tintuc@unishanoi.org UNIS Hanoi’s Weekly Community Newsletter
Volume 20, Edition 33, Friday 16 May
NEXT WEEK…
COMING SOON…
MONDAY, 19 MAY Advancement Committee Meeting, 08:00 - 09:30
MONDAY, 26 MAY MSHS Art Exhibition, Centre for the Arts, 26 - 30 May Early Dismissal Discovery - Grade 8, 11:30 Grade 12 Graduation Ceremony, 13:00 - 16:00
TUESDAY, 20 MAY K1 Arts Exhibition, Centre for the Arts, 20 - 22 May School Community Organisation AGM, 08:30 - 10:30, Community Room, B7 Annual Forensics Club Showcase, 16:00 - 17:30, Theatre Special Executive Board Meeting and UNIS Self Study Group Work Session, 17:30 - 20:30, Community Room, B7 WEDNESDAY, 21 MAY 2JC & 2TB Field Trip, 08:30 - 10:40 K1 PAC Parent Performance, 09:30 - 10:30, Theatre Grade 3 Vietnamese Class Field Trip, 9:50 - 12:20 THURSDAY, 22 MAY 2MT & 2BM Field Trip, 08:30 - 10:40 SMP 2015-2020 Planning Task Force Meeting, 17:30-19:00 Conference Room, B7, Personal Project Parent Evening for Grade 9 & families, 18:00 - 19:00, Black Box, B10 FRIDAY, 23 MAY Grade 12 Celebration Day. Tree Planting, 11:30 - 12:30 ECC Field Trip, 10:00 - 11:45 MRISA Annual Planning Meeting, 16:00 - 17:00 MS Formal Dance, 17:00 - 22:00
TUESDAY, 27 MAY ECC Character Dress-Up Day HS Co-Curricular Awards Ceremony, 15:45 - 17:15, Theatre Grade 5 to 6 Transition Parent Presentation, 18:00 - 19:00 WEDNESDAY, 28 MAY Parent Volunteer Appreciation Event, 18:00 – 20:00 THURSDAY, 29 MAY 5DL & 5KW Field Trip, 08:45 - 10:15 5MS & 5JH Field Trip, 2 09:45 - 11:15 MS Band Concert, 18:00 - 19:30, B10 FRIDAY, 30 MAY Grades 6 - 8 Celebration of Learning, 08:30 - 15:30, B10 ES Snack Sale Morning, 08:30 - 11:00 Middle School Day, 11:00 - 15:30 Grades 3 - 5 End of Year Party, 16:00 - 17:30 SATURDAY, 31 MAY MS Choir Concert & Workshop, 15:00 - 16:00
SATURDAY, 24 MAY UNIS Spring Swim Meet HS Formal Dance, 19:00 - 22:00
IN THIS WEEK’S TIN TUC - The Highlights... Notes from the Head of School and the Board of Directors (p.2) Notes from the MSHS Principal (p.3) Notes from the Tech Director (p.4-5)
Music Concert (p.8) Character Bottles (p.9) Aquatics Academy News (p.9)
The Dramatic - Vile Trial (p.6) ES Garage Sale (p.7) Discovery PAC (p.8)
Notes from the SCO (p.10) Notes from the School Health Centre (p.12) Job Opportunities (p.12-13))
Some parents have written expressing concern about the riots against Chinese businesses in an industrial zone outside of Ho Chi Minh City this week and the possible impact on things here in Hanoi.
We hope this will not only be more efficient, but provide more thorough answers on the spot. Respectfully, Dr. Barder, hos@unishanoi.org
We have been in regular contact with the security offices of the UN and of some major Embassies.
Photos of the Week
While small demonstrations occurred last weekend in Hanoi, they have not grown and do not currently indicate a need to change our school operations. We remain vigilant as we try to keep our students safe and secure. A reminder of the early dismissal on Monday, 26 May, for students in grades Discovery-8 not attending the Graduation Ceremony for our seniors. The details can be found in another part of the Tin Tuc. A big thank you to the 25 parents who attended the breakfast with the Head of School last Friday, 09 May. We are still gathering final information to include in a report of this meeting and it will be included in the Tin Tuc next week.
ES Garage Sale
In looking ahead to next year and our thinking about these “forums” with the Head of School, and recognizing the low turnout of parents for the Principals’ forums, we have decided next year to include the principals with the Head of School sessions next year. Therefore, we will have two morning sessions (“breakfasts) and two evening sessions (“hors d’ouerves”) with the Head of School and Principals. We also plan to have in attendance the Director of Activities, College Counselor, and anyone else whom we believe would be in a good position to answer questions.
Thank you to everyone who attended the Board’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) this week. The Board appreciated your invaluable input on the Risk Assessment Review and the opportunity to meet with community members. You can view the AGM presentation here. I will provide a summary of the Questions and Answers by the end of this month. At the meeting, the Board was pleased to announce that all Board members will be returning for the 2014-15 School
Discovery PAC
Year; a first in UNIS Board history. I was re-appointed by the Board for a third term while parent elected Board member Nguyen Van Hieu was unopposed in the Spring parent election and will begin a second term on the Board. I want to acknowledge the volunteer service of each Board member and to thank them for their time and expertise. To view the Board of Directors' profiles, please click here . For any questions, please contact the Board Assistant, Jennifer Sawyer at boardassistant@unishanoi.org. Regards Sarah Garner, Board Chair
Dear MSHS Families, As we head toward the end of the school year MSHS students are in the midst of final examinations. Students in grade 12 began IB examinations on May 5. IB exams run through May 23 ending a rigorous month of seemingly nonstop testing. End of year exams in the IB program are seen as the culminating event for most courses. Scores on each exam together with other components of the IB program combine to determine a student’s eligibility for the IB diploma. Students in grades 9 – 11 are not to be forgotten on the final exam front. They are sitting exams May 14 – 20. Needless to say there is an added sense of urgency on campus! As students prepare for and sit final exams please encourage your child to lead a balanced lifestyle. Research indicates that students achieve better results when they maintain a healthy diet, get at least 8 hours of sleep per night, engage in physical activity and study hard. Pulling all night cram sessions and skipping out on physical activity can be counterproductive to a student’s drive for success. Over Spring Break Mr. Brendan McGibbon (MSHS Music teacher) and I had the opportunity to accompany a group of 11 UNIS Hanoi students during the return leg of our
UNIS NY – Hanoi student exchange. If you recall, students from our sister school travelled to Hanoi in late March. UNIS Hanoi students completed the exchange by spending an exciting week in the “Big Apple”. During our week in NYC students visited and attended classes at UNIS NY, developed bonds with their NY counterparts and took in the sights of NYC. Highlights included a private tour of the United Nations, a visit to the US Mission to the United Nations, Empire State Building, Museum of Natural History, Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), Central Park, many subway rides, Greenwich Village, 5th Avenue, walking over the Brooklyn Bridge, 9/11 Memorial, miles and miles of walking the town, a Broadway show and of course food, food, and more food! The hope is that UNIS NY and UNIS Hanoi can build a strong bound which will lead to further interaction and exchanges in the future. Participating students: Kyungeun Jang, Susie Park, Yin Teng Ho, Hai Trieu Le, Kieu Khanh Linh Nguyen, Quynh Anh Do, Tue Man Kieu, Vera Woerner, Khanh An Vu, Soya Kanemaru and Michael Emblem. Happy Spring, Pete Kennedy, mshsprincipal@unishanoi.org
UNIS NY – Hanoi Student Exchange
Several parents attended our final parent session Proposed Tech Changes for 2014 -2015 last Tuesday morning. You can access the slides by clicking here. Frankly the slide show contains 5 slides and the real value came from the parent discussions and questions during the 90 minute session. At the risk of failing to do justice to the session I will try to capture a few of the discussion points related to each of the slides. Slide 1: A short overview of the UNIS Hanoi 1 to 1 laptop program led off the session in order to give context for expected discussions. The initial 1 to 1 concept was presented more than 7 years ago. UNIS Hanoi fully implemented the 1 to 1 laptop program in grades 4 through 12 nearly three years ago. In the beginning Hanoi infrastructure was not capable of handling a true one to one environment based on internet access. Three years ago UNIS Hanoi internet bandwidth was 8 Mbps for 1100 devices. Many of you exceed that in your homes today. The last bandwidth increase took UNIS Hanoi to 110 Mbps and UNIS Hanoi is positioned to increase bandwidth as student/staff appropriate use dictates the need for an increase. In January of 2013 several discussions were held regarding the need for an IT Audit in order to determine areas that the one to one program can be improved. Following a review of audit options a team was selected from the American School of Bombay and the audit was performed during May 2013. The audit results were delivered to UNIS Hanoi in late June 2013. A Tech Leadership Team (TLT) comprised of staff and administrators began discussing the audit results in September 2013. A parallel group called the Tech Advisory Committee (TAC) had been meeting for two years and it quickly became apparent that the two groups should merge. Initial meetings provided the following: Vision Statement: UNIS will become a technology
leader in the region. Prioritization of the audit recommendations into three
major areas: Systems, Technology Integration, Leadership. TLT subcommittee structure that focused on each of
the three areas.
TLT review of subcommittee work reports and
proposed action steps. Final TLT report submission to the Learning
Leadership Team (Admin Team subgroup) for approval. Slide 2: Parents were asked “What does it mean to you to be a technology leader in the region?” A lively discussion ensued and a few points that parents made include: UNIS Hanoi will be recognized as providing
appropriate technology and appropriate technology use to support student, staff and parent learning. UNIS Hanoi will have outsiders ask “How are you
doing what you are doing? Can we replicate your implementation of technology?” UNIS Hanoi parents will be informed about
technology use to support learning.
Slide 3: Systems UNIS Hanoi created a 1 to 1 laptop program that was limited by the options available in Vietnam and most specifically Hanoi. Limitations included bandwidth, platform availability and the need to provide a campus based reliable system. Those constraints dictated that SharePoint be used as a homegrown learning management system (LMS). SharePoint can be configured in any imaginable way but that ability increases the learning curve for all users. UNIS Hanoi recently adopted Haiku as an LMS for grades 6 through 12. Haiku has flattened the learning curve and reduced the time for teachers to productively use the LMS from 6 months to 6 hours. Efforts will continue to recapture time spent on learning complex systems in order to provide more time to develop teaching and learning strategies. UNIS Hanoi has given teachers and administrators an
option to choose between a Fujitsu notebook and a Mac Powerbook for 2014-15. Students in grades 4 to 12 will continue to use the Fujitsu notebook for next year. We do hope to give a group of students choices for the 2015-16 school year. Slide 4: Technology Integration
Slide 5: Leadership Leadership at its most basic level looks at the organization chart in order to determine whether appropriate positions exist for the needs of the organization. A review of job descriptions has led to more focused positions and an a potential addition of two positions.
Please consider visiting Tech Connect an online source of UNIS Hanoi information with a technology focus. Areas you may find interesting include The Latest News, Parent Workshops, and For New Parents. A Parent’s Forum section is included within Tech Connect and 13 threads were created based on an earlier SCO session. We see this as an area for parents to communicate with others regarding topics of interest to the school community.
Leadership dictates that we have standards to measure whether we are meeting the points listed on the slide. The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) has create three sets of standards:
Every point on this slide generated lively discussions. Perhaps Digital Citizenship has the most power to make a difference for our students. UNIS is presenting Digital Citizenship in many forms and Digital Citizenship will continue to be a focus at all grade levels.
Digital Citizenship is well represented in each of the NETS standards and as indicated before will continue to be a focus within UNIS Hanoi.
NETS for Students NETS for Teachers NETS for Administrators
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments at techdirector@unishanoi.org. Ed Gilbreath
Tuesday, May 27 will be an exciting day in the Early Childhood Center! Parents are invited to join us in the ECC gym at 8:30 to watch the children parade around in their special outfits. Discovery and K1 classes will have a "Character Dress-Up Day." Students are encouraged to dress-up as their favourite story character from any book. There is no need to purchase a costume for dress-up day, just use clothes and/or materials that you have at home!
your child experiment with clothes and put together their own outfit. Please don't spend any money, we want them to just be creative with things they have at home and have some fun with combinations and accessories etc. your child experiment with clothes and put together their own outfit. Please don't spend any money, we want them to just be creative with things they have at home and have some fun with combinations and accessories etc. Michelle Armstrong, ECC Teacher
K2 students will be encouraged to 'Dress to Express!' Let
If you’re interested in joining the UNIS Forensics Club or simply wish to understand what exactly it is that we do in B5 118 every week then come on down to the UNIS Theatre on Tuesday, May 20 from 4 – 5:30pm for the 3rd annual Forensics Club Showcase! A low-key and fun event with great performances/speeches that are sure to make you laugh and think deep thoughts about life– so deep it’s almost philosophical! Forensics Club members will be performing either Oral Interpretation (taking existing works and “interpreting”
them their own way with at least two different voices) or Original Oratory (in which students write their own speech about whatever their hearts desire). Family, friends, language lovers, speech lovers, dog lovers, bookworms or simply bored people; you are all welcome. There’s a 100% guarantee that it’ll be abso-fanlutely-tastic! Sincerely, The Forensics Club ASA
Those of you who were lucky enough to watch The Trial of Big Bad last Friday and Saturday did not go home disappointed. The show starred fifteen of our very best upper elementary school actors who put the show together in just nine weeks during an after school club. The performers mesmerized the audience who later broke out into huge rounds of applause, fits of giggles and wide-eyed wide toothy grins! And no wonder - the quality of the acting was outstanding, so good that it surprised many of us that young children could be just so good! What made the show special is the ability of the children to keep in character and throughout. As the action moved from one side of the stage to the
other, characters could be seen acting continuously, never once dropping the façade. Granny kept knitting and squinting, the jurors and witnesses reacted to the conversations in centre stage and they kept scratching, filing their nails or staring into space depending what their own character demanded. Each and every actor did a tremendous job! The stage backdrop and props which were also created and produced by students added even more ‘p-zazz’ to the show. My favourite scene was a false alarm during which Dr Barder ‘appeared’ as a voice over cameo! Enjoy the photos which were taken by Mr. David Carter. Chris Frost, pypcoordinator@unishanoi.org
What a HUGE HOT Success our first ES Garage Sale was this week. We had over 53 stall holders who had rummaged through their play cupboards to bring in unwanted toys to sell to the UNIS community. By 3:20 the 23 tables were set and the crowds began to arrive and find new homes for all the wonderful things students were selling. After only one hour most of the items had already been bought. All the stall holders counted their takings and placed half in a donation envelope which was collected and counted. Altogether we raised an incredible 8,711,000 VND that will be used to buy new toys for children in one of our Service Learning projects. The organizers, the Grade 1 and 2 Student Council representatives will meet next week to decide which organization will receive our donations. Thank you so much to the MSHS Ambassadors, parents and teachers who helped with the organization, supported your children in their marketing experiences and withstood the heat of the day. But most of all, thank you to following students who brought in their toys to sell, to make a little extra pocket money for themselves but mostly who donated half their profits so we able to buy toys for other more needy children.
Thank you very much to our fantastic sellers: David, Benjamin, Sander
and Oliver Tae Woong, Amy, Se
Yoon and Uy
Seo Jeong (Kate),
Anushka, Lia, Kitty and U Jeong Matthew and Vicente
Seung Joon
Duc Anh and Aiden
Danielle and Deya
So Eun , Jeong Min and Ji
Do Hyun Anna and Brielle Chi and Daisy Abigail and Daniela Anna, Megan, Angelina
and Fiona
Eun Benjamin Bill and Thanh Hai Nam Cat Tien Anita and Didi
Frida
Basile
Jeongseo, Ji Won and
Quang
Seo Won Ji Ah and Soo Hyuk
Julius, Emma and Luna Ben, Bill and Francesco
Jan Humbleby, ES Deputy Principal esdprincipal@unishanoi.org
THANK YOU to all parents who attended Discovery PAC, it was lovely to see so many of you there. The children had a wonderful time, sharing their learning and showing their parents their art work we are so proud of them. Discovery Team
This event is sponsored by the SCO who will provide refreshments and finger food during intermission.
need to write their name inside their book. Students may use a Library book if available. Recycle, Reuse and Repurpose: Use any size bottle to recreate your favorite BOOK character
Parents may assist but this should be a primarily student effort.
Students are encouraged to recycle, re-purpose and reuse materials from home.
Character bottles should be brought to Ms. Conroy in the Library over the course of the next few weeks
This is an optional HOME project.
and shall remain on display until the last week of school; soft deadline Monday, May 19th
Each Character Bottle must include name and class and have a card or note attached sharing the following information: Title
All Character Bottles will be returned to their creators. Ms. Conroy eslibrarian@unishanoi.org
Author Character name Personal connection with the character
Students may use a character from a Library or home book (Mother Tongue is fine!). Students choosing to share a personal book for display next to their Character Bottle
On Saturday, May 10, UNIS MS and HS swimmers traveled to ISHCMC to participate in the ISHCMC Invitational Swim Meet. Sixteen teams brought swimmers to race in the meet. Our UNIS Hanoi team placed 2nd for most effective team! That means our swimmers averaged the 2nd highest number of points of the sixteen teams! Individually, Uyen Trinh was second overall for 13+14 year old girls and Andy Cole was 3rd overall for 15+over boys. UNIS swimmers broke 11 team records! Newcomer Chiaki Goto led the way with 3 individual records in the 11+12 year old girls age group. Uyen Trinh broke 2 individual records in the 13+14 year old girls age group. Rohan Gowda and Peter Park (11+12 boys), Nils Jaranovs and Andy Cole (15+over boys) also broke team records. Our 13+14 year old girls 200 Medley and Freestyle Relays broke records with Uyen and Chiaki joined by Adelaide Charlier, Nikki Erken and Natania Peh. There is nothing like a ‘road trip’ to build camaraderie and team spirit and the UNIS Hanoi team had plenty of it as they cheered each other on in every event! The final swim competition of the year is the 1st Annual Hanoi Gala Swim Meet which takes place here at our UNIS
Hanoi pool on Saturday morning, May 24. We have invited schools and swimmers from virtually every Hanoi international school to join us. All UNIS Hanoi students who have completed Level 5 or 6 ES classes or participate on the ES, MS or HS Swim Teams are invited to join the meet. MS or HS swimmers who were not on the team but who wish to participate please contact Coach Andy as soon as possible. The deadline for UNIS students entry is extended to Monday at 12:00 noon. Entry forms are available on our Wiki page, in the Aquatics Office or request a form from Coach Andy aacoach@unishanoi.org .
Tuesday 20 May, 08:30 Community Room (Administration Building upstairs) All Parents are welcome. Did the Spring Fair put a bounce in your step? Did you have a ball at the Sparkly Social? Snag a snack at a sale? Load up on books at the Used Book Sale? Did you know these great events are organized by the School Community Organisation? The School Community Organization is a volunteer organisation, inclusive of all groups within the school, that works to support the UNIS Hanoi Mission, build community and can raise funds for UNIS community projects. Whether you are new to UNIS, or an old hand looking for a new challenge, the SCO is once again looking for energetic, can-do leaders for next year's executive committee . All six of the positions on the executive are open every year for election, including Middle/ High Chair, Middle/High Vice Chair, Elementary
Wednesday, May 28th , 18:00 – 20:00 Don’s Bistro (16 Lane 27 Xuan Dieu, Tay Ho) We truly VALUE each and every one of our volunteers. You have given your time and talents to support the UNIS Hanoi community. Your spirit of volunteerism makes our school community thrive and flourish. To THANK YOU for volunteering in the 2013/2014 school year, we would like to invite you to a Volunteer Appreciation Night.
Class Parents UN Day Volunteers Spring Fair Volunteers Book Sale Saturday Soccer Coaches Board Members
Board Committee and Taskforce members Healthy Snack Sale Welcome Committee SCO Boutique ECC Mother tongue readers
There will be GREAT food and drinks (wine, beer, cocktails, juice) for all to enjoy on behalf of the School Community Organisation and the Advancement Office. Please REGISTER for the event BEFORE Friday, May 23 ! For any questions, please contact the Community Liaison Officer, Nathalie Grun at clo@unishanoi.org
Chair, Elementary Vice Chair, Treasurer, and Communications Officer. For more information, or to nominate, please contact the current Executive Committee at sco@unishanoi.org. Elections will be held (by an anonymous ballot if more than one candidate stands) at the SCO Annual General Meeting on Tuesday May 20th. Eligibility: All parents, including short-term non-contract instructors and staff of UNIS, are eligible to run for office. No special skills or background are needed, just a desire to support the UNIS Hanoi community by committing some of your time and energy to SCO activities, such as meetings, projects, and other co-ordination, as well as have fun, working on events such Spring Fair with a likeminded group of people. You can also view the SCO Constitution for more information on the structure and functions of the Executive Committee HERE. See you next Tuesday. UNIS Hanoi School Community Organisation
Leaving the country, or spring cleaning? Not sure what to do with your books? Don't let them add to your shipping weight when there is so much good that can come of them here! We are collecting all gently used books for next years Used Book Sale. Your book will not only get sold to a UNIS community member who would be happy to find it here in Hanoi, but all the proceeds will be donated to endeavors providing more books for less fortunate Vietnamese children. Please deposit all of your donated books in the book drop OUTSIDE of the library. There will be signs clearly showing you where they go. Do NOT put library books there. We look forward to making next years book sale a success! Lori Fairbairn, Used Book Sale Coordinator
HOT
IF YOU ARE FEELING UNWELL IN THE HEAT Move to a shady or airconditioned area .
DRINK PLENTY OF WATER
Lie down and slightly raise legs.
and don’t wait until you are thirsty to drink, you are already dehydrated.
Loosen clothing and remove unnecessary clothes. Apply cool water to skin with washcloths or mist and fan
DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS
BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER ACTIVITY. 10 large gulps should be drunk every 15 - 20 minutes during PE/Recess
Drink cool water or sports drink.
AVOID alcohol or liquids containing large amount of
sugar. WEAR loose fitting, light weight, light coloured clothing.
Please note, without treatment heat exhaustion can lead to heatstroke, which is a life threatening condition School Health Centre nurse@unishanoi.org
Wear a HAT and SUNSCREEN. TAKE BREAKS during physical activity . AVOID MIDDAY SUN if possible.
The Community Education Programme (ComEd) is planning for the Autumn Session of the school year 2014-2015 (September – November 2014). If you would like to offer a course or suggest a course idea for ComEd, please contact Ha Thien Ha at comed@unishanoi.org by 6 June 2014.
UNIS Hanoi is inviting applications for a Middle School/High School Arts & Music Teaching Assistant. The incumbent of this position will assist Arts & Music Teachers in planning and implementing learning experiences that advance the physical, intellectual, emotional, and social development of students within a safe and healthy learning environment. He/she is expected to spend 85% directly involved in class learning and teaching activities. The successful applicant should have significant practical experience teaching string orchestral instruments and directing youth orchestras/string ensembles. For more information, please visit follow this link. Application closing date: 5 June 2014 Interested applicants please send your expression of interest, along with an up-to-date CV and current referees to jobs@unishanoi.org Ms Vu Ngoc Thanh, Human Resources Officer United Nations International School of Hanoi
We are delighted to offer the opportunity to local businesses to advertise in a very popular United Nations International School Hanoi publication that is a daily reference point for our families. The Tasty Snacks for Healthy Children cookbook is given to every new family as a welcome gift from the School Community Organization. Currently, UNIS Hanoi welcomes 1060 students every day to its campus and these cookbooks are used by parents and students alike to prepare foods for snack time which is a programmed part of the daily schedule. It is an important resource that has been created by the UNIS Hanoi community to raise awareness of healthy nutrition and to provide parents with a diverse range of recipes that can be made with local ingredients. This cookbook is a keepsake that travels to over 60 countries and is enjoyed for many years by students and parents and is treasured by our families and alumni. And now for the first time, we are offering community businesses the opportunity to partner with this very successful publication. For a very attractive price, your advert will expose your company to families in Hanoi from their very first days. The style of our cookbook is friendly, informative and professionally done, so we encourage you to use images and text that reflect that in your advertisement. The cookbook will be printed biyearly meaning that your advert will last for the next two years – even better value for your money! I know you will agree this is a great opportunity for your company. Please contact our Advancement Assistant, Dang Thu Thuy at advasst@unishanoi.org for the advertising specifications and contract or any other questions before Thursday, May 29. Nathalie Grun, Community Liaison Officer
Advert Specifications High resolution .jpeg/.tiff file (with minimum 300dpi) Email file to clo@unishanoi.org in the proper page orientation full page / portrait half page / landscape
Prices: Placement Front Pages Chapter intro Pages Advert section
Space available limit 2
Full Page
limit 6
$700
No limit
$500
Half Page
$1000
$250