Under the rallying cry “edible schoolyard”, the young gardeners of the IGS, directed by Alexander Schlee (gagacovn), began sowing and planting last week. We are already looking forward to the first harvest and are curious as to what the young gardeners will surprise us with next.
For the fourth time this school year, Coffee with Us took place on Thursday, 21.11.2019. As with the U6-group and the primary school, the secondary school invited an exchange between parents and teachers in the beautiful seating area in front of the villa E. As a topic, science at the IGS was discussed.
Discussions also centered around the upcoming research expedition to the Mekong-Delta, and the Christmas in Vietnam programme – probably because the Christmas tree in the schoolyard was festooned with red balls.
Many thanks to the parents for their visit and the interesting exchange.Finally, we visited the new laboratory together, where class 7, under the guidance of Mrs. Le, had just determined the pH-level of water. It’s great that the secondary school students now have the opportunity to carry out biology, physics and chemistry experiments and to explore scientific phenomena in a new laboratory.
We are very proud to announce that the class 2 community project has been selected for the Humboldt Calendar 2020. Our work will fill one page of this calendar.
Every year, the German School, Sao Paulo Colegio Humboldt, organizes the intercontinental school competition “Cities on the River”. Of course, this year is all about the naturalist Alexander von Humboldt.
Pupils from all over the world were challenged to grapple artistically with the scientific work of Humboldt – this included classes 2 to 7 of the IGS in art lessons with the amazing Mr. Ben Wayman.
Twenty-five works of art out of one hundred and fourteen submissions from 18 schools in 14 countries were selected for the pages of the Humboldt Calendar. One of these 25 artworks is the Collage by Humboldt done by Class 2.
Congratulations Class 2! Well done.
Being a teacher is more than a job. For many people, this work is a vocation that they fulfill with a lot of passion.
For us, it was special to receive such warm, thoughtful gifts from our parents this year.
We thank you for working daily with your children and for letting us share in their development.
Stress, lack of esteem, disrespect and ‘helicopter parents’ are buzzwords that are often associated with the teaching profession today, at least in the daily press.
If you were a guest at the International German School HCMC (IGS) in Vietnam last week, you must have felt like you were in a parallel universe. Teaching is traditionally one of the most respected professions in Vietnam; Education enjoys a very high priority.
Teacher’s Day is celebrated in the Socialist Republic on 20 November. Many students come to school on this day with bouquets for their teachers. Parents, too, often express their personal gratitude for the educational work that teachers have done.
The teachers at the IGS were also surprised by the representatives of the parents’ council. They had prepared small packages with a healthy snack before the weekly teachers’ meeting, which they lovingly presented. “Never before have I received such appreciation as a teacher,” says Ms. M., who decided to go to Vietnam after completing her degree and gaining professional experience.
On the evening of the official Vietnamese Teachers’ Day, Consul General Dr. Josefine Wallat, and husband Chris Moore, invited all educators of the German educational institutions in Ho Chi Minh City to a stylishly-prepared reception. The Consul General thanked the teachers of the German School, the Goethe Institute, the Vietnamese-German University, the German Department of the National University and the Pasch Institiute for their hard work, and took a lot of time to personally talk to all guests at the function.
Unlike the production of products in a factory, the results of education are often only visible years later. This is in the nature of things. Often, in the case of education, things are only noticeable as written between the lines, but which have a lasting effect on the lives of students.
Numerous graduates of German schools abroad hold important positions in their homeland after studying in Germany and build cultural and economic bridges between the countries in which they have studied and lived.
Vietnam and Germany have a long-standing friendly relationship, which is currently gaining momentum due to the economic boom in Vietnam.
For many colleagues at the International German School HCMC in Vietnam, it is a very exciting experience to witness this rapid development in such a diverse country.
Reading aloud promotes creativity and focus. For the annual reading day, many young and old readers could be found at the IGS today reading various books and poems out loud with enthusiasm and excitement. The school campus and classrooms were transformed into small reading oases: at the pool, on the sun terrace or sitting in a circle on the ground, where the boys and girls listened to different stories. “Winter is like this”, class 5/6 students read to the little ones from kindergarten and preschool. “The Little We” was read to class 3 and poems written by class 5/6 were presented to the Pirate Class. A German-Vietnamese fairytale story time in classes 4 and 6 rounded off the day. Do you feel like reading aloud too now? Maybe you have some time on the weekend to read your favorite book to your child!
“A plague on both your houses” – Grades 8, 9 and 10 took to the bus to visit Saigon’s grand old Opera House to see a production of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”. The play is being studied by Grade 9 at the moment, and Grade 10 studied it last year, so the play is familiar to most of the students. Grade 8 will have the joyful Shakespeare experience next year if all goes well.
The play was brought to life by only five actors who had (naturally) to play all the roles. Expert trimming of the script down to bare minimums and creative staging made for a clear, at times gripping performance. It was unanimously decided by the whole group that the actress portraying the nurse was the best player over all. There was some poignant madrigal singing which rounded off the play and allowed for some highly unique and creative staging.
It was an experience well worth watching and will give students some food for thought as they have been given the task or reviewing the play for themselves.
While students enjoyed a long weekend, teachers from School and Kindergarten met on November 11th and 12th to prepare for the rest of the year and to participate in professional development workshops.
Teachers of primary and secondary had the opportunity to participate in a workshop presented by Vivek Bammi, an experienced IB teacher. He gave a deeper insight into the core subjects: TOK (theory of knowledge) CAS (creativity, activity, service) and the extended essay.
In the early education section, improvements in the language learning process were made, following the Marburg program.
We extend a heartfelt thanks to Mr. Bammi for leading the workshop and initiating all the interesting discussions.
A trusting communication between parents and teachers, which is characterized by mutual respect and recognition is a prerequisite for the productive and sustainable promotion of our students. The joint search for solutions as well as an inspiring exchange of ideas was also the focus of the 1st Parents’ Day of the 2019/2020 school year.
The Lantern Festival, reminder of the historic Saint Martin, is always a highlight in the school’s calendar in November. The parents of U6 tinker for days in advance on their children’s lanterns.
The St Martin play, the songs and also the parade, everything is practiced beforehand. Douglas Vale’s drama group of students from grades 1 to 5 led the scene in the forum, the musical accompaniment composed by Ruben Viertel and the song, St Martin, sung by grade 5. Then there was the traditional procession with lanterns to Riverside.The guests enjoyed the atmosphere with lantern light, beer and sausages till late in the evening. For many visitors it was perhaps also a piece of European home in the south of Vietnam.
Full of energy, fathers and mothers from the KG section met on Wednesday evening to make lanterns for their children. In addition to imaginative unicorns and flying fish also dinosaurs were created and are now ready for the lantern parade.
We would like to thank all parents for their creative contribution.
“We learn from and with each other” – with this motto as a guide, a presentation lesson takes place every six weeks in primary school. Grade 1 to 4 elementary school pupils present their results, present poems and songs, or let other groups share their knowledge of the past few weeks from the various school subjects. On Thursday 7.11.2019 the time finally came round again: Enthusiastic children from class 2 explained and demonstrated the phenomenon of swimming and sinking. The pirate class introduced a self-designed board game and the learners of the dragon class performed an experiment and made protein visible. We are curious to see what we will discover together in our next presentation lesson.
Scary beautiful witches, cats and wizards took over the command in our U6 area yesterday. Exciting activities and a great Halloween party delighted young and old. Even the pirates of the first class have celebrated together with their teachers wild and boisterous.
Ms. Schaffer and Mr. Bösinger took part in the “Learning with iPad” training course, in addition to “split screen” and “spoken content”, there were many uses of the iPad for teaching purposes.
Horst Geicke was unanimously re-elected by the voting members of the school advisory committee. The school advisory committee serves as an advisory and supporting body for the support of the IGS in strategic issues as well as for promoting contacts in politics, business and culture. We congratulate Horst and look forward to further developing the IGS under his able leadership.
Project work challenges students, unlocks their imaginations and encourages independent learning. The interdisciplinary (Kl. 5/6) learning group, German, developed a project for the pirates of class 1. The little pirates could playfully discover District II. A quiz on the noise of our neighborhood as well as a board game on District II designed by the students, inspired the first graders.
This week, the children had the opportunity to experience nature up close. During their trip to the GaGaCo Garden Center, the children were able to collect flowers for a delicious lemonade, while others either produced environmentally friendly plant pots from paper strips or banana leaves, or plucked herbs in the herb garden. Between rosemary and thyme, peppermint and basil, the children had much fun on this beautiful morning.
We warmly congratulate Mrs. Hauschild on her election as Chairperson of the Parent Council and Ms. Ong Yu Wen (Grade 3) on her election as Substitute.Our congratulations also to the elected members of the school advisory board who have been nominated by the parent council:
Frau Issariya Hauschild
Frau Thị Vân Anh Trần
Herr Felice Iacobellis
Herr Ewald Andreas Hauschild
Herr Thorsten Janke
After visiting the German School in Chiang Mai last year, IGS received the five students of the graduating class from Chiang Mai on last week on Tuesday.
After taking a small school tour organized by Milan and Yipta, the class 10 IGS students exchanged their experiences of the upper grades with the 12th graders from Chiang Mai.
Afterwards, the guests took part in a double lesson in arts.
Library opens at the 0th hour!
Some of our young readers can be found quite early in front of the school library. Therefore, we have decided to open the library for our visitors from 7:15 am until further notice. Ms. Quyn Anh is available with a smile to all reading friends every morning from Monday to Friday for support. When the first piano pieces of our young pianists sound, it is usually time to put the books aside and prepare for the first lesson. We wish all of you a lot of fun with our new offer.
Last Thursday, the parents of this year’s lateral entrant students came to join an informative evening in the new Villa H. The Lateral Entrants’ Programme allows students of non-German mother tongue to enter the classes at the IGS through a special support program. Since close cooperation with parents is essential for successful integration, members of the extended school management, as well as Teachers of German as a Foreign Language and other subject teachers, offered various informational sessions to make the school organization and the Lateral Entrants’ Programme transparent to the visitors.
After some tea and cookies and a brief welcome address, divided into language groups the parents went into the first room which was prepared for them. A gong initiated the change to the next room for the following subject.
During informative discussions, walkabouts, and presentations, the parents received information on topics such as certificates and grades, curricula, the procedure of the Lateral Entrants’ Programme and the pursued school exit certificate, the IB Diploma Programme.
Of course, questions were always welcome, but there was still time at the end of the event for general inquiries and face-to-face discussions.
We thank all attendees for their participation and the lively exchange.
On October 15, the first fire drill took place this school year. First of all IGS students, teachers and staff leftthe campus via the specified escape routes and met at the assembly stations.Then it was exciting: The Fire Department deputised employees of the Property Department, who made themselves available as “injured”. The artificially placed fire was extinguished by a fire extinguisher by two “property owners”. They had participated last school year in a similar fire brigade training exercise.
After the “extinguishing work” on the artificially placed fire, the Fire Brigade advanced with huge hoses. Huge masses of water poured down on the roofing of the forum. After securing the area, U6 was allowed to visit a fire engine.
On 8 November, 2019 International German School HCMC (IGS) invites children, parents, and everybody who is interested to the annual Lantern Parade (St. Martin’ Festival). Visitors young and old are welcome to join in this public event from 17:30 – 20:00. You will experience typical German lantern songs, walk around the nearby premises with colourful, self-made lanterns and taste sausages from the BBQ and drinks. Entrance for this cultural event is free. We look forward to welcoming you. There is no registration required.
Secondary school students (grades 6-10) took part in a project day on Friday on the important IB topics “Mission Statement and Learner Profile”. At first the younger ones thought about what constitutes an “ideal learner”. In the subsequent practice-oriented workshops, the students were encouraged to shed light on these aspects in the context of personal and social success in life.Grades 8-10 started with a debate on the relevance of school grades and then dealt with key IB topics, such as epistemological issues, as well as research sources and learning approaches. It is precisely these aspects of the diploma programme that make the students who have completed the IB diploma phase so attractive to universities.The results were then brought together in a podium discussion.
Following the footsteps of Alexander von Humboldt, the students of grades 1-5 went on a treasure hunt today and crossed the jungle. They explored the Temple of Friendship, deciphered secret codes, discovered volcanoes, and invented secret musical instruments that served them well in their search for the treasure.
We thank all the teachers involved, who accompanied the little researchers throughout the day and once again, under the guidance of our art teacher Ben Wayman, who had prepared creative stations with great effort.
Historical events generate different narrativs and claims to the interpretation sovereignty. When dealing with historical events one necessarily relies on existing sources and, inevitably, makes a selection of topics and perspectives, which in fact carries the risk of manipulation of the audience.
Therefore, it was very important to us to have as many contemporary witnesses as possible on the Day of German Unity.
The project day on the 3rd of October, in which classes 7-10 took part, was organized by our Consul General Dr. Wallat. The students eagerly listened to the vivid stories and events that they had experienced on this day. Before the opening classes 5 and 6 sang the school anthem accompanied by Ruben Viertel.
Imagine a 16-year-old girl from Cologne and a 16-year-old boy from the GDR who had met in 1987 in Prague. They exchanged their addresses and from then on they wrote letters in which they shared experiences on either side of the border. These fictitious letters with episodes from the lives of the two teenagers were read on the small stage of the library.
During the summer holidays, our teachers had organized an interview with a contemporary witness from the Center for Political Education in Berlin.
Today it was time. The students had prepared themselves in history lessons on the subject. Everyone looked anxiously at the screen. Then something moved and the image of a 60-year-old man who first jokingly entered the conversation, appeared on the screen. Siegbert Schefke – He not only personally experienced the peaceful revolution of 1989, but also grew up in the GDR.
Of course, our students also had questions about his experiences as a teenager and his school days, Students had prepared by watching z.T. also from the movie “The Life of Others”, which was shown the night before.
Peace doves with wishes for the future formed a visible conclusion of the project day.
Qatar Airways and the International German School have signed a four-month
agreement. Employees, students and parents of the IGS are entitled to flight
bookings at special rates on the routes from HCMS to: Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich,
Vienna, Zurich, Rome, Paris, Milan, Athens, Beirut. In addition to a price
reduction on the basic ticket price, 10 kg of luggage can be booked additionally for
free. The agreement initially applies to the booking period from 30 September to
February 2020. The special conditions and further information are available via the
following link.
*IGS assumes no liability for the accuracy of the
information or claims that may arise in connection with this agreement or its use.
The security advisor at the German Embassy in Vietnam is in charge of safety measures at the German institutions in Vietnam. In September, he paid one of his regular visits to IGS. Together with our security officer, he conducted a safety and security inspection of the site.The main focus was the new laboratory, which was inaugurated this year.
On Monday and Tuesday, the students of the IGS took a trip to the German dentist in the Bitexco Tower. In addition to a check-up and some teaching on the correct way to clean your teeth, the students were allowed to try out the latest dental technology. In two weeks, parents will receive feedback on their children’s dental health.
The yearbook 2018/2019 has been available since Wednesday in the school office for the price of 400,000 VND per piece with really great photos from the last school year. It’s always a nice reminder of a special school time.
