Weekly Update #9, 25 October 2024

Nakita’s Pop-up Cafe Already a Huge Hit!

As many parents and children will already know, in partnership with our good friends at Nakita’s, our brand new pop-up cafe is now open for business! Located in the Atrium at the main entrance, it is open from 7:30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Offering a range of your favourite Nakita’s drinks, including fresh coffee, smoothies and fruit juices, as well as a selection of delicious baked goods, this latest addition to our ever-growing campus promises to be a huge hit.

Nakita’s Pop-up Cafe Rules and Regulations

• Nakita’s Cafe accepts payment in cash and by QR code only.

• Parents are welcome to use the cafe from 7:30-9:30am in the morning, and from 2:30-5:00pm in the afternoon. If you have an appointment to meet with a member of our Admin or Academic teams at any other time of the day, you are welcome to wait at the cafe.

• Students from all year groups are welcome to purchase products from the cafe at the start (7:30-8:00am) and end (3:20-5:00pm) of the school day when accompanied by a parent.

• Students taking the school bus are NOT permitted to purchase products from the cafe before leaving school.

• Primary students are NOT permitted to purchase products from the cafe between 8:00-3:20pm. From Term 2 onwards, an exception is made for Year 6 students as part of their transition to Secondary school.

• Secondary students are permitted to purchase products from the cafe at morning break (10:15-10:35am) and lunchtime (12:30-1:25pm). Secondary students must make their way quietly and sensibly to the cafe via the second floor walkwayin the Foundation and Primary building; they mustNOT pass through the ground floor Foundation Indoor Learning Centre (ILC). Secondary students are reminded that making use of Nakita’s Cafe is a privilege and this can be removed should they not follow the above rules.

• HeadStart reserves the right to impose sanctions on any students who do not abide by the rules and regulations laid out here.

Access Road Works Update

As mentioned in a previous Weekly Update, over the half-term break HeadStart undertook work to fix the drainage system at the bottom of the access road where it meets Srisoonthorn Rd. This has led to a significant improvement in the state of the road surface and resolved the flooding issue. With shared responsibility for this project, Kajoniet School had committed to widening the road and improving the road surface but they did not finish this during the break and have confirmed they will do so in December. Over this coming weekend, HeadStart has committed to pouring and compacting gravel on the side of the road and we will re-paint the lines again, ensuring road users are aware of the different lanes and their respective usage. We appreciate the patience of our parent community as we look to resolve the issues relating to our access road.

Recovering Lost & Found Items

Our Lost & Found cupboard, located outside the School Nurse’s room, is getting rather full! We would be grateful if parents could pay it a visit with their children once in a while to ensure anything that was once lost is once again found. We would politely remind all parents and students that, before the end of term, we will empty the Lost & Found cupboard and donate the items to charity.

Foundation Halloween Stay & Play

𝔾𝕖𝕥 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕪…ℍ𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕚𝕤 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠 ℍ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝔽𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝔻𝕖𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥! 🎃 On Thursday 31st October, we will celebrate all things Halloween in Preschool, Early Years and Reception with our Halloween Stay & Play! 🦇 We invite parents to join with their children for a 𝕊ℙ𝕆𝕆𝕂𝕋𝔸ℂ𝕌𝕃𝔸ℝ morning of interactive, creative and fun activities. Parents and children alike, make sure to dress up to join in the fun! 👻

Primary Halloween Activity Day

Halloween is coming! 🎃 Keep your eyes peeled (not literally!) for a whole range of 𝕊ℙ𝕆𝕆𝕂𝕋𝔸ℂ𝕌𝕃𝔸ℝ Primary Halloween activities taking place throughout the day on Thursday 31st October! Don’t forget to dress up for the occasion - be there or be 𝕊ℂ𝔸ℝ𝔼𝔻!

Secondary Halloween Party @ Chaofah City Campus

On 31st October, we will be hosting our annual Secondary Halloween Disco. 🎃 This is an exciting event that is organised by our student leadership and includes games, snacks and prizes for the best contest. 👩‍🦰 Students in Year 7-13 from both campuses are invited to attend. Students in BTEC Business have prepared special drinks 🥤and snacks 🍧for the evening, so please allow your child to bring some money to enjoy what is on offer.

📍 Chaofah City Campus, Sports Hall

⏰ 6.00-8.00pm

📅 Thursday 31st October

✏️ Sign up form has been emailed to parents.

Child-Watch Phuket 21st Run For Children - Come Join Us!

On Sunday 10th November, we look forward to members of the HeadStart Community, from management and teachers, to students and their parents, joining us for the 21st edition of the Child-Watch Phuket Run For Children. This wonderful local community fun run is sure to give everyone involved the spur to get fit and all in a good cause! With two courses - a 10km run and a shorter 3.5km version - both passing by our Chaofah City campus, our school will be the backdrop to this family fitness event.

To register for the Child-Watch Phuket 21st Run For Children, scan the QR in the poster below. Once registered, you are welcome to join the official HeadStart LINE group to stay tuned for updates and training events. Or for more information, you can contact our Fitness Coach, Jordi, who will be leading the Team HeadStart contingent as we look to get fit and have fun now that the cool season is approaching!

Parent Meeting: End of Term 1 Assessments, Revision, Reports and Grades on Thursday 7th November

We invite all parents of Primary and Secondary age students to join us for our latest parent meeting when our academic team will talk you through our upcoming end of term assessment procedures and reporting processes. 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 7th November 2024 from 8:30-9:30am in the Secondary Indoor Learning Centre (SILC).

Whole Staff INSET Day at Cherngtalay Campus

On Monday 21st October, HeadStart held our annual October INSET (Training Day) for all teaching staff and nannies. This meant over 240 staff had the chance to get together to collaborate on improving their teaching strategies, developing our curriculum and ensuring that the opportunities for our children remain world-class. The training day proved to be a resounding success, with our educators having the chance to have some excellent development opportunities ready to utilise these moving forward with our students.

In addition, on this day and during the mid-term break, a further 40 staff attended training sessions by our friends at First Aid Training Phuket in first aid/Emergency First Response (EFR). The school now has exactly 100 fully trained first aiders on site across both campuses.

Basketball Squad Shooting Hoops!

Before the half-term break, the Cherngtalay Basketball squad spent the week working on their shooting form. They’re making big strides, shooting big hoops and improving very quickly! Coach Rob - Basketball Coach

HeadStart Football Camp Scores Big with 40 Young Athletes

The HeadStart October Football Camp welcomed 40 young athletes, who were grouped by age and skill for coaching by HeadStart Academy staff. The camp showcased impressive skills and teamwork, particularly during the World Cup Wednesday event. All participants left with smiles and HeadStart Panthers medals. Excitement builds for the next, even larger camp! Coach Frost - Head Football Coach

Aqua Panthers Development Camp Success!

This past week, our Aqua Panthers swimmers had an incredible experience at the Development Camp! With a focus on mastering all four strokes—butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle—along with starts and turns, each swimmer made tremendous progress. Coaches and swimmers alike were thrilled to see the dedication and improvement in technique, endurance, and race readiness.

We couldn’t be prouder of their hard work and can’t wait to see what they accomplish next. Stay tuned for more exciting updates from the Aqua Panthers! Coach Zak - Head Swim Coach

October Basketball Jam!

Our 3-day Half-term Basketball camp was a fun-filled event where ballers enthusiastically participated in engaging basketball activities. Each day, they enjoyed a variety of fun drills designed to improve their basketball skills, from shooting and dribbling to teamwork and defense. In addition to the on-court action, the kids had the opportunity to watch the movie, “Space Jam”, featuring Michael Jordan and the Loony Toons, which added to the excitement and learning. At the end of the camp, all participants were awarded medals for their effort and participation. The event was a huge success, with everyone leaving with smiles, new skills, and great memories. Coach Mike - Head Basketball Coach

Investigating Solubility in Year 5 Science

Year 5 have been investigating dissolving. The children predicted which substances would be soluble, giving reasons for their predictions. They then tested the solubility of a variety of solids, whilst also considering the variables which needed to be kept the same. Mrs Williams - Year 5 Teacher