WelcomeWe now have all our classes back in school and BSQ is alive with the sounds of living and learning together as we explore new topics, work on assignments, play sports, plan events or start to prepare for assessments and exams. All these activities are part of the rich life of a school and as staff, parents and students it is up to us to play a full part in that life. We now have our new team of class representatives from the parent groups and I would like to welcome you all and say a huge thank you for all the work you will do this year to support the work of BSQ. The first whole school event of the year is approaching, and we are very excited to welcome you all to our Welcome Back Picnic. The aim of this event is to share good food, music and company so that we all have the opportunity to meet and talk. This event will be slightly different this year with the feel of a real family picnic, so would like to ask for your kind support to bring some food items, according to the following list per class, to share them during our Picnic. Keep an eye out on Facebook and the website for more information. This week the PA and I would like to ask for your help to review and refresh our work together. The PA have prepared a survey that explores their role in school life and we would like to request that you open the survey here, complete it and return to Sofía at [email protected] by the end of Friday September 14th- that is THIS FRIDAY. The PA will then collate the responses and share them with you all at the Welcome Back Picnic. And finally from me - some reminders and resets Drive-through We experienced some teething problems last week with the additional cars our larger student population has added to the drive-through. This has hopefully been solved by keeping the main gate to our drive-through open for longer so that all families can exit safely. I would also urge you to consider using the car park to leave your car and walk into the school to collect your children. Alternatively, there is an excellent bus service that has two new routes added this year to cater for our growing numbers. Finally, please note that there is an additional member of staff outside the school at drive-through time to support you to follow the correct routes into and out of the school site. Please remind yourselves of what those are and do your best to support the whole community to leave safely. There is now a no-parking sign and policy for the road outside the school gate – please observe that to keep the street safe and free-flowing. School Photographs On Thursday September 13th (Secondary) and Friday September 14th (Primary) we will be taking the school photographs for our records and for the yearbook. Please ensure that your children come to school in full and correct school uniform on that day. From the StaffThis week we welcome back our regular slot where teachers and students showcase their work. Here we hear from Ms Todd and some of her students. Flower Dissection - Year 9 Science Did you know that lillies have a perfectly formed anatomy to teach students about the different parts of a flower? Last week 9b found out in their Science lesson when we pulled apart (sorry!) some lillies in order to label the different parts based on what we had learned previously. As you can see they make for some fantastic displays and the students did a fantastic job of displaying their knowledge. Miss Todd Science Teacher Year 10 IGCSE Introduction Last Wednesday I spent some time with Year 10 to introduce them (again) to the concept of the IGCSEs as well as what skills they would need to develop in order to be successful. We started by making origami paper cups to hold water to emphasise the importance of having a plan, the students had a variety of results in this activity! We then talked through organising their time around out of school commitments and setting aside some time outside of formal homework to review notes each week to avoid revision panic when exam season gets close. Finally, the students drew their ideas of what a successful IGCSE student looks like, with this we are making a contract for our students to help support them in their IGCSE journey. It was an extremely positive morning and a great opportunity for me to understand more about our student's personal goals and ambitions. Miss Todd Secondary Curriculum and Outcomes Coordinator Dates for your Diary September 11th – Meet the Teacher Reception B. (3:30pm) September 13th and 14th – School Photographs September 22nd - WELCOME BACK PICNIC– 10:30 - 1pm September 26th - Juramento de la Bandera Emma Newman Principal Being BSQ – Primary Update This week saw the arrival of the Nursery and Reception children and the school is now approaching its full complement of students. These youngest students always surprise us adults with their enthusiasm, capacity to learn but above all, their resilience as they learn the names of their teachers and friends, say goodbye to their parents and try out new routines. It has been a delight to see the Early Years team nurture these students and give them such a wonderful start to their school-based education. This week these students have been involved in a wide range of activities, with their learning being recorded using the Tapestry application which all their parents should have access to. Meanwhile, the older students have started their first full week of school in Years 1-6, including starting Swimming lessons and visits to the School Library. I have really appreciated the community feel as I walk around the campus and see students from many different classes and year groups interacting with each other, playing and talking. The obvious enjoyment and excitement these students display about their school and learning is a powerful reminder to us all about the benefits of education and specifically the inclusive, ambitious school environment in which your children belong to. This week’s focus for our assemblies and discussions has been developing a Growth Mindset. This is linked to our school value ‘We live and learn with an active and determined approach to our ambition.’ All the staff at BSQ encourage the students to try new activities and learn new skills, even when they are difficult or challenging to them, by displaying perseverance and determination. Instead of saying ‘I can’t do it’ the students could say ‘I will try again’ or ‘I will ask for help’. Year 4 have had a wonderful start to the new year and quickly settled back into working hard. We have been thinking about the question, 'Why do people move?' Our focus country has been Japan and to start our topic we looked at two very different pictures of Japan and created a wall of questions that we would like to find out the answers to during our topic. We have also been honing our origami skills by making paper cranes, a symbol of hope and happiness in Japan. We will be reading the book, '1000 paper cranes' to discover why this symbol became so important to the main character. Finally, thank you to all the parents who responded positively to our request to send their children into school with their full uniform and correct equipment for each day. This attention to their personal appearance and readiness for their learning supports the work the teachers do in school and encourages good habits for the future. Star of the weekMarcus Madden Head of Primary Being BSQ – Secondary UpdateLife Skills One of the many developments this year in Secondary is the Life Skills programme. Running all the way from the beginning of Year 7 to the end of Year 13, the programme covers such diverse topics as friendships, mental health, and careers counselling. Planned and resourced by our quite amazing school psychologist, Andrea Carrera, and delivered by Andrea along with Dr Fernanda Avalos and the class tutors, the Life Skills curriculum covers a wide range of essentials learnings to help our students grow and develop as well-rounded, healthy and responsible citizens. House Sports Friday the 7th September saw the year's first House sports competition. The House system, based on the tradition in British boarding schools of groups of students living in different houses together on campus, is a great way to promote friendly competition between the houses, but more importantly it is a way to instill a sense of pride and camaraderie. Students enjoy being able to contribute to the success of their House, whether in sports or through academic effort and excellence. Jim Wild Head of Secondary From the BSQ Counselling TeamA new regular slot in our newsletter is from our hard-working and knowledgeable school counsellor Andrea Carrera. This week she talks about how to make the start of the new school year a little easier for all the students.
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May 2024
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