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Dear
Parents
 The
end of first term the world over is a busy and hectic time for students,
parents and teachers. This one has been no exception. I am sure there will
be a collective sigh of relief when the final bell rings but it will be
coupled, I am pleased to say, with a great deal of satisfaction.
Primary
Production
Our
thanks go to all parents and helpers who contributed to making The
Busy Innkeeper such a thoroughly enjoyable show. The theatre at
Sutera
Harbour
was nicely packed and the children rose to the occasion with a very
accomplished performance. Singing in the school has improved dramatically
over the course of the last year and singing with gusto was definitely the
order of the night. It was a most enjoyable event and one of which children
and staff can be proud.
Talent
Time
Although
entirely different in character, last night’s end of term Talent Show also
turned out to be a wonderful night. We deliberately opted for a low-key, low
cost approach and it turned out to be exactly right. The array of musical
and dance talent on show was impressive and the finale with Mr Albert’s
band was nothing short of spectacular. Many thanks to all performers, who
worked and rehearsed hard in their own time, and to Mr Albert, Mr Davies and
the PTA for all the organisational back-up. Without it, nothing happens. The
only sadness was that this was Emily and Jesse Fitzgerald’s final
performances at the school and that compere and dancer Michelle Quek is also
leaving us. Michelle has shared her considerable dance talent with all ages
and I have been impressed with her generosity of time and spirit. Thank you.
 Final
Assembly
It
was my great pleasure to present over 40 Bronze certificates in Assembly
this morning and 1 Silver. Bronze certificates are awarded when a student
collects 40 House points, the vast majority of which are awarded for
academic work. The Silver certificate requires 75 points. Congratulations to
all certificate holders on their high standard of work this term and
particular congratulations to Rizky (Year 9) for blazing a trail that many
others will be determined to follow.
Dates
for Next Term
These
will be published again but here are some key dates for next term:
- January
- 10
-
Term begins
- 12
-
Mocks start for Year 11
- 18
& 19
-
Primary Topic Talks
- 19
-
Mocks finish
- 21
-
Public holiday
- 31
-
Healthy Eating Week begins
- -
Parent Teacher Meeting
for Year 11
-
- February
- 2
-
Primary Mid-Year reports in Core Subjects issued.
- 4
-
Healthy Eating Week ends.
-
Year 5/6 Family
Assembly
- 7 – 11
-
Chinese New Year/Half Term
- 17
-
Secondary Grade Cards issued
- 22
-
Year 9 Parents Evening
- 28
-
Charity Week begins
-
- March
- 4
-
Charity Week ends
-
Year 3/4
Family Assembly
- 8
-
Sports Day
- 10–13
-
Secondary FOBISSEA Games (to be confirmed)
- 24
-
Secondary Grade Cards
- 25
-
Public
Holiday
- 31
-
Secondary production
-
- April
- 1
-
Secondary production
-
-
Year 1/2 Family
Assembly
- 5
-
House Volleyball
- 6
-
Term ends
 FOBISSEA
Games
As promised
last week, our roving reporter has managed to file from his sick bed an
account of the FOBISSEA Games in
Kuala Lumpur
.
 Fobissea 2004
After
an agony of waiting, the day finally arrived. 10.30 saw the FOBISSEA 2004
team at Terminal 2, looking the part in their superbly crafted uniforms.
Tearful parents (were they tears of joy or sadness?) waved off our team with
several parents ensuring full embarrassment by also delivering kisses.
 From the outset the students were
great. The plane flight went smoothly and it was a chance for Mr Leak and Ms
Hardie to see another side of the K.I.S. chosen few. For example, evidently
Mary Walker has a similar constitution to the hummingbird, which daily has
to consume several times its own bodyweight in nectar. Likewise, Miss Walker
needs to match her bodyweight in chocolate.
We
arrived at the swanky Cititel hotel, adjacent to a temple of consumer
excess, the Mid
Valley
Megamall
. We knew we were close when Joanna Moss got agitated and kept saying,
“shopping”, because apparently, as she later explained, she has a
shopping sense, similar to Spiderman and his spider sense. Unfortunately,
time would not allow a first inspection of the mall.
We
checked in and were pleased to find quality, clean accommodation.
Unfortunately for me, I was billeted next to Messers Aslie and Law. After a
rich supper these two young men provided a somnambulant symphony of eerie
night music. It was certainly a world away from the late evening matins of
my youth.
After a welcoming address by Alice
Smith principal Mr Nick Bishop, the welcoming dinner was in full swing.
A super buffet provided physical bodily sustenance, whilst the presence of
600 pupils provided nourishment of a different flavour. The Year 11 girls
were in their element, our young debutantes certainly proving the most
elegant and sophisticated. However, Ying Wong shattered this good impression
by teetering on a pair of heels more suited to a circus acrobat than a young
sports competitor.
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The
night passed without incident and Friday morning saw a refreshed but nervous
squad of basketball players breakfasting on the truckers’ favourite, bacon
and eggs. From the start it was obvious we were up against a stern
challenge. The opening game for the guys was against Tanglin Trust school.
After a poor start, K.I.S. performed unbelievably well and finished 40 to
29. All the Tanglin squad were six feet plus, 17 and hairy. Sam Ting was
inspirational.
The
girls played
Garden
School
, and lost by 3 scores. They led for large parts of the game, which when you
consider the size of
Garden
School
and the age of the girls, was an exceptional performance. I was so proud.
Claire Curtis was superb. In this game, foul queen Ying Wong announced her
presence. One thing is for certain,
Garden
School
will always remember our young ladies!
Rapid
defeats against
Garden
School
for the boys and Alice Smith for the ladies saw the teams transfer to Bukit
Jalil swimming complex. My mistake here was to enter our pupils in swimming
events. Other schools had separate swimming squads. Consequently, some of
our pupils pulled out, which at that late hour was not helpful. However I do
appreciate that it was a big request. At this time, Chris Law was superb.
Like the Spartans at
Thermopylae
, he took on all comers. Corrissa Loh, Chitra Mandalam, Sarah Moller and
Emily Fitzgerald will never need to walk the yellow brick road in search of
a heart because, don’t let appearances deceive, these sweet, innocent
young ladies have the hearts of lions. They took part in races they had no
chance of winning, knew they would finish a long way back and did it without
complaint. Medals have been awarded for less.
We
returned to the domicile truly worn out. It was here that the resilience of
youth was evident. After 2 or 3 hours, like the butterfly emerges from the
chrysalis, our students emerged refreshed and raring to go. A pasta
explosion provided much needed energy for the shopping. The pupils were
unleashed in consumer heaven. Fortunately, when energy levels dipped, the
super mocha latte from Coffee Bean provided the necessary jump-start. Like a
pig finds its sty, the older boys gravitated to a pool hall. They were soon
returned to the fold. The only other incident of note on Friday was when
young Michelle Quek tried to gain unfair advantage by flirting with an
unsuspecting match official.
Saturday
saw the team divided, with the guys going to Alice Smith school and the
ladies going to the Sungai Buloh, to compete. The boys battled bravely, with
their best performance coming against
Uplands
School
from
Penang
. They were one of the top teams and we lost by 5 baskets, I was very proud.
By the end our boys were truly exhausted.
 The girls were up against an
impossible task. Playing against 10 eighteen year old big-footed behemoths,
they had only one recourse: aggression. Jessica Wong led the way, getting
fouled out 3 times. This may sound bad but in basketball this is part of the
game and is a reflection of this young Amazon’s competitive nature.
Michelle Quek tried to confuse the opposition by attacking her home basket,
much to the consternation of her teammates.
During the match against J.I.S. one young Jakartan perempuan gave
Claudia Lim flying lessons whilst wrestling for the ball. Claud’, like a
terrier with a bone, would not let go, tenacity epitomised. Ms Hardie,
normally stoic in her countenance, was fulsome in her praise and admiration
for the girls. It is very hard to compete against older pupils: two or three
years in your teens is a chasm in physical ability. 
A
bruised and battered squad returned to the corridors of Cititel.
Myself, I was ready for the promised land of nature’s sweet restorative.
But that night was the big night, six hundred pupils and staff dining
together in the Renaissance hotel, undoubtedly
Kuala Lumpur
’s premier night spot. If we lost the basketball, we won the disco. A fine
meal was followed by three hours of disco provide by D J Sunil, the Baron of
Bangra. Our students were the owners of the dance floor. No other school
could compete. In an impromptu dance-off, Jessica and Claudia turned heads
and were voted best dancers by the audience. Chris Law gets applauded for
being the social butterfly of the occasion, and several young ladies were
keen to be on his dance card. Conservatively, Joanna Moss broke at least
eight hearts that night, one withering glance sending many a young suitor to
check in the rejection suite at the blow out hotel. One song urged the
dancers to remove their clothing due to it ‘Getting hot in here’; all
present saw this as just a lyric, except for Chris Law who whipped his shirt
off to appreciative screams from assorted young ladies. The highlight
though, was definitely the Macarena: who would have thought that Hey Jun had
such flexibility in his hips.
We
took the bus back to Cititel, Miss Hardie and I weary from the celebrations.
The students stayed up into the early hours talking in their rooms about
their experiences. Only two keys were lost, one by Walker and the other by
Ko. Apart from this, everything went smoothly.
I
would like to say that I have coached rugby to a high level in
Zimbabwe
, often in front of 2000 plus crowds. That experience was bettered by these
twenty students, who gave everything. I was proud to the point of tears.
Four different coaches came and commented on our pupils’ battling
qualities and for me this was fantastic. Everyone at K.I.S should be really
proud of the FOBISSEA students - 600 plus people are now very aware of the
location of K.K. I would just like to thank all the people involved in
staging this trip, with special mentions for Mr Davies, Ms , the office
staff, Cikgu Mutang and all the parents who contributed to the fund raising
and helped with all the logistics involved.
“Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey
Macarena!”
J Leak.
We are indeed very proud of our FOBISSEA team
and delighted that the trip went so well. The biggest “thank you” of
all, of course, goes to Mr Leak for his inspirational coaching and
determination. A big debt is owed.
It
only remains for me to wish all of you a very restful and peaceful holiday.
To those of you who celebrate it, I wish you a very Happy Christmas and I
look forward to seeing you all in the new year. Until then, have a good
break!
All
good wishes,
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