Rugby School Thailand eNewsletter

Matters of Principal

Whole School

RSTPA CHARITY GOLF DAY - REGISTRATION CLOSING SOON!
We currently have over 80 golfers and 12 generous sponsors with many prizes and giveaways planned for the day. Registration closes 23^rd October so be quick if you’d like to join this fun charity event for golfers of all abilities.

- To register as an individual or team of four golfers, CLICK HERE
- To find out more, CLICK HERE
- If you’d like to partner the event as a sponsor, CLICK HERE.

Announcements

SCHOLARS' SERIES
'The Four Oarsmen' are four pals from the UK who decided to take up rowing to enter a transatlantic race and ended up smashing the world record. They will be recounting their experiences of resilience, teamwork and extreme exhaustion with the audience.

NOVEMBER OPEN DAYS
We're having two Open Days in November which RST parents and students are welcome to join. It's an excellent way to discover more about your child's journey into Year 7 & 8 and the Senior School, as well as our boarding opportunities!

Saturday 4^th November - Senior School and Boarding
Saturday 25^th November - Upper Prep (Years 7 & 8 ) and Boarding

Please register here: https://tinyurl.com/3styakb5

Highlights of the Week

INTERNATIONAL DAY
Last year, to mark the 200^th Anniversary of the game of rugby, we participated in a worldwide ‘rugby pass’ video. Now, to celebrate our multicultural community this International Day, we have made another Global Pass video (this time with a world globe instead of a rugby ball).

From countries near and far, large and small, we come together at RST for a wonderful Globally Minded community moment.

RSTPA COOKING CLASS
Our week started with an RSTPA Cooking Class. Our French parents are teaching us how to make Quiche Lorraine.

WEST SIDE STORY TRIP
Over 80 Members of our RST community (students, staff and families) attended the Broadway classic 'West Side Story' trip last Saturday. This included students from year 3-13. This was the first of our many School Trips to open up the opportunity to see live and professional theatre. The show was an incredible experience and showcased the touring Broadway cast with professional choreography and Bangkok Symphony Orchestra accompanying. The Bernstein and Sondheim musical saw the Sharks and the Jets gangs take on the classic Shakespeare story of Romeo & Juliet. The show also featured spectacular sets all the way from New York and professional level performances with songs such as 'Somewhere', 'America', 'Something's Coming' and 'Tonight'. Mr Furness is hoping to run many more opportunities to encourage students’ learning (and enjoyment) of drama, dance and music.

Reminders

TRAILMASTER SERIES X 2024

Trail Masters Series X 2024 invites you to join them for an event hosted at Wisdom Valley!

When: Sunday, 7^th January 2024 (registration closes 31^st October 2023)

Where: Wisdom Valley

What: a choice of 50km, 30km and 10km running events, plus a fun Obstacle Race for all to enjoy.

If this event piques your interest, please click HERE TO FIND OUT MORE (including information in Thai) or HERE TO REGISTER (incredible RST community discounts available ).

We hope to see you there!

RSTPA CHRISTMAS FAIR

If it's not already in your diary, our RSTPA Christmas Fair will be on Saturday, 2nd December at Wisdom Valley.

This year we will be raising money for Take Care Kids and cancer research; iIf you would like to be part of the event - as a vendor, sponsor or volunteer - please contact the team: christmasfair@rugbyschool.ac.th

Senior

Announcements

SPORTS DAY
Sports day has been rearranged for Tuesday, 7^th November

AFTERNOON TEA
The planned parent afternoon tea has been moved due to a clash with the D block Futures presentation, it will now be combined with an introductory Higher Education presentation and take place on Friday, 10^th November at 3pm. A letter has been sent to all parents regarding this.

RSTPA YEAR GROUP MEETINGS
Mr Groves will be meeting with the RSTPA Year group reps after half term. Please pass any comments you would like to discuss to your RSTPA rep.

CALLING ALL BUDDING SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS, CHANGEMAKERS AND GLOBAL CITIZENS!

The Race4Good led by international Humanitarian Linda Cruse is a very special opportunity which is now open to all students in Senior.

The activity starts on 23^rd Oct 2023 (please note that it begins within the half term holiday and is an entirely online conference activity). If a Senior student chooses to join the team, they would be required to commit to attending online conferences regularly over the 6 week period. Once a week our team will complete Race Challenges to score points which allow the team to progress to the next round of the competition. Each challenge connects us with a community that is dealing with the stark reality of climate change in their daily lives.

There is a cost per student of 6000THB which will be invoiced to parents following the return of the Google form (please return by 20^th Oct).

This is an outstanding project that has the capacity to be mutually transformational for students and the communities they interact with.

RST students should expect to build relationships with peers from international schools all over the world and make connections with community representatives from the communities in the Arctic, Antarctic and the Himalayas.

Focused on the climate change emergency and building entrepreneurial skills - the final project pitches will take place live at COP28 in December. If our team is successful, then we may find ourselves taking to the global stage to present our work.

UNIFROG

We are dedicated to offering exceptional career guidance and tailored support to our students as they navigate their post-school options. To achieve this, we've adopted the award-winning online careers platform, Unifrog. This resource is accessible to all students from E Block onwards, and we'll soon introduce it to F Block students.

Unifrog equips learners with tools to make well-informed decisions about their futures, regardless of their year group. Each student has a personal account featuring:

Pathway Exploration: Personality quizzes, career profiles, subject information, MOOCs, webinars.
Record Keeping: Self-reflection on enrichment and employability skills.
Opportunity Discovery: Live vacancies, courses, university placements, virtual work experiences, and more.
Application Assistance: Tools for building applications, such as resumes and personal statements.

We've also provided a parent login, allowing you to support your child as they use Unifrog. Sign up with the code RUST2050 at www.unifrog.org/code. Watch an overview video here.

We encourage you to explore Unifrog with your child to assist them in their decision-making process. Our Higher Education and Careers team is available to address any queries.

Reminders

F BLOCK RESIDENTIAL
Tuesday, 24^th October – Friday, 27^th October (return to School for 4pm)

DOE ADVENTUROUS JOURNEY
Silver Duke of Edinburgh Adventurous Journey 1: Thursday, 26^th October (departs at 5:30am) – Saturday, 28^th October (returns 7-8pm)

SCIENTIFIC CALCULATOR
All students should bring a scientific calculator to School. We would recommend a Casio fx-991ex or similar.

SOCS SPORTS CALENDAR
Here is a link to the Socs sports calendar where you can find details of all sports fixtures. https://cc.rugbyschool.ac.th/Default.asp

NAMING OF EQUIPMENT
Please can all equipment that students bring to School be named, especially their School bag and clothing. This helps us to return items to students.

Dates for your Diary

23^rd OCTOBER: 18:00 – Boarders Return

24^th OCTOBER: 08:00 – School Resumes

28^th OCTOBER: Model United Nations Conference in Bangkok

31^st OCTOBER: Halloween Dress up day for RST MAD – 100THB donation

Highlight of the Week

MANDARIN
Last week, F block Mandarin students visited Anek Kusala Sala where students learned about Chinese culture outside the classroom, and gained a better understanding of Chinese culture by completing a booklet.

Prep

Announcements

BEYOND SCREEN TIME WORKSHOP
Thank you to all those who attended our latest Beyond Screen Time workshop. If you couldn't join us, please find the workshop resources along with the latest parent guide for Among Us on our Digital Learning Wellbeing page below.

Digital Learning Wellbeing

A reminder that if you would like help in setting up your child(ren)'s devices to be as safe and protected as possible, please contact Mr Burkhill to make an appointment at Scrummy's.

KEY DATES
Click here to see our key dates for the next half term.

LIBRARY UPDATE
Over the past few weeks, we have been welcoming our parents into School to visit our new library as part of our Coffee Morning cycle.

From your feedback, we are now delighted to confirm that after half term our library will be open for parents every Wednesday and Thursday from 16:15-17:30.

Feel free to come along by yourself, with a friend or with your children. During this time, you may come into the library to enjoy the space, borrow books or talk to our librarian – Ms Brassfield.

SENIOR OPEN DAY
The Senior School will be running an Open Day on Saturday, 4^th November and would like to invite parents of Year 8 students to attend. A letter with a sign-up form will be sent to Year 8 parents shortly.

PREP MAKE A DIFFERENCE (MAD)
Well done to everyone who applied to be a MAD representative this year. We thoroughly enjoyed watching your videos and the effort put in. Congratulations to the students below who will support the MAD projects in School this year.

MOANA
Moana Jr is coming to RST on 23^rd and 24^th November. Rehearsals have begun with Year 6 with Mrs Furness and Mr Cain. This will be our first Disney Musical since 2018 and is already shaping up to be a great musical drama performance from Year 6. Watch this space for more information!

Reminders

STUDENT EQUIPMENT
A reminder that all students in the Prep School should have a pencil case with a blue writing pen, pencils, ruler, rubber, sharpener, scissors, glue, colouring pencils and headphones. Please stock up over half term, so the students can be appropriately equipped for their lessons. All items should be named.

INKTOBER HOUSE COMPETITION
The Inktober house competition runs throughout October.

Students are invited to get creative producing ink drawings that match the prompt word for each day of October and earn points for their house in the process.

You can do only 1 or all 31 it's up to you. Every drawing counts for a point towards the competition. If you complete 10 you will earn a try as well, so you could get up to 3 tries for doing 30 drawings matching the prompts. If you succeed in doing all 31 you will earn double points for your house!

There are no Google classrooms this year, real drawing entries only. You can use Procreate but you must print the drawing off and hand it in to the display at the entrance.

**Make sure you use the correct size (A5 square) by checking the information carefully on the competition website. The website can be accessed through the link on the form or house google classrooms.

Good luck and have fun drawing!

Here are the competition rules:

RULES
- Your work must be on A5 square paper.
- Your work must be in ink (any type of black pen)
- Write your NAME, FORM, HOUSE and PROMPT WORD such as Dave, 5G, Webb Ellis, Fire.
- You can draw digitally, but you must print at home (A5 size).
- Place your work in the tray to hand it in.
- Every entry receives a point.
- If you complete all 31 drawings, you get double points!
- 10 drawings earn you a TRY for your house.
- Each day the best drawing will win double points and a treat!

Below are the prompt words and some entries from last year.

PREP MUSIC RECITAL – TUESDAY, 7^th NOVEMBER
(Entries close Thursday, 12^th October)

If your child learns a musical instrument and is ready for an opportunity to perform then please click this link or scan the QR code to sign them up for the next music recital. It is essential that you speak with your child's instrumental teacher prior to completing the form to ensure that they have a piece learnt to performance standard and they are ready to get the most out of this performance opportunity.

Dates for your Diary

23^rd OCTOBER: 18:00 – Boarders Return

24^th OCTOBER: 08:00 – School Resumes

25^th OCTOBER: 08:00-09:00: Year 7 Parent Coffee Morning in the Prep Library

27^th OCTOBER: 08:00-09:30 – RSTPA Reps Meeting with SMT (please pass on your comments to your year group reps)

27^th – 28^th OCTOBER: U13 FOBISIA Basketball

28^th OCTOBER:
Falcons Xtreme Swim Meet @NIST
U9 Football Tournament @STA
08:45-10:00 Session 1 of the Saturday Enrichment Programme (SEP) - Sign-up on SOCS
10:15-11:45 Session 2 SEP

Highlights of the Week

WHOLE ME
During Whole Me last Friday, students were encouraged to be Globally Minded by learning about the news around them. They spent time reading through our Rugby Post and have made news reports based on what has been happening in and around RST!

OUTDOOR EDUCATION CENTRE (OEC) MORNINGS
The last couple of weeks saw our Outdoor Education Centre (OEC) welcome our Year 3 and 4 students. Our purpose-built OEC is set in a beautiful clearing on the edge of the forest allowing our students to immerse themselves in the new environment, learn new skills and participate in new activities that build on their learner profiles.

Our zip line is a firm favourite and many students showed their resilience in overcoming their fear of heights. They also turned their artistic talents to the natural world, creating beautiful leaf-rubbing art and nature weaving that captured the intricate patterns, colours and textures of the forest.

In small teams, they worked together to erect tipis, a fascinating exercise in problem-solving and teamwork. The sight of these traditional shelters standing tall was a testament to their communication and collaborative efforts.

Year 3

YEAR 4 ART IN PARADISE TRIP
Art in Paradise is an interactive exhibition of traditional and AR (Augmented Reality) artworks. Last week Year 4 enjoyed their trip to the exhibition, where they used a special app on their iPads to make the artwork come to life. Not only did they learn all about some of the world's most famous paintings, but they had a great time too!

YEAR 8 GEOGRAPHY AND SCIENCE TRIP
Last week, Year 8 visited Sattahip for the geography/science field trip. This was an amazing chance for our students to learn some first-hand fieldwork skills, whilst experiencing beautiful parts of our local area.

Our students communicated and collaborated with each other in order to measure longshore drift on the beach, whilst thinking about the incredible land formations that have occurred as a result of erosion. This was to support their coastal studies in geography.

They developed their versatility, by studying the plethora of organisms living in a mangrove forest, and widened their knowledge of biodiversity to support their science class work.

For lunch, the students shared a feast by the ocean, and enjoyed the opportunity to socialise with their friends outside of School.

Finally, they displayed how globally-minded they are, by learning about the various threats to turtles and visiting a turtle breeding station, to find out more about how we can protect this form of wildlife. Overall, it was a fantastic experience for everybody.

Reminders

HAIR STYLES
We have several children with shaved hair patterns or coloured hair in School. May I remind you that these are not suitable for School? Please refer to the Parent Handbook, section 10.

SCHOOL OFFICE
The School Office is a working office. Please be mindful of this and help us continue to work with an acceptable amount of noise. It is sometimes very difficult to hold meetings or make phone calls if the office is used as a gathering point for parents and children. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Dates for Your Diary

24^th OCTOBER: School opens

25^th OCTOBER: Parent Workshop – learn what the new School reports will look like for the EYFS - PN, N and Reception 8:30am

26^th OCTOBER: Parent Workshop – learn what the new School reports will look like for KS1- Year 1 and 2 - 8:30am

27^th OCTOBER: RSTPA reps meet with SMT - 8:30am

31^st OCTOBER:
Come and See – parents welcome between 8:00 and 8:45am to visit the classrooms and see what their children have been doing.

STEAM Day- a Halloween theme maths, Science and Technology day - NO DRESS UP

Highlights of the Week

PRE-NURSERY
This week in Pre-Nursery, we have been learning all about how to keep our bodies healthy. We decided to try yoga to help improve our balance and coordination and to keep us fit and healthy. Excellent work Fishes and Rabbits!

RECEPTION SPANISH
Our Reception classes have been doing an exceptional job reviewing all that they've learned so far. They've engaged in numerous activities, including singing songs, interactive actions, passing balls while posing questions, exploring short poems, and exchanging greetings with their favourite superhero, Batman.

YEAR 2 SPANISH
Year 2’s topic in Spanish for this half term was ‘sea creatures’. This week, they have been hunting to discover the correct spellings for six different sea creatures covered in this unit. Once they mastered these spellings, they put their new knowledge to the test by playing a fun and engaging game, earning points along the way.

Incorporating 'Talk for Writing' actions in Spanish has been a fantastic addition to our Year 2 curriculum. It not only helped children to memorise the words but also added a fun and interactive element to their language learning. Which class did a better job singing? I cannot tell as they were all simply amazing!

Learner Profiles

Enrichment & Sport

Sport

FOOTBALL
Our Year 2 girls took part in their first-ever mini football tournament last Saturday. They were real 'Go For It Gorillas' and really tried their best in every game. We are very proud of the girls for their amazing effort, enthusiasm and attitude towards playing football. Well done girls!

Enrichment

PRE-PREP MATHS ACTIVITY
We have the pleasure of 2 Senior Peer mentors joining Miss Debbie's Maths activity. The children enjoy their help as they tackle the fun Maths challenges.

ECO GARDEN
Over the past 8 weeks, we've poured our hearts and efforts into revamping and rejuvenating our beloved eco garden for this term. Today, we're thrilled to invite you to join us in celebrating the fruits of our labour!

The journey to this point has been a collaborative one. We've received invaluable assistance and support from the Pre-prep and Prep teams, making our Eco garden team stronger than ever.

Our goal is to offer you a bountiful harvest of fresh vegetables and eco-friendly products. Don't forget to swing by and experience our freshly brewed herbal RSTea every Wednesday after the half-term break.

For our RST members, we've dedicated a special section of our garden to herbs and another to water lilies, so you can savour their beauty and tranquillity.

PREP CROCHET ACTIVITY
We're excited to share the wonderful progress of our Crochet Club! This activity has been thriving, with students passionately embracing the art of crocheting. Their dedication and creativity have been truly inspiring as they've crafted a variety of beautiful pieces. From intricate patterns to charming handmade gifts, our students have showcased remarkable talent. We look forward to witnessing the continued growth and creativity of our Crochet Club members next half term and this activity will run again in Term 2.

CREST AWARD
Crest Award activity students have been 'rainbow collectors', exploring nature to find every colour of the rainbow!

MAD JUNIORS
This week, the MAD Juniors decided to clean the toys and cupboards of the Reception playground as it would be one less job for our amazing cleaners to do.

We had lots of fun, and all agreed that we will be helping our parents at home to clean our own toys!