Message from the Head of School I am excited that next month we will be learning more about how two different countries celebrate Lunar New Year for our annual Culture Week. February 2, our Mandarin teachers are organising Chinese New Year festivities, while February 4, Ms. Christine has prepared some activities for our students to learn about the customs in South Korea.
Did you know that SPH has a rigorous Professional Development program for all teachers that takes place every Wednesday afternoon? Some of the upcoming topics our teachers will be learning to improve their skills this term are: Implementing feedback from recent leader observations in the classroom; Understanding Christian Education with Dr. Barry Shealy; PBL – planning, examples and reflection; Home Room teacher collaborative planning with Specialists.
If your child is not yet signed up for onsite learning, February 7 will be the next opportunity. We are looking forward to welcoming all our onsite students back on that date.
Please know that teachers and staff at SPH PV regularly pray for health and safety for you as part of our school community.
I encourage all parents to attend the upcoming Parent Seminar titled “Shaping the Heart of a Child” with Pak Rizal Badudu. I appreciate Pak Rizal’s commitment to sharing his experiences and knowledge with the SPH community.
Blessings on you and your family in this new year of the tiger! Tim Heading Head of School of SPH Pluit Village
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PHOTO GALLERY
Merry and Bright
SPH PV Christmas 2021
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EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
Students Age 6-11 Vaccination SPH Pluit Village, in collaboration with the Faculty of Nursing of UPH, had held the vaccination drive for SPH students aged 611. Thank you to all the families who attended this important initiative. We appreciate the continuing collaboration with Siloam hospitals and UPH which allows us to provide the best health care and practices for our community. If the past few days have shown us anything (apart from the constant need for flexibility) there remains a great need for our students to be vaccinated. This provides them the best protection to be at school and to stay in school. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to sign up for the second dose on February 8 at SPH Pluit Village. More details will be forthcoming.
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HIGHLIGHTS
Whole School
Full-Week Hybrid Learning
Welcome back!
It’s been a blessing to get to run classes in person and ask students questions and I’ve never had a year in my teaching career answer their questions without the barrier of anything like what the last couple have been a computer screen between us. like, but this year has had one recurring theme: welcome back. Some of my favorite memories of late have been simple things like having students Months ago, we welcomed students back to physically show me their projects, getting to the school for the first time in over a year hear them chat while they work on a and a half, and this week we welcomed mapping assignment, and getting to talk to students back for learning 5 days a week for students in the halls during breaktime. the first time in almost two years. It’s been These interactions are some of the things such a joy to see so many of our Middle and that make school feel real, and—while our Senior School students in the hallways students engaged in an incredible amount of laughing, talking and just being kids. active learning during Home Learning— getting to teach them in person is just special.
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HIGHLIGHTS It’s easy to see, even with masks on, how much they are enjoying being back at school and interacting with their friends and teachers. It's been a wonderful week, and it’s amazing how quickly it is beginning to feel normal, even with all the extra safety measures. I look forward to many more weeks of full-week hybrid learning and to the day in the future when we can safely get back to truly normal, full-time school. Until then, every one of our teachers is enjoying every moment we get to spend teaching and interacting with your children in person. I pray that God will continue to protect us and your families and that soon our whole school family will be able to meet together fully in person. Sincerely, Jon Steely Senior School Curriculum Coordinator SPH Pluit Village
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A NOTE FROM THE CHAPLAIN
Grief
Loss that Comes with Change The last two years have been an interesting time with a lot of emotions. Last week, I attended an online funeral for a family member. Her death was the third death in my family in the last nine months. In talking with my family, I have been reminded of how grief presents itself in many ways. Tears of sadness are what we normally expect. But anger, confusion, and numbness are also common. Sometimes, grief might even include relief. All these emotions are okay, and even necessary when grieving. We expect them when those close to us pass away. But the death of a loved one is not the only time when we may grieve. Any time there is change, there is loss. And when there is loss, there is grief. I experienced this just after Christmas break when we received the new hybrid schedules. The new schedules have significantly less asynchronous work time, and that was the time when, for the last two years, I had the opportunity to have deep conversations with students. I actually cried as I grieved the loss of that time.
Am I excited to have students back on campus? Yes! Am I excited to teach in a classroom? Yes! Am I excited to see students running and playing in the gym? Yes! But even with the excitement, there is loss, which means my grief is real. In this time of change (and there is so much of it these days!), allow yourself and your children time to grieve any losses. It’s okay. We can be happy that some things are getting “back to normal” while still grieving the loss of what we’ve gotten used to, or even learned to love, these past two years. In times of grief, we can turn to God’s Word, especially the book of Psalms, where we find comfort, such as these words from David: “The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). May we draw near to Him, no matter where our grief comes from or what emotions we experience, letting Him comfort us in our moment of need. If you think your child would benefit from talking with someone about their grief, and you don’t feel you can be the one to talk with them, please reach out to me. I would love to find a time to meet with them. Blessings, Ms. Rachel Feather Chaplain
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STUDENT COUNCIL
SPH PV's Official Merch is out now! Getting back to campus has been fun for StuCo, because we were able to have our first in-person event! The week before Christmas, MSS students made Christmas cards together. It was a fun afternoon of crafting, pizza, Christmas music, and candy canes. We also started selling PV’s original merch! The designs were selected from a competition in May 2021. Congrats to Jericho (G7), Mary (G9), and Kimberly (G9) whose designs are now on stickers, notebooks, tote-bags, and T-shirts. We were able to sell to MSS students before Christmas and JS students during the vaccine clinic. If you haven’t purchased anything yet, check out our IG (@sphpvstuco) or use the QR code below to support StuCo, encourage PV artists, and show your school (and house team) spirit! We’re looking forward to more upcoming events, and hope students will join us!
Scan me!
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ARTICLE
Culture Week
Lunar New Year As the new semester continues, Chinese New year is coming just around the corner. Our SPH Pluit Village family is excited to welcome this big festival and prepare some fun activities on Chinese culture day for our students to come closer to real life learning about Chinese people and culture.
On the first day of Chinese New Year, people wear new red or traditional clothes to go to visit their elders. The most common gifts are red money envelopes (hongbao) that are often given to children and (retired) seniors. The red envelope is called ya sui qian ( ), which means 'suppressing Sui [the demon] money'. Those who receive red envelopes are wished another safe and peaceful year. Day 2 to Day 7 are days for people to visit their relatives and friends to express their good wishes and gratitude.
压岁钱
This year’s Chinese New Year falls on February 1st, 2022, which is the year of tiger. In SPH PV, we'll celebrate Chinese Culture Day on February 2nd. The cultural activities will show the common customs to celebrate this big festival and also to remind On the 15th day, people watch and light up our kids about God’s blessings and grace all lanterns, eat sweet dumplings, and set off year around. fireworks at the Lantern Festival. Performances like lion and dragon dances, Known as the Spring Festival, Chinese New are widely seen in China and also in Year starts with the new moon on the first Chinatowns in many countries during the day of the New Year and ends on the full Lunar New Year period, to bring prosperity moon 15 days later. The 15th day of the new and good luck for the upcoming year. year is called the Lantern Festival. In SPH Pluit Village, our students will also On New Year’s Eve (30th of the 12th lunar engage in different traditional activities like month), people decorate their doors and making Chinese scrolls, house decorations, windows by putting up red couplets and painting lanterns, and many more. There will paper cuttings with some blessing words be lots of creative activities for our students written to wish good luck and blessings in to associate their knowledge of Chinese the coming New year. People also enjoy a New Year into their crafts. It will be a lot of big family reunion meal with all family fun learning about all of these special members gathering together and staying up traditions! late to watch the Spring Festival Gala. When the clock hits 00:00 AM, it is a tradition to Sincerely, set off firecrackers and fireworks to drive Ying Li, Huang away evil spirits and welcome in the New Middle & Senior School Mandarin Teacher Year.
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ARTICLE
Culture Week
Korea Day At SPH Pluit Village, we make sure to celebrate the diverse cultures that are present within our campus. We are thrilled to be celebrating the Korean culture this year! Korea has a rich history of over 5000 years of different dynasties ruling over the land with rich culture and history to follow along. Korean Pop culture along with Korean dramas and movies have been loved by many around the globe in the past few decades. This has allowed room for many Korean traditions and customs to be shared with people all around the world! During culture week this year, we will be looking into some of the traditional clothing of Korea called "Han-bok" ( ) and learn about the life of a typical student in Korea as well! We will also be learning how to say some simple greetings in Korean and go in deeper into some of the history and Korean traditions.
한복
We hope this day will be engaging and educational as we learn to appreciate different cultures and traditions around us. Blessings, Ms. Christine Kim Grade 3 Homeroom Teacher
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LIBRARY CORNER
How to Raise a Reader 10 tips for getting your kids hooked on books! By Regan McMahon – "Common Sense Media"
Read Aloud You may have to read your kid's favorite a hundred times, but just go with it. Kids will get the idea that there's something worthwhile in books and that there's something special about time spent with a parent.
Find Books About The Things Your Kid Loves Librarians, booksellers, and Internet searches will help you find books on any favorite topic.
Funny is fine! Humor is a great pathway to book loving.
Savor The Series It's common for kids to become book lovers for life after getting hooked on a series.
Comics are OK Graphic novels are among the hottest trends in children's publishing, and they can get kids hooked on reading.
Grab onto a Genre It's common for kids to become book lovers for life after getting hooked on a series.
Feed The Favorite-Author Addiction Once your kids find a writer they love, they may want to read all of his or her books -- a great excuse for a trip to the library or an opportunity for book swapping among friends and classmates.
Engage with e-books You can download or access many books on an e-reader or tablet, which make it a great choice for air travel and car rides.
Make Reading a Family Value Set aside time for reading only -- turning off the TV, computer, and cell phone. Encourage focused reading time, either for independent reading or reading aloud.
Count On The Classics Books are called classics because they continue to engage readers generation after generation -- you could try introducing your kids to books you loved as a kid and see which ones click.
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PARENT SEMINAR
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SPH PV CALENDAR
Upcoming Events 1
Holiday: Lunar New year
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Culture Week: Chinese Day
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Culture Week: Korean Day Parent Seminar
February 2022 Mon
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Vaccination Dose #2
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Mother's Appreciation Day
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Holiday: Isra Miraj
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