From the Director
Next Monday February 1st marks exactly 50 years since the ABC opened its doors to children. There will be a range of activities going on throughout the day culminating in a fireworks extravaganza at the school at 18:00, which families may attend in their cars. Save the date! Spaces will be limited, so please RSVP by filling out this form.
As many of you will know by now, I am a proud Scot (and sometime poet!) so today, January 25th is a special day for me as it is the anniversary of the birth of the great Scottish poet Rabbie Burns in 1759. Burns is renowned the world over as one of the great poets; Abraham Lincoln, a great admirer, once said when asked to propose a toast to Burns:
“I cannot frame a toast to Burns. I can say nothing worthy of his generous heart, and transcendent genius. Thinking of what he has said, I cannot say anything which seems worth saying.”
There is so much to admire about Burns’ poetry, its cadence and rich pastoral imagery and the way in which it celebrates the beauty of the Scottish landscape and the lives of the humble peasants who inhabit it. However, for me one of the most important aspects of Burns’ is the way in which it promotes the notion of brotherhood and reminds us of the profoundness of the connections we share in our human experience no matter where we come from, what language we speak, what colour our skin is or what status we hold in society. This of course, is a value that we share and promote as a learning community, especially when we think of our core value of Empathy. Burns put it this way in his song A Man’s a Man for a’ That:
Then let us pray that come it may,
(As come it will for a' that,)
That Sense and Worth, o'er a' the earth,
Shall bear the gree, an' a' that.
For a' that, an' a' that,
It's coming yet for a' that,
That Man to Man, the world o'er,
Shall brothers be for a' that.
Best wishes everybody and do stay safe…..
Stephen Lang
Director
From the Head of Primary
Performance Poetry
This week we saw a very powerful performance by Amanda Gorman delivering her poem ‘The Hill We Climb’ at Joe Biden's inauguration. It reminded me how important it is for children to see poetry performed. Here are some links for you to share with your children,
Solli Raphael, 12, becomes youngest winner of Australian Poetry Slam
Michael Rosen Reads Classic Poems
Student Council
Our Upper Primary Student Council, led by Ms. Ana Mena, has been meeting and discussing ideas about how we can keep mentally and physically healthy during online learning. They have been visiting classes to share their ideas.
Sending emails to friends and family
Playing online games
Spending some time outdoors: in the sunshine
Going out in the neighborhood with friends; on bike rides or nature walks, and playing outdoor games
Family time: movie nights, board games, etc
Doing homework together (online)
Showing friends how to do something you are good at
Asking parents to arrange google-zoom meetings with friends in the afternoon
Eating healthy and having enough sleep
Thank you to our Student Council 2020/21
2nd Ware - Helena Muñoz
2nd Avilés - Lucía Atanacio
2nd Padilla - Elena Pérez
2nd Carbajal - Natalia Lourdes Henríquez
3rd Mena - Julieta Rosales
3rd Pineda - Sara Lucía Solórzano
3rd Pashley - Alejandro Rivas
3rd Quintanilla - Bautista Saravia
4th Cáceres - Marco Planas
4th Segovia - Diego Cisneros
4th Borgo - Mariana González
4th Reston - Rebecca Fahy Portillo
5th Hernández - Isabel Urías
5th Quijano - Julian Inagaki
5th Guzmán - Adriana Guzmán
5th Williams - Columba Lang
The Power of Self-Organised Learning - The Hole in The Wall Experiment
As school closures across the world continue, the power of self-directed learning by children (or play as we call it at the ABC) becomes more and more apparent. So I wanted to share with you a famous experiment from over twenty years ago that nicely demonstrates the importance of a child-centered educational experience.
In early 1999, a group of educational theorists sunk a computer into the opening of a wall in Kalkaji, New Delhi. The area was located in a slum, with desperately poor people struggling to survive. The screen was visible from the street, and the PC was available to anyone who passed by. The computer had online access and a number of programs that could be used, but no instructions were given for its use. What happened next astonished them. Children came running out of the nearest slum and glued themselves to the computer. They couldn't get enough. They began to click and explore. They began to learn how to use this strange thing. A few hours later, the children were actually surfing the Web. Within six months the children had learned all the mouse operations, could open and close programs, and were going online to download games, music and videos. When asked how they had learned all of these sophisticated maneuvers, each time they said they had taught themselves.
Over the next decade they continued their research in self-directed learning, in many places and through many cultures. Each time, the children were able to develop deep learning by teaching themselves and some common observations of the process emerged;
Discoveries tend to happen in one of two ways: When one child in a group already knows something, he or she shows off those skills to the others. Or, while the others watch, one child explores randomly until an accidental discovery is made.
Several children repeat the discovery for themselves.
One or more children make more accidental or incidental discoveries.
All the children repeat all the discoveries made and, in the process, make more discoveries. They soon start to create a vocabulary to describe their experiences.
The vocabulary encourages them to perceive generalizations
They memorize entire procedures for doing something. Whenever a child finds a shorter procedure, he or she teaches it to the others. They discuss, hold small conferences, make their own timetables and research plans.
The group divides itself into the "knows" and the "know-nots," a child that knows will share that knowledge in return for friendship and reciprocity of information, unlike with the ownership of physical things, when you "take" information, the donor doesn't "lose" it!
A stage is reached when no further discoveries are being made and the children occupy themselves with practicing what they have already learned. At this point, intervention is required to plant a new seed for discovery.
Dates for your Diary
PRIMARY
February
Monday 1st - ABC’s 50th Anniversary Celebration
Monday 1st to Friday 5th - Internet Safety Week
Wednesday 17th - Half Term Holiday (school closed)
Monday 22nd - Inset for Teachers (school closed for students)
Tuesday 23rd - School resumes from Half Term Holiday
From the Secondary Leadership Team
On Monday 18th we celebrated Martin Luther King day.
Each year on the third Monday of January we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and reflect on the work that still needs to be done for racial equality. Each grade has celebrated MLK day in different ways. G9 prepared a fantastic assembly, lead 100% by students to students. Other Grades had different presentations recognising the rights of equality.
This January 18, is more than a holiday and just a day off ,it is a time to reflect and take action on civil rights issues across the globe. Martin Luther King was a Baptist minister who advocated the use of nonviolent means to end racial segregation, he was also the most influential of African American civil rights leader during the 1960s, he was instrumental in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed discrimination in public accommodations, facilities, and employment, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In 1964 he was awarded the Noble Peace Prize.
As a school we value differences because we believe in freedom of speech, freedom of belief, we tolerate differences, but not only that, we accept them and we welcome them as part of the beauty of being different. Our Mission is to change the world by building responsible outstanding citizens (ROCs) through our commitment to a values-based and holistic learning experience.
Our aspiration to change the world is founded upon a core set of shared beliefs:
We believe the world needs to change - to become more peaceful, more equitable and more sustainable.
We believe we have a duty to engender in young people a commitment to serve as agents of that change.
We believe we have a duty to enable young people with the values, personal qualities and skills to be agents of that change.
We believe the development of this commitment, and these values and skills, relies upon our learning community nurturing in young people a strong sense of care and respect for oneself, others and society.
This week is also dedicated to our Value “Respect” respect to others points of view, others differences, others ideas.
Kind regards,
Carmen Chávez
Assistant Headteacher - Student Wellbeing
Dates for your diary
SECONDARY
January 2021
Wednesday 27th - IB Spanish EE
February
Monday 1st to Friday 5th - Internet Safety Week
Monday 1st - ABC Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration
Wednesday 17th to Monday 22nd - Half Term holidays (school closed)
Monday 22nd - Staff INSET Day (School closed for students)
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