News for Parents

To round off our current fashion design project students were challenged to create a ‘high concept’ fashion piece inspired by the winning 2019 Miss Universe costume designed by Hoàng Thùy. Students were asked to create a quick costume that would represent an aspect of Vietnamese culture – made entirely of paper! We were impressed by a catwalk full of noodles, fans, menus and street food – bravo gang, we’ll see you in Paris!

Clowning Around
As part of the IGS Circus project, the group of clowns got to experience an actual clown at work. A local Saigon clown called Nam visited the group and taught them how to make balloon animals and other shapes. The clowns learned a thing or two (with many a burst balloon during the process) and had a good deal to show for their efforts at the end.
Hopefully the children will start producing their own balloon animals now that they have learned a few techniques.

This week the usual “Coffee with us” meeting took place in the U6 section. The topic was “Nutrition”. In addition to general information on nutrition in early childhood, the principles for putting together a balanced diet at the IGS were explained.
The highlight, however, was clearly the creative competition at the end of the event, where parents could show how healthy food can be prepared in an appealing and fun way for and with children.

As part of the DaF lessons, the students in class 2 wrote their own picture stories about their class mascot, Coco. Here is a story by student Ha Vy (Grade 2):
 “Coco has a Backache”
On Sunday, Coco goes to Ms. Quynh Anh. He has severe back pain. Ms. Quynh Anh has an idea. He needs to go to the doctor. The doctor examines Coco. Coco needs an operation. First, Coco is given an injection. Then he falls asleep. While he’s sleeping, the doctor sews Coco’s back together. Finally, Coco is given a plaster. Now Coco’s back no longer hurts.

Since last December, the candidates who qualified for the DSD I, the Deutsche Sprachdiplom Stufe 1 (Engl.: German Language Certificate of the Education Ministers Conference Level 1) had been preparing for one important day! On Wednesday, the time had finally come to prove their German skills. Students from grades 7-10 sat for three papers: listening comprehension, reading comprehension as well as writing in a 4-hour-long exam with intermittent breaks.
One German lesson a week had been dedicated to giving feedback on their progress and reviewing their work. In addition, a special Google Classroom with materials that introduce participants to the exam format had provided them with ample tasks to practice for the exam.
Currently, the DSD I candidates have two weeks to get ready for the speaking exam which will take place on Monday, March 29, 2021. In order to know what to expect from this official exam setting, IGS hosted demonstration exams on Friday. At this event, students of grades 7 and 8, as well as the older candidates, were able to get acquainted with the sequence and the expectations of the exam format by watching two of their brave classmates being examined. A great variety of topics were presented by the students. They ranged from the chess move Queen’s Gambit to the popular phenomenon of K-Pop to the sustainability of Fast Fashion; questions by the examiners were often answered to satisfaction.
With a DSD I certificate, German language skills at level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages ​​(CEFR) are certified. It is accepted as proof of the German language skills required for access to a Studienkolleg (Preparatory College) in Germany.
The DSD I certificate is a prerequisite to be registered for the DSD II exam that IGS holds in grade 11 and satisfies language requirements of tertiary institutions, e.g. universities in Germany.
The German Language Diploma is currently taken in over 70 countries by more than 80,000 candidates per year who sit the exam on the same date worldwide.

It was a great success when, on February 28, 1909, the first, then national, Women’s Day was launched in the USA. Inspired by this idea, Clara Zetkin suggested the introduction of an international women’s day at the second International Socialist Women’s Conference in 1910. While at first one of the main demands was the right to vote for women, actions against war later also came to the fore.
Nowadays, the demands which are made differ from the original simple demands, depending on the cultural context. However, the focus on the role of men and women and the demand for equality within the scope of this distinction is largely the same.
The modern semantics of diversity, and traditional notions of gender roles more or less coexist. If the terms “gender” and “sex” are introduced into the discussion, the distinction between what make a man a man, or a woman a woman, is no longer so clear, neither is the question of whom or what we actually celebrate on Women’s Day. Is it an idea, a social construct? Somehow the meaning of this day oscillates between the bouquet of flowers for the woman with cliché connotations, and the effort to deconstruct precisely these questions.
How wonderful it is when you can increasingly determine, change and develop your own identity (s) in our world – far from polarizing discourse about  black or white, man or woman – and without stopping at the merely superficial interchanging of traditional roles.How nice it is to live within cultures in which diversity is recognized as added value and self-defined identities can be celebrated.
In this sense, International Women’s Day is a great occasion to honor diversity and self-determination as well as the breaking of disadvantageous patterns and reflexes.It is a reason to celebrate and reflect for everyone – not just for those who see themselves as women and are valued as such, or men who value their feminine side.

Cheers to those whom we love.

Class 2 learned about day and night and learned more about our sun, moon and earth in their General Science class.
At the end they tracked their learning experiences of the day in art presentations.

The last day of school before the Vietnamese New Year celebrations is usually also the day of the mid-term graduation ceremony at the IGS. This year it took place via igs_online. The ceremony was opened with a piano piece performed by the IGS student Xu Ziyuan. This was followed by the headmaster’s speech and a review of the last few months together with the class teachers, where, among other things, goals for the coming half-year were formulated.
At the end, all students said goodbye to the First Term with the traditional lion dance. Actually, the lion dance had been rehearsed again this year by the students who are now, unfortunately currently doing distance learning at home. It didn’t take long before our teachers stepped in. See for yourself how gracefully our little lions move to the percussion.
The water buffalo is said to be hard-working, well-organized and resilient, and he places a special focus on education. So, this augurs well for the New Year.

We wish you and your family a healthy, successful, new Year of the Water Buffalo.

Chúc mừng năm mới

Speech by the IGS student representative

Võ Hà My (Hanna), grade 8 and the Deputy Student Representative Võ Đặng Kỳ Anh (Katie), grade 11 for the Vietnamese New Year celebrations.

As already mentioned last week, the little ones have been preparing intensively for the upcoming Tet celebration. The elementary school choir is rehearsing traditional Tet songs under the direction of Douglas Vale and Jonathan Armes. In addition, they are actively supported by Ms. Quynh Anh.
For the students of grade 6, slight feelings of stage fright are gradually rising. The students are rehearsing a play on the legend of Mai and the origins of the yellow flowers which can be seen all over the school campus.
We look forward to a colorful programme!

This week the students are busy crafting and decorating for our upcoming Tết celebrations. Grade 1 have created city-scape banners showing Saigon on New Year’s Eve, while Grade 4 are preparing papier mache sculptures for the library. Chúc mừng năm mới everyone!

If anyone was walking across campus this week they would have been able to see lions dancing on the sports field to the beats of boisterous drum rolls by the pupils of grade 7 and 8. They are rehearsing the traditional lion dance for this year’s Tet Festival under the direction of Matthias Mayr. Besides that, “Tết Tết Tết Đến Rồi” is pervading the air and we are already looking forward to being able to tell you about more surprises for the Tet Festival next week.
But this much can already be revealed – even with the little ones and the grade sixes, the preparations are in full swing.

Dear friends of the IGS, dear colleagues,

Over the past few months, teachers around the world have taught and tried to maintain standards at schools under challenging conditions.
Schools have shared the special pressure of adapting to the situation under which many institutions and companies suffer.
What sets schools apart is that they have a lasting impact on future generations.
Many of us will spend the Christmas season far from home, sometimes separated from our families, or at least with limited travel options.
Instead of a Christmas card this year, we would like to share a piece of home with you – a Christmas concert from within the library of the German School in Saigon.
Wherever you are in the world, you are welcome to join the Christmas concert with the Saigon String Quartet with just one click.

We thank you for your unstinting support of the International German School HCMC this year, and wish you and your families a Merry Christmas and good entertainment with the Saigon String Quartet.

Dirk Thormann
Principal

“I didn’t even know that the teachers could sing so beautifully,” whispered a little penguin from the 1st grade as the teachers’ choir sang for the students as an Advent surprise. The Advent door in front of Villa B had wonderful surprises ready for the 2nd week of Advent. There were waffles for everyone, a carousel for the little ones (and one or two teachers who also secretly did a round 🙂 ) a visit from the glassblower and, on the penultimate day of school, the teachers’ band rocked Christmas. The Christmas celebrations of the classes went into the 2nd round this week and not only brought delicious sausages and fried potatoes, but also one or two versions of mulled wine, and many really seasonal conversations.

On Monday, December 14th, the 11th grade students faced the final part of the German Language Diploma, Level 2 (DSD II): the oral exam. The DSD II is an official language certificate from the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs and is accepted in Germany as proof of language proficiency at levels B2 / C1 for university enrollment. Exciting topics such as “Lowering VAT as a solution for the inflation caused by COVID in Germany” or “Homelessness in Berlin” were presented in the examination and led to interesting discussions. All participants were overjoyed that they had reached this milestone. The examiners also had reason to be proud of the results of this, the first ever oral exam at the IGS.

For a week, students of class 3 worked enthusiastically with Legos in Sachunterricht (Science and Culture). The children first recreated simple snails, followed by fans and research probes, which were programmed afterward. In keeping with the Christmas season, the children then built and programmed Santa Claus with Rudolph the reindeer using fairly complex instructions. After some minor failures in the beginning, all groups finally managed to get Rudolph to pull the sleigh with Santa Claus behind him.

The class six students surprised the class twos with a magical time baking Christmas cookies and class 4 surprised class one. There was a lot of measuring, sifting, whisking and rolling out of dough. The little ones were in awe of their elder school mates, and wore wide smiles throughout. An IGS Bakery it sure was.
     

On Monday, 7 December the miraculous occurred – Nicholaus came to visit the IGS. Bearing bags of goodies and handing them out to all the good children, he wandered about the school campus looking for classes to visit.
He wore his famous red cloak over a white surcoat with gold trimmings. Around his waist he wore a gold belt. He wore snow-white gloves on his hands and he carried around his golden crozier. On his head (despite the intense heat) he wore his bishop’s mitre. All in all, he presented an imposing figure as he strode around on his quest to give presents to all the good children in the school.
Nicholaus had a wonderful time in the U6 section where he was regaled with music and, in turn, handed out packs of nutritious fruit and cookies. After visiting his last class, Class 5, he quietly disappeared as mysteriously as he arrived.
Let us hope that there are enough good children in the IGS next year to lure him back in 2021.

Shining children’s eyes! A huge Advent calendar door, which is lovingly decorated for Christmas, adorns the staircase to Villa B on Monday. The weeks before Christmas are the time of anticipation, small and large secrets, contemplation and, of course, joy. And so the Advent door at the IGS also holds new surprises, which are discovered by the students every day. In addition to musical and creative activities, there are of course a few Christmas treats.
Waiting for Christmas was rewarded this week with “Advent singing at the Christmas tree”, “Making Christmas cards with Ben Wayman”, “Music in the Schoolyard” and “Christmas stories with Quynh Anh”. As a special highlight there were hot chestnuts – freshly prepared by the chestnut seller – a must in the cold season 😉 to warm your hands in winter.
The Christmas celebrations for each class also started this week. In addition to international and traditional delicacies, mulled wine and Christmas music, for example, the Pirates of the 2nd class enchanted the audience of teachers and parents with their Christmas play, which they had rehearsed so rigorously before their party.

Also for the next week we have also prepared many great activities for the students. It doesn’t get boring at the IGS during Advent.

The Christmas season was also ushered in with a little surprise for the teachers. Organized by the Christmas Elf, Ms. Mai, and the teachers’ spokesman, Mr. Reisdorf, every teacher can expect the “little door” of an artistically designed Advent calendar. In this way, even among the big ones at the IGS, the Christmas mood and the anticipation for Christmas are awakened for many who are far from home.