Contents

Page No

Message from The Principal

Secondary News

2-5

Uplands Roar

6-9

Primary News

10 11

Art Department

12 13

Charity Event

14 15

University News

16

Great Debate

17 - 18

UPTA

19

To all in the Uplands Community,

The last two weeks have been truly international ones.
Children and staff attended competitions in Phuket,
Bangkok and Singapore. Staff have represented the
school in Bangkok, Kula Lumpur and Hong Kong and as I
write staff and children are in Beijing to join other
FOBISIA schools for a weekend of music.
One of the many pleasures of studying and working at an
international school is the opportunity to participate in
activities with like-minded students and colleagues from
all over the world and experience first-hand the deep,
rich and varied cultures that surround our communities.
Uplands will be hosting the FOBISIA Primary games next
year when we will be welcoming students from 47
schools to Penang.
Enjoy the many reports in this newsletter of our recent
activities.
Your sincerely,

Matthew Bristow
Principal
Follow us on Twitter: @ispuplands
Did the eggs survive? See page 10
1

It is hard to believe that Term 1 is nearly finished and 2015 is just over six weeks away! This
week has seen a lot of students leave Malaysian shores to pursue school trips in other countries
to gain real life experiences in their venture of a holistic education. It was an absolute pleasure
to be able to attend the Phuket 7s Football Tournament last weekend and watch the amazing
Uplands students battle it out on the football field with thirty-six other international schools;
some of these being five times the size of us in terms of student population. As per previous
years, it is always fantastic to hear teachers from other schools comment on how well behaved
the Uplands students are, admiring our students in regards to the support they offer each other
and congratulating us on the great efforts and sportsmanship they constantly display. The
Phuket 7s tournament was another wonderful trip and a big thank you must go to all of the staff
and students involved, however a special thank you must go to Mr Dean Metcalfe, for all of his
efforts in organising this great experience.

Yesterday
morning
six
students, accompanied by Ms.
Ogusu and Mr Liao, headed to
Beijing for this years FOBISIA
Music Festival, hosted by
Harrow International School.
There will be approximately
300 students attend this event
where they will go to various
music workshops and other
musical activities. This is an
excellent opportunity for the
Uplands students to grow as
musicians and to interact with
other students from other
international schools within
Asia.
Good luck and enjoy this super experience.
This morning also saw another group, this time 24 students and 4 staff, head to Bangkok to
represent Uplands in the U15 FOBISIA Games, hosted by St Andrews International School
Bangkok. The intense five day trip, consisting of three very long and tiring days of competition,
will come as no surprise for the majority of these athletes, with several of them attending their
last FOBISIA Games. I wish the team the best of luck in all aspects of the Games: football,
basketball, swimming and athletics.
Bullying:
Sadly bullying happens in all forms of life, both in and out of school for children and also in
different environments for adults as well. It is extremely important that the school
communication triangle between students, teachers and parents is functioning well at all times.
At Uplands, we are very proactive when it comes to this very sensitive issue and we adopt a
Zero Tolerance Policy in regards to these types of behaviours. Unfortunately it is extremely
difficult to act if we are not aware of such incidents.
The topic of bullying is covered in several year groups within the Pastoral Programme as well as
part of some Key Stage 3 subject outlines. We would greatly appreciate if parents could also
spend some valuable time with their children to reinforce the negative effects bullying can have
on a person. Some younger students find it a very difficult issue to deal with and they can become
quite confused in regards to what is the right and the wrong way to deal with these types of
experiences. Below is some brief information I use when speaking with students but for more
information please click on the links below.

http://blogs.uplands.org/hos/

Information I use in school when working with students.

Understanding bullying
What is School Bullying?

Fast Facts: Bullying in Schools

Teach children what to say and they'll stand up to bullies

We thank you for your support over this sensitive and important issue.
Have a great weekend,
Craig Skinner
Head of Secondary School
craig.skinner@uplands.org
http://blogs.uplands.org/hos/
Follow us on Twitter: @UplandsSecSch

On Monday, the Year 11 students were treated to a fantastic talk by Vera and Honami about examination
preparation and how to deal with stress. The girls went through the many different revision strategies that they
use and how they best revise. They also offered students a friendly face that they can go and speak to if they
have any concerns or need help in their IGCSE studies. I hope that the all the students found this useful and it
helps them in the build up to the mock examinations. The presentation is available on my blog
(http://blogs.uplands.org/idriscoll/).
A number of Year 10 and 11 students departed Uplands on Thursday to participate in the annual Phuket football
tournament. This was the 13th addition of the tournament and it turned out that 13 seemed to be our lucky
number! All of the students were great ambassadors for Uplands and I would like to further congratulate the
Senior Girls team who retained their title and the U15 girls who placed 2nd in a very difficult competition. The
Year 10 and 11 students competing last weekend were: Isobel, Vanessa, Marcella, Jens, Mahon, Kengo, Oliver R,
Amandeep, Shinta and Jia Wen.
I wish the U15 FOBISIA team who arrived in Bangkok this morning the very best of luck. I will be posting
regular updates on how the teams are getting on, to our Uplands Roar twitter account @UplandsSport
Iain Driscoll
Head of Year 10 and 11 & Secondary PE

Uplands Roar Sport

Our term continues at pace on the sporting front with a very busy November for our teams. Last
weekend saw our football teams travel to Phuket. This weekend the U15 FOBSIA team travels
to Bangkok and we play host to the U11 Uplands Invitational Football Tournament, involving
some 160 Primary students. This is then followed by our Tennis team travelling to Jakarta in a
couple of weeks, and alongside this we have MSSPP U16 & U14 Netball and the ISAC Swim
Meet. Thank you to all who make these events possible; staff, parents and students.
For detailed results please go to
http://uplandsroarsport.webs.com/apps/blog/
Phuket Football
A total of 59 students, 7 staff and 10 supporting parents travelled to Phuket last weekend for the
annual 7 a side tournament hosted at BIS Phuket. Two days of outstanding football from our
hard working teams certainly proved the old adage that good things come in small packages!
Having trained hard for the preceding 2 months, all 6 of our teams travelled confident of a strong
showing and they were not disappointed with 4 of our 6 teams progressing through to the knockout stages of their respective tournaments.

Lead by both O15 Boys and Girls our footballers produced some excellent passing football and
showed great spirit in competing with schools with far greater numbers than ours. As always
the O15 Boys and Girls looked to keep the ball on the floor and this brand of football has been
adopted across all our teams to great effect. Friday saw all teams compete in round-robin groups
with the target being to finish in the top 2 in their group and ensure qualification of the knockout phase. Both U13 Boys and Girls were up against it with tough opening groups but both
responded well; the boys putting in a great show, only missing out on qualification by 1 point,
and the girls being unfortunate to not go through despite remaining undeafted!
Our U15 Boys and Girls both travelled with high expectations, and neither disappointed as both
qualified with strong showings in the group stage. The Boys in particular, producing 2 great
wins over KLASS and the hosts BIS Phuket. The Girls were in the fortunate position, due to a
quirk of the draw, of being able to relax, safe in the knowledge that they would feature in the
finals. This freedom resulted some great displays against both KLASS and BIS Phuket, with a
slightly too relaxed showing against JIS.
Leading the way were our O15 Boys and Girls, both of whom are well respected amongst the
other schools due to their consistently strong showings at the past 2 Phuket Tournaments. The
Boys started against the hosts Cruzeiro Academy team and produced a very determined display
to earn a 1-1 draw. They followed this with good showings against QIS and JIS to qualify with a
little to spare. Over on the Girls pitch things were tight, with the Girls having to fight their way
through a tough pool of BIS Phuket, BIS Vietnam and StAB.
Saturday saw the knock-out games, and with this, the anticipation of a successful day. Playing
first up, the O15 Boys came up against a resolute SHB, unfortunately losing out 0-2 with 2
mistakes being punished. This resulted in the Boys having to enter the 5-8 play-off which they
came through with flying colours to earn a more than respectable 5th place. Both U13 Boys and
Girls backed this up with determined displays to move through the rankings and finish 10th and
9th respectively.
This left our Semi Finalist; U15 Boys and Girls and the O15 Girls. All 3 came up against quality
opposition at this stage. Having played 4 games just to qualify, the U15 Boys ran out of steam,
losing out to ISKL in a hard fought 0-2 loss, and then having to play shortly after in the 3rd/4th
play off. This proved too much as UWC, whom the boys had beaten in their previous 2 games,
ran out winners leaving the boys in 4th place.

Both U15 Girls and O15 Girls produced

great performances in winning their
respective Semi Finals; O15 Girls 3-1
against SHB and U15 Girls 1-0 against
KLASS. This lead to both reaching their
finals, unfortunately both of which took
place at the same time! Here the U15
Girls showed great character to come
from 2 goals down to narrowly lose out
1-2 to the hosts BIS Phuket, meaning
they finished as tournament RunnersUp. The O15 Girls, following on from
the success of last year, had the chance
to do what no other school managed to do the entire
weekend! A win and they would retain the title
won last year! As with all their games this year, the
Girls showed incredible team spirit and
commitment; this was typified in the manner of
their winning girl, a lung busting run from Vera
resulting in the goal that saw the girls run out
Champions again!
Given the standard of this competition, the largest
of its kind in Asia, this is an exceptional
achievement and it really has put Uplands on the
map with regards our reputation for producing
great football teams. Well done Girls, and Coach
Mr Hollis, enjoy your hard earned success and good
luck with the remainder of your year!
Thank you to all involved in coaching the teams, supporters and fellow squad members who
help push our teams to achieve the levels they achieve.
Our Roar Twitter account; @UplandsSport
Or the event Webpage:
https://sites.google.com/a/bisphuket.ac.th/football/https://sites.google.com/a/bisphuket.ac.th/fo
otball/https://sites.google.com/a/bisphuket.ac.th/football/

Penang Bridge Marathon

Sunday sees the 2014 Bridge Marathon taking place. With races taking place over 42k, 21k and
10k, this is one of the largest events of its kind worldwide and really shows off everything that is
good about Penang. Good luck to all members of the school community taking part; students,
parents and staff.
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
Monday Night Football
For the past month or so, we have been running some Slow Motion Football on Mondays
evenings, 8pm to 9pm. This is very much intended as a social kick-about, and any parents are
very welcome to come along and join in. If you are interested, please bring along a blue and a
white top.
Uplands Roar Sport Cancellation of Swim ECA
Please take note, there will be no swim ECA (morning and afternoon) on Monday, Tuesday and
Wednesday as I will be travelling to Bangkok with the U15 FOBISIA Team.
Coach Ben
Have a graet weekend!
Dean Metcalf
Head of PE Faculty
Follow us on Twitter: @UplandsSport

Our Year 6 students are very excited and looking forward to their Langkawi Residential next week. Next
Wednesday Year 1 children will visit the Spice Gardens and excursions are planned in the near future for
Year 3 and Year 4 students!
Currently our U15 FOBISIA Team is competing in Bangkok and we also have secondary students attending
a Music FOBISIA Festival in Beijing. Coach Ben will not be available for Swimming ECAs until Wednesday,
19 November.
Assembly: Our Primary Assembly on Monday, 17 November, will be hosted by Year 4. The assembly takes
place in the foyer beginning at 2:00pm. Parents are invited to attend.
Year 6 Langkawi Residential: On Tuesday, our Year 6 students will depart to spend four days on Langkawi
as part of their current unit of inquiry. We wish them a safe and enjoyable trip. They will return to the
Uplands campus on Friday, 21 November, at approximately 4:15pm. Please note that Tuesdays Cooking
ECA and Drama ECA will be cancelled as a result of the trip.
Play Leaders: Students from Year 6 were chosen as PLAY LEADERS after half term.
Congratulations to: Jie Yi, Fine, Fern, Chen Hao, Justin, Jesse, Sze Liong, Oscar, Sean and Darren.
Each pair has been entrusted with the responsibility of organising games for the year group they
have been assigned to. These games include: musical chairs, dodge ball, throwing bean bags into
a bucket, "basketball" and many more. This new initiative runs during break times and has been
very well supported by the students. Watch out for new games in the coming weeks!
Ali Nicholson
Head of Primary
Follow us on Twitter: @UplandsPriSch
Year 1 Trip to the Botanical Gardens
Year 1i went on a trip to the Botanical Gardens this week and everyone had a great time. The
children showed great enthusiasm and observational skills throughout their walk around the
gardens. One of tasks they had to do was to choose a favourite plant and give reasons for their
choice. A huge thank you to both parent helpers, Mrs. Nielsen and Mrs. Watson, for offering to
accompany us on the trip.
Year 5 Egg Drop Challenge
For our unit on technology, the students in Year 5 took up the challenge of inventing a device for
the Drop the egg challenge. They collected materials needed from home and school and built
a device with an egg in it which they dropped from the third floor of the primary block! The
objective of the challenge was to ensure that the egg survived when it landed on the ground floor.
Some eggs survived, some eggs did not! It was an enjoyable experience as the students had the
opportunity to be risk-takers and creative in their designs. Well done, Year 5.

10

11

The Art Department has presented the Maths Department with a collection of nine large carved
and painted Islamic Designs, the results of a project this term by Year 9CBA. The origins of the
designs range from Morocco to Malaysia, across the Islamic world. The artworks are to be
displayed both outside and inside the classrooms of the Maths Department.

Music FOBISIA Lunchtime concert and Year 11 Music Concert

There were two music concerts scheduled for this week - the FOBISIA Music lunchtime concert
in the Mesra on 11 November and the Year 11 Music concert for primary students, in F202, on 12
November.
A team of 6 talented young musicians from Uplands (Y13 Alex, Y10 Alycia, Y9 Miles, Y8 YeFun,
Y7 Carson and Ryan) are joining FOBISIA Music festival being held at the Harrow International
School in Beijing on 13th-18th November. Five instrumentalists were involved in the performance
of three short pieces at the lunchtime concert on Tuesday. Many students as well as teachers
enjoyed the performance which bodes well for the FOBISIA event. The 6 FOBISIA music students
are now very confident of playing the music at the visiting school concert as well as the rock
concert during the festival. Please join me in wishing them the best, as they will be performing
many pieces along with a wide array of students from different schools in the FOBISIA event!
12

1. La Donna E Mobile from Rigolette by Verdi Year 13 Alex (sax), Year 8 YeFun (piano),
Year 9 Miles, Year 7 Ryan (trombone) and Year 7 Carson (trumpet)
2. Tap Dancer by Bernard Denagtere Year 13 Alex (sax) and Year 8 YeFun (piano)
3. Triumphal March from Aida by Verdi Year 13 Alex (sax), Year 8 YeFun (piano), Year
9 Miles, Year 7 Ryan (trombone) and Year 7 Carson (trumpet)
One of the Year 3 classes and both Year 6 classes were in attendance for the Year 11 music concert
on Wednesday 12 November. Year 11 IGCSE music students are working on their ensemble
pieces as a part of the IGCSE coursework. Their ensemble performances are recorded officially
on the weekends in F202. Through this concert performance, they were able to work on their
weaknesses in their pieces, so that they can ace their final recordings on Sunday 23 rd and 30th
November. We were happy to hear great feedback from the primary students. A sample
comment Today, 12 November, I went to a concert in school. The concert was hosted by some
Secondary students. I liked the drums and the guitars. I also like the piece called,
Meditation, and the final piece which was composed by a student in Secondary. While
I was listening to the music I felt relaxed and was eager to listen to more. The instruments
were piano, violin, flute, guitar and drums. I think they practised a lot to get to the level
at which they are now. I was impressed and awestruck.
Michael Liao 6s
The Secondary Music Department would like to continue performing in more of such internal
school concerts to enable the talented Uplands musicians to share their gifts with the rest of the
school.

13

Uplands students walk for charity

Years 7 and 12 students hit the Youth Park at an unmentionably early hour on Sunday morning
to take part in Walk for Sight and Sound -a charity event organised to raise funds and awareness
for St Nicholas Home. In pairs, they had to navigate the route from the Youth Park to the
Botanical Gardens and back with one blindfolded and the other leading them, swapping roles
half way.
There was a lot of shrieking and laughter as helpful guides narrowly avoided (or in some cases,
didnt avoid) leading their charges into parked cars, other people, mopeds, traffic and drains.
After receiving their certificates for completing the walk, students were asked what it was like to
be blind. Scary, they said.
Mel Cartlidge
CAS Coordinator
Uplands students walk for charity

14

15

Uplands has arranged for George Mason University, Korea, to come and discuss their campus
and offerings.
There will be two sessions on 26 November 2014:
12:30 to 1:20 Student Presentation in English
1:30 to 2:00
Parent Presentation in Korean and English to discuss GMU and transitioning back
to Korea from abroad.
Please RSVP Mr. Mitchell, the University and Careers Counsellor, if you would like to attend
either session.
Inspired by George Masons appeal for individual rights and freedom, George Mason University
(Mason) recognizes that freedom and learning exist within a complementary relationship.
Students are empowered through education, allowing them to achieve the potential prosperities
of freedom. Mason hopes to position its students for even greater success by offering an
international education in Songdo.
The Mason Korea campus is strategically located 25 miles from Seoul and a 20-minute shuttle
ride from Koreas award-winning international airport. The campus accommodates 2,000
students and includes world-class teaching facilities, a library with state-of-the-art technology, a
performing arts centre, and comfortable dormitories, faculty apartments, and guest housing.
Bill Mitchell
Head of Pastoral

16

Hello there alumni!

If any of you are based in Penang, or fancy a weekend getaway to the lovely island of Penang
Please come and join us for our 3rd debate on Malaysias historical legacy and its influence on our
development.
Our topic this time is highly controversial and we hope it will ignite an exciting debate and
discussion.
As this is our first alumni event outside of KL, it would be wonderful if you could support it.
If you are unable to attend but know of contacts in Penang who might be interested, please feel free
to pass the word around.
Please RSVP as soon as possible to secure your spot, and send your questions in by 14 November.
Best wishes,

Joanne Low
Joanne Low | Alumni Officer | Political, Economic & Public Diplomacy Section | British High Commission | Level 27
Menara Binjai | No.2 Jalan Binjai | 50450 Kuala Lumpur
email joanne.low@fco.gov.uk | telephone +60 3 2170 2301 | fax +60 3 2170 2325 | ftn 8402 2301
| url https://www.gov.uk/government/world/malaysia
Join our Malaysian-UK Alumni network at: http://www.britishcouncil.my/study-uk/uk-alumni
Follow us at:

17

The University of Nottingham Institute of Asia Pacific Studies and Centre for the Study of
Communications and Culture, Malaysia in association with The British High Commission KL
and the Penang Institute invites you to attend the first session of highly topical panel
debates in Penang.
The Great Debate - Penang Edition: Is Malaysia's historical legacy a hindrance to the
country's future development?
The Great Debate in Penang provides a platform for an honest and open discussion about Malaysia's
historical legacy and its impact on the countrys socio-economic development. Has Malaysias historical
legacy made it difficult for our country to identify its place in the world? Has it contributed to divisions
between ethnic groups? Does our historical legacy dictate our future, or are we masters of our own
destiny?
Panel speakers:
YB Zairal Khir Johari (Member of Parliament - Bukit Bendera)
Ivanpal Grewal (Political Secretary to YB Dato Mah Siew Keong)
Himanshu Bhatt (chairman of Penang Players Music and Drama Society)
Rebecca Duckett (Council member of the Penang Heritage Trust)
Joe Sidek (Arts Festival Director)
Date: 21 November 2014, Friday
Time: 18:30 to 22:00
Venue: Lecture Theatre 2 Wawasan Open University
54 Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah 10500 Penang
RSVP: 14 November 2014, Friday to Joanne Low Tel: 03-2170 2301
Email to Joanne.Low@fco.gov.uk

18

Today is the final day to sign up for the German Country Breakfast. This event is
scheduled for Friday, 21st November from 9:30am to 11:30am at the MalaysianGerman Society at 250 B, Jalan Air Itam, Georgetown, 10460. The cost will be
RM40 per person for a full breakfast.
Please email Tanja Sigloch
at info@siglochs.net and reserve your place without delay!

Please note that there will be no Craft Group on Friday, 21st November. This is in
support of the German Country Breakfast which is scheduled that morning. Craft
Group will resume the following week on Friday, 28th November.

If you are available to help sell refreshments anytime between 8am and 2pm at
tomorrows sporting event at Uplands (Saturday, 15th November), please contact
uplandspta@yahoo.com today and we will coordinate a convenient time slot.

Kind Regards,
Roslyn Wirth
UPTA Secretary

19

U15 FOBISIA Games (St Andrews Bangkok)

Friday 14 to Tuesday 18 November 2014

Uplands U11 Invitational Football

Saturday 15 November, 2014

Primary Sharing Assembly, hosted by Year 4

Monday 17 November 2014

Primary and Secondary Christmas Concert

Wednesday 17 December 2014

U16 & U14 MSSPP Netball @ SK Westlands

Tuesday 18 November 2014

Year 1 Excursion Spice Gardens,

Wednesday 19 November

Year 6 Langkawi Residential

Tuesday 18 Friday 21 November 2014

U18 PSAC Netball

Thursday 20 November 2014

Primary TBALL with SCIPS & Straits

Friday 21 November 2014

Year 3 Excursion Ipoh Caves

Thursday 27 November

Year 4 Excursion Selangor School

of Hard Knocks
UPTA Carols by Candlelight

Monday 1 December

Sports Day Years 7 to 12

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

Tuesday 9 December 2014

20

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

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

21