Friday, September 11, 2015

Dear Community Members,

We will host our first parent coffee of the school year on Tuesday, beginning at 8:45 in the Elementary School Cafeteria. As you are likely aware, the school has adopted a new math resource called, Bridges. If you would like to learn more about this resource, then please plan to come to this information session which will be led Bridges experts Pia Hanson and Jenn Christiansen from The Math Learning Center.

Edmodo

We will be moving over to Edmodo as our default communication tool on September 18th. If you have not registered with Edmodo, you may potentially miss out on important announcements and class activities. This week, families received a direct email containing sign-up instructions. If you did not receive the email, please contact itsupport@aisch.org.

UN International Peace Day

The official UN International Peace Day is September 21, but AISC will celebrate it on Friday, September 18. The UN created this day to strengthen the ideals of peace. This year's theme for the day is "Partnerships for Peace – Dignity for All." There will be a Graffiti Wall on the outside of the High School CIC facing the fountain courtyard. Students, parents, faculty - all community members - can share their thoughts, images, examples of what "Dignity for All" means to them. This wall will be up and ready starting on Tuesday, September 15. 

UN Day, Friday, September 18

The preparations for UN Day are moving forward as the date approaches. The Parade Coordinator is creating a spectacular experience for the community as we celebrate our diversity. Country Coordinators are working hard to create an engaging experience for our students at the Country Pavilions. 

Country Coordinators may be contacting you regarding the dress for UN Day. Wearing national dress is not mandatory, but many countries do dress up. Please see the PCA Blog for your Country Coordinator's name and contact information if you have questions. 

Below is a parent schedule for that day, specifically for PCA Country Coordinators and Country Pavilion Volunteers.

Thursday, September 17:

10:00 -8:00 pm: MC E & F are open for PCA Country Coordinators and Country Pavilion volunteers to store things in.

5:00-8:00 pm: The Gym is open for set up for PCA Country Coordinators and Country Pavilion volunteers. Maintenance staff will be available with flat beds to help move items. 

Friday, September 18

8:00-8:30: Normal drop off for students

8:30: Parents move to the FAC Auditorium to watch the UN Day Parade (seating is limited, and we will have spill over locations with TVs and streaming video of the parade)

9:00-10:00: PCA Country Coordinators can access Gym for Final Set Up of Country Pavilions

10:00: Parade ends

10:30: UN Day Country Pavilions Begin

3:15: UN Day Country Pavilions End

4:00: UN Day Country Pavilions must be removed. Gym is ready for ASAs.

Elementary school and middle school students are scheduled to come to the Country Pavilions with their classroom teachers between 10:30am-3:15pm. High school students will have the option of coming during their lunch. 

Dot Day

Our school is celebrating “Dot Day” on September 15th, along with more than three million students in over 100 countries! It is one of the largest displays of worldwide creativity on a single day.

Inspiration for Dot Day comes from Peter H. Reynold’s book, The Dot. In this book, a young girl named Vashti, stares at her blank paper in art class, unable to create anything due to self-doubt. A caring teacher encourages her to “make a mark” and see where it leads.  Reluctantly, Vashti draws a single dot, only to find it framed in gold the next day. Determined to create a better masterpiece, Vashti challenges herself to make many other types of dots. What begins as a dot transforms into a magnificent art show. Vashti’s powerful journey of self-discovery even inspires another child in the book to be creative and take risks. He is not alone. Millions of inspired readers have been celebrating Dot Day ever since.

AISC’s mission to “empower all students with the courage, confidence, creativity, and compassion to make their unique contribution in a diverse and dynamic world” is why we embrace Dot Day.  Please click here for more information about Dot Day celebrations at AISC.

Here comes Big Bad Blue!!!

On Friday, September 18th from 4-6pm and Saturday, September 19th from 8:30am-5:30pm, we will be hosting the12th Annual Big Bad Blue Swim Meet here at AISC. Friday evening there will be 4 events swum by our AISC Team and on Saturday we will welcome 9 local teams to join us in a full day of competitive splendor. We invite the community to join us to cheer on our teams as they prepare for their SAISA competition in Muscat, Oman at the end of October.

Indian Month Photo Display

October is, “Celebrate India Month.” All Students and Faculty can submit photos for the India Month Photo Display. Please submit a picture of India that you have taken (with you in the picture or not). These photos can be shared hard copy or digitally. Please upload the image to http://tiny.cc/tntp2x or drop of the hardcopy with Pradeep. These images will be displayed during the month of October. The deadline for submission is October 5.

Students will be performing in one assembly during India Month.  Students in KG-2 will perform on October 21 from 8:45 to 9:45 and students in grades 3-5 will perform on October 28, also from 8:45 to 9:45. Both assemblies will be held in the FAC Auditorium. 

Fall Break Shopping Ideas

We encourage children to wear Indian clothing on the day of their performance, but this is not mandatory. Also in October, on the 30th, we will have a Halloween Celebration in the afternoon. Students may bring a costume to school that they change in to after lunch. We do ask students not to wear scary costumes and to leave toy weapons at home. Fall break may be a good time to pick up Indian clothing and a costume.

Have a great weekend!

Kevin Hall

Elementary School Principal