Songkran – time to refresh and renew

This week our Thai class students have hosted assemblies for each of our grade levels celebrating Songkran. Students shared the important traditions of Songkran, including the Rod-Nam ceremony to show respect to teachers and elders and the symbolic cleansing and renewal properties of water as we start the Buddhist New Year.  

It has been wonderful to see our ISB Values on display at these assemblies, including:

• the courage of our student emcees and performers,
• the respect shown to the traditions of Thailand,
• the care of our audience as they encouraged and applauded each performance and performer,
• the gratitude our students showed their departing teachers as they were each acknowledged.

As a middle school, we are collectively grateful for the hard work of our students and teachers as they’ve navigated this year, the safety requirements of school, the slow return of activities and trips, and the adjusted interactions at school due to COVID restrictions. 

Songkran brings us a time to renew for the new year. We hope that our students and teachers use the week-long break to re-energize for the final 2 months of the year. 

Happy Songkran to everyone in our MS community!

 

Songkran Holidays – NO SCHOOL April 11-15

ISB campus will be closed from April 11 to 15 for the Songkran Break. Students will resume school on April 18th.

Please note that in order to provide ISB staff a true holiday, the campus will be closed during that time.  

 

 

 

MS Schedule for April 18-22

We hope everyone has a restful Songkran break next week. School resumes on April 18th and MS will continue the schedule rotation from where we left off. Please note that Wednesday will be an Early Release Day, with school dismissing at 1:10 PM.

• Monday, April 18 – Day 3
• Tuesday, April 19 – Day 4
• Wednesday, April 20 – Day 5, Early Release Day
• Thursday, April 21 – Day 6
• Friday, April 22 – Day 7

 

Teacher Feedback Comments for MS Students 

As we head into the Songkran holiday, teachers have completed individual feedback comments for each student. Parents and students are able to view these comments in PowerSchool. On Tuesday, April 19th, a single mid-semester comment report in PDF form will be made available for ease of reading and printing out. In the meantime, comments can be viewed by following each course link in PowerSchool (see/click graphic on right).

Students will be guided through a reflection process after the holiday in which they will read each of their teachers’ comments and set goals for the remainder of the year. We have found that this process ensures that students benefit from the detailed feedback provided by their teachers.

If parents or students have questions about the comments they can reach out to the teacher via email. Please note that we want our teachers to have a restful break away from work and we are encouraging them to stay off of work email. Teachers will respond to parent and student emails following the holiday break. We hope that parents and students use this break time to relax and separate from school stresses themselves.

 

Strengths Difficulty Questionnaire (SDQ) 

Dear MS Parent/Guardians,

At ISB we care deeply about the well-being of our students. To help us meet our mission to support them in leading healthy, active and balanced lives, all Grades 6-8 will complete the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) during Advisory on the following dates:

• Grade 8: April 20
• Grade 7: May 9
• Grade 6: May 18

Why is the questionnaire being administered?
The purpose of this questionnaire is to:

• Identify students who require immediate support
• Identify students who are struggling with social/emotional/behavioral issues in order to provide appropriate early intervention/prevention support
• Obtain an overview of the social/emotional/behavioral needs at our school to ensure that we are providing optimal support for our students

How and when will the questionnaire be administered?
The online questionnaire will be administered during your child’s Advisory and will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. The survey items are available for you to review here.

How will the results be used?
The data collected will be managed, analyzed, and reported by a team including the school counselors, school psychologists and the Director of Student Services in accordance with the ISB Confidentiality Policy.

Individual student responses to the questionnaire are confidential. Any concerns raised through the survey administration process will be shared only with school personnel involved in supporting that student.

The questionnaire administration process has been designed to identify specific students who need additional support. The survey will be conducted electronically and students’ names will be captured along with their responses. ISB counselors will meet with any student whose responses indicate a need for follow up and parents will be notified.

School counselors, school psychologists, and administrators will analyze overall trends to help improve student support at ISB.

In completing this questionnaire your child will have an opportunity to privately reflect on his/her current social emotional health and wellness. Some parents may choose to use the questionnaire as an opportunity to create dialogue related to social emotional wellbeing topics with their child following completion of the survey.

Does my child have to complete the questionnaire?
No. As a parent or guardian, you can opt out of having your child complete this questionnaire. Students will be informed that they may choose to skip any questions that they do not feel comfortable answering.

Parents/Guardians who do not want their child to take the survey should let their child’s school counselor know by phone or in writing prior to the administration of the SDQ. ISB will assume parent/guardian consent to their child participating unless the school counselor has been notified. Parents do not have to do anything unless they do not want their child to participate.

Thank you so much for your support with this important project.

The ISB Counseling Team

Middle School Counselors:

• Colleen Coady (colleenc@isb.ac.th)
• Kevin Nelson (kevinn@isb.ac.th)

MS and HS School Psychologist:

• Ryan Ruhl (ryanr@isb.ac.th)

Director of Student Services:

• Keith Collins (keithc@isb.ac.th)

MS Principal:

• Dennis Harter (dennish@isb.ac.th)

 

Spring MAP testing dates – 2022 

MS students will take the NWEA Measurement of Academic Progress (MAP) test in Math and Reading on May 5 and 6, 2022.

As you may have read in the All-School eNews, MAP assessments are computer-based tests that assess students with a baseline question and then adjust subsequent questions to appropriately challenge each student.  The testing data provides a snapshot of what the student can do at a specific time of the year. This information is useful to our teachers as they decide how to differentiate the learning experience for their students.

Your child does not need to prepare for the MAP tests, nor should they worry or be anxious about taking this test.  We do recommend that all students get a good night’s sleep before the tests and that they eat a healthy breakfast before coming to school. All students will need their laptops for the testing sessions.  Students should have a book to read in case they finish their test early.

If you have concerns about your child taking the MAP assessments, please reach out to your child’s counselor (Kevin Nelson, kevinn@isb.ac.th G6, G7 or Colleen Coady, colleenc@isb.ac.th G7, G8).

 

MS Athletics News 

ISB Athletics: U12-U14 season 4 registration

Registration for U12 and U14 Badminton, Boys Rugby and Girls Touch is now open on https://inside.isb.ac.th/isbathletics/ 

Tryouts start on Monday 25th April, practices will be on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 2:30-3:30. 

This year we will also offer a badminton club on Wednesday and Friday from 2:30-3:30 for those players who want to play recreational badminton and/or those who are not selected for the team.

U12 and U14 programs are open to all students in grade 6, 7, & 8. Registration closes at 8:00 AM on Wednesday 20th April.

 

U12-U14 Sports celebration date change

The U12-U14 sports celebration has been moved to Tuesday 26th April. The event will start at 4:30pm with the team rooms. The celebration will take place in Rajendra hall and starts at 5pm. Official invitations for athletes and parents will follow soon. 

 

Upcoming events 

Wednesday 20th April: U12-U14 Football vs BPS (Home)

Saturday 23rd April: BMAC U12 Football Championships (NIST)

                                           BMAC U12 Team Tennis Championships – Girls (ISB) Boys (BPS)

                                           BMAC U14 Football Championships – Girls (ISB) Boys (BPS)

Monday 25th April: Start of season 4 (Badminton, Rugby/Touch)

Tuesday 26th April: U12-U14 Sports Celebration – Season 3. 

 

Invention Center Saturday April 2nd. Check it out!!!

Come to the Invention Center on Saturday, April 2nd from 10am-12pm and learn to design and make your own wooden earrings using the scroll saw. Make earrings for yourself or for a gift. This project is free and open to any middle or high school students. Contact Travis Dynes at travisd@isb.ac.th to sign up. We will have space and materials available for the first 10 students that sign up.

 

Season 4 Panther Activities Registration Now Open 

Please join us after the Songkran break for Season 4 Panther Activities including Panther Arts, Panther Basketball, Panther Baseball and Softball, Panther Golf, Panther Soccer, Panther Volleyball, and new this year, Panther Xtreme by registering your child/ren HERE. 

TIMELINE FOR REGISTRATIONS & PAYMENTS

• Open Registration: March 31-April 6, 2022
• Processing: April 7, 2022
• Confirmation of Activities: April 8, 2022
• Payment Window: April 8-22 , 2022

Note that space is limited and that sign-ups will be honored on a first come first served basis by area coordinators. 

 

HS Musical 

PRE-SALE TICKETS ONLY

Weekdays April 7th-22nd

(200THB per person)

Before School at the Panther 

During HS Lunch in the Cafeteria

 

SHOWTIMES:

6:30pm April 21st

6:30pm April 22nd

2:00pm April 23rd

Chevron Theater

 

Repeat Announcement: Songkran is a time for a break 

As we head into the Songkran holiday, we hope that students will have time with their family to rest and re-energize ahead of the final stretch of the school year. The MS purposely does not assign homework during this time in order to allow students to enjoy this quality time. As always we encourage students to bring along books to read for pleasure and for families to manage screen time during the break. 

(if students are behind on assignments, the break sometimes provides students with time to catch up, given that there is no new homework assigned)

 

Repeat Announcement: Summer School 2022 – Early Bird reduced tuition fees end on….