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» Issue 10 » 21 June 2019

Newsletter

ELC and Lower Junior SchoolVariety Showcase

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Principally SpeakingTim Waley, Principal

It only seems a moment ago when we were all return-ing for the start of Term 2! I guess this is symptomatic of a productively busy environment to the extent where one week morphs into another and all of a sudden a Term has passed.

It has been a positive and productive few months from any standpoint. Our students have excelled across a variety of competitive undertakings both within the Malaysian context and also internationally. I congratu-late them all on their performances which have not only brought great credit for themselves but additionally, for our school. In so saying, I want to express my apprecia-tion for the efforts of so many of our staff who contrib-ute to these efforts so selflessly.

Additionally, I am pleased to see that, broadly speak-ing, so many of the students are making significant personal progress in their academic endeavours. This is impressive and again, indicative of busy, stimulating and productive classroom environments. Certainly in my classroom visits during the past few months I am thrilled to see many examples of outstanding teach-ing practice taking place, especially that which is in line with the principles of Visible Learning - the AISM approach.

Congratulations to all those students who so actively participated in Green Week and also those Senior Stu-dents who were involved in organising events for Spirit Week. Some really worthwhile and productive under-takings took place during this period.

Commencement of Term 3

Monday, 15 July and Tuesday, 16 July Staff Professional Development days

Tuesday, 16 July Classes for Years 11 and 12 commence

Wednesday, 17 July Parent Teacher Student Learning Conferences (ELC- Year 10)

Thursday, 18 July All classes resume as normal

Congratulations as well to all those students who performed in the Years 9-12 Drama performances this past few days along with those involved in the Music Showcase last evening. Well done also to our younger students who participated with such enthusiasm in their Lower School Variety Performance last Friday. All were thoroughly enjoyable occasions. My thanks again to those staff involved with each of these performances and their work that has taken place behind the scenes in the lead up to them.

I took the opportunity recently to remind our Year 12 cohort that when we return for Term 3, there remain only 55 more teaching days until their HSC examina-tions commence in October. Important for them to make every day count I suggested - even if that involves dedi-cating a few regular periods of holiday time to some private study!

Finally thank you to Graeme Naftel for his great con-tribution to AISM over 6 years. On behalf of the AISM community, I wish him well as he embarks on his new challenge in Japan.

I hope you all have an enjoyable break and look forward to seeing everyone ready for action when we return to school in July. Again, please note the following details regarding the commencement of Term 3 below.

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Whole School

International Day 2019Ivan McLean, Head of Middle and Senior Schools

One of our very special days on the calendar is fast approaching - AISM International Day 2019 (Friday Week 2, 26 July 2019). During the day there will be a range of activities and performances to highlight the many diverse cultures within our school community. The Parents’ Association has offered to assist again with the “Around the World Food Tasting”, for which we are very grateful. If you would like to help out on one of the food teams, please contact Tanya Van Damme through the PA address, pa@aism.edu.my, or by phone on 010 704 6569. You may also contact any of the area coordinators via:

Students are encouraged to dress up in national costumes from any country. It is certainly a spectacle to see so many children dress to represent such a great variety of nations. The Chin students will also be joining us on the day and will participate in the activities and also provide a cultural demonstration. A full schedule of events will be sent out to parents closer to the day. Parents are more than welcome to attend our assembly and showcase event.

Africa Michelle Hart Email: pa@aism.edu.my

Americas Ros Burchell Phone: 017 222 1205

Asia Rebecca Mak Phone: 016 340 9907

Oceania Georgina Scambler Phone: 010 564 2604

Europe/Middle East Angela Werner Phone: 017 247 3244Malaysia Lavaniya Panicker Phone: 012 637 2484

Ina Alllenspach Phone: 012 373 9168

ELC to Year 1 Mercedeh Barbasteh Phone: 017 323 1346

Event Coordinator Tanya Van Damme Phone: 010 704 6569

CONGRATULATIONS to Megan Yap, Shao Zhe Loh and Joe Cheun who achieved excellent results in the recent Asian Science & Maths Olympiad 2019 (ASMO Maths). They have been officially invited to the Asian Science and Maths Olympiad National Round which will be held on 29 June 2019.

Asian Science Math Olympiads (ASMO) National Round 2019

Australian Mathematics Trust Computing & Algorithmic Thinking (CAT) competition

Congratulations to the following students for their participation and success in the recent Australian Mathematics Trust Computing & Algorithmic Thinking (CAT) competition:

Year 5 Ker Ru Lee - DistinctionRyosei Suzuki - Credit

Year 6 Akmal Hakim - Perfect Score - HDShao Zhe Lo - Perfect Score - HDSarah Selvindoss - Credit

Year 8Yeu Joe Cheun - Perfect Score - HD

Year 9Megan Yap - Perfect Score - HDMia Li Shen Tan - DistinctionSiew Leng Emily Tan - DistinctionKah Yin Ip - Credit

Year 11Cara Hobson - Credit

Katrina Reece, Head of Learning Enrichment - Whole School

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Junior SchoolGraeme Naftel, Head of Junior School

END OF SEMESTER REPORTSEnd of semester reports are available to download from the Parent Portal. These reports provide a comprehensive overview of your child’s learning progress over the first half of the year. As per Australian government requirements, all students from Years 1-5 will receive grades on a five point scale. If your child achieves a ‘Sound’ grade, this means that they are achieving at expected level for this stage of the year. Reports can be located under the DMS tab of the parent portal.

PARENT TEACHER STUDENT LEARNING CONFERENCESParents are encouraged to read the reports before the Parent Teacher Student Learning Conference, scheduled for Wednesday 17 July. Bookings for this day can be made through the Parent Portal until Sunday 14 July. If you wish to make an appointment with your child’s Mandarin teacher, please contact them directly:

Ms Wan - yokeyinw@aism.edu.my Ms Hor - kailinh@aism.edu.my

Appointments with all other specialist teachers can be made using the online booking system.

Please remember that there are no classes or child care arrangements scheduled for that day. Students are re-quired to accompany their parents to the Learning Conference and should wear full School uniform. If you are unable to book a suitable time to meet with your child’s teacher, please email them to arrange an alternate time over the first couple of weeks of next term.

ELC and Lower Junior School VARIETY SHOWCASE

Congratulations to all of the ELC and LJS children whoparticipated in last Friday’s Variety Showcase, and to the Year 4 Strings group who started the show. Thank you to Mr Gredig for all the work he put into preparing this performance. Our motto at AISM is ‘Explore, Extend, Excel’ and this was a per-fect example of the way in which all of our students have the opportunity to explore the Performing Arts.

Click here to view the video

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FAREWELLSix and a half years is a long time to stay in an international school, and I can honestly say they have been the best years of my professional life. I am so proud to have been part of the growth of the Junior School and I am so grate-ful for all the wonderful colleagues with whom I have been lucky enough to work, the caring parents I have enjoyed getting to know, and most importantly, the amazing children who make every day special.

LESSONS OF THE WEEK - Languages other than English (LOTE)

Reading skills, Feedback and Intercultural Understanding through celebration

Bahasa Melayu and Malaysian Cultural StudiesAdila Parman and Mohd Fadhly Roslei

1) Bahasa Melayu

Learning intention: Develop correct pronunciation of words in Bahasa Melayu through traditional songs

Success Criteria: • Use correct phonics techniques • Read with rhythm

Our target for this year is to improve our students’ reading skills through providing timely and effective verbal and written feedback based on our reading rubric. Different strategies are being used to increase student vocabulary and understanding of the Malay language. Recently, we used the Languagenut application and bilingual reading activities to enhance student capabilities in reading. Students shared the reading experience with their friends, practising their pronounciation, through the Visible Thinking Routines, Colour-Symbol-Image and Think-Pair-Share. Students also participated in Malay language group role-plays, where they wrote dialogue in Malay language based on storybooks. Intercultural Understanding is developed through Malay songs for the Hari Raya celebration. Through singing Malay song lyrics and sticking to the rhythm, students improved their pronounciation. The Year 3, 4 and 5 Bahasa students performed the songs on the stage at last Friday’s LJS Musical showcase. They were really excited and performed very well.

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2) Malaysian Cultural Studies

Learning Intention: Learn about the Fasting Month of Ramadhan and Hari Raya Aidilfitri

Success Criteria • Explain the significance of both festivals• Explain the importance of good values

In conjunction with Fasting Month and Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations, all students from Foundation to Year 5 were taught about the meaning behind the fasting month of Ramadhan and the victory day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri. They learnt about the importance of Fasting Month in Islamic belief. Students were required to think deeply about these celebrations, developing their intercultural understanding. They developed an understanding of how people from different cultures celebrate their beliefs and talked about ways they can show their respect for the values of others. Students made the ‘Sampul Duit Raya’, completed Fasting Month crossword puzzles, coloured Hari Raya Aidilfitri pictures, and made Hari Raya ECards. Students were active participants in the discussions and shared their personal experiences. They were able to identify similarities and differences between different festivals from different countries and cultures.

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Languages Other Than English: Mandarin

In Mandarin classes, students begin their new topics with the Thinking Routine: See, Think, Wonder. Students are introduced to the topic about which they will be learning, and then brainstorm to determine their prior knowledge. The Think, Puzzle, Explore routine then guides students and their teacher as to what they need to explore further, in order to understand the topic, deeply.

Students associate the familiar with the unfamiliar. They learn the basic parts of the characters and try to group them eg. 木 for trees, for plants.

Students match the parts and radicals to form a Chinese character.

Students enjoy playing the Kahoot Game as a fun way of learning new vocabulary and sentence patterns.

Year 3 students playing ‘What animal am I?’ Year 1 students practising speaking in small groups.

Year 5 students explain what they keep in their school bags.

Wan Yoke Yin and Hor Kai Lin

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Middle and Senior SchoolIvan McLean, Head of Middle and Senior Schools

As we come to the end of a very busy semester, I would like to wish all students and families a well-deserved and relaxing break.

The International School setting is always one of a transient nature and regardless it is always difficult to say goodbye to our departing students. I would like to wish those families that are leaving our school commu-nity the very best in their future endeavours and if you return to KL at any time, we are more than happy to have students visit the School. There will also be many new students joining us next term, so be prepared to see many new faces, too.

This semester has been filled with so many great academic challenges for our students - I hope that they have been able to reach their targets and goals. The demonstration of talent among our student body is inspi-rational: the success of a vast array of students academ-ically in terms of their individual results and academic competitions; creatively through their exhibitions of tal-ent such as at our Drama/Music and STEM Showcases; physically through both the individual and team success of so many talented sportspeople at sporting events and carnivals (and dancers at the Team Building Day!); and emotionally as students work their way through difficult and trying times as they become young adults.

I would hope that the forthcoming break gives all fam-ilies, students and staff a chance to “let their batteries fully drain and then re-charge.” It is crucial that students have a break and revitalise in preparation for the second half of the academic year. This is particularly true for our Year 12 students, who need a little time to energise themselves. However, in their case, the break is a long one and only thirteen full school days remain at the start of Term 3 before their TRIAL HSC examinations. I can only encourage our Year 12 students to ensure that they do not take the whole holiday; rather a good rest for a week or so before returning to study mode.

Please enjoy the holidays and return to school in Term 3 ready to make more new memories. I look forward to seeing Year 6 to 10 students at the Student/Teacher/Par-ent Learning Conferences on Wednesday 17 July, to be held in the Auditorium. A map of teacher locations will be displayed at the front doors.

Year 11 and 12 students will have their regular classes in their usual classrooms on both Tuesday 16 July and the day of the Parent/Student/Teacher conferences on Wednesday 17 July.

Please note that the entire Middle and Senior School will be in regular classes as of Thursday 18 July.

On a final note, I would like to extend my best wishes and gratitude to Mrs Jessica Stagg for stepping in as Deputy for Term 2. She did a wonderful job as interim Deputy before Mr Unsworth starts next term. I would also like to extend my sincere best wishes to Mr Graeme Naftel, outgoing Head of Junior School. His contributions to the School have been enormous and his legacy will endure in many areas. It has been a tremendous experi-ence working with and alongside Graeme.

Early Term 3 Events

Tuesday, 16 July Year 11 & 12 classes start

Wednesday, 17 July ICAS English Competition

Wednesday, 17 July Years 6 to 10 Student/Teacher/Parent Conferences

Thursday, 18 to Friday, 19 July Senior School (Shakespeare) Production

Monday, 22 July CCA’s commence

Tuesday, 23 July Years 8 and 10 Subject Selection Afternoon

Friday, 26 July International Day

STEM Showcase 2018

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Language Week - Years 6 to 10 Students

The AISM Language Week will be held from Monday 22 July to Friday 26 July (Week 2- Term 3). All Years 6 to 11 Language and Malaysian Studies students are currently preparing for the week, creating innovative displays, perfor-mances and activities.

The students will have the opportunity to participate in Languages Week, with activities being held each lunchtime throughout the event. Additional activities will take place during LOTE lessons and guest speakers will address target-ed year levels.

The purpose of the Languages Week is to promote the acquisition of additional languages, to promote intercultural understanding, to showcase student work and to engage the wider school community in language activities, all of which are a vital part of the curriculum. Students will demonstrate how it is possible “to move between cultures”in an international school setting.

Parents and guardians are most welcome to attend any of the activities throughout the week. Once details have been finalised, a program will be included in the weekly e-newsletter.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Head of Languages, Ms Liliane Heininger, hod.lote@aism.edu.my should any questions or queries arise.

SALUT!

HALLO!BONJOUR!

OLA!

HELLO!

CIAO!

LanguageWeek

Monday, 22 July - Friday, 26 July

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AUG Student Services University FairI’m delighted to invite you all to the upcoming AUG Student Services University Fair on August 1 here at AISM.

Date: Thursday August 1 (3pm - 5pm)Venue: Auditorium

The event provides parents and students with a chance to see the outstanding educational opportunities on offer around the world. For our older students, it gives them a chance to ask specific questions to experts, for our younger students it gives them an opportunity to think about what they might like to do when they leave school.

We warmly invite all AISM parents to attend, either to speak to representatives directly, or to support their children.

The event is organised in partnership with the AUG Student Services and we are looking forward to welcoming many institutions to AISM from all over the world.

Whilst we are expecting many more Universities to attend, our current list of confirmed institutions are:

Australia UK USA

The University of Queensland University of Essex Shorelight

Queensland University of Technology University of Liverpool

Griffith University Teesside University

University of New South Wales University of Sunderland

University of Melbourne University of Sheffield

RMIT Leeds University

University of Adelaide Coventry University

Flinders University Dundee University

Edith Cowan University (ECU) University of Reading

Notre Dame University of East Anglia

University of Bristol

Careers CornerChris Broadbent, Head of Humanities, Careers and Pathways Coordinator

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Sports CornerKim Bradley, MSS Co-curricular activities (CCA) CoordinatorIvan Yoong, Junior School Co-curricular activities (CCA) Coordinator

Co-curricular Activity Term 3

CCA’s start on 22 July in Week 2 of Term 3. Please remember to make any CCA withdrawals after the first week of trials, otherwise you will be billed for the whole semester. Please notify the relevant CCA Coordinator of any required changes.

Athletics Training

We are pleased to announce a new initiative in Semester 2. Our philosophy is to continue to offer high quality coach-ing that improves our students' skills and also raises the profile of our school community. We have secured the coaching of David Sung, who has 13 years of coaching experience. He is currently the head coach of Falcon Athletics and his athletes have competed at National level. Suben Ravindran will be responsible for coaching the throws and jumps, wis a qualified IAAF level 1 coach and has been coaching since 2013.

If you are interested in this opportunity for your child/ren, please fill out the google form. This program will go for 16 weeks and the program is designed to improve our skills and therefore our results at the ISAC carnival which is being held on 2 and 22 February 2020. The fee is being subsidised by the Sports Department.

The program will run from 22 July to 22 November at 7.30-8.30am.

Please sign up by Tuesday, 16 July.

Netball versus Nexus International

Congratulations to the Under 11 team who have been training hard together this term. They came up against a newly formed team of Year 5 and 6 students from Nexus; however, with most of AISM still in Year 4 this was a great test for the team and they did not disappoint. The players showed they have worked hard to improve their basic skills, such as footwork, movement and passing and it was great to see them apply these into a good game of netball.

Well done to all the team. The end result was a 14 - 5 win to NEXUS International.

On Monday 10 June, the Under 16 Netball squad played their final game for the semester against Nexus Internation-al School. Although AISM went down 22-5, the girls demonstrated determination and some moments of excellent play, particularly in the first half which saw AISM equal with Nexus. The girls should be proud of themselves and the improvements they have made to their game play this semester. I look forward to working with them to improve their fitness, accuracy and ball skills next semester in the lead-up to the AISA Games.

Click HERE to sign up!

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AISM Community Triathlon

Yet another successful AISM community triathlon completed for 2019. Before I mention all of the winners, I would like to thank the parents who helped with the setup on the Saturday and Sunday. The support of parents is important for the smooth running of this event and also strengthens those important relationships that make AISM a great place. A massive thanks to Bronwyn and Mark Clacher, Chris Buse, Peter and Jennifer Swanepoel, Greg Baldwin and Warwick Van Damme.

Not only do we have great parents at this school, we also have amazing students. A big shout out to the Sports Captains, Manisa, Akram and Cassandra for providing well earnt sausages. Ghazi, Nick Werner and Beatrice who were out on the track supervising the runners. Eve Weir for completing her first triathlon and helping out with registrations and marshalling.

Thanks to all of the PE staff for also giving up their weekend as well.

The Winners:

1st 2nd 3rd

Under 6 Girls Rafaella Widjaya Frankie Jones -

Under 6 Boys Baxter Janett Ziyang Guo -

Under 8 Girls Sylvia Fowler Surenn Au Billie Bradley

Under 8 Boys Hugo Fowler Hiew Lik Yang Daniel Chan

Under 10 Girls Gabrielle Widjaya Chloe Tai -

Under 10 Boys Hugo Tan Oliver Bradley Rain Au Chengye

Under 12 Girls Michaella Widjaya Emily Brand -

Under 12 Boys William Brand Kai Ter Huggel Joshua Wong

Under 15 Girls Eliza Tan Mia Tan Anna Huggel

Under 15 Boys Alex Baldwin - -

18+ Female Rachel Thompson Imelda Widajya Eve Weir

18+ Male Jason Brand Chris Buse Peter Swanepoel

Junior School Relay Extra Hot Chilli Peppers Ollie, Fynn & Hugo Fast & Furious

Middle School Relay The thrilling three Team Synergy -

Senior School Relay Team Peter The Oranges Team Anna

Family Relay The Swanepoel’s Tri- Brandy’s The Tan’s

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International Award Silver Practice Adventurous JourneyEndau Rompin National Park

On Tuesday, 11 June 2019, six eager AISM students headed off on a 3 night, 3 day hiking and camping adventure to Endau Rompin National Park, Johor. These students are completing their Silver level Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award, and it is a requirement of the award to complete two of these Adventurous Journeys.

After a three hour drive to Bekok town and then an additional one hour 4WD transfer into the park, the students set up their tents and got some rest before the gruelling three days of hiking began. The students are required to be totally self-sufficient, planning their food and meals and managing their rubbish to take out at the end. They also are required to take and carry everything they will need including their tents, sleeping equipment, stoves, fuel and other camping supplies.

Day one involved hiking to two waterfalls, Tinggi and Tempaang falls. The hiking was hard going, with an uneven and undulating track along with the heat and humidity. Constant leeches, local bees and a swarm of wasps also added to the adversity. After not reaching Tinggi Waterfall before the safety turn-around time, the students decided to turn their attention to the second objective, Tempaang Falls. This they achieved and were rewarded with a cooling swim in a stunning location.

Day two and the hiking was even tougher. The objective again was to reach two more waterfalls, but required a deeper walk into the jungle over some steeper terrain. The students were much better organised and packed on this day after some reflection overnight. This showed in their walking pace, teamwork and organisation throughout the day. Pandan waterfall was a stunning 50+m drop into a beautiful little valley where we took a mid-morning break. The second waterfall (Berangin Falls) though not as high, had a larger volume of water coming over it and once again, we all enjoyed a refresh-ing swim and lunch break in a picturesque setting.

The final day started early with the students breaking camp, doing a final tidy up ensuring to leave no trace, and then involved a 15km hike out along the 4WD access road of the park. This was the longest distance covered so far and was done on weary legs. However, the students persevered and achieved their objective within the allotted time frame.

I would like to congratulate Alex, Taiitsu, Maksim, Riya, Octavius and Kar Shane for their outstanding efforts to successfully achieve their goals. They will now set their sights towards the Qualifying Adventurous Journey to Taman Negara National Park in August. Thank you also to Ms. Kim Bradley for giving up her time to help super-vise the camp and also to Derrik, Yee and Ruth from GAC Adventure for their assistance.

Jason Brand, Head of PDHPE and The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Coordinator

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Others

This is an annual wonderful event for school. Every year the Parent Association hosts the International Food Tasting Tables. Children get a chance to try different food around the world.

Tanya Van Damme volunteered to coordinate the food stalls this year. Tanya and her team of parents for each conti-nent are already working very hard preparing for the day. Thank you Tanya and her teams.

Please refer the list of coordinators below, and feel free to contact them directly if you can help out:

1) Africa:Michelle Hart Email: pa@aism.edu.my2) Americas: Ros Burchell, Phone: 017 222 12053) Asia: Rebecca Mak, Phone: 016 340 99074) Oceania: Georgina Scambler, Phone: 010 564 26045) Europe/Middle East: Angela Werner, Phone: 017 247 32446) Malaysia: Lavaniya Panicker, Phone: 012 637 2484 or Ina Alllenspach, Phone: 012 373 91687) ELC to Year 1: Mercedeh Barbasteh, Phone: 017 323 1346

Event Coordinator: Tanya Van Damme Phone: 010 704 6569

As of today, WE ARE STILL SHORT OF Cooks or Helpers for EUROPE. If you could support any finger foods, please reach out to Angela Werner.

International Day Food Tasting

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Parent Association Gala Night

Please register your ticket at: https://forms.gle/dM39m5cabbzYiZu4A

Payment by Thursday, 1 August 2019.

https://forms.gle/m4oPGDqsu6ZDmW2N8