Student Activities:

The main activity this quarter was the preparation and production of our Founders’ Day Programme at the Sophia Bhabha Auditorium. The entire process involves every student from Std. V to X. The result is a production for the parents. It is a great time for learning and team-work.

This year Std. V performed a multi-cultural chanting, and a lively Koli Dance. Std. VI danced to a set of spirituals, and performed a musical piece as the orphans in the play, Oliver. Std. VII performed a play which was a take-off on the Mahabharat. Std. VIII, IX and X produced the English musical play, Oliver.

While Middle and Senior School children were performing, Junior School was busy with their Project work. This is a highlight of their learning. The project topics this year were : Lower Prep - Wild Animals, Upper Prep - Plants, Std. I - Food, Std. II Road Transport, Std. III - Mumbai and Std. IV - Discoveries and Inventions.

Our ex-students of the Class of 2005 conducted a mock UN session called UNIS for all our students of Std. VIII, IX and X. This is a very effective way of introducing our students to current affairs, and preparing themselves for other inter-school model UN sessions.

Our students showered the teachers with love and affection on Teachers’ Day. Thank you one and all for the wonderful expressions of your love.

 

 

Guest Speakers:

Dr. Manil Suri, writer and Mathematician came as a guest lecturer for students of Std. VIII, IX and X and spoke to them about the relevance of Fibonacci Numbers in real life situations.

Paramparik Karigar Workshops: Every year we organize artisans from the Paramparik Karigar to come to school and expose our students to various art forms. This year Std. VI experienced Miniature Painting, Std. VII had Palm Etching and Std. VIII had a Lehariya session.

Mr. Kishore Mariwala addressed Std. V on his sailing experiences. The photographs of his expeditions to Lakshadweep were very captivating.

Assemblies:

Middle School students recited poems on the Monsoon in Hindi. Middle and Senior School students were asked to speak for a minute on extempore topics which were given on the spot. Some of our more talkative ones “lost their voice” yet others were able to speak very well. For the first time students of Lower Prep came up on stage to perform in their very first assembly. Thank you, our little stars!

Middle School had a Hindi elocution on the theme of humour. The poems were well recited.

We had a Marathi Elocution, open to Middle and Senior School. The response this time was excellent. Instead of only Middle School, as in the past, we had a clear representation of participants from Senior School as well. The speakers were very clear and articulated well.

The following debates were held this quarter: Senior School (Hindi), Mahatma Gandhi - Father of the Nation or Divider of the Nation? Winning House: Gamma, Best Speaker, Siddharth Joshi, 2^nd Place, Sanjna Merchant and Samia Ellias. Middle School (English) International Sporting Events create a Spirit of Brotherhood and Unity among Nations. Winning House: Gamma. Best speaker: Priyanka Mariwala, 2^nd Place Neel Karpe. Middle School (Hindi) A society dependent on servants is an unsafe one. Winning House: Alpha, Best Speaker: Alisha Sonawala, 2^nd Place: Ziya Jaffer.

Field Visits:

Many field trips were organized for the Junior School. Std. I visited Nature’s Basket, Sophia Catering College, Crawford Market in connection with their project on food. At Nature’s Basket, each child shopped for Rs. 10! Std. I visited Shantivan in connection with the World of Senses. Bombay Papierie gave Std. I an opportunity to see recycling in action. They also visited the Cathedral Infant School to see a project on Sound. The Xavier’s Resource Centre for the visually challenged is where Std. I students realized the importance of sight. Std. II visited the Science Centre, Wadala Bus Depot, Mercedes Benz Workshop, the Petrol Pump and the Traffic Park, in connection with their project on Road Transport. Std. I, IV and VIII (on separate occasions) visited Mascot Labs to understand the chemistry behind which certain cosmetic products are formulated. All classes experienced it at their own level. Std. III visited Mani Bhavan to see a documentary on the life of Gandhiji. They also vsited the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, to understand what Mumbai looked like in the past. Std. III did a “Mumbai Darshan” as part of their project. They also visited the Jammu and Kashmir Emporium to appreciate the craftsmanship.Std. IV visited the Discovery of India exhibition at the Nehru Science Centre in connection with their Social studies Classes. Std. IV also visited the Weaver’s Centre in order to understand this ancient art.

Std. V had a unique opportunity to hone their persuasive skills during a visit to Trikaya Gray.

Std. VII visited the Max Mueller Bhavan and experienced an hour of German Language Instruction as part of the Institutes Language celebrations.

Sports Update:

ICSE Inter-school Aquatic Meet: Girls Under 8: Muskaan Tolani, 1^st place 50 mt. Free Style and 2^nd Place, 50 mt. Backstroke;, Ariesa Mongia 3^rd Place, 50 mt. Free Style and 2^nd Place 50 mt. Back Stroke. Mumbai DSO Swimming: Natasha Merchant 2^nd Place 200 mt. Butterfly and 2^nd Place 100 mt. Butterfly; Rahul Kapoor, 2^nd Place, 50 mt. Backstroke and 3^rd Place, 100 mt. Free Style. The Girls Relay team won 3^rd Place in both Free Style and Medley Relay with Natasha, Tavishi, Sakshi and Dwitya. The Boys Relay team also won 3^rd place in both Free Style and Medley Relay with Rahul, Akshaye, Akhilesh and Arnav. Well done, all our swimming champions.

Jehan Daboo won 4^th place at the Bombay Gymkhana Badminton Tournament. The Bombay City District Amateur Athletic Meet had Rushil Mehta in 1^st Place in the 400 mt., Yash Dalal 3^rd Place for the 200 mt., Arkin Isharani 4^th Place in the 200 mts. and Sakshi Mehta 4^th Place in the 200 mt. events. It is great to have so many participants in Inter School events. Inter-House Table Tennis Singles, Under 16 Boys, Siddharth Joshi 1^st, Vir Singh 2^nd, Jaydev Amersey 3^rd Place. Under 16 Girls, Akshita Shah 1^st, Monaz Irani 2^nd, Sunayna Gurnani 3^rd Place. Under 14 Boys, Vikramaditya Joshi 1^st, Neel Karpe 2^nd, Yash Dalal, 3^rd. Under 14 Girls, Natasha Merchant 1^st, Anushka Agarwal 2^nd, Kanika Basu 3^rd Place. Under 12 Boys, Aakanksh Mody 1^st, Sohel Shah 2^nd, Veer Parekh 3^rd Place. Under 12 Girls, Arusha Ellias 1^st, Ananya Johri 2^nd, Shivani Suresh 3^rd Place. Under 10 Boys, Vedant Mehta 1^st, Shanay Mehta 2^nd, Veer Makim 3^rd Place. Under 10 Girls, Saloni Sanwalka 1^st, Surabhi Batra 2^nd Place.

Inter-house Table Tennis Doubles, Under 16 Boys, 1^st, Siddharth Joshi/Vir Singh, 2^nd Krutarth Jhaveri/Jaydev Amersey, 3^rd Vedant Munshi/Rushil Mehta. Under 16 Girls, 1^st, Harshini Parikh/Anushka Doshi, 2^nd, Akshita Shah/Monaz Irani, 3^rd, Saumya Dalal/Sunayna Gurnaney. Under 14 Boys 1^st, Mrinal Trivedi/Yash Dalal, 2^nd, Jahan Bativala/Vikramaditya Joshi, 3^rd, Rahul Kapoor/Abhishek Dhawan. Under 14 Girls 1^st Mili Sanwalka/Anushka Agarwal, 2^nd Mubaraka Ezzuddin/Dwitya Sapre, 3^rd Natasha Merchant/Tavishi Pandey.

Under 12 Boys 1^st Aakansh Mody/Aniruddh Amersey, 2^nd Anshuman Mor/Rana Mukhi 3^rd Veer Parikh/Sohel Shah.

Under 12 Girls  1^st Arusha Ellias/Shivani Suresh  2^nd Ananya Johri/Bianca Contractor 3^rd Sanaa Jethani/Iyanah Bativala  Under 10 Boys  1^st Shanay Mehta/Vedant Mehta 2^nd Shiv Makim/Veer Makim 3^rd Miran Dalal/Vyom Sheth.

Inter House Chess  Under 16 Boys 1^st Rahil Sayed 2^nd Jaydev Amersey 3^rd Vedant Munshi Under 16 Girls 1^st  Bhakti Parekh, 2^nd Aangi Shah, 3^rd Harshini Parikh.

Under 14 Boys 1^st Namit Mehta, 2^nd Akshay Shah, 3^rd Jai Mathias   Under 14 Girls 1^st Gaurika Rai, 2^nd Sakshi Mehta, 3^rd Natasha Merchant  Under 12 Boys 1^st Aniruddh Amersey, 2^nd Kabir Karamchandani, 3^rd Mehul Gawde Under 12 Girls 1^st Avantika Mehra Under 10 Boys 1^st Shiv Madhok, 2^nd Ishaan Madhok, 3^rd Siddarth Shah Under 10 Girls 1^st Wyoma Chudsama, 2^nd Shanaya Munot, 3^rd Tania Tobacowala Under 8 Boys 1^st Karun Krishnamurthy 2^nd Niall Shah, 3^rd Shihan Palkhivala  Under 8 Girls 1^st Aria Panchal, 2^nd Riana Shah, 3^rd Diya Chitrabhanu.

Inter House Badminton  Singles Under 16 Boys 1^st Gaurav Doshi, 2^nd Samarth Gwalani, 3^rd Krutarth Jhaveri Under 16 Girls Harshini Parikh, 2^nd Bhakti Parekh, 3^rd Sunayana Gurnani Under 14 Boys  1^st Mirnal Trivedi, 2^nd Neel Karpe, 3^rd Akshay Shah Under 14 Girls 1^st Gaurika Rai,2^nd   Tanvi Nayar, 3^rd Tavishi Pandey  Under 12  Boys 1^st Jehan Daboo, 2^nd Cyrus Lalkaka, 3^rd Aakansh Mody  Under 12 Girls  1^st Renee Row, 2^nd Aananya Daniel  Under 10 Boys 1^st Sahaj Parekh, 2^nd Vyom Sheth.

Inter House Cricket  Senior Boys Winners Beta House  Runners up  Gamma House.

Inter House Football Seniors girls Winners Alpha House  Runners up Beta House.

Chess Carnival ICSE Inter School Tournament conducted by Beacon High School and Bombay Chess Tournament  Ritvik Radhakrishnan  3 out of 7 Rounds Sara Mehta 2 out of 7 Rounds Under 10 Years Aniruddh Amersey 4.5 out of 7 Rounds Shanaya Munot 3 out of 7 Rounds Under 12 Years Namit Mehta 4 out of 7 Rounds Gaurika Rai 1 out of 7 Rounds  Above 12 Years Mrinal Trivedi 4 out of 7 Rounds,  Bhakti Parekh 4 out of 7 Rounds. 

 

Cambridge Programme:

Training Sessions for the IGCSE subjects, English language, Math, Chemistry and Biology were held in Delhi and Hyderabad. Our teachers attended these sessions.

Some of our teachers have enrolled for the Cambridge Diploma for Teachers and Trainers. We are now a full-fledged Cambridge Centre.

Parent Activities:

We are happy to observe that our electronic communication is now gaining more popularity. Only very essential notices are now being sent as paper copies.

On July 12^th Dr. Pervin Dadachanji addressed parents of LP to IV on the issue of Bullying in schools. Although not very well attended, it was a very lively and interesting session. Parents were able to express their concerns.

Middle School Parents met with Mrs. Asha Sundarajan and had a lively session on a creative problem-solving approach to Math Teaching.

On September 13^th, Partho addressed a joint meeting of parents from JB, BIS and other schools by invitation, on Conscious Parenting. The session was held at Shantivan gardens.

We have been trying to organize varied sessions for parents. The attendance has been extremely low. We would like some feedback in order to plan for future sessions.

Infrastructure:

We now have wonderful Audio Visual Equipment in the AV Room, which has been donated. We also have a Projector and Computer in Std. VIII and it has really revolutionized the teaching in the classroom. We hope to have more such facilities throughout the school.

Teachers’ Workshops:

Our Counselor attended a workshop on The Whole School Quality Circle Time Model conducted by The Teacher Foundation. This is a unique way to promote positive behaviour within a structured approach. Some of the techniques learned were shared with our own teachers.

The Teacher Foundation is also having a series of small workshops in Shishuvan School in Dadar, during September and October. Teachers from various disciplines are attending these workshops and sharing the material with the others.

Podar School invited us to a one-day workshop entitled, “Drama in Education.” All these initiatives contribute to the professional development of the staff.

Fund-Raising:

It is with great pleasure that I would like to inform the Parent Body that the total collection to date is Rs. 1,58,99,091.

We appreciate each and every person’s contribution, and thank all of you who have come forward.

 

BIS For Bihar:

As a school we decided to involve all the students and initiate a fund-raising drive in which we collect for Bihar. Shiva Row of Std. VII made a short film clip, which was shared with all the students in our regular Assembly. Thereafter each class thought of their own innovative means of raising funds. The strategies ranged from selling hand-made bookmarks and cards, stationery, Newspaper drives, Door-to-door collections and a canteen of Goodies during short break. The response from the students has been overwhelming and indeed heartening as it has been entirely a student driven effort. Some staff members voluntarily contributed a day’s salary towards the fund. The total collection has been Rs. 1,17,937. The write-up in Times of India on 28^th September caused a great deal of excitement. We will keep each of you informed about how the funds are utilized. Well done, Way to Go, BIS!

International Links: Std. V has been corresponding with Copley School, and there is great joy in sending and receiving letters.

Cambridge had advertised an online competition on an essay, photographic write-up or short film on any aspect of our school life. We suggested this to the VII and VIII Classes, and some students have submitted their online entries. We hope to collect all these, and share them with the others in the school.

Once again, we have been invited to send four students to the Sunburst Youth Camp in Singapore. This is open to students of Std. IX. The entire class participated in the process, and with great difficulty a panel of teachers has selected Jaydev Amersey, Krutarth Jhaveri, Monaz Irani and Mahita Ajmera to be our representatives. They will go along with four students from Cathedral School, accompanied by a Cathedral teacher. The dates coincide with our Annual Examinations, and the students will attend the camp, as well as do the exams. This is the true BIS spirit of being able to balance both hard work and co curricular experiences.

Self-Discipline:  We have been making a concerted effort in school to ensure that students are neatly dressed, and the hair is of a respectable length. While we are liberal in our approach to education, there are certain norms of behaviour that are simply not acceptable. Being rude to one another, using abusive language and resorting to physical violence simply cannot be accepted. The teachers will take necessary steps to ensure that the students are respectful to every-one in the school. Our efforts are not possible unless parents co-operate with the School Authorities and reinforce similar values at home. We are all here to ensure that our students receive a good education. I urge the parents to also adhere to the school rules.

Once again, I remind you, that my visiting hours are on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. It may not be possible for me to give you time when you come in to school for another commitment, unless of course it is an emergency. If we all follow simple respectful ways, it will enable us to work as a very effective team. Please do come and meet me to discuss issues which pertain to BIS and are of concern, and/or joy to any of you.

Upcoming Events:

We look forward to our Annual School Fete, organized by the Student Government and the Primary Variety Entertainment.

Std. VIII Parents are to meet on October 7^th in the AV Room to discuss options for next year.

 

I would like to take this opportunity to wish each and every one of you

 

 

 

 

Mona Seervai

Principal