Rugby School Thailand eNewsletter

Matters of Principal

Whole School News

NEW COVID PROTOCOLS FROM MONDAY, 3^rd OCTOBER
Due to the CCSA's downgrading of COVID-19 from a dangerous communicable disease to a contagious disease, we are changing our protocols for positive and primary contacts at the School as of Monday, 3^rd October. The current set of protocols for the unvaccinated under five-year-olds remain, but for all other students and members of staff:

If there is a positive case:

If there are very mild symptoms (temperature lower than 38, occasional cough, sore throat and headache), the student/member of staff must isolate for 5 days from the onset of symptoms after which they can return to School wearing a mask for an additional 5 days.
If the symptoms are more severe (temperature higher than 38, persistent cough and runny nose, difficulty breathing and a feeling of fatigue), the student/member of staff must stay at home for a minimum of 5 days or until these symptoms have diminished and the temperature has gone down for at least 24 hours. Then the student/member of staff can return to School but wearing a mask for an additional 5 days.

Primary contacts:
No self-isolation is required, self-monitor and check for symptoms. Take an ATK test on days 0, 5 and 10.

We will continue to use ATK testing if a student/member of staff displays symptoms whilst at School to ascertain whether the student/member of staff is positive.

As ever, please do report positive cases to our nurses and they can advise further: nurse@rugbyschool.ac.th.

HAND TO HAND CHARITY EVENTS
In October we have two exciting charity events coming to Rugby School Thailand and we would like
you to participate in them to support the Hand to Hand Foundation.

Please click on the link below for more information on how you can get involved:

Hand To Hand Events

WINTER GALA
We'll be hosting a spectacular Winter Gala concert on Thursday 8th December. The concert will be a showcase of the best musical talent in Senior, with a select few Prep performers, and the music will span everything from classical and jazz, to pop and world music (plus lots more!).

Tickets will be complimentary but MUST be reserved in advance as seats are numbered.

Tickets will be available from the Box Office, situated at the Senior Reception, on the following dates:

24^th & 25^th November (for parents / guardians of performers only)
28^th November (for general reservation by the RST community)

We will send a reminder closer to the time when the Box Office will be open for reservations.

CHRISTMAS CAMP EARLY BIRD OFFER
Sign up by 15^th October 2022 to receive a 10% discount:

Whole School Reminders

HALF TERM DATES
13^th OCTOBER: Half Term begins
24^th OCTOBER: Return to School

SOCS SPORTS WEBSITE
Visit our RST SOCS sports website to see upcoming fixtures and results from across the School, all in one place.

CHARITY GOLF DAY

Senior News

Announcements & Reminders

INKTOBER SENIOR HOUSE COMPETITION

Dates for Your Diary

3^rd OCTOBER
Senior House Time during S6

4^th OCTOBER
UKMT Senior Mathematical Challenge for D Block, LXX & XX

5^th OCTOBER
Eastern Seaboard International Schools Debate Competition at RST

11^th OCTOBER
Inter-House Table Tennis
F Block Meet the Tutors event for parents

12^th OCTOBER
Senior House Music

D Block Geography Field Trip

The first trip in a long time! Geography fieldwork has inevitably been curtailed in the last three years, but this weekend we were able to facilitate 45 D-block geographers to have a 3 day residential experience.

The students needed to study a number of diverse environments, and experience the difficulties and limitations of collecting primary data. We, therefore, travelled to unfamiliar territory in the Chanthaburi region and observed the physical geography of coasts, rivers and mangroves. We also studied human geography, investigating economic activities in the region, and we saw the impact of shrimp farming, tourism and environmental degradation associated with development.

The students have recently finished a coastal environments topic, so the bay at Kung Krabaen allowed them to see their subject material first-hand. The students also benefited socially through shared experiences. They stayed in accommodation at the Burapha university campus, we dined outside, we worked in the evenings (outside), we walked over challenging terrain to get to our study locations, we were out in all weathers and from a teacher's perspective, the students were exemplary.

Day 1

Four Senior students (Leon, Lulu, Boo and Ohm) joined NIST and Amnuay Silpa School to participate in the Operation Smile medical mission in Mae Hong Son, last week.

The mission spanned three days and allowed our students to participate in the screening process for surgeries, as well as the pre-surgery and post-surgery ward visits. Students also attended a talk by the lead plastic surgeon, Dr Apichai, who answered their questions.

Our students also visited an International Recovery Centre, where Burmese refugees who require, or whose family members require, Operation Smile surgery, are temporarily housed. Our students donated 4,500THB towards the Centre, to be used for special meals for children under post-operative care.

The mission was inspiring, humbling and heart-breaking. RST-MAD has been offered 6 student places on a medical mission in Mae Sot in November 2023.

On Monday morning F block set off on their residential week. They boarded buses and set out on a three-hour drive to Khao Yai and The Wild Lodge.

After arriving and settling into their lodges, students undertook a series of team-building activities with their classmates. Students then enjoyed a delicious dinner and a campfire, where Form Groups performed musical and dramatic pieces to the rest of the year group. Followed, of course, by marshmallows!

The next day the students began their activity rotations. These included starting their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze award, trekking, kayaking, camping, cooking, survival skills and even water rocket making.

Every evening has been filled with food, laughter and games!

On 17^th September, Rugby School hosted a friendly invitational basketball tournament. Mr Chisolm asked for some student volunteers to assist with the scoring, registering teams, and running the RST MAD snack stall. I am delighted that the following students volunteered and willingly offered their time to support the community.

Thank you to: Karylle Matibag, Katie Stewart, Lily Suksawad, Nicki Jarupongsakul, Nina Sethanandha, Painuan Borriboon, Phoenix Sims, Owen Yau, Jane Yau, Perth Limtong, Maelys Agoundou, and Joshua Greening. I invited these students to my office for chocolate milk and cookies to thank and celebrate their efforts in running such a successful tournament.

Learning

MANDARIN
Last week, F Block Mandarin as Foreign Language students finished a chapter “问候与介绍 Greetings and Introduction”. They can’t wait to show you what they have learned and challenge your Mandarin listening skills.

As a mission to exit the classroom, they filmed a one-take video of relay self-introduction, showing the cooperative spirit and joy of learning a foreign language.

MATHS
This week, LXX Maths students spent time recapping their prior knowledge from IGCSE Maths about Trigonometric Graphs. This required them to work together to draw the basic trig functions of y=sin x, y=cos x and y=tan x and then extend their knowledge further by looking at the period, domain and range of the graphs in both degrees and radians. They did some great paired group work and were able to clearly present their understanding. This will lead in nicely to the next part of the topic where we look at transformations of graphs.

FURTHER MATHS
The LXX Further Maths class are approaching the end of the first of their modules in the course. Mathematical Problem solving is an important skill and one that takes a lot of practice to master. Last week, we were studying radian measure and its applications and benefits in trigonometry and geometry. Here we see the students working on a challenging problem in preparation for their Pure Maths 1 exam which they will take in January.

DRAMA
IGCSE drama students treated their parents to a viewing of their scripted coursework, following their exam the previous week. It was a great chance for the students to show off their hard work.

Drama students in E Block researched Ancient Greek Theatre this week, collaborating to create informative presentations:

SIXTH FORM TIME
In Sixth Form time this week, students took 13 study techniques and worked in groups to produce a presentation:

Random groups to engage with others in the year group
15 mins prep time
2 mins presentation time
Teacher assessed
Winners were the group that presented on Organisation Skills

I think they loved it!

PSYCHOLOGY
In Psychology this week, LXX students practised interview techniques for eyewitness testimonies as part of the Memory topic, by doing some role play:

ART
LXX are creating portraits in print. Some students are sketching out their study of themselves using pen and ink, and others are experimenting with mark-making techniques using etching tools in preparation for the final print:

Prep News

Announcements & Reminders

PARENT PORTAL
A reminder that you can access our curriculum overviews, timetables, contact details, rewards and reports on the Parent Portal. This video will show you where you can find all of the information. If you do not know your Parent Portal log-in details, please contact admissions@rugbyschool.ac.th

DIGITAL WELLBEING WEBSITE
Our Digital Wellbeing website has been updated to hopefully make navigation easier as well as some new activities to try at home around expectations, routines and digital citizenship.

TOBY'S RACING SUCCESS
Toby (Year 8) last Sunday became the Rotax Cadet Champion of Thailand 2022 in Go-Karting and will now represent Thailand in Spain and Portugal in November, as well as representing Thailand in Italy in October.

A huge congratulations to Toby for his achievements!

YEAR 5 INTER-FORM BASKETBALL
Mr Salter has once again arranged the very popular inter-form matches. This week saw the Year 5 forms competing against each other in basketball. A great way to spend a break time!

HAND TO HAND FOUNDATION CHARITY EVENTS
In October, we have two exciting charity events coming to Rugby School Thailand and we would like you to participate in them to support the Hand to Hand Foundation.

Dates for your Diary

1^st OCTOBER
U11 Girls & Boys Football Tournament @ BKK Prep - team players have already been notified by email
Year 3-6 Piing Girls Football Festival - email to be sent shortly

2^nd OCTOBER
RST v Bangkok Lions @ Bangkok Patana - team players have already been notified by email

4^th OCTOBER (12:45-13:15)
Prep School Lunchtime Concert:

7^th OCTOBER (08:15-08:45)
Reading at RST: Parent Information Session for Years 3 & 4

This parent information session will give an overview of the reading initiatives at RST designed to support your child's reading enjoyment and success. We will explain the launch of our home reading programme in Prep (such as Reading Eggs and the RST Reading Record booklet) and offer tips and strategies for parents. Together, we will support the children to become confident, engaged readers.

8^th OCTOBER
Netball Festival @ Shrewsbury
U12 Boys & Girls Football Tournaments @ Bangkok Patana

Team players have been notified by email

11^th OCTOBER
RST Prep School will hold their House Cross-Country competitions on Tuesday, 11^th October.

Y5&6 08:15-09:25,
Y3&4 09:25-10:35,
Y7&8 14:45-15:55.

Parents are welcome to come in and support their children. All students should wear their House Tops.

Year 3 Houses

We are pleased to welcome Year 3 to their Houses this term and we hope they enjoy representing them.

Inktober House Competition

This week the Prep house captains have been busy organising the 'Inktober House competition' (see below for more details) which is open to all Prep children. The Captains met and set up classroom assignments for all of the Inktober prompts. The captains will be responsible for running this competition for each of their houses. They are looking forward to seeing lots of wonderful entries from the members of each house.

INKTOBER HOUSE COMPETITION DETAILS
There are 31 prompts throughout October (one for every day of the month) and students can complete an ink drawing in response to any or all of the prompts to enter.

Students should attach their work to the correct prompt assignment on their House Inktober Google Classroom.

Students can join the correct Google Classroom by scanning the QR code for their House on the poster, or by visiting the competition website and clicking the link button there.

Students will get 1 point for their House for every prompt they enter, and if they have a go at all 31 of the prompts then they will get double points.

House Lego Competition

The Beauclerc house captains Ariella, Matty, Andrey and Kun have been busy running the recent lego competition. There have been some wonderful, but we are pleased to announce that the finalists are:

Arnold: Guang & Put
Beauclerc: Chris & Ray
Hardy: Mari & Mio
Webb Ellis: Zulin & Neele

The live final will take place next Wednesday in the Theatre during morning break.

Music Exam Achievements

In assembly last Friday, we congratulated our musicians for their achievements in the Trinity and ABRSM instrumental examinations. The following students gained certificates:

Roberto 8S Grade 1 Guitar with Distinction
Woody 7L Guitar Entry Level with Distinction
Alvin 8P Grade 3 Cello with Distinction
Reiko 6S Grade 1 Guitar with Merit
Jaja 6P Grade 1 Singing
Shinna 6P Grade 2 Piano with Merit
Samara 6A Grade 1 Piano with Distinction
Coupe 4J Grade 1 Drums with Merit
OB 5MD Grade 2 Flute with Merit

FOBISIA Code Breaking Maths Challenge

This week, many of our Year 5 to Year 8 mathematicians took part in our very first FOBISIA Code Breaking Maths Challenge. All students started on Level 1, which was made up of seven different codes. Each solved code revealed a password that allowed the students to progress further through Level 1. Codes included backward text, upside-down writing, Abash, semaphore, Caesar shift, Pigpen, Vigenere cyphers and many more. Solving all seven codes unlocked Level 2.

All those who took part thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and many have continued to break the codes outside the classroom. The challenge officially finishes today. However, the codes will be available on the challenge website https://schoolcodebreaking.com/ after this date, in case any students would still like to ‘have a go’.

May I say a special LLEW ENOD OT ENOYREVE OHW KOOT TRAP!

RST Tech Team

This week saw the final interviews for students seeking to fill the positions left in the RST Tech Team by our departing Year 8s. The level of presentation increased again this year with some outstanding examples of resilience, versatility and use of technology. Possibly the toughest decision yet, but we can congratulate the following for successfully making the team:

Olivia Balzi, Year 6
Taylor McCall-Pohl, Year 7
Nadia Sethanandha, Year 7

All other candidates have been given feedback on their application process which I hope will see them come back next year, even stronger. Training is now underway to get our team ready to use our sound and lighting equipment for future School events.

Year 3

WE ARE CARTOGRAPHERS!
Year 3 students have been developing their map skills by gathering information around the School so that they can sketch a map of the parts of our School they regularly access.

They started off by walking through the areas that were relevant, taking photos and making note of important information needed on their maps. They then worked collaboratively to transfer the data they had gathered onto a first draft of their maps. Next week, we will explore symbols and legends (map keys) to add more details to their maps.

COMMUNICATORS & COLLABORATORS
In 3D, students have been working hard on their communication and collaboration skills, working in pairs, in small groups and as a class. Together, we have used loop cards and number lines to develop our place value knowledge in maths, discussed our families in Whole Me, sorted vocabulary in English and created maps of the School in humanities.

When we work together, what we can do is impressive!

Announcements and Reminders

PARENT-TEACHER SETTLING-IN MEETINGS
Please log in to SchoolCloud https://rugbyschoolthailand.schoolcloud.co.uk/ to sign up for our Settling in Meetings. Please find attached a guide to accessing SchoolCloud. You should have received an email from Miss Kirsty with login details. If not, please email kburkhill@rugbyschool.ac.th.

Parents' Guide to Booking Appointments

Dates for Your Diary

4^th OCTOBER
Parent Workshop Independence and Routines EYFS but anyone welcome

7^th OCTOBER
Parent Teacher Settling in Meetings 3:oopm- 6:15pm (sign up information above)

10^th OCTOBER
Caring Koala Day

13^th OCTOBER
Half Term begins

24^th OCTOBER
Return to School, we will celebrate Divali with in-class activities

Intensive English

In Mr. Roger's Intensive English Class we started our new topic of "Clothes." The children really enjoyed dressing up as well as designing their own T-shirts.

This week in Teacher Declan's pre-prep KS1 Intensive English class, the students learned about positional language. During the week they visited the soft play room and Rugby Rascals to practise positional language through play. The students learned the meaning of words and phrases such as up, down, in, out, above, below and next to. By using their surroundings and objects as props they were able to act out the different movements and positions.

You can see they had a lot of fun with this activity!

Year 1 have been enjoying bike week; it's made us think about how eating healthily and exercising are good for our bodies and mind:

We are lucky to have our outdoor classroom extension to play, build, and explore the world with all our senses while breathing fresh air. The roof makes play possible regardless of the weather, which hasn’t been very kind to us lately. Our blackboard allows our students to practise their phonics and handwriting while reinforcing their core muscles, pencil grip, and hand-eye coordination. Our small groups meet on the benches outside the classroom to avoid the disruption that often happens in a busy indoor classroom. We even bake and eat our snacks outdoors!

Large building blocks made from different materials allow our young architects to turn their fantasies into castles, houses, or animal shelters. The children love to use our tuff trays and sensory bins, arranged every morning into thematic formations by our talented teaching assistants. Our little learners get inspired by the original setting and then use their imagination to act out their stories while practising their gross and fine motor skills and, most importantly, developing their social and communication skills and problems solving while interacting with others, sharing materials, solving their problems, and much more. Play is crucial for developing 21^st Century skills and getting ready for successful adult life in the future.

Learner Profiles

Enrichment and Sport

FIXTURE RESULTS
Last Saturday saw a fantastic day of sport for RST. We hosted Pattaya Inter FC and Piing Academy at home at U13 and U15 level, and our U11 basketball teams played away at the American School Bangkok against both City and Green Valley teams.

PRE-PREP PET CARE CLUB
The Year 2 Pet Care Club have been learning all about how we take care of different pets. So far, they have learnt about the Giant Tortoise and helped feed Ruby and her babies, and this week they learnt how to clean a fish tank. The two fish that live in our Pre-Prep Office area were much happier after we gave their tank a clean, and we even got to feed them.

PRE-PREP ARTS AND CRAFTS
In Mr. Roger's ArtS & CraftS activity, we watched The Hungry Caterpillar transform into a beautiful butterfly and then made our very own, and very beautiful, butterflies.

PREP ARTS AND CRAFTS
This week, we’ve been finishing off our pop art inspired by Andy Warhol. This simple technique has required some patience, but we’re happy with the end result:

PREP ADVENTURE EXPLORE SURVIVE OUTDOOR ACTIVITY
Students in Years 3 to 6 who are part of the Adventure Explore Survive outdoor activity have been trying hard to master the skill of fire lighting. With nothing more than basic materials and a flint and steel, students were able to strike sparks and build controlled fires individually.

Knowing the difference between tinder and kindling helped with their success but it was their perseverance that was key to building their first fire.

Many of the students have now earned yet another AES badge and are well on their way to completing the outdoor course and being prepared for the mini-expedition at the end of the programme.

PREP CERAMICS
Our ceramicists have been putting their final touches on their incense holders by decorating them with posca pens. They worked carefully to execute their designs onto their teepees and we think they look fantastic!

Boarding Life

It was such a varied weekend for our boarders in School House. A small group challenged Mr Ennis-Billing to back up his claim that he's virtually unbeatable at Cluedo. Others made use of the state-of-the-art Fitness Suite which is always open for boarders to use in their flexible time. There was a karaoke competition, a debate between two of our prefects Charlie W and Grahame W about what constitutes a 'great leader' as part of their prefect training, and finally some of the boarders challenged Rollo, Opal and Arthur to a game of basketball... There's always so many different things to do and get involved in here on campus.

SENIOR BOARDING PREFECT TRAINING
House Prefects from Rupert Brooke and School House enjoyed dinner at Wisdom on Wednesday night, whilst undertaking leadership training with Miss Passmore and Mrs Windsor. This week they shared examples of good and bad leaders and reflected on the different leadership styles and characteristics of what makes a great leader:

It was a food-themed weekend for the Marshall House boarders. On Saturday they visited the lovely 'Wonderfarm' where they made tasty Thai coconut pancakes and colourful Look Chub sweets, before exploring the small farm with its pigs, chickens and turtles.

On Sunday, when the rain had cleared, Mr & Mrs Stoker took the boarders up to Wisdom Valley to make pizzas... and to add a little extra flavour to the activity, there was a competition for creativity, look and taste. To burn off some of the delicious pizza, the boarders then skateboarded, roller-skated and cycled around the area, which was great fun: