Newsletter
25th January 2008
Headlines
For This Week
News
From Principal
-
Global Theme
-
Recycling Efforts
-
International Award
-
International Week Exhibition
News
From Secondary
-
Appointment
of Head Boy and Head Girl
-
Student Appearance
-
Sixth Form Dress
-
International Week
-
Careers – Term 2
News
From Primary
-
Jeremy
Strong Is Coming
Notice
-
Green
Notes From The Ranger
Co-Curricular
Activities
-
DSKL
Futsal 5 A Side Football Tournament
Parent,
Teachers and Friends of GIS
-
International Exhibition
-
Special Coffee Morning
-
Parents’ Forum
-
Mum & Tots Group
NEWS FROM
PRINCIPAL
The
past week has had a global theme. Last week, Mr. Ramon Molina, Director of
People to People Exchange of the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) announced the
winners of the AEC Award for 2006-07. Our project Cultural Kaleidoscope
received a cash award of 1000 Euros and a second project which our school was
deeply involved in, Peace Project, was awarded the Excellence Award. Cultural
Kaleidoscope is a project which promotes cross-cultural learning at
its best, through face to face conferencing involving students and accompanying
teachers during our International Week. Congratulations to all students and
teachers who helped make this project such a great success.
As
I hope you are aware, our Heads of House have organized selling drinks bottles
in House colours with a view to cutting down the
number of plastic bottle that are being used at school and raising money to
support recycling charities. This is an outstanding example of simple student
led initiatives that support the school community and the environment.
Finally,
from the 9th to the 12th of January, a group of thirty
plus students braved the elements in the
International
Week Exhibition
The
purpose of this event is to enable representatives to provide a stand which
represents their home country. The stand can display factual information,
involve fun games and trivia, flags, badges and balloons for the children to
take away and/or anything else that encourages the children to learn more about
our every-changing global society. We also welcome representatives to delight
our taste buds with some delicious foods from around the globe.
If
you have some spare time and would like to take part in this special event,
please send an email , detailing what country you will be representing, to:
Karen
Bradley, PTF Social Committee,
email address: karen.106bradley@btinternet.com
phone: 017 257 1405
Simon Mann
Principal
NEWS FROM SECONDARY
Appointment
of Head Boy and Head Girl
I
am delighted to inform you that the following students have been appointed to
these positions:
Head
Boy
Gregory Yap
Head
Girl
Priyanka Jethwani
Deputy
Head Boy Ruizhe Yan
Deputy
Head
Girl
Emily Hyde
These
students are ambassadors for the school and represent the student body at a
number of public and private functions. They also act as exemplary role models
to other students. They are very worthy appointees and I am certain that they
will carry out their responsibilities with skill and dedication.
I
would like to take this opportunity to thank their predecessors who have done a
superb job over the past year.
Head
Boy, Benjamin Rynjah Goh, Head Girl, Pooja Bharat, and their deputies
Owen Bendor-Samuel and Wong Ke
Ni have been a very strong team.
They
have played major roles in organising school events.
They have quietly and without fuss, given younger students and the Prefects the
benefits of their own experience at camps and during school activities. They
have also started to take a major role in the running of our student council.
They
have represented the school at formal events such as Graduation Awards evening.
They have been very good role models for other students to respect and look up
to. Congratulations on a job very well done.
The
new student leadership teams have many challenges ahead. I am sure that they
will try hard to meet these expectations.
Student Appearance
There
has been a noticeable rise in the number of students who are pushing the limits
with uniform and appearance.
Parents
– we need your support on this issue if we are to maintain standards of
appearance of GIS secondary students.
A
reminder of some of the rules that are being broken is stated below.
Years 7 to 11
White polo shirt (school issue) – tucked
in at all times
Hair
Hair for both boys and girls should be neat
and tidy with no extremes of fashion. It should not be dyed. Boy’s hair should
be of a reasonable length (above the collar and no shaved heads). Girl’s
with shoulder length hair or longer should have it tied back at school.
Jewellery
Only the following jewellery
is permitted. Anything in excess of these instructions will be confiscated.
Any jewellery of
an offensive nature will be confiscated immediately. This will be at the
discretion of the member of staff.
·
Girls may wear one finger ring and no
more than 2 pairs of studs/small sleepers (2 maximum per ear)
·
Boys may wear one finger ring only
and no ‘sticks’ in the ear or nose will be allowed.
·
No other jewellery
may be worn except for religious reasons. This must be cleared
through the Head of Year with an accompanying letter from Parents / Guardians.
·
Studs in the nose or other body parts (except
ears for girls only) are not allowed and will be confiscated if worn.
·
Neck chains / chokers should not be worn.
·
Bracelets should not be worn.
·
Nail varnish and make-up should not be worn.
Sixth Form Dress
As befitting senior students, members of the
Sixth Form are not expected to wear uniform. They are however expected to dress
in a manner appropriate to a professional working environment and in a way
which maintains the high expectations of GIS students.
Head of Secondary
International
Week
Interested
in teaching a foreign language or doing a presentation on your
country? During International Week, we
welcome parents' participation and would like to invite you to come into our
Thank
you!
Rames Ramasamy
Head of
Careers – Term Two
Year 9 - We
are approaching the end of the second cycle of the careers session. Students
have completed activities on the KUDOS software and will be able to share this
information with their parents. I hope they have found the two softwares used to be a useful starting point to start
thinking about their Option choices. If you have any questions linked to this,
please feel free to contact me at school.
Year 10 –
Students in Year 10 will start their Careers lessons with me on 12th
Feb. Each class will have 3 sessions with me and we will use a software programme called Jiigcal-Pathfinder
to help them to start thinking about their work experience which will take
place in Year 11.
Year 11 – I
am talking to the Year 11’s about the work experience programme
and students will be bringing home some paperwork for parents. Parents must
sign the parental permission reply slip and return it to school as soon as
possible please. Students were given an assembly by a team of speakers from Dr
Job as preparation for the work experience. The speakers covered the following
topics:
-
work in the
21st century
-
making the
best of your work experience placement
-
how to cope
with stress
As
the mock exam pressure is now over and before the real exam pressure sets in,
all Year 11’s should now be actively looking for a work experience placement.
They are reminded that they must have a placement secured before the end of
Term 2. If students are struggling to find a placement, they may contact
employers who have taken in GIS students in previous years. Contact numbers for
these employers can be found on the school system by following these steps:
–
Go to My
Network Places
–
Entire
Network
–
Microsoft
Windows Network
–
Training
–
Server 3
–
Career_Folder_Yr7_to_Yr_11
–
Choose Year
11
Students
can of course come and see me for any help at any point too. Work Experience is
a valuable learning tool. So, if you have a child in Year 11, please encourage
them to finalise their placement as soon as possible.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Ms V. Sharma
Careers Advisor
NEWS FROM PRIMARY
Reminders for your
diary :
|
All Parents |
30th
January 2008 |
Parent Info
Night (DT) |
|
Year 2 Parents |
31st
January 2008 |
Year 2
Performance ‘Spring Festivals Around the World’ |
|
All Parents |
1st
– 8th February 2008 |
MID TERM BREAK |
Advance Warning
for your diary :
|
All Parents |
11th
February 2008 |
School Reopens
after break |
Jeremy Strong is coming!
The
teachers and children are eagerly awaiting the arrival of Jeremy Strong next
week. He is an award-winning author from the
This is a joint school/PTF initiative and
we are most grateful to our PTF committee for raising 50% of the cost of
bringing Jeremy over from
Teacher Librarian
NOTICE
Green Notes From The Rangers
When
talking about conservation, one’s first thought would be on saving tracts of
majestic rainforests. Less known, however, are the unattractive, marshy and
watery wetlands - tracts of land at estuaries and coastal areas which are just
as vital in preserving the health of our planet. This February 2nd,
as the world celebrates World Wetlands Day, the Rangers would like to highlight
how important the wetlands are to us in this first of a three-part series.
Many
do not appreciate the wetlands. Consequently, they have been drained for
agriculture, filled for housing, reclaimed for industry or used as a rubbish
dump. Now, we need to try to save and protect wetlands for our very survival.
Nature’s Nurseries
The
wetlands provide a safe haven and plentiful food supply for many fish, crabs,
frogs and mosquitoes (which are the food of other animals). They are very
productive and support a rich web of life, from simple molds to mammals. During
“northern” winter, waterbirds such as storks, egrets,
herons, sandpipers and birds of prey exploit the bountiful supply of food in
the wetlands and mudflats in
The Wetlands as a ‘Sponge’: Flood Control
By
soaking up rainwater, wetlands on floodplains and coastal areas store and
decrease the velocity of water during heavy rainfall that may otherwise cause
flash floods. The vegetation too provides a natural barrier to fast moving
water and aids flood speed reduction, sparing surrounding areas from
devastation. Moreover, a reduced speed of water flow will allow sediments in
flood waters to settle down to the roots and stems of plants, fertilizing the
soil and clearing the water before it flows downstream. Without this process,
fish will suffocate and die because the silt in the water will clog their gills
and kill their eggs.
Next
week: Wetlands as pollution treatment plants and filters.
CO-CURRICULAR
ACTIVITIES
DSKL Futsal 5 A Side Football
Tournament
On Saturday, 19th Jan
U11
Boys played very well winning all four group games and beating Alice Smith
in the Semi-Final. They finished as Silver medalists losing 3-2 on
penalties after a hard fought 2-2 draw in the final with MKIS. Thanks to Mr Storey & Mr Dale for
coaching the teams.
U15
Boys also played very well to win their group with some fine strikes and
assists from Jo-Jien Lee, and surging midfield blasts
from Golden Boot winner Michael Cantillon
to reach the final, unfortunately tired legs got the better of the
boys but nevertheless they finished in the Silver Medal position also. Thanks
to Mr Friendship for coaching the teams.
U15
Girls had some fine performances and special mention to Ai Ru Lee in the nets, making and scoring penalties kept the
girls in contention for a place, eventually finishing in third place. Thanks to
Mr Perry for coaching the team.
U19
Boys entered and played well in a hard fought competitive group but
unfortunately failed to qualify for the knockout stages, suffering a little
from small squad sizes in the humidty. Good effort
Gents. Thanks again to Mr Friendship for coaching the
boys.
Many
thanks to all the students and staff who helped make this day possible.
Mr Bradshaw
PARENT,
TEACHERS AND FRIENDS OF GIS
International Exhibition
Friday, 29th February : 9am –
2pm
We hope you’ve seen the flyers around the school and at the end of
this newsletter. If you would like to help set up a stall for your home
country, please call Karen on 017 2571405 or email her at karen.106bradley@btinternet.com.
She can also help put you in touch with others from your country to work on
this together.
Special Coffee Morning – Chinese New Year
Monday, 25th February
The
Chinese New Year coffee morning will be held during International Week.
Immediately after the Parade of Nations on Monday morning, the activities will
begin in the Grand Hall. The organisers have been
working with Ms. Peers and the international visiting students will be
attending. They have some very exciting presentations. Donations of Mandarins
and Cookies would be greatly appreciated. Please call
Parents’ Forum
gisptf_forum@gardenschool.edu.my
This
email address is manned by parents on the PTF committee. The forum is for
parents to raise issues of concern, make complaints of a general nature, give
praise, make comment etc. Instead of just discussing or moaning with friends
about what bothers you, put it in an email. Then, we can gather the concrete
information and the school will then know for certain how the parents feel.
Also feel free to send us a copy of your formal complaints to the school and as
a PTF group, we can monitor and assist if necessary.
Mum & Tots Group
This group is back and running for all mums with children under
school going age. They meet every Wednesday from 9.40am -
10.55am in the EYD hall. Call Marie on 012-610 3431 or
017-2763524 for any queries or e-mail her at carolinalubienska.r@gardenschool.edu.my.
Karen Ho
PTF
communications sub-committee