether they are prepared to go that “extra mile.” For the majority of them, it is a case of really focusing hard over the next few weeks to ensure they achieve the success that they rightly deserve.

I would like to wish you all a very pleasant weekend.

We enter single digits this week on the countdown of days to IGCSE and A Level examinations. Year 10 accelerated, Year 11 and 12 students are all making the most of their last few lessons with their teachers before the 2 week revision period starts (Spring Holiday for the rest of the school!).

Mr Byrne, supported by Mr Wolstenholme, has been working hard over the last few weeks preparing our new Careers and Higher Education room. Although students will do much of their research and application on-line we felt it was important to create a room that collected all the physical information together but also was a place to inspire students in the next important steps of their academic career. Mr Tung, our Art TA has done a wonderful job of ‘branding’ the room so students are in doubt as to its purpose. The Careers and Higher Education room will serve as a venue for visiting universities to meet students.

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From Mr Christopher Short - Head of Secondary

We became authorised as a BMAT (Biomedical Admissions Test) testing centre this week. This test is used by the most competitive universities in the UK, parts of Europe and Singapore for entry into medical courses. This adds to our other authorisations and agreements which allow students to apply and test for entry into the very best universities worldwide. As you will know we already have the following in place:

• Cambridge International Exams – curriculum accepted for entry into competitive universities Worldwide• UCAS – UK Admissions system• College Board – CEEB registration to support US direct and Common App applications• SAT – Test Centre• IELTS – Agreement with the British Council who will run tests at BIS

With just under two weeks to go until the KS2 Production of ‘The Dracula Rock Show’ preparations are now well underway. Children are extremely busy rehearsing their songs, refining their dance moves, learning their lines, perfecting their acting, creating props and scenery, designing costumes, and

generally getting very excited. We have a wealth of talent amongst our children and it is great to see them shine in areas that they do not normally have the opportunity to experience during more regular school activities. The show promises to be a wonderful spectacular and we look forward to welcoming all Primary parents and families to enjoy the performance on Thursday 16th April at 1.15 pm.

This has been a very special week for Year 5 in particular who have been away on their expedition to Cuc Phuong. Their 3 day, 2 night trip proved to be a great experience for the children. They enjoyed a great many new experiences; particular highlights were the visit to the Endangered Primate Rescue Centre and the Turtle Centre. The afternoon trek on the second day was a challenge to many of the children, but there was a huge sense of achievement amongst them all when they successfully completed the walk. There is great satisfaction in being taken just a little outside your

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From Mrs Karen Hanratty - Head of Primary

normal comfort zone and finding that you are able to achieve something you had not previously believed you could. The children all returned this afternoon tired but exhilarated after their adventures. Teachers came back a little tired too……

FINE DINING

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Year 2 was very lucky to have a guest visit our class this week. Mrs. Corera, the mother of Ivana in 2B, came to talk about Sri Lankan New Year, which takes place on April 14th. She made a wonderful presentation, brought in some traditional dress and even made some very yummy traditional food! It was really interesting for the children to learn about another culture and some traditions their friends follow.

NEW YEAR

On Saturday 28th March, our History students went on a journey to find out about a central topic that we have been debating in the History Club. We wanted to discuss and ask “How is knowledge from the past used in universities today?”

We began our day with a tour of the Temple of Literature. We were shown around the grounds

by a local expert and learnt many things about this ancient university. The tour guide was pleasantly surprised by our students’ pre-existing knowledge about, and enthusiasm for, ancient Confucianism. We spent some time deliberating Confucianism’s significance in the 21st Century and it was fun to see the passion each student had on the topic. As the Temple became more crowded, I was impressed with the polite and courteous manner that our students showed to the many visitors that we encountered. For a brief moment we turned our attention to the pros and cons of museums and their educational value in Hanoi today. We all learned a great deal about the history of this magnificent place.

Afterwards, we continued on to the British University Vietnam to gain an understanding of an institution of higher education today. The students participated in a university-level lecture and soaked up the richness of the academic environment. Following this, they were divided into teams. Each group was invited to take part in a competition to create an advertisement. The task was to build a real world “print ad” for either the Temple of Literature or British University Vietnam. As the creativity flowed, the students worked together to apply what they had discovered during the lecture

and at the Temple of Literature. The BUV staff were especially impressed with BIS Hanoi students’ eagerness to excel in the activities set out for them. We learned how a contemporary university functioned and were impressed by the high-tech facilities of a modern university.

At the end of the day’s proceedings, some students were convinced education had retained many of the same features as in the past, while others noticed great changes between the two periods. We all agreed the day had been a success and that whether past or present, education is and always has been of great importance to Vietnamese culture and life.

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Mr. Andrew O’ReillyHistory Teacher

SECONDARY HISTORY

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YEAR 5 - CUC PHUONG EXPEDITION

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the draculaROCK SHOW

KS2 PRESENTS

TIME:LOCATION: AUDITORIUM DATE:THURSDAY 16th APRIL 1.15pm

Contact Primary office: Phone: 04 3946 0435 ext 220 Email: primaryoffice@bishanoi.com

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BIS HANOI MENUWeek Beginning 6th April

Monday6th Apr 7th Apr 8th Apr 9th Apr 10th Apr

Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

From Year 3 to Year 12 : All meals come with a salad or salad bar choice along and 2 choices of vegetables, rice, Vietnamese soup.

From Year 7 to Year 12: We have introduced our NEW Sandwich bar with assorted cheeses, fresh tuna, egg salad, roast meats and other daily specials on our homemade bread, dark rye, whole wheat, oatmeal, french bread, Vietnamese rolls, raisin bread and other fresh baked bread every day.

Morning snack

Morning snack

Lunch

Lunch

Lunch

Afternoon snack

EYFS

PRIM

ARY

SEC

ON

DA

RY

Steam bun Rice soup Nutella sandwichRice soup with

chickenAmerican doughnut

Milk Juice Milk Juice Milk

Fruit Fruit Fruit Fruit Fruit

German sausage with mashed

potatoesKorean beef stew Caramel pork Meat ball noodle

Chicken Cordon Blue

Egg sushi rollPan cake with

nutellaYogurt Oatmeal cookie

Juice Juice Fruit Juice Fruit

Steam bun Rice soup Nutella sandwichRice soup with

chickenAmerican doughnut

Milk Juice Milk Juice Milk

German sausage with mashed

potatoes

Maccaroni with meat sauce

Caramel porkRoast chicken 5

spicesChicken Cordon

Blue

Korean beef stew Fried tofu in tomato sauce

Meat ball noodlePork caramel

with egg

German sausage with mashed

potatoesKorean beef stew

(v) Fried tofu in tomato sauce

Roast chicken 5 spices

Chicken Cordon Blue

Maccaroni with meat sauce

Caramel pork Fried crispy porkPork caramel

with egg

(v) Sauteed rice noodle with

vegetable

Sauteed pork with coconut

Sticky rice with steamed chicken

Meat ball noodle(v) Vegetarian potato curry

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Good communication is important to us and we would like to ensure that you have the correct contact information in order for you to call the school:

School Number: 04 3946 0435

Extention number:

Receptionist: 0(For all general enquiries)

Principal’s Office: 208principaloffice@bishanoi.com(If you wish to contact the School Principal)

Business Manager’s Office: 109thaonguyen@bishanoi.com

Primary Office: 220primaryoffice@bishanoi.com(For all enquiries regarding the Primary Section)

Secondary Office: 215secondaryoffice@bishanoi.com(For all enquiries regarding the Secondary Section)

Admission Department: 222/122/555/777/888bishanoi@bishanoi.comdessydelevaux@bishanoi.com (Admission Manager)jinnyjung@bishanoi.com (Korean Liaison Officer)hatruong@bishanoi.comtrambui@bishanoi.com

Marketing Department: 189huyennguyenngoc@bishanoi.com(For all enquiries regarding Marketing)

Finance Department: 202(For all enquiries regarding school fees)

Medical Room: 117/303linhdieu@bishanoi.com (Main school)liennguyen@bishanoi.com (Early Years Building)(For all enquiries regarding Medical Issues)

Uniform Shop: 221tamle@bishanoi.comnhungpham@bishanoi.com(For all enquiries regarding School Uniform)

School Buses: 218nganguyenthithuy@bishanoi.com(For all enquiries regarding School Buses)