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NEWS

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The british school of bucharest magazine • Issue 4 • April 2015

BSB OFFICE STAFF

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301 301, 783 METRO

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42, Erou Iancu Nicolae Street, 077190 Voluntari, Ilfov County Bucharest, Romania

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For specific help relating to school transport and student lunches, please contact: Email: services@britishschool.ro Mob: 0728 133 432/3 Tel: 021 267 8919 Fax: 021 267 8969 For admissions please contact Mr Simon Lambert: Email: admissions@britishschool.ro Phone: 021 267 8919 Fax: 021 267 8969

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If you need any information or help in regard to your childâ€™s education and support at BSB, please do not hesitate to contact our office team during normal working hours, 8.00am - 5.00pm, Monday-Friday. Email: office@britishschool.ro

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Nursery, Primary and Secondary

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FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Jo Puddy-Wells Principal

Dear Parents & Friends of BSB As our school grows in age and size it is encouraging that more opportunities for our students and community can be offered. For example, this month we have been able to offer our first course in Parenting First Aid with our UK trainer; and welcomed the world renowned Dr. Michael Thompson to speak to our parents, faculty and students. Both events were a great success and we are already looking at additional trainers we can organise for the coming year. In one of Dr. Thompson’s talks he explained about the need for four frameworks in the life of a secure child. The initial framework referred to the child’s direct family, spreading out to extended family and close friends of the family, to school, and ultimately a firm understanding of their place in the world. International schools are an interesting dynamic in this model as they are often the source for the close friends of the family where families on the move make new relationships. These friends come to play an important part in the lives of the children involved. Schools such as the British School of Bucharest play a wider role in many students’ lives than just a place where learning takes place. They can provide consistency and continuity, a central place where friendships are formed and morals and values are honed. All of this happens successfully with a solid association between school and home, and BSB recognises the importance of this special link. Parents understanding and support for school, its culture and ethos, expectations regarding attendance, punctuality, uniform and behaviour

are vital for the strength of this partnership. Parent and teacher workshops focused on examining our home-school communication, aimed at improving the timing and amount of information sent home, is an example of our continued commitment to provide clear and relevant details about students’

“Parents understanding and support for school, its culture and ethos, expectations regarding attendance, punctuality, uniform and behaviour are vital for the strength of this partnership.” achievements and activities. Parenting sessions from speakers such as Dr. Thompson are another way to reinforce the connection between school and home. We shall be celebrating this strength and the subsequent success of BSB on May 8th at our Gala dinner, 15 years of history feels like just the beginning and I hope you will join us as we look to the future of our school and its community.

F R O M T H E P R I N C I PA L 3

Sessions for Parents, Students and Teachers

Michael Thompson Parents were treated to two days of talks by Michael Thompson, the insightful child psychologist and best-selling author of several books conveying children’s experience of life and school. Dr. Thompson insisted that parents must first discover and respect children’s perspectives on their own lives before trying to ‘discipline’ them. In his first talk, ‘How to Raise Responsible Children’, Dr. Thompson suggested that children cannot be taught directly how to be responsible. They are taught indirectly, by their family and the social frameworks surrounding them. Most importantly, children who will be responsible feel securely attached to their parents, recognised for who they are inside, and part of something larger than they are. So, instead of investing endless energy in lecturing and punishing children for their misbehaviour, parents can instead spend time listening to what their children have to say about the world without correcting them. This is difficult to do; every parent wants to ‘fix’ things for their children or set them on the right track. But responsive listening is more powerful in building responsibility in children. Without it, children feel that parents ‘don’t get it’ and they lose interest in developing self-discipline. Alongside attuning ourselves to our children, Dr. Thompson explained that responsible children have parents who are demanding of them. Many of us BSB parents nodded in relief we can do demanding! But Dr. Thompson had another view of demanding in mind. He pointed out that we are too demanding of academic skills in little boys and not demanding enough of practical and moral skills in older boys. This kind of ‘demanding’ creates anxiety in most and entitlement in some - not good grounds for being able to take responsibility. Better to expect children to make mistakes, understand that learning happens continuously, and not obsess on the numbers. Responsible children are allowed to try and fail and try again. Responsible children are raised by parents who have the imagination to see beyond their behaviour to the best inside of them. A challenge for all of us.

As a member of staff and as a parent, the opportunity to spend time with, ask questions and listen to Dr. Michael Thompson was both valuable and memorable. His depth and breadth of knowledge and experience in the workings and development of the young mind, alongside his obvious yet unintimidating intellect, spoke to us all - children and adults - with clarity and relevance. I was fortunate to attend the majority of Dr. Thompson’s talks, met with him twice at senior leadership meetings and even had the pleasure of accompanying him for lunch; at all times his advice was thoughtful and reassuring, but also matter-of-fact and without ambiguity or false promise. His words inspired: adding greater weight to our pride as educators; encouraged our students to speak out with confidence; reassured our mums that ‘this is and they are very normal’ and made our dads want to drop everything, go home and wrestle their young cubs. by Dan Batson When my friend Matteo and I were asked to give a tour of the school to a visitor, we thought nothing of it. The visitor turned out to be none other than Dr. Michael Thompson, a psychologist who specialises in children and families. He soon lived up to his reputation as we had barely walked into the library when the questioning began. Where do we come from? Have we always been in an international school? How long have we been at this school? He was particularly interested in the different education systems; the French and the Italian. After our long discussion we eventually proceeded to give him the tour. He was extremely interested in aspects of the school and kept up a constant barrage of questions. He was very keen on the different aspects of the school that gives it its homely atmosphere: the chandelier, the staircases, the different sized classrooms. Dr. Thompson was particularly fascinated by the work that was done in the Y12 and 13 art class and expressed his regret that he would not be able to spend more time within BSB looking at the students work. by Clarissa, Y12

by Jennifer Mahon, PhD

S E S S I O N S F O R PA R E N T S , S T U D E N T S A N D T E A C H E R S 5

Milena is currently in her seventh year at BSB

Nour - poacher turned gamekeeper

Getting to know your TA

Where are they now

Milena Gugiu

Nour Chehab

I came to this school thinking that I would stay here for about a month to see whether I liked teaching or not. This happened almost 7 years ago. I came, I stayed and writing this I am thinking how blessed I have been all these years. During this time, I have seen lots of people come and go. One thing remained though and that is the love for children. Besides being my place of work, the school has actually become a place where I belong. Here, some of my colleagues become my best friends. You build life here, yours and others, and that is the most amazing thing. I am from Petrosani, a small mountain town in the west of the country where it is green and quiet and…perfect! I came here as a student 14 years ago and decided to stay. I love my church, autumn, horses, architecture, tea houses, Paris, Bach, C. S. Lewis, kindness and chocolate. I have an adorable cat and some great friends. I spend my free time admiring old buildings, growing up with my friends, reading, writing, playing the ukulele and trying to make a difference to the lives of children.

This year I joined BSB as a member of staff to help out with the Boarding and Marketing Department. For those of you who might not know I used to attend BSB when I was younger. I graduated from BSB in 2009 and then went off to university in Beirut to study Communication Arts focusing on TV, Film and Theatre. The past 4 years at university were the best years of my life and I learned so much, but being back here is very surreal to me and made me remember how much I’ve missed being at BSB. I can’t describe the vast change that has happened since I left and all the improvements here. Being around staff and seeing some old faces made me feel more comfortable and at ease working here. Since I’ve been back here, I had the honour to help out Ms Hindley with some Primary drama lessons and of course with the school year production “Grease”, which was a great success. I have grown up so much since I left, and now I hope to grow even more being back here to work around the amazing staff and students. Thank you BSB for having me back and of course a big thank you for moulding me into what I am now.

Andra competing in the Romanian Qualifiers

Lena - helping children with cancer

BSB Congratulates

Andra

Lena

Congratulations to our talented Andra in Y5 who took part with her ballet group in the Dance World Cup - Romanian Qualifier 2015. She took the Silver medal in the Group Ballet Category. Andra also took second place at the European Dance Union Romanian Qualifier 2015. Both competitions are international and the number of participants is between two and three thousand! This year Andra will participate in both finals in Croatia for the European Dance Union - Romanian Qualifier 2015 and in Bucharest for the Dance World Cup - Romanian Qualifier 2015. Andra started classical ballet lessons when she was five years old. Two years ago she was selected for the academic section of the ballet school. This section includes very competitive groups who work intensively for around six hours per week. Andra is keen to take part in many ballet competitions and we wish her good luck!

A few weeks ago, I donated about 30cm of hair to a charity called Little Princess Trust, which helps children who have cancer. The hair donations that they receive get sent to China where they are made into wigs. Donations are highly appreciated, as one wig made out of natural hair would cost about $250. I wanted to donate my hair because my hair was too long, and I thought that if I was going to cut it, then I should donate it. I donâ€™t need such long hair, but maybe someone who is less fortunate might want a wig while they are going through cancer treatment. If you are thinking about cutting a lot of your hair off, please think about donating it to a cancer charity, as it would be amazing. If you are seriously thinking about donating your hair, then here is the website of the charity that I donated my hair to: www.littleprincesses.org.uk

15TH ANNIVERSARY by Simon Lambert

here are two events on the horizon as we continue to celebrate our 15th Anniversary this year. The first is the Anniversary Ball that will be held on Friday 8th May in the Palace of Parliament.

It promises to be a glittering occasion with interactive areas, celebrity guests, a celebratory dinner and dancing to the music of the Rat Pack, a Las Vegas act that will be flying in to perform. The chance to dine with friends, celebrate the school’s history and dance the night away is an opportunity not to miss. Tickets will be available via the parent portal shortly. Book early to ensure that you don’t miss out.

Every year the school supports DHL in their endeavours to raise money for Save the Children via the DHL Carpathian Marathon Relay in Poiana Brasov. At the start of the year I promised the Principal that I would enter “15 Teams of Excellence” to celebrate our anniversary. With a team formed of 6 runners, each ANNIVERSARY completing seven kilometres, it means that a total of ninety runners are required. At the time of writing I 2000 - 2015 have thirty staff volunteers and I am looking to recruit around twenty-five pupils and twenty-five parents although the more the merrier. Tin order for children to take part in the relay race they have to be fourteen years of age or older. However, there are also children’s races after the main event where children as young as four can take part. This year the event will be taking place on Saturday 20th June and the after-race entertainment includes a concert by Smiley so a great day out is guaranteed. If you are interested in taking part please email simon.lambert@britishschool.ro. Don’t worry if you can’t form a team, I will arrange all of that. If there are any questions please feel free to stop me or any other members of the Leadership team at the gate before or after school.

PTA Review

by Giorgiana Tecuci Paltineanu – Chairwoman After the success of the Artisan Fair at Christmas and the hard work involved, the Spring Term always seems to rush by as we turn our thoughts to the Summer Fair. However, we held a Martisor event with the help of some booksellers and a jewellery stall. Thank you to everyone who attended. It was great to see so many parents taking the opportunity to attend the various talks held by Dr. Michael Thompson. Thank you to the Principal for organising his visit and for affording the parent body the chance to participate in what were most enlightening discussions. A big thank you as well to all of the parents who assisted, in whatever way, to the recent school production. Costumes, make up, bringing students to rehearsals and putting up with all of the angst!

We are now turning our thoughts to the annual Teddy Bears’ Picnic in May and, of course, the Summer Fair, If anyone is keen to assist in either of these events please get in touch. The Summer Fair is a huge amount of fun but requires many hands. The more volunteers the merrier so please get in touch with any member of the committee or members of staff you see at the school gate.

FROM THE ENGINE ROOM by Simon Lambert

Re-registrations for the next academic year continue to come in and we are currently very busy with school tours each day as interest in the school continues to grow. We now have 53 countries represented in the student body and this diversity is demonstrated each and every day in the internationalism seen around the campus. We have also started to take registrations for the Summer School that will run for four weeks from Monday 29th June. In addition the Summer Soccer School will run for two weeks in July in

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Herastrau Park. If you need any further information please email summerschool@britishschool.ro Our annual Sports Day will be taking place on Thursday 30th April at the athletics stadium near Arcul de Triumf. We look forward to welcoming you all to what always proves to be a great day out. Finally, we are starting to gear up for the Summer Fair on June 13th. As usual we will be on the look out for raffle prizes so if any companies wish to donate a prize please get in touch.

BOARDING by Matthew Cox

I am excited to write that the redevelopment of the BSB Boarding House is moving forwards rapidly. The house has undergone a number of key changes in order to prepare for its important new role as a unique residential home for young boys and girls. In view of that, I am delighted to invite all members of the community to come and see the house for the first time. We are holding a Boarding House Open Day event on Friday 24th April between 1pm and 5pm and again on Saturday 25th April between 9am and 12pm. We will provide guides to accompany our visitors, and Simon Lambert and I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. Coffee, tea and pastries will be available.

boarding at BSB. However, even if you are not yet considering boarding as an option for your child, but would like to take a look around, do please come along. We will be delighted and proud to explain the steps in the project so far, and show everyone what the finished house may look like. Everyone is welcome to come and have a look around and see what Arghezi House has to offer its first residents. Please make an appointment for your visit through admissions@britishschool.ro or the school office.

This is an excellent opportunity for those families who have expressed an interest in sending their son or daughter to

BOARDING at BSB - from September 2015

Boarding House Open Days Friday 24th and Saturday 25th April. For an appointment email admissions@britishschool.ro

Summer School 29th June - 24th July 2015

www.britishschool.ro/summerschool summerschool@britishschool.ro 42 Erou Iancu Nicolae Street, 077190, Voluntari, Ilfov County, Romania pril 2133 0 1 5 432, +40 728 133 433 14 21 267 N E W S89 B L A 19, ST T. +40 +40A728

PRIMARY SCHOOL REVIEW

Robert Ford Head of Lower School

As the weather starts to improve I am excited that staff will be providing more opportunities for the children to learn outside the classroom. It is generally accepted that many children today spend a lot less time playing outdoors than their parents did. They are growing up in an increasingly indoor and virtual world. Learning outside the classroom is important. It encourages children to engage productively with each other and provides them with the opportunity to get away from screens and devices. As a school we provide a wonderful environment for children to enjoy the outdoors and learn about the natural world. The outdoor learning environment has a significant impact on children’s physical health, emotional wellbeing and social development. Learning outside the classroom extends far beyond just using the school grounds. We encourage each year group to provide educational visits away from school to enhance the learning experiences. School trips of any kind help to play an important part in enhancing the curriculum and making it real for the children. Key Stage 2 teachers are currently preparing for their annual residential visits in Romania and the UK. Residential visits are a fantastic opportunity for staff and students to get to know each other better, be a part of a team, problem solve, get along with each other, grow personally and emotionally, face challenges and learn in different ways to normal school life. They help to develop a positive ‘can-do’ attitude where children are encouraged to take risks safely. The programme of residentials at BSB is incremental from 1 night away in Y3 to 4 nights in the UK for Y6 students. Several students also take the opportunity to attend the ski trip or participate in

the COBIS games which will allow them to travel overseas to take part in sporting competitions. I have recently been reminding the Primary staff of the aims of the school and two in particular appear most relevant in relation to learning outside the classroom: • To provide students with a positive, stimulating, secure and caring environment that encourages the fulfillment of individual potential and the growth of self-esteem in all areas: academic, social and personal. • To encourage students to engage in open enquiry, creativity, decision-making and independent thought.

“As a school we provide a wonderful environment for children to enjoy the outdoors and learn about the natural world.”

These aims sum up some of the key attributes we hope our children achieve. In essence, creating rounded individuals who can reach their potential in every way. It is clear that so many of the skills we need to support this growth come from learning both inside and outside the classroom and I look forward to seeing what the children learn from their ventures over the coming months.

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EYFS

Crib and Crèche in Bloom by Claire O’Brien and Raina Myson

Spring is here and the children in Crib and Crèche are as busy as ever. This term is all about Growing and new beginnings. What better way than to be outside in the garden. All the children have been having fun digging up the garden and getting ready to plant some seeds. We have been on Bug hunts to find Caterpillars and look at the patterns on them. We are trying to work out what pattern will be on their wings when they turn into Butterfly’s. The children have loved making Caterpillars out of socks and creating their own designs after listening to the story of “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”.

Preparing for the bug hunt

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The children have been out in the garden planting seeds and taking care of them as we wait for them to grow. We have planted Mint, Sunflower seeds and Tomato plants and can’t wait to try them. We will be using our measuring skills to keep track of how tall our sunflowers grow along with counting how many tomatoes grow. Under this Topic the children will be using – cognitive, language, listening and Mathematical skills, which are imperative to their learning journey with us at BSB.

Getting ready for Spring by planting cress...

...and sunflowers. How tall will they grow?

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This half term in Preschool by Priscilla Varban and Kate Dibble

In Preschool V we had so much fun learning about life under the sea. We worked together to make an ocean scene and squeezed on different colours of paint (green, blue, turquoise, and white). Next, we used different types of rollers, brushes and scrappers to spread the paint. We continued by making different sea creatures out of our hand prints and cut out seaweed. It took the children several days to make some beautiful dioramas that can be seen in front of our class. Decorating starfish biscuits with Mrs Wheatley was another one of our very popular activities this half term. One of our favourite books was ‘Please Don’t Eat the Teacher’ by Nick Ward. This quickly became a class favourite and I was asked to read it every day!

Preschool D princess invasion

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We also created our own counting octopus. The children loved counting the circles and gluing them onto the legs. In Preschool D we finished our learning journey on ‘A Healthy Me,’ by taking a trip to the medical clinic. The children loved it and asked some great questions. We then decided that it was time to take a journey into outer space! The children in Preschool D loved the story of ‘Aliens Love Underpants,’ and had lots of fun creating many different alien themed crafts. We explored different materials and now have a great understanding of what stretchy means! The children were interested to find out about the Universe and our Solar System. They created some wonderful alien drawings which are on display in our classroom.

Reception learn from growing things by Isobel Ford and Kayleigh Evans

The Reception classes have been celebrating the beginning of spring by exploring plants and watching how seeds grow. The children were inspired by the story ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’ - and were thrilled to watch their very own beans grow tall. Since then we have planted a range of flowers and vegetables and learnt a lot of new skills in the meantime such as: How to care for plants and take responsibility for looking after them. The children have been very careful and remembered to water their plants each day. What plants need to grow. We learnt that plants need water, sun and soil. How to work together. Whenever we do an activity the children need to share the materials and support each other. When planting the seeds we worked in groups so that each group of children could take ownership of a plant and work together to take care of them. How to measure. The children were very excited to watch the beans grow tall and compare them to find the tallest and the shortest. We counted how many cubes tall each bean was to measure them and then, excited by learning how to measure things, we used cubes and larger measuring sticks to measure other things around the school grounds.

How different plants, fruit and vegetables grow. After growing beans we wondered what it was like to grow other plants. We bought a selection of different seeds and have planted lots of flowers and vegetables to watch them grow. We were amazed to see how all the seeds were different shapes and sizes. We looked in a selection of information books to find out more and have learnt so much about how some vegetables grow above the ground and some grow below.– Now we hope to investigate where seeds come from and find some of our own. Healthy eating. In information books we found out that fruit and vegetables are really good for us and we should eat them every day. We wrote shopping lists for the teacher and bought some fruit and vegetables and have being finding out how tasty they are by making vegetable soup and fruit salad. Money and counting. We love pretend play and have made our own fruit and veg shop in class. The children have learnt about the different value of coins and how to pay for items with the right money. There is always so much we can learn! We have all enjoyed being outdoors in the sunshine, digging in the soil and watching our plants change and grow. We hope you see some lovely flowers in the months to come.

Reception proudly showing off their beans

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KS1

Key Stage 1 ‘Toy Story’ has been Y1’s latest theme. We had great fun investigating and comparing old and new toys and using toys as starting points for scientific investigations. We have used our favourite toys as inspiration for our art work, making observational drawings and then using these to make repeated prints in the style of Andy Warhol. In English we followed, sequenced and wrote instructions for toys and games. We continued our non-fiction focus by writing definitions of toys and ordering them alphabetically to create a class books on toys. Each class created a toy shop in their role play area and used this to practice recognising coins and finding coin totals and change. We have also had great fun taking part in Book Week and Maths Enrichment days. As bedtime stories was the theme during book week, we shared many famous and favourite bedtime stories, created fantasy stories and art work based around dreams and followed and sequenced instructions associated with our bedtime routines. Dressing up as our favourite book characters was a great way to

Y1 performing for parents in assembly

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finish Book Week. Our Maths Enrichment Days gave us the opportunity to participate in a range of fun yet challenging Maths activities based on our school building. One of our favourites was creating 100 square games outside and using ourselves as counters. This term Y2’s Science focus has been Materials and their properties. This has led the children to investigate whether materials are waterproof, durable, absorbent or soft and to consider their uses. Y2 then considered the importance of recycling and reusing old materials for new purposes. The children thoroughly enjoyed their time in the Design Technology suite with Mr Catalin; where they had the opportunity to shred, melt and cut plastic. They designed the end product and were able to use saws and chisels to achieve this under the supervised guidance of Mr Catalin to ensure high levels of safety. The end product was fantastic and each child worked incredibly hard and enjoyed the experience.

Children in Y1 taking a nap with Teddy and writing about their dreams

Y2 enjoing lessons in DT suite, learning how to draw accurately and correctly label their designs

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KS2

Key Stage 2 The excitement of learning continues in Y3 and this term saw the start of the new topic about the Romans. The students have been fascinated by what they have discovered about life in Roman times. They found out how the powerful Roman Empire spread across Europe and that the strength of the Roman Army contributed to this. Great fun was had when learning about Roman shields and the army training techniques, including the Testudo formation! Linking to this, the students have been studying the characters, settings and plots of a variety of myths and legends, starting with learning about the foundations of the city of Rome through the story of Romulus and Remus. They created their own mythical characters and enjoyed writing their own myths, based on the idea and structure of those they read. Students were also engaged in two days of Maths Enrichment. Focusing on the vocabulary of position and direction, the theme of “Our School Building” provided the opportunity to explore the beautiful school campus through a maths trail using the Qrafter app on the iPads. Students came to understand how QR codes work and solved a multistep maths puzzle at the end of the trail. The “Pacman Angle Munchers” the students made helped them to explore the concept of acute, obtuse and right angles around the outsides of the school buildings. It has been wonderful to see how enthusiastic the children in Y3 are about their learning and we are all looking forward to entering the summer term with this level of engagement. Winter seems to have passed Y4 by this year – a little snow and a little cold; then the sun came out, even if it wasn’t shining too forcefully. As always the time just seems to race by and it is always a surprise to see how much we have managed to cover. In English our focus was primarily upon working with information texts – what they are, how they help us and how we can extract the precise information we need. We started off looking at general texts – their layout and structure, the language they used, how they incorporated captions and pictures. We used these skills to extract information from texts about the Saxons and Vikings – how they lived, what they ate, how they fought and so on. We then stuck to an historical theme and examined letters written by

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both the Vikings and the Saxons, compared them and analysed why two accounts of the same event can be so different… interesting. Finally we looked at writing instructions and realized that it is not as easy as we think it is. As alluded to already, our topic work was history-based, with a little geography thrown in to identify where the Saxons came from and where the Vikings sailed to. In art we painted and sketched Saxon jewellery. In science we examined the nature of sound – what it is, how we create sounds and, more importantly, how we measure it. We also briefly looked at how sound passes through the hearing system and how we identify what a sound is. We considered what happens when our hearing is damaged and what the implications of this are, especially for children, culminating in a short lesson when we learnt a little bit of sign language and finger spelling. Y5 launched into their topic on the Greek and Roman Empires by categorising the importance of some the legacies from these periods. We were surprised at how many things were introduced then that have stood the test of time. Where would we be without a calendar and a judicial system? We have been very keen to learn about the language legacies and have been inspired by the myths and legends from that time. We have written our own myths and are now keen to write a play based on the story of Troy. We looked at the wearable art from these periods and designed and made our own brooches. We learned how the computerised engraver and laser cutters worked. We had to be very careful to make sure that the designs could be scanned and read clearly. We learned about the areas of the world that the Greeks and Romans dominated. We related the mobility of the Romans to our mobility by locating and mapping the countries that the children have come from. We discovered that we are a very global community. We investigated lines of symmetry in Roman mosaics and made our own Roman inspired symmetrical mosaic patterns. Within our Enrichment days, we also looked at patterns within tessellation. The children were off-timetable for two days and were tasked with re-designing the area of the pool pitch with tessellated

Pupils in Y3 have shown great enthusiasm for their learning this term patterned tiles. They worked in small groups to create a proposal which included costings for the project. We were very impressed with the motivation and perseverance that the children displayed and it provided a wonderful opportunity for the children to demonstrate their mathematical skills, problem solving and creativity. We have given the children the opportunity to develop their coding skills, using a program called Scratch. Some ‘experts’ in Y5 have been learning how to do this in the universities and relished the chance to teach their peers. Y6 have been working their socks off this term thinking about their topic of ‘legacies’. Through studying the stories and challenges of inspirational people around the world, we have learnt about the importance of bravery and courage in order to stand up for what is right and what we believe in. We have

discussed the civil rights movement in America as well as many different struggles from around the world. The story of Malala fighting for education in Pakistan showed us that even at a young age we can make a difference and have a voice. We have also thought about the legacy we are going to leave behind when we move on from BSB primary school and how we can be good role models to the children around us. Writing has been a major focus in Year 6 recently and we love putting pen to paper in order to be creative! Our poetry writing is improving all the time and we particularly loved writing a humorous poem giving silly excuses about why our homework was late! Through exciting homework tasks we have written letters to apply to be a spy, been involved in a shipwreck and had exciting adventures in haunted houses. We can’t wait to see where our imagination and writing will take us next! K S 2 23

Marching like Romans

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Y6 made electric cars in DT

Maths enrichment day - working outside on a glorious day

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Primary Maths Maths Enrichment Days

Calculation Strategy Workshop

On the 10th and 11th of March the Primary School enjoyed two whole days exploring maths enrichment activities. This focus on maths was an opportunity for all children to spend quality time exploring a variety of mathematical investigations and problem solving activities, stretching and challenging students at all levels of ability. Although each year group was addressing slightly different mathematical concepts, the inspiration for all activities stemmed from the common theme ‘Our School Buildings and Grounds’. It was exciting to see the children involved in such a wide range of open-ended mathematical tasks around the school, including measuring, data handling and shape and space work, with so much work taking place outside in the sun now that Spring is here.

Earlier this term Mr. Jones and his Y6 class ran a hugely successful and well received Primary calculation workshop. This was to support a calculation guidance document that had been developed by BSB Primary, in order to ensure that calculations are being taught consistently throughout the school and at home. Children were on hand to lead live demonstrations for parents, and did so confidently, with many parents commenting on the clarity of their explanations. Some of the unfamiliar methods being demonstrated included the ‘grid’ and ‘Gelosia’ methods of multiplication, as well as the ‘chunking’ method for division.

Maths calculation workshop in Y6

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All children spent the days exploring a variety of mathematical activities

Measuring and data handling using the school grounds

P R I M A R Y M A T H S 27

CRAZY HAIR DAY

C R A Z Y H A I R D AY 29

Ski Trip

by Catherine Passmore This year we went to Leysin in Switzerland for the annual BSB ski trip. This year was an upgrade on last in both numbers and countries. Very early on Saturday 14th February 22 children and their parents descended upon Otopeni airport where we were ready to fly to Geneva. We stayed in a place called Village Camps that held great views from the top of the mountain. The weather was glorious the whole week which gave the most amazing 360 degree views. The children were separated into 3 groups, beginners, intermediate and advanced. Soon after this we all hit the slopes and had endless amounts of fun. The children battled through their tiredness in order to begin the afternoon with more enthusiasm than anyone had ever seen. As each day passed the children got better and better and mastered their skills on the piste. The beginners spent their time practicing their manoeuvers and developing their confidence on the slopes. The children enjoyed a tasty hot chocolate from the top of the mountain and on the evenings the children participated in quizzes, watched DVD’s and went swimming.

All the skiers improved their skills during the week

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“I really liked the ski trip to Leysin. It was fun. When we went for our first ski lesson I was a little scared because I had never skied before. The teacher that I had was very good and he taught me to ski.” Eleftheria “The ski trip to Leysin was an amazing experience. I learned new skiing methods and enjoyed the wonderful views. There were millions of slopes to ski on and thousands of people skiing.” Jo-Andri “We had to wake up very early but it was worth it. The skiing was great, however, even better was having a hot chocolate at the top of the mountain.” Misha “The ski trip was really great and the ski lessons were fabulous. Every day we skied for 5 hours.” Antonia

Getting to the top was as much fun as coming down

Outstanding weather on the slopes

S K I T R I P 31

Book Week by Tim Appleton

Book Week was bursting with activity in the secondary school. The Y9 Poetry Slam had built up over the preceding weeks, poets competing in front of crowds we never imagined could fit into one classroom, until the very best of an amazingly skilled and spirited bunch fought it out in the final. Monday’s assembly was buzzing for the showcase event, as our peerless performance poets wowed the judges and the audience with their verse from the heart. Congratulations to all who took part, and especially to: 3rd: Max Y7 2nd: Harriet Y9 1st: Anda Y9

Y8 enjoying their writing workshop

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Our visiting author from the UK was kept busy for two days, not just during his sessions but also at lunch times when he chatted with students and teachers. His visit is described below. With book stalls trading in the Parents’ Room, and pictures of teachers’ bookshelves (“shelfies”) pinned up around the school, this week was a real celebration of reading and even of that old-fashioned object, the book. Reading for pleasure continues to be a priority for us at BSB and it has been fantastic to see our children’s enthusiasm for the written - and spoken - word. Not to mention Harry Potter Book Night (see elsewhere in this issue) and the wonderful costumes on dress-up Friday!

Dracula in action during the Gothic masterclass It was a dark and stormy night. A night full of storms. And darkness. The shadowy tempest of this night brought dark, stormy terror to the most resolute of hearts. It was during this squally, gloomy night that I realized I would never truly get used to the nightmares. Nor - despite knowing how to use a thesaurus would I ever make it as a horror writer. But, fortunately, next morning help was at hand. William Hussey, author of ‘Haunted’, ‘The Nightmare Eater’ and the ‘Witchfinder’ trilogy, was in school to help BSB students with their creative writing and to share his twisted love of the Gothic horror genre. During his workshops we learned how to construct and plot a story. William stressed the importance of being unpleasant to your main character, so here goes: Hussey was a foul-smelling ogre of a man, whose pale, cruel eyes betrayed a hatred of all humankind. His desire to dismember and devour children was thwarted at every turn by the watchful presence of teachers at his writing workshops. His only outlet was to read the children frightening stories and to hope that they would wake up sweating in the night; their nocturnal terror would give nourishment to him as blood to a vampire and thus

rejuvenate his evil soul. Our students, however, proved immune to his frightful powers. They left William’s sessions as brighter writers and crack character creators. He had filled them not with fear, but with enthusiasm for making their own stories, gory or otherwise. His Dracula spectacular had not chilled their blood with icy dread, but entertained, warmed and informed. William’s liking for horror and his horror of being liked saw him end up judging not the dead but the very lively poetry slam, where his scores frustratingly for him - met with noisy approval from a boisterous audience. William also spent an illuminating hour in the company of our Carnegie Book Club, where his attempts to turn our keenest readers away from their heroes Rick Riordan and J.K. Rowling and towards the dark side were met with smiles and cheerful questions about his life as a writer and his taste in books. (He prefers anything bloody, of course.) Shattered by the constant positive response from our students, William departed BSB a broken man, leaving only memories… and his books, displayed in the library as a challenge to the stout-hearted. B O O K W E E K 33

Harry Potter Night

by Ana-Maria Marin and Tim Appleton BSB joined many schools and libraries around the world and organised its first ever Harry Potter Night in March, bringing together the biggest Harry Potter fans from Primary and Secondary. We were overwhelmed by so many Muggles, Wizards and Witches asking to take part and the event proved a great success. The evening was one of magic and dynamism: right after passing through the wall at Platform 9 3/4 and a brief encounter

Time for the sorting hat in the Primary Library, sorry Hogwarts

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with the Sorting Hat, the participants were whisked into a variety of activities, readings and games, sharing the wonder of J.K. Rowlingâ€™s unforgettable stories. For a couple of hours, the Primary Library became one of the Hogwarts halls, where Nimbus 2000s, potions and magic wands were at the ready. We hope to see many of you there next time, as this is sure to become an annual BSB event.

Staff and pupils enjoyed reading extracts from JK Rowlingâ€™s books

Expecto Patronum!

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UNIVERSITIES Lights, camera, action in Stop Motion University

Photo: BSB

by Charlotte Smith

his term we saw the completion of another round of University courses. It has been extremely exciting to watch the children’s practical skills develop in their chosen universities but also to observe softer ‘life’ skills emerging.

There have been ample opportunities for teamwork in Universities such as Stop Motion Animation and Cooking; problem solving in Escape Rooms, Coding and Making Things Happen; Leadership in COBIS and Newspaper; and creativity

in Photography, Elements of Art and Huzzah. As always, the children have thoroughly enjoyed their new experiences and we expect that many students have been inspired to pursue new extracurricular activities outside of school as well.

Hurrah for Huzzah University

U N I V E R S I T I E S 37 37

Photo: BSB

CLUBS Encouraging the love of reading in Book Club

Individual and collaborative work in Creative Writing

Karate remains a favourite club for all ages

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Recreating classic adverts in after-school Art Club

Teaching motorcycle maintenance to senior students

C L U B S 41

CELEBRATING THE

FIRST 10 YEARS SINCE OUR FIRST EDITION 20th June 2015, Brasov Join the anniversary 2015 edition and support our Romanian Paralympic athletes on the road to Rio! www.maratondhl.ro www.facebook.com/dhlmaraton

SECONDARY SCHOOL REVIEW

Philip Walters Head of Secondary School

The past two weeks have been busy and have to a large extent epitomised life at BSB and the resilience of our students and staff. This sense of being “busy” is a function of BSB and independent schools of a similar nature. The schedule of the past ten school days has included the following significant co-curricular events on top of regular activities and lessons: Three teams of Y11 & 12 students returned from Prague after successfully competing in the World Scholars Cup; 70 Secondary student actors and musicians have been involved in daily and weekend rehearsals in the final build-up to the Production; Y7 visited a Bucharest mosque; Teams competed in a major CEESA basketball tournament; Prefects led daily school tours; Y12 linguists visited the French and Spanish institutes; AS Geographers carried out coastal fieldwork; Student Council interviewed several applicants for teaching posts; all Y7, 8 & 9 classes were involved in a morning of Maths Day mathematical conundrums; Y12 & 13 students attended a two day First Aid Course. I am sure that I have omitted other noteworthy happenings which are part and parcel of the ‘usual’ week. This remarkable schedule is testament to the hard work of our superb teachers and what pleases me particularly is the manner in which so many of our students grasp opportunities to take a lead. Watching several choreograph, assist backstage and actively direct and manage peers whilst working alongside the teachers during production rehearsals has been inspiring. Miss Hindley has entrusted them with vital tasks and has set high expectations which are being met. Several have clearly grown in confidence and stature amongst peers and this was reminiscent of the exemplary leadership demonstrated by our student chairs, guides, timekeepers and contestants in the COBIS

debating competition which we hosted a few weeks ago and which is described elsewhere in Newsblast. A recent study conducted at Birmingham University suggested that school-age children who carry out charity work or participate actively in events similar to those listed above are more likely to display more sophisticated moral judgements. The study led to some government ministers calling for schools to

“... nurturing and encouragement is thriving at BSB” take an active role in teaching ‘character and morality’. Professor James, the report’s author, concluded that “a good grasp of moral virtues such as kindness, honesty and courage can help children to flourish... that level of understanding doesn’t just happen – it needs to be nurtured and encouraged.” I would suggest that this nurturing and encouragement is thriving at BSB; we are absolutely aware of the importance of a blend of academic attainment and the need to imbue resilience and moral virtues through an expectation that students will have a full and fulfilling schedule. The past ten days are proof of this.

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COBIS World Debating Competition 2015 by Elisabeth Citron

The Organisers After months of preparation, the COBIS World Debating Competition at BSB was a huge success. 16 international school teams from as far afield as Nigeria, Mexico and Dubai as well as from many European countries, participated in the event. The field of competitors was as strong as ever; both students and staff were treated to an excellent standard of debates on topics ranging from globalization, the purpose of the criminal justice system and the success of collective action to the impromptu motions such as play versus work for children and lowering the voting age to 16. The event was also a fun one, as the teams were able to socialize while bowling on the Friday night and enjoy an evening of traditional Romanian food and entertainment at Caru cu Bere restaurant on the Saturday. We were especially proud of the success of our BSB team who made it to the Final on Sunday, defeated only by the incredibly strong competitors from Edron Academy, Mexico. In the end, all the hours of hard work were made worthwhile by an amazing weekend and a wonderful outcome for our talented team of BSB debaters!

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The Chairpeople and Timekeepers As Y11 and 6th form students, we were selected to be Chairpersons and timekeepers for the debates. At first this job seemed daunting but after practices at weekends with the team, we soon got to grips with it. Listening to the debates was fascinating too but it was sometimes hard to remember to keep time! Another job over the weekend was helping in the â€œControl roomâ€?- adding scores and preparing the results sheets quickly between each round. This proved very stressful at times but we did our best to keep calm. Luckily we have some excellent mathematicians at BSB! The Team COBIS was an amazing experience as a whole, stressful but completely worth it. After months of preparation, we were pleased with our results and as hosts, glad to see that all the teams had a wonderful time. We are proud to have made it to the final again this year which was a feisty, emotional rollercoaster! Debating the pros and cons of advertising was great fun and we love the impromptu debates because it brings out our creative and passionate side. We are not sure if we will be off to Mexico or elsewhere but are looking forward to next year already!

World Scholars Cup – Prague Round 2015 by Finn Y11

We woke up at 5am on Friday and were at the hotel in Prague by 11:30. Mr Cox and Miss Ellingham dragged us through the streets of Prague to lunch and then to Zizkov Tower to see a “wonderful” view of Prague. The girls (plus Mohammed and Filippo) took just under a billion selfies and other pictures. Then we went to the National Technological Museum, which had lots of cool things to look at like old cars and steam engines. The wonderful students of the Prague British School gave us a tour of the city at night. The next day was game day. We headed towards the PBS school where we witnessed ‘The Burch’ (WSC presenter) singing and rapping the song “Timber” which was indeed quite cool to watch. Several hours later we had completed a team writing task based on a specific research subject, the Scholars Challenge (an individual round of complex multi-choice questions on the subjects that we had revised) and finally three debates. The Scholars Bowl on the following day was a team-based multiple choice question task based on the revised subjects. Filippo was then chosen to advocate for our school in the Showcase Debate. During The Scholars Talent Show we watched

some intriguing acts, for example, a school performed the silentorchestra piece 4’33” for all of us to ‘hear’, we watched a solo drama monologue, and two others performed a song from Les Miserables. The final act was our very own Muhammad, who sang for us his own rendition of “Uptown Funk”, minus about seven eighths of the lyrics, and then told some hilarious jokes. The award ceremony took place, where our teams and individuals received an abundance of medals and two trophies. All of our teams were in the top ten in the competition and two were in the top four. After saying goodbye to our new friends, we left for the hotel. On the Monday, we had our ‘chill-out day’. We had a “lie-in” until 9:30 and then we went through the Prague old town, looking at Prague Castle and taking selfies with random strangers. We were allowed about three hours to roam the shopping streets of Prague, making all the girls quite happy. After endless walking and souvenir shop visiting, we went to the Hard Rock Café and celebrated our wins and Miss Ellingham’s unscheduled, impromptu birthday.

ISTA

by Anastasia Y7 Where can I even start explaining ISTA? Was probably one of the best weekends of my life, and I know that I’m speaking for everyone when I say this. For the first time, I felt like I was part of a community, a huge, welcoming, community. The theme for this year was What is Behind Closed Doors; we discovered the buildings and all the little stories of Bucharest by going on a trip to the depths of Bucharest’s Old Town. We then worked on turning these into incredible pieces of drama with our ensembles. We all had our ensemble groups in which we all did very different things. This was demonstrated during the dramatic performance at the end of the festival. Our ensemble leaders were all good fun and took great care of us, this made us feel like we actually belonged at the festival. Additional to the ensemble work there were some amazing workshops, such as; Puppet making, where the students made their own puppets, Less is More, where we discovered that there

is more to things than their daily use, Romanian Folk Dancing, where we learnt and danced the Romanian traditional dance, Clowning, Devising and many other exciting and entertaining workshops! It was amazing meeting people from around the world (Kenya, Ukraine, Turkey, Ethiopia, Jamaica to name a few). It was great to learn about their cultures, and discovering what it behind their closed door. (And in the end, coming back with many new phone numbers!) Personally, I learned many new traditions and cultures, as well as taking the chance to improve my theatrical skills. But that is not it all- I have also learned the cultures from my nationality and what is behind my closed door.

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SAVE THE DATE

SPORTS DAY 30th April 2015 46

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MFL Trip to French and Spanish Institutes in Bucharest by Matteo, Clarissa and Stephanie

On Wednesday we had the opportunity to visit both the Spanish and French institutes in Bucharest. This proved to be a valuable experience as we explored the resources they offer (library, online resources, films, study room among others). This will benefit us this year with our AS in Spanish and French but also next year for our preparations for A2. Both institutes informed us about worldwide exams they offer (DELE for Spanish, DELF for French) which would benefit us for when we apply for university but also for a job on the long term. Like the Cambridge English exams, they grade your level into A, B and C.

We also had the opportunity to have a cooking session in Spanish in which we learned how to make Guacamole. It was a very interesting day and it was a fantastic experience which we highly recommend to other students. Both institutes offer a wide variety of fun activities to promote French and Spanish (gastronomy lessons, film festivals, exhibitions, etc). Keep an eye on their websites: http://bucarest.cervantes.es/es/ http://www.institutfrancais.ro/

S E C O N D A R Y S C H O O L 47

Houses in Focus by Jason Porter

his half term has been action packed for the Houses. The most recent wave of competitions started with the awe-inspiring Poetry Slam in Secondary assembly, where some truly moving pieces of original poetry were presented with true passion and flair.

Danube glided gracefully into first place, with Olt in second place. Then it was all hands on for the 24-hour Water Week Challenge, where coins were collected for charity, in which Olt gushed into first place, with Arges close behind. Danube made a calculated advance in the mathematics quiz, taking first place,

Collecting coins for charity

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with Arges a mere fraction behind. This term has also seen a great deal of hard work from all members of the House system in assisting about one third of all Secondary students in gaining their first House Colours badges. It has been very encouraging to see a number now gaining their second badge. More to come.

SECONDARY POETRY

Ileana

Au Clair de la Lune

My love in the sky

The maiden wakes once more,

People fear you, I know well why. I crave thee.

Perfection in the darkest eyes,

When full is the moon

Like a pearl-white dove she soars

You place your feet, I know, upon the balcony;

To find a majestic place to lie.

Covered in snow you

My dear sir, tell me you have not yet seen

Hesitate, your mouth agape.

Such beauty as this saddened queen.

The song to the folk gushes from your core

Like a dark mare with silver eyes,

Cuts through the margins of your confused lips,

Her reflection in the water,

The words accompany me in the air

Ageless, and yet her pale face

I keep them near me

Bears the thought and weight of four billion years.

Reminding of how moonlight,

And in the water from her sobs, the violence of the universe,

Dances upon your sweet hair, oh golden strands!

As the Sun casts it’s light on Earth once more

My love in the day

She flees for refuge,

Your hands lunge your being from the burrow.

An everlasting hide and seek.

You leave that nest;

And her lament can be heard,

You escape from the dark and hollow.

Distant yet perturbing,

Hollow and cold.

The howling of the wolves,

You call the children

The tremor in the deepest waters,

Who joyfully emerge from their homes,

The teardrops that fall from above,

Coming to see you,

And perhaps once, she will rise

Sprinting, sweating, need to see you.

At midday, and meet the sun,

The parent’s unbroken wails start:

Her power turning the skies dark.

“She is not clean”, They beseech; you prefer that

Ana Maria

The children are too far to hear, The cries can not reach! Ana

S E C O N D A R Y P O E T R Y 49

SPORTS

Sports News by David Hughes

The U18â€™s Basketball teams competed in the CEESA competition at AISB. Competing against seven other teams from Istanbul, Prague, Warsaw, Moscow and Bucharest the boys won 5 out of 6 games and finished 5th overall whilst the girls experienced tournament basketball for the first time and finished 6th. The COBIS girls football team travelled to ISB and played out a 0-0 draw whilst the U9 boys football team played to games, winning one 5-0 and losing the other 4-1.

Inter house sporting competition is enjoyed by all pupils

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The inter house basketball and matball competitions were fiercely contended in term 2 and Mures ended up overall winners in both the primary and secondary events. All results and final stands are below. The final house competition of the year will be Sports Day next term and training has begun in preparation for this great day. This year it will take place on April 30th. You can follow us on twitter @bsb_sports for more information on scores, results and pictures from sports fixtures and the PE department.

The house basketball and matball competitions were keenly contested

Mures were the overall winners in Primary

S E C O N D A R Y S C H O O L 51

GREASE

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G R E A S E 55

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G R E A S E 57

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Book Review by Gary Webster

Every year a panel of writers, critics and other leading lights of the literary world get together and read the best fiction for young adults published during the year – it’s a bit like the Man-Booker prize, but for fiction aimed at a younger audience – and it’s called the Carnegie Award. The first winner of the award was in 1936 and was Arthur Ransome’s Pigeon Post (on a personal note, another of his novels Swallows and Amazons is one of my alltime favourites and a must-read adventure story for all teenage boys!) More recent past winners include such celebrated talent as Philip Pullman (His Dark Materials Trilogy: Northern Lights in 1995), David Almond’s Skellig in 1998 and last year’s amazing but controversial winner The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks. The Carnegie Award is a mark of quality. The winning book each year is considered to be the very best work of young-adult fiction written by any author in the English language. You know if you pick up a Carnegie winner, you will be reading the very best fiction in the world. Many schools across the world get the chance to participate in the Carnegie Award Shadowing Scheme each year, and BSB is, of course, no exception. Mrs Webster, Mr Appleton and a group of 12 students from Years 7 to 11 are currently reading their way through some of the past winners of the Carnegie Award and now that the shortlist has been published, they will all begin reading

the short-listed titles and discussing which they think is their favourite. The students will finally decide on their own Carnegie Award winner and, once the actual winner is announced, they will compare their top 3 with the actual top 3 chosen by the Carnegie Award judges. Along the way, students will discuss, evaluate, analyse and consider – both independently and as a group – and hopefully further develop their love of reading and their critical reading skills. They will also write the odd book review or two – all of which can be uploaded to the Carnegie Shadowing Scheme website for millions of other students across the world to read. Here’s a short example of a review of Anne-Marie Conway’s Butterfly Summer, written by Emilia Barbu. Butterfly summer filled my heart with both anguish and bliss. It is full of suspense and I doubt you will ever want to put it down. I recommend this book to everyone and give it a definite 11/10! So, if you are happening to be either surfing the Internet or in a library, please do grab this book. Give it your full attention and I assure you, you will not regret it! The actual Carnegie Award 2015 winner will be announced on Monday 22nd June 2015 – just in time for you to download the winning novel to your e-reader to take away with you on holiday!

B O O K R E V I E W 59

Take a 3 hour course together at home and learn to be a safe online family

ME AND MY 500 “FRIENDS”: STAYING SAFE ON SOCIAL NETWORKS THE NEW COURSE DESIGNED FOR PARENTS AND KIDS TO TAKE TOGETHER To register for the course contact Denisa at BPTC on 021 3174 764 or Denisa.lulea@bptc.ro

This unique course gives young people and their parents an essential guide to safely using social networks. Experts discuss the dangers of cyberbullying, or harassment that occurs through various forms of technology, as well as the risks of sexting, and identity theft. This course provides social network users important, easy-to-follow rules for keeping information — and themselves — safe while using social networks.

My Favourite Teacher by Charlotte Sloan

I went to lots of different schools growing up so I had my fair share of teachers and really there are many that stand out. The one teacher that stands out the most in my mind is my Year 5 teacher in Northern Ireland – Mr McGuiness. He was enthusiastic, energetic and just the best sort of person to inspire and encourage learning in all areas. People that know me will know that I love to talk. I’m sure he will be the first to tell you that it was definitely an interest of mine even that long ago. He used to regularly say M.Y.O.B in his thick Irish accent which stood for Mind Your Own Business; obviously this didn’t stick as I still love to talk. Mr McGuiness was the type of teacher that was relaxed and considerate but that made you aware of where the line was. He showed me that you can have fun with children and have occasional silliness whilst still maintaining respectful

and mature behaviour and attitudes to learning. Mr McGuiness demonstrated a creative approach to learning and many of our Maths lessons were intertwined with Design Technology lessons and were focused around student led and peer supported problem solving. Much of this attitude to learning had a positive effect on many members of the class and especially worked well with boys who were struggling with different aspects of Maths. Mr McGuiness showed me how important it is for Maths lessons to not come across as contrived or staged and that they must have real relevance to the outside world for them to have the maximum effect in school. I was sorry to leave this school as I joined Year 6 but it paved the way for me to meet many more inspiring teachers during my time in secondary school and in college.

M Y FAV O U R I T E T E A C H E R 61

Herastrau Park summerschool@britishschool.ro

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CHARITY AND COMMUNITY

Year 12 Students: Leading the Way by Mark Hooper

The Community Sports Leaders Award [Level 2] is a UK nationally recognised qualification that we have introduced for our Y12 students. To achieve the award each student must complete a minimum 45 hours direct teaching time and 10 hours of coaching in the local community. To facilitate this a group of 17 BSB Y12 students have been coaching groups of children from a local school - Şcoala Gimnazială, Voluntari and have been working with students at school. The Community Sports Leaders qualification focuses on developing leadership skills, the assessment focuses an individual’s ability to lead and demonstrate their leadership skills. The children from Şcoala Gimnazială are aged between 11 – 15 years old and have been taught table tennis, yoga, rugby, football, volleyball, and hockey. Working in small groups BSB students took it in turns to coach each of the sports to the students from the local school. Cristina Marculescu from Şcoala Gimnazială, said: “the pupils love working with the sports leaders because it gives

them a chance to benefit from individual attention from very knowledgeable and well prepared pupils. The sessions are always well-structured, fun and our pupils get a great deal from it. They also get the opportunity to try sports that we cannot offer at our school. It is great that we can work so closely together.” The programme aims to develop important life skills including organisation, motivation, communication and teamwork. Each of the Y12 students hope to gain their Community Sports Leaders Awards in term 3 after completing their coaching sessions and assisting with BSB Sports Day. Y12 BSB student Keis stated “What I found thrilling about the experience is that you are given the opportunity to teach children new things. I now have a real interest in coaching as it gives me a sense of satisfaction, as it did for everybody else teaching alongside me. The feeling of teaching a child something they hadn’t known how to do, and seeing a smile on their face having fun in my sessions, is something I won’t forget.”

KS4 Students teaching Physical Education at Scoala Gimnaziala Voluntari

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World Water Day and the Planet BSB Eco Student Council by Pam Beer and the Planet BSB Student Eco Council This year, Planet BSB took another big step forward when we introduced our first Planet BSB Eco Student Council. This group of highly innovative students comprises of Muhammad, Mariam and Beatrice from Y 12, and Aaron, Dilara and Finn from Y 11. The council was set up in term 1 and unanimously decided our Eco theme for this year would be WATER and the basic “human right to safe drinking water and sanitation”, as defined by the United Nations. In 2015 over 780 million people live without access to safe drinking water and over 2000 children die every day due to diarrhoea and water borne diseases. Our aim for this year was not only to educate students and promote awareness, but to take action and try and make a difference. The tenacious, determined and hardworking Planet BSB Eco School Council set themselves a goal; to raise £1000 to build a well for students in another school who were less fortunate than themselves. Our link school is the Ras ZeSilas School in Ethiopia, who have 2,500 students and 1 tap!

Planet BSB Eco Warriors

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In term 1 the students planned a series of assemblies and money raising events to try and achieve their target. In term 2 we have launched the Penny in a Bottle campaign, Pancake Friday, A drop in the Bucket House event, World Water Day and the Sparkle Disco. The response has been amazing across the whole school. Our staff has taken every opportunity to educate and promote awareness through the curriculum and our students have risen to the challenge. In one lunch break lasting 40 minutes, “the Drop in the Bucket House event” raised over a staggering 600 lei! By the time this article is printed, we have every confidence we will have met our goal of £1000 and through WaterAid UK, we hope to build our well in Africa. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Petrom for their generous donation of 1200 lei, as well as all of our students, parents, teachers (especially the staff Eco Committee) and staff for their support. Thank you for helping us to make a difference.

There were many activities and support of World Water Day

Muhammad counting the money raised from Penny in a Bottle

W O R L D WA T E R D AY 65

42, Erou Iancu Nicolae Street, 077190 Voluntari, Ilfov County, Romania

T. +40 21 267 89 19, F. +40 21 267 89 69 E. office@britishschool.ro

/BritishSchoolBucharest /britishschoolro