The 2011-12 School Year is Underway!

October 2, 2011


Dear AIS Families,

We are well underway and almost one month of school has passed.  Many exciting Professional and Social Development (PSD) opportunities are taking place during Block #1 of Wednesday afternoon.  To name a few:

• Dance in Your Pants
• American Football
• Bowling
• Games
• Jump Rope
• Chinese Callgraphy
• Paper Airplanes
• Board Games
• Choir    

Our first "Understanding by Design" units have been completed in English Language Arts and we are quite excited about the depth of understanding our students are receiving as a result of this researched-based approach to teaching and learning.   Plans are taking place for our upcoming "Cultural Fair" which will be held on November 25th.  We hope to see all of our families attend this evening event that is guaranteed to be fun for EVERYONE.  Following "Cultural Fair" our Elementary "Winter Celebration" is scheduled for the evening of December 9th in the school hall.  

Grade Five House Captains have been selected after a very close election.  Congratulations to Giovanni, Jaime and Amber. Currently all of our G1J-5 students are working very hard to earn "House Points" by demonstrating behaviors that reflect the character traits of our character education program, "Second Steps."  As a reminder the trait for October is "Assertiveness."

Mark the date for October 13th as AIS will host its first "Volunteer Parent Program."  If you plan to attend please complete and submit the RSVP form to the school's main office. This form is available on the school website.  We hope to see as many parents as possible attend this event.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of further assistance.  Thank you parents for your continued support.

Sincerely,

Beckie Bouchard,
AIS ES Principal

AIS Elementary School Production

Dear AIS Families,

On the heels of Cultural Fair, Grade Level Assemblies, Parent/Teacher Conferences, World Vision events and fundraising activities, the Elementary School is pleased to announce it annual production entitled, "One Ocean, One World" on December 10, 2010.  It may well be the first ever original work at AIS from start to finish.

The setting for this unique musical production takes place in "the ocean" whereby the creatures come alive and reenact various important messages for all human beings.  Watch carefully and listen!

The lyrics for each of the songs were written by Grade 1 Jr. teacher, Mr. John Urquhart with help from Mr. Orlando Salazar.  The music was composed and arranged by HOD VPA, Mr. Edwin Edpalina and each grade level's classroom teacher choreographed his/her own excerpt that is seen on stage.  Grade 5 teacher, Miss Sarah Sullivan prepared the backdrops and parents supported in the costume readiness for their children.  Grade 5 teacher, Mr. Troy Decoff was the overseer of stage preparation and timing and final kudos are extended to Mr. Hilton Chan for sound and Miss Christensen for her support with the stage lighting.

Enjoy this performance and have a wonder Winter Holiday Season AIS!  See you in 2011!

Upcoming Events!

Dear Parents and Students of AIS,

What a great time everyone had at the cultural fair this last weekend.  Under the tutelage of Mr. Edpalina, our student performances were absolutely incredible.  Many thanks to you the parents for your support in attendance of one of the year's biggest events. 

A few little reminders about upcoming events appear as follows:
1) Grade 3 Assembly (Mr. Ng and Miss Christensen's class)
2) November 30, from 11:30 - 1:15 as part of the Annual World Vision program, the AIS High School "Human Rights Club" will be help facilitate greater learning on the part of our grades 3-5 students regarding healthcare. 
3) December 4 - "World Vision" bake sale to be arranged by Grade 5.  Proceeds go toward "World Vision."
4) December 10 - Elementary School Program
4) Winter Break takes place beginning December 18th to return on January 2, 2011.

Next Week is Cultural Fair!

November 12, 2010


Dear Parents and Students of AIS Elementary School,

This has been a busy but fun-filled week as we are preparing for the upcoming Cultural Fair and Elementary School Production.  A few reminders follow:

1) Mr. Fox will be sending home important information regarding school uniforms.  Please read through this thoroughly and if you have questions do not hesitate to contact the main office.  These requirements will be strongly reinforced by all staff here at AIS.  Our uniforms represent the pride in self and school we want our students to have.

2) Our Grade 5 students were provided with a hands-on Science demonstration on November 11th.  They explored the simililarities between a pig and human's respiratory system discussing the function of its section as it was dissected.

3) Literacy Updates - Mr. Adams continues to work with students and is beginning to get into the classrooms to help provide teachers with professional development support.  See photo above.  He also has his own weblink now available and will be posting "tips" and "strategies" for you to use at home.  Remember, educating students is a shared responsibility between home and school.  Below is a direct link for you to use.

http://www.ais.edu.hk/contentPage.aspx?pageId=82725&sectionId=840

4) Parents, if your children ride bus "1" or "1A" please remind them to line up and wait for their bus when they are dismissed.  The area does not lend itself to play at this time of day and we want to help insure all students and adults who are in the area are safe.   Thank you for your support in this matter.

5) White boards were recently purchased for elementary students.  These are to be used in the classroom only for instructional purpose and can greatly assist the teacher in determining if a student grasps a concept when taught. 

Enjoy the fall weather and have a wonderful weekend.

Ms. Bouchard

Week At A Glance!

Dear AIS Families,

Please find the following updates and reminders below:

ECE 1&2 and Grade 1 Jr. Halloween Parade
Due to the threat of a typhoon our ECE 1, 2 and Grade 1 Jr.s students were unable to participate in our annual Halloween parade that was held on Friday, October 22nd prior to Fall Break. However, on Friday November 5th, a major celebration commenced for our primary students. In spite of the rain, over 75 students from five classrooms participated by dressing up and holding their own parade.  Our young princesses, pirates and knights were all superbly dressed for this event and a good time was had by one and all.  Many thanks to the numerous primary parents who showed up for the event and for helping to make this a memorable occasion for our young AISHK children. Your support and the food were duly noted and appreciated.

Fall Parent Conferences and Parent Support
It was reaffirming to see so many parents in attendance of our parent evening conferences on Wednesday and Thursday evening this past week. It was truly a pleasure meeting each of you who stopped by my office and offered your personal support. If you are wondering how you might get further involved in parent programs please feel free to contact our PTA President, Mrs. Becky Lau for additional information. 

Dismissal Procedures and Green Passing Area
Due to the high activity that occurs between students, adults, and buses at dismissal times near the elementary section for safety reasons we ask for your assistance and help to enforce the following rules:

*No running on the green passing area.
*No ball activity permitted afterschool
*No running at dismissal time until after the buses have left.

As a reminder, in December we will officially be switching to our Fall Uniforms and the new AISHK blazers will be available.  Check them out! 

EARCOS in Sabah, Malaysia

Hello AIS Family Members:

I am currently attending a leadership conference in Malaysia and would love to share just one of my new learnings with you.

Sunday's dynamic speaker Dr. Yong Zhao challenges us to think deeply about education.  Did you know that from the time a child completes 8th grade he/she has approximately 2 million minutes to be involved in learning experiences that will profoundly shape the child's future? 

Other ideas Dr. Zhao raised for us to think about was what education should look like in the age of globalization? He inspires us to generate local solutions for local challenges, consider our students as global entrepreneurs and to make learning real without too much emphasis on test scores!  What matters are the 3 T's:
1) Technology
2) Talent
3) Tolerance

The following questions were posed for consideration:
What else can our school offer?
What talents can we produce that others cannot?
What dreams do our children have? 
What do our children want to become vs. what we want them to become?

As you can see with most effective speakers, Dr. Zhao leaves us with a great deal to ponder and his message was most appropriate for the EARCOS theme this year, "A Place Called School in 2030."

Hope to see you all at Parent Conferences this week.

Ms. Bouchard :)

Literacy Matters!!!!

Dear AIS Families,

As we prepare for the upcoming Fall Break I thought I would share with you some information you may/may not be aware of regarding a brand new position this year for the Elementary School.  It is with great pride that for the first time in the history of AIS Elementary School, we can now say we have our very own Literacy Coach. Indeed it is a valuable role: one that currently supports our students who are struggling with reading but will evolve into one that is in direct support of teachers who are in front of our students daily. A Literacy Coach is a “collaborative consultant.”


You may question why having a Literacy Coach important? Research states, “There is growing evidence that coaching leads to changes in teachers’ instructional practice and then to increased literacy achievement for children.” (Paglinco, Bach, Hovde, Rosenblum, Saunders, & Supovitz, 2003). Teaching a child to learn to read is a complex process and needs to be reinforced daily at home and at school. In Grades Grade 1 Jr. through Grades 3 students acquire reading skills in both reading fluency and comprehension that are needed to become confident readers. From Grade 3 on, this skill is applied not only in Language Arts but extends into other subject areas. As adults, we already know the strategies needed when we encounter a word we don’t know the meaning of or how to sound a word out but for many of our students they are in the process of learning these strategies. It is absolutely essential that a child be taught and understands how to use these strategies in order to become good readers.
Here at AIS we are very fortunate to have the expertise of Mr. Adams as our Literacy Coach to work alongside our students and teachers in direct support of literacy. Additionally, Mr. Adams possesses a wealth of information and suggestions that he is eager to share with you, our parents.
In closing, I invite you to visit Mr. Adam’s weblink where you can become acquainted with him, learn about our school’s literacy efforts and upcoming events. Furthermore I invite you to stop by and introduce yourself to Mr. Adams. The relationship between home and school is that of a true partnership. Thank you AIS parents for being active partners in the education of our children. They are our future!

Ms. Bouchard,
Elementary Principal, American International School Hong Kong