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Christmas in Cognita This December, 47 Cognita schools connected to celebrate 'Christmas Around the
World'.
Coordinated by Katie Miller-Chalk, Key Stage 2 Leader and Class 3 Teacher atQuinton House School in the UK, students completed four festive tasks: they madeand sent Christmas cards to their friends at other schools; shared festive recipes;decorated a Christmas Tree and recorded special Christmas messages for one
another.
Katie said: "Thank you to all of you for participating in our 'Christmas Around theWorld' project - you're all winners in our eyes. A Merry Christmas to you and your
pupils."
Finally, the results from our Christmas Tree competition are in. Every tree was trulybeautiful but the winners are: Colegio Pumahue Huechuraba, Chile; WoodlandsPre-Schools, Peak, Hong Kong; King's School & Nursery, UK and St. Andrews
International School, Green Valley, Thailand. Congratulations to our winners!
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A final thank you to Katie for organising a magical 'Christmas Around the World'.
Cognita Calling connects over 100classrooms
On 21st November, our second global Skype day, “Cognita Calling”, connected morethan 100 Cognita classrooms. In total, 34 schools in 8 different countries got
involved.
Hot topics of conversation included different languages, time zones and sport, withstudents also keen to find out what their peers could see outside their window.
We hope you enjoy this montage of photographic highlights from Cognita Calling2018.
Thank you to Tim Evans, Educational Technology Coordinator at Stamford American– Hong Kong, for organising this exciting opportunity for our students and staff to
make new connections within our global family.
End-of-year message from ChrisJansen
Cognita Collaboration
12 Days of Twitter challenge
At the start of the month, we invited educators to take on our “12 Days of Twitter”challenge to start using the platform for networking and CPD. Educators everywhere
got involved by completing 12 daily challenges, which included sharingrecommendations for classroom apps and educational books/blogs, shout-outs to
inspiring colleagues and sharing images of their favourite places in school. You canvisit @CognitaSchools for details of all 12 challenges and some of the highlights.
Thank you to everyone who took part, we hope you enjoyed it and now feel moreconfident using Twitter for your professional development.
Chile and Spain collaborate on ‘ÁmateProject’
In another demonstration of the Cognita Way in action, our schools in Chile andSpain are collaborating on an initiative to support students’ emotional and social
development.
The ‘Ámate Project’, run by Colegio Pumahue Peñalolén in Chile, uses dolls todevelop students’ emotional intelligence and teach them valuable life skills. Lastmonth, one of their Ámate dolls travelled from Chile, in the suitcase of Principal
Carmen Vera, to El Limonar International School, Murcia in Spain, to assist studentsthere.
The activities carried out with the dolls help students learn about their personal
environment, personal power, tolerance, gratitude, empathy, trust, relationships andteamwork.
If you would like to learn more about the project, email Carmen Vera, Principal
of Colegio Pumahue Peñalolén.
School Spotlight
Colegio Europeo de Madrid joins the Cognitafamily
We are proud to announce that the Colegio Europeo de Madrid (CEM) in Spain hasjoined the Cognita family of schools. CEM becomes our sixth school in Spain.
Colegio Europeo de Madrid was founded in 1991 as the natural continuation of the
Infant Nursery, BEBIN, also part of the school. BEBIN was a pioneer school inMadrid of early childhood education (from 0 to 6 years of age).
CEM and BEBIN have 608 students, 62 teachers and assistants and 9 employees in
the admin area.
You can find out more about the Colegio Europeo de Madrid (CEM) on our SchoolFinder.
ISHCMC celebrates 25 years of learningIt's a special year for the community of International School Ho Chi Minh City
(ISHCMC) in Vietnam as the school turns 25. When ISHCMC opened in 1993, itserved a small expatriate community; today it supports over 1,300 students, who
represent over 50 nationalities.
Monday 3rd December saw the start of ISHMC's celebrations, with students and staffenjoying tree planting ceremonies and exhibitions of the school's history, decoratingsections of a commemorative jigsaw puzzle and importantly, eating birthday cake.
We look forward to sharing ISHCMC's further celebrations across the year. Happybirthday ISHCMC!
ELIS Villamartín opens new Early Years
space The opening event of the new Early Years facilities at El Limonar International
School, Villamartín in Spain, brought together political and educational authorities,nursery owners, bloggers, the media, school staff and community members in a night
of celebration.
The new facility, acknowledged as “ground-breaking” in the region, provides a calmand inclusive environment where quality learning can take place.
Commenting on the development Chris Eversden, Executive Principal, said: “ELISVillamartín has a duty to push the boundaries of educational provision in order to
drive forward in the implementation of modern teaching and learning methods. A keyelement of this is to ensure that the appropriate infrastructure and facilities are in
place for learning to thrive.”
Cognita Faces
Lisa Reid, Librarian, St. Andrews InternationalSchool, Dusit
Lisa Reid, Librarian at St. Andrews International School, Dusit in Thailand, tells us abit about her role and why she's so happy she moved from the corporate world to
education.
Why I Tweet - Simon CambyIn this video, Simon Camby (@simoncamby), Group Director of Education, shares
the three reasons why he chooses to use Twitter.
You can find our list of over 350 Cognita colleagues on Twitter, and connectwith us on our other social platforms, using the buttons below.
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn
Latest from #CognitaInsiderThank you to Carmen Vera, Principal of Colegio Pumahue Peñalolén in Chile for
being our final ‘Cognita Insider’ of 2018.
Carmen shared insights into her school and neighbouring Cognita schools andtweeted some brilliant photographs. The video of Colegio Pumahue Peñalolén
students instrumentally playing the Christmas carol ‘Silent Night’ will certainly put youin the festive spirit!
You can catch up on Carmen’s takeover activities by searching for the
hashtag #CognitaInsider on Twitter.
If you'd like to be a future 'Cognita Insider', please [email protected] or tweet us @CognitaSchools.
Thought LeadershipCharacter - Taught or
Caught? The academic content of school is easyto measure, we can see it. Characterdevelopment can be harder to quantify.Is 'character' taught or caught? OurDirector of Education SimonCamby debates... [email protected]
“Emotional strength isnot guaranteedthroughout childhood” Warren Honey, Headmaster ofHydesville Tower School in Walsall, UKdiscusses childhood resilience andmental health. [email protected]
Quick tips on wellbeingfrom colleagues aroundCognitaColleagues from across the Cognitafamily share their top tops to nurturegood mental health and wellbeing.
News
The Times places Cognita schools in its top 100
Congratulations to Breaside Preparatory School, Long Close School, King's Schooland Nursery and Huddersfield Grammar School who have all been ranked in the Top
100 UK Prep Schools by The Times newspaper and feature in theaccompanying Parent Power: Best UK Schools Guide 2019. The rankings are based
on published examination results. More details can be found here.
Cumnor House recognised for cricketing excellence
The prestigious cricketing publication, The Cricketer, has named Cumnor HouseSchool for Boys in its Top 50 Preparatory Schools for Cricket in the UK.
More than 350 schools submitted entries in the hope of being included in the guide,before the top 50 were selected for their outstanding facilities, fixture programmes
and coaching.
Mr Brotherton, Director of Sport at Cumnor House School for Boys, said: “Sport andin particular cricket runs through the DNA fabric of our school. This is represented inthe school’s continued success in both county and national competitions, where we
consistently compete against much larger schools; this is testament to theexceptional attitudes of the boys and ongoing provision provided by the school and
coaching staff.”
Stretching maths challenges for Milbourne Lodge
Students at Milbourne Lodge School in the UK have achieved great success inmaths this term, performing brilliantly in competitions designed for students well
above their age.
Years 3 to 6 students excelled in the Mathematical Association’s Primary MathsChallenge (aimed at Year 5 and 6 students), whilst students from Years 7 to 13 took
part in the UK Mathematics Trust’s Senior Maths Challenge (aimed at 16-18-yearolds). In the latter competition, 12-year-old students won three Silver and three
Bronze certificates. It is fantastic to see students uninhibitedly working towards theirfull potential.
GayLussac embraces Mandarin to the benefit of all
It’s an exciting time at Instituto GayLussac in Brazil as it becomes the first school inthe country to make Mandarin a mandatory subject, greatly expanding its students’
global perspective.
Graduating students will join the one billion people who speak Mandarin across theglobe and be equipped with the language skills to help them thrive and find success
in this diverse, fast-changing world.
Furthermore, GayLussac is partnering with three Chinese universities (the SichuanAgricultural University, the Southwest University of Science and Technology and theSichuan University of Science and Engineering) to secure even more opportunitiesfor students and staff to collaborate and exchange ideas, knowledge and research
with international peers.
Long Close School receives Literacy Award
Long Close School in the UK has been appointed as a Read Write Inc. Model Schoolas a result of its outstanding literacy teaching.
Ruth Miskin, Creator of Read Write Inc, said: “Our Model Schools demonstrate an
inspirational passion and excitement for teaching. Their attention to detail and focuson continuous professional development marks them out.”
Kam Nijjar, Head of Long Close School, added: “It is wonderful to see the hard workof our staff and excellent progress of our pupils acknowledged and it will be fantastic
to be able to inspire other schools.”
An interview with David Beckham
Kati, a Year 9 student from St. Andrews International School, Sukhumvit 107 inThailand, had an unforgettable experience when she interviewed footballing icon
David Beckham.
Commenting on their meeting, Kati said:“I was super excited and also a littlenervous. I asked him a couple of questions about his football experiences and histhoughts on girls’ football. I then took him on a tour around the different training
sessions that were happening across the day.”
Last year, Kati won the AIA’s Mini Manager Competition for budding footballmanagers and flew to London, UK to meet Tottenham Hotspurs’ Mauricio Pochettino.
Interviewing David Beckham rounded off her fantastic year as AIA’s Mini ManagerWinner 2017.
Cognita Spain's inaugural Digital Transformation Workshop
Last month, The British School of Barcelona hosted the first meeting of the DigitalTransformation Team, Spain, who are responsible for driving the development of
digital literacy across the schools.
Raimon Bustos, Head of IT, Cognita Spain, said: “It was great to have the opportunityto bring everyone together. We shared ideas, plans and learnt about successful
cases where technology is already helping deliver and enhance education.Technology, just as it has become present and vital in almost all aspects of our lives,needs to become a natural and seamless ally to facilitate the education we deliver,
never a challenge or a stopper."
A focus on Mental Health and Wellbeing
As a group, we are continuing to place mental health and wellbeing at the heart of
everything we do and last month we took another step forward as the first group ofUK Wellbeing Leads completed ‘Mental Health for England’ training.
The training included definitions of mental health, signs and indicators of poor mental
health, learning about specific diagnoses, how to support vulnerable young peopleand how to look after ourselves and colleagues.
Training will continue over the coming months.
ISHCMC to host the Across Asia Youth Film Festival 2019
International School Ho Chi Minh City (ISHCMC) in Vietnam has been selected tohost the 2019 Across Asia Youth Film Festival, an independent film festival aimed at
helping young filmmakers gain exposure and generate dialogue with their films.
For Cognita Asia students interested in filmmaking, submissions for the Across AsiaYouth Film Festival (AAYFF) open on 1st January 2019 and entry is free for children
between 10 to 18 years old.
Visit the AAYFF website for more information.
Forbes ‘30 Under 30’ spot for Hastings alumnus
Alfonso Cobo, a former student of Hastings School in Spain, has been named as oneof Forbes magazine’s ‘30 Under 30’!
Alfonso has been recognised for co-founding photo-editing app Unfold, which helps
its users create engaging stories for Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook.
Laura Holgado, Communications Coordinator at Hastings School, said: “Just 8 yearsago, Alfonso was in our classrooms, and now he is running an extremely successfulbusiness. We remember him with great affection and the whole school couldn’t be
prouder!”
The Cog is edited by Rebecca Hills, Communications Manager and Sophie Hickey,Communications Executive. Please contact [email protected] with any
feedback and ideas.
Copyright © 2015 Cognita Schools, All rights reserved.
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