Term 1 Clubs begin on Monday 18th September
As we approach the beginning of this terms ECA programme I would like to take the opportunity to highlight some of our clubs and the benefits of involvement with them. Firstly, an introduction to a Community Partner..
Mai Tam House of Hope
The Mai Tam House of Hope is a home and shelter for HIV/AIDS positive widows, mothers, and children that are both infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. Most of the children living at Mai Tam are orphaned.
Mai Tam was established in 2005 and today supports more than 500 women and children in need, far beyond their initial hope of 100 people. The support offered by Mai Tam extends to medical, shelter, education and beyond.
For more information about Mai Tam please visit their website at: http://www.maitamhouseofhope.com/
BIS and Mai Tam House of Hope
As with all our community projects, we want our students to focus on the time and energy they spend with partners and the relationships they develop. These are the experiences that our partners value the most and offer the support that enables them to face the challenges that they experience in everyday situations like education and finding work.
As part of the Year 10 Community partnership with Mai Tam students work together to create a fun party with a Christmas, Tet or Easter theme and the Mai Tam Club visits the children on a bi-weekly basis. Our students have enriched the lives of many of the children that Mai Tam care for and at the same time learned more about HIV/AIDs and the stigma behind it.
Through fundraising events such as Christmas BISzaar, we have been able to support Mai Tam with some wish list goals, including school fees, study books and nappies for the younger children. As part of the TET collection, we have given Mai Tam clothes, food and stationery to support the many children that are in their care.
We truly value our partnership with such a wonderful organisation and look forward to another great year with Mai Tam!
To follow regular Community Service updates please view our Twitter page @BIS_Community
If you have any questions regarding Community Service projects at BIS then please contact: clover.sharman@bisvietnam.com
Spotlight on learning….
The weeks since the beginning of term have been a whirlwind of auditions and casting in the Music and Drama departments. We have auditioned 92 students for Chamber orchestra and Chamber choir and 95 students for our stage productions this year.
I applaud the students involved who have taken a courageous step out of their comfort zone to audition after no doubt many hours of preparation - well done to you all! From our new year 7 students all the way up to our Year 13 the quality of all the auditions this year has been outstanding, making our jobs in casting very difficult and making us immensely proud of all of our students.
So, with a huge drum roll. Our main performances this year are…
Antigone – 28th and 29th November
Winter concert – 7th December
Spring concert - 15th March
Into The Woods – 10th, 11th, 12th April
View From The Bridge – 22nd and 23rd May
The cast lists are now up and we want to offer our congratulations to all the students who secured roles. We would also like to encourage those who missed out this year to come and get involved in the wide range of other Music and Drama opportunities that we offer in school throughout the year.
We are very excited about the year ahead and working on these wonderful concerts, shows and ensembles with our amazing students, please do put the dates in your calendar and book your tickets early to avoid disappointment.
Year 7 and 12 Parent information evenings
Thanks to all who attended these evenings. It was wonderful to see so many parents who were keen to understand more about their child’s school life. It was a very positive beginning to see so many of our parents engaging in dialogue with their child’s tutor and also to hear from Asia Motions who will be leading the annual residential trip to Madagui for Year 7.
Today we welcomed more parents to join a Year 12 workshop with our new Sixth Form team. These parents have taken the opportunity to help shape information events for the remainder of the year by sharing their questions and ideas for future discussion.
Evacuation Drill
We take the safety of our students very seriously and as such we practice our emergency evacuation procedures periodically. This week the campus carried out the first of this year’s drills and students responded very well indeed. Well done to all on this.
International Day planning begins
International Day is the highlight of the school calendar, a day in which we celebrate together the rich diversity of the BIS Community, and provide wonderful memories that our students treasure beyond their time at BIS.
Our wonderfully diverse school community this year comprises families from more than 40 nationalities. We are looking forward to another great International Day with as many countries as possible being represented. Thank you in advance for the enthusiasm, hard work and spirit of fun you bring to International Day.
We will be holding a meeting for all country reps on Friday September 15th at 8:30am.
Please sign up for your country with Sign Up Genius by clicking the link.
BBGV Annual Charity Fun Run 2017
BIS HCMC are proud to once again be sponsoring the BBGV Annual Fun Run for Charity 2017. This event is a 3km fun run to raise money for local charities in Vietnam. Registrations are open from Monday 11th September at each campus, stop by and collect your bib and your shirt if you haven’t already.
An invitation to join our Secondary Parent Group social evening
An opportunity to catch up with old friends and familiar faces after the summer break or to meet and greet some of our newer community members, this event will be one of our first chances to gather together. Our wonderful BIS community is made up of so many people each with a different story. I would like to encourage as many of you as possible to come along and take the opportunity to speak to someone new.
The Inter-House Competitions Commence…
The official start of our Inter-House Competition has commenced. This week our four Heads of House organised their first assembly of the Academic Year to reflect on last year’s achievements and inspire their teams to strive for that winning trophy!
International Organisation for Migration (IOM)
On Thursday afternoon 25 BIS students had an engaging and wide-ranging presentation from Mark Brown from the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). The talk centred on the work of the IOM and the impact of both legal and forced migration, as well as the factors which influence migration itself. Over the course of the hour the students found themselves amazed to discover the true level of migration across the world (with over 250 cross-border migrations) and within nations (over 1 in 8 people globally are migrants within their own nation). It was fascinating to hear the steps which can be taken to alleviate the issues caused by migration, as well as those factors which push people from their home involuntarily. In the Q&A session at the end of the talk we had a great insight into how students can work for NGOs and Inter-Governmental organisations, and the benefits and drawbacks of such work. We thank Mark for his time; it was a very good presentation and a fantastic opportunity for those involved.
Saturday 9th September: ABRSM High Scorers Concert, 7pm
Tuesday 12th September: Year 10 & 11 Parent Information Evening, 6:30pm
Thursday 14th September: Year 8 & 9 Parent Information Evening, 6.30pm
Thursday 14th September: Parent Group: Parents Meet and Greet Evening, Boathouse, 7pm - 10pm
Friday 15th September: International Day planning meet for parents, 8.30am
Monday 18th September: Term 1 ECAs start
Thursday 21st September: Year 9 Options Evening, 6.30pm
Have a wonderful weekend
Carl Mincher
Headteacher at An Phu Secondary