This week, I write from Bangkok and a conference for school leaders hosted by the Federation of British International Schools in Asia. Whilst there's been plenty of serious business to attend to, it's always a pleasure to reconnect with colleagues and friends working across the region.

The jewel in the crown next week is likely to be the evening presentation of a pantomime performance by students in Year 6. Kicking off a season of theatrical production, the quality of rehearsals would suggest that guests are in for a real treat. I can also look forward to the gathering of the School Management Committee and the hosting of the latest in our series of parent workshops, entitled Five Ways to Track Academic Progress. If you've yet to register, you are very welcome to do so here.

An incredible weekend Open House led us neatly towards the flurry of engagements that typifies the arrival of the Board of Governors, with members rightly keen to engage broadly. Able to meet with current and prospective Shrewsbury families, members of staff, various student groups and a host of connected supporters of our school, they left suitably impressed by the commitment, camaraderie and consistency exhibited by all. Able to conclude the week with the shared hosting of a very first event in partnership with the Federation of British International Schools in Asia (FOBISIA), we have a lot to be grateful for on approach to the winter season: Together We Flourish.

I'll spend part of next week at a conference in Bangkok, but can look forward to joining friends at Bloomberg and Guidepost Montessori Kindergarten for events connected to the broadening of appreciation for all that a Shrewsbury education has to offer before departure. My time outside the region will be spent alongside an esteemed group of school leaders, with the rising influence of Artificial Intelligence a central theme.

Following an enriching day of professional learning on the theme of oracy, we were thrilled to welcome students back onto campus for the second half of our first term on Tuesday and it has proven to be an extraordinarily enriching return. Featuring an evening musical presentation in partnership with a host of young travelling musicians from Shrewsbury School (UK) and a Halloween Disco led by the Shrewsbury Parents Association, it was entirely fitting to conclude the week with an assembly on the theme of Community.

With hundreds of guests due with us for an Open Day tomorrow, next week will centre upon the arrival of our Board of Governors. Culminating with dinner at the Hong Kong Club in celebration of the contributions made by a select group of parent volunteers, we will be joined in Hong Kong by two new members following the retirement of John Clark last year.

Friday will see us host a first event in partnership with the Federation of British International Schools in Asia (FOBISIA). Part of the wider commitment to partnership held within our strategic plan, content will focus upon Humanities, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the power of service initiatives.

A restful break now behind us, I greatly look forward to reengaging with our academic team for a day of professional learning on Monday, prior to the return of students on Tuesday and the visit of the Shrewsbury School Orchestra. Led by Music Director, Maria McKenzie, we look set for an enthralling and inspiring evening.

Next week will also see the arrival of Halloween and the hosting of an early evening disco. We then open to the public on Saturday and can count on the arrival of hundreds of visitors from the local community, all keen to learn more about the myriad of benefits associated with a Shrewsbury education.

With the first half of a first term brought to a triumphant conclusion with the marking of a House Day, I also reflect with great pride upon an outstanding exhibition of musicianship, the hosting of several events for prospective parents and the conclusion of an enormously successful series of Parent Teacher Conferences.

The break ahead will allow for rest, recouperation and the refreshment of our boundless enthusiasm for change, growth and improvement. It will also see preparation for the arrival of our Board of Governors finalised.

Students return on Tuesday 29th October. Featuring the arrival of a visiting orchestra, a parent led Halloween Disco and an Open Morning on Saturday 2nd November, we have a great deal to look forward to.

Featuring a second showcase of our Hanqing Bilingual Pathway, delivery of the latest in our parent workshop series and the gathering of our School Management Committee, I write from home this week, in advance of a final week prior to the arrival of a mid-term break.

With preparations for the arrival of the Board of Governors taking good shape, the coming five school days will see a first set of Parent Teacher Conference meetings drawn to a conclusion, the hosting of two separate campus tours and the continuation of a lesson observation cycle that will act to focus professional dialogue among the academic team for many months to follow.

The time away from school will allow for reflection, rejuvenation and re-engagement of the restless mind that continues to drive for the incremental improvement of all we offer to students and families.

The onset of Parent Teacher Conferences and a lesson observation cycle designed to facilitate the analytical exploration of student engagement in the light of our teaching and learning policy, reminds us that a mid-term break is now on the horizon.

Between now and then, the regathering of our School Management Committee, the finalisation of plans for an upcoming meeting with the Board of Governors and the hosting of three separate events for prospective parents are sure to keep us occupied. With the next in our series of parent workshops also featuring on 9th October, those keen to learn more about the process of school selection are warmly encouraged to register here.

The hosting of another parent workshop stands particularly prominently in my mind as we approach the conclusion of our sixth week this academic year. Prompting thought on the mechanisms of learning and the ways in which we enable children to build and use interconnecting networks of information stored, an enraptured audience proved suitably participative. Parents keen to join our next session on the thorny subject of school selection are warmly encouraged to register here.

Next week will bring the onset of Parent Teacher Conferences and a lesson observation cycle that will allow us to revel yet further in the pedagogical expertise of our academic colleagues. I also look forward to hosting a campus tour, arranged on demand given the high levels of interest expressed at a recent international schools fair.

The visit of Shrewsbury School Music Director, Maria McKenzie, provided a triumphant end to another nourishing school week that also featured the launch of Co-Curricular activity, the gathering of our School Management Committee and the marking of Mid-Autumn Festival. In Hong Kong ahead of a concert soon to be hosted on campus here in Tseung Kwan O, Maria enthralled Orchestra members over the course of an hour-long workshop, designed to challenge their musicality and teamship.

Tomorrow, I'll be joining a panel discussion at the South China Morning Post International Schools Fair on the subject of school transitions. Mindful of the many ways in which we support families in their journey into our community, I'll also be available shortly thereafter for those keen to learn more about the unique benefits of a Shrewsbury education.

Next week, we'll be participating in a mathematics competition hosted by the Federation of British International Schools in Asia (FOBISIA), gathering for the latest in a series of parent workshops and concluding a round of standardised assessments. An early sequence of formal lesson observations begins shortly thereafter and with it, the opportunity to dive deeper into the complex range of decisions that shape learning each day.

The hosting of a successful parent workshop and an assembly led by Year 6 students stand most prominently in my mind at the end of another productive week, that also saw the opening of a report that will shape the October engagement of our Board of Governors.

We will welcome the broadening of Co-Curricular options on Monday, alongside the initiation of one of four service programme initiatives, designed to challenge, engage, affect and inspire our young students.

With Mid-Autumn Festival landing on Wednesday, our School Management Committee will gather on Thursday, just a few days prior to attendance at another International Schools Fair hosted by friends at the South China Morning Post. Scheduled to speak at 13:30 on the subject of school transitions, I look forward to engaging with parents keen to learn more about the many advantages of a Shrewsbury education.

The week that opened with a bang and closed with a storm, will be most prominently remembered for the incredible array of costumes that marked the launch of an ongoing engagement with Numbots and Times Tables Rockstars on Monday. Whilst typhoon related class suspensions drew the school week to a premature close, attendance at an International Schools Fair hosted by friends at The Standard tomorrow now seems assured.

Following a first round of academic committee meetings, Wednesday will see the opening of a new parent workshop schedule. Reading Coordinator, Sam Taborn, will be presenting Five Ways to Foster a Love of Reading. If you would like to join us for what promises to be a fascinating discussion, please register here.

I also look forward to welcoming Year 6 to the Auditorium stage for the first of a flurry of student led assemblies, productions and performances this term.

Following the initiation of a Performance Management Cycle designed to stimulate growth among an ambitious academic team, the presentation of a Digital Citizenship Acceptable Use Agreement provided the opportunity to explore the opportunities and risks presented by our ever more entwined relationship with technology. Attention has since switched towards the development of materials that will support the delivery of information sessions to parents keen to learn more about the January opening of the Hanqing Bilingual Pathway.

Next week will see the schoolwide launch of Times Tables Rockstars. Countering the inevitable furore, a series of Operational Plan meetings and an engagement with the Education Committee at the British Chamber will precede attendance at an International Schools Fair hosted by friends at The Standard. I also look forward to concluding a trio of assemblies on the theme of friendship and the upcoming arrival of class-led presentations.