Term 1 - 9th September

Matters of Principal

This week Mr Grindlay talks about the importance of being 'successfully resilient' in order to bounce back from the inevitable bad things that can (and do) happen:

Whole School Reminders

16^th SEPTEMBER - HRH PRINCESS MAHA CHAKRI SIRINDHORN'S VISIT
Please kindly view the Principal's letter regarding the HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's visit to RST on Friday, 16^th September, below:

17^th, 18^th  & 19^th SEPTEMBER - EXEAT
School will be closed for Exeat on Monday, 19 September and will resume on Tuesday, 20 September at 08:00 am.

13^th NOVEMBER - CHARITY GOLF DAY

GOOGLE REVIEW
Please take a few minutes to leave us a review on Google. It helps prospective families learn more about life at RST: https://tinyurl.com/2wn52pey

Whole School News

QUEEN ELIZABETH  II (1926 - 2022)
It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's longest-reigning monarch. Rest in peace your Majesty.

FOBISIA GAMES
Please find some more information from our Director of Sport, below:

LET'S STOP CALLING IT SCREEN TIME
Mr Burkhill is running another session on Monday, 12 September on this very popular topic, for parents who were not able to attend the previous workshop:

FOBISIA MEMBER SCHOOL NEWSLETTER
Please see the latest news from FOBISIA, below:

BOARDING OVER EXEAT WEEKENDS AND HALF TERMS
We are delighted to let you know that, as of this term, boarders have the option to remain on campus over any of our Exeat weekends or half-term holidays, if they would like to do so. This is another way we are improving and developing our boarding provision to offer flexibility and support for boarding families' different needs.

If you would like to find out more please contact the Director of Boarding, Mr David Ennis-Billing dennisbilling@rugbyschool.ac.th. To sign up for a boarding trial or discover more about our boarding options and how they can help your child, please get in touch with the Admissions Department admissions@rugbyschool.ac.th

Some of our students have been at the World Scholars event in Bangkok, with Mr Lindop and Mr Stoker. Mr Lindop commented on what outstanding ambassadors they were for the School, giving each of the challenges their all and truly embracing the global spirit of the event! RST's Junior and Senior teams both achieved remarkable results and both have qualified for the Champions Tournament at Yale! The Junior team were one of 60 teams (180+ students) in their Super Junior Division and achieved:

• 18^th place Team Overall (silver medal);
• 8^th place in the Team Challenge (collective score for the Scholar's Challenge) - they earned a trophy for this!
• 13^th place in the Team Bowl.

Individually, Max earned three gold medals in the Scholar's Challenge; Si Eun and Rute each earned gold medals in the writing; Si Eun was invited to play a solo violin performance; Max and Si Eun were selected as flag bearers for France and South Korea respectively in the closing ceremony.

The Senior team were one of around 70 teams from across Asia - and further afield - and finished 6th overall in their division. They were also the second-best team (overall) from Thailand! Other notable accomplishments for the team were:

• 4^th place in the Scholar's Challenge (Top scoring team from Thailand);
• 6^th place Scholar's Bowl;
• Prinn got three golds and two silvers in the Scholar's Challenge;
• Xander earned four silver and one gold in the Scholar's Challenge;
• Pam earned gold for debating;
• Prinn placed 15^th overall individually.

Congratulations to all who took part!

Senior News

ATK TEST
Please note that ahead of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's visit to RST on Friday, 16^th September, all students will need to take an ATK test on the evening of Thursday, 15^th September.

A letter with a link to a Google form to complete will be sent out next week.

ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE (EAL)
This week, the English as an Additional Language (EAL) department has begun providing students across the Senior School with relevant support for their studies. During these sessions, students receive tailor-made English courses, which serve to both enhance their understanding of the language, as well as other subjects across the curriculum. In addition, our Sixth Form students have now been provided with an after-school IELTS activity, designed to prepare them fully for the examination, giving them the best opportunity to succeed.

SENIOR POETRY COMPETITION
Entries for the annual RST Senior Poetry Competition are now open! Even though we had just over 100 submissions from students last year, we are still hopeful that we can break that record this year. Every student is encouraged to submit at least one poem of any length and style; the only requirement is that the poem deals with the theme of 'Who Am I?"

Please contact your English teacher or tutor should you require any further information. We look forward to reading your submissions.

TOPIK STUDY GROUP
Min Cho, Tudor XX, is coordinating a TOPIK study group, aimed at Korean students.

Topik (한국어능력시험) is a Korean language test for non-native speakers. Most Korean universities require a TOPIK level of 3+ for Korean students who have completed educational courses equivalent to elementary, middle and high school (year 1 - 13)(12년 특례) at an overseas school. Min says: "The main objective I wish to achieve through this study group is for students to achieve a TOPIK level of 3+ so that they can access Korean universities, as well as giving us an opportunity to develop our skills in Korean together."

Students involved in the study group, will share information and discuss TOPIK material, as well as self-study. It will run as an after-school activity on Mondays in the Collingwood Centre, Room SC2.

Please see the below poster for further information, and for any questions  please contact: min.cho2023@student.rugbyschool.ac.th

THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF THE BRAIN
Potential medical students in E Block, D Block, LXX and XX are invited to attend a presentation by Dr Guy Sutton, entitled: "The Present and Future of the Brain" on Tuesday 13 September 2022 from 16:10-17:15 in the Science Lecture Theatre.

Dr Sutton will discuss advances in laboratory-created human brain tissue and the implications for our understanding of brain development and neurological disease, together with a consideration of the growing field of neurobionics and neural decoding. 

This is a must for all potential medics/neurologists, and a great example of "supercurricular activities" that students can reference in their university applications. We strongly encourage any student who is interested in studying medicine to attend this session.

Dr Sutton's biography can be found at: https://www.medicalbiology.co.uk/about

Students should register their attendance by Monday 12 September at: https://forms.gle/WAQoYbgnTMBuYBXw5

MENTAL MATHS WORLD CUP
Aarav (E Block) took part in the Mental Maths World Cup, where he showcased his maths skills in a gamified and competitive maths environment. We are very proud to announce that Aarav ranked 2nd in the 'Country Category', and 24th in the 'World category'.

Such an incredible achievement - well done Aarav!

GO-KARTING SUCCESS
Austin (F Block) recently took part in the ‘Rok Cup Challenge Go-Karting Championships’. He skilfully won one of his heats and finished 2nd runner up overall. He has now qualified for the ‘Rok Superfinal 2022’ to be held 18^th – 21^st October 2022 at Southgarda Karting Lonato, Italy.

We wish Austin the best of luck!

ART
Mrs Cook received the family portrait that Dee-Dee painted over the long holiday. This was a very special and kind gesture as it features Mr Cook and their children. Dee-Dee received a ‘Head’s Distinction’ for it last week. 

10^thSEPTEMBER 
Harrow Cup Football Competition

Good luck to our U19 Footballers!

13^th SEPTEMBER 
Dr Guy Sutton 'Brain Day' for Biology and Psychology students

17^th SEPTEMBER 
Equity Partnership Launch

19^th – 22^nd SEPTEMBER 
RST MAD field trip to Mae Hong Song

23^rd – 25^th SEPTEMBER 
Year 11 (D Block) Geography Field trip

26^th – 30^th SEPTEMBER 
Year 9 (F Block) Residential

In assembly this week, we discussed the word 'Character'. This word refers to a character in a play or book, but also something more. When discussing our character, or someone else's character, we are referring to something deep inside; a mental and moral quality of an individual.

In assembly this week, we discussed the word 'Character'. This word refers to a character in a play or book, but also something more. When discussing our character, or someone else's character, we are referring to something deep inside; a mental and moral quality of an individual.

A person's character is not static, it can change, grow and develop. Winston Churchill once remarked that character is 'manifested in the greatest moments but is formed in the small ones'. It is our habits and actions that form our character, and we rely on this when we face challenges or unfamiliar situations. By working closely with Rugby UK and Rugby Japan, we have aligned our Rugby Learner Profile and designed it to help shape character. We strive as a School to help all students develop resilience, versatility, the ability to reflect, question, and communicate.

Our focus for this half term is to be ‘Globally Minded’, being able to embrace and value the strength in diversity, understand our place in the global community, and to engage with that community. In assembly, Ohm and Leon, two Year 13 students, spoke passionately about their upcoming trip to Mae Hong Son to work with Operation Smile. They will work alongside medical professionals and the local community. Six students, Helen, Phoenix, Lucy, Charlie, Albert, Xinxin and Shirley about the Mid-Autumn Lunar Festival, to all families celebrating - 中秋节快乐

Rehearsals are well underway every week with Mr Furness in our new ‘Concert Band’ which is open to all levels of Woodwind, Brass and Rhythm Section (Drums, Guitar, Bass, Keyboard).

With a strong team of visiting music teachers (VMTs), the ensemble is playing some great film hits from Raiders of the Lost Ark by John Williams, and Pirates of the Caribbean by Hans Zimmer. The band is hoping to play a range of Contemporary Pop, Christmas and well-known classics this term, and hopes to be playing a range of concerts throughout the year. Please see Mr Furness, or your VMTs, for more info about joining.

Over the past two weeks, our F and E block students have completed individual surveys to find out what their signature character strengths are, and how they can use them to improve the quality of their daily lives. Recent research in this field has indicated that people who use their main character strengths in new ways every week report higher levels of life satisfaction.

If you would like to learn more, please speak to your children about their results.

BIOLOGY
In Biology this week, D Block students used stop motion to create an educational video that explains the process of mitosis and cancer.

WHOLE ME PROGRAMME
It was the F block boys' first session of the programme. Mr Maurice took them through a skills survey. This allowed them to review their own strengths and find innovative ways of using their strengths to improve their weaknesses.

DRAMA
F Block students are continuing their 'devising project' in drama. This week, they have been experimenting with devising from a range of stimuli, such as photos, props and text.

Rehearsals are well underway for IGCSE drama scripted exams, which will be taking place over the next two weeks. Students in the D Block have been using our ‘Stage in a Box’ to bring their vision for an exciting set to life.

GEOGRAPHY
Having completed the geography learning tasks about coral reefs, students were able to feel like they were diving on a coral reef, by using VR headsets to immerse themselves.

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PHYSICS
In Physics this week, LXX have been investigating the I-V characteristics of different electrical components (resistors, light bulbs, LEDs, LDRs and thermistors):

ART
LXX artists have started the course with foundation-style lessons that required them to challenge themselves and to think slightly differently about what being an artist means. This week, lessons have focused on observational skills and learning how to ‘look’. The work pictured here is all in progress and unfinished.  

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Prep News

AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
The activities sign-up on SOCS has now closed. Students can no longer make any changes to their activity choices.

KARTING SUCCESS
Congratulations to Toby (8S), who has qualified for the World Karting Championship Finals in Italy. He will be one of about 90 (the best in the world) to compete. Recently, he came 1^st runner-up in the ‘Rok Cup Championships 2022’.

He clearly has some real talent and we wish him all the luck!

HOUSE CAPTAINS
It is with great pleasure that we would like to introduce the new House Captains for this year: 

Arnold – Ryan, Rodion, Tomoko & Nadia;
Hardy – Namtan, Nara, Jason & Arlie;
Beauclerc – Kun, Andrey, Ariella & Matty;
Webb Ellis – Linda, Pat, Melon & Guy. 

These students will be working closely with House Leaders, staff, and departments with the smooth running of the House system.  Throughout the year, we will also be calling on other members of Year 8 to help support and run various House activities, and we will be starting our Year 8 Community Roles very shortly.

10^th SEPTEMBER – FIXTURES
U11 Boys & Girls Football @ISB, U9A Boys and U9B Mixed Football @BKK Patana

Teams have been emailed separately

10^th SEPTEMBER – SATURDAY ENRICHMENT
Please see the letter about Saturday Enrichment. We are also offering the following Saturday sports:

08:30-10:00
Y7 & 8 Boys Rugby,
Y7 & 8 Girls Basketball.

10:15-11:45
Y5-8 Volleyball,
Y7 & 8 Boys Basketball.

We aim to use SOCS for Saturday Enrichment moving forward.

12^th SEPTEMBER (18:00) – LET'S STOP CALLING IT SCREEN TIME
Presentation by Mr Burkhill, Director of Digital Learning

16^th SEPTEMBER – HRH Princess Sirindhorn Visit

16^th SEPTEMBER – EXEAT WEEKEND BEGINS
Normal finish time, although there may be delays due to the Princess’ visit.

19^th SEPTEMBER – SCHOOL CLOSED FOR EXEAT

We had our first House Assembly on Friday, which focused on Versatility, from our Learner Profile.  This was a great way to introduce the new students who joined this year, the new House Staff and our new House Captains.  The House Captains ran the assembly, including the first House Competition of the year, House Charades.  The House Captains had to demonstrate great versatility by acting out different actions, with students having to guess what they were doing.  A great way to introduce new members in a fun and engaging activity.  The winners will be announced at the end of the term assembly.

Our Year 3s have been learning new skills in Art such as sketching using ghost lines, selecting the right paintbrush for a painting task, and painting in stages. They have been learning about Henri Matisse and are practising their new skills by recreating a painting by Matisse called ‘The Goldfish’. They have made a great start to Art this term and we’re excited about all the wonderful work they will produce this year.

Year 4 students enjoyed trying out new instruments this week:

In science, year 5 students explored the local habitats around School. They were provided with a map of the School and had to upload photos of the various habitats onto the map:

We have successfully registered for the 2022 Wild Wisdom Challenge - an online global schools competition that encourages young people to learn about the natural world, and the importance of biodiversity. The challenge will take place from 10^th to 21^st October 2022, and we will compete against over 50 schools from around the world. We have the opportunity to win great sustainable prizes for the School too!

Please see the poster below for more details:

During the last five minutes of our library sessions, our students share what they are reading with their peers. Mr Stoker started the term off by posing an astute question (asked by Namo) to the Year 8 class. The question was ‘Are the Harry Potter books considered gothic?’ As the Year 8s are learning the main features of the gothic genre, this was a great prompt.

Pre-Prep News

ROYAL VISIT FROM HRH PRINCESS MAHA CHAKRI SIRINDHORN
On 16^th September, we have a very special Royal visit from HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn who will come to open the  Siddhi Meta building in the Senior School. This does not involve the Pre-Prep children, but it does have an impact on the end of the School day.

Please click on the link below for more information:

COVID
Please inform nurse@rugbyschool.ac.th if you have had your child vaccinated against COVID-19 or if your child has recently had COVID. We require this information to ensure our School records are up to date.

EXPLORING EAGLE
Today (Friday 9^th September), is our ‘Exploring Eagle Day’ at Pre-Prep. Watch this space next week to see what we all got up to and how we learnt what it is to be an ‘Exploring Eagle’

HAND FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE VACCINE
Bangkok Pattaya Hospital would like to invite parents to get their children protected from Hand, Foot and Mouth disease, and they are offering a vaccine for this.

Please see the letter below for more details:

12^th SEPTEMBER
Year 2 bikes to School- please send a helmet too, scooters are also welcome.

16^th SEPTEMBER
HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Visit impacts pick-up times on Friday for Pre-Prep. Please collect your child either 2:15-2:45pm (or 4pm if you have siblings in Prep or Senior).

19^th SEPTEMBER
Monday 19^th is an EXEAT day off – School resumes on Tuesday 20^th

20^th SEPTEMBER
KS1 Reading workshop
8:30am in the Pre-Prep Assembly Hall

Reception Geckos had fun learning about emotions. We took it in turns to look in the mirror and to pull different faces. We played a game, seeing whether we could guess our partner's feelings by looking at their face:

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Year 1 Turtles have been Exploring Eagles using their plant ‘viewers’ in the Eco garden. They impressed Miss Naomi and Mr Ta with their enquiring minds by asking many curious questions to start off their new topic ‘Plants’.

I wonder what they will choose to learn about plants over the next few weeks?

Chimpanzees have been learning and reciting information about Crocodiles this week. We focused on information texts; we learnt the information off by heart and then created our own story map with actions. We can now tell you all about Crocodiles using the story map, with some amazing actions.

Signs of the Week: Fish, Rabbit and Friend

Can you learn this week's Makaton signs?

Learner Profiles

Enrichment and Sport

RUBE GOLDBERG MACHINES
Miss Wendy leads a group of Y1 and Y2 children in building Rube Goldberg machines. In this activity, the children learn how to design and build a simple chain reaction type machine which teaches them crucial 21st-century learning skills such as problem-solving, thinking critically, collaboration and creativity. Most importantly, the children have a great time learning together.

CERAMICS
In Prep this term, we have offered ceramics in our activity programme. Here our students have been making cat faces from clay and painting them. 

VOICE
VOICE is the newly established Senior close-harmony vocal ensemble. There are currently 19 members with boys and girls from F Block to XX. They rehearse each Monday afternoon and prepare a variety of popular songs in beautiful arrangements. VOICE will have its inaugural performance in the upcoming ‘Winter Gala Concert’ on 8^th December.

We hope to see all parents there!

CROSS COUNTRY
We were very grateful for some rain to cool us down after all the effort of running to the top of the hill:

Below is a video that shows the incredible countryside our School is located in, which we are fortunate enough to train in:

Boarding Life

It was a great weekend in our Senior Boys’ Boarding House (School House). Over half of our boys stayed for the weekend and enjoyed swimming, shopping, music, basketball, the Fitness Suite, some great food, and spending time really connecting with their old and new friends in different year groups.

Our full boarders in Marshall House had a great time last weekend! As well as relaxing in the house after a busy week, there was a Bake Off between Matty and Ayla (with lots of willing judges) and Zulin created some amazing things in the Lego room. On Sunday, we made the most of the good weather and headed out to the driving range, followed by the Pattaya Disc Golf course.

Mrs Douglas' DT evening activity is always popular with the Prep boarders. Here they are using scroll saws, hand saws and a band sander to cut shapes from local hardwood to create individual designs:

Look at this wonderful Origami creation by Vulcan! He was busy doing it when he arrived back in the boarding house on Sunday night and it took him over a day to complete. His form tutor awarded him a Try for his resilience, and Mr Howell gave him another Try for his excellent 'thinking' skills:

School House boys completed their next ‘Prefect Team Challenge’ on Tuesday evening. The Prefects chose an art competition, where each boy had to draw a portrait of someone in their team. The results were fantastic and showed such creativity:

Even rain can't stop the School House boys from practising their football skills after supper! We're so lucky to have the sports pitches on our doorstep.

RSTeam Spotlight

Get to know the people who make RST great by learning more about them and their roles.

This week's spotlight is on Eric Ho - Director of IT: