tintuc@unishanoi.org UNIS Hanoi’s Weekly Community Newsletter
NEXT WEEK… SATURDAY 14 FEB - TUESDAY 24 FEB UNIS Hanoi Tet Break, 14-24 Feb School & Offices close
COMING SOON WEDNESDAY, 25 FEBRUARY APAC Spring Performing Arts Festival - BAND @ CISS, 25 Feb - 1 Mar APAC Spring Performing Arts Festival - THEATRE @ WAB, 25 Feb - 1 Mar THURSDAY, 26 FEBRUARY MRISA Middle School Soccer @ ISE, 26 Feb - 1 Mar Grade 4 Heritage Field Trip, 9:00-11:30 PYP Exhibition, Parent Information Session, 18:0018:45, Library Projection Room G5 to G6 Parents Information Night, 19:00-19:45, Library Projection Room FRIDAY, 27 FEBRUARY MSHS Counselors - Guest Speaker Event for Parents, 8:30-10:30, Community Room
Volume 21, Edition 23, Friday 13 February MONDAY, 2 MARCH JV Girls' Soccer vs CISH @ UNIS, 16:00-17:30 TUESDAY, 3 MARCH ES Sports Morning, 8:30-11:30, Sports Fields Grade 10 Personal Project Exhbition, 18:00-20:00 WEDNESDAY, 4 MARCH UNIS Hanoi Model United Nations Conference, 4-8 Mar THUSDAY, 5 MARCH 2MA & 2RJ Field Trip, 8:30-10:15 MS Spring Sports Season Begins (Volleyball), 15:4517:30, Sports Centre Board Finance Orientation Session, 17:30-19:00, Conference Room Grade 11 College Info Night for Parents and Students, 18:00-19:30, Library FRIDAY, 6 MARCH UNIS Music Academy concert, 17:00-18:30, Black Box and Theatre SATURDAY, 7 MARCH Varsity Boys' Soccer vs MINSK @ UNIS, 15:00-16:00
SATURDAY, 28 FEBRUARY Community Education Spring Programme Begins Aquathlon, 12:00-15:00
IN THIS WEEK’S TIN TUC - The Highlights... Notes from the Head of School (p.2) Notes from the Admissions Office (p.2) Notes from the Board of Directors (p.3) The Scholarship Fund update (p.4)
Grade 10 Personal Project Exhibition. Coming Soon! (p.10) Service Learning News (p.11-12) Basketball News (p.13-14) UMA Concert. Save the date! (p.13)
High School Honour rolls and awards (p.5-6) Tet Celebration photo special. (p.7-8) Grade 1 Trip (p.8) K2 Students - the buzzing bees (p.9)
Summer Programme (p.15) Share the love! (p.15) Spring Fair: Make it unique, make it yours (p.16)
I would like to send a brief message to wish you all a wonderful Tet holiday and best wishes for a Happy New Year of the Goat. Chuc Mung Nam Moi. Respectfully,
Welcome to UNIS Hanoi
Dr. Chip Barder, hos@unishanoi.org
ES Tet Assembly - by Tim Barnsley
Please register your child directly with the admissions office. Applications will be available to eligible applicants at the end of February, following the Tet holiday. Tuition and Fees Agreements have been issued to all current families and should be returned to admissions@unishanoi.org. Placements for returning students must be secured with deposit payments by 3 April 2015. Please confirm the departure of your family from the school by submitting an Admissions Withdrawal Form. For assistance contact admissions@unishanoi.org or 37581551 extension 8217 / 8220 / 8732.
There are many opportunities at UNIS Hanoi for parents to share their talent, time and expertise with the community, demonstrating to our students the value of a life-long commitment to community service. Whether this be coaching weekend sports, talking to students about career and college choices, serving as a classroom representative or helping with the many School Community Organization (SCO) events throughout the year or serving on a board committee or task force- your contributions are all welcomed and valued. Through its annual membership review, the Board of Directors has determined there will be one parent-elected position open on the Board for the upcoming 2015/2016 school year. Board members are elected or appointed for four years. The board will now conduct an election for the position of parent elected member, with results to be formally announced at the 12th May Annual General Meeting. Parents can find more information about the work of the board, the role of a board member and the election process here. Anyone considering this opportunity and/or if would like to know more about getting involved with the board’s work is invited to attend an Information Session About Board Service on Thursday 12th March at 5:30pm, in the Conference Room, Admin Building. Testimonial by outgoing parent-elected Board member (2012-2015) Craig Burgess: 'It has been a privilege to serve on UNIS committees and as a parentelected UNIS board member since 2012. The experience has given me immense satisfaction, not only from being able to give 'something back' to the school, but also from working with a diverse team of board and faculty members, some of whom have become close friends and increased my awareness of UNIS's unique community and context. It has been a pleasure to be part of strategic planning, policy making processes and contribute to good practice in the governance of the school as it aims to go from 'Good to Great'. Because UNIS values good governance and personal development, I personally have learned much from others, in formal and informal sessions at the school and in the region, which have enriched other aspects of my personal and professional life. UNIS is precious and needs committed parents to help guide its future; I encourage any parent who has the interest and energy to stand for election. Jump in with both feet and an open mind!'
Serving on the board or one of its committees is a richly rewarding way to contribute in your children’s school. The Board of Directors encourages all parents to consider putting themselves forward for election. The deadline for receipt of candidate application forms is 16th March at 12pm. If you have any questions, please contact the Board Assistant, Jennifer Sawyer, at boardassistant@unishanoi.org.
On behalf of the Board, I am pleased to announce that Board appointed Board member, Mr. Bob Hughes, has been elected to the position of Treasurer and Chair of the Finance Committee for the remainder of the 2014-2015 School Year. Bob joined the Board in 2013. He is chair of the Strategic Management Plan Task Force and has been a member of the Finance Committee since 2013. Previously, Bob served as chair of the Advancement Committee. Before joining the Board, Bob was a member of the Advancement Committee (2011-12) and a member of the Board’s School Legal Status Task Force (2009-10). He is American and has a background working in both multinational corporations and local Vietnamese companies, in the IT, financial, aviation, agricultural, and resource business sectors. He holds BA degrees in Finance and Chinese Studies from University of Utah, USA and an MBA from Stanford University, USA. Bob has lived in Vietnam for over fifteen years and has one child at UNIS. Congratulations Bob! Best regards, Mr. Nguyen Van Hieu, Board Chair
TOGETHER we have done it! We have reached our first Annual Community Campaign goal and next year we will be able to offer a new scholarship place created by YOU!
Thanks to the gifts and pledges from nearly 300 of our families, faculty, staff and alumni! Every gift is celebrated on our wonderful Scholarship Fund Tree! And don’t worry - if you didn’t get the chance to make your gift yet, we will still be accepting gifts to the Annual Community Campaign, until the end of the 2014-2015 year.
All funds beyond 75,000 USD will go directly to our Founders Fund which aims to create a sustainable future for the renewal our new Scholarship places.
Dear MSHS Families, Happy Tet from the MSHS! I hope everyone enjoys a relaxing Tet holiday with family and friends. To get everyone in the Tet spirit our MS students produced an informative Tet assembly explaining the importance of Tet within Vietnamese culture and the significance of the many Tet symbols: Cay Dao (Peach tree), Cay Quat (Cumquat tree), food and of course lucky money! It has been several weeks since I have contributed to the Tin Tuc. My absence in print has been due to teacher recruitment activities. Each year our Head of School, Principals and Heads of Academic Departments spend a great deal of time and energy recruiting faculty. To secure the very best faculty UNIS Hanoi attends international recruitment fairs where highly qualified teaching candidates have the opportunity to interview with school administrators. This year the UNIS Hanoi Admin Team attended recruitment fairs in Melbourne, Bangkok and London. The competition among schools for talented educators is fierce. Fortunately UNIS Hanoi is a highly sought after school among top quality international educators. Nevertheless, it is a long and exhaustive process but well worth the effort. One of the most important elements in a top caliber school is the ability to hire and retain highly qualified learner centered educators. As such, I am happy to report that we have secured a cohort of fantastic teachers who are thrilled to be joining the UNIS Hanoi community for the 2015/2016 school year!
Semester 1 Reports were made available on ISIS Family two weeks ago. As such, Honor Roll (GPA: 6.0 – 6.49) and the highly coveted Principal’s List (GPA: 6.5 and above) were calculated. Students earning Honor Roll or Principal’s List status as well as those who were awarded Grade Level Awards were recognized during separate MS and HS assemblies. Please see the list of HS award recipients in this edition of the Tin Tuc. MS award winners were announced last week. Upcoming: 1. Feb. 12 - Grade 10 Parent IB Information Night, 6 pm in the Theater. 2. Feb. 13 - New Parent Workshop with MSHS Counselors, 8:30 am in the Library. 3. Feb. 25 - March 1: APAC Theater (Beijing) and Band (Shanghai) Festivals. 4. Feb. 26—March 1: MRISA Junior Soccer (Thailand). 5. Feb. 26 - Transition from grade 5 to grade 6 Parent Evening. 7 pm in the Library. The Transition Meeting will immediate follow the Grade 5 Exhibition Meeting for parents which is set for 6 pm. 6. February - March: MSHS Course Registration for the 2015/2016 school year. Information regarding required subjects, academic expectations and elective offerings will be forthcoming via email. Enjoy a wonderful Tet celebration! Warm regards, Pete Kennedy, MSHS Principal
GRADE 9 Learner Laureate Rachel Lambert
GRADE 10 Learner Laureate Giang Nguyen
GRADE 11 Learner Laureate Tam Do
GRADE 12 Learner Laureate Sebastian Meissener
Leadership Chelsea Chien Wen Cheng
Leadership Kimberly Knaggs
Leadership Michael Emblem
Leadership Award Viet Than
Citizenship Saskia Brennen
Citizenship Morgan Belle Bradshaw
Citizenship Gina Chen
Citizenship Award Vera Woerner
Humanitarian Yoav Shahar
Humanitarian Erika Valles
Humanitarian Kiana Freeman
Humanitarian Award Duong Nguyen
GRADE 9 Darlene Cheong Natania Hui Ting Peh Nga Nguyen Nguyet Nguyen Quang Anh Nguyen Sunu Kim GRADE 10 Giang Nguyen Ngoc Trai Nguyen Seyon Park Truong Son Trinh Yoon Zoo Gee Young Ju Lee GRADE 11 Awua Buahin Catherine Hoang Chihyun Ryu Ewa Dung Lachman Gun Hee Yoon Hieu Nguyen Hui Long Gan Jin Sun Park Linh Nguyen Linh Vo Pedro Montalban San Jose Tae Heog Yang Vu Bui Yong Bin Kwon GRADE 12 Devin Cheong Duong Nguyen Hung Nguyen Jae Young Yoo Jonas Fiebrantz Kim Lan Mallon Min Jeong Kang Na Young Kim Nam Nguyen So Yeon Jeong Tae Jun Park Thanh Le Veronica Lai YoungNan Kim
GRADE 9 Hyunsoo Chung Jae Min Yoo Ji Won Kim Kees Christiaanse Linh Nguyen Long Than Min Joo Choi Minh Anh Nguyen Minh Quan Dao Nguyen Niklas Jaakola Nozima Burkhanova Rachel Lambert Sorcha Hamer Su Yun Jeong Ye Hyun Kim Yoav Shahar GRADE 10 Anh Phuong Nguyen Briani Griffin Harjas Murar Henryk Le Hai Hoi Yoon Jung Jee Eun Kim Maho Wakui Ngoc Le Sofie Brondum Reeh Su Ho Jeong Tae Young Jeong Ujwal Kumar Yerim Kim
GRADE 11 Byung Jun Park Hao Shern Lee Jemima Brennen Joya Tabe Lena Fiebrantz Mai Phung Michael Emblem Min Ji Kim Nhi Trinh Nina McLean Phuong Ly Rosaria Battista Seung Yoo Yang Shin Ha Susie Park Siddharth Patra Son Nguyen Son Trinh Surabhi Sundaram Thai Son Trinh Vince Jose Keiko Escalante Yi Chun Chen Yin Teng Ho
GRADE 12 Animesh Sakorikar Duong Vu Gillian Vallely Haeji Noh Je Kyun Yu Kenna Valles Khanh An Vu Minh Anh Nguyen Nhat Nguyen Nhi Nguyen Quynh Anh Do Sebastian Meissner So Hee Jeong Sze Kate Tang Thu Tran Trung Tran Victoria Cortes Freeman Viet Than
CONGRATULATIONS
Photos by Tim Barnsley
Thursday morning the Middle School began what we hope is a new tradition of celebrating Tet with student work. Each grade level prepared an art piece to share our understanding of Tet. A number of the MS Vietnamese students created a wonderful video about the traditions and beliefs of Tet. Grade 6 students introduced (in French and Vietnamese!) each of the animals of the zodiac and
The Grade 1 students visited the Metropole Hotel on Tuesday morning in connection with their unit, "Where We Are in Place and Time". At the start of the unit the children had been given a "provocation" of a guitar case with various "artifacts". They then worked out that the guitar case and the artifacts were all connected to Joan Baez. This prompted our visit to the Metropole. The children realised that their deductions were correct. They got to see various artifacts and photos that the hotel had collected over the years. They also got a tour of the bunker that was 'rediscovered' under the hotel a few years ago. Many thanks to the Metropole for arranging all of this for us! More photos can be found on the class blogs.
displayed the beautiful zodiac banners they had created. Grade 7 students showed a video they had made of their artwork and interviews, called Visions of Tet. Grade 8 students showed a film with stories of Tet with some interesting stop action scenes. It was a wonderful way to educate our school community about Tet and highlight it's importance within Vietnamese culture.
Our K2 students were transformed into a swarm of buzzing bees and dragonflies on Tuesday, singing and dancing to tell the story of ‘Billy No Buzz’. This
Photos by Tim Barnsley
‘Performing Arts Celebration’ (PAC) was a tale about friendship and accepting differences. Our young students made their parents and teachers feel very proud.
The Girls on the Run ASA completed the 3K run on 9 February 2015. This celebratory, non-competitive event was the culminating experience of the curriculum. Completing the 3K gives the girls a tangible understanding of the confidence that comes through accomplishment as well as a framework for setting and achieving life goals. Crossing the finish line is a defining moment when the girls realize that even the seemingly impossible IS possible. And each of the girls did finish with the support of a running buddy. Way to go girls!
A gentle reminder to NOT take UNIS Hanoi Library books with you! Our precious Library books travel enough going to and from our UNIS Hanoi families’ homes.... they prefer to remain here in Hanoi. Happy New Year of the Goat! Julie Conroy, ES Librarian
A big thank you to all the students, parents, teaches and staff who supported our Read-a-Thon for Refugee Children in Jordan. We were able to raise a significant amount of money through your hours of reading and generosity. We have started to count up the money raised and estimate that we'll have nearly $900 USD to donate for the purchase of books for schools in the Zaatari Refugee Camp! This has been an exciting and successful studentinitiated and led ES Service Learning project. After the Tết holiday we will report on the total raised and about the delivery of the donation. Thank you again for your support! The Read-a-Thon Committee
The week before the Tet Bag delivery, we made Chúc Mừng Năm Mới cards to put in the gift baskets. We also put up posters to remind people to bring in donations for the Red River families. On Saturday, we met at the Elementary School and packed up a truck with all the gift bags. We had over 130 – heavy – bags full of items necessary for Tet! First, we travelled in the bus for 20 minutes to the bottom of Long Bien Bridge. We hired a little truck to transport the gifts over the bridge. When we got to the village, we donated our Tet bag gifts to the people living there. Everyone was so happy to receive the gifts. They were very appreciative of our generous donations. We felt good about giving instead of just receiving. After the trip we felt exhausted, but happy for being able to make a difference in someone’s life. Thank you to everyone who helped us deliver the gifts. And, of course, thank you to all the UNIS Community for creating a very warm Tet at the Red River. Xin Cảm Ơn! From the ASA Tet Bag Appeal Team
The Huong La Centre is a small group home for disabled adults and children. The Huong La Centre is approximately one hour’s drive from the UNIS-Hanoi campus. The Huong La Centre Service group has eleven Grade eight students and will visit the Huong La Centre six times this year. The group meets once per six day cycle to gather ideas, information, develop goals and try to think of things that can improve the environment of the centre. We also discuss how we are building relationships with the children at the centre. When I first joined Huong La, I was kind of worried because I've never been to a house where orphaned kids or kids with physical disabilities lived so I didn't know how to act or talk. I like being a part in this group because we get to make the kid's day better because they get to do activities and they get to talk to us and that makes me very happy. The head sister at the center is Sister Hai. On Sister Hai’s wish list, she requested a TV and a DVD player for the
small onsite classroom. As a group we decided to work towards meeting this request. We did this by selling candles at the Bazaar, the Festive Fundraiser, and during some lunch periods. We also sold things such as kit kats, cakes and cookies, not to mention Ms. Graham also sold some of her art works! As a group we wrote a proposal to the SCO to assist with our fundraising. We were so pleased when we found out our grant proposal was accepted, which matched to our efforts to fund the TV and DVD player for the centre. Thank you, SCO, for funding our proposal! The Huong La service group was able to grant Huong la Centre’s wish and donate both a TV and DVD player to the centre on our last service trip. Overall, The Huong La service group had so much fun and discovered many new things. And we are also all very excited to provide the center with something big from Sister Hai’s wish list. Jeyne Lee, Grade 8
UNIS Hanoi and HLC students working together to make collages
Huong la Centre Classroom
UNIS Hanoi Students presenting Sister Hai with the TV and DVD player for the Centre
The MRISA Basketball teams had their tournament at International School of Phnom Penh during February 6th & 7th. Atmosphere of the tournament was electric with very strong competitors this year. Girls basketball team were very tightknit and fought some very tough matches. They won two games and placed 6th out of the eight teams that participated. Boys basketball team result was not as good as the girls but they gained tremendous amount of experience from the tournament. Both teams were very positive and had a great time during the tournament and with their host families. All players are wanting to improve their standings and are looking forward for the next year's season of basketball. Go Phoenix!
UNIS Hanoi was proud to host the first ever Hanoi International Schools Activities Association (HISAA) Youth Sport Basketball Festival on the afternoon of Thursday 5th February. Over 120 Grade four and five students from five international schools participated in the festival and what a wonderful time they had. I would like to congratulate all UNIS students for their sportsmanship, attitude on court, effort and teamwork. I would also like to thank all the parents and community members who supported our young Phoenix teams. Adrian Hubbard, Co-Curricular Activities Manager
Photos by Tim Barnsley
For further information contact summerprogramme@unishanoi.org
do so only in moderation. Don't drink and drive or let others drive when you drink. Be safe. Be sure to use appropriate safety gear, including seat belts, life vests, and helmets to help prevent injury. During the month of February, not only do we see the human heart as the symbol of love, it is also the National Heart Month, a time to show yourself the love. CDC has given the following tips as a gift of health to you or someone you love on Valentine’s Day and all year long.
Be sensitive. Consider that your valentine may have allergies, asthma, diabetes, or other health conditions. You can be sensitive to your valentine by finding out if certain foods, flowers, pets, stuffed animals, or anything else might affect his or her health.
Be heart-healthy. Prevent and control high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. Avoid smoking and secondhand smoke. Maintain a healthy weight. Be active.
As we look forward to welcoming in the year of the goat, let’s all take time to keep our hearts healthy. Celebrate Valentine's Day, National Heart Month, and your commitment to heart-healthy living all year long!!
Be food-nutritious. Eat foods low in saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sugar and sodium, and high in omega-3 fatty acids and fiber.
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY AND HAVE A WONDERFUL TET HOLIDAY!!
Be germ-free. Spread love, not germs. Wash hands often. Avoid close contact when you or someone you know is sick. Get your flu vaccine. Be prepared to travel. Take the needed vaccinations. Take sunscreen or insect repellant when needed. Take enough prescribed medications. Be sensible. Go easy on the bubbly. If you drink alcohol,
School Health Centre
The UNIS Spring Fair is the largest event organized by the School Community Organization. It’s about the UNIS community getting together with our kids and having fun while sharing our cultures. The THEME this year is …. THE FARM !
The Spring Fair is completely organized by the hard work of our committed volunteers. We are looking for ALL countries in the UNIS Community to be represented. The key ingredients for a successful Spring Fair are a positive attitude, willingness to get involved, some time and your passion to make this day inspirational. You will feel proud to be part of an event that bonds the community together and creates our special blend of UNIS Culture. Click HERE to be part of the FUN!
Fun at the GAME TENT! This is a NEW idea, we aim to have a tent with competition games like sack races, threelegged runs, etc. and we are looking for enthusiastic people to help with this! Contact Christina Baeck at FAIR_FunCorner@unishanoi.org Cultural Booths (previously Country Table): Get together with families from your country/world region and
organize a booth to celebrate the cultural diversity at UNIS Hanoi. It would be wonderful to have many community groups represented. Cultural Booth meeting: March 2 from 10.00 – 11.30am in the Community Room. Click here for the Guidelines. Please contact Natascha Senftleben at FAIR_Cultural@unishanoi.org Do you have a Family Business? If so, Spring Fair 2015 Small Business Booth is for you! Places are now available to UNIS Hanoi Community business owners. Whether you are parents, faculty, staff or students, you are welcome at this year's Spring Fair. So hurry and reserve your spot! For more information and to request a spot, email Clarissa Hu -Andersen at FAIR_SmallBusiness@unishanoi.org Spring Cleaning in order? Time to clear out your house and make space for new junk! Book a space quickly at our popular Flea Market by contacting Malin Niklasson at FAIR_FleaMarket@unishanoi.org. Click here for the Guidelines. Raffle gifts needed! This year will are going to have a raffle every hour! Would you like to donate a gift basket or raffle gift? Contact Renea Freeman at FAIR_sponsorship@unishanoi.org Any other questions, ideas, comments….just email Claudia Marinzi at SpringFair@unishanoi.org