BSG Newsletter - 17th March

A big shout-out to our Primary students who proudly represented BSG at last Saturday’s Guangzhou Intercultural Day . Our BSG Dance Club shone with a vibrant Xinjiang dance, and our Year 2 students lit up the stage with an energetic Chinese drums performance. What a brilliant showcase of talent, teamwork and cultural celebration!

There has been a real buzz around mathematics at BSG recently, with several exciting competitions giving students opportunities to challenge themselves beyond the classroom.

Following on from the recent Nord Anglia China Mathematics Challenge, hosted by The British School of Nanjing, another group of BSG mathematicians travelled to Shanghai to take part in the FOBISIA Primary Maths Challenge - one of the largest mathematics events in the region.

With over 40 schools from 10 different countries taking part, the standard was incredibly high. The competition included a range of exciting rounds, including the always-popular construction challenge, where teams designed a skywalk connecting two Shanghai buildings using limited materials.

BSG were the highest-placed Nord Anglia school at the event, achieving a very impressive top-half finish overall. We also celebrated individual success in the Individual Written Round, with several BSG students earning medals:

Yihan (6A) - Gold

Owen (5C) - Bronze

Sophia (6D) - Bronze

Closer to home, students from Year 2 to Year 6 also took part in the recent FOBISIA Times Tables Rock Stars competition, where speed, accuracy and fluency were put to the test. BSG finished as the second highest-performing school in China, just outside the top ten overall - a wonderful achievement and a testament to the enthusiasm our students show for developing their number fluency.

While competitions like these are always exciting, they also highlight the deeper skills we value in mathematics: reasoning, resilience, teamwork and creative problem-solving. These experiences build on the work happening every day in our classrooms, where students are encouraged to think deeply about mathematical ideas and explain their thinking.

We are incredibly proud of all the students who represented BSG so positively!

A big thank you to Mr. McLaughlin for organising and supporting these opportunities, and to Mr. Thornback and Mrs. Nankani, who have been running our FOBISIA Maths ASA to help prepare and inspire many of our budding mathematicians.

With such enthusiasm and talent across the school, the future of mathematics at BSG looks very bright indeed.

During Pi Day, the Mathematics Department celebrated the occasion with Secondary by sharing pineapple and taro pies with students during break and lunch time. The pies were distributed throughout the day as a fun way to mark the significance of π(3.14) while bringing a little extra sweetness to the school day.

The celebrations concluded with the much-anticipated “Pie the Teacher” event at the amphitheatre. Students purchased a or multiple raffles for the chance to step forward and pie one of the brave volunteer teachers. This year’s participants included Mr Yip, Mr Brewer, Mr Cox, Mr Burman, Mr Slade, Miss Costello, Mrs Cummings, Mr Ajode, Mr Higson, Mr Frijling, Mr Walker, and our surprise guest, Miss Millar, with Mr Hetherington stepping in at the last minute to join the line-up.

The event was filled with laughter and excitement, with students cheering on as the teachers faced the pies. The money raised from the event will go towards Freeleaf, a Women’s Support Charity, which BSG supports by sponsoring the college tuition of three girls and helping them pursue the opportunity for higher education. (Any interest in the charity, please contact Mrs Cummings!)

A big thank you to everyone who supported the event and to the teachers who volunteered their brave faces for the pies. We look forward to continuing the tradition again next year at BSG Pi Day 2027.

Our 2025/26 Annual University Fair took place successfully this week, welcoming 33 overseas university representatives to BSG. Students and parents had the opportunity to speak directly with admissions officers, attend information sessions, and learn more about a wide range of universities, courses, and application pathways. The event created a lively and engaging atmosphere, with many valuable conversations taking place throughout the afternoon. We are very grateful to all university representatives, staff, students, and parents who contributed to making the fair such a positive and informative experience.