Patana News Volume 21 Issue 17

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 18th January 2019

Volume 21 Issue 17

www.patana.ac.th

PROMOTING STUDENT WELL-BEING IN THE SECONDARY SCHOOL

Assistant Principal, Mrs Conroy looks at how we endeavour to help students with the evolving challenges of being a modern day teenager.

Page 2

Also in this issue...

Exploring Rainforests / World Mathematics Championships 2018 / Love and Warmth at Winter’s End 18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

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

1

PROMOTING STUDENT WELL-BEING IN THE SECONDARY SCHOOL Lorna Conroy, Secondary Assistant Principal, Student Welfare

W

hen I think back to my school days, I remember many happy times; subjects that fascinated me; teachers who inspired me; sporting successes and trips I attended that felt like such a huge adventure. I also remember the times when it wasn’t so much fun, and the times when it was just plain difficult. During the Secondary school years we transition from being children, very dependent on our parents and carers, into adolescence where we start to become more independent and question what we might have previously accepted. Hormones and changes to our bodies effect the way we think and feel about ourselves, and how we act towards others.

Eventually we turn into young adults leaving the secure school environment, embarking on the next stage in our lives. Some students make these transitions smoothly but for the vast majority there are many bumps along the road.

We aim to support all our students through these times so that they not only flourish while at Patana, but are also prepared for the many challenges they could face in the future.

Student well-being is supported in a huge number of ways, from the smallest positive interaction between a student and member of staff, to whole school events such as International Day which celebrate diversity. It is also part of the curriculum in the shape of the Tutorial Programme. All 2

students in the Secondary school have a tutorial session on a Thursday morning. One week this may involve a House competition where students develop their teamwork skills, another week the tutorial time may be used for a careers or university related event that helps the students prepare for future studies. Other weeks however, we devote the time to well-being. The design of these sessions is based on best practice from the UK adapted to meet the needs and address the issues facing the students here at Bangkok Patana. The tutorials include topics such as: • Stress Management • Physical, Mental and Emotional Health • Sexual health / Healthy Relationships / Consent • Resilience • Personal safety • On-line safety • Substance misuse • Preparing for independence • Celebrating diversity We are continually reviewing the content of the Tutorial Programme to ensure we address the issues that are important to our students. To this end, all students over the next few weeks will be asked to share their thoughts and amendments will be made to the programme ready for

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

next academic year.

The social and emotional counselling team also play a key role in promoting well-being across the school and plans are in place to extend this provision in the next academic year with the team increasing to two full-time and two part-time counsellors. This increased capacity will enable the counselling team to extend the support they currently provide to the whole student body

as well as continue to offer one-to-one counselling for those in need. The recent coffee mornings focusing on ‘gaming’ and ‘parenting teenagers’ proved incredibly popular and this provision will also be extended with the counselling team offering more presentations as well as a series of workshops. The current counselling area will also grow to create a ‘hub’ where students looking for a quiet place during break or lunch time will be able to play board games, listen to music or just have a quiet few minutes away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the school. The Hub will also be a place where students can drop in to ask the counselling team questions, access resources or simply find a listening ear.

Times have changed enormously in the decades since I left school. While some of the issues facing teenagers remain the same there are many new challenges that have been created. Pace of life has increased and social media has become central in the lives of young people.

If our students are to flourish, achieve academically and successfully navigate their teenage years it is vital that they are equipped with the skills, knowledge, understanding to ensure they are emotionally healthy – and this is what we aim to do.

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

3

EXPLORING RAINFORESTS

Alexander (Coke) Smith, Secondary Environmental Systems and Societies Leader

O

ur Year 12 Environmental Systems and Societies (ESS) students have just finished an absolutely amazing week in Thailand’s Kaeng Krachan rainforest.

They spend nearly three full days (7th - 10th January) learning about and doing scientific studies in various habitats of this World Heritage Site.

Krachan is home to one of Thailand’s last great wildernesses.

Our students were led by myself and Caroline Ferguson, two of our resident ESS instructors, who have had a great deal of experience in field studies and wildlife observation. While in the forests, students spent time learning vari Kaeng Krachan is located about three hours to the ous environmental measurement skills that they can use to west of Bangkok and is nestled in the rugged mountains perform the Independent Assessments later in the course. of Petchaburi Province, hugging the Burma border. Kaeng Skills such as stream survey techniques and grassland field studies were learned using high tech equipment and state of the art methodologies. Students were also led on nature and bird walks by Jirayu Ekkul of Wild Encounter Thailand to view and count the numerous bird species that find their homes in Kaeng Krachan.

The Year 12s also spent a great deal of time experiencing Kaeng Krachan’s other impressive flora and fauna and observing such amazing creatures as Large Indian Civets, Great Hornbills, Oriental Pied Hornbills, Malayan Giant Squirrels, various deer species and so much more! In fact, one group even had a wild leopard cross directly in front of them as they trekked up a mountain to capture a view of the morning fog!

There is nothing quite like experiential learning to instil a love and respect of nature. Our Bangkok Patana School ESS students had such a wonderful and powerful experience in the nature of Kaeng Krachan.

4

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

5

WORLD MATHEMATICS CHAMPIONSHIPS 2018: A VICTORY FOR PATANA!

Ann Kanchanasakdichai, Year 12

O

been encrypted in various different ways such as ver the Christmas holidays, Palis (Fresh) Pisuttisarun

by Caesar cipher (a personal favourite of mine and and I packed our suitcases and hopped onto a Fresh’s). plane headed for Melbourne. After our success in the qualifier round which took place a few months ago in JaIn Jakarta, Fresh and I were in the same predetermined karta, we were invited to join the finals of the World Math- communication teams. However in this competition, our ematics Championships (WMC) in Australia. teams were completely random, which meant that we had WMC is a global, renowned maths competition deter- to learn how to cooperate with complete strangers thus almined to crown the best young mathematician with par- lowing us to foster new friendships from around the world. ticipants from all over the world. It has qualifier rounds in The entire competition spanned a total of five days. On many parts of the world such as South East Asia (the one the first day, we immediately started the first round called Fresh and I went to), North East Asia, and Europe. The “Inspiration” where we walked around the campus in teams finals were similar to the qualifiers but with three addition- and were tasked to create a presentation about anything al rounds, making a total of twelve rounds. These rounds on campus that inspired us under the theme of “calculus”. were created under the “Cooperation” category which My group found a pillar and did volumetric integration included: to find its volume. We then used the average density of a Datamine: Sift through large amounts of data and creatively manipulate them or tailor digital algorithms to make predictions about the future.

6

Proof: Cooperatively use mathematical knowledge to produce logically rigorous, written evidence that proves existing mathematical statements.

human and concrete to determine the pillar’s BMI if it were created from flesh and bone. Fresh’s group calculated the mechanics of a football (with air resistance!) and derived parametric equations to model its trajectory. We spent the entire evening presenting our findings to each other and peer assessing all ten presentations.

Crypto: Work in teams to decipher codes that have

On the second day, we did the Codebreaker, Shuttle,

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

Mathematician and Duel and finished with the Open to create a structure which created different shapes from round. For the Open round, each team was given one of different angles. This was a lot of fun for many of us as it allowed us to step out of our comfort zone and try new these tasks: unconventional areas of mathematics that weren’t found • Find the area of all the flooring in Trinity Colin the syllabus. Following that, there was the Crypto round lege (the college we stayed in) which surprisingly involved a lot of running. In the evening, • Find the entire volume of air in the dining hall we held a balloon debate where the top two posters from each Open round category fueled a debate where they • Find the length of all the blades of grass in the had to defend their research and show why their methods field

“I am very grateful for the opportunity to meet such incredibly talented individuals who qualified from all over the world. It was a humbling experience to discuss and collaborate on many areas of mathematics with people who were all jointly passionate in the subject.

I have made lifelong friends (not just Ann!) with a wide range of people through this trip.

For me, the success of this tournament wasn’t just the medals or trophy, but rather, the memories I’ve made and the continuous love for maths that the competition inspired. I look forward to more opportunities and extracurricular trips like this one which will allow students to become even more immersed in the subject areas which they are eager about.”

Fresh We were given two and a half hours to calculate and present our findings on a poster which we then hung on a stall and enjoyed a pleasant “Open gallery walk” where a member from each team attempted to critique (though in some cases, attack) another team’s research methods as well as their presentation whilst the remaining team members had to defend their research and its reliability.

were better. Then the three winners would participate in a final debate. Both Fresh’s and my own group made it to the finals.

On the last day, the Codebreaker and Duel final rounds were held in large auditoriums. Fresh participated in both finals and performed spectacularly. We then completed the last and final round called Lightning before going out We did the Codebreaker and Duel rounds again on on an excursion to explore the city of Melbourne! the third day. Codebreaker involved spotting patterns in a That evening, there was a gala celebration where medseries of codes, abstract and logical. Duel involved developing strategies and quick-thinking. However, after that, als and trophies were awarded to participants who perwe had a mini-break from maths and joined the universi- formed particularly well. Fresh achieved two golds, three ty’s tour and Farmer’s Market lunch. Later, we took part in silvers, and a bronze which led to him scoring a well demore rounds such as Pursuit and Datamine and then we served first place in the entire competition, basically a went on an excursion outside of the university. We went to champion! The first in Bangkok Patana history!

Eureka Skydeck which had a phenomenal view of the city Why not have a go at some of the questions from the and had a late night ice-cream before making our way competition! back to our dorms.

Prove the irrationality of e. (from Proof) The fourth day of the competition had a lot of the new Krz pdqb hgjhv duh wkhuh lq d grghfdkhgurq? (from Crypto) rounds which meant that I was a complete nervous wreck. What is sin^2(1) + sin^2(2) + sin^2(3) … + sin^2(90)? (from We started the day with Proof, and then we had the In- Mathematician) novation round. For the Innovation round, we were asked Integrate 1/cos(x)cos(x+1) between 0 and pi. (from Pursuit) 18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

7

FIRST, WE MUST ASPIRE TO UNDERSTAND DIFFERENT CULTURES Virginie Turner, Secondary French and Spanish Teacher

L

ast term, Ms Hitomi’s Year 10 Home Language Japanese students learned about the life and issues of foreigners living in Japan and how the Japanese should live with them. As this is a current hot topic discussed in Japan, Ms Hitomi emailed the students’ essays to a major Japanese newspaper.

Ms Hitomi was delighted when Asahi Shimbun, one of Japan’s main newspapers, contacted her to inform her that one of her students’ work, Mana Ganesh Kawamura, had been selected to appear in print. Mana’s article was published on 26th December 2018. Well done Mana! You should be very proud of your achievement.

Above: Mana’s printed article in the Asahi Shimbun newspaper, pictured right.

8

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

LOVE AND WARMTH AT WINTER’S END M

embers of staff from Bangkok Patana School were honoured to attend an cultural trip to this year’s “Un Ai Rak Khlai Khwam Nao” or “Love and Warmth at Winter’s End”: the River of Rattanakosin event at the Royal Plaza in the grounds of Dusit Palace and Sanam Suea Pa in Bangkok. Staff members enjoyed various activities and learned more about Thai history and the value of the waterways of Rattanakosin. They also enjoyed the beauty of numerous species of plants and fantastic artistic creations, namely the model of Aisawan Thipphaya-at Pavilion, the Thai-style pavilion in the middle of a lake at Bang Pa-In, royal barges, and the forms of buildings from early Rattanakosin period to the present day in the exhibition site. The group also tried delicious food from both floating and non-floating markets, watched a number of cultural performances, and made merit.

click here for the Canteen

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

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

Menu 9

YEAR 6 INVESTIGATE ‘PLAY’ IN FOUNDATION STAGE Patricia Burgaud ep.Calmels D’Artensac, Primary French Teacher

A

fter learning how to talk about their ‘hobbies’ in French, Year 6 students extended their project to ‘play’, realising that play is crucial for their well-being!

We decided to investigate the role of ‘play’ in the lives of the children. Being in a school, it was easy to meet some experts so we heded off to interview some Foundation Stage children and their teachers.

shoe shop, Barbies and much more! We all had a great time visiting Foundation stage, and discovered that the young students didnt really realise all the learning going on with the fun!

The next step for Year 6 will be to promote the importance of ‘play’ by creating posters in French, drawing on our language acquisition: selecting key words and key ideas During the visit, Year 6 children asked Monsieur Dan from our time in Foundation stage that we need to know in some questions such as, “How long should a child play French to be able to create powerful posters! Like scientist every day? If a child was not allowed to play how would do, we escaped the laboratory to collect our data, before he/she react? How does playing affect the childrens coming back and using it! Even though the Year 6 children were unable to conduct the interviews in French, it gave learning?“ Having a teachers perspective was an exciting and a real, engaging context to the learning. Everybody is powerful start to the next stage of interviewing with the now ready to translate, write, design their ‘power of play’ children. Year 6 children gathered a range of answers posters!

Bravo Year 6 for the way you interviewed Monsieur about the preferences of children: some like drawing, painting, writing, making lego towers, playing outside and Dan and children! only outside, jumping, sleeping, being inside, role-play,

DATES

for your

Diary...

10

Monday 21st January Primary Residential Week 1 Monday 28th January Primary Residential Week 2 Wednesday 30th January Patana Classic Saturday 9th February Fun Day Monday 18th February Half Term Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

What can we do about Gender Socialisation?

A workshop for Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 Parents Presented by Suyash Kothari, Year 13 student Thursday January 24th 2019 Primary Hall, 8:00 – 9:00am One of our Year 13 students, Suyash Kothari, is passionate about breaking gender stereotypes and would like to share with you some of the themes and ideas that have emerged from his research. The Primary School has provided Suyash with a forum for sharing this thought-provoking information and invites you to attend his workshop on 24th January in the Primary Hall.

Workshop Description: Is it okay for girls to play football and be ambitious, and is it okay for boys to like pink and be emotional?

Children should learn new things, gain new perspectives and discover themselves every day as they explore the world, but they aren’t always given an equal opportunity to do so. Sometimes we can be unintentionally restrictive by expecting boys to “man up” or girls to always be prim and proper; the long-term effects of this can be more harmful than we might realise.

This workshop will try to address the subtle process of gender socialisation that can make children grow to be people they don’t want to be, and what we can do about it.

Please register below by end of Friday January 18th to confirm your attendance at this workshop.

REGISTER HERE! If you require any further information, please contact Mr Cooper at jaco@patana.ac.th or Suyash at suko19@patana.ac.th.

About the Presenter: Suyash is a Year 13 student at Bangkok Patana School. He has been at Patana since Key Stage 1 and is currently one of five Senior Delegates elected to represent the student body.

He has given speeches at student conferences, delivered a workshop to teachers and most recently a keynote presentation to staff on the effects of gender socialisation. Suyash is really looking forward to welcoming you to his workshop on the 24th.

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

11

BUILDING A HOUSE BUILDING A FUTURE Varisa (Fern) Tantivess, Year 12

D

uring 7th-10th December, a group of students from Bangkok Patana School’s Habitat for Humanity group spent their long weekend constructing a house for an underprivileged family in Ayutthaya. During the four days, we were taught numerous new skills, from mixing cement to brick laying. This was a fantastic opportunity for us to witness the results of the club’s hard work throughout the year, where we fundraised through events by selling festive products at concerts, or organising bake sales in the lounge.

As well as learning new construction skills; however, we learnt how to collaborate as a team to successfully complete the house, with every member always ready to lend a helping hand to each other; it was clear that every member was compassionate, eager to build a new life for the family. The homeowner’s old house was made of substandard material, with a broken roof that frequently leaked, a massive problem especially during the rainy season, when we handed on the completed house to them, the parents were extremely emotional and it was clear we had made a positive impact on their future. Habitat for Humanity looks forward to the busy year ahead in preparation for the next build - make sure to come support us at our upcoming events!

12

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

TIGERS MATCH REPORTS

UNDER 15 GIRLS’ FOOTBALL VS BANGKOK PREP

Janelle de la Cruz, Year 10

A

3-0 win welcomed the year as the Under15 Girls’ Football team remained unbeaten in the group stage of the BISAC Cup.

The game started off with an early goal from the Tigers. We demonstrated patience by passing the ball around instead of wasting the possession. By carefully passing and swinging the ball to the other side of the pitch, the ball was able to find the back of the net twice again. The two goals started from the back and eventually travelled up the pitch, with quick one-two passes. Overall, this match was the best one of the season as we exhibited amazing teamwork and effort to achieve this win. It was a great way to end the league games.

The Tigers have scored 14 goals and not conceded any goals in the last three matches of the season, a demonstration of the solid defense, aggressive attacks, accurate passes and great teamwork. The team gathered for a team dinner in December to celebrate their success and are looking forward to another celebration after the BISAC Cup tournament on February 2nd.

UNDER 13 BOYS’ BADMINTON

You Wei (Terry) Lu, Year 8

VS THAI CHINESE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

O

n Thursday we saw the turn of the Under 13 Boys to start their competitive Badminton season after three weeks of hard training prior to the winter break. The team travelled to the Thai Chinese International School with high expectations and hopes for the season ahead and were not to be disappointed with their visit.

Amazingly all five competitive matches were won by Bangkok Patana, within two sets. I (Terry) beat my opponent 21-7, 21- 17. I would like to improve my second set focus in my next match. Neil played really well and cruised to a 21-7, 21 – 6 victory, he will certainly be challenging for number one seed position. Our final singles match was won by Punn, he won 21-18, 21-16 in a match that was slightly closer. He showed good concentration and finishing skills to ensure a two-set victory.

Our doubles teams kept up the winning streak, Bryce and Justin won their game 21-11 and 21-10. One of their opponents in this game was only Year 3. He will certainly be an excellent Badminton player in the future. Isaac and Picnic won the final doubles match 21-7, 21-6 to complete the 5-0 victory to Patana. Our doubles teams are continuing to work on their communication and team work skills.

Special mention to Jesse, our reserve who also comfortably won his friendly match.

I am sure there will be stronger tests to come in the future, but what a great start.

VS ISB

O

n Monday 14th January, the Boys’ Under 13 Badminton team was faced with a very tough team; ISB are very good and probably one of the strongest teams in the tournament. The final score was 4-1 to ISB. In Singles, I won my first set 21- 17 but lost the second set 21-15. The third set was very close with a final score of 21- 19.

My drop shots were good but for my future matches I need to improve my consistency and my concentration. Neil, our singles two player wasn’t as lucky. He faced a very good player and lost both sets 21-17. His drop shots were really good and moved the player a lot, but for his next match he needs to improve is smashing and movement around the court. Punna, our Singles three player lost his first set 21-14, but he improved on the second set, 23-21.

Justin and Bryce, Doubles one, also played against two very good players and despite fighting hard lost both sets, 21-15 and 21-11. Their smashes and drop shots were good but need to be more consistent. The Doubles two were also against two very tough opponents, losing their sets 21-15 and 21- 14. They communicated well together but will be working on their smashes. Overall, our team needs to improve footwork and agility. Better luck next time! GO TIGERS!

UNDER 13 GIRLS’ BADMINTON VS BANGKOK PREP

Pia Kapur, Year 8

O

ur team performed really well against Bangkok Prep. We did a great and very professional job as we won four out of five matches.

Even though this was a tough team, we managed to beat them. To keep up this good effort we need to work on smashes, placement and footwork. We

18/01/2019

will work hard and achieve even better next time. I played as number one seed, beating their number one in two sets. Pin, had a very tough opponent as she lost out in a gruelling three set game. Palak had a walkover as their team only had six players. Our doubles teams both excelled, winning their games without

Bangkok Patana School News

dropping sets. Well done to Fahsai, Pa, Kristina and Claire. Selina was reserve for this round, she supported us well and played a friendly doubles game, which she won.

Well done, two out of two for the Under 13 Girls’ Badminton team.

13

the m o r f t s The late

14

PTG

Bangkok Patana School News

Join the PTG Facebook page here!

18/01/2019

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

15

UNI COUNSELLORS’ CORNER

IN THE SPOTLIGHT...

École Hôtelière de Lausanne, Switzerland

L

ocated in Le Chalet-à-Gobet, eight kilometers from the city centre of Lausanne, École Hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) welcomes more than 2,600 students from 107 different countries. Since 1893, EHL has offered ground-breaking training to prepare students for global hospitality management careers and is widely renowned as one of the best hotel management school in the world.

They offer unique university-level programs that combine art and science, preparing students for a wide variety of hospitality management careers across the globe. EHL

prepares students for senior international positions in the field through the Bachelor of Science in International Hospitality Management The EHL campus contains several training restaurants for students in the preparatory year, including the Berceau des Sens, a gourmet restaurant that is open to the public and recognised by the Gault Millau guide. It also has several bars, 48 classrooms, auditoriums, a library, study rooms, a wine tasting room, a cafeteria, a boutique, a historic building, sports areas, and dorms.

Challenge 14 Start thinking about summer plans…

Internships, take classes, travel, summer school, part-time job, community service, college visits, sports or an activity that reflects your interest. What will you be doing? Remember, there is no one right activity to help your your university application.

Follow the Careers team...

CLICK TO READ THIS MONTH’S CAREERS NEWSLETTER 16

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

17

CATS CORNER

Tania Leyland, Youth Club and Community Services Coordinator

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL (SDG) 4: QUALITY EDUCATION

T

he SDG 4 Campaign Day was extremely successful. We chose to do a life size ‘Game of Life’. The game split into two paths: one with education and one without. One person would start at each side and they would meet at the end and see what their lives were like.

The events that happened along the path were representative of what a person in that socio-economic situation could expect. Things like jobs, housing, children, insurance, education and necessities were all aspects that players had to consider. At the end, the two people met and compared what had happened to them and their final outcomes.

The game showed that having an education did give people a head start and made things a lot easier for the rest of the game or in real life, their lives. Our goal was to educate people and make them more aware of the types of things less fortunate people have to consider, things that we take for granted. We also had our display board with the information about the student we will be sponsoring, and a video about her life and her living conditions. Our only error with the event was that we confused the dates, so not only did we had to quickly set up on the day, but the rota for who would be at the stall no longer worked, so at times we only had one person at the stall making it a bit hard to play them game. However, we ended up successfully working as a team and problem solving our issues meaning the campaign ran smoothly.

One For One Community Action Team

18

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

WORLD FOOD PROJECT (WFP) FOOD DRIVE 2018

W

FP is a CAT club that aims to raise awareness about world hunger, as well as seek ways to reduce food waste within our school. In Term 1, we launched a Christmas Food Drive, where each Secondary class was asked to donate staple food ingredients, such as rice, cooking oil, soy sauce and milk.

These donations were then delivered to a local slum in Khlong Toei on 15th December. Students who volunteered to be a part of this activity not only got to dis-

tribute the food items, but also personally deliver the boxes to some families and organise games for the children. It was an eye-opening experience that showed us that we should not take food for granted, no matter how basic and simple, as the food that we throw away every lunchtime could easily feed these families for days, or even months. We would like to thank everyone for their donations and hope to organise more food drives in the future!

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE

2019/20

CALENDAR 18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

19

om the r f e r o Even m

20

PTG

Bangkok Patana School News

Join the PTG Facebook page here!

18/01/2019

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

21

STUDENTS SPEAK

How are Blood Types Determined?

By Karnsiree (Ling Ling) Chen, Year 12

Have you ever wondered what determines blood types? How is it that genetics choose what blood type you’ll inherit? It is interesting to see that there are exact combinations which will make a specific type of blood.

There four main blood types that we refer to are A, AB, B and O. AB positive is considered the universal recipient, and O negative is considered the universal donor. This means AB blood can receive any kind of blood transfusion, and O negative can donate blood to any either blood type without any complications involving coagulation or rejection occuring.

Blood Type Frequency (U.S. population) O Positive blood – 38% O Negative blood – 7% A Positive blood – 34% A Negative blood – 6% B Positive blood – 9% B Negative blood – 2% AB Positive blood – 3% AB Negative blood​ – 1%

anti-B antibodies, and a person with B blood type will have anti-A antibodies. This plays an important role in blood compatibility as if you have type A blood, you cannot receive B blood because your body’s anti-B antibodies will fight the B blood’s B antigens. This is why it is important to have blood banks stocked with all types of blood in the case of the need for an emergency transfusion.

Blood Inheritance ABO Blood Type Blood types are defined by the umbrella term “ABO blood type” which refers to A, B, AB, or O types and an Rh factor (positive or negative). Just like eye or hair color, our blood type is inherited from our parents.

Upon fusion of gametes, each biological parent donates one of two ABO genes to their child. The A and B genes are dominant and the O gene is recessive, so the A and B genes will suppress the other one which is present. For example, if an O gene is paired with an A gene, the blood type will be A.

Compatibility The presence or absence of the A and B antigens on your red blood cells determines your ABO blood type.

People with an A blood type have only A antigens and the B blood type have only B antigens. The AB blood type has both A and B antigens, and the O blood type has neither of the two antigens.

For instance, a parent with O blood with two O genes and a parent with A blood with two A genes will have an A blood type child with one A gene and one O gene.

Antibodies against antigens your red blood cells lack are naturally developed by the time you are six months old. For instance, a person with A blood type will have

AA = A blood type AO = A blood type BB = B blood type BO = B blood type OO = O blood type AB = AB blood type

Information and Picture Source: https://www.zmescience.com/science/most-common-blood-type-43253/

22

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

Why Does Jet Lag Exist?

By Pasawat (Tang Tae) Sakulpanich, Year 12 Some of you reading this may still feel it; that dreadful feeling when you can’t fall asleep regardless of how tired you are and are falling asleep at noon instead (especially at this time of year). Jet lag is defined as a short-term sleeping disorder caused by rapid traveling across several time zones.

So why do our bodies react unpleasantly to traveling rapidly?

Our bodies rely on two systems to keep us awake and asleep at regular times; the first being the sleep/wake homeostasis and the second being the circadian biological clocks.

1. The sleep/wake homeostasis works

like a

timer and generates something called sleep drive – the desire for sleep – which gets stronger the longer you have been awake. This process acts as a useful reminder for those of you who sometimes forget to sleep!

2. The circadian biological clocks

regulate our sleeping pattern and body functions at different periods throughout the day such as body temperature and brain wave activity (see Lucid Dreaming: Real or Myth? previously published in the Patana News here). Our biological clocks rely on regular brightness and darkness cycles of day and night to keep ticking at the right pace and to stay in sync with our environment. Our biological clocks are located in a tiny, tiny part of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) where 20,000 nerve cells respond to the light which is detected through the retinas in our eyes by secreting a hormone called melatonin where low levels of brightness is detected, making us drowsy.

A study on mice showed that when their SCNs

were removed, the mice showed no random sleep and wake times with irregular activity throughout the day and night; proving the importance of the circadian biological clock!

But here’s the bad bit; an increase in sleep drive does not mean our circadian biological clocks will be in sync. Travelling across several time zones may force you to stay awake for longer, which increases your sleep drive; compounded with our misaligned biological clock due to irregular activity and daylight hours causes the infamous term jet lag, where our biological clocks continue ticking as the actual clocks invert themselves spiralling us into grogginess. Even with low levels of melatonin during the day, our sleep drive easily overcomes this, making us sleepy when we are supposed to be awake and vice versa.

But the good news is, flights coming back to Bangkok from Australia, New Zealand and other countries to the East of Bangkok will feel significantly less jetlagged, although those traveling from west to east (for example from Europe back to Bangkok) will find that it takes a little longer to overcome jet lag.

This is because flying west gains hours, in addition to the flight time, making following the homeostatic sleep drive smoother, even if we have to sleep earlier (difficult– I know), as opposed to losing hours and needing to repeat the day without sleep and egging on our sleep drive, without actually sleeping.

Even if you’re not feeling sleepy or haven’t reached the peak of your sleep drive, simply lying in darkness triggers the release of melatonin which will eventually help you fall asleep, so sleep early tonight!

Information and Picture Source: http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/healthy/getting/bio-clock / https://sleepjunkies.com/science/two-process-model/ https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-topics/ sleep-drive-and-your-body-clock / http://www.yourhormones.info/hormones/melatonin/ https://site.eightsleep.com/blogs/news/understanding-the-two-process-model-of-sleep-regulation / https:// www.nytimes.com/2016/07/16/science/jet-lag-east-west.html\ https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/165339.php

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

23

AIR QUALITY AT BANGKOK PATANA SCHOOL Helen Thew, Cross Campus Principal

W

hilst our campus is at an advantage being on the outskirts of the city, we regularly monitor pollution levels using information provided by the Air Quality and Noise Management Bureau of the Thai government. We are fortunate to have a monitoring station quite close to us on Sukhumvit Road at Bangna BTS station, so the readings are specific to our location. The Air Quality Index (AQI) readings taken in Bangna are typically lower than those from central Bangkok. Additionally, when we compared readings on our campus to those from the Bangna monitoring station and the AQI readings at school were 33% lower.

Table 1 shows ranges of air pollution for both types of reading together with our responses.

PM 2.5

General Air Quality Index Good

Air quality is considered as satisfactory.

Little to no risk.

None

Air quality is acceptable.

However, for some pollutants, a very small number of unusually sensitive individuals may experience moderate health concerns.

People who are unusually sensitive to pollutants should consider reducing prolonged or heavy exertion.

Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected.

People with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly and children should limit prolonged exertion.

Everyone may begin to Caution for All experience health effects; members of sensitive groups 151 to 200 may experience more serious health effects.

People with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly and children should avoid prolonged exertion; everyone else should limit prolonged exertion.

0 to 12.0 0 to 50

12.1 to 35.4

35.5 to 55.4

Moderate 51 to 100

Caution for Sensitive Groups 101 to 150

55.5 to 150.4

150.5 to 250.4

250.5 to 500.4

Precautionary Actions defined by US EPA*

Health Effects

Unhealthy 201 to 300

Hazardous 301 to 500

Health alert is triggered: everyone may experience more serious health effects.

People with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly and children should avoid any outdoor activity; everyone else should avoid prolonged exertion.

Everyone should avoid Health warnings of emerany outdoor exertion; gency conditions. The entire people with respiratory or population is more likely to be heart disease, the elderly affected. and children should remain indoors.

Bangkok Patana Response All Students: All outdoor activities unaffected.

Staff: Duties are unaffected All Students: All outdoor activities unaffected.

Staff: Teachers monitor students with unusual sensitivity to pollutants as identified through medical records.

All Students: Outdoor activities continue as planned. There may be some modifications to avoid prolonged exertion for those with unusual sensitivity to pollutants as identified through medical records.

Staff: Monitor students with unusual sensitivity as identified through medical records.

Primary Students: Nursery to Year 2 students stay indoors except for movement between buildings. Year 3 to Year 6 students have outdoor exposure limited to 30 minutes.

Secondary Students: Outdoor activities may continue but with modifications to avoid prolonged exertion. Activities may be reduced to lower intensity and/or shorter time periods.

Staff: Those working outside should avoid heavy physical work for prolonged periods of time.

All Students: All outdoor activities cancelled or moved indoors. Outdoor field trip decisions will be based on the local air quality at destination.

Staff: Those engaged in physical work outside should wear protective face masks.

Communication

None

None

None

Policy and Safety Reminder indicated on Parents’ Gateway, Staff Dashboard and Student Dashboard as an orange icon

Policy and Safety Reminder indicated on Parents’ Gateway, Staff Dashboard and Student Dashboard as a red icon

All members of the community (except SMS message to parents those responsible for security) to remain Policy and Safety Reindoors unless moving between buildings. minder on Parents’ GateFurther safety measures will be taken based way Staff Dashboard on the situation. and Student Dashboard Outdoor field trip decisions will be based as a purple icon on the local air quality at destination. * Source: Environmental Protection Agency (USA)

EPA defines ‘prolonged exertion’ as activity extending over a period of a few hours and causes breathing to increase more than normal.

24

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

OUR MONITORING PROCEDURES • As a school licensed by the Ministry of Education, we use the data provided from two official Thai government sites, both of which use data directly from the Air Quality and Noise Management Bureau.

• We refer to two sets of air pollution data: the general Air Quality Index (AQI) and also readings for PM 2.5. Measurement of PM 2.5 refer to tiny atmospheric particles that have a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers.

Type of pollution

Source

General Air Quality Index (AQI)

Air Quality and Noise Management Bureau (Thai government)

PM 2.5 Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) that has a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers

Website air4thai.pcd.go.th http://aqmthai.com/public_report.php (Choose Station 05t, choose the time period, choose PM2.5 under Parameter and choose Table or Graph)

• The Health and Safety Office at school checks the information daily from both of the above two sites.

• Of the two data sets (AQI and PM 2.5), we will act on the reading which indicates the greatest level of risk.

• The Health and Safety Office communicates to the Senior Leadership Team who in turn will inform colleagues and students as appropriate, as well as our Marketing and Communications team for the management of relevant communications with our parent community.

• We are subject to regular environmental inspections at school for both outdoor and indoor areas, including those which focus on air pollution readings. These inspections have so far confirmed that our campus air pollution readings are in fact lower than those of the nearest official air quality monitoring station (Bangna).

• Typically, checks are made during the school day. If unhealthy levels are indicated, we will enact early morning monitoring.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your respective school principal.

#112: Remove the Background from Images

I

shared this useful little webpage with the students and staff this week and several people have commented on how useful it has been. It’s surprising how frustrating it is to remove the background from images successfully and this tool will save you a lot of time and, in my experience so far, as yet to let me down. I love it when a webpage url is almost exactly the same name as what you’re trying to do, that way you don’t even have to remember it! https:// www.remove.bg/ Have a great weekend.

Brian Taylor Assistant Principal, Cross Campus Curriculum Technology Integration 18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

25

TRANSPORT CORNER

ECAs for Year 1 – Year 6 students finish today.

Secondary ECAs will continue until Friday 1st February.

PRIMARY RESIDENTIAL WEEK 1 AND 2: TRANSPORT AND ECA INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS IN YEAR 3 – 6

Please read below and plan in advance for your Transport arrangements on the departure and return date for your child/ ren’s Residential Week. Email Transport with any changes in advance at transport@paptana.ac.th.

YEAR 4 RESIDENTIAL TRANSPORT Monday of Residential Week: School transport to and from school as usual. There are no ECAs, all students will be on a 2:30pm bus home.

Tuesday departure day: Buses will be provided to school as normal. If you wish to bring your child to school using your own transport, please CANCEL the bus in advance to avoid delays to other users.

Friday return day: All school transport home is cancelled for students coming back from Residential. If you wish your child to get a 2:30pm school bus home, please contact transport to book them a seat.

YEAR 5 AND YEAR 6 RESIDENTIAL TRANSPORT Monday departure day: School transport provided as normal. If you will be bringing your child to school please CANCEL the bus in advance to avoid unnecessary delays to other users.

Friday return day: All school transport home is cancelled for students coming back from Residential. If you wish your child to get a 2:30pm school bus home, please contact Transport to book them a seat.

FOUNDATION STAGE, YEAR 1 AND 2 Transport to and from school as normal. ECAs have finished and all students will be on their default bus home at 2:30pm except for students in Year 1 or two who take Danish and Singapore Mandarin.

During Primary Residential Trips (21st – 25th Jan and 28th Jan –1st Feb) there will be no ECAs except for Selective Tennis, Selective Gymnastics, TigerShark Swimming, Singapore Mandarin, Danish and Dutch.

Students not on Residential who are in school will travel home on a 2:30pm bus unless they have one of the above ECAs. During this week, the mix of children on each bus or the bus may change. You will only be contacted via email or SMS if it is necessary to amend your normal pick up time in the morning.

YEAR 3 RESIDENTIAL TRANSPORT Monday or Wednesday departure day: Buses will be provided to school as normal. If you wish to bring your child to school using your own transport, please CANCEL the bus in advance to avoid delays to other users.

Wednesday or Friday return day: All school transport home is cancelled for students coming back from a SECONDARY STUDENTS Residential. If you wish your child to get a 2:30pm school bus ECAs programme will continue as normal until Friday home, please contact transport to book them a seat.

1st February.

CONTACT US 26

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

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019

COMMUNITY

18/01/2019

Bangkok Patana School News

27

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 28

Bangkok Patana School News

18/01/2019