From the Director
On Friday I had the privilege (and I mean this most sincerely) of being involved in the process to select our Head Prefects for our brand new student-designed Student Government. The standard of the presentations, the integrity and thoughtfulness of answers to interview questions and the poise and confidence with which they were delivered was outstanding. However, as much as I was impressed by the candidates, I was equally, if not more so by the current student leadership who served on the selection panel alongside me and my senior colleagues. They blew me away with their insightfulness and their clear understanding of what a truly values-based learning community requires of its student leaders. In short I was just so impressed by the maturity of all the students involved.
I remember being fascinated by this concept of maturity when I was a student at school. It was clear to me even then that I knew plenty of people of relatively advanced ages who seemed to utterly lack maturity and yet my peers and I regularly had our perceived lack of maturity pointedly and repeatedly bemoaned by the adults around us. And now, as someone with a little over 50 years of life experience behind me, I know that my journey towards real maturity continues yet (and suspect it may never end!). And what does true maturity look like anyway….?
For much of what follows I am indebted to an online article by Tim Elmore, founder and President of Growing Leaders.
1. A mature person is able to keep long-term commitments.
One key signal of maturity is the ability to delay gratification. Part of this means a young person learning to keep commitments even when they are no longer new or novel- committing to continue doing what is right even when it is burdensome
2. A mature person is unshaken by flattery or criticism.
As people mature, they sooner or later understand that nothing is as good as it seems and nothing is as bad as it seems. Mature people can receive compliments or criticism without letting it ruin them or sway them into a distorted view of themselves. They are secure in their identity.
3. A mature person possesses a spirit of humility.
Humility parallels maturity. Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself. It is thinking of yourself less. Mature people aren’t consumed with drawing attention to themselves. They see how others have contributed to their success and can even sincerely give honour to their Creator who gave them the talent. This is the opposite of arrogance.
4. A mature person’s decisions are based on values not feelings or impulses.
Mature people—students or adults—live by values. They have principles that guide their decisions. They are able to progress beyond merely reacting to life’s options, and be proactive as they live their life. Their character is master over their emotions.
5. A mature person expresses gratitude consistently.
Immature children presume they deserve everything good that happens to them. Mature people see the big picture and realize how good they have it, compared to most of the world’s population.
6. A mature person knows how to prioritize others before themselves.
A wise man once said: “A mature person is one whose agenda revolves around others, not self”. Certainly this can go to an extreme and be unhealthy, but part of the journey out of childishness is getting past our own desires and beginning to live to meet the needs of others, especially those less fortunate than ourselves.
7. A mature person knows that nobody is perfect
As we gather life experience, and if we actively learn from it, we realise that everyone has his or her faults, even those we admire the most, like our parents. However, we learn that this doesn’t make them bad people; it makes them human!
8. A mature person recognizes that life is not fair
Likewise, we take a giant step towards maturity when we learn to stop raging against unfairness and instead can deal with adversity with stoicism and resilience. One of the clearest signs of increasing maturity is demonstrating the ability to lose with grace.
9. A mature person is at the same time self-aware and self-confident, reflective but not overly self-critical
The mature person knows her strengths and weaknesses. She is often self-deprecating but by no means lacks confidence. She can anticipate some failings and thereby avoid them but admits those she doesn’t, reflects and moves on.
10. A mature person seeks wisdom before acting.
A mature person is teachable. She/he doesn’t presume to have all the answers. The wiser mature people get the more wisdom they realize they need. They’re not ashamed of seeking counsel from adults (teachers, parents, coaches) or from other sources. Only the wise seek wisdom.
Stephen Lang
Director
From the Head of Primary
Reading A-Z
Recently we have extended our subscription of the online English and Spanish reading platform to include 1st Grade. Reading A-Z provides us with an assessment tool and leveled readers across 29 levels of difficulty. Students are allocated texts by the teacher and can record themselves reading aloud and complete comprehension activities. It provides a range of reading materials, including texts in British English. You can use the Parent Portal to see which books and activities your child has completed, monitor their progress, and send them messages. Log into Kids A-Z as your child to request access. Click the "Parents" link at the top right of the page and follow the instructions to provide an email address. Your child’s teacher will need to approve the email address before you can see your child's information.
Library Collection Service
Don’t forget that you can borrow books from our primary libraries. Visit our library catalogue here or read our information letter to find out more.
How can you help your kids practice and improve their English (or Spanish for some of us) at home?
Further support can be found at Learn English Kids by the British Council
Many parents would like to help their children with their English at home, but don’t know how to start. It doesn’t matter if your own English is not perfect. The most important thing is that you are enthusiastic and that you give your children lots of encouragement and praise. Your child will pick up on your enthusiasm for the language, and don’t worry if your child doesn’t speak back to you in English.
Establishing a routine
Establish a routine for your English time at home. It is better to have short, frequent sessions than long, infrequent ones. Fifteen minutes is enough for young children. You can gradually make sessions longer. Try to do certain activities at the same time every day. Children feel more comfortable and confident when they know what to expect. For example, you could play an English game every afternoon, or read an English story with your children before bedtime. Repetition is essential – children often need to hear words and phrases many times before they feel ready to produce them themselves.
Playing games
Children learn naturally when they are having fun. Flashcards are a great way to teach and revise vocabulary and there are many different games which you can play with flashcards, such as Memory, Kim’s game, Snap or Happy Families. Contact class teachers for advice about which vocabulary your child needs to learn or practice. You can find free downloadable flashcards on a wide range of topics on the LearnEnglish Kids website.
There are many other types of games you can play with your children to help them practise English.
Action games – for example Simon says, Charades, What’s the time Mr Wolf?
Board games – Snakes and ladders, other traditional games
Word games – e.g. I spy, Hangman
Using everyday situations
The advantage of teaching English at home is that you can use everyday situations and real objects from around the house to practise the language naturally and in context. For example:
Talk about clothes when your child is getting dressed, or when you are sorting laundry (‘Let’s put on your blue socks’, ‘It’s Dad’s T-shirt’, etc.).
Practise food vocabulary when you are cooking, give your child a list of things to find to make a recipe.
Using songs
Songs are a really effective way to learn new words and improve pronunciation. Songs with actions are particularly good for young children. Make a playlist of their favourite English songs and sing along together.
Teaching grammar
With younger children, there is no need to explicitly teach grammar rules, but instead get them used to hearing and using different grammatical structures. For older children, you can use the grammar practice section on LearnEnglish Kids. It can be very useful for older children to teach their siblings or other family members. Explaining how to use grammar to someone else helps you to master it yourself.
Top Tips
1. Be enthusiastic and involved
2. Make learning fun and enjoyable
3. Follow your child’s personality and interests
4. Let your child choose the activity
5. Judge your child’s mood to pick the best time
6. Provide meaningful situations with real outcomes
7. Support your child’s learning in the virtual lessons and homework
8. Use apps and online materials
9. Share and celebrate your child’s learning experience with family and friends
10. Find ways for your child to communicate with others in English
Don’t be afraid to talk to the class teacher – they will be happy to advise you on how to support your child’s learning.
Marianne Taylor
Head of Primary
Dates for your Diary
PRIMARY
February
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
Last time I wrote for The Weekly, I asked Daniel to introduce Student Government. As you know, he made a great job of introducing the new structure and explaining roles. Today, Mr Lang, Ms Chavez and myself were lucky enough to work with the current student leadership team as we interviewed six candidates for Head Student.
To apply for the position is a great achievement in itself but to perform as well as all six candidates did is beyond impressive. I thought I might list some of the school values that were on display throughout the interviews but quickly realised that it would be easier to simply paste the entire list here. Suffice to say, the next generation of student leadership look more than capable of nurturing the legacy of the outgoing team. It really is impressive to hear the level to which students feel pride in the ABC. They are a great credit to the entire community and a creative team to look out for in the coming year.
In fact, this week has been a week full of various meetings. Grade 11 received their second Extended Essay introductory session on Tuesday. It’s fantastic to see how so many of them seem to have remembered the research skills they first encountered during the IB introduction programme last May and how keen they are to explore various topics within their subject choices. The EE is a great opportunity to hone the skills they’ll go on to use in university and beyond. If you are a parent of a Grade 11, please do encourage them in this upcoming project by talking through ideas and encouraging them to constantly ask their supervisors for advice once they have been allocated around mid-March. If your child is younger, don’t worry, you can still prepare them for the extended essay by asking about their studies and pushing them to think that little bit more by posing a well chosen question or two: Why do you think that? How can you be sure?
These opportunities for critical thinking really do go a long way. On Wednesday we held a Town Hall meeting with Grade 12. Naturally, our graduating class have numerous questions about exam season but rather than quietly wondering, they took the opportunity to meet with the leadership team and discuss their concerns as well as ensure they all share the same understanding of the situation as it currently stands. Just like the students who interviewed for leadership roles, G12 demonstrated the skills and qualities we encourage in ABC students.
These examples are just a snapshot of my week. I’ve also talked TOK with groups and individuals; discussed CAS projects; and spoken about university choices. If I had to sum up this variety of experiences I’d have to do so by saying that, once again, I’m thoroughly impressed by the capacity the students of the ABC have to rise to challenges and to assure parents of students in the lower years that their children have some remarkable role models to look up to.
Colin Hogan
Assistant Head IB Diploma Years
Dates for your diary
SECONDARY
February
Wednesday 17th to Monday 22nd - Half Term holidays (school
closed)
Monday 22nd - Staff INSET Day (School closed for students)
March
Monday 8th to Friday 12th – Brain Week
Monday 8th - International Women's Day / Día Internacional de la Mujer
Wednesday 10th - English Dept Oral Exams G12
Friday 19th - Francophonie Day
Monday 22nd to Friday 26th - Francophonie Week
Monday 29th to Friday 9th April - Easter holidays
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