Message from the Principal
Dear Parents,
It has been a busy and exciting time as we welcomed our prospective Year 1 pupils for their assessments. As usual it was a case of parents, generally, being more anxious than their children – some things never change!
We also got the news that the school has been accepted as a member of ACAMIS (Association of Chinese and Mongolian International Schools). This will provide opportunities for sporting fixtures for the amazing 55 teams and squads that we have in school at present.
I get a lot of invitations and do quite a lot of public speaking but this week was unusual. I was invited to speak at the St. Andrew’s Day dinner at the Diocesan Boys’ School in Mong Kok. One of the oldest and most prestigious schools in Hong Kong, I was honoured to be invited and somewhat jealous of the 5 hectares of land they occupy. It was a delightful event attended by the boarders and their parents with poems of Robert Burns recited and Auld Lang Syne sang at the end. I chose to speak about St. Andrew, why he was the patron saint, what Scottish characteristics are and gave examples of their effects. We did, of course, eat haggis!
I hope you have a great weekend, as we look towards the fun and performances we are going to have in school and much practice and rehearsal takes place.
Mr Cooklin
Principal
UPCOMING EVENTS:
5 December: Year 9 Rehearsal Day
5 December: Class Assembly 6D
6 December: Year 9 Performance Day; Dress Rehearsal 8:30am, Final Performance 1:30pm
7 December: Year 1 Rehearsal Day
7 December: British Chamber of Commerce talk: The Importance of Student Well-Being talk 6-8pm with Ian Gilbert, Founder, Independent Thinking at KPMG, Chater Road.
8 December: Year 1 Dress Rehearsal 1:30pm
9 December: Year 1 Final Performance 8:30am
9 December: Secondary Progress Reports Published
9 December: Key Stage 3 Movie night
12 December: Christmas Concert 4:30pm (please note time change)
13 December: Christmas Jumper Day
13 December: Sleigh Debate 8.15-9.45am
13 December: Class Parties in the afternoon
13 December: Year 8 Theatre Trip, Wicked, 7:45pm
14 December: Inter House Singing Competition.
1pm Finish!
Deck the halls with boughs of holly, tra la la la la la la la la!
Yes, we’re really in the festive mood. The Christmas trees have been put up, classrooms have begun to be decorated, and carols are being practiced in readiness for the Carol Concert on 12th December.
Here’s a round up of the weeks thats been and a few reminders about what’s coming up.
A MUST WATCH
Following on from the success of last weeks STEAM Curiosity Challenge we thought you’d like to see just what a great day it was. Watch how the day went here.
MIT – Nord Anglia STEAM Festival
We are delighted to announce that as part of Nord Anglia’s partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 104 students from 26 schools have the opportunity to travel to MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, to participate in the MIT – Nord Anglia STEAM Festival. The Festival is a week-long programme which provides unique learning opportunities specifically for our students at one of the world’s leading educational institutions.
More details to follow.
IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME … or at least it was for Year 3 on Monday
They came, not in Trojan Horses, but dressed in all their finery. Yes we had it all … from togas, to gods and goddesses. It was a real joy to see the children embody all they had been learning about Ancient Greece.
See their happy faces here.
A LOOK BACK AT SPORTS
The past two weeks have been busy for our sport teams. From the Girls Under 14s Basketball squad winning against HKA and the Boys Under 14s Basketball squad beating CDNIS through to our Under 9s placing as runners up in the GSIS football tournament, we’re making our mark in the sports arena. Our students have also been out and about taking part in the cross-country mini meet from HKA race in Sai Kung and another race at Wu Sha Pier Beach. What we love most is the fact that everyone gave 100% effort.
Check out our photos here.
YEAR 8’s TRIP
Independence and teamwork were at the heart of the Year 8s trip, which saw them, hike, camp, cook (we use the term lightly), kayak, shoot arrows, and generally push themselves. And what a great time they had (not sure this is reflected by some of the morning after the night before camping faces!).
To see more of what they got up to click here.
INTER-HOUSE CHRISTMAS CARD COMPETITION (deadline 7 Dec)
All the children have been busy designing and creating a Christmas card during their Art lesson this week.
With the deadline fast approaching (deadline is next Wednesday 7th December) the competition is stepping up. Over 60 children were in the Art department during Wednesday’s lunchtime working hard on finishing their designs. Stay tuned to find out who will be this year's winner!
See our budding artists and card designers busy in action here.
THE BRITISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TALK -
The Importance of Student Well-Being (7 Dec 6-8pm at KPMG, Chater Road)
At a time of high-stakes testing and global educational competition, we are in danger of overlooking the young human beings at the heart of the education process. In this session, Educational Specialist, Ian Gilbert will explore how a focus on children's health and happiness leads to better educational outcomes but not necessarily the other way around. He will also touch on the impact of a well-rounded education on future employability and the development of life-skills.
Join this interactive discussion over wine and nibbles after work. To register click here.
CHRISTMAS JUMPER DAY (12 Dec)
Long gone are the days when the embarrassing jumper you had been gifted from a relative was donned reluctantly and with much shame. Now we can’t wait to see and enjoy the lovely jumper designs as we celebrate this great tradition on 12th December. Please be reminded that a $20 donation is kindly requested and that money raised will go to our international charity, UNICEF.
SCHOOL SIBLING PHOTOGRAPHS (19 Jan)
Just a reminder to book sibling photos by Friday, 9th December, by emailing simon.choi@nais.hk.
THANK YOU FROM A BOX OF HOPE
Your effort and contribution meant that by the end of the drive, A Box of Hope had 27,253 boxes to send to children across 43 charities. 120 schools took part and 250 volunteers helped. Now that’s quite something.
PRIMARY ASSEMBLY – Class 3C and 2E
Monday saw 3C put on a fantastic Assembly that introduced us a number of Greek philosophers (and all in costume too).
In 2E’s Assembly this morning they focused on the importance of environmental protection. A valuable topic indeed and something we can all do our part to help with.
Check out our Facebook to see some great photos here.
SECONDARY ASSEMBLY
In the Secondary assembly today Mr Sutton showed the students the video created during the construction of our curiosity challenge. It was great to see questions filling up the reception area and our students asking their questions on camera, great work!
Mr Cross then announced that staff members had raised over HK$7,000 for ‘Movember’. A great result for a great cause that champions men’s’ health awareness. We also wished our staff team good luck as they will be competing in the Angkor Wat marathon this weekend, with Mr Mackinnon and Mr Calderwood representing Secondary.
Finally Mr Pate read out the highly commended certificates for PE this week. The students who shone brightest in this curriculum area were Kia in Year 7, Isaac in Year 8 and Callie in Year 9, well done to all three!
STARS OF THE WEEK – PE
More successes to celebrate this week. A big well done to the following students:
Year 1: Leonardo Koneberg, Niamh Walsh, Ho Chuen Gan, Lavonne Ho, Elisey Zubatyuk
Year 2: Esther Milici, Charlotte Francis, Caleb Beattie, Denise Manuel, Faye Mok
Year 3: Max Smith, Alicia Poon, Elina Lee, Hannah Chan, Mayu Okaguchi
Year 4: Brian De Lalinde, Theo Lam, Monty Sanderson, Hans Chiu, Tawfiq Kamhawi
Year 5: Charlotte Colton, Jeannie Cheung, Allegra Vidali, Tom Incledon, Ayla Heasman
Year 6: Brendan Cheung, Alishia Beigi, Kingsley Lui, Justin Wong
HIGH COMMENDATION AWARDS - PE
Year 7: Kia Letcher
Year 8: Isaac Voon
Year 9: Callie O’Shea
Photos can be found here.
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KEY CONTACTS
Quick list guide of who to email for what:
Please do not use the info@nais.hk for any of the above queries.
