BASIS International School Bangkok eNewsletter

Message from Head of School & Head of Operations:

Dear TUSKERS families,

Before the beginning of the February break, we would like to reiterate the critical importance of the “no outside snack policy” in school. This policy was established to ensure the safety of our students, and particularly those who have food allergies. We appreciate your cooperation in ensuring a healthy and safe learning environment for all of our students. Below are the important reminders that we expect all of our community to follow.

Students are not allowed to bring snacks into school, with the exception of milk.
For students who are attending Student Hours, the school will be providing snacks before Student Hours begins.
From 4.00 P.M., when parents are allowed on campus, you may bring healthy snacks for your child. However, we ask that this be done only at the canteen, and only after the Student Hour Lessons.

Thank you to our Kindergarten students for an amazing performance and showcase of their artwork in the Space Science Expo! Huge thanks to our parents who came to support and witness their amazing talents. Much appreciation goes to Kindergarten teachers for their dedication in making learning joyful and for organizing this wonderful event.

We ended the week with another remarkable event, Festival in the Garden! The Art Walkway was filled with fascinating installations and artwork of our Primary and Upper School students. We were also truly amazed by the incredible music shows from our rock band, choir and orchestra. Well done to our students for their talented performances and thanks to our teachers and staff for making this event possible as well as our Parent Association for their endless support. We could not be more grateful for the supportive community we have here at BISB.

Last but not least, upon the returning to school on February 27th we will once again be welcoming Mr. Toby Walker, VP from BASIS Independent Schools, to our campus. He would like to invite parents for Coffee Morning sessions. For more information, kindly refer to the poster below.

We do hope you stay safe and enjoy the quality time with your family. Please take good care and see you back on Tuesday, February 27th. Happy holidays!

Best regards,
Dr. W and Ms. Kwan
Head of School and Head of Operations

Save the date for School Events and Academic Calendar:

Message from College Counselor:

Greetings BISB Community,

Thursday morning, at BASIS Independent McLean, we had a Course Planning Coffee for Grade 8 parents. We took them through the BASIS Curriculum and showed them the choices and requirements their child could select. This workshop is very similar to the one we had at BISB just a few short weeks ago. In McLean, like in Bangkok, college counselors and members of the admin team meet individually with all Grade 8+ students in March to plan out their high school courses for the following year. In these student meetings, we discuss strengths, career interests, and the scope and sequence of their high school career. The parent workshop was productive and informative, and they know their children are in knowledgeable hands.

Following the workshop, I returned to my office to discuss college decisions and preparation with my seniors. This is their final month on campus, and I have created a speaker series for them to learn about college success strategies and adulting. It is a very rewarding time. While talking with the seniors, I realized that my Thursday had just spanned the entirety of high school. My morning group was just beginning to plan their high school journey and the other was learning how to successfully transition out. Every year, our seniors impress me, and all they have done and accomplished makes me confident in their future. Knowing our seniors' successes also enables me to be confident our incoming Grade 9 students (and all the grades that follow) will be just fine. Please enjoy this week's video highlighting one of our more Humanities focused seniors as she shares her high school experiences and hopes for the future. See you soon!

Best,
Ms. Kate Irving
College Counselor

Early Years Newsletter

Message from Director of Early Years:

Dear Early Years families,

I hope you had a lovely Valentine’s Day. In Early Years, our students spread kindness by giving out heart messages to staff all over the school. We also had classes who exchanged Valentines with each other and other classes who wrote Valentines to students in America. The Early Years staff got in the fun too and found their own Valentine Match! Let’s carry on the spirit of spreading kindness throughout the rest of the year.

Congratulations to our Kinder students for their culminating Space Expo. They have been working hard at learning facts about planets, moons, orbits and traveling to and living in space. Thank you to all the kindergarten parents who were able to attend and celebrate the children’s learning.

I hope you enjoy your Spring Break. Remember to Read, Read, Read and send us your pictures of your children reading wherever you go.

Take Care,
Ms. Annie Fletcher
Director of Early Years

Primary, Middle & High School Newsletter

Message from Dean of Primary School:

Happy Valentines Week Parents of BISB,

Last week students enjoyed many festivities for Chinese New Year! At our primary pep assembly last week, we discussed the house captains and announced the recipients of the American Math Olympiad competition awards. Next month, Dr. W, Ms. Kwan, and I will discuss School Lockdown Safety procedures on the following dates:

Friday, March 8th: G1-3
Thursday, March 21st : G4-5

This topic, rightfully so, can be very tense and frightening to children. We will do our best to minimize stress and make it as child friendly as possible. It also needs to be taken seriously as part of keeping your child safe while at school. Please prepare your child for this event by talking with them at home about the importance of preparing for emergencies and safety hazards.

Much thanks,
Dean Selby
Dean of Primary

Message from Dean of Upper School:

Dear Parents,

This week we welcomed Juthasree (June) Kuvinichkul to join our Grade 8 and Grade 9 students as part of the second part of our Business Speaker Series. June shared insights about her time at Harvard Business School, experience as a co-founding partner of Grab and her most recent FinTech, YouTrip. She reflected on how the deep relationships she developed with her classmates and the experience of being among a concentration of industry leaders enabled her to build the network that enabled her startup ventures. The idea of a “safe chauffeur” eventually led to a regional platform for much more than just getting people around safely, but enabling people to have ease of living and easy access to work. “Being an entrepreneur is not easy, you are responsible for people’s lives and need to make payroll every month,” led to a discussion on the challenges of managing YouTrip through COVID-19, which had launched just a few months before the pandemic hit.

Students asked about the competitive environment, returning to Thailand after being in the US and how her family received the idea of her spending time in a “non-traditional” industry.

Thank you, June, for such an insightful session.

Best wishes,
Dean Drew
Dean of Upper School

Message from Interventions Specialist:

Greetings Families!

We're thrilled to share the exciting results from the 2nd week of our "Love of Reading" challenge! Students from grades 1st to 9th have been diving into the world of books with unparalleled enthusiasm, and the competition is heating up. Let's celebrate our top readers and classes for Week 2:

Primary Grades (1st-5th): 🏆 Top 3 Individual Readers:

Phoenix (3Ar) - 1,169minutes
AJ (4Si) - 753minutes
Emma (4Si) - 597minutes

🎉 Top Class with the Most Reading Minutes (Primary): - 4Si: 2,969 minutes - Congratulations on your stellar reading achievements!

Upper Grades (6th-9th): 🏆 Top 3 Individual Readers:

Pan (8Ti) - 967minutes
Vivi (8V) - 673minutes
TianTian - 550minutes

🎉 Top Class with the Most Reading Minutes:

8V: 1901 minutes - Kudos to your dedication to the "Love of Reading" challenge!

We're immensely proud of these students and classes for their commitment to fostering a love for reading. As we approach the February break, we encourage all students to continue exploring new worlds through the pages of their favorite books. And don't forget – it's time for our "Extreme Reading" photo challenge!

📷 Extreme Reading Photo Challenge: Get ready to showcase your love for reading in the most unique ways! Submit your photos of "Extreme Reading" – whether you're reading in funny, interesting, adventurous, or just plain unusual places. We can't wait to see your creativity!

Submission Deadline: February 27, 2024

Let's make this February break a time for reading adventures! Keep those pages turning, and remember to submit your "Extreme Reading" photos before the deadline. In the meantime, keep growing and showing your love of reading, Tuskers!

Kindly,
Shaneika Edmond
Interventions Specialist

ECA Corner:

ECA Spotlight

Early Years - Balance bike

Balance Bike Crew is here! Our bike crew focuses on perfecting their riding techniques and mastering those tricky maneuvers. They started from smooth turns to confident stops, kept their eyes ahead, kept their posture balanced, and made sure to push their feet to make their bike run. Thank you for RIDING into this corner!

Primary and Upper School - Badminton

This week, our badminton players started off their class with a warm-up, with more focus on the dynamic stretches to loosen their muscles and get our blood pumping before the game started. Then, they dove into skill-building drills designed to enhance badminton player's grip, control, and power. All players have been reminded to don't forget to stay focused, stay agile, and stay determined, because every shot in badminton counts!

ECA Reminder:

All ECA class will be resumed after the February break, on Tuesday, February 27th .

ECA Information:

To order rollerbladers for inline skaiting class, please contact the provider via line @learnandplay
To pre-order a taekwondo uniform, please contact the provider via line @interktd

HSK & YCT Test Center

Dear families,

We are pleased to share a potentially significant development regarding our Mandarin program at BISB. We have been exploring the possibility of hosting YCT exam on our BISB campus on May 12th while the HSK exam will take place at Chulalongkorn University on May 19th.

To realize this opportunity, we require a minimum number of participants. This is an exciting endeavor that could open doors for our Mandarin program in the future. The success of this initiative could lead to further opportunities that benefit our students and the wider community.

The registration period is from today until March 31st, students can register both YCT and HSK exam at the same time.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us through the email: mandarin@basis.ac.th.

Thank you for your ongoing support and understanding.

Community News

BASIS Parents Golf Community - First Golf Tournament

Dear BISB Parents,

We are thrilled to announce the first-ever golf event organized by the BASIS Parents Golf Community (BPGC)! It's time to tee off and enjoy a day of camaraderie and friendly competition among fellow BASIS parents.

Date: Friday, 15th March 2024

Location: Nikanti Golf Club, Nakorn Pathom

Schedule: 11:30 am: Lunch

1:00 pm: Shortgun

Concluding with dinner and awards ceremony

Package Includes

Green Fee
Caddy
Golf Cart with GPS
Lunch and Dinner

Cost: THB 5,000 net per person

To secure your spot, please make your payment by contacting us via LINE (QR Code on the poster below)

Come join us for a fantastic day on the greens, filled with great food, friendly competition, and memorable moments. Take this opportunity to connect with other BASIS parents while enjoying the beautiful game of golf.

See you on the course!

Warm regards,
BASIS Parent Golf Community (BPGC)

Viemus Violin Veneration Intetnational Recital is coming to BASIS Bangkok.

February 18th, 2024

3:30 pm

Participants from Korea, Thailand and beyond will perform works by Sarasate, Paganini, Tchaikovsky & more.

BASIS families and the general public are invited to join us for the charity concert. Proceeds will be donated to animal shelter in Suphanburi. Ticket is 500 THB per seat.

Information:

Call: 096-194-6591

Line: @viemus

Facebook: Viemus

Instagram: Viemus_Music_School

Get your ticket(s) here!

“คนดี รักษ์ โลก” (Good People preserves the Earth)

BASIS International School Bangkok has been given Excellence Award for Implementions of Environmental Improvement Initiatives by the Prestigious Paliament of Thailand.

Our consistent work in reducing footprints to the environment resulted in reducing 65% of solid waste by recycling and repurposing as well as reusing 100% of water used on campus, among other impressive results. This was showcased at the “คนดี รักษ์ โลก” (Good People preserves the Earth) event hosted by the Sub-Committee on Morals and Ethics under the Senate Standing Committee on Religions, Morals, Ethics, Arts, and Culture, together with Catholic Association of Thailand And Port Authority of Thailand.

Also, a shout out the whole facilities team, operations team as well as the faculty and students for working together to ensure less impact to our beloved earth! 🌏❤️