The New Half Term

The half term break certainly recharged batteries as the first week back has been busy and productive. Week one of this half term began with so many successes and achievements across the School: Outstanding Pearson Learner Awards winners announced, Sixth Form Leadership Team appointed, successful PE and Sport workshops took place in the Junior School, a successful MedCup trip returned safely and the Foundation Stage had very happy Meg and Mog characters visiting - read further in this week’s Bulletin. 

Student Leadership

Following an intensive and rigorous round of application, assessment and interviews, BISC proudly presents the Student Leadership Team:

Head of Academics: Noureldeen  

Deputy Head of Academics: Karim 

Head of Community: Haya 

Deputy Head of Community: Zeina 

The selection process had to be intensive due to the strong field of applicants. Very well done to all those who applied, and congratulations to the successful candidates who, we are sure, will continue the excellent work and example of the current leadership team. 

The new Student Leadership Team will be working with me directly on key areas of improvement across the School, including kindness and anti bullying strategies, mentoring and community events. 

Our thanks and appreciation to the outgoing team, who have served BISC well and will continue to do so as they support, mentor and formally handover. Well done to: 

Head of Academics: Ahmed M

Head of Community: Youssef S 

Head of Enrichment: Noor 

Outstanding Pearson Learner Awards

Every year, Pearson Edexcel recognises and celebrates learners around the world who achieve outstanding academic results in their GCSE examinations. The Outstanding Pearson Learner Awards (OPLAs) are presented to students in each exam series who have achieved the highest subject mark in their country, in the region, and around the world. 

We were delighted to announce that four of our students achieved the Outstanding Pearson Learner Awards for their results in the 2022/2023 examination series:

• Cyrine in Year 12 - Highest mark in the world for GCSE Italian and highest mark in Africa for IGCSE French 
• Yassine in Year 12 - Highest mark in Egypt for IGCSE Further Pure Mathematics
• Ali A in Year 12 - Highest mark in Egypt for IGCSE Spanish
• Amena in Year 10 - Highest mark in Africa for GCSE Arabic

These students will be invited to a special presentation event later this term, and will receive formal certificates from Pearson. We look forward to celebrating their success within our School community. Congratulations!

Winter Uniform

The winter uniform is now available in the uniform shop. Students should now be in full school uniform. Please note that we will not allow any other hoodies to be worn. We also request that parents please ensure that students have, and are wearing, their ties everyday.

Cairo Jazz Festival

On Friday, our school Jazz band had the honour of performing at the Cairo Jazz Festival, at the AUC Downtown campus. As well as performing their songs to a professional standard with flair and polish, our students took part in a workshop with renowned Jazz musician Yumi Ito and her band. The audience were enthusiastic and supportive and showed great appreciation for our amazingly talented students - Youssef and Ali, Davide and Daniele, Mariam, Almante, Mansour, Zaid and Ali A. 

Well done everyone - you made BISC proud!

Years 9, 11 and 12 Progress Reports

Year 7 Geography

Year 7 Geography students were busy creating their own desert island maps using skills they have been learning about this year. They had to create their own island and use six figure grid references, scales and other important skills to plot where they had buried the treasure. We were presented with some very colourful and interesting maps.

Year 7 Spanish

This week, Year 7 students enjoyed a Spanish lesson dedicated to exploring how they use their mobile phones to learn a language. Students shared their experiences and insights, and the class engaged in interactive activities that tested their vocabulary and improved their language skills. The students left the class with newfound knowledge and a deeper appreciation for how their mobile phones can aid in language acquisition.

Year 10 Biology

Year 10 Biology students have been building models to complement their understanding of the microscopic structure of a leaf. This has enabled them to question the use of models to represent our knowledge in Biology (questions that may be on the mind of a future TOK student) as well as helping to consolidate their learning of the GCSE syllabus. Students often find microscopy difficult so a ‘hands on’ activity enables deeper engagement and is a way of differentiating for students who like to learn in different ways.

Readers of the Week

Maryam in Year 7 has read six books so far this school year. But being a successful reader is not all about the quantity of books read. It is also important to read books that challenge and improve our reading skills, vocabulary, and our knowledge of the world. Maryam actively seeks out and selects books from a range of genres and has not been afraid to try very advanced reading material. She then makes independent informed decisions about what she should read. This has been a very successful strategy for her and she is achieving great results. Well done, Maryam!

When Yassin from Year 8 gets into a book, his enthusiasm is contagious. He was so clearly engaged by his most recent book that lots of other people now want to read it too, myself included! Yassin is also a great team player and chose to stay in the library at break time to help record the whole class reading achievements on our display board. 

Carma in Year 9 has been consistently successful with reading since she first started Accelerated Reader several years ago. She has developed her own strategies for selecting reading material, meaning that she has total independence regarding her reading and book choices. Carma always sets a perfect example of calm and focused reading during our lessons. The result of Carma’s excellent attitude is that she exceeded her first reading target with ease and is well on the way to reaching her next target already. 

Well done to the following students, who scored 100% on book quizzes this week:

Year 7: Karma, Linda 

Year 8: Elias, Hussein, Magdalina, Amina, Yassin E, Omar G, Yassin H, Daniella, Laila and Tony 

MedCup

During the half term break, our Year 11 students competed in the MedCup in Italy. We were pleased to hear from organisers, referees and staff that our coaches and teams represented the School positively throughout the competitions. It was great to hear of the spirit and efforts of our teams, even if results didn't always go their way.

A thank you to both captains, Rokaya and Ammar, for leading by example and for supporting the whole team. We are proud of the teamwork displayed by all, with congratulations to Ammar for his award as Best Player and to Salem for his award for Top Goalscorer of the tournament.

Egypt & Middle East Programme - Guest Author 

في إطار برنامج مصر والشرق الأوسط، سيلتقي طلاب الصف الثاني عشر، يوم الاثنين الموافق 6 نوفمبر، بالكاتب والصحفي "عمر طاهر" ليناقش معهم بعض كتبه وتأملاته في المجتمع المصري المعاصر. عمر طاهر قام بتأليف العديد من الكتب والتي من أشهرها "صنايعية مصر" و "شكلها باظت" و" إذاعة الأغاني". هذا وتتميز كتابات عمر طاهر وبرامجه التلفزيونية بالأسلوب الساخر والحس الكوميدي 

As part of our Egypt & Middle East Programme, Year 12 students will meet the author and journalist Omar Taher to discuss his books and hear his reflections on the contemporary Egyptian Society.

Modern Arab League

في يوم الأربعاء ١٨ أكتوبر، ناقش طلاب نموذج جامعة الدول العربية القضية الفلسطينية. بدأت الجلسة بتعريف الطلاب بتاريخ القضية الفلسطينية، وقرارات الأمم المتحدة، ثم تم إجراء جلسة تدريبية mock session، مثَّل فيها الطلاب دول عربية، ودول أوروبية بصفتها مراقب.

On Wednesday 18th October, students enrolled in the Model Arab League at BISC met to discuss the Palestinian cause. The session started by presenting the milestones the Palestinians have been through in the past century. After that, students held a mock session where they acted as delegates, representing some Arab countries, and some European countries were invited as observers.

Sporting Achievements

Congratulations to Tamara in Year 11 who won third place in the Mediterranean Cup Gymnastics Team Competition.

House Competition Results Term 1A

Congratulations to House Fire for achieving first place overall for the first half term! The ranking is determined by a combination of sports and arts competitions, positive behaviour points, the least amount of negative points, and attendance.

It is commendable that House Fire has excelled in all these areas. We look forward to seeing how they will continue to maintain their position heading into the second half of the term. Well done, House Fire!

Upcoming Events

Final Reminder: Carers' Authorisation to Pick Up Form

For the safety and security of our Junior School students, we need to be informed of the people who are authorised to pick them up from school.

Please fill in the information on this form accurately and attach a clear photo per individual. Please select a minimum of two carers to pick your child up and a maximum of three.

If you do not have a clear photograph for the authorised pickup, we are offering assistance to take the photographs. Staff will be available from Sunday to Wednesday next week from 08:00 - 09:00 and 14:00 - 15:00 at Gate 1.

Please note: The final deadline for this is Sunday 12th November.

Today we displayed the artwork created during Arts Week for parents to view. All the individual pieces of art were inspired by music, using a variety of mediums, such as paint, collage, drawings and oil pastels to represent the music in abstract and lifelike ways. 

Reading Success

Reading continues to be a priority across the Junior School and we continually promote a love of books. Children across KS1 and KS2 have been accomplishing great reading achievements, and we are looking forward to many more during this half term. We are celebrating the following children in KS1 because of their efforts and enthusiasm towards reading:

Yehia (1E), Cecilia (1N), Sina (1J), Lyra (1H), Ali (2F), Hamza (2L), Aly (2B) and Hana (2C)

In KS2, the following children have read the most words in their class.  We are expecting an abundance of word millionaires this year!

Adam (6F), Yusef (6M), Elvin (6W), Laila (6F), Hannah (5W), Rafea (5B), John (5S), Sana (4D), Rayan (4T), Noor (4B) Mourad (4E), Selim (3F), Adam (3B), Mourad (3M), Fuad (3O).

Year 5 Arabic History

Egyptian culture is famous for a variety of unique and beautiful handmade products. Native and non-native pupils in Year 5 learnt about some of the traditional handicrafts in their Arabic History class, including the simple weaving carpet method. 

Creative Arts Week Video

Before half term, and to celebrate Creative Arts Week, Year 6 pupils collaborated on a giant collage in the Junior School Quad. 

Check out the time lapse video below that shows the process from start to finish!

PE Parents' Workshop

The PE department held a Junior School Parents’ Workshop to showcase how parents could help their children at home with the skills they learn during their PE lessons. 

Mr Yaqub demonstrated a range of activities for parents to try, which highlighted the skills that are used in the MOBAK skills tests. These tests are used to assess the pupils’ skills and areas for development, in order to further improve our pupils at BISC. Thank you to all parents who attended.

Sporting Achievements

Well done to Sharifa in Year 4, who won two gold medals at the National Gymnastics Championships final training rehearsals recently.

Kindness Week 2023

This year we have decided to replace 'Anti-bullying Week' with 'Kindness Week'. Beginning on Sunday 12th November, pupils will be involved in various activities including: wearing odd socks, making 'Kindness is Contagious' videos, visiting and working with Buddy Classes, learning a new Wake-up, Shake-up routine, and more. 

We will also be inviting parents to create kindness-themed art with their children. These workshops will take place over Tuesday 14th, Wednesday 15th and Thursday 16th November; further details will be sent to you early next week. 

There will also be the annual 'Blue' mufti day on Thursday 16th November. We all look forward to a great week of positivity and kindness spreading throughout our community!

Upcoming Dates

The Foundation Stage pupils have been telling their teachers about the places they visited or the people they met during the half term break. It sounds like a good time was had by all!

This second half of the term is generally a time when we see the FS children begin to show their full potential and observe some obvious progress. They are mostly fully settled, aware of the classroom routines and ready for learning.

It is starting to get colder, especially in the mornings, so to ensure that children maintain good health and attendance please make sure they are wearing suitable clothes.

Final Reminder: Carers' Authorisation to Pick Up Form

For the safety and security of our Foundation Stage pupils, we need to be informed of the people who are authorised to pick them up from school.

Please fill in the information on this form accurately and attach a clear photo per individual. Please select a minimum of two carers to pick your child up and a maximum of three.

If you do not have a clear photograph for the authorised pickup, we are offering assistance to take the photographs. Staff will be available from Sunday to Wednesday next week from 08:00 - 09:00 and 14:00 - 15:00 at Gate 1.

Please note: The final deadline for this is Sunday 12th November.

Foundation Stage One

FS1 had an exciting first week back. The children were very busy during Meg and Mog Week. Each class spent time completing a different activity with the FS1 teachers. In Ms Cashman’s room, they made spooky sandwiches; with Miss Younis, they made scary crafts; and with Miss Blackwood, they made potions. We ended Meg and Mog week with jelly and story time in the nature garden. 

The children also had their first Teddy Tennis lesson; it was a great success.

Foundation Stage Two

It was great to see children dressed in costumes for Meg and Mog Day. Children enjoyed a range of craft activities and had lots of fun.

We learnt the letter sounds j, v, w, and x. Next week, we will learn about our local area. Children will draw simple maps and share facts about places of interest.

If parents would like copies of any of the photos you have seen in the Bulletin, please email s706@bisc.edu.eg.

Keeping our students safe online is a priority at BISC. We are happy to share advice from the Safeguarding Training Centre, to enable parents to understand the pros and cons of various social media, games and digital trends.

This week we are sharing tips about WhatsApp.