Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

The spirit of Christmas very much enveloped the campus this week. Parent art workshops, open mics, celebration assemblies, hot chocolate and visits to Santa’s Grotto resulted in a wonderful end to a very busy term. There were many poignant moments but perhaps the messages of peace and hope penned to Palestinian children by Senior School students, all week, really embodied the season’s spirit of the BISC community. 

Thank you to everyone for their support during this busy term. So much has been achieved, and there is so much to celebrate. Wishing everyone a peaceful Christmas and Happy New Year.

Term 2 Dates

A reminder that term 2 begins on Monday 8th January 2024.

You can find more information about this academic year’s dates on our website, following this link: https://www.bisc.edu.eg/term-dates.html

BISC Uniform - Next Phase 

Thank you to everyone for their support in embedding the new uniform this term. We have made significant progress in this area and students are looking very smart, professional and comfortable in their new uniform. As a reminder, students must wear their ties every day please. 

In our next phase of improving standards, all students will be expected to wear the BISC blazer to School, every day, from Monday 8th January 2024. Please can all parents ensure that students have this blazer ready for the new term.

As a reminder, the full BISC uniform, which is shared in the Parent Handbook, can be found below. In addition to the BISC jumper and blazer, students can also wear the gilet to keep warm. Your support is greatly appreciated. 

I am also pleased to announce that as part of our commitment to raising standards, all BISC pupils will be gifted with a parka jacket (see below) once they purchase a BISC blazer. Pupils will be able to claim this gift from the 8th of January 2024. This jacket can be worn on top of the blazer, to provide additional warmth, but must not be used as a substitute for the blazer. 

Open Mic Concerts

This week, the Senior School celebrated music at BISC with Open Mic Concerts during break time. A wide variety of music was performed with a Christmas theme, and Wednesday was a special celebration of Arabic Language Day, where students performed a variety of Arabic music.

We are very proud of all the students involved - their talent and creativity shines through in all that they do and they have spread some joy and happiness to finish the term! Take a moment to watch the four daily concerts on the links below.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday 

In order to raise the profile of positives in school, we introduced a scheme at the start of this half term to encourage students to take more responsibility for their own attitude and approach to learning and improve the culture by striving for a positive learning environment in our classrooms and around the School. Well done to 7LW and 8GW; the two classes won a Mufti Day for having three Secret Students winners this term!

The winning Secret Students this week are:

Stars of the Week

Year 7 - Makram M for showing great application within his academic studies in recent weeks, as well as for making an extra effort to ensure his conduct meets the standards that we hold high at BISC.

Year 8 - Lara I for the extra effort she has given in achieving her goals.

Year 9 - Nour EA for volunteering to help her Head of Year with the Celebration Assembly. 

Key Stage 4 - Maya G and Mokhtar Z

Key Stage 5 - Kila E, Hana C, Ahmed I and Ronza K

Celebration Assemblies

We were excited to share with you the joy of recognising our students' achievements and milestones through Celebration Assemblies this week. These assemblies are a special time for us to come together as a school community and acknowledge the hard work, dedication, and accomplishments of our students.

During the Celebration Assemblies, we highlighted various achievements, including academic accomplishments, students who embody our IB Learner Attributes, and more. This was a time to recognise the diverse talents and efforts of our students, fostering a sense of pride and community spirit.

We would like to thank our parents for joining us during these assemblies and we look forward to welcoming you back in June for an End of Year celebration. Photos can be found below.

Year 7   -   Year 8   -   Year 9   -   Key Stage 4 

Library News 

We have had a fantastic term of reading in Senior School! Altogether, our Year 7, 8 and 9 students have read over 25,000,000 words since the start of the school year! Year 7 students have been our most prolific readers, reading an average of 4 books each. 

Many of our students have made us proud this year with their excellent approach to expanding their reading interests and developing their skills. Here are our top two readers for each year group:

Year 7

Linda L has made several appearances in the bulletin already this year for her reading. She is our first and so far only 'word millionaire' and is unrivalled in both the quality and quantity of her reading record. 

Khalifa H has achieved fantastic results through reading this term, by reading through 9 books with 92% accuracy on the book quizzes.

Year 8

Omar G, as always, has spent all term ahead of target for reading. In fact, he has already completed his term 2 reading target! Once again, Omar has made his favourite reads of this term so popular with his year group, we have long since run out of stock. Well done Omar for being an all round champion of reading!

Dacil has read her way through 4 books during our first reading target period, despite this being her first term using Accelerated Reader. Well done Dacil!

Year 9

Seif AH has helped many other readers this term by recommending the books that he has enjoyed reading. He has completed his second reading target of the school year already. Seif is always ready to take on new reading challenges and makes careful, informed decisions about his reading material. 

Mostafa S is undaunted by any amount of advanced reading. I have tested this by handing him some of the longest books in the library, which he has taken away to read without question, and has returned them with 100% book quiz results. 

These students all set a fantastic example of how to use reading to gain skills, whilst spending time doing something educational, enjoyable, and a great mindful exercise too. But well done to everyone. It has been fantastic to see so many students really enjoying their reading this term!

A round of applause for our stellar U16 volleyball teams, who both emerged victorious at the CISSA tournament last weekend, claiming undefeated champions titles! Both the boys’ and girls' squads displayed exceptional teamwork, skill and determination throughout the competition. Congratulations to both teams on an impressive and well-deserved victory! More photos here.

On Monday 18 December, Year 12 students welcomed Ms. Mona Elshayeb, a distinguished radio and TV presenter who worked for "Nile News" and "BBC Arabic" channels. She is also the founder of the podcast "Memory of the Senses". Samples of the podcast episodes were presented to students during the workshop; sparking ideas related to senses and the memories they evoke, in preparation for creating a distinctive Year 12 podcast episode. The workshop helped students gain insight into the various types of podcasts and their objectives. More photos here.

In celebration of World Arabic Language Day, Year 10 students had the privilege of meeting the author and illustrator Rania Husain Amin, renowned for her contributions to young adult literature, and founder of the "Farhana Series". During the workshop, students actively engaged in character development and generating ideas, drawing their inspiration from modernised Arabic proverbs to write their own stories. The workshop presented an enriching cultural and educational experience; broadening students' horizons and fostering their enthusiasm to explore and polish their own writing skills. School inviting this talented writer to share her journey in the realms of writing and creativity was such an inspiring experience.

مشروع تبادل البطاقات البريدية

عمل طلاب الصف السابع والصف الثامن وبعض طلاب الصف التاسع بحماس على كتابة بطاقات بريدية باللغة العربية لطلاب في نفس العمر في المدرسة الدولية للمجتمع في عَمَّان، وذلك احتفالًا بيوم اللغة العربية، وضمن مشروع تبادل البطاقات البريدية بين طلاب خمسة مدارس دولية. بذل الطلاب جهداً في تصميم البطاقات، واختيار الصور التي تعكس الثقافة المصرية، وكتابة رسائل لزملائهم في عَمَّان حول مختلف المواضيع التي تتعلق بالمواد الدراسية. نتوقع أن نتلقى عددًا من البطاقات من المدرسة نفسها، خلال فترة الإجازة، ليتلقاها طلابنا بعد العطلة

Our Years 7 and 8, and some Year 9 students were enthusiastically involved in the creation of postcards, written in Arabic, for students of corresponding ages at the International Community School of Amman, Jordan. They invested commendable effort crafting the cards, carefully selecting images that represent Egyptian culture, and expressing thoughts to their pen pals about various topics related to their studies. We anticipate and look forward to receiving a collection of cards from the same school over the holiday break.

Upcoming Events

Santa’s Grotto

Santa brought the magic of Christmas alive to the Junior School children this week, as he met each of them in the beautifully decorated Junior School Library Grotto. It was wonderful to see the children’s enjoyment as they each met with him and received a gift; Santa now knows who has been naughty and nice!

Click the link below to download photos of your child's class:

Parent Workshops

A wonderful festive atmosphere was created during a wide range of Parent Workshops in Junior School this week. Parents enjoyed making calendars, Christmas cards, Christmas ornaments, and more, as part of the activities on offer.

Thank you to everyone for supporting this workshop, and we know the children were delighted to share this special time with their family members. See the photos taken on the link below.

Year 5 Exit Point

Year 5 pupils had the chance to work with their parents on adding the finishing touches to their Viking Longboats. They have spent seven weeks designing, building, sawing, sanding, measuring and much more! Now is the time for these incredible projects to set sail! Let’s hope they do not sink! More photos here.

Writing Enrichment

Year 6 pupils have been delving into the realms of creativity in the recent Writing Enrichment sessions, showcasing their exceptional independence and fervour for storytelling. These budding authors have crafted mesmerising narratives, with vivid imagery and imaginative plots. Their determination to refine their writing skills is evident in the intricate worlds they have woven, demonstrating a profound commitment to becoming even better writers. 

Junior School Assembly

The Junior School Christmas Assembly was a great showcase of some of the musical activities the children have performed this term. It included a band performance, a Nutcracker performance from Class 1H, a visit from Santa, a dance from a selection of teachers, and lots of Christmas songs. It was great to hear everyone joining in with their brilliant singing. See more photos here.

Sporting Achievements 

Well done to Laila in 2C, Sarah in 3M and Suleima in 4E, who won gold medals at the recent Egyptian Gymnastics Competition.

Year 6: Senior School Entry Examination

As discussed during our Parent Curriculum meetings at the start of the year, and published in the School calendar, I am writing to confirm that Year 6 will be sitting the Year 7 Senior School entrance examinations week beginning Sunday 25th February 2024. A detailed programme will be issued nearer to the date. 

These will be assessments in English, Maths, and Science. The assessments will be provided and assessed externally, so are standardised against the UK national average results. They are skills based, designed to measure a pupil’s progress through the Junior School curriculum. The questions in these papers tend to also assess pupils’ ability to apply their knowledge to new situations. There is no need to revise or prepare for these assessments, and they only form one part of the overall profile of the pupils’ academic and personal progress through the Junior School. Further details will be published post the Christmas break.

Arabic Drama Mini Production

نشاط الدراما باللغة العربية يقدم عرضاً مصغراً

.قدم طلاب نشاط الدراما باللغة العربية عرضاً مصغراً يوم الإثنين 18 ديسمبر على مسرح المدرسة 

بالإضافة إلى تقديم مشهد، كنبذة دعائية عن العرض الذي سيتم تقديمه في الفصل الدراسي القادم، قدم كل من الطلاب أمام الجمهور مونولوج عن فرد من أسرتهم أو عن نشاط أسري يستمتعون به

"في انتظار العرض الكامل في الفصل الدراسي القادم تحت عنوان مستر "كوكب

Pupils of the Arabic Drama After School Activity had a mini production in the Theatre on Monday. In addition to staging a scene from the main production that they will produce next term, each one of them performed a monologue where they talked about a family member or a family activity that they liked. We hope to see the full production entitled “Mr Planet” next term. See more photos here.

Arabic Poetry by Year 4 and Year 6 Pupils 

During the celebrations of Arabic Language Day, Year 4 and Year 6 pupils were asked to write poems in Arabic. We thank all those who worked hard to find the right words. 

!طلاب الصف الرابع والسادس يكتبون شعراً باللغة العربية 

في سياق أنشطة الاحتفال بيوم اللغة العربية، قام طلاب الصف الرابع والسادس بكتابة بيوت شعر للتمرن على اللغة العربية، وفيما يلي عينة من أشعارهم. شكراً لهم

 حب مصر في قلبي

وشعري وألحاني

مصر هي أمي

أراها في رسمي وألواني

تاليا ع.ا

أمي رمز الحنان

يا وردة في البستان

تحب تلبس فستان

ايان

أنا أعيش في الإسكندرية

وأحب الملوخية

سافرت إلى السعودية

وارتديت جلابية

حمزة ا.ف

أنا إنسان أحب البستان والحيوان

أسقي العطشان بمياه الوديان

لا أترك شخصاً غضبان

لن أترك شخصاً جوعان

زين ج.

El-Leila El-Kebira Puppet Show

On Sunday 17 December, pupils from FS1 to Year 2 attended the puppet show performance "El-Leila El-Kebira" in the Theatre. The show featured several artists from the National Puppet Theatre; it was captivating and engaging, providing our students with a new experience, aimed at enhancing their connection to the Arabic language and Egyptian culture. See more photos here.

Upcoming Dates

Foundation Stage One

FS1 pupils took part in an array of Christmas activities this week and did a wonderful job performing Jingle Bells! In the spirit of the season, all of the Foundation Stage One team would like to extend our heartfelt wishes for a peaceful winter break and a happy new year. The children had a great first term and adapted smoothly to their new environment. We look forward to welcoming them back in the new year! 

Foundation Stage Two

FS2 pupils spent a busy week preparing for the holidays. Festive activities included Christmas crafts, a visit to Santa's Grotto and hot chocolate in the Nature Garden.

Next term, our phonics programme resumes with phase 3 sounds. Children have a booklet to practise their reading skills during the holidays. Please log in to Bug Club if your child would like to access the online library.

Next term, the children will embark on the topic of Sea, Land and Sky.

Santa's Grotto

Please click the link below to see photos of your children in Santa's Grotto.

Jingle Bells Performance

Please enjoy this video of FS performing Jingle Bells together. Thanks to Ms Veronica, Ms Tatiana and all our teachers for bringing this to life.

Upcoming Events