Your guide to
Middle School The British International School Shanghai, Pudong
CONTENTS 5
Our story
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First, a little background
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Setting the scene
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The main plot line
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Character development
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Textbook heroes
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Thinking outside the book
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Happily ever after
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Find out more
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Want to hear our story?
Welcome to our guide to Middle School. This guide tells a story of the broad range of opportunities and experiences available to your child at the Pudong Campus of The British International School Shanghai. It will introduce you to some of our outstanding students, and highlight the ways in which we strive to give your child the best possible environment for learning and achieving. After reading this guide you will have a stronger understanding of the exciting learning journey your child will take in Middle School.
YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
FIRST, A LITTLE BACKGROUND Our curriculum and how we teach it
Students in Years 6, 7 and 8 form our Middle School. Each year group is divided into approximately five form groups; class sizes rarely go above 22 and are mostly much
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Average class size – 20 students
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Average teacher tenure – 5 years
Curriculum, with a strong international
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70% of our teachers are from the UK
influence to challenge and engage students to
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All degree-qualified teachers
contribute to society as global citizens.
smaller. We offer the English National
As your child progresses through Middle School, they will move towards a more independent study timetable reflecting their personal interests and abilities. However, the first year, Year 6, continues as class-based study with a class teacher and specialist teachers for Mandarin, Physical Education (PE), Music and Art. This is a familiar format for students transitioning from Junior School. From Year 7 onwards, students start to follow their own timetable, attending subject-based classes in different, purpose built locations. Our unique approach – High Performance Learning – means that your child is constantly challenged to achieve personal High Performance Targets in each area of their learning. High Performance Learning reaches beyond academics, into performance, sport and community participation and nurtures them to become diligent learners, excellent performers and inspiring leaders. At this stage of their development, it assists students to develop self-awareness of how they learn and the impetus for achieving. In addition, your child will benefit from access to the Nord Anglia Education Global Classroom, an online portal that gives our students an enviable opportunity to share ideas, compete in global debates, and collaborate with students from other Nord Anglia Education schools around the world with guidance from our worldwide team of highly qualified teachers.
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Moving towards a more independant study timetable, reflecting personal interests and abilities
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
SETTING THE SCENE Creating the best learning environment for your child
Janavi displays the values that our school aspires to teach. She is Respectful, Honest, Trustworthy, Kind and Committed. A dedicated learner who excels at English and Drama, her passion for learning goes beyond the classroom as a member of the Model UN and a Class Representative for her Year 7 tutor group, feeding ideas back to the Middle School Student Leadership Team. Janavi is a leader now and undoubtedly will be in the future. Children in Middle School are in the formative years of their lives; the stage when a child reaches adolescence and encounters physical and psychological development as they make their way towards maturity. Our Middle School is designed to give them the right environment for this important stage of their lives. In Middle School your child will have access to the highest standard of thoughtfully designed learning spaces both inside and outdoors. Our Middle School classrooms are airy, bright and engaging places to work. Our Year 6 classrooms all feed into a large central atrium which serves as an additional learning space, with computer pods and small group work spaces. As your child is building their independence as a learner, and forming important peer groups, the design of our Middle School incorporates spaces for private reflection and work, as well as ones suitable for group collaboration. While we encourage independence and initiative, all of the facilities that your child will use are carefully
designed to ensure their safety and are within easy reach of their form classrooms. Your child in Years 7 and 8 will, for the first time, encounter facilities like our Science laboratories for lessons and experiments in chemistry, biology and physics; and the Design Technology workshops equipped with cutting edge design tools and technology for 3D printing, robotics, 3D Computer Aided Design (CAD), laser cutting and textiles design. Light and spacious art studios provide the perfect environment for creativity, and students’ work is celebrated in displays along the visual arts corridor. As your child grows and matures, they will benefit from our excellent sporting facilities, including our full size multi-use sports field, indoor swimming pool and tennis courts. Performance is an important part of High Performance Learning, and our 400 seat Auditorium is an excellent venue for the annual Middle School production and other performance events.
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
THE MAIN PLOT LINE Developing learners
Our teachers combine high level academic expertise with excellent teaching skills and a real concern for the well-being of each and every student. Talents are nurtured and achievements are celebrated. Students enjoy co-curricular activities and start to influence the school community at this important stage of their education. In Middle School, students thrive on academic challenges and relish extra curricular opportunities whether on the sports field, in the concert hall, on stage, or during trips, visits and Service projects. We embrace the principle of enterprise education for Middle School students; an education which encourages young people to deal with uncertainty and respond positively to change, to create and implement new ideas and ways of doing things, and to take and manage risks. Within the framework of High Performance Learning, and encouraged and assisted by the opportunities available through our Global Classroom, your child will develop a ‘can-do’ attitude and the drive to make their ideas happen. Our goal is to raise their aspirations and improve their achievement in school whilst developing valuable skills for education and employment. Service is a fundamental element of our curriculum, and your child will be encouraged to participate in Service both within the school and the wider community. Service enables young people to learn about and feel valued by the communities to which they belong. Our paired reading activities with younger students, and visits to a local migrant school, are examples of Service activities our students undertake. In Middle School, they also begin their journey of global service, travelling to parts of rural China to assist with projects as diverse as teaching English, renovating homes affected by natural disasters, and conservation programmes.
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT Well-rounded learning, well-rounded students
We believe that every child needs and deserves effective guidance to feel at ease, grow in confidence and achieve their best. In Middle School, your child will benefit from our carefully considered Guidance teaching, a fundamental part of our school’s philosophy which enables the development of independent, confident and responsible young learners. Guidance classes encourage your child to adopt our core Values, Attributes and Attitudes (VAA), to nurture an enjoyment of learning in an atmosphere of mutual respect, and to celebrate achievement. While academic success is our first goal, we believe that in order for your child to achieve in the future as a member of the global community, they must also have the opportunity to participate in Co-Curricular (CCA) and Activities. Being confident on a stage or sports field, and within the community, both locally and globally, are important skills for future success and our CCAs allow your child to try new and different activities that develop them as individuals and members of the broader community. The annual Middle School production gives your child the opportunity to explore the range of performance roles, from stage lighting to acting, working towards one of the highlights of our school calendar.
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Guidance teaching is a fundamental part of our school’s philosophy, developing independent, confident and responsible young learners
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
TEXTBOOK HEROES Daily routine of subjects and activities
Watching the progress of the laser cutter as it precision cuts the acrylic for his latest project, the casing for his own personally designed computer, David is a picture of concentration. A genuine computer enthusiast, in Year 8 he has the opportunity to bring many of his ideas together in the Design Technology workshop, while learning new skills such as 2D Computer-Aided Design. David is building on his already strong problem solving skills. His persistent approach will equip him well in his future learning. Developing to become an independent learner is a fundamental goal for your child in Middle School. Daily routines, with individual timetabling of subjects and focus on self-initiated learning, are designed to allow your child to build self-awareness of their learning; knowing how they learn best and why, and leading to future success. In Middle School, all students take core subjects in English, Maths, Science, as well as Mandarin. We teach these subjects in ability groups, where students are in a class with others who have a similar ability in the subject, an approach that is proven to produce the best results for individual students. If required, your child will also receive extra assistance in English as an Additional Language (EAL). In the modern global context, a practical understanding of other languages is an invaluable tool for your child which will assist them to become a future leader. From Year 6, your child will study Mandarin plus one other Modern
Foreign Languages; choosing from French, German and Spanish. The Middle School curriculum gives your child a broad experience of subjects. They will study Geography, History, Business, Design Technology, Art, Drama, Music and Physical Education (PE). These subjects are taught in mixed ability groups, with students studying in their form group. This combination of grouped and mixed ability classes creates a balance that works well for most students, giving them the right opportunities to progress as fast as possible and allowing them to mix with more peers. Our teachers’ high expectations are matched by individual support for all students; and our Guidance programme builds important study skills assisting your child to develop the Advanced Cognitive Performance Characteristics (ACPC) such as applying knowledge and critical analysis, to extend their thinking skills and mature as learners.
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOOK Connecting with the world around us
As your child progresses through Middle School, they will be encouraged to explore and experience the world beyond the school gate. The range of activities and excursions
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Service programme
offered will allow them to grow both their
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Trips and excursions
understanding of the global community in which we live, and become confident and active members of it. We encourage your child to become aware of the challenges and issues affecting the global community and to actively work to make a difference. Our Service programme enables young people to learn about and feel valued by the communities to which they belong. This can be at a school level, locally in the community, and in destinations far afield. Through our Service programme, you child will build the skills to make a real difference near and far. Whether it is becoming a member of the school Environment Group, working with the children of migrant workers, or travelling to a remote destination in China to help paint classrooms in a local school, your child will experience many opportunities for active and meaningful engagement. All Middle School students also have the opportunity to attend curriculum-based trips and excursions that take them beyond the classroom and enhance the area being studied. These trips are carefully designed not only with learning objectives, but also to give your child a sense of their place in the wider society and the impact they can have.
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
HAPPILY EVER AFTER Success stories
Our aim in Middle School is to encourage your child not only to be a high achiever, but also to build their self-awareness of how they got to be a high achiever, and instil in them the motivation to remain so. Celebrating your child’s achievements, and those of others, plays an important part in building this awareness. We believe that by recognising their achievements, your child will be encouraged to continue to strive to do better, and will be a role model for others. There are many ways in which we do this in Middle School. On an individual basis, your child has High Performance targets in each of their subjects, and achieving them is recognised by teachers on an ongoing basis. Held each term, our special Awards Assembly recognises the efforts of students in each class who have strived to embrace our five school values. These awards are given to one boy and girl from each class who are Respectful, Honest, Trustworthy, Kind and Committed. Your child will be placed in one of four houses. Throughout the year they are able to earn points individually but which are allocated to their House, building a sense of teamwork and community within the school. House points may be earned for achievements and participation in school activities and competitions such as the House Shout, Recycling Competition and Book Drive. Awarding student leadership roles, such as Head Boy and Head Girl, Service Leaders and Sports Ambassadors are also a way in which we celebrate and encourage outstanding achievement.
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YOUR GUIDE TO MIDDLE SCHOOL
FIND OUT MORE
The best way to find out about what we can offer you and your child is by visiting us and experiencing for yourself our welcoming school environment. The Pudong Campus of The British International School Shanghai is open to visitors year-round, and our friendly admissions team is always on hand to answer your questions. To book a visit or ask a question: +86 21 5812 7455 admissions@bisspudong.com Skype
Read more about our school and keep up to date with news and events online at: bisspudong.com weblog.bisspudong.com facebook.com/BISSPudong twitter.com/BISSPudong 600 Cambridge Forest New Town, 2729 Hunan Road, Pudong 201315
Lost? Look online at the interactive Google maps on our website to find out our location.
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