IGBIS Newsletter, Issue 220

Message from HOS

Mrs Anne Fowles, Head of School

Dear Parents, Guardians and Community,

You may have seen in the newspaper today that the Director-General of Health, Malaysia is advising the public ‘to postpone trips to South Korea, Italy, Japan and Iran following a marked increase of (coronavirus) cases in those countries to ensure the continued safety of yourself, family and society in general’. That being the case, it is strongly suggested that members of the IGBIS community carefully consider any upcoming travel plans, especially for the spring break over March 21-29, in case the situation deteriorates further. Some schools in Kuala Lumpur are requiring staff, students or parents who have visited the above-mentioned countries (as well as mainland China), to undertake a 14 day home quarantine before coming into school. We would like to give you an early warning that IGBIS is considering the same requirement.

Our student ambassadors rose to the occasion again today and did a wonderful job hosting visitors who came to see the school in action. Thank you for your contribution!

From the Elementary School Principal

Simon Millward, Elementary School Principal

Grade levels are in the midst of either completing or starting new units of inquiry. It was great to stop by the Grade 3 classes and learning lounge as they were exploring different activity stations to ‘tune in’ to the new unit of inquiry.

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Can you view the images and consider what their new unit is all about? It may not be completely obvious but all of the clues are there!

In preparation for the school photo week that is happening in March, you will be receiving an email with information around which day your children will have their photo and a google form to complete to ascertain whether you would like a sibling photo. It helps with our advance preparation if you can complete this information as soon as possible.

This week has also seen our school open our doors to the community for our ‘Open Days’. This is a time for prospective new families to see our school in action. All those who came had to follow our COVID-19 protocols so that we can keep our community safe. Thank you to all those students, parents and staff who came along to lend their support to speaking and guiding these new families around. 

Dates for your diaries

• 16th – 20th March: School photo week
• 23rd – 27th March: IGBIS school holiday

From the Secondary School Principal

Michael Arcidiacono, Secondary School Principal

Dear parents & guardians,

This week several Grade 8 students took part in our first assembly aimed at middle schoolers (Grades 6-8), either as performers or as initiators of action through their Community Projects. Our culture of taking action starts in the PYP and students are supported throughout the MYP to develop their skills through initiatives of their choice. This week’s assembly was a great opportunity for students to demonstrate these skills and I was very pleased to see how well they did. Their younger peers will benefit from the examples set by Grade 8, and the Grade 8s are getting themselves ready to lead future projects and initiatives. 

Speaking of initiatives, the Global Issues Network (GIN) club is organizing Earth week, starting on Monday. As a school, we have a responsibility to renew our commitment to sustainability and the practices we engage in on a daily basis that will support a more sustainable future. Next week will be a good reminder to our secondary community, of actions they can take to make a difference. My thanks to the Grade 10 students who are leading GIN this year and to all those who are part of the club.

Wishing everyone a restful weekend!

Grade 5 Camp

Josh, Luca, Emma, Maloe, Grade 5

On Wednesday, 19th February, Grade 5 began their 3-day, 2-night Camp in Gopeng, facilitated by Nomad Adventure. Please enjoy these recounts written by the Grade 5 students.

Day 1  – Josh and Luca

We left the school at 7:40, it was a long ride on the bus. When we got there we had to place our bags down in the dining hall. We talked about a few rules and then, we headed towards the dorms. There we learned how to do our beds and clean it. We also learned how to put the mosquito net because there were lots of mosquitos and spiders. So then, we headed to the dining hall to have lunch and after lunch, we went to play with our groups and do a couple of fun activities. Then, we went to make the fire for the tapioca cake. There were three groups: the fire group, the coconut group, and the preparation group. After that, we picked rocks so that on day two, we could paint them about something related to camp. At 6:00 pm, we had free time until 7:00 pm. Then, we went to the dorms and had our showers. After the showers, we headed towards the dining hall to eat our dinner. Then, we went back to our dorms and had 1 hour of free time and then, at 9:00 lights were out. So, we went to bed.

Day 2  – Emma

The second day, we woke up at 6:30 am and we had to be ready for breakfast at 7:00 am. 

After we ate breakfast, we went and got our helmets and lifejackets and then, we took a ride to the river. When we arrived, we had many different stations. We switched stations by groups. We learned how to save people in the river by using the rope, and we did the activity where you have to do the aggressive swim and get over the thick stick. We did two more activities and I think everyone liked it the best. The first one was floating and turning around and doing defensive swimming. The other one was where you have to jump off the big rock and swim back. But we were most excited about Rafting.

Before Rafting, we ate delicious lunch and then had some free time in the river. We had to split in a group of 4 or 5 and because there were 9 or 10 boats. Then, we started Rafting all the way back to camp.

When we got back, we took a nice shower and had free time for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Some were practising for the talent show, and some were playing with the pool noodle, while some were playing frisbee. Then, it was time for lunch. After lunch, we did a campfire and a talent show. And we also melted the marshmallow in a real fire. The inside was like cheese and the outside was crunchy. The talent show was awesome. Then, it was time to sleep(9:00 pm).       

Day 3  – Maloe

We woke up at 6:00 am, as it was the last day and we didn’t have a lot of time to do all the awesome activities waiting for us at mountain school. We brought our bags to the outdoor school and had a delicious breakfast. After breakfast, we got helmets and went on the bus headed to mountain school. At mountain school, we dropped our bags in the sitting area and had a briefing. After the briefing, we put on our harness and went wherever we wanted. There were 4 different activities. The first one was Rock climbing, the second one was the giant ladder, the third one was the leap of faith, and the last one was the zip line. They were all really fun. My favourite was the zipline. After 2 hours of having an awesome time we went back to the bus and went to the eating area at the campsite. We all played a little while and said our goodbyes. We took our bags and placed the bus one group went on the small bus and the other 3 groups went on the big bus. We arrived at about 3:15 at school and the camp was over.

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PVO News

Julie Arcidiacono, Community Support and Services Coordinator

Parent Workshops

Please take note of a new workshop series scheduled for the month of April, conducted by Ms Flavia Godja: Conversational English. This is a three-session workshop designed for parents who speak English as a second language and have a pre-intermediate and intermediate level. These sessions are designed to help them brush up their skills and get some fun practice using English! There will be a major focus on developing speaking skills, namely fluency, vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. 

February Parent Workshops

• Thursdays Unleash your Creativity through Drawing and Painting techniques

March Parent Workshops

• 2 Community Choir
• 3 Extended Essay (G9, 10, 11 parents)
• 5, 6 Community Music Band
• 11 Literacy
• 31 Learner Agency – Voice, Choice, Ownership
• Thursdays Unleash your Creativity through Drawing and Painting techniques

April Parent Workshops

• 1 What is the IB Philosophy and How Does This Impact My Child? (G9, 10, 11 parents)
• 20 Autism Awareness
• 21, 28, 30 Conversational English
• Thursdays Unleash your Creativity through Drawing and Painting techniques
• May Parent Workshops
• 18 General Introduction of IGBIS Curriculum and IGBIS Life (Mandarin-speaking parents)
• Thursdays Unleash your Creativity through Drawing and Painting techniques

June Parent Workshops

• 4 Unleash your Creativity through Drawing and Painting techniques