28th February 2025
Fancy Dress – Fairy tales!
International World Book Day 7 March! On this special day, your child can come to school dressed as a favourite character from any book. Prizes will be awarded for the best dressed child from each class.
Harry Potter, Matilda, The BFG, The Grufallo… Who will you be?
World Book Day - Book Swap
This event is a wonderful way for children to share stories, discover new authors, and promote a love of reading, all while being eco-friendly. For every book your child brings in, they’ll be able to swap it for a new one to enjoy!
How the Book Swap Works:
Choose books at home: Please help your child select any gently used books they are happy to pass on to another student.
Bring books to school: Between Monday 3rd and Friday 7th March, students can hand their books to their English teacher, who will record how many books have been brought in.
Swap day: On Friday 7th March each student who has brought in a book will be able to swap—one for each book donated.
Extra donations: If you are able to donate additional books for those who don’t have any to swap, these would be greatly appreciated.
Book Guidelines:
To ensure the best experience for all, please check the following:
Books should be suitable for children aged 5–15.
Accepted formats: hardcover or softcover chapter books, picture books, and joke books (chapter books are especially welcome).
Books should be in good condition – no missing pages, stains, or writing.
Books must be written in English.
Please avoid donating adult books, magazines, board books, colouring books, activity books, or sticker books.
Exciting News from Year 3!
This week we wanted to start our new weekly newsletter by sharing some wonderful news—Teacher Beth, our Year 3 teacher, is expecting a baby! She is due to welcome her little one in September 2025.
So please join us in wishing Beth all the very best during this special time. We look forward to celebrating this exciting journey with her over the coming months. Congratulations Beth & her partner Wut!
5 Time-Saving Tips for Getting to School on Time
At Si Ri Panya, we are committed to ensuring that every student makes the most of their education. Consistent attendance and punctuality play a crucial role in academic success. Whether it’s avoiding term-time holidays or ensuring a smooth morning routine, here are five key tips to support your child:
Get a good night's sleep! It's very important that your child has a regular routine of going to bed at a reasonable time, which ensures that they get 8 or more hours sleep per night.
Get organized! Help your child to take responsibility to organize their school bag and school uniform the night before, so they get into healthy morning habits getting ready for the school day.
Take holidays during school holidays. Statistics show that minutes, hours, days and weeks really add up and can have a negative impact your child's education. This is privileged time you pay for with your hard-earned money!
Ask for help from friends and neighbors if you need it. Sometimes a quick car-pool arrangement can transform your morning and help your child get to school on time. People are often more than happy to help.
Communicate with us. We are here to help you and can do that in many different ways. Making us aware of circumstances of your family's particular needs helps us to help you, so email us, speak to your child's class teacher or book an appointment to see the Head of Primary or Head of Secondary. We are here to help.
Canteen Update: Farewell and Welcome
We bid a fond farewell to Chef Golf, who will be leaving our school kitchen. He will be greatly missed, and we are sincerely grateful for the many improvements he has made during his time with us. We wish him all the very best in his future endeavours.
At the same time, we are excited to welcome Rungroch Sirungreung (Bank) as our new chef, starting 1st March 2025. Bank brings a wealth of experience from 5-star resorts on Koh Phangan, as well as the Centara Mirage Beach Resort in Dubai and the Waldorf Astoria in the Maldives. We look forward to the fresh ideas and culinary expertise he will bring to our school community.
Our new Scholastic Book Club is up and running! Go to https://world-schools.scholastic.co.uk/si-ri-panya/digital-book-club to browse the latest books and order online. For every £1 you spend on this month’s Book Club, our school will earn 20p in Scholastic Rewards.
Please place your order online by March 15th, 2025.
School Student-led Charity Committee to Host Movie-Nights Fundraiser in March
On Friday, our school student-led charity committee met to discuss several planned charity fundraising events, including a series of age-appropriate movie nights.
We’re excited to share that our charity committee, made up of students from both Primary and Secondary joined forces to discuss the upcoming movie screenings, which will raise funds for animals in need on our Island home of Koh Phangan.
Younger members (Year 1 & 2) will be supported by older Secondary volunteers, who will help care for them along with our Head of Primary Lisa and Pastoral Lead Faye, to ensure everyone has a great night.
The charity committee meet regularly to discuss things that matter to them and It’s a wonderful way for students of all ages to come together and contribute to a meaningful cause and build school community in the process.
Movie Night Schedule: Each evening will feature an age-appropriate film for the following year groups:
Years 1 and 2 – Tuesday, 4th March
Years 3 and 4 – Tuesday, 11th March
Years 5 and 6 – Tuesday, 18th March
A separate email with details about your child’s movie will be sent next week.
Tickets and Donations
Cost: 200 baht per ticket – Available from March 3rd in the school office.
All proceeds will go towards purchasing vital medical equipment for stray animals at PACS.
Inclusion for all – We want every child to have the opportunity to take part. If needed, families are welcome to donate an amount they are comfortable with.
Siblings – If your child has siblings in another year group who would like to join them, they are welcome to attend.
Event Information
The movies will be screened in the Drama Hall, supervised by Head of Primary Lisa and Pastoral Lead Faye.
Children may bring a blanket, bean bag, or cushion for extra comfort.
Drop-off and Collection: To ensure the safety of all children:
Parents must bring their child to the Assembly Hall and collect them at the designated time (which will be provided in the film-specific email).
Children will only be released to a parent or designated guardian.
Please be punctual when collecting your child, as staff will have had a long day.
We look forward to welcoming the children for these special events and appreciate your support in raising funds for PACS. If you have any questions, please contact Teacher Faye at faye.r@siripanya.com.
Parent & Friends Committee Q&A Summary 2024-25 T2
Thank you to all parents who attended the recent Parents & Friends Committee meeting. Your input is invaluable in shaping the future of our school. A special thank you goes to our Parent Executive Board members:
Idit (Parent of pupils in Years 2, 6, and 8),
Doron (Parent of pupils in Years 3 and 5), and
Jok (Parent of a pupil in Year 4),
for facilitating the meeting and helping guide these important discussions.
Key outcomes included:
Combining Year 6 (Welcome to Secondary) and Year 9 (Farewell Party) celebrations, with Years 7 and 8 invited to join.
Formation of a subcommittee led by Idit and Irina, with volunteers still welcome to support this parent-led event.
You can access the latest outcomes from our recent Parent & Friends Committee meetings through the links below:
Stay Connected
We are grateful for your ongoing engagement and support. If you have any feedback or would like to volunteer for upcoming events, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the school office or your class representatives.
Missing Library Books – Please Help!
We are missing several books from our school library and kindly ask all Primary and Secondary parents to check at home for any that may need returning.
If you find any school library books, please send them back as soon as possible so that all students can continue to enjoy them.
Thank you for your support in helping us keep our library well-stocked for everyone!
Class WhatsApp Groups: Join the parent WhatsApp group for your child's class via the QR code HERE
Raincoats: As the rainy season is still giving us the odd shower, don't forget to pack a raincoat for your child to bring to school.
Healthy snacks: Healthy snacks only. No sweets, crisps/chips or cakes at break times. Birthdays are the exception and dealt with per class policy.
Drop Off and Pick Up: 8.30 am drop off (not earlier) & 2:50pm pick up (4 pm for clubs). Please be punctual - there are a number of children waiting for up to half an hour after 2.50pm which can be distressing for them.
No Idling Zone: Help make the area outside our school a NO IDLING ZONE which means switching car engines off while you wait for your child. We appreciate your action for the environment and health of all.
Absence and Illness: Notify your child's class teacher directly to inform them of absence and sickness.
Head Lice Check: Continue to check your child's hair for head lice regularly and treat accordingly. Boys and girls with long hair need to tie it up.