BASIS International School Bangkok eNewsletter

Message from the Head of School

Dear All – hereafter are a few points regarding the week-gone! Have a wonderful weekend!

Our Covid protocols altered – it appears they have eased somewhat, with their being classifications for high and low risk. Comprehensive details are to be found elsewhere in this newsletter!

Of course, Friday has been Superhero Day. So important to take a breath occasionally in school and have some fun. Early Years were especially well-served where superheroes are concerned as they had a visit from the local firemen who came along with the engine! Certainly, there are fictional superheroes – but we have so many REAL superheroes in the community.

A large number of parents joined our Early Years’ coffee morning on Thursday. We had invited Dr. A, a child psychologist, to talk about developmental milestones in children from 3 to 5 years. This issue is one EY teachers have been working on over recent months, as we believe that these milestones are so important to understand and they key attributes in children’s long-term success. As such, the social and emotional report will look different in the future, capturing the developmental stages of our babes’ journeys and sharing these more comprehensively with parents than we have in the past.

I heard two words persistently repeated by Dr. A during her address – sympathy and empathy. And to that I add compassion. Clearly, these are concepts that underpin emotional intelligence – and through talking about and modelling these concepts, our children are being educated to be good people…

Associated to the above, there is a path by which we can attempt to address children’s development in accordance with age expectations. However, every child is unique. Some have especial challenges and amongst Early Years, these are so saddening as they appear to especially impact on children’s ability to make and sustain friends. And all children both want and need friends…

Empathy can be taught! Empathy is not about judgment, it is about attempting to ‘walk in someone else’s shoes’. As parents we might be tempted to say “You should have studied harder – and you would have done better!” Maybe, incorporating empathy – “Is this a difficult subject for you? How do you think you could do better? Next time, let’s make a plan together, and if you need extra help, we can talk about it.”

Bullying… I suspect you know our mantra is ‘TALK – WALK – SQUAWK’ – and this is reiterated to children through the year. Bullying is the persistent attempt to make another child feel bad about themselves – and it also includes children persistently shunning other children. Please, also talk about this concept with children yourselves from time-to-time.

Alan.

Important Changes to COVID-19 Protocols Coming April 1st, 2022

Dear Parents,

Our school has vigilantly managed the Covid-19 threat and assiduously followed government guidelines since the beginning of the academic year. The Covid-19 virus has mutated, hence there have been ongoing changes with regard to government protocols. We are sorry that we have frequently contacted families to explain the changes – however, safety is the school’s first priority.

Thank you ALL so much for playing your part in keeping our school safe.

Below are the number of positive cases in school since we reopened onsite learning in November 2021:

Group	Positive Cases
PK1	2
PK2	3
Kinder	2
Grade 1	2
Grade 2	1
Grade 3	6
Grade 4	1
Grade 5	-
Grade 6	2
Grade 7	3
Teachers	3
Non-Teaching Staff	4
Total	29

Important: There will be a further official change to the Covid-19 protocols affecting the numbers of days for online learning days for children impacted by either suffering with or having been exposed to Covid-19, with effect from 1^st April 2022.

Please see the guidelines in the attached file as well as the Covid-19 protocols and also our guidance in establishing how a Covid-19 case in school impacts both their families and classmates.