Dear Parents and Students,
We have completed nine weeks of online learning! Thank you for your patience and flexibility as we have worked through this journey together. Your feedback has provided us with valuable perspective on how you have experienced this. As we plan for next year, we will continue to consider your feedback to further modify our program as we provide flexibility, structure and connection for students should we have the need to be virtual next year.
This week we are sharing selfies from our eighth grade families!
Final Week of School Modules
Modules for the final week of school will run Monday-Friday. Modules may look different than past weeks. In addition to finalizing classwork or projects, students will have opportunities for final connection sessions with their classes Wednesday-Friday. Students will be participating in final reflection and class wrap-up activities. Students will also have an opportunity to evaluate the modules in each class through a student survey. This survey will be in the teacher’s module and will be emailed to students directly.
End of Year Grade Level Celebrations
Each grade level will have a virtual celebration online this coming week. Advisories will tune into these sessions together. The celebrations will be recorded for students who may not be able to join “live.” Here is the schedule for end of year celebrations:
Grade 6 & 7 End of Year Grade Level Assembly: Thursday May 28 2:30-3:30pm
Grade 8 Promotion Ceremony: Friday May 29 10:00am
Grade 8 Grade Level Goodbye: Friday May 29 11:00am
All grades live MS farewell session: Friday May 29 3:00pm
Theatre Class Production
Typically our theatre classes produce end of year class plays. This year, Ms. Rachel McCallum has adapted the production for sixth grade and found a way for all students to contribute while in virtual learning. Here is “The School Report” - a Grade 6 Theatre radio play. Thank you Ms. Mac and the sixth grade theatre students for your performances! Interested in identifying these voices? Here is the cast list.
Middle School Art Show
Our MS Art Show remains open online! Please
visit to view final works of art, videos that capture the creative process, and
leave feedback for individual artists. Thank you to Ms. Heather Hall and Mr. Sujeeth
Kumar for your efforts to create this website to display student art. Thank you
to our art students for sharing your creativity with the community!
From the School-wide Counselling Team: Saying Goodbye
As we near the end of the school year we also enter the all-too-familiar season of goodbyes to the friends and community members that have become such a presence in our lives. There is no way of avoiding goodbyes and they sometimes stir up unpleasant emotions as we grapple with feelings of loss, but what might those uncomfortable emotions be telling us? How might we say goodbye well? Here are some thoughts on supporting your child during this time:
· The most important thing is that we provide space for a well-rounded ending. As researchers in this study found, the way we say goodbye impacts the way we start anew.
· Acknowledge your emotions as they occur. Often they can be an indicator of how important people or this life phase has been to you.
· Children are likely to feel a variety of emotions about moving or about having friends leave them. Know that emotions aren’t permanent. Like the waves at the beach our emotions tend to surge and retreat making space for different emotions in the future.
· If there is anyone that your child needs to “make things right with” or needs to mend a relationship with before they leave, now is the time to try to do that. While it may not always end perfectly, taking the time to try is an important life skill.
· If your child is leaving, encourage your child to take the time to say goodbye to the people s/he has been closest to and to let them know the importance they’ve had in their lives. In our current virtual world, that could be through a video, a chat, a photo collage, a simple email or even a text message with photo or emojis.
· Ask your child to think about goodbyes to the people who have supported your child or looked after their wellbeing in your home, at school or elsewhere in the community. The gesture will leave everyone with a warm feeling.
· If you will be leaving behind pets, be sure to acknowledge the grief that may come with that and work with your child to decide how to best say goodbye to their pet.
· If your child is staying at AISC and has close friends leaving, recognize that this is a challenging time for them as well and they may feel a sense of grief or anxiety. It can be challenging to reach out and tell their friend how they are feeling. However, encouraging your child to do just that and to let them know how important the friendship has been to them, will help your child with maintaining and creating positive relationships in the future.
In summary, As we enter the final week of school, please encourage your children to take some time to say goodbye to the people and spaces that they have connected with over the last year. Acknowledge their emotions and validate them as real, perhaps by sharing some of the emotions that are surfacing for you as you say goodbye as well.
Arts, Sports & Activities (ASA) - Virtual Summer Jump-Off
We look forward to providing your child(ren) the opportunity to stay active, engaged, and connected with others while at home over the summer! After a successful Virtual ASA Season, we are offering a 2-week Virtual Summer Jump-Off program for June 8th - 19th (Monday - Friday). You may register your child(ren) for the Full Camp or for Individual Activities. You can find the registration form and more information on the Athletics & Activities Blog.
Withdrawal Forms
If you are certain of your withdrawal from AISC at the conclusion of this school year, please complete the Request to Issue Transfer Certificate/Past Records document linked in the “Quick Links” section of the blog. This will help the middle school office prepare your withdrawal documents in a timely manner.
Have a safe and healthy weekend,
Jessica Pechhold
Middle School Principal