Dear Parents,
This afternoon at 6:00 pm, you will be able to view your child’s second trimester report card on Skyward. You will need to know your Skyward login information in order to access your child’s report card. If you do, follow the steps outlined in this document to view your child's report card.
If you have not previously accessed Skyward or do not know your login, please reset your Skyward password by clicking on this link.
1. When you access this link you will be asked for your username (<Login>) or email address.
2. Enter your username or email and then click the "Submit" button.
3. Check your email to confirm your password reset.
4. When you click the link in your email, it will open to the password reset page where you will enter your desired password twice.
5. The Skyward login screen should appear (if not, you may access Skyward in the Quicklinks menu on the school website).
6. Enter you username (<Login>) and password.
Once you have completed these steps, you will be able to view all the information that relates to your child, including your address, telephone numbers, email address and your child's health information. Please check this information and contact the Admissions Office should any changes be required.
Questions?
If you have a question about Skyward, or are experiencing any difficulty, please email IT Support. If you have a question related to the report card, please contact your child's teacher.
Lunch Menu and Order Link for March
Please place your orders using the AISC pay online site or using the order link below for which you can pay at the cash counter before March 6th.
Lunch Menu Link
Lunch Order Link
A Culture of Thinking
This week, AISC welcomed back Mark Church. Mark has been an educator for twenty years and has a particular interest in helping teachers and school leaders think deeply about their efforts to cultivate thinking and learning opportunities for students. Together with Ron Ritchhart and Karin Morrison, he is co-author of the recent book Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners (Jossey-Bass, 2011).
In this book, the authors present 21 different thinking routines. One such routine is called, See-Think-Wonder. This routine encourages students to make careful observations and thoughtful interpretations. It helps stimulate curiosity and sets the stage for inquiry. A teacher may use the routine at the beginning of a new unit to motivate student interest or try it with an object that connects to a topic during the unit of study. Students answer three questions during this routine: (1) What do you see? (2) What do you think is going on? and (3) What does it make you wonder? The picture below shows what a final See-Think-Wonder activity could look like. This activity took place in 2D. As part of their social studies unit, Family History and Traditions, students will compare and contrast family celebrations of their classmates. Students began the unit working in groups and talked about different pictures of family celebrations from around the world using the See-Think-Wonder routine.
In their Solar Energy unit, students in 4E designed houses that would keep cool on hot days. Students engaged in a Claim, Support, Question routine to frame their thinking. Claim: As a team, students made design choices for their houses they thought would keep their house cool. Support: Students used reasoning from prior experiments and their past experiences to support their claim. Then they built their house. The houses were placed on the roof top tennis courts and temperatures were recorded at 12:30, 1:30, and 3:30.
Students displayed the temperature data in a table and created a graph. As teams, students analyzed the data and to find connections and conclusions. Question: Students asked a question based on their wonderings after finishing this experiment. (Some students asked what would the data look like if they kept the houses outside for 24 hours while others asked how they would keep a house warm if there was not much sun.)
Virtual Learning Drill - March 25th
Distance learning for continuity of instruction is a complex process requiring considerable training, alignment, and communication. To be ready in the event of a forced school closure, AISC must help all stakeholders build capacity to support distance learning.
On March 25th, AISC will host a comprehensive virtual learning drill in which all students PK-12 will stay at home and complete one full day of learning consistent with AISC’s Continuity of Instruction Plan. Teachers will be on campus during this exercise. All athletics and after-school activities will be cancelled on this day.
To learn more please read more about the event in our full brochure HERE.
To help parents with their Internet access at home, AISC will host an Internet provider business fair on March 5th & 6th in the Main Entry.
Yearbook Photos 2014-2015
We are pleased to announce the sale of photos from the January photo shoot for those students who did not get their photos taken in August. On the All School Moodle page, you will find a folder, “Yearbook Photos 2014-15.” Parents who missed ordering last semester may also place the orders now.
Order Forms may be downloaded from Moodle or picked up at the Cash Counter. Instructions are on the order form. Complete the form, make payment and submit the form to the respective section office.
Please submit all requests for photos not later than March 6. Prints will be ready for pick up after April 12.
Community Thank You from the Girl Scouts
The Girls Scouts would like to extend their thanks and appreciation to all the students, faculty and parents who supported the Valentine's Bake Sale last Friday. We hope you enjoyed all the great goodies! Once again, the sale was a huge success. Over 50,000Rs was raised for our charity. Next Saturday, Feb. 28 the Scouts along with a few other volunteers, will be painting and constructing a library and playground for the children at Thiruvalluvar Gorukulam Home in Saidpet. The children are very excited about their coming new spaces. Our endeavors would not be possible without the generous support of our AISC community and our Chennai restaurant and hotel donors. MANY THANKS!
Robyn Treyvaud Visit - Common Sense Education - February 26-27
Distance learning for continuity of instruction is a complex process requiring considerable training, alignment, and communication. To be ready in the event of a forced school closure, AISC must help all stakeholders build capacity to support distance learning.
On March 25th, AISC will host a comprehensive virtual learning drill in which all students PK-12 will stay at home and complete one full day of learning consistent with AISC’s Continuity of Instruction Plan. Teachers will be on campus during this exercise. All athletics and after-school activities will be cancelled on this day.
To learn more please read more about the event in our full brochure HERE.
To help parents with their Internet access at home, AISC will host an Internet provider business fair on March 5th & 6th in the Main Entry.
Yearbook Photos 2014-2015
We are pleased to announce the sale of photos from the January photo shoot for those students who did not get their photos taken in August. On the All School Moodle page, you will find a folder, “Yearbook Photos 2014-15.” Parents who missed ordering last semester may also place the orders now.
Order Forms may be downloaded from Moodle or picked up at the Cash Counter. Instructions are on the order form. Complete the form, make payment and submit the form to the respective section office.
Please submit all requests for photos not later than March 6. Prints will be ready for pick up after April 12.
Community Thank You from the Girl Scouts
The Girls Scouts would like to extend their thanks and appreciation to all the students, faculty and parents who supported the Valentine's Bake Sale last Friday. We hope you enjoyed all the great goodies! Once again, the sale was a huge success. Over 50,000Rs was raised for our charity. Next Saturday, Feb. 28 the Scouts along with a few other volunteers, will be painting and constructing a library and playground for the children at Thiruvalluvar Gorukulam Home in Saidpet. The children are very excited about their coming new spaces. Our endeavors would not be possible without the generous support of our AISC community and our Chennai restaurant and hotel donors. MANY THANKS!
Robyn Treyvaud Visit - Common Sense Education - February 26-27
It’s a big, confusing digital world out there and as parents we must keep up with all the social changes to help our children safely navigate this world. To support our community with this, we have partnered with Common Sense Media and Robyn Treyvaud to tackle some of the most critical issues we face as parents. This one-of-a-kind opportunity has been made possible by PCA Distinguished Visitors Fund, and should not be missed.
Please click HERE to sign up for these sessions. Descriptions of the sessions are included in the form.
Guest Artists on Campus - After-school Workshops – From the Theater Director
From next Monday the 16th to Friday the 27th, AISC has the honor to host three artists from Sukawati village on the island of Bali. Sukawati village is the center of puppet theatre in Bali and the lead artist, I Kadek Budi Setiawan, belongs to a world renown family of Balinese puppeteers.
Kadek will be joined by his accompanists, I Komang Ariawan, and the 15 year old gamelan sensation, Made Prameswara. Over their residency they will work with art, music and theatre teachers from the elementary, middle, and high school.
Students who would like to learn more about Shadow Puppetry, Balinese Dance, and Gamelan Music are invited to take the after school workshops in the FAC theatre room 2709, from 3:45-4:45, Monday-Thursday.
Students who attend after school workshops will be invited to perform in music and puppetry with the artists at the school wide R.I.S.E. event on February 27th.
Measures of Academic Progress® Tests (March 3rd to 13th)
Beginning March 3rd, most children will take tests called Measures of Academic Progress® (MAP®). We give students in grades 2-5 MAP tests to determine each child’s instructional level and to measure academic growth throughout the school year, and from year to year in the areas of math, reading, language usage and science (grades 3 to 5). When administered at regular intervals over time, it is possible to find out whether an individual, or an entire grade level, is making satisfactory progress in these basic skill areas. Your child will take the tests on a computer.
MAP tests are unique in that they adapt to be appropriate for your child’s level of learning. As a result, each student has the same opportunity to succeed and maintain a positive attitude toward testing. The tests are not time-based but take on average 45 minutes to complete.
New parents often ask how their children can study for these tests. Really, the best way to prepare for these tests are to make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep the night before a test and has breakfast the morning of the test. These are healthy practices in general. Students cannot study for a MAP test.
MAP test scores are not reported on the elementary school report card. You will receive a MAP Student Progress Report after the Spring Break.
For more information on resources for parents, download the Parent Toolkit at www.nwea.org >> Partner Support.
Report of BOOK WEEK Celebrations
The K-2 classes were so excited about the Book Week author Ms Stringer’s visit that they decided to do a follow-up activity in collaboration with visual arts. The topic was “Bringing Pictures to Life.” Students worked on the topic, “The AQUARIUM” from “ The Carnival of the Animals”
The students expressed their creativity by creating characters for the aquarium, and then brought them to life by movement to the music.
A special Thank you to Mr. Jet and team for giving us this opportunity.
Have a great weekend and remember, there is no school for students tomorrow.
Kevin Hall
Elementary School Principal
Measures of Academic Progress® Tests (March 3rd to 13th)
Beginning March 3rd, most children will take tests called Measures of Academic Progress® (MAP®). We give students in grades 2-5 MAP tests to determine each child’s instructional level and to measure academic growth throughout the school year, and from year to year in the areas of math, reading, language usage and science (grades 3 to 5). When administered at regular intervals over time, it is possible to find out whether an individual, or an entire grade level, is making satisfactory progress in these basic skill areas. Your child will take the tests on a computer.
MAP tests are unique in that they adapt to be appropriate for your child’s level of learning. As a result, each student has the same opportunity to succeed and maintain a positive attitude toward testing. The tests are not time-based but take on average 45 minutes to complete.
New parents often ask how their children can study for these tests. Really, the best way to prepare for these tests are to make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep the night before a test and has breakfast the morning of the test. These are healthy practices in general. Students cannot study for a MAP test.
MAP test scores are not reported on the elementary school report card. You will receive a MAP Student Progress Report after the Spring Break.
For more information on resources for parents, download the Parent Toolkit at www.nwea.org >> Partner Support.
Report of BOOK WEEK Celebrations
The K-2 classes were so excited about the Book Week author Ms Stringer’s visit that they decided to do a follow-up activity in collaboration with visual arts. The topic was “Bringing Pictures to Life.” Students worked on the topic, “The AQUARIUM” from “ The Carnival of the Animals”
The students expressed their creativity by creating characters for the aquarium, and then brought them to life by movement to the music.
A special Thank you to Mr. Jet and team for giving us this opportunity.
Kevin Hall
Elementary School Principal