Volume No: 2004-05/11

Date: 26 November 2004

Dear Parents

As I write this, the school is again a flurry of activity. Parents are busy organizing Mufti Day snacks and lunches, teachers are busy recording Mufti Day payments and the senior students have just come out of assembly and are ready to go swimming. Over the course of the day there will be primary singing practices and rehearsals and at 3.00 pm our boys’ basketball team will be out to avenge their recent crushing defeat. They play against S.I.B. at the K.K. town hall, opposite the Jesselton hotel, and we wish them good luck as they prepare for FOBISSEA … I have said it before but I will say it again – a lot is going on in this school of ours and thanks are due to all the parents and teachers who work so hard at providing a range of experiences for the young people in our care. I firmly believe that we all benefit.

Festivals Celebration

Last Friday lunchtime was a memorably nice one. The area at the rear of the primary block was decorated with paper chains and lights, classrooms were filled with work from the Festivals theme and, much to the children’s delight, the tables groaned under the weight of food. Each class then presented a short item or two on some aspect of the work they had been doing. The atmosphere was calm, purposeful and celebrative. Just right.

Primary Christmas Production

The school has been filled all week with the sounds of singing, rapping and choral speaking. The primary production is nearing completion! It promises to be a delightful evening - although I remain sceptical that all those angels will fit onto the small Sutera stage with their wonderful full-size wings! A separate letter has already gone out with rehearsal and ticket details and I am looking forward to watching the show come to fruition over the course of next week.

FOBISSEA Games

By the time next week’s newsletter goes out, many of our secondary students will be competing in the FOBISSEA Games under the watchful eyes of Mr Leak and Ms Hardie. The build-up to this event has been fantastic and I have rarely seen a group of students as inspired and determined to acquit themselves well. The driving force behind this, both on and off the sports field, has been Mr Leak , who has given selflessly of his own time. Sincere thanks are due.

A letter with all relevant arrangements for next week will be forwarded shortly to all pupils taking part. Everybody is expected to be at the Air Asia terminal, at 10 30 am.

Monosopiads v Seri Insan

This game, played a couple of weeks ago now, was very important for the K.I.S. girls as it was the first competitive female basketball game played by the school. After a slow start, the score was finely poised with K.I.S. in the lead by two baskets. The referee seemed to favour a flowing game, consequently fouls weren’t blown. Seri Insan picked up on this and treated the K.I.S. pupils to an exhibition of karate chops and kung fu manoeuvres. Our girls were slow on the uptake, but eventually Jo Moss fought fire with fire, contesting every ball as if her life depended on it. This inspired the girls who raised the game and ran out comfortable winners. The final score was 35 to 18. K.I.S. superstar Claire Curtis again dominated the proceedings for a large part of the afternoon. Didi Mahamud was tigerish in the mid court. When you consider that their school has 600 plus secondary pupils compared to our 50, this is a truly magnificent result.

 K.I.S. Monsopiads v the K.I.S. Aunties

The normal Wednesday afternoon atmosphere in the mathematics faculty was shattered by some determined grunts from the playground. A quick inspection revealed that Danish dynamos Janie Greve and Lotte Gronbech were working on their full court press. The girls in Year Eleven looked unnerved, their normal conversation about shopping and hair switched to a heated debate concerning the pros and cons of the zone defence.

Three thirty arrived with a large crowd providing a festive atmosphere at Bukit Padang. An impressive line up was provided by the aunties, a blend of youth, experience and cake. The girls opened strongly with Claudia Lim netting a fine basket, a reward for some determined play. Soon the samba style basketball favoured by the girls resulted in a 4 basket lead. The aunties replied with a free throw by Gronbech. Clearly a change had to be made. The aunties brought on the twin threat of Jeanniee Curtis and Swiss power forward Margreta Klauser. This changed the complexion of the match. Soon the aunties were back in the game. Quick baskets from Klauser resulted in 12 to 7. We had a game on our hands. Celeste Young brought an effervescent approach to the court; not being hindered by any knowledge of the laws of the game she ran, gazelle like, gamboling from net to net.

Claire Curtis dominated for large periods of the game and the aunties had no answer to her skill and passion. Even more pleasing was Claire’s avoidance of all sayings Anglo Saxon. She was supported by Jessica Wong, and captain Joanna Moss, who both clearly have talent in this game.

Half time saw a new tactic brought to the basketball court. Coach Leak thought training involved practice drills and fitness; the aunties’ coach, Lily Walker, countered with training cake. All of a sudden their tactic was obvious. Skullduggery was in the air - she was only offering the said cake to the girls. Coach Leak smelled a rat, a doping scandal seemed to be in the offing. Serena Lamb selflessly ‘fell on the grenade’ and ate 15 pieces of the doped cake.

After such a close shave the girls were glad to get back to basketball. Chithra Mandalam got stronger as the game progressed, relishing the physical exchanges. One can but wonder if Emily Fitzgerald was sent to bed without her supper as she downed Mum, Dawn, several times during the game. As the girls pulled away, the aunties became more desperate and as more chances were taken, the aunties seemed to lose their balance. Mariko Doe seemed to enjoy hitting the tarmac more than hitting baskets. Jelica Yap steadied the ship - clearly she has played the game before and brought some much needed refinement to the aunties’ play.

As the aunties struggled to get back into the match, controversy ensued. Referee Leak called a legitimate out of bounds play, a decision that was questioned by Curtis senior. After explaining the referee’s stance, Jennie Greve was not content with the officials interpretation. A stream of Danish ensued, resulting in a technical foul. This was the straw which broke the camels back. The girls ran out worthy winners 34 to 23.

The girls will take some lessons from this game, noticeably the competitive edge of the aunties, and we wish them all the best next week in KL. Our thanks to the aunties, who did fantastically well, a reflection of their supreme physical conditioning. I am sure a re-match will ensue.

 Go, Go, Go K.I.S.

Arsenal Football Camp

Do you want to bend it like Henry, pass like Bergkamp and dribble like Pires? Well here is your chance. The entire Arsenal Football Club coaching staff will be running a soccer camp at Garden International School, Kuala Lumpur, from the 12th to 16th December. The camp is for students aged between seven and fourteen years old and costs RM 595.  Further details can be found on the school office notice board and sign-up slips are available from the office. There are limited places available so hurry or else you might miss this unique opportunity.

Children’s Home

You will remember that last week’s newsletter was accompanied by a letter from Jenny Spice outlining our proposals to support the education of the children at Tambunan Children’s Home. There has been some response to this but I am sure there are many other families out there who would like to help. I have, therefore, appended a slip at the bottom of the newsletter that families can complete and return to Jenny Spice or the school office. Remember – just RM 75 will pay the school fees and provide the books for a child for one year.

Best wishes,