Friday, February 23rd, 2018



Dear Students and Parents,

We are excited for a busy weekend on campus - Cabaret and Feb Fling!

In other news, at the beginning of this school year, forty-nine Grade 9 Biology students were presented with a unique challenge by their teacher Ms Cheri Amarna: to create a student-friendly infographic for ‘Writing a Science Lab Report.’ Ultimately four students’ posters were selected for student- and teacher-choice awards. The graphic designers behind each of the winning posters were Anya Kumar, E-Shane Chew, Celia Malone, and Miu Kubota.

These four outstanding creatives collaborated for two months to finalize a design for whole-school implementation. In consultation with Ms. Amy Burchett, representing the Language Across Curriculum team, Ms Cheri and the Science Department, the four girls produced an exemplary product for all HS science classrooms that includes ‘QR Codes’ at each of the three sections for additional content and language support. ‘How to Write a Science Lab Report’ will benefit all students for years to come.

 
Course Registration for the 2018/19 School Year - Update

Last week students requested their first choice courses for next year in PowerSchool and submitted their worksheets. Unfortunately some worksheets did not have the necessary signatures to complete the process (parent and/or teacher permission). Students in such a position were notified via email along with their parents. They are expected to collect their forms from the office, collect the signatures and submit the complete form by today, Monday at the absolute latest.

Between now and the last week of March students have the chance to continue to meet with counselors and teachers to discuss their course selections. Any changes to the selection should be addressed directly through the counselors during this time period.

In the last week of March we will circulate “registration verification” sheets for students to review. This sheet will indicate which courses the student is registered for in our student information system and marks the last chance for students to make changes before the master schedule building process begins.

Next Early Release Wednesday

A quick reminder that Wednesday, March 7th, will be our next Early Release Wednesday. Students are expected to depart campus in a timely and organized fashion upon dismissal at 2:00 pm. We appreciate your patience with traffic on these days as all three sections are picking up students at the same time. In preparation, please plan on allowing longer time for entry and exit to the school at release time. For our Middle and High School students, hot lunch will be served.

At the request of the student advisory forum, the iHub will remain open until 2:30 pm as an air-conditioned place for high school students to wait for drivers. Please note that food service will continue to close at 2:10 pm.

Student to Teacher Feedback Survey - Coming Soon

On March 8th and 9th students will have the opportunity to give their teachers feedback via an anonymous survey. The first ten minutes of each class period on these dates will be dedicated to the process. As always, the schedule is arranged such that students will not complete the survey in the presence of the teacher they are giving feedback to.

Teachers will receive the feedback right after Spring Break and will share, in broad strokes, their takeaways with their classes.

Save the Date - Semester Two Student Parent Teacher Conferences

This semester we will run one full day of conferences by appointment from 8:00 am until 6:00 pm on Wednesday, March 14th in teacher classrooms. Appointments are ten minutes in length.

The link to schedule an appointment with teachers will be emailed home on Friday, March 2nd as well as included in the Principal’s Notes.

Save the Date - Raptorthon - A Note from Ms. Donna

The Fifth Annual AISC RAPTORTHON is scheduled for Sunday, March 4th from 7:00 - 10:00 am. If you are looking for a fairly easy event to motivate you to get into shape or a great reason to do something fun with your child please do participate!

Raptorthon 5 is a fun family and community event for anyone in grade 4 or older (please get permission from Coach Donna if you think your younger child can participate). This biathlon event combines swimming and running. Participants will be required to swim 150m, run 1600m then jump back in the pool and swim another 150m. People can enter as an individual or as a team of two  (one person swims and the other runs). The entry fee is 350 rupees per individual and 700 rupees per team. Late sign-up fee is 500 rupees per individual. The proceeds will be used to cover the cost of the event and any remaining money will benefit a local charity. Please bring a dish to share at Potluck Breakfast after the event. All participants will receive a certificate with their official time either at the breakfast or it can be collected from my office the following week. You can sign up here to participate.

Upcoming Event - Freedom from Chemical Dependency Visit - Repeat Announcement

​As part of our health education program and ongoing commitment to prevention and wellness, each year we invite a trained prevention specialist from FCD Prevention Works to join our community. FCD is a non-profit organization that provides substance abuse prevention education for schools. Their mission is to:

  • Encourage and support the non-use of alcohol and other illegal or illicit drugs during the growing years
  • Empower young people to make healthy, responsible choices regarding alcohol and other drug use
  • Teach students and adults how to recognize the early warning signs of substance abuse and to intervene appropriately
  • Educate students, parents, teachers and administrators on the physiological and psychological effects of alcohol and other drugs

The prevention specialist will be meeting with students in Grades 9-12 during the week of February 26 - March 2. Their aim is to provide students with the knowledge, understanding, and skills they need to make intelligent, healthy choices about alcohol and other drug use. During that time, they will meet with Grade 9 students over 2 lunch periods, Grade 10 students will be excused from 1/2 of 2 class blocks, Grade 11 students over 2 lunch periods and will have a special session with Grade 12 students on Saturday morning from 10am-12pm. A special session with Grade 12 parents will also be held on Saturday morning at 9:00am. Finally, the specialist will lead a MS/HS Parent Coffee on Thursday, March 1st, from 8:45 - 9:45 am in the Madras Hall.

Counselor's Corner

Summer program information for 2018 is now available. Counselors will add to this list as more information is shared with them. Check out the listing here: Summer Programs 2018

Joelle Basnight
High School Principal