The Week Ahead 2 March 2018

Dear Parents Welcome to this new look Week Ahead. Those of you who follow this publication will notice that the focus has become more compact, shifting the focus to a clearer identification of key events coming up across our school community. In this way, locating events that are of interest to you as a parent, or as a participant in WCA activities, will be easier and – I hope – further raise levels of engagement with the school. Longer pieces, focused on the work the school is doing with its pupils, educational insight and other more substantial articles will appear in our other communication channels. Each week, colleagues and pupils from across the school and the Wellington group will offer a range of thought-provoking articles that are designed to stimulate discussion around education. In this way, we are looking to establish a long-running partner programme to the very successful Festival of Education, which ran here in Tianjin for the first time in October 2017. The next festival will be in the Spring of 2019, so to bridge that gap and to keep our community engaged and informed about what a Wellington education means, I warmly invite you to enjoy and share our new series of articles on the WeChat platforms. This week alone, for example, we have shared news on the school Musical, Les Misérables; heard from some of our senior pupils about the ways in which an A Level education has enriched their lives; offered some ideas on how to deal with difficult teenagers; explored the way physical development in children is encouraged in the Nest; and discussed ways to foster inclusion and diversity in the classroom. As ever, I welcome your feedback on these developments, so please do let us know your views on the changes we have made. Happy Lantern Festival! Best wishes Julian Jeffrey Master

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MEET THE MASTER Common Room 1400hrs-1515hrs Thursday 8th March This week, the Meet the Master slot is aimed at parents of pupils in Years 7 to 11. If you would like to attend, please confirm via email with Ms. Emma Shi (emma.shi@wellingtoncollege.cn) by Wednesday 7th March. Bursar’s Office 1400hrs-1500hrs Wednesday 7th March Meet the Bursar will be on Wednesday, 7th March. Please send Ms Lisa Liu (lisa.liu@wellingtoncollege.cn) a message if you are planning to attend and any specific topics you would like to raise by Tuesday, 6th March. Many thanks. SUPPORTING YOUR CHILD THROUGH EXAM PRESSURE Common Room 0900hrs-1000hrs Wednesday 7th March Every Wednesday morning from 0900hrs, parents will have the chance to engage with the school in sessions that cover all aspects of your child’s education, from the Early Years to A Levels and university admissions. The venue will vary according to the anticipated audience, and for next week’s meeting, Mrs Samantha Wood, will give a lecture on how to support your child through exam pressure. Positive Parenting Class (basic) MB125 0930hrs-1130hrs every Monday Date: 26th March Charges: 30RMB/time or 200RMB/8 times Positive Discipline is a programme designed to teach young people to become responsible, respectful and resourceful members of their communities. Based on the best-selling positive discipline book by Dr Jane Nelsen, it teaches important social and life skills in a manner that is deeply respectful and encouraging for both children and adults. Parents will learn to avoid power struggles while helping their children to learn self-control and self-discipline. Classes are in a small group setting, allowing deeper discussions and very personalized experience. www.positivediscipline.com Art Class Junior Art Room 0830hrs-1100hrs every Friday  Dear Art lovers, Happy New Year! This Friday March 2nd, the WCA Art class will organize an ART TRIP to Yangliuqing Museum of New Year Paintings (Tianjin is famous in China for Traditional New Year Paintings) and the Shi Family Courtyard, a historic mansion. Afterwards we will organize a lunch nearby. A school bus will leave from school gate at 0830hrs and will be back to school around 2pm (so we will be on time to pick up our treasures from school). The trip is free of charge; the only expense will be the tickets for the museums. I am looking forward to visiting such wonderful, cultural and historic places and thanks to our Wellington School Community spirit for providing us the opportunity to organize such a trip. Looking forward to appreciating Art together with you. Remember that the Junior Art Room is always open on Fridays for our lovely Art experiments.   Lower Level EAL Class MB 235 0830hrs-0930hrs every Tuesday  This class is for beginner level learners who would like to improve their grammar, vocabulary and all-round language skills.   Higher Level EAL Class MB 231 1100hrs-1200hrs every Thursday  This class is for more confident learners who would like to extend their grammar and vocabulary and will have a focus on improving spoken fluency. Pilates Black Box 1100hrs-1200hrs every Tuesday  Dance Studio 0930hrs-1030hrs every Friday Pilates is a physical exercise system developed by Joseph Pilates. It is complete coordination of body, mind and spirit. Pilates focuses on core strength and balanced muscle development as well as flexibility and increased range of motion for the joints. So, don't hesitate, join our classes and feel better. You are warmly welcomed. WCA Yoga Dance Studio 0900hrs-1000hrs every Wednesday  Welcome to our newly introduced yoga classes at Wellington College. Yoga philosophy and practice has its origin in India. The word ‘Yoga’ comes from the word “yuj”, which means "to yoke", to unite your body and mind. Regular yoga practice helps your body to become strong, flexible, balanced and healthy. The same will happen with your mind. Yoga has become very popular all around the world for its healing benefits. It does not matter if you are new to yoga or a regular practitioner; everyone is welcome.