Insight Autumn 2014

Insight  

Autumn 2014

Inside: An Internationally British Welcome Supporting families in transition BSN Governance Looking back and moving forward Computational Thinking ICT curriculum now includes coding – across the BSN Sports News including 5-times ISST winning hockey team

Internationally British

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Contents Publisher The British School in The Netherlands

Letter from the Principal 5 An Internationally British Welcome 6

Editor-in-chief Tracy Tigchelaar

A look at how The BSN welcomes and supports our families

Co-Editors Sallie Taylor and Ginny Mees

BSN Governance: The Board of Governors 8

Editorial and research Sallie Taylor Uhuru Tyrie-Socha Ginny Mees

A glimpse into the role of The Board of Governors

News Coordinator Uhuru Tyrie-Socha Advertising Pauline de Zwart Telephone: 070 315 40 79 Email: advertising@britishschool.nl

Computational Thinking: the code for success 11 An overview of recent changes in the ICT curriculum and how they have been incorporated across the BSN

Careers 14 Support for Sixth Formers tackling the university application process

Bursary Fund 16

Design and layout Craig Stevens www.craig-stevens.co.uk Distribution Pauline De Zwart If you would like to receive additional copies of the magazine, please send an e-mail to BSNInsight@britishschool.nl Printed by Kapsenberg van Waesberge bv Schuttevaerweg 160 3044 BB Rotterdam

Supporting Students in Need

Being Social 18 How the BSN uses Social Media

Family Association News 20 News from The Chair and a review of the past year’s successes

Alumni News 22 News of former students and dates for your diary

The Arts 25 BSN Insight is a termly publication from The Marketing Department The British School in The Netherlands Vrouw Avenweg 640, 2493 WZ Den Haag Telephone: 070 315 40 76 www.britishschool.nl All rights are reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced, or used in any form, without prior written permission from the Publisher.

Every effort has been made to ensure that information in this publication was correct at the time of publication, the publisher and writers cannot accept any liability for the accuracy of the information included.

The BSN takes no responsibility for the quality of goods or services advertised in this publication.

A collection of our students’ cultural activities this term

Experience 27 A snapshot of some of the many experiences our students have enjoyed

Trips and Visits 32 A round up of the latest trips and visits enjoyed by our students

Sport 34 A summary of sporting action this term, including the continued success of the BSN Girls Hockey Team

The Blue Pages 40 A directory of services and suppliers useful to the BSN community

Spring 2015 issue Advertising deadline: Monday 9 February 2015 Email: advertising@britishschool.nl

Cover photograph by Andy Catterall: Anne Laycock and Claire Blacker – members of the BSN’s recordbreaking Hockey Team and the only girls in ISST history to have won four gold ISST medals in a row.

Autumn 2014 | 3

Under 5’s Open Morning Helping you select your child’s first school

Wednesday 22 January 09:30 Register online

www.britishschool.nl

Internationally British

Zein & BSN celebrating

10 LOCATIONS IN THE HAGUE

10 years of progressive partnership

Setting the standard for outstanding international childcare Day Care 3 months to

4 years

It really is a home away from home, where children can enjoy a wonderful and fun-filled curriculum, especially created for international children. transition into full international This enables the seamless education or into another care centre, should your day career take you abroad.

Individual care is our aim, so the way you take care of your little one at home is the basis for their care with us.

Playgroups 2 to 4 years

This is the ideal option if you do not need full time care for your child but want your child to socialize with other children.

Your little one will learn in a playful way and slowly get used to a class setting which eases the transition into school.

Zein has provided international childcare to BSN families for over 10 years. As a trusted partner to the BSN, Zein’s services ranges from day care, playgroups, after school care to holiday camps.

Dutch language group

available (only at The

Estate).

Available soon.

NEW: Premium child care for international (min ded) families The Estate

THE FORMER REN SWOUDEHUIS IN THE BENOORD ENHOUT AREA

Within the safe and engaging environment of the British School and at The Estate – our brand new, spacious and environmentally friendly childcare centre in Benoordenhout – Zein provide outstanding day care for children from 3 months to 4 years old. We arrange pickups from the British Schools in Mariahoeve to The Estate for our after school care service for older children. Zein also offer a range of exciting, activity packed holiday camps, for 4 to 12 year olds, during the school holidays.

After-school Care 4 to

12 years

After a long day at school children need to unwind.

First we provide a small, healthy and fresh meal to recharge batteries and then help the with getting the homework done.

Then it’s time to do what children do best – have fun!

Whether it’s climbing the treehouse, playing tennis or football, jumping on the trampoline, discovering the natural playground or working on an arts and crafts project, it’s all available for your child!

Pick up from the British

Schools in Mariahoeve,

Information and help

other schools on request.

Holiday Camps 4 to 12

years

During the holidays your child can enjoy an amazing programme full of fun activities. Theatre and music are very popular, as are our survival lessons. Or they can just free play in our very spacious natural playground with multiple zones. Plus, several times play a week we go on field trips in our British double decker bus! Snowboarding, surfing lessons, or for the smaller ones, the butterfly garden or Museon.

THE ESTATE

Children from all international and Dutch schools can Holiday Camps. join us during

OPEN JU DAY:

NE from 13:00 21 till 15 Registe :00 r for en inf

with childcare

allowance Zein is a registered and fully licensed childcare provider. Our administration be happy to provide details company DebiCare would and free help with your application for working parents childcare allowance.

o@zei try via nch by 17t ildcare.n l h Jun e

To reserve a place or for more information contact Zein at info@zeinc or 070-3268263. Open hildcare.nl day is Address: Jozef Israëalsplein on June 21st from 13:00 till 15:00.

36, 2596 AV, The Hague. www.zeinchildcare.nl

• Day care • Playgrou

OPENED JUNE 2014

ps • After school care

• Holiday camps

To arrange a visit or to request a copy of The Estate brochure please contact Zein at www.zeinchildcare.nl call + 31 (0) 70 326 82 63 or email info@zeinchildcare.nl 9082-125.5x175-BSN-Advert.indd 1

4 | Insight

20/06/2014 09:34

Letter from the Principal

Dear Parents

Once again it is a pleasure to write the introduction to The BSN Insight Magazine – as ever, there is so much that has happened in the school since the previous edition and even more will have happened between the editing of this magazine and the date you receive it.

All the seasonal drama and musical performances that traditionally occur at the end of the autumn term will no doubt have thrilled their audiences. You will see other arts activities reported here, as well as sporting triumphs for our student teams. In fact, there are a record number of senior school students participating in representational sport, including basketball, hockey, rugby, football, swimming, and gymnastics, as well as many junior school students joining the various sports activities that are on offer for them.

In this edition of the magazine you can also read about how we welcome new families and students to the BSN, about the introduction of coding into the computing curriculum, about the work of the Bursary Fund, our use of social media as a means of communication, and about support for sixth formers in their career choices and their university application process.

You will also read about The Board of Governors and notice that our Chair, Peter Bayliff, reaches a milestone of twenty years as Chairman this year.

Peter’s wise leadership of the Board is one reason for the continuing success of the school, and the school owes him a huge debt for the time and expertise he has offered us, on a completely voluntary basis, over so many years.

Time races on – as you no doubt notice as your children grow and develop so quickly. So I hope that during the coming holiday period you can slow down slightly and simply enjoy the company of family and friends.

My best wishes to you for a relaxing winter break.

Principal | Dr Martin Coles The British School in The Netherlands

Autumn 2014 | 5

An

Internationally British welcome

Moving to a new country can be an incredibly exciting time for a family: the discovery of a new city and environment, and looking forward to meeting new people and making new friends. However, the upheaval and disruption that comes hand in hand with such a move also has the potential to become a period of apprehension and anxiety.

The BSN recognises just how highly families value the importance of their children quickly settling into a new school, and the overall impact this has on moving country. The school has a well-established support structure in place to assist new families and students to successfully transition into their new environment.

The support is available through a variety of official and informal sources, such as the Family Association and its many subsidiary teams, the numerous Welcome Events arranged directly by the school, or in many cases the students themselves helping their new peers to find their feet.

The BSN is constantly looking into new ways of making the transition process as smooth as possible. For example, this summer, the admissions team introduced

An Internationally British welcome

a welcome e-newsletter for all new families starting in September – enabling parents to access all the important information they need to know via their smartphone, tablet, or laptop, ahead of their child starting school.

New BSN parent Helen Graham shared her experience: “We found the communication from the school to be easy to access during a chaotic time for our family. We were moving our two children – Olivia into Senior School and Matthew into Junior School – and settling into a new home. The fact I could pull up the information on my smartphone at any time was really helpful.”

Family Association The Family Association has now become an integral part of the BSN and its community. Comprised of both staff and parents, it oversees the activities of a range of subsidiary volunteer teams. Each team has a different focus, but all work towards the same goal of ensuring families feel welcome, valued, and at home in their new community.

The BSN Welcome Team makes contact with all new families before they start at the school, as team leader Dawn Black explains: “emails are sent out to new families before they’re due to start, just so they know we’re here. There is a team on each BSN campus to make sure all parents have someone they can turn to for guidance and support. This initial contact is then followed up with regular Coffee Mornings at each school, so newcomers get the chance to mix and meet other parents.”

Dawn’s Welcome Team have also recently established a series of Community Facebook Groups, which have proven to be an immediate success. “Social media has worked extremely well, as it provides an open forum for questions to be asked, allowing the whole Facebook group to contribute and chip in with their views and support.”

Ute Limacher-Riebold leads the BSN Sessions Team, who facilitate and organise presentations on an array of topics, as she describes: “We organise and deliver sessions on anything from the Dutch Healthcare system, Bilingualism, or tips on using an OV Chipkaart.”

Parent feedback is always highly valued: “We regularly

survey our parents so we can tailor our programme towards the needs of our community and continue to offer sessions that help them to feel at home as quickly as possible”.

Supporting international families As an International School, the BSN recognises the added difficulties of relocating to a country where the family’s mother tongue is not spoken. The International Team works under the umbrella of the Family Association, and one of its key roles is to link new parents – by their nationality or language – with other similar BSN families. Most non-English speaking families receive a welcome letter, in their native language, from their representative on the International Team before they start, and are also invited to international coffee mornings where they can meet other parents and socialise, whilst speaking in their mother tongue.

This type of support is mirrored by the students through the International Ambassadors programme.

As part of this initiative, longer standing students and children are assigned to welcome their new peers who either speak the same language or are from the same country. Amongst other things, they introduce them to fellow students, seek them out at playtime, or help them to translate words, so they can communicate with new friends.

These are just a few examples and initiatives through which the BSN tries to make sure every one of its students and families feel supported and welcome as they settle into their new lives here in the Netherlands.

Autumn 2014 | 7

BSN Governance: A glimpse into the role of The Board of Governors The management and governance of schools varies as much as schools themselves.

The roles of Head, Principal, Managers and Governors may not always be clear. In this article, we focus on the Board of Governors, and their role in the governance of our school.

The structure of governance The BSN is run on a day to day basis by the Board of Management, who in turn answers to the school’s Board of Governors. The Board of Governors is then overseen by the BSN Association. The BSN operates as an independent school – it is a non-profit organisation entirely dependent on fee income. Unlike many other international schools, the BSN receives no subsidy from either the Dutch or British Governments.

A role for all The Board of Governors has eight members, six of whom are appointed by the general meeting of the BSN Association. The remaining two are appointed by

Ian Bedwell, Governor with strategic responsibility for Senior School, takes a look around the new building with Ybella Hofstede – Operations Manager.

8 | Insight

the Chair of the Association, His Excellency The British Ambassador – one of these is the Governor responsible for Parental Interests, a position that parents can apply for every two years.

Each Governor has a specific responsibility for an area of the business and a particular school site.

The Governors meet regularly during the term, but each individual member also visits their particular campus each term to spend time in the school. These visits focus on a particular aspect of the school, such as grounds and facilities, social developments, or perhaps a curricular subject. These visits provide invaluable information and insight, fostering a greater understanding of school issues when matters are discussed at the regular Board of Governors meetings. Governors with a responsibility for oversight of a particular business area (such as Marketing, Finance, HR or IT) meet with the respective managers to keep up to date with latest issues and developments.

View from the Chair Peter Bayliff OBE has served as Chairman of the BSN Board of Governors since 1994. Here he shares some insights into the work of the board: As Chairman for the past twenty years, you have no doubt seen many changes at The BSN, and in education in general. What significant changes have you observed at the school during this time?

“I have indeed (over)seen some substantial changes over the years. As a non-subsidised, fee paying school, one of the biggest challenges the Board of Governors has to face is to balance the books in the face of changing student numbers.

Increasing demand led to the opening of Diamanthorst and, subsequently, Leidschenveen: “As part of this growth, over recent years we have experienced a significant increase in students from countries other than the UK. To address this shift the BSN introduced the IB Diploma. This increased cultural diversity has, I believe, further enriched the school in many different ways.”

Are there any examples of issues/projects currently being addressed by the Board of Governors that you can share with us?

“Yes, there are two – one short term and one long term.

The short term is the appointment of a new Principal to replace Martin Coles on his retirement. This is in process as I write, and from the candidates we have seen it is clear that the School has an outstanding reputation throughout the British and International educational community. A tribute to Martin’s leadership of the School.

BSN Governance

Members of the Board of Governors Mr Peter Bayliff OBE Strategic Responsibility Chairman + Educational Attainment School Liaison: Overall

Ms Stephanie Boyde Strategic Responsibility Human Resources School Liaison: Overall

Mr Yalcin Canatan Strategic Responsibility Finance, Real Estate and Environment School Liaison: Overall

Mr Thierry Guisan Strategic Responsibility Parental Interests School Liaison: JSL

Mr Alan Campbell Strategic Responsibility Government and External Relations School Liaison: JSD

Mr Kevin Douglas Strategic Responsibility ICT + Health, Safety and Security, Co-curricular activities School Liaison: JSV

Mr Ian Bedwell Strategic Responsibility Marketing and Public Relations + Health, Safety and Security School Liaison: SSV

Ms Alison Smith Strategic Responsibility Early Years and Child Protection School Liaison: BSN Language Centre

“The long term project also has an impact on the type of person we are looking for to be our next Principal. We are all aware of how much the world has changed over recent years, reflecting the impact of technology and globalisation. One can only guess what the future may hold. The world will not stand still, and change gives rise to many opportunities and challenges.

The challenge we have set ourselves is to identify what we, as a School, do, preserve, and change in educating and preparing our students for the modern world. In other words, what knowledge, skills and values should a 3 year old entering the school in September 2015 have when he/she leaves in 2030?”

What would you say is the most enjoyable aspect of being a Governor?

“The most enjoyable part by far is the people part – working with positive minded inspiring people who have a “can do” attitude. This is vital in a people-centric organisation such as a school. I am fortunate to lead a Board who give of their time and expertise and work as a team. We do not vote, but work towards consensus. The same goes for the leadership team, from the Principal to the Heads of School and Business Units, who are all inspiring professionals. It makes my job as Chair of Governors that much easier and satisfying. The ultimate joy is when I see the results of all their efforts in our students: be it in the results, performances (on the stage or field), or their faces in school”.

We thank Peter Bayliff OBE for his time, energy and service in his role as Chairman for the Board of Governors. In the Spring 2015 issue we will review the role of the Board of Management in the BSN governance structure.

Twenty Years in The Chair Peter Bayliff, OBE This year will see Peter Bayliff, the Chairman of the Board of Governors, mark his twentieth year in this role.

The BSN is fortunate to have had Peter’s support over this time, which has proved invaluable.

“We are privileged to have someone as committed and supportive as Peter heading up the governance of the school. We hope that the school can continue to draw on his expertise and enthusiasm for many more years as the BSN continues to improve and develop.”

Martin Coles, Principal

1997 Opening of Junior School Vlaskamp: (from L–R) Michael Cooper – Principal, Peter Bayliff OBE – Board of Governors Chair, Dame Rosemary Spencer The British Ambassador and and HRH Prince Willem Alexander of The Netherlands.

Autumn 2014 | 9

Computational the Code thinking for Success ●●●●●●

“Computational thinking is a skill that empowers, and one that all pupils should be aware of and develop competence in. Pupils who can think computationally are better able to conceptualise, understand and use computerbased technology, and thus are better prepared for today’s world and the future.”

NAACE (National Association of Advisors for Computers in Education)

10 | Insight

Recently, technology leaders such as Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg have been urging schools to rethink their approach and to teach programming in school. Code.org, a non-profit foundation that fosters computer science education in schools, points to a shortage of programmers around the world, and notes that currently only 1 in 10 pre-university schools in the western world actually teach students to code.

As the UK moves to tackle this problem head on, significant changes have been made to the National Curriculum in relation to technology in education. In the past, ICT was a common academic term used to describe technological learning which has primarily meant the practice of general computer skills like word processing. Now, however, through ‘Study for Computing’ – the new curriculum approach in the UK – there is a focus on introducing coding, programming and other technological skills to both junior and senior aged students.

A joined up approach In the BSN junior schools, the Learning Technology Managers (LTMs) – Liz Jones (JSV), Rachel Iles (JSL) and Craig McNeil (JSD) – have been working hard

Computational thinking to implement these new learning strategies with all junior age groups. Liz Jones explains: “As a result of the implementation of a consistent framework for ICT last year, the change to Computing at the BSN at junior school level has had a natural progression. The previous framework has been adjusted to incorporate some additional modules this year that will enable us to complete the process of introducing computing and coding across the year”.

The LTMs have common goals for each Key Stage, and they meet weekly to ensure that by Year 7 all the students will have the same basic skill sets. Examples of coding in action can be seen throughout the junior schools as this new approach is introduced: “In Year 1 we have introduced the concept of algorithms. At this stage, we describe algorithms as a list of instructions. The children use the BeeBot robots to program a set of directions. Not only does this introduce basic programming skills, it’s a great way of reinforcing directional language!”

Craig McNeil, JSD “In Year 4 we have kicked off coding with a bang this term. The children are learning to code with Logo and an online site which brings this long standing coding tool bang up to date. It can be used to create simple and complex line drawings with the use of straightforward directional language, distance measurement, and angles.

It also compliments the students’ work in mathematics”.

Liz Jones, JSV

“In Year 5 students learn how to program in JavaScript through a Khan Academy online course: ‘Introduction JS: Drawing and Animation’ which caused big excitement when trialled last year. Students learn new vocabulary, e.g. debug [fix and improve], parameters [x,y,w,h], parentheses and how to write program functions to ‘make things happen’ on screen. Khan Academy offers a range of creative programming challenges that appeal to all ability levels.”

Rachel Iles, JSL

iPad Update After a trial process with small sets of iPads/ iPods, the first deployment of Junior School 1:1 iPads was completed for Year 6 in Spring 2013 – this October there were more than 195 iPads handed to new Year 6 students.

An additional 300 iPads and 230 iPad minis were rolled out this term as classroom sets to Foundation 1 through Year 5, so Junior teaching staff will be able to access a set of devices within each age phase to give more flexibility within the classroom.

The BSN’s Learning Technology team is now more than rising to the challenge of staying abreast of the ever-changing landscape of technology to ensure the best application of this tool for the BSN Junior School students’ education.

The future of iPads at BSN will continue to focus on further development of the added value in education through curriculum enhancements and on measuring the success of their use.

Trends for parents to consider remain the same since tablets came into play: kids love the iPads, and tend to use them more than they should. Parents should make sure their children don’t forget to go and play outside with friends, because as much fun as an iPad may be, social contact and physical exercise are just as important as any games or homework one may do on his/her iPad.

Computational Thinking for Teenagers continues on the next page

Autumn 2014 | 11

Engaging teenagers The significant changes seen in the UK curriculum are also being mirrored in the Senior School. Computing as a subject is firmly back in the educational lexicon and courses and schemes of work are already being adapted to make them more “computational”. The Senior School’s new Computer Science Teacher, Calum Gordon gives an insight into some of the initiatives currently underway: “This term Year 8 students have been getting under the hood of web design, whilst learning the basics of HTML tags and CSS style sheets, and Year 9 have been learning some of the mysteries of JavaScript. Two excellent online resources being used are Code Academy and Khan Academy. Meanwhile Year 7 have been earning themselves a Computing “passport” by learning a host of essential 21st Century online skills. All Key Stage 3 students took part in the EU code week initiative in October using Code Studio at Code.org and in December we will be taking part in Computer Science Education Week which aims to get all students to have a go at an ‘Hour of Code’.

Calum Gordon, SSV Key Stage 4 students taking Computer Technology enrichments options have similarly either been jamming with JavaScript or perfecting their Python. In the Sixth Form the new IBDP Computer Science course option has started and the hope is it will strengthen in numbers next year. It’s an attractive option with its emphasis on practical skills, computational thinking and interesting optional topics. There are also plans to introduce GCSE Computer Science into Year 10 which will provide a clear

12 | Insight

progression pathway for those BSN students intent on following the Computing track.

Another Computing area we hope to extend this year is use of the Raspberry Pi device in the classroom.

These marvellous little micro-machines have a host of possible applications without the “black box” effect, allowing students to get hands-on with some real Computing concepts. These are exciting and fast-moving times in the digital landscape and we aim to ensure that students at the BSN will not be left behind”.

It is sometimes difficult for adults, to imagine the future opportunities that the rapid advances in technology will bring children as they grow up. As the late Steve Jobs once said; “everyone should learn how to program a computer, because it teaches you how to think.” The need for skilled programmers and software engineers has never been higher. Unleashing curiosity, stimulating creativity and developing courage through the world of computing and technology will allow BSN pupils to excel as they move on through education and into adult life.

The three aspects of the new Computing Curriculum ● Computer Science (CS) ● Information Technology (IT) ● Digital Literacy (DL)

Careering Ahead

Careering Ahead Even before making their A Level and IB subject Young people entering today’s choices, the Careers Department works closely with workforce are faced with a students to help them make informed choices and maintain a breadth of subject interests going forward. very different prospect than ‘Futurewise’ psychometric testing helps students identify which subjects are most compatible with their that faced by their parents interests and strengths. “It is not unusual for students to struggle to make finite decisions about a future career at this stage,” explains Dawn Street, Head of some years ago. Today’s school Careers, “it is our job to try to guide them to choose leavers must possess an array subjects which are consistent with their aspirations, whilst encouraging as broad a range of study as of skills, a flexible approach and possible to equip them for changes in the employment market and more importantly, their own personal goals.”

There is also a real emphasis on ensuring considerable initiative to help students understand the importance of enhancing their them get on. This seemingly ‘marketability’ beyond school and encouraging them to develop a broad-based academic and personal CV. complex path is made infinitely more manageable for our Sixth It’s a small world …

During this important year, Year 12 students and Formers, through the range of their families are invited to meet the Head of Careers to support and advice available to talk about post-18 preferences. This helps the students to focus on a coherent list of courses to explore, from which they are able to make final, informed choices. them from the key BSN staff.

In addition to this, students intending to apply to nonUK universities are identified and supported through meeting a range of international deadlines – this

Keeping their options open

Head of Careers, Dawn Street helping Year 13 student, Asmita Haque with her university application.

Autumn 2014 | 13

includes students taking SAT examinations for entry to US institutions.

Students in the Sixth Form adjust quickly to a different way of working with teachers and key staff. There is an emphasis on self-motivation and responsibility as students look at CV building and lifeskills required beyond school and work with others.

During Activities Week in the summer, Sixth Form staff work with students who are encouraged to re-evaluate and consolidate their personal portfolios and achievements, as well as to address some of the more emotional issues related to university life. By the end of this week, students are expected to achieve three key outcomes: a draft Personal Statement, a list of 10 universities and courses which interest them, and a CV.

approaching the end of their school days. All will have invested huge amounts of energy into looking at their options for the future. The majority will have visited prospective colleges and universities in Year 12 to draw up a ‘short-list’. Those looking at UK universities will have completed their University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) application forms. These applications are supported by subject teacher references, an overall school reference and the vital student’s ‘Personal Statement’ – written by each student to back up their suitability for their chosen course and direction.

Hitting the ground running This term is when all the hard work comes together for our Year 13 students, who are rapidly

Practice makes perfect

What is a Personal Statement?

A personal statement is a student’s opportunity to stand out from other applicants and show universities and colleges just why they are the perfect fit for them.

“The strongest applicants are those who can link their extra-curricular activities to their proposed course of study.” (Assistant Registrar, University of Warwick).

So it is well worth keeping track of any courses, qualifications, academic or sporting achievements earned throughout a students time at Senior School.

What is in a school reference?

A school reference is comprised of two parts.

The first is a paragraph written about the student by their subject teachers which focusses on their enthusiasm and aptitude for each of their subjects. The second, is a paragraph, written by their tutor, on their co-curricular activities which includes a more personal insight into the student’s character. School references are a positive reflection of the student and form an important part of the university application process.

14 | Insight

Invited applicants for Oxford or Cambridge (often referred to as Oxbridge) along with those applying for Medicine, Veterinary Science and Dentistry in the UK also undergo personal interviews at their chosen universities. To support this, students are given a number of ‘mock’ interviews with two subject specialists, external experts from Futurewise and Imperial College, London, and either Senior School’s Headteacher Peter Simpson or Dr Martin Coles, BSN Principal. These ambitious students are put through their paces and gain valuable insight into what they may expect from their interviews which take place, usually in December and January.

International aspirations – or staying close to ‘home’ Students planning early applications to US institutions are also given support and guidance through the process – the general deadline for the submission of US applications is January and these students are dealt with on a very individual basis. This year, we are introducing an external SAT preparation course to help the increasing number of our students applying to US universities.

With more and more BSN students opting for universities in The Netherlands, the Careers Department is well versed in supporting these

Careering Ahead applications. The close relationships we have cultivated with Dutch universities has resulted in them spending time in school, talking to interested students – often during lunchtimes and after school. A number of Dutch institutions have been integral to our Year 13 Lecture Programme – designed to help students learn more about subjects in which they have an interest.

The Careers Department works to support students, wherever in the world they may be heading – last year for example we supported a student in his successful application to study Medicine in Greece, which, alongside applications to universities in France, Switzerland, Germany, Poland, Canada and the USA is not unusual. This year the BSN is also supporting applications by students wishing to study in Japan and Australia.

Bringing in the experts This term saw over 60 universities and colleges attend the BSN’s Universities Fair “it was the biggest yet, with representatives from more UK universities than ever before.” Dawn Street explains: “We were particularly pleased to have the Student Recruitment Officer from Oxford University attend and give students a greater understanding of what to expect.

The increased support for the fair from Dutch and other European universities was also highly prized.”

Next term, in February, the Careers Department will host a Careers Evening, intended for students in Years 10-13 to find out first-hand what is involved with a specific area of interest. During the summer term, the Alumni Association and the Careers Department will work together to hold a Careers Networking Dinner where former BSN students – now with established careers – will join Sixth Formers for a dinner and offer their expertise and advice and give these students a chance to ‘pick their brains’ on key areas of interest.

Results Day In July and August, when the IB and A Level results are published, the Sixth Form team – including the Careers Department – is on hand to offer advice

to students who may have been unsuccessful in achieving the required grades for their first choice of university with a view towards helping them obtain offers from alternative institutions.

Careers Education Timeline Careers Education and Guidance is delivered at appropriate stages of a student’s progress through the Senior School, as Dawn Street, Head of Careers explains: “At each stage, students are encouraged to consider their future by recognising and reflecting on their own aptitudes and abilities – this helps them to develop an awareness of the multitude of options open to them beyond the school gates.”

Autumn Term: ● Year 9: Careers session in Lifeskills pre Options ● Year 11: Futurewise Psychometric Testing/Sixth Form Options/Exploring Careers in LifeSkills ● Year 13: UCAS and international applications/ Mock interviews for Medics & Oxbridge ● Years 11-13: University Fair

Spring Term: ● Year 9: GCSE Choices/Chocoloate Box Business Challenge ● Year 10-12: Careers evening ● Year 11 and 12: External SAT Course (subject to demand) ● Year 12: 8 week course of university preparation in LifeSkills/UK CAT Medical Training ● Year 13: International Applications

Summer Term: ● Year 8: ‘Take Your Child To Work Day’ including preparation ● Year 10: Entrepreneur Day ● Year 12: internal post-18 options interviews/ Activities Week

Autumn 2014 | 15

BURSARY FUND SUPPORTING STUDENTS IN NEED External exam periods represent How it all began It was back in the 1990’s that a group of BSN some of the most important parents recognised the importance of this issue and years of a student’s life. Things conceived the idea of raising funds to offer short-term financial support to families who found themselves in aren’t always as kind as we these distressing and difficult situations. Over the years, this support has developed into the BSN Bursary Fund as we know it today – an official registered Stichting would like however, and, when (Charity) which is operated completely independently these years coincide with a set from the school. of unexpected circumstances, What it’s all about the emotional impact can The Bursary Fund is managed by a Committee which comprises the Chairman, the Secretary and be hugely detrimental. A life Treasurer, and a further group of members, primarily made changing event such as the up of staff, parents, and students. Those who join the Committee do so on a completely voluntary basis.

Students are only normally considered eligible passing of a parent, or the main for funding if there’s been a significant and unexpected salary earner losing their job – change to their parent(s) income resulting in the inability to pay school fees from any other source whilst they’re studying for their exams in years 11, 12 or 13. impacts not only the family as The bursaries are awarded in the strictest confidence a whole, but also the potential and the funds given will cover or contribute towards the school fees. Ultimately, the intention is to support future of the student during this the student to avoid switching schools at this highly important period in their lives.

As is standard practice for all charity organisations, crucial period -. impartiality and fairness is fundamental to the process of

Long serving supporters of the BSN Bursary Fund: Anne Kerkvliet, Kathy Moore and Marelize van der Merwe

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Bursary Fund

Family Fun at The Bursary Fund Fireworks Evening. (photo credit: Dawn S. Black)

selecting beneficiaries, so each application is reviewed on a case-by-case basis by a completely independent body who apply strict guidelines. As Simon Weinberg, Chair of the Bursary Fund Committee, explains: “All Bursary applications are reviewed by an independent and anonymous Vetting Committee which has nothing in common with the Bursary Committee raising funds for the charity. When you think that the Bursary Committee’s Fundraising activities raises less than one student’s school fees per year, you will realise that it is absolutely essential that our fundraising efforts continue and all the help we can get is gratefully received”.

Raising the funds The Committee meets between six and eight times a year to plan its fundraising events. The most established and largest events are the Car Boot Sale and Fireworks Night – which has become one of the key social events in the school calendar.

These two flagship events are supplemented by a series of other fundraising activities in which the Bursary Fund gets involved. Simon Weinberg explains further “for example, in the past we have been kindly invited to sell drinks at the Family Association Winter and Summer Fairs which brings in additional funds. We’re pleased to say that students also come to us with ideas for fund raising during the year, such as non-uniform days or the BSN Talent Show held last year. We very much welcome new ideas and suggestions and would love to organise a parents’ ball if we could generate a critical mass of volunteers to help. We are always on the lookout for more helpers to join the committee.”

The Fireworks Night, which took place earlier this half term, was once again a huge success and raised almost 13,000 Euros. After expenses, such as paying

for the massive fireworks display, it means we raised around 8,000 Euros for the fund. The Executive Committee would like to express their sincerest thanks to the BSN Community for supporting both this event and for their continued commitment towards helping students through their time of difficulty.

For further information about the Bursary Fund including enquiries about joining the Executive Committee and contributing towards its fundraising objectives, please contact the Chairman simon.weinberg@gmail.com.

The next main event for the Bursary Fund will be a Car Boot Sale next year. Simon Weinberg comments: “We may be planning something a bit different for the Car Boot Sale next year, which we hope will bring in even more people, since we make most of our money at this event from the people coming through the door. Oh, and lookout for next year’s Fireworks Evening, which will be a Halloween Fireworks night – Simon Weinberg, complete with themed Chair of the Bursary décor, music, a disco and Fund Committee fancy dress!”

The Bursary Fund is currently supporting two BSN students through their examination years, and, at the time of writing, further bursary applications are being reviewed.

If you’re considering submitting an application to the Bursary Fund, please email bursary.enquiries@britishschool.nl; all communications are treated with complete confidentiality.

Autumn 2014 | 17

Being social!

Less than ten years ago, the key communication channel for BSN parents was the monthly magazine ‘The BSN News’, and the school’s first website which, although progressive for its time, was little more than a series of dry information pages. Since then not only has technology changed, but the way we communicate with one another, has altered irrevocably.

Our use of handheld devices, be it a smart phone or tablet, has brought an immediacy to our desire to ‘connect’ and resulted in the explosion of Social Media.

The meteoric rise of social media around the world, and especially in Europe, has meant it has now become a vital part of the way the BSN communicates with current and prospective parents, students and staff.

Being connected to what is going on in the BSN community has never been easier, and here we aim to explain the role played by a number of Social Media channels and how we use them.

Facebook The BSN Facebook Page – The British School in The Netherlands (Official) – is where we share quick updates and photos from events, competitions and tournaments across the school – we do not use students names in full and neither do we post detailed destination information in advance of school trips or expeditions. This is a great way to keep up to date with events and activities at the different BSN sites. This term has also seen the BSN Alumni Association launch its own Facebook Page. This new page has already proven to be a great success with many former students reconnecting with each other and the school.

For current BSN families, the Family Association runs a series of closed Facebook Community Groups for parents at each BSN school. These community pages can be a lifeline for anyone looking for help and advice for how to get on in The Hague area – frequently asked questions include recommendations for local dentists, hairdressers or mechanics all the way through to translation issues and advice of any kind. The recent introduction of the BSN Business Pages on Facebook gives enterprising members of the BSN community with a forum to plug their products or services to a receptive audience.

Twitter Around the world, Twitter is rapidly becoming the place to turn to find out more about breaking news and is used by world leaders and politicians – even the Pope has a Twitter feed – so, not to be outdone, the BSN has introduced Twitter feeds for each school.

These are used particularly by the Junior Schools during schools trips, special events or tournaments taking place away from school. There are also a couple of more targeted Twitter feeds that have been established with a focussed remit. For example, a cross school Music Feed was launched at the start of the year

18 | Insight

Being Social

School in The Netherlands: where we post career opportunities and other business-related updates.

You can sign up to “follow” the page which will provide updates as they are posted.

The BSN Alumni Association also has a (closed) LinkedIn Group called: The British School in the Netherlands Alumni. This is the perfect place for BSN past students to network. For more information about the Alumni Association, see page 22.

to keep BSN musicians and their families up to date with all things musical.

New Twitter feeds have also been launched this term by the Year 7 Digital Leaders – these are monitored by two Year 13 IB students working towards their Community Action Service (CAS) element of their Programme. The new feeds aim to keep followers up to date with life in Year 7.

BSN Twitter feeds: @BSN_Netherlands | @BSN_Senior | @BSN_JSD @BSN_JSV | @BSN_JSL | @SSVSafeTweeting @BritSchoolMus | @BSN_Sport

FlickR Flickr is an image hosting website where we post high resolution images in larger numbers. We often provide a ‘link’ to photos on this site when we write a news article about a particular event. Whilst we may post photos on other social media channels, Flickr allows us to share the full sized originals with parents.

Not into Social Media?

Not a problem!

If keeping up with all these new media channels seems a little daunting – or maybe you don’t have a Facebook page – remember you can still stay on top of things via our ‘Social Mashup Page’ – a link to which can be found on the home page of the BSN website.

Here we gather all the updates from Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, the FickR stream and of course the news articles from BSN. We also post more school news on Gateway – and in many cases the BSN website. Here we sing the praise of our students and attribute their successes in full, providing more detail and – in the case og Gateway – we include students names.

This year has also seen the rise of blogging in the BSN community – did you know that Peter Simpson, Senior School Headteacher has a Blog on Gateway, or that the PE Department regularly blogs about the latest sports news and results. The Media Crew – a group of students interested in reporting News from around school also have a blog where much of their work is housed. Look on Gateway under the ‘What’s On’ tab and follow the links.

YouTube You Tube is the biggest video-sharing site in the world. The BSN has had its own ‘YouTube Channel’ for some years – if you take a look you will be able to view videos going back over that time. From full promotional videos to online Christmas Cards or clips of performances, this channel is used by the BSN to house all videos produced for or about the school.

LinkedIn LinkedIn – with more than 200 million members worldwide – is a social-networking site for professionals and a great tool for graduates and business professionals looking to connect with one another. The BSN has a business page: The British

Autumn 2014 | 19

News from

The Family Family Association Chairman, Anne Nielsen de Bérard writes: Recently a member of the BSN community told me a story of how, while she was waiting in the queue to step onto the bus, a BSN young student simply stepped aside and let her pass first. A small gesture that cost nothing, but looking at the smile she had on her face while re-telling the story, it reminded me how ‘manners’ play a key role in our daily life. When we smile, ask in a polite way, and show respect for one another, we make life so much nicer.

In the Family Association, working with only volunteers, we value such gestures greatly. Most of you know that your own contribution to the Summer Fair, Winter Fair, and so on, goes back into helping students’ projects, or allows a school to buy a high cost item. We are fortunate to receive thanks for this in many different ways, but when we receive a hand written letter of thanks from students, as we did from the Project Nepal team this summer, it always makes us smile. How lovely to be on the receiving end of such a polite and nice way to say thank you, especially in this era of emails, messaging and texts.

The FA and the BSN community: At the start of the new school year, the BSN Family Association looks back to see what has been achieved over the past twelve months.

The Family Association would like to thank all families who attended the wide range of events that were organised during the course of last year. The profits

Summer Fair

20 | Insight

Year 13 Leavers Ball

Recently I read an article which suggested that people are more stressed today because of a lack of manners, rather than their own work. Manners say a lot, and perhaps it is old fashioned to take a few extra minutes in response rather than an instant “Yes” or “No”, but it is a sign of respect to take the time to acknowledge a person and the work they are doing.

So, let me take the time here to give a heartfelt thanks to all the FA members, and others who support us in different ways, for the fantastic and enthusiastic work they carry out for the BSN community. We are very lucky to work in an environment where everyone is actually very polite and smiley…

As we head in to the end of the year festivities, let me wish you, with a warm smile, a beautiful winter break and all the best for 2015.

Anne Nielsen de Bérard

raised at these events is ultimately filtered back into the BSN Community – be it through the purchase of a particular item or, increasingly, through supporting the charitable and developmental initiatives undertaken by BSN students.

In all cases, where money is provided to support student initiatives (such as Team Kenya or Project Nepal), the students offer their own time and energy to act as volunteers at Family Association events – often running activities and stands to ‘earn’ the money they raise.

Project Nepal

News from the Family Association

Association Funding Overview Last school year a total of €10,800 was distributed by the Family Association to the following : ● Team Kenya ● Project Nepal ● Bursary Fund ● Friendship swing at JSD ● Year 13 Farewell Ball ● CAS students charity Heart of Pillows ● Pancreas Cancer Research, Philippine Relief Efforts, and various campus materials and small charity projects led by students.

All applications for donations and contributions are reviewed and distributed at the discretion of the Family Association.

The term started with a talk on ‘‘Bilingualism at home‘ by Eowyn Crisfield, from Crisfield Educational Consulting. Eowyn shared valuable knowledge of the latest theories on bilingualism, as well as hands on advice about how to support our childrens’ bilingualism at home.

Afterall, children do not “magically” become bilingual.

The second talk on, “The Dutch Healthcare System,” was held by a range of specialists from the Bronovo Hospital whose insight helped guide parents to the excellent care that can be obtained once we know how to navigate the system. During the third talk, Caitríona Rush illuminated some of the most common challenges that Internationals face when moving to, or living in, The Netherlands. They also shared seven tips on how to “survive and be happy in the Netherlands.” As we go to print, the last two talks of the Autumn Term “Dealing with Difficult Behaviour” and “Third Culture Kids: Internationally Living Children” will take place.

Whilst the planning for the Spring Term Sessions is in full swing, the team welcomes input from all sectors of the BSN community and is happy to entertain any ideas for future events. If you have any suggestions for further talks contact Ute Limacher-Riebold using ute.limacher@gmail.com.

Talking Sense The Autumn Term was a busy time for the Family Association’s Sessions Team, as they organised a total of five talks on topics relating to parenting issues and factors influencing the lives of Internationals in the BSN Community.

Diary dates JAN FRI

30 MAR SAT

7

MAR FRI

13 MAY SAT

2

Sessions Talk: Supporting Bilingualism at home 09:30–11:00 | SSV TBC Quiz Night (run by Kenya team) 19:30–22:30 | JSD Second Hand Uniform Sale & Bring and Buy Sale 9:30–13:00 | JSV TBC International Family Event 16:00–20:00 | SSV

Full details of all these Family Association Events will be posted on BSN Gateway

Autumn 2014 | 21

Stay Connected – alumni@britishschool.nl The BSN Alumni Association has been developing several new initiatives, and is now busy implementing these new ideas and planning events for 2015.

NEWS Upcoming BSN Alumni Reunions JUN SAT

27

2015

The Netherlands Senior School, Voorschoten, followed by dinner in The Hague.

OCT SAT

24

2015

USA An exciting new reunion planned state side!

Celebrate with other BSN’ers in New York City.

Stay tuned for more information – and a chance to win a return flight ticket courtesy of Iceland Air!

Networking and Connecting Embracing today’s era of social media, the Alumni Association introduced its own Official Facebook Page – complete with a timeline which has been populated with photos from the BSN archive, taken as far back as 1932. After only two weeks, the Facebook page had over 500 likes! Why not have a peek and see what’s going on?

With this move comes a newly-styled Alumni e–Newsletter, which will now be sent via email at least once a term. The first edition for 2014 – 2015 was sent in the middle of November to more than 1,300 former students and staff around the world. In addition, the Association has also taken over an existing LinkedIn Group. This professional networking group allows for our alumni to reconnect, in addition to providing our recent graduates with the ability to connect and network with past alumni for potential career opportunities, guidance and advice.

Supporting our Sixth Formers We recognise that a good Alumni Association is about more than just reunions and networking – it should also provide an opportunity for alumni to feed something back into the school in a way that will benefit existing students. With this in mind, this June

22 | Insight

will see the introduction of the BSN Careers Network Dinner scheduled for 26 June 2015. This is intended to provide an opportunity for our current Year 12 students to meet and engage with experienced BSN Alumni who are experts in their chosen field of work. By providing a different viewpoint and an additional source of information to students – at a pivotal point in their school life – we hope they will be even better equipped to make informed decisions on their university choices and future career paths.

This photo received the most comments on the BSN Alumni page on Facebook: photo of Ernest Platt setting the record in the High Jump.

alumni association news

A BSN Hat trick The Italian and Dominican parents of Roberto, Jose, and Fabio Chiaschi moved to The Netherlands in the 80s for an international assignment. The boys are true products of the BSN, having spent their entire junior and senior education at the school.

The eldest son, Roberto, joined the Junior School in Year 1. While attending the BSN, he found a passion for football and developed a keen interest in playing the guitar. Some of his best memories include the ISST trips, receiving the Football Player of the Year Award in 2007, and performing at school concerts such as Care2Rock. After graduation in 2007, Roberto studied Politics and Economics at the University of Bath and completed a Master’s degree at Imperial College London. His most memorable sports achievement was playing against the England National Futsal team during his time at Team Bath. With an interest in finance and after a successful internship, he is now working at Bloomberg in London. He is reminded of the BSN every day, as he currently lives with two BSN alumni that he has known since his time at the Junior School!

The next Ciaschi to arrive at the school was Jose, who began in Reception. Jose developed his multi-lingual skills at an early age, speaking Italian and Spanish at home, English and French at school, and Dutch with his S.V. Wassenaar teammates. He received the Modern Languages Award at a prize giving ceremony while at Senior School. Jose attended the University of the West of England in Bristol to study International Business. He currently resides in Barcelona while studying for a Master’s degree, and working for the Barcelona Council.

Fabio also joined in Reception. At Senior School he developed a strong interest in psychology, languages, and swimming. His time spent working parttime in a restaurant helped determine what he wanted to study after graduating this past summer, and he is now studying Business Administration in Hospitality Management at the Hotelschool in The Hague.

The boys’ mother, Yudy (Yudelka Ciaschi), volunteers in the Senior School library. Looking back on her children’s education, she is convinced that “the BSN was fundamental in providing our boys not only with key academic skills, but also a multicultural understanding and sense of community that remains today.”

BSN RFC ‘old boys’ play for Gloucester Congratulations to Maliq Holden and Fergus Taylor – both former BSN students – who earlier this term represented Gloucester U18. The boys joined team-mates and headed to Welford Road, home of the Leicester Tigers for the first fixture in the U18 Premiership Rugby (Northern Conference) calendar.

Although Tigers eventually won the match 17-15, it was a strong Gloucester side and lightening-footed Maliq scored a cracking try.

BSN STRINGS Hartmut Ometzberger, now a leading Austrian violinist, left the BSN in 1994. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and has since played some of the great concert halls of Europe and the USA. In the past year he has been touring as part of a unique duo; The Diva and the Fiddler, with the American soprano, Diana Jacklin.

Autumn 2014 | 23

Get healthy Stay healthy

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the international Anglican Church in the Leiden area

every Sunday

Church Service

10.30 am BSN Senior School Voorschoten Contact: Ruan Crew (chaplain) chaplain@stjames.nl 071-5613020

Steven Douglas Ex BSN student

Call us on 06 1240 5641 for a FREE CONSULTATION and POSTURE SCREEN for you and your family www.chiropractie-voorschoten.nl

We hope to see you!

Andreas Kappers Hairdressers and Beauty specialists

Combines a trendy

and welcoming atmosphere with the latest cutting and colouring techniques.

On our beautifully decorated topfloor we also offer beautician and pedicure treatments.

We speak English Telephone: 071-5610873 Email: informatie@andreaskappers.nl www.andreaskappers.nl

24 | Insight

Tim Carroll (youth minister) youthminister@stjames.nl 06-46697651

www.stjames.nl

BSN News: The Arts

The Arts This section highlights some of the arts related activities that have taken place this term, showcasing the breadth of artistic talent across the BSN.

Instrumental Extravaganza

Some of our most talented aspiring musicians from all three junior schools gathered at JSL earlier this term to form a BSN Supergroup for this year’s Instrumental Day. The children were also joined by six Senior School musicians who provided the music teachers with some extra support, valuable advice and tips for the younger instrumentalists.

Most of the young musicians had never previously met, let alone played together, and with less than two hours to rehearse, they firstly subdivided into band sections to learn their individual parts. There was then just enough time for the band to regroup and practice together, before putting on a fantastic performance of the Carpenters classic ‘Top of the World’, in front of their fellow peers and staff.

Trumpet Masterclass Earlier this term the Key Stage 2 children at JSV were treated to a special assembly which had a very musical theme. Gary Kavanagh, who teaches brass instruments at the BSN, accompanied by guitar player Dan Nicholas, visited the children to deliver a mini masterclass on playing the trumpet, as well as an introduction into just how enjoyable learning a musical instrument can be.

During their presentation, Gary and Dan explained about the different roles each instrument has within a band structure, whilst debating what was more cool, playing the trumpet or the guitar!

Some of the children were also given the chance to try out Gary’s trumpet and many successfully managed to generate a sound, which is no mean feat for someone who’s never previously tried!

Choir performs at EPO

Children from JSL’s Show Choir rehearsing for the EPO performance.

This term the BSN choir was invited to the offices of the European Patent Office (EPO) to put on a special performance of seasonal songs. Many of our parents are EPO employees and on 11 December a combined choir of JSL and Senior School students entertained the staff in the office foyer during their lunch hour with a delightful performance. This was the first occasion our students have been invited to perform at EPO and it was the ideal way for everyone to get into the seasonal spirit.

Look out for the Media Crew logo on News articles written by students. Read more on the Media Crew Blog on Gateway.

Autumn 2014 | 25

Romeo & Juliet at the BSN This was the third time The Lord Chamberlain’s Men (TLCM) have visited the BSN and during this visit, the company put on two performances of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet for students in Years 7, 8 and 9. The whole of Year 9 were also involved in workshops exploring the story of the play, improvisation, and stage combat. Our Drama exam students from Years 10–13 were also involved in workshops geared towards their level of study and were joined by students from the British School of Brussels.

A final, public performance of Romeo & Juliet took place that evening, with students and lots of parents, staff and members of the public enjoying picnics and being treated to a fantastic production which marked the 10th anniversary of TLCM.

Measure for Measure – the Musical!

Have you have ever felt like you were stuck between a rock and a hard place? Perhaps you’ve felt torn between helping out a loved one yet compromising your own values? If so – you’ll have had no problem understanding what Shakespeare had to say in this term’s Senior School production of Measure for Measure.

Known as one of his ‘problem plays’, this extraordinary musical production, set in San Francisco in the 1970’s, was underpinned by disco classics and performed by talented students. This version of Measure for Measure really stood Shakespeare on his head!

The cast and crew of approximately 70 students worked hard all term to get to grips with a complex script, fabulous tunes and some extraordinary dance moves. Directed by Ron Elliott, who comments: “I am so proud of the commitment shown by all the cast and crew.

They have all worked hard and deservedly brought the house down each night!”

The actors are half the story – behind the stage were a team of volunteers who created the psychedelic costumes and worked their magic with make-up and hair.

The unsung heroes of the technical crew really brought the production to life.

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Music for all at JSD Learning a musical instrument has long been proven to show a huge variety of benefits for developing cognitive and behavioural skills, as well as the development of dexterity and fine-motor skills.

In practice, the programme involves introducing ‘learning the violin’ to the curriculum in Y2, which then becomes optional from Y3 upwards. The cycle continues with next year’s Y2 children also introduced to the violin, with the longer term intention that the programme will be later rolled out at JSL and JSV. JSD Music Teacher and Music Programme Coordinator for the Junior Schools, Jo Kilpatrick, will be managing. The scheme began in the first half of this term and has been rolled out to the whole of Year 2 in the hope that these children will carry on playing into the future. “I am very excited about the programme and look forward to developing it further over the next few years.”

BSN News: The Arts and Experience

Experience This section highlights some of the fantastic learning and enrichment experiences our students and children are involved in during their time at the BSN.

Magical Maths The children of JSL have been polishing up on their arithmetic this term and enjoyed a fantastic week of marvellous Magical Maths activities, with the help and support of independent Maths advisor, the Busy Ms Lizzie Jones and the ‘magic man’ himself, Maths Magician Andrew Jeffery.

The children expanded their numeracy development through a series of interesting and fun sessions, and the boys and girls were also provided with their own specially designed ‘Maths is Magic’ t-shirt to remind them of their fabulous week.

Students participate in Youth Peace Initiative

This Term ten BSN Senior School students were invited to take part in The Youth Peace Initiative at the Peace Palace in The Hague. The Initiative was established by a group of Israeli and Palestinian young people who wanted to become involved in the peace negotiations between their nations.

Students from twelve other schools also took part in sessions to develop ideas for a permanent peace between Israel and the Palestinian Territories.

Students worked with representatives from around the world, including Korea, Northern Ireland and Cyprus, who helped them develop their ideas into realistic goals.

The students also met former Dutch Minister, Jan Pronk, who, since his retirement from politics, is a member of the Governing Council of Interpeace, an international peacebuilding organisation.

Asmita Hacque Y13

JSL help design a library Children from JSL Y5 have this term been involved in a challenging project, to support Elena Marengoni who is working on a Master’s degree in Service Design at TU Delft and the Poytechnic of Milan. Elena’s project is about designing children’s libraries and she was interested in hearing the children’s suggestions and thoughts to help her in the next stage of her work.

The children worked together and in pairs came up with some great ideas. Elena was very impressed with their level of engagement, and at the end of the day she presented the children with a copy of one of her favourite books: ‘Nicholas on Holiday’ by Goscinny and Sempe.

Scouts Head for Japan In August 2015, four scouts – three of them BSN students – from the 1st The Hague scout group, will travel to Kirara-hama, Yamaguchi City, Japan to participate in the World scout jamboree. The Jamboree brings scouts together from all over the world, to promote a worldwide spirit of unity and peace, and is an amazing opportunity for these young people.

The scouts have worked hard fundraising the required amount to attend the Jamboree. Scouts living in more affluent countries have a higher target to raise which goes directly towards subsidising scouts from less wealthy countries who would not normally be able to attend such events.

The fund-raising activities have included selling bacon butties at BSN rugby training sessions and the BSN fairs, painting fences, holding cheese and wine parties, babysitting, selling para-cord bracelets, hosting murder mystery dinner parties, dog walking, a sponsored bike ride, and a Christmas Gala Ball – keep an eye on Facebook and Gateway for details of their fundraising total.

The British Ambassador opens Language Village The BSN celebrated the European Day of Languages on 26 September with the annual BSN Language Village at Senior School. This was the 8th year the Language Village had been organised at the BSN and was officially opened this year by British Ambassador to the Netherlands, His Excellency Sir Geoffrey Adams, KCMG. Also in attendance was the Language Officer of the European Commission Representation in The Netherlands, Mr Hugo Keizer.

A huge thank you to all the volunteers and international representatives for all their hard work and efforts in organising (yet again) such a fantastic and successful event.

World Food Day On Thursday 16 October – World Food Day – students and staff brought an amazing amount of food into the Senior School. The front of the Atrium was covered in bags of food. The cargo will not be transported as far away as another continent, but will be taken to Voorschoten Voedselbank (Food Bank on Zwaluwweg) which supports local families in need.

Thank you to all the students, parents and staff who donated food and loose change to the Food Bank. this week, the Voedselbank are extremely grateful.

28 | Insight

BSN News: Experience

Young Entrepreneurs

The trip of a lifetime on the Book Bus JSL Y1 Teacher Emma Loader this Summer realised one of her dreams by taking on a volunteering opportunity with The Book Bus charity (www.bookbus.org) in Zambia. Emma was funded through the BSN ‘wellbeing fund’ and her work involved working with children from pre-schools, orphanages or government schools to improve their levels of literacy.

Emma spent two weeks on the Book Bus and described the experience as “the most life changing thing I have ever done.”

As part of their Personal, Social and Health Education curriculum, Year 11 students spent the day working on a project to develop a business model for a music shop opening in the Hague – after several hours of design, strategy and planning, the students pitched their business ideas to a panel of esteemed judges. The Wheel were the outright winners with their unique blend of a music and instrument shop with bar combined!

The Estate Opens its Doors to BSN Children Immediately after the half term break, for the very first time, children from JSD and JSV started to make use of the wonderful new facilities at The Zein Estate – International Childcare Centre, which is conveniently located close to both schools, as well as the centre of the Hague.

After being collected by the special Zein vintage London double decker bus, the children get to relax and unwind and even practice some yoga in this cosy, safe and comfortable environment after a hard day’s work at school.

Wonderful Writing This term children at JSL participated in an array of interesting and fun activities designed to support and develop their writing and literacy skills.

Education consultant Phil Davies, and professional storyteller the Journey Man, spent the entire week working with the children to help inspire and open their minds to a range of new innovative methods for writing creatively.

Whilst working with Phil Davies, the children used their emotions from music and sound to improvise, construct and form the structure of a poem or song.

Meanwhile, the Journey Man told the children a series of captivating tales which encouraged the boys and girls to create and write stories of their own.

Autumn 2014 | 29

The Appliance of Science…

Technology, Engineering and Maths There was a special atmosphere at Junior School Diamanthorst this term, as the children have learnt all about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths), with an entire week dedicated to these subjects.

The week kicked off with a bang with a special STEM assembly hosted by Mr Pilling. The whole school watched eagerly as they learnt how dragons breathe fire and how light bulb moments can happen when you think a little differently. They then made their own STEM wishes with the STEM genie and found out what ingredients they needed to make their STEM dreams come true.

After returning to their classrooms the children were soon captivated by all the fantastic Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths activities that the staff had organised. Some of the highlights included Foundation 2 making shape sculptures with JSDs new 3D printer, Year 3 learnt all about teeth and dental hygiene, Year 2 learnt how to use iPads to create 3D models and there were many surprise science activities held in the playground during lunchtimes.

The STEM fun continued throughout the week as the Foundation 1 children created 3D printing shapes, Year 3 used a 3D modelling app to design buildings, whilst Year 6 investigated relative densities of liquids.

Bursary Fund Fireworks Spectacular!

Students were invited to take photos of the display and enter a photography competition on the night. Many congratulations to JSD Y5 student Nils Martenson who’s fantastic picture (see above) was deservedly judged as the winning photo.

On an unusually balmy November evening, parents and kids flocked to the Senior School for the annual Bursary Fund fireworks display.

Many of the younger visitors had their faces painted by artistic students and enjoyed an array of fun and games in the sports hall – supervised by student volunteers. In the Atrium, children were entertained by a clown who handed out neon balloons and everyone there enjoyed a choice of cupcakes, onion sausages, pizzas and more.

The highlight of the night were the fireworks. The display wowed spectators with the dazzling lights and this, again, marked another successful event hosted by the BSN Bursary Fund, which raise funds from the sale of entrance tickets, food and beverages.

Also on hand to help were many student volunteers and staff – which was much appreciated and of course – many thanks to parents and kids for making 8 November a night to remember!

Jia Wei Luk Y13

Fundraising Friday On Friday 14 November, children, students and staff participated in a variety of activities across each of our four schools, all in support of a number of very worthy and charitable causes. JSD and the Senior School both raised funds for BBC Children in Need, which provides grants for projects that support disadvantaged children and young people across the UK. Meanwhile JSV raised money in support of the Senior School’s Team Africa, whilst JSL collected for Edukans, a Dutch charity whose goal is to ensure quality education is available for underprivileged children in developing countries all over the world.

These are just some of the many fantastic fundraising events which take place across the

30 | Insight

BSN throughout the year and on just this day alone the school collectively raised more than €3,000, a tremendous effort. A huge well done and thank you to everyone for their contributions.

BSN News: Experience

MUNISH From 31 October to 2 November the International School of the Hague may have seemed like any ordinary school from the outside, however inside there was much more going on as students from all over the world had flown to the Netherlands to participate in MUNISH 2014. They represented delegates from every Nationality to discuss global issues and come up with elaborate and inventive resolutions to solve the matters at hand.

Teamwork was key as delegates came together to merge their ideas and create resolutions to the issues being discussed. The level of debate was immensely high as delegates took the floor and spoke convincingly and maturely. The issues at hand were serious and often complex matters such as ‘Increasing transparency in the trade of armaments to and within regions of conflict’ in GA1 and ‘Mitigating the growing income gap and its resulting effects on the standard of living’ in ECOSOC. For the first time ever in the history of MUNISH, a group of delegates, including two BSN students, put forward a treaty which was signed by more than 50 delegates. This was the talk of the conference and delegates from all committees were surprised by the action taken.

Overall MUNISH 2014 was extremely successful and all the presidents and vice presidents ended the conference satisfied with the effective resolutions passed and fruitful debate that had taken place. Thanks to all the delegates who, with a passion for global issues and current affairs, participated in this highly prestigious conference.

Anna Scolamiero Y12

JSV Parent Workshops JSV have this term been offering parents the opportunity to join a series of workshops which have been delivered at the very start of the week, first thing on a Monday morning. The workshops cover a range of topics such as guided reading, phonics, as well as assessments, and provide an open forum for parents to discuss these subjects with the teachers as well as share their experiences with each other.

Developments in the JSV Library There have been some interesting developments and a real buzz in the JSV Library this term. The introduction of First News, a newspaper especially written for children, with an emphasis on quality news writing, has caused a real stir and with weekly copies being published the news is always current. The Year 6 children have also been using the paper for examples of journalistic writing so they’ve become a really useful resource!

Another curriculum link has been the pop up display books which Year 4 children have been using to look for ideas for their own DT mechanism designs: some may be a little challenging though!

JSV have also introduced a “What I want to read next’ record book this term, so children can plan their reading: an important skill in children’s reading development.

The library received a donation of Mother Tongue texts from the Stichting Biblionef Nederland and to make these easier to access on the shelves, they now have a flag on the spine, which also helps teachers trying to find unfamiliar tongues!

The FS 1 children have now got their own special Library space in the Woodlands room, where they can go and borrow books in small groups and learn how a Library works. It is a calm, quiet space (apart from the occasional beep from the scanner!), one which can also be used by other year groups for Guided Reading.

The Library is open for parents and children after school on Mondays and Tuesdays, and for KS 1 and FS families, there is a Family ticket that can be used to borrow extra books. It is also open for children to change books, read newspapers and research at snack and lunchtime, when the library is staffed by Year 6 Library Helpers.

A new weekly library Newsletter is sent out to the children highlighting recommendations, book reviews, theme of the week, comments from staff and children and other book related news.

Autumn 2014 | 31

Trips and Visits During the Autumn Term many of our Senior School students visit a variety of interesting locations to support and enrich their studies – here are some of the highlights.

Year 7 Set Sail for De Kaag

Hola España!

As part of the ‘settling in’ period for our new Year 7 students, they enjoy a two day outward bound experience at De Kaag – specifically designed for them to get to know each other and develop teamworking skills. The students took part in a team building boat trip and other watery, nautical persuits and were well and truly bonded by the end of it!

As half term approached, a group of GCSE and A Level Spanish students flew to Valencia in Spain and basked in a week of phenomenal weather – peaking at 37 degrees during the week!

The trip began with the ‘Albuferas’ where students enjoyed a boat ride around the rice fields – a crucial ingredient in Valencian paella. Another thing Valencia is famous for is its statue competition in March and we were given the opportunity to view the winning sculptures in the ‘Museo Fallero’.

Getting around on public transport and on foot gave us the opportunity to interact with local people who were extremely friendly and helped us improve our Spanish language skills. Long days and lots of walking meant that we relished our evening meals and enjoyed a variety of Spanish food.

Biologists Collaborate in Spain The Biology trip in October saw 24 A2 and IB students and 4 staff travel to an unseasonably cold Gredos, Spain to complete the Ecology work from the syllabi. The students also collected data for their A2 coursework and for Internal investigations for the IB. During the trip, as well as working hard, the students saw male ibex fighting for territory, became experts in how to spot toxic mushrooms and enjoyed a dinner in the local Parador.

As this was my fourth year on the Spanish trip, I was particularly excited to learn more about bull fighting, something Spain is (in)famous for – and a lot different to what I’d expected. My favourite memory was visiting San José’s caves by boat – the atmosphere and experience were incredible.

Even visiting Valencia’s football stadium – something I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as other activities – was very enjoyable thanks to the positivity and great bond created throughout the trip between student of ages 14 to 17 and the staff.

I am extremely grateful to have taken part in such an enriching experience and find out so much more about Spanish culture in its different communities.

Thank you to Mr Coombes and the rest of the staff for organising it for us all!

Odette Guastavino Y13

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BSN News: Trips and Visits

Geography students explore UK’s Dorset coastline In October, a group of year 12 IB and A-level Geographers headed for Dorset to learn about methods of data collection. The group departed bright and early at 6:30 one Sunday morning – unfortunately, the weather was not quite so bright! The rain poured down for most of the 12 hour journey, before the group arrived at their quaint hotel in Lulworth Cove at around 6pm.

The first day was spent exploring the cove, searching the fossil beach for Dinosaur remains! The next two days were spent doing hard work on Portland, Abbotsbury and Studland beaches, collecting data such as the gradient of the slope, size and roundness of the clasts. The group also managed to take in the great Olympic sailing site and Durdle Door – a natural limestone arch on the Jurassic Coast.

BSN: 北京 Exchange 2014

In April this year, eight Chinese students from Beijing No3 Middle school enjoyed a week of BSN hospitality – the students stayed with host families and explored our corner of Europe before returning to Beijing to prepare for a return match!

Just as we began half term, the eight BSN ‘host’ students boarded a plane and headed to Beijing for the second leg of this extraordinary exchange. The students stayed with the families of their Chinese exchange friends and lived as members of their family – visiting the school and enjoying many of the sights and sounds of Beijing that are missed by many tourists.

As George Green-Hix says: “My highlight was when my exchange partner took me to the countryside to meet his grandparents – it was a complete immersion in rural Chinese culture, being surrounded by trees bursting with ripe persimmon fruit and greeted by a traditionally dressed elderly Chinese couple, who welcomed me into their home like a second grandson.”

Trip-Leader and SSV teacher, Ruth Burns speaks highly of the students on the trip: “All 8 of our students were excellent ambassadors and it was clear from the tears of their host families that they made quite an impression!”

The BSN–Beijing exchange is open to students in Year 10 and above – look out for a Note Home on Gateway with all the details next term.

The last day was spent in Swanage, focusing on human geography – taking surveys of pedestrian and traffic count as well as counting services on a walk up to Corfe Castle. The day ended with a terrifying 4km walk down some steep, dodgy steps and slippery slopes!

The trip was enjoyable, productive and memorable for the students, who would like to pass on a huge ‘thank you’ to the geography faculty for organising the trip.

Asmita Haque Y12

Vive La France!

On Saturday 18 October, 40 students and 4 staff headed for the South of France, hoping the long journey south would bring sun and beautiful weather!

As French Teacher, Tansy Graves recounts: “We were not to be disappointed and a gloriously sunny break in the beautiful city of Avignon began our four and a half days of sunshine. Monday saw us in the Camargue, touring the salt works, cruising along the waters of the Petit Rhône and walking the walls of the fortified town of Aigues-Mortes.

Tuesday introduced us to the wonders of the Roman Pont Du Gard and Uzès, along with the fascinating story of truffles, and culminating in a wonderful paella, served in the courtyard of our accommodation. Market day in Arles on Wednesday proved interesting as the Mistral wind – renowned in the area for driving people mad if it blows for too long – made its presence felt but did not detract from the beauty of Roman Arles. Our final day saw students making traditional “santons”, clay figurines used in the crèches of the Provence region, visiting Les Baux castle and finishing off with the cultural feast of sight and sound in “La Citadelle de l’Image”, where classical music accompanies the screening of works of art onto the huge rock faces of an underground quarry. We had a wonderful few days working hard and enjoying all that Provence and the Camargue has to offer; rich history and culture, a fascinating language, excellent food and good company, as the students were a real pleasure to be with.

Autumn 2014 | 33

Sport Here are some of the many sporting highlights in what’s been yet another very successful term for our teams.

The Hockey History Girls!

The BSN have been crowned ISST Hockey champions for the fifth time in a row!

The first two days saw impressive performances from the girls – the first was an 8-1 victory against International School Brussels (ISB), followed by a performance to make all the opposition take notice, a 8-0 win over British School of Paris (BSP). At the end of day one, BSN were in first place tied with British School of Brussels (BSB) with all to play for on day two.

The goals kept coming on the second day and a 4-1 victory over a tough American School of London (ASL) side gave the girls confidence going into a pressure game against BSB. The girls played out of their skin and a 5-0 victory followed. BSN’s goal scoring tally was 25 scored, and 2 goals conceded which put the team in first place going into the final day.

Saturday saw a tense final match in front of a large crowd against our local rivals The International

School of The Hague (ISH). The encounter was high paced with a nervous finish when ISH had two penalty corners in the final two minutes. But BSN held on and the game ended 1-1, with a draw enough to finish two points clear of the competition.

The victory was not only a record making moment for the BSN, but also for two of our players – Anne Laycock and Claire Blacker – who have now won four gold ISST medals in a row, a milestone in ISST hockey competition.

A remarkable 6 BSN players received an All-Star Award, which recognises the 15 best players in the tournament – congratulations to Rebecca Wells, Anne Laycock, Claire Blacker, Domi Smith, Cara Campbell and Anna Scolamiero.

Finally, a huge ‘thank you’ from us all goes to the irrepressible Ian Blacker for his amazing coaching – Ian has now coached the BSN to all five ISST victories, making him our most successful coach ever!

Squad: Jess Berry, Rebecca Wells, Anne Laycock, Tabitha Hammond, Charlotte Bedwell, Millie Gardner, Claire Blacker, Cara Campbell, Domi Smith (C), Emma Clarkson, Anna Scolamiero, Julia Moss, Isabel Perez, Brogan O’Neill, Francesca Lloyd.

Football Fest!

The football season at the BSN kicked off with over 40 students playing in a series of ‘friendlies’ against relative neighbours The British School of Brussels, International School of The Hague and The American School. We fielded three teams – U14, U16, U18 and saw tremendous support from parents, friends and fellow students. The U18 team also travelled to Paris to play three matches in a warm up competition for the International Schools Sports Tournament in November.

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BSN News: Sport

BSN Gymnasts have a packed start to the season This has been a busy term for the BSN Gymnastics Club – with the Under 9s travelling to Guildford, England in September, a full club competition against BSN in November, followed by the GISGA Under 9s and GISGA U13s Qualifier the following week.

The Under 9 Team of Ida, Leila, Kayla and Aliya did themselves proud in Guildford and secured their place in the GISGA Under 9s. With a new coach in place at BSB, the Full Squad Competition at the end of November was a good opportunity to see how we were doing against our traditional rivals. It proved to be a successful event, with the positive effects of adrenalin kicking in, there were some outstanding performances on both floor and vault. Numerous brand new voluntary floor routines were performed and all came away with a good idea of what to focus on in the weeks ahead.

National Honours for swimmers

BSN Rugby Club hooks up with The Warriors

Two BSN swimmers have been honoured for their performances in last year’s swimming season.

They both finished the season ranked in the top ten for the Netherlands for their events and age group.

Kassidy Dawn and Jack Davies both swim for a local Dutch club who presented them with the special medal from the KNZB (Dutch National Swimming organisation). Both gained exceptional times for the 100m breast stroke during the ISST swimming tournament in London, last March, which ranked them in the top ten.

BSN Rugby Club ensured that their players were well occupied during half term with the help of Worcester Warriors coaching team. Players aged 5 to 15 years old from both the British School and Hague Rugby Clubs were put through their paces by five youth coaches who had flown over especially from England to deliver a Rugby Training Camp.

Coaches included Tamara Taylor (pictured) No 8 from England’s Women’s World Cup winning team. This was a fantastic opportunity for the young players to learn directly from experienced international rugby professionals and the results were there for all to see with good discipline, fine rugby and smiles all round.

Autumn 2014 | 35

Leiden Clinch Junior Inter House Sports Title

Year 6 children from all three Junior Schools descended on JSL earlier in the term to take part in this year’s Interhouse Sports tournament.

In an action packed morning the aspiring athletes competed in Football, Dodgeball, Unihoc and a combined session of Bench and Matball. Each game was played with high intensity and the noise was at times deafening as teammates cheered on their fellow players from the touchlines. In the true spirit of fair play and good sportsmanship, the players took time out to shake hands and congratulate each other after each game.

Once the combined scores had been counted, double checked and verified, it was Leiden who took the trophy home this year with Gouda taking the runners up spot, Amsterdam finishing third with Delft in fourth position.

Claudia – Dutch Champ!

Congratulations to athlete Claudia del Rio Delgado (Year 8) and her team mates from Athletics Club Sparta, who are the Dutch National Champions of both the Swedish Relay 1000m and the 4 x 60 relay.

Claudia started athletics in year 6, when

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The Road to Athens Begins This term Year 5 and 6 children have been turning out in their dozens for a set of trials and a journey which they’re hoping will take them all the way to Athens for the Junior COBIS Games next Spring.

There are only fifteen places up for grabs in the final team, so the level of competition is as fierce as ever.

Mr Lowe will be making the very difficult decision on selecting those who make the plane and as he mentioned to the children at the start of the first session, he’ll above all be looking out for positive attitudes as well as strong team players during the course of the trials.

The young athletes were then put through their paces and had the chance to impress all the PE staff with their running, throwing and footballing ability.

The trials continued after the half term break before Mr Lowe compiles his shortlist for stage two of the selection process in the new year. Keep a close eye on the Gateway and our Facebook page for further updates.

Mr. Lowe became aware of her speed and selected her for the COBIS Junior Games, and encouraged her to join A.V. Sparta where, last year, she won the Club Championship by winning the 100 metres, long jump, high jump, and second place in 1000 metres. The future looks rosy for Claudia who is continuing her athletics and also swims and competes for the BSN Gym team.

BSN News: Sport

Four Trophies for the BSN at Local Football Competition BSN teams representing each of our four Junior Schools took part in the annual local schools football competition hosted at VUC football club. This year, for the first time, a team of Senior School Year 7 students were also invited to participate.

The tournament was played in great spirit and many congratulations to the JSV girls team who more than deserved the fair play award that they were presented with at the end of the competition. The JSV boys scooped a second trophy for the BSN after topping the table following a series of fantastic performances.

The Year 7 boys came out worthy winners in their group, which with a slightly different format took them through to a final to play for the chance of being crowned overall champions for their age category. In spite of the BSN scoring a goal which was controversially ruled out after much deliberation by the officials, the game remained scoreless and went to the dreaded penalties. The tension was almost tangible as the spot kicks were being taken, but alas the BSN eventually in the end had to settle for the runners up position.

The fourth and perhaps most prestigious trophy was collected by the BSN at the very end of the

presentation ceremony, which was the cup for the best overall school performance. Huge congratulations to all the boys and girls from each of our four schools for playing so outstandingly and representing the BSN so proudly.

Autumn 2014 | 37

Family or friends visiting?

Ideally located in the most beautiful street in the historic centre of Voorschoten, Bed & Breakfast La Casita offers light and spacious rooms.

Voorstraat 18-20 Voorschoten Phone 06-81453027 www.la-casita.nl

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070-328 0816 084-713 6196 info@parish.nl www.parish.nl

Dutch & English Courses at The BSN Language Centre

• Dutch Courses for Adults now at The Estate in Benoordenhout • Private lessons - for adults or children - now with our 30th anniversary celebration discount • Evening Business English courses with an online component

Office open weekdays (not Wednesday) 09.00-13.30 RELIGIOUS EDUCATION PROGRAMME & ABOUT 50 GROUPS RANGING FROM SPIRITUALITY AND FORMATION TO JUSTICE & PEACE INITIATIVES PASTOR:

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Fr Sjaak de Boer PhD

For more information: www.bsnlanguagecentre.nl

Contact us: 070 315 4080

????

G R I L L

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RIB ROAST BEST IN TOWN BIT restaurant

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Buitenhof 39-42

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2513 AH, Den Haag

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| Autumn hello@bitgrill.nl 2014 | 39

The blue pages Beauty Mobile English hairdresser available to visit you at home Ladies, men and children. Working with natural, organic products for all your colouring and styling needs.

Specialist colour technician.

KvK registered. Contact Maxine for more information.

Telephone: 06 5254 8119 Email: maxine@hair-in-the-hague.nl www.hair-in-the-hague.nl

Andreas Kappers: Hairdressers and Beauty specialists ● Trendy, nice and welcoming atmosphere ● Professional cutting and colouring techniques ● On our beautifully decorated top floor we also offer beautician and pedicure treatments Telephone: 071-5610873 Email: informatie@andreaskappers.nl www.andreaskappers.nl

The Saint and Angel Salon and Spa Men, women and children welcome.

Services include: ● Cutting, colouring and waxing ● Head, hand and foot massage ● Feather extensions ● Spa manicure and pedicure New in January 2015: Aromatouch massage.

English and Dutch speaking.

Havenstraat 33, 2242LZ Wassenaar.

For more information contact Liz. Telephone: 06 1386 1148 Email: saintandangel08@yahoo.com

Building Professional carpenter, builder and joiner ● A complete and all-round service ● Renovation/Conversion/Maintenance Specialising in bathrooms, kitchens, roofs, doors, windows and frames ● References on request ● No obligation quotes and advice If you want it done right!

Telephone: 06 242 2591 Email: mail@kingstimmerwerk.nl www.kingstimmerwerk.nl

Peter French and Sons – English builder/carpenter

GK Moments, your full service party planner for kids!

Thirty years of experience renovating and general building work in The Hague region. Free estimates and advice for a diverse range of work including; kitchens, bathrooms, dormer windows, roofing work, plumbing, plastering and electrical work. Well-equipped workshop for one-off furniture pieces/ repair. We organise planning permission when needed. Contact Peter for more information.

Telephone: 06 5332 8363 Email: peterfrench@planet.nl

A great alternative for kids parties with custom themes, amazing sweets tables and fun handmade Piñatas. Contact us today for your party inquiry. Enjoy your child’s birthday party.

Email: GKMoments@hotmail.com www.facebook.com/gkmoments www.gkmoments.com

Yankee Home Improvement Serving the international community for over 21 years. From bathrooms, kitchens, electrical, plumbing, tiles, painting and general repairs to complex home renovations or restorations. Dependable quality craftsmanship and on-time performance. Call Tom Di Gaudio or email for estimates and references.

Telephone: 06 5434 5354 Email: yankee9151@yahoo.com www.yankeeconstruction.nl

Children’s parties Art parties Celebrate in our art studio. Great party ideas for all ages. Contact Irene for more information.

Telephone: 06 1297 5648 Email: hivonck@hotmail.com www.colourmagic.nl

Playball Birthday Parties Our Playball birthday parties are a hit with parents because our Playball coaches take the reins, handling all the games and activities, while you and your guests sit back and watch your party peeps have a blast! Our special Playball party formula, which has been proven for years, ensures that everyone has a fantastic experience on your child’s big day!

All the hosting parent(s) need to do is organise the birthday venue and the party food, and we’ll provide the fun. Ages 3–8yrs. Kids love Playball!

Telephone: 0627214349 Email: kidsplayball@hotmail.com www.playballkids.com

The BSN takes no responsibility for the quality of the goods and services advertised in this publication

40 | Insight

Counselling Counselling International Confidential individual counselling or coaching, couple therapy or conflict mediation. Experienced multilingual professional Els Barkema-Sala, M.Phil., MBACP. Please call for a FREE initial telephone consultation or an appointment.

Check the website for more information.

Telephone: 071 528 2661 Email: basal@planet.nl www.counsellinginternational.com

Counselling and Coaching International Diploma course Diploma course Counselling and Coaching in The Hague (or Amsterdam) offered by CRKBO-accredited Academy for Counselling and Coaching. High quality professional and personal development in English is available for a fair price. Please check the website for details and registration.

Telephone: 03 1741 5454 Email: paul@counselling.nl www.counselling.nl

Courses First aid courses Learn how to make the difference between a life lost and a life saved. Sign up for a First Aid course where you will be taught basic first aid skills as well as CPR. Certified courses given by Linda Malley, Registered St John Ambulance Trainer to staff at BSN. Dates for students’ courses During half term holidays on: 8, 9, 10 April 2015 10:00–14:00 After school on Wednesday afternoon, 15:45–18:00 21, 28 January and 4, 11 and 18 February 2015 Venue: Senior School Cost: €125 Dates for weekend parent courses Saturday 22 November 2014 09:30–15:30 Saturday 24 January 2015 09:30–15:30

For the BSN Community Saturday 20 June 2015 09:30–15:30 Venue: JSD/Wassenaar Cost: €85 Dates for weekday courses Emergency Life Support (CPR) Tuesday 20 January 2015 or Wednesday 11 March or Tuesday 9 June 2015 09:30–13:00 Basic first aid Tuesday 27 January 2015 or Wednesday 18 March or Tuesday 16 June 2015 09:30–13:00 Venue: Wassenaar zuid Cost: €40 Bespoke home courses available upon request. Contact. Linda Malley.

Telephone: 06 1887 3421 Email: l.malleyfirstaid@online.nl

Financial services Financial services for expats Fully integrated financial planning services for expats. Make the most of your unique financial status by creating your personal plan assisted by qualified professionals. Wealth creation/protection, investment portfolio management, tax planning, pension analysis – including advice on portable pensions and transfers, maximising income in retirement, education fees planning, mortgages and insurances.

For independent unbiased advice contact Axis strategy.

Telephone: 070 346 4920 Email: phil.loughton@axis-finance.com www.axis-finance.com

J.C. Suurmond & zn Tax Consultants Tax advice and support for expats in the Netherlands. With nearly 30 years of experience, J.C. Suurmond & zn helps expats living in the Netherlands manage their taxes, we guide them through the regulations and offer a free tax assessment.

Telephone: 0174 24 47 25 Email: taxadvice@jcsuurmond.nl www.suurmond-taxconsultants.com

Garden

Motoring

Gardening services

Car Maintenance

Need some help with your garden? Eden Landscape Gardening offers a complete range of gardening services including: ● Design ● Landscaping ● Paving ● Fencing ● Tree cutting ● General maintenance For more information contact Vaun Smith.

Telephone: 06 2343 2854 Email: vaun@eden-landscape-gardening.nl www.eden-landscape-gardening.nl

Autobedrijf Steyger specialises in the total maintenance, APK and special repairs for all makes of cars at reasonable prices.

We are able to carry out bodywork repairs following accidents and will take care of all the necessary paperwork. We also buy and sell secondhand cars. Where customers are only planning a short stay in Holland, it is possible to agree on the repurchase price when a car is bought. Upon request, we can deliver every type of car at competitive prices. You may call us anytime for further information without obligation or check out our internet page: www.autosteyger.nl Our address: Autobedrijf Steyger, Leidseweg 420 (noord), 2253 JP Voorschoten.

Telephone: 071 576 5555 Email: info@autosteyger.nl www.autosteyger.nl

Health and sports Doterra essential oils: health and well-being for the whole family Prevent future health problems or correct and help current ailments with 100% natural oils!

Take stock in your own health. Located at Havenstraat 33, 2242LZ Wassenaar.

For more information contact Liz. Telephone: 06 1386 1148 Email: saintandangel08@yahoo.com

Household services Need help with house cleaning?

Need help with house cleaning? Ironing, cleaning, final moving clean, evening babysitting. Areas covered: Den Haag, Leidschenveen, Ypenburg, Voorburg, Leiden, Voorschoten and Wassenaar.

References supplied on request. Contact Tina.

Telephone: 06 8588 4502/070 406 8454 diana.hanford@gmail.com

Driving School EXLdrive – driving school for expats in greater Voorschoten area. Starting from scratch or looking for a refresher course?

Excel with EXLdrive! Instruction in English and local pick up/drop off possible. Very patient instructor!

Telephone: 0623829269 Email: info@exldrive.nl www.exldrive.nl

Music Piano lessons for children from 6 years old

Dutch nanny looking for work

Piano lessons for children from 6 years old. Teaching experience and ABRSM examination. Languages spoken: English, Dutch and Russian. For more information, please contact Tanya.

Telephone: 06 1653 7959 Email: tanja211071@gmail.com

Available 30hrs/week (3 days of 10hrs/ day), Tuesday-Friday.

Experience as a nanny since 2002 and before that I have worked 8 years in a nursery.

References available upon request.

Contact Sandra vd Baard for more information.

Telephone: 06 1322 1014 Email: svdbaard@gmail.com

Virtuosi School of Music offers Music Lessons Weekdays after school and Saturdays at: 2nd Floor “Mooov” Building, Binckhorstlaan 135, Den Haag. Free Parking. All instruments available.

Telephone: 070 383 4060 Email: admin@virtuosi.nl www.virtuosi.nl

Spring 2015 issue Advertising deadline: Monday 9 February 2015 Email: advertising@britishschool.nl

Virtuosi School of Music

The BSN takes no responsibility for the quality of the goods and services advertised in this publication

Autumn 2014 | 41

Piano lessons

Holiday Home in Rome

Lucy Timkova is a qualified and experienced piano teacher. Complete beginner to advanced level lessons are available for both adults and children (from 5 years of age). For more information, please contact Lucy.

Telephone: 06 4183 3235 Email: lucytimkova@gmail.com www.lucytimkova.com

Neat and cosy apartment in Rome (Central area). 12 minutes by Metro to the Spanish Steps.

Fully furnished and equipped.

1–2 persons at €130 per day.

3–5 persons at €180 per day.

Telephone: +39 3408 5474 94/ 070 382 4882 Email: maria.ciociara@usa.net www.mariabedandbreakfast.com

Guitar Lessons Graduated in classical and jazz music, with extensive experience as a teacher and performer offers private and group lessons for children and adults. Customised lessons focused on practicing tunes, rhythm and good practice habits.

Telephone: 06 4370 1598 Email: ximosirera@gmail.com www.ximosirera.com

Piano Lessons Pianist specialising in Jazz (Bachelor and Masters Diploma in Jazz piano) teaches piano for all ages and different styles. Extra Teaching fields: Harmony, Rhythmical training and group playing. For more information, contact George Tsolis.

Telephone: 06 1149 7933 Email: georgetsolis@hotmail.com www.georgiostsolis.com

Property and lets Property Management As every property is different, Expat Home Services offers a range of tailored services for Expats leaving or looking for a property in The Netherlands.

Our services: ● Property management ● Home search services ● General refurbishment and renovation work Telephone: +31 6 2180 4928 Email: info@expathomeservices.nl www.expathomeservices.nl

Holiday Home overlooking Lake Garda in Italy This large, modern private villa with 180 degree views of mountains and lake, sleeps 11 people. 20% discount offered to all BSN families, staff and alumni. Link below has calendar, pictures and pricing (w/o discount). Contact Ginny.

Telephone: 06 3979 0178 Email: ginmees@gmail.com www.homeaway.com/152915

Holiday home in Pollenca, Mallorca Holiday home in Pollenca, Mallorca – Superb, peaceful location, 2 bedroom/ 2 bathroom apartment in countryside with private pool. Perfect for hikers, cyclists, birdwatchers and those looking for complete relaxation.

Walk to historic old town and restaurants.

Air-conditioning and heating.

Telephone: 0034 649 102 473 Email: alexandra2416@hotmail.com http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/ accommodation/p8046190

Shopping La Buena Vida Closing Sale!

Classified advertising

The adverts in our ‘Blue pages’ are for 'Expatriate services' – companies and individuals offering services tailored to the expatriate community.

Small box advertisements are offered in three sizes based on word count.

Advertising space is limited and is sold on a first come first served basis.

Costs per issues are as follows: Box 1: up to 40 words Box 2: up to 80 words Box 3: up to 120 words

€25 €45 €65

Display advertising Display adverts are divided into full page, half page and quarter page.

Adverts are printed in full colour and are placed throughout the magazine.

Costs per issues are as follows: Full page Half page Quarter page

€650 €395 €275

Advertisers who are not in the position to supply us with an advert with the above specifications are welcome to make use of our artwork service.

Resizing of advert Creation of advert

€20 €50

Special rates are available for charities and non-profit making organisations.

On 17th January, La Buena Vida Fahrenheitstraat 582 in The Hague will be closing its doors after a great 5 year run! Officially we close on the 31st of December, but will have a CASH-ONLY BLOW-OUT SALE (50% -70%) from the 2nd January – 17th January.

Call us for more information.

Telephone: 070 364 2868

Spring 2015 issue Advertising deadline: Monday 9 February 2015 Email: advertising@britishschool.nl

42 | Insight

Advertise here

The BSN takes no responsibility for the quality of the goods and services advertised in this publication

YOUR ULTIMATE BRITISH & AMERICAN GROCERY STORE

Luifelbaan 50 2242 KV WASSENAAR (070) 511 87 29 OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK!

Zoutmanstraat 22a 2518 GP THE HAGUE (070) 346 97 53 OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK!

WWW.KELLYS-EXPAT-SHOPPING.NL

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