Dear Parents,
There
will be a Scholastic Book Fair from Monday, September 17 to Wednesday,
September 19! This year, our book fairs will take place in the courtyard
next to the elementary library. Come find lots of great books for all
your reading needs! Contact Mr. Jet (eslibrarian@aisch.org) if you have any questions.
On Monday, September 3rd,
teachers and administrators engaged in a series of professional development
activities. Mr Hoover and Ms Bane kicked
off the morning with a welcome address, an overview of the day and shared the professional
development plan for this school year. Faculty then spent the next 90 minutes
working with their CIS (Council of International Schools) Self-Study Team,
reviewing reports and recommendations written by the team this past spring. The
Self-Study Process is a very important part of the accreditation cycle. While
identifying and celebrating the school’s strengths, this process also involves
the identification of areas for improvement and initiates actions to address
them. Self-Study committee work is
divided into the following sections: Guiding Statements, Teaching &
Learning, Governance & Leadership, Faculty & Support Staff, Access to
Teaching & Learning, School Culture & Partnerships for Learning and
Operational Systems.
During the second half of the
morning, faculty met with their Vertical Curriculum Teams. In Vertical Teams,
teachers from different grade levels work together to develop a continuum of
knowledge and skills in one subject area that builds from one grade level to
the next. Vertical articulation is important because communication leads to a
greater understanding of what is taught each year, which helps teachers
organize strategies, plan the introduction of concepts, and reduce repetition
of content. As a result, student achievement and success is enhanced.
The focus of the afternoon shifted to small-group
sessions led by teachers for teachers. Teachers chose to attend two of the
following sessions:
1. Teaching and Learning in the 21st
Century Classroom With Moodle
Several elementary school
teachers led/co-led these sessions so I would like to acknowledge and thank Ms
Priya, Ms Megan, Ms Karen, Ms Morris, Mrs Robertson and Mr Jet!
This week AISC welcomed back Erma
Anderson. Erma is no stranger to AISC and many parents met her last October and
February. Erma is a former high school physics and mathematics teacher and Albert
Einstein Distinguished Fellow in the United States Senate. Currently she is a
science/mathematics consultant with the Office of Overseas Schools. Erma met
with all grade-level teams, Pre-Kindergarten through 5, to provide guidance as
they begin their work planning a math scope and sequence. Scope refers to the breadth and depth of
content to be covered in a curriculum at any one time (e.g. week, quarter, etc.).
Sequence refers to the order in which content is presented to learners over
time. As teachers engage in this process, they will have important
conversations about critical content and skills. Shared understandings and
commitments evolve from these conversations.
At AISC, our teachers are
committed to life-long learning, and our students cannot help but be positively
impacted.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Kevin Hall
Elementary School Principal