Patana News Volume 23 Issue 5

Our mission is to ensure that students of different nationalities grow to their full potential as independent learners in a caring British international community.

Patana

NEWS

Thursday17th September 2020

Volume 23 Issue 5

www.patana.ac.th

A FRESH NEW START

BY CINDY ADAIR, CROSS CAMPUS ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

Page 2 Also in this issue...

Measures to Alleviate Traffic/Parents on Campus/CAT Clubs in Focus 17/09/2020

Bangkok Patana School News

Bangkok Patana is a not-for-profit IB World School accredited by CIS

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A Fresh New Start!

Cindy Adair, Cross Campus Assistant Principal, ECAs and Sports

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eturning to campus and to PE lessons, ECAs and competitive sports has never been so eagerly anticipated after many of our students had to go without these activities which bring them so much enjoyment and a boost to their health, fitness and overall well-being. Thanks to the prudent management in Thailand; by the combined efforts of the government and Thai people, we are in a privileged position to be resuming almost a full provision of activities within Thailand, with sensible restrictions in place to make it possible.

fun and physically active became our team focus. From introducing the Tatam Family Circus with skills from juggling, catching and throwing, wheels and sliding to Ms Zoe setting a great home golf course challenge, our Padlet videos were full of great examples of families opting in and getting involved. Giving regular feedback through these Padlet videos and photos enabled us to keep in touch with our students and there were some very memorable and funny additions during our time away from school. We were delighted to return to our in-school environment for the final two weeks of Term 3 and reconnect face to face World events such as the current pandemic often act as before the summer break. a circuit breaker and give us pause to reconsider our approach. With students safely tucked away at home our It has been a pleasure to start the new PE and coaching teams rose to the challenge of creating school year with full classes of eager interactive content students could engage with at home.

Patana students. In these early stages of Upon return to school we quickly realised it couldn’t simply the term, our focus has very much been be “business as usual”. Students needed time to reconnect on the well-being and reengagement with peers and teachers, have fun and a good belly laugh of our students into school life and the with friends (hard to do through a screen) and regain fitmany social interactions that take place ness and strength their small apartment or the confines of during PE and Sport. their back yard did not allow them to develop. Season 1 trials and Block 1 ECA sign-up saw record turn-out which We have been particularly pleased that our Curriculum shows there is an appetite to be involved and most impor- has been unaffected and that ECAs have begun with their tantly connect. normal enthusiastic Primary bang.”

PRIMARY PE Andrew Tatam, Primary PE Leader of Learning, offers his reflections on the school closure…

“In Primary Sport and PE, COVID-19 wiped out many of our opportunities for friendly competition within the city and region. From the whisperings of what was unfolding in China came the realisation that we were in for something much more sinister and long term with far reaching consequences for us all. From these dark beginnings, the green shoots of creativity on how to adapt and support our students from their hugely diverse circumstances began to emerge. With the timetable structure for Primary CSL, live lessons were not possible but setting activities that could be performed at home with minimal equipment and yet be 2

SECONDARY PE Oliver Blundell, Secondary Head of PE, offers his reflections and plans for the Term ahead…

“In the Secondary PE department, we have looked to provide students with an experience as close to normal as possible. The PE department reviewed our curriculum offering for Term 1 before the summer holidays; we used the lens of student well-being and safety. One of our decisions was to separate our Football units over three, 6 week blocks, to enlist the support of the Football Academy, who in turn have provided age-appropriate, student-centred, small group provision.”

“In Key Stage 3, we have been able to cover Tennis,

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Athletics, Gymnastics, Softball, Football and Volleyball in Term 1A, with the inclusion of additional cleaning protocols, supported by the Sports Office. This planned return has helped our students feel safe and comfortable in their PE lessons, supporting their overall well-being at school.

We have built-in additional time for hand sanitising and changing, without impacting learning. Students have been able to collaborate safely, demonstrating increased empathy and are creating new positive relationships in their PE groups, through sport. It has been encouraging to see the renewed vigour with which students are attending their PE lessons, perhaps three months of “PE with Joe Wicks” has increased their appreciation of our facilities, equipment and engaging lessons at Bangkok Patana School.”

miniaturised gymnastics apparatus, which students can enjoy in a cool and low AQI environment. The Bangkok International Schools Activity Conference (BISAC) will, from next month, embark upon a year-long project to reassess the placement of each sporting season with this new challenge in mind. Watch this space for their findings.

COVID-19 presented itself in March as a problem worldwide. In a sporting context, it has been the catalyst for an entire summer of cancellations. The NBA moved to Disneyworld to facilitate some kind of competitive end to the season. Sporting organisations have been forced to problem solve like never before. What has always been simple, we play fixtures wherever and whenever we like, has turned into tracing issues, silent stadiums and missing “In Key Stage 4 and Senior Studies, we have been able players in quarantine. to incorporate the Academy coaches during Term 1 to Out of it all, we are beginning to see some light. Light increase our options provided to students and decrease the group sizes. Students have benefitted directly by hav- in the form of virtual competition, training challenges and ing trampolining with Coaches Will and Wah, dance by cross sport interaction. The past six months must be a reCoach Vallary, tennis by Coaches Dan, Gift and Ball, foot- minder that sport is a privilege and we must keep this in ball by Coaches Mark, Justin and Brandon and Coaches mind as our gyms, fields and pools reopen for competiTim, Joe and Ake for basketball, badminton and table ten- tion. nis. It has been great to see the students benefitting from Across the world, we are beginning to see some really the expert coaches in their PE lessons.” interesting outcomes. Individual sports have, quite surprisingly seen some outstanding results this year. We have “However, the question remains, will seen multiple 60 minute run world records, multiple men Coach Tim remain unbeaten during Term jumping over 6 meters in the pole vault (a small group in 1in badminton and table tennis?” history have ever managed it) and the second best throw in javelin history by Johannes Vetter. In the pool, Olympic MOVING FORWARD IN THE AGE OF COVID COVID-19 will not be our only challenge. We know that hopefuls have already begun the season swimming best poor AQI has become a perennial issue in Bangkok and times. The Tour de France is proving to be one of the closest we are lucky to have proactively installed fresh air filters ever for the yellow jersey and Naomi Osaka regained the throughout the school in all key learning spaces, including US Open title alongside a new Mens’ champion, Dominic our sporting facilities ready for that period. Our students Thiem. Sport hasn’t skipped a beat, in fact it seems to have will be able to continue their fitness and health journeys thrived under the microscope. indoors should the need arise. Our Sports Hall, Dance As human beings, we have learnt to adapt and change.

Studios, Spinning Studio, Fitness Suite and our new Les We deal with changing situations on a daily basis and Mills Group Fitness Room and “Shark Tank” CrossFit gym find the best way to make it work for us. COVID-19 may are all part of this ambitious plan. We are very excited to be a here to stay, but as a community we need to adapt announce that by Christmas we will be opening our very to this new challenge and create more incredible sporting own “Little Gym” in the Foundation Stage complete with memories over the next 12 months.

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Measures to Alleviate Traffic

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raffic in Bangkok is notorious, add in the rainy season and road construction on Srinakarin for the new BTS, and it gets even worse. Bangkok Patana School has implemented several measures to alleviate traffic and is considering new ideas to reduce this issue even more.

As Bangkok Patana is not the only school in the neighbourhood, we have checked with other schools to make sure that they haven’t adjusted their opening times in the morning (they haven’t!) and have asked the police to clamp cars that park on the main road in front of the school.

Other more permanent measures include: • New car park on Soi 35 and 37 • Close the U-turn in front of the school during the morning rush hour • Reroute the drop off flow at the Sports Complex • Open Gate 3 so cars can flow better in the morning and afternoon • Allow parents to use the inner lane toward the Foundation Stage parking in the morning • Provide more parking spaces for Foundation Stage families.

Additionally, we are looking at new and innovative ideas to alleviate traffic congestion. These are still in consideration and we haven’t yet finalised any of them: • Hiring a traffic consultant to find the most effective changes • Alternative points to facilitate smooth drop off • Using the Sports Complex as a drop off point and adding turnstiles so this will be an entry into school. The school is looking into the possibility of adding escalators and extending the bridge so that children enter directly into school.

• A walkway from the new car park on soi 35 and 37 into school • Allowing vehicles to exit using the bridge to Bangna Trad from behind the Sports Hall.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP ALLEVIATE TRAFFIC? We can all do our part to help reduce traffic congestion. Consider school transport, the school shuttles run door to door. Car pool with other parents. Make sure your child is ready upon arrival to reduce waiting times. Use the new car park while waiting for your child and don’t park on the main road.

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Parents on Campus

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ince the start of this academic year parents have not been allowed into school except for specific circumstances as part of our COVID-19 health and safety plan.

As our students and staff are now well-established in their routes and used to COVID prevention protocols we will allow parents to enter school on a trial basis. We ask that you follow the same practices as our staff and students.

• Wear a mask at all times •

Wash your hands

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Watch your distance

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Keep left in corridors

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Only use stairs as indicated (up or down)

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Please refrain from gathering in social groups in school.

If you are coming into school to pick up your child, please do not crowd in front of entrances to the buildings.

During this trial phase, eating at the cafeteria is not available to parents as we need to keep our numbers down.

Please make sure your health and travel declaration data is always kept up to date as our students health and safety is paramount at all times.

Bangkok Patana School News

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First Tennis Friendly of the Season

Lilly-Anne Boucher, 10M

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he Tennis Academy recently had our first match of the new season against NIST and it was great to be back out on the court playing competitively.

Although the games were friendly, everyone gave it their best effort and played really well.

We are all really looking forward to the upcoming season, especially our doubles event this Friday!

Year 3 Student Wins in Rapid Chess Championships Year 3 student Leah Leung has taken home the trophy in the Girls Under 8 category at the 6th Thailand 2020 Rapid Chess Championship. Great job Leah!

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Year 9 Student in Thai Nationals Kart Race Win

Congratulations to Year 9 student Nandhavud (Jem) Bhirombhakdi for his first place win at the Thai Nationals Race, Round 2 in Nakhon Sawan recently. Jem continues to shine on the track, well done!

Bangkok Patana Students Take Part in Tri Dash

Jacqueline Baumann, Parent everal Bangkok Patana students joined a Kids Tri Dash event and did an amazing job! Jacob (Jaidee) Baumann, 6L came first in the category under 10 and Chaychan Baumann, 7C came in 5th in the Under 12 category. Tri Dashes are grass roots triathalons for those new to these events but also a great challenge for seasoned athletes to test their speed, and everyone – athletes and staff – are helpful and friendly, creating a great race atmosphere.

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CAT Corner Right to Read Planning Ahead

Amanda Yongvanich, Co-President Right To Read, 12G

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ight to Read is a student-led initiative that supports the gap and help children reach their maximum potential. education of underprivileged children in Bangkok Last year, we visited Wat Hua Thanon school and dothrough book donations and more. nated a collection of reading materials, engaging with the By helping with skills such as language acquisition and children via educational games. As the trip was a huge literacy, reading has the ability to shape a child’s future success, we hope to visit them again in the near future. and is strongly beneficial at a young age. What we hope Some other projects we are currently planning include to highlight is that children who are born into poverty or poverty workshops, book drives, and the annual Non-fichave chronic disabilities should not be disadvantaged in tion November Dress Up Day. accessing quality education; hence, we see our CAT Club as an opportunity to work towards lessening the inequality

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One 4 One Helping Students Achieve their Education Dreams Clara Boucher, President One 4 One, 13B

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e are One 4 One - a CAT club that raises funds to provide two students, Mol and Piyawat, the help they need to continue their secondary education. We aim to raise 80,000 baht per year through different events that take place throughout the year.

The first student we support, Mol, is an engaged student within her community at Pang Mapa Pitayasup School in Mae Hong Son Province, where she currently studies; she has participated in several activities throughout the past year.

Her most memorable moment was when she had the opportunity to meet Her Royal Highness, Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn at the handicraft fair in her role as the school representative.

The second student we support is Piyawat, who currently studies at Hang Dong Ratrat Upatham School in Chiang Mai Province. Throughout the past year Piyawat has engaged in a variety of activities. He is a member of the President Committee at his school, he attends the three year course for Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) led by Thai soldiers, and more. He is a talented young boy who takes every opportunity he has to participate in different activities.

Throughout this year, we want to teach people about the importance of being thankful for what we have. We are very lucky to attend one of the top schools in Southeast Asia. Moreover, while educating every member who joins One 4 One, we will aim to raise 80,000 baht to fund our two talented students. We plan to raise funds through different events and funding from various departments from Bangkok Patana.

The events include: • Leg Waxing: We will be selling strips of leg wax and items during the event. This is a fun and unique type of event.

• Book Sale: There will be numerous books which are aimed at several age groups so the highest amount of funds can be raised.

• Quiz: This will be a typical quiz where there will be an entry fee and an incentive to win. There will be teams and the quiz will consist of several different topics.

In the coming school year we will host many events to raise awareness and funds for access to education.

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Dancing En Pointe in the CSTD Ballet Competition Ponrapi Kasemsri Na Ayudhaya, 9D

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ecently I participated in the CSTD Thailand Dance Grand Prix at the Aksara Theater. The Commonwealth Society of Teachers of Dancing (Australia) (CSTD) is a ballet competition supported by the Australian Embassy. At this competition, I performed a classical ballet dance called the Lise Variation from the ballet La Fille mal Gardee. It was a very nerve-racking experience since I had recently turned 13 years old and was competing in the “13 - 15 Age Category”, against other kids much older than me. In preparation for this competition, I made sure I reviewed my notes with my teacher and practiced endlessly until it was my turn to dance.

Luckily my session was postponed for 45 minutes due to other people rehearsing on stage and I got to practice a lot. It was my first time dancing en pointe (in toe-shoes) on stage, let alone in competition, and I was extremely anxious. I had previously danced on soft shoes in other ballet competitions such as TGP and Asian Grand Prix. Finally when the announcer said “Number 507. La Fille Mal Gardee” I entered the stage and began my dance. It felt fantastic as I successfully finished my dance with a smile. Even though I was exhausted, I felt satisfied with my dance and watched the other contestants dance on the stage.

Unfortunately, I didn’t place in the top four; however, I was content with my performance. I believe I did my best. I learned a lot from the feedback from the judge, and will definitely use it to do better in my next competition.

Bangkok Patana Students Take Home Second in Youth Basketball A

s members of the Bangkok Rookies Youth Basketball team, five Bangkok Patana students did their part to help the team take home second place in the Government Savings Bank’s Youth Basketball Tournament 2020 recently. Armaan Indrees (Y9), Tokito Saeki (Y9), Reyce Gabriel De La Cruz (Y9), Bhagabhon Jivattanask (Y9) and Rylan Saran Gulkin (Y8) were all important parts of the key to success of their team. The Government Savings Bank’s Youth Basketball Tournament is one of the most important youth basketball tournaments in Thailand, gathering several strongest and most competitive teams from local schools and academies.

ceptionally well and helped drive their team to advance to the final championship game against Assumption College, one of the strongest teams in Thailand. Assumption College prevailed in the finals but they had to fight extremely hard to beat the Bangkok Rookies.

Armaan, Tokito, Reyce, Bhagabhon and Rylan demonstrated their strongest basketball skills and efforts with amazing determination and team spirit. They played ex10

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#158: Favourite Chrome Extensions Series - #2 Send Link Via Email T

his week’s Chrome extension is my all-time favourite time saver. With one click you can send a link to the page you are viewing to a colleague or friend. It opens the email client of your choice, copies the url into the body of the email, adds the title of the page to the subject line, and even adds a default sentence for you. All of this with just one click. Watch the short video of me explaining how useful it is below:

You can find this handy chrome extension called ‘Send Link Via Email’ here.

Happy time-saving-sharing.

Brian Taylor Assistant Principal, Campus Curriculum Technology Integration

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UNI COUNSELORS’ CORNER

In the Spotlight...

University of Dundee

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he University of Dundee was founded in 1881 and offers more than 100 courses at the undergraduate level including Sciences, Business, Arts and Humanities, Health and Law. Dundee’s main university campus is located in the west end of the city, within walking distance of the main city centre and the River Tay. Additional facilities are found at Ninewells Hospital, where the school of medicine is based as well as a research centre.

The university’s student union has previously been voted the best in Scotland and hosts a wide range of events and sports contests. Clubs and social clubs at the university cover a wide range of interests, from the political to the arts. There are more than 12,000 full time undergraduate students and around 22 per cent of its total student body are international. The University of Dundee is well-known for its care of newly arrived international students.

University Visits UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE

COUNTRY

LOCATION

DATE

University of Rochester

USA

22.09.2020 7.15am

Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences, Worcester Polytechnic Institute Yale-NUS, California State University Colby College, Manhattanville College Pace University, Ringling College of Art and Design Bowdoin College

USA

2nd Floor Senior Studies 2nd Floor Senior Studies

Manhattan College, The College for Creative Studies Knox College

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Singapore, USA USA USA USA USA USA

2nd Floor Senior Studies 2nd Floor Senior Studies 2nd Floor Senior Studies 2nd Floor Senior Studies 2nd Floor Senior Studies 2nd Floor Senior Studies

Bangkok Patana School News

TIME

22.09.2020 9.15am

22.09.2020 12.30pm 23.09.2020 7.15am 24.09.2020 7.15am 24.09.2020 12.30pm 25.09.2020 9.15am 28.09.2020 9.15am

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STUDENTS SPEAK Sleep Apnea

Natabhorn (Plume Plume) Kashemsri Na Ayudhaya, 12G

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hat happens when you stop breathing temporar- ple see this as an irritating habit, an annoyance, with very ily during sleep? little people concluding that underneath the snoring, there may be an underlying medical condition. With that being Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in said, not all snorers have sleep apnea and some can even which breathing repeatedly stops and starts involuntarily. have it without its most well-known symptom. In addition to It is a common condition, as common as type 2 diabe- the snores, other symptoms can include excessive daytime tes; however, there are still many people who have never sleepiness (hypersomnia), difficulty staying asleep (insomheard of it, and many don’t even know they temporarily nia), gasping for air during sleep and morning headaches. stop breathing in their sleep. It is estimated that 22 million However, the symptoms present depends on a variety of Americans suffer from sleep apnea, but 90% have no idea factors, including the severity of the condition. they have it. Because of this lack of awareness by the public, the majority of sleep apnea patients remain undiagThere are several types of sleep apnea, but the most nosed. This is a cause for concern, since when left untreat- common is obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This type oced, sleep apnea can cause a variety of health problems curs when the throat muscles relax intermittently and block in the long run, such as high blood pressure, heart disease the airway during sleep. During this period, breathing may and abnormal cholesterol levels. So why is this condition be inadequate, the oxygen level in the blood may drop somewhat under-recognised compared to many other and cause a buildup of carbon dioxide, lasting for ten common conditions? seconds or longer before the brain senses this impaired breathing and briefly rouses the person from sleep, reDr. Joseph Krainin, a sleep medicine specialist based opening the airway. The awakening is usually brief, so in the United States, believes that there are two main rea- many people end up not remembering it, and this pattern sons why many people live their lives without knowing that can repeat itself five to thirty times or more each hour, all they have sleep apnea. The first being that the number of night. These disruptions may decrease the ability to reach physicians trained in sleep medicine is still relatively small the desired, restful phases of sleep. For example, it may be and the second being that the public don’t realise how harder for sleep apnea patients to reach a period of deep serious sleep disorders can be. Frequent, loud snoring is sleep (Stage 3). Read the entire article on Scientia. one of the main indicators of sleep apnea – many peo-

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Keep Dreaming Praewa Taylor, 11B

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams” Eleanor Roosevelt

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reams are one of the behavioral mysteries of psychology and science. Many experts disagree on what dreams mean. Some believe they are random brain impulses whereas others believe that dreams are actually based on your current conscience. Nevertheless, psychoanalysts and interpreters have still published lists of ‘dream dictionaries’ that aim to identify the true meanings and symbols of common dreams that people experience.

In fact, in 1899, Sigmund Freud (an Australian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis) published ‘The interpretation of dreams’ which is specifically aimed at this identification of the hidden meanings within dreams. He concluded that dreams are a way for the unconscious mind to express itself and represent your desires. So I will tell you about some of the most common dreams and what they may mean.

People very commonly have dreams about falling from great heights; this might mean that you need to rethink a decision in an area of your life. Dreams about being chased often mean you are trying to avoid something in your day-to-day life. Dreaming about flying can represent two different concepts: feelings of freedom and independence or the desire to flee and escape the reality of your life. Finally, dreaming about losing your teeth could mean you are worried about your appearance or on the other hand, you may be embarrassed from something.

Researchers have not certainly concluded whether dreams do or do not symbolize your repressed desires or conscience but it is definitely interesting to wonder about them. So when you wake up from another dream, feel free to try and interpret it’s meaning.

Contact scientia@patana.ac.th Check out the latest articles online here

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he t m o r f est The lat

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Desert Island Discs With Charlie Golsby, Senior Delegate

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his column follows in the style of the famed BBC podcast which features a celebrity every week – here we feature our own Bangkok Patana celebrities! What eight songs, one luxury item and one book would you take with you if you were stuck on a desert island?

Today Charlie Golsby, Senior Delegate, is stuck on a desert island.

CHARLIE , IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND WHAT EIGHT PIECES OF MUSIC WOULD YOU WANT TO HAVE WITH YOU? Violin Concerto in D - P.I. Tchaikovsky Money - Pink Floyd Best Friend - Rex Orange County The Longest Time - Billy Joel Scenes from an Italian Restaurant - Billy Joel Chaconne - J.S. Bach Listen to Charlie’s playlist here

Can’t Take My Eyes Off You - Frankie Valli Unchained Melody - The Righteous Brothers

PICK ONE LUXURY ITEM YOU WOULD WANT TO HAVE WITH YOU. THIS ITEM MUST BE INANIMATE AND OF NO USE IN ESCAPING THE ISLAND OR ALLOWING COMMUNICATION FROM OUTSIDE. My violin WHICH ONE BOOK WOULD YOU WANT TO HAVE WITH YOU? The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde Catch the real Desert Island Discs on BBC. Now that you are stuck at home, what are you listening to? Have a list of your own? Let us know! Contact SHKN with your favourites.

Have you bookedmarked the calendar?

2020/21 CALENDAR

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COMMUNITY

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For daily updates, snapshots and news on life at school you can find us here...

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