Weekly Highlights 05/11/2021

Mr. Simon Higham, Principal

Dear Parents

Following another extremely successful week of Virtual School Experience (VSE), I would like to start today’s Highlights by thanking all students for their ongoing efforts, our teachers for their extremly hard work and professionalism and to you, our parents for your continued support of learning.

Following last week’s safe and successful vaccinations of our BVIS students aged between 12 and 17 years that took place on our school site, we continue to remain both hopeful and ready for the return to face to face learning when we are able to do so.

Facility Update

During a period of Virtual School, we must not only focus upon developing new, exciting and effective online applications, we must also ensure that when our students return back to onsite learning, they have the best possible facilities to further develop and support the success that they have achieved online.

Over the next few weeks, I will be showcasing the updates we have made to our campus whilst children have been learning from home, in readiness for their return.

Whole School Field

This week saw the completion of our new all-weather  school field.

With improved drainage, full floodlights and a surface that will now allow play to take place at all times (day and night, sun or rain) this newest addition to our high quality sporting facilities will help to take competitive sport to the next level.

Take a look at what is waiting for students when they return.

Class of 2021 - Prestigious Scholarship Awarded to BVIS Alumi

Offered to new students enrolling in the Bachelor of Business (Human Resource Management) degree, the Human Resource Management Scholarship at RMIT is awarded to applicants who have achieved outstanding academic performance in high school and demonstrated a passion for managing and motivating workforces in a range of organisational settings.

Read more in this post about how Ella, from our BVIS Class of 21 achieved this incredible opportunity

Congratulations to Ella and all of our Class of 2021.

Meet our New Teachers

This week, the new teacher that we would like to introduce you to is Mr Ben Parsons, who is teaching Mathematics in Secondary this year.

Please take time to watch the video below and help us to welcome Mr Parsons to our school.

Additional Support for Parents - Working Together as One

We continue to support all parents with any technical aspects of our Virtual School, through our BVIS Help Desk email: it.servicedesk@nordanglia.com

For all individual queries about your child’s academic work/social and emotional wellbeing, contact their form/class teachers directly via email or Dojo.

• For all additional Primary Enquiries, please call /email:

              (028) 3758 0709 / ext. 111 or

               primaryreception@bvisvietnam.com

• For all additional Secondary Enquiries, please call / email

              (028) 3758 0717 / ext. 211 or

              secondaryreception@bvisvietnam.com

From all of our school community, have safe and enjoyable weekend ahead.

Mrs Mary McAloon, Head of Primary

Wellbeing Webinar

Last week I described the great initiative of Mindful Mondays that has been set up to support our community’s mental health and wellbeing. Next Wednesday 10^th November at 15:30, there is an opportunity for parents to join Mr Luke Curran, our Head of Safeguarding, Welfare & Guidance, in a webinar on supporting your child’s mental and physical wellbeing during Covid-19 and beyond.

We all want our children to feel good and function well both physically and mentally. Based on research into how the brain develops between the ages of 3 and 7, this seminar will help you understand how best to ensure that your child can continue to meet their age-appropriate developmental milestones and keep their minds and bodies healthy to thrive in any environment.

All EYFS and Primary families are welcome to join this webinar.  Please look on ClassDojo for the live link.

Home Learning Packs and Library Books

Thank you to all F1 to Y6 families who have visited school this week to collect their children’s learning packs and library books (if requested). These additional resources are aimed to increase the number of activities that children complete away from the screen.

If you have not managed to collect your child’s home learning pack then it is not too late! Our wonderful school guards at Gate C are still there to help. On arrival at school, report to the guard on duty, share your child’s full name as known in school, and the guard will bring the packs to you at the gate. In exchange, please bring any school library books that you have at home so they can be returned to the library. 

If you cannot come to school the alternative is to arrange a delivery/courier service. Many EYFS families during last year’s VSE successfully arranged a delivery service to collect their packs from school and bring it to their home. 

Teachers are always learning

On Tuesday primary teachers gathered online for their termly ‘TeachMeet’. This term had a different focus tailored to sharing top tips that we have learned during the Virtual School Experience. TeachMeets are open forums where teachers share new ideas and approaches that they have found useful to their teaching and student learning.

Through working online with our students and parents, there were a lot of excellent takeaways for colleagues to trial and apply which benefit student learning.  As a school we highlight the importance of reflection and evaluation and this TeachMeet allowed time for our teachers to do just this. Teachers will share the top tips for students over the next few weeks to enhance their own learning experiences.

Upcoming Events

• 10/11/21 @ 15:30 – Wellbeing Webinar for all parents
• 17/11/21 @ 15:30 – Primary Virtual Open Day for prospective families

Mr Jack Rudin, Head of Secondary

Textbook Collection for Years 9,10,11,12 and 13

Before half term, our library team and support staff teachers collected many of the textbooks from last year and created packs for students in years 9 to 13.

If you have not already collected these then simply come to Gate B with your school ID and the security team will provide you with the pack of books for your child(ren).

Many of the classes will also have electronic textbooks and resources so it is not necessary for every subject to have a physical textbook.

An Update from our English Department

Year 10 students have been producing adapted performances of the poem Funeral Blues by W. H Auden. They combined their knowledge and research around Slam Poetry to create a more sober piece using different media and their own voice over:

Ms. Mumby-Cole's Year 8 English class looked at the concept and plot-tool often nicknamed “family drama”.

They discussed this in relation to both realistic and fantasy texts such as Harry Potter, Finding Nemo, The Lion King, and Percy Jackson. Students then designed and presented their own fictional families and created “family drama” storylines that could be used to add subplots and character motives. Finally, students gave feedback and reflections using the online platform “Padlet”.

BVIS Champion of the Week

Congratulations to DUONG, Ai Nhu (10S) who is once again the BVIS Secondary Champion of the Week. Ai Nhu always takes part in everything and always does so with a smile on her face and so should be an inspiration to all of our students for her attitude!

Well done again!

Tutor groups of the Week

8I were our overall winners this week in the house points race so a huge well done to them. I am sure Ms. Bartram is very proud that a Hue group has won this week.

The attendance award this week is not won by a single tutor group – it instead goes to the whole of Year 10 as not a single student in this year group missed a single lesson or was late to a lesson or failed to engage in lessons yesterday. Well done to both Year 10 and to 8I students

Safeguarding and Child Protection 

The health, safety and wellbeing of our students remains the number one priority at BVIS HCMC. 

Should you have a concern for the welfare of any child in our school, please refer to our Safeguarding poster below: