Spotlights Issue 6 - September/October 2022

dani bell@cis dk

WELCOME TO SPOTLIGHTS

welcome note and

to this month's

CURRICULUM SPOTLIGHT

See what our students have been doing as part of their IB learning this month

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

some of the faces behind the scenes at CIS

FIELD TRIP SPOTLIGHT

See where our students have been this month

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

Take a look at the school

from across the month

STUDENT LIFE SPOTLIGHT

See this month's after school activities including sports, music and more.

Welcome to another issue of Spotlights

Well, here we are: Fall is very much upon us. Soon the clocks will be going back and we'll be well and truly into the infamous Danish hygge season.

A lot has happened within the CIS Community during the past months; from sports tournaments, to trips, to the launch of a brand new MYP initiative, this Spotlights issue will give you insight into what our students, faculty and parents have been up to.

If you have a story to tell and would like to be featured in a future edition, please reach out any time!

Tim Veale Director of Copenhagen International School

Curriculum Spotlight

Take a look at some of the wonderful things our students have been doing as part of their IB curriculum at CIS

Service and Sustainability

Pledges that might just change the world: Integrating Service and Sustainability into the core MYP curriculum.

Sustainability is an integral part of our school’s vision. But talking about educating champions of a just and sustainable world is one thing; what does it actually mean to do that in practice?

Sustainability is expressed in a number of ways across the school, and we are continuously looking for ways to embed a sustainability mindset that extends far beyond our students’ time here.

One such initiative is the recent launch of the Service and Sustainability Learning track within the MYP. This 30 week project will see more than 35 groups of Grade 6 to 10 students commit to a set of sustainability pledges. Each pledge will be designed to bring about a positive change within our community.

The pledges will be guided by CIS teachers, who will help the students to ensure that they:

Inspire and energise students (after all, service should be fun!)

Are actionable within our local or school community

Have a real impact on people or the environment Are achievable within the 30 week timeframe

Make use of resources that the school or students have access to

The new Service and Sustainability Learning track was kicked off with a bang on Peace Day on September 21st.

Grades 6, 8 and 10 heard a keynote speech by environmental expert Michelle Gordon, who invited students to explore a fictional environmental scenario. This workshop culminated in students representing a range of community stakeholders, collaborating in a meeting, and agreeing to three clear actions as a community.

Grades 7 & 9 considered this project through a more ‘peace’ focused lens. They departed by ferry from Nyhavn to Youth Island. Upon arrival they attended a series of inspirational workshops, following which they defined their own dreams, wishes and goals which form the basis of their pledges.

Central to the success of this initiative is ensuring that students are creating measurable and achievable goals, which they were guided to articulate through a series of workshops.

By the end of the objective setting phase, students will have articulated a clear project goal, defined success criteria and have broken their ideas down into tangible tasks.

What comes next?

Over the coming weeks, students will articulate their chosen pledges and action plans, which we will then share with our community. We’re excited to follow a few of these pledges more closely over the coming weeks and months to showcase not just the wonderful impact that students are having on their community, but also how their thinking and mindset is impacted by this process.

tuned!

Learning Support Snapshot

Field Trip Spotlight

Here's a look at some of the trips our students have been on during the past few months.

Grade 9 Trip to Østre Anlæg Park

Grade 9 science students recently took a trip to Østre Anlæg Park to gather data for a lab report assessment.

The students were able to link the trip to their GRASP (Goal, Role, Audience, Situation, Product) in class assignment.

The GRASP assessment engages learners to employ their thinking skills and demonstrate application of essential knowledge, conceptual understanding, as well as skills acquired throughout a unit of learning. It is anchored in the IB curriculum and builds the bridge between students' theoretical knowledge and practical application of it.

It is always so rewarding to apply the theory of a unit in the field!

Danish Film Institute

A group of Phase 4 German students were recently doing a unit on film and cinema during their classes at CIS and went to visit the Danish Film Institute in Copenhagen what a day!

by in ur IB

V E N T S

Event Spotlight

Here's a look at just some of the special events that have been taking place both on and off campus this month

Team Peru Fund Run

A big thanks to everyone who for supported Team Peru on September 11th. It was a super day where an enormous 6050 DKK was raised on behalf of Team Peru! This amount equals to a month's costs for the running of Mama Cocha, the children help center that Team Peru supports. The Fund Run is just one of the many events Team Peru organizes for charity purposes.

Around 100 people (and 10 dogs!) participated in the run. The CIS community walked 600 km in total not enough to get to Peru, but still a phenomenal result.

Mr. Zikusooka walked the furthest among participating teachers with a whopping 16.28 km! The Karaxha family walked the most of the group participants: 52 km in total, and the students who walked the furthest were Joseph McIlroy and Finn Lawless: 12.3km each!

A huge well done and thank you to everyone involved!

DISNAC Boys Football Tournament

On Friday, September 16th, the DISNAC U12, U14 and U16 football tournament took place at Ryparken. Teams from other International Schools came to Copenhagen and competed against our CIS Hawks.

Although the weather was rather rainy and grey, the mood was great not much that would hold back the young athletes!

Our U16 boys brought home the win against Rygaards International School - a well deserved team effort!

World Peace Day

September 21st marked the 41st celebration of the International Day of Peace, a yearly UN initiative devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace worldwide. Alongside the launch of the Service & Sustainability MYP track, CIS were proud to have a number of activities in place during World Peace Day.

Here are a few snapshots of the day:

Community Spotlight

Turn the page to meet some of the wonderful people from around the CIS community.

E O P L E

PTA Activity Fair

The PTA Activity Fair took place at the beginning of September.

Local organizations, businesses and vendors were invited to exhibit their causes and activities to the parent community, and what a variety of activities we had on offer! From Zumba, to painting classes - there was truly something for every taste. It's always so inspiring to see how our PTA community help to engage new families in their life in Denmark. Thank you for such a fantastic initiative!

Team Peru Orienteering

Team Peru invited for an Orienteering event in Charlottenlung Skov on October 9th - and what an exciting morning it was!

The 68 participants practiced their map reading and searching skills while venturing into the woods. A total of 2500 DKK was raised for Mama Cocha, the children centre that the team supports in Peru. Plus, the outdoor adventurers achieved remarkable time results!

The fastest family was the Zikusooka family, completing the course in just 1:04h, followed closely by Clare Hawkins, taking just a minute longer. The McNulty family was in third place with a time of 1:12h. A great effort all round!

Staff Spotlight Meet Nathan, PHE and EAL Teacher

We spoke to Nathan Foolchand, who is a PHE and EAL teacher in Primary School. Originally from Wolverhampton in the UK, he has been at CIS for 3 years now - starting off as a coach and substitute teacher until switching to full-time teaching in 2021.

Hi Nathan! Can you tell us a l about yourself?

I was born and raised in the however, my dad is Mauritian my mom is from Barbados, w is an important part of of my and I'm very much a part of tr to be part of those cultures as w

I'm the youngest of four childre a very active family. Our family always doing something, watching sports is also a very thing in my family. My dad and sister were in particular influences in my life in term learning about different sports

I enjoy running and watching football, and as an adult, I taught myself the different swim strokes by watching YouTube videos and reading articles.

I'm married to a Dane, and we moved to Copenhagen in 2019. Together we have a son born in May of 2021

I'm close to my Danish family and have enjoyed learning about all the Danish traditions since moving here, like dancing around the Christmas tree and celebrating my wife's grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary by singing at their doorstep at 6:00 am. That was the best definition of "hygge" that I've come across!

Can you tell us about your role at CIS?

Most of my time is spent in PE but I also work with grade 3 in the EAL (English as an Additional Language). I also organise the Primary School swimming program along with one of our other teachers, Rikke.

I like having a variety of teaching roles because it gives me different opportunities to do different things. I also value being able to get to know students better, when I see them in more than one place and one context.

What is your favourite part about working at CIS?

I like my colleagues and the relationships I have with people. Ever since I got here, people have been really helpful. I feel like I'm cared for here, and looked after by the community.

Student Life Spotlight

Here are just some of the things our students and staff have been doing on campus when the school day ends

Kindergarden Play & Stay

Parents were invited to attend a morning in their children's Kindergarden class. Ashlyn Sailsbury, Kindergarden teacher at CIS, organized a gathering for everyone to draw, craft or play togetherboth children and parents had a great time! We find it so important to give parents insight into what their children are learning and what the environment is like where they spend their school days, so why not have them participate - at least a little?

Letters from Grade 5

Teacher Simon Watkin’s students have been reading the children's book 'The Amazing Edie Eckhart' by comedian Rosie Jones in class. Just like the author herself, the 11 year old main character has cerebral palsy, a disease that impacted her experiences with other children and teenagers from young age on.

Moved by her story, the students decided to write letters to Rosie and got a reply back within only a day! What a great example of that “You won’t know unless you try!” the Grade 5 students were impressed with what their common action led them to!

"It was inspiring to read about the main character Edie's challenges, because they are the same that the author had.", the students said. The autobiographical background of the story made them emphasise with the main character and reminded them that kindness and cooperations will bring us further in life.

Why Take Positive Risks?

Our Grade 10 student Lisa Mary Paul shares some of her personal experiences of accepting challenges - and why you should not be afraid to do so, either.

I must admit that for a student who is still rather new to both CIS and Denmark, I have integrated into the student body and community surprisingly well. Although there has always been a strong emphasis on academics at all of my previous schools, this school’s IB influenced curriculum has truly helped me open my eyes to the application of education in the real world.

I would advise all CIS students to look for a bigger goal to their education. This will drive you to take more ownership of your education and pursue your passion with astonishing focus and drive. In order to inspire you to follow your vision, I would like to share some of my own experiences of risk taking at CIS. Often, this requires proactiveness and real grit to step outside of your comfort zone and create tangible change.

I had my heart set on starting a creative magazine club at CIS since I was in ninth grade. Last year, the first copy was distributed to all members and became available to borrow from our library. Additionally, a new area was opened at the library for CIS Authors (where the magazine is now on display), encouraging more creativity and innovation from the student body than ever before..

In the process of its creation, I interviewed the number one best selling author (Marc Reklau) and collaborated with Book Club and Charity. By working closely with the CIS Communications Department we also published a digital copy for the wider Copenhagen community to access. Reaching out to the print company also increased my knowledge of publishing and printing which has been a unique experience.

In reading all this, you are seeing only the tip of the iceberg. However, what’s little known is the fear that comes behind all this innovation. The effort. Before introducing my club, I was afraid of reaching out to a sponsor. Afraid of potentially not having enough club members. Afraid of having too much work to handle. Afraid of what others in my grade would think. However, your mission will only remain a vision without some uncertainty and sacrifice.

I told myself I would try no matter what the outcome of the club, because my intention was for the betterment of our school and student body. The results ended up surpassing my expectations of what is perceived possible. Therefore, my advice for CIS students, staff, parents and all community members is to be willing to put yourself out there. Take calculated risks. Have faith in your abilities and break the boundaries of what is deemed possible to achieve. Because trust me - there are no limits.