Weekly Update #21, 7 February, 2020

Upcoming events can be found on the website under School Life → Calendar and are outlined here for easy reference. For daily updates and news follow the HeadStart Facebook Page and You Tube channel. To join the Parent Community Facebook group click here!

On Thursday the 6th of February our Year 3 - 6 as well as our Junior CAPA Academy performed in another fantastic HeadStart production. The Little Mermaid Jr took place in an underwater world full of sea creatures from glowing jellyfish to starfish, crabs and an evil octopus. The cast did an incredible job in performing their lines, songs and dances, giving the audience a truly magical experience. Look out for these young performers. We have a lot of fantastic talent coming through!

The production highlighted our sustainability theme for term 2. We had whales swimming in plastic and many props were made from recycled materials. Our old playground equipment was turned into Ariel’s grotto and Ursula’s lair with Ariel’s “treasures” of human stuff was represented by bits of plastic she has found in the ocean.

There is always a very big team involved in making a production on this scale work. A very big thank you to the Y3 - 6 teachers and deputies and all the CAPA staff for all the extra hours that were put in. A special thanks to Mr Joel Adams and Ms Holmes for making this into another HeadStart CAPA success. Ms Erika Cramp, Director of Creative and Performing Arts

Parking Overflow

Good news! During the mid-term break, we will be expanding the external car park in order to provide a faster drop off for upper primary and secondary students. We will be making space for an additional 86 cars to park outside. If you would like to see the plan for this project, click on the download provided below.

Parent Committee Meeting

The Term 2 Parent Committee meeting will be at 8.15 am on Thursday, March 5th 2020. We would like to invite parents to send in points for discussion by 2 March. Points can be sent directly to the Parent Committee by emailing this address [email protected]

Parent Survey 2020

We would like to invite you to complete the Parent Survey for the 2019-2020 academic year. The survey is strictly anonymous and is done through a user-friendly website called Survey Monkey. The survey can be completed using a PC, tablet or smartphone. Thank you for taking the time to fill in the survey. Your feedback is important and will help us improve the educational experience your child benefits from at HeadStart. Please click on the link below in order to complete the survey.

English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6SHKSML

Thai: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6JHZBHB

Senior CAPA (Creative and Performing Arts) Auditions

Welcoming all Year 6-12 students interested in auditioning for the Senior CAPA development team on Monday, 10 Feb, 4:30-6:00pm. Come and be part of the on-stage magic that we have to offer here at HeadStart!

Year 6 Checkpoint Examinations Presentation

We would like to invite all Year 6 parents to attend an information meeting on Wednesday, 12th February, 2020. At the meeting, we will give detailed information about the Year 6 Checkpoint Examinations. This will also be an opportunity for you to ask any questions regarding these exams. The meeting will start at 8.15 and will be located in the Secondary Hall on the 4th Floor. We look forward to welcoming you all to this meeting. Mr Sam Khan, Head of Foundation and Primary

Year 11 Options Fair

On Wednesday 12th February HeadStart is running an A Level & BTEC Subject Fair for Year 11 students. This is an opportunity for students to talk to teachers about their suitability for A Level/BTEC study in a particular subject area and to find out more details about the different courses and assessment. It is important that students think carefully about the A Level/BTEC choices they make and have all the information they need before they make their final decisions.

You as parents are warmly invited to attend to be part of the discussion and receive information about the courses on offer. This is an informal “Table Top” event and parents are welcome to drop in at any time between 3.30 and 4.30pm.

A reminder that students are expected to select 4 A Level/BTEC subjects that they wish to study at AS Level/BTEC in Year 12. Individual students have been meeting senior members of staff to discuss their choices and how they meet the needs of their future studies and career path, and we will be asking for their final choices by the 14th February.

If you are unable to make this event but would like to discuss your child’s A Level/BTEC options, please do not hesitate to contact us for an appointment with myself, our Head of Sixth Form (Ms Caines), or our Academic Director (Ms Blackweir). Mr Richard Lukats, Head of Secondary

Introduction to Sixth Form

Thank you to all the Year 11 parents who have been in school this week finding out information about the next steps for their children as they think about entering Sixth Form. We had a well attended Thai parents talk on Tuesday followed by a talk for all parents and our Year 11 PTC (Parent and Teacher Conference) on Wednesday. There were so many fantastic questions and information sharing as the Year 11s start to make decisions about what they will do over the next 2 years.

The last big event about options is next week Wednesday 12th February. We will be inviting Year 11 students and their parents to attend our Subject Fair in the Secondary Hall 3.30-4.30pm. All of the different subjects students can choose to study in Year 12 will be represented, with teachers and current students there to share information about the courses, give insights from their own experiences and answer any questions.

There will also be a short presentation about BTEC for interested parents from 3.00pm. Although this event is for Year 11 students and their families, anyone in the HeadStart community who is interested in finding out more about what we offer in Sixth Form is very welcome to attend. We look forward to seeing lots of you there!

If you were not able to make it to the presentation about Sixth Form last week, please refer to the notes provided in the download below.

UPrep Talk on Applying to Thai Universities

Below are the meeting notes to last week’s presentation about applying to Thai universities. Next Thursday, 13 February, we will have our regular UPrep drop-in session in the coffee shop. Grab a cup of coffee and join Ms Gemma Caines and Ms Gem for an informal question and answer session.

The rooftop food garden is becoming greener by the day thanks to the diligent care and attention of the Phuket Farmers Club and our gardening team. Many edible plants such as radish, spinach, eggplant, carrot, corn, basil, dill, coriander, mulberry and more are now growing! We are experimenting with many different plants to see which ones will produce the most in these conditions. In term 3 we plan to open the garden to students so they can visit. More news to come!

• We have planted flowers that will attract insects, such as bees and ladybugs, which will help to pollinate the garden and make it more productive.
• A dripping irrigation system has been installed to make sure that the plants are always watered properly and that the water does not evaporate.

Swimming News

Just a reminder for all Aqua Panthers and spectators, the regularly scheduled Thanyapura Open League, session 2 has been postponed until May 30th. Our next competition will be the weekend of March 28th for the Thanyapura Invitational! Have a fantastic weekend! Coach Brown

Football News

This week, the U13 played a match against BIS in the first of a two-part fixture. The game was heavily affected by the loss of our superstar goalkeeper Sean in the first minute due to a fractured wrist. The team ran their socks off in the intense heat, everyone gave everything they had but the events of the day made it difficult to stay focused and play our passing game. BIS won the match but, the team certainly did themselves proud on a tough afternoon. We look forward to hosting BIS in the return fixture at HeadStart (date to be announced - proposed Wednesday, 12th February). Coach Asa

→ Sadly, the U15 match this Saturday was canceled by BCIS due to concerns over the Coronavirus. → We are in the process of arranging matches for the boys and girls against UWC for early March. → Soccer Circus continues this Saturday as always.

Head over to the HeadStart Facebook page for pictures and news of some of our star athletes competing in Thailand and around the world. We are very proud of their accomplishments and wish each of our students continued success in their chosen field of sport.

On the 11-14th of February, HeadStart will be hosting Sports Days for the students. Please have a look at the table below so that you are aware of the date and time of your child’s involvement. Students should wear their House shirt, P.E. shorts and sports shoes/trainers. It is important that students stay hydrated and protected from the sun so please remind them to bring a water bottle, sun cream, and a sun hat. Ms Nathalie Smith

A big thank you to Mrs. Kannika Sukahotu (mother of Rada Reception Yellow, who is a Pharmacist) for coming to speak to the Reception students about the importance of being healthy, how to stay away from germs and viruses and also for telling the students interesting facts about being a Pharmacist. Kru Cherry

Year 2 have been learning about fairy tales and linking stories together. This week, pupils had to research characters and create a character profile to share with their classmates. Mr Michael Marx

Year 6 have been conducting germination investigations over the past week. They all chose different variables to change and learnt about the idea conditions for mung bean seed germination. Ms Sophie Webb

Year 6 students in the Thai First Language programme have been learning the topic of “Syllable and Word” and they enjoyed making a Syllable word’s tree. Kru Fon

Year 8 students have been learning “อักษรนำ (ห นำ)” . Everyone had a chance to create the word by themself. Thai language is not too hard anymore when we enjoy in class.Kru Yui

Active learners took their make up skills to the next level week and designed some horror-themed faces. Their brief was to create a face paint design for a children’s Halloween party and to practice applying it on their own faces. Students did a fantastic job of making themselves look like the walking dead and I can’t wait to see their progress for the imminent Zombie Apocalypse! Ms Samantha Gill

The BTEC students did a fantastic job of presenting an assembly to Year 10 and 11 last Friday. The students gave information about courses available, assessment methods and soft skills they are developing on the courses. The students also spoke about the trips and Business Enterprise they have been a part of so far this year and how BTEC is accepted at many universities worldwide. The students demonstrated an amazing example of teamwork and great communication skills. Well done to Brendon, Sandi, Poom, Matteo, Chompoo, Patrick and Moh! Ms Yardenna Jones

Headstart is starting to branch out and make connections with local Chess clubs in Phuket to help develop some of our young masters of the game. In March there will be an independently run competition by one of those clubs at Lemonade Family Club in Cherng Talay. Please contact Bobby Tsang (see poster) to express your interest - we would love to hear of some of our students showing off their love of the game! Mr. Ian Jackson

Sports Days are fast approaching! Can the scores change the current running totals? All students have been practising and taking part in preliminary events and are very much looking forward to their Sports Days. This year’s Secondary Sports Day will see a new exciting March Past, whereby each House is to walk into Sports Day chanting their House Song. This is designed to increase the House Spirit and get everybody excited for the day ahead. The students will see these House Chants displayed on the TV screens around school and in the dining hall and will have the opportunity to practise this next week. At present, there are only 2 points between the Green Dragons and the Blue Tigers! Here are the current house points… Ms Kirstie Melville