From the Director
We started our “Welcome Back to School” nights this week and they continue next week and during the coming month. Our community is based on positive partnerships and as parents we expect you to attend these meetings so we can ensure we are all working together in the best interests of our students.
We are celebrating Civic Month in various ways throughout school helping students across the school understand the importance of the nation where we are living and growing up. Please note that we are closed next Friday for a staff training day and then we reopen after Independence day on Wednesday 16th September which will also mark the colour run taking place for students who have purchased a colour run kit at 2.30 pm. All funds are going to local charities. More details can be seen in each of the two separate sections of the newsletter below.
Please note we are now offering some breakfast options before school through the Canteen:
- Baked plantain (4 slices) $0.60
- Cereal with milk $2.00
- Croissant with scrambled/sunny side up egg $1.50
- Croissant with black beans and cheese $1.50
- Croissant with ham and cheese $1.15
- Omelette (one egg with vegetables, ham or cheese) $0.60
- Pancakes (2) $1.00
- Pupusas beans/cheese $0.50
- Refried beans (per portion) $0.60
- Yogurt with granola $1.00
- Waffles with honey or Nutella $1.00
Note: The Canteen will extend the menu subject to sufficient requests.
Last week the Madres Enlace had their first meeting of the year and the School Management Team addressed them. It was great to see all the new volunteers for this key role in school and we want to do all we can to help them represent any issues that the parent community has. In terms of your individual child it is essential you contact school directly but if you have a question or suggestion for school please do not hesitate to ask your Madre Enlace. Please remember though it is not appropriate to communicate via social networking about any school concerns. If you have a query about school please either speak to the teacher or your Madre Enlace.
Save the Children have been working in school specifically with the classes of 2019 and 2023 this week. They are helping us prepare our student community to play a larger role helping the plight of young children in our country.
Car Park Information and Advice
Thank you very much for the response to our requests last week for appropriate use of our tarjetas to get access to the pick ups. Can I please remind you that Primary cards cannot be used for preferential access up to and around 1.50 pm. After 2pm when all cars have access there are no priorities given to holders of any primary passes.
The French School has reopened and with their starting time of 7.30 their traffic makes the entrance to our top car park more complicated. We advise you try to arrive before 6.45 am if you want a quick morning drop off in that car park.
In the afternoon the Admin Car Park is relatively quiet at 1.50 pm so if you have a Primary 1-5 pass you can get relatively easy access to the campus at this time if you ask your child to go to the top car park. We are continuing to monitor car parks to try to find optimum solutions and avoid wasting your time in queues. I would like to repeat my request that you do not arrive earlier than the advertised times to avoid congestion in the area which ultimately causes more problems later in that pick up session.
Primary News
Dear Parents and Carers,
Thank you to those of you who came to our Lower Primary ‘welcome back to school’ nights. I hope you enjoyed meeting your children’s teachers again and spending some time in the classrooms. The Upper Primary ‘welcome back to school’ nights will be this coming week. Please see the dates and times below or on the school calendar link on the school website. There will be some refreshments and an opportunity to meet teachers and fellow parents. It is important for all of us to get to know each other.
Please ensure children with long hair have it securely tied back for the whole day, not hanging forward over their face.
5th Hayward start off this years assemblies on Wednesday the 9th of September. The assembly is full of the students own ideas and work so should be very interesting! Please see the calendar note there are two repeated presentations to increase options for parents and family to attend.
I have seen some very healthy lunch boxes this week, with wholemeal bread or rice, fruit and vegetables, pieces of chicken or other meat. I am delighted with this and just wanted to say ‘well done’ to those of you who are making this effort.
This week the Dentist came to grade 3 to give an important presentation about teeth and healthy eating as part of their IPC unit. t is important we keep our children’s teeth healthy with regular check ups as I am sure most of you know. The Dentist really enjoyed her visit and will be visiting the school again.
On the 10th of September the Upper Primary students are invited over to visit the Secondary Independence Day festivities at 11.30 am. There will be food stalls (including traditional foods) and local crafts for sale. The students have permission to bring a small amount of money in a named envelope or container on that day to purchase items or food. Students are responsible for looking after their own money.
We also have the ABC Colour Run event straight after the Independence Day long weekend on the 16th September. It promises to be an extravaganza of sound and colour! The students who would like to take part are buying Colour Run packs for $10 from the secondary school prefects. The pack includes a t-shirt, bags of coloured powder paint and other small items. Although the powder paint is completely non-toxic students are advised to wear goggles/eye protection for this event. I would also recommend they bring in old clothes to change into before taking part. This fun event is to raise money for local charities.
The Primary School has decided to take part in some art research that is being carried out by the Arts and Development Lab, Brooklyn College, CUNY relating to Culture and Art. Over the next few weeks parents will receive an email inviting them to enrol their child or children in the research project. Please keep an eye open for this. The students will do a small drawing activity in school that will then be uploaded.
Phew! There has been quite a lot to share this week.
I hope you have a great weekend and a lovely week ahead.
Best wishes,
Sharon Short
Head of Primary
Dates for your diary
Lower Primary
September
Monday 7th: Pre-Kinder extracurricular activities start
Friday 11th: School closed for a teacher training day
Friday 11th: School closed for a teacher training day
Monday 14th: school closed
Tuesday 15th: school closed - public holiday
Wednesday 16th: The Colour Run
Monday 21st: Peace One Day
Monday 21st: McLay Fun Run
Tuesday 29th: Pre-Kinder Curriculum Night 6:00pm PAC
October
Thursday 1st October Lower Primary celebrate children’s day.
Friday 2nd: First Aguirre Assembly 7:30am PAC
Tuesday 6th: Kinder Curriculum Night 6:00pm PAC
Thursday 8th: Prepa Curriculum Night 6:00pm PAC
Friday 9th: First Padilla Assembly 7:30am PAC
Tuesday 13th: First Grade Curriculum Night 6:00pm PAC
Friday 16th: Prepa Taylor Spanish Assembly 7:30am PAC
Friday 23rd: First Sullivan Assembly 7:30am PAC
Friday 30th: First Rivera Assembly 7:30am PAC
Upper Primary
Monday 7th September: grades 2 and 3 Back to school Night
Wednesday 9th September: Grades 4 and 5 Back to school Night
Wednesday 9th September: 5th Hayward class assembly
Thursday 10th September: UP students to visit secondary Independence celebrations at lunchtime.
Friday 11th September: School closed for a teacher training day
Monday 14th September: school closed
Tuesday 15th September: school closed - public holiday
Wednesday 16th September: the Colour Run
Wednesday 16th September: 4th Truscott class assembly
Monday 21st September: Peace One Day
Monday 21st September: McLay Fun Run -Grades 2 to 4
Wednesday 23rd September: 3rd Mena class assembly.
Friday 25th September: McLay fun run for 5th Grade at Bicentennial Park
Wednesday 30th September 2nd Brooke class assembly
Secondary News
Civic Month
Our Civic Month celebrations have started with a special presentation on the topic of Unity as a dear value in Salvadoran culture and history from September 2nd through 10th, with each of our year groups. The presentation is being delivered by the Spanish Department, and head students. This series of discussions and reflections will culminate with our Independence Day Ceremony for the Secondary School, which will take place on Thursday, September 10th in the Auditorium from 11:15 am - 12:15 pm, and followed by a traditional food festival with private vendors, live Salvadoran music, and traditional games, such as, capirucho, trompo, and many more, from 12:20 - 2:30 pm. Students may leave at their regular scheduled time, if they do not have other school activities.
Parents are invited to visit our Salvadoran Arts and Crafts stands in front of the LRC from Monday, September 7th through 10th. We are motivated to promote Salvadoran artisans, and for our students to appreciate the creativity and entrepreneurship of the Salvadoran people.
Eric Quijano
National School Director
100 Healthy Days
Wednesday 9th of September sees the start of the Secondary School’s ‘100 Healthy Days’ (culminating in the last day of term – Friday 18th of December). ‘100 Healthy Days’ is our attempt to try to encourage our students to be more active and healthy. The simple message is even small daily activities can build healthy habits.
During the ‘100 Healthy Days’ we will be providing students with a number of ways to make a healthy difference to their routines. Below are two events that are coming up very soon.
During the week of the launch we have Tribalfest. Organised by the Grade 11 Business Studies students, this will provide multiple opportunities for students to be active and have fun in doing so. The programme for Tribalfest is as follows:
Students interested in representing their tribe, and competing in these events, have until Monday 7th September (by 6.55am) to register (details are in the students’ daily Vista). We also want spectators to come along and support their tribe.
In the following week we have the Colour Run. This event has been organised by the Prefect team. Open to Upper Primary and Secondary School students, this promises to be a very energetic, fun and colourful event. The Colour Run costs $10 which buys entrance, a Colour Run t-shirt and ‘pixie powder’.
A proportion of the money collected will go to support local charities. Students need to come to the Secondary School Office at break or lunch time to pay to participate. The Colour Run is being sponsored by Powerade, Gatorade, Agua Cristal, Bodytek Fitness Center, Dreamland and Vanilla Spoon. A big thank you to these organisations for their support.
More details to follow in later ABC Weeklies of opportunities for students at school to be healthy and active as part of the ‘100 Healthy Days’ initiative.
As a family you can help your son or daughter be more active. Here are some tips to help you help your young people ease into exercise and stay motivated so that they can feel the benefits.
1. Little, but often is a good start. Children not used to exercising may only be willing to tolerate a little physical activity before wanting to give up. So start with small steps, such as a 10 minute walk every day, or even every other day, after school. Keep a record of the time they spend being active, the minutes will soon add up and the total will boost their motivation.
2. Be a role model. Setting a good example will motivate your child.
3. Limit sedentary pastimes like watching tv and playing computer games. Here is an interesting BBC article on the benefits (in terms of better I/GCSE results) of students spending less time watching TV or being in front of a computer - http://www.bbc.com/news/education-34139196
4. Encourage your child to participate in sports and if your child does not like competitive sports, suggest a sport such as cycling or running.
5. But, it’s not just about sports. Being active is not just about participating in a sport, it includes many other things such as hiking, dance, martial arts or drama. Encourage your child to pursue a healthy interest. Perhaps not the most ‘fun’ activity, but regular chores inside and outside the house are also a way for your son/daughter to be active on a routine basis (as well as teaching a child to be responsible).
Remember we have an extensive extra-curricular programme at the ABC, sporting and non-sporting. Please encourage your child to sign up and widen their interests.
6. Try to make being active fun.
A combination of small success, with praise and encouragement, will motivate your child to continue being active. Good luck.
Kind regards,
Stephen Spicer
Head of Secondary
Secondary dates for your diary
Thursday 10th September: Secondary Independence Day celebration for students
Friday 11th September: INSET DAY for teachers - school closed
Monday 14th September: HOLIDAY - school closed
Tuesday 15th September: Independence Day HOLIDAY - school closed
Wednesday 16th September: Colour Run event
Tuesday 22nd September: Grade 10 & 12 Know Your School meetings
Thursday 1st October: Grade 6 Know Your School meetings
Monday 5th October: Grade 9 & 11 Know Your School meetings
Thursday 15th October: Grade 7 & 8 Know Your School meetings
Monday 2nd - Friday 6th November: HALF TERM HOLIDAYS
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