Primary News - March 25th

Dear Parents and Students,

It has been an amazing last week of term, with lots of exciting activities and events taking place.

The first Spring Concert on Wednesday 23rd March was a huge success. The Year 2 and Year 3 students showcased their colourful and joyful performances on a brand new stage of the Performing Arts Theatre. It was wonderful to be able to host a live event for parents to enjoy. Thank you to all of the students and teachers involved in putting this together. We look forward to the upcoming performances in Term 3 with other year groups as well!

On Thursday, the Early Years hosted their first ‘Stay and Play’ event, with new families and children joining the after school supervision club for some fun activities on the playground. This is a great opportunity for BISL students to make new friends and to foster links with our local community. More Stay and Play events will be happening over the summer term, so please look out for these dates in the calendar.

Congratulations to all who participated and the winners of the Spelling Bee and the Short Story competition. With these, the English Block celebrations draw to an end. A huge thank you to the staff and Secondary students involved in organising these wonderful opportunities for the Primary students to engage in and develop their literacy skills through fun and interactive activities.

The Term 2 Primary Specialist Subject Reports have been given to students to take home. We are extremely proud of how students have continued to work hard to overcome various challenges and achieve their best!

As always, please ensure that you keep up with the latest News and Events, including the Update from the Principal for important weekly updates.

We look forward to seeing you back for the start of Term 3 on Tuesday 5th April and wish you a good break.

Kind regards,

Katarina Železinger

Head of Primary

Early Years

On the first day of spring, our Early Years students did a self-initiative spring-cleaning of the Early Years outdoor area. They swept the small wooden house and prepared the planters for growing flowers. The children enjoyed exploring the changes in nature. Our indoor activities were all about the exploration of animal habitats, in which the ground is always frozen.

We have concluded our animal block topic, with animals that live in Antarctica and the Arctic. To consolidate our learning, the children used different tools to chip away and rescue the animals, which were trapped frozen in the giant ice cubes. Alongside practising our animal-related vocabulary, the children have continued making junk models of animals and made cute baby penguins made out of paper rolls.

Ms Kukovica

Year 1

Another very busy week is behind us! We made our own books about nocturnal animals, using the information we found during last week’s research. In Maths we have been mastering the skill of counting change when at the toy shop, and this week our Topic lessons have taken us to West Africa, where we encountered the story of Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock. We even made Anansi spider crafts to decorate our classroom.

We must not forget the Spelling Bee which took place this week! Students were very successful in the final round and showed excellent phonic knowledge, well done everybody!

Ms Miklavec

Year 2

What an exciting week we have had in Year 2!

We had such a great time at the zoo last Friday then wrote to the Zookeeper this week to tell them what we loved and thanked them for a fantastic time.

We had the Spring Show in which Year 2 brilliantly performed the song Here Comes the Sun. Thank you to all the parents and carers that came to watch and support. It was a fantastic atmosphere. We have also continued all our learning in English, Maths and Topic and looking forward to lots more fun in Block 6!

Mrs Fordham, Ms Harris and Miss Klein

Year 3

This week, Year 3 has been busy researching key historic inventors, making their own inventions, and debating what inventions are the most useful to help us daily, in our everyday lives.

At the end of this activity, they had to debate to decide who had invented the most useful invention.

The students used books, ebooks as well as online resources to collect the information they needed to complete this task collaboratively.

Our Spring Concert was a huge success, thank you to everyone for coming along to watch our Year 3s colourful performance on the boomwhackers!

Ms Blundell & Mr Kokalj

Year 4

This block has all been about famous explorers of the world. Many of the Year 4 students chose to research famous people from their home country and because of this also gave part of their speech in their mother tongue.

It was a cross-curricular topic, in which the students learnt how to write autobiographies during their English lessons, and used this information to write their own as their famous explorers/discoverers. The students dressed up in costumes, and 'became' their famous people for the performance - of their life and life's work to the class. We found out some very interesting information that we never knew before, such as:

● Jeanne Baret disguised herself as a man to travel the high seas in the 19th century.

● Sunita Williams, the first person to run a marathon in space, has a grandmother from Slovenia.

● Shoqan Walikhanov was a Kazakh Historian, Cartographer, Scientist, Writer and Military Intelligence officer.

● Galileo Galilei's famous discoveries sent him under house arrest, despite his famous quote of "Prove it!"

● Tomaž Česen soloed a new route on K2 in 1986, which is now named the Cesen Route.

● Nikola Tesla was not only into electricity but was a vegetarian.

● Neil Armstrong had a naval burial at sea on September 14th, 2012.

● Ruth Harkness brought the first panda (Su Lin) to America.

Mrs Charlesworth

Year 5

This week the children have been taking part in a debate about zoos. The children researched the topic and discovered both sides of the argument. It was interesting to see the children's opinions on this matter.
In Maths, the children explored measurement and took part in some outdoor learning by calculating the volume of items in the playground. The children have had a great term and I wish you all a relaxing and safe break.

Mrs Thomas

Year 6

Year 6 students investigated air quality this week as part of our climate change unit. We planted air quality markers around various locations close to the school, including the playground, car park, fields, river and the main road, leaving them for a few days to see what would stick to them.

We then investigated the sheets under a microscope and were very surprised by what we saw. Not only did we see dirt flecks, but also microorganisms and small insects. Overall, it was a very exciting and worthwhile experience.

Mr Bishop

Slovene

Years 3 and 4 have been discussing sports they like doing in their free time, and sports they dislike. Students have revised sports, people who are doing particular sports and places where they are completing particular sports through a guessing game. They have been pretty successful with guessing and naming them.

Later, they outlined sports they like and the ones they dislike. Some students couldn’t find a sport they wouldn't like at all!

So, continue participating sports and stay on track with your Slovene vocabulary.

Zelo dobro 3. in 4. razred.

Slovene Department

PE

Throughout PE this week, we concluded our invasion games unit - focusing on competitive play and the importance of sporting behaviour. Years 1 & 2 were set basketball shooting challenges, tasked with working as a team to achieve the highest number of baskets. Years 3 & 4 continued their handball focus, working on how possession can influence the result of a game. Years 5 and 6 concluded their handball unit, with a competitive round-robin tournament, with scorekeeping and officiating organised by the students.

PE Department

French

Bonjour, and happy end of Block! This week, students were very enthusiastic about creating their own role-play.

The main theme was to order in a market. We also worked on pronunciation, and how to create our own café and restaurant menus. Well done to everyone for this fantastic Block!

Ms Tatil

EAL

This week, we finished the Term with some very nice presentations in our Year 3 & 4 group. The students had to choose one sport they liked and prepare a presentation about it. They had to take into account the rules of the sport, the equipment needed, the history and one famous person.

Besides their research skills, writing and vocabulary building, the students also practised their speaking and presentation skills.

Mr Siter

Year 2 & 3 Spring Concert Gallery

A huge thank you to everyone for joining our inaugural show in the Performance Theatre, featuring our first Spring Concert with colourful performances from Years 2 & 3.

Take a look at more photos in our Gallery here.

BISL Receives 'Exemplary' Accreditation from the Bell Foundation

Our school has been rated ‘Exemplary’ in our Bell Foundation Accreditation for EAL (English as an Additional Language) provision. As an international school with students from over 40 different nationalities, the quality of our EAL provision is of utmost importance, and we take great pride in the success of our programme here at BISL.

Find out more about this accreditation here.

Spelling Bee

We have some amazing spelling potential here at BISL - well done everyone!
A special congratulations to all the Spelling Bee winners and to everyone else who participated.

Ms Miklavec's Phonics Group:

1. Nour
2. Kaylee
3. Kaya

Ms Jacop's Phonics Group:

1. Attila
2. Aneliese
3. Angelina

Mrs Fordham's phonics group:

1. Kaja
2. Sofia Ana
3. Tereza

Ms Harris - Phonics Group 1:

1. Tit
2. Ondřej

Ms Harris - Phonics Group 2:

1. Sofia
2. Ayaka

Miss Blundell’s group

• Aleksej

• Tommy

Mr Kokalj’s group

• Christina

• Ana Lina

Mrs Charlesworth’s group

• Leon Jonatan

Year 3 & 4 EAL group

• Urs

Year 5

• Ela

• Marlene

Year 6

• Daniil

Year 5 & 6 EAL group 1:

• Franja

Year 5 & 6 EAL group 2:

• Ivan

Mrs Charlesworth

Art Club

Art Club students are going to create some outdoor artwork on the playground, by weaving designs into the metal fencing. To do this we are asking for help, to collect materials to cut up and use.

We would like your help to collect single colour old clothes such as:

• T-shirts

• Shirts

• Skirts

• Dresses

• We are also collecting old, colourful plastic bags for the same purpose

Please bring in what you can to Miss Blundell, we will begin making after the block break, so the sooner the better!

Thank you in advance for your help,

Ms Blundell

MEPI News

This week our MEPI adventurers took advantage of the glorious weather to develop their expedition skills in the Woodland Area. We enjoyed a more 'practical' session, where the participants attempted to pitch tents that they had not previously encountered. Only armed with a picture of the erected tents (no other instructions), they had a limited time to construct the tents to a standard that would provide them with adequate shelter to keep them safe and dry in a real 'expedition' scenario.
They also had to be able to 'strike camp', and successfully pack the tents away into the original bags. These basic skills are essential to the success of their 'Qualifying Adventurous Journey', as everything that they need to survive has to be carried with them over the two-day hike, including their accommodation!

The participants performed extremely well, completing the task within a very challenging timeframe. Some participants are purchasing tents of their own, and so we look forward to a further session to test these.

Mr Irving, MEPI Coordinator

Primary Student Council

The Primary Student Council has been very busy this Term! In February we had an online meeting with the incoming principal Mr Cox. It was wonderful to speak with him and get to know him a little bit. With the help of Primary Prefects, Head Boy and Head Girl we presented the amended version of the Four Square game rules.

Throughout Block 5 we organized a Road Safety poster competition for all primary students. Posters will be displayed in the next block, but here is a sneak peak of the winning posters to look out for. Congratulations to our winning artists

Ms Miklavec

Kangaroo Maths Competition

Last week, all students in Years 1-9 participated in the annual international Kangaroo Maths competition. This competition consisted of a mix of logical math problems, which are often different to the typical math curriculum, so it is great to give students the chance to show their skills in this area also.

I would like to give special congratulations to Year 5 and 6 students, who were the highest achievers in the school competition overall.

A big congratulations go out to Marlene in Year 5 who attained 100%! High achievers from Years 6-9 will be invited to attend the next round of the competition in April.

Teacher Feature - Mr Hayes

For this week's Teacher Feature, we take a look inside the PE department, bringing you a delightful interview with Mr Samuel Hayes!

Read Mr Hayes’ Teacher Feature here.

International Days - Mark Your Calendars

One of our biggest family events, organised in partnership with the PTA, this year’s International Days will take place between Thursday May 12 - Friday May 13.

There will be a variety of cultural and educational activities, stalls, traditional dress, flags, international cuisine, games and performances for our community to enjoy.

For details, please click here.

BISL Summer School 2022

With summer just around the corner, registration is now open for BISL Summer School 2022!

Click here for details.

Dear Parents,

Wow, what a term!

At the start of the term, we had mask guidance, no trips, events and an increase in covid cases. Now we have finished the term with an amazing Spring Concert, trips, no masks and students playing together outside and having fun!

It has been a perfect end to the term and a pleasure to see how much our students have enjoyed the past few weeks.

We have some hard work taking place over the break with some maintenance, building developments and deliveries, and we are all very excited about our 'sunny' summer term ahead!

The new building (currently being named by students) will see further development of the Performance Theatre, additional seating, a stage curtain and range of deliveries to improve this space. We are all so excited to now start showing you the potential for opportunities for our students to perform in front of others, I am sure it will inspire our students to try new skills, get involved and to work together. Performing and collaborating with others is a great way to grow confidence, have fun and explore creativity. We are all looking forward to seeing what is coming up.

During term 3 and in this next block, we have a variety of parent events and opportunities for you to come into the school. Please see the events page of the website to find out more as these include:

• Spring Concert - Year 1 and 6, 4pm, 6th April

• Parent Appreciation Day, 7.15am, Friday 8th April

• Spring Concert - Year 4 and 5, 4pm, 13th April

• Coffee with the Principal, 8am, Friday 6th May

• International Days, Thursday 12th and Friday 13th May

We are very proud of our recent achievement for the English provision at the British International School of Ljubljana to receive the standard of 'Exemplary' from the Bell Foundation. Please click here to see the full article.

Also, we move into Block 6 which will be focused on 'Science' across the school, so get ready for some wonderful projects, competitions and activities in all things Science!

I hope to see everyone during term 3 and am very excited to finish the term and the academic year with some fantastic events!

Please read my full Update from the Principal here for details.

Have a lovely break and see you on Tuesday 5th April.

Kind regards,

Paul Walton

Principal

All upcoming events and details are available on our website.