Newsletter No. 64 - December 2014

It’s the holiday season again, and we

would like to take this opportunity to

wish everyone a Merry Christmas

and Happy New Year!

See you all again in January 2015!

We have so much to share with you

in this issue of the newsletter:

Ashley Wong: Top in the World

Tenby Schools Ipoh, Song Competition

Introducing new CCA: Symphony Orchestra

Prefects’ Camp 2014

Christmas Assembly

and many more...

The top 3 winners of Tenby Schools, Song

Competition (L-R):

Marco George, Natalie Chan & Joshua Myat.

Ashley Wong with Mr Louis at the Outstand-

ing Cambridge Learner Awards presentation

in Kuala Lumpur.

Prefects’ Camp 2014 at Lost World of Tambun.

Printing my e-ticket out this afternoon for my flight back to the UK next

week was a tangible sign that the holiday is really upon us. Looking back

the last few months have been particularly exciting for me, not least with

the move to a new country, adapting to the demands of a new role, getting

to know staff, parents and students and coming to realize what a very

special place the Ipoh Campus is. There have been so many happy mem-

ories and events from the Mooncake Festival through to our Christmas

Assembly last week. While I look forward to a restful few weeks back in

England, I will be also looking forward to getting back to Ipoh for a very busy 2015.

Given that Sekolah Tenby and our Sixth Form students began their holiday last week, I was

not expecting many items for this week’s newsletter. How wrong I was! The school has been

frenetic right up to the very last moment and I am sure that you will enjoy reading about

these activities in the pages that follow.

Thank you again for taking time to read this newsletter; it is our primary way of communi-

cating each week and we hope it gives a good reflection of what has been going on as well

as information on school activities. It is excellent to see an increasing number of students

contributing and I am impressed by what they write. I would like in this final newsletter of the

term to say a big thank you to Eleen Teoh, our co-curricular administrator, who not only

spends a huge amount of time and energy in providing the layout to accompany the text but

is frequently seen around school photographing events.

So we come to the end of the term. I would like to wish all staff, students and parents a hap-

py and pleasant holiday and look forward to everyone being refreshed and back on campus

on Tuesday 6th January.

Howard Bullock

From the Campus Principal

As we close in on what has been a long and exhausting term, it is time to reflect and

say thank you to so many people within our community who have collectively worked

together as a team, to continue to help the school move forward.

Thank you to our amazing students. Their conduct, good manners and drive to learn

is simply inspirational. Well done to one and all!

Thank you to the TISSI teaching team of dedicated practitioners who give so self-

lessly of themselves in the name of developing the students in our care.

Thank you to the ancillary staff who help keep the school clean, the students fed and the environment

so welcoming.

Thank you to the parents who show trust, passion, conviction and support to the school in the educa-

tion of their children.

Thank you for the support and guidance from our Corporate Office and to teaching colleagues from

other Tenby Schools who assist us greatly.

Thank you to the elected members of our Parents Association who share guidance, encouragement

and experience to bring issues to our attention and to keep us from becoming complacent.

Thank you to the Admin and Finance teams who make the logistical challenges of enrolment, purchas-

ing and day to day events look effortless.

Finally, thank you to Ms. Puvanes, Madame Soot, Ms. Liew, Mr. Harvey and Mr. Bullock for their sage

advice on issues over the course of the term.

It was a joy to be part of the TISSI Rewards Assembly this week. Everyone in attendance were equally

impressed and astonished at the incredible level of skill shown in the composition and performances of

songs in the Tenby Song Competition. It was great to have Mr. Howard Bullock, our Campus Principal and

Mr. Alistair Bartholemew, our CEO with us for this assembly. We each remarked on how Tenby students all

had such poise and confidence, and never displayed a cynical side to the performing arts that would be

prevalent in the UK.

We have been saddened in recent days by a number of car accidents that have affected some of our

teaching staff. Thankfully nobody has been injured, although all involved were shaken by their experiences.

For all members of our close-knit community, I wish you happy holidays. If you are travelling, then as we

would say in my family – “safiri salama” and we wish you “Journey Mercies”!

We look forward to welcoming back our returning students in January, and to greet the number of new stu-

dents who are joining us at the start of Term 2. For any departing students we wish you happiness and

success in your next school.

For those celebrating Christmas, have a blessed time surrounded by all of your loved ones. It is the season

for giving and a time for families, so enjoy each-others company and be jolly and festive.

Happy Chirstmas!

Neil Page

Message from the Head of International Secondary

We have come to the end of a calendar year at Tenby International Primary

School, Ipoh and it is naturally a time of reflection.

As educators who believe in life-long learning we self-evaluate and reflect

constantly both on individual teaching practices and whole school innova-

tions. This has led to a constant search to improve and change whilst holding

on to our core values and the good practice that is going on in the class-

rooms.

This year some changes have taken place and others have begun the process of changing.

We have brought in a more International flavoured Literacy Scheme, on-line Numeracy devel-

opmental games and additional Science and P.E. lessons in line with the IPC Curriculum.

We have begun the process of Accreditation for the IPC and this will be completed within the

next six months with the first part being very successful and the school achieving their aim.

This was possible, thanks to the hard work of all the teaching staff, particularly Mr. Andrew

Hamilton the IPC coordinator. I would also like to thank the members of the Parent’s associa-

tion who took the time out of their busy lives to meet with the first group of accreditors who

were very impressed with their knowledge and support.

So although the school has moved forward in the last twelve months, we are not complacent

with our success and you can be assured the school will continue to work hard for the benefit

of our students.

On a personal note I would like to thank you all for your best wishes for my future, but you

haven’t got rid of me yet I am still her at Tenby International Primary School, Ipoh, until April

3rd

2015.

Have a Happy and wonderful New Year.

Lee Harvey

Message from the Head of International Primary

As the autumn term draws to a close, I wish to thank all staff for their tireless effort in making this term successful. The term has passed very quickly with the School Review, Parent’s Tea Party cum Parents teacher meeting, the Open Day and finally the Christmas Assembly which will be held this Friday, 5

th December 2015 adding to a busy calendar this term. Time does fly

doesn’t it???

There are a few changes to our staffing next term with Mrs. Carol leaving end of January 2015 to join her husband who has been transferred to Kuala Lumpur and Mrs. Antoinette Teresa (Mrs. Nathan) who is leaving for pastures new. I would like to take this opportunity to thank both the lovely ladies for their effort taken to guide the children under their care with full dedication and love. We wish them both all the very best for the future.

As with every departure, there comes arrivals and it gives me great pleasure to welcome Ms. Caroline Ann to the Tenby family. She will be joining as a teacher assistant in Year 1 (more details will be out tomorrow via a circular).

Apart from this, we would like to share news from abroad, Australia. An ex-student of our kin-dergarten, Kavita V Thanabal has been awarded a certificate for fantastic reading and fluency this year by her school “PIARA WATERS PRIMARY SCHOOL”. Her proud parents thanked us for the good foundation laid during her early years with us at our Kindergarten.

Autumn break will be from 6th December 2014 to 5

th January 2015. I would like to take this

opportunity to thank our parents for their continued support and look forward for the new term of fun and excitement when we return.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2015

Mrs Puvanes

Message from the Head of Tenby Early Years Centre, Ipoh

Sand and Water Play

Horse Riding

Registration

Hand bell performance by our enrichment group.

Lesson demonstration by student.

at Tenby Early Years Centre Ipoh

Last Saturday saw a very successful

Open Day with great support from

our parents and teachers. The event

started off with our student MC’s

who introduced the events and

performances. This was followed by

a hand bell performance and a

welcoming speech by Mr. Howard

Bullock, Campus Principal.

Christmas Assembly

On Wednesday 26th of November 2014, Tenby

Schools Ipoh had their Christmas Assembly. All of

us students, gathered and lined up according to

our classes inside the school’s Multi-Purpose Hall

by 8 a.m. and the assembly began after everyone

was in and settled down.

The first performance was a nativity performance

by the Year 1s and Year 2s. Then some of the

students sang some Christmas songs like “Silent

Night” at the back while the other students acted

out the scenes at the front. Next, was a speech

from the Hostel students about Christmas and its

importance. The third performance was a Year 9

band performance of the song “Walking in the air”.

The fourth and last performance from the second-

ary school was an IGCSE music group perfor-

mance where they changed the lyrics of the song

“Moves like Jagger” into a Christmas themed

song.

Next, the national primary school student repre-

sentatives from each standard took turns to place

handmade ornaments onto the Christmas tree on

the stage. Last, but not least, there was an ap-

pearance from Santa himself. Santa came and

gave little bags of sweets randomly to the audi-

ence. He then distributed the bulk of them to every

class teachers to be given out to every student

and teacher. There was enough candy for every-

one in the school!

Before the assembly came to an end, there was a

Christmas song sing-along session where every-

one sang a few Christmas songs, including “Jingle

Bells” and it was a great way to end the amazing

and festive Christmas Assembly.

Article by: Alicia Kong, Secretary of Sec. Journalism Club

Tenby Schools Ipoh, Song Competition

Symphony Orchestra CCA

Calling all students who play an instrument.

Come together to form the Tenby Schools

Symphony Orchestra! It doesn’t matter what

instrument you play just so long as you enjoy

playing and want to experience the thrill of

playing with others in an ensemble. So, if you

play any string, wind, brass, keyboard or

percussion instrument (or anything else) we

want to hear from you.

Symphony Orchestra is open to all students

from Year 4 / KBSR 3 upwards and takes

place on Monday’s from 3.15pm to 4.15pm in

Music Room 1. Auditions will be held on the

first Monday of next term.

The teacher in charge is Dr. Jeffrey Rowlands.

Joshua and his team performing at the auditorium last

Wednesday.

The Final Performance Round of the Tenby

Schools Song Competition took place on Wednes-

day, November 26th in the Auditorium when five

students performed their songs before a panel of

judges comprising Miss Nikki Sullivan, Mr. Neil

Page, Ms. Liew Yuen Peng, Mr. Lee Tiam Poh and

Dr. Jeffrey Rowlands. In judging the competition

the judges were mindful of the compositional brief

given to all the competitors: that their song should

take as its theme the Tenby Group’s Vision and

Mission: A United World at Peace – Through Edu-

cation, that the lyrics should be mostly in English

with the possibility of some words and phrases

being in other Malaysian languages and, lastly,

that as a school song, likely to be performed at an

assembly or other school function, it should be suit-

able for performance by an ensemble of voices.

The judges also took into account the quality of the

music and the performances.

All the competitors and their performers acquitted

themselves extremely well. The judges were very

impressed by the originality and fluency of each

song and, in particular, by the way the given theme

of the competition had been taken to heart and

expressed in both music and lyrics. Nevertheless,

the judges were charged with the task of finding a

winning song and, by a unanimous decision, placed

the 5 competitors in the following merit order:

5th place: Muhammmad Ameerul Hazig (KBSM 4)

Song title: Tenby My World

4th place: Tan Yao Zong (Y9G)

Song Title: Masterpiece

3rd Place: Marco George (Y10B)

Song Title: The Spirit of Tenby

2nd Place: Natalie Chan Ze Qi (Y9B)

Song Title: United Gratitude

1st Place: Joshua Alfred Myat (Y11B)

Song Title: Together Tenby

Muhammad and Yao Zong each received Certifi-

cates of Participation. Marco, Natalie and Joshua

each received a trophy and a cash prize of RM50,

RM100 and RM200 respectively.

Joshua’s winning song, Together Tenby, will go

forward to compete in the National Final of the

competition to be held in the Auditorium on Febru-

ary 1st, 2015 as part of the Inaugural Tenby

Schools Music Festival.

By Dr Jeffrey Rowlands, Director of Music

Ashley Wong: Top in the World

More than 400 guests were gathered at the

Holiday Villa & Suites, Subang Jaya, for the

Outstanding Cambridge Learner Awards

held on 27 November 2014. The keynote

speech was given by Mr Ben Schmidt, CIE

Regional Director for Southeast Asia and

the Pacific. Also in attendance for the con-

ferment of awards was Yang Berbahagia

Encik Abdul Halim bin Ismail, Director of the

Private Education Sector, Ministry of Edu-

cation Malaysia.

Miss Ashley Wong Lei Peng of Tenby

International School Ipoh had the singular

distinction of being the only Malaysian

student to have attained the honour of

being “Top in the World” for Thinking Skills

at A2 level based on her performance in the

May/June 2014 examinations.

Among the attendees were Ashley’s proud

and elated parents, Dr. & Mrs Wong who

paid a glowing tribute to the Sixth Form staff

of Tenby International School, Ipoh. Tenby

Schools Ipoh was represented by Mr Louis

Rozario Doss, Head of Sixth Form.

“Ashley has been a home scholar all these

many years until she decided to join the

Tenby Sixth Form. The sixth form experi-

ence was a crucible that helped Ashley

develop her thinking skills to the fullest,”

commented Mr Louis who teaches Thinking

Skills and History.

Among Ashley Wong’s other accomplish-

ments were A*s in Biology, History and

Thinking Skills. She also scored As in

Mathematics and Psychology. Ashley also

figured prominently in Shakespearean

drama wherein she directed the school’s

production of “Julius Caesar” (2013/14).

She was also an avid debater and debate

adjudicator par excellence.

Ashley Wong has applied to do History at

Oxbridge and is expected to begin her

studies in September 2015. When asked

what she plans to do in the meantime, she

commented:

“I am doing some homeschool teaching as

well as dabbling in e-commerce. The former

is my community service interest which I

hope to do all my life. The latter is based on

my hunch that my future earning capacity

may lie somewhere in cyberspace.”

Congratulations, Ashley Wong! May your

achievement be the foretaste of greater

things to come!

Ashley Wong receiving the award.

Ashley Wong with Mr Louis.

Source: Mr Louis Rozario

Prefects’ Camp 2014

On Thursday 20 November 2014, thirty-two prefects

departed from school en route to Lost World of

Tambun, never more ready to put their physical and

leadership abilities to the test.

The first day was a good start to the camp, with

activities such as icebreakers and teamwork beach

activities organized carefully by the EXCO Board.

Each team of prefects, consisting of 6 to 7 people,

battled it out to garner the highest score in each

game. Mr Ang, the teacher advisor of the Board, conducted a leadership session, in which

prefects listened intently to Mr Ang's explanation of the four main leadership styles.

After a good night's rest, the prefects gathered in the Lost World Garden Terrace the next

morning for a hearty breakfast. With a physically engaging morning game of “Galah Panjang”,

all hints of sleepiness were shaken off. Mr Ang conducted a discussion session on the vision

and mission of the Prefectorial Board. Team members collaborated with each other to draw up

a vision and a set of mission goals for the Board, each based on the objectives and purpose of

the Board.

At 11am, the Lost World Team-Building Centre staff carried out the Super Adventure Race,

a series of games and challenges located across the theme park, which teams were to com-

plete as quickly as possible. Despite their exhaustion, prefects were still eager to continue with

the Amazing Race after lunch, the second race across the Lost World of Tambun, this time

organized by the EXCO members of the Board.

After these fatiguing activities, the prefects made their

way back to the hotel to shower and freshen up for the night

activities. Dinner was a satisfying Malay cuisine meal which

preceded an interesting drama night. Prefects worked in their

teams to put up a sketch based on childhood TV shows such

as Naruto, Power Rangers, Ultraman and Avengers. After

the entertaining sketches, the prefects had their own fun on

the beach. Despite the rainy weather, Day 2 ended with

smiles and laughter.

After breakfast on Day 3, the tabulated scores attained

by each team during the camp activities for the past two days

were announced. Expectant faces broke into smiles as the

winning team was announced. Orange Team were the cham-

pions; they were given their first place prize. Prefects from

other teams sincerely congratulated Orange team members,

and then went to collect their consolation prizes.

The camp closed with a captain ball match between teams, in which EXCO members also

participated. It was a refreshing game, and was an excellent way to close such a joyful camp.

Overall, prefects enjoyed themselves. Some gladly informed EXCOs that this camp had

brought their sense of confidence up many notches. The EXCO Board is satisfied with the result

of our meticulous planning, and wishes to put across our appreciation and thanks to the school

management for allowing this camp to happen. We also thank the camp chaperones, Mr Teoh

and Ms Yulaga, who helped to maintain order throughout the camp.

Last but not least, we sincerely thank Mr Ang, our dedicated teacher advisor, for all the time

and care he took to plan the camp and his sessions.

Written by

Emily Ho, Head Prefect

Recent Visitors to Tenby

Congratulations to Tan Choong Yen of

KBSM 3B, who emerged as the state

champion in Axiata Cup Juniors last

November.

Way to go Choong Yen!

Source: http://axiatacup.com/juniors/

winners.html

Visitors from St John’s International

School, Kuala Lumpur

Tenby Schools Ipoh was recently

visited by a delegation of teachers and

administrative staff from St. John’s Inter-

national School, Kuala Lumpur. The

visitors were received by Campus

Principal, Mr Howard Bullock and taken

on a tour of the campus by Mr Louis,

Head of Sixth Form.

Visitor from Air Asia

Kertan Jeyaprakasha(Damian),

old boy of Tenby International

School, Ipoh, paid his teachers a

courtesy call recently during a

break from duty with Air Asia

where he works as a flight

attendant on the Japan-Korea-

Australia route. Kertan, who was at

Tenby from 2008-2010, was a top-

notch basketballer at school. He is

currently one of the official coaches

for the national team “YCL

Dragons” and the Air Asia basket-

ball squad.

From Ottawa with Love

Two old boys from the Tenby

Sixth Form currently studying in

Ottawa, Canada, paid their

respects to their teachers at Tenby

International School Ipoh. Ivan

Wong and Anand and Chandra-

sekhar are both studying Actuarial

Science.

“We owe much to our strong

foundations in Further Maths and

Economics taught by Mrs Flavis

Pakianathan and Mrs Kong re-

spectively,” said Ivan Wong.

Congratulations!

UPSR 2014 Results

The results of UPSR were released on 26 November 2014. Our

heartfelt congratulations to all our KBSR 6 students. We are ranked

6th in the Kinta Utara District with a grade point average 1.69.

Top Scorers:

5As: Lee Shee Ching, Ayra Adila Zuhdi and Erica Goh Kah Yen

4As: Aqil Harith, Chen Lixin, Liew Zi Wei, Sri Aishah,

Lim Zhi Qing and Sohail Mohamed Nordin

3As: Cherry Cheng, Elaine Selvakumaran, Lee Sum Yee,

Muhammad Alif Daniel, Nur Amisha, Shireen Alisha and

Wang Wei San

Spotlight on Tenby’s Boarding Hostel

Tenby Schools’ Ipoh Hostel is located in Meru Valley Resort Homes in Block C,

Golf Vista, covering five apartment units on the first floor. Facilities offered

include 24 hour security and Meru Golf & Country Club’s non-golfing facilities –

swimming pool, tennis court, basketball court, sauna and gym.

Four boarders share an apartment. Each apartment comprises of 2 bedrooms

with attached bathrooms. The apartment is fully air-conditioned and furnished

with its own kitchenette, dining area, living hall, laundry area and the usual

amenities.

Mrs. Susan Manikam is the House Mother who is in overall charge of the School

Hostel. She has had extensive experience as teacher, writer and counsellor in the Malay-

sian and Brunei Education Service. She also has specialist qualifications in Home Eco-

nomics for the Lower Secondary and Food and Nutrition for Upper Secondary.

Mrs. Susan Manikam believes that learning is not just about what goes in the classroom

but is also about what happens around us. Everything we do depends on our attitude and

the very clear expectations of the outcome we have in mind. The most ‘fun’ or ‘beneficial’

thing or situation does not necessarily become so to everyone. It is a challenging job to

be a ‘mother’ to so many children of different cultures. The reward is in the child; the gift;

(no mum would want to miss) to see them mature into beautiful, independent, responsible,

respectful and happy young adults.

Mr. John Manikam assists Mrs. Susan Manikam in the overall administration of the

boarders’ welfare at the Hostel. Mr. John’s official designation is that of English Language Tutor to the boarders.

Mr. Manikam is a qualified teacher and has served in the Ministry of Education of Malaysia and Brunei, mainly as

an English Language Instructor.

Form 2 visits Kuala Lumpur

On Friday, 14th November 2014, 32 Form 2 students of

SM Tenby, supervised by 4 teachers, visited the Petro-

sains & Aquaria KLCC in Kuala Lumpur to increase their

knowledge in the fields of organic chemistry and marine

life.

The Petrosains is a Science discovery centre where

visitors can learn about a range of scientific topics such

as the age of dinosaurs, earthquakes and how human

life has changed with the discovery of petroleum. The

students were able to use all their senses in exploring

and discovering Science. There was a wide range of

activities for the students, from experiencing a hair blow-

ing hurricane to exploring a life-sized depiction of an oil

rig and getting an insight into the lives of the various

workers on the oil rig.

Continue next page...

Contact Us

Tenby Schools Ipoh

16 Persiaran Meru Utama

Bandar Meru Raya

30020 Ipoh, Perak

T: 05 - 525 2628

F: 05 - 525 2881

ipoh@tenby.edu.my

Visit us on the web at

www.tenby.edu.my/ipoh

Upcoming Events/Announcements

30 January - 1 February 2015

Inaugural Tenby Schools National Music Festival

Sekolah Tenby

29 November 2014 - 5 January 2015

Term Break

5 January 2015

Orientation Day

Tenby International

6 December 2014 - 5 January 2015

Term Break

6 January 2015

Year 11 Mock Exams begin

8 January 2015

Year 10 Parents Evening

14 January 2015

KS3 Parents Evening

21 January 2015

Primary Parents Evening

21 April - 23 April 2015

Year 6 and Year 9 Checkpoints

Please be informed

that the Admin Office

of both Meru and

Ipoh Campuses will

be closed for

staff training on

8th

& 9th

Dec 2014.

Sorry for any

inconvenience

caused.

Then, at about 2.00 pm, the students then went to the next

destination which was the Aquaria KLCC. Aquaria KLCC

is a world-class aquarium that showcases aquatic animals

& marine life from Malaysia and around the world. With

the Aquaria experts to share about how the different

aquatic animals and marine life interact in their natural

habitats in Malaysia and the surrounding region, students

were able to learn a lot about the subject while enjoying

the beauty of the big aquaria.

After visiting Aquaria KLCC, the students and the teachers

then departed for Ipoh, arriving back in the evening. All in

all, it was an enriching experience for both the students

and the teachers. Source: Pn Noor Naemah (SM2 teacher)