School presents

an open mind with

Special Education-

al Needs class

On February 21st, Billa-

bong High received a visit

from Clinical Psycholo-

gist, Afiya Ali. Ms. Afiya

conducted a presentation

which focused on identi-

fying and educating learn-

ers with special educa-

tional needs. This was a

very insightful event, aid-

ing the teachers in better

understanding why a stu-

dent may be struggling in

class, and how we can

help them. Billabong High

would like to ensure par-

ents we will never ex-

clude a child with learning

difficulties. Instead, we

will ensure the proper

resources and teaching

methods are in place to

aid them to develop as

best they can. Everyone

has a right to be educat-

ed, no matter whether

they have any learning

difficulties or not.

The School would also

like to thank Ms. Afiya Ali

for sharing her knowledge

and experiences with our

teachers.

Between the 24th and the 28th of

February, the staff and students of

Billabong High were trained in han-

dling dangerous situations. The clas-

ses included educating the teachers

in what actions to take in the event

of Male’ being hit by a natural disas-

ter. Captain Naheed from the

MNDF Fire & Rescue Officials gave

multiple presentations, detailing how

shockingly destructive fires can be.

One section in particular shocked

the staff as they watched an entire

room go up in flames within two

minutes of a single flame being lit!

The staff were also involved in prac-

tical demonstrations showing how

to extinguishing fires.

Billabong High celebrated its fourth

birthday on February 7th. To cele-

brate the milestone, an audience of

parents and teachers were enter-

tained with fantastic performances

from the students. Parents also got

involved and performed a very comi-

cal dance routine which had the audi-

ence in hysterics. The night was made

more wonderful as Buru Park was lit

spectacularly by lanterns created by

the Billabong staff.

The night ended with the students

presenting TWENTY SIX delicious

cakes which, when put together, read

‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY BILLABONG

HIGH’.

Here is to many birthdays to follow.

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS WEEK

BILLABONG CELEBRATES FOUNDERS DAY IN STYLE

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3

http://bhisfocus.blogspot.com/

Education's purpose

is to replace an

empty mind with an

open one.

- Malcolm

Editor-in-Chief

Mr. Matthew

Secondary Editors

Ms. Reena,

Ms. Fortune,

Ms. Sophia, Ms. Sharon

Primary Editors

Ms. Mariyam,

Ms. Carol

Layout & Design

Mr. Aslam

P A G E 2

"Education

is the key to

unlock the

golden door

of freedom."

- George

Washington

Carver

The Badge by Maryam (Grade 10-A ESL)

MAY THE BEST EXPLORER WIN!

By Aishath Raya Riyaz (Grade 7-A)

It was one of the most com-

petitive and stimulating

presentations of all time. For

our first history project of

this year we were given differ-

ent, remarkable explorers of

the past and competed in an

election to win ‘Best Explorer

Title’. Four groups from our

class competed for the title.

The explorers included Vasco

da Gama, Ferdinand Megalin,

Prince Henry the Navigator

and Bartholomew Dias. Un-

fortunately for our group, we

got Prince Henry, not only an

unfamiliar explorer, but also

someone who had never sailed

in an expedition ever! Howev-

er, we did not let that stop us.

After thorough research, we

came to know some remarka-

ble work by our explorer, so

much so we decided to pre-

sent him as ‘PRINCE HENRY

THE NAVIGATOR—HERO

OF MODERN EXPLORA-

TIONS’. We presented our

posters in the form of an old

map and made banners as well

as sashes for everyone in class.

But, it was the jaw-dropping

twist in our presentation that

earned us an overwhelming

landslide win. We dressed as

four famous explorers, three of

them the names of the explor-

ers being represented by the

other groups. We then advocat-

ed how Prince Henry’s incredi-

ble contributions had been for-

gotten while other explorers

who were just his executives, or

people who used his inventions,

got all the glory.

cate, or in fact on oth-

er achievements We don't

always walk around with

our certificates to prove

how better we are. Certifi-

cates and academic

achievements are tools we

use to get a good jobs or

something like that; once

you get hired, no one cares

what you achieved in

school.

I think that matters is, if

the education has had any

good influence on your

character or self. I think

what’s important is to build

a strong character that has

the courage to manage and

handle anything that passes

by, to succeed in the little

battles of life. It’s more

important to have the

strength to control ones

self when required.

It takes a lot of guts and

courage to build a

strong character, to have

a strong personality that

could pass anything that

comes your way and the

strength to forgive and live

ahead.

Believe me, after sometime

certificates and school leav-

ing certificates become

nothing but filed paper. If

you have a character, with

or without the badge, you

are already much more than

a true captain. And besides,

you still have so much time

to prove everyone what you

are capable of. So, hold on

and never give up.

Standing up for school posts

will take a lot of courage

and responsibility. I am very

proud of everyone who got

elected as part of school

council this year and I wish

you all the luck.

I have heard many people

praise the students who

were elected as student

council members. But little

did I hear the apprecia-

tion for those who tried so

hard but didn't get elected.

Those students

who didn't get enough sup-

port to reach so high.

Well, this post is for

them.

The way I see it, everything

fades and nothing remains.

No matter what you are

called at school, it all goes in

a couple years. After some-

time, no one actually looks

at the school leaving certifi-

Random Trivia

Astronauts get taller

when they are in space.

Welcome to the Student Gallery P A G E 3 F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3

I'm (Not) Sorry! By Zuhura Ismail (8- B) To my dearest friend: To you I send a note of sorry, so that you won't worry, about who ate, your chocolates, sweets and cake. Wonderful sweets I wanted to send, But so lovely they were, they met their end. In my stomach they now reside, And more shall join them inside. Chocolates so velvety sweet, They send bursts of warmth to your very feet. I dearly wish you could've tasted it too, But I'm afraid there's none for you. Caramel all gooey and brown, They're better than a golden crown. I wish you could've seen it, set on a lovely plate, But sorry my friend: it's now too late. The cake was so pretty, with icing and sugar, I can't look at it without a snigger: For soon it will be gone, And alas! for you there will be none! So I write this to tell you, About the chocolates, sweets and cake I didn't send you. I hope you don't mind, My failed attempt to be kind.

Mishka Ibrahim Sujau from 4-B created

this stunning painting of the sun setting

over a beautiful landscape.

Ali Nuaym Mohamed from 3-A

constructed a spectacular

collage of the solar system

which is simply out of this

world.

Optimism is the faith

that leads to achieve-

ment, nothing can be

done without hope

and confidence.

- Helen Keller

Follow us at:

http://www.facebook.com/BillabongHighInternationalSchool

https://twitter.com/Billabong_High

https://twitter.com/Billabong_High

If you would like to provide any feedback, please contact Mr.

Dinesh Bakshi at principal@billabonghigh.mv

Community service

On February 23rd, the Dept. of Biology conducted an Ecology trip and community service in Villingili,

a land of no cars. The activities took place between 8am to 3pm. Forty one students from grade 8 and

10, four teachers, five parents, one nurse and the Vice-Principal participated in the trip. Dur-

ing their community service program, a group of students helped the NGOs in preparing for

their upcoming Clean the Beach program.

Book drive

BHIS students

carried out a

book drive to

collect books

from all grades

in Billabong

High. The idea

of sharing is

caring, which is

embedded in

the minds of the Billabong kids, was seen throughout

the book drive. Over two thousand books were col-

lected and have been donated to K. Gulhi School.

These books will light up the lives of many students

who do not have the financial means to attain these

expensive books. Our dream of making our students

more compassionate and caring is now being realized.

IAYP

We are proud to announce that

Billabong High EPS International

School is the first and the only

school in Maldives to receive a for-

mal authorization to conduct the

International Award for Young

People (IAYP) programme.

It is a great opportunity for the stu-

dents to display their talents and to

be recognised internationally.

Billabong goes GREEN

On February 6th, the solar panels

installed on the Billabong High EPS

International School were finally in-

augurated by the Hon. Minister of

Environment and Energy, Dr. Mari-

yam Shakeela. The minister appreci-

ated the School’s efforts in encourag-

ing 'green' thinking among its stu-

dents. We are proud that our educa-

tional institution is to be among the

front runners in the country (perhaps in the world) to use

a sustainable source of energy.

‘Who do you think you’re kidding?’

Ms. Leena Ashar, the founder of Billabong High and Kan-

garoo kids launched her new book, ‘Who do you think

you are kidding’ on February 26th. The function was held

in the School Hall at 4pm. Many parents attended the

function where copies of the book were sold on the

spot. The book is now in high demand across Male’.

EVENTS AHEAD 3 March - A Level Launch 5 March - World Literacy Day 6 March - World Math Day 7 March - World Science Day 14 March - Maths Olympiad 21 March - Sports Day

P A G E 4 F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3