Secondary School Updates (18 February 2022)

Key Dates | School Return | Learning Showcase

Weekly update from Head of Secondary

Dear Parents,

After almost 10 months of virtual learning, by next Monday we will finally have Year 7-13 students back on campus for in-person learning. Years 8-13 returned this week, and there was a sense of joy, pride, and relief from all teachers to have the students back into lessons, along with an incredible buzz of energy.

It does look different to what we have had pre-2020 – for example, there is careful distancing and sanitizing in classes, and temperature checks on arrival – but the quality of learning and trustful relationships between teachers and students remain exemplary. I would like to express my deep gratitude to the teachers who have put enormous effort into managing a smooth transition and to the students for the positive way they dealt with such a big change.   

I trust that students have greatly enjoyed their time on campus this week. Please enjoy some pictures of student return below. We are conscious of the difficult conditions in the city and will continue to support students and families however we can. I hope that soon life and work will become easier in Hanoi as we all adjust to the ‘new normal.’ 

Yours sincerely, 

Chris Newman 

Head of Secondary 

Key Dates

• Tuesday 22 February: Year 13 Parents Evening 

• Monday 28 February - Friday 11 March: Year 10 and Year 12 Internal Exams  

• Tuesday 14 March: Year 11 Parents Evening

• Tuesday 28 March: Year 8 Parents Evening 

• Friday 1 April: Last day of Term 2 

School return

Learning Showcase

BISCAS 2022 | English | Science | MFL 

BISCAS 2022

At BIS Hanoi we value learning outside of the classroom environment and traditionally arrange a residential trip for Year 12 students to Mai Chau as part of their IB CAS programme. However, due to COVID, we placed Year 12’s safety at the fore and so this could not take place this academic year 2021-2022.  

CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service) is an essential element of the IB programme and students are required to fulfill all learning outcomes to achieve the IB/BIS Diploma. Our IB team devised an exciting alternative called BISCAS that took place on Thursday 20th and Friday 21st January, that fostered similar skills to those acquired during the residential trip, particularly team building and advocacy service.  

Students led or participated in workshops devised around creativity and activity; these included Mime, Debating, Yoga, Korean cooking, HITT and so many more. They were then able to come together as a year group and reflect on this using various techniques to consider strengths and challenges from these sessions.

Focusing on the service element, with their CAS advisers, students were each given a sustainable development goal to research and advocate for. The students worked hard to plan and create a lesson for a primary class about their SDG that they then taught on Friday. All these experiences encouraged students to take risks and try something new, safe in the knowledge that it is helping them to achieve what is needed for the CAS requirements of the IB/BIS Diploma. Well done Year 12! I am so proud of you.  

Ms Black

CAS Coordinator 

English 

It’s snowing in Hanoi! 

Year 13s were throwing snowballs to celebrate being back to school! It’s a fun and kinesthetic way to recap on learning, share ideas and work collaboratively- despite social distancing.  

Mrs Clarke 

Head of English 

Science 

It was great to have a full class of Year 9 students back this week. After so long in virtual school, we casted aside our laptops and got stuck into some practical work! The students showed that they remembered much of the practical skills they had acquired in lessons last year and were flawless in their execution of the task. We investigated the reactivity of metals in Hydrochloric acid, students observed the reactions and ranked each metal according to their observations. It was great to see them back in action in the classroom setting! 

Mr Pearson  

Science Teacher 

Modern Foreign Languages (MFL)

We have thoroughly enjoyed having our students back in our classrooms this week! It has been wonderful to hear our students speaking French and Spanish to one another without having to pause for unreliable internet connections. Our MFL teachers have been so impressed with the high quality of language that our students are using in class; it is a real testament to the excellent effort that our students put in over the virtual school. Speaking is such an important part of language acquisition, and our exam groups are busy preparing for their upcoming speaking exams and individual orals. They have been taking part in many activities to practise these skills. We wish them Bonne Chance and Buena Suerte in their preparations over the next few weeks! 

Ms Georgina Dorr 

Head of MFL