From the Director
Thank you all for your trust and support these past months; it has been humbling. I hope you have managed to catch (or will) some or all of the end of term events; they say far more about the resilience and vibrancy of our learning community than I ever could here.
I wish you all a joyous and peaceful Christmas. God-willing you will all remain safe and healthy and find the time with your loved ones refreshing and renewing. Pride is a vice, they say, but the peace that comes from knowing that this year you have, as a family, and as individuals, overcome tremendous challenges with courage, grace and perseverance are not, so take a moment to be kind to yourselves and reflect on what you have achieved.
There is nothing quite so special as a family table full of food and laughter and when I am sitting at mine on Christmas Day, I shall raise a glass to all of you!
¡Feliz Navidad!
From the Head of Primary
Wishing you and your families a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
As we come to the end of term, I want to say a big thank you to the primary teaching staff. They have achieved what was thought to be impossible, to connect, motivate and facilitate learning via virtual sessions. Teaching staff have, overnight, re-learnt what it means to be a teacher, ensuring that their students continue to make progress. Our students have continued their learning journey, have acquired new skills and reinforced the qualities and values that make them Responsible, Outstanding Citizens. I am more confident than ever that we will come out of this pandemic stronger, with more talented, independent and resilient students and even more accomplished teachers.
Congratulations to our students for their outstanding performance in the Christmas Shows and a special thanks to Mr McNeil and the music team for the hours that went into editing the videos.
Next term and plans for reopening
We have applied to MinEd to be able to open in ‘hybrid’ mode next term. Please visit our parent portal to watch the video of our meeting or download the presentation.
Next term
We will begin next term with the same online timetable. Please note, there will be no Extra Curricular, LSU, Upper Primary Support and Extension, English Second Language Support, or Spanish Second Language Support in Kinder and Prepa sessions in the first week. We will not be changing class teachers, this means that Prepa students will be with an expat teacher (the Prepa Bridge) next year when they are in first grade.
Timeline for Reopening
We receive a site visit from MinEd
We receive approval to reopen from MinEd
We review the most up-to-date information to decide if it is safe to open
If we judge that it is safe to open,we will announced the planned reopening date
We will publish the Hybrid Parent Portal, with
Further information about reopening
Specific timetables and staffing teams for each grade
Specific details about drop-off and collection
Transition plan for Pre-Kinder and Kinder
We will hold further parent meetings in Spanish and English
Students will have opportunities to get to know any new online teachers
We will ask parents to choose some in-person learning or commit to a full online programme (for a set amount of time), update medical records and agree to parental expectations
Parents and staff will start monitoring for symptoms and possible contact with suspected or confirmed cases of Covid-19,
Staffing for Reopening
Following parent meetings, we had some questions about which teachers children will have if you choose a fulltime online curriculum.
Following the parent survey in November, which showed us that 80% of parents were interested in some in-person teaching, it was decided that class teachers would provide the in-person teaching sessions.
This means that children who learn online fulltime will have sessions with a new teacher.
The class teacher will still monitor and plan for your child, and we will make every effort for them to be able to connect with both their teacher and their class through additional sessions or web-cam technology.
The teachers allocated to teach children who learn online fulltime are qualified and experienced, for example we plan for Ian Truscott our KS2 Coordinator to support the 5th Grade students who are online fulltime.
To encourage staff to stay home when unwell and to avoid disruptions to your child’s education we will need to be flexible with staffing, however we are very lucky that we have a large team of staff who are qualified and experienced to teach a range of ages and subjects.
Please be reassured that many groups and individual children have started working with new staff this year online and have made strong connections and good progress with the new adult.
I will continue to monitor and review our staffing structure as long as we are online
Primary Leadership Team
I am pleased to announce that at the start of this year Ms Ana Raquel Suarez was appointed as Assistant Head of Primary. She has delayed starting her new position until now, to support her class online. However in January, Ms Morena Valladares will be taking over as the class teacher for Kinder Suarez.
The Primary leadership structure now no longer has a deputy head for lower and upper primary, instead the leadership team will be working across both sections of the school to improve continuity and consistency.
Here is the Primary Senior Leadership Team (PSLT):
You are welcome to contact any of us at any time, but please remember that in most cases your child’s class teacher is the best initial point of contact.
The school secretaries will remain in their current roles:
I am also pleased to announce as Ms Mayra Caeres will continue leading 5th Grade as Grade Leader, Ms Guadalupe Guzman will focus on supporting all staff across primary with ensuring and supporting student wellbeing through the curriculum.
Marianne Taylor
Head of Primary
Dates for your Diary
January
Monday 11th: School resumes after Christmas Holiday online
From the SSLT
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,
As we reflect on the year just past, think how will history books describe the year 2020! (This video from Google sums it up pretty well.) We continue to live in a turning point in our human existence, one that will be studied for years to come. At an individual level, how will our children look back at this year? We hope that they look back at this time, as a critical point where they have developed skills, where they have learned resilience as well as practised adaptability to meet the challenges which we have all been presented!
As we look forward to the future, it is essential to consider what our personal goals and ambitions are for 2021 and beyond. Whether they are to eat healthy, exercise or learn a new language, we are sure that the new-found resilience we have all learned will help you achieve these goals! Over the last few weeks, our Head Students have been preparing for today's assembly asking for a Christmas photo to share of each student holding a written copy of their new year's resolution. Today we would like to share with you the photos and new years resolutions that some of the head students submitted. Below you will be able to understand what their goals and ambitions are as we move forward into the next year.
Senji Shibata
Since the start of quarantine, I was not worried about the quarantine situation as I don’t go out a lot (The impact it would have to the world was far more concerning to be honest). During quarantine, I became friends with more people and found a lot of common ground with them (Sometimes staying awake until 5 am talking). I’m truly grateful for the relationships that bloomed between us. For my new year’s resolution I will try to help more people out. My wish for christmas: I hope everyone’s dreams come true.
Elisa Giammatei
For me 2020 has been a call to stop, to reflect, to understand the process of life. We are constantly wanting to get better or to get things done once in for all without appreciating the process of what we have achieved. I’ve always been a rushed person, overstressing over insignificant things, but from 2020 I have learned to cherish life, cherish the first ray of sun every morning and be able to focus on my daily goals, my tiny steps, instead of looking at the wider image. Validate that you have a life and that things always have a way of happening. Understand that you don’t always have the control of your life and that’s totally fine.
Daniela Guerra
At the end of 2019, we had no idea of what the onrushing train of 2020 had planned for us. During this year, we have seen/experienced all a rollercoaster of emotions after COVID-19, racism issues, wildfires, hurricanes, volatile climate, and more. Yet, in the face of disaster, there was bravery, kindness, compassion, sympathy, sacrifice, support, and there was always hope. Together, let’s hope for 2021 to be a better year that allows each of us to flourish in the best possible way. Although we all have different goals and aspirations for the coming years, I hope you all can attain the determination and persistence to reach them. My resolution for the coming years is to be a happier person and value each moment and achievement in my life regardless of concerns or daunting situations.
Jubran Lemus
This year was full of its ups and downs! But as with all things, all that starts needs to end. The Coronavirus is no exception, the vaccine signals that our condition might end sooner than expected. I reflected during this Pandemic on our ways of living, how there is much beauty in life and the notion of time. After reading writer Kahlil Gibran I created this quote which summarises my findings: “Yesterday is but today's memories, today's is but tomorrow's wish”. For me, it is on the concept of Carpe Diem, living in the present and smiling when possible. Which brings me to my resolution: Love more. Find beauty in the mundane. Be thrilled by the thought of thinking. Liberate the love you have within.
Well done to all of the head students for their work towards today's Christmas assembly and we wish them all the best in working toward their goals in the future! We would also like to say a huge well done and thank you to all students who were involved in the online Christmas Concert today. Thank you for the amazing performances which now have us suitably warmed up for Christmas! If you wish to watch today's Christmas Concert and Secondary Assembly you can do so on this link.
We are looking forward to seeing all students back online on Monday January 11th.
From all teachers in the school and SSLT.
Have a wonderful Christmas break!
ABC Secondary Reopening plans.
We had an excellent turnout to the ABC parent meeting on Tuesday. If you missed the meeting for any reason, we recorded it and you can watch the video of the meeting at this link.
Some key points we would like you all to be aware of moving ahead into next year:
We will start the term online and continue to offer an online programme to those who require it until we can all safely return to school.
MINED have been sent the plans we presented and we are awaiting final approval including an inspection of the site.
Once we have approval of our plans we will be l
aunching a website (Hybrid Parent Portal) for parents with the most up to date information on the Hybrid learning program for each grade.
We have not determined a reopening date at this point, the absolute earliest we will return to any form of in-person learning is Monday January 25th.
We will be asking parents to make an informed decision whether or not to send their child or children back to school two weeks before we plan to go into any phase of the reopening plan. This gives us enough time to make the necessary preparations.
Purchase a supply of KN95 or N95 masks without valves.
Familiarize yourself with the Hybrid programs, the daily health checklist and the schools' Covid-19 communication procedures by watching the presentation video.
Please ensure that your child has access to a device (tablet or laptop) which can be fully charged ready for when your child comes into school.
What can secondary parents do to prepare for sending their children back to school?
Dates for your Diary
SECONDARY
December
Monday 21st - Christmas holidays start
January 2021
Monday 11th - First day of Term (Online Learning)
Monday 18th to Friday 22nd - G12 English Orals
Wednesday 27th - IB Spanish EE
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