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In order to support Secondary parents with our new Firefly system, Mr. Robertson, our Assistant Head of Teaching and Learning, has provided this handy video tutorial to guide you through.

On Wednesday 17 May, Pre-Nursery students participated in their Pre-Nursery Sports Day event. Unfortunately, the weather was too wet to go outside, and the event took place in the Gymnastics Room. However, the weather did not dampen the spirits of the students. It was a fantastic event, with the pupils performing brilliantly. They displayed determination, perseverance and a great amount of effort.

We are thrilled to share with you the details of our Year 12 Biology students' recent visit to the DNA Learning Centre in Suzhou, affiliated with the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. This world-renowned research and education institution has been contributing to the field of biomedical research since 1890 and is home to eight Nobel Prize winners, employing over 1,000 people, including scientists, students, and technicians. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's education arm includes a graduate school, academic publishing house, and programmes for students and teachers at all levels, from middle school to undergraduate.

The Primary Mandarin Speech Show is one of the most popular language events among the students. Students from Year 3 to Year 6, no matter whether they are from a native Chinese class or non-native Chinese, take the leading role to design their own script; to create their presentation; to host their own show by combining what they have learnt in the language classes and then, use this event as a platform to showcase their language skills in front of an audience.

Thank you to those parents and Key Stage 3 students who attended the ‘Getting Exam Ready’ event this week; there was a very strong turnout. It was a pleasure to present information which we hope is of help to you as parents/guardians and your children, to support their academic success through the upcoming weeks, and as students prepare to sit their internal Key Stage 3 examinations from 18-24 May. For you and your children, we aim to strengthen your understanding of the Key Stage 3 exam process and provide guidance on how your children can be successful.

As part of the Key Stage 3 pastoral programme, each pupil was tasked to prepare a speech on a topic they were passionate about. This activity took place during form time within the first term. Pupils chose a diverse array of topics ranging from sports and hobbies to global hot topics such as ‘Misconceptions’, ‘The value of life’, ‘Equality’ and ‘Cancel culture’.

‘Conflict: Healing the scars of the past’. This was the bold theme underpinning debates in the three committees running at the Wellington MUN on 24 and 25 March. The committees: Security Council; Human Rights Council and the General Assembly for beginners constituted of delegates from five international schools in Shanghai. Eighteen delegates and two chairs representing BISS Puxi were all raring to go as the excitement of socialising and collaborating with other like-minded delegates reached fever-pitch.

We often describe the learning journey of a student as being when they are in the midst of being at school. Recent research suggests that the learning begins whilst in the womb. The foetus is exposed to a range of sensory experiences, such as sound, light, and touch, which can influence their development. For example, research has shown that babies can recognise their mother's voice and respond to certain sounds in the environment while still in the womb.

In English lessons on Tuesday, students were celebrating World Poetry Day by crafting and performing their own compositions, in addition to testing their literary knowledge through participating in a fun poetry quiz.

The Year 3 children have been engaging in the exciting ‘Talk for Writing’ genre of non-chronological report writing. The text titled ‘How do people survive in the desert?’ was the starting point to sharpen and develop the children’s writing skills of the non-chronological report.

As the school year continues, we are proud to highlight the important role that our Year 5 and Year 6 students are playing as playground buddies. These students have put themselves forward for this responsibility and are now serving as role models for younger children in our school.

Mathematics is an essential subject that provides a foundation for many other subjects and is crucial for success in everyday life. As such, it is important for schools to provide a strong Maths education for their students. One way that BISS is doing this is through the implementation of the White Rose Maths scheme. Recently, James Callan, our Maths Leader, held a Maths parent workshop to inform parents about the White Rose scheme and how it is implemented across different year groups.

Last week, Year One students were very excited to go on their first educational visit of the year! Excursions out of school are such a valuable part of our students’ education and learning experience, and we are delighted that we can now resume such activities.

At the start of Term 2, students across the Secondary School were encouraged to apply for a Prefect Role. The rationale behind a Prefect is the following: A Prefect employs the core values of courtesy, respect, and responsibility. Prefects are ambassadors for the school and are excellent role models for other students. Their function is to represent the student body at school events and to act as role models upholding our value system.

Whether your child is a student in the Primary or Secondary School, the foundations for their learning are made in the Early Years. This area of the school looks different to the regular classrooms in the more senior sections of the school because it is here that we create their future by setting them on the right path for success. It is here that we provide opportunities for children to explore, evolve and adapt to their ever-changing world inside the school buildings as well as in our outside learning spaces. It is here where firm foundations create strong and sustainable futures.

For me, this is a difficult question to answer as there is not one answer; at BISS Puxi we look at several hundred versions of academic excellence as all children are different. Academic excellence differs between each student, each age group and each individual circumstance. What we can agree on, though, is that we need rigour, stimulation and the provision of experience.

BISS Puxi reached out to some of our class of 2022 network around the world and asked 3 questions about their future and their time at BISS Puxi. Helena will study advertising at Boston University in the USA and shared some of her experiences.

‘Personalised learning’ is just one example of a term discussed frequently in schools but often with different ideas and meanings. In my 30+ years as an educator, I have found that some parents have different definitions of personalised learning, while others may not be very familiar with the concept or the concrete benefits it brings to students at school!