BPS Newsletter
Issue 35 - 29th May 2020
Life-long Learning so all can flourish
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As we move towards the end of a rather interesting year, which I believe has made us stronger as a learning organisation, I would like to begin by showing my appreciation for your support, particularly with the way in which the drop off and pick-up process has evolved, with many of you indicating that this is an improvement on what was previously occurring at the EPC. Thank you for making this change in procedure a success!
Secondly, I would like to thank the members of staff who have taken on Action Research Projects during this academic year. With out research, enacting positive change for all, and particular our children is difficult, further summed up by John F Kennedy (1962),
'Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.'
Throughout the year Mr Myerscough, Mr Bonnet, Mr Groom and Ms Maksymova have looked at the following areas:-
- Mindfulness and impact on self regulation
- Geometry
- Change culture and school leadership capacity
- EAL transition to enrichment model
The findings of each of these studies was presented to the Senior Leadership Team, and further discussion around conclusions were had which culminated in a commitment to continue a rich evidence based research philosophy which can only have a positive impact on our school, and most importantly, our students!
It has been a big week for our Y.6 students, and I would like to thank the BSHS Section for making all feel welcome. Having spoken to the students, and as you will see below, all came back 'buzzing' about next year, and the opportunities that they will be able to experience following an easy integration.
Next Wednesday 3rd June, the British Primary Section will hold its transition, where children will have the opportunity to meet classmates and their teacher for next year. Much effort has been made to ensure that this is a successful experience for all. When creating new classes, we put our students at the core of this process and set out to deliberately create student communities that can thrive and flourish. Throughout this process, we are mindful about what it really means to be a 'learning community' and how we can support all students. We considered friendships, student needs, learning styles, and of course, the perspective of the year group teams.
Finally, I would like to wish you all a wonderful weekend, and look forward to welcoming you back on Monday.
Best wishes,
Luke Chaeter
Child Led Learning in Year 3 - by Mr Chris Bonnet
Year 3 have adopted a child led approach to our learning in Topic this week by empowering our children to learn about any area of History or Geography that interests them. Our children have picked topics ranging from the life of Queen Elizabeth I to the largest volcanoes in the world.
How does this support learning? And how is it possible that every child can learn a different topic?
This approach has been proven to foster a love of learning and motivates children to participate and collaborate. When a child is interested in an area of learning, it motivates them to want to learn more. This learning is subsequently embedded further and easier to retrieve in the future.
Regardless of the subject matter the children have chosen, we still ensure they meet the objectives from the Year 3 curriculum. This approach covers all of our 'Historical understanding' objectives along with those found in 'Enquiry and Investigation'. To ensure this is a cross-curricular approach, the children will present their findings as either a non-chronological report, newspaper article, biography, google slide presentation, animation or documentary.
This week, the children have picked their area of interest, researched questions to answer, found books in the library and decided on how they would like to present it all. Over the next two weeks, they will work closely with their teachers to bring their project to fruition.
Year 6 transition days at the ESC - by Mr Ale Massey
On Tuesday 26th May and Wednesday 27th May, the Year 6 students made their way up to the Secondary Campus for their two transition days ahead of their move in August. There was a buzz of excitement on the coach as we made our way up on the first morning and were greeted by Mr Imbleau and the other secondary teachers leading the day. On the first day, the students had a chance to try out science (elephant toothpaste anyone?), PE ('dodgeball' and 'crossovers'), had a tour of the campus and watched some ex students perform some music. On the second day, the students had some language taster sessions, followed by a messy art session using clay and then, after lunch, a tour of the new Phase 3 building! Overall it was a very successful two days and the students were a credit to themselves with their attitude throughout both days. A big thank you to Mr Imbleau and all of the secondary teachers who put together such a fantastic programme and supported the students throughout. Below are some quotes from Year 6 students about their visit.
Roll on August!
BPS 1:1 Device programme - by Mr Craig Gamble
SAM Labs Winners - by Mr Dipak Mondal
Year 6 children have been learning about this amazing STEAM tool during their Computing lesson and had a chance to apply real-world skills of STEAM. Three students from Year 6 registered for the 2-weeks long competition under the mentorship of Mr Mondal. Using the Design Thinking Process, the team have defined the problem people are facing during COVID-19 crisis, ideated a solution that could help people keep safe during COVID-19, created a prototype of their solution model using SAM Labs kit along with Makers resources and submitted the final outcome to the SAM Labs competition judges.
The votes from judges around the world are in and the Year 6 team of Travis, Alden and Jeffrey won the ‘Best (S)TEAMwork’ reward. Congratulations to three of our hardworking and incredibly talented participants from Year 6 who were highly motivated and worked hard to design and program a STEAM product that can make a difference during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.
They compete against over 300 other participants from 13 different countries including Taiwan, USA, China, UAE, Myanmar, South Korea, Pakistan, UK, Italy.
If you haven’t watched or read about it yet, don’t forget to check out the following links:
Save the date and mark your calendars for next Saturday, May 30th at 8 AM PDT for the global watch party where SAM Labs will stream the projects and announce the winners live! Can't make it? Don't worry, SAM Labs will save the recording and email it out after the stream is complete. After the Livestream, SAM Labs will email certificates of participation and awards.
Click here to enjoy the teaser trailer SAM Labs Creators Competition Season One. Watch out at 7 seconds mark featuring TES-BPS Year 6.
SAM Labs will also put together a gallery website to show off all of the amazing projects put together by each participant to show family and friends the amazing work.
Volleyball Progression by Mr Peter Poulton
Year 4 and 5 have progressed well over the past couple of weeks with their volleyball skills and general game understanding. They have moved on from ‘Catchball” and are now implementing actual volleying within a modified game. Everyone is progressing well.
Well done!
Action Research Group by Mr Aidan Stallwood
These are passion projects that staff have stepped forward to take on for the year, whereby they receive some training and support to pursue an individual project. This is highly beneficial for both them to develop their leadership and work outside of their usual remit, but also for the school as it can lead to some long term impacts in what we do for our children.
The four projects this year were:
FRIDAY MUSIC CORNER - LET'S ENJOY THE MUSIC!
IMPORTANT REMINDER BY MR LUKE CHAETER
Hot weather
夏天到了,最近天氣特別炎熱,在校園裡有許多的陰涼處及足夠的飲用水提供'給學生,還是請家長協助提醒孩子,每天要記得配戴帽子,降低中暑與熱傷害的情況發生。
Thank you for your interest in our summer school program. Before you fill out the form, please pay close attention to the following message from our CEO office regarding summer campus access.
Attention!
Message from our CEO Newsletter sent to all parents on May 1 is as follows:
At this present time, we cannot possibly predict what may happen, including but not limited to travel restrictions around the world and local inbound quarantine requirements. So, if you plan to travel, please do plan ahead to ensure your child can return to school in a timely manner when school opens, ready to begin the 2020-2021 school year.
Based on the information we have from CECC and MOE, students should be back on island at least 21 days before school begins. As it stands, all inbound travelers are required to undergo 14 days quarantine plus a 7 days self-health management.
We ask all community members to respect this provision and plan your trips/travel with this in mind. We understand that the guideline from the Taiwan authorities may change, but the above is the latest guidance.
Please do check the regulations of your destination / present country as well as continue to follow the updates from the Taiwan authorities.
Should you travel this summer, please note the dates of entry required.
For Week 1 (Aug 3rd~7th): arrive in Taiwan by July 12
For Week 2 (Aug 10th~14th): arrive in Taiwan by July 19
We are looking forward to having you in Summer School. Please be assured the school has taken extra precautions to mitigate risk in this present situation.
Student Services
Taipei European School British Primary Section
Website: https://taipeieuropeanschool.com/index.php?id=120
Location: No. 99, Fuguo Road, Shilin District, Taipei City, 111
Phone: +886-2-8145-9007
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/British-Primary-Section-Taipei-European-School-1781787432102978/