From the Principal’s Desk, 21 November 2019
Dear Parents
It is essential that we prepare our students, throughout their school career, not just to pass their final examinations, but for the challenges which lie beyond the confines of the education system.
The Year 11 students left for their annual leadership camp on Monday and when I joined them on Tuesday, I was immensely proud of the teamwork I witnessed. I saw the students come to each other’s aid in order to conquer the various obstacles set before them; from helping each other navigate the river to leading a blindfolded friend via a safe path, these were only a couple of the skills on display. I watched them with pride, as so many of the students I have known since they were in junior school and have followed their progress as they transitioned into high school and now into the leaders of our student body. They are a keen and passionate group and we have much to look forward to as they navigate their final year.
Our Year 12 students completed their final Cambridge examinations on Friday the 15th of November and we eagerly await the results in early January next year.
We had a fruitful information morning on Saturday the 16th of November and are looking forward to welcoming our new parents and students in the 2020 academic year.
This coming Monday, the 25th of November, is the primary school orientation morning where students will be introduced to their teachers for the 2020 academic year. It is an exciting time for both teachers and students as we all prepare for the new academic year.
I wish you all a wonderful weekend!
Kind regards
Edna
From the Principal’s Desk, 7 November 2019
Dear Parents
What makes a school stand out? What makes BIS an extra ordinary school? We at BIS believe that education is more than the academics we offer to our students. One of the key skills that all students need in life is the ability to apply critical thinking in decision-making.
Critical thinking should be integrated across curriculum content through activities and strategic planning.
What is the language of critical thinking? Here are some traits that we can identify:
- Adapt
- Strive
- Examine
- Create
- Communicate
- Collaborate
- Inquire
- Reflect
- Link
Students must be taught to identify and nurture these traits and apply them academically as well as in social interactions.
Critical thinking fosters teacher development, student growth and family engagement; all important factors for intellectual and emotional growth.
This weekend we will be hosting our Foundation and Key Stage 1 Sports Day. Please join us for this exciting event!
Have a wonderful weekend.
Edna
From the Principal’s Desk – 11th April 2019
Dear Parents
Welcome to the second term of 2019! I trust you all had a wonderful break and are ready to plunge straight in to what promises to be a busy term. Easter is also just around the corner and with the slew of public holidays this month, we’ve got a few four-day weeks ahead of us.
During the week of the 15th to the 18th of April we are hosting a Book Week for Foundation Stage to Key Stage 2 and on the 4th of May we are looking forward to hosting another Interactive Open Morning.
“In good schools there is a great deal of fun and laughter, but also a great deal of seriousness, honesty and fairness. There is a kind of security; sense that growing up is something to be enjoyed, not merely got through. There is a feeling of safety and an immense variety of outlets, as if you are surrounded by a thick, firm hedge inside which is a world of beckoning activities and interests.” – Michael Oakeshott (British philosopher)
I’d like to welcome Ms. Sonia Terblanche to our school as the Junior School IT teacher and we are excited about the Robotics Programme she is putting in place for our Junior School students. The addition of Ms. Terblanche to our team enables Mr. Kroukamp to devote all his attention to the High School’s more advanced Coding and Robotics Programme, as well as his Computer Science classes.
I’d also like to welcome Miss Caroline Grix to our High School staff and I am certain she will valuable addition to the Business Studies Department.
This term promises to be a challenging one, but as our students continue to grow academically, so do they grow emotionally and socially, better preparing them for the world beyond our walls.
I would like to congratulate Michael Schoots for achieving the Top Achiever SA Cambridge award for the AS level Business Studies exam in November 2018. This is the second year in a row that one of the Blouberg International students win the Top Achiever for Business Studies and we are super proud of their achievements.
Audrey Lepo also won the Top Achiever SA Cambridge award for French IGCSE.
Well done to both students and teachers who relentlessly encouraged and assisted them in their studies.
I wish you all a wonderful weekend with family.
Kind regards
Edna Carolissen
“I would like to congratulate Michael Schoots for achieving the Top Achiever SA Cambridge award for the AS level Business Studies exam in November 2018. This is the second year in a row that one of the Blouberg International students win the Top Achiever for Business Studies and we are super proud of their achievements.
Audrey Lepo also won the Top Achiever SA Cambridge award for French IGCSE. Well done to both students and teachers who relentlessly encouraged and assisted them in their studies.” – Ms Edna Carolissen (BIS Principal)