Constant & True
Message from the Head of School
Dear Parents,
We are often asked questions about the British education system
and A levels in comparison to other education programmes offered
by international schools in Bangkok. We have run two sessions for
parents this year explaining what the children will experience in
our Secondary School and we will be also running an information
session for parents later in Term 2 outlining the differences
between A level and the IB curriculum. In the interim, I thought
that you might be interested to read excerpts from an article
published in the Telegraph (a UK periodical) on Thursday February
26th 2015. The whole article is too long to reproduce in this week’s
newsletter, but if you are interested you can read the full version
online.
Entitled ‘Why English exams are the gold standard overseas’
the article states the following:
“…according to Sir Roger Fry, founder and chairman of the King's
Group, which runs schools in Spain and Panama, as well as the
UK…" It (the British education system) is a quality education and it
is recognised as such worldwide…" One of the attractions of the
UK system is the rigour and integrity of its exams, he says.
International schools following the UK curriculum at secondary
level will usually offer GCSEs or their international equivalent, the
IGCSE, and many offer A-levels as well.
"The examinations are set and moderated by university boards,
whereas in many other school systems they have school-set
examinations," says Sir Roger, who is also president of the Council
of British International Schools (Cobis). "It means they are the
same for everybody and people know what to expect."
Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
IMPORTANT DATES
Saturday 28th February
Book reading session by Ms Pepa O’Donovan
during the Mighty Bulldogs Playgroup from 9.3011.30 in the Foundation Stage garden
Thursday 5th March
Year 2 Trip to Siriraj Hospital from 9.45am –
1.45pm
Saturday 7th March
Circus Party from 10.00am – 12.00pm at the
Foundation Stage Garden
Tuesday to Friday 10th – 13th March
Year 5 Residential Trip to Kaeng Krachan
Thursday 12th March
Informal Recital from 2.45pm – 3.45pm at the
Auditorium 5th floor
Thursday 12th March to Sunday 15th March
Bangkok Prep hosts the U13 FOBISIA Games
Monday to Wednesday 16th – 18th March
Year 4 Residential Trip to Khao Yai
Monday to Thursday 16th – 19th March
Year 6 Residential Trip to Kanchanaburi
Monday 30th March
Year 1 Easter Egg Hunt from 10.00am – 11.45am
in the Year 1 Playground
Part of the appeal is also the international reputation of Britain's
education institutions. Names including Eton, Harrow, Oxford and
Cambridge are well-known across the world. "British traditions
come through in education and are admired worldwide," says Sir
Roger.
Thursday 2nd April
“The English curriculum also has the advantage of being taught in
English, growing ever popular as a global language,” he adds.
For many expatriates, an English curriculum means their children
will be able to slip back easily into school if they return to the UK…
– 11.15am at the Foundation Stage Playground
Spring Concert from 5.00pm – 6.00pm at the
Auditorium 5th floor
Friday 3rd April
Songkran Celebration for Early Years from 10.00am
Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
The article goes on to say:
…One of the big attractions of the English curriculum is its combination of breadth with depth, right through the key
stages and particularly at GCSE and A-level… parents in particular like the breadth and the possibility of doing history and
geography with a language and three sciences. The standard of teacher training in the UK is also widely respected, and
following a UK curriculum means schools can draw on a large pool of qualified teachers. But there is another reason
parents choose a British curriculum, according to Simon O'Connor, principal of Jumeirah College in Dubai, and that is as a
passport to university. Many European countries accept each other's qualifications for university entrance, but A-levels are
also respected elsewhere, including the USA and Canada. "The qualifications that result from a British education enable
students to continue their education around the world," says O'Connor.
"A set of good A-levels is recognised as an impressive achievement that demonstrates a high level of ability," says
O'Connor. "There is an integrity both to the qualifications and the system that supports them, and a confidence that if a
student is successful it has given them a knowledge of the world."
For non-UK universities, A-level students are highly sought-after, says Danette Anderson, director of enrolment at John
Cabot, an American university in Rome. Around 15 per cent of John Cabot's 7,000 students have followed A-levels,
making it the third most popular entry path, after a US high school qualification and the International Baccalaureate. "It is
a very standardised system and usually students who arrive with A-levels are of a very high standard," she says. "They
have excellent writing skills and very good analytical skills."
A-level students often have a greater depth of knowledge than those who followed other routes, she adds. "They are
focused and they have the building blocks for when they start an advanced degree. We find they are very well prepared
for our courses," she says.
A student with good grades in four A-levels can expect credits worth around a sixth of a degree, she adds.
We will publish the date of our information session on A level and IB in the near future and I hope that you will be able to
find the time to attend.
Have a great weekend.
Val Thomas-Peter
Head of School
FOBISIA U13 Games
Bangkok Prep is hosting the FOBISIA U13 Games from 12 th-15th March 2015. We are
welcoming competitors, supporters, officials and teachers representing 6 British
schools from Asia. Students will be competing in basketball, football, swimming and
athletics. For more information about the games please visit www.bkkprep.ac.th.
The school is proud to have the support of the following sponsors.
Gold sponsor
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Bronze sponsors
Constant & True
Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
New Campus Update
Bangkok Prep is delighted to reveal the location of its new Secondary Campus which is set to open in August 2017. The new
Bangkok Prep Secondary Campus will be located on Sukhumvit 77 (please see the map attached). Parents and students will be
able to reach the school by several convenient access points such as On Nut BTS (500 metres away from the school vicinity),
Sukhumvit 77, Sukhumvit 71 (Soi Pridi Banomyong2) and from Ram Intra - Atnarong Expressway.
The school is now working closely with the architect team on the master plan to ensure that the state-of- the-art facilities, the
aesthetics of the design and the green surroundings of the campus create a perfect environment for teaching and learning.
We will keep you posted on future developments.
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
Golf Achievement
Last weekend, Achira Chumchaivate (Monte), Year 3 student, secured first place in
the last match of U.S. Kids World Qualified 2014-2015. During the 2-day competition,
Monte finished his second round at 1 stroke under par (Score 71) and the total 2-day
score was 13 strokes better than the second place.
In this event, Monte received 2 trophies. The first one was for winning this match,
and another one was for the highest ranking from the overall tournament 2014-2015.
This has qualified Monte to the U.S. Kids World Championship 2015 which will take
place in North Carolina, USA in July 2015.
Thailand’s National Laser Championship
Last 21st and 22nd February, Arthit Mikhail Romanyk (Miki), Year 9 student, has
officially won Thailand’s National Laser Championship in 4.7 Sail class. A total of 40
sailors entered the competition. Congratulations to one of Thailand’s National Laser
Champion!
Swimming Results
During the weekend of the 13th-15th February Georgina Winters (Georgie),
Year 8 student, competed in a long course swim meet called Martins Cup
which was held at Assumption University.
This meet is prominent on the Thai swi mming calendar as it is the second
last meet for swimmers to qualify and secure a position at the Thai
National Championships which are held in April every year.
Georgie qualified for 10 individual races, and managed to secure 3 silver
and 4 bronze medals amongst some strong competition. The competition
was so tough, in Georgie’s 50 Freestyle the gold medal winning time was
29.04, Silver 29.05 and Georgie got the bronze in 29.06.
Angelina Allen, Year 6 student, also qualified for 5 races. Craig
Albuquerque, Year 8 student, was less than half a second to a second off
qualifying for some of his races. Bangkok Prep students who also
competed were Maja Gunnarson and Julissa Boen from Year 6.
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
Learning Support – working in partnership with parents
DIFFERENTIATION
Wouldn’t teaching be easy if…
All
All
All
All
All
students
students
students
students
students
arrived to our classrooms with the same skill.
arrived with the same areas of development.
learnt at the same speed.
had the same interests for us to connect with.
had the same experience for us to build on.
Since all humans are not like “The New Aliens on The Block”, and rather than quoting Ofsted for their definition of
differentiation, this quote by Einstein sums up what I think differentiation means:
“Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler”
Best regards,
Dominic Proctor and Sarah Huson
Learning Support Team
End of the school day – students off campus by 4pm
Could we please remind students and parents that, unless they have an organised activity, students must be off campus
by 4pm. Beyond that time we cannot guarantee their safety on the school grounds. If you pick up your children please
ensure that you do so before that time.
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Constant & True
Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Book Week
We had a lively and colourful return to school on Monday with the start of book week. It was impressive to see the range
of book character costumes worn by both Primary and Secondary students.
There have been a range of exciting activities taking place throughout this week. Many of our Secondary classes have
been involved in reading sessions with the Primary children. It has been very encouraging to see the interest our students
have shown in purchasing books from the wide selection provided by our vendors. Reading is such an important factor in
the academic development of all students and is particularly effective when it is seen as an enjoyable pursuit.
We were very lucky to have our guest author, Sonia Leong, visit the school on
Tuesday and Wednesday. She provided separate Primary and Secondary
assemblies that proved to be most entertaining and inspirational. Sonia is a
Manga style author/artist and also provided practical workshops to both Primary
and Secondary students. The students thoroughly enjoyed the experience and
produced some excellent art work.
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
UPCOMING EVENTS
Public Book Reading during the Baby Bulldogs Playgroup
Tomorrow Saturday 28th February from 9.30am – 11.30am
Pepa O’Donovan, a Foundation Stage teacher, has published her second
book, Not Quite The Usual Setup, which addresses the issues
surrounding “step families” or “blended families”.
Come and join Miss Pepa on Saturday 28th February from 9.30am11.30am during our Baby Bulldogs Playgroup. Miss Pepa will be reading
her book followed by a book signing session and some activities related
to the book. The event is open to public. Free admission.
Circus Party
Bangkok Prep, in conjunction with BAMBI (Bangkok Mothers and Babies International) invite parents and their children
between the ages of 1 ½ - 5 years old to Bangkok Prep’s Early Years Foundation Stage Unit for a morning of fun and
activities under the theme “Circus Party”. Fun-packed activities include circus-themed arts and crafts such as making
clown’s shoes. The children will also enjoy clown face painting, decorating cupcakes and a variety of classic circus games.
There will also be a petting zoo!
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
PRIMARY SCHOOL NEWS
Dear Parents,
This has been another very exciting week and it began with
Monday’s colourful Story Book Character Costume parade, which
marked the launch of the 2015 Book Week. As you will have noticed,
the Undercroft Area was packed full of book shops where children
enjoyed searching through the array of shelves to find a new book.
This week has been focused on fostering a love of reading for all
Bangkok Prep students and I was lucky enough to have been invited
in to read stories to children in their classes.
Last night there was an opportunity for some lucky competition
winners to have a sleep over in the Primary Library. They played
some games, had hot chocolate and then relaxed in our Cinema for a
great film before they cleaned their teeth and went to bed. Many
thanks to all the Bangkok Prep staff that attended this event.
Have a great weekend.
Best wishes,
Duncan Stonehouse
Head of Primary
Maths Challenge
Next week on Friday and Saturday 6th-7th March a team of our top mathematicians, from Year 6, will be heading to
Shanghai for the FOBISIA Maths Challenge, where they will be competing against schools from all over South East Asia.
The event will include team and individual challenges, a construction round, a Maths trail, a special round and many other
fun activities and challenges. The four students selected are Khing, Ula, Rohan and Pooh; they will be accompanied by Mr
Callow and Miss Tom. Please wish them the best of luck if you see them around school.
Running alongside the FOBISIA Maths Challenge in Shanghai, will be the FOBISIA Mathletics Competition. In this event,
all students from Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 will be competing, online, against rival FOBISIA schools. This will be an in-school
event run during school hours. However, students can still compete when they get home. First prize is a free membership
of Mathletics for all students in Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 for a year....so get practising!!
Simon Callow
Year 6 Teacher
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
SECONDARY SCHOOL NEWS
I hope you all had an enjoyable half-term holiday and it has been good to see everyone return refreshed ready for the
challenges ahead.
The external examinations are getting closer and there are now revision sessions in place after school for students in
Years 11, 12 and 13. These have been provided to ensure all our students are able to be given support in all the areas
necessary. The revision timetable is available on Firefly. Revision tips will appear each week in this publication. We also
will have a countdown to Songkran in the daily bulletin and around the school.
Kindest regards,
Wyn Williams
Head of Secondary
Teach Ms Knight a lesson
I had the pleasure of visiting two lessons this past week. Last Friday saw a quick visit to 9AL Science with Mrs Cook. We
were learning about metals and the different properties of brass and copper. It was good to see confident students
leading the lesson. Thank you to Mrs Cook and 9AL- I look forward to coming back again soon.
The highlight of this week was Mr Chanrion's Year 7 French class. The class were absolutely determined to teach me a
lesson- in French, of course. The first part was actually quite tough; the students wouldn't let me sit down until I had
completed a question correctly. Thank goodness my rusty old French kicked in as the Year 7s took me through colours,
places and time- they were very tough teachers. And lucky thing it did too, they wanted one house point each for any
wrong answers! I proudly left with a level 6b.
Merci beaucoup, Year 7 and 9AL!
Julia Knight
Key Stage 3 Coordinator
Exam Revision tip
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Teaching days to go until Songkran…
It is important to practice using past papers and even more important to bring any completed
past papers to the teachers for feedback.
Kind regards,
EAL Department
Readathon
As I write, the results are yet unknown but I am aware of the tremendous response to this charity fund-raising event. The
Readathon award ceremony will have taken place today, the last day of Book Week, at 1:20pm-2:20pm (In combination
with the Primary Book Quiz). We would all like to thank Miss Mia and all those involved who have ensured that Book
Week and Readathon have been a great success.
Wyn Williams
Head of Secondary
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
Key Stage 3 Showcase evenings in production now!
After the success of Jake and ShirLee’s The Grandfathers and Sian’s School Journey to the Centre of the Earth in Term 1,
Terms 2 and 3 are all about Key Stage 3. The students in Years 7-9 will have the chance to apply their learned skills in
the upcoming KS3 showcase evenings.
7VP will produce an anti-discrimination campaign which they have just begun work on with Mrs Knight. 8MJL will begin
their devising process with Ms Laragione where they will study Shakespeare's Macbeth and work on their own, original
adaptation of the play. This year, Ms Laragione is working in close conjunction with Ms Brown of the English department.
The pair have planned a cross-curricular scheme of work which will support and reinforce the students’ learning in both
fields. 9AL have begun work on a very modern genre of theatre: Theatre in Education which aims to teach young people
about moral and social issues which directly affect them. 9AL will present a clear message to their young audience
through a variety of explorative strategies, Drama medium and elements- all of which they now have an extensive
knowledge of after nearly 3 years of studying Drama.
The three form groups are the first in the Creative Arts carousel to present their end of year examination work. This
performance evening will take place in the auditorium at 3.30pm – 5.00pm on Wednesday 11th March. The rest of Years
7-9 will have their showcase evenings on Friday 8th May (7EO, 8MFL and 9CB) and Wednesday 17th June (7CC, 8JDP and
9MG).
We look forward to seeing you at our next event.
The Drama department.
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Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
PE NEWS
Football Results
U11 Boys
After a difficult first game away to St Andrews 71, the Bangkok
Prep Bulldogs Under 11s returned to good form with a 4-2 win
against BCIS. Goals from Pooh (2), David and a wonder goal from
Nadol secured a first win of the season. The next game will be at
home on Monday 2nd March.
Simon Callow
U11 Boys Coach
U13 Girls
On Tuesday 24th February, the U13 girls played against St.
Stephens International School (SIS). It was a very close match,
with SIS taking the lead with an early goal in the first half. We
played well as a team and demonstrated excellent football skills,
hitting the cross bar 4 times during the game. Unfortunately the
game did not go our way and we lost 1-0. The player of the match
went to Nafisa, who was extremely strong in defence. Remember
girls “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”.
PE IMPORTANT DATES
Football Fixtures
Monday 2nd March
U13 Boys Football home against St. Regents
Tuesday 3rd March
U13 Girls Football away to St. Andrews 107
U15 Boys Football home against Wells
Friday 6th March
Senior boys home against Ascot (friendly)
Thursday 12th March to Sunday 15th March
Bangkok Prep hosts the U13 FOBISIA Games
By Jeannie 7EO
U13 Girls – second game of the week
Prep 2 – Charter 0
Well done everyone who played yesterday. We
fought well in the heat and sun, and continued with
determination. We started off slow but quickly picked
up the pace and scored our first goal. Our movement
was much better in the second half, we were more
focused and our defence was stronger.
We
continued to work hard and scored another goal. We
never gave up, even in the hot sun and are happy
with our final result. Well done to Elle who got player
of the match.
By Mymi 8JPD
U15 Boys
"An understrength U15 boys team crashed to a 6-1 defeat away at St. Andrews. Sun came on as substitute to score a
consolation goal. This now leaves them with three points from two games in the TISAC league"
Robert Hills
U15 Boys Coach
Issue # 7, 27th February 2015
Constant & True
Senior Boys
Prep comfortably swept aside Concordian to win
their first league title in Mr Morris's era. Despite
being under a pressure of needing a win to clinch
the league with a game to spare, the boys put in
a
vigorous performance
in
the
searing
afternoon heat. Prep made the traditional fast
start with our star man, Kop, smashing in his third
consecutive hatrick while Raja produced another
sensational solo goal from the left wing to cap a
fine performance. Concordian's keeper had to be
on top form to keep the score down. In the
oppressive afternoon heat, ten-minute spells were
enough for most players and even Title needed a
rest after 25 minutes hard running. The captain’s
armband was handed to Jhah who put in another
hard-working and composed display and scored with a beautifully taken goal. Tommy drilled in his first of the season
from a tight angle, but in the absence of Kim Goodburn, our defensive midfielder, Concordian’s strikers exploited the
space to use their pace and scored two goals in a five minute spell. There will be bigger challenges to come but we are
confident we can rise to them.
Prep 9 Concordian 2 (Kop 3, Raja 3, Jhah 2, Tommy)
By Title 12PM
FOBP
At Bangkok Prep on Friday 13th February was a really "Sweet" day! I
think everyone would agree that all the yummy treats contributed by
parents whether homemade or purchased, were amazing. Again,
parents and students at Bangkok Prep have a definite ‘sweet tooth’.
The sales of all the yummy treats, including the FOBP's famous
lemonade which was pink for the occasion, soared to 24,560 Baht.
Wow! What a sweet amount to add to the FOBP’s account. With the
funds we raised, we are looking forward to contribute something
special that the school could use effectively for our students. A huge
thank you to all the parents that donated their goodies, time and
support (money for their children to buy treats!). Thanks for being a
part of the FOBP Mighty Bulldogs Team!
For comments, questions or ideas please get in touch via
[email protected] or sign up to our Facebook page: Friends of
Bangkok Prep.
Angelique Leijdekker
(FOBP President)
& the FOBP Committee
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