Weekly Highlights is a weekly newsletter sent by the BVIS Leadership Team to parents, providing updates on notable news and activities at the school. The newsletter consists of three main sections: updates from the Principal, Head of Primary, and Head of Secondary.
Mr. Simon Higham, Principal
Dear Parents,
Thank you once again for engaging and connecting with our school through the Weekly Highlights. As always, it has been a very busy and learning focused week with a tremendous amount of achievement and success from EYFS to Year 13.
During the academic year, we organise a wide variety of parent workshops and learning sessions with the aim of helping to support all parents to understand our school better and developing a stronger sense of belonging across our BVIS community.
This week, I have seen Primary parents designing and making in their STEAM and DT workshops and witnessed parents of EYFS learn more about their child’s mathematical development and how they can help to support its growth (more can be read about these two sessions in Ms Mary’s Highlights below.)
Additionally, on Wednesday this week, we had over 20 visitors who joined our Primary Open Day which was supported by Friends of BVIS (FoBVIS).
It is delightful to see that more and more parents are engaging with our school in many different ways and this is something that I think all of our school community should be very proud of. Over the weekend, I encourage all parents to ask themselves the following 3 questions:
1. What do I want to learn more about BVIS and how can I achieve this?
2. What is the next parent workshop or school event that I am going to attend?
3. What time do I have in my busy schedule to help BVIS students and the wider community to learn and experience more?
If you would like to offer your help and support to FoBVIS or offer suggestions about future events for parents and children, please do not hesitate to contact Ms Nhien (Events Manager) at the following email address: nhien.ngo@bvisvietnam.com
On Friday 28th March, two separate earthquakes in Myanmar had a devastating impact on children and families. The two large earthquakes shook the country with epicentres near the cities of Mandalay (7.7 in size) and Sagaing city (6.4 in size). Aftershocks then followed.
The earthquakes were the most powerful in Myanmar since 1912.
As I write, more than 2,800+ people have died and over 4,600 are injured – many of them children.
The shocks have damaged homes, schools, health facilities and water supplies in urban centers that are home to hundreds of thousands of children.
On behalf of everyone at BVIS, I would like to thank you for your generous donations to all of those affected by this natural disaster. Currently, the funds that have been raised are being counted and I will confirm final amounts with you early next week.
As mentioned in my email to you all on Wednesday, we will be working with UNICEF through their Myanmar earthquake Appeal.
Full Details of the Appeal and how you can donate if you haven’t already done so can be found in this link.
I would like to further share a message from Ms Alion Fox, Principal of the British School Yangon (BSY), a Nord Anglia Education school in Myanmar:
BSY would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to our fellow NAE schools and colleagues who have reached out with messages of support and offers of assistance. Your kindness has been deeply appreciated, and I have shared your messages with the school community.
Should you wish to further support local Myanmar charities, Mrs Fox and the school’s Social Impact Committee have suggested the following organisations based upon their efficiency, neutrality, well established links and ethical operations:
Do Eain (www.doeain.com)
A social enterprise and nonprofit focusing on community resilience, urban development, and disaster recovery in Myanmar, including emergency response efforts.
SONNE Social Organization (www.sonne-international.org)
Works in Myanmar to provide education, healthcare, and livelihood support to vulnerable communities, with a strong presence in disaster relief efforts.
Medical Action Myanmar (MAM) (www.medicalactionmyanmar.org)
A nonprofit organization delivering critical healthcare services, emergency medical aid, and humanitarian assistance to disaster-affected communities in Myanmar.
Thank you again for all of your support to those who have been severely affected by these tragic events.
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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.
Have a peaceful and enjoyable long weekend ahead and see you all again on Tuesday 8th April, after the public holiday.
Mrs Mary McAloon, Head of Primary
FAHASA Book Fair – Thank you
As a thank you to our school for hosting the book fair during our Book Week, FAHASA has kindly gifted BVIS 3,000,000VND to spend in their store. Ms Ngoc Anh and Ms Trang, our Head and Assistant Head Librarians, visited FAHASA to select new titles to put on our BVIS library bookshelves for all students to enjoy.
Thank you to all families and students who supported this event, not only have you increased your book collection at home, but you have also brought new titles to our library.
Keep on reading!
On Monday we welcomed parents back into the Secondary Design, Technology and STEAM room to complete their individual projects. This series of workshops gave parents the opportunity to experience what their children experience at school. Design, Technology and STEAM lessons are filled with fun, practical activities with time to experiment, explore and test knowledge and skills by combining a variety of subjects.
STEAM activities are designed creatively to encourage students to focus on the subjects, Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Maths in the same unit of work. This allows students to develop a deeper cognitive level of understanding as they are required to apply their learning in a new context. Each academic year in Primary, teachers facilitate a special STEAM project related to their Lien Ket topic. We are proud of how our students embrace these challenges and allow their learning to flourish.
Thank you to the parents who joined us for the challenges that Mr James Chandler and Mr Chris Hughes set. Your time and commitment to learning more about your children’s learning is much appreciated.
07/04/25: Public Holiday for King Hung Day – School Closed
10/04/25 @ 2pm: Year 1 Exit Point of ‘Buildings and Landmarks’
11/04/25 @ 08:45: Year 4 Production
14/04/25 @1:30pm: Deepening the sense of belonging at BVIS – all primary parents welcome
14-18/04/25: Green Week in Primary
18/04/25: Wear Green for Green Week - proceeds go to Saigon Xanh our chosen community partner for sustainability
Mr Toby Bate, Head of Secondary
12 students competed in the Saigon Maths Competition on Saturday at VAS.
2 teams took part in the Intermediate Competition, intended for students in year 9 and 10, and 1 team in the Senior Competition, intended for students in Years 12 and 13.
Intermediate Team 1:
Khac Nguyen Anh Nguyen (Tony)
Nguyen Khanh Bui
Chau Anh Dao (Joan)
Nhu Minh Quach (Kate)
Intermediate Team 2:
Anh Khoa Le (Sam)
Nguyen Bui (Yoo)
Nguyen Khanh Linh Tran (Amy)
Hiep Phuc Thien Nguyen
Senior Team 1:
Duy Vu Jayden Mai
Trieu Hoang Jimmy Huynh
JiU Moon
Nguyen Gia Ngoc Le
Well done to all the students involved, they were excellent representatives of BVIS. Special congratulations go to the Senior Team who gained 3rd place overall, and to Jayden who won 3rd place in the individual competition.
Year 10 Business students have been diving into the world of manufacturing by simulating job, batch, and flow production in a dynamic, hands-on lesson. Working in teams, students took on the challenge of producing products using each method, experiencing firsthand how businesses operate in different production environments.
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Through this engaging activity, students discovered the efficiency of flow production, the flexibility of batch production, and the craftsmanship involved in job production. By reflecting on their experiences, they were able to evaluate the advantages and drawbacks of each approach and consider which methods suit different industries.
A huge congratulations to our U19 boys football team! For the first time ever, they made it to the final of the HCMC City Championships, where they faced off against CIS in an exciting and hard-fought match. The game ended in a 2-2 draw, with both teams giving their all. Unfortunately, after a tense penalty shootout, they were narrowly defeated.
Throughout the match, the crowd was incredibly supportive and positive, cheering on the team every step of the way. The energy from the supporters was electric, and it was clear that the whole school stood behind the team, creating a great atmosphere that fueled their performance.
Despite the loss, the team’s effort, determination, and sportsmanship were outstanding. Their journey to the final is a true testament to their hard work and dedication. They have set an amazing example for the entire school, showing what can be achieved with passion and teamwork. We are incredibly proud of the U19 boys — you’ve made us all proud with your performance!
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In the final week of this term, one student from each house in Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4 along with two sixth form students will be invited to a reward breakfast.
These students are selected based on the contribution that they have made to their House or the sixth form and is not related to academic performance or Housepoints.
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
University Newsletter - University ambassadors 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
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
Top XP earners this week are:
|
Year Group |
Name |
Class |
|
7 |
Bim Luu |
7S |
|
8 |
Hong Nhung Nguyen |
8zMat2y |
|
9 |
Amy Tran |
9zMat1 |
|
10 |
Quoc An Nguyen |
10zMat1 |
|
11 |
Kyle Chenh |
11zMat1 |
This week’s bedrock champions are:
Year 7 - Ha Quang Yen Dan
Year 8 - Le Hong Minh Quang
Year 9 - Chung Quang Huy
Year 10 - Nguyen Dien Phuc Huu
Year 11 - Ngo Khanh Ngoc
Year 12 - Nguyen Minh Tai
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...
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Congratulations and well-done to Mai Lam!
This week’s Champion tutor group is
Congratulations to 789v/hanoi3 well done!
Congratulations to Hanoi house who are still leading the house point challenge.
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:
As I look ahead to my next challenge, I look forward to hearing how BVIS continues to move onwards and upwards into the future. Never underestimate how special this school really is with academic rigour, care and personalised attention and a happy, safe and flourishing culture at the heart of everything it offers.
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