Weekly Highlights 29/04/2022

Mr. Simon Higham, Principal

Dear parents 

One of the greatest ever sportspeople of all time, Muhammad Ali said, ‘I have learned to live my life one step, one breath, and one moment at a time, but it was a long road. I set out on a journey of love, seeking truth, peace and understanding. I am still learning.’

This week, I have been reflecting about what constitutes a BVIS ‘moment in time’ and why these short periods of time are so important to our everyday wellbeing.

A moment in time is defined as ‘at the present instant’ and is an experience that sparks your emotion, makes you stop, smile and gives you an immediate feeling of warmth and contentment. Over the previous months, it may have been more challenging to search for these moments, however I would argue that they are always there to find – if you are prepared to go out and look for them.

This week, I personally encountered a very special moment in time, as we welcomed back to school our FundinoTots programme for the first time in nearly 12 months. 

What is FundinoTots?

FundinoTots is our very own parent and toddler group that is open to children aged between 0 and 36 months. It is designed to help introduce our youngest children, in partnership with a family member, to learn through play within our school environment. Whether it be inside, outside or in the EYFS Oasis, the many varied activities that are available allow parents and their children to have fun together and connect with other young families in a safe and supportive community.

On Tuesday, I took time to stand back and watch as our ‘Tots’ played, discovered, interacted and communicated together once again – this was my ‘moment in time’ which brought a smile to my face and a feeling of warmth that I will cherish for weeks to come. We would like to welcome all our new FundinoTot families back to school and trust that this recently revisited experience continues to make a real and positive difference to all of our young families that attended. We look forward to the future weekly sessions that will run until 23rd June. 

If you would like to find out more about our FundinoTots programme, please email:

Huyen.Le@bvisvietnam.com or contact our Primary Reception at: (028) 3758 0709 / ext. 111. We’d love to see you there to experience your moment in time!

As we approach the long weekend, I would encourage you to take time, personally reflect and also ask your children the following questions:

Regular reflection can help to bring your family even closer together, have a positive effect on your overall wellbeing and develop your general communication skills – especially if your conversations are in both English and Vietnamese. So go ahead, share your moments and always aim to keep them in a very special place for when you need them next.

Remember: ‘Be happy in the moment, that's enough. Each moment is all we need, no more.’ - Mother Teresa

Contact Us

Should you require any help, support or advice, please do not hesitate to contact us using the information below:

(028) 3758 0709 / ext. 111 orprimaryreception@bvisvietnam.com

(028) 3758 0717 / ext. 211 or secondaryreception@bvisvietnam.com

On behalf of everyone at BVIS, I wish you a very peaceful and relaxing public holiday.

Mrs Mary McAloon, Head of Primary

Earth Week Celebrations

Last week primary children spent time considering how we should care for our environment and how this care will impact positively on the Earth that we live in. Representatives from Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation joined our whole primary assembly to kick off the week of activities. Blue Dragon shared a variety of ways in which we can all look after the environment and by doing so, will support the under privileged communities that they support.  We talked about saving water, using only re-usable plastics and disposing of litter in sustainable ways.

At the end of the week, we marked the occasion with a dress-up day where everyone wore green to represent our Earth and the importance of looking after it responsibly. Thank you to our community for the donations; the proceeds will go to Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation to support the projects aimed at developing sustainable farming skills in developing areas of the country.  The contribution from our students will make a big difference to the lives of those children who are living in the north of Vietnam, Dien Bien and Ha Giang.  Thank you to our caring community!

Extra-Curricular Activities

As we move further forward to new normal practices, we begin to offer a selection of after-school activities for the Year 1 to Year 6 students to enjoy with their friends and teachers. From today, Friday 29th April, students will be able to sign up for clubs that will run for a 5-week block from Monday 16th May.  For further details of how to sign up, please refer to the email that was sent from the primary office.

We look forward to seeing this trial version of our club programme run in preparation for the full programme to commence at the start of next academic year.

Student Council

This week the primary Student Council President and Vice-Presidents presented their Term 3 project proposals to the Primary Senior Leadership Team. There was a fruitful discussion over the ideas which covered aspects such as, impact, timelines, workload and sustainability.  As a result of this meeting, our student community will start to experience new and exciting events and campaigns to enhance their experiences at school.  Look out for updates shared in the Weekly Highlights in the coming weeks.

Upcoming Events

Mr Jack Rudin, Head of Secondary

Congratulations to TRAN, Minh Anh from 8S who was the first Champion of the Week for Term 3 last week and to Nancy in 11S who is this week’s Champion. 

Both students have demonstrated great effort to become champions across both weeks (Nancy won by just one housepoint!). A huge congratulations to both Minh Anh and to Nancy!

It was two in a row last week for 9I who were the last Champion Tutor Group of Term 2 and were then the first Champion Tutor Group of Term 3. Well-done to all in 9I.

This week, the winners were none other than 11S – this was not surprising considering they had the Champion Student (Nancy) and the student that she beat by just one housepoint (Thao Linh)! Who can beat them next week?

Year 12, and Year 11, are in the final stages of preparing for their final examinations next week. For Physical Geography, diagrams are a key aspect that they are reviewing to be able to accurately draw, explain and give the characteristics of them. To help with this we have recently installed large whiteboards into their classrooms to allow all students to do this and receive instant individual, peer and teacher feedback.

An Update from our Student Council

After a long 2 weeks of Term 2 holidays, BVIS students are finally back in school, well-rested, determined and ready to face the final term of this school year. 

Last term, the Student Council (with the help and cooperation from teachers around school) hosted many exciting activities including the Brownie Bake Sale, Green Week, and World Book Day. We are so glad these events have been thoroughly enjoyed by the student body!

In contrast, the upcoming term will be a much quieter one with a focus on study and revision. Because many students will be taking their exams very soon, the Student Council has reduced the number of planned events in April and May. These exams are extremely important, and we want all BVIS students to have adequate revision and preparation time. 

However, when all exams have passed, the Student Council plans to ramp up its events to end our school year with a blast! 

Additionally, the Student Council would like to announce that it will start accepting new applicants for the new school year very soon! Interviews will take place at the beginning of June 2022, and a month-long induction period will begin for accepted members. Many of our members have worked extremely hard this year to bring new initiatives to BVIS and we hope that our new generation will continue this legacy left behind!

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: