BANGKOK INTERNATIONAL PREPARATORY & SECONDARY SCHOOL (BANGKOK PREP)
PREPAZINE BANGKOKPREP | BKKPREP.AC.TH
ISSUE 28 | FRIDAY 5 MAY 2017
MUSIC IN MAY Page 8
INSIDE: Page 3 Important Events Page 4 Letter from Head of School Page 7 Community helps fire victims
Page 10 Letter from Head of Primary Page 13 Letter from Head of Secondary Page 18 Prep goes Pink for charity
WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS
Letter from the Head of School Dear Parents, As we move further into our third and final term, I would like to share with you information about the teachers who will sadly be leaving us at the end of the academic year. For the past few years our ‘teacher turnover’ has been low in comparison to many other international schools, some of which lose as many as 30% of their teachers each year. Approximately 17% of our staff are moving on this year; a slightly lower number than last year. From the Primary School: Having spent seven years living and working in Asia, Helen Young (Head of EYFS) will be moving with her son Billy back to Yorkshire in the UK and after many years of service to Bangkok Prep both Nina Coates (Y5 teacher) and Isla Gordon (Primary PE) are moving on. Nina is going to go and live in Lyon, France, where she intends to learn to speak French, whilst teaching yoga, whilst Isla says the following: “After ten wonderful years at Bangkok Prep I have decided to start a new challenge. I will be staying in Bangkok and will be a classroom teacher at another international school not too far away.” Lizzie Compton (Y3 teacher) and her husband, Vincente (PE TA) will be staying in Asia but moving to slightly cooler climes in Shanghai where she will be teaching in YCIS (Yew Chung International School). Steve Evison (YLY4), who has been at Bangkok Prep for 6 years, is now moving to South America to continue his career at Colegio Anglo Colombiano in Bogota, Colombia. Also heading to South America is Laura Stone (YL Y1) who is taking up a new teaching position working in Quito, Ecuador. She is very much looking forward to living in and learning about Ecuador as well as having time to travel and discover the South American continent. Hannah Manfield (Y4 teacher) will be taking a few months to travel and volunteer with children’s projects then hopes to take up a new teaching position in January 2018 in another exciting location whilst Dan O’Sullivan (Y2 teacher) and Ellie Godwin (Y1 teacher) will be returning to teach in London in the UK, enabling them to spend more time with their families. Finally from Primary Linda Owen (Primary Music) will be leaving us to spend more time with her daughter Evie (who has just turned 1 year old). Being married to Brad Owen, our Acting Head of Primary next year, Linda will still be around and about in the school community and hopes to also assist us in the opening and running of a ‘playgroup’ for babies and toddlers early in the next academic year. From the Secondary School: After many years of service at Bangkok Prep John Lockwood (Faculty Leader, English) will be leaving us, but will be staying
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in Asia and moving to China. He will be joining Harrow Beijing to take up a teaching position. Steve Rudall (Faculty Leader, Humanities) is also staying in Asia and has sent the following message to our school community, “Next year I will be taking up a post at West Island School in Hong Kong. After six enjoyable years at Bangkok Prep my family and I are looking forward to a new challenge and destination.” Amornrat Sachdev (School Counsellor) is relocating to Gaborone, Botswana in July, where she hopes to resume being a school counsellor and/or Psychology teacher at a private school there. She is very excited about taking the next step in her personal life and career in Africa! Sophie Tighe (Art/DT teacher) also has exciting plans for next year. She is moving to Spain to embark on her next adventure, turning a patch of land into an Eco lodge. This will be used as an Art retreat for all ages and a forest school, taking children out of the classroom to reconnect with nature. Vicki Brown will be returning to work and live in the U.K. at the end of the academic year. She sends this message, “I have enjoyed working at Bangkok Prep this academic year and I will have some very fond memories of my time here. Thank you to all the staff and students at Bangkok Prep for making me feel very welcome.”
WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS Christophe Chanrion (Faculty Leader, World Languages) will be moving to the Middle East with his wife and last but not least Alia Sillett (Maths and IT teacher) will be moving to teach in another international school in Bangkok after completing a temporary contract with us. I am sure that you will join with me in thanking all of our departing teachers for their contribution to Bangkok Prep and in wishing them well for the future in all quarters of the globe. They will be missed! During the next few weeks I will be presenting short bios of the new staff to you via Prepazine. Have a lovely weekend. Best regards, Val Thomas-Peter Head of School
Important Events
Calendar Changes
10 May: FOBP Coffee Morning
Please note the following amendments to the school calendar:
10 May: Visakha Bucha Day (school open as normal)
Academic Year 2016-17 28th July 2017 has been announced as a public holiday for King Rama X’s birthday
11 May: Y7-Y8 FOBISIA Mathematics trip to Beijing 12 May: Reception school trip to Kidzania 19 May: Nursery Picnic in the Park 19 May: Y10 Bake Sale for RAK event 21 May: Helping Hands Sunday Funday
Academic Year 2017-18 13th October 2017 has been announced as a public holiday for the anniversary of King IX’s passing Academic Year 2017-18 28th June 2018 is now a school day and 29th June 2018 is the last day of Term 3
The school calendars can be viewed on the website at this link: http://www.bkkprep.ac.th/about-us/schoolcalendar/academic-year-calendar/
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WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS
Poem of the week: Metamorphosis To mark the launch of the 2017 Poetry Anthology in June, we are publishing a poem from the book every week in Prepazine. This week it’s ‘Metamorphosis’ by Yumin K in Year 5.
Neale Donald Walsh states that, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Like from the safety of the womb into life with no format, No sense of direction, simply mystical and unknown. A childhood ride in a hot air balloon, Floating serenely along a creamy-white blanket, Peppered with the threat of a monsoon, Ebbing and flowing towards the distant moon. A time of transformation that purifies the human soul. A process of growing up that makes us whole. A great change in form and appearance: Greyer, battered, torn. We journey to the heavens, Which blissfully and boldly beckons, Man purposefully plans his journey, But the beyond decides his destiny.
Staff footballers take second place Last Saturday the staff football team travelled to Harrow School for an invitational tournament.
narrowly losing out to Harrow Bangkok on head to head results.
In difficult conditions we played well and after beating Harrow Beijing, Rangsit University lecturers and a team of Bangkok Veteran all stars we secured a creditable joint Second Place,
Stars of the show were Mr Callow for two well taken goals and our goalkeeper K. Pon who saved us on many occasions. Special thanks to K. Pim for helping to organise our new kit.
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WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS
Musical soloists shine at May show Our May-Time Music Recital on Tuesday 2nd May was an opportunity for our Primary and Secondary instrumental soloists to perform to an audience of family and friends. There was a wide range of styles to captivate our audiences, from classical piano to rock drums. Our musicians ranged in age from Year 1 through to Year 12 and included vocalists, pianists, guitarists, saxophonists and even a harpist! Congratulations to all of our performers for a thoroughly enjoyable concert! It really is important that children have the opportunity to demonstrate their musical abilities in front of a supportive audience. Regular performing gives students a sense of accomplishment and encourages students to work towards a goal. We have several recitals throughout the year catering for a range of abilities and styles. If you are interested in performing at our next concert ‘Live from the Undercroft’, please contact your music teacher to register. more information, please contact Dulcie Kellner: For dkellner@bkkprep.ac.th
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WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS
Prep raises money to assist fire victims On the evening of 27th January 2017, the Bangkok slum of Klong Toei was devastated by a fire, though fortunately no-one was physically injured. As a result of this blaze, 40 homes were destroyed and 73 families were affected. The cost to rebuild these homes was determined to be approximately THB100,000 each, excluding the cost to replace each family’s ruined housewares, furniture, and clothing. Bangkok Prep immediately began relief efforts for those affected by the inferno. Families at the school began donating needed items in a schoolwide collection. This outpouring of generosity inspired the families of Year 2 to put forth a group effort to further aid Klong Toei’s fire relief efforts.
The Fletchers live in the Klong Toei slum and, when asked, informed the Year 2 parents that the neighborhood was in need of cash donations for rebuilding efforts. Year 2 didn’t need to be told twice! Just in time to make merit for Songkran, the families of Year 2 enthusiastically responded. The effort began to take on momentum, and soon families from Reception also began to donate. Over the course of two and half weeks, the combined efforts raised THB31,400! The money will be put directly to the Klong Toei community, where it is most needed. Many thanks to all those who participated and assisted in this project. “The power of one, if fearless and focused, is formidable, but the power of many working together is better.” – Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
Among the parents are Jonathan and Elise Fletcher, who work with Urban Neighbours of Hope (UNOH). UNOH workers live in some of the most disadvantaged neighborhoods in cities throughout the region, commit longterm to these communities, and advocate for those that live there.
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WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS
Full house enjoys Spring Recital concert Congratulations to all of the musicians who performed at our Spring Recital on Tuesday the 4th April. This was the biggest concert of the year so far and the quality of the performances was outstanding. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, with a varied programme of solo and ensemble performances playing to a packed auditorium. These included our singers in the Piccolo Choir (KS1), Primary Choir (KS2) and Secondary Choir (KS3/4/5) with lovely performances of ‘Just like Me’, ‘Best Day Ever’ and ‘In the Name of Music’ as well as the Secondary Orchestra, who delighted the audience with the music from ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ and ‘The Magic of Harry Potter’. Thank you to all of our dedicated students for the hard work they put into their performances, you made us all very proud.
For more information, please contact Dulcie Kellner: dkellner@bkkprep.ac.th
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SECONDARY NEWS
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PRIMARY NEWS
Letter from the Head of Primary Dear Parents, Another amazingly busy week has drawn to a close. Throughout this week, there were a wide range of photo sessions and I understand that many of these images will be included in the 2016-2017 Year Book. Today the Primary children (and some teachers) came as ‘Future you’ and arrived in school dressed in costumes to show what they would like to be when they get older. Thank you for your support in this event. I also trust you had the opportunity to attend the Early Years and Key Stage 1 Swimming information session where Coach Matt communicated ideas and strategies for developing confidence in our youngest swimmers. You may have heard about a new phenomenon called ‘playing with fidgets’ (see images below). These new inexpensive toys have recently become very popular and actually promote lots of actions involving the fingers, hands and wrists. These activities do have positive benefits for example they help to develop the pincer grip, providing important practice for writing skills and scissor control, and to develop strong fine motor skills, grip and manipulation. Many schools have recently banned these toys because they distract children from their learning. At Bangkok Prep, children will not be allowed to use them in the classroom as we have already had some incidents of misuse and distraction. However, children may continue to enjoy using them at break times as long as they are used sensibly.
Have a restful weekend. Best wishes, Duncan Stonehouse Head of Primary
Value of the Month of May – Community Minded Please see page 12 for more information.
If you are interested in finding more about ‘fidgets’ then you may find this article from The Guardian newspaper useful - https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/ may/03/fidget-spinner-inventor-patent-catherine-hettinger Many thanks to FOBP once again, for a fantastic Funky Friday!
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SECONDARY NEWS
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PRIMARY NEWS
Primary Focus: Equality Our life value for the month of May is ‘Community Minded’. I am sure we can all agree that this is a particularly relevant focus in an international community, especially when we celebrate such diversity in our school. With this in mind, the Primary School will be using the theme of community and diversity to further develop their understanding of the UN Global Sustainability Goals, which we studied in Term 1. Our focus will be on equality and the reduction of inequality in our wider community. The reduction of inequality is Goal 10 on the United Nations Sustainability Goals and is identified as key in developing a successful society on all levels. “Goal 10 calls for reducing inequalities in income as well as those based on age, gender, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status within a country.” - United Nations Next week, each class in the Primary School will devote some time to investigate what it means to live in a truly equal community and the disastrous social, economic and environmental effects of inequality.
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In order to develop a mindset of equality in our students, we must ensure that we are demonstrating and modelling these values in all areas of a child’s life. With this in mind, we would like to encourage parents to talk with and ask their children to explain what they have learned about equality over the coming week. It will be a good learning experience for your child and an opportunity for parents to reinforce a valuable part of their son or daughter’s social and emotional development. Studies show that children learn through imitation. This highlights the importance of demonstrating an equal and community minded attitude wherever possible, as teachers, and as parents or guardians. It is these small examples of positive behaviour and values that shape our young people into responsible adults and prepare them for life in an increasingly multicultural society. Thank you for your help and support, Kris Leverton Key Stage 2 Leader Eco Schools Coordinator
PRIMARY NEWS
KS2 children enjoy TISAC Choral Day On Thursday 27 April, children from KS2 participated and performed in the TISAC Primary Choral Day. It was held at St Andrews Sukhumvit 71. The day revolved around rehearsals which led up to a performance for parents. Ten international schools took part and each school brought over twenty children each. Subsequently, Bangkok Prep children also had the opportunity to make new friends. Our singers learnt four songs and all songs were in parts. This is an amazing achievement in one day! Bangkok Prep children accomplished an excellent performance with the other schools.
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SECONDARY NEWS
Letter from the Head of Secondary Dear Students, Parents and Colleagues, HOT WEATHER GUIDELINES At Bangkok Prep we take child safety and well-being very seriously. We ensure that all teachers and adults working on site have had appropriate checks to verify they are safe to work around children. There are many aspects to safety so last year we initiated a Hot Weather Policy, in collaboration with other international schools here in Bangkok, so that children and staff are protected from the extremes of hot weather whilst enjoying a full and varied curriculum. There are three stages of heat related illness that all teaching staff are made aware of: Heat Cramps are experienced from fluid loss due to heavy sweating and usually occur in the abdomen or legs. Heat Exhaustion derives from prolonged exposure in hot conditions with high fluid loss due to heavy sweating and an elevated body temperature below 40 degrees Celsius. Heat Stroke is a condition when the core body temperature is higher than 40 degrees Celsius and is potentially fatal. To limit the effects of the hot weather on all outdoor activities we ensure that students are given sufficient rest breaks from exertion whilst also actively encouraging water consumption. To aid in teacher’s awareness we internally publish the Humidex Rating and associated Warning Level three times during the day at this time of the year. The Humidex Rating combines the air temperature with relative humidity to give an effective measure of how hot it feels. The following is a summary from our policy:
At the moment our highest values have been 45/46 and are at the low end of Level 2. Our highest rating last year was 52 on May 13th. We would very much welcome your support by promoting the following actions: - Wearing of hats at breaktimes - Regular drinking of water Avoid sodas/caffeinated drinks as they tend to dehydrate Follow the ‘little but often’ rule Personalised water bottles ensure water is always at hand - Applying sunscreen - Monitoring energy levels to check for heat exhaustion/ stroke - Talk to your children to promote the above good habits With your support and our vigilance we are confident of keeping our children safe and active. Kind regards and have a cool weekend if possible. Nigel Wilsonlock Head of Secondary
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SECONDARY NEWS
Internet safety and social media Social media is - increasingly so - a fact of life. Brands like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are here to stay. For those of us involved in the pastoral care of children and young adults, social media has brought with it a range of problems. Social media can be a fantastic thing. With so many of us living an international lifestyle, I am sure you will agree that the Internet provides us with the perfect way to stay in contact with loved ones back home. As part of our PSHE curriculum we have been looking at Internet safety and social media. The Internet can be a dangerous place, and the sad reality is that we have to be as careful in the virtual world as we do in the real one (and maybe even more so). We have offered this very simple advice to our students to help them keep safe online:
Safe - Keep safe online. Never give out your personal details (name, address, telephone number, photos, or school name) online. Meet - Never agree to meet anyone who you have only been in touch with online. Accept - do not accept files, instant messages, or emails from anyone you do not know. Reliable - people online could be lying about who they are. Make sure you check the information before you believe it. Tell - make sure you tell a parent or teacher if there is something you are uncomfortable or worried about. We would also encourage parents to be aware that the minimum age to open an account on most social media platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, is 13. Joshua Watters Key Stage 3 Leader
Champion racer Bangkok Prep student Minnie recently won round two of the Thailand Mini-kart Championship 2017. Congratulations!
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SECONDARY NEWS
‘13 reasons why’ announcement
By Secondary School Counsellor Amornrat Sachdev During the course of the year, I have attended workshops and conferences with other fellow counsellors, therapists and psychologists. I am also a member of the Bangkok Counsellors’ Group. Through our ties, we constantly share information and advise one another, particularly about trending issues in the international school community in Bangkok and beyond. A recent Netflix series, “13 Reasons Why”, seems to have taken the internet world by storm, and is becoming of increasing concern to educators. This drama series is adapted from Jay Asher’s young adult novel that lead to the suicide of the girl at the centre of the story. The content of the book is tough and explores many topics that are only appropriate for student readers who are mature enough to keep the matter in context and it comes with an age limit of +14 Years. However, the Netflix series is more graphic, powerful and disturbing. We worry that if watched inappropriately, either without parental guidance or dialogue with a trusted adult, negative responses could appear followed by worrying and dangerous behaviours.
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Point for Consideration: The show is produced by Selena Gomez, a global celebrity who is particularly relevant to a young teen audience. Our concerns are heightened because of the number of young social media followers she has that are aware of the show, and the easy access they may have to watching the show on Netflix or other streaming sites. Recommendations: - Always supervise the appropriateness of material your child watches or reads. - Discuss the reasons for age limits with your child - Ensure your child feels able to discuss difficult matters with you - Enure your child’s media devices have appropriate parental locks and limits The following links will give you more information regarding thoughts and guidance around this series. http://bit.ly/2p37fg4 Please do not hesitate to contact your Head of Year or myself should you need any clarification on the matter.
SECONDARY NEWS
Prep rocks out at Battle of the Bands On 29-30 April, Bangkok Prep sent five bands (30 students) to the TISAC Battle of the Bands competition. Our bands ranged from Year 7 to 10, with many having only formed within the past few months. We are delighted to announce that two of our KS3 bands placed in the Lower Secondary Category, with Year 7 band ‘Untamed’ taking 3rd place and our Year 8 band ‘Ultraviolet’ taking first place and bringing home a trophy! Ultraviolet were especially impressive as Ton and Sean have only been learning their instruments since January. “It was a really great day and our students were really wonderful, not only in their performances, but in their team spirit and their encouragement and support of other schools performances,” says Head of Music Dulcie Kellner. For more information, please contact Dulcie Kellner: dkellner@bkkprep.ac.th
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SECONDARY NEWS
Bangkok Prep in the pink again! Report by Bangkok Prep CAP committee It was a triumphant pink day again for Bangkok Prep on 31st March as the whole school went pink-crazy to raise awareness of breast cancer and to raise as much money as possible for Bangkok Breast Cancer Support, a local charity which helps local women suffering from breast cancer.
company donated all their profits to the charity and worked very hard to promote and sell the T-shirts.
Both Primary and Secondary paid to wear pink outfits for the day and Secondary had a cake, nachos and candy floss sale. There was also a healthy lapathon in lesson 7 for Secondary students to encourage fitness.
Thank you to everyone who helped in any way, especially all the students and parents who donated to this very worthwhile cause. We really have made a big difference to a lot of disadvantaged local women by raising this money.
Many thanks must go to the students of the CAP committee for their work and enthusiasm in the preparation of the day. Likewise, Ms Wilsonlock and Ms Marsh were also tireless in their support of the day and the whole CAP team were grateful for their help organising the bake sale and candy floss sale. Year 12 students Utkarsh and Farez also need praise for their initiative in creating their garment company ‘Vein X Gain’ and selling pink T-shirts to many students. The
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The total money raised this year by the Think Pink charity day was: 65,809 baht. A fantastic achievement!
SECONDARY NEWS
Year 10 learn about sport leadership This term in the Secondary PE curriculum, students are working on their skills in Volleyball and Rounders. The PE Department are also implementing ways to introduce the values of Leadership within sport. This week, Year 10 iGCSE PE students were invited to lead a lesson of Volleyball for some fortunate Year 8 students. Students were taught skills in isolation and were coached how to apply these skills effectively in games. Sports Leadership will feature more prominently as we move to the new campus. Such practices enable students to develop their confidence, communication and leadership skills, so that they might become better equipped to support or even run sporting activities at School and in the wider community. The students received some excellent coaching from their senior peers and demonstrated the value of reciprocal teaching practices.
bkkprep.ac.th | 19 Bangkok Prep by no means validate the safety / quality of external events
SECONDARY NEWS
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