Staff Training Days
Our staff, like our students, strive to be lifelong learners. On Monday, the staff at ISA was involved in the first of three training days scheduled for the 2024-2025 school year (the other two are 6 February and 2 May 2025). These days are incredibly valuable opportunities for us to come together as a team to improve our practice and to develop ever more effective ways to engage, inspire, support and challenge the children at ISA. I keep myself reminded of the importance of the lifelong learning that our training days make possible with ideas from Carl Glickman, author and professor of education. As he says:
- I do not visit or observe other adults as they teach;
- I do not share the work of my students with colleagues for feedback, suggestions and critiques;
- I do not visit other schools or attend particular workshops or seminars or read professional literature on aspects of my teaching;
- I do not welcome visitors with experience and expertise to observe and provide feedback to me on my classroom practice…
Glickman’s overall list is longer than this, but I’ve kept the four key points related to the types of things we do during training days at ISA. On this particular day, we were joined once again by Dr. Jamie Galpin, who engaged us all in meaningful dialogue about belonging and inclusion, with a particular focus on the ways we can design for multiple means of child engagement in our lessons (taking the sensory, structural and social needs of all our children as the starting point for all our planning and designs). The staff and teachers at ISA will certainly have returned to school on Tuesday with new ideas and fresh inspiration for improving the learning experiences of the children.
Preschool & Elementary School Ceilidh
Next Wednesday (27 November) marks the return of the annual Preschool & Elementary School Ceilidh. All students have been busy preparing for this wonderful community event. Remember to have the students come prepared with a “touch of tartan”. Families and teachers will be encouraged (or, should that say “expected”?) to join in the fun. Please check in at reception so that you can arrive at the large gym hall for 1:10pm.
Thanksgiving
A form of Thanksgiving exists in many countries around the world. It almost always includes time off to celebrate an important achievement, such as a successful harvest. Canada, for example, has its big celebration every October. In the United States, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the last Thursday of November. Similarly, as mentioned during Friday’s assembly, countries such as Ghana, Japan, Brazil and South Korea also have their own versions of thanksgiving celebrations. In the Preschool and Elementary School, we welcome the opportunity to feature cultural celebrations from around the world. Looking at the ways in which different countries and cultures celebrate forms of thanksgiving is a good example of how we can bring an appreciation for international traditions into the classrooms. Discussing thanksgiving celebrations provided a meaningful context for conversations about gratitude and for student writing about the ‘things we are grateful for’.
Next Thursday (28 November), students in Preschool and Elementary School will capture the joy of a Thanksgiving tradition with a family-style meal including turkey, roast potatoes and vegetables. All lunches will be provided by the school and please note that there will be options available for students with dietary restrictions. Staff and students will sit together to enjoy conversations and the wonderful food prepared by the amazing kitchen staff. Some parent volunteers/CECs will also be on hand to share in the celebrations.
Festival of Code/Meet-a-Coder
The annual Meet-a-Coder visits to our classrooms will commence on Monday (25 November) and will run throughout the week. What are these visits? Several years ago, Shashi Krishna (Computing teacher in Middle and High School) started our annual Festival of Code - a chance to highlight computer programming and coding skills in an engaging context, overlapping with worldwide events (such as Code.org’s The Hour of Code). It has been an enormous success and something that staff and children look forward to each year. One particularly impactful element of this initiative is “Meet-a-Coder”. During these sessions, computing students from Middle School and High School visit the Preschool and Elementary School classrooms to make short presentations about coding, sharing some of their amazing projects and their genuine enthusiasm for the subject. This is always a wonderful highlight of the week; please ask your child/ren about what they heard and saw during their visit.
Monday, November 25
Lunchtime Concert (12:30pm, Black Box Theatre) - families welcome
Wednesday, November 27
Preschool/Elementary School Ceilidh (1:15pm, Gym/Hovde Hall) - families welcome
Thursday, November 28
Thanksgiving lunches for students (Preschool; Kindergarten-Grade 2; Grade 3-Grade 5)
Wednesday, December 4
Grade 1 trip to The Lemon Tree
Thursday, December 5
Grade 3 trip to Dundee Rep Theatre & Dundee Science Centre
Preschool trip to The Lemon Tree
Friday, December 6
Festive Jumper Day
Elementary School Winter Assembly (2:15pm, Queen Elizabeth Theatre)
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