IGB International School Newsletter, Issue 31, Week 3, March 2015

IGB International School’s Weekly Newsletter - Issue 31, Week 3, March 2015

Discounts available until 30th April 2015 for new students applying for 2015-2016 Academic Year.

Grade 10 Drama students working on a unit of work exploring the role of the director.

Inside this week’s Newsletter

23th March 2015 Professional Development Day for teachers, no school

Message from Head of School Mrs. Anne Fowles, Head of School

27th March 2015 Pajama Day, for Secondary School only

News from Elementary School Mrs. Claire McLeod, Elementary School Principal

28th March 2015 Open Day, 10.00am - 1.00pm

News from Secondary School Mr. Lennox Meldrum, Secondary School Principal Updates from Student Services Mr. Peter Fowles, Head of Student Services Updates from Academic and Support Services Mr. Peter Syme, Director of Academic and Support Services Updates from Admissions Mrs. Bronwyn Thorburn, Admissions Director

Upcoming Events

Igniting Minds

30th March 2015 Early Years 2 Parent Workshop on Reading, 1.45pm - 2.45pm, room opposite clinic 31st March 2015 Elementary School Parenting Class, 8.15am - 10.15am, room opposite clinic 13th - 17th April 2015 Mid Semester Holidays

Impacting Lives

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Message from Head of School Mrs. Anne Fowles Head of School Dear IGBIS Parents and Community Members, The IGBIS Executive Board had its monthly meeting on Tuesday, 17th March. Discussions were held regarding the students who have been shortlisted and recommended to receive IB Diploma Scholarships for 2015-17.

Approvals were made at the board level and the scholarship offers are now being made. We hope to announce the scholarship recipients next week.

The board also approved our proposal to run summer school at the end of the school year. This will take place over 22-26 June and 20 – 31 July. We will share more details of the summer school when teachers have made their programme proposals.

As you are aware, school will be closed for students this coming Monday, 23rd March as we will be conducting a professional development day for teachers.

Have a good weekend!

News from Elementary School Mrs. Claire McLeod Elementary School Principal Today I enjoyed viewing the simple machines that Grade 1 students have made and hearing how well they explained how they worked.

The Grade 1 Unit of Inquiry is:

How the World Works

Machines have an impact on time and efficiency in our daily lives.

Concepts: Functions and Causation It was rewarding for Mrs Blakeway to hear her students clearly and confidently use the correct terms such as wheel, pulley, axle, fulcrum and lever to explain the function of their simple machine. The photos show their simple machines used in children’s playground see saws, wheels on cars, a pulley to lift heavy weights and the axle and pulley used in an escalator. This is a wonderful science based unit.

Monday is a Professional Development day for teachers and therefore there will be no school for students.

Until next time.

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Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives

Screen Time Screen time is defined as any time someone (usually children) spends in front of a screen (television, computer, iPad, phone).

As a parent it can sometimes be hard to know what to do with our children and screen time. There are so many opinions out there, no screen time for children under 12; one hour of screen time for every five hours of something else; 30 minutes a day; an hour a day; no television; no computers; no iPads. There are charts, table, infographics and websites with suggested screen time for various ages. Add to this the fact students are subject to screen time during the school day.

Just typing “screen time and children” in Google I got 106 million hits in less than half a second. It seems like everyone has an opinion on what is best for children when it comes to screen time. Most of these opinions are that screen time is bad for children.

I think when it comes to screen time and children we need some balance to the arguments. I am all about children playing outside, reading books, talking, building, drawing and doing all the things kids do. I am also aware of the growing body of evidence that devices and technology are beneficial to children and their learning.

Some very well regarded publications have more balanced perspectives including Common Sense Media, New Scientist, Quartz and the Atlantic. Their main point is that not all screen time is equal. You cannot compare passively watching a television program with playing an active Wii game of Just Dance with a parent or even with creating their own movie or television series with their siblings.

Nor can you compare playing a violent video game in a bedroom alone with a Skype phone call with grandparents on the other side of the world. Similarly reading an interactive book, drawing a picture, making a movie or playing a jigsaw puzzle on the iPad with a sibling (talking and discussing as they do it together) is very different to giving a child an iPhone in a restaurant to keep them quiet.

It is the parent’s responsibility to choose what is appropriate screen time and what games, shows and apps their children use. My children (2 years and 4 years) watch some TV, they play on the iPad (usually with mum or dad or with each other) making pictures, playing games, reading stories or even creating movies. They also spend a lot of time building, playing outside and creating with toys and Lego. As my Grandmother used to say, it is all about balance.

This was inspired by this excellent blog post on the matter: http://bit.ly/screen-time Geoff Derry, Technology Integration Teacher

Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives

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News from Secondary School Mr. Lennox Meldrum Secondary School Principal Our exciting first year of operation continues with reflections on the year so far, progress on our current goals, and planning for our future as a larger school. We have talked about our accomplishments and lessons learned from our first year in many of our newsletter articles, but it is still good to remember events such as: * Our first day with 14 grade levels starting! I will never forget the spirit and energy on display that day. * The growth in our student numbers, allowing us to increase the number of classes offered. * The very successful EosMUN conference held in January. * A series of information sessions and meetings involving parents, students, and our teachers. * The launch of sporting fixtures against schools from across Kuala Lumpur. * Our continued dedication to service learning opportunities offered through our Activities programme and clubs such as the Global Issues Network. * The very fun school camps that our students still talk about.

During the past few weeks our teachers have commented on a noticeable shift in the deeper understanding demonstrated

by our students. This is a great sign of the progress being made in not only the academic content presented as part of our curriculum, but also the Approaches to Learning skills that enable students to make deeper connections and transfer skills between classes. This is another indication of how powerful an IB education can be in transforming students into lifelong learners.

With the continued growth in our student numbers, we are going to quickly progress from our current small school status through to a mid-sized school and then onwards to be a large international school with a rich background and history. Our teachers are starting to help prepare students for these changes and the responsibilities these will bring. One focus recently has been on security of personal items and the smart use of our lockers. Although we love the small community feel that has been engendered within our students this year, we are also looking forward to the opportunities that the growth in student numbers will provide.

On Monday our teachers will be working on internal professional development aimed at improving our programmes and the day is based on the same principles of reflection, recognition, and planning. We hope your children enjoy the extra day of rest.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Grade 10 Drama Grade 10 Drama have been working on a unit of work exploring the role of the director. They have been developing a Director’s Notebook as part of this exploration in which they record their research about the role of the director, stage directions and design, costume design ideas and developing a directorial vision for a production. For assessment they each chose a scene from a play and ran a workshop with their peers in the role of the actors and themselves in the role of director in the theatre.

Mr. Jon Suffolk, Performing Arts Teacher

Leadership at IGBIS The school has made a commitment to student leadership by having been accepted as an independent operator for the Duke of Edinbugh Award for young people. The school has paid the registraion fee and on 13th and 14th March, Mr. Ben Wylie and Mr. Peter Fowles attended the supervisors and assessors training in Brunei.

The school is now offically able to support the enthusiastic group of fifteen students who are meeting on a regular basis. The Award is open to any student who is 14 years or over and we welcome inquiries. The Duke of Edinburgh Award is included in the activities sign up.

Mr. Peter Fowles, Head of Student Services

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Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives

Activity and Athletics Coordinators Roles and Contact Update As of 20th March 2015, Mrs Jasmine Brawn, the IGBIS Athletics Director will also take on the role as Activities Coordinator. The positions have been consolidated with the objective to provide better service and opportunities for students. Initial contact can be made with Mrs. Brawn through her IGBIS e-mail address jasmine.brawn@igbis.edu.my, Activities are very much a part of student life and well-being so please continue to contact me if the need arises at peter.fowles@igbis.edu.my.

The wide range and excellence of learning experiences outside of the classroom is only possible due to the dedication and enthusiam of the IGBIS staff. The expertise of Mrs Brawn will ensure the growth and focused development of the programme for our students.

Mr. Peter Fowles, Head of Student Services

Sports Representative Team We are having a fabulous first year at IGBIS. Our activities program has offered a variety of programmes to students of all ages and we have had excellent participation across the board.

Unfortunately, we have been unable to run competitive sporting teams due to our low numbers. During fixtures against other schools we have played over- or under-age players in each sport, at times recruiting students with little prior experience.

Other schools have been understanding of our limitations during these friendly fixtures.

IGBIS is well on it’s way to becoming affiliated with a group of schools that will play Saturday tournaments and friendlies on a continuous basis. To be able to compete in the upcoming season we need numbers and commitment from students interested in participating in sporting teams. We need to be able to field a full team in each age division so we can legitimately participate in these opportunities.

The Sports Representative Team activity being run in season 3 is an idea born solely out of the need for participants right here and now. It will not happen next year as we will have enough students to field individual teams in each season. This activity maximises our students’ ability to participate in as many tournaments as are on offer and also provides an opportunity for our students to commit to something, work hard and see the rewards of their experience.

This is also the best opportunity for our school to demonstrate to other schools in the conference that we are established and committed to offering quality, competitive teams.

There are currently three Saturday tournaments scheduled between April and June of this year. They will consist of a different sporting opportunity for each the Under-11, Under-13 and Under-15 age groups. There are also options for extra games and hosting of our own tournaments in and around these dates.

Our teams will focus on one particular sport for a few weeks in preparation for the upcoming event and then move on to the next sport, depending on the scheduled offering.

Our hope is that our team will come to learn from one another, grow together, work hard, have fun and have an experience unlike any other they have had before. We hope you encourage your child to join the representative team activity that will be conducted on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.

Jasmine Brawn, Athletics and Activity Coordinator

IGBIS Instrumental Music Ensemble The IGBIS Instrumental Music Ensemble will make their debut public performance at the Secondary School assembly next Wednesday morning. This group was formed as part of the Activities program and has made excellent progress due to the commitment of its members and growing numbers. As we move forward to the next Activities session, students in Grade 5 who play a musical instrument are also encouraged to join this group. We are particularly interested in additional String, Woodwind and Brass players.

The Ensemble will have an additional rehearsal next Tuesday afternoon after school in preparation for the performance. Students who travel by bus must inform their driver that they will be catching the bus at 4 10pm next Tuesday afternoon.

Mr. Jon Suffolk, Performing Arts Teacher

Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives

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Updates from Student Services Mr. Peter Fowles Head of Student Services Dear Parents and the IGBIS community, The Student Services Team is an Integral part of student life at IGBIS. The team includes counselling, learning support and homeroom teachers, whom along with all IGBIS staff prioritize student welfare as a means of supporting lifelong learning.

Outside of the classroom, enrichment and personal growth are key components in an IB education our ‘Activities’ programme continues to be developed and refined. Session two ends on Friday 20th March.

The third and final session commences on 30th March and ends on 5th June 2015. Activites only run during the school academic hours, so will not run in the April break.

Students in Secondary can sign up for Activities via this link, which has been sent to them on ManageBac.

Elementary School parents are sent the link using their e-mail contact. It is essential that the ‘Sign up’ tab is used for registration.

Over 45 activities are now offered. Some are ‘user pays’ meaning an outside organization is providing the service.There is a minimum requirement of 5 participants for an activity to run. Secondary School students and parents in Elementary School will have choices confirmed. Fees can then be paid at the school finance office from Monday to Friday 7.45am until 9.00am or 3.05pm until 4.00pm.Please choose carefully as fees are not refundable and activities can not be changed.

Students must re-enrol to participate in each session as registration does not roll over from one session to the next. We welcome all students to take advantage of the activities being offered.

http://bit.ly/igbis-activities

Updates from Admissions Mrs. Bronwyn Thorburn Admissions Director Dear All, The Class Representatives are being finalised and you should be receiving contact requests from everyone. With International Day happening on 23rd May 2015 from 10.00am to 1.00pm, we have established an International Day Committee and the parent representatives for this event are: Elementary School - Felicier Maccagno and Sujatha Josen Grades 6 - 8 - Cathie Hearns and Elke Boehncke Grades 9 - 11 - Sheau Ming Wang and Flora Remeo We are looking forward to working with you all and arranging this wonderful day.

Open Day We will be hosting an Open Day next Saturday, 28th March 2015 from 10.00am to 1.00pm. If you have friends, family, or colleagues that are interested in our school then please do bring them along. There is an online sign up which helps us to plan for the event at http://openday. igbis.edu.my.

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Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives