tintuc@unishanoi.org UNIS Hanoi’s Weekly Community Newsletter Volume 20, Edition 17, Friday 13 December
NEXT WEEK...
COMING SOON...
SATURDAY, 14 DECEMBER
SUNDAY, 5 JANUARY
Winter Holidays, 14 Dec - 5 Jan School & Campus closed, Offices open weekdays 16-20 Dec & 30 Dec-3 Jan. Offices closed 23-27 Dec
MONDAY, 6 JANUARY
COMING SOON... SATURDAY, 21 DECEMBER
Alumni Reunion in Hanoi 18:00, Pots n’ Pans
TUESDAY, 31 DECEMBER
Scholarship Programme 14-15 Application Deadline
FRIDAY, 3 JANUARY
Quarter 3 Tuition Fee Payment Due
Alumni Reunion in Melbourne 18:00, The World Restaurant and Bar First Day of School after Winter Break
WEDNESDAY, 8 JANUARY
SMP 2015-2020 Task Force Meeting 7:00-8:30 HS Boys Basketball 15:15-16:15, BVIS
THURSDAY, 9 JANUARY
Grade 4 Fieldtrip 8:30-12:00 MS Boys Soccer 16:00-17:00, UNIS Field
SATURDAY, 11 JANUARY
Basketball North-South Cup 11-12 January, Sports Centre
IN THIS WEEK’S TIN TUC - The Highlights... Notes from the Head of School and the Board of Directors (p.2) Notes from the Elementary and Middle/High School Principals (p.3-4)
Hanoi Cuisine. Grade 10 personal project (p.6) Amazing Science with Philip Rose (p.7) Grade 3 ‘Slice of ICE’ (p.8)
Is your Family leaving Hanoi ? (p.4) Festive Fundraiser (p.5) New UNIS Hanoi hotspot (p.6)
K2 Field Trip(p.9) 12 Ways to a healthy holiday (p.10) Job Opportunities (p.11-12) Canteen Menu
I am pleased to announce the hiring of Tarique Al-Iesa as our new Director of Co-Curricular Activities beginning in July 2014. You have all seen his resume in a link from the Tin Tuc but as a reminder Tarique has a Bachelor of Science in Education specializing in PE, a Masters degree in Educational Leadership and several years as a teacher and Director of Activities. He is most recently working as Director of Activities at the KAUST School in Saudi Arabia which is an international school for the professors of a large consortium of universities with campuses in Jeddah. Tarique grew up in both Kuwait and the U.S. and is a citizen of both countries. He has a wife (Cortney) and two ES aged children.
Saturdays (15 January and 8 February). Other employers have the option of doing the same thing IF THEY CHOOSE TO. For us, the idea of Saturday school, taking two days off of Spring Break, or going two days later in June did not seem to make sense. So our TET holiday remains unchanged and will begin on 30 January 2014. Please let me know if you have any questions. May this three week holiday bring some rest, rejuvenation and quality family time. Respectfully, Dr. Barder, hos@unishanoi.org We wish all the best to
We are fortunate to get such an experienced and highly regarded administrator for this job and feel confident that we can continue the good work that Dirk Kraetzer has done over the last three years. On page 11 of this week’s the Tin Tuc, we are advertising an additional position in the Co-Curricular Activities office. This position is Activities Manager and the person will report directly to Tarique. There is a link to the job announcement including requirements and a description of the job. We will be recruiting internationally for it as well, but expats already in Hanoi are eligible to apply. Some of you have asked about the government announcement last week indicating that the TET holiday for all government employees will be extended earlier by two days. This means that for Vietnamese Government employees, the TET holiday will be Tuesday 28 January through Wednesday 05 February. This is an extra two days (Tuesday and Wednesday, 28-29 January). The employees will be required to make up these two days on two
who is left Hanoi this week
approval of the budget and tuition for the next school year (2014-15). Please click HERE to read the letter. Last week, the Board held an information session for Class Parents. To view the answers to the questions that were asked during the session and on the evaluation forms, please click HERE.
I would like to wish all members of our UNIS community a happy and restful holiday. To those of you who are moving on from Hanoi, I wish you good health and success in the future. I look forward to seeing everyone else back here in January.
Tuition and Fees Letter for the 2014-15 School Year
Best regards,
Today, I sent a letter to all parents informing them of the
Sarah Garner, UNIS Hanoi Board Chair
Suddenly it seems impossible that the Winter Holiday is upon us. The last two weeks have been as busy as ever, with the children enjoying a range of different learning opportunities and events.
This was our second “Slice of Ice” in as many weeks and again proved a great success in terms of children showcasing their work and raising the profile and status of learning across the arts. A big thank you to the arts teachers in particular for all their work throughout the semester and who collaborated with the homeroom teachers to help the children stage the evening.
For the Music department and the children this was also a busy week with the Festive Fundraiser last Friday evening which entailed a good deal of preparation and practice and led to an evening enjoyed by all.
One of my favourite student learning memories from last year, came around again this week as the Grade 5 students shared their presentations based on their Unit of Inquiry about Migration. The presentations were very powerful evocations reliving stories of migration of family members: some poignant, some adventurous, some humorous and all fascinating. Interesting to note that most of these Grade 5 ‘Third Culture Kids’ will have an even more remarkable and distinctive life journey of their own to tell their children in the years to come, as they move from place to place and school to school following their parents’ migratory moves.
Science was brought to life by our visiting scientist Philip Rose who worked with classes throughout the Elementary School this week. We have been incorporating more Science in to our Units of Inquiry this year so this week of experiments and scientific fun was a great way to reemphasize the importance and applicability of scientific concepts and understandings.
Two representatives from each grade level (G1-5) met with the Perkins Eastman representatives this week to share their ideas about how to improve the campus. Ideas ranged from building a Science Lab (perhaps inspired by our visitors!), having a second swimming pool, building a separate ES library, having more language classrooms in the ES, resurfacing all the pathways, upgrading the toilets and inevitably the creation of a new playground area. The children were able to justify their choices and were confident in expressing their ideas. We look forward to hearing whether any will be incorporated in the next version of the campus re-development plan.
Reports went live yesterday afternoon and we hope that all parents have been able to access the report for their child via ISIS Families. The upcoming Parent teacher Conferences in mid-January are scheduled to allow for discussion of the report. The online sign up will open the first week back after the holiday.
For your information, I will be away from school for much of January recruiting for new faculty members for next academic year. When I am away Ms Jan Humpleby will be Acting Principal. I will still be accessing my emails and be in regular contact with school should you wish to contact me directly. In the meantime may I take the opportunity to wish all of our departing families all the very best for their next adventure and all ES families a safe and happy holiday. Warm regards, Carole Denny, esprincipal@unishanoi.org
Dear MSHS Families, As we head toward Winter Break there is a heightened sense of excitement on campus. It is hard to believe the school year is almost halfway over…..it seems like opening day was just a few days ago! Time sure flies in a busy and productive school! UNIS Hanoi surely is a beehive of activity. Academics and activities in the Arts, athletics, service learning, trips, MUN, ……., (The list can go on and on!) create the fabric of a vibrant learning community. UNIS Hanoi students are extremely fortunate to have such a large selection of opportunities in which to participate. All activities are designed to promote the development of a well-balanced young adult. It goes without saying that our core function must focus on academics, but a UNIS Hanoi education is so much more. Educating the whole child includes a balance between a rigorous academic programme and active involvement in a verity of activities. As such please encourage your child to create a healthy balance between academics and co-curricular activities. I would like to thank Mathematics teacher Sam Trebesch for spearheading our MSHS “Hour of Code” activity. Paradoxically, over the past decade technology usage has increased exponentially but the ability to write code
(programme computers) has become somewhat of a lost art. Ms. Trebesch saw an opportunity for all MSHS students (and many teachers) to participate in a coding experience sponsored by Code.org. During the Hour of Code UNIS Hanoi joined students from around the world in an experience designed to build basic coding techniques. Within the curriculum at UNIS Hanoi we do teach aspects of programing and we do have many “coders” but we also have students who shy away from this form of expression. To assist with the activity our student coders joined faculty members and happily served as facilitators for less experienced students and teaches. Overall our Hour of Code was extremely successful! For more information please visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=3acWFYmIYR0 In closing I would like to wish our entire UNIS Hanoi community a joyful and restful Holiday Season. I would also like to wish the families who are leaving UNIS Hanoi the best of luck in the future. Separate MS and HS assemblies will honor our “leavers” but it is also important to wish parents and families a fond bon voyage as well! Cheers and Happy Holidays, Pete Kennedy, mshsprincipal@unishanoi.org
Please notify the Admissions office of your intended withdrawal date. School will close for the winter break on Friday 13th December. The last day of the first semester is Friday 17th January. Upon confirmation of your departure, we shall guide your family through the withdrawal process. If you require any further assistance, please email admissions@unishanoi.org or contact Admissions staff on 37581551 extension 8217 / 8220.
A number of educational and popular writers are now raising the fear of our children growing up divorced from nature, the biosphere and any meaningful relationship with the natural world. That the western intellectual process of analysis and hypothesis is encouraging our learners to consistently abstract the salient features of observable phenomena and try to understand the item, divorced from the context, or environment in which it is found (can you really understand a frog by pinning it to a dissection table?) The Green Team have been active in trying to get the issue taken seriously as one that truly impacts learning, growth and wellbeing. While much of their work is happening behind the scenes in curriculum and pedagogy discussions, occasionally there is something to photograph and publish in Tin Tuc. So stop a while when next passing the MSHS garden. Take a moment to sit and wonder how long it takes
that pineapple to grow or those tomatoes to ripen - get back in touch with your wild-side (if only for a nanosecond)
My name is Nhi Trinh and for every 10th Grader in the MYP it is a requirement to do a project, due to the fact that we have to complete it by ourselves with only the assistance of a teacher supervisor it is called the Personal Project. For my project, I have decided to create a blog which I will talk about traditional Vietnamese food and how it has affected my life. All throughout my life food has always had a huge impact on me, especially traditional Vietnamese food. Growing up my parents would prepare for celebrations or memorials and explain to me the meaning of each food and how it is made. This has lead to my interest in not only Ha Noi food but also food all over the world. And so I would like to pass on my knowledge of Vietnamese cuisine and a part of my childhood because what I have come to learn is that not a lot of people actually know too much about Vietnam, more specifically Ha Noi even though they have lived here all their life. I would like to ask for everyone's help by reading my blog and giving me comments on how to improve it. Please CLICK HERE to visit my blog. You never know, maybe you will learn something! Thank you so very much, Nhi Trinh
Photos from wikipedia
We had a very exciting visitor at UNIS Hanoi this week, scientist Philip Rose. Philip works for a British company called SciTech: www.scitech.co.uk. SciTech promotes science and technology to children of all ages through the use of exciting hands-on interactive workshops and lectures. Throughout the week Philip worked with UNIS Hanoi students from Discovery to Grade 6. He mesmerized children through his application of science. His demonstrations included green bubbling, smoking potions which would have looked at home in a Harry Potter movie! He used liquid nitrogen to freeze and then shatter a rose and to snap an elastic rubber band as if it were a twig. Philip also set up forensic investigations, ultrasound experiments and amazing forces experiments using a fulcrum and pivot. Best of all many students had the opportunity to interact with the materials and become part of the show.
Each grade had their own special lecture focus. The lectures were tailor made to connect to the students’ current science units of inquiry and as such they were each highly relevant to our UNIS Hanoi curriculum. For example The Wonders of Light in Kindergarten 1, Science Sound Sensation in Grade 1 and Forces in Grade 3 (to name a few). SciTech prides itself in teaching both scientific understandings and nurturing important scientific skills. Philip teaches children science concepts and also how to ‘do’ science. This commitment to scientific inquiry is also at the core of the UNIS Hanoi Science curriculum. To get a flavour of what scientific inquiry looks like in our own classrooms in a usual school week when Philip is not here you may wish to have a look at these two short videos recorded recently showing scientific inquiry in action in Kindergarten 2: K2CA and K2AP. Christopher Frost, PYP Coordinator pypcoordinator@unishanoi.org
Grade 3 Slice of ICE Grade Three ‘
Slice of ICE’
Parent evening on Dec 10 proved to be another successful extension and sharing of student learning in the new ‘Innovative, Creative, Expression – ICE’ Arts block. Students began by introducing the night and ‘touring’ their parents around learning in Visual Art, Media Art and Drama in the Foyer, followed by some creative music composition performances on stage in the theatre and black light giant drama puppet performances. The final performance was a song; ‘Good Friends’ performed by all Grade Three Students on stage.
The evening highlights all of the creative, innovative and expressive learning taking place through their five lessons per week in two forms of ‘The Arts’ per quarter. We believe through this new ICE block schedule students are gaining a more in-depth study into their quarterly lessons as well as having a broader range of artistic lessons taking place. Thank you to the wonderful Parent turn out and thank you to the Grade Three and Arts Teaching Teams. Sally Oxenberry, ES Arts Team Leader soxenberry@unishanoi.org
Kindergarten 2 have been learning about shelters in Vietnam and around the world. As a culminating activity we visited the museum of Ethnology and saw a range of types of shelter, materials and methods of building. We saw the impact that weather has on materials. When we came back we talked about why people might have chosen each material and method we saw. Amy Pitcairn, K2 Team leader apitcairn@unishanoi.org
to a healthy holiday UNIS Hanoi said to me, wash hands to be safe and healthy. to a healthy holiday UNIS Hanoi said to me, Bundle up for warmth and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to a healthy holiday UNIS Hanoi said to me, Manage Stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash your hands to be safe and healthy. to health UNIS Hanoi said to me, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, BE SMOKE FREE, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, fasten seat belts while driving, BE SMOKE FREE, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, Get exams and screenings, fasten belts while driving, BE SMOKE FREE, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, Get your vaccinations, get exams and screenings, fasten belts while driving, Be smoke free, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy.
to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, Monitor the children, get your vaccinations, get exams and screenings, fasten belts while driving, be smoke free, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, Practice fire safety, monitor the children, get your vaccinations, get exams and screenings, fasten belts while driving, be smoke free, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, Prepare dinner safely, practice fire safety, monitor the children, get your vaccinations, get exams and screenings, fasten belts while driving, be smoke free, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy. to health, UNIS Hanoi said to me, Eat well and get moving, prepare dinner safely, practice fire safety, monitor the children, get your vaccinations, get exams and screenings, fasten belts while driving, be smoke free, don’t drink and drive, manage stress, bundle up for warmth, and wash hands to be safe and healthy.
School Health Centre, nurse@unishanoi.org
UNIS Hanoi has experienced steady year-on-year growth in our student population, which currently stands at over 1,000 students from 66 different countries. We are now accepting applications for a Co-Curricular Activities Manager (CCAM). The position reports to the Director of Co-Curricular Activities (DCCA). Overview of the Co-Curricular Activities Office: As a strong complement to the curricular programme, the co-curricular programme of UNIS Hanoi includes all activities that take place outside of the school day. These activities include all After School Activities (ASAs), Performing Arts, Sports, the Community Education Programme, UNIS Music Academy (UMA) and the Aquatics Academy, the Saturday Soccer Programme, the Energize Fitness Programme and management and scheduling of recreational facilities of UNIS Hanoi. In addition, the co-curricular team works in collaboration with the UNIS Hanoi Service Learning programme and the curricular programmes of the Elementary, Middle and High schools. The Co-Curricular programme currently offers over 250 different programme offerings each year to students in Grades Discovery – 12. Offerings range from weekly after school activities/clubs to participation in sports or nonsports teams/groups that go on to participate in tournaments and festivals at large international school events at UNIS Hanoi or in travel to international school tournaments and festivals. Duties and Responsibilities The CCAM assists DCCA in all aspects of the UNIS Hanoi co-curricular programme listed above. The CCAM will act as primary contact and be directly responsible for the following areas: Saturday Activities (Saturday is part of the 5 day work week, Sunday and another day in the week will be days off for the CCAM) UNIS Music Academy: design, implement and manage a high quality extra-curricular music education programme in accordance with UNIS Hanoi objectives; Summer Programmes After School Activities (ASAs)
Position Requirements: Required Demonstrated leadership capabilities with a strong background in leading and implementing co-curricular programmes Excellent organizational ability and initiatives Effective communication and interpersonal skills Experience in an international school setting Extensive experience in the development and implementation of youth development programmes Experience as a teacher, activities sponsor, coach, and/or performing arts director
Preferred Previous experience in a leadership role in Activities/Athletics Programmes An M.A./M.Ed./M.Sc. degree or equivalent
In return, UNIS Hanoi offers an attractive work environment, flexible working hours and leave arrangements, competitive remuneration, and professional development opportunities. Successful applicant would be expected to commence duties in August 2014. Interested applicants please send your expression of interest, along with an up-to-date CV and current referees to jobs@unishanoi.org. Only short-listed candidates will be invited for interview Ms Tran Thi Quyen, Human Resources Manager United Nations International School of Hanoi
UNIS Hanoi is a not-for-profit international school offering all three International Baccalaureate Programmes f rom Discovery to Grade 12. UNIS Hanoi is also fully accredited by the Council of International Schools and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
UNIS Hanoi has experienced steady year-on-year growth in our student population, which currently stands at over 1,000 students from 66 different countries. We are now accepting applications for an ES Physical Education Teaching Assistant for school year 2014 - 2015. Duties and Responsibilities Provide support to the classroom teacher as requested Cover class during teacher’s absence for short periods of time Maintain good teaching-learning rapport with students; model and collaborate to implement good behaviours; and act as good PYP model Proactively manage student discipline in alignment with classroom agreement Manage small groups and one to one exercise with students under teacher supervision Prepare and check for safety all PE resources, equipment, materials and first aid kits based on the teacher’s teaching plan; maintain inventory and stock control of all equipment and resources Collaborate with teacher to prepare playing fields and other areas Contribute to the enrichment of student life at UNIS Hanoi, for example in sports, ASAs, student clubs and/or UNIS community services; actively get involved in UNIS Hanoi Service Learning programmes Seek feedback, reflect and act upon information received to develop professionally; attend UNIS planned training activities; learn from others and share knowledge with others Other responsibilities as required by the Supervisor.
Position requirements University degree in Education/Teaching or related disciplines 2+ years’ experience in a similar role, preferably in an international learning environment Excellent communication skills in English Demonstrated desire and capability in working with young children Cross-cultural exposure and understanding Strong organizational and planning skills Ability to communicate effectively and positively with students, faculty, parents and other constituents of the school community Ability to collaborate with team members within agreed protocols to focus on student learning Special requirement: High level of physical fitness is required for this role In return, UNIS Hanoi offers an attractive work environment, flexible working hours and leave arrangements, competitive remuneration, and professional development opportunities.
Application closing date: 6 January 2014 Interested applicants please send your expression of interest, along with an up-to-date CV and current referees to jobs@unishanoi.org Ms Tran Thi Quyen, Human Resources Manager United Nations International School of Hanoi