Dear Students and Parents,
Please note that as all high school students will be on Discover India next week these notes cover from Monday, September 24th through Friday, October 12th.
Congratulations to the honorees for September Vision for an AISC Learner recognition! September is honoring 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.
Grade 12: Shruthi Chandrasekar - As part of her Passion Project, Shruti noticed that students in a public middle school have the ability to learn Math and English at a more rigorous level, but due to the lack of resources were not able to do so. In order to make a difference, she has been conducting research, by connecting with educators and the public school teachers, to see how she is best positioned to make an impact. Shruti’s ability to change her course based on new critical information and view the solutions from multiple perspectives reflect the qualities of being an active thinker.
Grade 11: Neila Cuillevers - Neila is thoughtful and critical and can offer creative solutions and extend thinking through her questions. She is interested in deep thinking; her engagement with the material is genuine, she is open to ideas and incorporates them into her evaluations and reflections. It is great to see her modeling this for her classmates!
Grade 10: Vikram Noronha - Vikram is always thinking about how and why things work, how to make them work better, and what he can do about it. His deep level of question and scientific way of breaking apart an issue in order to understand its genesis, help him to truly understand ideas.
Grade 9: Lekhana Gogineni - Lekhana wants to understand the world around her and therefore ask clarifying and probing questions. She truly exemplifies AISC's vision of a Thinker, through her critical analysis and creative problem-solving. Her thinking goes beyond the classroom, as she strives to think of ways to make the world a better place.
Discover India Drop Off/Pick Up Reminder
The travel details are available here. In case of emergencies, please contact Ryan McFarland at +91 98405 38553. Remember that no news is actually good news!
Next Progress Update
The next Progress Update will be on Friday, October 12th. Please keep in mind that only two weeks of instruction have occured between the last Update and this one. As such, it could be that few additional assessments have been added to grade books.
Meet Nick Pollman
Nick Pollman is from Fairfax, Virginia and is an EAL teacher in the High School. After graduating with a BA in English Literature, Mr. Nick decided to go on an adventure with the Peace Corps in China. It was there that he became inspired by the passion and resilience of students who were learning English and decided to go into EAL teaching. Mr. Nick is thrilled to see shy and nervous students begin laughing, making friends and communicating in as they acquire a new language. A little known fact about Nick is that he loves durian, and he eats as much of it as he can whenever he is in Malaysia, the country his mother is from. If Mr. Nick could have one superpower, it would be to teach a full school day without coffee! He is pretty sure that would be impossible without a superpower!
Discovery Day - A Note from Mr. McFarland
The High School will have a Discovery Day on Friday, October 19th. During this day students choose from a menu of activities that include service, academic and creative pursuits not directly tied to the regular curriculum. This is a great chance for students to explore something new! Attendance on this day is expected and absences will be noted for a B6 day.
Students will be asked to make their Discovery Day selections late in the week prior to the event. Students should check their school Gmail accounts for more information.
Student to Teacher Feedback Coming Soon
On Monday and Tuesday, October 22 and 23, all students will complete anonymous surveys to give feedback to their teachers. Students will complete the survey in the first few moments of class and will evaluate teachers as per the following schedule:
October 22nd:
Block 3 - survey for Block 4 teacher
Block 4 - survey for Block 1 teacher
Block 1 - survey for Block 2 teacher
Block 2 - survey for Block 3 teacher
October 23rd:
Block 7 - survey for Block 8 teacher
Block 8 - survey for Block 5 teacher
Block 5 - survey for block 6 teacher
Block 6 - survey for block 7 teacher
As always, students are encouraged to be honest in their evaluation as well as specific and appropriate in their comments. The teachers take the student feedback very seriously and the administration reads all results. We hope that students take advantage of this important opportunity to give actionable feedback.
Next Early Release Wednesday Coming - Repeat Announcement
The next Early Release Wednesday will be on October 10th. 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. Please note that the iHub will be open to provide an air conditioned waiting space until 2:40 pm in case drivers are delayed. Food services in the iHub will close at 1:50 pm.
Sincerely,
Joelle Basnight
High School Principal
