TIV Issue 2 -2019

IBSB News & Views By the student for the students

The International Voice

Issue 2 May 2019

SPORTS 54

SCHOOL EVENTS 39

Athletic Grand Prix

ESU Public Speaking Competition

ALUMNI 47

WHITE BOARD 10

Life at Falmouth

Children’s Book Day

A New Year, A New School pg 4

Contributors Christie V. (TIV Student Editor) Milena V. (TIV Assistant Editor) Alina Radu (White Board Editor) Silviu Nastase (Photographer) Lea Cohen (Chief Editor in Design) Laura Hawkins (Editor in Design) Andreea Strimbeanu (Editor in Design)

STUDENT CONTRIBUTORS Lena S. (Year 12) Sonia M (Year 6O) Anastasia I. (Year 6M) Solbean S. (Year 13) Lisa P. (Year13) Loren Badarni (IBSB Graduate, 2018) Lana Badran (IBSB Graduate, 2013) Wang Q. (Year 13) Kyriaki (Year 12) Jamie B. (Year 11) David C. (Year 6M) Matei B. (Year 6 M) Constantin I. (Year 6O) Luca P. (Year 4L)

teacher CONTRIBUTORS Matthew Tansley Alan Cornish Kendall Peet

TABLE OF CONTENTS SPOTLIGHT Student Editor Notes Head of Secondary Message A New Year, A New School

pg. 2 pg. 3 pg. 4

WHITEBOARD Head of Primary Message We’re Going on a Bug Hunt To the Left, to the Right The International Francophile Day Children’s Book Day My Visit to Carturesti Verona Class Trip to Made by You Easter Art Spanish Lesson Weather project Was gab es froher hier?

Cross Curricular Literacy in Year 5 Year 5 visit the Military Museum Science Week Fun and Madness Climbing like Superheroes Climbing to Secondary The Magic Club Culinary on!

Let it snow!

pg. 7 pg. 8 pg. 9 pg. 10 pg. 12 pg. 13 pg. 14 pg. 15 pg. 16 pg. 17 pg. 18 pg. 20 pg. 21 pg. 22 pg. 23 pg. 24 pg. 25 pg. 26

SCHOOL EVENTS AND TRIPS 1st place Maths Competition PTF Social Event Martisor Brunch Celebrating Martisor Day Juxi Magic - Open Morning World Book Day The 7th Edition of the School Show 2019 COBIS World Debate Competition Middle School MUN ESU Public Speaking Competition A Published Author at the Age of 10

pg. 29 pg. 30 pg. 32 pg. 34 pg. 35 pg. 36 pg. 38 pg. 40 pg. 41 pg. 42

Secondary School Spring Show UKMT Maths

pg. 44 pg. 45

CAS Autism Awareness Week Tree Planting

pg. 47 pg. 48

ALUMNI First Year of Dentistry Life at Falmouth

pg. 50 pg. 51

SPORTS U11 Basketball Competition Volleyball Victory Good Cricket Athletic Grand Prix Interschool Swimming Paul Georgescu Wins Gold Ironman Competition

pg. 54 pg. 55 pg. 56 pg. 58 pg. 59 pg. 60 pg. 62

SCHOOL VIEWS Russell Group Universities VetMed Application How to Win a Car Game New Teachers Interviews

pg. 66 pg. 68 pg. 69 pg. 70

CREATIVE CORNER The Williams and the City of Chaos

pg. 73

SPOTLIGHT Welcome

STUDENT MAGAZINE EDITOR’S NOTE Welcome to Issue 2! The Easter Break has come and gone, and the new – and final – term is upon us. Let us take a moment to look back on the past fourth months, and forward to the summer semester.

Although off to a rough start for the senior years, with mocks being the first thing greeting us back from the Winter Break, it turned out to be a wonderful term, jam-packed with activities such as the school ski trips, the BISAC MUN, lots of interschool competitions, and the COBIS Student World Debate Competition (a special shout-out to my teammates for making the final!).

By Christie V., Year 12

The recent term also saw the beginning of revision classes and the first exams of the season, being practical exams for Art and ICT, and the oral exams for English and MFL. As an ending to the term, the primary school enjoyed a week with Easter activities, whilst on the secondary side , there was the CAS Gala and Year 13 graduation photos, combined with a heartwarming assembly-which acted as an unofficial graduation ceremony, filled with heartfelt speeches and bittersweet goodbyes.

But Easter is not the end of the year, as there is still so much to look forward to in the final nine weeks of Term 3. If you’re in the Primary School or KS3, the final months of the school year offer plenty of fun events, including the Middle School Debate Competitions, end of year trips, the Primary School summer show, and the various other activities, including day trips, etc., that always herald the summer holidays.

Those of you for whom the approaching weeks mean studying, exams, and worry, be sure to take care of yourselves: avoid overworking, get at least eight hours of sleep a night, and try to find

Assistant Editor’s Note Being part of a school for me does not only mean gaining an education, but also means making the school a better environment for everyone to enjoy. It’s about being proactive and giving change a voice, giving the students a voice, and what better place to do it than writing for our school magazine, The International Voice.

At IBSB we have a community with a wide variety of skills, engaged in different activities within and outside school, with different interests. This provides us with the perfect opportunity to write interesting articles, sharing news and views in our school magazine. We do however need more!

I decided to join the TIV team because I know of the potential that exists at IBSB, with many bright and talented individuals, and would therefore like to encourage everyone to write for our school magazine as your views and opinions make for interesting reading. We are interested in what you have to say!

Writing does not only develop your skills as a writer, but can also show universities that you are an involved student. I would therefore encourage everyone to get writing, even if it’s just a short article.

For me writing is a pleasure, and perhaps it can become yours too! I hope that together, with my colleagues on the TIV team and the full support of the school community, we can make each issue better than the last to ensure our school magazine is something that everyone enjoys reading.

By Milena V., Year 12

SPOTLIGHT Welcome

HEAD OF SECONDARY MESSAGE

The spring term has been a very busy one as you will have seen in my weekly newsletter entries. The new term began with mock examinations for years 11, 12 and 13, and is now finishing off with mock exams for the same years groups, which gives a sense of closure, but also demonstrates how seriously we take the preparation of our students for these external examinations.

Over the course of the term, we have focused on several of our core values, beginning with Innovation, before we moved on to Tolerance, Integrity, before finishing with Sustainability, which fitted in nicely with our participation in the tree planting initiative and earth hour. Many of our core values have been introduced as part of our weekly assemblies which have taken on a new lease of life this year as the students have taken the responsibility for leading, preparing, and performing, which always gives me great pride and reaffirms my belief that we have the most able and confident students in Bucharest.

Our CAS students have continued to contribute to the wider community around them, raising funds for their projects with bake sales, as well as activities through life skills and games at lunch and break times. Most recently, we have had the “Help Autism” team raising awareness of Autism amongst the school community with great success. As I write this article, they will be preparing for the CAS Gala where we will celebrate their achievements and allow students and parents to see what they have managed to attain over the course of the year.

I had the pleasure at short notice of taking 14 students from years 8, 9 and 10 to Nassfeld in Austria for a week of skiing. Although Ms Evi and I were not the strongest skiers to begin with, we were much improved by the end of the week, and everyone had a huge amount of fun, which could be seen by the video produced by Ciprian Rosu and Medeea Constantinescu which went down a storm when presented to the school. I am now eagerly looking forward to next years trip, although I wll be ensuring I get a little bit of practice in before then….

Students have again had the opportunity to have their say about the school and how they feel it can be improved. There is always room to improve in any school, but what is pleasing is how positive the majority of the comments were. The major feeling that I took from this, along with the follow up meetings that I have had with students from each year group is how safe the students feel, and how much they enjoy attending school. I feel this is testament to the approach and care that my colleagues show and although there will be changes in staffing at the end of this year, I am confident that we will continue to improve as a school, and remain as one of the top, if not the best of the international schools in Romania.

We have yet again had a huge amount of success in debating this term, with our senior school debate team building upon their silver plate success from last year with a second place in the COBIS World Debating championships, which we ourselves hosted here in Bucharest. This was an excellent performance by our team, and I am sure the best is yet to come with the majority of the team being in Year 11, meaning they have another few years to achieve the top spot! We will also be hosting a European Middle School Debate in Term 3, and I am sure there will be much more to celebrate in our next edition of TIV. IBSB has continued to dominate in the sporting arena, with the senior boys winning the interschool volleyball, the girls performing outstandingly in the interschool swimming, and finally both the boys and girls dominating the interschool athletics. As Mr Peet is often heard saying, “We may be a small school, but we have a lion’s roar!” and long may this continue.

This was only a quick blitz through everything that has been done in Term 2, and I must admit, I feel tired writing it!!

There have been so many activities that have taken place, I am sure that I may have missed something, but I would like to take the time to thank the staff and students that have supported, participated or just turned up to watch at many of these events, as without you, our school would be a much smaller place.

Matthew Tansley Head of Secondary School

SPOTLIGHT A New Year A New School

A NEW YEAR, A NEW SCHOOL The Next Stage of the IBSB School Development Plan

Aura Bogdan Executive Director

Phase 1 of the School Development Plan involved building a new School Gymnasium and Community Centre, which was successfully completed over the summer break in 2018. The result of this has been felt in a variety of areas, with primary school students now enjoying PE lessons in the hall all year round.

We have hosted a several interschool sporting competitions. WE are also able to provide a greater variety of clubs both during school and after school. Last but certainly not least, we are able to host community events in the hall, such as UN Day Celebrations, Ro With this in mind, we are all now looking forward to the roll out of Phase 2 in the summer of 2019, which includes the construction of a new school building offering a number of additional facilities for our students and staff.

A New Cafeteria With Hot Lunches With a new building comes new facilities, with a number of exciting developments to look forward to. First on the wish list for our children is a new school cafeteria with a selection of hot food and salads on offer, to suit a sections of taste buds and eating preferences. Children will be able to walk in, pick up a tray and walk along the serving counter pointing out what they would like.

The catering provider we have selected www.flavours.ro is one that has been tried and tested, and is currently being used by a number of other international schools, so we are conďŹ dent that our students will have a menu they can look forward to each day.

IMPORTANT NOTE: These pictures show the building design only. They do not reflect the design for the new school playground, which has been contracted to a different company.

SPOTLIGHT A New Year A New School

A New Early Years Centre There will also be a new EYFS centre with an increased capacity for 44 students, enabling the primary school to have a two level entry all the way through from Year 1 to Year 6.

There will be a new Medical Room, a new reception areas for parents, displaying the many awards and trophies won by our students over the years, new offices and new meeting rooms.

Ground Floor: • Reception • Medical Room • EYFS Centre- Capacity for 44 students (200 sq/m) 1st Floor: • Lunch Room (Flavours Catering)- Capacity for 100 students (228sq/m) • Head of School’s Office 2nd Floor: • Executive Director’s Office • School Administration • Admissions • HR 3rd Floor: • Roof Terrace We plan to acquire additional building permission extending to Level 4, with Level 3 becoming a library, Level 4 a terrace.

Redesigning the School Playground Finally, I am very pleased to announce that we will be fast-tracking Phase 3 of the school development plan, originally scheduled for the summer of 2020, but brought forward to create more playground space for the students for the next academic year.

Phase 3 includes pulling down the current EYFS Classrooms/ Office Building, redesigning and resurfacing the entire school playground area, and adding additional features and playground equipment to offer a greater variety of activities to enjoy during breaks and outdoor PE lessons.

Official Opening The official opening of the new building is scheduled to take place on Monday, October 28th, being the first day back in Term 1b.

This is an exciting time for the IBSB school community, with plenty to look forward to in the next few years, included also the opening of the new IBSB Secondary School, located a few minutes’ walk form our current campus which will become Early Year/Primary School Campus when the secondary school relocate.

We would like to thank everyone in the school community for your continued support in the months ahead and we ook forward to celebrating the opening of the new school facilities at the start of Term 1b.

PRIMARY PRIMARY SCHOOL SCHOOL

WHITEBOARD Welcome

HEAD OF PRIMARY MESSAGE

Welcome to the Primary School section of the Sping Issue of TIV. I wish to start by thanking all the contributors and the Primary TIV editor, Ms Alina, for their endeavour creating and editing our section.

We hope you enjoy the pictures and stories on these colourful pages.

This year we have asked the pupils to become more involved in writing for the TIV and I am happy to showcase our writing talent in the Primary. Two pupils stand out as contributors in this issue, Sonia and Anastasia in Year 6 started with one article and kept going! We have budding future journalists. In fact, we have budding mathematicians, artists, scientists, writers, and leaders in our school who every day do something that astounds me, as incrementally they get to be better and better during their time with us.

And time and tide wait for no man. Unbelievably, we find ourselves looking back on another term of successes and mistakes, of ebbs and flows, of friendships and arguments, of sunshine and snow, of digital devices and analogue too, of learning and reflecting… of life and of growth.

One of the best things about the Spring Issue is that we are so much better than we were at the beginning of the year. We can read better, we learnt and use a new technique in art, we know our times tables, we understand a scientific concept, we can explain what happened to Pompeii and can recite the lyrics to the new songs we have learnt.

But, because these changes happen each day, little by little, we do not always notice just how much we have learnt, how amazing we are.

So, I ask everyone, parents and children, for a minute, stop reading this and take a moment to look back at something you could not do in September that you can now do with confidence. Take a moment to marvel at how far you have come, how much you have discovered,

how much you have grown as a person (not how much shorter your trousers are now). And, next year, when you come across a challenge or problem that you cannot do, remember that there was a time when you could not write your name, when you could not count to 10, when you could not walk. And remember, that there are many people (parents, teachers, and friends) who helped you do these things then and are here to help you now too. This is how we learn to get better, with the 4 most important ingredients… family, teachers, friends and you.

Throughout this issue of TIV you will see pictures of children making the best use of the ingredients at their disposal, taking risks, being supported, making mistakes, and getting better.

They have grasped the opportunities we present them every day, practice the skills and then perform them with smiles on their faces. Standouts this term are our success at the Maths Competition at AISB, coming first in the team event.

Performing poetry at the St George’s event run by Light into Europe. Sweeping the board with our amazing orators at Wordfest and then backing this up with excellent performances at the Public Speaking competition. Pupils getting through to the final stages of the Kangaroo competitions in French and Romanian, being the best in Bucharest. In sport, winning the Primaverii Cup and being inspired by Mr Georgescu’s swimming.

Many of these successes have been captured on our Facebook page, on the website, and through our Whatsapp groups. We publish the amazing exploits of our children every day on social media, so our community can see how brilliant they are. Even though we already know it, it is worth taking a look once in a while to remind ourselves.

Alan Cornish Head of Primary School

WHITEBOARD EYFS Bug Hunt

We’re going on a bug hunt‌

Children in Nursery and Reception found out about the fascinating world of Minibeasts.

They learned to treat the tiniest creatures on Earth with respect! They also learned that Minibeasts are animals without a backbone, and these are the most numerous type of animals in the world!

The children also found out that Minibeasts are crucial for our survival: they help with plant pollination; they are a crucial source of food in the ecosystem.

Learning about Minibeasts is always fun!

WHITEBOARD Year 1

To the left, to the right…

Year 1

One thing we love to do in Year 1 is putting our skills into practice. We have been learning about following directions in maths. Doing half turns, quarter turns, turning right and turning left.

So we decided to have a class challenge! We split into groups and by following instructions we had to look at the clues and find the coloured tickets! We were so good that we are going to do it again as an Easter Egg Hunt! Some children worked really well together and managed to get all of the tickets!

We are pretty sure our mums and dads don’t need a GPS any more…leave it to us!

WHITEBOARD Francophile Day

The International Francophile Day

This year, on the 20th of March, over 369 million French speakers around the world celebrated The International Francophile Day and our Primary School was no exception.

Wearing the colours of the French flags, messages in French, or very chic berets, everyone came to school eager to experience some French culture and of course indulge in some amazing well-known French desserts. Who doesn’t love a good buttery croissant?

Our Year 1 students enjoyed a virtual tour around a fascinating Paris and took a closer look at the famous La Tour Eiffel. Did you know that when it was first built many people thought it was ugly? But after finding out that the tower makes a great radio antenna, the city of Paris decided to keep it. We were shocked too! We even tried to replicate its grandeur by using only some cotton buds and the results were very creative.

The inquisitive minds in Year 2 put together a quiz for everybody in the Primary School. They did some research and came out with some famous things that have French in their name like the French fries or the French bulldog and tested everyone’s opinion about: Is it French or not? Mr Cornish was shocked to find out that the French press is not really coming from France but from Italy.

We can’t wait for next year’s Francophile Day!

WHITEBOARD Carturesti

Children’s Book Day Visit to Carturesti To celebrate Children’s Book Day, the Primary School was invited to the cozy attic of Carturesti Verona to participate in the workshops lead by authors and illustrators. A space full of books for children, with toys and games, put us all in the perfect frame of mind to listen to a story, discovering the long journey it takes from the initial idea to the book we find on the shelves. The trip to Carturesti was absolutely fascinating.

The first session I participated in was with Year 3 and 4. When we arrived, I asked how I can be involved and was happy to be told that I will be a mini-teaching assistant, a translator, and also a photographer, like a journalist in the field. Our host was Ms Ioana Niculescu from Carturesti, assuring we have everything we need. Then, we listened to Irina Dobrescu, author and illustrator of Lupul Jucator de Poker. I really enjoyed her presentation; I am sure that all the children did too.

I especially liked the moral of her story - never judge a person by how they look on the outside, as the most important thing about a person is how they behave, act, but more importantly how they treat other people. Irina is a kind person and a real pleasure to listen. She interpreted the book together with two guests she had, which made the experience very captivating; it was like the book came to life. At the end, we were eager to buy the book and have it signed by her, so we took the story at home and had a nice time with the family talking about the story and about why this day was memorable.

The second session was about the book called Domnul Papuzek, and Mr Cornel Vlaiconi told us briefly what the story is about. The students I joined this time were from Year 1 and 2. Mr Cornel spoke to us about Domnul Papuzek, its characters and from where his inspiration to write comes from. This time the session was different, as in addition to talking about the story, each child had a drawing session to draw a pigeon. I was amazed by the great skills some children of 5 to 6 years old have, as some pigeons were even more beautiful from my point of view than the one on the book’s cover. I am especially glad we managed to have a group photo all I must say that Ms Nicolaescu from Carturesti told me that she was really impressed how well educated IBSB children are, how interested to learn they are, and how silent they were during the sessions. It felt really good to be part of this community. She told me that she organises activities with children from various schools, and that we really stood out from her point of view.

Thank you to Ms Nicolaescu and Carturesti for making our day so awesome. As Ms Orla always supported me to write, I am also very thankful to her, especially as she proposed me to join this trip to get involved in supporting the authors at Carturesti.

I would also like to thank Mr Cornish for encouraging me to write for the school magazine. This is something I love astoundingly much as it helps me to improve my writing ability. By the way, my story for this school magazine can be found in the Creative Corner!

Sonia M. Year 6O

WHITEBOARD Carturesti

My Visit Carturesti Verona Year 3 and 4 were lucky to have an inspirational visit to Carturesti Verona, to listen to a dramatic reading of the book Lupul Jucator de Poker. Many children were also thrilled to purchase a copy of the book personally signed by the author, Irina Dobrescu. While the book and reading was in Romanian, it was really special to see how enthusiastically their Romanian colleagues translated for those that do not understand Romanian. It was a moment when the character of IBSB, as a truly international school, was evident

The children were involved in the reading and enjoyed offering their opinions of the book during the reading.

They appreciated that the author explained more details about the book than they would have understood from reading alone, and it really inspired them to keep asking questions about books. Being able to meet real authors is key to motivate them to continue to read and write creatively.

The book was about a magical wolf who can disguise himself as a real man or women in order to play poker. He could tell which card was which by their smell, and so he became really rich! However, he met his match when he crossed a granny, which led to a series of hilarious situations, as she tried to get the better of him!

The children also had the chance to ask the author questions, and some had a chance to explore the delights that Carturesti has to offer, including toys, games, stationery, and books in a variety of languages.

Luca P. Year 4L

WHITEBOARD Made By You

Our Class Trip to ‘Made By You’ Allowing the children to express themselves creatively is one of the lovely aspects of working at IBSB. On the 4th of March, the pupils in Year 3 got the opportunity to do just that, and to make their mothers happy at the same time!

Using a variety of paints, sponges, brushes, and stencils, a widely varied collection of plates were created by pupils to give as gifts to celebrate Mothers’ Day 2019. The children showed a genuine flair for design as they created bespoke ceramic artwork. The pride they showed in forming such beautiful designs showed the importance they placed on the task and the love they have for their mums too!

Each unique plate was created entirely from the imagination of the pupils at the school. The colour choices and application were also unique to each individual. Once the plates had been fired in the Made

By You kiln, they were delivered to the school ready to be taken home as gifts. The children were thrilled with the final product as the firing process brought their designs to life, giving their colour choices and application methods a vibrancy that was only hinted at previously.

This was a delightful trip that the year three pupils thoroughly enjoyed.

I’m sure their mums did too!

WHITEBOARD Made By You

Easter Art ‘Made By You’ On Friday the 5th of April, Year 2 had the opportunity to get creative at Made by You

The students showed an incredible amount of creativity and concentration during our trip. They each received a salt cellar, paints, and paint brushes, and worked hard for 1 hour to create very different final pieces with Easter patterns.

They made circles, triangles, dots, and lots of other designs. The art technician provided the children with instructions and suggestions, which led to beautiful designs on their finished pottery. The colours look a little faded initially, but we were told that when they will look much brighter once they have been in kiln, which the children were all excited about waiting for their pottery pieces to emerge.

At the end of the workshop the children all returned home happy with an Easter pottery gift designed for the parents.

Well done everyone, and thank you to ‘Made By You’ for arranging such a special day for all the students in Year 2.

WHITEBOARD Spanish

Spanish Lesson Weather Project “Climate is what we expect, weather is what we get.”- Mark Twain Anyone in need of a weather forecast? We know how ‘’moody’’ the weather can be in Bucharest at this time of year and IBSB Spanish group in year 5 can now help you to prepare beforehand so that you will not face any problems in choosing your perfect outfit according to the weather outside. ‘’La temporada’’ (What’s the weather like) has been a fun topic for them, especially that they have had the opportunity to turn their homework into a more fun activity, thanks to our Google Classroom.

As we sail through the 21st century, technology in the classroom is becoming more and more predominant. Tablets are replacing our textbooks, and we can research just about anything that we want to on our smartphones. As educators, we have also seen the benefits of technology in the classroom. Students prefer technology because they believe that it makes learning more interesting and fun.

It was no surprise to see that most of the students in Year 5 have chosen to do their homework about the weather forecast in a more unique and up-to-date way, replacing the traditional worksheet with making a video which they shared with their colleagues; they wanted to show that homework can be fun and that you can use your gadgets for other purposes, including the academic ones.The ones who were a bit shy and didn’t want to be in front of the camera, have decided to present their weather journal in a Google Slide and the outcome was great.

Stay tuned, there is more to come!

WHITEBOARD German MFL

WAS GAB ES FRÜHER HIER? Co-authored by, David C. – Year 6M Matei B. – Year 6M Constantin I. – Year 6O

In MFL German this term, we had a great experience using our laptops during the lessons to write short paragraphs about cities, how they were in the 1900s, and how they look nowadays. Let us show you an example:

We really enjoyed using our laptops in the lessons, because we had the opportunity to work in teams and interact with each other, to share ideas and analyse pictures of different cities and read about their history in order to help us complete the task.

”Damals gab es keine große Straßen in Berlin.”

We are looking forward to doing this We learned how to use verbs in the past and present tense and kind of project again soon! various time adverbs. We learnt the means of transport and all types of places and locations, such as: restaurants, supermarkets, hospitals, and other places in town.

We learned how to build sentences with “earlier, now, back then” and “today”. Here is also an example of this: ”Früher gab es ein großes Hotel.”

We also studied the use of years when describing a period of time in the past, which was very helpful in writing our own texts.

Co-authored by, David Cernea – Year 6M Matei Berciu – Year 6M Constantin Ivanica – Year 6O

WHITEBOARD Cross Curricular Year 5

Cross Curricular Work in Year 5 Literacy The International Francophile Day Here is Carla’s book review of the story: Did you know that the 75th Anniversary of the D-Day landings is just around the corner? How much do you know about the D-Day landings?

D-Day took place on 6 June, 1944. It was a combined naval, air, and land assault on Nazi-occupied France. Its codename was Operation ‘Overlord’. Early on 6 June, Allied airborne forces parachuted into drop zones across norther France. Simultaneously ground troops landed across five assault beaches in Normandy given the code names: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword. By the end of the day, the Allies had established a foothold along the coast and could begin their advance into France to ultimately liberate it from the Germans.

Wherever possible we endeavour to plan for cross-curricular topic links between subjects such as literacy and maths. This enables the students to use and apply aspects of learning from one subject to another; it is useful because it helps engage students in their learning, providing a mechanism for us to adapt activities so that all children can make good progress.

The Year 5 students were fascinated to learn about the pre-preparation and planning that was involved to successfully undertake such an important and pivotal Allied military operation in World War 2.

Through reading our class novel The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips, by Michael Morpurgo, they learnt about another military operation called ‘Operation Tiger’, which is connected to the D-Day landings.

It’s 1943, and Lily Tregenza lives on a farm, in the idyllic seaside village of Slapton. Apart from her father being away, and the ‘townie’ evacuees at school, her life is scarcely touched by the war. Until one day, Lily and her family, along with 3000 other villagers, are told to move out of their homes – lock, stock, and barrel.

Soon, the whole area is out of bounds, as the Allied forces practise their landings for D-day, preparing to invade France. But Tips, Lily’s adored cat, has other ideas – barbed wire and keep-out signs mean nothing to her, nor does the danger of guns and bombs. Frantic to find her, Lily makes friends with two young American soldiers, who promise to help her.

Now, many years later, as Michael is reading his Grandma Lily’s diary, he learns about The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips – and wonders how one adventurous cat could affect their lives sixty years later.

WHITEBOARD Cross Curricular Year 5 Michael Morpurgo’s novel is based on a true story. Local British residents evacuated their farms and homes in 1943 to allow US military servicemen to conduct training in preparation for the D-Day landings.

On the afternoon of April 27, 1944, thousands of men boarded eight LSTs (Landing Ship Tanks also known as Long Slow Targets) to embark upon the full dress rehearsal. These soldiers were in full combat gear and the LSTs were loaded with tanks, jeeps, small amphibious vehicles, weapons, fuel and ammunition. These ships were to join up with other ships and form one convoy out at sea in Lyme Bay. The American military were not made aware of the fact that the convoy’s intended escort ship, the British Destroyer HMS Scimitar was out of action for urgent repairs. Nor were the ships given any warning over the radio of increased enemy activity in the English Channel and told about sightings of German E-boats in the area. At approximately 2:00a.m. On April 28th the convoy of LSTs were attacked by German E-boats armed with torpedoes resulting in the deaths of at least 749 US servicemen.

All survivors were sworn to secrecy and facts about this incident only became known about 30 years ago.

Perhaps this was due to embarrassment or concerns about potential leaking of information just prior to the real invasion. There were rumours of a cover-up; some servicemen lost their lives due to friendly fire; soldiers positioned on the beaches hadn’t been told to stop firing at the soldiers who were landing back on the beaches. The exercise had used live ammunition on the beaches to simulate the exact conditions the soldiers would experience on the actual day.

We decided to use the incident of the German E-boats attacking the American soldiers on the LSTs in our class novel as a stimulus for a piece of creative narrative writing.

As teachers we encourage our students to push themselves to write as descriptively as they can and we enjoy trying out different techniques. We used a ‘slow writing’ technique for one piece of writing suggested by ‘Literacy Shed’ (a literacy planning resource site) called DADWAVERS! This is a mnemonic which stands for: Description, Action, Dialogue, Where, Adverb, Verb, Estimation of time, Rhetorical Question, Simile or Metaphor and ! Exclamation or Onomatopoeia.

Each of these are suggested ways to start your sentence; changing sentence openings often alters the whole sentence structure resulting in more sophisticated and varied writing. We encouraged the students to try and use these prompts at the beginning or as close to the beginning of their sentences as possible.

The International Francophile Day

Here is an example of the finished piece of writing from Kerem Erkaraca in Year 5T

DADWAVERS has been a very useful tool that has aided not only the EAL learners.

We were on a boat in The following feedback from Milo says the middle of the sea. it all, “It really pushed me to write the While hopping on the ship best piece of writing I have ever we made ourselves done. It pushes your brain to think comfortable by singing about many things and try to together, “Run Adolf, run Adolf, make your writing more run, run, run!” The ship wasn’t descriptive”. comfortable but singing made me feel better. It was night time, so we Kerem’s work deserves full were cuddling our coats. Still, I had a recognition; after two question in my mind: Will Harry or I get a years of studying EAL in friendly shot? I was thinking I was like a an intensive dog waiting to be told to do something. programme, he is a I could see something big but then “BOOM”. motivated confident We were sinking? I figured that it wasn’t a learner who is shark! achieving excellent “What was that?”, said Harry. results in his Why us? I thought. I felt as if we were the deer and writing. they were the lions. It was quite dark so I could barely see through the dark smoke coming out of our boat.

Everybody tried to be calm but it was impossible.

A quarter of the boat had sunk as the soldiers were jumping.

But, they had another question in their minds: will we survive?

While thinking this we had another torpedo hit. CRUSH! This time there was an explosion, a big one. The sun started to rise (that was good) so we could now see better. But, they left as we were jumping like kangaroos into the sea. “Come on everybody, jump!”, I shouted while I was making sure that Harry had already jumped.

At last I decided to jump into the sea. Seeing my friend float on the sea made me feel as if I was a rabbit trying to escape hell. Then, I saw a ship coming for help. Happily they pulled me into the ship but I was worried about Harry. Meanwhile I started to shout “Harry! Harry?”. I asked everybody “Have you seen Harry?”. Suddenly, I saw Harry floating in the sea. I have never felt so angry! The sun rose and when it rose I decided to pray for him every single day!

WHITEBOARD Year 5 Trip

Year 5 Visit the National Military Museum

On the 29th of March, both Year 5 classes had the pleasure to visit the National Military Museum to study WW1 and WW2 first-hand, as a part of their Cross-Curricular and English focus for Term 2.

Upon arrival our students discovered that the museum is housed in an old elegant building with large halls, half open air and half indoors, exhibiting a large collection of both military and civilian vehicles from ancient times to post WW2 and communism.

Our guide was extremely pleasant and taught us so many new interesting things, as we walked through the museum, trying best to answer all the students’ questions.

We found out, for example, that the museum was established by King Ferdinand in 1923. The fascinating walk through the history of the Romanian military revealed amazing things from the pre-Roman period to the communist years and present-day Romania. We learned about the most important battles and Romania’s fight for independence and freedom.

The collection of over 1 million artefacts set in chronological order is impressive: battle flags, knights, armour, military uniforms, a vast exhibit of weapons, including medieval spears, WW2 firearms, and a rifle given to Nicolae Ceausescu by Queen Elizabeth II. The children discovered the same information they had heard about at school – Romania’s involvement as an Allied force in WW1 and its change of allegiance in WW2.

In the courtyard of the museum, we saw a magnificent collection of military artillery and vehicles, including cannons, tanks used during the Cold War, and rocket launchers.

At the aircraft hangar, there is a variety of helicopters and planes, including one designed by engineer Aurel Vlaicu. It was wonderful to see the section dedicated to Dumitru Prunariu, the first Romanian to fly in space.

I think we can safely say that the students are not likely to forget their exciting experience. Our trip was just one of the many examples that we bring the learning process to life for our students, connecting the classroom to the real world

WHITEBOARD Science Week Fun

Sci ence Week Fun and Madness Science Week, this year, was a festival of activities, a cornucopia of experiments, a multitude of mind-boggling investigations.

We had Casa Experimentilor and WOW Labs visit every class in Primary with everybody being amazed with hands-on, fun-filled Science.

First to arrive in school were WOW Labs who helped out for 3 whole days. Years 5 and 6 learnt about Space and our Solar System.Incredibly interesting information and activities about nebulas, planets and the immense distances in our Solar System and Moon phases kept students' minds in overdrive.

Onto Day 2 and this time it was Early Years and Years 3 and 4 who were working with WOW labs.Early Years experimented with Walking Water, Lava Lamps and Skittles Rainbow. Years 3 and 4 were bending water using static electricity and using pH indicators. The rest of us were mixing colours by water potential or making magnets using electricity.

Whilst Upper Key Stage 2 were busy in Space, Early Years and Years 1 and 2 were trying to burst balloons on a bed of pins and finding it harder than expected. Years 3 and 4 were using carbon dioxide to magically extinguish candles without touching them.

Wednesday was chaotic as both WOW Labs and Casa Experimentelor were both in school. Students made popsicle catapults, kaleidoscopes, and thaumatropes, while some of the older students made bouncy eggs and tried to crush eggs in their hands.

Thursday saw our first trip of the week take Early Years to Oraselul Cunoasterii, where they explored gravity, forces and got wet messing about with the water.

Back at school, Casa Experimentelor amazed us by making wind powered cars as the younger students designed crystalline patterns using salt, glue and food colouring.

On Friday, students brought in their own Science experiments from home to teach their class even more about the crazy world of Science.

It was an action packed week, with fun for all, but unfortunately over all too quickly, so already the students are saying that they can't wait for next year.

WHITEBOARD Climbing Year 1

Climbing like superheroes!

Spiderman, Wonder Woman, Hulk…move aside, there are some new superheroes in town!

One of our topics this term was Superheroes, but we actually looked at who real superheroes were. We learnt that police officers and fire officers can be boys or girls!

We also learnt about Florence Nightingale and how she changed hospitals from being full of germs and everyone being squashed, to making sure people cleaned properly and gave women a chance to be doctors and nurses. We also learnt about Louis Braille, Dr Birute Galdikas, and many others! We learnt how so many people wanted to and still want to change the world.

It was an action packed week, with fun for all, but unfortunately over all too quickly, so already the students are saying that they can't wait for next year.

To finish the term we had a fantastic trip to Climb Again. Climb Again is a charity that works with children with learning difficulties, and by going there to climb and giving our donations, we were able to help them support these children. We climbed high up rocky walls, ducked under many obstacles and overcame fears such as flying over everyone on the zipline! We loved it!

WHITEBOARD Climbing Year 5

Climbing to Secondary

The Year 6 classes were both treated to half a day climbing with Secondary School’s Mr Hudson. A keen climber himself, Mr Hudson gave the Year 6 children the chance to join Year 7 in one of several transition activities that have been put in place to help make the transition to the Secondary School as smooth as possible. This opportunity allowed the children to ask questions, make friends, and get an insight into what life in Secondary is like. It also gave the children chance to spend some time with Mr Hudson, who will become a familiar face next year as the children attend his lessons. Both sessions were very positive and as you can see from the photos, the Year 6s and Year 7s thoroughly enjoyed their time together.

WHITEBOARD Magic Club

The M gic Cl b The students in the Magic Club have been busy learning magic since the start of Term 2. The best thing about magic is being amazing by it.

But learning how to amaze somebody else can be almost as exciting.

Students have learned card tricks, mentalism, and how to read minds. Memory tricks are always an impressive way to amaze someone, and students have been practising their crazy mind-bending skills. They have learned the secrets of the stage and how to manipulate an audience in simple ways, discovering how some of the world's most famous magicians have fooled their audiences.

Next term, students who pass the Magic Test will be invited back to learn sleight of hand and how to make things disappear.

WHITEBOARD Culinary On

Culinary On! Year 4 had what may very well end up being the most exciting day of the year, with a trip to CulinaryOn! We felt at home from the moment we arrived, with signs welcoming us by the door!

We quickly put on our chef’s aprons, washed our hands, and got ready to do some cooking!

Firstly, the children watched attentively as Chef Cristi showed us how to prepare chicken nuggets, colourful pasta and lava cake from scratch!

They then demonstrated excellent teamwork, as they divided the tasks between them and worked together to produce the gourmet 3 course meal! ‘ They confidently cracked eggs and prepared the lava cake batter, diligently kneaded the pasta dough, and meticulously shaped the chicken nuggets, all under the expert eye of the CulinaryOn staff.

We all then had a quick refreshment, before enjoying our starter of chicken nuggets (or vegetable spring rolls for the vegetarians) together around the table.

While we ate, the pasta had time to rest, meaning that it was time for the next stage!

We rolled all of the groups’ pasta into one unbelievably long piece! To the dulcet tones of the Macarena, the whole class worked together to roll out the mega-pasta until it was just right. They then took the perfect pieces back to their stations, for the final processing into tagliatelli.

Once done, we washed our hands again, and prepared to eat our creation in a delicious creamy sauce with parmesan.

After having a second helping, some children were adamant they wouldn’t be able to eat any more until…the chef pulled out all the stops by producing some liquid nitrogen!

He first demonstrated what happens to a plastic glove dropped into the pot, then proceeded to make instant ice cream to eat with the lava cake.

The smoke was quite spectacular, and it turned out that we all had room for desert after all!

To top off an excellent day, the children all received diplomas for their participation.

All in all, we had a blast, and for sure made lots of special memories today.

Thank you to all the staff at CulinaryOn for making today such an educational, but also fun, experience!

WHITEBOARD Primary Ski Trip

let it snow!

All eyes had been on the weather forecast leading up to the annual IBSB ski trip this year. The snowfall had been minimal and rumours were emerging about a lack of snow on the mountains of Poiana Brasov. Nevertheless, Sunday morning arrived with an early meet at school. Bags were packed, ski gear was ready and the children were eager to head off and hit the slopes. We jumped on the bus and aimed north.

We arrived at Ana hotel in good time. We then proceeded to take over the reception area with suitcases and coats before a short wander down the corridor led us to our lunch. The buzz coming from each table suggested there were some very excited children.

Finally, the time had come to get ‘kitted up’. Boots were collected, followed by skis and poles, and we took our first steps out onto the slopes. So that the instructors could get an idea of the levels of skiers on show, we all had a practice together and were placed into four ability groups. Mr Oldham narrowly missed out on joining the advanced group and, instead opted to join the beginner group. Ms Madalina and Mr Cornish joined the capable skiers in the middle groups and Ms Morgan opted to take on the challenge of keeping up with the seasoned skiers at the top of the slopes.

Our first full day began with everyone hoping to see plenty of snow outside. Unfortunately, however, the sun shone brightly and the snow was very much hanging on. This didn’t dampen our spirits though as we The beginner group stayed at the bottom of the slope and learned the basic skills needed to ski safely. The other three groups warmed up and then attached themselves to the button lift and glided off up the mountain.

A gentle first day ended with the beginner group having learned plenty of new skills and needing to recharge; and the other groups hungry after remembering and polishing their skills.

WHITEBOARD Primary Ski Trip One of the many benefits of the location and facilities of Ana hotel is that there are still plenty of activities to do once the skis are removed. The activity centre - a short walk away - had plenty on offer: climbing, table tennis, bowling, and billiards. The hotel also played its part, allowing the children the chance to go swimming. Each evening, year groups were given their chance to opt for their given activity or rest and relax in their rooms.

As lights were turned out, attention once again turned to the weather.

The forecast was showing signs of becoming much more wintery so fingers and toes were all crossed in hope.

The morning arrived with a dash to the window to check if the forecast had been correct. It had. Layers and layers of fresh snow laid across the ground and more was still falling. Straight away, the excitement and eagerness to get out on the mountain was shown

The snow continued to be perfect for skiing for the duration of the week. Everyone made the most of it! The beginner group were unbelievable. From not knowing how to attach their skis on Sunday, to skiing down in a huge snake from the top of the ‘Blue’ slope on Friday. The progress they made was absolutely outstanding and all of this was thanks to not only the instructors, but also their own determination. Great job!

Ms Madlina and Mr Cornish were also so impressed with their group, having started off shaky at the bottom of the slopes they were soon reaching new heights of 1400 meters! Ms Morgan couldn’t believe the confidence in her group, doing jumps and tricks over mounds of snow encouraging her to do the same - of course not in as much style as the Year 4 pros!

Overall, it was another superb ski trip and we look forward to the next one already!

School Events Events School

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Math Competition

IBSB 1st Place Interschool Mathematics Competition 2019

Having entered the interschool mathematics competition for the first time last year, IBSB retuned with 3 teams of pupils from Years 5, 6, & 7 ready to compete in the 2nd Annual Bucharest Interschool Math Tournament – with a full day of maths to look forward to at AISB. Firstly, and for me most importantly, the 15 children who came along were very well behaved and respectful throughout the day and did their very best. They also enjoyed the occasion, even if they were a little nervous at first. So well done to everyone just for having the courage to participate in such a big competition.

I very am happy to report that out the almost 100 children and 20 teams taking part, IBSB competed remarkably well. In the individual event, 2 of our pupils made it to the tie break with 3 other children. At the end of the tie break, Ramzy Hassanain

picked up 2nd place, with Andrei Peli placed 4th place- an incredible result for both students!

In the team category, IBSB went one better, with IBSB Team 1 (comprising David Cernea, Rares Saizu, Stefan Neagu, Andrei Peli and Ramzy Hassanain) coming 1st. A truly impressive result!

A hearty congratulations to all the teams who competed in what was a very warm and friendly spirit. Also, thanks to all the parents who supported their children with extra practice at home - a superb team effort!

Below are a selection of the questions for both the individual and team event, so you can see just how challenging it was.

We go back next year to defend our title!

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Martisor

P T F Social Event Martisor Brunch On a beautiful sunny day, to celebrate Martisor and the start of Spring, parents, teachers, and children gathered together for a relaxing brunch in one of the many brasseries in Bucharest, but with the best view of the University Square and reportedly the best seafood spread on offer.

We were happy to see so many children from IBSB joining us. Sonia and Anastasia interviewed the participants to understand better how we can best organize social events to meet the needs of our community.

What does Martisor mean to you?

For Claudia Marta, Martisor means a new beginning, a burst of colours in the city, and more days outside to enjoy the sun and the beautiful weather. For Ioana Gherasim, Martisor is the end of winter and nature coming to life. For Florentina Pascalin, Martisor is in a way a return to childhood. For Simona Gemeneanu Martisor is all about the Spring. And for Ana Sanduleasa, Martisor is a reason for happiness watching spring’s arrival. For Giuliana Bianchi, it is a new event to celebrate, thinking that it’s amazing how many flowers she saw in the city, almost every man having a bouquet for a lady, and on the other side the ladies are more lovely with Martisors on their blouses, or bracelets, and are surrounded by so many beautiful colours of the flowers they receive. For Mr Cornish, Martisor means spring, and a nice chance to show appreciation to the ladies.

Do you like the brunch so far? Why? Ms Gherasim says she likes the Brunch very much, as she loves the Intercontinental Hotel and its restaurant; she enjoys the good food and the overall atmosphere, which she says is astonishing. Ms Marta always enjoys spending time with parents, as some of them are also her friends, but also likes events when she has a chance to be surrounded by so many children full of energy and enthusiasm. She is happy because there are always sponsors offering small treats to the children, as now Next clothing stores offered 3 vouchers to 3 lucky winners: Patricia, Johnny, and Tudor. Ms Gemeneanu says she usually joins our social Brunches as she likes the company of the other mothers. For Ms Sanduleasa, it was her first Brunch and she says she is happy to find that everything from the food to the kid’s corner is great, and so she is looking forward to other events like this.

Why do you like IBSB? As Irene, Ms Sanduleasa’s daughter, joined IBSB just a week ago, there are few reasons at this stage, but she is sure she will discover more. At this stage she sees it as a different system than the one in the state schools, loving it even more, as she thinks the children at IBSB are smart, the teachers are very helpful toward the children, and Irene is happy in the morning because she comes to IBSB which is very important. Ms Gemeneanu likes the playground as this is very important for her son, Victor.

Ms Pascalin finds that the school is a wonderful place to study and the teachers are really supportive.

For Ms Marta, IBSB is an important part of her and Sonia’s life, as this is the place where her daughter found her passion, where there is a lot of positive energy, children are nurtured to be the best they can, and they are always supported in their areas of interest, which is a great thing to have from the early stages of life, not to mention the acquisition of foreign languages which will be a strong skill for life.

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Martisor Brunch What facilities do you like at the Intercontinental?

I would list a few things here as all parents mentioned them: the location in the heart of Bucharest, the convenient parking, the restaurant and its great view of the city, the food, and the kid’s corner as this can make the lunch for the adults more relaxing and for children fun with all the games organised for them.

What other social events would you like the PTF to organise?

Ms Gemeneanu suggested that PTF can organise more visits to Museums, as these are always better to be visited with friends, not just with the parents. She would also like to know the other children in the school better, not just the ones which are Victor’s class mates and suggests to organise days to come and talk to them, or the children to come to visit the places where the parent’s work. Ms Sanduleasa would like to participate in events where she can meet other parents and teachers to better understand our community.

Ms Pascalin suggested a gathering with children like the Brunch every month. Ms Gherasim so far enjoyed the festive brunches we have organised since she joined our school, as they are a chance to meet many parents. Ms Marta would like to organise an event closer to the summer at Tree House, where all can enjoy the pools, but as well the houses built for children in the forest. She likes all other events where more children can join and play outside like ice skating, roller skating, now when the weather is beautiful in the parks, or going to movies when it rains.

Regarding the children’s view, we interviewed a few of them as well. A few ideas which captured their attention are mentioned here. Filip P. (Year 6M) suggested organising pancakes, pizza, and cookie days where many children could join in. Maia B. (Year 4L) would like to organise a weekend picnic with pizza, Tommaso (Year 6O) would like to have more social opportunities like this outside school in the future to strengthen his friendship with his colleagues.

Sonia and Anastasia would like to thank again the participants for their support in answering their questions for a few minutes.

It was nice to have so many parents willing to contribute their thoughts to this article.

Sonia M.Y6O Anastasia I.Y6M

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Martisor Day

Celebrating Martisor Day On Friday, March 1st, IBSB celebrated Martisor Day, one of the many favourite Romanian customs, in beautiful, warm, spring sunshine. As it was a non-uniform day, each child came to school dressed in red and white.

For the children, each class teacher organised Martisor activities for every child to make something wonderful for the most impotant women in their lives. The activities provided our children with an abundance of opportunities to be creative.

Wonderful mini masterpieces were to be seen taken home on that afternoon, such as ladybird cards, hand-made bracelets, paper roses martisoare, and many more.

We also learnt about the legend of Martisor Day and why we have the red and white intertwined threads, all thanks to our Romanian department. The red is said to represent the spring and the heat, while the white represents the winter and the cold.

It was a wonderful day ďŹ lled not only with lots of flowers, traditional gifts, and sweets, but also with love, joy, and happiness.

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Juxi Magic

Juxi Magic -Open Morning At IBSB, we are always happy to welcome new children to our school, arranging a day to enable the children to join in with our normal classroom activities, to learn discover what learning at IBSB looks and feels like.

As a part of the day, the children had the opportunity to join in a number of fun learning activities with us, which included making lots of different graphs, and it was up to us how we wanted to sort them.

For the pictogram, some of us wanted to sort the sweets by colour and others wanted to sort them by brand. For the Carroll diagram, some of us wanted to sort the things into things we play with and living things, whilst others wanted to sort them into letters and shapes. Even though we decided on different groups, we were all correct.

While the children were busy enjoying their Numeracy and English literacy lessons, the Parents were able to enjoy some food and interact together before being lead around the school by the Year 6 Prefects, who did an outstanding job of explaining the different aspects of our school, including a brief overview of a day in the life of an IBSB student. As a part of the tour, parents were able to see the facilities we have on offer and to spend time in the classroom, to see the learning process in progress, watching their children interact with their new classmates and teachers. The work our children do during school time was shown, and children happy to answer any questions the parents had, with the result being that the parents were really impressed. One quote from the morning was: ‘The more time I spend in this school, the more I think it is the right place for my child’, which is a wonderful complement to both our students and our teachers.

To finish off the day, the new children joined the Primary School for a show by Juxi Magic! During the show, the children were encouraged to show their emotions and appreciate others’ feelings using stickers that could be stuck on their foreheads. They were then treated to some sing-along songs accompanied by a guitar, followed by the chance to stand up in front of the school and sing their own songs. The confidence in our children was once again outstanding with many children asking for the chance to sing. This is one thing that IBSB really does encourage and the results are clear to see!

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS World Book Day

World Book Day Reading and writing form an integral part of any school's curriculum, but World Book Day gives us a gentle reminder of the joys of reading for pleasure. Even the process of choosing your next book can be a source of interest and joy; discussions and recommendations after reading help us to connect with others who might share your passions.

World Book Day has become an annual event at IBSB, popular with students and teachers alike. There are some fun activities, such as the Costume Day and the spelling bees which occur in every class. This year, thanks to Ms Tansley, we also had a "Book-in-a-box" competition, for which students had to get creative at home to bring in a 3-D shoebox display representing a particular book.

We had a visiting author, who helped judge the "book-in-a-box" competition during his time with us. It was a very difďŹ cult decision in every class due to the imaginative ways children had chosen to interpret the instructions. Our author, David Bedford, spent time working with students from EYFS up to Year 7 over two days. He was also busy selling books - he is the author of more than 80 children's books; arguably the most famous is Bedtime for Little Bears, which accompanies many a child's night time routine.

As in previous years, the number of enrolments in the Student Council's Reading Challenge increased. The students have until the ďŹ rst week of May to read and review nine books. If that means your children are bugging you to buy more reading material and choosing to read for pleasure over other (often electronic-based) pursuits, then surely that's a good thing! That's the power of World Book Day. So, whether you enjoy using your Kindle, reading comic books and magazines, or just curling up with a good book, remember that it doesn't have to be World Book Day for you to read a little extra.

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Talent Show

The 7th Edition of the International School Talent Show The journey began on November 26th 2018: Fifteen acts were fighting for a place in the top 3 to go on to the finals of the Inter-School Talent Show. The judging panel, comprised of Ms Hawkins, Ms Iona, and Mr Jennings, who arfter much deliberation, due to the high calibre of acts on offer, finally selected Andrei Ghita, Ana Maria Zamfir, both Y8, and myself to represent IBSB against the five other international schools in Bucharest. The final took place on March 5th 2019 at Palatul National Al Copiilor, hosted this year by the Cambridge School of Bucharestthe schools all take turns hosting, with Avenor hosting last year and possibly IBSB or AISB hosting next year – to be confirmed. We were accompanied by Ms Evi, Ms Dumitrescu, our fellow member of the student music group, Tudor Nacu from Y13, and of course our entourage of from the IBSB community there to support us in force.

Thank you to all those who came along!

When we arrived at the theatre, it became evident that Cambridge were determined to make the show as professional as possible: the lights and sound system, supplied by Senia Music, were incredible, even if a bit loud at times!

Due to the individual nature of our acts, all three IBSB performances were scheduled relatively early on in the show, giving us the opportunity to watch the rest of the acts compete from the auditorium. There was some real anxiety backstage as the audience was rather large. Andrei, second to perform, was extremely nervous about being on stage, but then went out and smashed his own composition. He really should have received more credit for his work as he was the only musician performing an original piece of the night!

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Talent Show

Being fourth up, I was called to the stage as James Baker! At which point I jumped round the curtain exclaiming: “Surprise, I’m not a boy!” Making the audience laugh, which increased my confidence on stage, and so I was able to perform quite calmly!

Ana Maria, being the third and final IBSB act on the night, looked very elegant in her tutu and en pointe ballet shoes, but had some tough competition on her hands. The individual dance category was diverse and highly competitive, with many schools entering an act, and despite not winning a prize, I think all agreed that Ana Maria did extremely well!

Finally, it was the bands and groups in the second half who battled it out for their categories, as we nervously awaited the judges’ decisions, which seemed to take a lot longer than we thought it would, which means it must have been a tough decision deciding on the eventual winners in each category.

While we waiting, we were well entrained by a variety of local acts, including two songs sung by the children from the Hospice Casa Sperantei, along with a variety of entertaining dances by a Bucharest based school for modern dance,

Then finally the moment came. As my name was called out for first place individual act, I was both surprised and elated, having seen the quality of the other acts, giving credit where credit was due. Then standing on stage to receive my trophy and prize bag from Senia Music, was a moment I will forever remember.

A huge congratulations to all the students who participated in the event from the Cambridge School of Bucharest, Avenor College, British School of Bucharest, International School of Bucharest, and of course the International British School Thank you also to the main event sponsors Senia Music, and to the 3 judges supplied by Senia Music, Alex Iordanescu, Alin Fuzz, and Tobi Ibitoye, and those who signed up to support Hospice Casa Sperantei.

Finally, a big thank you to Ms Evi and Ms Dumitrescu for all your support - it made all the difference, resulting in a night to remember!

Jamie B., Year 11

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS COBIS World Debate

2019 COBIS World Debate Competition After last year´s success winning the Silver Plate in Dubai, and the great time we spent socialising with other schools, IBSB stepped up to the role of hosting the 2019 COBIS Student World Debate Competition. We had schools flying in from around the world, with countries both near and far joining us from the UAE, Spain, Nigeria, the Czech Republic, Mexico, Egypt, Denmark, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Venezuela, to name just a few, for two days of lively debate, with the coveted prize of World Champions up for grabs.

Debating is always a pleasure, but the true art can only really been seen when two strong teams of equal ability and skill come face to face – this is when debating truly flourishes, and this is how we felt at this year’s event. All students were well-informed, proactive, worldly individuals, with many being seasoned debaters, and it showed – we were in for a tough competition, but one we were happy to embrace.

Talking to the students from the various team, it was clear that we all had something in common- we had all set our goals very high in life, and were working hard in different ways to strive to achieve them.

There is something about being in the room with future politicians, engineers, entrepreneurs, and individuals that are destined for greatness, to become agents of change. It is an overwhelming yet calming feeling, because it leaves you feeling the future is in good hands with great minds.

We cannot always build a bright future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future!

Franklin D. Roosevelt

To break the ice between schools, on the first day we organised a fun an activities day, with each member from our senior and junior team being in charge of their own group of students from different schools; so there was room for extensive networking. By the end of the day, all the schools had already formed an international WhatsApp group chat that became the information highway for the following two days of debating.

We started with a tour at the Village Museum, where students began to bond as our varying nationalities began to blend into one, discussing the various places we had lived and the experiences enjoyed- it was truly a celebration of internationalism with the types of conversations arising that naturally lead to intelligent debate.

The Romanian tour was also a chance for many students to learn about Romania´s history and traditions, as we served as proxy tour guides to teach them about Romania; like the fact that Romanian is the language most similar to Latin in structure. Last year some of the students from Bahrain experienced snow for the first time at the COBIS MUN we hosted. This year the Nigerian students had the chance to experience their first real At our lunch at Hanu Berarilor we were shuffled up once again, and I managed to convince many people at my table to try the assortment of Romanian cheeses with raw onion, but it was a bit too much for some, becoming something to laugh about as an inside joke. .

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS COBIS World Debate

Everyone who attended the competition this year became part of a larger family and intellectual international community. Similar to previous years, our discussions ranged from Brexit to global warming, from the joys and challenges of living abroad to the things we missed from our home countries, and similarly interesting topics. Enjoying such lively discussion over lunch offered us a taste and an indication that the following days of debating would be both rich and fruitful.

On Day 1 of the competition, our first debate was the prepared debate, being whether or not our species had a bright future to look forward to, which was won by slightly more teams on the side of the opposition (arguing that we do not have a particular bright future based on our current situation- let’s hope this changes in the coming years), but which continued to be evenly debated by students in casual conversations throughout the remainder of the competition.

Topics coming from the pool of options for the impromptu rounds included related to rising university fees, increased surveillance, the process of globalisation, what makes a great leader, amongst others.

We used our general knowledge combined with personal experience and times some much needed wit as progressed through each round toward the final. For example, during the debate about the effects of globalisation, we were able to apply our knowledge from Business and Sociology lessons. It´s interesting to see how we can apply our education to the real world and how we were able to use what we learned in class to create convincing arguments and build a strong case. Debating encourages you to think critically, analytically, and out of the box.

This year, the Senior COBIS Debate Team did particularly well, as we managed to win the Golden Cup in the finals, and had the pleasure of debating a team of students from Dubai College, who had made the final the previous year. We put up a good fight, and came close to victory, but in the end congratulated the students from Dubai College of a job well done.

Topics coming from the pool of options for the impromptu rounds included related to rising university fees, increased surveillance, the process of globalisation, what makes a great leader, amongst others. We used our general knowledge combined with personal experience and times some much needed wit as progressed through each round toward the final. For example, during the debate about the effects of globalisation, we were able to apply our knowledge from Business and Sociology lessons. It´s interesting to see how we can apply our education to the real world and how we were able to use what we learned in class to create convincing arguments and build a strong case. Debating encourages you to think critically, analytically, and out of the box.

The IBSB team made a big effort to interact with every school over the course of the competition, to ensure everyone felt welcome, and as a result we received many heart-warming messages at the end of the competition thanking us for our hospitality and open arms.

Many students mentioned that this was their first experience at a COBIS event and that it made them eager to attend next year’s competition.

Receiving this feedback was for us the best result of the competition, filling us with much joy. We won a trophy, which is always nice, but more importantly we won the friendship of many of those joining us, which for us was the greater prize and one we should all strive for in life.

Milena V., Year 11

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS AISB MUN

"Esteemed delegates and honourable chairs" The Middle School BISAC MUN morning was a morning like any other. While our colleagues were hard at work back at the IBSB campus, the Middle School MUN Team (and myself) were making our way to the American International School of Bucharest for a jam-packed two-day event. With excited glances and opening speeches memorised, the conference was opened by the Secretary General.

The first day was spent lobbying and getting to know all the other delegates and chairs, while participating in in a variety of workshops (for the first-time MUNers). There were two committees: Human Rights and Environmental & The second day is where the momentum started to pick up. The delegates debated topics and resolutions, submitted amendments, and above all had a great time.

This MUN gave me the opportunity to be a Chair in the Environmental and Cultural committee. The experience was exciting and fun and I wish to be able to do this again someday. It was especially rewarding watching our Middle School team come out of their shell as the conference progressed. I am sure that we have a great team of MUNers to look out for in the upcoming years.

Melissa Aydogan, Year 10: "It was a wonderful experience. Whilst lobbying everyone worked together, however, when it came to debate everyone had to debate their country’s point of view, which made it much more interesting. I generally got along well with everyone and had a great time. My resolution got passed both in my committee and the General Assembly, which was very impressive since it was the first resolution I ever wrote."

Our team was made up of the following students: Maria Sticlea, Year 9 Patrick Tansley, Year 9 Zoe Popovici, Year 7 Alessia Grozea Year 7

Kyriaki, Year 12

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS ESU Competition

IBSB Host Regional Junior ESU Public Speaking Competition On Saturday the 2nd of March, children from schools all over Bucharest arrived at IBSB to compete in the annual English Speaking Union's Public Speaking Competition for the 8-11 age group. The last few editions of this competition have been held at IBSB and we are always impressed by the standard shown by the young speakers present.

Public speaking is a skill that is relevant to virtually every profession as a way to connect, inspire, and share knowledge.

For students as young as eight years old to deliver such eloquent and well-structured speeches they have to show a lot of determination and courage.

At IBSB, the students shared ideas and discussions around this topic, making links between daydreaming, creativity, and mindfulness. Some even made a more literal translation of the quote and spoke about astronomy, celestial bodies, and the mysteries of the universe. Clearly, similar ideas were being developed in classrooms across the city, as students prepared for the regional round putting in a lot of thought and effort to compete for the prizes on offer by event sponsors Prior.

The basis of this year's speech was a quote from the David Almond book Skellig: 'Do not worry about staring into space; it is an excellent thing to do.

For IBSB's representatives, the journey to the regional round started with our own internal competition, which was held in the second week of January. Four Year 6 students and two Year 5 students then qualified to represent IBSB at the regional level.

As a school, we are really proud of all six students, not least because they had already overcome fierce competition from their classmates at IBSB. In the inter-school encounter, Mara (Year 6) achieved a first place, while George (Year 5) won an honourable mention. Theo, Ecaterina, Anastasia (Y6) and Stefan (Y5) did not place, but made their parents and teachers very proud with their polished performances. Just to take part in such an event requires a lot of maturity and perseverance, so all of our students can be very satisfied with their results achieved.

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Oracol

As a Published Author at the Age of 10 Sonia Marta is inspiring the next generation of writers

IBSB is a school with some incredibly bright students, but also some incredibly talented and creative students.

One of our talented students is Sonia from Year 6, who has recently been visiting kindergartens around the city reading her newly published children’s book of poems - Oracol – inspiring other children to read, write, and be more creative in following their dreams. With the help of our Creative Writing Club, run by Ms Orla, and with the support of Sonia’s teachers, Ms Tansley and Mr Oldham, Sonia has managed to publish her first book whilst still in the primary school – an incredible achievement achieved by few others, including the great Nobel Prize winners!

On some of Sonia’s visits, her best friend Anastasia came along to support her in encouraging the children to experience life to the fullest, trying new things in order to discover their passions and to talk about friendship and what this means. She also read poems to the children as she was close to Sonia, supporting her with encouragement on her journey toward publishing her book.

Both of them talked to the curious children explaining that it is important to read every day with the parents when they are very young as this develops their imagination. They spoke about how they can talk with their friends about the stories they read and switch books to discover new authors and new stories. They also talked about the steps required for anyone to reach their dream, do something every day for your dream to become a little closer. The rewards for them were the hugs and applause they got from the little ones and the joy in their eyes when receiving their autographed copy of Oracol.

Sonia now finalizing the manuscript for her second book, about a rapping astronaut that is different from others and how he turns this to his advantage, and how a real friend can always help you overcome barriers. She hopes to publish it soon. Stay tuned for more information.

Oracol is available on emag.

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS Secondary Spring Show

Secondary School Spring Show

Our Secondary School Spring Show this year was a really ambitious project, which challenged us all from the very beginning. Doing Oscar Wilde’s most famous comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest, was never going to be easy- many have tried and failed.

The cast was smaller for this show and the parts considerably longer, and really difficult from a linguistic point of view requiring considerable research and guidance to fully understand and interpret the subtleties of the text.

I chose do this difficult play for the Spring Show for a number of reasons. Firstly, because I felt that it is very important for the KS4 and 5 students to be acquainted with Oscar Wilde’s work from a literary point of view. Oscar Wilde’s play are considered English literature classics and any international student studying either English literature or drama should be aware of his work as a part of their general knowledge, particularly as some of the most famous quotes we hear today can be attributed directly to the abundant wit present in the plays of Oscar Wilde. Here are just a few examples: “The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about.”

“I can resist anything but temptation.”

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”

“Genius is born--not paid.”

On a more personal note, I would say that I love the dry humour and the acid criticism of the aristocratic class in Victorian society. A witty wordsmith, Wilde exposes the hypocrisy of the Victorians’ strict social mores through memorable puns, paradoxes, epigrams, and inversions in the characters’ actions and dialogue, which makes their interpretation a challenge to any actor, professional or amateur. It was therefore quite difficult for everyone, myself included, to find the exact voice and movement for the characters Oscar Wilde so carefully crafted in his desire to explore a fundamental question in theatre: ‘’Does art imitate life, or life imitate art?’’

The students endured long rehearsals, sometimes on a Saturday, and I really appreciate the big effort they made. Andrei Vagaon was particularly brave taking on Jack’s part, which was one of the longest and most difficult. I also appreciated Alexia Verdes’ drive and diligence; she managed to do a very difficult part for a student of her age. Yunus, Radu, and Eva were fantastically reliable on stage and did a wonderful good job throughout. All in all, I have to say that I am extremely grateful to the entire team for taking on this project, despite the numerous difficulties faced.

As most people already know, I will be leaving IBSB that the end of this academic year to follow a different path in pursuit of new dreams, and doing this play together with the students was a wonderful way to draw the curtain on my time at IBSB. It will forever remain a memory I hold dear because IBSB is the school where I started my teaching career and where I have learnt so much.

I wish everyone a great summer holiday, and I wish IBSB all the best for the future - I am sure we will meet again.

SCHOOL TRIPS & EVENTS UKMT

UKMT Competitions at IBSB

Cristina Marascu Head of Maths and ICT

The Unit Kingdom Mathematics Trust (UKMT) runs individual and team challenges for students from age 12 and below to age 18. The aims are: • Experience the fun of tackling maths problems as part of a team • Develop mathematical, communication and teamwork skills My experience to date is that these competitions can have a very motivating effect on students of all ages, and the questions can be used as a valuable classroom resource for helping students to develop their mathematical problem-solving skills.

Rather than choosing students to take part, I think the best way to use the competitions is to encourage all students to have a go, on the basis that they have nothing to lose and that students who really couldn’t see themselves doing maths for fun often surprise themselves by really enjoying the experience. Taking part in a competition and being drawn into mathematical problem-solving by the style of questions they use can act as a catalyst to enable students to see mathematical problem-solving as an intriguing and satisfying activity.

The IBSB students participate in the competitions, at two levels: Junior and Intermediate levels. The competition at Junior level gives pupils the opportunity to tackle a variety of engaging mathematical activities while developing teamwork and communication skills. It is open to students in Year 6, 7 and 8.

The competition at Intermediate level is open for years 9 and 10. It promotes problem solving and communication skills and takes place in the spring term. Around 70 events take place each year across the country attracting entries from over 750 schools, which can use an enrichment activities to develop problem solving skills.

This year, we would like to congratulate out young mathematicians from IBSB for taking part in the Maths Challenges, representing the school at the highest level. This mathematical problem-solving challenge is organised by the UK Mathematics Trust and consists of twenty-five multiple choice questions from which participants can score 4 marks for a correct answer or lose 1 mark for every incorrect answer. The school delivered precise guidance and training to our team prior to the challenge which resulted in 6 medal positions, including 1 gold medal, 1 silver medal and 4 bronze medals! Maria Sticlea has also qualified for the follow-up round, so special congratulations go to her for scoring exceptionally well.

Here are a few words from three of our winners: “UKMT, it definitely is quite an experience. Every time I do it, I am sure I will get negative points, but each time I get my score, I am pleasantly surprised. I'm not going to lie, it is a real challenge, and you shouldn't rely on your mathematics skills in order to get a high score, you should rely more on logical thinking. I started doing UKMT when I was in Year 6 and since then I've been doing it each year! Everybody should sign up for it!”

Medeea Constantinescu “Believe it or not, I was extremely terrified when I first had the opportunity of participating in the UKMT. All the false rumors I heard about the level of difficulty being too high or the mark scheme being too harsh just seemed to diminish my confidence. However, you should never get discouraged and instead go ahead and sign up. There are so many benefits this competition has to offer. For example, this extracurricular examination helped me improve my time management skills, develop my logical determination, and also made me establish a regular revision timetable. Therefore, I personally recommend any of the readers who still have the option of joining this challenge, to simply do it and to not consider it a contest. The only thing you should be competing for is yourself and improving your mathematical skills.”

Nichita Rosca “This was my 4th time participating in the UKMT Maths Challenge, and my first time in the Intermediate Challenge. It was much harder than the Junior one, as is expected, however I really enjoyed it. It was different to what we usually do in school, and it challenged me to think more and channel all my concentration and knowledge into a one-hour exam. Fortunately I managed to qualify for the Intermediate Olympiad, which is a two-hour paper containing six very challenging questions. I am extremely thankful to Ms Cristina for organising the competition in our school, and for giving me the opportunity to participate in this follow-up round. However, the true essence of this competition is gaining experience, and having the courage to participate, to give it a go!”

Maria Sticlea

cas

CAS Autism Awareness Week

Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed Autism Awareness Week, which took place between the 2nd and 5th of April. On behalf of the Sixth Form students volunteering for Help Autism, thank you for taking part in all the activities we prepared!

We introduced everyone to this special week with presentations in both Primary and Secondary School assemblies. We included information about Autistic Spectrum Disorder’s (ASD) symptoms and the needs of the children diagnosed with it, as well as about Help Autism, the organisation whose mission we’ve made our own: “to increase the chances of recovery and integration for as many children diagnosed with ASD as possible”.

Autism Awareness Week Wang QianQian,Year 13

During “Question time” in assembly, we were very impressed by the interest of the students, shown by the thoughtful answers given, especially from the younger children in the Primary School. There is certainly plenty of compassion and care in our community, as well as a desire to understand how to offer appropriate help when needed. This certainly gave us even more motivation for the week that was coming and for all the activities we planned to do!

Tuesday, the 2nd of April was the official International Autism Awareness Day. It was a rather full day for all of our members, but also the day that everyone seemed to enjoy the most! Not only because it was a non-uniform day, and everyone dressed in colorful clothes, but also because of all the donations we received from the students and parents, which will be used to provide free therapy sessions in the Help Autism recovery programs. During the “short break”, our group sold stationery to the secondary school students, and everything was sold out even before the break finished! Wednesday we had a Bake Sale; here, we would like to give special thanks to the CAS Club members Abby, Aditi, Alina, Andrei, and their families for baking delicious cupcakes, brownies, pies, banana bread, and doughnuts, and for managing the bake sale stall. I heard students praising the treats on offer, and so it was a pity I wasn’t able to taste any of the treats myself because of my 3 hour Business mock exam.

On Thursday, we invited the Primary School to participate in some games in the PE Hall. I was very happy to see all the kids, especially as I was a mentor for two classes last year. We started with a small quiz refreshing the information about ASD, and were pleased to see that many of the students remembered the information from our presentation. We then moved on to a game called “Change the Leader”, which was definitely the most loved and popular one - no one should ever underestimate the children’s dancing skills! So much better than mine! The last activity was “Emotional Charades” where emotions had to be acted out and guessed by the other students. I have to say, we have some very expressive future actors here at IBSB! At the end, we explained to the children how a child with ASD would not have been able to enjoy these games due to their difficulties with verbal and non-verbal communication, and social interaction (e.g. recognizing and expressing emotion) and encouraged them to continue to show support to those in need.

On Friday, we brought some fun and challenge to the Secondary School students - a good way to relax before exams! The house teams picked up M&Ms with chopsticks, guessed songs within two seconds, and completed puzzles in less than 10 minutes. I think staying in houses made everything more fun, as everyone worked together to win for their house. The Autism Awareness Week came to an end with the announcement of the winning house during assembly: congratulations to Transylvania for coming out on top, but with Dobrogea and Muntenia close behind! Congratulations to everyone for doing so well. I hope Transylvania enjoyed their end of term pizza party reward on Monday.

Finally, I would like to thank Ms Croci for making everything possible, for supporting all our members and believing in our ideas! Thank you to the Help Autism Dream Team (Lena, Siena, Qian Qian, Kyriaki, Anca and Octav) for all your hard work, to all our colleagues who jumped in to help (Luiza, Lisa), and to all the teachers from Secondary and Primary! Most importantly, thank you Mr Tansley and Mr Cornish for giving us this opportunity – we hope this week will now become a tradition in IBSB!

CAS Tree Planting

PTF Tree Planting Making a Positive Contribution

On Saturday, March 30, a large group of students, parents, and teachers made their way to DragoČ™ Voda (a 1 hour drive from Bucharest on the way to Constanza), for the annual IBSB Family Tree Planting outing, with a morning of tree planting planned, followed by lunch, and for the really passionate green climate warriors, an additional afternoon of tree planting.

As you can see from the photos, it was a great day out with blue skies overhead and a pleasant breeze present to keep everyone cool as digging holes and planting trees can be hard work.

This IBSB event was part of a large Romania wide effort involving many companies in addition to the individuals who turned up from Bucharest and beyond, with over 500 people in total present to lend a helping hand.

In total the IBSB community managed to plant over 200 hundred trees, which is an incredible achievement, and a wonderful example to our children, making a positive contribution toward solving the global climate crisis.

A big thank you to everyone who joined in! We look forward to repeating this activity again next year!

alumni alumni

ALUMNI Loren Badarni

Life Life at at Falmouth Falmouth Loren Badarni - IBSB Graduate, 2018

Studying at Falmouth University isn’t anything like I had imagined university it would be. This is neither good, nor bad. To me, it feels like a constant holiday - and I don’t mean to say that my course isn’t challenging, which it definitely is, but I mean it in the sense that I am doing something that I enjoy. I think this came as a slight shock to me, especially after studying at IBSB, which is nothing like where I am right now. University differs widely from high school: for instance, with far fewer rules and you have the ability to specialize in something you truly love. This has made my experience at Falmouth truly enjoyable for me.

It is unreal how much I have grown since I came here, both academically and socially. It is a change that I never thought possible back when I was in high school. It feels like I am where I need to be.

Being at an Arts University, I have had the opportunity to meet people with whom I share the same values and interests - which again, is something that hasn’t happened before, as university puts similar people from all over the world together in a way that high school doesn’t.

Falmouth is not for everyone, however. It does look straight out of a fairytale - right by the ocean, surrounded by nature and with warm weather even in the winter months. The beach is a 10 minute walk from my dorm, and from my bedroom window I have an ocean-view.

But it is a small town, with few things to do and even fewer places to go. If you are not an artistic individual, and do not want to spend your time writing in a coffee shop, painting by the beach, or listening to music in a field larger than the town itself, then chances are Falmouth is not the place for you. But again, that is the magic of university: you have the ability to find that place that suits your personal interests and lifestyle preferences.

I find Falmouth to be somewhere I can really manifest my creativity freely. I’ve met so many different people and had the chance to experience lots of things: I have started contemporary dance classes,

ALUMNI Loren Badarni

Play Trouble in Trelawney Rehearsal, Falmouth University

I go to yoga almost daily, I’ve learned to develop and print my own films in the dark room, taken loads of different courses, and made friends with the local farmers, from whom I get fresh veggies every Thursday. I’ve also travelled a lot throughout Cornwall, which is a beautiful region to say the least. I have taken advantage of everything that this creative University has to offer, and I am pleasantly surprised to discover just how much Falmouth value their students and try to provide the best for them.

I’m also very much enjoying my course: I’ve already made 2 films this year, and am now working on a book of poetry, which I will later on produce as a series of short movies. I’m also working on my first individual feature length film, and if all goes well, you’ll get to see it at the 2020 Berlinale (the Berlin International Film Festival).

I can wholeheartedly say that I have Falmouth to thank for proving to me that the career path I chose is the right one, and for doing this in a creative, relaxed way.

University is an exciting, beautiful opportunity, somewhere where you can find your people, your place, and yourself.

ALUMNI Lana Badran

THE FIRST YEAR OF DENTISTRY IS DEFINETLY THE HARDEST Lana Badran - IBSB Graduate, 2013

It seems like only yesterday that I graduated from IBSB. In reality, though, it has been almost six years since I began studying dentistry at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Iuliu Haieganu” in Cluj-Napoca.

It is now 2019 and I find myself once again preparing to graduate, only this time it is from university. Coming to the end of yet another stage of my educational journey, I can honestly say that the last six years have been the longest and most difficult years of my life, changing me as a person in many ways, preparing me for my future career, making me the person I am today.

I can honestly say that the first year of dentistry at university is definitely the hardest- what got me through was knowing that all the hard work would eventually pay off in the end, which kept me motivated and helped me through the periods when I felt it was becoming too much for me.

Having all but completed a degree in dentistry, would I recommend it? Absolutely, but only to a person fully dedicated to their studies, willing to take on a challenge, as dentistry is a lifelong learning journey requiring you to learn continually in order to keep up to date with the latest research, technology, practices and procedures.

I am aware now, more than ever, that there is so much more to dentistry than just teeth. As a part of my six year degree, I have completed various courses in general medicine, which emphasises the fact that the practice of dentistry is an area of specialisation within the general medical field.

I’m now very much looking forward to starting a new chapter in my life. Post-graduation, I will be leaving Romania to work in the UK, and I am particularly looking forward to gaining a lot of hands on practical experience, learning more about veneers, which are used to create the ‘Hollywood smile’.

As a student enrolled in the English section of medicine for international students, I have had the chance to meet people from all over the world, exchanging both knowledge and experiences. This for me has been the best part of my life at university, as some of these people have become a part of my family and will remain in my life forever.

Good luck to all the students completing IGCSE and A Level exams this year. I’m sure you are all very nervous, but will do very well as the teachers at IBSB are great and definitely prepare you well. Just remember, practice makes perfect, so be sure to compete as many past papers as possible!

Best wishes also to the graduating class of 2019- enjoy your graduation ceremony, as I am sure you will look back on it, as I do, with a sense of fondness in the years to come. It’s incredible to think you are about to start your degrees, just as I am finishing mine. How quickly the time passes! I hope you all have a wonderful time at university.

SPORTS

SPORTS Basketball

U11 Interschool Basketball Competition - IBSB 1st Place On the 6th of February the International British School of Bucharest hosted an Interschool Basketball Tournament for boys U11. The games took place in our physical education hall and we were very happy to go through this experience with the International School of Bucharest (ISB) and Avenor College.

Our children proved that they are not only good hosts, but also pretty good on the basketball court, winning all their games and as a result, 1st Place in the Competition overall.

CONGRATULATIONS to all our U11 boys who participated in this competition: Aizic Theodor, Borenea George, Boronea Petru, Berciu Matei, Dezzani Milo, Chen Jinkai, Hassanain Basam, Rosca Mircea, Saizu Rares, Usurelu Tudor, Filip Pascalin.

Great job, guys! We are proud of you and we hope that the future will bring us more accomplishments like this one!

SPORTS Basketball

The announcement of an interschool volleyball competition was a welcome addition to the interschool sporting calendar, adding some variety to the traditional serving of football, football, and more football. With the children of famous Romanian footballers like Gheorghe Hagi and Gheorghe Popescu having attended school at IBSB, it is no surprise that football might be popular here. This does not however mean we do not also achieve success in other sporting areas, such as athletics, swimming, triathlon, and now volleyball.

Congratulations to the following students who took part in the competition this year:

Congratulations to our secondary school students and Secondary School P.E Teacher, Mr Ciprian Iacob, for returning home with the first place trophy in hand from our first Interschool Volleyball Competition.

Marius Meita

There was fierce competition in the preliminary knockout rounds, with IBSB eventually making it through to the final with ISB, which was evenly matched, confirming that both teams with worth contenders to be this year’s champions. In the end however it was the students from IBSB who eventually lifted the winner’s trophy, with a deserving win.

Alex Serban

Mihnea Cristache Andrei Minculete Theodor Prajisteanu Orel Tetruashvili

Radu Bageac Victor Popa

Minoru Kishinami Bogdan Iorgulescu Matei Gheorghe

SPORTS Cricket

Good Good Cricket!

Cricket!

Cricket returned this year after Christmas, with Mr Oldham running the club on a Wednesday afternoon. A number of children from Year 4 to Year 6 joined and are already showing signs of cricketing ability. The club focuses on the basic skills of catching, throwing, and hitting a ball. After a skill has been learned, there is then chance for it to be used in a game situation.

To begin with, these games may not bear much resemblance to cricket, however, they are all useful chances to practice.

Now, after much more practice, the children are playing games that are more familiar to those who have seen cricket and they are beginning to understand the ideas and rules of the game. We may have some budding cricketers in our school yet!

SPORTS Athletic Grand Prix

Interschool Athletic Grand Prix 2019 IBSB Students Top Medal Count

Following on from the success of 2018, when IBSB were the first school to win both the boys’ and the girls’ trophies in the Interschool Athletic Grand Prix, the students from IBSB once again proved their sporting pedigree by topping the medal count on the day.

Adding to the overall school tally, of medals were a number of individual success stories, with Alina Barbu collecting 5 gold medals, Andreea A. 3 Gold and 1 Bronze medal, and Ana N. 3 Gold medals. It was definitely the girls that shone through this year!

60 m Girls U12: Ana N. (gold) U14: Alina B. (gold) and Alexia V. (bronze) U16: Andreea A. (gold) and Anastasia S. (bronze)

60m Boys U14: Kevin Xie K. (bronze) U16: Andrei M. (gold) and Minoru K. (silver) U18: Alex S. (silver)

200m Girls U12: Ana N. (gold) U14: Alina B. (gold)

200m Boys U14: Kevin Xie K. (bronze)

400m Girls U16: Andreea A. (gold) U18: Alina B. (gold) and Ioana B. (silver)

400m Boys U16: Andrei M. (silver)

1000m Girls U14: Alina B. (gold)

1500m Girls U16: Andreea A. (gold) and Anastasia S. (silver) Mixed Relays

Middle School: Tony/Kevin/Andreea/Alexia (bronze) High School: Ana N./Alina B./Andrei M./Alex (gold)

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the Interschool Athletic Grand Prix this year, and to our impassioned PE teachers, Paul Georgescu, Ciprian Iacob, and Maria Orban for living the IBSB Mission: ‘Inspiring and Supporting Student Achievement’ to the highest level!

SPORTS Swimming

Interschool Swimming With the IGCSE and A Level practical exams already underway and the end of year mock exams just around the corner, it was a smaller group of upper primary and middle school students who headed off to compete in the interschool swimming competition this year, being hosted by Avenor College at the Sydney Olympic Pool in Izvoran on Saturday, March 23rd.

What we lacked in numbers, we more than made up for in quality, however, with the few students able to attend competing with passion and determination.

Results Summary 9-10 years 3rd Place - Andrei G. 13-14 years 1st Place - Ana N. 2nd Place - Alina B. 3rd Place - Andreea A. Girls Relay 2nd Place - Alina B., Ana N. Andreea A. and Ilinca D.

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the Interschool Swimming Competition this year, and to Paul Georgescu and Ciprian Iacob for continuing to inspire our students toward sporting success in the pool.

SPORTS Swimming- Paul Georgescu

Paul Georgescu Wins Gold Ice Swimming World Champion - 500m Freestyle

Paul Georgescu became the first Romanian to win Gold at the 2019 Ice Swimming World Championships in Murmask, Russia, March 15.

Swimming in frozen waters, requiring the removal of over 20cm of surface ice in preparation for the competition, with a water temperature of -0.2 degrees, a total of 410 swimmers from around the world gathered to participate in the third edition of the Ice Swimming World Championships.

In order to qualify for Ice Swimming world Championships, needed Paul to first complete the ice mile challenge, which he did on February 2nd at Daimon Club in a time of 22 minutes 43 seconds. You can see the interview with Paul by the world renowned ice swimmer Gerr Kennedy and his swim at the link below: http://dailynews.openwaterswimming.com/2019/02/paul-georgescu-before-icemile-oceans.html 500m Freestyle Final Taking his place in the final line up, swimming in lane 6, Paul was off to a good start, taking an early lead at the first 50m turn, closely followed by Kristoff Vandrage (Germany) and Fernandez Mario Gorgoja (Spain).

At the 200m mark Paul had extended his lead to 5 metres, as he increased the tempo with each turn, with just Kristoff Vandrage (Germany) still in contention at the halfway point.

It was, however, to be a day in which the Romanian flag could fly highest, as his nearest rival, Kristoff Vandrage (Germany), was forced to abandon the race with just 150 metres to go due to breathing difficulties caused by the extreme cold. Paul went on to write his name into the record books, touching the wall in a time 6.07.22.

Final Results 1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place

Paul Georgescu (Romania) 6.07.22hr Fernandez Mario Gorgoja (Spain) 6.50.47hr Kubiak Krzisztof (Poland) 7.02.38hr

What Next?

April 08-15 Paul heads to Hawaii to swim the Molokai Channel (55km) as the third swim in his Oceans Seven Challenge, as he attempts to join an elite list of just 13 swimmers to have completed this challenge to date.

August 08-16 Paul travels to Ireland to complete his fourth Oceans Seven Swim, the North Channel (34km), from Ireland to Scotland.

August 29-Sept 05 Paul joins two IBSB students as the first Romanian relay team to swim the English Channel.

February 17-28, 2020 Paul heads to Antarctica, to face his biggest challenge yet, completing the ice mile amidst the icebergs, with killer whales on one side and polar bears on the other. The current world record for the total distance swum is currently 2250m, with Paul setting his mind on the very real possibility of setting a new world record. With Paul, you always know that anything is possible!

Become a Sponsor Paul and looking for additional sponsors to support him in his efforts to complete the Oceans 7 Challenge. If you are interested in joining Paul as a sponsor on his incredible journey, please write to Paul directly via paulpolo78@yahoo.com for more information.

SPORTS Ironman

I usually focus my termly TIV article on an area relating directly to school life, with a view to something that took place in Term 2 or perhaps something that is currently ongoing. On this occasion however, I have at the encouragement of colleagues elected to share with you my personal experience of preparing for an Ironman event, as on reflection I realise that preparing for such an event has many correlations to achieving success both academically and in life.

Where did the idea to do an Ironman come from?

There is no simple answer to this question. For me the origins of my rediscovered joy of training were born in my early childhood years, running track and field from the age five, beginning with the 50m and progressing on to the 100, 200, 400, and 800m, experimenting with the long jump, high jump, shotput, discus, and javelin, before eventually settling on the 1500m during my later primary school years, and middle distance cross country and road races in Key Stages 4 and 5.

Over time I improved as a runner immensely, becoming the first student at Tauranga Boys College (www.tbc.school.nz) to win the sixth form school road race whilst still in year 11 and continuing on to enjoy success at school level middle distance running events for the remainder of my time at secondary school. I am not sure that I was all that talented, but I loved to run and trained pretty much every day rain, hail, or shine, clocking up on average 100km+ a week, and as such was living proof that effort equals results. For the runners at IBSB, my best 4km time at the age of 15 was 13.13 (3.18/km pace), for 8km was 27.23 (3.25/km pace), with a 33.10 10km (3.19/km pace) recorded at the age of 16.

Sport was in my blood Although I stopped running competitively when I went to university, in order to focus more on my academic studies and other pursuits, it would be accurate to say that sport continued to play an important recreational role in my life in the years ahead. I went to the gym sporadically, enjoyed regular jogs, played tennis weekly, swam, surfed, and enjoyed plenty of time in the water whenever I was back home in Tauranga, and spent a lot of time trekking in the great outdoors.

Arriving at my 40s Then one day I suddenly found myself in my 40s, as we all eventually do. Where did the time go!

It was around this time that a colleague and good friend Paul Georgescu needed someone to complete a school triathlon team in the Winter Tri at Izvoran. I was a little overweight, unfit, and in many regards the least likely candidate to help out, but he asked me nevertheless, knowing that I was once a keen athlete, so I unexpectedly found myself 25 years later in life registered as the swimmer in a relay for a winter triathlon. Unbeknown to me, it was the beginning of things to come- the swim by the way did not go all that well, although I did manage to finish, but only just.

Then a few weeks later Paul asked if I would like to swim for a team again in the Afara Asfalt Triathlon scheduled for May, and I eagerly accepted, promising myself that I would be better prepared. www.faraasfalt.ro/triatlon-la-mare Well the Afara Asfalt came and went, followed by the Mogosoia No Stress Triathlon, and a few additional triathlons, all as the swimmer of a relay team.

Long distance swimming was then added to the mix, again as a result of the encouragement and support of Paul Georgescu, firstly with the 5km Cupa Hamsia, from Vama Veche to 2 Mai, and then a big step up to the 15km Oceanman Lago de Orta swim (definitely not for the faint of heart!).

SPORTS Ironman The final piece of the puzzle The final piece of the puzzle was a combination of the natural progression from competing in team relays to competing in triathlons as an individual in 2017 and the arrival of our previous Head of Secondary, Robert Hewett, who was already an accomplished Ironman triathlete.

For a year I enjoyed participating in individual Olympic distance triathlons, being a 1500m swim, 40km cycle, and 10km run, but did not train particularly hard. I enjoyed triathlon more as a social event and a good reason to travel to the Black Sea Coast, as well as a way to maintain a reasonable level of fitness. I was, however, surrounded by students, parents, and colleagues who were training more consistently and with more intensity, and so I started to think that maybe I should also being setting my goals a little higher.

I selected the Mamaia Olympic distance triathlon in 2018 and began to put more effort into my training, with more time spent in the pool and an increased focus on the bike: with a background in running, I figured I could move my attention to the run once I had raised my level in the swim and bike and shed a few pounds in the process.

September eventually rolled around, along with the Mamaia Olympic Triathlon, and I was surprised to discover that I was amongst the first swimmers exiting the water, and 5th overall on the bike on the fourth lap before I was forced to retire with a puncture. It was a disappointing end, but a positive experience overall and a real motivator to continue with my training, determining to return in 2019 more prepared and possibly to do the longer 70.3 half ironman.

A New Goal Now 6 months on, my goal has been upgraded yet again to a full Ironman, which if all goes to plan, will be the Hamburg Ironman on July 28, which involves a 3.8km swim, 180km bike, and a full 42km marathon to finish off. As we say in English, in for a penny, in for a pound.

Firstly, and most importantly, I managed to finish the race, which gave me the belief that I could complete a full ironman with 3 months of additional training.

I also learnt some important lessons, not least that you need to set your bike up for each specific course: my largest rear cog on my bike had 25 teeth, on course with 1500m of ascent recommended for a minimum of 28 teeth, with 32 teeth being preferred by many.

As a result, I struggled up some of the steeper sections, praying that I wouldn’t need to get off and walk, eventually finishing the 90km bike in 3.17, but with little left in the tank for the 21km run. I pushed on jogging between each feeding station managing to finish in a time of 6.11. Success sometimes means just crossing the finish line!

The Marbella 70.3 How does Marbella fit in then? As it works out, Marbella was the exact half way point on the road to Hamburg. I signed up for Hamburg as one of my New Year’s resolutions, and thought if I intend to do a full Ironman in July, that it would be wise to complete a half ironman halfway along the way. It just so happened that the Marbella 70.3 Half Ironman happened during the April break and was the very same Ironman one of our parents, Alex Dutu, had completed the year before and told me about, so I signed up committing myself to this medium term goal.

It turned out to be both a good decision, and a great learning experience.

SPORTS Ironman

Important lessons learnt which apply to life in general 1. Set clear, meaningful long term goals For me, this is initially completing a 140.6 Ironman on July 28, and then working toward the qualifying time of around 9 hours for the Kona World Ironman Championships in October 2020 or 21.

For you, it may be achieving a specific grade in a test or in your IGCSE or A Level exam, gaining admission to a specific course at a specific university, or maybe learning to play the piano or to paint.

2. Break your longer term goals into SMART shorter term goals For me, this means being consistent and sticking to my weekly training programme in the short term, and completing certain events and certain times in the medium term.

For you, it may be keeping to your revision schedule with a specific number of hours per day/week, completing additional supplementary reading by a certain date, or a certain number of past papers each week.

3. Ensure you have established the whys to motivate you For me, this is simply knowing I am a happier person when I am training with a clear goal to work toward, but also because I want to be healthy when I am older and around long enough to enjoy my grandchildren.

For you, it could be getting the grades needed to get into a specific course or university, feeling more confident speaking publically, supporting a worthwhile cause or perhaps living a more sustainable lifestyle and being a part of the solution. .

4. Do the necessary research to ensure you are well informed For me, this means knowing the about the swim, bike, and run course at of each specific course. It also means speaking to or reading the advice of people who have completed an Ironman, and, at some point, finding a coach to guide me in my training to ensure I am making steady progress toward my long term goals.

For you, this may mean knowing what content you will be examined on, what type of questions may come up in the exam, planning out your use of time in the exam and sticking to it, and actively seeking the advice and support of your teachers in the form of constructive feedback.

5. Ensure you have the right equipment/necessary materials For me, this means having the right swim wear, the right bike properly adjusted for the specific course, comfortable running shoes, but most importantly the right nutrition plan to keep me fuelled for up to 12 hours initially, but for 9 hours when I am attempting to qualify for Kona.

For you, this may mean ensuring you have the books, standards booklets, past papers, mark schemes, and examiner reports. It also means ensuring you are eating well, getting sufficient sleep, and exercising sufficiently to ensure you are in the best position to learn.

6. Enjoy the journey Having a meaningful end goal is certainly important, but no more important than ensuring you enjoy each and every day of your life.

For me, this means listening to myself and not pushing myself beyond my limits. Rome wasn’t built in a day, which may mean at times that I need to stop, assess, and reset my end goals or maybe adjust my short or medium term goals to ensure I am able to enjoy my life today.

Too often we sacrifice our happiness now for an end goal, but in reality this is a poisoned chalice because we unwittingly end up chasing our happiness through life always thinking or feeling it is at some point in the future, which is an illusion.

Be careful therefore to find a healthy balance which allows you to enjoy your life now, whilst working toward your meaningful long-term goals. If your long term goals are well chosen, working to achieve your shorter term SMART goals will bring both meaning and joy into your life now.

SCHOOL SCHOOLVIEWS VIEWS

SCHOOL VIEWS Russell Group Universities

Which are the Russell Group Universities? www.russellgroup.ac.uk The International British School of Bucharest has a history of sending its students to top universities around the world, and this year has been no exception with a number of our students receiving offers to Russell Group Universities.

Whilst many of our parents will have some awareness of the names of top universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge, or perhaps UCL (University College London) and LSE (London School of Economics), which IBSB students have all gone on to in recent years, fewer parents will have heard of Durham University, The University of Bristol, or The University of Nottingham, for example, which are all world-class universities included within the Russell Group of universities.

It is for this reason that I have decided to write this short article to offer you some background information about the Russell Group Universities, to encourage our students and parents to do additional research on the universities listed in order to know what they each offer as possible post Y13 destinations.

The Russell Group represents 24 leading UK universities which are committed to maintaining the very best research, an outstanding teaching and learning experience, and unrivalled links with business and the public sector.

Russell Group Universities have developed a worldwide reputation as research-intensive universities, which is one of the main reasons why they maintain their high rankings on the various university ranking lists, such the QS Rankings (US based) and Times Educational (UK based): the US based lists naturally place US universities higher on their list; conversely, the UK based lists place the UK universities higher on their rankings.

If you are interested in looking at university ranking tables, you can do so quickly and easily visiting the following IBSB website page, which has links to the most popular lists and also shows the university destinations of IBSB graduates: www.ibsb.ro/secondary/university-destinations/ Regardless of which list you look at, you will consistently find that Russell Group Universities listed in the top 200 universities, meaning they are placed in the top 1% of universities around the world. This does not mean that a university, such as The University of Surrey, Bath, or Sussex, are not a top universities. Quite the opposite in fact, as all three universities are also included within the top 1% of universities worldwide.

They are simply not included within the Russell Group of Universities, which meet to form the group in 1994, becoming officially incorporated in 2007. Had they been at the initial meeting, they would no doubt have

RUSSELL GROUP UNIVERSITIES: WORLD RANKINGS

QS World Rankings

Times Educa�onal Rankings

University of Oxford

5

1

University of Cambridge

6

2

Imperial College London

8

9

University College London

10

14

University of Edinburgh

18

29

University of Manchester

29

57

King's College London

31

38

London School of Economics

38

26

University of Bristol

51

78

University of Warwick

54

79

University of Glasgow

69

93

Durham University

74

114

University of Sheffield

75

106

University of Birmingham

79

116

University of No�ngham

82

149

University of Leeds

93

153

University of Southampton

96

118

Queen Mary University

119

130

University of York

134

119

Newcastle University

141

171

Cardiff University

145

187

University of Exeter

154

141

University of Liverpool

161

181

Queen’s University Belfast

180

201

= Universi�es IBSB Students have received offers to in the last 5 years Bold = IBSB offers received for September 2019

SCHOOL VIEWS Russell Group Universities

Since their official incorporation, however, the Russell Group Universities have gone on to develop a reputation for being the best universities in the UK, and for many high schools around the world, such as Eton, Harrow, and Dubai College, to name just a few, they have become a key measure of the success of their academic programmes, often posting statistics on the number of students accepted into Russell Group Universities each year.

Whether or not they should be used as a measure of success is a point to be debated. What is not debateable however is the fact that they are all unique institutions offering an outstanding level of education, each with their own history and ethos, but sharing a common set of key distinguishing characteristics.

In essence they are all committed to maintaining the very best research, an outstanding teaching and learning experience, and unrivalled links with local and national business and the public sector Together they have a huge social, economic and cultural impact: • They produce more than two-thirds of the world-leading research produced in UK universities • Their annual economic output exceeds £32 billion • They have more than 420,000 undergraduates and 192,500 postgraduates • They attract students and staff from around the world: 39% of academic staff and 34% of students are of non-UK nationality.

• They also have the highest employment rate of UK universities Congratulations not just to the Y13 graduates who received Russell Group offers for September 2019, but to all our graduates, many of which have been accepted to top non research-based universities in their particular field of interest relating to the creative arts, business studies, and hospitality management, which review in the next issue of TIV.

Luiza Ruptureanu University College London, Philosophy, Politics, & Economics Solbeen So University of Bristol Economics Luca Ion University of Nottingham Mathematical Physics

SCHOOL VIEWS VetMed Application

My VetMed Application Process

I have applied for Veterinary Medicine at multiple universities in the United Kingdom and have in the process come to discover that the selection process truly is as rigorous as everyone says it is! There are several parts of the system that I had not previously known, so if you intend to apply for similar courses, this article is for you.

Check the Deadline First of all, the deadline for a medical course, be it human or veterinary, is usually in October, so I had to be done with everything 4 months before most of my peers. Right after my application was sent in, I spent about one week receiving emails from all the universities separately with further steps. What this meant for me was that the self-evaluating essays were piling up, and the enquiries about my work experience were demanded.

There were also essays about current veterinary issues that I had to prepare and send in within a week of finding out the topic.

Needless to say, it was a wakeup call, helping me to understand that this field, and my future career, was not going to be a walk in the park.

The Interview The interview requests followed several months later. I had no idea what they would entail and even though I was informed about how the day would proceed, hearing that you have to spend more than 3 hours going through interview stages is not a fun thing to think about. Regardless, after going through several mock interviews with both Ms Baker and with my parents, I felt a bit better. As it turns out, when the days of the interviews came, I was relaxed and able to answer the questions to the best of my ability.

This was also because when I was sat in the waiting room with all the other candidates, I saw such big age differences, ranging from kids in the last year of high school, up to people who already finished a degree at a university and were looking for the next step in their development; this small but crucial bit of information calmed my nerves and allowed me to be calm and collected during the questions.

Lisa P. Year 13

High Grades are not enough of their own The entire process highlighted that while academic achievement is a relatively big part of the process, it will not ensure you a place anywhere: you should have something that sets you apart from the rest of the crowd. The good thing is that we are all different and have so many varying interests that can help showcase our skills. It is so important to partake in activities that you are passionate about because you will be able to showcase the enthusiasm naturally during interviews and when writing your personal statement, which will enable you to get into the course and university that you are meant to be in.

My Final Thoughts In the end, hard work always pays off, so do not let anything stop you from achieving your goals!

As for me, my focus in now my final exams and a summer to remember, before I head off in pursuit of my dream, to study Veterinarian Science at the University of Surrey.

How to win a car in a game show

STUDENT VIEWS How to win a Car Game

Solbean S., Year 13 Imagine yourself on a game show where there are 3 doors in front of you. Behind one door, there is a car and behind the other two doors there are goats. The host of the game show asks you to pick a door and if you pick the right door, you win the car! You pick a door, say Door No.1, and the host, who knows what is behind the doors, opens another door, say Door No.3 which has a goat. He then gives you a chance to switch the door you picked to the other remaining door (Door No.2 in this case). Will you be better off by switching?

We can summarise this in 3 possibilities: 1. Only two doors are remaining so switching or not switching will not increase the chance of winning the car (1/2 chance of winning), 2. Not switching will increase the chance of winning the car, and 3. Switching will increase the chance of winning the car. What would lead to the best outcome in this situation? Switch? Not switch? Or it does not matter because the chances are equal?

“You must switch!”, a columnist, Marilyn vos Savant claimed, saying that switching the door you picked will increase the chance of winning the car to 2/3. To support her claim, she said, “imagine one million doors in front of you: Behind one is a car; behind the others, goats. You pick Door No. 1, and then the host, who knows what is behind the doors opens all the other doors which have goats except for the door you picked and Door No. 777. You would quickly switch to the Door No. 777 now, wouldn’t you?”

However, her explanation with one million doors was limited to an intuitive way of seeing the problem. So she explained again with the table with all the possible outcomes of switching.

“You must switch”. A columnist, Marilyn vos Savant claimed that switching the door you picked will increase the chance of winning the car to 2/3. To support her claim, she said, “imagine one million doors in front of you: Behind one is a car; behind the others, goats. You pick Door No. 1, and then the host, who knows what is behind the doors opens all the other doors which have goats except for the door you picked and Door No. 777. You would quickly switch to the Door No. 777 now. Wouldn’t you?”

However, her explanation with one million doors was limited to an intuitive way of seeing the problem. So she explained again with the table with all the possible outcomes of switching.

Then why do people think that switching or not switching have the same chance of winning the car and why do they stick to their originally chosen door? The answer is simple: people are irrational and easily satisfied with their “rule of thumb” responses, regardless of how flawed it can be. This is the reason why we study mathematics, statistics, and probabilities. It will help you to think rationally, logically, and perhaps to win a car in a game show. Furthermore, it will guide you to make the right decision at the right place, without being biased, and as well bringing you one step closer to your ultimate goal.

SCHOOL VIEWS New Teachers Interviews

New Teachers Interviews Teacher’s Name: Ms Maria What brought you to IBSB? I was on the tennis court when a P.E teacher came to me and told me about this opportunity and, the next day, I sent in my CV to the office and here I am.

What do you like about IBSB? I like the community and academic environment; that every child is different and learns in their own way.

What do you do outside of school?

Coaching, tennis, university Masters and travelling.

Why did you want to become a teacher?

Because I have a lot of patience and I love kids from the bottom of my heart. Also, the feeling of teaching them and seeing them evolve in incredible.

What makes an ‘ideal’ student?

An ideal student has to have all the core values that our school has: be brave, respectful, innovative, tolerant, integrative, sustainability, Teacher’s Name: Ms Alexandra What brought you to IBSB? I was recommended by a good friend.

What do you like about IBSB? I like the vibe; the entire team in the Primary School; the students; and the approach towards education.

What do you do outside of school?

I like spending time in nature, reading, doing yoga, and working out.

Why did you want to become a teacher?

I really like seeing the world through the eyes of a child and I hope I can help children have a better connection with the idea of school.

What makes an ‘ideal’ student?

Someone who isn’t afraid of trying, failing, and then trying again. Someone who gets led by Teacher’s Name: Ms Evi What brought you to IBSB? I heard it is a school that values community and they see every person as part of a family.

What do you like about IBSB? The students.

What do you do outside of school?

I like to compose music and dance. I love the ballet, and I also like to discover new things in Bucharest.

Why did you want to become a teacher?

I travelled the world and learnt a lot – and still am learning a lot – and I see myself as a teacher and a student at the same time.

What makes an ‘ideal’ student?

I cannot answer by describing an ideal student, but I can describe an ideal person as being someone who wants to learn, is not afraid of making mistakes, and is creative inside and outside the classroom.

SCHOOL VIEWS New Teachers Interviews

Teacher’s Name: Ms Emilia What brought you to IBSB? It is a very good International School. And I wanted to be a part of the school to further learn about children’s education.

What do you like about IBSB? I like everyone that is part of the education team. I also like how organised the school is.

What do you do outside of school?

I like to read books, help children with personal development, and play the drums.

Why did you want to become a teacher?

To help children achieve their best and to have a good impact on future generations.

What makes an ‘ideal’ student?

Creative students who have respect for the people around them.

Teacher’s Name: Ms Elena What brought you to IBSB? The truth is, I needed a job, so I applied online.

What do you like about IBSB? I like the way things are organised and the way we teach. I like almost everything!

What do you do outside of school?

I like to read, spend time with my daughter, and housework.

Why did you want to become a teacher?

Because I love kids. I love their positive energy, their innocence, their honesty, and I just love kids!

What makes an ‘ideal’ student?

Those with an open mind who are not afraid to cultivate their emotional intelligence.

creative corner

CREATIVE CORNER Story

The Williams and The City of Chaos

“GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!” wailed a voice from inside the banana.

It was foggy outside, and it had been raining all day. William was outside playing with mud, not noticing his mother shouting.

“Darling, it’s dinner time!” she yelled. He took no notice. Again, she yelled. And again. He pretended not to hear her. William was one of the naughty boys, who would spend all day playing Fortnite, pretending his parents wouldn’t exist; take no notice of them; or wouldn’t do his homework. His mother was getting quite annoyed now, her face turning a burning red colour, and steam almost exploding out of her ears. She rushed to him - by now already soaking wet due to the rain -and pulled him up from the muddy ground. “I’ve had quite enough of that young man!” she roared while pulling him to the house. “What happened to you all day? You have been completely avoiding me lately. What’s gotten into you?”

“I don’t know ma’.” William answered sarcastically.

“Well sort it out then.” replied his mother. She walked into the house, leading her son to the kitchen and slamming the door. She called his father downstairs and now they all sat around the messy table. “We need to have a serious talk,” she said with a face William had never seen before. This time she was serious. She grabbed her flamingo pen from her fawn-coloured purse. She was moving assertively with a look of disappointment in her eyes. A red pocket notebook was then followed by a handful of crumpled papers. “Right. We need to do something about you.” she glanced at William. “What happened? You know you can tell us everything, right?”

“Yeah.” answered William quickly. He tried not to make eye contact as he knew this would only make things worse.

“William?” questioned his Father.

“Yes Pop?” he replied quite bored.

Father put on a brave voice, and said: “Look, we know that you aren’t a little child anymore, but we need to know what’s gotten into you. Me and your mother are very concerned. And you know very well that we don’t like it when you’re hiding things from us. So that’s why we need to be aware of what has changed. You don’t seem to be yourself anymore lately.”

“I really don’t know!” he replied sarcastically.

“Well it seems like this discussion will have to be held tomorrow, but for now young man, you go right up to your bedroom and sleep. Tomorrow is a very big day for you,” interrupted Mother.

William was changing schools and tomorrow was his first day. He wasn’t ecstatic at all. He cried a lot before he arrived in this huge and crowded city. If you’re wondering why they had to move, it’s because of his parents’ new jobs – their salary had increased by about seven times, and his parents couldn’t possibly reject the offer, as this meant the world to them. This meant that they wouldn’t have time anymore for William, and this led to him being lost, with no friends, and nobody to talk to.

The next morning, Mother came into William’s bedroom to get him ready for school. It was sunny outside, and very warm. She promised him they would go to the seaside when a jolly day arrived, but because of what happened the other day, she wasn’t so sure anymore.

“William, it’s wake up time!” she said softly from the bedroom door. He gently twisted a bit, and then finally opened his eyes.

CREATIVE CORNER Story “Good morning ma’” he said sleepily, with his eyes almost shut. You see, he wasn’t such a morning person at all.

“Put on your new school uniform – it’s on your desk, and then come downstairs for breakfast. Remember, you don’t want to be late for your first day of school, do you?” And with that, she headed towards the kitchen to make his food: a medium-sized omelette with extra, extra, extra cheese; avocado and extra, extra, extra onion; and a smoothie with strawberries and bananas. After about ten minutes, William dashed downstairs, ready for school, with his backpack on his tiny shoulders, waiting for his breakfast in the huge, new kitchen.

Mother had only finished mixing the ingredients for his son’s smoothie, and handed it over to him.

“Thanks ma’” he said gratefully and with a great smile on his face. He quickly gobbled it up like he had a mouth as big as a crocodile. He then put his roller skates on, not forgetting to take his shoes in a bag. William’s family lived quite far from the school he was transferring to, and so he decided to take either a bicycle or a scooter.

“Not this time, darling,” she said. “I’ll give you a ride to school today. So take your skates off and hop in the car.” she added. So, with that, he jumped in the car.

Suddenly, the road started to feel bumpy, and noise was filling the car. Something awkward was taking place. Mother, on the other side, seemed not to notice at all what was forming around her skinny body.

“Mother?” questioned William. Mother took no notice. Again, he asked, and again she did not answer. Neither did she turn around to face him. He tried once again – just to make sure that she didn’t mishear – or anything else. The same thing happened again. William was getting quite scared now, and started to panic a little. I guess you didn’t think it was because of the age (the reason he was panicking, (oh, and by the way; he is eight years old, just one more week before his ninth birthday) but because Mother always answered him way quicker than what happened now. She would normally even answer before the person finished his or her sentence – it was like she could read what was in that person’s head. Getting back to the story, William was absolutely petrified of what was going to happen next, and so that is why he had to be really brave and do something he had never done before: break the rules. And so, he took off his seatbelt and shuffled towards the front seat, where Mother was staying. He gently patted her on the shoulder, waiting for a response. There was no sign of movement – absolutely nothing. He was panicking now. One more thing, even a little one and he would burst into a bomb of fear.

CRASH! Suddenly, all he could see was road – sky – road – sky – road – sky. William woke up. He looked around in a daze. He realised he was on the ceiling of the car, while the car was somehow on its roof. He kicked the door in desperation, trying to exit. He hastily opened the door, when suddenly, he was now completely falling down in the middle of nowhere.

Falling.

And falling.

And falling.

And falling.

And falling.

Then something came into view. What looked like the top of Tilted Towers appeared, marking the entrance to some sort of place. It was a sort of a vintage place; quite old I can say. William landed with a bump. He looked around and noticed a road. A U-shaped road. He ran.

He kept running on the U-shaped road, desperately trying to find help. In the middle of the silence, he yelled at the top of his voice: “Somebody help me!” All of a sudden, he saw a banana (yes, a banana) running towards him. As you could imagine, seeing a human-sized banana running towards him, had William slightly confused. His brain started filling up with thousands of questions, like ‘What is wrong with me?’ or ‘Am I really seeing a walking banana?’. Unbelievably, it kept jogging casually towards him, and it responded: “? Ouy era Htrae no tahw” which meant ‘What on Earth are you?’. After what I think was about two minutes, William had realised that he was talking backwards. He tried to responding politely, but this is what he said anxiously: “Mailliw si eman ym.” he tried responding ‘My name is William’. However, he didn’t speak as fluently as the banana whose name wasn’t figured out yet. They then spent some time talking to each other, becoming friends quickly. I can say that William was now quite excited, not only that he met him, but the fact that he met someone he could actually talk to; they talked about why he was so distant lately – it was because of them moving and about him having to leave his best friends in his past. Move somewhere new, that sort of stuff.

And so, when they talked, William realised something, something that made him regret what he had done in the past. Realised that he needed his parents more than ever. He turned into the best person he could ever be. And he found out all sorts of new stuff – stuff that he missed out. And because of that, he started being the best he could ever be. William Williams. Tilted Towers was now the place he had found himself – his true self – the place he will always be grateful of. He promised he would start doing his homework from now on, and listen to his parents. And all those things about the old William that I have mentioned in the beginning.

But then, everything started to shake; it shook and shook like millions of earthquakes taking place. Danger had struck them. Suddenly, a honk was heard. And another, followed by what I think were 6 others. Then something roared “YOU LOST!!!

HAHAHAHAHAhahahahahahahahahahahhahaha.” Everything started to make sense now: William was back in his huge, black Rolls Royce, with his mother angrily honking at people’s cars – and him, with his phone, who just lost a Fortnite game; they were on the way to school. This was going to be his new start.

Sonia M.Y6O

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