Changchun American International School Newsletter April 2015 April Whole School News On 8 April the Foreign Expert Bureau named CAIS as the Foreign Expert Community Center of Changchun, which is a natural progression for our school as cultur al diver sity can be considered as one of the school’s stregths. Over 30 nationalities walk into the building every day. We form a learning community where multiple perspectives is recognized as a challenge, and celebrated as an opportunity to learn, to grow and to develop mutual under standing and respect for one another. the students, therefore it would mean a great deal to us if you could grace the occasion with your presence as we believe that for us, the graduation ceremony would not be complete without your being there to witness it. Your presence would add a glow to our special day and make the event a memorable one. DP1 students need to prepare t h e m s e l v e s f o r t h e fi n a l examination that will be held from 26 May until 3 June 2015. The exam schedule will be uploaded to Managebac, sent to students’ email and hard copy will be distributed to each of DP1 students. DP1 students should be encouraged to start working on their final assignments such as E x t e n d e d E s s a y, I n t e r n a l Assessments, completing their CAS reflection and others. We are pleased to have the opportunity to interact with the wider expatriate community of Jilin Province. CAIS is proud to be the venue where China’s valued guests can share the richness of their cultures, as well as discover each other’s cultures and traditions. - Santo Kuruniwan DP Coordinator MYP News DP News Good luck to all DP2 students who will have their final IB examination from 4-22 through May 2015. The schedule has been sent to each of the students and also uploaded on ManageBac. Parents please make sure that you have the correct Foreign Expert Bureau named CAIS as the Foreign Expert Community Center. examination schedule so we can help our students to arrive at school at least 30 minutes before the examination time. Please be informed that DP2 Students do not have to be at school if they don’t have any exam at the day. Once they have done the exam, they also can go home right away. This information may be needed to make arrangement of transportation for our children as they may not go to school or go home at the same time with other students. Graduation Day - It is our privilege to invite you, DP2 parents to the graduation ceremony on 23 May 2015, and be a part of our children’s happiness as they complete this important milestone of their life. The graduation will be at Changchun American International School in the afternoon from 1.00 - 4.30 pm. The ceremony will be followed by a graduation party at 6 pm at Sheraton Jingyuetan Hotel. We would be honored if you could be a part of that as well. You can read more details about the event on the official invitation letter that will be distributed to MYP students attended the second year of the Annual Dining Etiquette lessons this month. We are very grateful to Hyatt Regency Changchun for sending Executive Chef Steven, and Food and Beverage Executive Assistant Manager Martin to train our students in the fine art of western dining. DP2 students will have their final IB exams through May 2015. CHANGCHUN AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL NEWSLETTER!! ! ! ! APRIL 2015 This month’s Parent Information Session was about the MYP maths curriculum and assessment. Mr. Sanjeev’s MYP5 students prepared a videotaped explanation of each criterion of the MYP assessment. It was impressive to see how students had developed an excellent understanding on how their performance in the subject is being assessed. MYP Students enjoy this month’s western dining etiquette training. PYP News PYP had a great Earth Day celebration on 22 April 2015. We started with a 30-45 minute hike and reached the lighthouse in Da Ding Zi Shan to enjoy the view and find a site for our picnic lunch. We were lucky as we had MYP 3 students who assisted each PYP class during the trip. The students enjoyed the picnic and started cleaning up around the area. It was heart-warming to see them do their best in cleaning up not only in the picnic area but also during our hike on the way back. We also had a meaningful flower planting activity and hanging of birdhouses. Through our own little way, we were able to enjoy the nature and leave a trace of our gift to our planet. We hope that everyone will try to make everyday an Earth Day and so something good for our precious planet. Mr Sanjeev talks about technology in math classes. We enjoyed Angela Wang's inspirational talk to MYP 4 to DP1 students on 21 April. Angela graduated from CAIS in 2011, attended Case Western Reserve University in the American state of Ohio. In spite of her numerous involvement in extra-curricular activities, Angela managed to finish her course in three and a half years. This fall, Angela will be attending Harvard Graduate School for a master's degree in human development and psychology. Angela talked about her years at CAIS (being the president of the Student Council and engaging in CAS activities), and how universities not only look at the IB scores but how well a person can lead a balanced life by pursuing special interests and giving back to the community. We are also proud of the PYP students for successfully accomplishing their Student Led Conference last 24th of April 2015. They prepared their portfolios and showed their learning journey to their parents or guardians. Great job PYP! This month, PYP also had several field trips that extended their inquiry and learning in class. PYP 1 and 3 went to a local kindergarten as part of their unit in Children’s Rights. They had joint activities and taught the kindergarten children how to make clay. They also donated books, school materials, used clothes and toys to the children. It was an enlightening and a meaningful filed trip for both grade levels. PYP 4 went to GenSci factory to inquire more on matters and the physical changes that it undertakes to come up with medicines and vaccines. The staff walked the students through the step-by-step process PYP visit local school. that they go through to come up with a product. They also had a chance to weigh objects and see cells and bacteria in the microscope. The students enjoyed the trip and brought back skills and knowledge that they can use as they work on their summative task for this unit. Ms. Ann hands out awards during COLA assembly to students. On 23 April, MYP held its Celebration of Learning Assembly featuring the exciting activities happening in our Friday club time. Students showed movie trailers produced during the Movie Club, first aid training with Red Cross China, MUN trip to Beijing, Habitat for Humanity work camp in Louhe Province, and sports tournament with other schools. PYP 5 is in the middle of working on their PYP Exhibition. At the beginning of the month, they started with a field trip to Changchun Geology Museum. In this trip, they saw models of the Earth and solar system. They explored different planets and how they move in relation to their distance to the Earth. It was an interesting field trip as they learn and inquire on space in preparation to their Exhibition. We look forward to more activities and learning not only in class but outside of class as well. We welcome parents’ involvement in relation to our current unit of inquiries and suggestions for field trips as well. - Ann Gaillard Secondary School Principal & MYP Coordinator ! ! 2 CHANGCHUN AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL NEWSLETTER!! PYP students learn about fractions with pizza. Important May PYP Dates: • May 11th – 15th – Book Week • May 13th – PYP Coffee Meeting • May 28th – Opening of PYP Exhibition to PYP students • May 29th – Opening of PYP Exhibition to Parents and Guests - Cherie Roanne A. Montalla PYP Coordinator ! ! ! APRIL 2015 fun. Q: Ayman, why did you volunteer to help Kevin organize this? Ayman: Because I think it was a great opportunity for all the school to show their talents, and I wanted it to work out. I thought that if Kevin were alone, it wouldn't be so easy for it to happen, so I said okay, I would do it. Q: What were the difficulties in getting this show to happen? Kevin: I think that, especially for MYP students, they are shy and in the beginning, not many of them wanted to sign up for the show, but later it got better. Ayman: Most of the difficulties came at the very end, except for the prizes, which we weren't very sure about. But at the end, some people dropped out, and it was pretty confusing because we had to change the list several times. But other than that, I think it worked out pretty well. Q: What did you learn from planning this event? Kevin: Just try harder if you want to get something to happen; for example, in the beginning, not many people wanted to sign up for this show, but then... Q: What specific effort did you make? Kevin: I tried to convince my friends and some of the MYP4 students to do things I know they are special at, and also Ayman and I went to each class to talk about what the students could do, and also the prize. Q: Do you think having the posters helped advertise? Kevin: I think the posters got people's attention, and the Smart Watch attracted people. Q: Was it a success? Kevin: Yes, I think everyone enjoyed it. It's fun and special, and it's a new thing, different from a concert, because we had videos (like the "flying ping pong ball") and other things. We had the special prize of the Smart Watch, and the trophies. Both the audience and the talent guys enjoyed it. Ayman: Absolutely, because I think that many people showed their talents. People were happy afterwards, and I thought the audience enjoyed seeing the show. It was something very new to the school, and I think it was a very good idea Q: And finally, should there be another show next year? Kevin: Yes, I think that after this year, more people will realize what the talent show is, and want to join next year and fight for the prize. CAIS We’ve Got Talent: Including the winner, PYP4 Monicka, receiving her Smart Watch prize from MYP5 Kevin and Ayman. PYP Sky dances. PYP brother and sister Toby and Malona sing together. Organizing the Student Council’s CAIS Got Talent Event This month, the Student Council put on the first ever CAIS Got Talent Show. This was an idea from Vice President Kevin. Below is the interview with Kevin and his classmate Ayman on how they accomplished organizing this. Q: Kevin, how did you come up with the idea for 'CAIS Got Talent?' Kevin: Well, I love 'America's Got Talent,' that TV show, and somehow that idea came to my mind: why can't we have that at school, a show that everyone would like? I'm sure there are lots of students at our school that can do cool stuff - singing, dancing, a magic show. If we have something like that, students will realize that it's their talent. And I thought it would be 3 CHANGCHUN AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL NEWSLETTER!! ! ! ! APRIL 2015 Ayman: Yes! of her leadership qualities allowed her to really excel at CWRU. Angela came back to our school to share her amazing story of hard work and Q: Would you be willing to hep organize it? creativity in her desire to attend a top flight graduate school after Kevin: Yes, of course! I want to make this happen again. completing her undergraduate studies. Angela's remarkable story highlights Ayman: No, because I won't be here next year. the fact that students from CAIS are going above and beyond in there Q: If you were here, would you be willing, Ayman? desire to change the world and contribute to China's future. Ayman: Absolutely! I think it was a great opportunity. Ms Catherine: I would like to say that, as Student Council Advisor, that Angela spoke to a packed room of over 100 people about the struggles you both did a great job, and without your sustained effort, it could have and success that has given her the opportunity to now pursue her dream easily not happened. You guys kept a positive attitude, and because of that, of attending Harvard Graduate School. Angela spoke of her days here it did happen. Good work! at CAIS and the valuable lessons she learned in the IB program and more importantly about the CAS component of the IB education. With her in PTA CORNER depth understanding of the importance of the CAS Angela encouraged all students to work hard to complete the CAS. But to also grow from the Welcome to the PTA Corner! The PTA is a voluntary organisation with process of giving back to others who are less fortunate. Angela worked the aim to connect with and support CAIS's multi-cultural and multithe crowd like a seasoned college graduate answering questions and lingual school community. Members of the PTA have been very busy in the speaking in two world languages. background, planning activities for the rest of the year and acting as liaison between parents, teachers and CAIS Management. We are happy with Daniel Chou and Irene Chou presented Angela with a gift for all her the progress to open CAIS' first PTA shop and hope to have the first sale efforts of 10,000 US dollars to be applied to her graduate studies. It was a of items at the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival in June. moving experience to see CAIS owners continue to show they are committed to supporting one of our most successful alumnus so far with The first English Book Club meeting was held on 7 April and everyone such a gift. This remarkable young woman is full of promise and the future really enjoyed the book 'Wonder'. We had a lively discussion on the certainly looks very bright indeed. importance of compassion and are looking forward to our next meeting on 5 May at 08:00 in the Library. The next book for discussion is 'The Joy - Michael Hayes, Director of University Counseling Luck Club', by Amy Tan. Everyone is welcome to join! We also had our first Writing Club meeting on the 21st. The Writing Club provides a supporting and constructive environment for people who feel that they have a story or poetry to share and is a wonderful way to get the creative juices flowing! Please join us for our next meeting on 19 May at 08:00 in the Library. For more information on the Book Club and Writing Club, please contact Celia at [email protected] or Ms Missy in the Library at [email protected] The International Ladies Group in Changchun will have its next lunch at the Shangri-la Hotel on Friday, 8 May and it is wonderful to see this group grow into one that already represents almost 10 nationalities. Please contact Anna Burman to rsvp if you'd like to attend at [email protected] Parents who have interesting news or 'Changchun tips' and would like to include it in the next PTA Corner, are welcome to contact Celia at [email protected] All parents, guardians and teachers are automatically members of the PTA and are invited to the next PTA meeting on Wednesday, 20 May at 18:00. This will be our last PTA meeting of the school year and we'd like to encourage everyone to get involved and share your ideas with us. Please feel free to contact any member of the PTA Executive Committee if you have any questions. Have a great day! - Celia Stander CAIS Parent Teacher’s Association Chairperson: Ms Anna Burman [email protected] Vice-Chairperson: Mr Yu Ming Zhao [email protected] Secretary: Ms Celia Stander [email protected] Treasurer: Gui Li Song [email protected] Counselor’s Corner On 21 April Angela Wang who graduated from CAIS in 2011 returned to Changchun American International School to share with all of us here the goods of her acceptance to Harvard Graduate School. Angela is an outstanding example of a CAIS student who graduated and then went on to truly live the IB Learner profile during years at Case Western Reserve University. Angela's strong foundation in academic skills and development Daniel and Irene Chou presented Angela Wang with a gift to be applied to her graduate studies at Harvard University. 4 CHANGCHUN AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL NEWSLETTER!! ! ! CAIS SPORTS & CLUBS CAIS Soccer Our CAIS Soccer Team went to Dalian International School for a two-day tournament with other International schools from nor theastern China. Unfortunately, we lost the first match we played after the journey and on a new pitch. Each individual player improved after that and we showed great team spirit on - and off - the field. We achieved a draw and a final win on the second day. All supervisors enjoyed watching the students improving from game to game and playing as one team with great spirit, fighting and running for each other. Undoubtedly, off the field the team continued existing and we finally had a lot of fun as a group. We all came home happily after a successful trip to Dalian. - Mr. Jorg Swimming & First Aid In the last term, King and I offered Swimming and First-Aid club. The club was supervised by Mr.Bob and Ms. Carmen. We selected a natatorium that is very near to our school. Also, we invited an instructor from the China Red Cross in order to teach us first-aid including CPR. At last, we have received official first-aid certificates from the Red Cross. It was a very valuable two days experience for all of us. - Kevin, MYP 5 5 ! APRIL 2015 CHANGCHUN AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL NEWSLETTER!! ! ! ! APRIL 2015 2015 CAIS Summer Camp This summer, Changchun American International School will run a summer camp. Instructors for the CAIS summer camp are native English speakers from the United States. They have knowledge of the subject as well as the sports that will be taught. Each camp participant will be evaluated to determine their level of English comprehension. This will assist in placing them at the level they will learn the most and be the most successful. Welcome to the CAIS Summer Intensive English and Sports Camp – a rare opportunity for students to learn academic English in a fun-filled environment. WHO: Chinese and International Students between 11 to 16 years old WHAT: Summer Camp to improve English skills and enjoyment of sports Morning activities: Students will learn history, science and math in an intensive English environment using exciting educational iPad apps Afternoon activities: Students will have an opportunity to engage in various sports. They will be able to choose from the following sports, and the most popular activities will be those that will be offered: Basketball Whiffle Ball Golf Frisbee Swimming Enrichment weekend activities include trip to Changbai Shan and hiking in Jingyue Park. WHEN: 13 – 31 July 2015, 9:00 – 16:00 + special weekend activities WHERE: Changchun American International School Come and enjoy a fun educational learning experience in the first and only IB -world school in Changchun. Important May 2015 Dates Communication @ CAIS • 9 May: Make-up Day following a Friday timetable CAIS uses Managebac for programme information and communication. cais.managebac.com • 4 – 22 May: DP2 IB examinations • 11 – 15 May: PYP Book Week Celebration • Ann Gaillard (Secondary School Principal/MYP Coordinator) [email protected] • Emma Tang (Principal’s Assistant) [email protected] • Shelley Zhang (DP Assistant) [email protected] • Santo Kurniawan (DP Coordinator) [email protected] • Desiree Dong (MYP Assistant) [email protected] • Lena Liu (PYP Assistant) [email protected] • Cherie Montalla (PYP Coordinator) [email protected] • Mike Hayes (Director of University Counseling) [email protected] • Julia Kang (CAS coordinator & Korean liaison) [email protected] • Nancy Li (Chinese liaison): [email protected] • Jason Borovick (IT Manager) [email protected] • 14 – 16 May: Cambridge PET & FCE Examinations • 16 May: HSK Examinations • 20 May: Last PTA meeting for the school year • 23 May: Graduation Day • 27 May, Wed: Parent Information Session on Language Acquisition; Careers Night • 27 – 29 May: PYP5 Exhibition • 26 May – 3 June: DP 1 internal exams • 29 May: Personal Project Showcase 6
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