The newsletter provides information about upcoming events at the British International School in Ho Chi Minh City, including a family picnic, maths workshops, a Year 6 residential trip meeting, and Business and Enterprise Day. It introduces new teachers and the student council and house captains for the year. Various classes share news, such as a community service trip by Year 2 and buddy activities between Year 4 and younger classes. The music and PE departments provide updates on after-school activities. Contact information is provided at the end.

1. 3 October 2014 | ISSUE 6
Dates for your diary
IN THIS ISSUE
From: Page
Headteacher & Deputy Headteacher 1,2,3,4,5,6
Y2 Teacher 7
Y4 Teacher 8
Y5 Teacher 9
Music Department 10
PE Department & Community Service 11,12,13,14
PTG 15,16
Lunch Menus for F1-Y6 17,18
Contact information
225 Nguyen Van Huong St, District 2, HCMC
Tel: (848) 3744 4551
Fax: (848) 3744 4182
E-mail:
simonhigham@bisvietnam.com
BRITISH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL - HO CHI MINH CITY
AN PHU PRIMARY
Newsletter
5th PTG Family Picnic 9.30—11.30am
7th & 9th Maths Calculation workshops (MP1 & MP2/MP3)
8th Y6 Residential Trip Meeting - 5.30pm
16th Business and Enterprise Day
17th School finishes for Half Term Holiday
27th School resumes after Half Term Holiday
October

2. From The Headteacher - Mr Simon Higham
Issue 6 /Page 2
Scan here to access the
‘AP1 Parent Blog’
AP1 Parent Blog
http://ap1parentblog.blogspot.com/
The AP1 Primary Parent Blog is a one stop shop of information, detailing
how you can help to make a difference in our child‟s education by knowing
how to help.
If you are new to Vietnam, visit the AP1 Parent Blog and simply click on the
„Parent Documents‟ tab and access the „Welcome to HCMC - New Family
Guide. This will give you a comprehensive guide to what to do and what to
expect if you are new to HCMC.
Please do not hesitate to contact me directly - simonhigham@bisvietnam.com
if you have any further ideas about how to make this blog more useful.
Victor Hugo, author of Les Miserables, wrote: „To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is
spelled out is a spark.‟
This week, our focus at AP1 has been to read, read and read some more. It has been a privilege for
me to visit classrooms and read to our children during Book Week and it has been wonderful to see
small faces light up with excitement and wonder, caused by words and pictures within a book.
I would like to thank Adam Bushnell, our resident author at BIS this week for working with all of
our children from F1 to Y6. His passion for both reading and writing has inspired and encouraged
our children to make reading a regular routine. Aside from teachers and authors, parents too have a
large part to play in the reading process too. Please can I urge all of you to read as often as you can
with your children - whatever their age and ability. It is clear that those children who regularly
share books with an adult become more confident and competent readers and writers. I encourage you all to „light that fire‟
and „be that spark‟.
Next week, our Mathematics Leaders are offering two workshops on Tuesday (MP1) and Thursday (MP2 and MP3) from
8.15am to explain the methods of calculation that we use at BIS. Further details about this will be sent to you via email
shortly.
Thank you for your support in ensuring that all children are wearing the correct uniform. This helps us to reinforce the
highest standards that we set across all areas of our school life. May I also remind you to label all uniform, especially hats
as this helps to identify any lost property that we have during the week.
I look forward to seeing you all at this week‟s Family Picnic at AP1 from 9.30am to 11.30am. If you still have not purchased
a ticket, payment can be made on the gate, with all families that are new to BIS this August coming free. Thank you in ad-
vance to all parents from the Family Picnic committee that have made this event possible. Look out for the pictures in next
week‟s newsletter. If you would like to help out on Sunday, there is still time to do so. Sign up by clicking here
‘Fill your house with stacks of
books, in all the crannies and
all the nooks.‟ - Dr. Seuss
I hope that you enjoy looking
through the many activities
that have occurred this week
at AP1.

3. Book Week in Pictures
Issue 6 /Page 3

4. Meet our New
Teachers!
Meet our New
Teachers!
Introducing Our New Teachers
A chat with Ms Anna from F3I
Pick the first 3 words you think of when I say Vi-
etnam
Hot, busy, food!
What are your first impressions of BIS?
A very friendly and welcoming place to work. A
school that has realistically high expectations
of staff and the pupil’s enjoyment in learning
is the top priority.
What new experience have you had since you ar-
rived in Vietnam?
Actually having money at the end of the month!
This didn’t really happen in London.
If you were writing a postcard to friends back home,
what would it say?
You must come and visit! Bring me an espresso
maker and a tin opener please.
A chat with Mr Pete, Cover Teacher and Infor-
mation Literacy Leader
Pick the first 3 words you think of when I say Vi-
etnam
Friendly, vibrant and interesting.
What are your first impressions of BIS?
I am really enjoying working at BIS. It was a
little different teaching lots of different classes
every week but I really like it because I now
know so many different people/students. Every-
one is so friendly and happy and I feel very
happy and settled here already.
What new experience have you had since you arrived
in Vietnam?
I now have a motorbike so am starting to feel
properly Vietnamese. I am getting used to the
traffic and am enjoying the freedom of being
able to explore and find new places.
If you were writing a postcard to friends back home,
what would it say?
Dear Mum and Dad,
Having a great time in Ho Chi Minh City. I re-
ally like the food, the warm weather, the school,
the students and I have made lots of new
friends.
Dear parents,
We are continuing to introduce our new teachers to you and let you know how they are settling in. Please do
say hello if you see them in school and feel free to offer them some of your „top tips‟ about life in Vietnam!
Kind regards,
Deidre Grimshaw
Deputy Headteacher
Issue 6 /Page 4

5. Responsibility at BIS is given, where possible, to the children. Having ownership of their school and a vested
interest in its improvement and development is an important part of the children‟s development and gives them
a real sense of belonging. Throughout school we look for opportunities to make this happen.
Perhaps two of the most important ways to achieve this is through the Student Council and House Captains.
We are delighted to introduce you to the new House Captains for 2014 – 2015 and also our new Student Council
for 2014 – 2015. All of the students had to apply for the posts and were chosen by their peers for the roles.
House Captains
Mailk, Shayna, Jessica, Huy Kai, Tim, Teaghan, Emily
Renee, Jung Min, Sophia, Henry
Go Eun, Ly, Ben, Joseph
The Student Voice at AP1
Issue 6 /Page 5

6. The Student Council, will also be guided by a teacher, Ms Marion, who facilitates meetings and supports them
as they too generate ideas to further improve our campus and what we do for the students. We look forward to
hearing their many ideas to support our school and make it even better. The executive committee will also meet
with Mr Simon every week to feed back their ideas, suggestions and any concerns that they have.
The Student Council
Student Voice
Issue 6 /Page 6

7. Issue 6 /Page 7
2S Community Service Visit
Last week, 2S visited Anh Minh
School to meet their partner class.
The children in Anh Minh school have
h e a r i n g i m p a i r m e n t s s o ,
in preparation for the visit, our chil-
dren investigated different ways that
deaf people can communicate. Our
children were really supportive and
helped their new friends create a pup-
pet.
A lot of fun was had by all. 2S are
looking forward to the children from
Anh Minh School visiting us at AP1
next month.
Ms Jude Handscombe
Y2 Teacher and MP1 Leader

8. Year 4 - Buddy Classes
We are really settling into life in Year 4! One of our favourite activities so
far this year has been meeting our younger friends in our buddy class.
When 4S met F3S we had great fun in the role play area. We helped them
to create pictures using stencils and built towers with the construction
toys. As part of Book Week, each class paired up to share our favourite
stories. We had to choose a book that our buddies would be interested in
and made sure we used our most expressive voices when reading. It was
lots of fun and they were a great audience! 4I, on the other hand, gave
their buddy class (1I) a dance lesson on how to do the „Time Warp‟. The
hilarious results of which can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=c6XHihPbFyg .
Year 4 look forward to keeping the „Buddy Class‟ system working as bril-
liantly for the remainder of the year!
Mr Chris McKelvie
Y4 Teacher & MP2 Leader
Issue 6 /Page 8

9. Business and Enterprise Day - Coming Soon!
Issue 6/Page 9
Where in Ho Chi Minh City can you have your hair styled, relax with a manicure and pedicure, buy some deli-
cious home-made chocolates, visit a sweet factory, pop into a tea shop, pick up some essentials for Halloween
and watch a talent show all within a few metres walk? The answer is right here in AP1 on Thursday 16th Octo-
ber between 10.00am and 11.30am, when the front playground will be transformed into a market place. Classes
across the school are shortly going to receive their starting capital and have begun the process of designing a
game, service or product that will attract the attention of other children in the school. In addition to every class
becoming a business for the day, every child will be invited to bring in maximum spending money of 50,000
VND. This will enable them to experience managing their own budgets by being necessarily selective in decid-
ing how to spend their money from the array of tempting offers.
Parents are very welcome to come and observe the young entrepreneurs in action, although we would ask par-
ents to resist the temptation to buy from the stalls so that customer base of the producers is not confused.
Mr Andy James
Y5 Teacher and Mathematics Leader

10. Issue 6 /Page 10
We‟ve been making a lot of noise in the Music depart-
ment during the last few weeks with the start of our af-
ter school and lunchtime clubs. We have begun to pre-
pare a range of musical items for our Carol Concert in
December and are full of the Christmas spirit already,
despite it only being October!
For more information about our clubs, you can check out
our AP1 Music Blog at www.ap1music.blogspot.com
Ms Beth Bown
AP1 Music Leader
Music

11. Issue 6 /Page 11
Extra Curricular Clubs – Term 1 2014-2015
Thank you for your support with the first two weeks of our Extra Curricular Clubs programme. Most of our clubs are well repre-
sented however there are still some that need more children to run effectively (see above).
If you would like your child (ren) to be allocated to another club, in addition to their current allocation, please look carefully
at the list of clubs above and email Ms Nhung directly.
nhungdanglehong@bisvietnam.com
Please note that if minimum numbers for some clubs are not reached, then
they may not be able to run.
Ms Deirdre Grimshaw
Deputy Headteacher
Scan here to access the
AP1 Club Booklet
Name of club Year group Time & Date
Tag Rugby Y1&2 Monday 7:00am
Paid football Y4-Y6 Monday 4:45pm
Create and Write Y3 Monday 2:45pm
Make Your Own E book Y3-Y5 Monday 2:45pm
Girls Football Y4-Y6 Wednesday 7:00am
Swim General Y4-Y6 Wednesday 7:00am
Tag Rugby Y5-Y6 Thursday 7:00am
Space Y3-Y4 Friday 7:25am
Green Screen Y5-Y6 Friday 7:00am
Keen to be Green club needs your help.
Please bring in any used, small drinks
bottles to school. We would like to recycle
them by making them into a rubbish bin
as shown in the picture.
Please take your bottles to Ms Rachel in
room 010.
Keen to the Green Club Members
Keen to be Green Club - we need your help!

12. Issue 6/Page 12
Holiday Sports Programmes - October 2014
Date Sport Time Head Coach
Mini-
mum
No. Of
Stu-
dents
Age
Prices (all
in VND)
Location
20/10 - 24/10 Football 8 am- 11 am SSA Min 8 Year 3 upwards 1,900,000 Big field
20/10 - 24/10 Basketball 1pm-4pm SSA Min 8 Year 3 upwards 1,900,000
AP2
Sportshal
l
20/10-24/10 Multi Skills 8.00-9.00
Mr Richard So-
riano
Min 8 Y1-Y3 440,000
AP1
Sportshal
l
20/10-24/10 Multi Skills 9.00-10.00
Mr Richard So-
riano
Min 8 F1-F3 440,000
AP1
Sportshal
l
20/10-24/10 T ball 4pm-5.30pm
Mr Richard So-
riano
Min 8 Y3-Y6 660,000 Big field
Group Time Cost Venue Minimum Maximum
Foundation 2-3 8.00 – 08.45 415,000 VND AP1 5 10
Foundation 2-3 08.45 – 09.30 415,000 VND AP1 5 10
Year 1 – 2 09.30 – 10.15 415,000 VND AP1 5 10
Year 1 – 2 10.15 – 11.00 415,000 VND AP1 5 10
Year 3 – 4 11.00 – 12.00 550,000 VND AP1 5 12
Year 5 upwards 12.15 – 01.45 825,000 VND AP1 5 15
20/10 - 24/10 Swimming 8am- 1:45 pm
Mr Vinh Ngu-
yen
Min 8 F2 upwards
Various
(see letters)
AP1 pool
Holiday Swimming Programmes - October 2014
U11 Boys & Girls Basketball vs TX
On 1st October we had a great match against BIS TX
campus.
In the first half we were losing 5-2 with Jonathan
Brownrigg scoring a nice basket through a jump shot
13 feet away from the hoop. From there, we started to
heat up and pour in the baskets.
In the second half our defence got better too. We left
them scoreless in the second half, while taking ten
points ourselves. Jonathan scored 6 points overall, Wil-
liam scored 2 with 3 assists, and Young Jin scored 4. In
the end, we won our third match in-a-row 12-5. The
coaches are hoping for more of the same in 2 weeks
against ISHMC. Go BIS!
William Shultz 6B
The wind was gently brushing past my red sweaty
face. My heart was palpitating so hard I could hear
it resounding in my ears. “Pass Tig!” the ball flies
across the air towards me. One chance is all I got, I
reminded myself with a deep breath and I took the
shot. It rolled around the hoop, and went it! The
score was ten- nil. We were wining and there was
only a few seconds left on the clock.
Soon the countdown had begun 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4,
3, 2, 1! We had won! All that hard work had paid
off. I scored 2 baskets (4 points), Emily scored 2
baskets too and Ela scored 1 basket (2 points).
Overall I really enjoyed the match and hope to play
against TX again soon.
Naomi Martin 6V

13. Everyday there are losses of life due to traffic accidents - 15 people out of eve-
ry 100,000 die due to road accidents, and this is partly due to not wearing
helmets. By just wearing a helmet, motorcycle injuries are reduced by 69%, and
motorcycle fatalities by 42%.
Last year in Secondary the Year 9s collected data, monitoring helmet wearing at the school gate before and af-
ter the school day. The Year 8s analysed the results in their maths lessons to find:
It is surprising that still after 4 years of helmet wearing campaigns approximately 20% of the secondary pop-
ulation (adults and students) do not wear helmets on two-wheeled transportation and over 60% of adults do
not wear helmets on their bicycles! Time to reflect and become change makers!
Make sure YOU wear your awesome helmet, be a role model in your community and join the Helmets for
Kid‟s Campaign!
Helmets - a crucial asset to transportation
Accidents will always take people by surprise, and anyone can be affected, even in An Phu! This is why we see
the importance of committing to the Public Health Project - Helmets for Kids within the wider Community Ser-
vice Projects Program, to raise awareness in our community of the importance of wearing a helmet. We Year 9s
are committed role models. As a parent, teacher or student are you?!
Hoang Son, Ji Min and Mai, 9N and
Ms Emma Jane Morris
Community Service Projects Manager
Issue 6 /Page 13

14. Issue 6 /Page 14
BBGV Fun Run
Click on the YouTube icon
to watch the video

15. Issue 6 /Page 15
Volunteers are needed for ticket sales & day of event.
To volunteer, please email
ellaraj@hotmail.com or santisa17@yahoo.es
Thank you!
50,000vnd per
ticket
&
Free Entry for
Adults &
Children under
2 years
Term 1
New
Families –
Free Entry
PTG - Events
www.SignUpGenius.com/go/10C054EACAE28A4F85-bisfamily/

16. Issue 6 /Page 16
PTG

17. Issue 6/Page 17
MENU FOR F1 - F2
MENU 1 (WEEK BEGINNING 6 OCTOBER)
DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY
MAIN
COURSE
CHOOSE
1
Honey Lime Chick-
en, Sautéed Potato
OR
Braised Tofu with
Pork, Rice
Cottage Pie-Beef
OR
Chicken & Vegeta-
ble Curry, Rice
Pasta with Pork
Balls
OR
Fish Teriyaki,
Rice
Roast Pork,
Mashed Potato
OR
Chicken Noodle
Soup
Fish Goujons, Potato
Wedges
OR
Minced Beef & Vege-
table Stew, Rice
VEGETA-
BLES
Choy sum & Car-
rot
Chinese Cabbage
& Carrot
Spinach
Long Beans &
Carrot Morning Glory
SOUP
Spinach & Melon
Soup
Watercress Mixed Vegetable Spinach
Cabbage & Carrot
FOR VEG-
ETARIAN
ONLY
Aloo Tikki Burger
Spinach & Melon
Soup
Vegetarian Cottage
Pie
Chinese Cabbage
& Carrot
Pasta Napoli-
tana
Chickpeas Salad
Vegetarian Noo-
dle Soup
Long Bean & Car-
rot
Tofu & Vegetable
Stew, Rice
Cabbage & Carrot
Soup
MENU FOR F3 - YEAR 2
MENU 1 (WEEK BEGINNING 6 OCTOBER)
DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY
MAIN COURSE
CHOOSE 1
Honey Lime
Chicken, Sau-
téed Potato
OR
Braised Tofu
with Pork, Rice
Cottage Pie-Beef
OR
Chicken & Vege-
table Curry, Rice
Pasta with Pork
Balls
OR
Fish Teriyaki, Rice
Roast Pork, Mashed
Potato
OR
Chicken Noodle
Soup
Fish Goujons, Po-
tato Wedges
OR
Minced Beef &
Vegetable Stew,
Rice
VEGETABLES
Choy sum &
Carrot
Chinese Cabbage
& Carrot
Spinach
Long Beans & Car-
rot Morning Glory
SOUP
Spinach & Mel-
on Soup
Watercress Mixed Vegetable Spinach
Cabbage & Carrot
FOR VEGETAR-
IAN ONLY
Aloo Tikki
Burger
Spinach & Mel-
on Soup
Vegetarian Cot-
tage Pie
Chinese Cabbage
& Carrot
Pasta Napolitana
Chickpeas Salad
Vegetarian Noodle
Soup
Long Bean & Car-
rot
Tofu & Vegetable
Stew, Rice
Cabbage & Carrot
Soup
DELI BAR
OPTION
Bun
filled with Ham
& cheese
Served with
Salad
Jacket Potato
filled with Baked
Beans & Bacon
Served with Salad
Bun
filled with cheese &
egg
Served with Salad
Jacket Potato
filled with Bolo-
gnese Sauce
Served with Salad
Bun
filled with Chick-
en & mayonnaise,
Served with Salad
Fresh Fruits & Salad Bar are available daily

18. Issue 6 /Page 18
MENU FOR YEAR 3 - YEAR 6
MENU 1 (WEEK BEGINNING 6 OCTOBER)
DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY
MAIN
COURSE
CHOOSE 1
Honey Lime Chick-
en, Sautéed Potato
OR
Braised Tofu with
Pork, Rice
Cottage Pie-Beef
OR
Chicken & Vegeta-
ble Curry, Rice
Pasta with Pork
Balls
OR
Fish Teriyaki, Rice
Roast Pork,
Mashed Potato
OR
Chicken Noodle
Soup
Fish Goujons, Po-
tato Wedges
OR
Minced Beef &
Vegetable Stew,
Rice
VEGETA-
BLES
Choy sum & Carrot
Chinese Cabbage &
Carrot
Spinach
Long Beans & Car-
rot Morning Glory
SOUP
Spinach & Melon
Soup
Watercress Mixed Vegetable Spinach
Cabbage & Carrot
FOR VEGE-
TARIAN
ONLY
Aloo Tikki Burger
Spinach & Melon
Soup
Vegetarian Cottage
Pie
Chinese Cabbage &
Carrot
Pasta Napolitana
Chickpeas Salad
Vegetarian Noodle
Soup
Long Bean & Car-
rot
Tofu & Vegetable
Stew, Rice
Cabbage & Carrot
Soup
DELI BAR
OPTION
Baguette/Jacket
Potato
fill with ham, chick-
en, cheese, egg, tu-
na mayonnaise,
baked beans, peas
& bolognese sauce
Served with Salad
Bun/Jacket Potato
fill with ham,
chicken, cheese,
egg, tuna mayon-
naise, baked beans,
peas & bolognese
sauce
Served with Salad
Wrap/Jacket Potato
fill with bacon,
ham, chicken, egg,
cheese, tuna mayon-
naise, baked beans,
peas & bolognese
sauce
Served with Salad
Bun/Jacket Potato
fill with ham,
chicken, cheese,
egg, tuna mayon-
naise, baked beans,
peas & bolognese
sauce
Served with Salad
Baguette/Jacket
Potato
fill with ham,
chicken, cheese,
egg, tuna mayon-
naise, baked
beans, peas & bo-
lognese sauce
Served with Salad
Fresh Fruits & Salad Bar are available daily