AIS MONTHLY NEWSLETTER | Issue Oct 2017
BRINGING OUT THE BEST IN EACH OTHER October 2017 ยก The Leader
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From the Executive Principal
BRINGING OUT THE BEST IN EACH OTHER by Dr Roderick Crouch Executive Principal
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s we commence Term 2, it is worth reflecting on what an excellent start to the year it has been for AIS. Building on the outstanding academic success of last year, the staff have worked hard to raise expectations and support the students in their learning. They are a very professional team and the quality of the work is evident across the school. There has been many visits from universities who are all eagerly seeking AIS students and great help has been provided to senior students by Mr Vella, senior leaders and ATS in their university preparations. Recently, another of our 2017 graduates received news of a 100% scholarship at RMIT. This past week, the Vietnamese staff participated in their annual team building. The motto this year was ‘Bringing out the best in each other’. It set me thinking about how we as a school, or indeed as family or a community help to bring out the best in each other because we know we are stronger together, and can achieve more than when we are on our own. There are many ways we can bring out the best in each other. We can encourage each other. Encouragement doesn’t mean saying something was good when it wasn’t. This is always a challenge for parents because we want to praise and protect our children. But false praise hinders not helps! Encouragement focuses 2
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on the person and is a way of helping people learn and keep trying. Similarly in our community, it is easy to find fault and criticise people, especially when something goes wrong. When we do this, do we recognise the effort the person has made, or how they might feel? It is so much better to encourage. A word of encouragement is like a word to your heart. It inspires you to do more. Saying thank you is another great way to bring out the best in each other, especially when someone does extra to help us. We all have our jobs, and we don’t necessarily need to be thanked for simply doing them. But, when the job has been done very well, or the person has done more than asked, a thank you shows we appreciate the person. We know how it makes us smile when our children remember to thank us (without being asked). How often do we thank our partners or our children when they have helped us? How well do we teach our children to say thank you? The easiest way to bring out the best in each other is to do the best we can ourselves. What example do we set as parents to our children? Are we a person who volunteers to help or do we just wait for someone else to do things? Are we the person who is happy to do the hard or messy jobs or do we think someone else should do that? When each of us does our best, we set a great example and inspire others to work hard.
Bringing out the best in each other can be challenging when a mistake has been made. The temptation is to find blame. We are all human so we will make mistakes but it what we do afterwards that really counts. Do we accept responsibility? Do we learn from our mistakes? Do we try to get better? Bringing out the best in each other means not being afraid or embarrassed to ask for help or to try because we think everyone else will laugh. Bringing out the best in each other means we can stop worrying about what others might think because we know we will be supported. AIS is a very good school, with excellent staff, multiple opportunities and high quality facilities. As I said at the start, it has been a very good year as a school. We have improved many things and achieved great success. But the journey never finishes and we can always get better. The future belongs to those who can think and find new solutions – in other words, who can bring out the best in each other. As a school community, when we bring out the best in each other by working closely together as school and home, we give our children the best chance to create success. And that success is seeing the students of AIS graduate and become fine young men and women.
From the Executive Deputy Executive PrincipalPrincipal
Digital Citizenship at AIS
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IS is committed to encouraging and supporting students “to become inquiring and knowledgeable learners with the confidence to achieve to their potential”. In 2017 this means that we must equip our students with 21st century skills and dispositions. However, being a BYOD school and using computer hardware and software is not enough. To prepare our students to live and work in the digital age we have a responsibility to foster what is called ‘digital citizenship’. There are several important strands to digital citizenship including digital literacy (how to use digital devices and the internet effectively), being internet safe and internet smart, and online rights and responsibilities.
Vietnamese teenagers, is addiction to games. In 2015 research showed that Vietnam had 12 million online gamers, of whom many were by Mark Vella addicts. For adolescents Deputy Executive Principal addictions can have harmful and irreversible effects. In the short term, addiction seriously affects school performance and results. But the effects can also be long-term. The brain continues to develop until the age of 23. If someone is addicted once, they’re more likely to become addicted again.
At AIS, digital citizenship is encouraged in the number of ways. It is taught explicitly as part of ICT, which is a compulsory subject in the Middle School, and as an option subject for IGCSE and IB. It is an integral element of the learning outcomes in all Year 7 to 13 subjects, and it is also a theme that runs through our programme of annual pastoral lessons. Each year the school has a ‘Digital Citizenship Week’ and in the past it has been a focus of ‘Year 7 Collapsed Days’. Digital citizenship is also part of the Primary School programme.
Recently the Vietnamese government started responding to the problem of game addiction by closing down cybercafés situated less than 200 metres away from school. Unfortunately, there is still a lack of prevention and education on addiction in Vietnam. That is why, as part of our digital citizenship programme, this year AIS is working together with a local organisation called RESIST, which offers a prevention programme that focuses on the problematic use of games and social media. The programme involves a teacher workshop to help teachers recognize the symptoms of online addiction, a survey of all secondary students about their online behaviour and a series of student workshops, initially involving Year 12 students. Throughout the year, RESIST will be available for consultation for teachers and parents.
One side-effect of life in the digital age is the emergence of smartphone and internet addiction. Research conducted in 2016 showed that teens use an average of 9 hours of media daily and that 50% of all teenagers feel addicted to their phones. Another addiction, that is particularly prevalent amongst
If you have any questions about this, please contact your child’s student welfare coordinator. • Does your child have difficulty controlling his / her online hours? • Do you feel your child’s online behaviour affects homework completion? • Is your child starting to lose (real life) friends? • Is your child lying about the hours he / she spends online? • Do you argue on a daily basis about his / her online behaviour? • Does your child respond with annoyance when he or she is not able to be online? Email: info@RESISTvn.com October 2017 ¡ The Leader
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N G I S E D D E PUTER AID
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MUSIC NOTES
by Andrew Sweeney
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ast week we had our Moon Festival. Over the last six weeks we have had 20 drummers rehearse every recess and lunch to learn a difficult ensemble piece for Taiko drums. We also had a part for the traditional cymbals. Our performance was exceptional and we will continue our ensemble rehearsals throughout the rest of the year. We also had a small ensemble who accompanied the Year 4 and 5 students, Sayaka, Chitose, Doyeon, Taeyeon and Vy Yang who sang a traditional song.
This week we also had music students Nina, Owin, MinSu and Jenny (from Years 11 and 12) perform solo piano pieces and songs in the cafeteria for some lunchtime entertainment. The crowd loved it and the standard was excellent. After the school break our Mulan rehearsal will go from 9am to 12 noon on Saturday mornings. This is because, as the show develops, we are being asked to play many more songs. The songs are difficult and when we accompany the singers we will have to know our parts extremely well. Our public performances are on the 17 and 18 November. The AIS Senior Concert Band continues to grow in size - we now have 49 members and still growing. This is an opportunity for students to make real improvement with their playing skills on their instruments. We are playing a mixture of songs from movie themes, traditional music and some with a solo vocal singer. It is fantastic to see so many students become involved in a professional music ensemble. The AIS Senior Concert Band will continue throughout the year. Year 7 students have started to play their instruments and are now learning to read printed music as a class group. For all year classes we always start with 20 minutes of music theory terms, elements and how they are used. It is great to see the more advanced players help new players with learning note recognition and how to play them on their chosen instrument. On Saturday 7 October at 4.30pm Eun Ji (Year 12) will be performing a solo clarinet piece at the Opera House. Eun Ji is a fantastic clarinet player and she has been involved with all of our AIS music activities. We wish her well and the best of luck.
Events Coming up: AIS has Talent Mulan Winter Dance Christmas Concert
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by Rachel Perkins Primary and Kindergarten Principal
FROM THE Primary SCHOOL And Kindergarten PRINCIPAL
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ast week the school community came together to enjoy our Moon Festival celebrations and it was wonderful to see the children performing so confidently in front of their friends and families. At AIS we always feel a great warmth when our community comes together to celebrate these important occasions so thank you for joining us. This month we have enjoyed welcoming many different visitors to share their personal experiences with the children. Each presentation has been inspirational and we feel that we have a wealth of expertise in our community from which the children can learn. If you feel that you have a particular topic you wish to share please contact me directly. Please see more details throughout this newsletter of our speakers this month. Leadership has been very evident across all campuses this month with the student council representatives being actively engaging in meetings, supporting playground play and speaking in assemblies. The children make me feel very proud to be their Principal when they act with such great responsibility. If you would like to keep up to date with the activities and learning that take place, please feel free to follow us on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/AustralianInternationalSchoolVietnam/
Thank you for your continued support and have a wonderful month!
were also privileged to welcome Mark Brown, Head of Visiting speakers in WeOffice from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Ha Mai Ngan, Program Assistant, came to speak to the Primary School the Year 6 children on the topic of migration and refugees around the world. The children asked many interesting questions about their roles and the support they give to people in need.
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The Leader ยก October 2017
THE 11TH “OVER THE MOON” FESTIVAL in Thao Dien campus By Nguyen Pham
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s we look back on our yearly ‘Moon Festival’ (Mid-Autumn Festival or “Tết Trung Thu”) which has been celebrated since our school’s establishment in 2007, our overwhelming impression is that this year’s Tết Trung Thu” 2017 was our best ever. It was certainly another year of great celebration in the history of AIS Saigon community. The aim of the Festival is to give students as much exposure to the Vietnamese culture as possible. With this in mind, the students were guided and inspired to learn, enjoy, practise, reflect and participate in a variety of performing arts and activities that really deepened their cultural perceptions and delighted their appreciative audience. After several weeks of hard work, they truly played well and harvested an abundance of moonlit memories on the night of golden glints: a mindblowing opening drum performance and lion dance by Year 4 students, sincere opening remarks by Dr Crouch (whose Vietnamese speaking is improving greatly), a scrumptious “Lion Dance” song sung by our little Kindergarten ‘possums’, another cheerful song about the Mid-Autumn night presented by Year 1 boys and girls, a vibrant ‘Rice Drum’ dance with other musical instruments dedicated by Year 2 students, an ‘OOHH and AHHH’ eye-catching Fashion Show meticulously prepared and run by Year 3 models, a lively bamboo dance by our Year 6 dancers, an upbeat dancing and story-telling performance on the background song ‘Once Upon a Time’ by Year 5 talents, a children-centred Vietnamese song ‘This World is All for Us’ beautifully sung by all AIS family members, and indispensably, the most eagerly anticipated lantern parade that concluded a stunning evening. Thank you to all AIS devotees and special guests for being part of the 11th Moon Carnival of HAPPINESS. We congratulate the students on their wonderful performances.
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Moon Festival
in Thu Thiem Campus By Le Thuy Vy
On Wednesday 4 October, students in AIS at TT campus dressed up in their traditional clothing to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival in colour and style. The students in Kindergarten to Year 6 performed songs and dances about the Vietnamese Moon Festival. It was a delightful and festive night, which entailed traditional Vietnamese music, dancing, and drumming performances. Following the performance, children and their parents were then treated to a spectacular drum performance, lion and dragon dance. Then they took part in a bright and colourful lantern parade around the school field. Here are some thoughts that the students have expressed after the night. ‘My favourite part was watching my brother performing the song called Rock Vang Trang’ – Penny (Kindergarten) ‘My favourite part was when we were performing because I was proud of myself. I learn that it is not easy to perform.’ – Rosa (Year 4) ‘In Moon Festival, we made lanterns and mooncakes. In Moon Festival night, I like the dragon dance the most. This year I felt wonderful.’ – Tram Anh (Year 5)
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‘My favourite part was when the shiny dragon came out because it was so fantastic. It also was the first time I saw them. Bamboo dance with my friends was fun! I really enjoy it. I like my beautiful Ao Dai. I also learned that we could see fantastic full moon. It was so shiny and beautiful that I opened my mouth. I felt so fun and excited at Moon Festival.’ – Irene (Year 6)
Developing Independent Critical Thinkers It Is Never Too Early by Taylor Oughton
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s part of AIS’ commitment to academic rigour and 21 century skills, Year 1 children have been having fun developing their critical thinking skills through a series of structured, research based, visible thinking routines. The aim of visible thinking routines is to foster children’s thinking skills so they can become deep independent thinkers who can make sense of new information and situations. The overall aim is to establish a thinking culture across AIS. The visible thinking routines have been researched and presented by Harvard University in the United States. If you would like to learn more, please visit www.visiblethinkingpz.org.
Thinking Routine
PURPOSE: This thinking routine helps us use reasoning by thinking about something in a logical, sensible way. e APPLICATION: The children describ ng what they see or know (What’s goi on?) and then justify their say explanations (What makes you ge or ima ing vok pro that?). Use with a statement.
Thinking Routine
PURPOSE: This thinking routine helps children look at things, people, places and situations through different perspectives. APPLICATION: The children describ e what they think and feel is happen ing from different perspectives. Use with a provoking image or short vide o.
Step Inside Exemplar An example of our first attempt at step inside. We used a provoking picture of an orangutan tied up in a cage and people watching. The children put themselves in the place of the orangutan and people. We hoped the children would make connections to human responsibility (What is our responsibility towards animals?) and connection between humans and the environment (How humans and wild animals are connected). Next Step: Ask more questions based on the answers today. Find out why orangutans might be tied up and put in cages. Find out what people are doing to help orang-utans. October 2017 ¡ The Leader
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Visiting Performing Arts Specialist by Jacqui Gaynor Performing Arts Coordinator
Renowned British Head of Performing Arts visits AIS. Louise Losztyn, a secondary school dance and drama specialist, recently visited AIS as part of her one-year sabbatical to experience different cultures and then embed the many dance, drama and music styles into her school’s Performing Arts curriculum. Louise visited AIS as an observer and to share her talents and skills by running some classes and workshops. She was at AIS for 3 days. During that time she: • • • •
Observed 6ABR rehearse the Vietnamese Bamboo Dance Bamboo Dance (Múa Sạp) Choreographed the Year 6FMC upcoming assembly performance of ‘True Colours’ Introduced Drama Games to all the Year 8s Choreographed 2 dances with the MULAN cast.
Louise was very impressed with the AIS students she watched and worked with and stated: “The discipline and the focus of the AIS students is amazing. They are so keen and enthusiastic to get involved and yet, still respectful”. Following the success our IB and IGCSE students in the performing and visual arts, and the recent mural, such a visit reflects AIS’ growing reputation as the leading visual and performing arts school in Ho Chi Minh City. Collaborations between AIS and Cedar Mount Academy Performing Arts departments will be set in motion when Louise returns to work in 2018.
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AISA (AUSTRALI AN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS ASSOCIATION) G AMES
Go for it!
On Thursday 19 October, 41 AIS st udents are leaving HCMC to compete in the a nnual Australian International Sch ools Association (AISA) Games, which this year a re being hosted b y AIS Jakarta, Indonesia.
The students have been busy prepa ring for this great event since May, with teams comp eting in Swimmin Touch Rugby, Fo g, otball and Baske tball. AISA is an association of Australian Interna tional Schools across Asia and th e Middle East. E ach school is independently op erated and owne d, but the schools collaborate with e ach other in a ran ge of areas. Dr Crouch will atten d the annual Exe cutive Principals meeting. The AISA games are a wonderful o pportunity for ou students to expe r rience internation al competition an help cement AIS’ d reputation as stro ng sporting scho ol. Please join me in wishing our team s good luck and strive to be the b to est they can be. by Jo Denny Athletic Director
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MAKING WAVES! AIS Titans Swim Squad Last weekend, Our AIS Titans Swim Squad had their first meet of the season, The SSIS Relay Invitational, in which they competed with other International Schools within Ho Chi Minh City. The AIS Titans Swim Squad is composed of students from both our campuses, Thu Thiem and Thao Dien. It was a great team effort with lots of personal bests. From the very first event to the last, everyone from the squad swam their best and finished well. Most of our students from the squad are new and this was their very first time to swim in a competition. Our Primary Squad did a really great job, racing their best. Congratulations everyone! We are very proud of our swimmers and we would like to express our thanks to their coaches and families for their continued support. by Jet Asis - Swimming Coach by Gabriel Price
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The Leader ยก October 2017
Year 4, 5 and 6 Camps Year 4, 5 and 6 are preparing for their upcoming camps with great excitement, and I am sure their bags are already packed. This month some of our Year 4, 5 and 6 parents attended an information session on our Camp programme. It was a great opportunity for parents to find out more about the camps and to be able to ask questions. Thank you to all who attended and the staff for their presentations. Have a fantastic time Year 4, 5 and 6!
by Helen Zhuang
Students made wonderful projects after school activity in Term 1. October 2017 ยก The Leader
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IT IS TIME FOR THE ANNUAL HCMC TERRY FOX FUN RUN
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his year’s Run will be held on Sunday, 5 November. The morning’s festivities kick-off at 7AM with the fun run starting at 8AM.
This is a great family day out and all are welcome. If you can walk, wheel and/or ride we hope to see you there to participate in the 4KM event. If you would like to purchase a Terry Fox t-shirt prior to the event, please remit payment (200,00VND) to the receptionist at your campus or to your child’s teacher no later than Monday, 30 October, 3PM. Along with payment, please include the following information: student’s full name, teacher’s full name, your campus and size(s) of shirt(s). All AIS shirt orders will be collated and forwarded to CANCHAM and then received at respective campuses by or before Friday, 3 November. Please see the attached poster for additional information and for the size chart of T-shirt (follow http://terryfox-vn.org/). Alternatively, for more information you can contact Gabriel.price@ aisvietnam.com We hope to see you there
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AIS Production Team presents
FIND YOUR INNER WARRIOR AIS Thu Thiem Auditorium
17 Nov 6pm 18 Nov 4pm
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he time is quickly approaching for this year’s School production, Mulan. The production will be held on: Friday, 17 November at 6PM and Saturday, 18 November at 4PM.
You can purchase tickets from the AIS reception staff at your respective campus. Alternatively, to reserve tickets if you are unable to purchase from the receptionists, please email: Gabriel.price@aisvietnam.com for more information. Below is the pricing guide. We look forward to seeing you there, The AIS Production Team
for 2 tickets
for 3 tickets
for 4 tickets
for 5 tickets
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