Welcome to the Weekly Wellbeing Blog which brings you all the latest exciting developments in the new Wellbeing Curriculum over the last seven days at BIS HCMC.
“There is clear evidence that building good relationships - with family, friends and our wider community - is positive for our wellbeing.”
As the half-term draws to a close and we look forward to a (hopefully) relaxing holiday, it provides us with a great opportunity to draw breath and celebrate the successful launch of our Wellbeing Curriculum.
It feels an age since Dr Miguel from Family Medical Practice addressed our students about the importance of ‘Teenage Mental Health’ back in late August. Since then a huge amount of work has been done to embed the philosophy underpinning our Wellbeing Curriculum and working towards making it an integral part of our students' everyday lives, in school, the local community and beyond.
With the help of Viviena Nguyen, a student in Year 13, we now have the recognisable ‘face’ of Wellbeing (well, two actually!) and it is wonderful to see how quickly they have come to represent the new curriculum. Ask students what they represent and I am confident most would correctly reply “Wellbeing.”
Over the course of the last half term, it has been a pleasure to address many of you at the various Parent’s Open Mornings and communicate the vision and philosophy behind the new Wellbeing Curriculum. I look forward to working with many of you again in the near future as we continue to develop the student, school, home link that we can all agree is key to our students Wellbeing.
As the Head of Middle Secondary (Pastoral & Wellbeing), I regularly take the opportunity to visit Wellbeing lessons and associated Tutor Time Activities. It is wonderful to see so many examples of students engaged in activities which develop the key elements required for good wellbeing; positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, accomplishment and health.
Despite only being a few weeks into the new curriculum, the process of continuous improvement is already underway and we constantly review, analyse and improve lessons. Staff are fully engaged in training and it is fantastic to see Wellbeing teachers and Form Tutors giving their valuable time to ensure that our students get the best experience in every lesson.
We continue to develop key relationships with our community partners who are keen to support the new Wellbeing Curriculum. We have had a number of guest speakers on the topics of teenage mental health, the benefits of sleep and stress management and healthy nutrition. In the coming year we hope to welcome more speakers on a range of topics to enrich our students' experiences.
I hope you are having an opportunity to discuss the Wellbeing curriculum with your son or daughter and gain a greater understanding of the work they are doing during lessons and in Tutor Time. There is a growing global recognition of the importance of positive wellbeing and the increasing problems caused by stress, anxiety and depression, particularly amongst young people. Our new Wellbeing Curriculum is only one element of a greater wellbeing programme aimed at supporting our students to flourish and thrive in life and to bounce back in times of adversity.
Thank you for all your support over this last half term and I wish you all a fantastic and relaxing holiday. Should you have any feedback, please do not hesitate to contact me at robert.alexander@bisvietnam.com. I look forward to seeing many of you next half term.
Mr Alexander, Head of Middle Secondary (Pastoral & Wellbeing)
101 Thao Dien Street,
Thao Dien Ward, Thu Duc City,
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Junior Campus
225 Nguyen Van Huong Street,
Thao Dien Ward, Thu Duc City,
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Secondary Campus
246 Nguyen Van Huong Street,
Thao Dien Ward, Thu Duc City,
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
