Si Ri Panya News Highlights
- Nicola Bunchuay
- Oct 10
- 7 min read
Updated: Oct 15
Welcome to our Friday October 10th 2025 Newsletter (issue 24)
A new logo for a new chapter
This week, we bring you our new and improved school logo! Beginning now, you’ll start to see our refreshed school logo across our platforms. It reflects who we are — warm, trusted and Cambridge-accredited — and where we’re going next.
Over the past three years we’ve grown from our Primary roots into Years 7–9, and in September 2026 we will open Year 10, leading to IGCSEs in Year 11. The updated logo brings a balanced Primary-and-Secondary feel as we enter this next stage.
When will you see the change?
We’re updating the website now, and you’ll notice the new look appear on social media, email signatures and school documents through November and December. If you spot the old logo in a few places during this time, that’s simply part of the transition.
What will look different?
You’ll see the new logo in our website header and footer, updated social profile images, and refreshed email signatures, letters and certificates.
What’s staying the same?
Our name, our values, and our commitment to a warm, high-standards, Cambridge education.
Same heart. Moving forward together.
🌸 Just a reminder — school will be closed on Monday 13th October for the national holiday honouring King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX). 🌸
Inner Walk to a Peaceful Mind – Year 5 explore this simple meditative practice
This Friday is World Mental Health Day, and we’ll mark the occasion with a special Primary and Secondary assembly dedicated to this important topic. Looking after our mental health is crucial for everyone — with no exceptions.
At Si Ri Panya, we provide continuous opportunities for students to strengthen their mental wellbeing through a variety of learning experiences and support services.
This week, as part of our Religious Education (RE) Curriculum Day, our Year 5 students visited Inner Walk – a meditative practice that encourages open awareness of our thoughts. The approach helps participants observe what’s happening inside themselves and, through regular practice, become less attached to passing thoughts — allowing them to come and go without reaction.
The practice was founded over a decade ago by Phra Olam, a local monk here on Koh Phangan. Inner Walk now offers 4-day retreats at the end of each month, and its shala remains open 24/7 for anyone in the community wishing to undertake their own inner work.
During their visit, Year 5 began their inward journey by sitting in a circle for word-association activities. These exercises illustrated how easily the mind fixates and jumps from one thought to another — a pattern sometimes called “monkey mind” in yogic traditions. Students learned how to watch their thoughts as if observing a movie, a simple but powerful way to understand how the mind works before trying the walking meditation for themselves.
Year 3's Visit to St. Seraphim Orthodox Church
On Tuesday, Year 3 visited a truly fascinating building — St. Seraphim Orthodox Church. From the outside it is grand and imposing, and inside it gleams with gold and rich colours, filled with beautiful paintings of saints and other important figures from this branch of Christianity.
This visit was part of our Religious Education (RE) excursion programme, in which each year group takes part in a trip linked to its current topic. While our RE curriculum explores a wide range of world religions and non-religious beliefs, these excursions focus on places of worship and practices that can be experienced locally on Koh Phangan and nearby.
At St. Seraphim, Year 3 learned about symbolism in worship, the meaning of lighting candles, and how and why people pray. To deepen their experience, they took part in a candle-lighting ceremony, offered short prayers of gratitude, and shared in a class blessing using holy water, making this a memorable and meaningful learning experience for everyone.
Across the six-year Primary journey, students take part in a variety of excursions connected to their RE topics — from visiting temples, mosques, and Shabbat houses to exploring mindfulness and humanist practices. Each experience builds their understanding and supports rich classroom discussions about belief, reflection, and respect.
Year 4, RE Curriculum Day - word searches and colouring artifacts and symbol associated to the world's major religions.
Year 7 Creating Shelters for the Festival of Sukkot
In Humanities, Year 7 have been looking at festivals. Last lesson we learnt about the history and meaning of Sukkot, the festival of tents, which remembers the Israelites escaping slavery in Egypt and living in the desert for 40 years. Sukkah, the tent, must be made from natural products, such as branches and leaves. Year 7 made their own to experience making them. You should be able to see the stars and eat your meals in there.
UPDATE: Some of shelters have survived the whole week - great job, Year 7!
Year 9 Science - Learning (not playing!) with Fire
We believe that to classroom learning should always be focused on developing our understanding of ourselves, our communities and the world around us - and having practical, hands-on experience is a key way to link what we talk and read about to the world around us. We are developing the range of practical experiences that we can offer students in our science lab, and this week Year 9 have been using the heating equipment installed last year to learn about the different forms of heat - convection, conduction and radiation.
Eco Club and Community Mapping
The Secondary Eco Club on Tuesdays aims to think about and find practical solutions for challenges to the environment that we share as a community. As a first step, we are using community mapping to build up a better understanding of our environment, so that we can then think about where we can make changes that can make this a better place for all the humans, animals and plants in our local eco-system.
Students have been making detailed sketches of the buildings and grounds, which they will turn into computerised models. We can then use these models to play around with ideas for improvements, and create plans that we can then present to school leaders for consideration. Having a real-world goal that encourages students to use things that they have learned in the classroom gives learning real meaning - and can be fun too!
Key Dates at a Glance
Looking Ahead: Key events and special days for the school year are published on our homepage.
Parent Discussion Circle - every Friday
See Newsletter Issue 21 for full details
Links to our end of term event songs to practice at home
See Newsletter Issue 21 for full details
Get Caught Reading competition
See Newsletter Issue 22 for full details
Term 1 Parent & Friends Meeting
See Newsletter Issue 23 for full details
📅Have Your Say, the Si Ri Panya Way ☕️
We warmly invite all parents to the Term 1 Parent & Friends Committee Meeting on Tuesday 14th October, 9:30–10:30am at Baan Manali Resort (map link: Baan Manali Resort).
This is your chance to share ideas, raise concerns, and stay connected through your Parent & Friends Committee—a vital link between families, teachers, school management, and the Executive Board.
Your current parent representatives are:
Mr. Doron Lariv (Y4 & Y6)
Ms. Idit Reizner (Y3, Y7 & Y9)
Ms. Phavika Palsingh (Rupa) (Y8)
Mr. Brian Jay (Parent of former pupil)
Thank you to all our dedicated parent reps for their continued support. We hope to see many of you there—your voice matters!
Next Week's Parent Discussion Circle Topic
Friday 17th October: How can we support motivation, homework routines, and adapting to structured learning?
📅 When: Every Friday, 9:00am – 10:00am
📍 Where: Boardroom, upstairs at the main office
👩🏫 Hosted by: Pastoral Lead - Faye Reading
✨ Come as you are—whether to share your thoughts, ask questions, or simply listen in. Every parent is welcome.
Weekly Lunch Menu Update 🍴
Following parent feedback, our kitchen team has made a few small adjustments to ensure a healthier balance across our weekly lunch menu.
Fish and Chips has moved from Week 1 to Week 3
Eliche Pesto has moved from Week 3 to Week 1
In the Thai menu for Week 4, Pork Ribs with Pickled Cabbage Soup and Yellow Curry with Prawn and Mixed Vegetables have swapped days
These changes help reduce the number of fried dishes early in the rotation and add more variety to each week. The updated menu will take effect from Monday, 27th October, following the half-term break.
You can view the full updated menu here:👉 www.siripanya.com/school-meals
Ongoing Weekly Reminders
Library Reminder: Please check at home for any lost books and return them to the Primary or Secondary library so everyone can enjoy them!
Bottle Cap Collection: We're collecting bottle caps for our Precious Plastic Project! Please bring your bottle caps to the collection point located inside the Primary school gate on the left. Secondary students can bring theirs to the Design and Technology Lab. Find out more about this exciting long-term project here: Precious Plastic Phangan Facebook.
Drop Off and Pick Up: Drop-off is at 8:30 am (not earlier). Pick-up times are 2:50 pm for Primary (or 4:00 pm if attending an ASA) and 4:00 pm for Secondary. Please be punctual, as some Primary children have been waiting up to 30 minutes after 2:50 pm, 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 (Primary) or form teacher (Secondary) 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.
Uniform Orders: Ensure your child wears the correct uniform each day. Uniform orders can be placed online: 🔗 Secondary Order Form 🔗 Primary Order Form
Healthy snacks: Healthy snacks only. No sweets, crisps/chips or cakes at break times. Birthdays are the exception and dealt with per class policy.
