Patana News Volume 21 Issue 12

Our mission is to ensure that students of different nationalities grow to their full potential as independent learners in a caring British international community.

NEWS Patana

Friday 16th November 2018

Volume 21 Issue 12

www.patana.ac.th

WHAT IS MENTAL HEALTH?

Mr Cooper discusses ways to effectively support the mental health and wellbeing of Page 2 our children.

Also in this issue...

Key Stage 3 String Festival / Librarians’ Knowledge Sharing Workshop / Jacobs University, Germany 16/11/2018

Bangkok Patana School News

Bangkok Patana is a not-for-profit IB World School, accredited by CIS, NEASC and ONESQA

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WHAT IS MENTAL HEALTH?

Jason Cooper, Primary Principal

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mental health of our children we have to be taking care of our own mental health first. What also struck me is the fact that most of our children know more about mental health, and are more willing to talk about mental health than we adults are. We have a wonderful opportunity to engage in activities with our children that will help to build our 1. We have to be deliberate about being mental health; a walk in the park, some mindful colouring, mentally healthy family meditation, a bike ride together, or even taking the 2. We need to educate parents about mental time to share with your children some of the things that may health The first seems like common sense, but it is something be worrying you and what strategies you are using to deal that is often overlooked. Natasha compares mental health with them. to physical health, asking the question, “Do we know as much about how our mind works as we do about how our body works?” Just as physical illness can result from a lack of physical health, mental illness can also result from a lack of mental health. Proactively focusing on mental health can ensure we have the tools and strategies, the mental strength, to deal with stressful situations when they arise. If we don’t develop these tools and strategies, stressful situations can very quickly turn our mental health into mental illness. We all know that prevention is better than cure, so it makes sense to apply the same philosophy to our mental well-being by taking time to work on our Being mentally healthy requires regular, deliberate mental health, ensuring that we are mentally strong and practice, just the same as being physically healthy. We resilient enough to face any situation.

The second takeaway makes me think of the inflight also need to ensure that as parents and educators our safety instruction that tells us to apply our own oxygen mask mental health levels are high, because this put us in the before helping our children. To be fully able to support the best position to effectively support the mental health and well-being of our children. ecently I attended the FOBISIA Leadership Conference and had the opportunity to hear Natasha Devon speak about Mental Health. There were two main themes that I took away from Natasha’s very thought provoking keynote:

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The

BIG A N A T A P K BANGKO

S A M T S I R CH E V I R D Y TO Please donate a new, wrapped* toy, game or book for a child in need aged 3 - 16

SPREAD THE JOY OF THE HOLIDAYS Please bring your donation to the tables at the Front of School between

26TH - 30TH NOVEMBER Give an extra gift this Christmas

TO THE DESERVING CHILDREN AT THE GIFT OF HAPPINESS FOUNDATION

!

*please label your gift with the age of child it is suitable for

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u o y k n Tha

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KEY STAGE 3 STRING FESTIVAL

Alec Bien, Head of Secondary Arts Faculty

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he Bangkok Patana Key Stage 3 String Festival grew out of a desire to give our young students an experience playing in a large string ensemble. ISB hosts an annual string orchestra festival for Secondary School students, and there are also festivals on offer through FOBISIA and SEASAC. We noted that there were very few opportunities for the younger players, so we decided to do something about that.

it relaxed and informal. Each teacher suggests a piece of music to include in the repertoire, and the students take time to learn the music as well as they can prior to the festival. We gathered at 2:30pm on Friday 2nd November and began the process of rehearsing together. For the students, this involved intense concentration. They did their very best to count carefully, play the notes, follow the conductor. Each conductor tried to convey a musical message – what can This is a truly collaborative effort, with an aim to keep we communicate as a group and how do we get there?

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We were all working towards the same goal, without worrying about who gets the credit – and when that is the case – great things can happen.

To participate in a festival such as this one, we are experiencing the characteristics of what makes a good global citizen. We take local control for the global good.

We listen, adapt, cooperate, take responsibility for our own actions. Sometimes we lead, sometimes we follow.

Probably most importantly, we care. We want to perform well for ourselves and for the good of the group.

Our 2018 String Festival was a huge success, with 156 students representing seven international schools: Bangkok Patana, Bromsgrove, ISB, ICS, TCIS, St. Andrews and Berkeley. The students produced a beautiful sound together.

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CELEBRATING CPL

Stephen Murgatroyd, Head of Libraries

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his year’s Librarians’ Knowledge Sharing Workshop conference (LKSW) was held at Bangkok Patana between the 8th - 10th of November. Over 90 librarians, from 10 countries in the region, attended this annual gathering to share ideas and discuss developments of all things ‘library’.

It has become a tradition that there are Library Tours arranged on the ‘pre-conference’ Thursday and this year was no exception. Sixty librarians arrived early on the morning of 8th November, ready to board buses to take them on the start of their adventures. One bus went to ISB, where it was to start a tour of libraries to the north of the city, including ISB, Harrow and RIS, aiming to finish at Concordian International School, just off the Bangna Trad.

The other bus was heading towards the river to start at Shrewsbury. From there, the Shrewsbury boat was used to get everyone to the BTS station at Saphan Taksin and then on to NIST, Bangkok Prep, to finish at St. Andrews 107. The tours are a special part of LKSW now and everyone loves

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the opportunity to be a little bit ‘nosey’ and have a look at how others’ have tackled the challenges of space, creative activities, displays and sharing all of the wonderful books we have. The groups came away impressed at what Bangkok had to offer and thankful that the BLISS network of librarians (Bangkok Librarians in International Schools) had allowed them the opportunity for such a wonderful start to the conference.

Friday and Saturday were days spent in the Conference Centre here at school, where the participants were treated to a welcome from Mr Bien and his excellent Secondary string quartet – it really gave the start a special feeling and a unique one at that. We had so many lovely comments about their music. Once we got underway, the presentations were all given by the participants themselves, apart from those given by members of the Bangkok Patana teaching community; Susan Brosnahan, Mark Verde and Katherine Hume, Mick Smith and Brian Taylor. This year, the format was a little different as we had asked for 2030 minute presentations as well as ‘SLAM’ talks, lasting no longer than five minutes. This meant that there were

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lots of changes of pace and subject matter, but all set around the conference theme of ‘Global Citizenship’. This new arrangement went down well, with delegates feeling invigorated by the huge variety of talks on offer; there was certainly plenty to discuss when breaks and lunch were on the agenda.

The Conference Centre itself had been given a makeover by our wonderful Library Team, and it looked stunning with display walls and Roald Dahl characters drawing the participants in, some to play the games that had been setup to showcase a few of the things we had done with the children and students in our libraries in the not too distant past. Our Buildings and Grounds, Catering and Housekeeping staff were also superstars, ensuring that everything worked, was set up properly and stayed clean throughout the conference – the compliments we received for the level of service they provided was very well deserved.

All in all, it was a conference to remember and people left on Saturday afternoon having experienced the best that Bangkok Patana has to offer as well as receiving some superb professional development and learning from our colleagues across the region. We are all looking forward to the next one, which will hopefully be taking place in Kuala Lumpur next year. In the meantime, follow the goings on in the Library here on Twitter!

For more information about Continuous Professional Learning (CPL) at Bangkok Patana, please contact Katherine Hume, Cross Campus Assistant Principal kahu@patana.ac.th

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GYMNASTICS TEAM HOST IN-HOUSE COMPETITION

William Preston, Gymnastics Programme Coordinator

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n Saturday 10th November 2018, Bangkok Patana’s Gymnastics Team hosted the annual In-House competition in the newly renovated gymnastics hall with over 100 Patana gymnasts attending. The In-House competition marks the start of the gymnastics competitive season.

It was a great opportunity for our gymnasts to gain some more competition experience and receive feedback on their performance by real competitive judges from the Gymnastics Association of Thailand.

Each team consisted of an even mix of gymnasts from all different levels. This was a brilliant chance for our junior gymnasts and our senior gymnasts to work together.

The senior gymnasts definitely inspired the younger gymnasts with their exceptional and highly skilled tumbling routines.

Thank you to all of our gymnasts, coaches, parents and support staff who made this event such a success. Go Tigers!

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UNI COUNSELLORS’ CORNER

IN THE SPOTLIGHT...

Jacobs University, Germany

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ocated in northern Germany, Jacobs University is one of the country’s most international universities, characterised by a truly intercultural community of students and faculty. Founded in 2001 as a private English-speaking university, Jacobs attracts highly talented and open-minded students from all over the world.

Jacobs is a research-oriented university with a broad portfolio of programmes. The class sizes are small and professors act as both mentors and academic advisors. Students are actively involved in research from their first year of study. A transdisciplinary approach is one of the core elements of a Jacobs University education. Students live in one of four residential colleges, each comprising of its own study area, meeting rooms as well as recreational lunches and cafeterias. You will find over 100 student-driven events throughout the year including cultural festivals such as Deepavali and Chinese New Year.

UPCOMING UNIVERSITY VISITS UNIVERSITY / COLLEGE

COUNTRY

Kwansei Gakuin University

Japan

Brock University

Canada

REP

LOCATION

DATE

TIME

Kokoro Hitokoto

Senior Studies, second floor 20.11.18

12:15

Helen

Senior Studies, second floor

09:15

21.11.18

Challenge 9 Research the extra curricular programmes on offer at some of the universities you are interested in.

How do these match with your interests?

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MUDDY PLAY IN FOUNDATION STAGE

Sarah Gaughan, Primary Leader of Excellence in Teaching and Learning

Mud is one of the most equitable play materials out there — easily accessible to children around the world — but also, as it turns out, is good for children's health and learning.

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hildren in the Foundation Stage were super engaged in very sensory mud play last week. Here's why mud play is such a great learning opportunity...

“The open-ended nature of mud play is perfect for the developing brain. Here are a few reasons why: • During unstructured, outdoor play, children form ideas, problem solve and think critically. Mud is an abundant and cost-free material, so children can experiment repeatedly and create new hypotheses.

• While kids are squelching around, they are challenging themselves by expanding their experiences and becoming more adventurous.

• As one of the most basic elements of the earth, mud allows children to develop an appreciation for the environment as they experience its diversity.

• Mud is a perfect learning material. Mud enables children to practice emergent science by exploring its properties, solving problems and investigating the living things found within it. Math skills are encouraged through weighing and measuring and manipulating and navigating the way through mud enhances motor skills.

As an open-ended, creative material, mud stimulates artistic expression, imagination, expressive language and critical thinking.”

Read the full article on Mud Play here.

Here’s what we observed in our mud play: Communication and Language: Lots of talk about what was happening and why. Lots of opportunities for open questions, “Why do you think it did that? What do you think would happen if......?”

Physical Development: Lifting large pipes, moving them around, carrying crates and resources, around.

Hand eye coordination, pouring, balancing.

PSED: Building relationships with others, listening and responding to what others say, helping each other.

Then we extended the thinking by adding the challenge of getting the mud from one container to another, it was great fun. Why don’t you have some fun with mud this weekend!

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#107: Video Gaming Workshop for Parents

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here is a Video Gaming Workshop for Parents coming up on Thursday 22nd November from 8am to 9.30am in the Conference Center. We will address the following areas:

• The effects of gaming • Strategies for parents of gamers • Gaming from a student perspective • Healthy or unhealthy? The warning signs of excessive gaming You can sign up for the workshop here.

Here are my 4Ts for this week: 1.

a Tip: Advice on How to Deliver a Powerful Presentation

2.

a Tool: Turn your picture into a brick mosaic (a great Christmas present perhaps?)

3.

a Text: Time to Thing by Matt Renwick (read time = 2 mins)

4.

a Tutorial: Add closed captions to your Google slides (see below, watch time = 29 sec)

Have a great weekend and don’t forget to sign up for the Parents Workshop on Gaming, for more info see page 24.

Brian Taylor Assistant Principal, Cross Campus Curriculum Technology Integration Links in this article: https://goo.gl/forms/pqGQH1EvFMxd5lmf1 https://www.educatorstechnology.com/2018/05/tips-to-help-you-deliver-power.html https://www.brickapic.com/ https://readingbyexample.com/2018/11/13/time-to-think/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbBtW-vlXmY

click here for the Canteen

Please note the menu is updated for the following week on Friday at 1pm

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Menu 11

the m o r f t s The late

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Join the PTG Facebook page here!

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TRANSPORT CORNER BLOCK 2 ECAs Block 2 ECAs continue on Monday 19th November for Secondary students returning from Residential. Please ensure that ECA commitments are up to date and accurate for your child. Any changes must be communicated to Transport.

SEATBELT REMINDER Please remind your child that seatbelts MUST be worn at all times and MUST NOT be undone during the journey. Your help in reminding your child about the importance of safety on the school transport service is very much appreciated.

MAKING CHANGES Year 12 and 13 students can make changes to their own Transport arrangements without parental consent but please note all changes must be made prior to 11:00am.

Changes after this time or requests at the Bus Park may be denied. Please plan ahead to avoid disappointment and inconvenience to Transport staff and other bus users. Your cooperation is appreciated.

CONTACT US

Direct phone: 02 785 2470 Email: transport@patana.ac.th The Transport Office is staffed from 6:00am - 6:00pm Monday to Friday.

ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE (I)GCSE ENTRIES: YEARS 9, 10 AND 11 STUDENTS If your child studies a language outside of school, either a Home Language or an MFL, and would like to consider taking an IGCSE exam in that language, please contact Celine Courenq ceco@patana.ac.th. In the email, include: • the full name of your child • his/her tutor group • the language they wish to be entered for

DATES

for your

Diary...

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Wednesday 21st November International Day Thursday 22nd November Loy Krathong Wednesday 5th December HM King Rama IX’s Birthday Monday 10th December Constitution Day Wednesday 12th December Christmas Concert Friday 14th December Whole School Christmas Assembly

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Community

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Community

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Community

ANAPANA MEDITATION COURSE FOR STUDENTS

Anapana (Mindfulness of breathing) teaches students improved concentration skills and enhances calmness of the mind. This technique helps to relieve anxiety and is very useful at exam time to calm those nerves, but also for every day life.

The next Anapana Meditation course will be on

Sunday 2nd December for students between 8-16 years.

The course is completely free!

To enrol or for more information, please contact Eva Sophonpanich at evasophon@hotmail.com You may also find this site useful: http://www.children.dhamma.org/en/children/about-meditation.shtmlÂ

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Community

DANISH CHRISTMAS BAZAR IN BANGKOK

Join us for an afternoon of Danish Christmas-hygge The charity event will be a place to buy and experience Danish design, Danish food specialities, Christmas decorations and craft activities for kids.

DATE: 25. November, 12 - 4 pm VENUE: Emporium Suites Hotel, EL floor, BTS: Phrom Phong Looking forward to seeing you!

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For daily updates, snapshots and news on life at school you can find us here...

643 Lasalle Road (Sukhumvit 105) Bangna, Bangkok 10260. THAILAND Tel: +66 (0) 2785 2200 Fax: +66 (0) 2785 2399 www.patana.ac.th Email: reception@patana.ac.th 20

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