Dear Middle School Parents,
In all schools, there are always a wide variety of different types of readers. There are voracious readers who read anything and everything they can get their hands on. There are readers who enjoy and dabble in different types of materials such as books, newspaper, online articles, blogs, and magazines. Then you have those who read on what they need to read. Finally, we always have a few reluctant readers. Why? They are reluctant to read because they are not interested in what they are given to read. Here is an article by author Aaron Becker, who talks about himself as a young reluctant reader and how we need to find an “in” for children to begin to enjoy reading. As educators and parents alike, we all want children to enjoy reading. What’s your child’s “in”?
Student Voices Forum
We are still looking for students to join Student Voices Forum (SVF) which is a group of student representatives that meet with the Middle School Principal, Counselor, and teacher volunteers to discuss issues, policies, and procedures of the Middle School. The first meeting will take take place at lunch time on Monday, 12 September. Lunch will be provided.
Interested students, please complete this application and turn it into the MS Office, not later than Tuesday, 6 September by 4:00pm.
Second Early Release Next Wednesday
Next Wednesday, 7 September, we will have our second Early Release Day. Students are expected to depart campus in a timely and organized fashion. We appreciate your patience with traffic on these days. In preparation, please plan on allowing longer time for entry and exit to the school at release time. For our Middle School students, hot lunch will be served.
Middle School Pool Party
We will have the first middle school social next Friday, 9 September from 4:00 to 5:30pm. Please remember to pack a swimsuit for your child. Please note the guidelines at the end of the blog with the frequently asked questions about middle school social events.
Middle School Coffee
Tuesday, 13 September @8:45 in the Hall of Light
One of the feedback we had last year from parents was to learn more about the curriculum that is taught in the middle school. Please join us at the next middle school coffee where Mr. Dan Love, Director of Teaching and Learning, and I will provide more information about the curriculum. Following the coffee, we will be introducing Learning Journeys where you will be able to visit classes while they are in session, from 9:30-9:50.
Student-Parent-Teacher Conferences
We will have our first set of conferences on 29 and 30 September. Please save the date and join us in celebrating your child’s learning in the school. Please note that the format includes the student at the center of the conversation as they lead and explain their goals for the year and their learning thus far. Students are required to be at these conferences.
ISTA Middle School Theatre Festival
This year Middle School students have an exciting opportunity to attend the ISTA Middle School Theatre Festival in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Dates will be Friday 11th November 2016 until Sunday 13th November 2016.
ISTA is a very popular International Arts Organisation that specialises in creating Theater workshops for young people. Students from schools from around the world meet up for three days, and they are then taught and inspired by visiting theatre specialists. At the end of the three days there is normally a showcase of work presented to an audience.
Students will not need to audition to get on the trip. Students will not need to come to rehearsals. Registration fees for ISTA Theatre Festival will be paid for by our school, participants only have to cover the cost of the flight to Sri Lanka and any food that they purchase on route.
Interested students will be given information letters to take home next week. You can find out more about ISTA organisation at www.ista.co.uk.
If you are interested in this trip, please ask your son/daughter to see Mr. Gareth, the Middle School Theater Teacher, for an information letter.
Calling all middle school artists! Come help fix up the Middle School Memory Wall! Help beautify the school and practice your mural-making skills!
What: It’s the big painting with the hot air balloons and little feet.
Where: On the wall between the green cubbies and the pool.
Why: It’s getting a bit run down and needs some love.
How: We will be re-painting parts of it and maybe adding some new elements.
When: Thursday, Sept. 8, Thursday Sept. 15 & Friday Sept. 16, After school 3:45-5:00.
Who: All middle school students are welcome! It’s okay if you can’t make it to all the sessions and there may be more sessions if necessary.
If you have any questions contact Mr. Aneesh or Ms. Heather.
UN International Peace Day Celebration, Friday, September 23
One of AISC’s amazing traditions is the celebration of UN Day. This celebration will be held on Friday, September 23, as part of United Nations International Day of Peace. Each year the International Day of Peace is observed around the world on September 21. The General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples.
This year, we continue to celebrate UN International Peace, but differently than in the past, we will begin with the parade and end with a special assembly. In preparation for flag parade, K-12 students will gather in the gymnasium and, once assembled under their respective national flag, will proceed to the auditorium for the beginning of the parade. The PK students will gather in the auditorium lobby and, upon arrival of K-12 students, will lead the school into the parade. PK students will exit the auditorium when they finish their role in the parade.
Once our 6-12 students complete the parade, they will proceed downstairs and be seated in the cafeteria with live streaming of the assembly in the auditorium. After the parade, we will perform a short assembly where will have student speakers from Elementary, Middle and High school. This assembly will end at approximately 10:15, with the PCA UN Day Country Pavilions opening for students at 10:30am in the Gym.
Students come to school in their native dress on this day, especially for the parade. This promises to be a fun day for all and a chance to celebrate the international community!
What are Learning Habits?
One of the aspects of moving to a Standards-Based Grading and Reporting system is to separate the behavior from the academic achievement. Therefore, we will be giving feedback on student’s behavior using the four words, with its description below to indicate how frequently they display these attributes. In addition to the feedback that students are getting from the assignment, students will receive their first update about how these attributes contribute to their learning.
Preparation
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Student actively plans for learning activities, displays effective organization and manages their time well.
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Engagement
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Student actively participates in learning activities and is communicative about their thinking and learning.
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Collaboration
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Student works with all peers by showing respect and compassion in a diverse classroom environment.
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A Growth Mindset
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Student can thoughtfully self-asses and strives for continual improvement.
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Frequently Asked Questions about the Middle School Social Events for Students:
Who runs these events? At the Middle School, students who have joined the Activities Club work with three advisors (Ms. Lakshmi, and Ms. Lucy) on a weekly basis to plan various social events throughout the year.
What are the events this year? Typically there is a Pool Party, a Halloween party, a Winter Party, a Friendship Party, a School Spirit Week, a Movie Night, and an End of Year party.
What do the students do at these parties? A disc jockey plays middle school appropriate music and students socialize together. There is pizza, popcorn, chips, and drinks. Students are supervised by middle school teacher volunteers.
What can parents do to help? For the parties we ask parents to supply some baked goods such as cupcakes, cookies, or easily served sweet or savory snacks. We kindly request that these are finger foods that are easily served and are in small portions. Please do not include nuts in any of the food items and clearly label any item that is non-veg. The Class moms usually send out a request for these and follow up reminders.
Note that we do not require baked goods for the pool party.
Is there a cost for these events? Students in the Club sell tickets the week of the event. The tickets are usually 200Rs in advance, 250Rs at the door. Student must pay with cash- students cannot use the school's smart cards for this. The money is spent on the refreshments, the disc jockey, the decorations, and any additional costs related to the events (movie rental, lighting, etc)
Can my child leave at any time? We are responsible for supervising your child during the event, therefore, please communicate in writing to the Principal before the event if your child needs to leave early for any reason.
Where can I pick up my child after the party? Students are dismissed from the party and are required to leave by the main gate. Please pick up your child there promptly. The timings for the events are published in the Community calendar.
Can my child bring a friend who is not a student at AISC or a younger/older sibling? As this is a middle school event and because we need to have a complete list of all students attending the event for security/safety reasons, these events are only open to middle school students enrolled at AISC.
Thank you for your understanding and have a good long weekend.
Sincerely,
Alan Phan & Andrew Ranson
Middle School Administration