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To all in the Uplands Community,

As Term 1 draws to a close, the school is still a hive

of activity. Not only are we still working on this

term’s lesson and activities, we are already planning

numerous events and challenges for not only the

new year and also the next academic year starting in

August 2015.

Please mark this event in your diary -

Sunday 15th March 2015 Uplands 60th Birthday!

We will be having a huge party here at the school.

Everyone is invited. More information will be sent

to you as soon as details are finalised.

Enjoy this edition of our weekly newsletter. Have a

great weekend!

Yours sincerely,

Matthew Bristow

Principal

Follow us on Twitter: @ispuplands

Contents Page No Message from The Principal 1 Secondary News 4 Year 10 and 11 News 5 Uplands Roar 7 - 8 Primary News 9 - 11 Art Department 12 Year 9 News 16 UPTA 18 Upcoming Events 19 - 20

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Today was a non-uniform day for the Secondary School, with a black and white theme for Years

7-11 and a colours theme for our IB students. I was extremely impressed with the participation

rate, but more with the sensible approach the students had taken in choosing to wear appropriate

clothing. The Uplands Student Council, led by Jasmin Dalsgaard and Kyling Saw, and guided by

Mrs Collis, play an important role within the Uplands community and they should be

commended for their positive and mature outlook with the numerous projects they undertake. I

look forward to attending the Prom next Friday evening, which is their showcase event each year.

Can parents please support the Uplands staff who are attending, by being punctual in picking

their child up at the end of the evening. I do hope that all of the students enjoy their special night

at Hotel Jen, formerly the Traders Hotel, and I am sure they will represent Uplands well,

throughout the evening.

I am delighted to inform the community that we will be having a new member

of staff joining the Mathematics Faculty at the start of next term. Mr. Phil Chao

has previous experience in teaching Mathematics at Key Stage 3, IGCSE and IB

Diploma level after a numbers of years at Yew Chung International School in

Beijing. Mr. Chao, born and bred in America, will be joined in Penang by his

wife Zi Li and their two young children. The appointment of Mr. Chao will

allow for five classes in each year level for Mathematics in Years 7-11, resulting

in smaller class sizes and a better teacher to student ratio. As a result, there will be some

movement of students in regards to class sets but please note that our main objective is to ensure

all students receive the best teaching we can offer.

We will be hosting an information session held next Tuesday evening (9th December) for the

community to learn more about the IB Diploma Programme. The evening will start at 7:30pm

and it will be held in the new MPH. It is extremely important that the families of current Year 11

students attend this session, however other members of our community are also encouraged to

attend to assist them in planning their child’s education.

Have a great weekend!

Craig Skinner

Head of Secondary

craig.skinner@uplands.org

Follow us on Twitter: @UplandsSecSch

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The year 11 students were treated to an insight in to the IB Diploma by Mrs Hollis and Mr Rose

on Monday. The talked focussed on the structure of the IB and the challenges the students may

face whilst completing it. On Monday, they will have the chance to question the current year 13

students on how they have found the course. For more information regarding the IB, please

contact Mrs Hollis (Kathleen.hollis@uplands.org). There will be a parent’s information evening

on Tuesday 9th December starting at 7.30pm in the F Block MPH.

On Monday I spoke to the year 10 students about their work experience week and I have been

impressed with the number of students who have approached me saying they have got their

placements in order already! The work experience week starts on the 8th of June and is aimed to

give students the opportunity to find out more about a possible career path. Parents are

encouraged to discuss this opportunity with their children and help find an appropriate

placement if they can. Students who are having difficulty finding a placement need not panic as

I have a vast database from previous years and am more than happy to help them secure a

placement.

This weekend we again have students in year 10 and 11 representing Uplands in more sporting

events. We wish Dayana, Jia Wen and Shinta the very best of luck as they swim in the ISAC meet.

Congratulations also go to Aniqah and Sydney who performed exceptionally well at the recent

MUN conference in Ho Chi Minh. Ernest T, Amandeep, Maxime and Omar must also be praised

for their efforts in Jakarta as they battled against Asia’s finest tennis stars in the FOBISIA tennis

tournament.

Iain Driscoll

Head of Year 10 and 11

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Families on the Move

It is at this time of year that many celebrate the Christmas holidays and being together as a family.

The downside to this time of year for the school family at Uplands is that we have to say goodbye

to families and friends as they move to new countries for new challenges and opportunities

elsewhere. Please stay in touch with us at alumni@uplands.org and visit the Uplands School

Facebook page.

As part of the transition process of moving, families are needing to apply to other schools and it

can be quite competitive. For any request that involves transcripts and grades to be sent, please

contact the Curriculum & Assessment Office, and myself and Mr. Rose can assist with

documents. Letters of Recommendation are sometimes also required. Please keep in mind

during your busy time preparing to transition your family, that the school family is continuing

to provide an excellent education here at Uplands. Please request your letters of recommendation

well in advance and let the teacher/administrator know the deadline that is required.

Please do not hesitate to contact either your son/daughter's Head of Year or myself to seek

support in this transition.

Savannah College of Art and Design

December 10th, Room B105. 12:30 to 1:20pm

The University for Creative Careers, Savannah College of Art and Design will be visiting

Uplands. Students and parents from Year 10 upwards are invited to attend to hear about the

main USA site and also the campuses in France and Hong Kong! SCAD describes itself as,

"Offering more degree programs and specialisations than any other art and design university,

SCAD is uniquely qualified to prepare talented students for professional, creative careers." Come

and hear from a representative of one of the most well known Art and Design universities, and

perhaps you will be the next Uplander to enroll!

Bill Mitchell

Head of Pastoral, Universities & Careers

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The last 2 weeks have seen our Roar Sports teams continue to be very active with a whole range

of events/fixtures taking place:

U14/U16 Football

U18 PSAC Netball

FOBISIA Tennis Invitational

U11 PSAC Football friendlies

U9/U8 PSAC Football ‘Mini Tournament’

U13 PSAC Netball

PSAC X Country

For detailed results, photos and write ups please go to:

http://uplandsroarsport.webs.com/apps/blog/

U9/U8 PSAC Football ‘Mini Tournament’

Monday afternoon saw our youngest footballers get a taste of tournament competition with

SCIPS and Dalat both bringing teams over to Uplands. With some 80 footballers in action, 30 of

whom were from Uplands, it was great to see the enthusiasm that all showed.

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Our Uplands teams showed typical Uplands spirit and displayed great attitude and

determination. All 5 of our teams tasted some success; be it winning their competition or

showing progress from game to game during the tournament. I look forward to seeing all

continue their training next term and developing their skills on the football field. A special

mention must go to the U9 Lions who went undefeated, winning all 4 of their games, scoring 17

and not conceding any!

Thanks must also go to our Year 6 Coaches and Year 7 Referees, all of whom did a fantastic job!

PSAC X Country

Wet conditions on Tuesday created almost perfect conditions for this years first X Country.

Uplands was well represented with entrants in all bar 1 category, and enthusiasm shown for

what is a developing sport at Uplands was great to see. Races were run over both 5km and 3km

distances, with all runners beginning on the soft Tanjung Bungah Beach. The course didn’t ease

off as runners then had to tackle 4 sets of stair cases on their way round. With some sore quads,

all did a fantastic job in completing their respective distances.

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Special mentions to the following:

Jackson Caroll – 2nd O16 Boys

Niccolo Guastella – 1st U16 Boys

Patti Wezel – 3rd U16 Girls

Carl Sigloch – 2nd U12 Boys

Luca Guastella – 3rd U12 Boys

Sophia Poulsen – 2nd U12 Girls

Sabina Dass – 3rd U12 Girls

As always for all fixture/event write ups, photos, calendar and training information please go to:

www.uplandsroarsport.webs.com

And for more immediate Roar Sport updates you can follow us via Twitter at: @UplandsSport

Upcoming Fixtures/Events

Friday 5th December ISAC Swim Meet @ Alice Smith, KL

Saturday 6th December ISAC Swim Meet @ Alice Smith, KL

Thursday 11th December O15 Boys Basketball vs POWIIS

Thursday 11th December O15 Girls Basketball @ POWIIS

Tuesday 16th December Secondary School Sports Day

Primary House Aquathlon

Next Monday and Tuesday our Year 3 to Year 6 students will be taking part in their Annual Inter-

House Aquathlon. This will take place during regular swim lessons and will see students

complete a short swim immediately followed by a short run. A note has gone home reminding

all of the need to bring appropriate kit for both activities. Points will be awarded to all who

complete their respective courses, with bonus points for 1st to 5th Boy and Girl in each Year.

Weekend Sports Programme

Last Saturday saw the final sessions for Term 1 take place. With some 60 students regularly

attending the sessions, the final sessions took on a carnival atmosphere. For the football section

this meant the much looked-forward-to ‘Tournament Day’. Some great teamwork saw keenly

contested competition in both Primary and Secondary sections. Well done to all involved! Have

a good rest over the Christmas break and see you all in January.

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For more information and details of the Term 2 dates please go to:

http://uplandsroarsport.webs.com/weekend-sports-programme

Monday Night Football

Slow Motion Football continues to grow on Mondays. All ageing Messi’s are welcome. Just bring

along a pair of trainers and a light and a dark top. Teams are mixed up each week, with fun and

a little exercise very much emphasised! Start time is 8pm, and we play until approx 9pm.

Dean Metcalf Head of PE Faculty Follow us on Twitter: @UplandsSport

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Secondary Sports

Sports day fever has hit Uplands this week as students in years 7 to 11 have been completing their field

events during their PE lessons. I have been thoroughly impressed with the standard of competition and

look forward to presenting the winners’ ribbons on Tuesday the 16th at USM. The track heats and finals

as well as the jump finals will also take place on the 16th. Events will start at approximately 8.15am and

be finished around 1.30. Buses will be provided for students who normally use the school bus service and

those who make their own way to school should meet at USM athletics stadium no later than 7.45am.

Attached to this week’s newsletter is the bus schedule for Tuesday the 16th. Please ensure students are at the bus stop at least 5 minutes before the scheduled departure time to avoid any delays. Parents are BREAKING NEWS… The U13 FOBISIA team was announced today and congratulations go to the following students where have been selected: Su Lin Driscoll, Rebekkah Howe, Julieanne Dalsgaard, Ella Rose, Zara Ruhl, Lucy Watson, Emily Goerg, Patti Wezel, CJ Gabo, Xjinnie Tan, Lara Kawai, Romane Jary, Aleksej Strohmeier-Presicek, Tylor Park, Bryant Choi, Denis Eserman, James Cho, John Yoo, Jonah Ruhl, Josh Crompton, Leo Falkhed, Mark Oh, Markus Poulsen and Mino Von Wehden.

Iain Driscoll Head of Secondary PE

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It has been a long first term but we are now counting down towards the holidays with 9.5 school

days to go.

Primary children are rehearsing for the Christmas Concert on Wednesday, 17 December. We

hope many families will join us for the evening which begins at 6:30pm in the new MPH, Block

F. The concert will be followed by refreshments in the refectory. All parents should have

received information from class teachers which contains specific details for each class level. If

you have not received this, please contact your child’s class teacher.

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of next week I will be attending a 21st Century Learning

Conference in Hong Kong.

The latest message received from our swim team, “A great start, 1 gold, 2 silver and a bronze

from the first 6 events!”

Calendar Competition:

This morning, Mrs. Cecile Ooi from Allied Pickfords announced that two of our Year 6 student’s

artwork had been selected for their calendar. Congratulations to Chelsea Choo, Year 6i and

Oliver Hojbjerg, Year 6s. Both students received a ‘goodie’ bag including a TOYSRUS voucher.

Oliver is currently in KL as part of our swim team – Congratulations Oliver, we will have your

presentation on Monday!

Term One ECAs:

Next week will be the final week of session one ECAs. During the final week of the term there

will be no ECAs so please arrange transport so that children are not left unsupervised on the

campus. Term two ECAs will begin on Monday 26, January, with sign-ups during the second

week of the new term.

Term One Reports:

All Primary students will receive written reports which will be distributed on Friday, 19

December. For those families leaving Penang earlier, we will email a PDF copy of your child’s

report. The paper copy can be collected from Ms Karthini in the Primary Office at the beginning

of term two.

Primary Sharing Assembly:

Our final Sharing Assembly will be held on Monday, 15 December, hosted by Year 1 children.

Alison Nicholson

Head of Primary Follow us on Twitter: @uplandsprisch

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Yuta & Chen Hao

Chelsea receiving her prize

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Yuta & Chen Hao

Oliver Jojberg

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This week, we witnessed the Year 13 IB music concert on Tuesday 2nd December and the Year 11

IGCSE music composition concert on Wednesday 3rd December, held for primary students. These

concerts were held to enable the students to prepare for their official recordings, which are a part of

the IB or IGCSE music coursework, and are scheduled for Sunday 7th December. The primary

students were a very polite and well-mannered audience and I am sure the Year 11 and 13 students

are now more confident about completing their recording.

Parents as well as interested students are most welcome to attend the three music concerts coming up

this month.

I. Year 13 IB Music Solo Recitals - Sunday, 7th December, 1.00 - 1.40 pm – F202

Please be in F202 before the recital begins. As per IB guidelines, no person will be allowed into the

room once the recital has started. Those arriving after the recordings have started are requested to

wait in the corridor and only enter the room during the interval sessions between each piece. The

scheduled recordings are -

1.00-1.20 pm: Year 13 Guitar Solo Recital by LOPRESTI, Luke (Lucas)

1) “Romance” by anonymous

2) “Canon in D minor” by Pachelbel

3) “Ave Maria” by Bach/Gounod

1.25-1.40 pm: Year 13 Piano Solo Recital by LIN, Cheng Wei (Cherry)

1) “Sundial Dream” by Kevin Kern

2) “Allegro assai, 3rd movement from Sonata No.6 in E flat, WXI/3” by Bach

3) “Finale, 3rd movement from Sonatina” by Barto

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As the term is coming to an end very soon, kindly return all books loaned, back to the respective

libraries by Friday, 12 December 2014. Your prompt action is highly appreciated.

For IB and IGCSE students, you are allowed to borrow only non-fiction books over the term

holiday.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Sharlotte Bernard

Librarian

The Tutors and Head of Year 9 would like to express how proud they are of all the Year 9 students

who took part in their Term 1 Service Project with such enthusiasm. The PSHE focus for

November was the IBDP Learner Profile element ‘Caring’. After working through lessons on the

benefits of community service each student pledged to undertake at least one community service

activity. Students were given autonomy to choose activities they personally felt were of benefit.

Some students volunteered to work with animals, others to work with young children, some to

work with the elderly and others pledged to improve the environment.

The most impressive thing about this project was the voluntary element. Students were

encouraged and supported but all work photographed was completed on their own initiative!

Different service activities had been assigned different values in points ranging from 1 – 10, and

tutors only stipulation was that students complete a single ‘good deed’, collecting a single point.

However, when given a little independence, our Year 9 students show themselves to be caring

and resourceful individuals who are able to take initiative and get things done in our community!

Year 9 volunteers, we salute you!

Special mention must go to the following 20 students who each collected well over 20 Service

Points:

From 9I – Zara, Wan Xuan, Jane, Ciara, Dickson, Jin Min, Aaron and Da Min.

From 9S – Jenna, Yixian and Fiaq

From 9P – Andrea, Chalyn, Miguelle and JiaYing

From 9Q – Aubrey, Pavithra, Ashwin, Hannah and Cassandra.

In acknowledgement of your dedication to improving our community, the Welfare Team will

shortly be issuing you with an invitation to a reward party. Well done!

Miss Emma Mc Askie

Head of Year 9

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The UPTA invites parents who would like to help decorate the school for Christmas to

meet at 1:00pm this coming Monday, 8th December in the front foyer. We also invite

parents to help decorate the stage in the MPH for the Primary Christmas Concert. For this,

please meet in the MPH on Tuesday, 16th December at 1:00pm. This is the day before the

concert. If you plan on assisting on either of these dates, please email

uplandspta@yahoo.com

If you will be attending the Primary Christmas Concert on Wednesday, 17th December and

are able to contribute a plate of food to share following the performance, it would be most

appreciated. We will be enjoying refreshments, the lighting-up of a live Christmas tree

from Santa Fe Relocation Services, and best of all, a visit from Santa Claus himself, in the

Mesra following the show.

In the spirit of the season of giving, we encourage donations of non-perishable food items

which can be placed under the Christmas tree at the Christmas Concerts. These will be

gifted to a local charity or charities supported by organised Uplands senior student groups

such as CAS and DSS in support of their efforts. Details to follow.

Like last year, we will also be offering “stars” on which to write a wish, and which can

then be hung on the Christmas tree for a nominal donation. Proceeds from this fundraiser

will also go towards a worthy charity or charities supported by Uplands senior students.

If you would like to donate any new or gently used toys for a child who would really

appreciate a special gift, we will be organising collection of these items from the 15th to

the 19th of December at the school. All toys will be distributed to a suitable charity or

charities selected by Uplands senior student organisations. Details to follow.

Thank you,

Roslyn Wirth,

UPTA Secretary

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Parents IB Diploma Information Session – Block F MPH Wednesday, 9 December, 2014

USC Secondary Prom – Traders Hotel Friday, 12 December 2014

Sports Day Years 7 to 12 - USM Tuesday 16 December 2014

Primary & Secondary Christmas Concert Wednesday 17 December 2014

Term 1 Ends at 12.00 noon Friday 19 December 2014

Boarding House closes at 12.00 noon Saturday 20 December 2014

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Orientation Day for all new students – morning Monday12 January 2015

Boarding House re-opens at 2.30 pm Monday 12 January 2015

Term 2 Starts Tuesday 13 January 2015

Taipusam Tba

Mid Term Break at 2.40 pm Friday 13 February 2015

Boarding House closes at 12.00 noon Saturday 14 February 2015

Boarding House re-opens at 2.30 pm Sunday 22 February 2015

School re-opens Monday 23 February 2015

Term 2 ends at 12.00 noon Thursday 2 April 2015

Boarding House closes at 12.00 noon Friday 3 April 2015

Boarding House re-opens at 2.30 pm Sunday 19 April 2015

Term 3 starts Monday 20 April 2015

School closed – Labour Day Friday 1 May 2015

Term 3 ends at 12.00 noon Friday 19 June 2015

Boarding House closes at 12.00 noon Saturday 20 June 2015