2018–2019 MS Knowledge Bowl

On the last day of school before the Christmas break, Middle School students and teachers gathered in Godbout Hall for the annual MS Knowledge Bowl. Dressed in holiday, um, attire… Mr. Kevin and Mr. Felix were the lively emcees for the event, which featured two rounds of a Jeopardy-style quiz along with a series of themed challenges.

Representatives from each of the six MS House Teams—the Golden Gibbons, Pink Elephants, Black Bears, Emerald Cobras, Titanium Tigers, and Blue Hornbills—were on stage to answer the challenging questions, which included topics such as Thai culture, sports, arts, and social studies. At the end of the round, the students were given one Final Jeopardy question on which they could wager up to 600 house team points!

The challenges ranged from fun PE-based activities, such as using straws to suction ping pong balls and drop them into a basket, to name-that-movie and name-that-tune games, to a final series of tricky questions that revealed how well the students “know their teachers.” It was a close competition, but ultimately the Cobras beat the Tigers by a mere 20 points to claim first place.

The event culminated in a Teacher Dance-Off that, besides pure entertainment, served as a fundraiser for the Camillian Home. The students were required to raise a minimum of 10,000 baht for the teachers to even start dancing. After some gentle coaxing, the target amount was secured and 24 MS teachers took to the stage in a battle to see just who has the coolest moves. There were five elimination rounds, the winners of which were determined by MSC representatives. Each round went for 2 minutes, one of which judged the teachers on their enthusiasm, creativity, and energy. It’s safe to say, there was plenty of that! But the final champion was Mr. Kevin in his outlandish Christmas suit, who secured his victory by busting out some impressive Fortnight dances. There was one final dance-off between a group of students and a very tired Mr. Kevin. The judges couldn’t decide who was better and declared a tie.

The final House Point standings were:

Hornbills: 1,462

Bears: 1,620

Elephants: 1,912

Cobras: 1,960

Gibbons: 1,978

Titanium Tigers: 2,227 (making them the Semester One Champs!)

But the true victory of the day was the money collected for the Camillian Home. The dance-off raised a total of 15,700 baht, which goes to care for orphaned and abandoned children with special needs. What a fantastic way to end the first semester!