Thankfulness
Happy belated Thanksgiving Day everyone!
So, I learned something today……did you know anything about the origins of the word “thank”? It turns out I certainly didn’t, and I honestly feel rather ashamed about that. I mean, I have been on this planet for half a century or so and until now I have never thought to look into the origins of a concept that is central to so much of human custom and etiquette. Language is just a device (albeit an incredibly sophisticated one) for trying to give expression to all of that rather messy, nefarious stuff we call thoughts and feelings. Because the meaning of words can be distilled, refined or diluted over the course of time, we can often find that our understanding of not only a word, but also of the concept it is trying to give meaning to, can be enhanced by researching its origins. So what are the origins of the word, “thank”?
thank (v.): Old English þancian, þoncian "to give thanks, thank, to recompense, to reward," from Proto-Germanic *thankojan, from *thankoz "thought; gratitude," from Proto Indo-European root *tong- "to think, feel." It is related phonetically to “think” as “song” is to “sing”
Online Etymology Dictionary
In other words (no pun intended!) the word “thank’ has a shared heritage with the word “think”. There was a time in my Scottish childhood when I was guilty of using the word “thank” as the past participle of the verb “to think” and it now seems I was not so terribly wrong as I was then led to believe!
Look again at the definition of the original Proto Indo-European word “tong”- “to think, feel”. It seems that the heritage of the word thank lies right in the middle of the aforementioned “messy, nefarious stuff” and, therefore, right at the heart of the things that distinguish us as a species from the rest of the animal world. The verb “to thank”, expressions like, “to give thanks” and, “to feel thankful”, these are our best attempts at giving expression to something really quite profound, to a very unique human experience. They mean that we have reflected on (hence the links with the concept of thinking, I suppose) that action, that person, that experience and found it/him/her quite special in some way and we are also aware that a distinct and quite wonderful emotion has been evoked in us as a result that we feel we want to give expression to; that, I think, is why we say, “Thank you”.
The rules of custom and etiquette mean that we are all a little guilty perhaps, of using the phrase, “thank you” as little more than culturally demanded punctuation rather than an attempt to really express gratitude. So perhaps we should take a moment to think a little more deeply about the things, the experiences and the people in our lives that cause us to feel that elusive emotion we call gratitude* and, having felt that emotion, then see if we can find some satisfactory way to give expression to it.
*”Gratitude” shares its etymology with the word “grace”, by the way…
From the Head of Primary
Christmas is a time to share and care for others and there are a variety of collections going on in school. In Primary we support the Shoebox campaign. We thank everyone who has already sent in their shoeboxes. We would love to see more to support those less fortunate in our community. We hope you enjoyed preparing them with your children.
Sick Children- We all know that during this time of the year, due to changes in the weather, we see an increase in cases of influenza or viral diseases. We kindly ask for your cooperation, if your children are sick, please do not send them to school. It is better that they rest and fully recover at home; If you receive a call from our doctor, who has the support and trust of the school, informing you that your child must be picked up due to any health issue, we ask you to pick him or her up as soon as possible so that they can receive the necessary treatment or care.
Next week the students in Primary start their rehearsals for the Christmas Shows and concerts. Many of them will have lines and actions to learn. Please help them to practice so they can feel confident and can speak loud and clear during their performance. Upper Primary have their Christmas Show in the Auditorium on Thursday, 5 December⋅6:30 – 8:30 pm. Lower Primary have their Christmas Show (PAC) and Xmas Fair on Wednesday, 11 December⋅3:00 – 7:00 pm.
A HUGE congratulations to our wonderful ABC students, parents and community who raised over $6 000 for Teletón. As you can see from the photos below, our students were very proud to present the cheque!
Book of the Week
The Suitcase by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros
A weary animal arrives in a new place dragging a suitcase behind him. The animals he meets are very curious about its contents. He tells them what is inside but they are sceptical. To say more would give too much away. Much of the text is a dialogue between the animal protagonists, the speaker indicated by the device of using the same colour font for their words as the colour of their fur or feathers. The strength and simplicity of this picture book’s message is enhanced by the use of a limited but carefully chosen palette set against white space.
Lower Primary
December
**Collecting Christmas Shoeboxes**
Friday 6th: Reports go home
Saturday 7th: Baby Bulldogs (free class for parents and toddlers aged 12-30 months)
Wednesday 11th: Christmas Show & Christmas Fair - LP playground
Thursday 12th: ABC Musicians' Christmas Concert
Friday 13th: End of Term
Upper Primary
December
Thursday 5th - UP Christmas Show - 6:30pm - 8:00pm - Auditorium
Friday 6th - Session 2 Extracurricular Programme Ends
Friday 6th - UP Reports go home
Friday 6th - Grade 2 Camping Night
Wednesday 11th - Santa’s Festival - 2:30pm -7:00pm - LP Playground
Thursday 12th: ABC Musicians' Christmas Concert
Friday 13th - End of Term Break
January
Monday 6th - Back to School
Monday 6th - Extracurricular Programme Session 3 starts
From the Head of Secondary
Dear parents and carers,
We are nearly at the end of the term and it is a time to truly reflect and give thanks for all the blessings and opportunities we have. Give thanks for being part of this wonderful community and give thanks for being able to serve others. Service is a common word to hear and see in action in our community- from teachers offering support and going the extra mile (miles!) to students helping each other and their community projects and of course everyone in the school being of service to each other. In particular I would like to mention our Maintenance and security staff who day in and day out give their very best service to this community. This week as you know we are collecting items for their Christmas baskets and I thank you all for your contributions. It is of course a moment to give thanks for being an ABC Bulldog and of course, celebrating Bulldog Pride.
As Mr Hogan put it:
Dear parents and carers,
We are nearly at the end of the term and it is a time to truly reflect and give thanks for all the blessings and opportunities we have. Give thanks for being part of this wonderful community and give thanks for being able to serve others. Service is a common word to hear and see in action in our community- from teachers offering support and going the extra mile (miles!) to students helping each other and their community projects and of course everyone in the school being of service to each other. In particular I would like to mention our Maintenance and security staff who day in and day out give their very best service to this community. This week as you know we are collecting items for their Christmas baskets and I thank you all for your contributions. It is of course a moment to give thanks for being an ABC Bulldog and of course, celebrating Bulldog Pride.
As Mr Hogan put it:
"Bulldog Pride is about recognising and displaying the best possible version of yourself in all aspects of your actions and character."
"Bulldog Pride is about celebrating your collaboration with others and the successes of others."
I couldn't agree more!
IGCA Beach clean up and Turtle Release
from IGCA member Diego Rivas
The IGCA team went down to Playa San Diego over the weekend for the Beach Clean up and Turtle Release. These activities targeted the core values of IGCA, by focusing on our environmental and social strands, we managed to teach the importance of taking care of our ecosystems. It is our duty, not only as IGCA but as part of the ABC Community to take action against problems such as climate change and habitat destruction.
"Bulldog Pride is about celebrating your collaboration with others and the successes of others."
I couldn't agree more!
IGCA Beach clean up and Turtle Release
from IGCA member Diego Rivas
The IGCA team went down to Playa San Diego over the weekend for the Beach Clean up and Turtle Release. These activities targeted the core values of IGCA, by focusing on our environmental and social strands, we managed to teach the importance of taking care of our ecosystems. It is our duty, not only as IGCA but as part of the ABC Community to take action against problems such as climate change and habitat destruction.
Yesterday's activities were beach cleaning and the turtle release, which relates back to our motto "Every little action counts".
KS3 Student Ambassadors workshop on Public Speaking with Dale Carnegie
On Monday, our KS3 Student Ambassador Team spent their morning in a workshop with renowned trainers from Dale Carnegie. The topic: “Public Speaking like a Pro”. The workshop was exclusively done for our ABC Ambassadors, based on their needs and what they asked for during their interviews. As our ABC motto says “Effort leads to Success”. This is an important skill for being an outstanding citizen, a leader and a good communicator. They learned about the qualities of a good speaker, tips to give a good speech, how many seconds it takes to give a good impression and many other important factors that will help them to become good public speakers.
KS3 Student Ambassadors workshop on Public Speaking with Dale Carnegie
On Monday, our KS3 Student Ambassador Team spent their morning in a workshop with renowned trainers from Dale Carnegie. The topic: “Public Speaking like a Pro”. The workshop was exclusively done for our ABC Ambassadors, based on their needs and what they asked for during their interviews. As our ABC motto says “Effort leads to Success”. This is an important skill for being an outstanding citizen, a leader and a good communicator. They learned about the qualities of a good speaker, tips to give a good speech, how many seconds it takes to give a good impression and many other important factors that will help them to become good public speakers.
When asked about how they felt and what they learned after the workshop, they gave some of the following answers:
“I really enjoyed today’s workshop because we were able to have fun while public speaking, the techniques they use make us feel more confident and free when speaking .”
“I learned how visual representation is a vital part of communication since it affects our understanding of the message the sender is trying to give. I also learned that even without much experience, you can still be a great public speaker, since it's all mostly about the attitude, then the ability and last but not least, knowledge.”
“I liked the Dale Carnegie workshop. It was fantastic! I enjoyed doing all the activities, I am sure that this will help me speak in public like a pro.”
“I learned that public speaking is not about learning things word by word but about knowing your topic and having a good attitude while speaking, therefore, reflecting confidence. For other people to receive your message you have to know how to connect with them, making the public engaged.”
Congratulations to Enzo Lemus, Class of 2025
“I learned how visual representation is a vital part of communication since it affects our understanding of the message the sender is trying to give. I also learned that even without much experience, you can still be a great public speaker, since it's all mostly about the attitude, then the ability and last but not least, knowledge.”
“I liked the Dale Carnegie workshop. It was fantastic! I enjoyed doing all the activities, I am sure that this will help me speak in public like a pro.”
“I learned that public speaking is not about learning things word by word but about knowing your topic and having a good attitude while speaking, therefore, reflecting confidence. For other people to receive your message you have to know how to connect with them, making the public engaged.”
Congratulations to Enzo Lemus, Class of 2025
We are happy to share that Enzo Valentino Lemus García won FIRST PLACE at Universidad de El Salvador's ”Jóvenes Talento” programme, Level 3 this week. We are very proud of his effort and we look forward to celebrating even more achievements in your future! Effort Leads to Success!
HIV Awareness Day - December 1st
This morning, Thursday, 28th November Grades 9 to 12 had an assembly to commemorate World Aids Day/ HIV Awareness which is on Sunday, 1st December. The theme for this year is "Community Action & Support" and as a school community, our aims were to review HIV transmission, prevention & medication, as well as to highlight the stigma that is attached to the condition. The intention was to show that every HIV diagnosis has a personal narrative/ story. We take the words from Alejandra Oraa, UNAIDS Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Latin America & The Caribbean as our starting point:
“No one can tell a father or a mother to talk or not to talk about sex with their children; this is their decision. However, a state should guarantee comprehensive sexuality education. If the state prepares a child to go out into the world knowing maths and literature, spelling and science, why not prepare him or her for something as important as his or her sexuality? It is not about teaching them to have sexual relationships, it is a matter of explaining what it implies, what are the risks and the consequences.”
UNAIDS (2017)
A reminder to parents of Grade 9 and Grade 11 that we look forward to welcoming you at our Parent - Teacher meeting next Wednesday 4th of December, from 4:30pm- 7:00pm in the Auditorium. Your children have been making appointments with their teachers for that evening. Please check your iSAMS Parent Portal to access their CAL 1 report today.
Thank you again for your continued support.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Natalia Cáceres Escalón.
Head of Secondary School
Dates for your diary
November
Today Friday 29th - Grade 10 students are back at 3.00 pm from their Empowerment and Camping days trip, Helvética Cerro Verde
December
Tuesday 3rd - Grade 10 Art Mock start
Wednesday 4th - Grade 9/11 Parent Teacher meetings, 4:30 pm - 7.00 pm: Auditorium
Thursday 5th - Grade 6 Empowerment Trip, Cajamarca
Grade 7 Christmas breakfast 7.00 a.m - 8.00 a.m
Friday 6th - Grade 12 ToK Essay deadline
Saturday 7th - SAT Test
Tuesday 10th - Grade 8 Learning Review Day, all day in LRC (by appointments) and Grade 12 Art Mock first part
Wednesday 11th - Grade 12 Art Mock second part
Thursday 12th - ABC Musicians' Christmas Concert, 6pm PAC
Friday 13th - Last Day of Term and Christmas and New Year holidays start
The 1st Intertribal Season has just started, all students are participating and putting into practice their physical abilities, enjoying the competition and experimenting with the sense of belonging to their tribe. To see all kids in action, visit the PE Blog.
The Basketball Bilingual League is finishing, Semifinals and Finals will be soon and The Football Bilingual League has just started. To read more about this week’s Sports events, please visit our Instagram and Facebook pages.
Head of Secondary School
Dates for your diary
November
Today Friday 29th - Grade 10 students are back at 3.00 pm from their Empowerment and Camping days trip, Helvética Cerro Verde
December
Tuesday 3rd - Grade 10 Art Mock start
Wednesday 4th - Grade 9/11 Parent Teacher meetings, 4:30 pm - 7.00 pm: Auditorium
Thursday 5th - Grade 6 Empowerment Trip, Cajamarca
Grade 7 Christmas breakfast 7.00 a.m - 8.00 a.m
Friday 6th - Grade 12 ToK Essay deadline
Saturday 7th - SAT Test
Tuesday 10th - Grade 8 Learning Review Day, all day in LRC (by appointments) and Grade 12 Art Mock first part
Wednesday 11th - Grade 12 Art Mock second part
Thursday 12th - ABC Musicians' Christmas Concert, 6pm PAC
Friday 13th - Last Day of Term and Christmas and New Year holidays start
The 1st Intertribal Season has just started, all students are participating and putting into practice their physical abilities, enjoying the competition and experimenting with the sense of belonging to their tribe. To see all kids in action, visit the PE Blog.
The Basketball Bilingual League is finishing, Semifinals and Finals will be soon and The Football Bilingual League has just started. To read more about this week’s Sports events, please visit our Instagram and Facebook pages.
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