Nord Anglia Education
WRITTEN BY
Nord Anglia
17 January, 2025

Weekly Highlights 17/01/2025

Weekly Highlights 17/01/2025 - Weekly Highlights 17 01 2025

Update from the principal

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Mr. Simon Higham, Principal

Dear Parents

Welcome back to another edition of the Weekly Highlights. Thank you for taking time to once again engage and connect with us.

Tet Festival 2025

It was a real pleasure to see nearly 1,500 members of our school community through the gates last Sunday, to share in what I believe was our biggest and best Tet festival to date.

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From children’s traditional games, choirs and pottery making to school bands, dragon performances and the best Vietnamese cuisine – our Tet Festival had it all.

Aside from all the amazing activities on the day, I am always taken aback by the warmth, togetherness and strength that the Festival brings across our BVIS community. The colours of ao dai were beautiful to see, mirroring the vibrant decorations that were seen across the whole campus.

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I want to thank everyone who took time out of their busy weekends to help support and attend this event – from teachers and TAs to cleaners and guards - it truly was a remarkable way to start our Tet celebrations! Thank you also for attending – we sincerely hope that you enjoyed the experience!

Principal Interview – Update

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As mentioned in last week’s Highlights, this week we have conducted our Panel meetings, interviews and presentations to find our new BVIS HCMC Principal. I can confirm that the 2 days went very well and when we have any additional information, it will be shared with you.

Our thanks go to the 8 parents from the Friends of BVIS who took part in Monday’s Parent Panel. As always, the support and time you give to our school is very much appreciated.

Should you wish to find out more about how YOU can be part of the Friends of BVIS, our parent group in school, please contact Ms. Nhien Ngo, Events Manager, via: 

  • Email: nhien.ngo@bvisvietnam.com
  • Hotline: 0906 880 005

School Photographs

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A reminder that you are now able to view and select your child’s school photos on the Picture Day website, from which you’ll be able to purchase prints and digital packages online. Your unique personal login details were sent to you on Tuesday 7th January.

Key dates to note:

  • Orders taken up to 19th January 2025 Free delivery to school
  • Free delivery of orders at school: 26th February, 2025

Picture Day accepts most debit and credit cards for local and international payments, made directly on their website. Alternatively, you can also pay by bank transfer with the bank information on the confirmation email after placing an order.

If you have any difficulties accessing your account or any further questions, please directly contact them by email at: hello@pictureday.asia or hotline 0243 717 3588 (8:30-12:30 & 13:30-16:30, Monday - Friday).

Picture Day offers support in English, Vietnamese and French for your convenience.

Chuc Mung Nam Moi!

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Next week, I will be attending the annual Nord Anglia Education Recruitment event in London and Manchester. This means that I will sadly be out of school from Monday and will not see you on the gate or across the school.

In light of this, I would like to personally wish you all a very prosperous Year of the Snake and hope that you have a wonderful Tet holiday with your family.

Please note that as we finish school for Tet next week on Thursday 23rd January, the next Highlights that will be sent to your Inbox will be on Friday 14th February.

Chuc Mung Nam Moi!

Contact Us

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Should you wish to contact your child’s Class Teacher(s) or Form Tutor directly, we encourage communication to be written in the language you most feel confident to use. 

Parents may also find it useful to contact their child’s class teacher(s) or form tutor directly for all individual queries about their academic work/social and emotional wellbeing in school.  Individual contact details can be found in the Parent's Handbooks or via our Primary/Secondary Receptionists.   

Wishing you all a great break when it arrives and a successful weekend ahead.

BVIS Weekly Highlights


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Mrs Mary McAloon, Head of Primary

U11 Boys Badminton Championships

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On Monday we hosted 7 international schools in the U11 Boys Badminton City Championships. The teams arrived full of passion, energy and determination to play their best in the games. The sports hall was bustling with excitement as spectators cheered and players gave their opposition a great game to challenge their skills and endurance.  

In total, our BVIS Bulldogs U11 Boys team played 21 games of badminton against 7 other international schools in HCMC. Out of these 21 games, the Bulldogs won 19, lost 1 and drew 1 finishing in 1st place overall. We are incredibly proud of our players for their individual and collective achievements. The U11 boys demonstrated excellent sportsmanship throughout the championships whilst maintaining a competitive edge throughout every game. Congratulations to our Bulldogs and their team coach, Ms Jess Blick.

Look out for the summary of our U11 Girls Badminton achievements during their City Championships in the next primary highlights.

Upper Primary Residentials 

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Following the Tet holiday our Upper Primary year groups will embark on their residential trips.  

  • Year 4 head to Long Hai for 1 night 
  • Year 5 to Can Tho for 2 nights 
  • Year 6 to Madagui for 3 nights

The increase in the number of nights away is purposeful over the three year period to support the development of each student’s resilience, confidence and independence. The team leaders of the residential trips have now completed the annual recce where they visit the location, check out the planned activities and assess all aspects of the trip for safety to ensure our students and teachers have the best time away. Kit lists will be shared with students and families through Class Dojo so please do look out for these to help children prepare for their time away from home.

Vietnamese Perspective

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Throughout the year there are many ways that teachers plan to promote and encourage students’ Vietnamese Perspective.  Learning is planned with a view of Vietnam so that Vietnamese perspective is developed implicitly during lessons. As an example, the role play area in Early Years will have signs, labels and objects that relate to Vietnam so that as students are playing, they experience how life is in Vietnam.  In primary, some of the poetry studied in Vietnamese literacy lessons will reference Vietnamese cultures and traditions.  

In addition to implicit teaching, explicit activities and events are also planned to support and develop Vietnamese Perspective. Next week is a time of year when teachers plan practical and meaningful activities for students as we lead into our most important celebration of the year – Tet. Some highlights of the upcoming week are experiencing cooking and tasting traditional Vietnamese dishes, exploring customary dress from the different provinces of Vietnam and practicing Vietnamese cultural music and dance. Look out for updates of the week on Class Dojo and the school’s social media channels.

Upcoming events

  1. 20/01/25: Vietnamese Perspective week in Primary
  2. 22/01/25: EYFS Tet Performance (ticketed event)
  3. 23/01/25: Students and Teachers wear traditional dress to celebrate Lunar New Year 
  4. 24/01/25 – 11/02/25: School Closed for the Tet holiday
  5. 12/02/25 -08:25am: School resumes for students
  6. 12/02/25 & 13/02/25: Parents Evening Meetings (See individual email to book meetings)
  7. 18/02/25 & 20/02/25: Parents Evening Meetings (See individual email to booking meetings)
  8. 26-28/02/25: Year 5 Residential Trip to Can Tho
  9. 27-28/02/25: Year 4 Residential Trip to Long Hai
  10. 03-07/03/25: Book Week

BVIS Weekly Highlights


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Mr Toby Bate, Head of Secondary

Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge Results

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BVIS Secondary students from all year groups took part in the recent Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge. Once again, BVIS recorded outstanding results, with a new record of 26 students achieving a gold award for finishing within the top 10% of scores, nationally. An excellent effort from our talented Computer Scientists. We now look forward to a further, even more challenging, coding challenge in the new year. Well done to everyone who took part in this year's competition!

University Guidance Counsellor Weekly Updates

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During Term 1 of the Academic Year 2024-2025, a total of 75 universities visited BVIS HCMC. Among these, 14 universities are ranked in the QS Top 100 Worldwide Universities, including Imperial College London (UK), Australian National University (AUS), among others from various countries.

The university fair, held on Tuesday, December 10th, marks a significant milestone to conclude Term 1 with a total of 29 universities participating. This includes several prestigious institutions from the Group of Eight universities (University of Sydney, University of Melbourne, University of Adelaide...), as well as other notable universities.

To ensure you stay informed with our latest updates, please refer to our Newsletter for more information.

History Trip

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Last week Year 11 History students had an informative trip to the War Remnants Museum, where they were guided around the various exhibitions that enlightened them about the Vietnamese American War. Students were fantastically behaved and respectful during the entire trip and showcased a great deal of empathy as they connected with the stories of those affected by the war.

Performing Arts at the Tet Fair

Over 30 performances, including ensembles, musical solos and dance numbers, helped to celebrate the spirit of Tet on Sunday. From our youngest performer in Year 2 to our more experienced in Year 13, all shared the stage. Well-done to all involved and thank-you to the wonderful audience, including parents, family and friends, for your support.

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Happy New Year

Year 11-13 mock exams (CC)

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Our Year 11-13 students are working extremely hard to prepare for their mock exams from 14th – 22nd January. These mock exams are an important step in preparing students for their real exams by assessing their knowledge and allowing them to feel comfortable in the exam rooms. Students’ teachers are always available to support them with their revision, and we wish them the very best of luck!

House Sways 

The links below display the House Sways, which are put together by our House student leaders. As the term progresses different posts and updates will be added displaying the relevant news for each of the Houses. 

Dalat - Dalat House News 
Hanoi - Hanoi House News  
Hue - Hue House News 
Saigon - Saigon House News 

Sparx Maths Champions 

The Sparx Maths Weekly Champion is the student who is the top XP earner in each year group. 
 
Students earn XP by completing tasks in their Sparx Homework 

  • Compulsory Tasks earn 60-80XP 
  • XP Boost Tasks earn 120-150XP 
  • Target Tasks earn 120-150XP 
  • Independent Learning Tasks earn 100XP 

Students reach a new Sparx Level every 10000XP 

Huge congratulations go to our Top XP earners this week, who are:

Year Group

Name

Class

7

Khoi Trinh

7S

8

Sunrise Do

8zMat3

9

Bin Tran

9zMat2x

10

Chi Hieu Nguyen

10zMat3

 11 Jay Hua 11zMat1

 

The following students are the students who have earned the most XP in their Year since August 2024

Year Group

Name

Class

7

Bim Luu

7S

8

Susie Le

8zMat1

9

Anna Quach

9zMat2x

10

Naomi Ho

10zMat1

11 Emma Nguyen 11zMat2y

Bedrock Champions  

This week’s bedrock champions are:  

Year 7 Nguyen Hoang Thuc Quyen  
Year 8 Le Hong Minh Quang
Year 9 Nguyen Phuc Khanh
Year 10 Mai Kim Ngan
Year 11 Do Nhat Minh Anh  
Year 12 Nguyen Ngoc Bao Tran 

Congratulations to all the above students who came up on top in their respective Year groups. A special well done to Mraz who achieved the highest Bedrock points total across the whole of the secondary school for this week! 

Champion of the week

This week’s champion is...

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Congratulations and well-done to Alex!

Champion Tutor Group

This week's Champion tutor group is...

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Congratulations to 789v/Hanoi3, well done!

Housepoint Totals

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Congratulations to Ha Noi house who are still leading the housepoint challenge.

Upcoming Events

  1. 14 - 22/01/25: Mock examinations for students in Year 11, Year 12, Year 13
  2. 19 - 22/01/25: Year 7, 8, 9, 10 Residential trips 
  3. 24/01/25: Tet Holiday begins
  4. 12/02/25: Students are back to school

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: 

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