The American International School of Rotterdam
SHARK Bulletin...
11.11.11
From the Director
Dear Parents, First of all, please see the attached announcement from the Chair of the Board of Trustees. In addition, you should find a letter on MAP testing from Ms. Lipp and a communication on CAS initiatives from Mrs. Boot and Mrs. Moseley of the PTSA. Congratulations and thanks to Mr. Faling and his team for overseeing two successful projects recently: the construction of the magnificent new Early Childhood playground and the installation of the great new sound system in the gymnasium. Again, we thank the PTSA and, especially, Mrs. Mosely for making these projects possible. We have many teams taking part in NECIS tournaments this weekend and wish all success to them in their various matches. I am out of school this afternoon from 1.00pm in order to attend the meeting of NECIS school heads at ASH. Next week, I shall be out of school on Tuesday morning in order to pick up costumes for the High School Play. The group going to the European Council of International Schools Conference will leave on Tuesday afternoon and this consists of Ms. Lipp, Mr. Krumrei, Ms. Houlder, Ms. Stewart, Ms. Willen, Mrs. Golder and Ms. Elliott. I shall travel to Lisbon the next day so will be in school on Wednesday morning. In the following week, the High School Play, “Arsenic and Old Lace” will be performed on Tuesday, November 22 at 7.00pm in the Gymnasium. Tickets will go on sale very shortly at the School Office. I am also excited to announce that we have a visit from a very senior member of the US military community on Wednesday, 23 November. This, of course, is also our Thanksgiving Celebration. I shall give you more details of this visit when I am able to. I hardly need to remind you that November 24 and 25 are Thanksgiving holiday days! During the following week, there is a High School French trip to Brussels on Wednesday, November 30. Ms. Akerboom and I will be out of school that day. Sinterklaas makes time in his busy schedule to visit our school on Monday, December 5. Rumor has it that he will, as usual, be accompanied by Zwarte Piets! The next Half Day is on Wednesday, December 7 and the Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony is on Thursday, December 8. A Seasonal Program of Music from the Elementary School will follow that event. High School Examinations (IB Diploma Mocks for some Grade 12s) will begin on Friday, December 9 and continue through to Thursday, December 15. The last Board of Trustees meeting of the calendar year is on Tuesday, December 13 at 7.00pm and the Elementary School Play "The Little Prince" is on Thursday, December 15 at 6.00pm in the Gymnasium. And, at last, of course, the semester ends on Friday, December 17. Really not at all long to go now...
Cont.
1/5
The American International School of Rotterdam
SHARK Bulletin...
11.11.11
Apart from being a fascinating day for numerologists, today is also Armistice Day - a very important commemoration for some cultures, notably Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and France. Â If it is an important day for you and your culture, I wish you peace at this time of reflection. Â You may know the significance of poppies at this time. I should like to crave your indulgence one more time by sharing the following:
"In Flanders Fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch: be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields." !
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Have a very pleasant weekend. Graham Gamble g.gamble@aisr.nl
2/5
John McCrae (1872-1918)
The American International School of Rotterdam
SHARK Bulletin...
11.11.11
From the Elementary Principal Dear Parents, As promised, here is the schedule for the traditional Thanksgiving celebrations at AISR. Parents are very welcome to join us for the performance and the special lunch provided by Tjeerd and the PTSA. Tickets for the lunch can be purchased at the front office and the cost is 5 euro per person. Please let the front office know if you are planning to attend before Friday November 18. November 23 – Thanksgiving Celebration Date:" " Time:" " Place: " " " " Pre-K 1" " Pre-K 2"" K" " Grade 1"" JSR Students " Grade 2"" Grade 3"" Grade 4"" ! ! Time (Approx.)! 10:50" " 11:05" " 11:15" " 11:25" " 11:35" " 11:45" " 12:00" " 12:20" " 12:45" "
Wednesday, November 23, 2011 10:15 School Gym An Explanation of the meaning of Thanksgiving will be given by Grade 5 students. “Turkey wore his rainbow feathers”" " " " “Five little pumpkins” " " " “Thanksgiving Song” “Harvest Time” " " " " “Born on this planet” " " " " " " “Lean on me” " " " " " “Thanksgiving Song” " " " " " " “What a wonderful world” " ! ! ! Dinner Schedule !: ! Grade ! " Pre-K & K " " " " " Grade 1 " " " " " Grade 2 " " " " Grade 3"" " " " Grade 4"" " " " Grade 5"" " " " Grades 6 & 7 " " " " " Grades 8, 9 & 10 "" " " Grades 11 & 12" " "
!
!
!
December 5 " December 8 " December 15 "
!
!
Up-coming events:
– Sinterklaas will visit the school – Tree Lighting Ceremony and Seasonal Program – Elementary Play – The Little Prince
Here is another interesting article from the BBC News “Education and Family”. “Reading to children has long impact, says OECD study Parents and children reading together at the start of school makes a long impact, says study. Children whose parents frequently read with them in their first year of school are still showing the benefit when they are 15, says an international study. An Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development analysis examined the long-term impact of parental support on literacy. Discounting social differences, the study found children with early support remained ahead in reading. It found a strong link between teenage reading skills and early parental help. Cont.
3/5
The American International School of Rotterdam
SHARK 11.11.11
Bulletin...
Talking together. The OECD analysis, based on teenagers in 14 developed countries, found that active parental involvement at the beginning of school was a significant trigger for developing children's reading skills that would carry through until they were teenagers. On average, teenagers whose parents had helped with reading at the beginning of school were six months ahead in reading levels at the age of 15. It is important that parents read books regularly with their children - such as several times a week - and that they talked about what they were reading together. This parental involvement overrode other social disadvantages and in some countries could represent more than a year's advantage in reading levels at the age of 15 compared with children whose parents rarely read books with them. The study, which draws on data from the international Program for International Student Assessment tests, also found a link between teenagers' reading skills and continued engagement with their parents. Everyday family get-togethers, where parents and children talk, could influence school performance, says the research. "Eating main meals together around the table and spending time just talking with one's children are also associated with significantly better student reading performance in school," says the OECD report”. Have a relaxing and enjoyable weekend.
Anne-Marie Blitz a.blitz@aisr.nl
From the Curriculum Office... Dear Parents/Guardians, As you know, we have recently completed our first session of MAP testing at AISR for the 2011-2012 academic year. This is our first year of full implementation and teachers are already learning how to interpret the results and apply this learning to their classrooms. This training for teachers will continue throughout the year. We would also like to involve parents in this learning process so that you too can access and understand this useful information about your child. In order to understand how it works and what it means for your child, you are invited to join a parent MAP group to help us move forward and "launch" this process with parents. If this is something that interests you, please contact me directly at a.lipp@aisr.nl or by calling extension 316 at the school. Once I have a list of people who will comprise our MAP Parent Group, we will schedule our first meeting. For more information on resources for parents, please refer to the attached “parent toolkit” or visit the following website. http://www.nwea.org/why-choose-nwea I look forward to hearing from you. Kind regards, Alison Lipp a.lipp@aisr.nl Curriculum Coordinator American International School of Rotterdam .
4/5
The American International School of Rotterdam
SHARK 11.11.11
Bulletin...
Come and Have Lunch With Your Child Tjeerd is preparing a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner on Wednesday, November, 23rd. You are all invited to come and have Turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, and cranberry sauce with your child. The cost is 5 euros per adult. You may purchase ticket in the front office. Thanksgiving Desserts Needed It is time to show off your best desserts. Please bring your pies, cakes, cookies, brownies or whatever your specialty is and share it at our Thanksgiving Luncheon. Donations will be accepted in the morning prior to the luncheon in the cafeteria. We will also need help cutting and plating the desserts. Thanks!
Thanksgiving Time
The Annual Thanksgiving Drive The PTSA and the CAS Program is collecting items for the Havenzicht Homeless Shelter. All new men’s hats, gloves, scarves, and travel sized toiletries are greatly appreciated. Collection bins are located in the AISR entrance hall . Your generosity will make a difference to the homeless of Rotterdam.
5/5