GIS Newsletter May 2018

Your choice. Their future. Our family. โรงเรียนนานาชาติการ์เด้นอีสเทิร์นซีบอร์ดบ้านฉาง May 2018
IB Formal 2018
Find us at:
Website: w w w .gardenrayong.com
Twitter: w w w .tw itter.com/ gisrayong
Facebook: https:/ / w w w .facebook.com/ gardeninternationalschool/
Youtube: w w w .youtube.com/ user/ gardenrayongthailand
Accredited by
Affiliated to
1

From Mrs Hawtree: Principal
Dear GIS Community,
With the end of the academic year fast approaching, I am delighted to be able to introduce the new staff joining us in August and,
sadly, to advise which staff will be leaving us at the end of June.
However, before this I want to share with you an excerpt from an email I received from a parent following the huge success of our
teams at the recent Primary FOBISIA Games in Phuket:
I am writing to congratulate the school on a most successful showing at the Primary FOBISIA Games held between the 5th
and 9th of May in Phuket.
As you are aware, the team returned triumphant and with a sense of real achievement. The cup and medal tally is staggering
when one considers the size and standing of some of the opposition.
We were fortunate enough to be present in Phuket for the games…the GIS head coaching staff were a credit to the school,
not only in how they prepared for the games, but also in their professionalism and ethos of fair play which embodied the spirit
of the games as the "friendly games". Mrs Longstaffe especially deserves particular credit for her total dedication to making
this event rewarding and enjoyable for all concerned, students and proud parents alike. She has undoubtedly been key to
the great success this year and her dedication in helping all members of the team achieve their full potential is worthy of special
note.
We look forward to FOBISIA 2019 and the continued success of the GIS teams.
We always welcome feedback, but it is particularly nice to receive such positive feedback, and I would certainly echo this parent’s
sentiments on the dedication of our sports staff. Sport has come a long way at GIS over the last two years and, although we recognise
that there are still ways we can improve even further, our PE staff, led by Mrs Longstaffe, certainly do deserve credit for the
achievements thus far. I hope that many of you will be able to join us to celebrate this year’s sporting successes at the Sports’
Awards evening on June 19.
Fond farewells from staff leaving at the end of June:
Miss Elyssa (Reception)
I have enjoyed the past four years at Garden International School. The Foundation team, parents and students have been such a welcoming and
caring community. I enjoy coming to work each day in the beautiful, natural setting we have for the children.
I started as an Early Years teacher, supporting children and parents with the transition to school for the first time. This year I have taught Reception
and was able to watch the same group of children I had in Early Years mature, grow and transition into Year 1. From watching them learn to speak
English, to sharing with friends, and now writing and reading, it has been a wonderful journey for them. It has been an honour to watch them develop
and be able to support their joy of learning in this critical stage.
My students have been so passionate about the environment, collecting recycling, taking care of the gardens, composting and making sure that
others know the importance of what they are doing. I love working with young children who have such a desire for change. I hope they continue to
influence others and to make sure we take care of our earth. I hope they remember not to lose their love of learning and to find joy in all that they
do.
I will be moving back to Canada with my husband Evan and our newly-adopted son Kasidi. We look forward to introducing Kasidi to Canadian culture,
his family and our friends.
Ms Clifton (Languages and CAS)
After having spent five years at GIS, Ms Clifton and her children Léanne and Pierre as well as their two rescued Thai cats are moving to Qatar for
new adventures. “I really have enjoyed working at GIS and living in such a beautiful country. I feel fortunate that I have been able to experience so
many wonderful cultural events as well as seen fabulous places in Asia. I continue to marvel at the beauty of Thailand every day, be it in a sunset, a
colourful Thai dish presented with care and artistic design, or the wooden curves of a temple’s roof or a house. I also take with me all the smiles
from the lovely people, students included, that I have met, worked with, shared food with and laughed with. Along the way, during this five-year journey,
I have made a few very good friends, Thai and “farang” and I know this is not “adieu” but just “au revoir” as we definitely will be in touch. I will
miss the flavours, scents and colours of Thai food, especially ‘khao soi gai’; I will miss the beautiful Thai dresses and the shimmering of Thai silk
too. The children and I look forward to discovering Qatar and we really hope to be able to see one “Al Qatt Al Ramli” during our stay in the desert.
¡Mucha Suerte!¡Gracias por todo! ¡Hasta luego! Señora C”.
Miss Clack (Geography)
I am very grateful to have been given the opportunity to work in this wonderful school; GIS. Even though I have only been here for two years, I have
had many fantastic and interesting experiences; ranging from trips to Koh Samet and Ayutthaya, to celebrating Thai holidays like Loy Krathong. I
feel privileged to have taught such friendly and conscientious students. My next chapter will be in Berlin where I will continue working in international
education. I am looking forward to living in Europe again so that I can be closer to my family and friends. I will also be able to pursue 2 my other
passion, competitive Latin dancesport. I will miss you all! Thank you for all your support and the unforgettable GIS team spirit!

Mr Fung (Science)
It has been a privilege to teach at GIS for the last three academic school years. I’ll really miss all the wonderful children, some of
whom I've taught every year since my joining GIS and have had the pleasure to watch them grow into bright young adults.
I’ll always remember the House competitions, Sports Days, green eco-warrior ninja suits, singing birthday elephant and entourage,
students and staff clambering on giant inflatable rubber duckies in the pool, crisp-eating contests, Songkran sponge throws,
cupcake bakeoffs, MAD Nights, IGCSE & IB formals and so many other events and charming quirks that have made my GIS experience
so special.
As for next year: I won’t be very far, as I am joining Mooltripakdee International School, in the Nongprue area. I leave with my
very best wishes to everybody at GIS.
And please welcome our new teachers arriving in August…..
Ms Sarah (Nursery)
Hello to everyone! My name is Sarah Kriel and I am excited to be joining the Foundation team at GIS. At present I teach Foundation
stage at Taipei European School and after five years in Taiwan I am happy to be moving to Ban Chang with my husband and
two daughters. I am really looking forward to the challenges of a new school, delicious Thai food and the beautiful spirit of the
Thai people. I look forward to meeting you all.
Ms Emma (Reception)
Hi everyone! My name is Emma Dunn and I will be the new Foundation teacher at GIS. I hold a Bachelor of Arts and a Certificate
in Education from my home country, Australia. My husband, Alex, and I have lived and worked overseas for almost 5 years now,
in Thailand and Colombia. For the last year, I've been teaching Year 3 and 4 at an international school in Pattaya. My family and I
are very pleased and excited to be joining the community at GIS in Ban Chang, where our 18 month-old daughter, Isobel, will
also be a student. We look forward to meeting you soon!
Mr Childs (Humanities)
In my current role I am Assistant Principal of a large secondary school on the Norfolk coast and I am looking forward to relocating
to the warmer coast of Ban Chang. I have been a teacher for best part of 15 years and this is my first international post. I am delighted
to be joining you with my wife and 2 young sons. Fieldwork and travel are my passions and I am excited about this new
challenge, to experience more of Thailand and beyond and further develop the humanities faculty at GIS.
Mrs Childs (Science)
I am a zoology graduate with a Master’s degree in Conservation Biology. I completed my PGCE in 2006 whilst lecturing in Zoological
Conservation. I am currently working in a college in Norfolk lecturing in Animal Science and Wildlife Conservation as well
as teaching and examining GCSE biology. I am looking forward to exploring and appreciating the wildlife and landscapes Asia
has to offer together with my husband and two young boys.
Mr Crewdson (Business/Humanities)
I'm currently teaching in Kota Kinabalu and have been teaching overseas for the last seven years, previously in Kuwait and Tanzania.
I will be arriving with my wife Kerstin and 5 year old son Luca. To be honest there's loads of things I'm really looking forward
to like getting to teach the IB, travelling around Thailand and the region again (I was in my early 20s the last time I did
this!) and I suspect my son is going to love the Songkran water festival!
Mr Tebbutt (Languages/ELS)
I am currently teaching Spanish at Compass International School in Doha, Qatar, where I have been based for the past 3 years.
Previously I have worked at international schools in the Philippines and China. Prior to that I worked for several years at Auckland
Grammar School in New Zealand and my first teaching job was at an independent school in Staffordshire in the UK.
I will be joined at GIS by my wife Reggel, our 7-year-old son Tor and our baby daughter, Sophia who was born last December.
I look forward to teaching the students at GIS along with coaching football.
You will have the opportunity to meet our new teachers on Thursday 16 August, at our welcome evening, where I will also share
with you our plans for the year ahead. Please save the date!
Kind Regards,
Ms Dinah Hawtree
Principal
3

Upcoming Events
Whole School
June 5: World Environment Day
June 9: Friends of Garden family fun day and car boot sale, 10am-2pm
June 12: Child Labour Day
June 13: House T-Shirt Day
June 15: Mufti Day
June 20: Refugee Day
Fri June 29: Last day of the school year (finish at 12noon)
Weds August 15: Start of the new school year
Primary
June 5: Year 6 to Year 7 transition day
June 8: Year 1 trip to the turtle sanctuary
June 11-14: Year 6 residential trip
June 12: Year 1 trip to the Teddy Bear Museum
June 19: End of Year Reports distributed
June 25: Transition open afternoon for Reception parents
June 26: Open afternoon
June 28: Foundation graduation and lunch
June 29: Primary Year 6 promotion assembly
Secondary
May 28, May 30-June 1: Internal examinations
June 3-5: IGCSE Geography trip
June 8: IB1 TOK planning morning
June 11-15: KET and PET-style examinations
June 16: IGCSE Formal. Movenpick, Jomtien, 6pm-10pm
June 21-22: IB1 Group 4 Project
June 22: Year 7 Mandarin trip
June 26: Report Cards distributed
June 27: Awards’ Ceremony, 10.50am
Many thanks to our generous GIS sponsors:
Platinum
Aditya Birla
Encounter Church
Indorama
4

Head to our Facebook page for the latest news on
what’s been happening at GIS. This month, you
can read about:
www.facebook.com/gardeninternationalschool
You can also watch our latest videos about what’s
been happening at GIS by going here:
www.youtube.com/user/gardenrayongthailand
Follow us on Instagram! Find us at
garden_international_school or search for
#gistitans
Check out our Pinterest page and see the dozens
of photos showcasing life at GIS.
Follow our tweets on Twitter!
https://www.twitter.com/gisrayong
See our snaps and stories on Snapchat!
Our username is gisthailand
5

From Mr Walsh: Head of Primary
Dear Parents and Carers,
Term 3 is always an interesting time of the year in Foundation
and Primary. The students are coming to the end of a year of
learning and are starting to feel ready to move on to the next
year. All of the Primary students have been taking end of
year assessments, but the learning will go right up until the
last day of the year.
As usual, the teaching teams have been considering classes
for next academic year. The class lists will be issued to parents
on Friday 1 June. To compile the class lists the teachers
have taken many factors into consideration. One of the main
factors is friendships; each child has identified some friends
they’d like to be with next year and the teachers have ensured
that each child is with at least one of their identified
friends. Other factors taken into consideration are academic
ability, gender, learning support needs, level of English, as
well as class dynamics – which children and groups of children
will learn well together.
We have had a lot of new students this academic year and
we are expecting more to start in August.
Already, we are looking forward to an exciting year next year.
UK MATHS CHALLENGE
At the end of April four of our Year 6 students took part in the
UK Maths Challenge. They all did very well in the challenge
with Games and one student achieved the bronze award!
Well done!
SHARING
ASSEMBLIES
In our recent sharing assemblies,
we have enjoyed finding
out what all of the classes
have been learning about.
The assemblies have been informative
and entertaining.
Year 2 - Movement exhibition
and magnet stories
Year 3 - A brief explanation of
time and how digestion works
Year 4 - A creative display of
Art and colourful masks
Year 5 - Dramatising class
reading books and Science
raps
The next sharing assembly is
on Wednesday 6 June with
Year 1.
REUSE, REUSE, REUSE
Following on from the success of the Plastic World project,
Year 2 students decided to keep the bottle tops and work in
groups to create temporary 'dot style' pictures.
So far each picture has only been kept for a day, and then
the lids are returned to their box for use another day. The
message - 'There is no place for single-use plastic in our
world'.

YEAR 3 RESIDENTIAL TO KHAO KHEOW ZOO
Despite being really tired afterwards, it was unanimously agreed
that our residential trip to Khao Kheow Open Zoo was fantastic!
On our first day we were introduced to our guides and learnt
about the history of the zoo and its conservation effort. Afterwards
there was a whirlwind tour of the animals in the park, with highlights
including, feeding the giraffes, the bird parade and visiting
Lemur Island.
After an evening of fun games and activities, we slept in exciting
bunk bed dormitories with our friends. We were so tired, nearly
everyone was asleep before 9.30pm! For most of us, this was the
first time we have stayed away from home, but we handled it maturely
and really, what better place to spend the night than in the
zoo with all the other monkeys!?
On the second and final day, we went on a nature trail, up the hill
in the jungle, and learnt about the uses of different native plants.
Following that we went to the 'sustainability village' and discovered
how to make soap with natural products.
7

POND DIPPING TRIP
Year 1 students have been on an exciting local
trip. They went pond dipping to see what cool
creatures they could find. They even collected
some of them and a big bottle of freshwater to
put in our micro-habitat. Aside from the pond,
there were other habitats in the area that they
explored. The children also had a chance to
feed the fish! It was really a fun day of exploration.
TERRIFIC TIE DYE!
Year 2 had a fabulous time on their trip to the Ban Chang Community Cooperative
Workshop. They each created a wonderful and very individual T-shirts by twisting
and tying the fabric before adding a rainbow of colours. We learned how to make
spirals and hearts using just an elastic band. Thank you so much to the workshop
for hosting us!
8

THE LAST STRAW
Students have been using their school’s plastic to help
build a new world.
To mark Humanities Day at GIS on April 25, Primary
students tackled the subject of Global Waste with a
series of exciting activities.
Single use plastic and paper waste from 3 days of
school was cleaned and sorted. Students then used it
all to create a 'Plastic World'. Those in Year 1 to 3 created
a recycled paper world with Thailand at its centre
while students in Years 4 to 6 created some amazing
sculptures of famous buildings using all recycled materials.
Throughout the day, students from Year 2 also made
surprise presentations across the school. They popped
in to classes, the canteen, office staff and even Principal
Mrs Hawtree, letting them know that 'We Need To
Use Less''.
It was fantastic to see the response of students and
families, coming to see the installation and starting a
discussion about how we can reduce single use plastic
in our school and community.
This was a great discussion and we hope everyone in
the school community will help out. After all, 'There is
no planet B'.
LANA THROUGH TO FINAL ROUNDS
OF MISS TEEN THAILAND
Lana Panmai Lindsay in Year 6 has made it through to the
final stages of a national competition.
This latest round in the ‘Mister and Miss Teen Thailand
2018’ contest was held in Central Rayong for children in
the Eastern region of Thailand. There were 56 children in
Lana’s age group. Lana was named as one of 12 children
who will go forward into the final rounds, which will be held
in October.
9

NEW SCHOOL LEAFLETS LAUNCHED
We have re-designed our GIS leaflets with new photos and updated information
about the excellent facilities and learning opportunities on offer. Feel free to pick one
up at the front office and share with friends.
BUMPER BEACH CLEAN
More than 130 people helped out at Phala
Pier Café for Ms Lucy's birthday beach
clean on Friday May 18. Everyone helped
remove more than 100 large black bin bags
-full of trash. Thank you to Thai Lion Air
(who sent 30 volunteers), Tom at the café,
K.Neung from Phala Community Association
and the parents of Yohan and Honey
Seong who donated 500 pairs of rubber
gloves.
We are hoping to make this a regular Friday
event next year. It is a real eye-opener
for the children to see how much single use
plastic washes up from the sea, and how a
group of willing volunteers can make a difference
in such a short amount of time.
There is no planet B!
10

THE KING AND QUEEN OF CHESS
Two GIS students are continuing to take the world of chess
by storm.
Poleon, in Year 4, and his sister Bambi, in Year 7, recently
visited Singapore International School Bangkok (SISB) to
compete in a tournament, with Bambi winning the G12 (girls
under 12) contest and Poleon coming second in the U16 —
despite only being 9 years old.
SISB made a special effort to welcome Poleon, the current
Thai champion for his age, by displaying a 3-meter high
poster of him at the school entrance, along with a poster of
Bambi, who is 3rd in Thailand for her age group.
They have just returned from the Asia Championships in
Chiang Mai, where Poleon represented Thailand in all categories,
and where Bambi joined a ‘blitz’ tournament. Overall,
Poleon had the 2nd highest score of all 70 Thai players
across all age categories.
The most interesting games were a draw against the former
U7 blitz world champion and a loss against the highest
ranked U8 player ever (both now also U10).
In the recent internationally-renowned Bangkok Open, Poleon
played 2 world-class opponents in blitz: world blindfold
chess champion and Grand Master Timur Gareyev as well
as world number 1 U12 player Gukesh D. This adds to the
long list of Grand Masters, Youth World Champions and
other chess celebrities he has played in his brief chess career.
Among their other recent success are:
- the Laos International Open in Vientiane: a strong tournament
with several world class players from 14 different nations
competing. Poleon won gold (and US$200) for Best Youth
Player
- Thailand Youth Championship: Poleon once more became
Thai Champion, only drawing one game and winning all others.
Bambi missed the title by 1.5 points and came third.
- Bambi and Poleon have also played 5 rapid tournaments this
year (where a game lasts 30-40 minutes). In an Eastern Seaboard
tournament at Laem Chabang, Bambi came first in the
U12 category, (the boys group, which was the stronger) winning
every game. Poleon played in the Open, adult, section
against some of the strongest players in Thailand, including
some from the adult chess Olympiad team. Remarkably, he
finished 4th - drawing games against 2 Top 10 adults in Thailand.
- A 101 Anniversary tournament in Bangkok. Poleon was 4th in
the adult section with 3 draws and one win against 4 of
Thailand’s Top 10 adult players - and wins against everyone
else.
- Ekkamai International School Open. Poleon played in the
adult section, but as several foreign chess masters also competed,
he didn’t make it to the top ranks.
- The Chess Without Borders Rapid tournament, Bangkok.
Poleon came 3rd in the 13-19 age group and Bambi won her
G12 age group.
Last summer Poleon won the Orlando Open (Florida) and beat
the trainer of a former world number two in the Andorra Open.
In 2016, the pair competed in the World Youth Chess Championships
in Georgia.
The pair started playing at a GIS chess club in 2015. 11

From our Head Student
Well done Year 11 and IB2!
Another month has passed by - perhaps the most stressful month of
the year, especially for our IB2s and Year 11s.
Our IB2s have completed their examinations and, of course, celebrated
this at their formal evening, held at the Mövenpick, Pattaya. The
delicious food, incredible performances and emotional speeches
made the night one of a kind. It was a pleasure to see them perform
for one last time.
The Year 11s will soon complete their IGCSE examinations and will
be celebrating the end of their IGCSEs at a Formal evening also held
at the Mövenpick.
I would like to congratulate all the students for their hard work.
Some upcoming events are the Year 11 Formal on June 16 and the
Sports Awards’ Evening on June 19. Tickets for both these events will
be available for purchase in the uniform shop. STEM day is on June
13, Band Slam is on June 14 and finally there will be a car boot sale,
organised by the Friends of Garden, on June 9.
Head Student Rachel
Friends of Garden AGM
The Friends of Garden Action Group held its annual
general meeting in a packed Primary Hall on May 3.
Parents and teachers came along to hear about the
work done by the FOG, and also to elect a new committee.
The new FOG committee will meet regularly and
discuss ways to support GIS.
The new committee is comprised of:
Chair: Colin McKean
Vice-chair: Orathai Vudhisethakrit
Secretary: Kirsten Francisco
Assistant Secretary: Khun Suda Khunsawad
Treasurer: Ilse Vaneynde-Schaeken
Media Officer: Kerry Hucknall
Events Coordinator: Sonali Sheth
Assistant Events Coordinator: Russell Garcia
Committee Member: Jason Ballard
Committee Member: Sarita Tyagi

We have some great school blogs to tell you about life at GIS. Click
on the links below to see what’s been going on!
PRIMARY BLOGS
Early Years http://earlyyears.gardenrayong.com/
Nursery http://nursery.gardenrayong.com/
Reception http://reception.gardenrayong.com/
Year 1 http://year1.gardenrayong.com/
Year 2 http://year2.gardenrayong.com/
Year 3 http://year3.gardenrayong.com/
Year 4 http://year4.gardenrayong.com/
Year 5 http://year5.gardenrayong.com/
Year 6 http://year6.gardenrayong.com/
ESL Blog: http://primaryels.gardenrayong.com
SECONDARY BLOGS
Year 7-9
IGCSE
IB
ELS
http://year7to9.gardenrayong.com/
http://gisigcse.gardenrayong.com/
http://ib.gardenrayong.com/
http://secondaryels.gardenrayong.com
WHOLE SCHOOL BLOGS
Extra-curricular Sport
Extra-curricular Music
http://gissport.gardenrayong.com/
http://gismusicblog.gardenrayong.com/
Extra-curricular Drama http://gisdrama.gardenrayong.com/
Library
http://library.gardenrayong.com/
Community Programmes http://communityprogrammes.gardenrayong.com/
Community Service
Friends of Garden
Boarding
Global Action
http://gisserviceprojects.gardenrayong.com/
http://friendsofgarden.gardenrayong.com/
http://gisboarding.gardenrayong.com/
https://globalaction.gardenrayong.com/

14

From Mr Share: Head of Secondary
Dear Parents and Carers,
It has been a very busy few weeks since Songkran; our IB2 students have sat and finished their IB examinations
and have now left the school. We celebrated with a lovely IB Formal evening at the 5-star Movenpick
Resort in Jomtien, which was attended by staff, parents, and teachers. Students (and parents) are rightly
very happy and proud in finishing a course that often gets compared to finishing an endurance race or
climbing a mountain. The reality is that IB is deliberately designed to be manageable by all abilities and
builds a skill set that no other 16-plus course and examinations can match.
The IB’s ten Core Values and its emphasis on a wide-ranging experience that encourages community service,
creativity, “learning to learn” and activity beyond the classroom make it unrivalled in building young
adults equipped for success in the future. We prepare our students for the IB Diploma by preparing a curriculum
path from Year 9 onwards that ensures there are natural choices for our students to take and therefore
every one of our students has a chance of success in subjects they are familiar with or want to take. We also
offer IB Courses, which reduces the number of subjects that a student is required to take, and is a more
straightforward course. It is a recognised qualification by many universities and employers. The IB is therefore
exactly what it was intended to be when it started 50 years ago: a course that all students can access, a
course that reflects the need of modern students, employers, and universities around the world, and one
that gives students a lifelong foundation of skills and values that no other course can offer.
As our Year 11s come to the end of their IGCSEs and head towards their Formal evening on June 16, they
too will have their moment in the spotlight celebrating the end of one part of their education. No other school
or qualification at this stage of their education can provide them with the personalised knowledge of what
they need to succeed as individuals. Our wide-ranging courses provide a high chance of success. No post-
16 course is easy and our teachers are experienced in setting coursework deadlines and knowing our students
personally so that they are aware of how to manage workloads with appropriate support and motivation.
Our results in IGCSE and IB are above the world average and that really counts at this time of year. So
in the next month we will celebrate all of our students’ achievements in all areas of school life with a Sports
Awards’ Evening on Tuesday June 19, and our Secondary Awards’ Morning on Wednesday, June 27. I
hope you can join us in recognising all of our students’ wide variety of success this year as
we recognise academic, sporting, creative arts, internationalism, caring and endeavour (effort) in many
ways.
Our IB and IGCSE students are the pinnacle of that success. The school has successfully helped many students
cross marathon finish lines and reach the summit of their own personal mountains; we ensure that
they win their personal battles against the unknown with help and support and training.
Regards
Mr Share
Head of Secondary
headsec@gardenrayong.com

IB Diploma
IB2 Leavers’ Assembly
GIS held a special whole-school assembly to say farewell to
our IB2 students.
The IB2s have completed their IB Diploma course and so
come to the end of their time at GIS. Primary and Secondary
students gathered in the main hall to give them a spectacular
send-off. After a welcome by Principal Mrs Hawtree, the IB2s
were given a guard of honour from the IB1s and party poppers were let off.
IB Diploma Coordinator Mr Beales then introduced various tributes from the students’ brothers and sisters
(many of whom also gained the IB Diploma at GIS), as well as some teachers and friends. This included a
surprise visit from Aakshi, who is currently studying in Singapore but returned to wish Shilpi well.
Some IB students have spent their entire education at GIS so it was a big moment as they marked their last
official day of school before the examinations started. Once the students have gained the IB Diploma, they
can look forward to attending some of the world’s top universities. For more on IB, go here.

IB FORMAL EVENING
Students celebrated the end of their IB Diploma studies with a Formal evening at the 5-star Movenpick
resort near Pattaya.
The evening included an international/Thai buffet and performances from all the students. There
was a flute duet, singers and a group song from everyone at the end.
IB Diploma Coordinator Mr Beales handed out IB teddy bears to each student and wished them well
as they prepare to head off to leading universities around the world.
IB is the world's leading course for 16-18 year olds.
17

18

TREE-MENDOUS STUDENTS
GIS has planted special trees
and plaques to recognise the
long-service of two students.
Mangpo and Jignil have both
been at GIS since Foundation,
meaning they have spent their
whole education at school.
On May 22 their parents,
friends, and GIS Principal Mrs
Hawtree watched as Jignil and
Mangpo helped plant their trees
by the entrance to school.
EXTENDED ESSAY DAY
IB1 students have spent a day explaining their plans for their Extended Essays during
a day of presentations.
The Extended Essay is a research project that is a core part of the IB Diploma. This
year’s IB1 students recently spent a day presenting their ideas and plans to their classmates
and other teachers. After each presentation, there was a chance to ask questions
to each student to help them think about their plan and how it may develop.
IB students attend several workshops to help them prepare for their EE.
19

TEACHING ENGLISH
IN THE COMMUNITY
IB1 students have been visiting a local
Thai school to help teach children English.
The students have created a mini-
English course for the Primary students
at a nearby school. They plan, organize
and then teach the lessons every week.
This is part of their Creativity, Activity,
Service (CAS) project, which is an important
part of the IB Diploma.
IB Diploma Coordinator Mr Beales said:
“It’s great that these students have taken
the initiative and delivered such a
useful project. This is more evidence
that IB goes beyond academic excellence
and prepares students for university
and beyond far more than any other
courses.”
SHORT STORY CONTEST TO NAME WINNERS
Short story writers in Secondary are awaiting to hear if they have won a major competition.
Tanya, Chloe and Anja in Year 10 made it through to the final stages of the graphic
novel contest, run by Neilson Hayes. They will find out soon if they have won the
overall competition.
The English Department also encouraged students to take part in a FOBISIA Short
Story competition. In Secondary, the GIS entry for this was written by Ellen Dowling
in Year 10.
20

We continue to celebrate all the countries represented at GIS by flying a different nation’s
flag each week. Here are the countries that have recently been recognised at the
front of the school. These are compiled by our Humanities’ Prefect Aniela.
21

22

24

PE & Sport
Primary FOBISIA 2018
From May 5-9, 32 students from Years 4, 5 and 6
made the journey to Phuket for the Primary FOBISIA
Games.
They had trained very hard leading up to the Games
and it showed in the results. Day 1 saw the GIS Titans
win 69 medals in Swimming and 100 in Athletics.
Everyone worked extremely hard in both the individual
and team events. Day 2 was the T Ball competition.
Students were focused and played very well
with the both the A team and the C team placing second.
The sportsmanship and fair play shown by the
pupils in T Ball teams was something to be proud of.
The final day saw all four teams place in football. The
competition was tough with some teams having to go
to penalties to decide if they had a semi-final
place. The final evening saw the students enjoy their
gala dinner, sharing memories of the last few days
with their new friends where they showed the true
meaning of the 'Friendly Games'.
25

26

Garden International School
Your choice. Their future. Our family.
Find us at:
Website: www.gardenrayong.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Garden-International-School-Rayong-Thailand/128699487157809
Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/gardenrayongthailand
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/gisrayong
Accredited by
Affiliated to
27