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When browsing the web and looking for English-speaking schools in Brussels we got a bit lost. We read about the BJAB and decided to visit them. After touring the BJAB, listening to the Head teacher's vision and the possible future class teacher's lesson, there were no doubts! Our four years spent at the BJAB confirmed our first thoughts. No other school could be more devoted, enthusiastic, exciting and altogether so cozy! The school offers successfully a 360 degree education, covering all aspects of life and bringin children to enjoy their learning. At BJAB our child received a first rate education, learning in a caring environment that was supporting, and paying attention in, our scholastic interests. Most importantly, he has always been encouraged to express his potential at maximum level. Indeed, every morning we happily left home looking forward to going to his school. We would certainly recommend BJAB to all our friends!
— Letter from Nella and Manlio Silvestri
I just want to let you know how much we appreciate the BJAB and to thank you and the teachers for making our children's education such a success. Our two youngest children are thriving there and love going to school. BJAB is a warm, welcoming and secure place where the children feel happy and safe and therefore learn a lot. The fact that the school is so international with children from all over the world who speak many different languages, is also inspiring, and the children learn about different cultures in a natural way. It is impressive that, based on the results for SATs, the great majority of the BJAB children do so well at school (including those for whom English is not their mother tongue) and BJAB should be very proud of this achievement.
Based on the experience of our oldest son's nine year career at BJAB (from Pre-KG to Year 6) it is clear that the academic level is high and that the children are well prepared for secondary school. Our oldest son did not speak English or French when he started but learned both languages to a very high standard, in addition to all that he learnt in other subjects. He also received extra support in maths when this was needed and this helped him finally to believe in himself and his abilities in maths, and due to this he is doing really well in the subject. He was also challenged in the right way in the subjects were he was originally stronger and this helped him to develop and reach his full potential. He carries with him since his BJAB time, not only knowledge and a useful set of "techniques and tools", but in particular a love of reading and of learning. At BJAB he also learnt critical thinking and to think independently and this will help him not only in secondary school and at university but also later on in life. I am also grateful for the support we received whilst applying to secondary schools in England and the fact that he managed to pass the entrance exam to Eton is very much due to everything he learned at BJAB.
That the academic level at BJAB is high is proven by our oldest son's track record at his current secondary school; he has been place in the highest set for Maths and French and he has alread received 15 merits and and a Head of Year award in just 7 weeks. In all this work he built up the writing skills he learnt at BJAB. It is clear that the good results in secondary school are due to the foundations laid at BJAB.
— Letter from Christina Hamelius Willan
Thanks once more for the help you gave us today [at the fund-raising Swimarathon]! So far, the image of a pool fully (all 8 lanes) occupied by BJAB’s teams, was something fantastic!!! We would love to see something similar every year from now on! At the end of the day, we (LIONS members) were talking about the great support you have offered us by bringing there 8 teams and so many dedicated swimmers.
— E-mail from Costinel Prica, member of the Lions Club of Brussels Heraldic
When asked what I'd like to do for a living, my immediate response was, "I'd like to be a musician; a singer, classical singer, to be precise." Only to be asked, "Don't you think it's a bit hard to obtain work experience as a musician, Isabella? Try and think of something a bit more straightforward, please."
"Okay," I replied, "I've always liked the idea of being a primary school teacher." This idea was given the seal of approval by my senior school in the UK.
"So would you like us to organise a placement for you in a local primary school then?"
"No thank you. I know exactly where I'm going."
"Oh, really. Where?"
"The British Junior Academy of Brussels. I used to live in Belgium and I went to the BJAB. It's a really lovely school."
On my last day of term at the BJAB back in 2003, through teary farewells, I vowed that the school had not seen the last of me, I'd be back, and indeed, I stayed true to my word.
I wasted no time at all in contacting Mrs Perry, filling out paper work and notifying my school of all the arrangements (since Brussels is out of the school's usual 20km work experience radius, it was down to me to arrange the placement for myself).
Eventually the time came for me to pack my bags and leave home (for all of 10 days). However, I had managed to convince myself that popping across to Brussels, which I was more than familiar with having lived there for almost 3 years, was a rather big deal. Perhaps compared to the local placements my classmates had arranged for themselves it was a big deal.
Nevertheless, I set out to meet Mrs. Perry in Kent and we made our way over to Belgium. Chatting away on the journey across, it certainly didn't feel as though I hadn't seen Mrs Perry for four years. She was just as lovely as I had remembered her to be and although it's a real cliché to say, I already felt as though I'd never been away.
I awoke the following morning bright and early to get ready for 'work'. It was an incredibly surreal experience walking along Boulevard St Michel four years after leaving, the glint of the royal blue blinds catching my eye, but going into the school not as a student, but as a member of the teaching staff.
However, I knew that the purpose of work experience was to give us a taster of being independent, seeing what it's like to be a working adult. Any reservations I had, however, were soon put aside when I met the team of mostly new faces, who were all lovely and made me feel very welcome. Once again, I felt as though I'd never been away and spent my first 'working day' with Mrs DePypere and her delightful class of Year Ones. I found this quite fitting as she was my first ever teacher at the BJAB when I joined in 2001. She said I'd changed so much that she barely recognised me, but I maintained that she hadn't changed one bit!
I was amazed by the advanced level that the class worked at, and when I took a small group of readers out to do some group reading, I was extremely impressed with the way they read, reading with animation and excitement in their voices, seeming to fully understand the story which was fairly advanced for 5 and 6 year olds, many of whom spoke English not as their first but their second language.
That afternoon I had the honour of watching rehearsals for 'The Pied Piper' the end of term production that the combined Year One classes and Year Two had prepared. It was full of lively songs and a great treat to watch.
My second day at the BJAB was a Wednesday which meant a half day, as well as a trip to the local swimming pool and gym. I spent the first part of the morning with Kindergarten and I must say that I was astonished by the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes in the Kindergarten department. I'd expected to be able to sit back, relax and play with the younger children, perhaps do a bit of painting and play with some Play Dough, but I was entirely wrong!
Kindergarten probably required the most organisation of the whole school, with numerous activities needing to be set out at any one time with lots of supervision required. Not to mention the fact that all of the art work done by the children needed to be filed into each of their individual folders, and I soon learned that they did an awful lot of art! Despite this, 'Miss Caroline' and her team make things run like absolute clockwork.
I then joined Mrs Braund who was taking Year Two at the gym for dance. Each of the children in this class were very enthusiastic about the African dance that they were learning but also about dances they'd previously learned - especially Eye of the Tiger.
Thursday was probably one of my favourite days as I spent the day with Mrs Spence and her lively bunch of Year Two's. Although arguably one of the school's wilder classes, I thoroughly enjoyed working with them.
I took a hands-on approach and helped the children where they needed help. However, in most cases it was more a case of helping to settle the children down as they were so lively! I was very impressed by the enthusiasm that the class showed when they wrote the openings to their 'Tiger Stories'. Using Thesauruses, the children came up with lots of exciting new words which helped them to write equally as exciting story openings.
On Friday I was with Mrs Gardner and Year 5/6. Whilst spending the day with this class, I got to use my musical abilities and teach them the South African chant 'Azikatale' for Mrs Gardner's African theme assembly the following week. Looking back on it now, I can see that I had been rather ambitious in trying to teach the class numerous harmonies, but in the end we stripped the song back to two parts and it worked rather nicely.
The class's co-operation and maturity shone through when learning this, as did the school's multicultural aspect when children who spoke various African languages helped to fine tune the tricky pronunciation of some of the more tricky South African words.
The advanced academic level of the students was also evident when in the maths lesson some of the number problems left me momentarily stumped!
For once I was excited about Monday morning, knowing that I would be spending the day with Mrs Braund's Year Four. I was particularly eager to work with this age group as I have a brother of the same age. I was eager to see how the work that Mrs. Braund's class was doing with that of my brother back home in the UK. As anticipated, the BJAB's Year Four were working to a much higher standard, tackling more complex things in both English and Maths. In fact, I found myself loosely relating the techniques of 'Number Chomping' (the maths subject that the children were studying) to my own maths work.
I also got to make my mark on Year Four's classroom, by creating a scary wall display to mount the class's ghost stories on. As I no longer do art at school, I particularly enjoyed this as it gave me a chance to get my creative juices flowing!
Unfortunately, Tuesday was my last full day at the BJAB but it wasn't all bad news as I was spending that day with Year Three. In the literary session I listened to some children read and then gave a helping hand to those that needed it in numeracy, and although the number shape problems that the children were tackling were particularly difficult, each of the children embraced the exercise and showed an eager attitude to try and solve the problems themselves.
I rounded the day off by reading the class a little bit of 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone', which reminded my that I had to pre-order my copy of the 7th Harry Potter book, 'The Deathly Hallows', before its release in July!
My very last day was gym day again, so I accompanied Mrs Braund and Year Two to their dance lesson. My last day also marked the day of Mrs Gardner's African themed assembly, and Year 5/6 gave a fantastic performance of Azikatale.
Throughout my placement I also sat in on many of Madame Wait's 'Immersion French' lessons. This was a new concept to me, as it had been introduced after I'd left the school. I really think this is a fantastic idea. The scheme means that the children will learn to use their French in practical ways by learning about Belgian history, geography and culture in French. This also means that the children come across words that they wouldn't usually in 'average French lessons', and as a result of this many of the BJAB's pupils are tri-lingual, speaking English, French and their mother tongue fluently.
Alongside the immersion classes, Madame Verbist continues to teach the children French grammar to ensure that their written work and grammar is at an equally high standard, and together Madame Wait and Madame Verbist work as a very good team, ensuring that the children's French is of an exceptionally high standard, often even higher than that of GCSE standard back in the UK.
Not only did I see what goes on in the classroom, I got a clear idea of what goes on 'behind the scenes' in a school. I saw reports being prepared, lessons being planned, the organisation of the trip to Logne, all these little things tend to be taken for granted.
I've often heard people say, "Oh, it must be great to be a teacher … All those holidays they get, only working from 9-3.30." And I must say that I used to agree, but my work experience has definitely made me think otherwise.
Many of the teachers arrived in school before 8am, leaving at 5pm, with large amounts of marking and lesson-planning to be done. It was also not unusual to see teachers working in the staffroom on their breaks and in their free lessons. So although they may get more holidays than most, it's by no means an 'easier job'.
But the burning question is, "Did all this put me off wanting to be a teacher?" And the answer: "Certainly not!" Although it requires a lot of hard work, I could see how rewarding a job teaching is. I thoroughly enjoyed interacting with both the students and teachers alike, witnessing how the school is run. I also realised how lucky I was to have attended the BJAB. As a child you take your education for granted and although I enjoyed school, I didn't realise how good an education I was receiving whilst at the BJAB. Each of the students receive individual attention and are given special jobs and responsibilities to ensure that they set off to secondary school as mature, well-rounded students, and as silly as it sounds to say, I'm sure that the BJAB influenced me in many ways to be the person I am today.
So all in all, I had an amazing time on work experience at the BJAB, and I'm so glad I steered away from the crowd and did what I wanted to do, despite being advised against it! I learned a great deal, but most of all, I saw what a wonderful, diverse, caring community the BJAB really is and how lucky I have been to be a part of it.
— 'Work Experience' by Isabella Valentini
Hi,
My name is Lindsay Muir, I’m now 15, and I went to the BJAB six years ago, and I left in year 5. In my last year my class tutor was Diane Perry, who I believe is now Head teacher. I doubt if any of the teachers who taught me would remember me at all, but if it makes any difference I had very blonde, very curly hair.
I thought since I was on the website that I should make contact although I myself am not exactly sure what for. I guess I want to thank the school, as corny as it sounds, for the contribution it made to my life.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve found that the time I spent in Belgium changed and shaped my life in ways that I wouldn’t have expected it to. I find, even now, that elements of the experience shape my personality, attitude and general life despite me leaving Belgium six years ago – and more importantly, they have changed my life for the better. The BJAB was a huge part of my life at the time, so the way I see it, the BJAB also shaped my life.
I’m now in my GCSE year at the local Grammar school back in England – and last year I took my GCSE maths a year early, achieving an A*. This was no easy thing to do, and although it took a lot of hard work I really do believe that if it wasn’t for the practically one-to-one tuition that I had at the BJAB I wouldn’t have the natural talent that I now have for it.
I don’t suppose that I have said much in this e-mail, but I hope that you realise I’m just trying to say thank you.
So, again, Thanks to everyone at the BJAB, especially those who taught me.
— E-mail from Lindsay Muir
My name is Juliette Hearn. I was a student at BJAB around 13 years ago. I’m 22 years old and I’m now at university, in my first year, studying for a BA (Hons) Music Industry Management with Live Production.
My fondest memories of schooling in Europe are of BJAB, and having seen Lindsay Muir’s e-mail on the website I thought I would get in touch. My most vivid memories are going up the staircase to our French lessons on the top floor, music lessons and the production of Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr Fox. I still remember the silly outfits we wore!
When I was at BJAB I was particularly interested in Music and Art. With the benefit of hindsight I really appreciate all that handwriting practice in the morning, and the individual attention we all received.
And, since leaving the school, I have trained to be a qualified Studio Sound Engineer at a recording complex in London and I’m building a career and a reputation within the Music Industry.
I suppose that this is a vote of thanks for the fantastic education I received, for the wonderful friends I made and for being part of helping me achieve to my best ability.
— Juliette Hearn
Hello there.
My name is Huw Davies. I was at the BJAB for four years and left in 1997 at the end of year:6. I see that other former pupils are reporting in so thought I’d do likewise, maybe even get an alumni type thing going!
Anyway, I too would like to express my profound thanks to the school and its teachers. The four years I spent there will undoubtedly be among be among the happiest in my life. I made many wonderful friends some of whom I am still in contact with. I still have fond memories of playing rounders on Friday sports afternoons, and Tuesday swimming club, as well as the annual residential/adventure weeks in the Ardennes and Dover.
I have a particularly vivid recollection of an afternoon we spent rafting, which generally involved lots of capsizing and getting very wet!As a dyslexic I found the small classes and the friendly atmosphere of the school particularly beneficial to my academic development. All the teachers I had were excellent and were always understanding and willing to help out with my problems. I am now in my first year at Oxford University studying History and Politics, and very much doubt whether I would be here without the attention and development I received at the BJAB which added immeasurably both to my confidence and ability.
Diane Perry was my teacher for the last two years at the school, and I consider her to be one of the most important and inspiring influences on my life (reach for the sick bags if you must, but its true). I am therefore very glad to see that she has become the head mistress, and am sure she will continue to preserve what is best and wonderful about the school.
Basically, I just really want to say thanks to the school and everyone who taught me for four great years that I’ll never forget.
— Huw Davies
Hello!
My name is Sarah Davies and I was a student at the BJA for six years up until 1999, and after having a look at your website and seeing my brother's letter, I, never the one to be knowingly outdone, thought that I would send one too!
Like my brother, I would just like to say how much I enjoyed my time at the BJA and that even now, I still have many fond memories such as Thursday's ice skating sessions and our festive baking session at Mrs. Horspool's house! None of these things, I'm sure, would have been either possible or enjoyable in a bigger school where we were not given so much one to one attention, or where the teachers were not quite so "up for it".
Since leaving the BJA and after a brief stint at the British School of Brussels I am now at Tonbridge Grammar School in England, and the brilliant tuition I recieved at the BJA has really paid off, nowhere more so than in French which meant that I got to take my GCSE two years early. Now I am in lower sixth and preparing for my IB exams I am finally back to having lessons in those small, cosy classes that made the BJA so special!
So, overall, I would just like to say a big thanks to everyone who made my time there so thoroughly enjoyable!
— Sarah Davies
© 2011-2012, British Junior Academy of Brussels. Accredited member of the Council of British International Schools.
