Week 11: Preparing for the Showcase and More

Welcome to Week 11

Last week the school was full of activity as many projects begin to reach their final stages. It has been wonderful to see the level of initiative and creativity across the school as students bring their ideas together and reflect on their learning from the year.

This Week

• We will soon confirm details for our end-of-term trip on Friday 27th March, which will take place at either Black Mountain or Vana Nava Water Park. We will also be sending full details for our End-of-Term Showcase, which will take place on Thursday 26th March at 6:30 p.m. on the school lawn.

• Our café will open on Thursday 19th March, selling coconut drinks and baked treats. Parents are very welcome to join us.

• Wednesday Coffee Morning: Coffee Morning with me will run from 8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. as usual.

Friday Trip

The Agent Owls will visit Ninepunn Café to take part in an art activity.

The rest of Primary School and Middle School will visit the Wat Tham Khao Tao area. The older students will be filming on location in preparation for their showcase film, while Lower Primary will take part in a small trek before spending some time playing at the beach.

Looking Ahead

Next week will be the final week of the term and the academic year. We will be finishing projects, wrapping up the term, saying goodbye to graduating students, hosting our evening showcase event, and finishing the year with our end-of-term water park trip.

School will then be closed for the holidays until Monday 4th May.

Highlights from Last Week

• On Monday, our Grade 6 students took part in the Ministry of Education examinations and represented the school extremely well.

  
  

• We opened a small Friday morning playgroup for younger children aged 1.5–3 years. We had a wonderful turnout and it was lovely to see so many little ones meet, play, and connect with others. Ping An, one of our Grade 6 students, volunteered to help and did a wonderful job supporting the younger children.

• Grade 6 also received their O-NET examination results, with the majority achieving very strong scores. Considering that we teach Science and Maths in English, the students performed exceptionally well.

• Our Friday trips were a big success: Lower Primary enjoied their finial swimming lesson of the term, our Silver Sharks visited an organic farm where they learned about sustainable farming practices and the Ninjas The Crystal Tigers had a wonderful time at Go Karting Hua Hin.

• There was a large cucumber harvest from the school farm, with students selling some in the school shop and enjoying the rest at lunch.

• Alhena and Grace ran the café and did an excellent job. A special thank you to Alisa for opening the Halio Bank so students could withdraw additional Butterfly Money. 

  
  

• Amanda and Toa continue to do an excellent job in the school shop. 

• On both Thursday and Friday, it was wonderful to hear so many children sharing the books they have been reading during Reading Circle. All students shared their books in small intimate groups on Friday, with some choosing to present their reading to the whole school during Circle Time.

  
  

• On Thursday evening after school, teachers also took part in a Professional Development session, continuing to reflect on teaching practices and planning for the coming academic year.

Circle Time Highlights

• There has been lots of filming happening around the school as students prepare their showcase projects. Several students have taken real initiative, particularly Matthew and Harris, who have been making announcements and coordinating filming during Circle Time.

• Ticha passed the Playground Test; congratulations to her. Daniel, one of our oldest Primary students, helped guide her through the process.

• Students also voted on our end-of-term trip, deciding that we will visit both Black Mountain and Vana Nava.

• The Sabertooth Group shared the song and language game they learned in English class with the whole school.

Relationship Education

Agent Owls

The Agent Owls explored the feeling of being “grumpy.” Through discussion and storytelling, students shared experiences that can lead to feeling irritated or upset, such as arguments with friends, not being able to play with favourite toys, or simply feeling tired. A story about a character experiencing these emotions helped students understand that such feelings are normal and something everyone experiences.

Hummingbirds

The Hummingbirds explored the concept of the “Invisible Backpack.” They learned that everyone carries feelings, worries, and experiences that others may not see. This led to discussions about patience, empathy, and kindness.

Sabertooth Group and Silver Sharks

Students explored positive communication and how their actions can affect the group. They looked at body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice, as well as the feelings associated with isolation and being left out. Students discussed ways to communicate more clearly and respectfully.

Penguins

The Penguins continued exploring citizenship and responsibility through scenarios and shared experiences. They discussed ways to positively contribute to the school and were challenged to perform random acts of kindness towards students they may not know well.

Ninjas

The Ninjas discussed online communication, including social media comments and online group discussions. They debated how language used online can have both positive and negative effects, and also explored discussions around gender topics online. It was an insightful session that will lead to further discussions.

Crystal Tigers

The Crystal Tigers helped deliver the Relationship Class to the Sabertooth Group and Silver Sharks before applying their learning about communication to online interactions. They discussed feelings of being excluded from groups, the idea of “ghosting,” and examined comments on social media. Students compared in-person interactions with online communication and reflected on the impact both can have.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support.

Warm regards,

Mr. Vincent and The Halio Team