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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.
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.
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.
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!
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:
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:
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.
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!
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.
Mrs Mary McAloon, Head of Primary
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.
Following the Tet holiday our Upper Primary year groups will embark on their residential trips.
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.
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.
Mr Toby Bate, Head of Secondary
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.
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.
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.
Happy New Year
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!
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
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
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 |
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!
This week’s champion is...
Congratulations and well-done to Alex!
This week's Champion tutor group is...
Congratulations to 789v/Hanoi3, well done!
Congratulations to Ha Noi house who are still leading the housepoint challenge.
Upcoming Events
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: