From the Director
Dear Community,
I hope you are all now aware that both the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) and Cambridge International Exams (CIE) have authorised our Grade 12 and 10 students respectively to follow a non-exam, teacher assessed grade award process in the light of our current online learning status. This is excellent news as it will allow our students to be fairly and safely assessed and at the same time receive full IB Diploma and CIE IGCSE certification.
In other good news I am delighted to be able to announce some important promotions in, and to, our secondary and primary school leadership teams, effective August 1st, as follows:
Head of Secondary- Matt Burdett
Deputy Head (Curriculum)- Colin Hogan
Deputy Head (Wellbeing)- Carmen Chávez
Assistant Head (Secondary)- Sarah Diebelius
Assistant Head (Secondary)- Helen Kinder
Assistant Head (Primary)- Ana Raquel Suárez
Many congratulations to all concerned! We now have settled leadership in place in both primary and secondary that I expect to carry us forward boldly and effectively for a number of years to come.
Please can I ask all primary parents with children in Grades 1-5 to keep an eye on their inboxes for an invite to an exciting online meeting with the secondary leadership team next week entitled “Building a curriculum for future-proof world-changers” next week and the week after. I really urge you to attend if at all you can.
Let me wish you all a safe and peaceful weekend. I know we are all a little nervous but hopefully the elections will run smoothly and fairly and all parties will show maturity in accepting the results.
Stephen Lang
Director
From the Head of Primary
Resilience Day - 12th March
Here are some of the ways in which we are going to celebrate our incredible ABC spirit and the resilience we have shown in the past year.
Virtual class parties
Photo Mosaic: each community member to send a photo to anabellasoto@abc-net.edu.sv that says something about the resilience they have shown in online learning mode and/or the achievements they have accomplished. (Photos must be sent in by Thursday March 4th by noon.)
Send a short 30 second video to anabellasoto@abc-net.edu.sv in which students and staff describe briefly a way in which they feel they have grown as a person this past year despite, or even better, because of, the lockdown. (Videos must be sent in by Thursday March 4th by noon.)
Drive-thru: keep Friday 12th March afternoon free for a drive-thru event at school where you can see your teachers. Bring a poster or decorate your car on the theme of resilience/Bulldog Spirit
Secondary students have been invited to compose their own version of the song ‘Dos mil veinte’ Song. Primary students are also invited to participate, so if your child is a budding song writer please submit a video of their version to helenkinder@abc-net.edu.sv keeping the chorus ('Y ahora somos más fuertes que antes’) the same but adding their own verse lyrics. More info here.
Results of the Parent Survey - Primary Online Learning Review
The teaching staff have been reviewing our primary curriculum and virtual learning since school reopening was delayed in January. We were very pleased that the results of the parent survey supported our vision for online learning development. Here are some highlights from the survey.
How well is your child progressing in their core subjects (English, Spanish & Math)? 81% of parents felt their children are making ok, good or excellent progress.
How motivated is your child to attend their lessons? 53% of parents feel their child is very motivated attending online lessons.
How happy are you with your child's current timetable? 18% of parents are unhappy with the current timetable
How well supported do you feel by the class teacher? 88% of parents feel supported by the class teacher
67% of parents would like us to prioritise personalisation over additional curriculum time. Although we are increasing curriculum time in some areas, the new timetables are focused on improved differentiation for your children, with the opportunity to better communicate and connect with teaching staff in sessions. This is an approach which staff know makes the greatest impact on learning, both in the classroom and online.
However 55% are worried about their children falling behind, and it will be my focus to address this issue over the coming weeks, by supporting parents to know if their child is on-track, advice on how to support them and information about how children can catch-up if gaps do emerge.
We will be having a ‘Coffee with the Primary Leadership Team’ on Tuesday 16th March (7:30 am - 8:30 am) LINK, if you would like to come along and ask questions about these or any other issues.
24/7 Parenting
Recently our LSU department had a coffee morning where they discussed something being called 24/7 parenting syndrome. We know how tough it is parenting during school closure so here is a copy of the presentation in Spanish and English.
Virtual Mud Kitchen
This week some pre-kinder children participated in a virtual mud kitchen session so I thought I would share some benefits of mud play for all children:
Healthier immune system: The germs found in mud may help strengthen your child’s immune system. In fact, living (and playing) in an environment that is too clean may increase the risk of illnesses such as allergies and asthma.
Gut health: Mud play may help increase the diversity of friendly bacteria in the body. A medical study in Finland found that children in daycare who played in gardens with soil and vegetation had more types of gut bacteria than children in daycares with gardens that had less natural space.
Emotional health and creativity: Mud play allows children to connect and interact with the natural world around them. It helps children develop tactile skills with sensory play. Mud play and other outdoor activities not only get them away from screens, but give children fresh air, exercise, and sunlight. Mud play is also a teaching tool that can help children boost creativity, imagination, independent learning, and teamwork. It can also help develop construction, building, and problem-solving skills.
A few tips for mud play
Take them out after a rainy day to explore muddy puddles or if you prefer to keep the mud a little more controlled, let your child play with mud in a shallow bucket or a large bowl in the garden.
Always keep an eye on smaller children during mud play. While they may get some in their mouth or on their face, avoid letting them eat mud or get it in their eyes while they squish and explore.
Let them take the lead. Some children may love the glorious mess of mud, while others might prefer to keep it cleaner. Let your child decide how messy they want to get.
Set mud rules. These should be basics like no throwing mud at other children (or at you).
Dress for the mess. Make sure your child knows that they should only wear shoes and clothing that they are allowed to get muddy during mud play.
Provide some tools. Kitchen implements like plastic containers or spoons are great, as are small plastic cars or animals.
Activities with mud play are just about endless! Here are some ideas:
Mold mud into pretend muffins, donuts, and cookies.
Make mud bricks to build a dollhouse or mini fort.
Make mud castles and buildings.
Paint and write with mud using a large paintbrush.
Make a mud digging and construction site for toy trucks.
Make a mud racetrack or roads for toy cars.
Throw mud balls against a wall or cardboard target.
Things to say when our kids feel anxious and scared
Ms Ana Mena, our safeguarding officer and Personal, Social, Health and Emotional Curriculum Leader found this wonderful advice that I thought I would share. It is not always easy to know how to communicate with children when families are going through tough times.
We don't know what will happen or when this will end. But this won't last forever.
What questions do you have? What are you wondering about?
I am here and I'm looking after you.
This is really hard right now. But I also know that we can deal with this and get through this together.
It’s totally normal to feel worried, sad, disappointed, or even angry in situations like this. Let’s see how we can take care of your feelings.
Even though we don't have all the answers right now, when I know more, I will let you know, too.
We will take it one step at a time and focus on what we do have control over, like doing things that help us to stay safe, taking care of ourselves, and being gentle, forgiving and kind with each other.
Dates for your Diary
PRIMARY
March
Monday 1st - New Primary Timetables begin
Monday 1st to Friday 19th - Upper Primary 3 Way Conferences
Tuesday 2nd March - Building a curriculum for future-proof world changers - Grade 5 and 6 Parent meeting
Wednesday 3rd March - Building a curriculum for future-proof world changers - Grade 3 and 4 Parent meeting
Thursday 4th - Last day to purchase for the Superhero T-shirt Campaign
Monday 8th March - International Women's Day
Tuesday 9th March - Building a curriculum for future-proof world changers - Grade 1 and 2 Parent meeting
Friday 12th - ABC Resilience Day (afternoon drive-thru event at school)
Tuesday 16th - Coffee with Primary Leadership Team (7:30 am - 8:30 am) LINK
Friday 26th - National Day of Life, Peace, and Justice
Friday 26th to Thursday 26th April - Virtual “T-shirt Days”
Monday 29th- Friday 9th April - Easter Holiday
April
Monday 12th - School resumes after Easter Holiday
From the Secondary Leadership Team
It's that time of year where we begin to look ahead and start making arrangements for August 2021. With this in mind, we will soon be asking Grade 8 and 10 students to make option choices for their IGCSE and IB Diploma Programmes, taking their next steps on their learning pathway.
We have several different opportunities set up for Grade 8 and 10 students to learn more about the decisions they will be making in the next few weeks. These include Life Skills sessions, discussions with their Tutors, and options evenings for both Grade 8 and 10 students and parents. (The dates of these events are shown below and on the school calendar). Closer to the options evenings, we will share the options booklets, the options form, and video explanations from each department, including the vital information about each of the courses available.
When making these decisions, all students will need to consider the influence that they will have on the next stages of their education and future career. It is important that you discuss the options available with your child and allow them to think carefully about what they want to do. Older students who have already made their choices will be a good source of advice, as well as subject teachers. We highly recommend you to ask questions to either of these groups if you need more information than the booklets and videos provide. The University and Careers Guidance team is also available to answer specific enquiries about which subjects are useful for different careers ( email: mariavides@abc-net.edu.sv ). When making these decisions, please use all of these reliable sources.
Below I attach some recommendations for students on how best to make these choices:
HOW to choose?
Read and understand the information provided very carefully.
Discuss your options with your parents, teachers, older students and your tutor.
Think about your ability in a subject. How are your skills best used? Are you good at writing essays, or better with numbers and equations?
Think about your interests. It is the subject that needs to interest you instead of who is teaching the subject.
Consider what your ultimate goal is? Think about university requirements and career implications. If there are subjects you might want to take at IB (e.g. Music), it may be a requirement to have first taken them at GCSE, but find this out as it is not always necessary.
Remember, every subject on offer can develop students' knowledge, understanding and skills in some way. Please consider that these are your choices and no one else's. Therefore you need to focus on what you enjoy most because you are unlikely to get satisfaction from a career that relies on subjects you dislike.
Dos and Don'ts of Making Option Choices
You should remember these:
Dos
DO choose subjects which you like
DO choose subjects at which you are successful
DO choose subjects which you may need for a career or further education
DO find out everything that you can about the subject before you choose it. Once you have started a subject, we expect you to stick with it for two years
DO talk to the people who know you
DO listen to the advice your subject teachers give you
Don'ts
DON'T choose a subject just because your friend has chosen it
DON'T choose a subject just because you like - or dislike - a particular teacher; they may not end up teaching you
DON'T choose a subject because you think it is 'easy' – it probably isn't!
We look forward to speaking with students and yourselves soon about these exciting next steps.
ABC DVA
Dates for your diary
SECONDARY
March
Tuesday 2nd - Building a curriculum for future-proof world changers - Grade 5 and 6 Parent meeting.
Wednesday 3rd - Building a curriculum for future-proof world changers - Grade 3 and 4 Parent meeting
Thursday 4th - IGCSE Options Evening (Grade 8 Students and Parents)
Monday 8th to Friday 12th – Brain Week
Monday 8th - International Women's Day
Tuesday 9th - Building a curriculum for future-proof world changers - Grade 1 and 2 Parent meeting
Thursday 11th - IBDP Options Evening (Grade 10 Students and Parents)
Friday 12th - Resilience Day
Friday 19th - Francophonie Day
Monday 22nd to Friday 26th - Francophonie Week
Wednesday 24th - English Dept Oral Exams G12
Thursday 25th -Spanish spelling Competition 2021
Friday 26th - Last day of term
Monday 29th to Friday 9th April - Easter holidays
ABC SPORTS
I would like to congratulate 20 PE teachers and coaches who recently finished a virtual training of motor skills development, focusing on children from 4 to 11 years of age. The training was given by expert teachers from Secretaría de Educación from Puebla México and lasted for 12 sessions which started in October 2020 and finished the last INSET day on February 22nd.
Teaching is a key element for embracing quality in our Sports program, as well as focusing on this important stage of our children to develop their motor skills and abilities to their fullest.
We are very proud of our teachers and coaches who participated actively at every session.
I am taking advantage of this opportunity to continue inviting parents to enroll their children in the extracurricular activities offered from Pre-Kinder to Grade 12, the timetables and links to join the virtual sessions are posted on the Parent Portal.
Ms. Cecy Hernández
Athletic Director
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