Mr. Simon Higham, Principal
Dear Parents,
Safety first
Thank you for taking time to read through this week’s Highlights.
I am pleased to report that today, we successfully completed our first emergency evacuation of the academic year. Across our 3 terms, it is important to ensure that safety remains our number one priority with at least 3 emergency evacuations and 2 Lockdown drills planned into our calendar. It is essential that our children, staff and visitors fully understand what to do should an emergency situation arise in school.
Today, all children and adults were successfully accounted for within our targeted times. Ask your child(ren) about today’s emergency drill and what they would advise you to if the school fire alarm sounds when you are in school.
Communication, communication, communication
As mentioned at both the recent Primary and Secondary ‘Meet the Teacher/Tutor’ evenings, should you have any questions, concerns or feedback regarding your child’s learning, please contact your child’s class teacher (Primary) or class tutor (Secondary) in the first instance. Our teachers are ready and willing to support you and your family in any way they can.
Teachers can be contacted directly through Class Dojo (Primary) and email.
Our admin staff are also available to help and support using the numbers below:
- For all Primary Enquiries, please call:
(028) 3758 0709 / ext. 111
- For all Secondary Enquiries, please call:
(028) 3758 0717 / ext. 211
- For all enquiries linked to Admissions, please call:
(028) 3758 8033
Calling our talented students for the Young Musician of the Year 2020
This is an amazing experience and great opportunity for all Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 children who play an instrument to showcase their musical skills and develop performing with confidence and style in increasingly competitive rounds. It is also a very sociable event with students from both schools taking part in a mutually supportive environment.
Read more about how your child can enter in this post.
F1 Explorers
Our teachers are working hard to ensure that all of our children feel safe and secure in their new environment. As you know, starting school can be a very challenging time for children, especially when they are young and some will take longer than others to settle.
Read more about the great progress our young children in F1 are making in this post from our website.
Meet our new teachers
This week, it is my pleasure to introduce Ms Lee Stanley who has recently taken up her role as our new Secondary Mathematics teacher. Take time to read through her answers and reflections to get to know her better:
1. Where did you live prior to coming to Vietnam, what role did you have and what was the name of your previous school?
Prior to joining BVIS, I taught in the UK at St Joseph’s Catholic Academy in South Tyneside. I worked there for twelve years and held several positions of responsibility – most recently Curriculum Leader of Mathematics.
2. What were your first impressions of BVIS?
My first impression of BVIS was a very positive one. I was pleased to find the staff are incredibly friendly and supportive. The students have also been so welcoming and understanding – particularly with my struggles in pronunciation!
3. What is your teaching philosophy in short?
I believe that all students should be given the opportunity to learn, but my fundamental aim is that all students I teach love learning. In this, I can then encourage them to be whatever it is that they wish to be.
4. What 3 things are you looking forward to doing whilst working and living in Vietnam?
Three things I wish to do whilst working and living in Vietnam are to enjoy and learn from the challenges provided when teaching in a new country. I’m really looking forward to travelling, both in Vietnam and South-East Asia – Hoi An and Malaysia are at the top of my list! And the food – I'm already enjoying this, and I know that I have not even scratched the surface of what is on offer in this beautiful country!
5. If you could sum up your experience so far in just one word, what would it be?
One word to describe my experience of arriving in Vietnam in 2020 – Unexpected!
Please note that you can access all of our staff profiles on the school website within the ‘Our Teachers’ tab. This can be found here.
Thank you for your ongoing support of our school in keeping us all safe and learning focused. On behalf of the whole staff, I would like to wish you a very pleasant weekend ahead.
Mrs Mary McAloon, Head of Primary
BVIS is a place for not just our students to learn, but also our parents and teachers. This week our EYFS and Lower Primary Coordinators hosted our first coffee morning of the year on the theme of ‘Communication and Virtual Learning’. Parents experienced a walkthrough of the online platforms that are used at BVIS to connect students and families with learning even when they are not at school. ClassDojo, Microsoft Teams and Nearpod are the platforms that were shared to support parental understanding of how learning from home is successful. Thank you to all families who joined us for this insight. If you missed it and would like to know more, please refer to the presentation slides shared on ClassDojo and contact the class teachers for support.
Fundinotots
Welcome back to our fantastic Fundinotot families!
We welcomed a number of new children and families to the school this week with our new intake of Fundinotots whilst at the same time, we opened the doors once again to our returning Fundinotots, who are on their way to beginning in F1 as they approach their 2nd birthday. The children soon became thoroughly engaged once they had arrived with all the new learning resources and activities to explore, which are always carefully planned by Ms Chrissy and Ms Yen, our talented Fundinotot team. Having our last group of children return to school following the summer holiday really does make our BVIS family complete.
If you have a child aged 0 to 36 months, then Fundinotots is a place for you both. Contact Ms Phung Huynh in Admissions at, Phung.Huynh@bvisvietnam.com to find out more and register for a trial session.