BSQ Newsletter No. 7

Now that we are back at school and starting to feel some return to normality, there is time to reflect on what has been happening here in Ecuador. Last week we shared a post on our Facebook page from the Scouts and their message exactly mirrored our own values of Respect, Care, Happiness, Welcome, Ambition and Determination. As we work to develop and nurture those traits in our students (and the wider community), we hope that we are building the foundations for adults who will make a positive difference in the world around them and work to ensure that everyone can live (and learn – should they wish to do so) in peace.

Whilst there is little news from last week, this week we are as busy as always here at BSQ and there is lots coming up to report.

This Wednesday our Equality and Diversitygroup, made up of a small team of committed and caring students, will be spending a day working on a student guide to our values. They will be considering exactly what being respectful, caring, happy, welcoming, ambitiousand determined looks like for every student here at BSQ. This will then be followed by a similar activity with parents and staff.

This week the secondary students will be celebrating their hard work with their first Reward and Recognition Assembly following Partial 1. Joining together in this way is an important part of acknowledging the contributions our senior students and staff have made to the school and to their own development since the start of the year.​

This Saturday we will be holding our Global Citizenship Day at BSQ. This will be a great opportunity for students to engage in a range of activities designed to encourage their thinking about their own country and others. With thanks to the parents who are also supporting this day.

Our team - the maintenance team

Whilst teachers and students are busy in the classrooms there are groups of staff at BSQ working hard to make sure that the buildings, the play areas, the resources and the necessities of daily living and learning in a school are functioning and in place. Here at BSQ we are very lucky to have such a dedicated, hard-working and positive team who look after us every day.

Continuing with our teachers and their stories about learning in the classroom this term. This week we hear from Mr. Matthias Lee in Secondary and from Mr. Simon Newman in Primary.

Mr. Matthias Lee – Secondary English Teacher

These past few weeks have seen a couple of new units started with KS3. Year 8 have begun Animal Farm, the famous novel by George Orwell. In lessons, we have been examining the background context of the novel, looking at communism, Orwell's view of communism and how his view is put forward through the use of allegory. All of the students have been very engaged by the novel, a testament to the engaging power of Orwell's writing and to their own motivation and focus. It has been very rewarding to see the students exploring the ways in which Orwell subtly presents the shift from ideal to reality through close analysis and discussion. We are currently at the end of chapter 3 and about to move on the chapter 4.

Year 9 have begun a unit exploring war poetry from Britain at the time of WW1. We have been looking at both pro and anti war poems, analysing the ways in which writers attempt to protray war as either attractive in order to encourage people to sign up, or unattractive, specifically through the use of irony. To consolidate the learning, in groups the students have created both pro and anti-war posters, using lines and images from the different poems to put across their message.

Mr. Simon Newman - Year 6 Teacher

In Year 6 this term, our learning has been organised around our topic question for the term:

Why Do People Move?

Taking the United States as our country of focus, we have been studying the stories of the Creek Indians as our model text in Literacy. These are tales from the area that we now know as Florida and they involve narratives about men who transform into snakes and giant birds that eat human beings! Our topic focus has enabled us to get to know the geography of the United States with more accuracy and, in terms of history, we have been researching the 45 presidents of the country and evaluating their efforts as leaders.

Our class assembly was also linked to our work in class. The children performed three different protest songs from the late 1960s to the audience and then presented information about each song to the audience through presentations and drama.

Singing to the audience in our class assembly was a great way to begin to get the Year 6 children thinking about their performance later this school year. Did you know we’ll be performing our interpretation of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest next June for the Year production? More on that across the year…

October 19th – Global Citizenship Day. 8:45 - 12:00

October 21st - 25th – CAS Spirit Week

October 25th – Halloween Dress up Parade

Emma Newman

​Principal

This week in Primary we are looking forward to Global Citizenship Day on Saturday 19th October, between 8:45am and 12pm.

On this day, the students in Reception to Year 6 will be questioning, investigating, researching and presenting their ideas about the culture of their chosen country, in relation to their knowledge and understanding of this country. But what exactly is Global Citizenship? Oxfam define a global citizen as someone who is aware of and understands the wider world - and their place in it.

​They take an active role in their community and work with others to make our planet more equal, fair and sustainable. Global citizenship is all about encouraging young people to develop the knowledge, skills and values they need to actively engage with the world. And it is also about the belief that we can all make a difference. Here at BSQ we hope that the benefits are felt across the school and beyond. Global citizenship helps young people to:

• Build their own understanding of world events.
• Think about their values and what's important to them.
• Take learning into the real world.
• Challenge ignorance and intolerance.
• Get involved in their local, national and global communities.
• Develop an argument and voice their opinions.
• See that they have power to act and influence the world around them.​Above all, it shows young people that they have a voice. The world may be changing fast, but they can make a positive difference - and help build a fairer, safer and more secure world for everyone.

We hope to see many of you at school at about 11:45am to share your child’s learning, ready to go home at 12pm.

We have also arranged for the postponed Reading Workshop for Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 parents to now be held on Thursday 17th October at 8am in the Library. This workshop will share some great tips on supporting your child’s reading development and phonic awareness at home.

Marcus Madden

Head of Primary

Global Citizenship

On Saturday 19th October, we celebrate our first community awareness day of the year, International Day. In socially anxious times, is it more important than ever that we strive to understand the stresses, strains and circumstances under which our fellow humans live, in order that we are able to think, talk, and act with care and empathy for the good of everybody.

As part of our ongoing mission to nurture such internationally-minded leaders and builders of the future, this year’s International Day will be aimed at developing global citizenship through the lens of 3 of the 17UN Global Goals: Climate Action; Reduced Inequalities; and Zero Hunger. Students, in mixed-age groups designed to enhance cross-pollination of ideas and experiences, will move between three 'lessons' created to frame contemporary global issues in accessible, stimulating, and relevant ways, with the outcome being greater understanding of the world, and of their role in it's future.

This is not an optional exercise. This is a planned and taught school day, at which all students' attendance and full participation is expected. Students need to arrive for an 08:45 start. They can be collected from 12:00. School buses will be provided for those who use them.

Jim Wild

Head of Secondary

This week our school counsellor, Andrea Carrera, talks about helping your children cope with situational anxiety.