Dear parents

One of the more lingering effects of the pandemic on the school has been the restriction on international travel. Wellington is a school that takes great pride and institutional strength from our links with our sister schools in China and across the world. Our association with these schools is real and meaningful. We have teachers from other Wellingtons in our ranks, and we share common governance, values and identity for our pupils. We offer regular opportunities for visits and the sharing of resources, both for pupils and staff. Our year 13 graduates, just as with their peers in England, are eligible to join the Old Wellingtonian (OW) Society, giving them networking, social and sporting ties to other Wellingtonians worldwide. 

Covid-19 has curtailed the offer of trips for the past 18 months, and there is no prospect of any physical interaction between our schools for the immediate future. In this new age of technological innovation, however, remote connection via Teams or Zoom means that we can maintain an effective working relationship with our sister schools and their pupils. One current example will be familiar to parents of children in years 5 and 6. These pupils have a new ASA run by Role Models, a British company that offers young people lessons in resilience, leadership, teamwork and character-building. An Old Wellingtonian runs Role Models, and the company has close links to the school. Many of its student trainers are former pupils, including three of our own Tianjin graduates from this summer, and thus they are well-used to our pupils' high expectations and bright intelligence. The work done with Role Models has focused on leadership in year 6 and collaboration for pupils in year 5. These build into transferable life skills and help young people manage themselves and their relationships more fully over time. I am so pleased that we can offer this programme, and it will be available to years 3 and 4 in the Lent term, with years 1 and 2 in the Summer term of 2022.

Our Wellington links are strong further up the school, too. Our Oxbridge and Ivy League applicants will once again be able to have mock interviews with colleagues from the Wellingtons in England and Shanghai. Access to such frequent, supportive and informed advice is a massive advantage for our pupils. Whilst unseen to pupils and parents, but equally influential on our work in Tianjin, is a thriving Wellington group team of university experts which meets each term to plot new projects for each new generation of university applicants. Once travel reopens, part of the work of colleagues from this team will once more include cross-group university tours of the UK and US, further strengthening the links among the world’s Wellingtonians.

I often write of the challenges schools faced during the pandemic. Supporting pupils, staff and families effectively during these times of uncertainty has placed a strain on all of us; no school has found its core businesses of keeping children safe and educating them to the best of their abilities straightforward. In this climate, sharing resources, ideas and good practice, even down to offering the proverbial shoulder to cry on when things seem overwhelming, is invaluable. Once we are again free to welcome visitors and take trips, I hope all parents will join me in thanking the pupils and staff of the Wellington family of schools for all their tireless championing of the school here in Tianjin. We will once again be able to meet in one another’s schools and celebrate a worldwide group that is bound together by a single message: We are Wellington. 

Julian Jeffrey
EXECUTIVE MASTER

Managing your child’s screen time

As we start the new academic year, many parents will be recalibrating at home. Holidays are often a time when structures and routines are relaxed. Sometimes, re-establishing bedtimes, study expectations and so on can be challenging in the early weeks of a new academic year. One such expectation is around ‘screen time’ and ‘device usage’ at home. I’ve written an article outlining five principles for safe screen time that will help empower you in positive conversations with your child.

If you are having issues over screen time ‘creep’, firstly, don’t be disheartened – it’s a common problem; secondly, please read my article and be safe in the knowledge that another article titled “How to set up family agreements” is on its way. 

How Are You Surveys

This week we surveyed all Senior School pupils to gauge their general wellbeing levels and how they have settled in for the academic year. The results are just coming in and overall look very positive. The results also enable us to address pupils’ needs where necessary or respond directly when pupils have asked for help. 

Next week, we will be surveying pupils in the Junior School in a child friendly manner to ensure that their voices are also heard and responded to. Pupil wellbeing and pupil voice is a central feature in an excellent school and here at Wellington we strive to give pupils every opportunity to share their feelings about their learning experiences, social experiences, motivation and general happiness levels. In the next few weeks, I will share the broad picture outcomes of these surveys with you and the steps we will be taking to continue to support pupils’ happiness and wellbeing in their educational journeys at Wellington.

Junior School House Team Building
Friday, 24th September

On Friday 24th September, the Junior School will be participating in a House team building afternoon. There will be different activities organised to build team spirit and camaraderie. Some of these events will be led by our new House Captains to build skills essential for leading and coaching others.

Lunchtime Concert
Black Box
1325hrs-1355hrs, Friday
24th September

The Music Department will host the first lunchtime concert to showcase the student musicians who continued to strive for the best over the summer break. The show will begin at 1325hrs on Friday 24th September in the Black Box with a piano performance of Picking Tea Leaves and Chasing Butterflies by Sun Yilin by Elsa (year 3), followed by a rendition of Joe Hisaishi’s Castle In The Sky by Billy (year 11) on the guitar. Lydia (year 10) and Kelly (year 11), who have already established themselves as leading student musicians in the school, will perform works by Bloch and Mozart. The concert will close with a piano performance of Schubert’s Impromptu No.1 in C minor from the Vier Impromptus, Op. 90, D899 by Ethan (AL Induction), a talented pupil who just joined our school this year. The programme is well balanced with notable works from composers of different eras.

Please come and support the student musicians. The programme will surely help you unwind after a busy morning. Parents of those who perform can apply to come in for the concert. The number of visitors allowed for this event is ten, so please make sure you contact the music department soon at stella.sun@wellingtoncollege.cn.

University Visits
FoW Room (MB238)
Thursday and Friday, 23rd and 24th September

As part of our ongoing University Fair, there will be three university visits to school next week. We are very fortunate to have KCL (THE ranking #35), Boston University (THE ranking #62) and Warwick University (THE ranking #78) visiting us. Parents of pupils in all year groups are warmly invited, but please remember that the number of visitors is limited to 20. Please e-mail Miss Luyi Feng if you would like to attend

(luyi.feng@wellingtoncollege.cn).

Senior School House Competition: Chinese Debate

The mid-Autumn Festival brings Chinese culture week to our school, and the Mandarin department will organise a series of pupil events, including KS4 and KS5 Chinese House debates. Monday and Thursday will see the preliminary and semi-finals, respectively.

Year 12 Art trip in Tianjin
Thursday, 23rd September

This Thursday, the year 12 Art students will be venturing to well-known locations around Tianjin to practise their observational drawing skills. An opportunity to draw outside, our young artists will work on perspective, tonal range and linear detail. These are invaluable skills in A Level Art study, and a whole day of focused drawing can bring about excellent outcomes to inform the direction of this term's work. Watch this space for future examples of amazing artwork!