After School Clubs | The British School Kathmandu

In TBS, we have a wide range of clubs and activities.

We usually have a vibrant and varied programme consisting of around 65-70 clubs for primary students and 50-55 clubs for secondary students each term. We do replace some of those clubs depending on demand. Also, some sports clubs are seasonal like swimming. Clubs are reviewed on a regular basis and we do reassess before the next block is published.

At the start of the academic year we do not have clubs for 2 weeks as we need that time to have all the teachers give their options and time for sign up. Thereafter, each term we do not run clubs in the first week and the last week of each term.

Clubs and Activities at TBS are voluntary and children should be taking them for additional challenge, social interaction and fun. They enable our learners to experience a wide range of activities which will help them grow into well-rounded, happy individuals. We are very happy to open up new clubs or additional sessions of existing clubs wherever possible to meet the interests of our learners. TBS expectations for commitment, behaviour and attendance are the same during club times as they are during the rest of the day and all our coaches, teachers, and club leaders will expect the highest standards of behaviour. However, the voluntary aspect is important if students are to get the most from these sessions. It is also important that club choice is made by the children/students as far as possible rather than by parents. Each term all our clubs information will be on our webpage.

We encourage full attendance at clubs once they are selected. As we do hire external coaches, it is a waste of money if children sign up without meaning to attend. Those who do not attend regularly without a valid reason will be removed from that club list (if they miss 3 sessions) and the place given to a student on the waiting list. Organizing the club’s system is a huge task and would not continue to run so well without the support of all parents. We appreciate this and we are always open to any feedback.

We believe the range and variety of clubs and activities we offer rivals any school in the world but we want to keep getting better. If there is anything else we could clarify please do let us know and if you do have suggestions we would welcome them and we will do our very best to put them into action.

Thank you to all parents for suggestions and support!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do parents/students select clubs and how do they work?

Most clubs take place at 2.30-3.30pm (primary) and 3.30-4.30pm (secondary). We publicise a timetable for the year and instructions are sent out to primary parents and secondary students by email at the start of the year. On the website there are more detailed descriptions of our clubs in the TBS Clubs and Activities area. At parents request we have adjusted the system so that most clubs will run for a full calendar year to allow progression. There will be an opportunity for children to change clubs between the 3 blocks if they wish though (and subject to spaces being available). Block 1 runs in Term 1 & 2, Block 2 in Term 3 and Block 3 in Term 4. The 3 blocks usually run for about 10 weeks.

How do we actually sign up?

Please scroll down to view the sign up process. We have ‘Parent Portal’ that should make the process more efficient. A TBS help desk (primary playground 8-8.45am) will be available to any parents who need training or support during the sign uptime.

How many clubs should primary children do?

Every child is different but as a rule Foundation 1 and 2 students usually cope best with 1 or 2 clubs per week, 3 being maximum for Foundation 2 students, 2 maximum for Foundation 1 students. Foundation students do take time to get used to longer days at school and it can be counter-productive to their enjoyment to add the extra hour of clubs at the end of the day when they are not ready for it. Older primary children can generally cope with more clubs and they enjoy them. Therefore some will want to do 3, 4 or 5 and this is fine.

How many clubs should secondary students do?

It is very important that secondary students do as much as possible in their school career and clubs are no exception. We would like to see them do 4 or 5 times per week in a range of different spheres i.e. active learning such as sport of Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award, academic such as Model United Nations, creative such as Music or Drama etc. Sometimes myths develop that doing too much will mean you do worse in examinations or fall behind in your academic work or not have time for home learning. The opposite is true! Our busiest students are our highest performers and being committed to clubs builds character and offers rich and broad experiences that complements and enhances academic learning. But they do need to evaluate their own performance.

Club description

How to sign up for Clubs & Activities?

All club sign up forms are on one easily accessible webpage. To access the booking, you will need to
have your parent portal ID and password which will be provided by the school.

Once you have reached the engage portal site, please login using your engage username and password.
Select the ‘Activities’ button next to the ‘My details’ button.
Please select the ‘Activities’ button only once and then select ‘Activities Booking’.
The Activities Booking page will open up the page where you can choose your child’s name.
Please choose Academic for example, year 2022/23.
Then select your current term, example, Term 1, Term 3, etc.
Choose the day on which you want to sign up for the clubs. (NB – Foundation 1 students can pick a maximum of 2 clubs and Foundation 2 students can sign up for a maximum of 3 days and all clubs are voluntary. Please check if your children actually want to join the club. We want them to have fun doing these activities!)
There will be 3 options for each day and it will be a lottery system. If there are 9 students for option 1 and 10 seats, all 9 will get their first option. If there are 12 students, then it will be a lottery for those seats. Same will go for their second option if they don’t get their first option, and then the same for their third option if they don’t get their second option.
There will be a deadline for the entries. After the deadline, the forms will no longer be available.
You will receive a confirmation email a day after the deadline.
You will be able to check the clubs for your child on the parent portal thereafter.