FRIDAY NEWSLETTER from Secondary – 8th Sept 2017

Week 5-Celebrating our diversity

What a wonderful way to start our week-a celebration of who we are, where we have come from and where we are going!  It was so fantastic to see all of the smiling faces in their national dress as our student body paraded through our campus celebrating the diversity that makes BIS the truly special place that it is.  It was wonderful to experience all of the different cultural activities, information and of course the food!  The International fair that followed shows how committed our community is to BIS and how much they give back to the school and our students.  Our ability to come together, engage with each other’s cultures and share our distinct national pride was so evident during the student’s interaction with each national booth.  Thank you again to everyone who made this such a special event.

BIS Literacy Day

Today we celebrated literacy day here at BIS. We have been incorporating reading comprehension into our homerooms each week, ask you student about the Kahoot Challenge! Today we looked at the importance of literacy throughout the day, we had some of our secondary students read to primary students, poems were recited and performed during BIS Live, a 10 word story challenge was taken on by our students, sustained silent reading went on in classes and Mr. Marshall received resource recommendations from our students. Literacy is a key component to learning and I encourage all of our students and parents to commit to 20 minutes of sustained reading a day!

How do we learn Best?

Learning takes on many forms. How do we internalize what we learn and make it a part of who we are? Like any activity, learning takes time, practice and reinforcement. However, what are some of the most effective ways in which we can help our students practice/prepare how to learn? Make it Stick is a text dedicated to the science of learning. One of the steps that it highlights as most effective is a consistent, short testing of one’s ability in relation to the task that was just ‘learned.’ This links to the idea of quick and consistent formative assessments and feedback. By testing ourselves we truly get to see where we are in relation to the ideas we have just been exposed to. I am including a short link to a clip and the first chapter of this text. I would welcome any further discussion about this topic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNHBMFCzznE

Chapter 1 – Make_It_Stick_The_Science_of_Successful_Learning

EOTC Week is Coming!

We are less than 2 weeks away from our EOTC Week.  Having had the chance to sit in on each of the planning and parent sessions I am quite jealous of the fact that I did not have a chance to do this as a student and that I am only able to go on one of the trips this year!  Information has been sent out via the Enews and also through our parent emails.  Your students have also been receiving a great deal of information in their Homerooms and during MYP and DP hour.  Please ask them what they are most excited about.

BIS Live to Start Again!

After numerous requests from students we are going to be starting up BIS live again in the near future.  For those of you new to BIS, like myself, BIS Live is an opportunity for our students and faculty members to highlight their artistic abilities outside of the classroom in front of a live audience.  If you have a talented youngster at home make sure to encourage their participation.

BIS College and University Fair

Please join us in the afternoon of Friday September 15th for our annual BIS College and University Fair. We have some great institutions joining us this year from 17 different countries. All students from Grades 9-12 will be attending the fair.

There will be two rounds of workshops from 1:10-2:45 and booths in the covered courts area from 2:45 to 4:15. Please encourage your Grade 9-12 child to attend the booths section after school hours.

Please click here for the list of attending institutions and workshop schedule. Parents are welcome to attend both.

For any questions email me at counselor@baliis.net.

BIS College & University Fair 2017 Online

Parent Information Session-Introduction to the Diploma Programme