Dear Students and Parents,
As the High School is closed next week for Discover India please know that the next newsletter will be published on Friday, October 6th.
Please join me in congratulating our new National Honor Society honorees! The students qualified for the honor because of their exemplary scholarship, leadership, character and service. Congratulations to: Gyanendra Sengar, Harin Jeong, Isha Suresh, JooHee Lee, Manav Chandravarthy, Nithya Gogineni, Pranav Unni, Vinay Sriram, Yeji Han, Amore Tripaathy, Hee Won Hwang, Johui Hwang, Junwon Choi, Beomseok Cha and SeungYoon Oh.
Please also join me in thanking our amazing student council for a very cool Spirit Week. Here are some pictures taken by Ms. Shannon for the dress up days!
Finally, this month we honored four students who epitomized our description of a THINKER in our Vision for an AISC Learner. We honored them with a certificate and a sustainable gift - a plant! Specifically, in the classroom thinkers:
Thinkers are those students who examine information critically and creatively to analyze and take considered action to solve problems in the classroom. These students exercise initiative in making reasoned, ethical and data-informed decisions. Thinkers may demonstrate their thinking by being thoroughly prepared and well informed, by asking clarifying questions, by deeply engaging with the material taught in class, by considering information and ideas from multiple perspectives and thus increasing understanding.
Here is a description of each student writing by the faculty member(s) who put forward a nomination!
Grade 9 - Hee Sun Hwang - Hee Sun is a student who researches and thinks through an issue before forming an opinion. She is not swayed by what other people think, but instead looks at each angle of an idea, analyzing the situation and then coming up with an idea or theory. She does not shy away from the difficult questions and supports her ideas with evidence. Throughout her time at AISC, she has continued to be engaged in her learning and is a good example to her peers.
Grade 10 - Advika Srinivasan - Advika always engages deeply with the material. She makes sure she understands everything by asking clarifying questions. When she presents, her work is thorough, and original. She doesn't just take in knowledge, but makes it her own by engaging with it, which requires higher thinking (comparisons and synthesis).
Grade 11 - Max Harrison - Beneath Max's relatively quiet and relaxed exterior lies a deep thinker who truly strives to understand complex content and connect it to prior knowledge and world experience. His questions and comments demonstrate critical thinking and a deep understanding of the concepts we are discussing in class, and this is also reflected in his written work.
Grade 12 - Uday Saharia - During discussions and collaborative work, Uday is always willing to share his ideas. He thinks through situations and questions thoroughly before forming opinions. His insights are well thought out and supported with evidence from the text. He is also collaborative and puts effort into including others in discussions by asking questions, allowing time for all people to speak, offering supporting opinions, as well as respectfully disagreeing at times.
Parent Coffee - Follow Up Information from the Counselors
Thank you to all who attended our parent coffee this week! The workshop gave parents an opportunity to collaborate by sharing thoughts about challenges and what has worked well when communicating with their teens. See notes here for some of what came up! Counselors shared tips and actions parents might take to help with positive communication in this presentation. A big tip: Listen. Pause. Paraphrase. Pause. Pose Question. Repeat. We hope to see you at the next parent coffee in October!
Discover India Reminders
We have 17 different Discover India trips departing later this week for all corners of India from the Andamans to Ladakh. They will experience a huge range of activities from getting to know parts of India culture better to exploring remote rivers and mountains. We had our last group meetings this week to check in about anything they may need to have packed, reminding about when to meet and other trip-specific details. Here are some informational items you might find helpful.
- The departure and return times for dropping off and picking up students from the school. Please note: students may not be picked up at the airport.
- Each day Ms. Priya will email out a very brief notification to parents of the status. We apologize that there won't be much detail, but since some trips are in remote areas with poor connectivity we feel it is best to not have only those share photos and trip news while others are unheard. So, as difficult as it may be, please know that no news is actually good news! If you have questions while we're away please contact Priya spriya@aischennai or Monicka dmonicka@aischennai.
- If you need any trip specific information, please reach out to the staff members that are on your child's trip. They have been in touch with the operators and will be able to answer most questions you might have. If you have broader questions about Discover India, you can also reach out to me at mryan@aischennai.org though I will be off on one of the trips and largely out of touch next week.
University Information Session brought to you by AISC High School Counseling Department
Students & parents are cordially invited to an informational program with representatives from the Undergraduate Admission Offices of Columbia University and University of Pennsylvania. Admissions officers will address issues of particular concern to students applying from India. Topics to be covered include: academic programs, admission policies, student life, costs and financial aid. There will be a general question and answer period as well as an opportunity to speak with individual representatives. For more information, click this link! Join us in Madras Hall on Thursday, October 5th at 4:00pm!
Progress Update - PowerSchool Navigation
The next progress update will take place on Friday, October 6th. Grades will be as up to date as possible with all relevant information posted by 4:00 pm that afternoon. For those of you who may have missed the link to the presentation explaining how to navigate PowerSchool, here is the presentation. Simply click the arrow at the bottom left and the presentation will start. There is a little lag time between each slide so please be patient.
Screening of the documentary “Screenagers” - A repeat announcement
Due to popular demand, we are happy to announce that we will be hosting a second screening for parents of the documentary film Screenagers, at a parent coffee on Thursday the 5th of October from 8:45 to 10:30 am in the Madras Hall. The film explores how screen time impacts kids’ development and offers solutions on how adults can empower kids to best navigate the digital world and find balance. Parents who have seen the film have said they now feel more confident and better equipped to establish balance around screen time.
All grade 9 students will watch the film and participate in discussions about it that week in Freshman Seminar classes.The film will be viewed with Korean subtitles.
Next Early Release Wednesday - Repeat Announcement
A quick reminder that Wednesday, September 27th, will be our next Early Release Wednesday. The High School will not be in session due to Discover India but please do make note if you have younger children. The next early release day is October 11th.
Discovery Day - Repeat Announcement
On Friday, October 6th, the High School will suspend our usual routine so that students can participate in Discovery Day. This special event happens once per semester and attendance is required. Students have a menu of activities to choose from - from volunteering at Blue Cross to practicing mindfulness to engaging in field study off campus - and the hope is that students will get a chance to explore something different each time.
Joelle Basnight
High School Principal
