s e n i l d a e H L The IS From the Head of School : Mr. Martin Gough “Striving for
Well, we have all made it and survived another very busy year. I know that all the teachers and students at ISL are looking forward to some time away from school to recharge their batteries.
Excellence” Important Dates Last Day of school —
18th June
reports out Teacher Day 19th June School reopens for teachers
June 2015
17th August
School reo19th Aupens for stu- gust dents
The end point of 16 years of education at ISL is completion of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, followed almost immediately by Graduation from school. This year, of course, it was the turn of the Class of 2015 to graduate from secondary education and head out into the wider world. After receiving their IB results in early July, most of our IB2 students will be off to start university. IB2 Students have accepted offers at 20 different universities in 8 different countries: UK, US, South Africa, South Korea, Canada, followed by Zambia, Netherlands, Australia, Germany, Denmark. More South Africa university applications will come later when students apply for February 2016 entry. Approximately $220,000 in scholarship funds has been offered to ISL students so far this year – mostly to those going to study in the USA. A handful of students will be taking a gap-year. It is the end of the year and, inevitably, some teachers and students are moving on to new pastures. I would like to thank the following teachers for their contribution to the International School of Lusaka:
Teacher
Contents Head of school
1
Primary Principal/Early years
2
PYP
3
Upper Primary
4/5
Secondary
6
Yr 8 Livingstone trip
7
IGCSE/IB
8
Ultra Marathon
9
Last Supper
10
Prom
11
Graduation
12
Mrs. Fatima D‟Cruz Mr. Clement Mwanza Mr. Steve Luke Mr. Phil Bowen Mrs. Amanda Bowen Mrs. Katell Dodd Mr. Fraser Dodd Mr. Dale Sanford Ms. Jennifer Greensmith Mr. Charles Hearsum Mrs. Marit Roeper Ms. Phoebe Nyaywa Ms. Courtney Nicoletti
Years @ ISL 35 21 13 11 11 4 4 4 3 3 2 2 1
Main Role @ ISL Chemistry & Science Teacher Secondary Principal Biology & Science Teacher Primary Principal Primary Teacher JS Coordinator & French Head of Creative Arts Head of Science Head of English IBDP Coordinator Secondary Drama Teacher Head of IT & CAS Coordinator Visual Arts Teacher
I would particularly like to thank five colleagues who have taught for many years at ISL and who have made significant contributions to the school both inside and outside the classroom during that time. Amanda Bowen arrived in 2004 as Amanda Leach and leaves for Tanzania with a husband and two beautiful daughters. Amanda has been a very dedicated teacher and one of the founding teachers in the introduction of IBPYP into the Primary School. She has even made forays into Secondary as teacher in charge of the International Award this year.
Her husband, Phil Bowen, joined ISL as a Primary class teacher; he has taught primary art, was the first IBPYP Coordinator and for the last few years has been a very effective Primary Principal. Phil‟s has many strengths, not least the ability to connect well with children, their parents and many others inside and outside the ISL community. Phil also spent a year as Acting Head of School and I have to thank him personally for the work he did during that difficult period and for his support when I took over the following year. Steve Luke has been at ISL since 2003. A couple of years later I offered him a job at Bishop Mackenzie International School in Malawi, but he chose to stay at ISL and since then has taught Biology very effectively to our high school students as well as building the CAS programme up, with an emphasis on community service, and organizing the residential field trip programme for the school. Clement Mwanza has a very long association with ISL. Mr. Mwanza arrived in 1996 as a maths teacher. He has taught many, many students during his years here and influenced even more in his roles as Head of Maths, Vice-Principal, Acting-Deputy Head of School in 2012-13 and in the last few years as Secondary Principal. 19 years commitment to the school is a wonderful achievement. We wish Clement all the best and good health too as he retires. Finally, we must recognize the fantastic contribution of Mrs. Fatima D‟Cruz, teacher of science and chemistry, who has taught literally generations of students since she joined the school in 1980, 35 years ago. I know that Fatima is teaching children of children she taught and I suspect she may even be teaching grandchildren of children she has taught. Such commitment to an institution is absolutely commendable. After such a long time at the ISL chalkface I am sure she is going to miss the school and the students. We will also miss her; as a teacher but also as a supportive colleague and friend. We hope that all the leaving teachers „Go Well‟ and trust that their transition to new jobs, new schools, new countries and new challenges goes smoothly. We have all our new teachers in place for next year and I look forward to introducing them to you in August. School started the year with 655 students and we end with 692 enrolled and 35 applications already for next year. There are waiting lists in place in a number of years, including Year 10. If you, your relatives, friends or employees are planning on applying for a place at ISL, please go to our new online application website at https:// islzambia.openapply.com/ and complete the application form to start the application process. I wish all the students and families a good break from school, whether that be resting and relaxing, just doing something different or choosing to take on some new physical or mental challenge. See you in August – the teachers will be raring to go, students will be looking forward to a new year at ISL and the 2015 -16 timetable is ready to run! Martin Gough Head of School PS: Please note that school tuition fee notes were sent home with students on Thursday 18 th June. If your child was absent on that day, please come into school or contact accounts@islzambia.org to get your tuition fee note for next year. Fees are due to be paid by Wednesday 12 th August, one week before the start of the new school year on Wednesday 19th August 2015.
ry
Prima
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Message from the Primary Principal: Mr. Bowen
A big well done to everyone! As you read this newsletter we will be closing our doors on another year at ISL. Our students have once again surpassed expectations, excelled in their exploits and made us proud as parents and teachers. All the year groups in Primary have accomplished their residential fieldtrip, whether it be a tented sleepover at school (Year 2) or lodging with hyraxes at Lake Itezhi-tezhi (Year 4), and returned to school with a tale to tell. I am delighted that the fieldtrip programme in the Primary School is so strong now as the experiences of living and working together outside the classroom represents a valuable learning opportunity. When such trips are supervised by our caring and knowledgeable teachers, the experience for the children becomes indelibly etched as a life memory. Thank you to parents and teachers who work so hard to arrange and support these field trips. As with every year, some of our students and teachers will be leaving ISL in July. Every year I remind the children that moving on and meeting new people and places is part of the wonderful opportunity of life. Had we not once moved to ISL from wherever we had been before, we would never have shared the experiences that we are enjoying now. There is a lesson there. It‟s a lesson that I somehow need to swallow myself as I write my last contribution to an ISL newsletter. ISL…..Lusaka…….Zambia, have been beautiful to me and my family and given us so much. I am eternally grateful for all my experiences here and will always call this place my home. Zikomo kwambili.
From the Early Years Coordinator: Mrs Karen Hedstrom It is hard to believe how quickly this year has passed. As always the children have been busy learning, exploring and discovering as they gain knowledge about the world around them. We have been busy until the very end with our Nursery and Pre School Olympics and our Reception, Yr1 & Yr2 Potted Sports. The children had loads of fun in the various stations as they showed off all their skills. It was lovely having so many parents come and support their children. Our Yr 2's move upwards and onwards and go from being the big little people in the Early Years, to the little big people as they move into Upper Primary. This time of the year always sees us bidding farewell to some families, friends and colleagues. We wish you all the best of luck on your new adventures. Thank you so much for sharing your children with us this year and trusting them in our care! It brings us joy to watch them grow, learn and change into capable children! We wish you all a restful holiday and look forward to seeing everyone back in the new school year ready to take on new challenges and adventures.
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Message from the PYP Coordinator: Mrs Sunita Nair “The end of another academic year….time to reflect and then take a break! ” As with every other school year, it was indeed a busy one. This year the Primary School successfully completed the IBO (International Baccalaureate Organisation) Evaluation visit and are now well equipped with ideas and strategies to implement in the next five years. In short, we have a clear road map ahead of us. A big “Thank you” to our committed Primary staff members for making this happen and to the parents who joined us to share their perspectives with the visiting team. We have had some of our Primary parents involved in PYP Parent workshops and each time received applause and positive feedback from them. If you have been unable to attend these workshops, please do join us as they take place each academic year and offer us a chance to interact and learn from each other. The workshops are run each year with a view to sharing beliefs and practices of the Primary Years Programme. We are open to suggestions from the parent community on the kind of workshops you would like to participate in. I would like to end with thoughts on staff leaving the school. Mr. Bowen‟s departure with his family to Tanzania is undoubtedly a loss for the Primary school. “Fun to be around”, “Supportive” “Ever ready” “Approachable” are words that spring to mind when we think of him. He has been involved in all school events, been great with the students and parents and simply said- a fantastic person. Both Mr. and Mrs. Bowen leave us with fond memories we will cherish. We will indeed miss them, but they leave the Primary school with well - established practices and policies, with beliefs that we can carry on and with new prospects for them to embark on. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank them for their contributions to ISL and wish them good luck in their journey ahead. We also bid goodbye to Ms. Marit Roeper, our Primary Counselor who has been an absolute pleasure to work with. Always willing to support class teachers, talk to students and parents and help us with strategies we could use in the classroom. She set up the Primary Peacekeepers group which has worked very well in the Primary school- a concept we hope to continue. As Frank Herbert said, “There is no real ending. It‟s just the place where you stop the story.” Happy holidays everyone! See you back in August!
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UPPER PRIMARY: Mrs. Grace Kambeu As we come to the end of this academic year, I would like to say a big Thank You to all the children and parents in Upper Primary. The students have worked extremely hard in all areas of our school program. They have enjoyed the fun activities outside the classroom, entertained us during assemblies and participated in inter-house competitions. May I also take this opportunity to say a special Thank You to all the institutions and places that we visited during our educational field trips. It is always sad when say goodbye to people who are moving on to new schools and countries and we wish them all the best in their new adventures. I wish everyone a blessed holiday and I look forward to seeing you next academic year!
Year 6 Exhibition Gala Night On Thursday 7th May the Year Six children celebrated hard work on the Exhibition topic Poverty. The Gala Night was composed of selected children‟s projects such as skits, raps, poems, narrations, dance and songs. The children later shared their research with the wider audience which left a lot of parents impressed with the work displayed and the knowledge gained by the children. The Year Six team would like to thank management, teachers, students and especially the parents for all the support that was rendered to the year group. As a result of this, the Exhibition 2015 was a great success!
Year five The Year fives went on a residential field trip to Pioneer Camp. They participated in a two day workshop with the theme “Reducing Deforestation Through Sustainable Craft Production” organized by Monkey Orange Crafts. The children enjoyed being creative and innovative.
Year 4 Year 4 students visited New Kalala in Kafue National Park from Wednesday, 13 th May to Friday 15th May. The field trip had a lot of interesting activities. Everybody had fun
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Year 3 sharing the planet How We Share the Planet Indeed! Year Three exploring the best ways to share our planet with the giraffes! Year 6 Good Bye Assembly We are moving on‌.. On Friday morning Year six treated us to their very last primary school assembly. Through slide shows, dance and song they bid farewell to the Primary School. Representatives from Hope and Faith School attended the assembly and received the 2,200 kwacha that was raised for them in different Mentor Clubs. At the end of the Assembly all Year six students received certificates for their PYP Exhibition. We are happy and proud to share with you that ALL students scored 70% and above! This is a fantastic achievement! Year 6 Leaving Party at Mrs Barry’s House. Ending our academic year in style. After the Year six Assembly all year six students were invited by Cami and her family to celebrate the end of primary school at their house. It was a great party with music, football, swimming, snooker, jumping castles and a braai
Inter house Hockey Monday 8th June was inter house hockey and in third place was Luangwa with 70 points, in second place Kafue with 90 points and in first place Zambezi with 110 points!
Message from the Primary House Captains of 2014-2015 Being House Captains has been a great experience for us. We have enjoyed being responsible, although sometimes it gets very tough. We have been competing against different houses and making sure we support the other houses too. Whether we win or lose, we have tried to demonstrate good sportsmanship. We have encouraged children to try their best in everything they do. As House Captains, we encourage the children to participate in all inter house sports. We have tried to organize new and fun activities for the children in primary classes. We went around interviewing the primary students and made a list of activities that can be organized next year. We would like the students in primary to enjoy their activities and we hope they will learn something! It is sad saying good bye to primary, but we hope to enjoy Secondary school too!
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Secondary
From the Secondary Principal: Mr. Mwanza
The academic year is fast coming to a close. The IB2 and Y11 students have just completed a rigorous menu of external examinations and are eagerly waiting for their graduation and completion of IGCSE ceremony to be held on 13th June, 2015. On behalf of all the staff I offer my best wishes and hope for good results which are a befitting reward for their labours. The school is now in the processes of finalizing the selection of the recipients of the IGCSE and IB scholarships. These scholarships are aimed at all-round students who make a significant contribution to many aspects of school life. As a general rule, the expectation is that students receiving scholarships should display a strong record of high academic and creative accomplishment. Students must demonstrate originality and innovation in the arts and humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences. Students will be at an advantage if they can demonstrate experience in leading groups and providing direction to others including organizing, managing and carrying out responsibility for a club, activity group or organization. Finally I wish to inform you all that this is my last year here at ISL as I gracefully retire from active teaching service. I have had a very wonderful and enjoyable time working for this great school. I would like to thank my colleagues on the faculty, non-academic staff and all the parents for the unwavering support throughout my stay at ISL and most importantly during my sudden illness in the month of February 2014. Goodbye!
From Junior Secondary School : Mrs.Dodd It seems hard to believe. The year started off at a sprint and it seems to have left many of us still trying to catch our breath. As we looked forward to all the challenges ahead of us, it did appear a little daunting at times; however the Junior Secondary students have made it once again, excelling in the Arts, Sports and the Academics! Their enthusiasm and their will to achieve have enlightened our Secondary School. Well done Y7s, Y8s and Y9s, I am immensely proud of each and every one of you! I find it invigorating to be part of a young personâ€&#x;s development as they discover more about themselves and make greater commitments to their academic studies and sporting or artistic passions. I was proud of all my students as they worked hard throughout the year and visibly showed maturity and responsibility as they engaged in our internal examinations during November and June. The ability to function at their best during these stressful times is a process that takes time to develop and so these beginning experiences with examinations is vital. Trips went out to Lower Zambezi, Ndubaluba and Livingstone with wonderful stories returning of a growing awareness from our students about the rich Zambian history, the precious environment as well as their own personal development. I would like to take this opportunity to wish all students and parents a wonderful and invigorating holiday. It is now time for me to say Goodbye! I consider it both a privilege and an honor to have been involved with a school such as ISL. Over the last 4 years I have seen amazing things happen, wonderful student participation in Sports, Music, Drama and Art, amazing times during school trips and student council meetings. I have taught and looked after the Year 9s over the past 4 years and have seen them blossom, I will miss them all enormously! I will also miss the great times with my IGCSE and IB classes, the laughs and the serious moments. ISL students are rare and precious gems! Thank you for the happy memories that I will take with me to cold Germany, thank you for the opportunities that were offered to me and thank you for the friendships forged over the years we spent together. I wish you all many successes. Farewell!
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Year 8 Trip to Livingstone On the fourth of May the Year 8 class went on a road trip to Livingstone. Mrs. D’Cruz, Mrs. Petit, Mr. Chizyuka and our trip leader Mr. Mwale were our chaperones. The overall stay at Prana Lodge was a tip to survival. Our highlight as class was the campfire. No matter how tired we were at the end of the day, we all sat around the fire and bonded. Visiting the Victoria Falls and helping each other down the boiling point showed us how much we truly cared about each other. Having the opportunity to know more about the Big 5 was splendid. Getting to know about how life is in Mukuni Village was an eye opening experience and we all enjoyed helping the villagers. The drive through Mosi-O-Tunya National Park showed us how sharp and knowledgeable our classmates are. The boat cruise into the sunset was definitely a beautiful moment. Spending those few hours together gave us a chance to get to know each other, no matter how sick we were. It was truly fantastic. The tour of the museum taught us a lot about our country, Zambia . Every section had something different that showed us how amazing Zambia really is. This spectacular trip brought us all together. We all learnt a lot about each other and we’ll cherish that memory forever! Done by: Maryam Musa, Sonia Patel, Katende Mushimba, Vedika Basu, Rimjhim Singh.
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From the IGCSE coordinator: Mr. R Van de Velde
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The last 6 weeks were nearly completely filled with final CIE examinations for the year 11 students. The results can be checked individually online on Tuesday 11th of August from 07.01 (=GMT +2) hours onwards. Year 10 finished their end of year exams and their results will be shown in the end of semester 2 report issued in the last week of school. And so another busy year comes to a close while a new one will be starting on the 19 th of August 2015, with a new Secondary head, some new teachers and new Year 10 students. Enjoy the long break in between !!
IB Corner! From Mr. Hearsum As I write this the final IB examination of the current session has ended. The students have been fantastic throughout and I eagerly await their results in early July. I would like to thank their excellent teachers who have worked extremely hard to ensure that they were ready for the examinations. Prospective IB students should contact me. If you would like to make an appointment to discuss the programme please email ibcoordinator@islzambia.org This is my IB Corner newsletter and my final year at ISL and I have thoroughly enjoyed working with some excellent staff members and a wonderful bunch of students. My wife and I will always have fond memories of both the school and the wonderful people of Zambia. My major role in ISL has been to coordinate and also to promote the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. The IBDP is the premier pre-university course available to international schools. Universities throughout the world recognize the qualities of the programme in delivering a twenty first century education. With that in mind the graduating class of 2015 has displayed all of the characteristics that would be expected of an IB class. Their amazing efforts, dedication and integrity have been inspiring. This has been a truly wonderful class that I have had the privilege to teach and coordinate for the previous 3 years.
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ISL - ISUZU ULTRA MARATHON
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IGCSE and IB Last Supper
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ISL PROM AT RADISSON BLUE
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CONTACT US
http://www.cois.org/
http://www.ibo.org/
The International School of Lusaka 6945 Nangwenya Road Lusaka, Zambia Phone: +260 211 252291 Fax: +260 211 252865 E-mail: info@islzambia.org
http://www.pamojaeducation.com/
http://www.cie.org.uk/
http://www.neasc.org/