TIV Issue 1- December 2016

Issue 1: December 2016 INTERNATIONAL BRITISH SCHOOL OF BUCHAREST

www.ibsb.ro

Looking through this ďŹ rst issue of The Interna onal Student Voice for the 2016-17 academic year, it is clear that it has been a very busy term with plenty to celebrate in sport, in the performing arts, and academically. A special thank you to our team of dedicated sta for all your hard work this term, and to the students and parents for adding so much to the school community, suppor ng the Clean UP Day and the many other school and community events, and for suppor ng the various charity ini a ves to improve the lives of those less fortunate.

Wishing everyone a well-deserved break and a special fes ve holiday surrounded by friends and family.

Aura Bogdan - Execu ve Director-

Contents Staff & Editorial Coordinators Teacher Coordinators: Ms Andrea Carman Mr Paul Jennings Junior School Whiteboard: Ms Andreea Rus Journalists/Contributors Irina Chemencedji, Emilia Mihaescu, Alex Ciolan, Mir Shirin, Andrei Dogaru, Mihnea Radulescu, Boris Radovanovic Luiza Ruptureanu, Maximilian Mihailovici, Adela Ciobotaru, Ioana Serban, Elenza Urzica, Catrinel Craiu, Andrei Marin, Shashwat Kumar, Adriana Bajescu, Christie Vernon, Sara Podgoreanu Photographers Mr Silviu Nastase Contributing Staff Mr Kendall Peet Mr Duncan Gowen Mr Ciprian Tiplea Ms Johanna Croci Ms Blessy Savu Ms Aida Ivan Mr Alan Cornish Ms Ana Maria Boiangiu Layout: Ms Lea Cohen

Office Staff Contact Information: Address: 21 Agricultori St. District 2, Bucharest, Romania, 021841 Tel: (+4) 021.253.1698 Fax: (+4) 021.253.1697 E- mail: office@ibsb.ro Website: www.ibsb.ro

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Assistant Editor Message

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Prefects

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Head of School Thoughts

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Student Council

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Deputy Head Thoughts

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COBIS Leadership Weekend

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Keeping our children safe

CAS 7

Clean up Romania!

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CPD

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CAS Club

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6th Form Life

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Art Room

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Veganism

SPORTS 11

Bucharest Marathon

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Sports Day

WHITEBOARD 15

Welcome Message

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Early Years

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Year 1

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Year 2

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Year 3

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Year 4

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Year 4

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Year 5

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Year 6

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Year 6

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Coffee Morning

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Halloween Party

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Primary School Winter Show

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Year 6 Sport Interview

CREATIVE CORNER 61

Short Stories

ALUMNI 33

Andrei Dogaru

SCHOOL EVENTS 35

DOE Visit

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UN Day

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Romanian National Day

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Caledonian Ball

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Science Fair

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Enterprise Trading Game

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Sir Winston Churchill Debate

SCHOOL VIEWS 45

Food for Soul

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New Teachers

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Science Camp USA

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Assistant Editor

It is a complete honour to hold the position of Editor of the TIV for the second year in a row. This is in effect the first issue of my last year; I can honestly say, that I’m going to miss having such an incredible post where I witness so many young students having the chance to have their voices heard. I’m glad that the school and I can support such a platform, where our students and teachers can share their ideas and enthusiasm, creating an evermore closely-knit community.

It feels as if the months have been disappearing in the blink of an eye; every student and teacher faces the daily task of juggling their work, their social lives, and their passions and personal interests – so to know that people willingly take out of their valuable time in order to upkeep the role of the TIV in our school is heart-warming. From the beginning of the first day of school to this very day where the icy breeze of winter can be felt and joyful songs can be faintly heard in the background, it is clear that the Christmas holidays are quickly approaching; our journalists have enthusiastically documented the many events that have come and gone – from the exciting commotion of the Annual IBSB Sports Day to 2

carefully organised traditional UN Day Celebrations and charitable Caledonian Ball.

I shall not delay you any longer from ruffling through these very pages. I would just like to briefly thank everyone, no matter how small the contribution, for the creation of this issue as I know how exhausting it can be to put all the pieces together in order to produce this issue of TIV. As soon as you finish my Editor’s note, you can venture on to the words of my colleagues to enjoy what they have written. Every issue we try our best to ensure that you have quality reading to interest every single audience; everything we do is for you, our readers.

By Maria Ion (Year 13)

Head of School Thoughts

Effort to Excellence When you reflect back on your life, be it a shorter life, as is the case of a student currently enrolled at IBSB, or the life a parent with a few more years behind you, many of the moments that stick out as defining moments are the ones in which we were challenged in some way and had to respond with a considerable amount of effort.

Every day we complete tasks and tick items off our ‘To Do List’, but seldom do we remember these activities a week later. Likewise, seldom do we remember what we watched on television a week ago. What we do remember, and for many years after the event, are the times we worked very hard to achieve something, to finish something, to attain a goal strived for and achieved with effort.

If I think back over my own life, to use as an analogy, I cannot recall the many hills I walked up, but I do remember, almost like it was yesterday, as if I can close my eyes and relive the moments minute by minute, my experience of climbing Mt Kilimanjaro (5895m) in 2012, of climbing to the top of Mt Omu (2507) in 2010, though a slightly smaller mountain than Kilimanjaro, and my 6 weeks trekking in the Himalayan Mountains, the Sagarmatha National Park to be exact, and my solo ascent of Chukung Ri (5833m) and crossing the Nangpa la pass (5700m) from Nepal into Tibet. In each case, the vividness of my recollections seems to correlate exactly to the intensity of the trek and the effort expended, which is why the higher climbs stand out so much as the effort required to climb at high altitude with less oxygen is exponentially more.

something, as you are left with memories for life. It is ironic and somewhat paradoxical, therefore, to think that these moments, some of the most valuable moments, moments we remember and look back on with a sense of fulfilment and inner joy, are the very same moments that our psyche seems to avoid like the plague.

How often have you found yourself languishing in bed in the morning, looking for the will to get up to start your day, to throw on your trainers and head out for a run, or to head to the gym, or to the pool to flick a few laps? And how often, when you did raise the will to do it, did you regret it? I’m going to reflect on personal experience and hazard a guess at ‘Never’ or ‘Almost never’, because I can’t remember a time when rising early in the morning to do some exercise before work or on a weekend didn’t start my day on the right foot and leave me feeling great for the rest of the day, almost untouchable, reducing problems that arose to mere minor inconveniences.

When we read the biographies of successful people, which is something I highly recommend everyone to do, we find that it is effort that leads to excellence, and, more often than not, it is the early risers that seem to catch the worm. I first stumbled across this idea of rising early as the key to success and achievement when reading Henry David Thoreau’s On Walden Pond, which is one of the 8 classics of American literature.

As parents and teachers, we need to be teaching our children this: that true, lasting happiness, the sort that you can recall on a rainy day, comes from effort. It is important to give our children and students the chance to develop this view of life, which is why programmes such as the International Duke of Edinburgh Award Programme are so incredibly valuable. The more chances we offer to show that true reward comes for effort the better. For this reason, I will be forever grateful, and have to truly thank my Mum for dragging me up so many mountains as a child, both literally and metaphorically, as she helped me to learn one of life’s most incredibly valuable lessons. Thanks Mum!

By Kendall Peet Head of School

Taking this all together, my theory is that a large portion of the true value of life in the end is the sum of these moments, being times when you have worked hard to achieve 3

Deputy Head Thoughts Encourage respect, tolerance and desire to learn new things every day!

In a world where many things seem to happen in a way that more or less puts the future of our children in an uncertain perspective, in a world where the most powerful nations are developing mass destruction weapons, in a world where some of the developed and strong countries on the planet seem to encourage the opposite of respect, tolerance and equality of rights, the quote above becomes something that we all must remember and reflect upon.

“Education is the most powerful weapon that can change the world” -Nelson Mandela School and education is the MOST POWERFULL MEAN for all of us to change the world for the better. If we, who are supposed to be the adults and the ones making the decisions about our lives acknowledge the fact that education in our homes and in the school is the most valuable gift we can give our children, than they will have the chance to dream of a better future. I have always said that a healthy society can only be built on the base of a strong and rigorous education.

However, I must also say that by education I mean the process through which families and school manage to establish strong values and principles like respect, tolerance, empathy, integrity; by education I also mean the way we manage to inspire the children to become long life learners.

Yes, we must teach our children an academic curriculum that will enable them to develop their skills and abilities, but what use would that have if in the process we forget to implement and continually promote the values mentioned above. It is our responsibility to make sure our children live in a world where respect, tolerance and integrity are not just words used in essays and articles like this.

A positive and effective partnership between parents and schools is fundamentally important in the world we live today. We must realise that our children have access to so much information and tend to use the new “bible” of the 21st century (as I like to call the internet) as a very important source of information. The school and the family must represent the guidance that will enable them to filter the information and use it in a way that will help them grow.

A few important facts about bullying just in case you did not know!

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Over 3.2 million students are victims of bullying each year.

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Approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying.

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By age 14 less than 30% of boys and 40% of girls will talk to their peers about bullying.

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71% of students report incidents of bullying as a problem at their school.

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90% of 4th through 8th graders report being victims of bullying.

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1 in 10 students drop out of school because of repeated bullying.

As boys age they are less and less likely to feel sympathy for victims of bullying. In fact they are more likely to add to the problem than solve it. Physical bullying increases in elementary school, peaks in middle school and declines in high school. Verbal abuse, on the other hand, remains constant.

I wanted to raise this problem as we had the anti – bullying week in the school this term and it is strictly related to the article on the left. As a school, we are proud to say that we have a happy, friendly and safe environment. Having said that, we are aware that bullying does happen and it can take many forms. We have a number of policies and procedures in place in order to prevent and combat bullying as part of our Safeguarding practice. However, bullying can happen in a way that it is not detectable without vigilance from us (parents and teachers). This is why it is again very important for us to understand bullying, the implications and the effects that it has on our children. I encourage all parents to read the documentation on our school website and ask as many questions as necessary in order to understand the whole picture and fight against it in a strong partnership with the school.

Family and school – it is our duty and responsibility to recognise the signs and act on it as soon as possible in a way that will help both the victim and the bully. Reference to the quote on the top – we are all involved and we all must take action!

Ciprian Tiplea Deputy Head of School

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Community Action Service 6

Citizenship Day Clean Up Romania

Let’s do it Romania!

Another academic year and another striking event to kick it off. The annual Clean-Up, initiated by the organisation ‘Let’s Do It Romania’, brought together students from both Primary and Secondary School, teachers and parents alike to pick up the trash dumped in the Baneasa forest.

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..continued

Typically, the state is supposed to pick up this trash, however it is appropriate for us to pick it up as volunteers too; if they don’t do it, and we won’t do it, who will? Recently, there have been people who noticed that more and more minors are participating in voluntary work such as the forest clean up; it looks disgusting (and believe me, it can be…) yet it is an advantageous experience for the reason that we learn to treat nature with respect and we learn to cooperate with others.

This year’s clean-up gathered over 40 hefty bags of trash, and that doesn’t cover even a quarter of the whole forest! I personally enjoyed the whole experience, from beginning to end, and next year we are waiting for even more people to join in and help us!

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CAS Club The CAS Club is a team of students and teachers who fight for causes pertaining to people and animals in need. Throughout the course of the first school term this year, the CAS Club has accomplished many goals that help to make the world a better society.

the secondary school students while they got dressed up in Halloween costumes. Their afternoon continued by having the pleasure to go “trick or treating” all around the school as they collected candy from some of the IBSB staff. Everybody had a wonderful time thanks to those who donated costumes and candy and to Ms Katie, who organised the event. Together we One of the events we supported was World Animal Day. World helped build unforgettable memories for the children who live Animal Day is an international day of action for animal rights at Sfanta Macrina. and welfare, celebrated annually on October 4th. This year IBSB celebrated the event by having a bake sale and a competition for “The Crazy Pet Photo Contest”. This contest involved of students paying 5 RON to submit a funny photo of their pet in order to have a chance of winning a pizza party organised by the CAS team. All students in our school had a chance to vote for the best photo, and in the end, we raised 1,300 RON! Thanks to all the people who participated and donated money and tasty treats.

The CAS Club also decided to bring attention to the people of Haiti that fell victim to the wrath of Hurricane Matthew. On the 14th of October during the school's annual UN Day, we had our own stall providing a variety of activities and goodies.

These entailed hair braiding, face painting, lots of handpainted cards and delicious treats. The activities were thoroughly enjoyed by all who attended UN Day; there were even some boys who got their hair done and parents who got their faces painted. No restrictions on fun at our stalls!

Everything was for a donation of 5 or more RON. With all the contributions, we managed to raise 400 RON for the people who suffered the damage caused by this terrible storm.

Our most recent event was a Bake Sale aimed at raising funds for a thirteen-year-old boy suffering from Leukaemia, named Gabriel Lupu. Leukaemia is a deadly disease with only a 60% chance at life, also known as the cancer of the cells. Living in Dambovita, Gabriel is a bright student who dreams of becoming a police officer, however his parents cannot afford the expensive yet crucial treatment he needs to live. Although people close to the family have tried to help, the money they have to give is not enough. Our CAS club walked to the bank where we deposited it in Gabriel’s bank account. Any further donations could help at saving Gabriel’s life.

Overall, the CAS team had a very active term to start the year with many charity events in which we raised a lot of money for people and animals in need. We have also supported national and international causes which we will continue helping as much as we can.

Thank you to everyone who donated, as our fundraisers wouldn’t have been possible without you. We believe that our community can make this world a better place.

By Irina Chemencedji (Year 9)

On the 31st of October, the children from Sfanta Macrina, an orphanage neighbouring our school, joined us for a special Halloween party taking place at IBSB. The children had an enjoyable afternoon carving pumpkins together with some of 9

SPORTS 10

Citizenship Day Bucharest Marathon

The Bucharest marathon this year was on the sunny day of the 9th of October. About 14,000 people ran the marathon. Our school contributed with four teams made up of both students and teachers and each runner had about 10km of running to do. It was indeed challenging, however, all teams finished strongly.

It was a rewarding experience and I am very glad I participated as I learned a lot about my limits and I was very satisfied with myself.

It was also an event that IBSB has a lot to be proud of as we won 1st place trophy for the school with the most entries.

Well don’t to all the students, parents and teachers who showed that IBSB is a small school with a lions roar.

By Emilia Mihaescu (Year 12)

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Sports Day

This year’s Sports Day followed the tradition of bringing both teachers and students together for a full day of activities. Early in the morning the Prefects arrived at the Lia Manoliu Stadium to plan and prepare the events for the students.

The day started off with the 100m class race. The competition was tight between the houses in each class with everyone competing for the most house points.

Next up was the circuit in which each year was assigned a different activity; for the secondary school this included, shot put, high jump, long jump, dribbling and the 400m race. In the Primary School the activities included, sack race, dress up race, sack throwing, and many fun events. After each event was completed, the students rotated, thus ensuring everyone got to enjoy every activity.

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Winners!

and run for their teams. Many teachers including Ms Carman, As the day went on hundreds of house points were earned, Mr Morrison and Mr Storey participated and even our new and finally after everyone finished the circuit, the houses came Head of Secondary Mr Gowen. together for the highlight of the event; the relay race. Here the strongest and fastest students from each House were

Soon enough, the awards were given out. Students from each year received certificates and medals according to their place in each race and activity. Finally, the overall winner was announced: TRANSILVANIA! selected to give it all they had in a competition that put At a difference of more than a hundred house points, everyone on edge.

Transylvania was declared the new Sports Day winner and As the day drew to an end, the event that everyone was leading House thus far. The students cheered and praised their waiting for commenced; the infamous Parent/Student/ fellow colleagues and an atmosphere of joy swept the arena.

Teacher relay race! Everyone was encouraged to participate

By Alex Ciolan (Year 12) 13

WHITEBOARD 14

Welcome to Term 1a Welcome to the Primary School section of the Winter TIV. I wish to start by thanking all the contributors and the Primary TIV editor, Ms Andreea Rus, for their endeavour creating and editing our section. In this edition, Ms Andreea wanted to be more adventurous with the articles and involve the children more in the process. I love the fact that Ms Andreea and the team wanted to develop this further, to improve and extend, to be better – this is the very purpose of education after all.

We hope you enjoy the articles and appreciate the effort of our budding journalists and fearless editor.

The Big news for this term was IBSB gaining a place at next year’s COBIS Primary Games. The COBIS Games takes place at Stowe School in Buckinghamshire in the UK in April. It is an exciting and unique sporting event which draws together young people from around the world to take part in three days of competitive sport (swimming, athletics and football). Each school brings a team of 7 boys and 7 girls from Years 5 and 6, who take part in all the events. As I write, Mr Georgescu is conducting trials, but by the time you read this, the team will be known and training will have started in earnest. It is a fantastic opportunity for us and one the children have really embraced.

Other competitions coming up in Term 2 are the ESU Public Speaking Competition, open to all children in year 4 and above. We will host it again this year and hope to equal, or even better, our excellent results from last year. We will also have our inaugural spelling bee competition during the World Book Day celebrations in the Primary School as we continue to focus on good spelling for all.

This term we have already had the Kangaroo Romanian test with 41 children taking part (our biggest cohort yet) and we look forward to the Maths Kangaroo and UKMT Maths Challenge coming up soon. We have also had success in the Autumn Cup football competition with the Year 9 boys collecting the winner trophy and hope to defend our crown at the mini Olympics basketball competition next term. And to cap what has already been a fantastically successful term, IBSB won the Bucharest Marathon 2016 School Participation Award and Cup as we entered the most children in the race on a wet Saturday back in October. The level of involvement of our families in these endeavours never fails to amaze me. Maybe they were inspired by Mr Georgescu’s ultimate success in swimming the channel? I know I was.

Many of these events have been captured on our Facebook page, on the new and improved website and on Twitter. We publish the amazing exploits of our children every day on social media, so the world can see how brilliant they are.

Please follow us on Facebook or on Twitter @IBSBprimary or the many class pages set up by teachers in Key Stage 2, and you will get up to the minute updates on the brilliance that we see every day and an opportunity to interact with the daily life in the Primary School at IBSB. Let’s see what else we can achieve next term, we have only just started…

By Alan Cornish Head of Primary School 15

Early Years Investigate Night and Day This term, EYFS’s children were learning about Night and Day/ Sun and Moon.

The teachers encouraged children to talk about the Earth, the Sun, the Moon and various sources of light- natural light/man made light including the sun, moon, stars, candles, torches or matches. The children played with torches in the tent and in the den and had lots of fun. Now the children are learning how to tell the time and it is a good opportunity for them to revise numbers from 1 to 12. Every morning, the children from EYFS do physical brain gym activities which are meant to open the brain pathway for academic learning activities. Brain gym brings improvements in areas such as concentration, memory and physical coordination. “Movement is the door to learning.�- said Paul Dennison, the founder of this approach.

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Year 1C Building a Reading House This Term Year 1 started their first Art lesson by painting beautiful pictures which they used to decorate our reading house made out of cardboard.

The students had a lot of fun when they discovered that by mixing primary colours you can create new ones. They discovered how to make green, yellow, and purple and enjoyed using them in their art work.

After painting the pictures, the students cut and glued them on the walls of the house. They were very excited to see the results of their work and now they are happy to spend their reading time in a lovely house.

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Year 2D ICT is not a Secret Computing is a new subject introduced in the 2014 curriculum to replace ICT. Year 2 are always very excited and enthusiastic about visiting the ICT room every Wednesday. They love the challenges and opportunities offered by the technologically rich world in which we live.

This year, the children completed a range of different acitivities during their computing (ICT) lessons. They are becoming increasingly confident logging on and off the computer, most can now navigate different software programs and have started to use Google search to research different topics.

Offline, the students have also been working hard creating their own algorithms to direct each other walking in different shapes on the playground. They are also coming to grips with turning left and right and instructing a program to turn left or right 90 degrees. More recently, they have started to put all of this information into practise and are now creating simple programs on the computer. They recently wrote a program that made balloons disappear when clicked.

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Year 3 Discovering Ancient Egypt Year 3 had a very exciting start to the year with their Egyptian topic. The children were all very enthusiastic when learning about Egyptian traditions. They especially enjoyed learning about mummification, writing instructions about the mummification process and even mummifying each other in houses.

Even though some children found the topic disgusting, they were all very intrigued by canopic jars and the process of mummification.

As part of this topic we had a very exciting Egyptian day. The children were all given a costume to dress up like an Egyptian.

They wrote on papyrus paper using Egyptian hieroglyphics and even travelled to the pyramids in Giza by using virtual reality glasses! They were amazed at how big the pyramids were and especially loved seeing the sphinx. For their projects at the end of the term, the children created their own Egyptian gods or created models of pyramids to showcase what they learned. They had great fun throughout the topic and have become very knowledgeable about the ancient Egyptians. Ask them to share a fact about the Egyptians with you.

One of their favourite tasks was making an Egyptian mask. The children had to use Papier-Mache to make the mold, paint their own design on the front and construct a headdress. This process involved great perseverance but I am sure you will agree that the final products look amazing!

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Year 4M

A taste of Wales What a fantastic time we had on this day! We were very fortunate to be joined by two teachers from Wales, both of whom teach in Welsh schools, are in Welsh choirs, and have won numerous Welsh dancing competitions. The children had already been learning about the UK during the term and it was a great opportunity to enrich their understanding and experience. As soon as the morning started they were keen to share the facts they had learnt about the UK’s geography and culture with our visitors. Ms Jones and Ms Ifans were impressed by how detailed they remembered their facts.

Good job Year 4!

Next we tried out some Welsh folk dancing steps. To start with it was a bit of a challenge, but in no time they got it! When it came to putting all the steps together the children were smiling and laughing with each other, evidently having fun. Up and down the aisle of children they danced, creating bridges, skipping and clapping. The children were mesmerised. At the end they all cheered and it was great hearing them speak about how much they had enjoyed their Welsh experience.

Throughout the day, I could hear them humming the tune of one of the Welsh songs and having a go at the ‘clocsio’, an experience I’m sure they’ll remember fondly. So, I wonder what country we will study next and what experience we will have?

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Year 40 Nature The Year 4 class was really excited when they discovered their new topic this term – A Bug’s Life. In connection with this topic we looked at the characteristics of living and non- living things and researched interesting information relating to many bugs. On our trip to Cismigiu Park we went on a mini beast hunt, and were amazed to see the different locations where they could be found around the park. We studied the various types of mini beasts and carried out observations using a microscope. In pairs we made predictions as to the types of various trees and flowers in the park. Our results were very interesting, and when we presented our midterm projects in class, it was evident to see we learned a lot of interesting facts during this topic!

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Year 5E Spooky Surprises at Halloween IBSB celebrated Halloween in style this year, with a party organised by our PTF. The party was a little early - on 26th November to be precise – but Year 5 started thinking about Halloween earlier in the day by writing some scary, atmospheric stories!

imagination we were able to describe other occurrences that cranked up the fear factor!

Next, the students planned and wrote their own stories, with the emphasis on describing things using spooky imagery and carefully chosen vocabulary.

The class really enjoyed the session and produced some bloodcurdlingly creepy stories. Egyptian mummies, haunted houses and unusual Halloween parties all featured, leaving First of all, we read a story about a student coming to school Miss Oana and Mr Ennion petrified! late at night to pick up her homework. The dark, empty building provided us with a haunting setting, and with a little

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Year 6M Science is fun In Year 6 we discovered that Science lessons can be lots of fun! We’ve been looking at microorganisms and finding out which ones are good and which ones are harmful for us. We found that there are microorganisms like yeast that make it possible to make bread. So we decided to give it a try and make some ourselves. Yeast is a microorganism used in the food industry! Later on, we visited the Danone factory, where we got to see how all dairy products are being made also with the help of growing microorganisms. Even though they are invisible they play such a big part in our lives!

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Year 6P Made by us Year 6P had the pleasure to go on a very nice trip to MADEBYYOU ceramic and painting workshop, on the 18th of November. The students spent two enjoyable hours there, in which they shaped clay creating fine brooches, and after that they painted them by using Romanian national patterns. The whole place looks very beautiful, inspiring and artistic. The children were delighted to play with the different paints and tools that they used in pottery. At the end of the visit we thanked to our great instructors and left our pieces of art to be dried up in a special oven. They will be brought to school a bit later, so that all Year 6P students can wear them proudly on first of December. Here are some wonderful photos of the students enjoying their time at MADEBYYOU.

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Coffee Mornings

Back to School Parent-Teacher Coffee Mornings This was the 5th year running the back to school parent coffee mornings, which we always host at the beginning of the school year. They offer our parents a great opportunity to meet the new class teachers, to meet other parents with children in the same class, and together to hear about some of the routines and expectations in a relaxing environment over a cup of tea or coffee. It was a time for parents to ask questions and to receive answers not just from the class teacher, but also from other parents who have been at the school and know a lot about how the school works.

This year we had two well attended coffee mornings, with around 120 primary school parents in all coming along to Casa Jienilor to talk and share a coffee and croissant. Friendships were made, relationships developed, parent understanding we hope greatly enhanced, and a good time enjoyed by everyone present.

IBSB Parent-Teacher Coffee Morning are now a wellestablished tradition that will continue to be a prominent part of the Term 1a School Calendar.

By Alan Cornish (Head of Primary School) 26

Halloween Party Halloween - what a night! Gruesome, spooky, scary and sinister are not words usually associated with the Primary School, but they are perfect words to describe the Primary School Halloween Party which took place this year on Wednesday, October 26, from 6.00-8.30pm. The costumes were amazing, the venue perfect, the fun levels high and the feedback great. There were tears at the end as some didn't want the party to end and there were a few tired eyes on Thursday morning. Thank you to Kiddoland for organising the evening so well, for the PTF for their continued involvement and Dacris for supplying the prizes for our competition winners.

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Winter Show Spectacular

One of the highlights of any school year is, without doubt, the away at the end. It was a great event to bring the first term children’s amazing performance at the Winter Show, which h toward a fitting end. took place this year at the Tandarica Theatre on Wednesday,

By Alan Cornish December 7th. What was special about this year for all Head of Primary students, parents, and staff, was that this year, for the first time in 5 years, we had the whole Primary School, from the youngest in Early Years to the oldest in Year 6, perform on stage.

Reflecting back now, there were so many positives to take away from the evening- it was certainly clear how much time and effort they had put into the rehearsals. The stand out for me, though, was the children’s poise and confidence during their performance and the clear expression of joy on all their faces as they sang, acted, danced and entertained us. It was a special evening and I was happy to see so many of our parents there sharing the memories that will for all of us, I am sure, last a life time.

Thank you to our teachers for all their support, to the students for all their hard work learning their lines and practicing until perfect, to the parents for supporting the Winter Raffle and coming along to enjoy the night, and to the support staff for setting everything up on the night and clearing everything 28

And more pictures

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Year 6 Interview -Channeling your inner champion – An interview with Paul Georgescu

question. “Do you still want to continue?” At that point, I remembered you, my students, and I looked at your names written on my arms and I felt encouraged to continue this challenge and I succeeded.

Now that you have succeeded, what are your plans for the future?

My plan for 2017 is to finish in the top three in one of the most challenging swimming competitions in Europe, the Zurich Lake Competition. There, I will have to swim in 20 degree water for 26.5km. I also want to finish in the top three in an open water competition in Turkey, crossing the Bosphorus, starting in Europe and finishing in Asia. I am sure it will be a great experience and the distance is only 6.5km.

What is it like swimming in the open waters of the English Channel compared to an Olympic Pool?

There’s a big difference because in the open water you need to be constantly aware of your position. Also, you must look ahead to see where you’re heading, then you have to fight the waves without wasting all your energy. For me, as a water How was Mr. Georgescu as a student? polo player, it was easier to adapt my swimming style for the I started water polo when I was six years old. I was quite good open waters of the English Channel; I am used to changing directions quickly while swimming more than a normal in school also; I used to get prizes for good results at school. swimmer.

When did you find out that swimming was the best sport for you?

I come from an athletic family, my father was a water polo coach and my mother was a handball player on the national team. So I chose water polo and my father took me to all the training camps with the national team. I was there for their training because I didn’t have much of a choice. Finally, I chose swimming and somehow I started to like it even though at first I didn’t like it too much.

When did you win the first competition?

I won a competition in water polo when I was 10 or 11 years old, but I won my first title in swimming in an open water What advice would you give to the students in this school competition in Buftea Lake. I remember that I was the pursuing a career in sports? youngest contestant I think I was 7 years old when I received First of all, at your age, you need to like what you’re doing and my first prize. always aim high with your dreams. You always have to try to What motivated you to swim across the English Channel? be better than yourself and not comparing yourself to others.

For sure you will experience hard times practicing a sport to a At first, I wanted to break the world record, but I didn’t high level, but you need to persevere in order to achieve. manage to. Then, I found motivation in you, my students; I wanted to teach you to never give up, even when things get hard. After two hours of swimming, fighting with strong waves

By Sara Podgoreanu (Year 6 M) and feeling nauseous from the effort, my observer asked me a 30

Photos from the Swim

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ALUMNI 32

Life after IBSB

I never knew what to expect from university or from university life before I walked onto the Warwick campus, but I have to say that I was very pleasantly surprised and that I have enjoyed my first term very much.

Everyone tells you it is completely different to anything you have done so far and that it is nothing like high school – things that make logical sense, but you can’t really understand entirely unless you have had the relevant experience (here I may be accused of adopting an empiricist view – but never mind my digression to philosophy; this is a symptom of studying the subject, you tend to digress frequently and not always usefully).

For me, the most striking aspect of university life in general is that, in comparison to high school, everything seems to be enlarged by a scale factor of 1000: large lecture theatres in even larger buildings where you inevitably get lost once or twice; masses of students (Warwick has around 13,000 undergraduates) and the diversity of nationalities are all factors that truly distinguish the university experience from anything else so far- at least in my case.

There are also many more opportunities to get involved in all sorts of extracurricular activities, from sports, to debating, to

ballroom dancing: there is a society for anything and everything, and if somehow there is no society for something you wish to do, you can easily go ahead and set it up yourself.

I joined the Piano Society, the Climbing Society, and the Debating Society, although I wasn’t involved in the latter two so much this term: better time management is required on my behalf!

At first, all of these may be overwhelming as you have to get accustomed to everything in a very short amount of time.

However, the one thing that makes everything better – and fun – is the fact that you meet some amazing people along the way. I have already made a few really good friends with whom I still keep in touch over the winter break and with whom I found that I have lots of things in common; it is, I dare say, highly unlikely statistically speaking to not find people with similar interests, preoccupations, and hobbies as you, simply due to the fact that, as I have said before, there are just so many students from all possible backgrounds; this diversity is I think what makes university life so special and so much fun and something that should be enjoyed to its fullest, because I think that I will not have this experience again any time soon after I finish university, or even ever again.

By Andrei Dogaru (Former IBSB Students) 33

SCHOOL EVENTS 34

DofE Visit S: From your point of view, how does having participated in the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award help you in the future?

R: I can tell you straight away that it helps you in a huge way.

Firstly, this programme is recognized by numerous top-notch universities around the world. It acts as an enhancement for your CV and any other applications. Secondly, it helps you to strengthen your independence and skills since we offer a huge range of both physical and mental activities.

On Tuesday, Sept. 6th during Life Skills, the year 10 and 11 students had a presentation from Ms “Ruxy” Florescu of the DofE organisation.

S: How many students usually attend this programme?

R: Well...depends on the level they chose. This year we are very proud to say that over 700 students across Romania enrolled for the Bronze Award S: Wow that is surely a big step-up from the previous years.

R: Indeed!

S: So, another question: Do you notice a change in the young people that complete the programme?

R: Most students say that they have become more confident in their personal skills, much more organized, and more tolerant.

S: There is a pretty big satisfaction coming from working in such a unique programme, therefore I must ask you, for how many years have you been a part of this?

R: I started as a volunteer in 2010, then joined the National Team after 1 year and a half and continued from there on.

S: In other words, a great opportunity! Since we are coming towards the end, I have one last question: What are the differences between the levels for any newcomers that might be wondering?

R: BRONZE Service = 3 months, physical=3 months, skills= 3 moths + 2 DAY ADVENTUROUS JOURNEY SILVER Service = 6 months, physical=6 months, skills=6 months, + 3 DAY ADVENTUROUS JOURNEY GOLD service =12 months, physical=12 months, skills= 12 months + 5 DAY RESIDENTIAL TRIP (a project-based activity away from home) The beauty of the programme is that you get to choose the activities you want to do in the sections (who you give service to and what you offer, for example) and you develop the skills and interests that you want.

There are also preparation classes which you must attend in order to be able to take part, first aid, risk assessment, etc.

S: Thank you very much for taking a minute off for this interview! Enjoy the rest of your day!

For more further support please take a look at: http://www.dofe.org/ P.S.: Following the Award National Authority visit, our school has been validated as a Duke of Edinburgh International Award Unit as we have given proof that we can offer the programme to the quality standards required internationally!

There is one more reason for you to join in the programme and enjoy the outcome: your personal growth that comes from touching the lives of many other people.

By Mir Shirin (Year 10C)

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UN Day ascended onto the stage to greet the audience in their native languages. Some students even came dressed in their national costumes, making the segment even more interesting.

Our Guest Speaker from this year was Olympic Gold Medallist, Valeria Van Groningen, who talked about how sport has the power to unite people from all around the world.

United Nations Day, typically celebrated on the 24th of October, marks the anniversary of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter. On this day, the United Nations officially came into being with its five permanent members of To finish off the day, students were able to watch various the Security Council. 24 October has been celebrated as UN traditional songs and dances through which they were able to experience the traditions and cultures of other countries.

Day since 1948.

This year, the annual IBSB UN Day took place on the 14th of October. Predictably, it was a huge success! The day started off with arguably the most important and the most popular aspect of the day: the food. Our school’s generous parents have never failed to impress us, and this year was no exception. The array of food represented a plethora of countries, from Turkey to India, from Israel to our very own Romania. The appreciation of students and parents alike for the food showed through the long and never-ending line near the food tables.

After the food came the international greetings. One by one, our hosts and fellow classmates Maria Ion and David SpiruDakas presented the students from many countries, as they 36

This day is especially important for our school, as it represents the unity and collaboration of the many nationalities that we represent, and on a larger scale, the harmony and alliance of the countries of our world.

and more

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Romanian National Day

On the 29th of November the IBSB Community celebrated Romanian map, using different colours for each region that the Romanian National Day, which is officially celebrated became part of the Great Romanian Kingdom. Year 6 each year on the 1st of December. students even had the opportunity to take part into a ceramic workshop where they created their own brooches made out of clay and painted in Romanian flag colours, using traditional patterns, in order to explore a Romanian tradition. All in all, everybody enjoyed this experience, decorating our school with Romanian flags, wearing beautiful Romanian traditional costumes, and singing popular music tunes.

In fact, the entire week at IBSB was dedicated to this special event with our students involved in various activities based on this theme. They learned about Romania’s participation in the First World War and about the Great Unification on the The highlight of the day was the big ‘hora’ which took place 1st of December, 1918. They were introduced to some on Friday during normal assembly time, where we all danced Romanian geographical features, as they had to draw the in concentric circles, as a symbol of the unification and spiritual communion. We used this celebration as a chance to pay our respect to all Romanian soldiers who sacrificed their lives so we can live today in a free, reunited country.

We would like to say a BIG ‘Thank you!’ to all those parents who enthusiastically supported us and joined in our hora.

This was a memorable way of celebrating the Romanian National Day and we are determined to turn this into a big tradition here at IBSB. To help us make it an even more successful experience next year, please send us your ideas for next year!

By Ana Maria Boiangiu (Romanian Teacher) 38

Caledonian Ball The Annual Light into Europe, Caledonian Ball

On the night, everyone was dressed in their very best attire, looking glamorous, as the champagne toast announced the It was my third year participating in the prestigious Caledonian beginning of our dance. Thankfully we didn’t let our Ball. For the readers that have not heard of this event before, nervousness get the best of us, successfully completing our it is a grand ball organised by the charity “Light into Europe”, dances without missing a beat. which provides support to the sight and hearing impaired; this event’s intent is to raise funds and to create an opportunity so The rest of the night flowed seamlessly, with delicious Scottish that everyone can have a chance of experiencing Scottish cuisine- of course, referring to the traditional Haggis- and the culture. dancing of all the astonishing dances we were taught. It was also great to see the determination and dexterity of those dancing for the first time as they enthusiastically joined in.

After all these years of participating in this event, I would like to give the greatest thanks to Mr Platt; an incredibly kind and caring man who I have had the great fortune of getting to know these past years.

The step in preparing for this ball, from the students point of view, is to find a group of senior students willing to join the weekly dance rehearsals in order to learn the various different dances that will be performed on the night to perfectionthough still paling in comparison to Mr Platt’s dancing skills.

Even though to some practice on a Sunday night might be considered a burden, to us it was a joy, every time performing the dances hand in hand with smiles on our faces from laughing so hard at the mistakes made, as the music played on – it was an atmosphere of ecstasy that was downright contagious.

And just to show you that I am not biased, I thought to share with you the perspective offered by a student who partook in this event for the first time: ‘Taking part in the Caledonian Ball was an amazing experience which gave me the opportunity to meet new people and learn more about Scottish culture. Being able to learn traditional Scottish dances and dance them in front of highly success members of society is something I’ll never forget- as Captain Platt told us, “These dances will remain with you forever.”

What made the event so special is that so many cultures were brought together and enjoyed a wonderful night of food, music and intricate dancing. This night served as a vivid reminder that a great cause can bring people together.’

By Mihnea Radulescu (Year 12) and Maria Ion (TIV Editor)

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Science Fair The annual IBSB Science Fair was a success yet again!

Throughout Key Stage 3, the Science Fair has brought out the originality and creativity in students, presenting projects which piqued the judges’ interest and gave them a hard time deciding upon ratings for the projects. It was an opportunity for the students to channel their inner scientist and apply their knowledge by demonstrating an experiment of their choice followed by an explanation of its workings. The whole affair is set up as a contest with the goal of preparing the most innovative, practical, and educative experiment. Seeing their creative minds come up with fascinating experiments can be a source of great thought for older students, whilst being fun as well as educational for the younger ones.

thus compare and match DNA molecules from different individuals. Interestingly, this seemingly state of the art technology was recreated by the boys using only a battery, a plastic tub, some gel, and a solution of baking soda.

Following the observation stage and questioning about the projects came the time of debate upon rating the projects based on poster design and information, oral presentation, real-life applicability, originality and creativity.

Winning the fair in first place was Haesung, Irina, Sophia and Dandan’s project, titled “Dry ice”, closely followed by Kathleen, Ana and Meea with their project on “Homemade Hand Warmer”, and Ishika and Melissa who participated with “Multiplying Microbes”.

This year, Ishika and Melissa were able to expose just how dirty our cell phones can get by cultivating a sample of bacteria taken from a phone and comparing it with samples taken from other surfaces often considered to be unclean. To the surprise of many, the school bathroom floor turned out to be cleaner than our average phone!

Congratulations to the winners and to all participants who contributed to this year’s IBSB Science Fair. We hope to have such a fruitful event in the years to come!

By Boris Radovanovic (Year 13) Detectives Boldizsar, Gekko, and Vianayak recreated a device used to carry out gel electrophoresis; a process often used in criminal forensics and genetics among others, to separate and 40

Enterprise Trading Game BP Global, one of the leading oil and gas companies in the world, has just created an “Enterprise Trading Game” dedicated to enabling young people to learn about real-life trading situations.

The trading game involves buying and selling barrels of oil, given the current market price and various news bulletins that would influence future prices. Students have to use their knowledge of business and economics to decide whether to buy/sell their own stocks, and if so how much. Teams also have to fill out financial reports to keep track of their transactions and submit trading request forms to me.

Having first played the oil trading game within our Y11 economics’ group, the three teams quickly caught onto what they were supposed to do, and set effective strategies revolving around the current and predictable price levels to maximise profit. After a few practice rounds, all teams were ready to compete, which is to say to begin trading. The ones who made it through with the most profit was team OG China, made up of Siena Jiayi Xia, Li Yi and Octav Grigore, who managed a winning balance using bearish and bullish approaches. Congratulations!

team's chair, Ioana B. from Y10, felt that their success was attributed to the fact that she was not an authoritarian leader, trusting her teammates to act responsibly in accordance with the best knowledge at hand.

Congratulations BlackGold, and to all the teams that participated in this trading event. I am sure everyone would agree with me when I say that it provided an incredibly fun learning experience!

Taking the experience from the first games in Y11, I then managed the following games with the Y10 group, who showed great enthusiasm and involvement. In fact, one group’s determination to win was especially noticeable to me please note that we do not encourage bribery.

After the game, students had the opportunity to reflect on their strategies during company meetings and learned the importance of balancing risk and safety to maximise profits.

We certainly look forward to trying out this activity again in the future!

However, their bullish approach enabled this eager team to a

By Luiza Ruptureanu (Year 11) win in the practice rounds, but proved to be too risky in the trading rounds, leaving the leading spot to team BlackGold Inc., composed of Ioana Balan, Gekko, Alima and Vinayak. This 41

Sir Winston Churchill

What an extraordinary chance to represent IBSB in the 8th year of the Sir Winston Churchill “Future Leaders” debate competition! It was actually the first to feature schools from outside Romania – 2 to be precise. Can you imagine how far IBSB has come when all schools used to previously be from our country? It was indeed a challenge for IBSB’s team, comprised of Luiza, Gekko, Milena, Tamara, Christie and myself to compete against experienced Year 12 and 13 students.

Nonetheless, we took up the challenge, assuming the responsibility formerly held by our Year 13 team, and surprised all the other teams by gaining third place – something we would never have anticipated.

The day began at 8:30 (don’t even think that we got to come in later and sleep more), in line with a normal school day, with an official welcome and introduction speech. The day carried on with the official prepared debates, the motion being “This house believes that monarchies should be abolished”, where I got to chair the debate with the French School who defended the motion, and EIC (English International College in Marbella, Spain) who were Team Opposition. There is truly something satisfying about ringing the bell, monitoring the time, and announcing the winners at the end – don’t you think? The other two debates were as follows: ISB (Proposition) vs BSB (Opposition) and BSN/The British School in the Netherlands (Proposition) vs IBSB (Opposition). EIC, BSB, and our team You may ask who ended up winning. Well, you’ll have to stick came out victorious! around until the end to find that out.

Next, we had the first round of impromptu. IIBSB (Proposition) To quickly define what the Sir Winston Churchill debating faced off against the French School (Opposition), debating the competition is: a European debating competition where six motion “This house believes that people from minorities or schools, each with their respective teams and coaches, clash in disadvantaged backgrounds should be given preference when a series of prepared and impromptu (motion given on the applying for university”. It was a heated battle, when after a point; teams have 30 minutes to prepare speeches) debates very intense moment of thought for both judges, ended in a for the prestigious honour of earning first place, or making it draw. As for the other teams, EIC (Proposition) won the battle to the finals. against ISB (THBT marriage is outdated), and BSB (Proposition) won against ISB (THBT universal education should be free).

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3rd Place! squeeze ourselves into the semifinals. Of course, we cannot forget that without Miss Blessy’s commitment and passion, we would’ve never made it this far.

We faced off against our long time adversaries and nemesis – BSB. The motion was “This house believes that humanity should fear the advancement of A.I.”, where we chose to oppose it. After a long, tedious and well-fought fight, BSB came out on top. Two judges agreed that they won, but one thought the contrary; it’s the thought that we weren’t easily defeated and that one judge stood by us that counts. As for the other round, EIC beat the French School (3-0 judges for EIC winning).

Now, that we’ve gotten to the final, let me get the winner out of the way really quick: yes, BSB did end up winning. But it wasn’t by a landslide; by any means, it was extremely close.

At first it was a 2-2 draw, but after a long discussion, the judges sitted with BSB and agreed that BSB did get the slight edge. Just in case you were curious, the motion was “This house believes that genetic modification should be banned”, where BSB was the opposition. We should also take pride in EIC for not only being such a great team but for also having the best debater overall: Kamryn Rana.

Next came a 5 star buffet where we took a moment to talk to the other teams about their mornings performances, establishing new bonds and friendships. Yes, you may have had more fun at school, but here we experienced a different kind of fun. The extraordinary moment then came to be; the announcement of the semi-finalists. We all crossed our fingers, hoping for the best, and then we finally found out that we had indeed made it through! By way of our powerful arguments, determination and teamwork, we managed to Thank you to our Head of School, Mr Peet for once again organising this competition and for his valuable advice helping to prepare us for this years competition , by encouraging us to think outside the box.

What I gathered from this competition was that winning isn’t what counts the most, but participating and sharing the experience and a sense of competitiveness with other schools. My last words should go to our team for such a fantastic job! Thank you to all who helped make this happen; It was indeed the team’s effort.

By Maximilian Mihailovici (Year 9B) 43

SCHOOL VIEWS 44

FOOD GLORIOUS WISDOM students feast on the food for the soul that is always available in the dining area on the pillars that support the ceiling.

On the pillars there are boards with inspirational quotations from great people of the past. Benjamin Disraeli, a C19th British Prime Minister and great favourite of Queen Victoria, says on one board, ‘The secret of success is constancy of purpose.’ In an era when Prime Ministers were often quite young Disraeli did not become Prime Minister until he was 64 years old. He did indeed show constancy of purpose as will all of us if we are to achieve our goals.

On another board Einstein has written, ’In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.’ Today in many educational establishments the talk is of positive mindset. Challenge is good for the soul and for the brain. I wonder how many of us know that Einstein could not speak fluently until he was nine years old and that at eighteen he was refused entry to Zurich Polytechnic. Schools do indeed need to develop resilience in students so that challenges can be embraced as learning opportunities.

Fine Dining at IBSB What makes a great restaurant? Food, glorious food most definitely; an excellent and affordable wine list certainly. Food and wine together will contribute to a lovely atmosphere I am sure, but the ambience and the messages in the restaurant are also important. It has been said that ‘Food for the body is not enough. There must be food for the soul also.’ I am not for one moment suggesting that the dining room at IBSB is ever going to be a fine food restaurant, although some may argue that with some imagination it may indeed become a fine example of its type.

On another board one can read the famous quotation of Mahatma Gandhi that encourages us all to be the change that we wish in the world In relation to food Mother Theresa said, ‘If you can’t feed a hundred people then feed just one.’ I sense here that Mother Theresa uses food to include all forms of support and comfort to others in less fortunate places than ourselves. . I have been very impressed by the significant amount of charity outreach work that takes place at IBSB. The school clearly has a very selfless soul and long may this continue.

So there is much wisdom available to be digested in the IBSB dining room as well as pictures encouraging us all to eat five pieces of fruit and vegetable a day. Virginia Wolf wrote that, ‘One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.’ I could not agree more and I urge us to all feed not only our bodies but also our souls.

By Duncan Gowen Head of Secondary

It is true that at lunchtimes plenty of food for the body is consumed, the company is obviously convivial with discussions covering a range of school and non-school topics occurring across and between tables. I wonder though how many of the 45

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New Secondary Teachers Why did you choose IBSB? There were lots of other options that I could choose as well, but the main things that we wanted to get from this placement and coming across here is that we wanted to be closer to our family, who are all in England. We found that being in Thailand was way too far away, a 13-hour flight, massive time difference, and a lot of Skyping. So we wanted to come back to Europe. Coming back from Asia to Europe and teaching can be quite difficult, so we needed really to come more to the eastern European countries rather than west mainland Europe,and we needed to go somewhere that had a good school reputation as well.

What do you think of it now?

It is absolutely everything completely opposite to my previous school in every single way! It’s tiny in comparison to my other school. It has very friendly students, as my daughter stated, and for me a huge difference is everyone’s ability in regards to the English language. It’s far superior to what I was dealing with in Thailand. It’s an inner-city school, so everything is in close reach, as opposed to where we were before in the countryside.

Did you get a chance to explore Romania?

Only Bucharest at the moment, but family are coming over in the holidays and we are planning on going to Brasov in order to ski since we all like skiing.

Adela: Good luck with that.

Ms Jayne Baker (Secondary School Business Studies Teacher)

By Adela Ciobotaru and Ioana Serban (Year 10)

Where do you come from?

I’m from Bristol, in the United Kingdom, which is about the fifth biggest city in England.

Where did you teach before IBSB? I was teaching in Thailand beforehand. I was there for two years, at quite a big school in a place called Pattaya, which is around one hour and a half south from Bangkok. And even before that I was teaching in a tiny little island called Bahrain in the Middle East and I was there for five years.

Adela: So you like travelling?

Yes, it’s become a part of my life; it hadn’t been up until seven years ago.

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& more Where are you from?

I’m from Thessaloniki, Greece.

Where did you teach before?

I was teaching in Greece for over 10 years in public schools.

Why did you choose IBSB? First of all, I chose Romania, so I moved here, then I had to look for a job; I had several applications from companies and schools, but teaching is what I do so it’s closer to me.

What do you think about it?

Everything is new to me because it is a different curriculum that I have to learn. it’s a private school and I’ve been used to public schools, so there are things that I have to learn or situations that I have to adjust to, so I’m still in the learning process.

Did you get a chance to explore Romania?

Ms. Eleni Lytra (Secondary School Mathematics Teacher)

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Yes, I’ve been to Sinaia, to Brasov, and I really liked Bran Castle. Bucharest is very green, more than Greece I would say, but I still have things to explore; I have to find time though.

Science Camp USA Nasa On the 4th of September, I had the opportunity to visit Los Angeles through a Science Camp. We visited the California Science Center where there were many interactive simulations and activities, such as a Space Flight simulator or an airplane ride. In addition, we visited the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and Caltech and talked to some students there. I really enjoyed speaking to students directly because they gave me another perspective towards student life.

Alongside the beautiful ocean, glamorous Hollywood, and California sun, what really surprised me was the amount of poverty in Los Angeles. This proved that only the few 'lucky' stars got to live a wonderful life in Los Angeles, and it’s a place many people fantasize about that really isn't as amazing as it sounds.

On the other hand, I noticed that a lot of money is invested in Science. This is great as it increases the interest in Science and innovation, which shapes the future. It was an amazing experience for me to go on this trip, to see so many cool museums and businesses such as Google because it really opened my eyes to the opportunities the USA provides to those interested. Overall, it is a worthwhile and exciting experience visiting an area of the world that features some of the best people and products related to your personal interest, in my case, Astronomy and Science in general.

By Elena Urzica (Year 12) 49

Head Prefect Message

From left to right: Catrinel Craiu (Head Girl) , Dilara Yildiz ( Deputy Head Girl) , Marilu Verdes (6th Form Student)

Hi! My name is Catrinel Craiu. I’m in year 13 and I had the immense pleasure of being elected to the post of this year’s Head Girl. I am very happy to be in a position in which I can give back to a community which has helped me grow as a person, as well as achieve my full potential. I sincerely hope that our Prefect body will make everyone proud this year.

I’d like to take a moment to congratulate everyone chosen to be part of the Prefect body this year: Dilara (Deputy Head Girl), Maria I. (TIV Prefect), Adriana (Pastoral Care Prefect), Boris (Science Prefect), Alex C ( Sport Prefect), Elena (Events Prefect), Maria P. (Events Prefect), Emmy (Events Prefect), Andrei Marin (Pastoral Care Prefect) and Sorana (Maths Prefect). They are all very committed, creative and overall amazing people and I am very proud to be able to lead them.

As IBSB Senior Prefects, we have the responsibility to organise events such as the Winter Ball, and mentor students individually or as a group. Each of us is assigned a Senior School class and a Primary School class where we serve as role models. We aim to be there for everyone and offer advice whenever it is needed.

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This year’s goal is to be more involved and more approachable and we are all very determined to achieve it! If there are any issues, we hope that no one will hesitate in approaching one of us to discuss anything from bullying incidents, if they occur, to personal issues or academic matters.

Let’s have a great year!

Prefects 2016-2017

Catrinel Craiu

Dilara Yildiz

Adriana Bajescu

Maria Ion

Head Prefect

Deputy Head Girl

Pastoral Care Prefect

TIV Prefect

Boris Radovanovic

Alexandru Ciolan

Andrei Marin

Elena Urzica

Science Prefect

Sport Prefect

Pastoral Care Prefect

Sport Prefect

Emilia Mihaescu

Maria Popescu

Sorana Cristea

Events Prefect

Events Prefect

Mathematics Prefect

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Student Council

Bottom Row from left to right: Christie V. (Year 9B), Alexia V. ( Year 7), Stefan Gruia P. (Year 8), Bianca S. (Year 12) Top Row from right to left : Radu B. (Year 10), Anna M. (Year 11A), Timeea T. (Year 11B), Mihnea R. (Year 13)

Get Involved , Have your say!

The student Council represents an important part of the IBSB community; it contributes significantly to improving the life of students not only scholastically but also in the extracurricular programs. They use students’ views and opinions to have a positive impact on the school life and therefore strongly believe in the view that “every student matters”.

For the future they are planning to buy board games in order to make winter break times more fun and enjoyable for the students. Also, they wish to organize a movie night.

The student Council consists of Alexia V. ( Year 7), Stefan Gruia P. (Year 8), Milena R. (Year 9A), Christie V. (Year 9B), Radu B. (Year 10), Anna M. (Year 11A), Timeea T. (Year 11B), Bianca S. (Year 12), Mihnea R. (Year 13) and their main It represents an honor for the elected members and also a responsibility is to work together in order to change the great responsibility as they are the ones who represent the school for the better, and represent the voices of the students as a whole. Therefore, if any students have concerns students. or views regarding the school life they should not hesitate to address them to their class representative.

By Maria Popescu (Year 12) Since the beginning of the year they have organized bake sales and non-uniform days in order to raise money for Light into Europe and will continue to raise funds for different causes and charities as they have a strong collaboration with the environment committee and the CAS program.

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COBIS Leadership Week

The Student Leadership Weekend offers the senior Prefects from IBSB and other schools from Qatar, France, Egypt, Slovakia, Romania, Portugal and Spain the opportunity to increase academic skills and develop professional and managerial skills for both the future and the present.

perfectly presented. This course covers leadership skills, teaching the different types, and traits of a leader; presentation and body language skills, making me and others more aware of our actions and habits; even social media teachings and projects were made (that you may also find on Youtube). We also had some great free time to visit Madrid My expectations for the weekend in Madrid were high from itself, including the Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor and even a the start. Just the idea of learning and working together with 1920’s style party. students from around the world made me think just how much this course must be worth. My prediction was never Students that look forward to becoming a senior Prefect compromised throughout the trip. From the students should aim to attend the student leadership weekend; it is an themselves to the course and course leaders, everything was experience that is never forgotten and provides life-long fascinating. lessons of value.

The course offered me so much in only three days: the lessons were interactive, filled with extensive knowledge and were

By Andrei Marin (Year 11)

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Keeping our children Safe Some of the questions to ask yourself before you decide what to do are:

There comes a moment when we must allow our child to go out on into the world their own or with friends. It’s a natural part of their growing up process, but it can also be challenging for parents not only because there is no set age when you know it will be safe for your child to go out, but also because some of the risks they might face now are different than the ones we grew up with.

Risks could include:

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getting lost

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danger from traffic

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bullying from other children

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stranger danger

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Where and when do they want to go?

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What do they want to do there?

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Who's going to be with them?

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How far away are they going?

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What time will they be back?

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How can I reach them?

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What should you do in order to make sure that your child is ready to go out alone?

First of all, be prepared. You know that this moment will come so you should both start preparing for it.

Also, start talking about the dangers. For example, you could ask them about how they know when it's safe to cross a road, what to do if a stranger starts talking to them or other children start to bully them. Use every opportunity to offer examples and suggestions about the dangers they might face while building your child’s confidence ( have a test run before letting them out alone, letting them lead the way and only step in if they are putting themselves in danger). Don’t wait for the first night out. Start early!

Setting rules and explaining why you are doing it might be difficult, but it is a very important step. You should also tell them a definite time to come home (this is hard with teenagers).

And…keep talking. Even after they start going out on their own, keep discussing safety outside the home with them and remind them of the dangers. You might think they are old  exposure to alcohol or drugs enough, but you should still show you're interested in who It might seem like a scary list, but your guidance can help they're spending their time with and what they're doing. your child keep themselves safe. It'll also help build their selfIf you do notice anything that doesn't seem quite right – like confidence and independence at the same time. them being secretive or coming home with new belongings Some 11 year olds will be quite capable of going to the park they can't explain – you should definitely look into the or the shops on their own, but others might not be ready to reasons why. do this safely.

Investigate carefully or ask for help if you feel you can’t deal Because we all want our children to be as safe as possible, with it. Your child’s safety is the most important thing! you really need to feel comfortable before letting them go Good luck! out on their own.

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grooming

By Aida Ivan Student Counsellor

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CPD Secondary School Continuing Professional Development Towards a Growth Mindset IBSB seeks to develop passionate life-long learners. This applies equally to staff as well as to students. In education, many schools across the world spend time providing relevant continuous professional development for staff.

In the secondary school over the past term we have focused on three areas which are all interconnected: Growth Mindset Differentiation The use of data to inform teaching and learning Growth mindset is a simple idea discovered by the world renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck. After decades of research on achievement and success, Dweck discovered that teaching a growth mindset creates motivation and productivity in the worlds of business, education, and sports. The staff at IBSB spent a CPD session discussing how the practices in the secondary school can more effectively reflect growth mindset culture. The messages that we as teachers and as parents send to our students and children are very important in developing a mindset culture: in the secondary school you will see lots of posters encouraging students to develop a growth mindset.

Data is ever present in our world today, and in education is becoming essential in enabling teachers to develop the potential of students. At the beginning of the year all students took the GL Assessment Tests. The data produced by these tests informs teachers of the strengths and weaknesses of students in four skill areas; verbal, non-verbal, spatial and quantitative. This helps teachers to prepare lessons that will help all students to make progress.

One of the CPD sessions this year was dedicated to understanding data and using it to inform teaching and learning. If, for instance, a student has a low score in the verbal test then teachers can concentrate on developing that student’s vocabulary. To return to the Mona Lisa the GL Assessment helps us to understand what is going in the mind of the beautiful Mona Lisa. What are her strengths and what are her areas of weakness.

During Term 1B the life skills lessons were dedicated to discussing growth mindset. In the school reports you will now see a greater emphasis being placed on ‘effort’ with grades being given for both class effort and homework effort. In the language being used in classrooms teachers are being encouraged to praise effort and students are being congratulated for sharing their thoughts. Classrooms are becoming mistake friendly zones. Classrooms are also Next term the CPD in the secondary school will continue with becoming areas where the thinking of all students is more a close look at feedback as well as a whole day spent visible. developing our ability to develop in students the key skills and attributes that make for effective life-long learning.

Take a look at this picture of the Mona Lisa. What do you see?

What do you think? What do you wonder? You know that the

By Duncan Gowen picture is the Mona Lisa, but do you know what the beautiful Head of Secondary School enigmatic woman is thinking? How much do we actually know about her?

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6th Form Life

Being in the Sixth Form is a privilege apart. Not only do children feel like they are young adults, they have more opportunities, a space apart that feels like a second home, and a growing sense of community.

I have been a Year 12 Form Tutor since I joined this school, but this year has been a first as the Key Stage 5 Coordinator – tough work, and long hours, but all worth it when we see things moving forward. We saw many Sixth Form traditions continue in full vigour this year. The Prefect body of 10 have been involved in all activities that happened in Secondary School. From attending and being an enthusiastic presence at school events like Sports Days and International Day, they spearheaded several initiatives. Their initiatives come in waves, reflecting the individual character and interest of each members. At the start of the school year the Prefects reflected on past successes and where they may have fallen short. The one big realisation had been that strategic marketing has its place even in our small school community. I hope that some of the readers of this article will take a moment to congratulate the Prefects for their hard work this year and if curious about what they have done this year – please do keep an open heart

and an open ear!

But it is not only the Prefect body, as many of the students in KS5 have been fully involved in community-wide initiatives.

They tend to do this as their passion for the field grows over the years they spend in education and within our community.

All students in the Sixth form are part of our CAS programme, and many go out of their way to simply ‘do good’. Ioana Iorgulescu, a year 13 student, reflects that “being the oldest, we have the privilege of mentoring and giving advice to

younger students [something she does religiously throughout the year in secondary school]. Mentoring these students has helped me build good relations – we celebrate birthdays and they tell me of their good results or bad days …”

Loren Badarni, a year 12 student says, “I like that we have more opportunities to engage in fun activities and for good causes like the sign-language course which I have started to really enjoy. I feel more relaxed and a stronger sense of community in the Sixth Form. I go on with my day without feeling stressed; so I do things with pleasure [rather] than because I need to do them. I like that we have more freedom and are trusted with our actions.”

Assemblies this year have been a hit !! We were all pleasantly surprised with each other – watching our own excitement and getting excited watching others get all involved in passionate discussions. We debate and analyse world affairs and social topics; some students take this opportunity to show-off their subject knowledge that gives them an upper-hand. Of course then there were those who help deliver assemblies and other initiatives for KS3/4 students, be it as a member of the Science Department, a CAS initiative, or as part of Pastoral Care initiatives – talking about bullying or mentoring. Things have not been peachy all the time though, but then we wouldn’t be the Sixth Form Family we are. We still have a push-and-pull on dress code, quiet study times, and attendance. But we debate, discuss and expect to move together as harmoniously as possible. After all, as Cristina Gropescu (Year 13) says, “I feel that our teachers help us and guide us to be independent. I feel more of a connection with our teachers”.

Of course, being part of the Close-knit CODECS Community, one that we have all become a part of over the past couple of years, has meant that the teachers have also invested a fair bit of their own character when giving guidance and showing the way forward. Ms Croci has always shown the way forward on making the place feel like “home”. Ms Baker has done a great job this year with university applications and has also got us started on our Facebook Group that has been a major hit – we’ve used this to run polls on different issues, share news and information, debate current affairs outside our form time, post our ‘cutesy’ moments in this closed group and more. Ms Dumitrescu has been the friendly, approachable, yet stern presence who is always informing us about cultural events in town. We also had our quiet contributor: Ms Anda, and more recently Ms Adam, going about the task of providing support to all in need. For us all, CODECS has become a home away from home with so much look forward to each and every day.

By Blessy Savu KS5 Coordinator 57

Art Display

What’s Going on in the Art Room?

Year 8 student, Shashwat, a member of the journalism club, went to check out what’s going on in the Art room. This is what he discovered: There is going to be a COBIS competition for KS3 in January and the theme will be ‘Transformations’.

What’s new in the art room?

All the cupboards are now on wheels. This means more space to play with. The old tables were replaced with proper art tables; the art tables can now open up. There is a new smart board. There are more display boards. There is a new 3D printer. They have new drawing tablets and new chairs. The chairs can be adjusted to the height the students like. The students are also very happy with the new art room.

Are there any future plans that involve the art students?

The art students are going to help with the Spring play. The teachers are planning field trips to visit exhibitions and more.

Is the work on the display boards new or old?

What projects are currently going on in the art room?

All the art work on the display boards is new and I hope Ms Broadhurst: Years 7 & 8 are working on portraits, year 9 is everyone will stop in to see it. working on a project called ‘Open’; Year 10, 11, 12 on course projects.

By Shashwat Kumar (Year 8) 58

Veganism What is veganism? What good does it do us?

First of all, veganism is not a “diet”. Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude all forms of exploitation and cruelty to animals for the purpose of food, clothing or any other use.

People go vegan for a number of different reasons.

Let’s start off with personal health; if the diet is well balanced, a diet without meat or dairy products is likely to contain a lot less saturated fats, which is related to increased cholesterol levels and increased risk of heart disease. Some further studies also show links between development of cancer and eating meat. People who eat plant based are more likely to consume fruit, vegetables and cereals, which are as our mums have always told us, are the most nutritious foods. People that are uninformed on this topic usually believe that vegans suffer from a lack of protein as a matter of fact, lack of everything; in fact many plant foods are higher in protein than meat and dairy, such as lentils, chickpeas, beans, pumpkin seeds, and many more. Omega 3 is found in flax seeds, calcium is found in many dark green leaves, healthy fats are found in avocados and nuts. The vegan diet is rich in fibers and nutrients, and after some further internet research or a consultation with a nutritionist, I recommend you give it a try and see how your health will improve.

A second reason is obviously for the animals. It is no secret that the meat, dairy and egg industries torture and kill animals. They all live a short painful life whilst being trapped in small cages and being injected with hormones that end up being eaten up by you on your plate. Animals feel pain; that is a fact. After a quick internet research you can find plenty of hidden camera videos from the inside of factories to see for yourself. A common misconception is that animals don’t die in the dairy industry. Cows used for milk are killed after 4 years of life, naturally, they could live for up to 20 years. Eating your house pet seems barbaric to many people so why isn’t it wrong to eat a baby cow or chicken who feels just as much pain, or a pig who has a greater mental capacity than dogs?

Do it for our planet and do it for your own health.

By Adriana Bajescu (Year 13)

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CREATIVE CORNER 60

Short Stories Alternative Ending for Revolver – the “Fourth Choice” The bullet hit its target with razor-sharp precision.

Sig breathed hard. He could not believe what he’d just done.

He dropped the old Colt, and grabbed his coat; he was heading for Anna.

“Anna! Anna! He’s dead!” Sig cried, closing the door behind Sig looked behind, and there he was: the fallen behemoth him and racing after her. now risen from the ashes, and ready to finish the job. His greedy eyes that stole the living breath from any human they “You-you killed him?” Anna could not understand how Sig encountered, his ginger beard, and this time around, a hole was able to commit such an atrocity. She was lost for words: about the size of a door knob located just south of his hip not a single one in her vocabulary would’ve been able to splattered in blood, although Sig couldn’t seem to see describe her emotions at the time. through to the other side.

“You did. How could you?” she yelled at Sig, losing her “I have you now boy,” Wolff bellowed, raising what appeared respect of him. to be the newer Colt revolver, now fully loaded with smokeless cartridges “Anna, the threat is zero-” “Wha-” “I don’t want to know”, she interrupted him, still enraged, “In fact, I don’t even want to see you, to know you. Ever again. I “You have two choices boy”, Wolff raised his gun and felt the regret I trusted you all my life.” wound that Sig had caused, “either you give me the gold now or you die” She made herself clear, and left Sig all alone in his giant pool of guilt and frustration, now morphing into a whole lake of “I don’t know! Honest” hatred; hatred for his choice, hatred for Wolff, hatred for Anna.

“Oh, I’ve had enough of your games alright. But this time, you’re not getting away with it; you’re joining your Papa” Sig looked once more at his sister, wandering off into the Wolff lined up the sights of the gun with his target, pulled distance, and decided to head back to the cabin. Sig thought pack the arm, and pulled the trigger. deeply – what if his life had no point anymore? Should he even continue to live? These thoughts haunted his mind like The sound echoed all the way to Giron and back again like a lost souls did to people. distant howl warning any person to stay back or face danger.

The shot, however, did not hurt Sig. In fact, it did not even Sig opened the front door. He hesitated for a brief moment, touch him. Instead, it hit one of the sled dogs, causing the but then decided to close it. He knew what he had to do: end others to jump up in panic and fear of being killed as well, it all – to join his father in the eternal realm of the dead. The then freezing into a sitting position just as quickly. only way to ensure this was to die the exact pitiful death.

“You really think I’d kill you first?” Wolff smiled, pulling back Sig released the guide dogs, and prepared for his final the arm once more. journey. Before he could set off, however, he heard the front door being slammed and three distinct thuds that he knew “Now, your death will follow” he’d heard in the past.

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Revolver

“Freeze! Stop right there! Gunther Wolff, you are under After a short period of deep thought, Mr. Bergman finally arrest for crimes against the Andersson family” Mr. Bergman, responded: along with a group of other menacing, tough-looking armed men arrived just in time.

“Do as he says” “Bergman. You mistake me for the criminal. You see, the “I’m glad we could come to a common agreement. Now, as Anderssons happen to have some of my gold, and refuse to for you boy, I will put an end to this –” hand it over”, Wolff said in such a tranquil tone that you never would’ve guessed he’d just been shot.

Wolff never got to finish his sentence. He was hit with what appeared to be a shovel from behind, by none other than “Tell that to the lawyer. For now, you’re here to be taken to Anna. the court.” Mr. Bergman raised his voice, and the men got closer to Wolff, still keeping their guns on him “Anna, you came to help!”

“Gents, here’s the deal. Either you leave right now, or I end “I’m sorry Sig, for everything I said.” Anna approached him, his life. Have I made myself clear?” Wolff sprang out from the and gave him a tight hug calm tone he previously used to a more fitting tone that suited his personality better.

“Let’s not talk of the snow that fell last winter”

By Maximilian Mihailovici (Year 9) 62

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At One with the Sea

I took careful steps along the beach, allowing my foot to sink into the silky sand, feeling it slide past my calloused skin. High on the beach it was stony, with thorny bushes and winding weeds erupting from in between rough rocks; but where I walked, the sea had ground the sand into a fine powder over the course of thousands of years. The scent of seaweed and fish and Sulphur scorched my nostrils. Granules of sand blown up by the light breeze crunched between my teeth as I stepped down towards the sea, my hair whipping in the wind.

Icy water lapped at my dusty soles, drove a tremor up my spine. I turned towards the horizon, where a dozen boats clustered; they looked as if they were about to fall off the edge of the world. The sky above was that stunning palette of grey-blue, violent purple and slashes of gold and silver that can only be glimpsed the very second after a brilliant sunset.

A pallid sliver of moon hung in the sky, growing bolder every moment. The sea roiled beneath it, the night ushering in a 64

sharp and chilling wind. Waves bloomed far in the distance, curling around the slices of rock that encircled the beach. The deafening roar of them crashing over and over and over against the black rocks rang in my ears. Earlier, the coast had been bustling with lounging families, shrieking children and photo-snapping tourists. Now, it was empty but for me, and the sea battering the rocks, the waves stroking my feet, the whoosh of the over-head wind, those were the sounds that surrounded me. I walked further into the sea, feeling my feet squelching through the soft silt. For that moment, when all my senses were engulfed by salty sea spray, by the low growl of the night water, by the gathering darkness, by the taste of contentment, everything was ok.

By Christie Vernon (Year 9)