Thursday, 20 February 2014

20 February

Principal’s Notes

Dear Middle School Parents,

It has been great to see all the students in their Indian clothes last week. Thank you for encouraging them to participate in this week. The celebration continues with the creation of the Horses of Ayyanar. Please come to our campus and see the process of these amazing sculptures yourself. You can follow what the artists are doing, see how the students are involved and learn a lot more from the Mr. Ed Doherty’s Blog: http://ejdoherty.blogspot.in/.

Association for Music in International School (AMIS)
Middle School Honors’ Band Festival, Shanghai,  12 – 16th February 2014
Congratulations to Ui Hyun Cho, Hana Suzuki, Suzu Toyonaga and Sae Shimada for their passion courage, confidence and hardwork.  The AMIS Middle School Honors’ Band Festival in Shanghai was a lifetime experience for these students, and a great way to represent AISC in an international music festival.   Looking forward to the next year; AISC is hosting the festival 2015!



Kodaikanal International School Concert
Friday, 28 February at 4:30pm in Auditorium
The music at AISC just keeps getting bigger and better all the time! We have a very special concert coming on February 28, featuring some special guests whom our middle school musicians and parents won't want to miss. Join us as the top band, orchestra and choir from Kodaikanal International School sweep through the AISC Auditorium on their annual South Indian tour. The KIS ensembles are well respected for their energetic and detailed performances, and are supported by a staff of private tutors in instruments and voice. And at the very same concert, representing AISC, our very own Concert Band and Symphonic Band will challenge a head-to-head matchup of musical might with our esteemed guests. Our middle school students and parents will enjoy the beautiful sounds, and will get a good idea of what to expect in the AISC music program when they get to high school.

The show is Friday, February 28 at 4:30pm in the AISC Auditorium. No tickets are necessary, but get your seat early as the hall is expected to be full. All middle school students and parents are invited to attend.

"Instant Harmony: Live!" in our AISC Auditorium, on Friday, February 28, at 4:30pm. Come cheer for The Big Bad Blue Bands!

School Photos 2013-2014
You should have received an email from the PTA grade level reps regarding school photos. If you missed it, here are the details.

On the AISC All School Moodle page community members will find the order forms and links to the on-line photo albums. Here is process by which you can access the photos on the Moodle page and place your order:
1.       Download the School Photo Order Form from the Moodle page.
2.      Click on the set of photos you wish to see and copy the image numbers of the photo(s) you want onto the order form.
3.      Indicate which print package you want. Please note that the CD ROM is only available if you purchase one of the photo packages.
4.      Take the completed order form and the correct payment to the cashier’s window near the main reception area and pay the required amount.


Please submit all requests for photos not later than February 28. We anticipate that the photos will be available for pickup by March 21.

Unfortunately, due to a change in photographers we are unable to provide prints for students whose photos were taken in August. If you have any questions about the ordering process, please contact the Administrative Assistant of your child's school section.

TEDEdClub - Ms. Danieta Morgan
We are honored to join TED in helping our students find their voices and share their message with the world.  Here at AISC, we believe that we should develop our children's ability to make a difference in their world.  The TEDEdClub  is based primarily off of the TED style presentations and talks. TEDEdClub gives our students a voice and a platform to do this.  Students will have the opportunity to connect with other students from all over the world to support, stimulate, and celebrate their ideas.  Students will develop public speaking skills and presentation literacy so their ideas can be easily seen, understood, and acted upon. At the completion of the program, interested students will have the opportunity to speak in front of a live audience at a TED Youth Conference.  As of now, we are offering this program to all interested in grades 5-8.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Ms. Danieta Morgan at mdanieta@aisch.org.
Logistical information:
·  Start date: To be announced after registration
·  Time: 3.30 – 4.30 pm
·  Day: Tuesdays
·  Grade Level: 5-8
·  Registration: At the ASA office (MC-1B). Last day for registration is Monday February 24, 2014

There will be no ASAs on:
·  Staff Development day: February 21, 2014
·  Parent Teacher Conference (ES and HS): February 27 & 28, 2014

Please note that all Saturday ASAs (Swimming, Soccer and Drama) will be conducted as scheduled. All ASAs will resume on March 3, 2014.

From our Athletics Director-Mr. Ron Thomson

As most of you are aware AISC is hosting the SAISA Track & Field Meet this year. There will be over 180 athletes from Bombay, Dhaka, Karachi, Kathmandu, and Muscat.  We are  working on housing these athletes and their coaches.   

We request our community to come forward to host athletes from the visiting schools, this gives the visiting students a warm home while they participate in this tournament.

Please fill in the attached copy and return it to the Athletic Office ASAP. Please remember to mention the number of kids you would like to host and indicate the gender. If you are on campus, you can also get a hard copy at our office.

I want to thank you in advance for your support.

Academic Corner

French 6/7A: Students have just finished a unit about places in a town and talking about where they are and where they are going. Students learned how to order food in a restaurant, how to ask for and give directions to various locations around a town, and practiced the verbs être (to be) and aller (to go). Some students will start a unit about their daily routine. In this unit they will do a presentation talking about their own daily routines, the classes they take, and what they often do in the evenings. Some others are working on a project in which they design a school in French West Africa, using any combination of media and computer programs they wish, which they will present to the class and then be asked questions, in French by the class, (taking the role of "African/ International students" ) who might be interested in attending the school.


French 7/8B: Last week students finished reading "Le chouette bouquet," a short story from Le Petit Nicolas, and this week they have been working on retelling the story in a comic strip form, or by creating an RSA animation video. Students will finish these projects next week, so make sure to ask your child to see the final product. In both classes we are also continuing to study the past tense.

Spanish 6/7A:  students are learning to talk about their school routine. They have learned the vocabulary for classes, school supplies, and verbs related to school work. They are recycling what they learned in the previous unit to describe their teachers, and to say whether or not they like a class, and why.

Spanish 7B - Grade 7 are learning how to extend, accept and decline invitations. Within this topic, students are reviewing previously learned material to explain that they have other plans or obligations. Some students have just finished being waiters in a restaurant in a South American country and will now be realtors trying to "sell" a house to interested buyers.

Spanish 8A- Grade 8 students have just finished writing dialogues in pairs, using excuses, and are now learning about families. They will present their family poster to the class in small groups.

Spanish 8B - Grade 8 students have been working on the topic of family and celebrations. They have been discussing topics such as family values, the role of each family member within their culture, and what makes each family unique. They are also working on the launch of a class newspaper where they will publish articles on topics of their interest.


Have a good weekend.

Alan Phan
Middle School Principal