One Day is coming!
On May 16th, ISB MS students will be engaged in the 2nd annual ISB One Day. ONE DAY is a great opportunity for our MS students to choose an idea to focus on for an entire school day.
Besides being aligned with our school’s definition of learning, many other reasons make this a great opportunity.
- It’s fun.
- It fosters creativity and innovation
- It gives kids a sense of ownership and voice.
- It fosters intrinsic motivation.
- It highlights talents and interests that don’t necessarily get revealed at school that often.
- It’s a great place to develop 21st century skills like collaboration, problem-solving, and project
management.
For the next few weeks during advisory, students will identify topics of their choice and brainstorm ideas to develop a product or project to complete for ONE DAY. Some possible projects include:
- Make a Rube Goldberg machine
- Write a song and perform it
- Write and performing a one-person
comedy act or play - Write a story and publish it
- Create a podcast to tell a story for children
- Create a podcast or movie about a science
topic or experiment you tested - Create a podcast or movie on an important
environmental issue - Create a new App.
- Create a new board game
- Create a new piece of art
- Create a website to share or teach
something educational - Sew or knit a handicraft for charity
- Choreograph a new dance and perform it
- Create a how-to tutorial on how to bake or
cook a recipe - Build a model of an interesting landmark
- Research and present on a topic you
are passionate about
Students will be working on their projects in various venues throughout the day on Thursday, May 16, so we invite you to visit and see our amazing students enthusiastically pursue their passions!
The next day, Friday, May 17th in the afternoon, students will showcase their work. Please come to the showcase to see what the MS students created.
See what kids did in just One Day last year in this video. You can also see last year’s student projects at the ISB One Day website.
“Sharenting” – what should parents post about their children?
In our Wellness classes, we discuss social media use, and the influence social media can have on our mental and physical health – both positively and negatively. In grade 8 these conversations have been happening recently. In grades 6 & 7, they will look at digital citizenship a few weeks after Songkran.
Students learn the THINK model for deciding if a post is responsible and kind, and understanding the role of teen brain development and the influence of technology. We are looking at how to prevent cyberbullying, and have a healthy relationship with social media and technology.
Many parents are also highly engaged on social media platforms, and yet we spend little time considering this question: “do parents have the right to post any picture of their child on social media accounts without the child’s knowledge and/or consent?” It’s an interesting question.
To help you contemplate this, here is an article about Gwyneth Paltrow and her daughter, Apple. They publicly had a disagreement over a photo Gwyneth posted of Apple. While the celebrity factor brings this disagreement to the public’s attention, gossip aside, it does raise interesting questions about our own role as parents in helping our students manage their online presence.
The article closes with this thought:
“We are equally responsible for ensuring the way our kids are represented online is in their best interest, not ours. Checking if your child is comfortable with the photo you want to post of them online can be a quick, win-win conversation. It also sets up a great, respectful approach to digital etiquette. And we all know that the world needs more of that.”
Reflecting on our own beliefs around social media is important as we teach our children to be responsible digital citizens. How we model reflection and consensual online posting, helps our children learn how to manage this themselves.
We encourage conversations at home about social media in your family. The more we talk about it, the more we can make and model safe decisions for everyone.
ISB Middle School Health & Wellness Teachers
Mid-Semester Teacher Comments on Student Progress
by Cindy Plantecoste, MS Dean of Academics
As part of our communication timeline on student progress, teacher comments related to your child’s learning will be available on PowerSchool as of Monday, April 22nd. These comments are an important component of our learning feedback system as they specifically address areas of strength, areas to target for growth, and specific strategies that your child can take to demonstrate further progress. During the week of April 22nd, during advisory, your child will participate in a reflection and goal setting process based on the mid-semester comments. We encourage you to review the comments and your child’s reflection together so that you can engage in a rich discussion around his/her learning.
Here is how you can access the comments:
Songkran Holidays – No School
On behalf of the Middle School Faculty and Staff, we wish you a Happy Songkran Holiday – safe travels, rest and fun for all!
School will be closed all of next week, April 15-19.
School will resume on Monday, April 22nd and will be a Day 1 for Middle School.
Selling Band Instruments
By Kentaro Udagawa
Contact Email: kentarou@isb.ac.th
Dear ISB Bands families,
Next year’s grade 6 band students will soon be hoping to purchase instruments for next year. Some will be looking for second-hand instruments to purchase.
If you have band instruments in good condition that you wish to sell (flute, oboe, bassoon, clarinet, alto/tenor/baritone saxophone, trumpet, French horn, trombone, euphonium/baritone, tuba and/or percussion kit), please contact <kentarou@isb.ac.th> and bring your instruments to the MS band rooms (#119 or 107, first floor in the Cultural Center) before Friday, May 10 for us to evaluate and give an estimated price. We will then send a list of available instruments to parents who are interested in purchasing second-hand instruments.
Please be advised that we are not able to guarantee that all instruments will be sold due to the condition or interested buyers.
If you have further questions, please feel free to write to <kentarou@isb.ac.th>.
Kentaro Udagawa and Brent Poling, MS Band
Summer School 2019 – Reminder, Last Day For Early Bird Tuition Price is Friday, April 26th…
Dear Parents,
Summer School registration for session 2 already has a waiting list in several classes and others are almost full.
If you are planning to enroll your child(ren) in summer school at ISB, reminder, our Early Bird tuition fee applies to all registrations received by end of day on Friday, April 26th.
You can click here to access all information about dates, programs, and fees, and to submit a registration form online.
Our Summer School Office is located through the door on the right side of the ISB Bookstore where Khun Fon will be there to greet and assist you Monday to Fridays, 7:00 – 3:00pm.
For any questions, please email sumdir@isb.ac.th
Best Regards,
Mr. Maurilio Baron-Toaldo
Summer School Director