Weekly Highlights 06/06/2025

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.

Dear Parents,

It’s great to connect with you all once again via the Weekly Highlights!



Recently, I was speaking with a parent who is thinking about bringing her children to BVIS. She asked me, “How do you know children are successful at your school?”

This is a common question from parents to educators which got me wondering how you see success in school and outside of it.

This weekend, I encourage you to reflect upon the following questions and share these with your chid(ren):

1. What does success mean to you?
2. Who do you see as successful in the world today and from the past?
3. What skills or attributes do you think people need to be successful?
4. How have you been a success and what/who helped you to achieve this?



Personally, I like this quote by Albert Einstein who said, “Try not to become a person of success but rather try to become a person of value.”

Should success be based upon what you achieve or the person you become? Or indeed, could it be a mixture of the two?

Interestingly, when I searched for the word ‘success’ in our school website, it came up with 45 pages with 222 separate references – from TedX Youth to FOBISIA Games, University scholarships to EYFS play.



Check out the search for yourselves using the Q function on the Home Page. 

I hope that you will gain your own personal success from these reflections!

Building Community

Thank you to all parents who were able to attend this week’s final Principal’s Afternoon Tea held on Wednesday 4th June – the final one of this academic year. I trust that you were able to learn more about Ms Deirdre (Dee) Grimshaw, our incoming Principal, through a Q and A session in the second half of the event. 

Like me, I also hope that you also enjoyed the cream and jam scones – thank you to BlackCat for this lovely touch!

Events such as these are an effective way in which to further grow and strengthen our BVIS community and I look forward to reading more about them and their successes over the next few years. 

Summer Music Concert

 
Time: 16.00
Date: Thursday 12th June
Venue: BVIS Theatre
Ticket cost: 20,000vnd

The Summer Music Concert is an opportunity for our students across Primary and Secondary to share their love of music. 

All parents are cordially invited to performances shared by our musicians from the extensive extracurricular programme, as well as selected performers from our in-class curriculum. Additionally, there will be other notable performances from this year's Primary Young Musician of the Year finalists.

Secure your tickets now – they are available to purchase from both Primary and Secondary Receptions, with all proceeds going to our BVIS Community partners.

Contact Us

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, an incredible weekend ahead.

Time to Prepare for Transition

As we approach the end of Term 3, we're focusing on preparing students for their onward journey to the next year group.  This involves class discussions that allow students to ask questions about what to expect and share their thoughts and feelings.  It also includes visits to the new classrooms and learning spaces that the students will use starting in August.

At school, we also believe it is beneficial for parents to know what to expect and be prepared for the changes ahead.  As children grow and develop through their school years, so does the amount of responsibility and independence that teachers expect from them.  This is where parents can also support at home.  That is why, on Tuesday this week, Ms. Yen Tran and Mr. Ben Hulbert, Upper Primary Phase and Assistant Phase Leaders respectively, invited Year 3 parents to learn all about the upcoming transition to Upper Primary for their children.  From developments in the use of technology to expectations in home learning, parents learned how to support their children from the experts of Upper Primary.

Thank you to all families who attended the meeting. If you were unable to attend and have questions about the transition from Year 3 to 4, please contact Ms. Yen or Mr. Ben by email at yen.tran@bvisvietnam.com and benjamin.hulbert@bvisvietnam.com. 
 

Every Child is Unique

On Thursday, Mr. Sam Chapman, our Primary Inclusion Leader, hosted a parent workshop focused on understanding and supporting children’s communication, emotional regulation, and sensory needs in everyday life.
 
This was part of a series of two workshops to help parents better understand their children and, therefore, support them with the best strategies and resources so that they meet their developmental milestones.  The workshop offered practical tools and helpful insights for parents to use with their child(ren) at home.  

Whether a child has recognised differences in how they learn, communicate, or experience the world, or parents were simply looking for new ways to support their development, they came away with top tips from our in-house expert in understanding that every child is unique.
 
Thank you for attending the workshop and supporting your children in this way.  We look forward to welcoming you to part two on Thursday 12th June, at 8:30 AM in the Library.
 

Celebratory Trip for Year 6

On Wednesday, Year 6 had their final day trip of their primary years at BVIS. As a celebration, Mr Ben, Upper Primary Assistant Phase Leader, organised for the whole of Year 6 to go to the cinema.  Our BVIS students and teachers were treated to their very own private movie theatre for the trip, along with popcorn and drinks.

As we reflect on the learning and development of the Year 6 students, we are proud of the achievements they have made with the support of their parents and the expert teachers at BVIS.  With proficiency in English and Vietnamese, not forgetting now being magnificent mathematicians and scientists with enquiring minds to think critically and creatively, our Year 6 students are ready to take on the next chapter of their learning.  

As an international school, students moving on to Year 7 will learn all subjects through the medium of English to prepare them to excel in their iGCSEs and A Levels at 16 and 18 respectively, and move on to universities, including those in the top 50 worldwide.  

Congratulations to our Year 6 cohort of 2024-25, and we wish you all the very best as you transition to secondary at BVIS.

Upcoming events

Pastoral

For their recent PSHE lessons, Year 9 has been hard at work developing an eye-catching campaign aimed at raising awareness among both our primary and secondary students about the importance of always wearing a motorbike helmet.

Through their dedicated efforts, our students have designed a powerful poster campaign that will be displayed across both primary and secondary. These visually engaging posters serve as a reminder to our entire school community – students, parents, and staff alike – to prioritise safety on the roads by consistently wearing a helmet.

This student-led campaign not only highlights the practical benefits of helmet use in preventing serious injuries but also fosters a culture of responsibility and care within our school. Please take a moment to admire their fantastic work as you see their posters around the school. Let's all reinforce their message and ensure that helmet safety remains a top priority for everyone.

Live Lunch

Last Friday saw The Cheeseboys headline a musical break in the exam season. With support from Bao in Year 10 singing the hit single ‘APT’ and with guest performer, Forester – a BVIS alumni, fun was had by all. Thank-you to all performers and for our superb audience members.

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

• University Newsletter - University ambassadors 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

Top XP earners this Term are:

Bedrock Champions  

This week’s bedrock champions are:  

Year 7 - Bui Nha Uyen                                 
Year 8 - Le Hong Minh Quang Mraz  
Year 9 - Bui Nguyen Khanh
Year 10 - Vu Huu Vuong                     
Year 11 - Ngo Khanh Ngoc

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 this week! 

Champion of the week!

This week’s champion is...

Minh Phuc (Sam) - 8S/3

Congratulations and well-done to Sam.

Champion Tutor Group of the week!

This week’s Champion tutor group is

Congratulations to 789s/saigon3. Well done!

Housepoint Totals

Congratulation to Saigon’s house who stay in the lead. All housepoint totals are now hidden as we build towards the end of year.

Upcoming Events

Safeguarding and 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: