From the Head of Secondary 22.02.2020

International Trips are very much a part of Secondary School and it would be fair to say that a student lucky enough to be able to participate can be left with long and fond memories of the event for many subsequent years. Friendships are created and strengthened, team spirit is developed, performances honed, and medals won! Our U13 Sports Team is leaving tomorrow after many weeks of intense preparation and we wish them all the best. 

What’s happening in the Sixth Form? Mr. Barker is busy organising the mock AS and A2 exams which will be taking place from the 9th to the 13th March. The students are preparing for those, with the support of their teachers. They understand the importance of taking them seriously and as an opportunity to review and consolidate all of their learning since last August. After the mocks they will be in a good position to set some targets and know where to focus their revision in preparation for the May/June exam session. 

Year 11 students are working hard. At this time of year they invariable begin to get very focused; they all want to do their best in their exams. However, it is important to have balance and parents can help in making sure that their teenagers get plenty of sleep and have time to switch off and enjoy leisure activities in between study sessions at home. Exam stress is a common phenomenon. I am sure that we can all remember that gut-wrenching moment when the invigilator, with one eye on the clock, said ‘YOU MAY START’ and we quickly scanned the paper, taking a few deep breaths, calming ourselves, before putting pen to paper. However, too much stress can cause real problems and young people sometimes forgo sleep, exercise and even healthy food as they become consumed by revision, practice questions, and worry. We advise students in school about how to cope but parents are in the best position to have that important overview at home and to guide their child into a sensible routine. 

In this newsletter you can read Episode 2 of our regular feature article ‘A Day in the Life of’. This week Ms Colbeck provides some insight into what her job as Teacher/Librarian entails. Next week we can read all about a typical day in the life of a PE teacher!

Margaret Renshaw

Deputy Principal/Head of Secondary

So my day begins at 7.30. By this time, I’ve had two cups of tea, and my brain is beginning to fizz and crackle into life. There’s usually some of my Year 13 form already in the Secondary Library, so we have a quick chat about the news, life, current affairs. This morning it was a bizarre, yet stimulating argument about whether a walrus or a polar bear would win in a fight…

After the register is done and events from the bulletin covered, it’s a quick check of the emails. I switch on all the PCs, make sure the laptop trolleys are ready for action, and today got to scoff some brownies! Not because it’s Valentine’s day, but because it’s a form birthday, and we always celebrate with cake. I am also aware that Mr. Colbeck did not buy me Valentine’s brownies, as he’s off on the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh expedition, so this is my compensation- Breakfast of Champions!

Then the bell goes, and I send my form off to lessons. I’ve got two hours until the break time crowd arrives in the Library, and my ‘to do’ list is already five pages long. Book Week is looming on the horizon (16th- 20th March) and there are a hundred things to do and organise to make sure it all happens perfectly! This year’s theme is ‘Robots and Aliens- The Future’, so even when I’m not organising Book Week challenges and events, I’m planning my costume for the Character Parade on the Friday. I don’t want to brag, but my dystopian future outfit is going to blow everyone’ minds!

The first thing on my list to do is sorting book collection boxes so I go to find Ms. Kerry in the Primary Library to coordinate our day. We’ve already found the boxes, we just need to put class lists on them and put them in every Primary classroom and every Secondary form room. It’s only when you’ve had to walk to every room in the school with large boxes that you realise just how big the school is! But it keeps my pedometer happy, and I’m just glad I put sensible flat shoes on today! These boxes are to collect all the book donations from students for ‘The Big Book Swap’ on the Monday of Book Week. We’re hoping that four weeks is plenty of time to galvanise the KIS community to give us their old pre loved books- Book Swap only works if every student brings a book to swap! Parents and teachers are welcome to join in. I am putting a collection box in the school office for ‘grown-up’ books to swap, so please donate and come along to the Book Swap!

Once the book boxes are done, I embark on a quest to find the fabric and fairy lights we use for the Story Tent. A Book Week event for students to indulge in their love of story-telling, we create a grotto in the hall, and man it with teachers before school and during break, so that students can hear their favourite stories. After a few memory-jogging conversations, and rummaging in some very cobweb-riddled cupboards, I find all the equipment we need, and put it somewhere safe.

While all this is going on, classes are coming in and out of the Secondary Library; some to borrow the ipads and laptops, some for their lessons. Mr Graham has his Year 7 English class in here, and is handing out the lovingly made Book Passports. (I say this because Ms Kerry and I are the ones who made them!) The Passports have seven genres listed inside, and if students can read seven books in five weeks (and get them signed off by their English teachers or me) they will win 20 House Points, along with immense satisfaction that they have improved their minds. Several teachers and Sixth Formers are going to join in the challenge too – perhaps you could as well? KIS should be a hotbed of frenzied reading activity over the coming weeks!

And then it’s break time. Around 35 students come into the library today, so it’s a busy and industrious place to be! Unlike old-fashioned, silent libraries, modern school libraries are a learning hub and students meet to do their group work, prepare presentations, revise and study together. It’s always great to see such good communication skills and team work going on. A few students are snuggled into beanbags with their noses in their books, lost in their own worlds, and Library Cadets bombinate around the room, restoring order and making sure everything is shipshape and looking good.

Peace and quiet arrives in period 3, as I’m off to teach my Year 13 History class – which I think I may enjoy more than my students! Today we are researching the rise of Black Power in 1960s USA- Fascinating, engaging, and topical – food for the mind, and very satisfying before lunch.

During lunch time in the Secondary Library, it’s my favourite time of the week – Film Friday! We’ve worked our way through all 3 ‘Hobbit’ films since September, and we’re very nearly at the end- I manage not to cry at the final scene, and keep my dignity intact. The epic films are very inspiring, and many students have come to borrow the Tolkien books since we started watching the films.

After lunch, Year 11 come in to work on their English Coursework, whilst Year 8 Geography students pop in to borrow iPads. In the corner, Year 13 Biology students are quietly studying. I manage to get some new books catalogued while it’s quiet. Some Year 9 History students wander in to see if there’s space for them to revise for a test, so we move some people around to make sure we can all fit in. At least I can never complain that I am lonely in here!

The Library feels very much the heart of the school, and I am always very glad to be here in the middle of it all.

Book Week 2020 is not long away now, with exciting plans and ideas being mooted amongst the staff at KIS to make sure this is the best Book Week ever! Our theme this year is ‘Robots and Aliens – The Future!’, and many of the week’s events, challenges, and competitions will be based around this.

Monday 16th March

Book Week 2020 Launch and The Big Book Swap.

The week will get off to a flying start with the Primary and Secondary Big Book Swap, followed by brief introduction to the events happening across the school throughout next week. The Primary Book Swap will be from 8.00 to 9.00, followed by The Big Read from 9.00- 10.00; students will get a chance to get stuck into their ‘new’ pre-loved books.

Secondary students will spend 8.00 – 9.00 competing in a school-wide treasure hunt, then their Book Swap will be 9.00- 10.00. The Big Book Swap will take place in the Hall, where all the students who have donated a book will be able to browse the tables and choose a new book to take home.

For a successful Book Swap event, we are relying on every student to bring in ONE book each, in good condition, to donate. If your child has not yet donated their Big Swap book, please can you ensure it is handed in to their class teacher, if they are in Primary, or to their form tutor if they are in Secondary, by Wednesday 11th March. Thank you very much.

The Storytelling Tent

The Storytelling Tent is back again this year! The tent will be set up on the stage in the Hall again this year, and again will feature teachers reading their favourite stories. Each day, the children will have the opportunity to go and sit in the tent before school (7.30am – 7.50am), and at break times, and listen to a host of mystery storytellers weave their special storytelling magic! Please encourage your children to head to the tent in the morning when you drop them at school.

Friday 20th March – Primary Character Parade and Assembly

Perhaps the highlight of Book Week this is the day where staff, students – [and maybe even parents!] – come to school dressed up as their favourite book characters! After registration, all the students will gather in the Hall with their teachers and then take to the stage for photographs, judging, and general gasps of admiration from the audience! This will begin at 8.10am. We would like to encourage you to stay and watch the parade so you can see all of the fabulous costumes and there will be plenty of opportunities for you to take photos of your children!

Friday 20th March- Secondary Character Parade and Assembly

Our student numbers dictate that Secondary need their own celebration for the Character Parade! All Secondary students will gather for photos in the Hall at 11.20, followed by the prize-giving and a short assembly to hand out all the awards and prizes from the Book Week competitions.

Extreme Reading Photo Competition 

All students are invited to enter anytime over the next 5 weeks. All they need to do is submit a photo (by emailing it to me francescolbeck@kis.edu.my) of them reading a book in an unusual or unexpected place- The more unusual, the better! Entries will be judged by SLT and prizes will be distributed on Friday 20th March.

Our other events

We will also be engaging in scavenger hunts, book quizzes and picture quizzes over the course of the week, as well as decorating the doors and windows of the classrooms to represent our favourite books. The ‘Guess the Teacher’ competition will be happening again, with a range of literary prizes to be won. Book Master, Drop it and Read, and The Book@Bedtime are all back by popular demand. The Secondary cake contest, held on the Friday, where we see how creative our students can be, is my personal favourite – especially as we all get to eat all the cakes!

We will look forward to seeing you over the course of Book week. If you have any questions about this special event, or would like to get involved, please speak to your child’s class teacher or form tutor or contact me directly.

Mrs Colbeck

Teacher Librarian