Dear Parents,
Thank you for your attendance this week at our Grade 7/8 parent coffee and Back to School Night! Your attendance at these events is important to us as we begin the year together as partners supporting your children. If you were not able to make the parent coffee, the slides are here. The introductory presentation from Back to School Night can be found here. A reminder that each teacher has posted a screencast on their PowerSchool class page for you to view to become familiar with them and the course they teach. You can watch these videos at your convenience. Slideshows from grade level Week Without Walls presentations are below.
Back to School Night Survey
Our Back to School Night followed a different format than in year’s past. We would like to know your thoughts so we can consider planning for next year’s event. Please take a few moments to complete this survey.
MAP Testing, August 27-28
Each year, middle school students take the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test -- once in August and again in April. MAP is a computerized adaptive test that measures academic progress in Reading, Math, Science, and Language. MAP tests students with engaging and age-appropriate content. As a student responds to questions, the test responds to the student, adjusting up or down in difficulty. Our team uses the data to inform instructional decision-making for increased student growth and achievement.
MAP testing will happen on Tuesday, August 27th, and Wednesday, August 28th, in students’ core classes. Please remind your children to charge the laptops each night, especially during testing week. There is no preparation required for MAP testing. We do, however, recommend that students get adequate sleep and a good breakfast before they come to school for the MAP Test. Make up tests are available for students who miss tests due to absence. The dates for make-up tests are after school on September 3rd and 4th.
Yearbook Photo Dates Middle school students will have their individual pictures for yearbook taken on Thursday, August 29. Students who are absent on Thursday will have the opportunity to have their photo taken on Friday, August 30.
Yearbook Photoshoot and Ordering Headshots
Our Yearbook Photoshoot is taking place on August 26–30. Watch this space to learn more about the photoshoot schedule. This year there are two ways to order your prints.
Option 1: Order photos the week of the photoshoot
1. Students can pick up their order forms from the MS Office by Thursday, August 22.
2. On the day of their scheduled shoot, students can bring their order form with the exact amount and pay the vendor directly.
3. Photo prints will be ready in two weeksfrom the date of order. You can collect the prints from the MS Office.
Option 2: Order photos after reviewing headshots
1. Photos will be uploaded to SmugMug a couple of weeks after the photoshoot week.
2. Review your headshots.
3. Contact the vendor directly via email or phone to order your prints. Vendor information will be provided with the SmugMug link.
Week Without Walls Presentations Below you can access the grade level WWW presentations. More information will follow from grade level teams as the trip approaches. We understand that Fall Break immediately follows WWW. For safety and efficiency reasons, it is a priority for our grade level groups to travel together through completion of the trip, including the return trip to AISC’s campus. We request that families take this into consideration when making arrangements for Fall Break departures. If you have a question about your child’s return to campus, please contact msprincipal@asichennai.org.
MS Pool Party This Friday, August 30th, from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., the MS Student Activities Club will host our first Middle School social: our Back-to-School Pool Party. Tickets can be purchased prior to the event for 200 Rupees, or for 250 Rupees at the door. SAC members will be stationed outside of the iHub with tickets at lunchtime Monday and Tuesday of next week and will visit each Advisory classroom on Wednesday morning. Please encourage your children to join us!
AISC UN International Peace Day, Parade of Nations: September 13 This year's UN International Peace Day celebration will be held on Friday, September 13! The Parade of Nations will be held in the FAC Theater and students are encouraged to dress in their national attire.
Upon arrival to first block as usual, teachers will direct MS students to gather in the gymnasium. Once assembled by their respective national flag, students will proceed to the FAC Theater stage for the beginning of the parade. Each student will process across the stage with his/her country. Once they finish the parade, Grade 6 to 8 students will proceed to the cafeteria for live streaming of the program.
The Parade of Nations will be followed by a regular school day.
How does the school determine what country students represent?
Students are grouped by their passport of record. If you would like to have your child(ren) parade with a country different from their citizenship of record, kindly send an email to Deborah Allen, Director of Admissions and Parent/Alumni Relations at admissionsdirector@aischennai.org [Please specify Subject Header: Parade Flag Change]. Please let us know no later than August 30, 2019.
Parent Questions During coffee mornings throughout the year, I will be collecting questions from parents and answering them here. This week’s questions are about student activities during at lunch and scheduling ASAs for MS students.
Q: What activities are available for students at recess?
A: At lunch recess, students are welcome to use Raptor’s field and the new indoor covered gym for physical activities. Students can get balls from the PE equipment room to play a variety of sports and games. During breaks, students can access the iHub, Unity Courtyard and all outdoor areas of campus for recreation. Card and board games are available in the iHub for students as an alternative to playing on mobile devices. The CIC is also open to students who would like to read or study at lunch time. Throughout the year, organized activities may be held at lunch time and these are published in the student daily bulletin. We encourage students to eat and socialize during the first 20 minutes of the lunch period; therefore, students may not use devices during this time.
Comment: There is a lot of conflict for MS activities.
A: Each activity season, there are multiple activities for students. We do our best to schedule activities and events to minimize conflict. Some activity schedules are set by external organizations we partner with (SAISA and ASIAC) and others require us to consider how facilities are used school-wide to accommodate a range of activities throughout the school. While we would like students to be able to explore a variety of activities and try to ensure that students have opportunities to access ASAs, we also ask you support in helping students to make choices that support a balanced schedule and their wellbeing. We will continue to strive to decrease conflicts in our calendar so opportunities are available to students. One resource available to help you and your child make decisions about activities that may conflict is page 49 of the student handbook. This chart outlines conflicts in practices and competition/performance dates.
Have a great weekend,
Jessica Pechhold Andrew Ranson
Middle School Principal Middle School Associate Principal
