HeadStart Weekly Update #23, 15 March, 2019
Dates for Your Diary
Upcoming events can be found on the calendar on the website School Life → Calendar but we have outlined upcoming events here for easy reference. For daily updates and news follow the HeadStart Facebook Page
| Date | Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18-22 March | All week | Eco Watch Week | In school |
| 19 March | 8:15am | Thai Parents Meeting | TBA |
| 21 March | 8:15am | U-Prep Talk | Dance & Drama Studio |
| 21 March | Afternoon | PISAC Secondary Athletics | TBA |
| 23 March | 9:00-12:00pm | Saturday Thai Culture Club | In school |
| 24-25 March | All day | World Scholars Cup regional Round | BKK |
| 26 March | 8:15am | Thai Parents Meeting | TBA |
| 29 March | All day | Casual Clothes day for charity | In school |
| 29-30 March | AM | Thanyapura Swim Meet | Thanyapura |
| 1-5 April | In class | Primary Swim Galas | Swimming pool |
| 02 April | 8:15am | Thai Parents Meeting | TBA |
| 2-4 April | 3:30-5:00pm | Foundation/Primary Parent Teacher Conferences (PTC) | Classrooms |
| 04 April | Last day for all term 2 ASPs | ||
| 05 April | During day | Songkran Festivities | TBA |
Parent Committee Meeting Notes and Outcomes
In February, a meeting was held between the Parent Committee and school management. The purpose for these meetings is to continue to keep a strong connection between parents and the school. In the download below you will find a list of items discussed and the answers that management have given for each point. If you would like to contact the Parent Committee for any reason CLICK HERE and the link will take you to the web page that outlines the roles and responsibilities of the committee as well as how you can contact them.
In term 3, members of the Parent Committee will be invited to a ‘guided learning tour’ of the school. There will be small groups escorted around by a member of the management team and these groups will have the opportunity to visit lessons and to see the school ‘in-action’. There will be an opportunity for parents to see the wonderful things that are going on in and out of the classroom. Following the tours, there will be a short meeting and lunch will be provided in the canteen. More news to come…
After School Programmes (ASP) Announcements
Free ASPs in Term 3
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All free ASPs will continue on from term 2. There will be no online booking for term 3.
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ASPs begin 22 April, the first day of Term 3.
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New students can sign up for Free ASPs at the office or by email
Fee Paying ASPs in Term 3
All fee paying ASPs will continue unless notified otherwise. Invoices for term 3 will be sent out in the second week of term 3. If you want to cancel fee paying ASPs please notify me by email. If you want to sign up to a fee paying ASP in term 3 please contact the following Coordinators to see if they have a place available:
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Dance School: Fabienne Mester [email protected]
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Judo: Stefan Klimsch [email protected]
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German Language: Stefan Klimsch [email protected]
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Tennis: Darran Ferre [email protected]
Please contact Ms. Anisa Van der Laan if you would like your Foundation child to join :
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Swimming lessons on Saturday morning
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Balance and Coordination Monday 14:30- 15:20
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Mandarin Wednesday 15:30-16:20
U-Prep Meeting Info
This week Ms Gemma Caines gave a 30 minute U-Prep talk to parents on the topic of ‘Applying to the USA, Canada and Australia’. Over 30 parents attended this event. If you missed this presentation and would like to have some information on the topic, please click on the download below.
The next U-Prep Talk will be on the 21st of March at 8:15am in the Dance & Drama Studio on the 4th floor. The topic is ‘Helping Your Child Choose a University’. All interested parents are welcome to join.
Year 9 Options Meeting
Thank you very much to everyone who attended the Year 9 Options Fair on Wednesday. There was a really nice atmosphere and it was lovely to meet so many of you face-to-face. If you were unable to attend the meeting, you can collect an Options Booklet from Khun Sa, Secondary Secretary. Her office is on the 3rd floor. This afternoon students will be sent instructions on how to make their subject selections online. The deadline for completion of the online form is next Friday. I will then print out the selections and send them home for you to sign and confirm your agreement. We will also meet with some students (and parents) if it is necessary to make any changes to subject selections.
Below is the power point presentation that you can download and look through in case you missed the presentation on Wednesday. Many thanks for your support as we work together through this exciting process!
Dance Opportunity–Urban Dance Workshop (Hip Hop / JFH / Contemporary)
HeadStart Dance Academy has a last minute opportunity to organise a workshop with Nick Anthony, a professional dancer and choreographer from Los Angeles. Please see profile in attachment and the following YouTube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRb9yEke03s
- Date: Friday 22/03 4.00-6.00 pm / Saturday 23/03 10.00 am-12.00 pm
- Age group: Year 7-13
- Requested Level: Intermediate (minimum of 1 year of dance)
- Venue: HeadStart Dance/Drama Studio on the 4th floor
- Fee: 1,500 THB (4 hour workshop) payable by Wednesday 20 March, 2019. Please note that the workshop must be taken as a whole and not separately as it will be a continuity from one day to another.
- Approval Deadline: Please email Fabienne Mester, The Dance Academy coordinator at [email protected] by Monday 18 March 2019
STEM Learning at HeadStart!
On Friday the 15th of March a group of IGCSE Design Technology and Science students attended the Dell team building event at the Hilton hotel. Here they were able to oversee the construction, and subsequent racing of, solar powered cars that were constructed from kits.
The kits allow the assembly of fourteen different solar powered vehicles and can be deconstructed afterwards, allowing them to be used multiple times and for a variety of projects. After the event these kits were donated to the students to be used at HeadStart to promote STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) in the school community.
Watch this space for more news soon on how the kits are being used to inspire a love of STEM learning at HeadStart.
Nicholas Carter
My name is Nick Carter and I am from Kent, in the UK. I came to Thailand in 2015, after 6 years of living and teaching P.E. in Stockholm, Sweden (where it snows for six months of the year!). So, it is fair to say that I was ready for a completely different climate change, as well as cultural change. My sporting background is very diverse. I grew up with a passion for playing football but, later, in my teens, I discovered baseball. I made my debut for the Great Britain national baseball squad at the age of 18 and played with the squad for the next 14 years. I also trained as a professional contemporary dancer and toured nationally and internationally for 7 years in numerous dance companies. Although I have many other sporting interests, I want to make it clear that P.E. teachers are not just whistle blowing, basketball bouncing individuals, as I released my first fictional novel (in June, 2015). However, participating in sport, physical activity, and leading a healthy lifestyle are very important to me, and I’ve enjoyed imparting my knowledge in teaching and coaching environments for over 20 years. I am delighted to be HeadStart’s Director of Sport and my fundamental aims are for our students to continue to experience a really diverse range of physical activities, all the while having loads of fun through being active. For example, HeadStart pupils will participate in the following sports activities in either curriculum time or in our fantastic After School Sports programme: Basketball, Netball, Football, Rugby, Athletics, Swimming, Badminton, Table Tennis, Volleyball, Softball, Rounders, Yoga, Dance, and Gymnastic activities (amongst others). If you have any questions, you can email me at – [email protected]
P.E. Department News & Updates
Year 4 & 5 Sports Residential to Koh Samui
Last week, Mr Carter, Miss Brelstaff and Kru Dia travelled to (International School of Samui)[https://www.iss.ac.th/] with 20 Year 4 and 5 students for a sports residential trip. It was a full-on, but fun 3 days for the students who participated in many competitions such as Gladiator Ball, Swim Gala, Football and Basketball tournaments. They had the opportunity to visit Samui’s Big Buddha and Choeng Mon beach with the ISS students. The trip was a resounding success and we look forward to hosting ISS next year at HeadStart for the return visit.
Primary PISAC Athletics
On Thursday, approximately 70 HeadStart students from Year 3-6 competed in the annual PISAC Athletics event hosted at HeadStart. For many, it was their first time competing in a PISAC event but the HeadStart team (under the expert Management of Miss Nadine Brellstaff) ensured a solid team performance, and HeadStart came in 2nd place overall. Well done to all of the athletes who participated in the event.
| School | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|
| BISP | 1st place | 319 points |
| HeadStart | 2nd place | 210 points |
| UWCT | 3rd place | 181 points |
| KIS | 4th place | 141 points |
Football News
Last Friday Under 13 years old and Over 15 boys played against KIS. The Under 13 team had a very competitive match against their opponents. Our boys who are mostly first year of learning football, have shown solidarity and their technical qualities made for a very good match. The results of the game were 2/2. Congratulations to all the boys! Their next challenge is in Bangkok for the BIS Football tournament. The Over 15 football team dominated the game vs KIS using technical and physical strength despite the absence of their team leader, Vincent Edoaurd. Congratulations to all players for their win of 5-0.
The Under 13 girls played against BISP on Thursday, and even though the girls are still relatively inexperienced, they played exceptionally well and continue to go from strength-to-strength. Well done, girls!
Zak Brown
My name is Zak Brown, and I have a deep passion for swimming. I hail from Bakersfield, California, where I discovered my love for the sport at the age of 10. Throughout my high school years, I had the privilege of leading our team to four consecutive league championships, a testament to our hard work and dedication. After graduating, I pursued my swimming journey at Bakersfield College while representing the esteemed Bakersfield Swim Club. As a part of this club, I had the opportunity to compete in various competitions across California and even ventured to different states for national level meets. These experiences shaped me both as an athlete and as an individual. Seeking new challenges, I made the decision to move to Niagara Falls, New York. There, I continued my swimming career at Niagara University as a Division One Swimmer. During my time at Niagara, I achieved remarkable accomplishments, setting three school relay records and graduating with a degree in marketing and logistics. Swimming has not only shaped me as an athlete, but it has also shaped me as a person. For over 19 years, I have been teaching and coaching swimming, working with athletes of all levels, from beginners to aspiring Olympians. It has been an incredibly rewarding experience, enabling me to meet inspiring individuals from all corners of the globe. Swimming is more than just a sport to me - it has become a lifestyle. The invaluable lessons I have learned through swimming have stayed with me throughout my life. In 2016, I joined the HeadStart team, and it has been an amazing journey thus far. I am thrilled to continue working with the students, supporting and nurturing their swimming abilities. Together, as a cohesive team, we will strive for excellence in the pool this year, pushing ourselves to new heights.
Swimming Academy News
Over the weekend, 14 of our fantastic Aqua Panthers traveled to Malaysia to compete in the 55th Annual Malaysian Age Group Championships! These individuals were: Anna Meakin, Annabelle Prentice, Anton Solnyshko, Artem Kiselev, Cameron Smith, Kirill Kochetkov, Lisa Kim, Michael McLean, Natasha Chaloemtoem, Nazar Zakharov, Sarita Pouydel, Sasha Syrkina, Shane Walters, Vitalina Oshchepkova.
This was our first international team travel meet and it was certainly an experience! Teams from all over Asia brought their elite swimmers who were competing for spots in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. It was such a rush to be in the same facility as these star athletes. Though the other teams had some very fast swimmers, the Aqua Panthers did not let that intimidate them. This extra motivation pushed us to achieve 83 best times and breaking 26 team records! Words can’t express how happy I am with all of our swimmers.
Now that our big travel trip has finished, it is time to move forward to our next big event; the 12 Hour Relay! Last year we raised over 110,000 baht for the Life Home Project Foundation and this year we are looking to raise more for the Good Shepherd, Phuket. If you would like to donate to our cause, please find a swimmer to support or you can contact Coach Brown directly.
What’s Coming Up?
Football
Coach JR is heading off to the Bangkok Soccer League Tournament at Brighton College from March 15-17 with our Under 12 and Under 13 teams. Good luck boys! A full report will be posted next week!
Basketball
Eight of our Basketball players will compete at BISP’s 3-on-3 Basketball Competition on the 15-16th of March. I will give a report how they did next week. We wish the HeadStart teams the best of luck! Next week HeadStart will host BISP for some Basketball Fixtures (U17 Girls and Under 15 boys). Tip off is at 15.30pm and all are welcome to come and watch.
Student News
Early Years are really loving our new topic of Transport! We have learnt all about road safety, buses and trains this week, as well as taking part in lots of transport themed play. We are looking forward to learning more about this topic next week. By Ms Holly Strawbridge
A big thank you Dr. Bandit and Dr. Phat, father and mother of Zen who are Doctors, for coming to speak to the Early Years students about the importance of being healthy! By Kru Dia
Reception Yellow love learning about Jungle animals! This week we created our own crazy hybrid animals by combing two animal names together. A crocodile and an elephant makes a crocophant! The children have made cute ‘Who Am I’ books and practised their descriptive language when talking about different creatures. We also learnt fun facts about monkeys. Did you know that there are currently 264 known monkey species? In Maths we have been measuring length and capacity. The children loved making magic jungle potions and practising finding half or full cups of the magic ingredients. Every day the children continue to amaze us with their super enthusiasm and effort in everything they do. Keep it up Reception! By Ms Hannah Kuusik
Reception students were very excited to have a visit from police officers last Monday. A big thank you Police Lieutenant Colonel Chinchaipong, father of Naphat, and his team for coming to speak with Reception students regarding police work. The students had the chance to look at real Police equipment which was exciting. Who knows, maybe one day one of the students will take up this profession. By Kru Dia
Children in Year 1 Yellow had a wonderful time conducting an experiment as part of out ‘I wonder…’ topic. Look at this Wizard’s Brew! By Ms Charlotte Myers
Children have been getting to know the 7 Dwarves from Snow White this week. They did many fun activities and eventually wrote their own fact file all about their favourite dwarf!By Ms Charlotte Myers
In Geography this half term, Year 3 have been learning about the Earth and what is going on under our feet. The field trip to the Phuket Mining Museum was an excellent opportunity to link what we’ve studied in Geography with local history. By Mr Dan Nicholson
Year 4 Russian students had fun practicing adjectives. They wrote a story about an unseen animal and illustrated it. By Ms Alina Platkova
In Science in Year 4, we have started our new topic of ‘Electricity’. We started by looking at where electricity comes from and discussed non-renewable and renewable sources, before going on to think about the appliances we use in our daily lives and which ones rely on mains or battery power. This week, we explored making circuits and realised the circuits needed to be complete for the electricity to flow. We then developed our scientific inquiry skills by investigating how to make bulbs brighter and dimmer. In Humanities we are looking at the Wonders of our World. This term we are focusing on the ‘modern’ wonders and we have chosen one to research in more detail so we can create an information book about it. First step was to find out the key facts about our chosen wonder: where it is, how it got there and why was it built!By Ms Jen Rapkins
Year 5 have been enjoying lots of Science experiments this week for our knew topic ‘States of matter’. The children have carried out a viscosity experiment, testing, comparing and analysing the different consistencies of liquids. They compared, honey, sweet chili source, washing up liquid, shower gel, hand sanitizer and fabric softener. The children thoroughly enjoyed the experiment and the usual aroma which filled Year Five Yellow! By Ms Kay Forster
The Year 8 students are learning the vocabulary for fruits and drinks in their Thai lessons. In order to make the lesson fun, the students practiced using all of the words and sentences they know by playing shop: ordering drinks and asking for the price. Everyone enjoyed fruit shakes made by classmates during the lesson. By Kru Gen and Kru Sue
Year 10 have started a brand new project investigating the human form. They have all began by completing a portrait using a rang of observational drawing and shading skills. The outcomes are looking fantastic so far! By Ms Samantha Gill
House News
Exciting House News!!
Starting from Monday a new rewards system will be rolled out for students from years 1 -13 to help motivate them to earn points for their House and to recognise individual achievements. Each week homeroom teachers will inform students of how many House points they have in total and whether they have achieved a Bronze, Silver or Gold badge, which they will be able to wear on their shirts. When students achieve the Bronze level, the students can then come and see Miss Brelstaff in the P.E. office to receive their badge and their vouchers. Deputy teachers will assist those in Key Stage 1 with this. Gold badges will be handed out at the following flag raising by Mr Drew.
As you can see, each badge has an associated prize. Students will receive the vouchers in 10, 20, 30 or 50 denominations to spend at the school cafe, unfortunately change will not be given. Primary students will only be able to spend their vouchers after school as they are not permitted in the cafe during the day. I hope that the students will enjoy working towards the badges by showing kindest, working hard and going above and beyond in all things they do.
Primary School Rewards
75 points = Bronze award = Bronze badge and 60 baht school coffee shop voucher
150 points = Silver award = Silver badge and 250 baht school coffee shop voucher
250 points = Gold award = Gold badge and x2 cinema ticket
Secondary School Rewards
40 points = Bronze award = Bronze badge and 60 baht school coffee shop voucher
60 points = Silver award = Silver badge and 250 baht school coffee shop voucher
80 points = Gold award = Gold badge and x2 cinema ticket
