Friday, April 27, 2018

Friday April 27, 2018


Dear parents,

Happy long weekend! Enjoy Monday with your friends and family and see you back here on Tuesday morning.

Today we had our Lower Elementary Swim Gala where students from Early Years 5, Grade 1 and Grade 2 showcased their impressive skills in swimming. Thank you Coach Donna and Coach Velin, all the lifeguards, and the PE team; Jack, Sobha and Jane.
MAP Testing
This coming week we begin Measures of Academic Performance (MAP) testing for all our students in Grades 2-5. This online computer based test measures academic performance and growth over time in the areas of math, reading and language usage (grammar, spelling etc). Grade 3-5 students are also measured in science. Results from these give us individual as well as class and grade level progress and help us create teaching and learning programs to meet each child's’ instructional level.

Each test takes around 45 minutes, and no preparation at home is necessary. Parents often ask how they can help their child get ready for these and the best way is to ensure your child gets a good night sleep before their test as well as eats a substantial breakfast on the day. These are overall great preparation ideas for any day at school - students cannot study in advance for a MAP test.

Parents will receive a MAP Student Progress Report card along with the Trimester 3 reports. For further information, parents can go to this link.

Parent Coffee - Tuesday May 8, at 8:45 - 9:30 am, Madras Hall  
We will be hosting a parent coffee for any elementary parent who is leaving us at the end of the year.  As with many international schools, at this time of year, we have many families who will be moving on, and many new families who are currently transitioning to move to Chennai. This coffee will be led by our counsellors, Ms Linda and Mr Ron, and focus on a lot of strategies to help families and in particular, children, transition out of AISC and Chennai and into a new place with ease.
  
Class Placements for 2018-19 (final announcement)
Every year, together with counsellors, we review class groupings and re-create new class lists as elementary children move from one grade level to the next.  As outlined in our handbook, we prioritise the following criteria when creating new homeroom groups;

  • Social groups
  • Gender
  • Learning needs
  • Nationality
  • English Language Proficiency

For the past few years we have also sought parental input. While we do not consider direct requests to have a particular teacher, we do welcome input for anything you feel would be important for us to consider when placing your child.  

Our form will close next Tuesday 2 May as we begin drafting class lists. Please do not approach a teacher or counsellor directly; complete this form for any special considerations you may have.

Items needed for the Mud Kitchen (repeat announcement)
Leaving Chennai? Have old pots and pans, wooden utensils, metal bowls or utensils you want to get rid of? Please drop them off in the Elementary reception as we will gladly use them in our Outdoor Learning Centre Mud Kitchen!

Operation Smile - Yard Sale (repeat announcement)
Operation Smile will be holding a Yard Sale to raise money for cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries.
The Yard Sale will take place on Friday, 4th May, from 3.30 pm to 5 pm in the Unity Courtyard.

Please donate items in good condition that you no longer use, and that other families would like to buy. These could include clothes, books, toys, sports equipment, household items, games, etc. Operation Smile volunteers will then sell these items, with all profits going to the organization.
Please put your donations in bins marked 'Operation Smile Yard Sale', which may be found in the HS Office, MS Office, ES Cafeteria, main Cafeteria, the main reception, and Madras Café.

We also invite families to 'rent table space,' and sell their own belongings at the prices they wish. The cost of renting a table to sell your wares is Rs.1000. The proceeds from the sale of the goods will be yours. If you would like to rent a table please pay Rs.1000 to Ms. Sunita in the High School office.

AISC Support Staff will get to shop first from 2.30 pm to 3.30 pm.

Elementary School Afternoon Coffee, Tuesday, May 1, 2:15-3:15 pm (FAC Cafeteria)
Join us for a special coffee to share and discuss parent feedback on the climate survey regarding how AISC prioritizes learning and challenges our students. This coffee is focused on program and practices in grades EY5-Grade 5. There will be time for questions and input of parent perspective.

Withdrawing Students
If you are relocating and your child is not returning to AISC for the next school year, please fill out this Withdrawal Notification Form and hand it in or email it to bhazel@aischennai.org / ppadma@aischennai.org at the Elementary office.

May 2 - June 1, Lunch Menu & Order links  
To order a school lunch for your child, please use this Payonline link.  
Elementary Lunch Menus: (Grades EY- 3 Pre-order) and (Grades 4 & 5 - No Preorder)

Warmly,


Keryn Dowling and Lori Newman