This year, The British School of Beijing (BSB Shunyi Campus) students are traveling to all four corners of the world and beyond, with trips to the Large Hadron Collider, the Empire State, an impoverished village in Tanzania, and even a quasi-extraterrestrial journey with the Drama Department’s rendition of Return to the Forbidden Planet. Though student calendars are stocked with a plethora of projects to last the year out, the wider Beijing community is also invited to join in on some of the exciting endeavors as we move from one sensational event to the next. Here’s a round-up of some of highlights happening at BSB this academic year.
Secondary Residential Trips – October 19, 2015
Two weeks after the return of the CERN trip to Switzerland, BSB students set off again, this time splitting off into year groups and scattering across China and Southeast Asia. Year 9 is heading to Xiamen where they will take a walk inside a tulou, a traditional communal residence, Year 11 will experience stretches of sandy beaches in Hainan, and Year 13 enjoy the legendary beauty of sunrises in Halong Bay, Vietnam.
The Big Draw – November 7, 2015
The Art Department will embark on its second annual Big Draw Week, culminating in a Community Big Draw in the BSB lobby on Saturday, November 7. Under the theme “Every Drawing Tells a Story”, huge swathes of white canvas will be covered in the art of students, teachers, parents, siblings, and grandparents of the BSB community. Panels will be outlined, and fantastical characters will be drawn, traversing their own story across the paper, each new plot line contrived and executed by a new artist. It’s sure to be a wonder to behold.
The Christmas Fayre & German Market – November 21, 2015
The annual staple at BSB, the Christmas Fayre is back again at its usual date to signal the official start of the festive season. Beijing’s only Santa’s Grotto will be a magical experience, with multifarious stalls all around the campus selling treats to eat and games to play. The German Market set up in the courtyard outside the main entrance will serve up some hot meals and drinks to accompany the chilly weather.
Year 12 in Tanzania – November 27, 2015
In a remote district in Tanzania, a developing country in Sub-Saharan Africa, village primary students walk four hours to school and back every day. In the drier seasons, they don’t receive lunch at school, going hungry the whole day for want of a better harvest. Many are orphans, others struggling providers for an extended collection of younger siblings. Year 12 students will travel there for a week, as part of a long-term student-run project to help improve the Tanzanians’ quality of life. Biofuel stoves were designed and produced by students, goats given to malnourished families, goat sheds built, and bicycles donated to children having to walk to school. Students are currently working on devising a more efficient farming strategy to ensure food for the children in even the driest of seasons.
Return to the Forbidden Planet – March 4 2016
After last year’s sensational and widely acclaimed rendition of the musical Grease, BSB is producing another sure crowd-pleaser in Return to the Forbidden Planet, a heartfelt play loosely based on William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, with the added bonus of robots and space travel. Starring young talents from the secondary school, this will be the most otherworldly and enthralling adventure to ever take place in BSB’s amphitheatre.
Charity Fashion Show – April 17, 2016
Next year’s Charity Fashion Show follows on from the spectacular Lights Out themed premiere show earlier this year, sponsored by Hyundai, which raised over RMB 50,000for a local dog shelter. This time around, under the theme “Jazz”the event will be the biggest black tie event BSB has hosted to date, with a classyevening of champagne and jazz appreciation compounded with a dazzling catwalk display. Both students and staff models will show everything from Italian tailored suits by designer labels to pioneering pieces of evening wear from local couturiers. Entertainment of all sorts from BSB’s best will intersperse the show. Come along for an elegant and exclusive night of both sparkling gowns and sparkling wine.
Amy is a Year 13 student at the British School of Beijing (BSB). Having grown up in The Hague in the Netherlands, she has lived in Beijing for four years and hopes to share her views on current affairs and school news through her blogs.
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