Community Announcements And Classifieds
To Advertise here contact:
If you have an article you would like to publish in the Shark, please send it to :
Congratulations Class of 2010! theshark@aisr.nl
g.gamble@aisr.nl or Tel + 31 (0)10 422 5351
The deadline for submissions is Monday 20th September.
Family Group Therapy
Expat Socials - Internationals In Rotterdam
“Hands to help and hearts to care”
Monthly Expat Drinks @ Cafe Engels (in front of Central Station) Open from 18:00 to 23:00hrs
Do you need to talk to someone to express your difficulties and challenges with raising your child? Katherine Fortier, an educational and child psychologist, will lead
If you would like an invitation to this get together or any of the future events, please join us on Facebook:
the parents group. “...an opportunity to discuss their concerns and develop strategies
www.engels.nl/internationals
to help their children and manage their own stress.”
and subscribe to:
Our International hearts.2care@yahoo.com or call Rubina Anis Graduates Look Toon mobile The 06-52072084. Future... For further information or to register, Please email
www.meetup.com/INTERNATIONALS-in-rotterdam We look forward to welcoming you all.
Languages
Culture
Ballet classes: Would you like to improve your English ?
For ages 3 and up in the AISR building. The classes will be taught
Now is a great time to start studying in small friendly groups of
by Sue Manville who trained at The Royal Academy of Dance in
adults with English teacher, Susannah Tomlinson.
London. Sue has 20 years experience of ballet teaching and
“Why not give it a go?”
choreography, in the United States, UK, Australia, Greece,
More details are available at reception, or contact Susannah via
Spain and Brazil.
email: susannah.tomlinson@yahoo.com If interested, please email
or telephone: 040-8428486
Sue Manville at sue.manville@gmail.com stating your child’s age.
DUTCH BEGINNERS CLASS OFFERED AT AISR Monday’s from 9am till 11am, starting on Monday the 20th of September My name is Arjan Blokland and I offer a Dutch beginners class at AISR. The course focuses on practical language skills. The course has been designed for people with no or almost no knowledge of Dutch. The course consists of 12 lessons. The first lesson will be held on the 20th of September. The minimum number of participants will be four and the maximum will be nine. The prices of the classes are between € 15,- and € 24,- per class, depending on the number of students. e-mail: lindenlanguages@hotmail.com or telephone: 06-41585013.
Guitar Lessons: Private Guitar Lessons, after school at AISR or at home. Please contact bob@bobhamilton.net or visit www.bobhamilton.net more info. All ages and styles, flexible scheduling for both students and parents! Email: bob@bobhamilton.net
Services Treasured memories? Old or damaged photos restored: I can repair most images to a high level of presentation and provide a digital image and photo-print of the restored image. If interested please email me, David Blackburn. Email: mrblackburnart@gmail.com
Inside: • Director’s and Principal’s welcomes • Graduation 2010 • A Winning Strategy! • Letter from the Board • Sporting News
The American International School of Rotterdam
August 2010
SHARK
Graham Gamble
From the Director
From the Director
Graham Gamble
In these letters, it is not uncommon to start with some trite remark about how quickly time has passed. Once again, I am not going to be able to avoid the cliché because, like so many clichés, it is, annoyingly, true! We have now been back at school for two weeks: our colleague Dutch schools are now also back in business (which is why there are so many more cars on the roads again in the morning!) and, even though we haven’t even hit September, there is a decided autumnal chill in the air. Or is that just the library air-conditioning…?
You may have noticed that one of the things I share with children is no sense of the reality of time. One of the many good things about working continually with children is that it prevents you from ever growing up.
As always, there are lots of people to thank in these lines. I should particularly like to appreciate all our staff who have worked so hard to give such a positive, energetic start to the school year. I should also like to single out parents Liz Compton and Lisa Tobin who have developed and put on a terrific series of events designed to welcome new families into the school. This is a very generous gesture of support, which has been much appreciated.
For the Secondary School, the main event for September will be Trips Week (13th-17th). This is when our Middle and High Schoolers are dispersed to various corners of Europe for a week of educationally themed excursions. It is a highlight of the year for our older students – much will be learned and, of course, much fun will be had. Further information on this will follow shortly.
One of the main things to have occupied many of us in school during these first few weeks has been our Strategy Review work. I have written something about this initiative within this month’s “Shark” so I urge you to take a look if this important project for AISR interests you.
Please note also that Secondary School Open House will be held next Thursday, September 2 between 7:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. This will be an opportunity for Middle and High School parents to meet their children’s teachers and learn about programs for the year ahead.
The academic year has started smoothly. At least, I believe so, as not too many problems are ending up in the comfortable salon with the white sofas. Those new to our school, both staff and students, are gradually getting used to our eccentric routines. At the same time, existing members of the family are, happily, doing their best to integrate their new friends or simply resigning themselves to the fact that there are only four hundred and fifty weeks until the next vacation…
See you then.
Graham Gamble Director
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On behalf of all the Elementary Staff, I would like to say how much we are looking forward to a wonderful school year. The students have all settled in very well and as you walk around the hallways, there is learning in the air! So a big “Welcome Back” to all our returning students and a big “Hello” to our new students. We are sure they will have a successful and happy stay at AISR.
Welcome to AISR! PK1FD Krish PK1FD Isabella PK1FD Danish Zharif PK1FD Cesar PK1FD Harper PK1FD Taichi PK1FD Reyansh PK1FD Mateo PK1FD Itai PK1FD Maximus PK1HD Kirill PK1HD Aidan PK2 Giacomo
PK2 Ayana PK2 Mao PK2 Aaron PK2 Jing Bo PK2 Parker K Kai 1 Susana 1 Leigh (Savon) 2D Davide 2D Mats 2D Madelyn 2D Sydney 2S/B Elyse
3 Devan 3 Nerea 3 Nicholas 3 Angelina 4 Denis 4 Dakota 4 Siddharth
We also welcome several new staff: Ms. Dudley-Owen is teaching in Grade 2, Mr. Bradley Gooding in Grade 3, Ms. Alexander Mandic in Grade 4 and Ms. Bianca Rimbach in Grade 5. Ms. Melissa van Ringelesteijn will be teaching the Elementary Library classes. They are very excited to be working with your children. This year, the Elementary School will focus very strongly on our Community of Respect (COR) program. The student Ambassadors (student representatives from Grades 4 – 12) met for the first time this week to discuss the COR events for the first quarter. They will also continue to be important contacts for new students coming to the school. The first Elementary Assembly will take place on Monday, September 13, at 8:30 a.m. Parents are very welcome to attend these events. The curriculum focus for Elementary teachers is Supported Planning for Math, with particular emphasis on Assessment. Several teachers will be attending an Assessment Workshop at The American International School of Paris in October. Another very important focus will be working towards integrating IT into the classrooms. Another important change is that Grade 5 will also go swimming every Friday. In the past, students who joined us in Grade 4 never really got the chance to finish their diploma swimming. Mr. Wah and I both felt that by including them it would provide a better opportunity for all to complete the program.
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Anne - Marie Blitz
Anne - Marie Blitz
From the Elementary Principal
From the Elementary Principal
This year I will be teaching in Grade 2 on Mondays and Tuesdays. I will still be available before and after school on these days if you need to make an appointment to see me. I am also very happy to inform you that Ms. Alison Lipp will be the Elementary Assistant Principal. In my absence, Alison will be available to answer any questions you may have. She is teaching in Grade 5 and Middle School but is available most days after 1:00 p.m. Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the Elementary Open House scheduled for Thursday, September 9. The evening will start at 7:00 p.m. and end at 9:00 p.m. This intended to give you information about the curriculum, special projects and expectations regarding your child’s behavior and work habits. I look forward to seeing you all there. Have a lovely weekend,
Sincerely, Anne-Marie Blitz
Polite Request... Dear Parents, may we remind you to try not to block access to the back gates of the school as students using their bikes have sometimes had difficulty with visibility and safe entry to the playground. Many thanks.
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Dear Parents, If you are new to the school, may I please introduce myself. I am Laurence, the school nurse at AISR. As part of our Student Services Team (Counselor and Learning Support Coordinator), my role is to look after the physical well being of our students and staff. I work every day from 8:00 to 3:00 and am available throughout the day to care for any sick or injured student. I will call you if I think your child needs to go home or/and to be referred to a doctor. I will also care for any medical condition you child might have (allergies, diabetes...).
Nurse’s Update
Nurse’s Update Laurence Chambers
During the school year, I will organize screenings (Athletic examination, vision, weight, height...) and link with Dutch agencies in order to find resources available outside AISR (psychologist, speech therapist, physiotherapist...) if necessary. You may have received a blue Medical Form through your child. Please take the time to fill it in carefully as it contains very important information. If you do not have yet Dutch phone numbers or an address, please forward the missing information to me as soon as possible. Do not forget to fill the immunization dates at the back of the form or attach a copy of your child’s immunization book. It is also very important to have your Health Insurance details as they will need to be passed onto the hospital in case of an emergency occurring during school hours or during after school activities (incl. Athletic Program) to cover the cost of treatment. If your child becomes sick (fever > 38C or 100.4F, vomiting, diarrhea, chills, cough,...), he/she is not allowed back at AISR for a minimum of 24 hours after the symptoms disappeared. This measure has been proven very effective last year to reduce the amount of sick students and members of staff and we shall apply it this year again. If your child is unwell and unable to come to school, please contact me on l.chambers@aisr.nl or on 010 422 535. I am looking forward to working with you in the best interests of your children’s health.
Nutrition Committee The Nutrition Committee meets every month to go over the Elementary school menu and the “big plate” for Middle School and High School to ensure the best quality possible for your children’s food at the cafeteria. We are working very closely with Tjeerd van Delden, the cafeteria manager to continuously improve the standard of the food offered for your child’s lunch.
Did you know? •
All cooked vegetables are steamed to preserve their vitamins.
•
Meat is cooked in the oven or on the grill without addition of fat.
•
Raw vegetables and fruit are fresh cut.
•
Sea salt is used and only in small quantity.
•
The variety of vegetables is quite extensive: broccoli, cauliflower, green beans etc.
•
Fresh fruit is widely available: kiwi fruit, apple as well as pears and oranges cut in segment, pineapple on a stick, melon slices, grapes and bananas etc.
In one of the next issues of the Shark, we will give out a questionnaire regarding the meals and food served at the cafeteria. It will give you a great opportunity to express your views and your answers will help us to know more about your expectations regarding the food served here. AISR is a multicultural community with many different nationalities and therefore many different tastes. Our goal is to make the menu for our children as healthy, tasty and diversified as possible.
If you have any concerns, questions or suggestions regarding the food served at the cafeteria, or if you want to join the Nutrition Committee, feel free to contact one of us.
Anne-Marie Blitz
Uta Engelen
a.blitz@aisr.nl
Dr.Engelen@arcor.de
Laurence Chambers l.chambers@aisr.nl
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Nutrition Committee
Laurence Chambers
Graduation 2010
Graduation 2010 by Lynda Boot and Kate Driver
2010 was an auspicious year for the AISR graduates. They were the 10th graduating class of AISR. In the meantime, the very first graduates, Aqil, Von, Kat and Wendell are all grown up and have long since gone onto their chosen careers and further courses of study. Some even have children. Since then, almost 100 students have already graduated from the halls of the American International School of Rotterdam and many contact us on a regular basis about their excellent progress. In fact, keeping in touch is a hallmark of the family atmosphere of AISR, and this has been further facilitated by the increasing use of social networking programs on the internet.
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The highlight of the ceremony was the Student Addresses. Thoughtful, humorous, and full of thanks, the graduates stood in front of a packed auditorium and bravely spoke about their unique AISR careers. This was followed by a gorgeous slideshow prepared by the students themselves. The AISR Class of 2010 made a donation to the foundation Toekomstweg in the name of AISR to help rebuild the Moria School in Suriname. For those who are interested in the foundation, more information can be found at www.toekomstweg.nl.
Heartfelt Congratulations to the AISR Class of 2010 Won Young Choi, Maria Veronica Lara, Joyce Merceij, Hayden Miller, Anne Nicole Overbeeke, Yu Jin Park, Elliott Quassa, Jakub Romaszewski, Stephen Scott, Zhiyu Tian, Bilal Yesiloglu.
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Graduation 2010
The graduates were addressed by Mr. Gamble, Mr. Steele-Nicholson, and Mr. Rosenblatt. These speakers offered wise words and wishes of good luck and success in the students' future endeavors. Mr. Rosenblatt, the faculty speaker, spoke fondly about his experiences with each student in the Class of 2010.
A Winning Strategy! - Graham Gamble
A Winning Strategy! Graham Gamble I claim not to have controlled events, but confess plainly that events have controlled me Abraham Lincoln 1809-1865, sixteenth president of the USA Anyone who knows anything at all about the life and achievements of the man commonly considered to have been the greatest president of the United States will quickly observe that Honest Abe is being far too modest here! Such great achievements as he managed in his tragically shortened life could not possibly have been achieved without shrewd and coherent plans for obtaining the best results for the American people. Taking control of events, resources and people and making them work towards desired events is part of what strategy is. There is always a better strategy than the one you have; you just haven't thought of it yet Sir Brian Pitman, former CEO of Lloyds TSB Like any organization, even a bank(!), a school needs a strategy. Factors such as changing demographics or changing economic conditions can significantly affect the number of students to be recruited, the educational programs they need, staffing required – in short, the very nature of the school. As at any school, the strategic development and implementation process at AISR is ongoing. The last complete strategic plan was created in 2003 and so it was certainly time to devise a new one. Recently, it was not only the testing financial crisis but also the observations of our Visiting Accreditation Team which impressed upon us the urgency of renewing our strategy. However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results Sir Winston Churchill 1874-1965, statesman The AISR strategic engine was started up once more, in fact, in May of this year. The move was led by former AISR parent and Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees, Peter Ford. You, the AISR parents, have also been part of this process as your opinions on strategic change were recently elicited in a (deliberately!) provocative questionnaire. The information gathered in this way was combined with a pack of key data circulated to and digested by a volunteer group of interested parents, teachers and Board members – the Strategy Group. Last Saturday, August 24, this group met at school for a long day’s workshop designed as the first stage in a thorough process designed to evolve a new strategy for our school. In the meantime, as some of you know, the former Strategy leader, Peter Ford, and his family had relocated to the Middle East. So the facilitator role in last Saturday’s workshop was, at short notice, taken by parent and experienced business strategist, John Trenchard. All of us involved in the strategic review are hugely grateful to John for stepping in like this at the last moment and for the great skill and energy he is bringing to the difficult task of guiding, shaping and challenging our work. You can see pictures of our workshop at school as part of this article. There was a huge amount of creative thinking done by the fifteen or so who were there and I should also like to express the school’s gratitude to this group for their efforts. In summary, what we did on Saturday was to begin to define, in clear terms, the nature of the challenges facing AISR in Fall 2010 (“What is the question?”) and the parameters surrounding the definition of those issues. As the day concluded, a smaller Working Party of seven (“The Magnificent?” “The Samurai?”) was formed. It is the task of this group to work intensively and in detail on the strategic plan during the next few weeks so that a final version can be presented to the full Board of Trustees in early October. We shall aim to keep you up-to-date with work by this group as the weeks roll by but our main communication will be when the plan is rolled out, later this season. For now, I leave you with some more thoughts on this matter by one of those management gurus whose work entertains us on long-haul flights. If only it were all so simple! In real life, strategy is actually very straightforward. You pick a general direction and implement like hell Jack Welch in “Winning”, 2005
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I would like to start by welcoming you on behalf of the board at the start of this new school year. Standing on the playground on the first day of school, I was touched by the energy that radiated from the children, the parents and the staff. This is a great start to the new school year! I also would like to share the fantastic news that we received over the summer. The Council of International Schools confirmed that our school had secured its Re-Accreditation for the coming years. This is the culmination of a lot of work by many of you, and the confirmation of the quality of the education offered by our school. Looking forward, we have quite some work on our plate. The highest priority for the coming weeks will be given to the strategy review. As was communicated on previous occasions, this review started on Saturday 21st of August with a full day workshop facilitated by John Trenchard, one of our parents. A lot was achieved on Saturday, and a lot more needs to be done. Thank you to all the parents who answered the questionnaire, your contribution is an important part of this process. For more information, we refer to the Director’s article on this subject. Also, by the time you read this newsletter, we will have held our first (open) board meeting of this year. More information on the meeting will be published in the next Shark. More than ever we welcome all parents and staff to attend, to contribute and to challenge. On another note, you may have learned that the Ford family recently moved to Oman. Rachel was the Chair of the PTSA last year, and Peter was the Vice-Chair of the board. We are thankful for their tremendous contribution to the school and are already missing them dearly. At the end of last year, we were extremely happy to welcome two new board members: Margriet Berkhout and Willem Koolhaas, two Dutch professionals active in the field of education. We would like to complement the board with about 3 more people. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you would be interested in contributing to the success of our school community in this fashion. Finally, I would like to end by wishing you an exciting and instructive school year! Tim Chambers Chairman of the Board board@aisr.nl
Board Meeting Dates* 2010
2011
August: Tuesday 24th
February: Tuesday 15th
October: Tuesday 26th
April: Tuesday 19th
December: Tuesday 14th
June: Tuesday 7th
*Please note: All meetings are held at 7:00 p.m. in the Library. These dates are correct at time of going to print, but might be liable to change for unforeseeable circumstances. Any changes made will be announced in the Shark in advance where possible. Many thanks.
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From the Board of Trustees
From the Board of Trustees
The AISR Board
The AISR Board’s Wish list The members of the Governance Committee and the current board members took some time to think about the constitution of the board. We would like to share with you our thoughts:
•
We aim in the short-term for 9 members (presently we have 6) , of which a minimum of 6 are parents. The by-laws allow for up to 11 members in total, but we feel that at this stage the size of such group might affect the decisiveness of the board.
•
We wish the board to reflect the make-up of the school and the wider community. At this stage, we do not have any representative of the biggest constituents of our school, i.e. the US Army / Coast Guard, or of multinationals such as Unilever or Shell. We lack representation from parents of High School students. Perhaps there are people you know that have links to the City Council, the Port, or a local governmental entity, and who might have an interest in the fate of our school. Finally, we would benefit from a better balance in terms of gender or nationality.
•
Lastly, looking at the challenges ahead, the school would benefit from specific experience or skill sets. Anyone with experience in board membership, in Dutch law, in communications and / or IT, in education in general would be a fantastic addition to the team.
The PTSA
Should you tick one or more of the above boxes, or if you know someone else who does, please send us an email. Thank you for your help!
The PTSA ...an urgent reminder As is usual in the expat community, some valued members of the current PTSA Committee have moved on and some are still with us. We ended the school year on a high note with a sincere thank you to the community for all of the support we had received throughout the year. Without all of you, our AISR community, wouldn’t have had such success. If you would like to get involved at AISR, playing a vital part in your children's education then the PTSA is a great way to make a difference at your child’s school while also enjoying the company of fantastic people living the same expat experience. We need new volunteers, and new ideas, for the PTSA. Volunteers are needed to serve on the PTSA Committee for the 2010 – 2011 school year. Positions include President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Outreach Committee. Please contact the PTSA, at PTSA@aisr.nl. or enquire at the school office.
Please consider getting involved with the organization dedicated to raising funds for the students of AISR. Without parent volunteers, there will be no PTSA!
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Rob Zeilstra
NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC DEPT. Our Soccer and Volleyball teams have enthusiastically started practice. We have the following teams U12 Volleyball coached by Martine Meyers U14 Soccer team coached by Ruud Temminck and assisted by Steven Scott. (this team is a combination of 5-8th graders) U14 Volleyball Team coached by Lisa Tobin JV Soccer coached by Justin Wah JV Volleyball coached at the moment by Louisa G-Kelso and Veronica Lara JV VOLLEYBALL COACH NEEDED- soon our JV coaches are off to university and so we are need of a coach. If you know anyone interested please contact R.Zeilstra@AISR.nl OUR FIRST GAMES- come an cheer us on! Sept. 9 @ AISR for our high school teams, vs Antwerp. Sept. 11 @ AIS (Antwerp) for our middle school teams for a mini-tournament including Amsterdam, The Hague.
IMPORTANT NOTE TO PARENTS with children on teams: Our Athletic Director, Mr. Zeilstra will contact parents by email before each game as a reminder. Throughout the season he will also let you know some important information. However, please go to the AISR Athletic Website and link to Event Schedule, so that you know when and where we have games. If you do not hear from Mr. Zeilstra, please let us know.
GO SHARKS! ...AND GOOD LUCK FOR THE SEASON! 10
Sports - Rob Zeilstra Sporting News
Sporting News
Community Announcements And Classifieds
To Advertise here contact:
g.gamble@aisr.nl or Tel + 31 (0)10 422 5351
If you have an article you would like to publish in the Shark, please send it to :
theshark@aisr.nl The deadline for submissions is Monday 20th September.
Family Group Therapy
Expat Socials - Internationals In Rotterdam
“Hands to help and hearts to care” Monthly Expat Drinks @ Cafe Engels (in front of Central Station)
Do you need to talk to someone to express your difficulties and
Open from 18:00 to 23:00hrs
challenges with raising your child? Katherine Fortier, an educational and child psychologist, will lead
If you would like an invitation to this get together or any of the
the parents group.
future events, please join us on Facebook:
“...an opportunity to discuss their concerns and develop strategies
www.engels.nl/internationals
to help their children and manage their own stress.”
and subscribe to:
For further information or to register, Please email
www.meetup.com/INTERNATIONALS-in-rotterdam
hearts.2care@yahoo.com or call Rubina Anis on mobile
We look forward to welcoming you all.
06-52072084.
Culture
Languages Ballet classes: Would you like to improve your English ?
For ages 3 and up in the AISR building. The classes will be taught
Now is a great time to start studying in small friendly groups of
by Sue Manville who trained at The Royal Academy of Dance in
adults with English teacher, Susannah Tomlinson.
London. Sue has 20 years experience of ballet teaching and
“Why not give it a go?”
choreography, in the United States, UK, Australia, Greece,
More details are available at reception, or contact Susannah via
Spain and Brazil.
email: susannah.tomlinson@yahoo.com If interested, please email
or telephone: 040-8428486
Sue Manville at sue.manville@gmail.com stating your child’s age.
Guitar Lessons:
DUTCH BEGINNERS CLASS OFFERED AT AISR Monday’s from 9am till 11am, starting on Monday the 20th of September My name is Arjan Blokland and I offer a Dutch beginners class at AISR. The course focuses on practical language skills. The course has been designed for people with no or almost no knowledge of Dutch. The course consists of 12 lessons. The first lesson will be held on the 20th of September. The minimum number of participants will be four and the maximum will be nine. The prices of the classes are between € 15,- and € 24,- per class, depending on the number of students.
Private Guitar Lessons, after school at AISR or at home. Please contact bob@bobhamilton.net or visit www.bobhamilton.net more info. All ages and styles, flexible scheduling for both students and parents! Email: bob@bobhamilton.net
Services Treasured memories? Old or damaged photos restored: I can repair most images to a high level of presentation and
e-mail: lindenlanguages@hotmail.com or telephone: 06-41585013.
provide a digital image and photo-print of the restored image. If interested please email me, David Blackburn. Email: mrblackburnart@gmail.com
The AISR accepts no responsibility for the community announcements, services and items advertised.
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