The Lion – 2nd March 2018

School news

Primary

Secondary

PTA

Community

MESSAGE FROM BRIAN CHRISTIAN – PRINCIPAL Dear Parents, The primary influences of the past week at BST have undoubtedly been literary: there have been readings, assemblies, a visit from a best-selling author and, of course, yesterday on World Book Day itself, we had all those wonderfully imaginative outfits. However, as I am sure that Mr Platts and Ms O’Connor will want to say more about specific events in each sector of the school, I hope you will forgive me if my focus is a little wider. I feel sure that you will agree that one of the great strengths of the school is that it is so successful in encouraging students to develop a genuine love of books. When I stand at our Shibuya door on a Monday morning and see how rapidly those library return boxes are filled to the point of overflowing, I know that the youngest children in the school are reading voraciously – and getting a lot of pleasure from doing so. There is no doubt that you play a major part in nurturing that reading culture; all the research shows that our reading habits are heavily influenced by the number of books in our childhood homes, by parents who read regularly to us in our earliest years and by the time and space that families set aside for reading. That said, I don’t think I will encounter much opposition to the notion that whatever your native language might happen to be - Mr Steven does a magnificent job in support of your efforts. What our Primary School libraries lack in space is more than countered by the warmth of their welcome, and it has to be a good sign when there always appear to be more books than there are shelves to accommodate them! Given that they get off to such a strong start, it is vital that our students are encouraged to build on those firm foundations as they move up through the school. It was with this in mind that, when it came to planning how we would use the additional space recently allocated to us at Showa, we were determined to make a new Secondary library the centre-piece. Just part-way through its first year, it is already proving its worth and Mr Bell is quickly establishing a young adult reading culture worthy of all Mr Steven’s early work. When I see how busy the library has become, when I chat to students about the range of books they have read, when I hear them talking about their favourite authors, I know that we are providing our students with an environment in which their love of reading can flourish. I promise that you simply have to walk down any corridor to see just how much books mean in a school like ours.

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PRINCIPAL CONT’D

SAKURA MEDAL Round about this time every year, reading takes on an even more central role in the life of the school as the annual Sakura Medal readathon nears its conclusion. Many of our families will already be familiar with titles such as Fog River, The Novice or Born a Crime, and perhaps some of you have read a few of them for yourselves. All I know is that the books from this year’s selection have been flying off the shelves, that some have generated a lot of classroom debate and that votes are coming in thick and fast. There are still a few weeks to go – I wonder how many more votes we can muster in the time that’s left to us? I am firmly of the opinion that the gift of reading is one of the most precious we can give our children. After all, it’s one that really can last a lifetime. Enjoy a good book this weekend! Brian Christian https://twitter.com/BST_Principal

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SECONDARY NEWS Dear Students and Parents,

It has been wonderful to see so many parents in school for different events this week. We had the PTA Coffee Morning on Monday, Year 11 Options Evening on Tuesday, an evening of 'Promoting Reading' on Wednesday and our Counsellors delivered a workshop for parents this morning on ‘Positive Discipline’. I am often asked by prospective parents, as I was yesterday, about what are the strengths of BST and I often find myself saying 'community'. We obviously have fabulously driven and thoughtful students, caring and hardworking teachers, but also such a supportive parental body who want to get involved with school life, find out more about their children's education and pose the right questions to help guide us to doing things even better. Obviously, the huge community event of the year is just around the corner and I look forward to see lots of people at the Spring Fair in two weeks’ time. Not to be outdone by their parents, our students have also been very busy. Our boys and girls High School basketball teams have been competing this week, leading up to the Finals this weekend. On Wednesday, a group of Key Stage 3 students took part in the MS Brain Bowl at St Mary's. The day saw them work in mixed teams, with peers from a range of international schools, to answer challenging, and fun questions from a plethora of subject areas. The atmosphere during the day was academic, enthusiastic and collaborative and was a great opportunity to exercise one's mind and make new friends. All students did well but a special mention should go to Rachel Bickle, whose team placed second overall. Some of our senior students participated in an MUN Conference at St. Mary's, alongside students from Seisen. They showed fantastic resilience and the ability to think on their feet by providing some of the best speeches of the evening, on the topic of the global legalisation of medicinal drugs. The skills gained by students from taking part in Model United Nations are wide ranging, as well as being a lot of fun, and I would encourage students to get involved, to make this a bigger activity here at BST.

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SECONDARY CONT’D SEAN MICHAEL WILSON Finally, our English Ambassadors have been busy all week working on a variety of activities and games to celebrate World Book Day, which was yesterday. We have been fortunate to have Sean Michael Wilson with us in school, an award winning manga writer, who has been working with our students and was interviewed by our Ambassadors in the Green Room, in the Green Hall, during Thursday's Assembly. I was also very pleased to award Claire Liersch our first Platinum House Point Certificate of the year. Claire has already accumulated 80 house points, and it was fitting to receive her award from Sean Michael yesterday.

It certainly appears that the weather is changing, as opposed to the UK, where snow is causing havoc. We have recently seen a lot of students wearing clothing that is not part of our school uniform and I am asking parents for their support in ensuring their children come to school appropriately dressed. School jumpers should bear the school logo and this does not include hooded tops or sports tops. Can we also ensure that all students wear formal black shoes. Please refer to the following link for a comprehensive guide to uniform guidelines: http://www.bst.ac.jp/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/BST-Uniform-Guide-20171013.pdf .

Thank you for your support in this matter. We look forward to Languages Week, Year 9 Tutorials, a French exchange for Year 7s and a Year 11 Physics Olympiad next week. Have a lovely weekend. Brian Platts https://twitter.com/BST_Secondary

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SECONDARY EVENTS Term 2.2 (2017-2018) Monday 5th March Languages week Y9 Tutorial Meetings Tuesday 6th March Y7 French School Exchange Day (Y7) 14:00 – 17:30 MS Boys ISTAA Basketball Tournament @ BST OLD GYM Friday 9th March Y11 Physics Olympiad Challenge Saturday 10th March Robotics Competition at Yokota MS 06:45 – 16:00 Primary and Secondary Swim Team March Age Group Championships Day 1 @ St.Mary's Sunday 11th March 06:45 – 16:00 Primary and Secondary Swim Team March Age Group Championships Day 2 @ St.Mary's

STUDENT MATHS COMPETITION

Downloadable flyer & details here - https://goo.gl/7eGBJG

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UKMT MATHS CHALLENGE RESULTS

Earlier in February, a record 121 BST students took part in the Intermediate Maths Challenge, a competition from the UK which is also entered by many schools worldwide, and aimed at students in Years 9-11. Each year there are around 200,000+ entries at this level, and the questions are designed to make students think more creatively about problem solving. As a result, there is no topic list or scheme of work, so questions can be asked on virtually anything within Maths. Awards are given out to the same percentage of participants each year, Gold to the top 6-7%, Silver to the next 13-14%, and Bronze to the next 20%, meaning that overall, 40% of participants win awards. This year we are delighted to announce that of our participants, 26 achieved Gold, 25 achieved Silver, and 28 achieved Bronze (in total, 65% of entries). Congratulations to the students Results here - https://goo.gl/6x5veH

PUZZLE OF THE WEEK British School in Tokyo - Puzzle of the Week Previous Solution: The water level will be lower. Solutions for the puzzle this week are due in by 9/3/2018 A pyramid of integers is constructed in such a way so that each “parent” has exactly 3 “children”. What number is the parent of 2017?

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ADVANCED MUSICIANS RECITAL

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FANTASY FOOTBALL

BST Fantasy Premier League round up: We’re getting to the crunch stage of the season and nobody seems able to reel in Primary’s Mr Norton. He has sat in pole position for 8 consecutive weeks, and, much like Man City, seems a cut above the chasing pack. The race for Champions League positions remains as competitive as ever, with just 30 points separating 2nd and 10th. Good luck for this weekend…

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PRIMARY NEWS Dear Primary Parents,

What a week of lively learning! BST was flooded with colourful book characters on Thursday for World Book Day. Each class was buzzing with discussion about our favourite books and characters. Our Year 5 staff came in character as their class book ‘Moon Bear’ and even received a response from the book’s author, Gill Lewis, on Twitter! She was thrilled to see her work not only being used, but being applied to its full potential as a base for our curriculum. Thank you to all of the parent help with costumes and also for helping us instil a love for books in your children - it was evident in their enthusiasm for the day. On Wednesday the Year 1 students celebrated their 100th day of being in Year 1. The day was celebrated with gusto, not only applying their numbers skills to discover many different ways to represent ‘100’ but also with creative snacks. Great to see our Year 1s showing how proud they are of their accomplishments so far. The PTA Spring Fair is flying towards us - Saturday 17th March – 11am-3pm. Our Spring Fair Team have been working very hard to make this year another success and I know that our families and staff are all looking forward to coming together to eat, drink and be generally spring-like. Whether you attend as a volunteer or as a family, we look forward to a day full of fun and laughter with you. Fingers crossed for some blue sky too! Looks like we are in for some warm weather this weekend. Hope you can get outside and enjoy it. Warm wishes, Kirsten O’Connor https://twitter.com/BST_Primary Page 10 of 19

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PRIMARY SPRING CONCERT

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PRIMARY NEWSLETTERS Nursery Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/nursery-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Reception Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/reception-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Year 1 Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/year-1-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Year 2 Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/year-2-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Year 3 Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/year-3-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Year 4 Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/year-4-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Year 5 Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/year-5-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/ Year 6 Newsletter http://www.bst.ac.jp/year-6-news-friday-2nd-march-2018/

RE & PHILOSOPHY

RE and Philosophy at BST What religious celebrations take place this week? Holi is TODAY for those of Hindu faith. Lent continues for those of Christian faith. Here is a philosophical question for you to wonder over...

What is beauty? Page 12 of 19

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PTA

CALL FOR PARENT AND SECONDARY STUDENT VOLUNTEERS! The Spring Fair committee is asking for volunteers from the BST community to help out with games, toys & cake stalls on Saturday 17th March 2018. Simple to use electronic sign-up forms have been sent to the BST community. These sign up forms sheets will explain where volunteers are needed and what they will be required to do. You can sign up for as many timeslots as you would like but even one hour of your time will be invaluable and much appreciated. Many hands make light work! If you have any questions in the meantime, please feel free to contact the Spring Fair committee at [email protected] As always, thank you very much for your continued support.

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BRITISH SWEET DONATIONS NEEDED

Email [email protected]

BOOK DONATIONS NEEDED Twelve of our Y11 students had the experience of a lifetime when they visited our partner school in Dor. Staying in the village, they taught lessons and met the villagers. To continue to raise money for this incredible community, the second hand book sale will be happening again at the Spring Fair. Over 100,000¥ was raised last year so please support this cause again by having a Spring clear out and bringing in your books.

They can be dropped off at either Reception Desk at Showa or Shibuya Campus.

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SPRING FAIR

BST PTA is sponsored by Azabu Gardens, a Pembroke property. https://www.azabugardens.com/ Page 15 of 19

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PTA TOURS Monday 5th March – SHIBUYA TOUR Monica & Sandra PTA Tours will be leading a tour for anyone who would like to explore around the Shibuya Campus. The tour will visit Takeshita Dori, Omotesando Dori, Oriental Bazaar, and Starbucks Omotesando with a hopeful view of Mount Fuji on the day. The Shibuya Tour departs from the Shibuya Foyer at 8.50am Please email your attendance to: PTA Tours [email protected]

UPCOMING TOUR Tuesday 13th March – Mount Takao – Hiking Tour - by Sanae& Riko Please email [email protected] if you are interested in joining

BST PTA is sponsored by Azabu Gardens, a Pembroke property. https://www.azabugardens.com/

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UPCOMING PTA TOURS Tuesday 13th March – MOUNT TAKAO HIKING TOUR Sanae & Riko PTA Tours will be leading a tour Please email your attendance to: PTA Tours [email protected]

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COMMUNITY EVENTS

1ST TOKYO SCOUTS NEEDS HELP

1st Tokyo Scouts are urgently needing leaders to help run their Cub and Beaver Pack due to their leader returning back to the U.K. If you’re interested, please get in touch as the pack will have to close at the end of this term if we can’t find anyone. [email protected] Page 18 of 19

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COTO JAPANESE CLUB

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