I am pleased to report that the Shoebox Campaign at the end of the past term was a success. We managed to raise a little over 500 boxes that made Christmas a little sweeter for many underprivileged children. I would like to let you know that the boxes were distributed in different communities. Some members of the ABC will deliver part of the boxes to patients of the San Rafael Hospital. The Tecleños de Corazón Foundation and the Montesión Nuevo Amanecer Foundation, put together celebrations and gift giving opportunities throughout different communities in Santa Tecla and Ahuachapán. Thank you to everyone who contributed for reaching out and supporting some of the neediest people in vulnerable communities. Also, thank those who helped us deliver the boxes. Below are some photos, because these images express more than a thousand words ever could.
Wishing you a happy and successful 2020.
Ana de Cabrera
National Programme Director
From the Director
Happy New Year everyone. I trust you all had a vibrant but restful holiday and feel refreshed- excited by, and ready for, the new year (and decade) that lies ahead.
Huge thanks to all of you who took a little time to fill out the traffic/school drop-off survey; I already have 518 responses, which is fantastic! I do assure you that the results will be considered very carefully by both the Senior Management Team and the Board, as we discuss solutions to our current traffic challenges in the mornings.
Please can I encourage you to spread the word regarding Pre K admissions. We are currently accepting applications and running assessments to help us understand our potential new learners better. I must say that I believe our Early Years provision here at the ABC is truly world-class so do encourage your family and friends to strongly consider us won’t you.
And now a little sad news….. Mr. Nevan Bridge, Head of Primary, will be leaving us at the end of the academic year when his contract comes to an end. These kinds of situations are a feature of our international school paradigm where colleagues are generally on quite short, time-limited contracts but it is always, nevertheless, sad to have to say goodbye to valued colleagues. Mr. Bridge will, I know, continue to put his heart and soul into leading our primary school, as he has done since he first arrived here. We will celebrate Mr. Bridge’s achievements and contribution to our community more fully later on in the year but, for now, I felt it important to let you know how things stand. Likewise, as soon as I have news of Mr. Bridge’s replacement, I will let you know.
Finally, the turn of a New Year is traditionally a time for honest self-reflection and perhaps new pledges and commitments towards self-improvement. Bookstore shelves groan under the weight of their innumerable self-help guides but essentially, self-improvement comes down to the choices we make at almost every point in every day. Here is the poet, Robert Frost’s take on it:
The Road not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
From the Head of Primary
Welcome back! I hope everyone managed to enjoy the three week holiday. The children and staff have returned refreshed and ready to continue their teaching and learning journey. ABC is a busy school with many learning opportunities for your children. It is wonderful to see our students taking advantage of these opportunities.
As part of the teaching and learning process Assessment is vital for teachers to understand where each child is at compared to the objectives being taught. Assessment takes many forms- observations, conferences, one on one talks, quizzes, group work, homework and much more. We also believe that with evidence, teachers make Overall Teacher Judgements about what a student’s strengths are and what areas to work on.
Assessment has several purposes. It helps teachers plan learning programmes geared to the needs of their students. It gives the students an idea of how they are going and what their next Learning Steps will be. It ensures parents receive reports that indicate how well your child is doing and what support can be given at home. It gives management an understanding of the trends of achievement for each Grade, gender and whole of Primary. And it gives information to the Director and Board of Governors so they can make resourcing decisions that support teaching and learning.
In December we ran the Shoe Box Campaign in Primary. This wonderful initiative has enabled the ABC to make a big difference to the lives of many children this past Christmas. The boxes were given to less fortunate children, who without our help, may not have received any presents this Christmas. A HUGE thank you to everyone who contributed to this amazing kindness.
Book of the Week
Rabbit & Bear: Rabbit's Bad Habits By Julian Gough
Illustrated by Jim Field
Bear wakes up from her hibernation early to find snow on the ground and meets the grumpy and rather self-important although apparently very knowledgeable Rabbit. Bear soon starts to learn about gravity, avalanches, why rabbits eat their own poo… Rabbit has surreptitiously stolen Bear’s Winter food hoard but his survival instincts don’t extend to easily escape when a wolf appears. Bear’s intervention and generous nature lead to a lasting friendship between the pair as they contemplate the snowy landscape from the mouth of a cave and consider creating a companion for their Snow Man.
Dates for your diary
Lower Primary
January
Saturday 11th - Open morning
Saturday 18th - Spring Fair
Upper Primary
January
Saturday 18th - International Friendship Fair - 7:30pm - 12:00pm
Wednesday 22nd - 5th Navas Assembly - 8:15am & 10:55am - PAC
From the Head of Secondary
Happy new year to all of you and welcome back to school!
I trust everyone had a great holiday and is ready to come back and give their best this new term. It has been a great week seeing all of our staff and students back in school and the campus buzzing with activity! I must thank all of the people who supported our Christmas basket for Maintenance staff campaign as well as our shoebox campaign in December! It was such a wonderful demonstration of gratitude and solidarity which is what our ROC community is about!
At the end of last term we announced the Class of 2021’s Head Prefect team and I am happy to share this news with the community. The selection process was very difficult with so many talented and incredibly insightful students applying to the role. In the end, the following team was appointed.
Head Prefects: Luciana Molins, Senji Shibata
Deputy Head Prefects: Daniel Figueroa, Daniela Guerra, Jubran Lemus
I know they will also be supported by the whole community and our Temporary Prefects are now carrying out their duties in their selection process which will continue throughout January. More on this soon.
This is a shorter, albeit, busy term! Please keep a close eye on our school calendar to ensure your children do not miss any days of school. Our Grade 10 and Grade 12s, in particular, have had a focused start as they are in their MOCK exams period. We wish them all the very best and remind them that the purpose of these exams is to see the areas they are excelling in and look for areas where they need to continue working hard to improve in order to achieve their best results in their international examinations.
Grade 7 and Grade 8 will also have their exams this term and again, we need to work together to remind them that these are important for their learning journey. Our students need your support at home so please do be vigilant for opportunities to help them; above all, please remember that we are here also to help so do contact us if there is anything we can support you with.
Ana de Cabrera
National Programme Director
From the Director
Happy New Year everyone. I trust you all had a vibrant but restful holiday and feel refreshed- excited by, and ready for, the new year (and decade) that lies ahead.
Huge thanks to all of you who took a little time to fill out the traffic/school drop-off survey; I already have 518 responses, which is fantastic! I do assure you that the results will be considered very carefully by both the Senior Management Team and the Board, as we discuss solutions to our current traffic challenges in the mornings.
Please can I encourage you to spread the word regarding Pre K admissions. We are currently accepting applications and running assessments to help us understand our potential new learners better. I must say that I believe our Early Years provision here at the ABC is truly world-class so do encourage your family and friends to strongly consider us won’t you.
And now a little sad news….. Mr. Nevan Bridge, Head of Primary, will be leaving us at the end of the academic year when his contract comes to an end. These kinds of situations are a feature of our international school paradigm where colleagues are generally on quite short, time-limited contracts but it is always, nevertheless, sad to have to say goodbye to valued colleagues. Mr. Bridge will, I know, continue to put his heart and soul into leading our primary school, as he has done since he first arrived here. We will celebrate Mr. Bridge’s achievements and contribution to our community more fully later on in the year but, for now, I felt it important to let you know how things stand. Likewise, as soon as I have news of Mr. Bridge’s replacement, I will let you know.
Finally, the turn of a New Year is traditionally a time for honest self-reflection and perhaps new pledges and commitments towards self-improvement. Bookstore shelves groan under the weight of their innumerable self-help guides but essentially, self-improvement comes down to the choices we make at almost every point in every day. Here is the poet, Robert Frost’s take on it:
The Road not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
From the Head of Primary
Welcome back! I hope everyone managed to enjoy the three week holiday. The children and staff have returned refreshed and ready to continue their teaching and learning journey. ABC is a busy school with many learning opportunities for your children. It is wonderful to see our students taking advantage of these opportunities.
As part of the teaching and learning process Assessment is vital for teachers to understand where each child is at compared to the objectives being taught. Assessment takes many forms- observations, conferences, one on one talks, quizzes, group work, homework and much more. We also believe that with evidence, teachers make Overall Teacher Judgements about what a student’s strengths are and what areas to work on.
Assessment has several purposes. It helps teachers plan learning programmes geared to the needs of their students. It gives the students an idea of how they are going and what their next Learning Steps will be. It ensures parents receive reports that indicate how well your child is doing and what support can be given at home. It gives management an understanding of the trends of achievement for each Grade, gender and whole of Primary. And it gives information to the Director and Board of Governors so they can make resourcing decisions that support teaching and learning.
In December we ran the Shoe Box Campaign in Primary. This wonderful initiative has enabled the ABC to make a big difference to the lives of many children this past Christmas. The boxes were given to less fortunate children, who without our help, may not have received any presents this Christmas. A HUGE thank you to everyone who contributed to this amazing kindness.
Book of the Week
Rabbit & Bear: Rabbit's Bad Habits By Julian Gough
Illustrated by Jim Field
Bear wakes up from her hibernation early to find snow on the ground and meets the grumpy and rather self-important although apparently very knowledgeable Rabbit. Bear soon starts to learn about gravity, avalanches, why rabbits eat their own poo… Rabbit has surreptitiously stolen Bear’s Winter food hoard but his survival instincts don’t extend to easily escape when a wolf appears. Bear’s intervention and generous nature lead to a lasting friendship between the pair as they contemplate the snowy landscape from the mouth of a cave and consider creating a companion for their Snow Man.
Dates for your diary
Lower Primary
January
Saturday 11th - Open morning
Saturday 18th - Spring Fair
Upper Primary
January
Saturday 18th - International Friendship Fair - 7:30pm - 12:00pm
Wednesday 22nd - 5th Navas Assembly - 8:15am & 10:55am - PAC
From the Head of Secondary
Happy new year to all of you and welcome back to school!
I trust everyone had a great holiday and is ready to come back and give their best this new term. It has been a great week seeing all of our staff and students back in school and the campus buzzing with activity! I must thank all of the people who supported our Christmas basket for Maintenance staff campaign as well as our shoebox campaign in December! It was such a wonderful demonstration of gratitude and solidarity which is what our ROC community is about!
At the end of last term we announced the Class of 2021’s Head Prefect team and I am happy to share this news with the community. The selection process was very difficult with so many talented and incredibly insightful students applying to the role. In the end, the following team was appointed.
Head Prefects: Luciana Molins, Senji Shibata
Deputy Head Prefects: Daniel Figueroa, Daniela Guerra, Jubran Lemus
I know they will also be supported by the whole community and our Temporary Prefects are now carrying out their duties in their selection process which will continue throughout January. More on this soon.
This is a shorter, albeit, busy term! Please keep a close eye on our school calendar to ensure your children do not miss any days of school. Our Grade 10 and Grade 12s, in particular, have had a focused start as they are in their MOCK exams period. We wish them all the very best and remind them that the purpose of these exams is to see the areas they are excelling in and look for areas where they need to continue working hard to improve in order to achieve their best results in their international examinations.
Grade 7 and Grade 8 will also have their exams this term and again, we need to work together to remind them that these are important for their learning journey. Our students need your support at home so please do be vigilant for opportunities to help them; above all, please remember that we are here also to help so do contact us if there is anything we can support you with.
Finally, once again I need to ask for your support in ensuring your child abides by school regulations in terms of attendance and punctuality as well as uniform expectations. The usual areas- facial hair, shoes, nail varnish but especially the length of shorts and skirts. Your Head of Year will be in touch with you regarding this.
Please take a moment this weekend to go over the calendar dates and add them to your agenda so you can join us in our up and coming parent-teacher meetings, Learning Review Days and of course our Parent Partnership evening,
Have a wonderful weekend,
Kind regards,
Natalia Cáceres Escalón
Head of Secondary School
Dates for your diary
January
Tuesday 7th to Friday 17th - Grades 10/12 Mock Exams
Tuesday 21st to Friday 24th - Grades 7 and 8 Exams
Friday 31st - Grade 9 Geography Coursework Fieldtrip
Friday 31st and Saturday 1st February - Mathrelay and Mathcounts Central America, ABC Auditorium and Field, from 7am to 2:30pm
February
Tuesday 4th - Parent Partnership meeting No.2 - for Secondary
Friday 7th - Staff INSET Day - school closed for students
Monday 10th to Sunday 16th - ICT Silicon Valley Trip (TBC)
Tuesday 11th -Grade 11/12 Learning Review Day in LRC all day (by appointment)
Thursday 13th - 7th Grade - Parent-Teachers meeting - 4:00pm, Auditorium
Thursday 13th and Friday 14th - Grade 8 Empowerment Days trip
Tuesday 18th - Grade 10 Learning Review Day, all day in LRC (by appointment)
Wednesday 19th - Grade 7 empowerment Day
Friday 21st - Grade 12 Family Day - Lunch for students and Parents Class of 2020
Friday 21st to Sunday 1st March - Art trip to Europe
Monday 24th to Friday 28th - Half Term holidays, school closed
Sports practices started this week, we are preparing our athletes for this semester, which is full of Tournaments and Competitions. Semifinals and finals for the Basketball Bilingual League are right around the corner and the Football Bilingual League will resume next week.
It is important for all athletes to purchase their Sports uniforms, the second period to order them is from January 13th to January 31st, information related to this matter has been sent in an email.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Kind regards,
Natalia Cáceres Escalón
Head of Secondary School
Dates for your diary
January
Tuesday 7th to Friday 17th - Grades 10/12 Mock Exams
Tuesday 21st to Friday 24th - Grades 7 and 8 Exams
Friday 31st - Grade 9 Geography Coursework Fieldtrip
Friday 31st and Saturday 1st February - Mathrelay and Mathcounts Central America, ABC Auditorium and Field, from 7am to 2:30pm
February
Tuesday 4th - Parent Partnership meeting No.2 - for Secondary
Friday 7th - Staff INSET Day - school closed for students
Monday 10th to Sunday 16th - ICT Silicon Valley Trip (TBC)
Tuesday 11th -Grade 11/12 Learning Review Day in LRC all day (by appointment)
Thursday 13th - 7th Grade - Parent-Teachers meeting - 4:00pm, Auditorium
Thursday 13th and Friday 14th - Grade 8 Empowerment Days trip
Tuesday 18th - Grade 10 Learning Review Day, all day in LRC (by appointment)
Wednesday 19th - Grade 7 empowerment Day
Friday 21st - Grade 12 Family Day - Lunch for students and Parents Class of 2020
Friday 21st to Sunday 1st March - Art trip to Europe
Monday 24th to Friday 28th - Half Term holidays, school closed
Sports practices started this week, we are preparing our athletes for this semester, which is full of Tournaments and Competitions. Semifinals and finals for the Basketball Bilingual League are right around the corner and the Football Bilingual League will resume next week.
It is important for all athletes to purchase their Sports uniforms, the second period to order them is from January 13th to January 31st, information related to this matter has been sent in an email.
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