British School of Nanjing Newsletter

The British School of Nanjing | Issue 2

N ewsletter

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N ewsletter N ovember Dear Parents, The British School has always tried to ensure our students are involved in the running of the school, taking pride in what they do, and standing out as confident speakers. However, this year, we have made sure are focus is on developing leadership skills in our students. Our charter states that ?The school views teamwork and leadership as interdependent and complementary skills. Pupils must become used to working in teams and groups. They should learn to appreciate good leadership and be provided with opportunities to develop their own leadership skills.?

The key to this is that all our students ? not just those who already stand out as confident leaders ? are given opportunities to develop these skills. We have sports team captains sending motivational emails to their teams, all our students involved in assemblies, House Captains organising their houses for inter-house competitions, the football team involved in coaching and refereeing at the Youth League Level; and our Enterprise Club ensuring students take a leading role in improving their world. On top of this, our Student Council was recently elected and began work.

The Senior School Council is made up of 12 Senior Students, with a boy and a girl representing each Year level, along with our Head Boy and Head Girl. Together, with Mr Umpleby and Ms Verlato?s guidance, they have begun to take responsibility for their meetings, their budget and their targets. I am confident they will drive some real student-led development in the school!

Congratulations to all of students who have taken on leadership of areas of our school!

Warm regards

MatthewShephard

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Library News

Name that country? and flag!

Reorganization and categorizing of the books continued this month with the satisfaction of completing the categorization our of Non-Fiction material. It was a long process yet; quite satisfying to be able to go directly to a book when one is requested. Next section is our Levelled Reading Section.

Our interactive display board received a lot of attention from students and staff alike in an effort to figure out the shapes of the countries and match them to the flags as well. There was a bonus question asking the students if they knew where in the Non-fiction section of the library they could find information on countries. It was quite exciting to see most of the children not only compete for the 10 housepoints and bragging rights being offered but also working together to help each other. They were able to show their collaborative, investigative skills along with learning a library skill in locating information.

The month ended with a Halloween display where the children were able to ?Choose their own adventure? and complete a Halloween themed word search puzzle and maze.

Combining fun with a bit of competition and learning is always a winning combination.

By Orelia Brown-Burrows ? School Librarian

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Nursery

Listening helps us learn!

In our Nursery class we have been working very hard on listening skills. There are lots of different reason why having good listening skills are so important which we can sometimes underestimate.

to and following instructions when given the first time.

The children in our class get rewarded for starting to clean up immediately when they hear the clean up song.

When giving instructions to the whole class, we make sure everybody focuses on the teacher who is giving instructions. The teacher talks clearly, show examples and use body language. The teacher then shows appreciation for the children who follow their instructions and will repeat it again to the ones who may not have heard it the first time. When everybody in class listens, everything is much more fun and everybody learns so much more.

A child?s performance in class depends a lot on their listening skills. If a child cannot listen properly, they may not know exactly what the teacher expects from them. Children with good listening skills, perform much better in class. They learn new things so much quicker because they know exactly what to do. The task they are given in class can be done much better because they heard exactly what to do. Good listeners can also take in so much more information.

So we are working on been good listeners in our Nursery class and everybody is happy and reaching there full potential

In our class we bend down to the children?s level and make sure the children realize we are talking to them.

The children are rewarded or praised for following instructions. We are now working on the children listening

Marianne Potgeiter? Nursery Teacher

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Reception S

Around the World The children in our Reception classes travelled the world, participated in a range of activities, and compared the similarities and differences from lots of different countries. They discovered that at times food, games, costumes and languages might be different or similar.

In our Reception S class we travelled from China to USA, New Zealand, Canada, Brazil, Italy, India, Korea, England, Hong Kong, Germany and Nigeria. The children investigated the flags from the different countries and we learned some interesting facts about them. They made drums from Nigeria, a headdress from Brazil and fans from Korea and danced their way around the classroom. When we visited India we made our own Rangoli patterns as a welcome to class. They learned how to do the Haka, the traditional Maori war dance. After travelling to the USA we made a model of the White House.

We then extended our travel to Canada and made a maple leaf brooch. As we crossed the ocean again we travelled to Germany and Italy we dressed our models with lederhosen and tried some Italian pizza. We completed our journey in Hong Kong and designed our own skyscrapers. We enjoyed our journey around the world and the children looked fabulous in their costumes from a country of their choice for UN day.

By Adeline Sutherland ? Deputy Head

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Reception W

Shape and Pattern Throughout this term we have been learning about Shapes and Patterns. The children are beginning to use mathematical names and language for naming and describing 2D shapes. We have been drawing, painting, making and folding shapes. We have made shape collages, drawn shapes pictures on the computer and have played shape games and puzzles. We have been sorting and classifying shapes and finding them in our environment.

In Chinese, we have been making pictures with tangrams and learning shape vocabulary. Learning about shape is important as we all use shape as a way of identifying and organizing visual information. Learning about shapes will help your child identify letters, and support their reading and writing development.

Recognizing, creating and describing patterns are important numeracy skills at this age. Our children are getting proficient at recognizing patterns all over the place ? their clothes, their school bags, around the room, in picture books, outdoors etc. Patterns are everywhere! We have been using shapes and colours to create patterns. We even patterned underpants! Miss Verlato makes patterns in music with the children every day! Many mathematical concepts (including times tables, addition and skip counting) are based on patterning. Identifying and creating patterns in reception is the beginning of the mastery of life-long mathematical skills.

Be a shape and pattern detective at home and you?ll be amazed what you find!

By Rebecca Williamson ? Reception Teacher 6

Year 1H

Maths in Year 1H The learners in 1H have been having a fabulous time, making sense of Maths. Everyone is encouraged to ask questions and is given the opportunity to explain the strategies that they use to solve problems. Explaining to others helps reinforce their own understanding and it is wonderful to see the children?s confidence to share their thinking with the group grow. To enable these kinds of conversations the children have been working hard building banks of mathematical vocabulary and developing their understanding of mathematical symbols.

Everyday the children count and play games with numbers, using an array of different manipulatives to engage the senses of sight and touch. From our recent studies in Science the children understand that engaging more of their senses will offer them an enhanced understanding of what they are doing. Not to mention increase their enjoyment and happy children learn!

While the bulk of Numeracy in Year 1 is number based, last week we started to explore the concept of estimating and measuring. The children loved using non-standard measures to measure and compare objects around the classroom.

Keep up the fabulous work 1H!

By Sara Heath ? Year 1H Class Teacher

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Year 1B

Letter, words and sentences!

Firstly, a big congratulations to all of the learners in Y1B who are now fully in the swing of Year 1; having settled exceptionally well, and with no little amount of confidence! Their sterling start is a hugely positive sign for the months ahead.

Our English work this month has been focused on letters, words and sentences, as the students begin to recognise how letters can construct words, and that sequences of words together become sentences.

Firstly, the students identified the a,e,i,o and u sounds, and how these vowels are essential building blocks in nearly every word in the English language. After some fun phonics games to identify vowels in words, the children then investigated the two most common word types ? verbs and nouns. They thoroughly enjoyed learning about all of the different actions that constitute verbs, and had fun pointing out the dozens of different nouns that exist in our classroom ? including each other!

Finally, we considered punctuation in the form of full stops, considering how without these special little dots we would be very out of breath and difficult to understand when we talk ? or read!

With their new grammatical knowledge, the students then began constructing their own original sentences; producing some super ideas such as ?The kangaroo hopped.?Impressively, some learners progressed to including adjectives and adverbs for description: ?The creepy caterpillar slithered slowly.?

On a daily basis, Y1B began to develop their understanding of the terms 'question' and 'answer,' gradually becoming able to identify what a question looks and sounds like. We learnt that many questions begin with why, what, where and how, as the children used these skills to learn more about their partners.

Underpinning all of this was our daily handwriting and phonics sessions, as we continued to learn how to say sounds such as: h, b, f, ff, l, ll and ss, along with writing the corresponding grapheme (written letter).

It has been fabulous to see the super progress that each student, even at this early stage, has made. Here?s to continuing the good work Y1B!

By Leon Beardshaw ?Year 1B Class Teacher

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Year 2B

Year 2B are Simply Spag-tastic!

The students in class 2B enjoyed a rollercoaster ride through the galaxy of spelling, punctuation and grammar (SPAG) as they learnt and developed core skills that will underpin the rest of their writing in Year 2 and beyond.

SPAG is a key element of the new British National Curriculum, and the students began by familiarising themselves with the correct terminology for the different elements of the English language. They quickly became competent with vocabulary such as nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs - constructing and deconstructing sentences by sentence type.

The learner?s deeper understanding of word types was developed by analysing terms such as pronouns ? the little words that replace nouns ? and prepositions ? those words that tell the reader where the noun is. They then considered how sentences and ideas could be linked together by connectives as simple as ?but?, or as exciting as ?meanwhile?and ?consequently?.

Being able to construct accurate, interesting and informative sentences is impossible without precise punctuation, and 2B are becoming experts with using the full range for effect. The learners looked at how exclamation marks can be used to create emphasis, and how they can be combined with question marks to make certain sentences even more exciting. Furthermore, students were introduced to using commas to separate items in a list (a skill usually learnt in Year 4, shhhh!).

To further broaden their understanding of the English language, 2B looked at root words and their origins - learning how a prefix before or a suffix after the word can drastically alter meaning; drawing on their own vocabulary and conversations to unpick the correction terminology.

This unit was a hugely pleasing beginning to our English work in Year 2, and the student?s impressive ability to understand these essential ?nuts and bolts?of writing is incredibly encouraging for the rest of the year.

By Cheryl Brown ? Year 2B Class Teacher

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Year 2C

Maths in Year 2C The children in class 2C this term have learned about lots of different things in their Maths lessons, but two things everyone especially enjoyed were measuring and directions. The children started by using paper strips measured in groups of ten centimeters, we learned that ten centimeters is called a ?decimeter?. We used these to measure lots of things around the classroom, like the display boards, the interactive whiteboard, books, shelves, table legs and the length of Mr. Cleverley?s arm. The decimeter strips were useful, but we decided that we also needed something more precise, so we moved on to using rulers of various different lengths. We learned that these are marked in centimeters, which are much better for measuring small items.

The children measured a variety of different items, then added them to a chart that grouped items smaller than ten centimeters, between ten and thirty centimeters, and longer than thirty centimeters. When the children were measuring, they learned that it is very important to be accurate, so that all of the items are measured correctly. After our work on measuring, we are moving on to work on directions.

We thought carefully about which direction is left and which is right, and how this changes if you are opposite a person. Then we wrote directions for a map, explaining how to get to different locations using left and right. We also used a giant map on the playground to learn about making clockwise and anticlockwise turns!

By Roger Cleverley ? Year 2C Class Teacher

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Year 3

Science Rocks!

This term, the children of Year 3 have been learning that science rocks ? sometimes quite literally!

As part of their science curriculum, the students have been spending a lot of time looking closely at rocks, learning more about where they come from and how they are used. The pupils took a walk around school to explore how various rocks have been utilised in our school environment, discovered more about the rocks beneath our feet and spent a series of lessons looking at what happens when a volcano erupts.

The students have also had the opportunity to find out more about rocks for themselves, by planning their own investigation into the properties of different types of rocks. The pupils had to decide what they would examine, how they would carry out their investigation and how they would keep their test fair. Upon completion of their investigation, the students then evaluated how successful they thought their experiment had been, and how accurate their predictions had been.

Being able to plan and carry out an investigation is a vital scientific skill that the students of Year 3 will continue to develop throughout the rest of their school life, and perhaps beyond!

By Michael Burrows ? Year 3 Class Teacher

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Year 4C

Painting a picture with our words

In Literacy, 4C have been reading and writing poems that create images in the reader?s mind. We used 'The Reader of this Poem' to look at how to use similes to compare something to something else using 'as' and 'like'. We had a go at writing our own version of the poem. Here are some of the similes the students wrote:

In addition to these techniques, we also thought about the impact that our choice of verbs has on our writing. We tried to use powerful verbs that describe exactly how the verb is done. For example, instead of saying ?eat?we could say 'devour', 'nibble' or 'crunch'.

To finish off our unit of work, we had a go at performing a poem. Students worked in groups, trying to learn their lines and decide on how they would deliver them for the best effect. There were some great performances, and most importantly everybody got up there and had a go.

?As lazy as a sloth.? ?As colourful as a rainbow.? ?As sneaky as the wind.?

By Amelia Chin ? Year 4C Class Teacher

We then considered the effect of metaphors in the poem 'Rainbows' and discovered how they helped paint vivid pictures in our minds. We discussed how we felt when we are angry and calm, and thought of different metaphors to express each mood. The poems they wrote created some fantastic images, here are some of them: ?I am lava covering the earth.? ?I am a wave, softly brushing the sand.? ?I am an eagle, gliding through the smooth air.?

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Year 4W

Words that paint a picture

Year 4W have been learning to create images through using different styles of writing this month. They have looked at adjectives, similes, metaphors and even frontal adverbials as tools to enhance their writing and even the use of collage as a stimulus to help them create a picture using words.

lages as further prompts they set to work independently.

The poems they created were really good and drew upon all the areas we had been learning about including adverbs, similes, metaphors and even fronted adverbials.

The whole class really engaged with their poems and were very proud of their results. Well done!

Having looked at the wonderful book ?Window? by Jeannie Baker the class had to imagine what might be behind some closed curtains and then use natural materials and various craft materials such as glitter, tissue paper and corrugated card to create their vision. However, first we started with a bit of relaxing visualisation, whilst listening to some calming music. There was lots of excitement as the groups collected materials from the gardens for their collages. Part of the process of writing their poems meant they had to explain to the rest of the class what their picture depicted and it was excellent practice for them to stand up and make themselves heard when speaking to the class.

By Katherine Wharton ? Primary School Leader

After finishing their collage it was down to the final task of drafting, editing and finishing their poems. We talked again about different words and other writing tools they could use to enhance their poems and using their col13

Year 5D

Year 5LD Forces The students of Year 5LD have spent the first part of this term exploring forces. They also investigated how mechanisms, like levers, allow the use of less force to do greater amounts of work. We concluded that we could use a lever to lift a teacher, a large rock, or even an elephant! Some of our favourite moments in this scheme of work:

across the football pitch with cardboard of varying sizes.

We did conclude that the larger the board the slower the student.

Students then put their knowledge of air resistance into practice by creating a parachute to allow something to fall slowly off Year 5LD?s balcony. Students were creative and used trial and error to create an effective parachute.

Mari?s parachute slowly delivered her figurine to the ground in an impressive 5.8 seconds!

Friction We often linked learning to real life examples. Examples of useful friction were discussed, such as being able to stop when driving a car and riding a bike. Students could observe the actual friction occurring on a bike and watched how friction can be used to create fire.

It was an enjoyable unit due to the wide variety of practical and hands on tasks. But overall, the students of Year 5LD maintained a positive attitude to learning and an incredible enthusiasm for the study of physics. What an excellent start to Year 5LD Science!

Air Resistance ?It will fall first because it?s heavier? ? A common belief held for years, until Galileo questioned it and tested this theory from the leaning tower of Pisa. The students of Year 5LD, recreated Galileo?s experiment in the classroom, dropping a variety of items and timing their fall.

Many students reiterated the need to perform the experiment again demonstrating excellent understanding of the importance of accuracy in scientific investigations.

By Ms Silvia Vuong - Year 5LD Science Teacher

We then explored if air resistance could slow a person down, by getting one student to run as fast as they could

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Year 5D

What?s Beneath Our Feet?

In our Humanities class we have been finding out about volcanoes! The children learned that the earth is made up of 3 layers: the crust, the mantle and the core. The core is in 2 parts, a solid inner that is made up of iron and nickel, and the molten outer core. The mantle is molten rock such as asphalt. The crust is the part that we live on and is split/broken into plates. We call these plates ?tectonic plates?. These plates slowly move around because they are floating on the mantle.

The children were then given different coloured play-dough to make a model of the different layers of the earth; they then cut their earth in half and used cocktail sticks to label the different layers of the earth. Check out the children?s play-dough models of the Earth and its layers.

By Anthony Garner ? Year 5G Class Teacher

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Chinese

Travel around the world in one day!

This month in Chinese class, Reception children went on a great trip to explore different countries around the world in the days leading up to our UN Day celebrations.

China was the first stop of our exciting journey. We discussed food customs and discovered that Chinese people prefer to use chopsticks to eat with instead of knives and forks. We also learned about animals unique to each region such as the cuddly and cute Panda.

When learning about British culture, we found out it is the home of Paddington Bear and looked at famous buildings such as the London Bridge, which opens up to let ships pass under it. We played lots of different games to recognise various countries?flags, and the children worked really hard on learning new vocabulary and grammar structures.

On our exciting UN Day celebration, Reception children visited different countries all in one day! Together we went to South Africa to learn about animal footprints, Spain to build a cathedral, Hawaii to make a lei and to New Zealand to learn the Hakka.

One of the key aspects of learning a language is being open to learning about new cultures and customs. It was lovely to see how enthusiastic the children were on and leading up to UN Day, and we hope this enthusiasm continues in their Chinese learning journey!

By April Chu- Chinese Teacher

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German

Language and Culture If we think about learning a language, we mostly think about words and sentences and of course grammar. But is this all we need to know?

poster, while others expressed their information as a presentation, which they presented to the class. Most students used this opportunity to earn extra points by presenting some or all of their information in German. I was very much impressed and the projects have been very successful.

Of course not! Language is part of a culture. And culture is part of a language. It is impossible to separate one from the other. Both are influencing and forming each other. Therefore, culture should be an important part of language learning ? especially in a classroom where the culture is not present. When students don?t have the chance to live in the target culture and daily speak the language, many natural learning opportunities get lost.

I am proud of my students and hope they all keep up the hard work! Well done!

By Jane Tulke ? German Language Specialist

During our German lessons, I often try to include cultural aspects and knowledge while we are learning the language. Students will find out why people say something or who exactly uses certain phrases. They learn which phrases are formal and show respect and which phrases should be mostly just used between friends.

Most importantly, we are learning about topics that the students can identify with. The students learn how to talk about themselves and their family, their interests and opinions, their hobbies, daily and school life, music, films and much more.

As part of our cultural learning, the students from year 7 to year 9 created posters about the topic they have been learning this year so far.

The topics were:: Year 7: ?Sports in Germany? and ?Hobbies in Germany?

Year 8: ?Seasons in Germany? and ?Holidays in Germany?

Year 9: ?Media in Germany?, ?Computing in Germany? and ?Music in Germany?

The students were asked to research the chosen topic online and to present their findings in a way that they felt comfortable with. Many students chose to create a 17

EAL

Cross Curricular Tools

It?s been good fun in the EAL classroom in the last few weeks!

The Key Stage One children have nearly finished the second unit of the withdrawal course. The first unit was about colours and the school environment. The second has been about our faces and bodies and describing people by saying how many legs/faces/noses etc. people have. Interestingly all the students seem to agree that Mr Aydon has no less than four heads as one by one they told me ?Mr Aydon, you have four heads!?Indeed, when I questioned them about this in a state of disbelief, they were adamant that they could count four heads, although the laughter that accompanied the counting aroused some suspicions!

We in the EAL department are getting ready for the massmigration to the new campus. We know we are not alone in our looking forward to the increased amount of space we will have at our disposal. Space and the freedom to move and express oneself physically are so important when it comes to learning English, so we are excited about the new opportunities that will be afforded by the EAL set-up in the new school!

By Jack Aydon ? EAL Specialist

Continuing the theme of the face and body for one more week (the week beginning 26th October), we will spend some time in class preparing some work to go up on a display board in our primary school, which is halfway up the main stairs. I hope at some point during November parents will get the opportunity to see what surprises EAL KS1 has in store for the board.

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English

Drama and Literature with Year 9

It has been a challenging initial few months for this year?s class of 9s; they?ve been introduced to a formal Drama lesson and have already submitted their first assessed piece of writing. They?ve tackled both of these challenges with enthusiasm, diligence and ease.

In our Drama sessions, we?ve been working through a unit on Mime; we?ve just finished experimenting with Tableaux or ?Freeze Frame?, where students have to work in groups or as a whole class to create still images of different scenarios. Through the looking at the photographs, the students worked in teams to make improvements to their Tableaux pieces. The students are currently designing a piece of work combining all of the skills that they have developed throughout the unit. I am looking forward to their performances.

Students?were offered a selection of beautifully crafted images from ?Harris Burdick?s Stories?; they chose one each to inspire a work of creative fiction. I was extremely impressed with the planning and constructive feedback they shared with their peers to help improve their pieces prior to submission. I read about caterpillars helping with teen anxiety, a cruise ship dragged into Venice and a young man trying to break the conformity of his society?s conventions.

By Angie Spalding ? English language Specialist

Lately, we?ve been focusing on Reading skills, specifically to improve on our inference and deduction proficiency.

Students have watched scenes from films with complicated storylines and characters, and based on contextual clues, had to determine what is going on in the plot.

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Science

Wild Science

This month, the scientists of BSN have an amazing opportunity to do some hands-on investigation in the jungles of Borneo and in sunny Xian. Borneo especially is a highly promising environment for the budding explorer. From snakes to spiders, orangutans to fireflies, Borneo presents a raft of unusual creatures for our Y8 and Y9 students to interact with. Fear not though, our brave teachers will surely protect them from the worst that nature has to throw at them.

Venturing out into the jungle for the first time can be a nerve-wracking experience. Not knowing if it will be a giant beetle or an inquisitive frog that awaits you as you go for your evening shower makes the experience even more thrilling than expected. However, it all works out, I'm sure our students will all be feeling very close to nature by the time they return. Here's to our brave heroes! Y8! Y9! We salute you all.

By Richard Mands ? Science and Technology Specialist 20

Geography

How does development affect us?

Development affects us all and in varied ways. For many people development brings great benefits, such as employment opportunities, access to education, and improved health care services. However, for others development projects bring little change and may even make things worse. Students in Year 9 have spent the last month studying global development patterns, inequalities, and relationships. They studied a range of development indicators, The Millennium Development Goals, sustainable development projects, and progress in development throughout the second half of the 20th century. We also addressed the students?own connection to development through the charity appeals implemented by the British School of Nanjing, such as The Shoebox Appeal and The Nepal Earthquake Fund.

The module also provided an ideal means of introducing students to the concept of ?sustainability?- a key part of Key Stage 3 Geography in Year 9. Through looking at the ways that short term benefits often turn into longer-term costs for people and for the natural environment, students developed their understanding of the need for development projects which meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

By Nicholas Umpleby ? Geography Specialist

The purpose of the module was to describe and explain changing human processes through a study of inequalities in the global distribution of wealth and development in the era of modern globalisation. After mapping where the very wealthiest people live, students investigated the reasons why people in some countries are gaining wealth faster than others. Furthermore, the module also encouraged student reflection on important questions about the nature of global citizenship and the importance of money for quality of life (and happiness).

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ICT

Digital Citizenship It has been a very busy start to Key Stage 3 ICT this year and we have been developing a raft of new skills and understandings as well as building upon past learning. Across the whole Key Stage we began the year by looking at digital citizenship and cyber safety and then the classes have either investigated the process of making movies with digital devices or delved into the skill of Coding.

it was clear that the students both had fun as well as gained an understanding of the film making process.

The year 9s and 6s had an introduction to coding and learned some basic skills with Scratch or took it a lot further by beginning to code in HTML, which is one of the languages that the internet is written in. Year 7s learned how to make simple games and the year 9s created webpages about themselves. It was great to see some of the older students gain a sense of enthusiasm for coding and they used the resources available to learn a lot more about coding on their spare time? maybe we have a future Bill Gates or Steve Jobs in the class?

With movie making the year 6 and 8 students have looked at the whole digital process beginning with camera angles and recording then they moved on to more complex parts of the process such as folly art (making sound effects) and creating a soundtrack to add mood and emotion to short movie clip. This unit cumulated in students filming short movies in groups and

By Luke Dyer ? Year 5 Teacher and ICT 22

Maths

Our Investigations- Year 7 Maths When we read the news we are bombarded with information: ?Two in every five students do not have anything to eat before they go to school.? We know that statements like this are the result of collecting information and then organising it. The process begins with someone asking a question.

spend over 10 hours per day on a device. Hopefully that was an experimental error! Also, When do students go to bed each evening? The most common bedtime was 10pm! I was surprised by these results, as I believe some teachers go to bed before 10pm!

Overall, the students of Year 7 embraced this investigation and I believe we all found out some interesting answers to our questions!

The students of Year 7 formulated their own question for their investigation. They collected their data with a frequency table, making it easy to record responses promptly before moving on to ask the next person.

By Ms Silvia Vuong ? Year 6, 7 and 8 Maths Teacher

Students had to explain why they were interested in their particular investigation and make a prediction about their results. Then they surveyed each other providing a sample size of twenty students.

So, do boys prefer action movies to girls? It turns out action movies are a common favourite, whether you?re a boy or a girl. Science fiction was a close second, which was just as popular as comedy.

Some other important questions that were asked which may provide insight into how much energy our students have for class each day: How many hours do students of Year 7 spend on a device each day? The average was two hours per day, however one student claimed to

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History

An Interactive Term at BSN Year 6 students have been investigating medieval beliefs this term and looking in particular at the Black Death and the concept of heaven and hell. They are beginning to forge complex links between religion, science, superstition, trade, and medicine, which will serve them well as we delve into social attitudes in the medieval period later in the term.

Year 7 is focusing on causation at present. Why do things happen? They have identified and created their own causes for Henry VIII break with Rome, and will develop these skills when they evaluate the causes of the Reformation. ?I have a dream?, can be heard in Year 8 classrooms as students chart the progress of the Civil Rights Movement, identifying key players and big moments in the quest for racial equality in the United States. Learners have demonstrated their knowledge in a creative way, synthesising the story of the Civil Rights Movement with songs of their choice in a music video.

Who or what was most responsible for the outbreak of, what had been up to that point, the most destructive war in human history? Year 9 has focused on identifying and explaining the causes of the First World War. The role of Germany has been hotly debated, and students have responded to feedback they were given in the first part of term to produce balanced, focused, and coherent essays on the subject.

Analysing, interpreting, comparing, evaluating, and placing sources in historical context has kept the brains of Year 10 students busy in recent weeks. Their investigation has focused on the Treaty of Versailles, arguably the most important document ever written ? the outcome of which changed the course of history for the entire planet and quite possibly caused a second world war, which claimed the lives of a hundred million people.

By Jon-Paul Graham ? History Specialist 24

Business Studies

The Four P?s What types of business exist? Where is the best location for a business? How can they expand? These are just some of the questions that Year 10 students have been grappling with. In particular, this group excel at linking business theory to their own experiences and developments in the wider world.

Product, Price, Promotion, and Placement. These are the four P?s that have occupied Year 11 students in the second half of the first term. Creating their own case studies, testing each other?s knowledge, and acting as marketing gurus just might help them become the entrepreneurs of the future.

By Jon-Paul Graham ? Business Studies Teacher

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Music

Performance and Participation in Music It?s been a long-propagated myth that simply listening to certain types of music can improve students?intelligence the so-called ?Mozart effect?.

A study published last year in Time magazine explained that, rather than simply listening to music, it is the active engagement and participation in and performance of music that can result in neurophysiological benefits for developing brains. A good analogy for this would be that, ?You can?t get physically fit by simply watching sports?you have to participate!

The study showed direct evidence that participating in music and/or learning an instrument ?has a biological effect on children?s developing nervous system?. Essentially - actively playing music increases students?brainpower and ability to concentrate and remain on-task in other lessons!

To this end, much of the music department?s lessons across the school place an emphasis on participation, rather than simply listening and taking in information. In recent weeks, students of all year groups have been required, for example, to: create short compositions in groups using various instruments, which they then perform to their peers; participate in singing rounds; use tuned percussion instruments to accompany pieces of music, lead performances in the role of conductor; and many other examples of active participation. Of course it goes without saying that all our choirs, bands and orchestras are actively participating in learning new songs and pieces of music with a view to performing them in assemblies, end of year shows, and so on.

We hope that this active participation in lessons and performances will not only aid the development of students in Music but also be beneficial across the rest of the curriculum!

By Jonny Schouten ? Music Teacher

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PE

Sports Report This month has been a great month for sports at BSN! On Tuesday the 13th of October the Senior Boys Football Team travelled to the British Columbia Academy in Jimingsi to kick off the football season. This was their first game playing together as a team; they started very well but found themselves unfortunate to be 3-0 down at half time. The boys, however, produced a spirited fight-back in the second half, dominating for large periods, playing some tremendous football, and finding themselves deservedly winning the second half 3-1. After a frantic last couple of minutes in which the boys gave their absolute all to secure an incredible comeback, the final whistle was blown and BCA ended up 4-3 winners.

It was a thrilling encounter and an excellent start to the season for the boys. It was their first time playing together, but it didn?t take them long to find their feet and confidence. They did themselves and the school extremely proud. This was the first of many fixtures we expect to have scheduled throughout the school year, and we are confident that if we play like we did tonight, it won?t be long until we have our first victory! Very well done boys, a fantastic evening. Thank you to Mr Beardshaw for refereeing, and Mr Watson also for coming along and providing some expert tactical advice!

Since then our BSN Senior Boys football team played their second match of the season this week, away at Nanjing Foreign Language School (NFLS).

After a close-fought first half, with there being almost nothing to separate the teams, BSN found themselves desperately unlucky to concede two unfortunate goals on the stroke of half time. The boys bounced back brilliantly though in the second half, with Joschka scoring an absolute peach of a free kick from 25 yards. It didn't look like it was going to be BSN's day though, as NFLS then went straight up the other end and scored a third. But our BSN boys didn't give up.

They kept plugging away, and with less than five minutes remaining, Joshua hit home an emphatic strike to give us a fighting chance going into the last couple of minutes. NFLS again went straight up the other end, and looked to have scored until Alex pulled off a miraculous goal-line clearance to keep us in the game. Moments later, in the dying seconds by this point, we hit NFLS on the counter-attack and won a corner. The cross came in for Adriano to score a wonderful volley and secure a memorable 3-3 draw with the very last touch of the game. It was a great evening, a great game and a fantastic effort from the boys. Very well done!

By Daniel Plummer ? P.E. Teacher

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Art

BSN Christmas Card Design Competition 2015 BSN is running the children?s Christmas art competition to design the British School of Nanjing?s Christmas cards for 2015!

The competition is open to all children aged between 2 and 16 and we have the following age categories:

24th November - Whole School Christmas Art Competition Date of completion.

The closing date is Tuesday the 24th November. The winners will be selected on Thursday 26th November and cards will be available for purchase from the first week of December.

2-5yrs 6-10yrs 11-16yrs

By Caroline Shephard ? Art Specialist The design can be in any medium; paints, crayons to collage, with a maximum A3 size.

BEST of LUCK!!

Please hand your finished entries to the front desk, Art Department or your class teacher.

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Netball Club

BSN Demons off to a flyer!!

The BSN Demons participated in their first ever Netball match against Nanjing British Columbia Academy on Tuesday, October 27th. The girls put on a show for the crowd and strolled to an 11 ? 5 victory. There were some superb skills on display including fast passing, nifty footwork and an amazing work ethic amongst all of the team.

Mia started off the scoring with 5 successive goals and it didn?t stop there as she went on to score 10 of the 11.

Nuskaiym scored her first goal of the campaign to complete the scoring with a calm finish. Jemimah and Isla put on a strong defensive show demonstrating their knowledge of the game with some timely interceptions. Tara, Alice, Emily, Ananya, Isabella, Matilda, Ahhyun, Chloe and Ling Yu were all part of the strong BSN outfit and were instrumental in assisting our scorers and defensive structure.

After the netball match the girls participated in a short basketball game. An unfamiliar sport to the group and they started off a little slowly. However, they sharp got in to it, showing lots of character in their fight back but unfortunately they were left a little short in the end with the game resulting 14 ? 11 to BCA. The girls shocked themselves with how quickly they adapted and felt themselves wanting more once the game was over.

All in all a successful start of the BSN Netball calendar, a record of 1 ? 0 and it?s on to the next game.

By Liam Watson ? Netball Coach

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Sleepover Fun

Sleepover Fun! On October 16th the students of Year 3 and 4 came together to enjoy the BSN sleepover. This is an event that happens every year and gives students the opportunity to experience a night with their friends at school.

Wharton had prepared a thrilling outdoor activity, where teams of students searched by torchlight for hidden tokens!

Once the excitement was over, it was time for some hot chocolate and a movie upstairs in bed.

The students took part in a range of fun and exciting activities, which included cookery with Mrs Heath and a variety of games with Mr Umpleby, Mrs Sutherland, Miss Brown and Mr Beardshaw.

After a peaceful night?s sleep, the children rose and had a healthy breakfast before going home with smiles on their faces.

It was then time for everybody to tuck in to some delicious pizza. Following that, the students took the responsibility of washing their own plates and tidying up the tables.

The sleepover was a wonderful experience for all involved.

The children learned important lessons in independence, organisation and responsibility as well as having an absolute blast!

At this point, the students were delighted to find that it was already dark outside. But, it wasn?t time for bed yet! Instead, Mr 31

By Michael Burrows and Amelia Chin ? Year 3 and 4 Teacher

Sleepover Fun

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Trip To Borneo

Year 8/9 Borneo Adventure!

For this year?s senior school trip students in Years 8 and 9 were fortunate to spend 8 amazing days in the jungles of Borneo, Malaysia. Over the course of the week they engaged in a wide range of activities specifically chosen to support classroom learning, help students develop interpersonal and employability skills, and have fun with their friends in a new and exciting environment. We trekked in the jungle, zip-lined between islands, visited the orangutans, learnt about palm oil production and deforestation, and helped support on going development work in a remote village home to one of Borneo?s ethnic minority groups.

self-confidence and a desire to embrace new challenges. It is through these types of experiences that The British School of Nanjing helps create responsible global citizens and leaders of the future.

By Nick Umpleby, Silvia Vuong, Liam Watson and Jon-Paul Graham

Trips like this play a crucial part in a child?s social, emotional and personal development and are essential to The British School of Nanjing?s holistic approach to education. Their longterm value is crucial in helping students gain independence, 33

Trip To Borneo

Journal extracts Team 1 ?On the trek we didn?t give up and we did the best we could. Everyone gave it their all no matter how hard it was! Looking back on the day, through all the mud and trees, I can?t say anything negative. It was an amazing experience?

?I saw lots of people trying to help others on steep slippery slopes - people respected each other. It was an amazing experience to actually sleep in the jungle, use hammocks from trees, have a shower in a stream and walk around in the dark. It was awesome!?

?We all helped each other when in need and there was no negativity in our group. The support that people gave other teammates was great. When a struggling person needed help, we were there for them ? guiding them, helping them and encouraging them. Our communication skills were on top form throughout the day!?

By Tara, Chloe, Harry, Isla, Joschka, Catherine, Antonio, Gahyun, Dong Hyeok, John, Caroline, Esther, Emily and Jemimah

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Trip To Borneo

Journal extracts Team 2 Carrying 50kg of concrete mix was back breaking!

Our teamwork was great though. We communicated well, encouraged each other, and worked efficiently.

It was hot and humid so our team organised shifts and everyone had regular water breaks. We also split the group into pairs so people could help those who didn?t understand. I feel like our leaders during the community service valued all our ideas.?

'All of us negotiated and debated how long we should walk for and how many breaks we should have. Chae Yun gave quality information; Kyle was really encouraging; Joshua inspired and influenced people to keep going and be strong; Marco and Alex were great middlemen and communicated well between the front and back of the group; and Matilda offered us lots of snacks. We achieved our goal in style!?

?We took some time to switch on and get on with the task. What we learnt today is that we can all be more By Joshua, Ji Won, Chae Yun, Marco, Seo Yun, proactive and should not wait to be told what to do.

Matilda, Katelyn, Tina, Alex, Kyle, Andrew, Janet We also learnt that we should aim to stay positive no matter what.?

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Building 2, Jinling Resort Jiahu Dong Lu Jiangning District Nanjing 211100 +86 25 5210 8987 info@bsn.org,cn www.bsn.org.cn

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