Weekly Update #5, 20 September 2024

Announcements

Foundation Stay & Play

Our Stay & Play sessions hold significant importance within the Foundation Department. These sessions promote parental involvement, allowing parents to actively engage with their child’s development, foster social skills, understand play based learning and build trust with the school community. Stay & Play also supports the gradual independence of children, helps develop important early learning skills, and boosts confidence, ensuring a positive start to their educational journey.

👉 We invite our Foundation parents to join us next week for our first Stay & Play sessions of the year. These sessions are for parents to spend time with their children in their classrooms all planned around the theme ‘All about me!’ Each session will start at 8.30am and be held in your child’s classroom and the Indoor Learning Centre. Mrs Natalie Walker – Deputy Head of Foundation

Change of Date – Saturday Thai Culture Club

Due to the continuing adverse weather conditions, the date of our first Saturday Thai Culture Club of the school year has been changed.

Let’s kick off our first term with some fun cultural activities. Inviting all students and parents from Early Years to Year 6 at our Cherngtalay campus to join our unique program where we learn more about Thai Culture on Saturday 16th November from 9.00am to 12.00pm at our Chaofah City campus.

If you are interested in participating in this program, please feel free to contact your child’s Thai teacher at school.

October Half-term Football Camp

Join our October Half-term Football Camp from Monday 14th to Wednesday 16th October (3 days) at HeadStart International School Chaofah City campus.

This is the perfect opportunity for players to play fun football and develop new skills in a positive environment.

Camp starts at 09:00am (drop off after 08:30am) and finishes at 2:00pm with lunch provided! Open to students in Year 2 to Year 8. Players will be split into the appropriate groups, depending on their age and abilities.

Expect high-quality coaching, lots of fun and medals to be won! To sign up please contact Head Coach Stef Frost [email protected]

Sign up today. Limited spaces available!

Upcoming Events

Yearbook Photoshoot 2024

Our annual photoshoot for the whole school yearbook is coming soon. This is your child’s chance to capture the smiles and laughter they share with their classmates and to preserve memories of friendships, achievements, and experiences at our ever-growing Cherngtalay campus. Our professional photoshoot will take place from Monday 30th September to Wednesday 2nd October. Your child’s homeroom teacher will communicate which day their class will have their photos taken. We look forward to capturing and sharing their bright smiles!

Mandarin Language Day @ Chaofah City campus

Dear Parents,

We are excited to invite you to a vibrant Mandarin Language Day event on Saturday, 5th October, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM at HeadStart Chaofah City campus!

Event Highlights:

• Everlasting Flower Fan Making

• Grain Painting for Chongyang Festival

• Chinese Character Challenge Game

• Food Sharing

Please click the link to fill out the registration form: https://forms.gle/NNbCcfEgGzXxvZfV7

Thank you for your cooperation and support!

尊敬的各位家长：

我们将于2024年10月5日(星期六)上午9:00 – 12:00在HeadStart Chaofah校区为您举办丰富多彩的中文语言日活动。

活动亮点：

• 永生花团扇制作

• 重阳节五谷杂粮作画

• 汉字大比拼游戏

• 美食分享

请点击链接填写报名表: https://forms.gle/NNbCcfEgGzXxvZfV7

感谢您的配合与支持！

诚挚问候 HeadStart 国际学校中文团队

Wai Kru (Teacher Appreciation) Ceremony

We are delighted to extend an invitation to all students and parents to join our Wai Kru (Teacher Appreciation) Ceremonies at our Cherngtalay campus. This ceremony holds deep cultural significance and takes place in schools throughout Thailand at the start of each academic year. It is a special occasion where students express their respect and appreciation for their teachers by presenting them with flowers.

Students are encouraged to bring flowers to express their appreciation for their teachers.

Dates and times for our Foundation and Primary & Secondary Wai Kru Ceremonies can be found in the poster below.

Meetings & Presentations

Introduction to the Primary Curriculum at HeadStart meeting on 19.09.24

Thanks to the Primary parents who attended the meeting this week where we presented an overview of the Primary Curriculum at HeadStart. We gave an overview of the subjects offered and how we aim to create transdisciplinary links. We also talked about the age-related expectations at each year level, finishing up with the types of assessment that inform our planning and teaching. Mr Lawler – Head of Foundation & Primary

If you were unable to attend the meeting, please find a copy of the presentation below 👇

Introduction to the Primary Curriculum Parent Meeting 19 September 2024

Parent Meeting: Secondary Curriculum and Pathway on Thursday 26th September

We invite all Secondary parents to join us for our latest parent meeting when our Secondary team will introduce you to our Secondary Curriculum and talk you through the different pathways that your child can follow as the progress from Year 7 through to Year 13. It will also be a great opportunity to meet other parents and members of our community. Our Thai, Russian and Mandarin speaking admin teams will be on hand to provide translation services. We look forward to seeing you there! Thursday 26th September 2024 from 8:30-9:30am in the Secondary Indoor Learning Centre (SILC).

Friday Market

Here’s a sneak peek at our first Friday Market of the school year, a community event that took place last Friday in our brand new Atrium. Sincere thanks to all our vendors for the high quality products that were on offer: from delicious homemade treats to freshly pressed juices, and scented candles to locally produced free range eggs, there was something for everyone. It was once again a treat to see our older students running craft activities for the younger children, bringing our community together in a special way!

📩 Interested in participating? Our next market will take place on the last day of this half-term, Friday 11th October. Contact our Events team by visiting the admin office or writing to [email protected]

Meet the Team

Our Preschool teaching team is dedicated and passionate, fostering a nurturing environment for young learners. With diverse backgrounds and expertise, they implement creative curricula that inspire curiosity and exploration. Emphasizing social and emotional development, the team encourages collaboration and communication among students. Their commitment to each child’s growth ensures a positive foundation for lifelong learning.

PE & Sports News

In the Pool!

This week saw the grand opening of our brand new 50m Olympic swimming pool! Despite the rain, the children were never happier than when splashing around in their new pool with their friends!

HeadStart Panthers U9 Boys Up and Running

The HeadStart Panthers U9 Boys travelled to Kajonkiet Thalang school this past weekend for their first competitive match against another school. The energy from the team was fantastic and there were a lot of excellent moments from all of the players.

We are looking forward to more matches and seeing the development of the team as the season progresses. Well done, U9 Boys! Coach Paul Rothwell

ECA News

Last Saturday, HeadStart International School held our first Chess tournament of the 2024-25 season.

🏆 Champion: Georgiy, Year 5 Chaofah City campus

🥈 Runner-up: Alex, Year 8 Chaofah City campus

🥉 Third Place: (ex aequo) Bogda, Year 5 Chaofah City campus and Luka, Year 6 Cherngtalay campus

Best female player: Amalia (Amy), Year 9 Chaofah City campus

Thanks to everyone for participating and support. The next tournament will be held on Saturday, 12th October. See you there!

Languages Department

Learning to Tell Stories in Russian First Language Classes

Russian language lessons are not just about penmanship and rules. With younger students, we focus on developing speech and learning how to form sentences and stories from pictures. For older children, we explore vowels and consonants through dynamic interaction. We also take breaks for neuropsychological exercises to stimulate the brain. Additionally, we create useful crafts that develop fine motor skills, cater to the child’s interests, and reinforce the academic knowledge from the lesson.

Learning Russian is fun and interesting! Enjoy it! Ms Kuzina – Russian Teacher

Writing Letters to Our Future Selves in First Russian Language Lessons

This week in a Russian language class, we wrote letters to our future selves, capturing our current dreams and goals. After finishing the letters, the real fun began as we decorated envelopes or made vibrant collages, each one as unique as the student who created it! The activity sparked lots of laughter and creativity, giving everyone a chance to reflect on where we are now and where we want to be in the future. It was an exciting mix of self-discovery and artistic expression, leaving us eager to open our letters in the years to come! Miss Skibinskaia – Russian Teacher

Foundation

Our Little Learners Become Little Floaters in the Pool

What a fantastic start to our Little Floaters swimming program! Our first session was filled with laughter and excitement as the kids got comfortable in the water. Under the guidance of Coach Slav and Coach Nee, they splashed around, played games, and began building their swimming skills. It was wonderful to see their confidence grow with each little float! We can’t wait to continue this journey together—here’s to many more fun-filled sessions ahead! Mrs Walker – Deputy Head of Foundation

Primary

Year 4 Courageously Dive into the Learning Across the Curriculum!

The Year 4s have had a fantastic week of learning! In English, we courageously stepped into the shoes of characters from our new book, Gorilla by Anthony Browne, bringing a scene to life. In Humanities, we’ve been diving deep into our beautiful Blue Planet, exploring the ocean’s layers and working together to creatively design sea creatures from each unique layer! To top it off, in PDIA, we’ve been all about kindness, with Year 4s spreading the love and complimenting their friends on all the awesome things that make them special. Well done, Year 4! Mrs Cotterell and Mr Frenna – Year 4 Teachers

Collaborating to Discover Explorers in Year 5

As part of their Age of Exploration humanities topic, Year 5 worked together to develop their map skills. They studied a variety of explorers and identified when, where and why they travelled. They located countries on a map and then marked out the route to the place each explorer discovered. Great exploring, Year 5!

Year 5 Actively Engaging in Maths to Round Numbers

To round off (pun intended!) their week of maths, Year 5 got active with applying their rounding skills! Mr Carroll – Year 5 Teacher

Secondary

Learning to Play a “Walking Bass Line” in Year 8 Music

In this Year 8 Music lesson, the students were learning how to play a ‘walking bass line’ on the piano keyboard. They are currently studying the Blues and have shown open-mindedness and respect when learning about this genre of music, which emerged from the oppressed, economically disadvantaged African-American communities in the rural southern states of America in the years following the American Civil War. Students have demonstrated courage and resilience when learning this new skill on this piano, working together collaboratively each lesson to develop their understanding. Ms Thompson – Music & Drama Teacher

Student Success Outside School

🥇 Congratulations to Kita (Year 2) for winning 1st place in the Beginner Intermediate category at the Phuket Gymnastics Internal Competition 2024!

🥈 Congrats to Ruslan (Year 4) for winning First Runner-up at the Thanyapura Tennis Youth Open.

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