I S K VO I C E M o n t h l y
N e w s l e t t e r
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O c t o b e r
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E d i t i o n
October 2011 - Volume 7, Edition 1
I n t e r n a t i o n a l
S c h o o l
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K r a k o w
Be Respectful Be Responsible Strive for Excellence
I n t e r n a t i o n a l
S c h o o l
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K r a k o w
Founded in 1993, ISK is an independent, not-for-profit school that provides a world-class education for children from 3 years old to university entrance. Beautifully situated just outside the Krakow city limits, our spacious campus provides a quiet green setting with fresh air and a studious atmosphere...
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ISK VOICE October 2011, Volume 7, Edition 1
6 Anne Frank Exhibition Message from the Director ................................4 Upcoming Events ................................................5
16 Field House
Anne Frank Exhibition ........................................6 Remembering Kia Zaks .................................... 14 Field House........................................................ 16 Abbott House ....................................................20 Focus on Preschool B ........................................24 Green Science in Grade 1 .................................28
20 Early Years Center
Drama Classes ...................................................30 Halloween .........................................................32
24 Preschool B Fun 3
Message from the Director
T
oday marks the end of the first quarter here at ISK and it has been an enthusiastic beginning to the school year. Our students have found their niche in the classrooms and in after school activities, the teachers have set their classroom standards and expectations, and the parent community is actively involved in supporting our school. As we reflect on this quarter, there is much to celebrate: highest enrollment in the 18 year history of the school, opening of the nursery and pre-school in newly renovated Abbott House, and completion of the new sports field house. Immediately following Fall Break, parents will receive First Quarter Reports for students in grades 0-12 and MAP (Measurements of Academic Progress) results for students in grades 3-9. The School Office will be sending more information on the Parent-Teacher Conferences scheduled for November 16th. These conferences are for discussing student progress and goals for future learning. Attendance at parent-teacher conferences is a school expectation. One of the greatest indications of a truly established and respected international school is the school’s membership of regional associations and its ability to participate in and host major regional inter-school events with the region’s most prestigious international schools. ISK is proud to announce excellent results from the CEESA (Central European Schools Association) Middle School Tennis Tournament in Riga and we will have students attending the upcoming CEESA Middle School Speech and Debate Tournament in Moscow and High School in Budapest. In January, ISK will host the CEESA High School Knowledge Bowl; our Activities Coordinator, Coach Adam, will be in touch in coming weeks for host families for this CEESA event. Go Hussars! As we build on the momentum from First Quarter, I look forward to the many celebrations to come. Warm regards, Mamie Heard Director 4
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Biography
rowing up on a farm in rural Mississippi in the 60’s & 70’s was an interesting experience. My father was a successful farmer who taught me to respect the land and the people who worked with him. I truly admired my father for his ability to think for himself and not follow ‘the crowd’ during a most turbulent period of history in the South. My mother was a nurse who possessed an extraordinary passion for helping others. Our dinner table was often the forum for passionate political discussions about the monumental changes taking place around us. These early experiences inspired me to become a social studies teacher, counselor, advocate for children, a committed volunteer, and an excellent gardener. After graduating from Delta State University, my first teaching position was part of a team that integrated a large public high school in Jackson, Mississippi. After four years, I accepted my first overseas teaching position in an international school in Managua, Nicaragua and since then have taught 19 years in international schools in Italy, Germany, Turkey, Costa Rica, and now Uzbekistan. I have taught AP European and US History, IB History (HL and SL) and Theory of Knowledge, and served as coordinator for both programs. As IB Coordinator and Principal, I implemented successful IB programs in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in Charlotte, North Carolina, Istanbul International Community School, and Tashkent International School. I returned to the United States on several occasions, once to complete certification in
administration and curriculum development at the University of North Carolina and another time to be near my father whose health was failing. As an international educator, I utilize my past experiences as a counselor, teacher, director of admissions, IB coordinator, and secondary principal to foster a collaborative learning community. A considerable part of my day is spent with students, teachers, and parents listening to their hopes and anxieties with the goal in mind of establishing an atmosphere of trust and respect. I am convinced that the reason I approach each school year with energy and enthusiasm is because I still have a passion for teaching. The investment I make in the lives of students in my care is more than a profession; a way of life. Success for me is working with all students, each presenting unique challenges and opportunities. As an educator, I too am an active learner and know that some of the most profound learning experiences take place outside of a formal classroom setting. I am an experienced hiker having hiked parts of the Inca, Appalachian, and Oregon Trails and the Alps, Dolomites, and Black Forest Region. My commitment to community service includes builds for Habitat for Humanity in North Carolina and Costa Rica, volunteering at a local orphanage in Costa Rica, and working with our students who teach English to handicapped students from a local school in Uzbekistan. I am an avid gardener, animal lover and also thoroughly enjoy cooking and hosting dinners in my home for colleagues and friends. While teaching at the John F. Kennedy School in Berlin in the mid 90’s, I visited Krakow for the first time and was completely enamored by the charm, history, people, and culture of this city and even contacted ISK (then American School of Krakow) regarding teaching vacancies. I was told they had a total of 25 students and rarely had openings. When the position as Director of International School of Krakow was posted in 2010, I seized the opportunity and the rest is history. I am at my best when challenged by a new class, new approach to learning, new position, or new school and living environment; ISK has been a fantastic opportunity for me.
November Events Calendar 30 October to 4 November Fall Break NO SCHOOL November 5
SAT (university placement tests) at ISK
November 8
8:45 am PTA Coffee in MPR 6:00 pm Speech and Debate Fund Raiser Spaghetti Dinner
November 9
First Quarter Reports go home (hard copy) for grades 0-12
November 11
National Holiday NO SCHOOL
November 15
School Board Meeting
November 16
4:00 to 7:00 pm Parent Teacher Conferences
November 17 - 20
CEESA Middle Speech and Debate Tournament in Moscow CEESA High School Speach and Debate Tournament in Budapest
Please put December 16th on your calendar for the Winter nationals. More information to be announced.
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Anne Frank Exhibition Hosted by The International School of Krakow
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s ISK’s mission is dedicated to the education of “tomorrow’s world citizens” and to teach Tolerance through education, we were proud to host the traveling exhibition “Anne Frank – a history for today” from 19th to 30th of September, 2011. This exhibition has currently been shown in over 50 locations across Europe. Just as in other countries, young people acted as guides to the exhibition. The guides (who were: from grade 9 Daiana, Krzysztof, Mateusz, Kelly, Alex, from grade 10 Simon, Magda, Caroline, Gabriel, Sage, from grade 11 Emi, and from grade 12 Sonya and Kanishk) were prepared for their task through intensive training which took place on Thursday and Friday, September 15th and 16th. The students learned about the content of the exhibition and also about the ways in which they could make use of the texts and photos during their guided tours. The exhibition was open for 2 weeks within which ISK had the privilege to host other local schools. It was an important event for the school, students, and Krakow community. Katarzyna Tymczak
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Student Perspective
Students write about the event and their experience
ISK was proud to host the Anne Frank Exhibition during the last weeks of September. In a nutshell, the exhibition was a moving exhibit that has been presented in a lot of countries, prior to Poland. It takes us through the historically significant journey of Anne Frank, drawing from the pages of the famed The Diary of Anne Frank. This exhibition came into being and traveling with the collaborative measures of the Anne Frank Haus back in Amsterdam. The tour guides were divided into groups, one group of which gave the presentation in Polish, for native Polish speakers. The panels contained information both in Polish and in Dutch. The panels were creatively crafted, with both pictures and text. There were some immensely expressive photos of the Kristallnacht, also known as the Night of Broken Glass. There were, apart from the war pictures, a lot of pictures of Anne Frank and her family, both in Germany and in The Netherlands. The exhibition opened with the introduction of the Consul members from all over the continent, along with the American consul members here in Krakow. After a short introductory speech by the Director of the school, Ms. Mamie Heard, the exhibition was officially opened and the VIPs were given a tour by many high school students. The exhibition panels consisted of historical elements concerning the World War II, and led onto the Declaration of Human Rights by Elanore Roosevelt in 1947. The brief presentation spanned the number of years significant for Europe’s as well as the world’s history. The presentation focused on the early and short8
lived life of Anne Frank, and the political changes coursing through Europe during the time of the war. During the same week, ISK hosted the exhibition for Dutch and American teachers who came over to our school. Being a tour guide myself, I can vouch for the fact that it was quite nerve-racking talking history to historians! However, their immense background knowledge helped us students a great deal in learning more about the history of the war. After the tour, there was a brief discussion session amongst the students and the scholars, which was also very fruitful. A Middle School from the neighboring Gaj and the 5th High School from Krakow also walked in to ISK to view the presentation. Prior to the actual exhibition, students who took part in the event attended workshops to be able to give effective tours of the presentation. The workshop was a three-day intensive project, which involved studying and grasping the situation during the Second World War. Students were introduced to the intricacies of things we usually hear about a lot, but hardly ever fully understand. Tolerance, for example, was probably the most significant one of them. During the three days, students worked with the basic idea and the correct application of tolerance. Also, they learnt more about effective presentations skills and a lot of background information about the topic, which was ultimately needed to give a fully formed presentation of the panels. Sonya Singh, Grade 12
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The Anne Frank exhibition was a huge success. But prior to the exhibition, all High-School students participating received training from Ms. Julia, a tour guide from the Anne Frank foundation in Netherlands, who came to Krakow to help us present the tours by ourselves. We spent half of two days, a Thursday and a Friday, learning about the life of Anne Frank, the situation of WW2 during those times, and the struggle that Jews faced. On the first day, we did a lot of fun activities which included making a poster with a random picture from those times, and writing down thoughts about it. It was very engaging as our learning was not repetition and regurgitation. We got to do activities relating to the subject which enabled us to remember it for a long period of time. “We learned a lot in a very unique and educational manner which was quite engaging”- Gabriel Prouse The second day was even more exciting as we had groups of people come over from Netherlands, who participated with us in activities and added more information to our knowledge. On that day, we explored a little bit more about why their were tensions regarding different races, why such mentality existed during those times, which caused large scale Jewish massacre. Tolerance was the key word here. So we were split into groups, and were assigned a particular task- either draw a comic strip, act out, write a song, or draw a picture about why people should be tolerant towards each other so not to disrupt the harmony which normally would exist amongst people. “The training was very informative, 10
and historical. I enjoyed it�- Matthew Brownd To sum up, I believe that overall it was a fantastic experience. The discussion about issues throughout the world, delving into the minds of the Jewish population living in Germany during World War 2, and just learning a lot about historical events was one exciting adventure that will impact our lives greatly in the future. Kanisk Chakraborty, Grade 12
Special Thanks to Ms Tymczak for putting this great event together for the community and students.
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Anne Frank Comes to ISK! In September of 2011, ISK was very lucky to host a traveling exhibition entitled, Anne Frank: A History for Today, depicting the life and legacy of a Jewish girl named Anne. The exhibition came to our school for a period of two weeks, in hope of being viewed by as many people as possible. A total of 17, front and back, panels were set up in the ISK library before the official opening of the exhibition and high school studentguides were to master different topics in order to transfer the information from the panels to the dozens of attendants of the multiple tours held. The whole adventure with the exhibition started on the 14th of September when the panels were brought to school. This day, ISK high school students were putting together these panels and assembling them in the library. For the next two days, students spent multiple periods participating in workshops, led by a specialist on Anne Frank and the holocaust. Many interesting activities that were presented in the workshops were meant to help ISK high school students prepar to become guides for the exhibition in the following week. Students were then assigned different groups of people coming to visit the exhibition after the weekend. Usually, 3 or 4 people were responsible for touring a group at a certain time. The groups changed a lot, so many guides were touring multiple times.
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From the 19th to the 30th of September, ISK students, students from Polish middle & high schools, teachers and representatives of different important organisations and offices gathered at ISK to view the unique exhibition. Tours were given both in English and in Polish, so all viewers could understand what was presented by the guides. Over all, hosting the Anne Frank: A History for Today exhibition at ISK was a great success. The majority of the tours went very smoothly, and the passion and confidence with which many spoke could be clearly seen by many spectators, who came to our school. The whole project was a great success, but this success could not have been achieved without the dedication and constant effort of many here at ISK. Taking part in the exhibition was a great experience for me and although preparing for tours at up a lot of time, I believe that it was worth it. Mateusz Mroczka, Grade 9
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Ad perpetuam memoriam Remembering Catherine (Kia) Lucy Zaks
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n September the 15th 2011, The International School of Krakow held a memorial assembly for Catherine Lucy Zaks, a former student at ISK, who tragically lost her life last August. As part of the ceremony, a pink magnolia tree was planted on the grounds of ISK in celebration of Kia’s life and a granite stone was laid identifying her as a member of the class of 2008. I remember meeting Catherine Lucy Zaks better known to us as Kia in 2006 when I began working at ISK. I remember Kia who was an individual with a strong sense of identity. I remember Kia as an extraordinary young woman who was extremely modest and reserved. She wore her hair covering half of her face. I remember thinking if this girl could have combed her entire head of jet black hair over her pale and delicate features, she would have. I remember her soft spoken voice, keeping verbal communication to a minimum. I remember asking myself how can a young person appearing to be so shy, dress in an extraordinary and distinct way that would so markedly set her apart from all the other students? I remember Kia’s form of dress was in the Goth style. All black! Short black crocheted gloves cut off at the fingers, black fishnet tights, heavy black ankle boots or black shiny patent high heels. I remember being very happy when Kia decided to try for AP Studio Art and AP Art History with basically very little experience in either subject. She was most successful in Art History program. I remember her projects in Studio Art – images of caged roses and caged butterflies behind bars being set free. I remember her love for her horse that was often the excuse for her assignments being late or not turned in. I remember a good writer who had an excellent command of English and an artistic flair in her usage of the language. Her essays were always a joy to read. Kia always wanted to be a journalist. I remember Kia’s close bond with her class of 2008. I remember my excitement when I heard that she was accepted at Kent University in England to study Art History. I will always remember that day in late August when I heard of her tragic death in Krakow. I will remember her shy smile, her laughter, her tender and delicate nature. Paulette Lidert Art Department
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Field House New Physical Education Facilities
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The new field house is a welcome addition to ISK’s campus. The facility creates new opportunities to host inter school competitions, perfomances and other school related activities. The physical education teachers are excited about the new opportunities and eager to make new community connections. The gym is very versatile and can be easialy configured to accomodate many different types of athletic activities. The court configurations can accommodate Indoor Footbal, Basketball, Volleyball, Hand Ball, Condensed Tennis and Badminton among others. The main court can also be divided in half with a curtain to make two basketball or volleyball courts. The Physical Education teachers are already finding new and creative ways to utilize the new versatility, including using the dividing curtain to have up to 30 students utilizing the facility at the same time.
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Construction Construction on the new field house began shortly after the end of the 2010-2011 school year. The construction started off well but was slowed due to weather during the middle of July. The rain made it difficult to prepare the ground for the foundation. Warmer and dryer weather came at the end of summer and the dome started to take shape with the steele frame going up just before the begining of the 2011 school year. By mid september the electical and heating systems were finished, and in late October the floor was in place. The delay resulted in moving the completion date to mid October.
Dimensions Length 25m Width 15m Height 10m
Features Removable nets Adjustable rims Curtain divide Heated
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The court has a rubber core with solid outer surfaces 19
Abbott House New Early Years Center
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ISK expands and remodels the Abbott House to create a new Early Year Center - The construction project
started just before the end of the 20102011 school year and the final touches were completed during the first week of the 2011-2012 school year. The bottom floor garage which contained a small gym was removed and replaced with large windows in the front of the house. The south part of the building was expaned to include large windows and access to the new patio. The upstairs music room was moved to the main building and the floor was expanded to include a large classroom and lunch room. The new features of the building were taylored to fit the needs of the younger students, with lowered restroom facilites and easy access to storage. The remodled building comfortably accomodates 42 students in a bright and cheerful learning environment. Students and teachers are enjoying the larger rooms which have led to some new and creative lessons. Continue to the next pages to see how the new classrooms look and how PreSchool B is utilizing their new space.
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PreSchool A
Classroom
Nursery Classroom
PreSchool B Classroom
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The Early Years play-
ground gets a new fence. Safety is a top priority at ISK and the new fence carves out an area for the younger students to play and run with out worrying about cars and other activities encroaching on their space. The fence was funded by a Security Grant from the US State Department and the school is grateful for their contribution Our outstanding staff installed the fence and did a beautiful job. Thank you - Mariusz, Adam and Mr. Tadeusz
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PreSchool B
Focus On
Highlights - September & October
Science
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Language
a
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Sidewalk Chalk Drawings
Here is a celebration of some wonderful chalk pictures created by the preschoolers:
Caps for Sale! Caps for Sale!
First of all, thank you Mr. Lou for your splendid performance of Esphyr Slobodkina’s story “Caps for Sale.” You were an amazing peddler and the students absolutely loved you. To get us ready for the performance, all the Preschool B students were busy making monkeys, and later had a great time imitating the “Tsz, tsz, tsz” sound from the book. This has been a great finale to our puppet and performance week, but we look forward to having many more of such wonderful performances in the classroom.
A Dog’s Day
We welcomed a striped, four-legged, friend in Preschool B, called Prega. The dog came from a local animal shelter, and showed us some neat tricks. The students also learned a little bit about the responsibilities of owning a dog, and the proper ways of petting dogs. Do you know that dogs do not like having their ears pulled? We sure do! 26
Puppet Show
I think it’s safe to say that ALL the students, and teachers, had a great time putting on puppet shows for each other. Just look for yourself how amazing our foam shadow puppets turned out to be:
The forest is a very mysti-
cal place for young children. Whenever we enter the woods across our school, the students are automatically drawn to investigate trees, plants, rocks, bugs, leaves... etc. Today, we were busy collecting twigs for our picture frames, as well as small leaves and acorns to decorate them with. The trip to the forest gave us an opportunity to follow a short path down the “big hill,” and then slowly climb up to get back just in time for Polish and English class. It was a wonderful experience to see all the children get so excited about finding their little treasures, and then showing/comparing them with their teachers and other students. Pictures and text provided by Mr. Adam
Cooking
Preschoolers made a delicious pumpkin soup! It was a lot of work, but in the end, it was worth the effort.
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Green Science
We did plant flowers on Thursday
We planted plants Teo
Niklas This is Grade 1 and [we are] planting now plants in cups because the dirt will not let the water go in the cup Rebecca
We plant seeds and put dirt Jake
We did plant new seeds Szymek
We are learning how to plant plants Faustine
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in Grade 1
We plant plants Alek
We did an experiment of planting plants because it is fun We were planting plants and we did it at ISK Nika
Matthias
We planted some flowers
We do in science a game with flowers because it is an experiment
George
Ethan
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DRAMA F
or the first time, Drama Classes are alive and happening at ISK in the Middle School! This year all Middle School students are taking one semester of Drama with Mr. Lucas. So far, students have been focusing on learning to be comfortable on stage as opposed to being nervous on stage and thinking that they must perform or be funny. Students began with many different forms of improvisational drama which has focused on making the unreal become real! They have learned to reflect on one another’s way of walking and talking, and to be more aware of what they themselves look like at all times.
Students then began to create characters. This requires them to think about the age and complete background of a person. They are also asked to think about the physicalization of that person which makes for some very funny characters, indeed. The latest exercises have had students mirroring one another both when doing simple actions, as well as when carrying on simple conversations on a single topic. Presented photos are of students learning to be one another’s mirror. This exercise helps develop sensitivity to one’s partner on stage, learning to react to them rather than act. This is the key to learning to be on stage!
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CLASSES
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The next step in Drama Classes will be to put scenes from actual plays on their feet. This is a major challenge for students, but one which students are excited about. We have eight students traveling to Speech and Debate competition in November, where they will perform their “duet acting� scenes for their peers from eleven international schools. All our Middle School Drama students will have a chance to perform their scenes at a school in KrakowPodgorze where contacts have been made with the local English teachers. We are looking forward to interacting with them, as well as hoping that they will have some work to share with us. Parents will be able to view these scenes sometime in November here at ISK. Paul Lucas Drama teacher
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Halloween in Grade 3 O
n October 26th grade 3 had fun celebrating Halloween with Ms. Anita and Ms. Vickie. First, Ms. Anita told us the history of Halloween. Next, we made special jack-o-lantern masks. After that, we played a very exiting game “the musical gourds’’. In the end, we enjoyed a very yummy treat. We had lots of fun. Happy Halloween! Grade 3
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Halloween Fun in Grades 0, 2, 1
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Halloween A Spooky Good Time
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Happy Trick-or-treating!
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