REGENTS’ NEWSLETTER

EDITION 2 TERm 1 2014/2015

PRImARY

Dear Parents,

Over forty of our Primary students, from Years 2 – 6, ‘thought they can’ last week when they stood for election for either the Key Stage 2 Student Guild or the Key Stage 1 House Captain positions.

Observing the Key Stage 2 Student Guild elections this year were our current Head Girl and Boy, Helena and Leroy. Helena and Leroy, now both in Year 13, were also both Regents Primary students some years ago and they were active in the Student Guild and our eco-warriors group, the Eco-dudes.

They have fond memories of being in Primary and they agreed that they took their desire to be active in student leadership from Primary with them into Secondary where they have both been very involved in a range of roles from Year 7.

I am pleased to see so many of our students challenging themselves and their belief in what they can achieve with some positive thinking and risk-taking so early in the new academic year.

As Kurt Hahn, the founder of Round Square and Outward Bound, famously said,

‘There is more in you than you than you think.’

At Regents, staff use this philosophy time and again with the students to encourage them to challenge themselves and to take themselves ‘out of their comfort zone’.

Working together with parents, we can make sure our students fully explore the range of their potential in and out of the classroom this year.

This mantra of course also applies to our multi-talented staff so I was not surprised to learn earlier this week that

several of our staff members are currently training for the upcoming Khao Yai Trail Marathon.

I admire their commitment to challenge, risk-taking and hope their preparation for the race goes very well. We will report on their achievements in the Primary Newsletter later this term.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Nonie

outstanding classroom practice

primarY maratHon cHallenge

parent meetings in primarY nonie adams, Head of primarY

WhEThER YOu ThINk YOu cAN OR cAN’T, YOu’RE PRObAbLY RIghT!

ThIS WEEk IN ThE PRImARY NEWSLETTER

“ .. Henry Ford

DIARY DATESmondaY september 29tH new uniform launcH

mondaY september 29tH entries for tHe world animal daY art and pHotograpHY competition due in

fridaY october 3rd world animal daY

fridaY october 17tH mufti and donation daY

mondaY october 20tH to fridaY october 25tH Half-term break

mondaY october 27tH wHole scHool staff training (no cHildren in scHool)

tuesdaY october 28tH first daY of term 1.2

green & HealtHY week

By James Baker, Deputy HeaD of primary

I remember at the age of 15 being totally bored with Physics. I found it dull, boring and completely uninspiring. I recall even more vividly gazing out of the window, one grey September afternoon, watching the rain drops trickle down the window pain, dreading my first GCSE Physics lesson

of the year….and then in strode Dr Northage. Everything changed. His self-confidence, ceaseless humour, empathy and burning passion for Science brought the subject alive, within minutes. He always had practical demonstrations to back up the principles he was trying to teach and he never stopped questioning us in his unique and sometimes quirky way. He loved discussions and would often provoke us by suggesting something particularly unscientific, or even absurd, and then get us to engage him in lively discussion. He played a great ‘Devil’s advocate’ and knew how to keep an audience captive. Within two or so lessons my whole attitude towards Physics changed. I used to constantly look at the clock during his lessons, willing the hands to move slower, so that the lesson would seem longer. He was amazingly ambitious for us to do well and would constantly encourage us, and even on occasion, goad us into working harder and revising with greater thoroughness.

That was all many moons ago and Dr Northage has long

since passed away, but the teaching memories he gave, live on. Outstanding lessons, no matter when, or by whom they are taught, will invariably have many of the same elements: effective communication; pupil involvement; stimulating ways of framing objectives; sometimes funny; and always challenging. Dr Northage is one of the reasons I became a teacher and as someone who has now, in turn, had the opportunity to observe many fabulous lessons, here at Regents International School Pattaya, it is good to be able to say that the art of effective, vibrant and outstanding teaching is alive and kicking.

We try very much to encourage equal pupil participation and individual accountability via the use of Cooperative Learning Structures. Our teachers don’t just stand in front of the class dishing out information, but rather engage pupils in intelligent questioning and involve them in peer and self-assessing their own work. Probably the greatest asset a teacher can have, and one which our teachers possess, is that of high pupil expectation. Dr Northage simply did not let us get away with second rate work. He knew, that we knew he had very high standards, and he never let us forget it.

As time rolls on and whiteboards replace blackboards, and PCs replace whiteboards, and ipads replace PCs one thing is certain: outstanding teachers produce outstanding lessons which in turn produce outstanding pupils.

By NoNie aDams, HeaD of primary

tHe leadersHip of learning support and englisH as an additional language in primarY

OuTSTANDINg LESSONSThis year in Primary our Learning Support department continues to be led by Mrs Tricia Gray and our English as an Additional Language (EAL) department is led by newly arrived Mrs Sara Berenguer.

The Learning Support department is a whole school department and this is Tricia’s third year in the role. The department currently consists of three teachers and three Learning Support Assistants (LSAs).

The department supports children who have an identified learning need as well as those who may simply have gaps in their knowledge due to moving from one educational system to another.

The English as an Additional Language (EAL) department in Primary currently consists of six teachers and one EAL assistant.

Sara joins us after a career as a teacher, experienced leader and EAL specialist in various UK and international schools. Both departments work closely with mainstream teachers so as to ensure the students in their care receive a seamless and relevant education.

Any queries about Learning Support or English as an Additional Language should be directed to:

• Learning Support,

Tricia Gray: Tricia.Gray@regents-pattaya.co.th

• English as an Additional Language,

Sara Berenguer: Sara.Berenguer@regents-pattaya.co.th

SARAh bERENguER

TRIcIA gRAY

great teacHers produce great learning opportunities and outstanding classroom practice

By alisoN lyforD, early years aND key stage oNe literacy co-orDiNator aND Dougal fletcHer, ks 2 literacy co-orDiNator

parents participated in worksHops about reading and pHonics.

Sharing a book with a child is a really fantastic way to help children progress with their phonics and comprehension and develop a lifelong love of reading. On the 15th, 16th and 17th of September groups of parents came into school to take part in Reading workshops to learn more about the techniques and strategies we teach children in reading. In the Early Years workshop parents were introduced to the Oxford Reading Tree characters; Biff, Chip and Kipper and had an opportunity to look at some of the first texts that children read in school. Early Years and Key Stage One workshops also involved a crash course in phonics and the way in which the Letters and Sounds scheme is delivered

in school. Key Stage One parents also learnt about the 7 Assessment Focuses in reading and were given examples of questions to ask when sharing a book with a child.

In the KS2 workshop, the focus was on how best to help the children progress. Intervention strategies were discussed, a fire alarm went off, and we all realised that sounding out the alphabet isn’t as easy as it sounds! We would like to thank all the volunteers who turned up. It was a real pleasure to see so many willing to help those children who most need it.

By DaviD NatHaN aND aNDrea Beattie, primary teacHers

emergencY first response (efr)

Over two days in the last two weeks, six members of Regents staff have successfully undertaken an instructor’s course in Emergency First Response. This is a first aid course that is designed by doctors to teach ‘lay’ people how to provide care in the event of a medical emergency until qualified medical practitioners arrive. The staff involved are located in different areas of the school; Early Years, Primary, Secondary, Boarding, PE and Outdoor Education.

We spent the first day learning how to provide both Primary and Secondary care to adults and children suffering illness and/or trauma. We learnt how to assess a person who had been involved in an accident and how to provide CPR (cardio-pulmonary resuscitation) in case the victim is not breathing as well as learning how to provide first aid to those suffering from bleeding, sprains, broken bones, shock and spinal injuries. On the second day we learnt how to share our knowledge and teach the skills we had learnt on the first day through practising in different scenarios. We look forward to sharing our knowledge

with our colleagues in the near future so that all Regents staff have current EFR training.

TEAchER EFR TRAININg

READINg & PhONIcS WORkShOP

By DaviD colliNs, primary pe co-orDiNator

primarY maratHon cHallenge

Another busy two weeks at Regents has seen sport at the forefront once more, with Jesters Fair and the combined marathon challenge being the headline events.

Jesters Fair on Sunday the 7th September drew large crowds of young and old, all sampling in the festive atmosphere.

The PE department ran a basketball shoot out competition which proved very popular with the bustling crowd. Large numbers of our Regents Primary pupils were keen to get involved on the day as they attempted to score as many baskets as possible within the one minute time frame.

The day was a huge success and all involved went home with beaming smiles on their faces.

The PE department would like to extend our gratitude to the Hufschmidt family for their very generous donation of the prizes for the basketball shoot out. wThis week marked the commencement of Green and Healthy week and resulted in a wave of striking green coloured costumes descend on our Primary school. The PE department were heavily involved during the week, especially in promoting the benefits of a healthy active lifestyle to all our Primary

students. The main focus for students during their PE lessons was their completion of the combined marathon challenge, which required each Primary class, KS1 and KS2 to complete a combined marathon. This equated to 110 laps

of our brand new running track. Each class attempted this as a team and combined their efforts in order to attain the target of 110 laps. All of our Primary students performed admirably throughout the week and continue to keep alight our burning ambition to love sport for life.

JESTERS FAIR & PRImARY mARAThON chALLENgE

By Dale farriNgtoN, primary ls assistaNt/rs coorDiNator

green and HealtHY week

Our annual Green and Healthy Week got off to a lively start on Monday, courtesy of a pumping workout led by Mr Mulford. It was great to see all our staff and children dressed in green and following the routine.

Over the course of the week we were also treated to more “Wake and Shake” sessions, courtesy of Mr Crew and 4S, the PE department and Miss Helen & Miss Jenny.

Mr Whittaker’s popular pre school ‘Fruit and Veg Stall’ - an extension of the weekly ‘Green Grub’ tuck shop was open for business every day.

Lots of our children, parents and teachers really enjoyed purchasing their healthy snacks on their way into school each morning.

Our Eco Dudes started their daily litter patrols and recycling collections. It is nice to be able to report that there was very little litter in evidence this week and more and more children are bringing in

healthy snacks in re-usable cartons and boxes.

Finally, our Green and Healthy Week assemblies celebrated all the wonderful events that had gone on throughout the week. The highlights were the judging of the best dressed recycling box competition and the Yr4 keep fit dance group.

During Green and Healthy week in Primary, Year 1 has been taking part in all sorts of challenging and exciting activities.

The children have learnt about living a healthy life through eating balanced meals, drinking enough water, exercising and making sure they get enough rest. The majority of our learning was based on the story ‘Oliver’s Fruit Salad’ where Oliver discovered that fruit can be delicious if you join in and have fun making something fruity.

The children were particularly excited to learn how to hold, peel and chop fruit up safely and arrange it to make a fruit face, especially because they got to eat all the fruit afterwards! We have also explored how to record information to find out which fruit is the most popular in our class by completing a tally chart and then creating a class pictogram to show our results.

We have also made fantastic and wacky portraits using fruit in the style of Renaissance artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo, What an impressive week we’ve had Year 1 !

By HeleN Ball, year 1i classroom teacHer aND primary elp coorDiNator

FRuITY FuN IN YEAR 1

fruitY fun in Year 1

By mrs HaNNaH Naowasuk aND mrs karyN waltoN, assistaNt HeaDs of primary

initial parent meetings in primarY

This year has seen the introduction of Initial Parent Meetings in Primary. These are a fantastic opportunity to ensure strong home/school connections are built on from the very beginning of the academic year. The meetings allow both parents and teachers time to discuss the individual needs of each child effectively. Conversations include information about children’s like and dislikes, strengths and any concerns. Children were involved in the preparation for these meetings, setting targets with their teachers before-hand, to then be shared during the meetings. Having input from parents, children and teachers ensures we all work effectively as a team to promote high levels of progress for each individual.

The first of these meetings have been held this week and have already had great success and positive feedback:

‘The Initial Parent Meeting was

brilliant. It was a wonderful opportunity for parents to know how their children have settled into their new class and what their targets are. I believe it is a great event at the beginning of a new academic year’.

By JorDeN Hegazy aND mack wooDacre, stuDeNts iN year 6p

wHat an epi-cure for tHe food at regents!

On Thursday 11th September, Mack and Jorden in Year 6P interviewed Mr. Andy Bird from Epicure to find out more about the catering company employed by Regents School.

Andy, from England, has currently been working for Epicure for 4 years and as well as working at Regents they also work at two other schools in Bangkok (Harrow and ISB).

Epicure used to cater for Regents but then they left because the school wanted to experiment with other catering companies.

Unfortunately, the new caterer’s food was not fresh, appetising or appealing so Epicure was invited back by Nord Anglia Education.

With a larger budget, Epicure was able to have a wider selection of food products and therefore provide better quality meals. parents and is a non profit making venture.

The Cafeteria, menu and quality of food has progressed a lot. It was decided that they needed to prepare the food with fresh ingredients that would be cooked in the Primary School so they built a new Primary kitchen.

This is a great idea and has really made a difference to lunchtimes. Regents has their own unique menu, which is different from any other school that Epicure has catered for.

Ideas for the future were discussed and one exciting new plan was the intended introduction of International theme days to encourage children to try different foods from around the world.

Suggestions were given to Mr Bird and he will consider if these are possible.

Just in case you were wondering, there will not be ice creams on Friday as this does not follow our Primary school’s healthy eating policy.

We prefer the new menu and Cafeteria but how about you?

gETTINg TO kNOW YOuR chILDREN !