- Dear Parents
-
-
 At
the beginning of this term we trialled a re-organised primary day. Our
intention was to shorten the time before lunch, which at 4 hours was
felt to be too long for younger children, and to increase where
necessary the amount of playtime available to, particularly, Key Stage 1
children. Having run this schedule for a month, the primary team and I
have now reviewed it.
-
-
 Our
view is that the re-organisation has proved, by and large, to be
successful. The earlier lunchtime has certainly been welcomed by many of
the children and staff and the new eating arrangements are generally
regarded as an improvement. However, it has become evident that some
fine-tuning to lesson times is still required. Whilst the current time
allocations suit KS1 well, there needs to be some modification for Key
Stage 2. KS2, therefore, will revert to their original break time from
10.00 to 10.20 and their lunch time will now run from 11.30 to 12.20.
These alterations do not affect either KS1 or parents but gain 20
minutes per day more teaching time for the older primary classes. They
still, however, have a longer lunchtime than was the case last year.
This revised arrangement will be effective from next Monday, 11 October.
-
 Book
Week
- This week the primary children have
been “bonkers about books”. Classrooms everywhere have been full of
children reading, talking about books, illustrating texts and sharing
enthusiasms. We have had booksellers in school and even children reading
quietly during break times. As a school we are always anxious to promote
reading but this week has seen exceptional effort by both teachers and
pupils to put books where they ought to be – at the forefront of
children’s learning. I would like to say a big public thank-you to all
of the primary teachers – they have gone way beyond the call of duty
and led a truly memorable week of book related activities.
-
 Family
Assembly
- The first Family Assembly for
primary students and their parents took place yesterday and was
reasonably well-attended. We hope that these will become more of a
feature of school life in the coming months.
-
 Bedtime
stories
-
From 5.30 onwards last night, the school playground filled up with small
children in pyjamas and nighties clutching teddy bears and furry animals
of all descriptions. Yes, it was bedtime story night, another feature of
Book Week. The children were given Milo and biscuits, curled up on
cushions and listened spellbound to the stories read by their class
teachers. It was a lovely evening and a useful reminder, if ever we
needed it, that children love being read to, especially at night. Are
there bedtime stories in your home?
-
- Bookshop
- The bookshop in school this week
has done good business and we have all benefited from it. A big thank
you to all parents who have supported this initiative.
-
- Football
- The delayed match of Fathers and
Daughters vs Lads will now take place next Thursday at 5.00 pm on the
Archery Field. Given the torrential rain recently, I had better add that
this will be subject to word-of-mouth confirmation nearer the time.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed that this intriguing fixture can go
ahead.
-
 Japanese
School Visit
- KIS has a history of exchange
visits with the Japanese School and the next of these will take place
next Friday, 15 October. On this occasion, some pupils from Years 3, 4,
5 & 6 have been invited. We look forward to a pleasant and
productive day.
- CGP
books
- On
Monday, from 8.00 to 8.45, CGP workbooks, revision guides and practice
papers for Key Stage 3 SATs and Key Stage 4 GCSEs will be on display
outside of the office. The CGP books are excellent resources for
students preparing for exams so will be of particular interest to
children in Years 9 and 11. The books are great value for money,
especially if you order them through the school. Order forms will be
available. Mr Davies will be there to give advice if needed. CGP books
for primary students will be on display later in the term.
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- Red House
- Red House Book Orders are due in by
next Tuesday, please. This is a good opportunity to purchase high
quality books from the UK at reasonable prices.
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-
 Golf
- The secondary students’ golf
“taster” had to be postponed from this week because the golf pro was
called to KL for a meeting. We have re-scheduled it for next Friday.
-
- Shoes needed!
- Regular readers of this newsletter
will know of our ongoing efforts to establish contact with a
children’s home. We shall shortly be delivering the items that were
collected last term but have a particular need for shoes. If you have
any shoes in good condition for children aged 6 – 12, please bring
them in to school and give them to Mrs Spice, who will ensure that they
are added to the children’s home collection.
-
- Finally, our football correspondent
has this week turned travel writer …
-
 Trip
to the Islands.
-
- After
such tempestuous weather it was pleasing to arrive at the jetty in
glorious sunshine, which was more than matched by the beaming faces of
the K.I.S pupils.
-
- We
were soon on our way to Gaya Island to embark on a nature walk. With Ms
Hardie setting the pace, rapid progress was made across the difficult
terrain. The canopy echoed with strange sounds: was it a gibbon? Was it
perhaps a mouse deer? The answer was far less exotic - Jung Ho had
overdosed on the kimchee. Mr Leak kept spirits high by treating the
marchers to a catholic selection of hits ancient and modern but the
highlight of the walk was undoubtedly when Hey Jun Ko, a keen exponent
of extreme sports, chose this occasion to introduce jungle downhill
skiing. Experience one again proved to be the best teacher as Hey Jun
careered, limbs flying, into the abyss. At all times, however, he showed
good style and held his form, resulting in a creditable score of 5.6
from the Russian judge.
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- All
too soon the K.I. S. armada was heading to the treasure island of
Manukan. Wasting no time, the K.I.S. ‘frogmen’ took to the shallows,
in search of aquatic life. Excitement rose to fever pitch as Chitra
Mandalam reported the sighting of a large aquatic mammal. Was it perhaps
a humpbacked whale, or maybe a sea cow? Unfortunately the truth was far
less exciting. It was only Mr Davis doing the backstroke.
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- Lunch
time arrived in the form of prawns, hot dogs and other bounty of the
sea. Having in my youth spent time on the plains of Africa, witnessing
Year 7/8 demolish a veritable mountain of hotdogs reminded me of the
spotted hyena. This beast is perhaps nature’s finest trencherman,
capable of eating a zebra in four hours, bones and all. I would back
year 7/8 against any of the said bone crunchers.
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- During
lunch the talk turned to the afternoon’s footballing challenge, a Mr
Leak invitation squad versus Cigku Mutang’s Headhunters. As the game
kicked off the Headhunters unleashed their secret weapon: Mike Ford
removed his shirt. Grown men cried, ladies fainted, the glare was
blinding. Such tactics should be frowned upon and certainly are not
within the spirit of the game. Leak’s band of merry men (and women)
ran out worthy winners 22 to 3, with Leak dominating the midfield. Many
of the winning team left the pitch with more than the glow of victory.
Emily had brought her kicking boots and she kicked everything; she even
kicked her own team, a dog and a palm tree. Cigku is not a man to take
defeat lying down, so the challenge for revenge on the volleyball court
was issued and accepted.
-
- Team
selection provided two well-balanced teams but Mutang certainly got the
better of the draft. The first game was soon over, honours going to
Cigku. Several players seemed affected by too much ice cream. Claudia
Lim, who normally uses her height to great effect at the net, couldn’t
manage to get off the ground: it would have been difficult to insert a
tissue between her sturdy size tens and the tarmac. A last ditch effort
to salvage the match came from player-coach Leak. This came in the form
of bribery, ice creams being proffered in exchange for victory. The
tactic misfired as his team swapped thoughts of volleys and smashes for
cornettos and wafers.
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- As
the heavens opened, we headed for home. Thanks must be given to all the
teachers and parents who made the day such a success. At all times our
pupils were a credit to the school, to their parents and most of all to
themselves.
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- Best
wishes,
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