Download it - The British School of Bahrain

24 th March 2011
Dear BSB Parents,
Due to the unstable situation in Bahrain and our school closure last week, I was unable to do my usual
weekly newsletter. I’ve decided to do a shortened newsletter today to record and share reports of some of
the events that took place earlier this month and to bring you up to date with what’s been happening at
school this week.
It is still our intention to reopen school on Sunday, 27 th March, for all year groups and I will send out a
final confirmation of that on Saturday afternoon. Please check our website regularly for updates.
Campoz Dubai Football Tournament
On Thursday, 3 rd March, three teams from the BSB travelled to Dubai to participate in the Campoz
football tournament. An U19 boys team coached by Mr. Wayne Ridgway, an U17 seven aside girls team
coached by Mr. Paul Millington and Mr. Claus Hansen and an U19 girls seven aside team coached by Mr.
Martin Drennan. The boys played hard matches against some tough opposition on both days. Their best
result and most popular was a win against St. Christopher's "A" side. The team was lead admirably by
Ben Rodney from 11R. The U19 girls’ team fought hard every match but were unfortunately outclassed
by the other teams in their groups. Sara Al Yushaa was formidable in defence and Mehnaz Ahmed was
excellent as goalkeeper. The U17 team, however, were more successful. Their success is more formidable
in that they are all year 9 students. There was no compatible tournament for their age groups but both
coaches believed they were more than capable in competing against older students and this proved to be
true. Lead by captain Alicia Van Der Meer, the team won their tournament outright with outstanding skill
and determination. Malak Bahbaz was consistently strong in defence and as keeper Anna Hansen was
head and shoulders above any competition. They proudly brought another trophy home to the BSB.
Thanks to Mr Hansen for the photographs.
Sports’ Day
Sports’ day was held for the first time in two years on Thursday, 10 th March at the Rugby Club. There
were 12 events in all, 4 track and 8 field. The day started at 9.00 a.m. and there was non-stop action from
the start. The 100m saw some exciting races, but probably the best race of the day was the sixth form
400m race, which saw Josh Hayward just pip Zan Moolman to first place. There were also some exciting
scores in the field events with Jean-Marc Marais throwing the short javelin further than anyone on the
day. Mr.Furness and Dominic Truman kept everyone entertained with musical compilations from a
variety of artists and those not competing supported their houses in all events. Although Griffin
dominated the supporters club with banners and flags, all houses had their face painted and were cheering
to their best. The highlight was Ms. Raju running with the cuddly dragon in order to increase her house's
competitiveness. It seemed to work as the final result saw Dragon house captains Josh Hayward and

Sarah Wanniarachchi, awarded the house cup from Mrs. Moffat, after all first-placed athletes had
received their medals. A fabulous day was had by all and it could not have happened without the support
of the BSB staff that helped run the events.
Postponed events and activities
Unfortunately, we have had to postpone some of the events we had planned for this month, such as
‘Skipping for Joy’, The Boxtones, Character Day and Red Nose Day. We have also postponed all the
Parent/Teachers meetings planned for the Infants’ and Juniors’ this week and next. We are hoping to
reschedule most of these events when we get back to normal which will, hopefully, be next week. We
will let you know our plans after we’ve been back in school for a couple of days next week. We will also
put after-school activities and clubs on hold for a day or two after school resumes next week and we’ll let
you know about the new schedule for them too.
School Re-opening this week
As you know, we reopened school in phases this week. All year groups, except Years 7 and 8, attended
school today, and, if the students I spoke with are representative of their peers, they’ve had a productive
and enjoyable day.

BSB wikispaces
For those of our students who are not able to be here in person, we hope they are still at school on the
BSB wikispaces. It is important that all our students keep up with their learning.
We created wikispaces accounts for our students and provided them with login information. Some
students have had difficulty logging in to their accounts because they have not followed the instructions.
Usernames are case sensitive so the capital letters are important. If students cannot login they must not
send a membership request to join the site, they need to send an email requesting help to
spittald@thebsbh.com
Making up for missed time
The Leadership Team and I have devised a plan to make up for all the time that has been lost in the
Juniors’ and Seniors' and we will be sharing that with you soon. We are completely confident that the
instability of the past weeks will have minimal impact on your children's education and that the
examination students will be as well prepared for their examinations as they would have been under
normal circumstances. We will publish our plan next week but I can let you know now that it will not
involve changing either the dates of the Easter holiday of the end of the school year.
Year 11 Art Examination Students
The Year 11 Art Examination begins on Sunday 3 rd April, running for the entire week. The recent
disruption to school has seriously reduced the amount of supervised examination preparation time, so, in
order to make up for lost time, Mrs Ridgway is proposing to offer an extra art lesson on Saturday 26 th
March, from 9.00 a.m. – 2.00 p.m. in B9. It is strongly recommended that students attend this session
because there is very little time remaining before the examination. This is a 5-hour session in order for
students to complete their exam preparation work that has been in progress over the last 7 weeks.
Students must be in class and ready to begin working at 9.00 a.m. Please note that this is not a ‘drop-in’
session for students to come and go as they please, attendance is required for the entire session. All
students should be dropped off and collected promptly. As the school cafeteria will not be open, students
will need to bring their own food and drink.
Dates for your diary
Saturday 26 th March
Monday 28 th March
Wednesday 20 th April – Monday 2 nd May
Sunday 29 th May – Thursday 2 nd June
Thursday 7 th July
Y11 Examination Extra Art Lesson
Y2 Movie Matinee
Spring holiday
Summer mid-term break
Last day of summer term
Best wishes
Karen Moffat
Acting Director

24 th March 2011
Dear Parents,
Thank you to the parents who attended the last monthly meeting. It was a very productive meeting with lots of
decisions made and future events confirmed. The full detailed meeting minutes follow this newsletter, but I will
highlight some key items below. Next month’s meeting will be held on Monday, 4th April at 8:15 a.m. in the
school cafeteria.
Elections for 2011-2012 Academic Year BSB Friends Executive Committee
This will take place during the May meeting, currently scheduled for Monday, 16th May. Any interested person
must be nominated and seconded. If there is more than one person interested in any position then a ballot will be
drawn. The Executive Committee must have a minimum of 8 members, 4 of which are designated by our
constitutions:
• Chair
• Vice Chair
• Treasurer
• Secretary
The 4 other positions are flexible and typically consist of parents playing an organisational role in one or more of
the Friends main activities. This year, for example those members consisted of our Class Link Co-ordinators, Cake
Raffle/Bake Sales Co-ordinator, Movie Matinee Co-ordinators. It has also been discussed that having a member
focused on communication for the Friends would be very helpful! If you have an interest in being a member of the
Executive Committee for the 2011-2012 academic year, please contact any of the current Executive Committee
members for further information.
Spending Committee
Work is progressing nicely. Quotes are coming in for both the playground and a sound system for the school. It
was recommended to the committee that we seek the assistance of a QS (Quantity Surveyor) to review any quotes
on the playground and help us ensure our monies are spent wisely. If there are parents out there willing to help us
in that capacity, please contact Clauss (39950699).
Future Events
• Parents Night Out - A Dinner and Quiz Night – 14 th April from 7:30 p.m.. Details to follow closer to the event.
• Lost Paradise of Dilmun Family Fun Day – 28 th May - More details to follow closer to the event.
Cake Raffle
BD 44.900 was raised at the last cake raffle - thank you very much to everyone who contributed!
Congratulations to our winners: Dawn (6D), Kyle Castellino (RGG), Ali Al Qattan (RJ)
Many thanks to our volunteers who make it possible:
Bakers: Gabby Dellasandra, Nadia Zuchelli, Tara Thawley
Ticket Sales: Debbie Bentley, Jill Haines, Orayb Abubshaib, Susanne Chabara, and Maysa Qasem
Carey is still in need of volunteers to help sell raffle tickets this term!! If you can help, please contact her at
sistercarey@hotmail.com or 36581074. Many thanks!
Second-hand School Uniforms
You can purchase second-hand uniforms at anytime by calling any of the following volunteers: Rebecca Myles
(39407210) or Pip Smith (39415974).

BSB Merchandise is available for purchase in the Infant and Junior/Senior Reception.
2011 BSB Self Portrait Calendars -March Madness - NOW BD2 - children’s self-portraits from Reception through
to Year 6 are captured in this colourful calendar. With Infants on one side and Juniors on the other, each child has
their self-portrait shown in their birthday month!
• Car Window Sun Visors - 2.5 BD - these blue and silver car sun visors have the BSB emblem on the front and
come in a handy pouch for easy storage.
• Lanyards - 1.5 BD - handy for hanging your parent card when coming into the school
• Hair Ribbons - 2 BD - dark blue, light blue and white ribbons attached to a pony tail holder.
• Hair Bands - 1.5 BD - come in 4 colours: Dark Blue, Light Blue, White & Blue/White Stripes
Warm regards
Clauss Niazi
Friends of BSB Chair

Friends of BSB
Monthly General Meeting
7 th March 2011, 7:30pm, BSB Cafeteria
Meeting Minutes
• The meeting was opened at 7.30pm with a welcome address and the main points of the agenda by the Chair of
the Friends.
• Upcoming Elections – Clauss Niazi
• The Chair addressed the meeting with information regarding the upcoming elections for the new Executive
Committee which will take place on 16/05/2011. The main positions in the committee were discussed
along with the fact that the executive committee must have a minimum of 8 members. The elections are
based on someone being nominated and then seconded for a position. If more than one person is nominated
and seconded then a ballot will be cast.
• The main roles in the Executive Committee are as follows:
1. Chair – is the leader of the Executive Committee, leads meeting, responsible for final
decisions, liaison with the school, guidance to the friends and helping with the weekly school newsletter
2. Vice Chair – fills in the gaps for the Chair and in the event that the Chair is not available assumes those
responsibilities as Leader of the Executive Committee
3. Treasurer – responsible for accounts and money dealing, receipting and paying out where required
4. Secretary – responsible for minutes all meetings and helps in communication where required
5. 4 other members will be required to ensure minimum quorum is always maintained but there are no
specific roles for them.
III. Accounts – Maha Sadik
A. Monies raised are as follows:
1. Merchandising Sales for February – BD 154.5
2. February Cake Raffle – BD 74.7
3. Funds raise din total this session – BD 7850
4. Funds Available to the Friends – BD 15,132
IV. Spending Committee – Clauss Niazi
A. Playground
1. 1 vendor has estimated for creating a new playground using the old apparatus as well as new things.
The Committee has asked for a breakdown of the costs for each area
2. The meeting discussed ways in which the costs could be kept down and work carried out by contractors
themselves
3. It was recommended that a Quantity Surveyor to be contacted to help carry out the study for this
project
B. PA/Staging
1. Meeting to take place on 09/03/2011 to discuss quotes and strategy for this project
V. EVENTS/ACTIVITIES
A. Mothers Day Cake Sale – Carey Pilgrim
1. Date and Time - 21/03/2011 from 12.30 to 3pm
2. Venue – in the playground or the playhouse
3. Items to be Sold - cakes, second hand uniforms, used books and the possibility to sell roses on the day
for kids to their mothers will also be explored
B. Quiz Night – Arshed Elahi/Sarah Allenby/Julia Harrison
1. Date and Time – 14/04/2011 from 7.30pm onwards
2. Venue – Dilmun Club – To be Confirmed

3. Format – A Dinner Evening with a Quiz Night for Adults. Dinner will be a set 3 course menu where
we will request for Vegetarian, Meat and Fish and will be inclusive of beverage on the table
4. Dress Code – Formal
5. Ticket Prices – To be confirmed
6. Flyer and Ticket – To be done by Julia once venue and prices are confirmed
7. Ticket Sales – Will commence on 20/03/2011 and will be limited to number of seats available on a first
come first served basis
C. LPOD - Aleksandra Wormald/Arshed Elahi
1. Prices received from LPOD and Wahoo
2. Date of event – 28/05/2011 – All Day
3. Venue agreed - LPOD
4. Ticket Prices – Over 1.2m BD 11 and under 1.2m BD 5
5. Discounts – Special discount on Food and Beverages and also Retail
6. Ticket Sales – Will commence after 03 May. 700 tickets over 1.2m and 300 tickets under 1.2m will be
given to BSB
7. Alex to contact LPOD and inform them of decision but to request they hold off on printing tickets until
early April
8. Alex to liaise with LPOD on getting flyer designed
D. Parent Education Morning - Clauss Niazi
1. Healthy Eating with Alia AlMoayed on 10/03/2011 at 8.15 am in the school library
2. Edible Arrangements, Savoury Snacks, water, tea and coffee will be provided by the friends
3. Her book will be on sale at the reduced price of BD 7 and a simple breakfast will also be provided.
VI. Any Other Business
A. Class Links
1. No external business activities or charities are to be promoted or distributed by the class links
VII. Next Meeting
· The next monthly meeting will be held on Monday 4 th April at 8.15am in the school cafeteria
The meeting closed at 9.00pm with a thank you to all attendees from the Chair