Upcoming MS Conferences
by Dennis Harter
dennish@isb.ac.th
Looking ahead several weeks, we are excited to be hosting the Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences on October 3rd and 4th. The conferences are a chance for teachers to engage in conversation with you about your child’s learning. On these days, school will not be in session for students. We strongly encourage that your child join you for the conferences to hear the feedback themselves and to provide insight into how they are doing (they do not have to dress in uniform).
For these conferences we use the “arena” format for conferences. This means that almost all MS teachers will be in one venue. Parents attend a single two-hour session, during which they can see all of their child’s teachers. A few “shared” teachers with the HS, may be in the high school venue on the Friday.
Conferences will take place in the “new” sports complex gymnasium, near the 50 m pool, with tables, chairs, and refreshments set up for this purpose.
In order to find a balance between access to teachers and wait time, we require parents sign up for sessions of ~2 hours. We limit the number of parents from a grade level per session, to help ensure that teachers have time to see everyone in the block and that parents aren’t waiting in lines too long.
Both days have three blocks each with short breaks built in for teachers to re-energize after all that talking! The short breaks also allow our teacher-parents to briefly attend their own child’s conferences in other divisions.
More information will come out about conferences in the coming weeks. Sign-ups will take place in the week of September 23rd (still weeks away).
Enjoy the long weekend!
By Cindy Plantecoste, MS Vice Principal
In the spirit of helping our students to find balance, there are a few times in the year when we don’t run activities on campus or assign home learning to our students. This three-day weekend is our first ‘activity free weekend’ of the year. For this reason, our teachers did not assign any home learning on Wednesday or Thursday of this week. We hope they will use this opportunity to relax, have some fun, and connect with family and friends!
Repeat Announcement: Screening of Love and Bananas
ISB is thrilled to host a very special screening of the highly acclaimed documentary “Love and Bananas.” This documentary focuses on the work of conservationist Sandeun “Lek” Chailert and the rescue of Asian elephants from cruel captivity. In addition to the movie we are honored that Kuhn Lek will join us for this event.
Date: September 18, 2019
Time: 6:30 PM (duration: 1 hour 15 mins)
Location: Cultural Center Theater
The screening is open to the community and free of charge (donations are optional on the evening or at Elephant Nature Park website (https://www.elephantnaturepark.org/).
The movie is unrated, and the director has intentionally kept the graphic content low to enable reach of the next generation of animal advocates. However, at ISB we regularly refer to Common Sense Media which recommends the age of 13+ for viewing this.
Here is an outline from Common Sense Media:
Parents need to know that Love & Bananas: An Elephant Story is a 2018 documentary about the work conservationist Lek Chailert is doing to rescue Asian elephants from cruel captivity. There are some intense scenes in which young elephants are shown being taken from their mothers, then placed in a “crush box” where they are beaten with sticks and chains for 24 hours straight until they are “broken” for training — to be ridden by tourists or taught to perform in circuses. There are scenes of elephants who have lost legs from stepping on landmines, whose legs are bloodied from abuse, and whose bodies are scarred from abuse at the hands of humans. An elephant who lost an eye from getting hit with a slingshot is shown. These scenes and discussion of the cruelty and exploitation that Asian elephants suffer might be too intense for younger viewers and sensitive animal lovers of any age. Overall, this informative documentary showcases the positive work that conservationist Lek Chailert has achieved by rescuing elephants from cruel captivity and keeping them safe and happier in nature preserves where they’re free to move around and frolic with other elephants.
LA TIMES: “Impossible to come away from unchanged”
NY TIMES : “Emotionally Charged”
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/26/movies/love-and-bananas-review-asian-elephants.html
