Secondary News - April 8th

Block 6 Week 1

Welcome back to Term 3 and the second last block of the year! It was wonderful to see the sun shining this week and the summer uniform come into effect. Just a reminder that the link for this uniform is on the website and orders arrive very quickly with the new uniform shop in place.

The students have started the term smiling and showing an incredible amount of appreciation for their fantastic parents who continually support them every step of the way. Cards were created for parents and presented to them at Parent Appreciation Day this week, to say thank you to parents for all that they do. It was a lovely breakfast and event to celebrate with many parents in attendance.

Another fantastic event onsite was the Spring Concert for the Year 1 and Year 6 students and parents. Once again, our Secondary students attended and were hosting the event. Next week we look forward to supporting the final cohorts from Primary performing in the new Performing Arts Theatre.

With only two more weeks to go with a full timetable of lessons onsite, the Year 11 to 13 students continue to dedicate themselves to their studies. The Secondary teachers once again hosted booster sessions onsite during the block break and will continue to have them after school also to maximise the learning at this stage for these examination students. Not long to go now!

I wish everyone a restful and enjoyable weekend ahead.

Stephanie Andronikos, Head of Secondary

Transition weeks for current Year 11 and 12 students

As was the case in previous years, transition weeks will take place this year during the final two weeks of the academic year, from Monday 14th until Friday 24th June. Transition weeks allow students who are moving up from Year 11 to 12 and Year 12 to 13, the chance to get a taste of what is awaiting them. Students will be given introductory lessons in their chosen subjects, shown the textbook and the online resources, given tasks and collaborative projects to do during the day, and work to do over the holidays to make sure that they enjoy an early start on their new courses. Students will focus on one subject per day and the timetable will be released shortly.

Red Cross Donation

"Thank you BISL community for your donations in all forms over the past few weeks which have been used to provide humanitarian assistance. Particular thanks go to the members of the sixth form who started the donations drive and who will continue their fundraising activities with an upcoming bake sale. This week I was very happy to donate the €876 collected from the community to the Red Cross."

Bake Sale - 13th April

As we continue our donation drive, we would like to announce a bake sale that we are organising at school on Wednesday 13th of April. It will be taking place in the woodland area for both primary and secondary students during the morning break and then during lunch break. We will be selling brownies, chocolate muffins, chocolate chip cookies etc.

There will be nut-free, gluten-free, lactose-free, and vegan options included so that everyone will be able to enjoy the goods. Allergens contained will be displayed in front of the product along with the price which will start from €1.50

All the money collected from the bake sale will be used to fund Humanitarian Aid, which is why we would really appreciate your participation and support.

Thank you.

Ewa, Semiha & Ekaterina, Year 12

Mr Batson, Head of Sixth Form

Subject News

Science Block

Science Block Challenges:

Block 6 celebrates all things Science - and throughout the block, the Science team will release a bank of practical challenges to ignite everyone's curiosity for science and engineering!

You’ll find new sets of practicals on our website here each week to try at home.

Science News:

Year 12 students, during the first week back from the block break, took mock practical exams in order to prepare for the real deal in May. They faced titration, electrical circuits, pendulums and catalysis reactions among other practical problems.

For their practical, Year 13 students had to use pretty much every piece of equipment at their disposal to hydrolyze amides. They used Bunsen burners, Leibig condensers and even fume hood among other usual glassware. They had to wear lab coats, gloves and goggles to protect themselves from corrosive chemicals used during the practical.

The Science Department also received a new plasma ball so that students from all year groups can have fun exploring the properties of an electric field.

Science Department

English News:

Year 7: Year 7B read from an entertaining extract of a play on the subject of vegetarianism. They also had an interesting discussion on what would happen if everyone on the planet stopped eating meat permanently.

Year 8: Year 8 worked on enhancing their self-editing techniques for their written work, paying particular attention to the vital role of punctuation in their writing. They also continued their reading of “Holes.”

Year 9: Year 9 continued working on their analysis of World War I poetry.

Year 10: Year 10 worked on a variety of narrative writing exercises.

Mr Fordham, Mr. Wilkins, Mr. Staines, Mr Siter and Mr. Eve - English Department

MFL News

Slovene:

As the end of school for Y11 is approaching, the students will have their final Slovene Adv. exam next week. They have worked hard all year and we wish them all the best. Once they have successfully completed the exam, they will receive an internal certificate from our school.

Year 8 has been learning about body parts in Slovene. Firstly, they have checked their prior knowledge in a guessing activity. Secondly, they have studied new vocabulary through a matching activity. Finally, they have drawn body parts and named several body parts they have learnt. Students have been collaborating this lesson as a group. They were supporting each other and trying to learn as much as they could.

Well done Year 8. Kar tako naprej!

MFL team - Ms Kotnik, Ms Košec, Ms Tatil

Maths News:

At the start of this term, the students redefined their learning responsibilities and established a golden standard for their work. They developed a good grade plan and agreed to adhere to it in order to achieve predicted grades. Students' golden standard examples are published on Canvas and displayed in classroom 316.

Years 7 and 8 applied their knowledge of fractions, decimals and percentages to problems involving real estate vocabulary. They shared an interactive powerpoint and solved the problems in teams.

Year 10 students recalled trigonometry ratios and solved problems related to real life. They used mnemonic techniques SOH CAH TOA to memorise the correct ratios.

Year 11 and 12 students have been recalling concepts, method and formulae through student presentations. The students also analysed the exam papers and solved examination style questions.

Kangaroo Maths Competition

Valentin from 8B attended the regional round of the International Kangaroo Maths Competition this Wednesday at OŠ Sostro, we wished him the best of luck and are now awaiting the results!

Maths mistake of the week

Check out new mistakes next Monday, in front of room 316.

UKMT Junior Mathematics Challenge

The UKMT Junior Mathematical will take place on the 28th April for students in year 7 and 8. This is an online challenge and will be taken in school during school hours. Preparation classes have been taking place and will continue to take place on Monday and Thursday afternoon. We still have five places open if any student would like to take part in the challenge. If you wish to, please contact Mr Batson.

Ms Zupanc, Mathematics Teacher

PE News:

We introduced new sporting themes throughout secondary PE this week. Year 7 began their kickball unit, focusing on the techniques required when looking to kick the ball into space. Years 8 and 9 were introduced to rounders, working on the concept of running the bases and the techniques used when striking the ball. Year 10 started their cricket unit, working on being able to bowl effectively, whilst Year 11’s took part in some team, tactical games.

Mr Hayes, PE Teacher

Computer Science News:

In Secondary Computer Science this block, Years 8 and 9 have been exploring 3D modelling software and designing their own game pieces. Year 7 have started the COBIS Coding Competition to design an app around the theme of a difficult journey. The competition will run until April 27th when the three best apps from our school will be submitted for the international competition. Year 10 have been learning about loops in programming and how to represent negative numbers in binary whilst Year 11 have been revising and undertaking mock exams to prepare them for their final assessments in June. It's been a busy but interesting term for Computer Science and I am looking forward to term 3.

Ms Burtrand, Computer Science Teacher

Spring Concert - Year 1 & 6

What a fantastic performance from our Year 1 and Year 6 students this week! Take a look at our Spring Concert Gallery here.

Parent Appreciation Day Gallery

It was lovely to see so many of you on Friday morning for our Parent Appreciation Breakfast! Thank you to all parents for everything you do - enjoy the handmade cards that the students will be taking home for you this weekend.

You will find our Gallery of photos here.

International Day Planning Meeting

Come along on Thursday, April 14 at 8am if you are interested in getting involved in International Day! We will be meeting in the Assembly Hall to discuss ideas and logistics for the International Day Fair, taking place on Friday May 13, where there will be a variety of cultural and educational activities, stalls, traditional dress, flags, international cuisine, games and performances for our community to enjoy.

See you on Thursday April 14 at 8am in the Assembly Hall for the Planning Meeting!

BISL PTA

Pro Peace Football Tournament

Last Saturday, 2 April, the diplomatic representations in Slovenia, friends of Ukraine, and the European Commission, together with a team of Slovenian journalists and our local hosts (a local high school), organised a “Pro Peace Tournament/Turnir za mir”. The British International School of Ljubljana were proud to provide trophies, certificates, student-made posters and a plaque for the event!

Library Book Donations

In partnership with the PTA, we are accepting donations of books to our library throughout block 6 and encourage everyone to bring in their used books - in any language - and drop it off at Reception.

In the final block of the academic year we are also looking to organise a book fair - watch this space!

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,

It is very exciting to be in Term 3 as we have many events ahead of us to enjoy!

First of all, thank you to all Parents for attending the Parents Appreciation Day. It is a wonderful annual event and a great way to recognise the support from parents in the community, a day solely to focus on thanking parents for your positive contributions is very important and something we look forward to each year. Today is simply about showing appreciation and gratitude in a positive and heartfelt way.

During the block break we had a great LEGO robotics workshop on the Monday for students to attend. Thank you to Ms Burtrand and all students involved, as we are passionate about creating many opportunities for students to code, problem-solve and think creatively.

A quick shout out to our wonderful MEPI team who continue to offer a range of activities for students (14-18 years old) to explore Slovenia, develop further knowledge and life skills, teamwork and to embrace a range of challenges as part of the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award! Well done to all students and staff involved and good luck in the coming months in the future expeditions and events!

I have included a gallery below of photos from the Pro Peace Tournament last Saturday 2nd April. Thank you to the diplomatic representations in Slovenia and a special mention to Mr Anton Niculescu and the Romanian Embassy for organising such a wonderful event.

I really appreciated being involved, it was amazing to see a range of people playing football, and I am very grateful for the support of everyone who attended. It was a real privilege to provide trophies, certificates, student-made posters and a plaque for the event. In school, we have also had a very successful donation drive by our Sixth Form students, a collection of clothes, a gift to the Red Cross and now have a further Bake Sale event on Wednesday 13th April to continue our support. Thank you to everyone for helping out with these 5 events.

We have had further recognition at BISL this year through our 'Exemplary' EAL provision by the Bell Foundation. The support and development of students in their English language acquisition and the wonderful progress they make, is a real strength of our school, and is a true testament of the hard work and dedication by our staff.

As mentioned in my last update, during Term 3 and in this next block, we have a variety of parent events and opportunities for you to come into school. Please see the events page of the website to find out more as these include:

• 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

Have a lovely weekend!

Kind regards,

Paul Walton

Principal

Dates to Note

All upcoming events and details are available on our website.