ISB Touchstone Issue 1 2013 - 2014 by Touchstone ISB

Booster Club Executive Board School Year 2013-2014

President Terri Alexander VP/Spirit Events Lynn Jones Treasurer Terri Thomas Secretary Mary Turner Academics Dana Whiteley F & PA Wendy Cole Athletics Noy Milan Banquets Cathy Miller Booster Hut Anita Gopalaswamy Andrea Modlin MS Liais Kim Curlin ES Liaison Andrea Modlin Pancake Breakfast Nicole Cano Shana Dehaven Panther Pops Rachel Neale Recognitions Sally Kemper Purchasing Mary McCarthy Touchstone Kim de Keijzer JV Coordinator Karen Mitchell

International School Bangkok Parent-Teacher Auxiliary Executive Officers School Year 2013-14

President Cory Fox 1st Vice President Patsy Remijan 2nd Vice President Kim de Keijzer Treasurer Kristen Garrett Secretary Sara Ayala ES Coordinators Niciole Wright Sharane Sherman MS Coordinators Andrea Puck Carrie Lin HS Coordinators Charlotte Hallengren Renee Rutledge Communications Heather Ferguson Hospitality Jo McGregor Host Country Rep. Yupa “Mam” Rattanajan Veeramol Chindasook “Mol” Adult Education Ginger Duval International Food Fair Kim de Keijzer Welcome Wai Coordinators Graduation Coordinators Lost and Found Coordinator Popcorn Sales Coordinator

Karen Schneider Helen Hodges Mid-year: Ken Ohashi End-year: Cheryl Ohashi Dianne Parker Bethe Warrick

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Country Representatives

Australian/New Zealand Cathy Sackett Bangladesh Jesmin Tarana British Heather Powell Canadian Mare Harvey Chinese Carrie Lin Dutch Sophie Gerritsen French speaking Rep Cristina Platzer Indian Mamta Shukla Vani Alva Israeli Livnat Ziskinder Japanese Eriko Osumi Mayumi Yamamoto Korean Sookyung Han Latin Community Gabriela Alvarez Anita Palazuelos Scandanavian (Norway) Anne Gry Ranchil Singaporean Sheryl Ang-Chisholm

www.isb.ac.th.org

Content

TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

ALL SCHOOL • Head of School • PTA, Booster Presidents • New Faculty Members • Green Panthers

• International

DATES ELEMENTARY

• Message from

the Principal

Day • Panther Track & Field • U11 Team News 25

MIDDLE • Message from the Principal • Symphonic Band • Art • Athletics

HIGH SCHOOL • Pricipal’s forum • Varsity Soccer • Cross Country • Art • dance • Counseling Group 35

AT THE BACK

• Rcycling • Easy Computer

Fixes

Touchstone, the newsletter published by the Parent Teacher Auxiliary of International School Bangkok, is delivered free of charge to all ISB families. It is written, compiled, edited, and distributed by an all volunteer staff. Chief Editor Assistant Editor Elementary School Middle School High School

Heather Ferguson Shiney Aravindakshan Holly Markham Karen Schneider Sara Ayala

Technology Booster Club Country News

Kevin Sypolt Kim de Keijzer Anita Palazuelos Gabriela Alvarez Fourcade

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TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

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Message from the Head of School

What’s New @ ISB in 2013-2014?

Our school seldom seems to sleep and I doubt that there is a more active day school anywhere in the world. There is a real vibrancy about ISB as we double as both a school and a community center, embrace things new, and seek to improve in all areas of the school. Each passing year sees fresh ideas, new projects, incremental improvements and yes, areas where we know we can do better. For this school year, I will highlight some of our main changes and additions below.

Planning for the future: ISB 2020

I would first like to highlight the school’s “Futures Thinking” and our ISB 2020 Vision, but first some background. Our thinking began last August with a community gathering of parents, board members, teachers, students, classified staff and administrators to begin a process of looking at the kind of education our students will need in the future. We then researched models, made contact with other future oriented schools and organizations, explored what employers and colleges are looking for in future graduates, and also thought about what we would like to retain at ISB. The following questions guided our thinking:

As we look toward 2020….. •How do we become a leading edge school that is ahead of the curve and

prepared for the changes ahead? •How do we ensure the best learning possible for ISB students? •What are the emerging “p ro m i s i n g practices” in education that we need to consider and potentially plan for? •What might become obsolete?

What opportunities are there for the school to develop 2013-2020?

Our work resulted in the development of eight “Guiding Principles” that would inform the school’s decisionmaking, planning, budgeting, and mindset in the short to medium turn: 1. ISB will be a forward-looking, innovative school that explores new research-based approaches to improving learning. 2. Student learning experiences will be based on thinking, inquiry, understanding, reflection, risk-taking, creativity, passion and innovation. 3. Student learning will involve greater individual choice with respect to course and program offerings, systems, content, assessment, delivery and learning style. 4. ISB will endeavor to develop a growth mindset, instilling a belief in our students that dedication, resilience and a positive attitude will bring success. 5. Students will experience appropriate levels of challenge based upon ability and interest in both school and after school programs. 6. eLearning will become a standard practice at ISB as we seek to provide more learning options for students and to prepare students for a world where the use of online learning is growing exponentially.

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7. Students will have greater opportunities to learn in authentic, real-world situations. 8. ISB will ensure the development of the “whole student”, ensuring a rich balance of academic and co-curricular activities, a commitment to global citizenship, and a healthy lifestyle.

Passion Day – 8 November

Our inaugural “Passion Day” can be seen as stepping-stone to the ISB 2020 Vision as we suspend traditional school structures for a day and give students some “voice and choice” in what they learn, provide greater authenticity, promote inquiry, and open some minds about what is possible. We will learn plenty from this first endeavor and the most important outcome is that it inspires some new thinking about what it is possible.

Increasing Challenge

Over the past few years, parent and student survey data has consistently indicated that not all students at ISB are being appropriately challenged. The Leadership Team has decided to make the provision of appropriate challenge a priority for the school and this is a key component in our Strategic Learning Plan. To date, the school has hired a Challenge and Enrichment Specialist to spearhead our efforts, provided additional courses in the HS to better meet student needs, enhanced our intellectual extracurricular offerings, and being more intentional in challenging those that need more challenge.

Strategic Learning Plan The school has a rolling four-year

Strategic Learning Plan to focus our efforts on where learning can be improved the most. For 2013/14 our learning improvement work is primarily centered on developing strong assessment practices, providing greater challenge, improving writing, and expanding students’ metacognitive skills. We are also planning for various learning improvements for subsequent www.isb.ac.th.org

Message from the PTA President

Education is not filling a pail but Booster Club has started this year in the lighting of a fire - William turbo mode. We have had astounding ISB community support at the Booster Butler Yates Welcome back ISB. As everyone is settling into routines, new classes, for some us new homes and a new country, I too find myself in a new position, that of ISB PTA President for the 20132014 academic year. Diving into this role I am learning more each day about how ISB as a school and a community fuels the passions of our children. I have many goals for this year ahead, but the goal that fuels my passion is to create a truly connected school for our children. With three unique and wonderful divisions and hundreds of sports and activities it is easy to move from day to day in the same path and not see what lies beyond our own hectic schedules. To bring together all of our schools, parents and children, to form a family of panthers, to support our children, and us as parents, is my highest priority this year. Come visit the PTA in our office in the Elementary school art and music quad to find out all the many ways we will be working to fulfill my goal and to connect with other parents and discover ways you too can fuel the hearts and mind of our amazing children.

Hut every Friday, we have had three Spirit events, we supported the Strings Concert on September 21, 2013, we sold Panther Pops twice already, and there are plenty more Booster events coming in the upcoming weeks. All of these were made possible by a group of dedicated volunteers led by our Booster Club Executive Board.

As you can see the Booster Club, here at ISB, is based on the core principle of supporting the students. It began predominately with the goal to support athletes participating in and traveling to IASAS tournaments. That group of fun-loving parents designed tournaments to encourage dedicated play, good-sportsmanship and team spirit. Today, we focus on all student accomplishments from Fine and Performing Arts, Academics (MUN, Forensics and Debate) to Athletics. We have slowly moved into supporting select events in Middle School and Elementary School. Our goal, however, is to generate funds that benefit the whole school, while encouraging, cheering and spotlighting them during their experience at ISB. Everyone at ISB is a member of the Booster Club, so come to a meeting to find out what I look forward to representing ISB we are about. They are held mostly the this year as the PTA President and to first Monday of every month. meeting and learning from the diverse With three high schoolers myself, I and energetic ISB parent population. can’t imagine a better way for me to

Some Final Words I will leave you some words by Seymore Papert that encapsulate some of our thinking as we look to the future needs of our students. “…the model that says learn while you’re at school, while you’re young, the skills that you will apply during your lifetime is no longer tenable. The skills that you can learn when you’re at school will not be applicable. They will be obsolete by the time you get into the workplace and need them, except for one skill. The one really competitive skill is the skill of being able to learn. It is the skill of being able not to give the right answer to questions about what you were taught in school, but to make the right response to situations that are outside the scope of what you were taught in school. We need to produce spend my extra time. After all, when people who know how to act when Thank you, your ISB PTA President, volunteering, you might as well GO they’re faced with situations for which Cory Fox BIG! If you would like to join in the they were not specifically prepared”. fun, there is information in the PTA (Papert, 1998) office or you can contact me, Terri Alexander at tamc9190@yahoo.com.

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years, including leading healthy & balanced lives, meeting the needs of more diverse learners, and the development of our ISB 2020 Vision. Safety ISB will witness significant safety enhancements this year. Some of the highlights are training of staff in CPR/First Aid, hiring additional nurses, improving screening of students, purchasing an ambulance, enhancing facilities and equipment, developing a heat policy, educating students about healthy practices in our climate, completing a safety audit, and conducting risk assessments for off campus trips.

Message from the Booster Club President

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New Faculty Members 2013/2014

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Helen Allen – ES Pre K • From: Al Khor International School, Qatar • Born: Leeds, England • Married to Philip • Children: Oliver (age 9), Lauren (age 7) and Emily (age 5) • Likes: Spending time with my family, travel and being active Karlie Barness – ES EAL • From: International School of Tianjin, China • Born: Wisconsin, USA • Likes: running, cycling, kayaking, stretching my body and mind in yoga, READING, cooking, writing Craig Butler – MS Mandarin • From: John Bapst Memorial High School, Maine, USA • Born: Massachusetts, USA • Married to Margaret Butler • Children: Shiuan (33); Daniel (23) • Likes: the outdoors, yoga, the Traveling Wilburys, Jon Stewart, Garrison Keillor, Amy Goodman Paula Carroll – MS EAL • From: Jakarta International School in Jakarta Indonesia • Married to Jim Carroll • Returning ISB, Parent • Born: Caracas , Venezuela • Loves cooking, traveling and reading (would love to join/start a book group) Evelyn Chang – ES KG • From: American School of Johannesburg in South Africa • Born: Boston, Massachusetts, USA • loves to climb, travel, dive, eat and laugh • travelled and backpacked to 26 countries in 2 years before joining the international schools community Corry Day – Aquatics Director • From: Shanghai American School, China • Born: Saskatoon, Canada • Married to Vera Day (ES teacher) • Children: Piper (2) and McLeod (4 months) • Likes: travel, cooking/eating, golf, hockey, shopping, trying to get to the gym and hanging out with our family and friends

Vera Day – ES Gr.3 • From: Shanghai American School, China • Born: Truro, Canada • Married to Corry Day (Aquatics Director) • Children: Piper (2) and McLeod (4 months) • Likes: Running, fitness, cooking, traveling and most of all, spending time with friends and family TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

Conor Duffy- HS English • From: American International School of Vienna, Austria • Born: Canada • Returning ISB, Teacher • Married to Amarita Duffy • Children: Shannon (7 years), Jayden (2 years) • loves reading, playing guitar, and pretty much anything to do with sports Linda Eide – ES Gr.2 • From: Singapore American School • Born: USA • Married to Jeff Scott (ES teacher ) • Children: Leo (age 5), Jude (age 4) • loves to travel and spend time together with family and friends Selena Gallagher - Challenge and Enrichment Specialist • From: NIST International School, Thailand • Born: Leicester, England • Married to Daniel • Children: Callum (age 18), Austin (age 14) • Likes: my job, reading, writing Jackie Greenwood – MS Counselor • From: International School of the Hague, Netherlands • Lecturer - Webster University, Leiden, Netherlands • Born: East Riding of Yorkshire, England • Married to : Matthew (ES teacher) • Children: Finley aged 10 and Jude aged 8 • Likes: Football - spectating not playing!, attending music gigs, meditation/ spiritual retreats, being with family and friends Matthew Greenwood – ES Gr.5 • From: International School of the Hague, Netherlands • Born: Solihull, West Midlands, England • Married to : Jackie (MS Counselor) • Children: Finley aged 10 and Jude aged 8 • Like: Soccer, attending music gigs, literature, cycling, mindfulness, being with family and friends Becky (Rebecca) Hansberry – HS Science • From : The International School of Amsterdam, The Netherlands • Married to Kenneth (HS Social Studies teacher) • Children: Kate (9); Dani (6) • Born: Texas, USA • Likes: running, cooking, reading and exploring weekend markets www.isb.ac.th.org

New Faculty Members 2013/2014 Meredith Michalski- ES Gr. 5 • From: Eldorado K-8 in Superior, CO, USA • Born: Detroit, MI USA • Likes: rock climbing, running, yoga, skiing, hiking/walking/hanging out by the water with my dog McCarthy, baking and cooking for my friends and family, hanging out with my nephews and watching them grow and learn.

Eleanor Haynes – ES Gr.3 • From: The American International School of Muscat, Oman • Born: New York, USA • Married to Ryan Haynes (HS - Counselor) • Children: Miles (age 9), Evan (age 6) • Likes: enjoy participating in sports, riding bikes, playing piano and reading.

Jennifer Motre – HS English • From: New School of Northern Virginia outside Washington, DC • Born: Montana, USA • Likes: Film, design, old cities, new places

Ryan Haynes – HS Counselor • From: The American International School of Muscat, Oman • Born: Washington D.C., USA • Married to Eleanor Haynes (ES teacher) • Children: Miles (age 9), Evan (age 6) • Likes: spending time with my children, playing and watching ice hockey, playing basketball, listening to music/ discovering new music/ going to see live music, reading, traveling, writing/ blogging, meeting new people, going out to eat Teresa Hirst – HS EAL • From: The British International School, Jakarta, Indonesia • Born: Cambridge, New Zealand • Likes: Reading, Movies, Travel, Tennis, Gym and Swimming Pongsatorn Kaewngam – MS Thai • From: Ruamrudee International School(RIS), Bangkok • Born: Chantaburi, Thailand • Likes: Reading, writing, cooking, traveling, working out Katie Kersey – ES Counselor • From: International School of Tanganyika, Tanzania • Born: North Carolina, USA • Married to Datus • Likes: Physical fitness (running, dancing); eating (hence the interest in exercise); cooking; watching reality TV shows (I admit it!); having fun with friends; camping; traveling; dinner parties Megan Meyer – ES Gr.2 • From: International School of Brussels, Belgium • Born: Minnesota, USA • Likes: learning about new places and people, going for runs, and exploring photography www.isb.ac.th.org

Cynthia Nordmeyer – MS Counselor • From: Shanghai American School, China • Born: Ohio, USA • Married to Jon Nordmeyer (MS -Learning Coach) • Children: Gus (age 12), Atticus (age 8) • Likes: reading, art/design and health/wellness Jon Nordmeyer – MS Learning Coach • From: Shanghai American School, China • Born: Illinois, USA • Married to Cynthia Nordmeyer (MS Counselor) • Children: Gus (age 12), Atticus (age 8) • Likes: biking, hiking, reading, gardening and yoga.

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Kenneth Hansberry – HS Social Studies • From: The International School of Amsterdam, The Netherlands • Married to Becky (HS Science teacher) • Children: Kate (9); Dani (6) • Born: Massachusetts, USA • Likes: exercise, playing poker

Lee O’Rourke – HS PE • From: American School of Dubai, Dubai • Born: London, Canada • Likes: biking, rollerblading, playing frisbee, floor hockey, and/or just working out, would love to join a book club, learn how to play the guitar, get back into diving and love to travel. Peter Roback – HS Dean of Students • From: Rosemount High School, Minnesota, USA • Born: Minnesota, USA • Children: Anders (age 10), Dane (age 7) • Likes: traveling, running, reading, and chasing around our boys from one activity to the next Mike Rutherford – HS Yearbook • From: ASK Publications and Professional Development, Alexandria, Virginia, United States of America • Born: Rota, Spain • Likes: Sports - specifically basketball, soccer, and volleyball. I love to read science fiction, sports psychology, and coaching basketball books. Huge fan of Indiana University’s (USA) mens basketball team. I also love gadgets, movies, and video games TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

New Faculty Members 2013/2014

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Jeff Scott – ES Gr.5 • From: Singapore American School • Born: New Zealand • Married to Linda Eide (ES teacher) • Children: Leo (age 5), Jude (age 4) • loves to travel and spend time together with family and friends Lindsey Serrano – MS Science • From: Shanghai Community International School, China • Married to Jesse Serrano • Born: California, USA • Likes: outdoors and warm weather, camping and hiking Michael Sharp – MS Drama • From: Chadwick International, South Korea • Born: New Zealand • Married to Tonya Jacquelene Low • Children: Forrest (7) and Coco (6) • Likes: performing music, songwriting, hiking and spending time in nature, musical theatre and diving Coke Smith - HS Science • From: Shanghai American School’s Pudong Campus • Born: USA • Married to Sivaporn “Som” Sukjaroen • loves wilderness travel and nature photography Carolyn Nelson – ES Art • From: Lincoln County School District#2, Wyoming, USA • Born: Minnesota, USA • Married to Rick Nelson • Children: Erick and Alea (live in USA) • Likes: ski, rock climb, canoe/kayak, bike, hike, and scuba dive. I am an artist. Alan Ward – ES Gr.4 • From: The International School of Kuala Lumpur, (ISKL) Malaysia • Born: Andover, Hampshire, UK • Likes: travelling and experiencing new cultures but enjoys spending time at home, laughing (a lot) eating (and drinking), listening to people’s stories, reading sci fi and fantasy and playing with my 3 furkids

Peggy Ward – ES Gr.2 • From: Cairo American College, Egypt • Born: Iowa, USA • Married to Trevin Ward (HS Social Studies teacher) • Likes: reading, knitting, and cooking TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

Trevin Ward – HS Social Studies • From: Cairo American College, Egypt • Born: Iowa, USA • Married to Peggy Ward (ES teacher) • Likes: enjoy surfing the web and riding dual sport motorcycles Bronwyn Weale – Curriculum and Learning Specialist • From: American School of Bombay, India • Born: Wanganui, New Zealand • Likes: rugby enthusiast, boating, fishing, and cooking Jiaping Zhao – HS Mandarin • From: Western Academy of Beijing, China • Born: Tianjin, China • Married to Xuan Xu • Likes: arts and history, traveling, tea culture Hayley Johnson - Annual Substitute • From: Reading Town Academy, BC, Canada • Born: Scarborough, Canada • loves reading, writing, watching/discussing movies, trying new foods, visiting new places, music and photography Emily Marshall - Annual Substitute • Born: Sarnia, Canada • Likes: Soccer, Treeplanting and Traveling Caitlyn Robertson - Annual Substitute • From: Somerset West Community Health Centre in Ottawa, Canada • Born: Sault Ste Marie, Canada • loves to cook, go for a jog Judy Wei - Annual Substitute • From: Magic Years International Kindergarten • Born: Taipei, Taiwan • enjoys playing the piano and flute, love traveling, swimming, taking pictures, blogging, and shopping Casey Idol – ES LS • From: McMinn Central High School • Born: Tennessee, USA Brigitte Hudson – ES EAL • From: International School of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam • Born: Texas, USA www.isb.ac.th.org

The New Sports Complex ... a great addition to our programs issues have been futile. Therefore the contractor is re-laying the base layer to the courts and re-installing new top layers to ensure we are given a high quality surface to last many years. We anticipate the opening date for the new courts in the new year with the start of second semester.

Our new tennis courts have sat tempting us for months and our tennis community have been patiently waiting for an opening date. The courts have been out of action as their levels were initially laid wrong and attempts by the contractor to achieve new levels and correct the drainage

There is no doubt the complex has improved our program and in particular we have seen increased numbers in both our gymnastics and swimming teams. We look forward to the last pieces of the facility being finished in the near future and the facility being in full use.

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It is over two years since ground was broken and piles were laid for the New Sports Complex. The building is now open, with nearly all the facilities operational, with only the Rock Climbing wall still to come and the Tennis Courts to be finished. Building any project is generally a challenging task, but building in Thailand offers its own unique challenges.

The sports complex has been a great addition to our program, offering an additional full size Basketball/ Volleyball court with practice courts for both sports along with 6 competition Badminton courts. Our Gymnastics program is thriving with over 200 participants using the equipment each week in this new purpose built facility. Our purpose built foam pit is allowing our gymnasts to practice safely at a level much higher than in the past, which has been a great addition to the program. Our Panther Swim Team is also benefiting greatly from an additional twenty 25m lanes, which means all our practices are now taking place at ISB instead of at the Nichada Pool. We also look forward to the versatility of the pool which can move to a 50m pool with ease.

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Welcome Wai 2013/2014 The new school year has gotten off to a great start. If you are a new parent needing assistance with your transition or navigating around our big, beautiful school, please contact a Welcome Wai representative. Please also keep an eye out on the calendar for future Welcome Wai events and coffees. 2013/2014 Welcome Wai Committee

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ES Wakanyi Hoffman 087-998-0839 Andrea Cramer Modlin 089-897-2324 Nicole Wright 089-201-8695 Trish Aguilar 081-980-8047 MS Karen Schneider Helen Hodges

081-903-6549 090-973-0886

HS Laura Sadowski 089-924-5306 Jo McGregor 082-204-1007 Renee Rutledge 082-785-6145

wakanyihoffman@yahoo.co.uk littlemodlin@yahoo.com nicoletwright16@gmail.com daparish@aol.com ksrf23@yahoo.com helenhodges2@gmail.com lsadowski65@yahoo.com ozmcgregors@gmail.com trenee7@hotmail.com

Country Groups

British Community For October 17th we are planning a social evening, details to be confirmed in eNews. November, 14th, we will have a lunchtime meeting. Our Community will also be hosting a British room for ES International Day and would like to thank our volunteers. For more information, you can contact: Heather Powell (heather.wyn@gmail.com, 0832932169), ISB PTA British Rep. Latin Community: Last August 31st, we hosted a Welcome Back evening for all, new and old Latin families in ISB-Nichada. We spent a great time sharing and meeting the new families… There will be more meetings and activities in the coming months, we’ll let you know by email and/or eNews. We are glad to have some Latin Countries rooms at the ES-International Day. Thanks to Brazil, Chile, Italy and Mexico for representing us! Our Community is also open to any family who want to practice Spanish, Portuguese or Italian, please join us! For more TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

information, please contact: Gabriela Alvarez Fourcade (gabiaf@hotmail.com) or Anita Palazuelos (anita85eu@ yahoo.com), ISB PTA Latin Reps Chinese Community: The Chinese community hosted a welcome lunch in September. Our next meeting is on October, 24th. For more information, please contact: Carrie Lin (carrielintw@ gmail.com), ISB PTA Chinese Rep Japanese Community: The annual “Japanese Parents Community Welcome Back Coffee” took place at MBP1 on September 10th. This is one of our most important events of the year, attended by 74 Japanese parents of both new and old, ranging from PreK to G12. And finally our Japanese Liaison Ms. Machiko Morizono, we can not thank her enough for her support helping us to coordinate this event. The coffee/tea and snacks were kindly provided by the Cafeteria and were thoroughly enjoyed by all. JPC is open to all the Japanese parents. For more information, p l e a s e contact: Eriko (jpc2013.2014@ gmail.com), ISB PTA Japanese Rep

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ISB Service Fund: Helping ISB students to help others by Chris Tananone, Global Citizenship Coordinator The ISB Service Fund, established in May, 2013 by a generous donation from the PTA, has as its objective “to provide ISB student service groups with an accountable loan and grant system to enable them to carry out meaningful service projects in the local and global community” as well as to “educate students in grant writing, financial accountability, and fiscal management.”

The Fund will operate as a pilot for the 2013-14 school year with the option to continue if it is a success. Many thanks to the PTA for its generous donation which supports ISB’s mission to inspire our students to become caring, global citizens.

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There are currently 13 fund managers: ten students and three adults – one from each of the three school divisions. Since the fund managers began meeting at the end of August, they have established by-laws, devised the application, established criteria for accepting proposals, and brainstormed ways to disseminate information about how to access the fund.

application and possibly appear before the fund managers in order to defend it. If the grant is approved, the clubs will need to submit a written account of how the funds were used to benefit others. If a loan, they will need to repay it in a timely fashion!

The fund managers will be sending out the application and information about how and where to submit it to all three divisions in mid-October and will be accepting applications for loans and grants after the October break. Student groups from elementary to high school will be able to request grants and/or loans in order to carry out their service activities. They will need to submit a written

ISB Cafeteria

Welcome to the ISB Cafeterias!

What does it take to get lunch on the table for ISB…? Allow me to introduce the Epicure Team: Serving you are a total of 48 full time members – 20 dedicated to the MS/HS Kitchen, 4 in the onsite Bakery, 9 at The Grind Café, including 2 for Functions/Catering Management and 4 Cashiers, 13 in the ES Kitchen, 1 Safety and Nutrition Consultant, and to keep it all in check is myself, the Manager. Working alongside us is i Frezh, serving up their yummy non-fat frozen yoghurt. We are proud to announce that just about everything we serve, from our soups, to our sandwich meats, to our sandwich buns, to the Khao Tom broth, to our iced tea, is all homemade by us from scratch, daily. We further pride ourselves in offering a partial Organic Salad Bar and the popular Organic Jasberry Rice in the HS/MS, while ES further enjoys 100% Organic Rice. The chicken we serve school- wide is antibiotic and hormone free, not to mention prepared according to Halal practices. A fresh delivery of produce and product arrive daily, with careful attention to quality first. As one can imagine, there is always something cooking in our kitchens. To keep up to date on some of these on-goings, please look for the Cafeteria News in the Friday E-Bulletin under each respective school. Should you have any inquiries in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact us. We look forward to another great year of serving up some great lunch! Enjoy.

Michelle Ihrig - Epicure Manager at ISB - Cafeteria@isb.ac.th

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Community Activities Office

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CAO stands for Community Activity Office. Many of you have already made your way into the CAO, probably to pay for one of your child’s activities or to get some

information about an event or activity. The CAO provides assistance and support to Community Activities. This includes handling registration, handling payments, booking of facilities, general finances, payroll, handling of accounts, and being a central location for parents and kids to get information regarding their activities. The Community Activities Office only consists of the 15 activities that we support (see below). Although there are many other activities happening in our community, they do not all fall under the CAO umbrella. Community Activities is a pretty broad label; because of this, many people make the assumption that if it isn’t a school activity it must be a “Community Activity”. This is

not quite the case, nevertheless we are happy to help when time permits. Our ‘real’ job is to assist the following activities: North Bangkok Basketball League (NBBL), After School Dance (ASD), Panther Swim Team (PST), ISB Gymnastics Club, BBSA (Bangkok Baseball Softball Association), Panther Paws Track & Field, Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, Bangkok Youth Soccer (BYS), Panther Run Series, Colgate Triathlon, Panther Tennis Team (PTT), Instrumental Music Program (IMP), Panther Track and Field. The majority of the CAO groups are run by volunteers, and running a community activity is a huge task. The CAO is here to take some of the burden off the volunteers who run the activities. We are here to enable volunteers to focus on running a quality activity and not having to worry about some of the more mundane tasks involved. We hope you continue to enjoy many of the great activities at ISB. Please remember that they would not be possible without the work of many volunteers. Most of these groups are always in need of extra hands. So please consider signing up to assist one of the Community Activities in the future. Please visit http://inside.isb.ac.th/cao/ for more information on the CAO and the Activities on offer.

Healthy, Sporty and Fun Activities for Parents, Teachers and Staff If you are interested in doing any activity such as sports, socials, inside or outside ISB, you can join one or more of these options... Take a look and have fun! Sports • Volleyball --> Contact Khun Pat (psethbhakdi@hotmail.com) who organizes the group • Soccer for adults --> contact: Stephen Romery (stephen@isb.ac.th) • Panther Runs on Saturdays --> contact: Tim Krusinsky (timothyp@isb.ac.th) • Scuba Diving --> contact: Troy Regis (troyr@isb.ac.th) • Ultimate Frisbee, playing on campus --> contact: Donald Hunter (donaldh@ist.ac.th) or email the group directly (bangkokultimate@gmail.com) or Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/bangkokultimate.soidawgz/) • Slow-Pitch Softball (Bangkok Int’l league) --> contact: Troy Regis (troyr@isb.ac.th) • Basketball --> contact: Paul Dobrowski (pauld@isb.ac.th) • Ice Hockey (Flying Farang), from October to March --> contact: Alasdair Fawcett (alasdair_fawcett@hotmail.com) • Nichada Football Club --> contact: Stephen Romery (sromary@gmail.com) or (stephen@isb.ac.th) • Netball --> contact: Maggie Oliver (maggie196800@yahoo.co.uk) Socials (only adults) Quiz Night at “The Briz Pub” (twice a month) --> contact: Mike Hall (mike@humblemusic.com) For more information --> you can contact Kerry Dyke (kerryd@isb.ac.th) or take a look at: http://inside.isb.ac.th/cao/ adult-activity-options/

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The Role of the PTA and PTA activities at ISB community to ISB and connects us to each other. The International Family Fest is our other big event; held in February, it is an opportunity for the community to come together, show and share in our diversity, and to let loose and have FUN! The PTA uses the funds raised at these activities in many ways, but one big way is by providing grants to student groups throughout all three divisions. These have been highlighted in previous Touchstones and this edition, but we are proud to assist our students in this fashion. The PTA also sponsors the Elementary School International Day, which allows our youngest students to learn about their global ISB community, learn experientially, and take pride in their heritage. This day also requires more than 100 parent volunteers who readily step up each year to make this day one we all remember. In many smaller, yet important ways, the PTA brings all facets of ISB together. Staff

Cookie Day in November thanks those adults who spend 30 hours or more with our children each week, and we thank everyone again in April with a staff appreciation lunch. We reach out to parents with HS, MS and MS PTA meetings. Our newsletter highlights parent activities and opportunities each week, and along with the Booster Club we provide this amazing publication quarterly to spread the word about our spectacular students and the community that is ISB. We are also focusing more on offering unique opportunities to our parents on campus. From the Resilience Workshop in September, to opportunities connected to visiting authors and other new surprises planned for second semester, we want to connect, educate, enrich, and celebrate the entire ISB community. Take pride in being a Panther and in being a PTA member, and come help us create a positive environment for all.

ALL SCHOOL

By Cory Fox PTA President The PTA, Parent Teacher Auxiliary, is made up of all ISB parents. There is no membership fee, or need to fill out paperwork; if you are an ISB parent you are a member of the PTA. Our role is to promote a positive environment for the ISB students by involving parents in and out of the classroom, facilitate contact among parents, teachers and staff, support communication through the PTA newsletter and Touchstone, and to offer opportunities that enrich and supplement student academics. How do we do this? With the help of all ISB parents and the energy and dedication of our PTA executive board and appointed chairpersons. We want parents to feel a part of the ISB community, that they too are life long learners who can show the students that we all continue to grow, learn and change throughout life. Adult Education is one of our biggest projects each semester, and while it is a fundraiser, it also brings the adult

PTA Grants Program Have you recently walked by the high school quads and noticed the large student photography and artwork on canvas displayed? Or maybe your elementary school students have discussed the colorful plates from the cafeteria, or some of the new equipment for the Pre-K/ Kindergarten playground? Well these are just a few of the examples of where PTA funding are being showcased at ISB. We are pleased to roll out the 2013-2014 PTA Funding Request Program. This school year we have budgeted for a little over 600,000 baht to go towards grants to approved projects which will enhance student life here at ISB. Any teacher, staff member, student or parent can make a request for these funds. The process for request is easy. Just fill out a request form which can be found on the ISB webpage under the Parent Portal and PTA Reports tabs. (http:// inside.isb.ac.th/parentportal/pta/pta-reports/) All requests should be submitted to the PTA Treasurer, either by email or in the treasurer box in the PTA office. The PTA Board then determines the approval of the project based on the following criteria: Essential • Improves student learning, safety or quality of life. • Is not covered by tuition or is not a priority for school www.isb.ac.th.org

spending. • Meets the criteria of the Funding Request Form. Desirable 1. Matches ISB’s vision and guiding principles. 2. Is enduring. 3. Fills a need no other organization can. 4. Will benefit school grounds, individual schools or school program. 5. Enhances ISB’s community service through sharing with those outside the ISB community. 6. Helps programs that are insufficiently resourced. 7. Involves minimum future resource requirements: upkeep, staff and maintenance. 8. Will benefit the children during the year which the funds were raised. All funding requests are reviewed and voted on at the PTA Executive Board Meetings. Exceptions can be voted on sooner if the need arises for speedy requests. We look forward to helping as many students as possible with the Funding Request Program this year. If you have any questions concerning this or any PTA finances please send an email to pta@isb.ac.th . Kristen Garrett (PTA Treasurer) TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

The 19th Annual Bangkok International Chior Festival Gala Concert

Bangkok International String Festival Gala Concert

ALL SCHOOL

This year’s even featured performances

by choirs from Bangkok Patana School, Bromsgrove International School, Ekamai International School, Grace International School – Chiang Mai, International Community School, International School Bangkok, NIST International School, Ruamrudee International School, and Shrewsbury International School as well as the BICF Festival Chorus led by guest conductor, Kevin Allen-Schmid, from Arusha International School, Tanzania, East Africa. It has been amazing to watch him work with our students. Why do we sing? The focus of BICF has been and continues to be one of choir as community where people from a variety of musical and cultural backgrounds come together to share and learn from each other through music. In the first half of the program today you will hear selections performed individually by each of the participating choirs. I like to think of these presentations as musical offerings where the listener is introduced to each ensemble, a variety of repertoire and different musical approaches. In the second half of the concert the audience witnessed the transformation of many into one as the nine schools’ choirs joined together to sing pieces they had rehearsed a day and half prior to the performance, with Mr. Allen-Schmid. In Harmony, Anthony A. Giles, Director of Choirs

Does it matter if you play some wrong notes? No - not if the essence of the musical expression is being captured. Proof of this philosophy in action was experienced on September 21st when the Bangkok International String Festival Gala Concert exploded into expression under the tutelage of

conductor Jonathan Mann. The atmosphere was electric all the way through, and a surprise proposal of marriage (to our own MS Choir teacher Coleen Peterson) almost trumped the incredible music! John Secomb can surely feel proud of this 5th Festival (BISF) that has grown and blossomed into a captivating event. The full house attests to the way Mr Secomb has built the festival attracting many other local schools to participate. Mr Mann asked for the sound to be like chocolate and that’s what we got! The intensity of focus of sixty plus

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musicians united in spirit and sound makes the most beautiful vibrations that are richer and more delightful than Lindt chocolate and yes I am a chocolate connoisseur! Those who managed to squeeze into the theatre were rewarded with a vibrant experience of pure music ranging from the delicacy of Albinoni … to the drama of John Williams (composer of the Harry Potter) … and to the new sound worlds that were created by the Thai premiere of Orion and the Scorpion (Soon Hee Newbold). This concert had something for everyone. Even kept four and five year olds were riveted in their seats. The combination of dedicated and talented young players, the awesome

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… now find that in your body and let it come out.” Then he turns the image into a conducting gesture that holds all that significance so the music is at the forefront of the students’ minds

Rather than focusing only on the technical way of playing there is always something connected to the expression of the music, going beyond the notes of the score Talking with some of the students later they explained how they responded really well to this kind of approach. Mr

Mann said “Come on, I don’t care if you make wrong notes … let’s make the music, play out and enjoy it! Have fun with me - I don’t care if you make wrong notes” Whether the students were thinking of the richness of chocolate, or imagining electric currents which were making them play robotically or, (for the Harry Potter “Quidditch World Cup”), whether they were at a crazy Irish party dancing around little chairs – whatever the image he conjured it certainly transformed the music.

ALL SCHOOL

acoustics of the CCT, and a conductor who works to extract pure expression is magical. Many young audience members (and… ahem… some older ones too) arrived resplendent in Harry Potter dress up all adding to a dramatic musical experience for everyone. The mysterious case of the ‘late cake’ only increased the dramatic intrigue! Jonathan Mann endows musical phrases with humanity and depth by drawing dramatic images for the musicians to embody. He asks them to “… imagine you are a big, fat baritone singer ... Laaaaaaaaahhhhh

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ISB Booster club Annual Pancake Breakfast

ALL SCHOOL

The 20th Annual Pancake Breakfast is coming soon, on Saturday, November 9th Mark your calendars! Hosted by Booster Club Volunteers. The ISB HS cafeteria will be transformed into a restaurant setting, Booster Club volunteer moms and dads will be ‘dressed’ for the occasion to serve you a delicious pancake breakfast. The wonderful smell of bacon will be in the air, pancakes will be flipped and stacked on plates, eggs will be scrambled and juice will be poured! Everyone is welcome! It’s an event for the whole family. Tickets go on sale the morning of the breakfast. Don’t miss out on the food and this fun event! See you there!

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Booster Club Spirit - How about you?

ALL SCHOOL

The Booster Club welcomes all new and returning families to ISB for an exciting 2013-14 school year. It is off to a busy start as we’ve already run three spirit tents that supported our soccer and volleyball teams and fired up students and parents during “Spirit Night”. The purpose of this club is to support our students in athletics and the fine arts. We do this through spirit tents, selling merchandise at the Booster Hut, housing students from other competing schools and hosting IASAS - this year rugby. For music and drama performances, we provide hospitality rooms for visitors and refreshments for all students as well. More importantly we are a visible group of black and gold parents who are cheering and supporting our students. Consider joining this fun group. Work the tents, bake, shop, sell merchandise and wear your black and gold! For further information contact Lynn Jones (that’s me) at lynnandaj@icloud.com. GO PANTHERS!

PTA Volunteer Opportunities There are many ways you can become involved with the ISB PTA. You can bake cookies for staff cookie day the last week of November, or show you country spirit by hosting or helping at a booth for International Family Fest in February. We need someone to coordinate the delivery of the joint Booster-PTA publication, Touchstone, and people to just give an hour or two once a month and help man the Lost and Found table. The opportunities to assist the PTA are numerous, flexible and we are always happy to see a new face walk in the office door and offer the help. Please stop by the office, email pta@ isb.ac.th, or even give me a call at 084-460-6649 and we will connect you with the perfect way to get involved. Cory Fox PTA President

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Scouts

ALL SCHOOL

Boy Scouts by Radha Friedman This past summer, Boy Scouts from Troop 701 joined fellow Scouts from other Asian Troops in two major BSA events. July 14-24, our Scouts were part of over 40,000 Scouts and Leaders attending the National BSA Jamboree in West Virginia, and took part in building a handicap ramp at a disabled person’s home. August 3-11, Troop 701 was one of 16 troops from Asia and the U.S. that attended the 2nd Asian Camporee in Kakani, Nepal, where they engaged in a Habitat for Humanity project building village homes. Next year, August 2-10, 2014, the Scouts will embark on the 3rd Asian Camporee in Mongolia and engage on a Habitat for Humanity project. These adventures provide valuable life skills and knowledge to always be prepared, helpful and upstanding citizens. You, too, can be a part of this great experience. Stop by at our weekly Tuesday meeting, 6:00-7:30 PM at ISB ES-MPR, and learn more on how you can become a Scout or a volunteer Adult Leader.

old ones after the long summer break. Our wonderful Cadettes, Seniors and Ambassadors led the younger girls in singing popular sing-alongs as well as helping them make their first SWAPS (Special Whatchamacallits Affectionately Pinned Somewhere) of the year - a beautiful and colorful lotus flower. The Girl Scouts have an exciting agenda with troop meetings and celebrations for World Thinking Day, Earth Week and Girl Scout Week, optional weekend campouts, a school “lock-in” and Siam Ocean World sleepover. Mark your calendars for the Girl Scout hosted Mother-Daughter Sock Hop Dance (December 7th) and FatherDaughter Dance (May 17th) which are open to all girls who want to attend. For those of you that are unfamiliar with the Girl Scouts, we are a volunteer-run organization for girls from Kindergarten through grade 12th. Our goal is “to empower girls and to help teach them values such as honesty, fairness, courage, compassion, character, sisterhood, confidence and citizenship through activities and community service.”(en.Wikipedia. org/wiki/Girl_Scouts_of_the_USA) We are still accepting new scouts and have a continuing need for adult volunteers to help mentor our terrific girls. Whether or not you have a daughter in the program, if you would like to get involved, please contact us at gsthailand40@gmail.com.

Cub Scouts Fall 2013 Update By Deana Turner Cub Scouts The Cub Scouts kicked off the scouting year with “Camp 101” at ISB on Saturday September 14. Scouts worked together in their Dens to complete swimming assessments, leather-work, tent set-up, group sports, skits, jokes, and a campfire with s’mores, all before lights-out. Parents and siblings joined in on the fun as well. There was even a Scout vs. parent tug-o-war. The Webelos Scouts worked closely with Den Chiefs from Boy Scout Troop 701 to set-up for the campfire. The Cub Scouts have many exciting events planned this year, including the Pinewood Derby, Raingutter Regatta, Bike Safety Day, and several Family Campouts. Individual dens enjoy more age specific activities like field trips, fishing, geocaching, sporting events, and volunteer projects. Our next pack meeting is November 4 in the Multipurpose Building, Room 1 from 6-7pm. We invite you to come join in the fun. For more information contact Pack701Thailand@gmail.com or check us out on www.Facebook.com/ Pack701Thailand

Girl Scouts

The third year of USA Girl Scouts Overseas Thailand kick-off was a delicious Family Ice Cream Social held Friday, September 13th in the ES Cafeteria right after school. The girls along with their leaders enjoyed made to order sundaes while getting to know new members and reacquainting with TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

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Green Panthers By Kerry Dyke - Environmental Coordinator

ALL SCHOOL

What do kids get out of an Eco Trip? On Friday, Sept 20th, 31 students and 3 teachers went to Kanchanaburi for the first eco trip of this school year. We stayed on a beautiful house boat on Friday night in Sai Yok Yai national park. Saturday we began work with Bring the Elephant Home and together we went to the jungle to build check dams. The goal of the dams is to make the water stay around longer in the dry season thus giving wild elephants a drinking source. Otherwise the wild elephants go to the farms and are in direct conflict with villagers. We then went to Earawan Elephant Paradise, an ethical elephant sanctuary that is just starting up and not even open to tourists yet. Working with these elephants was a magical experience (see the studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s responses). We are now looking at forming a partnership with this amazing place and help them get support. Perhaps you are interested in being a sponsor. Students cooked their dinner and breakfast the next morning. Saturday night the rain was a bit of a nightmare as we realized some didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t put up their tent properly, however everyone survived! The next day we played with the elephants a little more and then went off to plant 400 trees in a wild elephant buffer zone. The students were fantastic and hard working troopers. They knew when it was time to have fun, but also that there was a message in this trip. Hopefully, everyone came away a little more educated and ready to make a positive difference.

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International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

PTA Executive Board Meeting 10am

MUN Black & Gold Assembly

PTA Staff appretioation

World Philosophy Day

World Diabetes Day

FRIDAY

THURSDAY

WEDNESDAY

Passion day

TUESDAY

November 2013

Booster Club Meeting 11am

MONDAY

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Thai Craft Fair

International Day for Tolerance

Amazing Race

Booster Club Pancake Breakfast

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

World Science Day for Peace and Development

Amazing Race

DATES

Habiba is cool!!

email: touch@isb.ac.th

We welcome your feedback, please write to Touchstone

http://inside.isb.ac.th/ parentportal/pta/

for more PTA/Booster Club News See ISB website

Movember Movember (a portmanteau word from moustache and “November”) is an annual, month-long event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of prostate cancer and other male cancer and associated charities.

National Novel Writing Month, shortened as NaNoWriMo (na-noh-ry-moh)[citation needed], is an annual internet-based creative writing project that takes place every November.

National Novel writing Month

November is the eleventh month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of four months with the length of 30 days. November was the ninth month of the ancient Roman calendar. November retained its name (from the Latin novem meaning “nine”) when January and February were added to the Roman calendar.

November

World AIDS Day

SUNDAY

MS Olympics

Int’l Mountain Day

Human Rights Day

International Migrants Day

HM The King’s Birthday

Thai Environment Day Int’l volunteer Day

THURSDAY

WEDNESDAY

Thai constitution Day

International Day of Persons with Disabilities

TUESDAY

Thai Natonal Sports day

Booster Christmas Lunch

NONDAY

December 2013

End of semester

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

Monkey Day

DATES

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dacade of Biodiversity for Sustainable Development The United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, 2005 - 2014

Dacade on Biodiversity The United Nations General Assembly declared 2011-2020 the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity (Resolution 65/161). The UN Decade on Biodiversity serves to support and promote implementation of the objectives of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, with the goal of significantly reducing biodiversity loss.

UNESCO thus celebrates UN International Days related to its fields of competence, in addition to the other World Days, proclaimed by the Organization’s governing bodies or other institutions.

The United Nations General Assembly designates a number of “International Days” to mark important aspects of human life and history

International Days

December was originally the tenth month of the year in the Roman calendar until a monthless winter period was divided between January and February. It gets its name from the Latin word “decem” which means tenth. However, when the Romans added January and February to the calendar, it became the twelfth month. The name remained the same however.

December

Message from the Principal

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

by Kelly Armitage, ES Principal We are off to a fantastic year of learning in the Elementary School. One of our goals this year is to continue to cultivate “Engaged Learners, Collaborative Learners, and Responsible Learners.” These three categories are part of our Habits and Attitudes for Learning (HAL) here at ISB. Both Elementary School and Middle School have identified these as dispositions we strive to foster, which are later extended in High School as well. As you read through this edition of Touchstone, we hope that you will see several recent opportunities for our learners to demonstrate collaboration, engagement and responsibility. Your support in fostering these is essential. Staying informed of school happenings will help guide your family discussions and assist you in modeling skills when opportunities arise. Open house, new parent orientation, and most recently, parent/teacher conferences are only a few ways to stay informed. Additionally, it is key that you read our weekly ES eNews issued on Fridays, classroom blogs, classroom communications, Parent/Student handbook, and most importantly, talk to your children about what is happening on a daily basis. Some questions to ask around the dinner table could be: tell me something you learned today; what was a high/ low; what will you do tomorrow to make something better; what made you think today; and what are you wondering about? Research is clear that when parents are connected to the learning happening at school, student achievement improves. Thank you for your continued partnership.

ES Welcome Assembly: Try a Little Kindness!

by Ashley Benusa

The ES Welcome Assembly opened on August 23rd in the Chevron Theater with a message that will carry throughout the year – “Try a Little Kindness.”ES students new and old were warmly welcomed to a new school year by administrators Kelly Armitage and Diana Drummond as well as grade 5 students Jitpuwapat “Earth” Mokkamakkul and Gagan “Meg” Sriprasert. Students and teachers in Grade One also had the opportunity to share some of their learning with crafted paper hands and the poem, “Hello to You.” To highlight the message of the year, ES administrators shared a book by one of their favorite authors, Peter Reynolds. The book read was I’m Here, and it reminded students to consider including their classmates, new and old, in their activities in school. Students then sang a community song by Glen Campbell, poignantly titled “Try a Little Kindness.” Other ES community songs performed in the assembly included the “ISB Welcome Song,” written by former ES Music Teacher, Vince Bullen, and “This is a New Year,” by A Great Big World. A cast of ES new teachers and the ES Music Department also unveiled a surprise music video of the newest faculty members, lip-syncing and dancing in a hilariously enthusiastic rendition of “This is a New Year.” The new ES teachers have some great moves! If the energy level of the assembly is any indication of the year to come, it looks as though we’re in for an exciting new year!

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After School Activities by Livnat Ziskinder, ES After School Activities Coordinator

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

This semesterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s After School Activity (ASA) program is well underway with over 50 different activities in session and over 570 applications!! Old favorites have returned, ranging from Top Flight Basketball to Clay Works and Amazing Science, while new additions such as Golf, Tournament of Minds and Parkour are proving extremely popular. The ASA Program brings students and adults together in meaningful and rewarding co-curricular activities. These activities are an important piece in your childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s learning experience while at the same time providing lots of fun! Our ASA instructors are parents, teachers, instructional assistants and other professionals who are eager to spend this valuable time with our children. Our ES ASA program recognizes and celebrates that learning can take many different forms. Some activities, like cooking, drawing and science, take place in the classroom and other activities, like Dodgeball, volleyball and Parkour, are played outdoors. Because of the wide ranging interests and needs of our ES children, the ASA program aims to give all our students the opportunity to explore and develop new interests, as well as having the chance to develop interests or skills they already have. There are limited spaces available in some of our ASA. If your child would like to enroll please contact Livnat Ziskinder in the ES office or write to esactivities@isb.ac.th. www.isb.ac.th.org

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International Day

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

by Sharane Sherman, PTA ES Coordinator With International Day occurring the very day Touchstone was due to the printers, I was tasked with writing an article a few weeks before the actual event. At first I considered putting down the usual thank you and fanfare, but what I really want to write is about how International Day all comes together and the gargantuan effort from our ISB community to pull it off. We knew before the end of last school year that International Day would be earlier than usual. We knew we would need to rally people in those hectic first few weeks of school, and that parents new to ISB and International

of Northern Thailand, Thai traditional medicine and the arts and festivals of our amazing host country. The USA also stepped up this year and planned to bring slices of Americana, to include Baseball training camp, a taste of Hollywood, and a bit of the Wild West. Other countries planned to repeat successful rooms from last year. Japan brought origami sumo wrestling to the second grade and Canada introduced fifth graders to maple syrup and igloo building. In Mexico, the kids learned about the Dia de los Muertos. India brought us yoga and Bollywood dancing. Laos talked with third graders about land mines and introduced a traditional game. It is dif-

ficult to start listing rooms as they all bring something special and unique to the classes that pass through them. Our kids leave school on International Day with a richer understanding of the diversity of ISB. I am not usually a warm, fuzzy type person. But while sitting in the planning meeting and seeing teams of parents gathered around tables, brainstorming amazing ideas, I got a warm fuzzy feeling. When parents saw holes in the schedule at certain grade levels, they stepped right in, willing to charge blindly into the fray. These parents were so passionate and excited to be a part of their childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s grade for the day, to elevate the day to a truly special experience for our Elementary kids.

Day would be dazed and confused by it all.

We held our first planning meeting at the end of August and had an amazing turnout. With over 700 kids in Elementary School and 32 classrooms to convert into various corners of the world, the task of filling in country rooms seemed ominous. But there are certain things we can always count on. The Thai Community pools resources and turns one classroom in each grade level into a mini-Thailand. Past years we have seen umbrella making, a taste TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

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I look forward to the photographs that will accompany this article, highlighting the parade of nations, and our studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; travel to our microcosm of the world (no passport or visas necessary).

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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Parent Education Woorkshop

Improving Writing

by Sarah Fleming, Mary Bellone and Tammy Westrick

by Kelly Armitage and Diana Drummond

Exploring Literacy and Math Over the last few weeks, the ES Learning Coaches offered training for new parents. Moving to ISB can be a big transition, and the learning coaches want to ensure that new parents understand ISB’s philosophies and approaches to learning. The ES Literacy Learning Coach, Tammy Westrick, gave participants an overview of reading & writing workshop as well as our approach to Word Study. The Technology and Learning Coach, Sarah Fleming, and our Learning Coach for Instruction and Pedagogy, Mary Bellone, offered a session to dig into our Math and eLearning philosophies. They explored what learning looks like at different grade levels, how it aligns with ISB’s mission and vision, and offered tips on how parents can support their children at home.

Recent visiting consultant, Dylan Wiliam, believes that assessment is at the heart of good teaching in order for learning to move forward. As you know, writing is one of our focus areas this year in the ES. One way we have invested our assessment efforts is through Team Writing Calibrations. Several times a year, teachers meet in grade level teams after students have completed a ‘Writing on Demand’ piece. These pieces are written by students without teacher support. During the calibration meeting, teachers assess writing using a ‘writing continuum’. The continuum outlines different components of writing (Focus, Structure, Detail, Style, and Conventions), describing various developmental stages within each component. During this process, teachers are able to closely analyze the ‘Writing on Demand’ piece, and then triangulate this with what they know about each writer. Placing each writer on a developmental continuum allows teachers to see what writers are doing well and what writing components need further development. Most importantly, it gives teachers a clear indication of the instruction that is most likely to help the writer improve over the next phase of teaching. As you can imagine, our teachers find this an extremely valuable process. Our focus on improving school wide practices in the teaching of writing continues throughout this year and includes working with two writing consultants. In the end, what matters most is that we find ways to help create and support the best writers possible.

Please see Mary and Sarah’s blogs below for more in depth summaries of the sessions, as well as tips for supporting your students at home. http://inside.isb.ac.th/mbellone/ http://inside.isb.ac.th/sfleming/ https://docs.google.com/a/isb.ac.th/presentation/d/1vMmqNJTURRYVXvmXYvL-jaMktQ-PkFbkraw7G2GC9Mk/edit?pli=1#slide=id.p69 Stay tuned for upcoming parent trainings throughout the year. We look forward to learning with you!

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Under 11 Cross Country by Emily Marshall

Panther Track and Field Team by Diana Nelson

We are excited to announce the newest team sport at ISB: The Panther Track and Field Team. In the past, ISB has offered an after school track and field club that ran for five weeks in the Spring for elementary schoolage children. Because of the overwhelming success of this program, the school started, on September 4th, a Track and Field team that meets every Wednesday until December. Session two will start in January and run for 15 weeks. The team consists of stu-

dents from grades 3-5 and 6-8. The head coach is Christopher Bell and his team of coaches includes: Ugo Contessi, Amir Mizraie, Emily Marshall, and visiting coaches who bring specific expertise based on www.isb.ac.th.org

the coaching skill being developed. Along with developing a culture of

race. The team was able to test all the skills they had worked on in a “Timed Trials Event” that was held on October 2nd. In the next unit the athletes will learn the proper form for the various track and field ‘throw’ events (e.g. Disc, shot put, etc.).

running, every five weeks the coaches teach different disciplines in track and field (e.g., high jump, long jump, hurdles, shot put, javelin and sprints). In addition to focusing on track skills, Coach Bell said, “another goal is to educate student athletes on nutrition and health [thus] helping the kids to develop a culture of healthy living and

running.” The team just finished their first unit where they focused on dashes and relays. Some of the skills the athletes learned were how to use ‘blocks’ at the start line for when they compete in the dash races (e.g., 50m, 100m), and they learned the proper technique for handing off the baton in a relay

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

The U11 team consists of a combination of boys and girls , some experienced and new runners. Our motto for U11 Cross Country is that everyone is welcome! During training we focused on improving running technique, increasing endurance, and having some fun. After only a few training sessions, I could already see much improvement with the kids and I had no doubt there would be more as the season goes on. The team’s boundless energy and positive attitude has made coaching a great time. We worked together as a team to offer encouragement and support to each other throughout training and especially on race day. We had a fairly short season, only 6 weeks, which culminated with the BISAC Cross Country meet on October 12. The meet was held here, at ISB, on our very own Cross Country course. Thanks for supporting the team and helping cheer everyone on!

They will also continue to focus on developing stamina as well as running form. The kids are having a great time learn-

ing new skills, exercising and making new friends. As Coach Bell said, “We are having a lot of fun and are busy building our ‘track family’. Go Panther Track and Field!

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ISB Under Eleven (U11) Teams News

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

U11 Boys Basketball By Coach Jim Armitage

ball. Coach Boom’s priority for the girls is to have fun while playing a great season!

The U11 BISAC Boys Basketball teams have worked hard in anticipation of tough competition for our regular season practice games and ultimately the BISAC Tournament scheduled for November 2 at BPS. We began the season with 24 boys working to get better with each practice. The boys have been playing in the new sports complex on the eightfoot baskets. We have been working on individual skills like dribbling with both hands, shooting under pressure and following jump stops, passing and rebounding. Team skills, including understanding zone and man-to-man defenses, running set plays and motion offenses, and helping teammates defend the basket, have kept us busy and focused. Our goal was to have two to three boys teams compete this season. Our first game was on the Road at Shrewsbury on September 25, and we hosted Bromsgrove here at ISB on October 2. For many of our students, these games were their first inter-school competition. Coach Perkins and Coach Armitage have been emphasizing trying to get better everyday, knowing that if that happens, winning will follow. U11 Girls Basketball By Coach Krittiya (Boom) Jailak-Fizgerald

The U11 Girls Basketball team consists of eleven players in Grades 4-5. Our season began in September with practices after school every Monday and Thursday in the ES AC gymnasium. Already by the team’s first game at Shrewsbury on September 25, Coach Boom could see that the girls knew exactly what to do and were playing an excellent game. Looking towards their final U11 Tournament hosted at ISB on November 2, the girls have continued to work well together, building on their overall good skills and defense, and especially honing their individual technique with the TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

www.isb.ac.th.org

Message from the Middle School Principal, Tom Burgess A New School Year Brings Many New Changes to the Middle School by Tom Burgess, Middle School Principal

Twenty-nine newly renovated Middle School classrooms greeted our students and teachers on the first day of school this year. This was a tremendous project to complete so many room renovations in just two months over the summer holiday, but it was a tremendous success and our students are now enjoying wonderful new learning spaces as a result. These renovations include new flooring, walls, ceilings, cabinets, electrical wiring, desks, tables, chairs, and soft furnishings. A new multipurpose ‘Skybox’ has also been created that can host large groups of students, faculty meetings, and a variety of other purposes. Phase two of these renovations will occur next summer as we renovate our Science labs, Art rooms, and EAL and Learning Support rooms. Thank you very much to our Facilities, Finance, and Maintenance Departments for the massive effort that went into our current renovations www.isb.ac.th.org

Another major change this year has been our totally new schedule along with new class offerings. The new schedule creates a flexible ‘Core’ block of time (approximately 170 minutes) each day for our different grade levels. Our Humanities, Math, and Science teachers at each grade level can schedule shorter or longer periods during this Core block in a flexible manner to best meet the needs of their grade level on any given day or week. By separating the ‘Core’ classes from our ‘Encore’ or specialist classes, an important benefit has been that we had far fewer schedule conflicts at the beginning of the year and more students were able to get the classes they wanted or needed. We have increased the number of ‘Encore’ Arts classes

available to students, including some new classes that have been created to focus on developing ‘design thinking’, such as Drawing & Painting, Graphic Design, 3D Modeling, and Science Research/Design Challenge. Another important class is called Learning to Learn (L2L), which focuses on the development of metacognition, digital citizenship, and Wellness. Our new schedule and new classes are providing our students with many new learning opportunities aligned with our ISB Mission and Definition of Learning.

teachers assigned to each group. The purpose of this structure is to make a big school feel like a smaller school in which the students and teachers get to know each other very well, teachers work together to support students based upon their individual needs, and teachers plan for common teaching and learning experiences, including balancing homework loads for their students. Also, to support our ISB Mission to ‘inspire students to lead healthy, active, balanced lives’, we have assigned one Counselor per grade level as the Wellness ‘champion’ responsible for overseeing our Wellness program. Our Counselors are teamteaching Wellness lessons with teachers at each grade level on a regular basis so as to build close working relationships with their students. This type of ‘House’ structure is quite common in large Middle Schools as a means for providing a strong pastoral care and integrated learning experience for students.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

As the new school year is well underway, many of you may have noticed many changes in our Middle School this year. Some of these changes are more obvious, such as the renovations to our classrooms that occurred over the summer, while others may not be quite so easily observable, such as our new schedule, new classes that are being offered, and a new ‘House’ structure. All in all, there are many changes happening all at once this year, and we are excited about the learning opportunities these changes are providing for our Middle School students.

as well as the work coming up in phase two of our renovations!

Change is never easy, and we expect to learn from our experience of implementing these changes over the course of this year. Therefore, we anticipate that we may make a few adjustments both later this year and next year to fine-tune our new schedule and House structure. Our teachers have taken on multiple changes all at once and are to be highly commended for their teamwork, resilience, and efforts to support our students within the framework of these significant changes. As a result, we are confident that all of these changes will better support the learning and development of our Middle School students.

A third major change we are implementing this year, which coincides with our classroom renovations and new schedule, is the creation of a ‘House’ structure. At each grade level, we have two ‘Houses’ of 80-90 students, with four Core TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

Symphonic Band Community Trip “Once in a Lifetime” MS Symphonic Band Community Service Trip to R-35 School, Khao Lak

MIDDLE SCHOOL

by Kentaro Udagawa (MS Bands)

visit for ISB MS band students since 2008. The ISB students performed for the R-35 students, observed as their counterparts performed, and enjoyed interacting with R-35 students through cultural exchange activities and games. ISB students gained much from the visit, including personal growth, the joy of sharing music, and the opportunity to connect with others. Following are some students’ reflections on the trip:

As suggested by this article’s title— the words of Kate Nanthayapirom (Gr. 8)—the recent Symphonic Band trip to R-35 school in Khao Lak was highly memorable. 32 Symphonic Band members traveled to R-35 school between September 13-15, 2013. Their visit, done in association with After the Wave, was the fourth such

“When we played music for students, I could see smiles on their faces and it made me feel joy.”—Naisha Gandhi (Gr. 8)

school was) when a student from R-35 school approached me, and we became friends. That was when I got over being shy.”—JJ Sirithantikorn (Gr. 7) “When we had a dance with R-35 students, it was really fun and it felt like we were just all friends, not like strangers.”—Pin Kanjanachusak (Gr. 8), “(The most memorable moment at the school was) letting students ride on my back, because it’s like wefriends, brothers, having connection.”—Zen Chaiyatat (Gr. 8)

“(The most memorable moment at the school was) playing the Careless Whisper solo (in front of over 150 people), because I thought I would fail miserably. Although I slightly did, I still recovered and was able to play well till the end.”—Nico Ma (Gr. 8) “(The most memorable moment at the

Athletics What’s happening in MS Athletics?

First, it is no longer MS Athletics. We have changed to U13 and U15 to allow ISB teams to compete more fairly with other BISAC teams in the proper age category. Thus, most 9th graders are now eligible to play U15. You will even see some 6th graders playing U11 and some 8th graders on JV Soccer and Volleyball. BISAC is now following a new format whereby we have two divisions with five teams each. We are in the North Division with NIST, Shrewsbury, Harrow, and Traill. Matches against the four other teams in the same division actually count towards the

ranking in the tournament. We encourage players and parents to follow the seasonal score sheet. It is a great way to see how all the teams are doing in their division. This year U13 and U15 Basketball are off to a great start. With our new alignment of teams, we are much more competitive on all levels and our four teams have a combined record of 173! In the divisional play, both our girls teams are undefeated and in first place. The boys are both 2-1 and are either in first or second place at the moment. This season we also have U15 Boys Rugby, U15 Girls Touch Rugby, Cross Country Running, and U13 Tennis.

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We are looking to get them more matches, but there is less competition out there, making regular matches more challenging to find. Please check out team schedules under the U13/U15 Season: http://inside.isb.ac.th/athletics/u1315-athletics/season-1/ We have matches just about every Monday and Wednesday. The tournaments are on November 2 and ISB will host the U15 Girls Basketball tournament. We hope you can get down to cheer on your ISB team and give those kids the support they deserve. Oh and did I mention the games are pretty entertaining as well?

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Art By Kerri Fitzgerald

To help with the high demand for these visual art courses, ISB is fortunate to have Nevdon Jamgochian teaching Drawing & Painting and Graphic Design and Jonathan Steenwijk teaching Digital Photography/Art in addition to their core class teaching roles. Trista Meisner will continue her position in the department, teaching Art 6, Ceramics, 2-D Art and 3-D Art. ISB is looking to involve more students in the visual arts. The visual arts play a large role in key points of the ISB Mission; that is, they inspire students to lead healthy, active and balanced lives, while also being passionate and reflective learners. None of this would be possible without ISB’s fantastic staff. A special debt of gratitude is owed to Khun Toto and and Khun Eed who are our fabulous MS/ HS Instructional Assistants. They are both invaluable to the arts program at ISB. The Arts Department is also thankful that we have Tom Burgess as our MS www.isb.ac.th.org

The ISB Arts Department hopes to build on the successful 2012-2013 school year which included sessions with visiting artist, Khun Vipoo Srivilasa, the One Million Bones library exhibit and ended with an exhibition in the Chevron Theater and The Hunchback of Notre Dame display in the CCT Foyer.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

The new Middle School schedule is rejuvenating the visual arts at ISB. This year seventh and eighth g r a d e students have more opportunities to take art courses, which have been expanded to include Drawing & Painting, Graphic Design and Ceramics in addition to the already existing 2-D Art, 3-D Art and Digital Art/ Photography courses. These semester-long courses will allow students to more deeply immerse themselves in the creation of art and artistic knowledge than the quarter-long courses of years’ past. In our new program, sixth grade students will continue with a semester-long exploratory course, which involves work in a variety of media. This will help students determine what best suits their interests for the elective courses in grades 7 and 8.

Principal, and Moe BaronToaldo as the MS Assistant Principal. They have been very supportive and they spearheaded the additional arts offerings this year. Of course we would be remiss if we forgot to thank Buildings and Grounds for all their help throughout the year and especially during exhibits.

Student Getaway By Ross Tague On Saturday, August 17, 60 new middle school students and student ambassadors along with 15 teachers traveled to the Rose Garden for the MS New Student Getaway. The Getaway is an opportunity for both new students and ambassadors to learn about Thai traditions and customs, as well as meet and make new friends. After a one-hour and a half bus ride to the Rose Garden, students first took part in arts and crafts workshops such as bamboo dancing, Thai cooking, and Thai martial arts. A Thai style buffet for lunch gave students an opportunity to try a variety of Thai dishes. In the afternoon, a lively Thai Village Cultural show gave students a great introduction to the traditional Thai way of life.

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Pricipal’s Forum

Do you have a concern or suggestion involving the high school that you’d like addressed by the principal and his team? The High School Principal Forum addresses subjects of wide interest to the parent community and presents those issues to the principal for consideration. The goals of the team include sharing information and ideas between parents and the administration, building understanding, and working together to arrive at solutions to problems where appropriate. Last year, over 40 issues were discussed, and Mr. Bradley and the high school administration were prompted to take action on several key issues. A wide range of subjects were addressed including the HS drug and alcohol policy, standardized testing practices and preparation, changes to the IB program, updates to the student handbook, standards of conduct for student and teachers, and the college application process, to name just a few. This year’s Principal Forum team has finished gathering, discussing, and organizing issues to present to the principal and his team in preparation for the first forum of the year. The community is encouraged to come out to hear directly from the principal and his team as they address these issues in an open forum on October 9 at 9:00 am in the HS MPB2. While the deadline has passed for the October forum, parents are encouraged to direct additional issues directly to the forum team members, to CoChairs Charlotte Hallengren and Renee Rutledge, or to the forum’s email at hsppforum@isb.ac.th in preparation for the second forum on November 27. (All personal information held in the strictest confidence.) Overall, the forum has been very successful in bringing HS parents and the principal’s team together to deal with important issues. The forum team looks forward to another successful year ahead.

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HS Counseling Group By Debbie McDowell, Department Head

The High School Counseling Office is made up of six counselors who all have experience as teachers and/or counselors in the US and at other international posts. Mr. Kevin Davy is the Grade 9 counselor. Students in Grades 10, 11 and 12 are assigned to one of the other five counselors: Mr. Andrew Weiser, Mr. Ryan Haynes, Dr. Cathy Curtis, Mr. Kevin Callahan and Ms. Debbie McDowell. The counselors provide a guidance program for each grade level called Seminar. In Grade 9 the Freshman Seminar is designed and coordinated to help students adjust in their transition to high school. Freshmen meet in the first semester with important individuals to find out about community service, GCW, athletics, activities and clubs and much more. In addition, the Grade 9 students begin focusing on goal setting and planning for future success. In Grade 10, students meet in four Sophomore Seminars which focus on career research by doing several interest inventories through Naviance. They will also be taking the ACT PLAN on October 16th and the score report will provide additional information about careers. Juniors participate in four Junior Seminars designed to build a basis for university searches and investigations. All Juniors will take the PSAT on October 16th as a practice test

for the SAT (a standardized test used by many universities around the world in the application process). In the second semester, University Labs will be held each Monday during flex time allowing students to work with a counselor investigating universities and formulating his/her university application list. Grade 12 students participate in a number of Senior Seminars where they work with the counselors on the university application process. Workshops are held early in the first semester covering topics such as essay writing and completing applications for the UK, US, and other countries. Each Monday, the counselors provide a University Lab from 2:15 to 3:00 for students to work on their university applications or to get support from a counselor on university research. Just before graduation, the counselors will conduct Senior Transitions Workshops to facilitate the student’s transition from high school to the university. All of the counselors are passionate about working with students! Each counselor can support students with social, emotional, career and college advising and counseling. Students are always welcome to stop by to see their counselor. Appointments for students and parents are available upon request and can be made by speaking to the HS Counseling receptionist, Khun Vannee (02-9635890). The counselors look forward to working with students and families in the 2013-14 school year.

www.isb.ac.th.org

JV Soccer-Girls

Varsity Soccer-Boys

by Scott O’Neill

by Benjamin Blackstone

team (eleven seniors), as well as many new faces, we have been able to improve steadily throughout the season and develop a great camaraderie. After having unlucky results in the IASAS Exchange, we were able to calm our play down and win every match in the ISB Friendship Tournament without conceding a goal. Every day in practice is enjoyable, and the coaches

It may sound like a given, but every year, the JV Girl’s Soccer team is focused on getting better as individual players by solidifying basic skills, and getting better as a team by identifying common goals and developing mutual respect and understanding that will help us to get there.

have done a great job preparing us for IASAS. Right away, we established goals and have done a great job achieving them. Whether or not we gain the results we hope for, I know that every player has had a fantastic season, and I could not have asked for a better one.

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Finding a way toward being our best

Here are some examples of how the girls plan to do it: What is a goal that you have for our team? • We should be able to communi cate and work together, • Better talking and moving of the ball, • Have a fun, positive season

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As our final week of practice draws to a close, it seems like the soccer season has gone by much too fast. I know I speak for all three captains when I say that this team has been one of my favorite teams to be a part of in all my years playing soccer. With quite a mature

What kinds of behaviors among team members (including you) will help us to progress toward this goal? • full focus during practice • bring people together with constructive talk and humor • kindness and respect What kinds of behaviors among team members (including you) will hinder our progress as a team toward this goal? • not working as teammates and criticizing others • not trying completely • bringing others down We are realizing that none of us have reached our maximum potential, and by working together as a supportive team, we are more likely to get there, with no regrets. TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

Planning Promotes Quality

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by Phil Rogers, HS Dean of Academics

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Our students have many opportunities to grow through our extensive academic course choices, multiple student-conceived and led clubs, through exceptional stage performances, exhibitions and on the field. Age and maturity develop as students become part of the High School where they need more independence managing their own time and direction. This can be a turbulent time for the student, their family and the school to work in partnership. Although there are many different approaches through this period, two key areas can be used to develop independence and resilience to life’s inevitable twists and turns: PPPPP – Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance “There is no substitute to Quality” Students who make the most out of every situation are those who plan ahead ensuring flexibility in their schedule to meet unexpected demands. Our students have more productive time available if they plan ahead, behave proactively and monitor what comes next in their academic, extra-curricular or social pursuits. Our most committed students are successful inside and outside the classroom because they plan and manage their time well. Whenever they focus on their homework it is minus the distractions of social media or the ‘clutter’ of procrastination techniques. They put quality time into their class work ensuring time for practicing an instrument, dancing, playing sports or being part of a service club. The type of planning tools depends on the individual, however, not planning or strategizing could be considered unacceptable in preparing our future leaders. ISB families have the opportunity to travel regularly and maybe you would consider handing over the planning and organization of

Pre-Participation Examination one trip to your high schooler with your guidance and support. Think carefully how we as adults plan for the future, are we sharing this critical thinking and important life skill? Do you have a “to do” list, diary, online calendar or range of reminder mechanisms helping you stay on track to achieve your short, medium and long term goals? Planning is critical to success and quality over quantity should be the key focus, which complement an ability to be resilient when faced with challenges, big or small. The perception that bigger is better and more is critical to success and future happiness may well be fallacies in the future where being able to do more with less will become the paradigm. Producing quality requires critical thinking and reflection throughout the process. Our high school students have high expectations and it’s important to emphasize the importance of quality over quantity. It is not about how long is spent on homework; the length of the essay; the hours of practice or service; quality of the family time; commitment to your friends, team or colleagues. It is the attention to detail and the quality of the reasoned argument, the focus on practice, the removal of distractions and the commitment to plan ahead. No longer is it important to put word count ahead of the weight of paper for a research paper; it is about the words themselves and the concise nature of their meaning in making a convincing argument. To improve upon the quality of time spent at school, it is critical to proactively plan and reflect on the various forms of feedback that are received at many points in a learning experience. We are all students in life and with a great focus on planning and quality, resilience will improve to help all of us overcome the challenges

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by Andy Vaughn,Athletics Director What did we learn from our change in pre-Participation Physical Examinations (PPE’s) this year? This year has seen a lot of change in the way we conducted our pre-Participation Physical Examinations (PPE) as part of the school-wide safety review that is ongoing at ISB. The key changes were an increased range of athletes that were screened and the addition of specific heart related illnesses screening and testing. In reviewing our PPE process we looked at a number of methods of Athlete Screening from around the world and realized that we are in a unique situation that we can require all athletes to have an in depth medical check for relatively low cost. Hence, the decision was made over the summer holidays to require all athletes to have an ECG (Electrocardiogram). To date we have had a total of 572 students from grade 6-12 complete their PPE and from this total we had just over thirty students who needed additional testing after completing their initial ECG and PPE. All these students requiring additional testing have so far been cleared for participation. For those cleared some of the further testing showed the initial ECG as a false positive and for others a better understanding to the make up of their own body and restrictions that may be necessary. We believe that these changes have been positive and will be reviewing the process by which we screen students at ISB so that we are more efficient and user friendly. We are also excited to see the addition of an activities nurse that will help support our current nursing team to provide better medical coverage in cases when needed.

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HS Cross Country by Dan Bentley, Boys Varsity Cross Country Coach Dave Giles, Girls Varsity Cross Country

Reaching New Heights

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The ISB Cross Country Teams travelled to Singapore on September 14 and 15 for their first taste of competition with other IASAS schools. The exchange contained four IASAS schools (SAS, ISKL and JIS) and several other local Singapore schools such as UWC joined the race on Saturday. Both the boys and girls teams performed valiantly in the Saturday 5 km and the Sunday 3 km time trial. In the 5 km race, each team’s top five runners’ places are combined and the team with the lowest total wins. The boys came in second on Saturday with a total of 47 points while Singapore American School had 29 points. Senior Jack Melhorn won the race with a dramatic kick at the finish. The girls also took 2nd place with 45 points to 23 for SAS. (It was noted the ISB girls did beat the boys by 2 points!) There were some stellar performances by all runners and best of all, some room for growth. On Sunday in the time trial, runners run in waves and the top six runners’ times are combined for a team time. The ISB boys total time was 63:20 while SAS bettered them by only 42 seconds. The ISB girls times were 73:09 while SAS had 72:44…. only 25 seconds separating the two teams! Both teams possess the talent and heart to beat any team at IASAS. The coaches really saw a transformation in ISB’s runners this weekend as they see themselves as tough competitors. Many athletes found that the competition took them to new levels.

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Model United Nations, (MUN)

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By Thira Chartsakulkanjanajarn Words are power. There is nothing quite like words. It has the ability to alter the course of history, to change the world. However, the use of words is like a muscle. It must be trained and sculpted under vigorous conditions in order for it to become extremely proficient. This is what the Model United Nations aims to do. It is essentially a gym for those interested in perfecting their skills with words. It teaches students the beautiful art of manipulating words in order to convey a certain point. It teaches students how to negotiate with others, and how to compromise. All of this is within a global context, so students get much more than just training in the ways of articulation, they also gain an insight into current situations occurring in the world. TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014

The world is passed down to younger generations, so it is of utmost importance that the youth of this age learn about the condition of this world, but more importantly, how to solve such issues. The Model United Nations shapes students into global leaders. Leaders who can quickly adapt to situations, provide sufficient solutions, and look classy while doing it. The ISB Model United Nations will be hosting an Open House debate on October 3, from 3:15 until 4:30. We are also hosting the Bangkok MUN conference, with over 300 delegates from 20 Bangkok area schools in attendance, on Saturday, October 12. We encourage all members of the ISB community to take these opportunities to witness our young MUNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ers using words to wrestle with world issues. www.isb.ac.th.org

HS Art

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by Kerri Fitzgerald Visual Arts in the High School had a successful year 2012-13 and we are looking forward to more exhibitions of student work in 2013-14. The Art shows celebrate the quality work produced by students on the semester-long courses in Fine Arts, with outcomes in Jewelry, Photography, Fine Art, Printmaking and Ceramics. The annual IB Art show opens in early April and is a showcase of the immense talent we have at ISB, exhibiting the artwork produced over the two years of the IB course. The Fine Arts courses have been adjusted this year to offer more depth, www.isb.ac.th.org

as well as emphasis on the process of creating art. Students are encouraged to develop independent ideas in their work, using an art journal to record observations, media investigations, and relevant artist research. This connects together to lead into one or more final outcomes. Artwork exhibited in last semester’s High School Art Show included designs based on the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party from CS Lewis’ “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”. Students began by studying crockery and cutlery related to a typical afternoon tea, and drew these in a range of styles and media. They studied work by artists whose work connected with theirs in

theme and approach, and learned to experiment with media and design, incorporating text from CS Lewis’ book, playing cards, tea-bags and related objects into their work. The freedom to develop ideas and designs within a defined project encourages students to think creatively and prepares them well for the demands of the IB Visual Arts course, should they choose to study at that level. Visual Art is a language and by developing independent, refined and intelligent work, students are learning to express and communicate their ideas in visual form.

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HS Dance

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ISB shared another extraordinary weekend of culture and artistry with other IASAS schools at the 2013 Dance Exchange hosted by Taipei American School (TAS.) This annual event brings together students to share an unforgettable experience of intensive training and cultural appreciation. Saturday started early with Tai Chi, challenging students in balance, core strength, and focus. Peacefully sharing a packed classroom, I.B. dance student Ellen Sypolt noticed, “…competitiveness was not a factor,

… it was really about … learning from each other.” Soon, dancers had jumped into a rigorous four-hours of non-stop collaborative dance workshops. Senior Mimi KhawsamAng highlighted the Contemporary class where…’we danced with a former company member of Twyla Tharp’! Jazz and Musical Theater were equally engaging workshops. The long day wrapped up with collaborative creativity and social learning. Dance and drama students learned Salsa dance together, then created an improvised Physical

Theater show. In a 15-minute challenge, students used simple props with their voice and movement talents to recreate famous fairytales and legends. Ink Wissuta’s comments wrapped up the extraordinary weekend experience: “Taipei (food!) is amazing! I met so many new people … and learned a lot of new skills I know I’ll be able to use in the future!”

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Recycling at ISB Most of the students and ISB community are aware of the extensive plastic bottle and aluminum can recycling at ISB. But are you are aware of the other items that you can recycle at ISB? First, all of the below items can be left at the recycle center at ISB which is located in the hallway close to the HS/MS cafeteria. It is just around the corner from where the ATM machines are located.

Used Batteries - People are using more and more household batteries. The average person owns about two button batteries, ten normal (A, AA, AAA, C, D, 9V, etc.) batteries, and throws out about eight household batteries per year. About three billion batteries are sold annually in the U.S. averaging about 32 per family or ten per person. Batteries contain heavy metals such as mercury, lead, cadmium, and nickel, which can contaminate the environment when batteries are improperly disposed of. When incinerated, certain metals might be released into the air or can concentrate in the ash produced by the combustion process.

e-waste problem. Indeed, toxin-laden electronics are clogging landfills and polluting air and groundwater supplies all over the world. Just think how many phones you and your children have owned since you have been in Thailand. What did you do with the old one? Lastly, there is a recycling center on Soi Praset Islam (the road between Subway and the By-Pass Rd) across from the shut down gas station. They take paper, plastic, bottles, glass, metal. Maybe more. They pay for items turned in and have a chart with all the prices. It is a sloppy looking place. A lot of motorcycles go there to drop off a few items and collect money.

Old cell phones - As cell phones proliferate they are giving computers and monitors some competition for the dubious distinction as the largest contributor to the world’s growing

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Used Ink Cartridges – Over 375 million empty toner cartridges and ink cartridges are thrown into the trash every year in the US. Most of these printer cartridges end up on landfill sites or in incinerators. Most printer manufactures like Hewlett Packard, Canon and Epson will accept and properly reuse and dispose of used ink cartridges. Plastic ink cartridges take 1,000 to decompose so it is vital for our environment that you don’t just

toss these items in the trash.

Easy Computer Fixes for the most common problems Part 1. It has happened to all of us. That horrible feeling when you drop your cell phone in the sink or your child knocks a glass or water onto your laptop or some other technology catastrophe strikes. But all is not lost. When these things happen it does not mean you have to throw the device away and head to IT Square for a new one. Here are some easy fixes to some of the most common problems we all face. Drying a submerged phone – First, open up the back of the phone and remove the battery, SIM card, mini SD card, etc. Don’t bothering powering down. Quickly open that phone up. If the phone landed in chlorinated or salt water, you will need to rinse it out first. There are some electronic circuit cleaners on the market but in a pinch, just use rubbing alcohol. Next, air dry the phone on a sunny windowsill for a couple hours. With our Bangkok sun, two hours should be plenty of time to ensure it is dry. Do not use a hair dryer to dry your phone – the excessive heat can cause more damage. Next, put the phone in a re-sealable plastic bag along www.isb.ac.th.org

with some uncooked rice – seriously, no kidding!! The rice will absorb any moisture left in the phone. Leave the phone sealed in the bag for a couple of days. After two days, remove any rice attached to the phone, put your SIM card back in your phone, re-assemble it and try to make a call. If it doesn’t work, oh well – you are likely out of luck. But this method is the best way to give your phone a fighting change. Lastly, take the rice from the plastic bag and serve it to your children for dinner. Clean up a spill on your laptop – Computers and liquid are not good friends. If you spill something on your laptop, you need to move quickly if you want to save your machine and data. First, unplug the laptop power cord and remove the battery. Don’t bother closing programs or saving documents. You don’t have the time. Tilt the laptop over to drain the liquid from the laptop but be careful to avoid getting water on the LCD screen. If it is easy to unscrew parts of the laptop to expose the internal circuits then do this. Do as much as you feel com-

fortable doing in terms of opening the machine up. As discussed above with a wet cell phone, do not use a hair dryer to attempt to dry your laptop. If you spilled a lot of liquid, you might consider taking the laptop to a computer repair shop at this point. But if you spilled less than ¼ cup of liquid, what you have done should be enough. Leave your laptop disassembled or open and up-side down for a couple of days. Put the laptop in a warm room next to a windowsill. That should not be too difficult to find in Bangkok. After a couple of day, re-assemble your laptop and give it a try. If it does not work, keep in mind that your data may still be intact. You will probably need to get a new laptop but at least your data is not lost. On the other hand, it is possible your computer will work but you can’t access your data. The internal hard drive on your laptop might be damaged. In this case, you will need to purchase a new internal hard drive but at least you don’t need to buy a new laptop.

TOUCHSTONE Issue 1 2013/2014