Crossroads issue 27: May 2016

27 MAy 2016 MIC(P) 131/08/2015

A Singapore American School community service publication

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EDITOR’S NOTE/CONTENTS

SEE YOU

LATER

By Kyle Aldous ’02 Director of Communications

The end of each school year is punctuated with dueling emotions.

We are thrilled to wrap up another successful year filled with IASAS championships, academic visitors-inresidence, and plenty of Mr. Hoe’s food.

At the same time, many of us face the sadness that comes from seeing good friends move away.

At the end of the weekend, one thing was clear: we don’t do goodbyes here at SAS. There is a finality to “goodbye” that isn’t part of who we are. We have taken Interim Semester trips together, studied in our rainforest together, and explored this great country together.

The experiences that connect us are unique and binding.

As we celebrated our 60th anniversary this year, we had over 200 alumni return to Singapore to celebrate. The weekend was filled with endless stories, catching up with old friends, and reliving the glory days. Alumni toured the Woodlands campus, and even reunited with some of their former teachers.

One day, we will meet again and relive our glory days. To those of you moving on, we wish you all the best in your next adventure. To those of you coming back, we can’t wait to see you in the fall!

To all of you who are part of this great community, we say: see you later!

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EDITOR’S NOTE/CONTENTS

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From the superintendent

06 08

Five Minutes

The learning environment

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Advancement

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Elementary SCHOOL

26 30

HIGH SCHOOL

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ALUMNI

38 42

MIDDLE SCHOOL

BOOSTER club & PTA

CAMPUS SCENE

NEXT YEAR AND BEYOND

By Dr. Chip Kimball Superintendent

It is with great pride and appreciation that we can reflect on Singapore American School’s 60-year history. Our students, families, teachers, and our school have experienced many changes over the years, from recruiting our first foreign-hire teachers in 1964 to the establishment of our Advanced Placement program in 1968, and from our first Interim Semester trip in 1973 to the launch of the IASAS league over 30 years ago. Through it all, SAS has remained grounded in our pursuit to provide each student an exemplary American educational experience with an international perspective.

The world continues to change rapidly and SAS is changing with it, offering our students the best possible international education in Asia and preparing them for the complicated future they will face.

In the past several years, our entire faculty has worked tirelessly to plan for that future.

As many of you know, teacher teams from every division have immersed themselves in research, visited the highest performing and most innovative schools, spoken with more than 100 college admissions officers, and discussed the future of education with community members, business leaders, and educational experts.

The high school division was the first to enter this process, and the first to deliver exciting recommendations including our advisory program, a Catalyst

project requirement, new advanced topic courses, the College Board’s new AP Diploma, and increased flexibility for students’ individual courses of study.

The early learning center, elementary, and middle school divisions began the R&D process a year later and developed new learning approaches and programs, including the Reggio Emiliainspired approach for early learning, continuing the advisory model through the homebase structure, introducing more project-based and interest-based learning, creating makerspaces, and planning a future elementary Chinese immersion program.

All the work that we called R&D resulted in more than 100 recommendations, which are now mapped out in our new strategic plan. Some of the changes that will be rolled out in each division next year are highlighted on the right.

We want to ensure that student experiences are compelling and relevant, impacting our students’ lives. We want all students to have access to new approaches to learning, personalized programs, and innovative course options. We are well on our way.

It has been an incredible 60 years at Singapore American School. I’m excited about the road ahead as we continue to innovate and improve the educational experience for each and every student. Thank you for being part of our journey.

SCHOOLWIDE Professional learning communities (PLC) PLCs will continue aligning practices across divisions to match our expected learning outcomes and ensure that teachers are able to respond quickly and appropriately when students need support.

Teachers will continue to increase their understanding of how we know that a student is learning at high levels, and how to engage students to become strong partners in their personalized learning journey.

Assessment We are revising current guidelines that outline our beliefs about the assessment of student work, especially in areas that are harder to measure such as creativity and critical thinking. We will expect all faculty to implement these assessment strategies, and the data will continue to inform grading and reporting practices.

Instructional strategies We utilize instructional practices that focus on our desired student learning outcomes of character, collaboration, communication, content knowledge, creativity, critical thinking, and cultural competence, ensuring opportunities for students to demonstrate their growth in these areas.

Social studies This year we adopted the C3 Framework for social studies, which has a deliberate and strong approach around inquiry. Next year, teachers will present units as provocations or problems for students to solve, explore, and learn together.

Topics of curriculum won’t

05 change next year, but inquiry will be introduced, and we will provide professional learning for teachers on inquiry as an approach to teaching.

Next Generation Science Standards We will continue to implement new standards and practices in all divisions, giving students the best research-based science experience. These include asking questions, defining problems, using models, conducting investigations, using mathematics, analyzing data, constructing explanations, designing solutions, arguing from evidence, and communicating information.

Over the next three years, we will complete implementing Next Generation Science Standards throughout the school.

Math Math practices that will be strengthened and become evident in classes include making sense of problems and persevering in solving them, reasoning abstractly and quantitatively, constructing viable arguments, critiquing the reasoning of others, and modeling with mathematics.

Facilities We recently completed design principles as the foundation for a new facilities master plan. The principles will directly support our strategic plan and focus on learning, collaboration, sustainability, and community.

Next year, we’ll have new furniture and classroom arrangements in a variety of learning spaces.

Technology A new digital learning plan was recently developed and endorsed, focusing on the use of technology to personalize

From the Superintendent From the Superintendent

the learning experience.

This includes makerspaces and creation stations in the elementary and middle school libraries, digital tools for learning, and digital citizenship lessons.

Early Learning Center Philosophy We will fully roll out the Reggio Emilia approach throughout the entire early learning center.

This approach focuses on the child as an active participant in learning, making learning visible, and the significance of the environment, parent, child, and teacher as collaborators in learning.

Instructional strategies and facilities All early learning classrooms will become learning hubs that support inquiry-based, open-concept learning environments and foster an engaging, personalized learning experience. Seven prekindergarten classrooms will be remodeled into four learning hubs and the current openconcept preschool learning environment will become two learning hubs. Perceptual motor and Chinese classrooms will be relocated opposite preschool learning hubs.

Elementary School Writing We will continue working with Teachers College, Columbia University to communicate with students where they are in their learning journey for each element and each genre of writing.

Instructional strategies Students will engage in experiential learning which includes service learning and personal inquiry projects.

Pastoral care We will pilot a new social and emotional program in two classrooms per grade level, which will include a dedicated daily 20-minute morning meeting and social and emotional lessons.

MIDDLE School Reading Staff developers from Teachers College, Columbia University will work with teachers and staff to strengthen approaches to teaching reading.

Instructional strategies Students will engage in experiential learning, including service learning and personal inquiry projects.

Pastoral care Teachers will be trained in the Responsive Classroom model of advisory and introduce specific advisory units into their homebase.

HIGH School Advanced topic courses New college-level courses offered include Writing Seminar, Tropical Ecology, Chinese Language, History, Performing Arts, and Kinesiology.

Quest We will launch an innovative, year-long curriculum featuring unique experience-based programs, interdisciplinary thematic connections, flexible scheduling, corporate partnerships, and community outreach.

Pastoral care We will continue to deepen our commitment to the advisory program introduced this year.

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Five minutes

MINUTES

WITH SARAH ABSOLOM-COOLE FIRST GRADE TEACHER

By Sandhya Bala and Clara Fong Communications Interns

Sandy Bala is a junior at Singapore American School and a member of the SAS Communications and Alumni Relations Work Study Program. Sandy enjoys photography, writing, and traveling.

Where do you call home?

Peka Peka Cottage, Napier, New Zealand.

What was your favorite subject in school? Is it your favorite subject to teach?

I loved arts and crafts. I believe children learn best when they are engaged and focused with hands-­on activities, so I try to make learning fun in the classroom with enriching projects. It’s fun to teach something you enjoy doing yourself.

Where did you teach before SAS? What interested you into moving to Singapore?

Before coming to Singapore I taught at Jakarta Intercultural School. During the May 1998 riots in Jakarta, we were evacuated to Singapore. While we were here, SAS allowed us to use the elementary

Clara Fong is a junior at Singapore American School and a member of the SAS Communications and Alumni Relations Work Study Program. Clara enjoys reading about current events, eating home-cooked food, and practicing fencing in her free time.

theater to hold our end-of-year get-together. The school had such a great feeling about it, I knew I had to somehow get employed here. I interviewed for an additional first grade class they were adding and got the job. I can’t tell you how happy I was.

Tell us about Captain Coole.

Captain Coole is an enthusiastic, passionate educator who cares about giving her crew a memorable first grade experience. Teaching young kids also makes you young at heart. Each year my crew love that their classroom has a pirate theme and that I shape the daily routines around it. With such a “Coole” surname and being a mum to three boys, it seemed perfect for me to embrace skulls and crossbones and to take my classroom crew on swashbuckling adventures each day.

What do you like about teaching at an international school?

I come from New Zealand and teach at an American school where my children learn Chinese. The diversity of our community is incredible. I love how we are all different people at the same place, yet united with a common goal of developing and becoming positive contributors to our world.

What is the best part of your job?

My crew and my colleagues.

Each year I get an eager group of learners ready to sail the first grade seas with me. I feel lucky to have incredible colleagues with whom I collaborate and navigate each new school year’s adventure.

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We heard you’re a bit of a foodie.

What is your favorite restaurant and how do you find places you know you want to dine at?

I love to eat at Blu Kouzina. It’s a Greek restaurant on Dempsey Road.

It’s consistently great food and service. Their saganaki cheese and figs are a must. My husband Bryan and I have Friday date nights to try out new restaurants in Singapore.

The choices for good food are endless in Singapore, as are new spots. I read about restaurants and what they offer, then we give them a try. I’m amazed at how we never run out of places to go!

What do you about enjoy teaching elementary school students?

Teaching first grade has to be the most rewarding age to teach. They grow so much throughout the year and you feel such a part of what they have achieved. I love first grade hugs, too. They are necessary for Capt’n Coole to start her day right.

Is there anything you are looking forward to in the coming school year?

Having my whole family at SAS. Bryan will work here next year, too.

We are very excited to all be going in the same direction each day.

Five minutes

Who is your role model and why?

My mum, GG. She was always feeding shearers, sewing our clothes, bottling fruit, pickling gherkins, knitting jerseys, driving tractors, gardening, and driving us to after-school activities with complete grace and ease. When my life gets hectic, I think of her and how she did it. I’m still amazed by all that my mum accomplishes. It’s amazing all the creative projects she has on the go. From building to decorating and just about anything else you can think of, she does it all.

I hope to be like her.

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The learning environment

SOAR

TAKING ROOT One of only a few mature rainforests in the world located on a school campus, the Singapore American School forest is an inspiring place in itself. But when teachers like Rindi Baildon and Alice Early team up to teach in the rainforest, learning becomes truly magical. Baildon and Early often take students to this outdoor learning lab to explore, study science, and learn about preserving the environment. Every parent hopes that one special teacher will reach their child where they are, spark their curiosity, and become forever memorable. At SAS, such teachers are in every child’s life and in classrooms – both indoors and out.

Meaningful Experiential Learning Under the guidance of the Singapore Botanic Gardens, SAS students plant seedlings and propagate endangered plant species for all of Southeast Asia.

Interdisciplinary Discoveries

The SAS rainforest sets the stage for academic and intellectual discoveries in science, and also provides opportunities in photography, film, art, and writing.

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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The learning environment

SOAR

BUILT TO SOAR As a boy, Kartikye Mittal loved Legos and dreamt of life as an astronaut. At Singapore American School those interests were nurtured by robotics coaches Bart Millar and Meredith White. Kartikye was given the resources, training, and encouragement to achieve a lifelong dream. Now, as a high school senior and intern at Stanford University, he is working on PocketQube Sat for his senior Catalyst project - a satellite he will build, code, and launch into space. With an array of resources, passionate teachers, and a knack for connecting students’ interests to unique projects, SAS helps each student recognize they were built to soar.

Mr. Roboto

Through robotics projects and global competitions students develop communication and collaboration skills that will serve them throughout their professional lives.

Choose Your Own Adventure

The Catalyst Project gives students the opportunity to choose their own passion-based path. Students have launched businesses, written novels, interned at prestigious companies, and even built their own satellites.

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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The learning environment

SOAR

LIVING THE DREAM From singing as a young girl to soaring as a solo opera performer on stage at Victoria Concert Hall in Singapore, Kristin Symes continues to live her dream while inspiring the next generation of singers. As the middle school choir director, Kristin is the embodiment of one of her favorite roles, Miss Wordsworth, a comical teacher passionate about her students and bursting with energy. At Singapore American School, teachers like Kristin are encouraged to develop their own passions, so they can inspire students with the techniques and skills necessary to live their own dreams.

Soaring on Stage

Student musicians can perform in concert, symphonic, and wind ensemble bands, from concert to chamber strings, and in choirs, jazz bands, coffee house mornings, and a cappella groups.

Constellation Acoustic System

The only Constellation acoustic system in Southeast Asia is located in Singapore American School. Student composition, performance, and appreciation of music is transformed with the touch of a button in this rare setting where notes and hearts soar.

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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The learning environment

SOAR

WHERE EVERY CHILD SOARS For young learners, every moment is filled with new ideas, quiet discoveries, and excitement. When our youngest students at SAS explore our campus rainforest, watch kites soar in the wide sky, or build imaginary worlds, they discover that what they say, think, and wonder matters. Early childhood teacher Laura Jo Evans believes the best teachers are constant learners who trust children to be capable and to grow. She's inspired by her creative and confident students who ask questions and explore their world. Through a Reggio Emiliainspired approach and a focus on inquiry and self-guided learning, SAS helps children realize they can all soar.

Mandarin and Perceptual Motor Classes Dive into a ball pit. Blaze through an obstacle course. Sing and dance in Mandarin. Students gain language and motor skills through interactive and engaging Mandarin and perceptual motor classes every day.

Wide Open Spaces

Science exploration stations, making snacks, poetry, puppetry, drama, music, and movement–early childhood center students get to do it all in a newly renovated, open-concept indoor space and outdoor playgrounds.

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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The learning environment

SOAR

THE PERFECT FIT Opening a university acceptance letter is an unparalleled experience in a student’s life. Over the past 60 years, Singapore American School has helped thousands of high school seniors earn acceptance to more than 300 universities around the world. Top-notch academics and an exceptional team of experienced high school counselors such as Dale Ford help students navigate the process of selecting and applying to best-fit universities. Looking beyond test scores and GPAs, counselors learn each student’s story to help them find schools where they will thrive. SAS counselors know that when a student finds the perfect fit, they will be more than ready to soar both in college and in life beyond.

Global Students

80 percent of SAS graduates attend university in the US, while 20 percent attend university in over 18 other countries. Over 250 universities visit SAS each year, allowing students to go straight to the source to find the right fit.

Advanced Placement Achievements

85 percent of the 2015 graduating class completed at least one AP course. Of the 1,591 AP tests students took in over 30 different subjects, 93 percent of SAS students scored a three or higher.

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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The learning environment

SOAR

A-HA MOMENTS! For Singapore American School science teacher Dan Chassagne, there is no better expression of learning than his students' joy when they make astonishing discoveries and mind-expanding insights. From mousetrap cars and ping-pong ball shooters to students' favorite flame-in-a-bottle, Dan helps students connect classroom experiments to their daily lives. For 25 years, he has empowered inquisitive minds and helped students understand that science is about making sense of the world around them, helping them soar both in and out of the classroom.

The Joy of Science

After-school activities and summer semester courses such as Mad Scientists, Junior Zookeepers, Crack the Case, Space Colony, and robotics clubs enable students at every grade level to explore and discover the joy of science.

Deep Learning

Students can pursue college-level study while still in high school, thanks to 30 Advanced Placement courses on offer, specialized advanced topic courses, senior Catalyst projects, and a year-long immersive interdisciplinary Quest program.

JOIN THE SAS FAMILY AT WWW.SAS.EDU.SG/ADMISSIONS Singapore American School CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges

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The learning environment

THE SCHOOL OF THE FUTURE

By Kyle Aldous ’02 Director of Communications

In the school of the future, students and faculty take naps.

Students and teachers will nap for 26 minutes each day

Wait, what?

Dr. Medina recommended a 26-minute nap. It’s a specific number, and he stuck to it. His data shows that a 26-minute nap leads to a 34 percent increase in performance immediately after.

What other management strategy can do that? (If you’ve got one, we’d love to hear it!)

That’s right. For 26 minutes each day, we will close our eyes and dream of algebra equations, grammar rules, or our weekend plans.

Bold, sweeping statements like this were presented to SAS teachers and administrators by New York Times bestselling author Dr. John Medina this April. Dr. Medina was invited to speak to faculty and parents about his book Brain Rules:12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School and how findings from recent neuroscience research might impact the school of the future. The SAS Foundation made this possible through the donations from community members like each of you!

Dr. Medina came to SAS tasked with one objective: to paint a picture of what the school of the future could look like. Using mountains of research he described some radical changes that excited faculty and administrators and left everyone wondering how SAS will look 10 years from now!

In the school of the future . . .

And in case you’re wondering if there is a specific time in the afternoon when you need to shut down and crawl under your desk, the answer is yes. Dr. Medina says you should take the midpoint of your previous night’s sleep, and then add 12 hours to it.

If you went to bed at 10:00 p.m. and then woke up at 6:00 a.m., the midpoint is 2:00 a.m., which means you should turn the lights off at 2:00 p.m. for a 26-minute nap. Don’t get too comfortable though! If you creep past 26 minutes, you actually run the risk of throwing your entire sleep cycle off and ending up more drowsy than productive.

There will be flexible scheduling for larks, owls, and hummingbirds Did you know there are studies that now prove a link between the type of sleeper you are and your

genes? Twenty percent of you are larks; you love the morning hours and are ready to jump out of bed.

Twenty percent of you are owls; you come alive at night and hit your stride long after the world has gone to bed. The rest of you are hummingbirds; you could go either way depending on the day.

The K-12 school of the future would operate more like a university where there is flexibility in developing a schedule tailored to your genetic needs. Twenty percent of K-12 students (owls) are not actually operating at full capacity because of the standard lark-friendly school schedule.

You may take classes right before bedtime Remember the last all-nighter you pulled? For many people, an allnighter is a badge of honor.

“Look at me, I studied all night to finish this paper and study for my final!”

Stop it. You’re not impressing anyone any more.

According to the data, pulling an all-nighter is basically like saying, “I don’t need to to do my best on this project or anything else for the next 96 hours!” because it takes 96

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The learning environment

to postsynaptic neurons (also called “student” neurons). When a student neuron becomes stimulated with this new information, the interaction between both neurons is temporarily strengthened.

However, Dr. Medina writes, “If the student neuron does not get the same information from the teacher within about 90 minutes, the student neuron’s level of excitement will vanish. The cell will literally reset itself to zero and act as if nothing happened . . . But if the information is repeatedly pulsed in discretely timed intervals . . . increasingly smaller and smaller inputs from the teacher are required to elicit increasingly stronger and stronger outputs from the student.” This is how memory formation works when we learn something new.

hours to fully return to your baseline performance level following that sleepless and unproductive evening.

Dr. Medina says that if you were really looking to optimize your performance, you would study hard for a couple hours before bed and then immediately go to sleep (no TV, no radio, no phones). Let your mind stew on the content and process what you learned while you sleep. Sleep is not just about getting rest, but is also an incredibly active state for your mind. Sleep is when your brain finally has the opportunity to parse through the activity of the day and determine what’s worth keeping around— which is why you want to remind it of what’s most important right before bedtime.

Imagine taking a class from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., and then immediately heading off to bed.

You will review information repeatedly Dr. Medina’s school of the future is one where students spend quality time reviewing material.

He says that in current school systems, homework is not a time for reviewing, but instead, a time for relearning. This is an inefficient use of resources.

Dr. Medina proposes that the school of the future is one that has students repeat what they have learned, not at home, but throughout the school day, 90-120 minutes after the initial learning has occurred. In the brain’s hippocampus, presynaptic neurons (that Dr. Medina calls “teacher” neurons) pass electrical information

The idea of going to class, forgetting most of what was learned, and then trying to relearn it each night sounds ridiculous. So why are we repeating this mistake every single day?

As we continue to look forward as a school and develop ways to prepare students for the future, it’s important to keep an open mind to even the most radical ideas, especially when they are backed by data. Dr. Medina reminds us that for a piece of information to appear in his book, it has to pass the Medina Grump Factor: the supporting research for the information must first be published in a peer-reviewed journal and then successfully replicated, many of which are replicated multiple times.

While SAS won’t be adding nap time to our class schedules in 2016-17, it is certainly something to keep on the table for discussion, along with many of the other ideas suggested by Dr. Medina.

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The learning environment

AVOID THE SUMMER SLIDE

By Lauren Mehrbach and Scott Riley Middle school principal and middle school RLA instructional coach

Long summer breaks often mean learning regression among children, especially in reading and math. Here are some fun ways to help your kids avoid the summer slide!

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Head for a summer camp. Look for activities available in the town or city where you spend your summer.

Some have academic, physical, and social elements, while others are focused purely on outdoor education. Consider camps in focused fields such as second language immersion, computers, drama, sports, and math.

Find a summer school program for your child in middle or high school. Many of these are run by US universities such as NYU, Duke, and Stanford; many offer varied and stimulating summer programs from art to photography to rock climbing.

Religious centers, museums, and community groups might have offerings, too.

Participate in online learning activities. Help your child set up a Khan Academy account. Agree to some math practice goals and establish some concrete rewards for when your child reaches the goal.

Check out safe, parent-approved websites. Many have daily craft activity suggestions, brain teasers, educational videos, and fun grade-related math, reading, and science materials. DIY.org has some wonderful activities and includes a badging system.

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Set a reading goal. Befriend your hometown’s local librarian and visit the library weekly to check out books, audiobooks (great for roadtrips!), or magazines to read with your child.

Pick books from the Young Adult Library Services Association book awards and book lists, or take on the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge online.

Students respond more favorably to creating their own unique reading lists and setting ambitious reading goals around them, like what real readers do.

Find books on Goodreads, YourNextRead.com, WhatShouldIReadNext.com, ReadKiddoRead.com, ALA.org, and Amazon’s “customers who bought this item also bought . . .” section. And remember to model good habits by reading alongside your child!

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Do a creative project with your child: make a short film, compose a song, co-author a comic book, create a blog about your travels with photos, videos, and stories, curate a photo-a-day series, work on a sculpture or model kit, or plant a garden.

Give your children breaks from screen time as per usual.

Whatever you decide to do, help your children stay curious, active, engaged, and thinking to beat that pesky summer slide.

Republished from the Singapore American Newspaper.

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ADVANCEMENT

YOUR GIFTS MATTER Excerpts from a speech to the Eagle Society by Jeane Khang, Class of 2016

When I was first asked by the advancement office to be the guest speaker at this event celebrating the Eagle Society’s contributions to the SAS Foundation, the first thing I did was say “yes.” But, the second thing I did was look up what the SAS Foundation was. Embarrassing, yeah, I know.

Well, over the past few weeks I’ve done a fair share of research and I have to say the results are quite amazing. I’m a total geek, so I could read you some of the statistics about financial allocations and improvements, but I think we can all agree that impact reports can be dry. They have great numbers, facts, and they’re very readable, but they’re impersonal. So, here I am to make it personal.

I can tell you for a fact that your gifts to the SAS Foundation have had an incredible effect on all aspects of my high school career academically, emotionally, and socially, and I can explain why I am so thankful for the foundation’s existence. Today, I am your case study.

I’ve been a dancer since age six.

When I entered high school, I immediately joined the dance club, junior varsity dance team, and later the Dance Performance class.

Yet, many of my favorite dance experiences have been directly funded by the SAS Foundation.

Last year, the foundation paid for a visit by Karen Lacey, a famous guest artist who taught all of the dance classes a number of broadway jazz, contemporary, and modern pieces.

I had the privilege of working with her for multiple, long-hour Saturday rehearsals to rehearse a Broadway jazz piece she choreographed called “Newsies”. Nineteen other dancers and I would later perform this piece in the Dance Showcase.

In addition, the high school auditorium went through a major renovation last year, partially funded through philanthropy. Walls were torn down, seats were replaced, and the world-renowned Constellation acoustic system was installed. You have to hear it to believe it, but with a press of the button, the auditorium can turn into an echoey church hall, a symphony-specific environment for orchestras, and more. As a musician and dancer, the new auditorium is my favorite space on campus, and because of it, our student-led performances have reached a new level of excellence.

In addition to arts facilities, the SAS Foundation also brought TEDx talks to SAS for the first time in 2015.

After an extensive audition process, around 10 students and teachers were given the opportunity to give a 10-15 minute speech on the theme “Breaking Barriers.” I was the host and emcee of the event, and

learned invaluable lessons about public speaking. The event required months of planning for the catering, facility booking, purchasing of gift bags, registration, and more, but it was a huge success. Although it was expensive, faculty and parents will agree that it was one of the most outstanding events of the year—a true celebration of the achievements of SAS students and teachers. In other words, it was worth it. After that year, TEDx became an annual tradition at SAS. Yet, the most interesting part of the SAS Foundation is that the audience it impacts actually goes much larger than just me, goes much larger than the school, and goes much larger than Singapore, too.

I’m a big service advocate—I’ve been on the Executive Service Council since my freshman year.

Executive Service Council is a council of six elected students that manage all service-related affairs in the high school: we oversee 60 running service clubs, hold schoolwide disaster relief campaigns, organize visits from service leaders, and much, much more. However, one of our biggest goals is to get students to focus on direct service which is face-to-face, hands on service such as visiting care homes or travelling on service trips rather than indirect service which includes

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bake sales and fundraising for NGOs and organizations.

Originally, most service clubs spent their year raising money for NGOs, charities, and other beneficiaries, but students weren’t learning anything from the experience because they didn’t get to see where the money went or how it helped. Now, with the creation of the SAS Foundation-funded Service Fund, everything has changed.

Clubs no longer have to hold bake sales in order to pay for their service trips or to pay for transportation costs because they have the opportunity to apply to the Service Fund for grants.

Here’s an example: the Gawad Kalinga Club is one of the biggest service clubs at SAS. They go on house-building trips to the Gawad Kalinga village in Manila every year. In 2014, they applied for a $1,500 grant to subsidize the cost of building materials such as gloves, shovels, and cinder blocks, and materials such as paint, paper, markers, and arts and crafts tools for their child-focused “soft program.” Forty students were able to travel to the Philippines and start breaking ground for a new preschool at the site, now called the SAS Sibol School.

The Sibol School is a prime example of the trickle-down effect of your

ADVANCEMENT

gifts to the SAS Foundation. First, the funds were given to six students on a small service council. Then, these funds were made available to the officers of 60 different service clubs. Finally, these officers brought these funds all around the world, to impoverished villages in Manila, local leprosy homes, schools in Nepal, forests in Indonesia, and more.

In the end, I am just one unique case out of a high school of 1,200 students and a school of over 3,000 students. Clearly, the SAS Foundation benefits the individual as much as it benefits the global community at large.

After 12 years at SAS, I’ve finally reached the final stop of my journey.

I’ll be moving on to brave those brutal Boston winters, but SAS will always be my home, the place that raised me. The SAS Foundation has allowed me to grow, mature, and learn in an infinite number of ways, but also see the way that the world can grow. After I graduate, I know I will also be joining the Eagle Society and I know I will be giving back to the very foundation that has given so much to me. So, thank you, from all of us, for all that you do— your gifts matter.

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Elementary SCHOOL

By Jodi Wert Preschool teacher “How does it feel?”

“How does it move?”

“What does it sound like when squished?”

“What happens when we add water?”

Clay is of the earth. Our preschoolers note, clay is “so, so soft.” It smells “salty like the sea,” or “like potato chips,” or “dark like the dirt . . . not sand, but the kind that plants grow in.”

As we dive deeper into coconstructed learning in the early learning center hub, we have fully transitioned from working with play dough to sculpting, developing fine motor skills and muscles, and exploring our senses with clay.

Clay can be sculpted intricately, returned to time after time, and added to, inviting sustained exploration and creativity. Clay is strong, can be shaped to great heights and expanded to a large scale, setting the stage for critical thinking and problem-solving.

“The wing fell off my airplane. Can I fix it?”

“How do I make long eyes for my clay snail?”

However, before even touching on visual representations, such as an airplane or a snail, we built a relationship with the clay.

As the children claimed their lumps of clay with conviction, they slid, pushed, and pounded and made a sloopy, gloopy, swampy clay area.

I was attentive to their full-body, individualistic investigation, and also listening intently for a focal point to come from one of the students, and it did just in time!

When Ezra pulled the clay over and again, he noticed a surprise: “It looks like an elephant trunk. It’s a baby elephant!”

We can shape and form the clay with purpose and intention. We shared our knowledge, and learned with each other. In addition, we enjoyed many wanders over to the high school ceramics studio to observe what the “big kids” do with clay.

Upon our return to the hub, the children built their coil higher, and sculpted figures to add inside her walls. The name of our work changed from “Mine!” to “Ours.”

The children named it “The Togetherness Story.”

Clay reminds us of invitation.

Clay also provokes our curiosity about transformation. As we continue to explore and know the transcendental possibilities of clay, I think of an extract from Nora Naranjo-Morse’s poem from Mud Woman: Poems from the Clay titled “When Mud Woman Begins”: Folding into this earth a decision of joyful play, transcending expectations of fear, failure, or perfection.

I smile momentarily satisfied with my play.

Electricity, generated from star colors far from home, entering through my feet blessing my hands and opening my heart.

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Elementary SCHOOL

WHAT IS SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING?

By Koh Xin Tian Communications Specialist

Have you ever met an articulate, polite, respectful, or well-spoken student and marvelled to yourself, “Wow!”?

“Everyone knows how to recognize a great kid, but nobody really knows the formula for how you get one!” says elementary principal Mr. Ken Schunk. “Still, we think we can teach our core values of fairness, honesty, compassion, respect, and responsibility very explicitly so our elementary students understand what each of them are.”

Why social and emotional learning?

“Social and emotional learning is about the well-being of the whole child; the idea that every child is known and advocated for,” says elementary school counselor Mrs. Colleen Steigerwald. Mr. Schunk adds, “Some people think social and emotional skills are secondary to academics, or that you just pick them up as you go along. But I think we can be much more intentional in teaching them.”

A few years ago, a group of SAS elementary school teachers asked each other, “What does our school really need?” This became the foundation of a research process including visits to exemplary schools. Among

several recommendations they they brought to the school board were to teach social and emotional learning in a more direct and deliberate manner. This is why the elementary school is piloting new social and emotional learning activities that build on the existing work teachers have done to inculcate our core values in all students.

What’s the research behind it?

Teachers in the elementary school spent the 2014-15 school year exploring how to further support our students’ social and emotional needs. The committee considered the 2013 Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning Guide: Effective Social and Emotional Learning Programs for preschool and elementary school.

Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) is the leading US organization advancing the development of academic, social, and emotional competence for all students, and aims to make evidence-based social and emotional learning an integral part of education. Through research, practice, and policy, the group aims for all students to become knowledgeable, responsible, caring, and contributing members of society.

According to the CASEL guide, “Social and emotional learning involves the processes through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.”

What is positive education and Responsive Classroom?

SAS elementary school teachers and counselors also looked at the work of Dr. Martin E. P. Seligman in the field of positive education.

Dr. Seligman is the director of the University of Pennsylvania Positive Psychology Center and Zellerbach Family Professor of Psychology in the university’s department of psychology. His work on positive education advocates education for traditional skills and for happiness. He proposes that the high rate of depression among young people worldwide, the small rise in life satisfaction, and the synergy between learning and positive emotion argue that skills for happiness should be taught in school, and points to substantial evidence from controlled studies that indicate how skills that increase resilience, positive emotion,

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engagement, and meaning can be taught to students.

Meeting every two weeks, SAS counselors researched different social and emotional learning options, attended webinars, connected with representatives from other international schools, and attended training in Singapore on positive psychology and education based on Dr. Seligman’s 2008 work in Geelong Grammar School in Australia on the ideas of positive purpose, positive emotion, positive relationships, positive meaning, and positive accomplishment.

Elementary SCHOOL

Responsive Classroom is an approach to teaching that emphasizes academic, social, and emotional growth in a strong school community, supported by the Center for Responsive Schools in Massachusetts. This approach comes from the belief “that how children learn is as important as what they learn, and that academic success is inextricably tied to building social-emotional competencies.” Responsive Classroom provides teachers with practical training and resources to help create safe and joyful classrooms and schools where children can thrive. Independent

research has found that the Responsive Classroom approach is associated with higher academic achievement in math and reading, improved school climate, and higher-quality instruction. It has been backed by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning as one of the most “welldesigned evidence-based social and emotional learning programs.”

How will social and emotional learning work in SAS? Twelve classroom teachers (two from each grade level) are implementing a 2016-17 social

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emotional learning program, which will grow in the following years, based on: •

•

•

•

•

A foundation of positive education inspired by Dr. Martin Seligman’s work; Existing guidance lessons that explicitly teach concepts and content specific to social and emotional learning; The SAS core values of fairness, honesty, compassion, respect, and responsibility that will build a common language, common expectations, and an ethical compass for students; A 20-minute block of time in class schedules dedicated to personalizing relationships and building community first thing in the morning; The Responsive Classroom approach will be adopted in 2017-18. Training in the Responsive Classroom approach to teaching and

Elementary SCHOOL

based on our findings the elementary school will make further decisions about the rollout of social and emotional learning.

Many SAS teachers of the youngest elementary children have long believed that helping each child feel good about being in school is job number one. “If social and emotional learning is in place and you get it right, you can teach kids just about anything academically,” Mr. Schunk says.

He adds that SAS teachers visited “schools touted as elite spots, churning out scholars and putting people into government positions, but they didn’t necessarily feel a positive atmosphere.” Our teachers felt that a positive atmosphere was important for the success of our own school: the way kids play, how they interact, and whether they are comfortable in their own skin and in the building.”

To foster a positive atmosphere, the elementary school’s daily morning meeting, based on our core values, will respond to the needs of each specific classroom.

Colleen Steigerwald says, “In some classrooms, teachers might lead a team-building game if a class needs to foster collaboration. Other classes may have explicit lessons about inclusion or respect. Teachers will plan and prepare these lessons; it’s not just feel-good time. We’re also giving teachers permission to not jump into math at 8:01 a.m., so that they can take time to connect with students. This is the same concept of advisory time in the middle and high school divisions where teachers get to know the students and build community.”

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How will social and emotional learning build on our previous work?

“Someone might think a morning meeting takes 20 minutes away from academics, just as when we talk about extending play time, or anything else. But what they don’t see is how much time is spent on building community and a sense of belonging through the course of a day anyway in school,” adds Mr. Schunk. “When I was working as an elementary school psychologist in Colorado, you could not go near any kind of instruction on ethics, morals, or decision making. We could only teach academics. In the 1980s, ethics was a no-fly zone. If you brought it up, you would be likely to have a parent say, “That’s not your territory. That’s a home thing.” Honesty and compassion— we could not go there.”

Elementary SCHOOL

It’s different at SAS. In every elementary classroom there is a reward or incentive system to help students work, pay attention, do their best, or be kind to friends.

“We have core values that are well espoused by kids, and what we call a sense of extraordinary care where we want kids to feel included. We have counselors, learning support teachers, and lots of kind, caring classroom teachers who want to make the school experience for each child feel as good as it possibly can so children will want to come back to school the next day,” Mr. Schunk says. Students have goal-setting conferences once a term when teachers talk to students about things they’re good at and things they want to grow in. Goals that students set for themselves could be about writing, reading, listening, or getting along with their friends, and students discuss the progress they make towards these goals.

Mr. Schunk says, “In a school like this where everything is fastpaced, if we have a purposeful time set aside to greet children, listen to what they’re saying, and build community, we can be more welcoming and inclusive. The beauty of it in elementary school is that children are in their own classes where this relationship-building is going to be important all year long.

Many teachers do something similar to this, whether it’s show-and-tell time, taking time to let a student talk about a special event that occurred over the weekend, and so on. It’s a natural fit with elementary and the way classrooms work.”

References: http://www.casel.org/social-andemotional-learning/ http://www.positivepsychology.org/ people/martin-ep-seligman https://www.responsiveclassroom. org/about/

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MIDDLE school

RAISING ADULTS

By Jodi Jonis Communications Parent Volunteer

Our fabulous middle school counselors ran another successful book group this past April. Over 20 parents met weekly to discuss the themes presented in How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kids for Success by Julie Lythcott-Haims.

Lythcott-Haims has worst-case-scenario stories of over-parented kids arriving at college completely unprepared to make the transition to a life independent of Mom and Dad. She tells of students unable to organize their own luggage on move-in day or find their way around a new campus environment, but who remain in touch with parents who assist from afar. She even tells of parents who are beginning to follow their kids into the workplace, sometimes arranging interviews and actually accompanying young applicants on interview day.

It might be easy to dismiss this anecdotal introduction and assume these kids are the unfortunate, unsuccessful ones; the ones who will never amount to anything anyway. Until you consider that LythcottHaims gathers much of her substantial research from her own observations during 10 years as the associate vice provost for undergraduate education and dean of freshmen and undergraduate advising at Stanford University.

The Stanford University.

These kids that she is talking about are the best and the brightest; graduates of the best high schools in the nation who have been vying for placement at the top universities in the world. And then you ask, “Are you kidding me?�

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Apparently, the reasons that kids are landing with alarming frequency at universities without any selfmanagement skills are many and varied. They range from fear of stranger danger to competitive, demanding parents doing all of the child’s planning, scheduling, transporting, and in some cases even doing their homework for them. However, having these things regularly done for them limits kids’ chances of developing the normal competencies needed upon entering college.

What exactly are the expected competencies of a student entering college? Lythcott-Haims submits that every 18-year-old must be able to: 1. Talk to strangers 2. Find their own way around a new environment 3. Manage their own assignments, workload, and deadlines 4. Contribute to the running of a household 5. Handle interpersonal problems 6. Cope with ups and downs of courses, relationships, teachers, etc.

7. Manage money 8. Take risks In addition to producing young adults who are unable to meet the challenges of real life, LythcottHaims discusses a more worrying side effect of the tendencies

MIDDLE school

of overparenting: the negative impact on mental health. She cites a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga study linking helicopter parenting to a higher likelihood of a student to be medicated for anxiety and/or depression. Many universities are becoming concerned about the growing number of significant psychological problems on their campuses, as well as the prevalence of drugs such as Adderall to help kids focus long after their bodies tell them they’ve done enough for the night. The stress on these kids to perform academically and socially is overwhelming.

Closer to home, we need look no further than our own school community to see that stress is a real issue. A quick recap of the speakers and topics circulating around campus recently says it all: an article titled “Stressed Out” in our last Crossroads issue, National University Hospital’s Dr. Roby Marcou and school psychologist Dr. Jeff Devens’ talk about stress and boundaries, and Dr. Devens’ talk on teenage suicide to name a few. Judging by the topics and the high number of attendees to each event, parents at SAS are clearly concerned about stress.

During the panel discussion following the stress and boundaries talk, one parent expressed worry over her child’s seemingly unhealthy obsession with high grades. The parent added that she and her husband did not put this stress on

her child and she wondered if the school was somehow responsible for applying this pressure.

Dr. Marcou’s response was surprisingly frank. “We each have to stop saying that we don’t cause the stress. Everybody says that it’s not them. The teacher says ‘I’m not stressing them out.’ The parents say ‘We’re not stressing them out.’ We have to get past that and stop saying it’s not us.” We each play a role and until we can take ownership of an issue, nothing is going to change.

As for the original question put forth by the book’s title, How to Raise an Adult, the prescription is as follows. According to the author, in order to raise a happy, welladjusted, responsible, and capable person, we must: 1. Let our children play—a lot!

2. Teach kids specific life skills through chores 3. Teach kids to think in many different ways, on many different levels 4. Prepare them for hard work 5. Let them find their own purpose 6. Normalize their struggle to build resilience 7. Keep an open and realistic mind when it comes to college selection 8. Listen to them And now you know the secret!

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MIDDLE school

...how to be as organized as I needed to be.

I WISH I KNEW...

...on the first few days you aren’t expected to know where all your classes are, so you have time to transition to your classes.

...having an extra PE uniform is really life saving.

...locker combinations were easy to remember after a while.

...if you miss a day, it is a big deal.

...how quickly my classes would go during each unit.

...you have to solve all of your problems yourself without a teacher asking you to.

...you didn’t get your computer until about a month after school starts.

...where all the elective classes were.

By Sixth Grade Peer Counsel

Moving from elementary school to middle school is a huge and sometimes overwhelming transition. Save yourself some worry by listening to these helpful hints from the sixth grade peer counsel.

...we have to know when break and lunch ends without getting signaled.

...how quick the school year would go by.

...how important getting homework turned in complete and on time was.

...how important all tests we take are.

...how important studying for tests and quizzes is.

...middle school in the movies and middle school in real life aren’t the same!

...to double check work and compare it to the rubric.

...picking the right electives is really important.

...how quickly I had to travel to get from one class to another.

...forgetting to do your homework for one day is a big deal.

...they don’t give you tons of homework in sixth grade.

...I didn’t need to worry that much about changing for PE: they give you time for that.

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High school

HOW HOLLYWOOD ACTIVISM GETS DONE: AN INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR ANGELINA JOLIE-PITT

By Nicole Weinrauch Grade 9 Student

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HiGH school

When Nicole Weinrauch was in Cambodia on an SAS service trip, she coincidentally met Ms. Angelina Jolie-Pitt’s film crew and manager, who were working on the film First They Killed My Father. They kindly connected Nicole with Ms. Jolie-Pitt through an email interview.

Hollywood personalities are sometimes accused of overstepping boundaries in social activism. But Angelina Jolie-Pitt is no member of the “Hollywood ignorati.” She brings a platform to give voice to the experience and aspirations of those less heard. She’s an activist, but it’s not at all about her. Her role is significant to the cause of genocide awareness, the ability to shine a light through layers of silence obfuscating Cambodian society’s consciousness and acknowledgement of its traumatic past.

Jolie-Pitt’s latest film project, First They Killed My Father, is about the Cambodian genocide of the late 1970s adapted from the memoir by the survivor and activist Loung Ung. Joining Jolie-Pitt in production is her adopted son Maddox who was born in Cambodia, the site of a genocide which took an estimated 2.7 million lives not only as it happened but also in the 40 years since. It is a country still struggling with the effects of the Khmer Rouge campaign to annihilate and “rehabilitate” its structure and culture, and still struggling to process the events and lessons of the Khmer Rouge regime.

Jolie-Pitt made the decision to target her film at Cambodians

rather than the Hollywood market.

“The film is entirely in Khmer. It is made with a Cambodian audience in mind first and foremost, and it will premiere in Cambodia. The intention is not solely to remind the people of Cambodia about the years of a difficult past, but to celebrate them by shining a light on Cambodian culture, customs, and family life, and the resilience of those bonds in the face of the most difficult of circumstances,” Jolie-Pitt says.

First They Killed My Father reflects the ideals of Loung Ung, whose experience and subsequent work inspired the film. Ung’s inspiration is clear when Jolie-Pitt describes the local settings of the movie.

“From the landscape of Apsara to the temples of Angkor Wat, it is in some ways a love letter to Cambodia. I hope it will be a film of which Cambodians can be proud.

It is a testament of the talent and skill of the Cambodian cast, crew, and supporting actors that we were able to pull off a film of this size,” she says.

A film which tackles an event as critical to modern history as the Cambodian genocide takes on profound obligations. It must serve as a tool to teach both a local and international audience.

It must balance tragedy with a demonstration of how a beautiful culture can endure. Ultimately, such a project endeavors to raise awareness about genocide anywhere. First They Killed My Father makes this awareness flow naturally from the authentic voice of a survivor elevated to wider recognition by the work of a global celebrity with far-reaching access.

Cambodia is still wrestling with its trauma of 40 years ago. “Without voices like Loung’s, without people who have survived genocide coming forward to speak about their experience, we would never know the truth of these situations.

She is one of millions of people affected by genocide, and one of many important voices. She represents Cambodia but also the experience of people in many different countries who have withstood violence and genocide,” Jolie-Pitt adds.

Jolie-Pitt may offer a springboard toward mass public recognition of such atrocities. First They Killed My Father will give voice to a horrendous episode of humanity, while at the same time underscoring the triumphant preservation of an extraordinary culture.

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GIVING HOPE TO HURTING KIDS

By Jeff Devens, Ph.D. School Psychologist After 16 years in Nebraska, Kevin’s dad, a petrochemical engineer, accepted a job in Saudi Arabia, over 7,000 miles away from Runza sandwiches and Big Red football.

Kevin, a self-described introvert, found the geographical and cultural isolation of Saudi Arabia didn’t offer much to draw him out. To mitigate feelings of hopelessness and despair, he resorted to drinking . . . excessively. In addition, he began skipping classes and school altogether, electing to sleep off his hangovers.

Four months into his first year in Saudi Arabia, he began expressing a desire to self-harm. Kevin’s goal wasn’t to end his life as much as it was to end the psychological pain. “I felt hopeless and helpless. Hurting myself was the only out I could think of to end the pain. I was a messed-up kid. As a 25-year-old, I look back on that time and recognize I needed help. I needed hope. I’m glad my parents got me the help and support I needed. It’s made all the difference,” he says.

High school

Facts and figures Suicide is the third leading cause of death among persons aged 10-14, and the second leading cause among persons aged 15-24.

It’s estimated that for every youth who dies by suicide, 100 to 200 attempt suicide.

For every three students who attempt suicide, only one receives medical attention.

Among reported suicide deaths in the 10-24 age group, 81 percent were male and 19 percent were female.

Adolescent females are significantly more likely (1.5 to 2 times) than adolescent males to have thought about and attempted suicide, while adolescent males are more likely (4 to 5 times) than adolescent females to complete a suicide.

Adolescent females die in approximately 1 out of 25 attempts, and males die in 1 out of 3 attempts. These differences are attributed to the methods of lethality.

In nearly three out of four of suicide attempts, a person has mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, or an eating disorder.

Those who have attempted suicide are up to six times more likely than adolescents who have not attempted suicide to attempt again.

As concerning as these facts and figures are, of most importance to parents is their child’s well-being and safety. Surprisingly, research indicates that 50 to 75 percent of parents were unaware of their child’s suicidal thinking. Other studies note that parents were unaware of their children’s depressive symptoms and alcohol use, which are both risk factors associated with suicidal behavior. When should a parent be concerned their child may be suicidal, and what actions should they take?

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HiGH school

Know the Warning Signs Immediate warning signs Seek help immediately if your child exhibits any of these signs.

• • • •

When a child is threatening to hurt or harm themselves When a child has a plan to harm, is seeking access, and preparing to carry it out If there have been previous attempts at self-harm Writing or talking about suicide based on some perceived or real trauma

Risk factors Consult with your child’s counselor or other outside mental health professionals if your child manifests one or more of these signs. While not an imminent indicator of self-harm, a number of these taken together do indicate the need for further investigation and support.

• • • • • • •

!

Protracted feelings of depression, or anxiety, or eating issues Hopelessness Seeking revenge Recklessness or risky behavior Expressions of feeling trapped Increased drug or alcohol use Withdrawal from family and friends

Protective factors The following protective factors correlate with positive adolescent social and emotional growth. The more factors noted, the less likely a child is to engage in self-harming thinking or actions.

• • • • • • •

!

!

Family and school connectedness Outlets for kids to ask for help Helping kids identify trusted adults Outlets and opportunities for kids to demonstrate competence beyond academics Positive and consistent academic growth and achievement Positive self-esteem and coping skills Access to and care for mental, physical, and substance abuse issues

The National Longitudinal Study on Adolescent Health surveyed more than 90,000 students in grades seven to twelve (ages 13 to 18) and found that a student’s feeling of connectedness was the number one protective factor against suicidal behavior. More specifically, kids who believed that teachers treated them fairly, who formed supportive relationships with peers, and who felt that they were part of a school were less likely to engage in at-risk behaviors including suicide.

When discussing this topic with students, we focus on education, prevention, and living. If you have questions regarding your child’s social and emotional health, often a good place to start is by speaking with their teachers, coaches, counselors, and other mentors.

They can provide insights into their thinking and behaviors. Think of this as providing layers of support in the lives of kids. The more contact points, the healthier the child.

Lastly, if you suspect your child is thinking of self-harm, trust your instincts, act, and seek support.

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High school

CATALYST, CAPSTONE, QUEST

By Kyle Aldous ‘02 Director of Communications

The 2014 Gallup-Purdue Index Report found that six major experiences are related directly to employee engagement and overall well-being in life (read success and happiness).

This study of over 30,000 college graduates across the US identified these six experiences as:

Having at least one professor who made you excited about learning Having professors who cared about you as a person

Having a mentor who encouraged you to pursue your goals and dreams Working on a project that took a semester or more to complete Having an internship or job that allowed you to apply what you were learning in the classroom Being extremely active in extracurricular activities and organizations

Only three percent of college graduates have had all six of these experiences.

At SAS, we’re not sitting back and hoping that our students have these experiences in college. We’re providing these crucial experiences now. Beginning with the graduating class of 2018, 100 percent of our graduates will have completed at least two (numbers three and four) of these experiences before ever stepping foot in their freshman dorm.

The high school offers three courses that will require students to complete a longterm project or paper under the guiding eye of an invested mentor: Catalyst, AP Capstone, and Quest.

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CATALYST Catalyst will be a mandatory course for every student beginning with the graduating class of 2018. Catalyst offers students the opportunity to spend a semester focused on a project they are interested in pursuing.

There are truly no limits to the possibilities a student may pursue.

Last year students choreographed dances, raced go-karts, built rain harvesting devices, created organic cosmetics, and filmed documentaries.

Erin Jung ’16 says, “My experience in Catalyst has taught me relevant skills that I will continue to use and refine as I enter adulthood such as how to present clearly and effectively, think critically about the impact of my actions, and expand my professional network.

The freedom to construct my own curriculum has created the most enjoyable and focused learning experience I’ve ever had, and sparked my passion for interdisciplinary learning by creating an intellectual pursuit not otherwise found in regular coursework.”

HiGH school

CAPSTONE

QUEST

AP Capstone is a research course open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors looking for a taste of what it means to conduct university-level research. It is a two year course where the first year is spent learning research skills and the second year is an intensive research project. To earn the AP Capstone Diploma, students must earn scores of three or higher on the AP Seminar and AP Research exams, and on four additional AP exams. Students select a topic at the start of their school year, look for gaps in the current research available, and then conduct their own research in order to meaningfully contribute to the field of study. Similar to university students, AP Capstone students submit an academic paper of about 5,000 words and defend their work through a presentation. Students this year uncovered the similarities between Google and Genghis Khan, the correlation between personalized learning and classroom design, and analyzed the impact of Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) spraying on mosquito abundance in our rainforest.

Quest is the newest offering in personalized learning and is available only to high school seniors. Described as “tight on skills, flexible on content,” Quest allows students to focus on various interests to develop skills and connections to the real world through meaningful experiences such as community partnerships, community outreach, design challenges, and off-campus experiences. For example, a student who is interested in musical entrepreneurship could learn song lyric copywriting, financial analysis, and design principles that will help them build a stronger business concept for the music industry. Students may work in groups, individually, and with advisors and experts in their field to earn credit.

AP Capstone student Jamie Uy ’16 says,“I’ve always been more of a worrier than a warrior, but I’ve begun feeling empowered. I worked through evenings and weekends, challenged myself to look for new angles, and pushed myself to think and write better than before. I came out of the board room after my final presentation a better critical thinker and writer than I was before AP Research. That night, I wrote this sentence before falling asleep: If I did that, I can do anything.”

Jong Hyun Cha ’17 says, “I decided to enroll in Quest because I liked the concept of real-world learning it supports.

I also wanted to connect my learning to passions. Through Quest, I hope to engage in my passions at a more scholarly level. I hope to see the paths my passions can take me to, and how I can use my passions in my life other than mere recreation.”

These three offerings give our students experiences that the majority of college students never have. Getting into college is not the be-all and end-all of how we measure success at SAS. We’re also providing students with experiences that will prepare them for the competitive landscape of life.

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ALUMNI

FROM AP PERFECTION TO AQUABOT CONSTRUCTION

By Koh Xin Tian Communications Specialist

When did you first discover your interest in physics?

Physics was a different perspective into a branch of science that I hadn’t really explored before. I didn’t go into physics liking it, but realized that I had a knack for it when I got in. It was like a trial by fire.

Don Gi Min ’14 is a Singapore American School alumnus with a passion for robotics and physics.

He was head of electrical and software engineering on the SAS One Degree North robotics team which participated in robotics competitions. Crossroads caught up with Don Gi this year when he visited SAS on a break from college.

An electrical and electronics engineering major at Georgia Institute of Technology, Don Gi now studies digital design, programming for hardware and software systems, and serves as vice captain on the Georgia Tech Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE) hardware team. He is also a subteam leader, for electrical and controls engineering with Vertically Integrated Projects: Aquabots, and a co-op software engineer at Concurrent Computer Corporation in Atlanta.

Mr Ian Page was my Physics B teacher, and Mr. Fred Crawford was my Physics C teacher. They had a great impact on my career and my choice of major. When I first took physics, both Mr. Page and Mr. Crawford taught me a lot of physics phenomena in a very straightforward way, and I got into it quickly.

How did you achieve your AP Physics C score at SAS? What did you study in Physics C? I got a perfect score in AAP Physics C is two exams under the same banner. It’s really AP Physics C Mechanics and AP Physics C Electromagnetics (or “E&M”). I got a perfect score in Mechanics, but not in E&M. I didn’t really expect my perfect score in Mechanics. That was kind of a surprise.

In Physics C Mechanics, we mostly do Newtonian mechanics involving calculus. With a better understanding of calculus, we can get a better understanding

of physics. In Physics B, it’s mostly done through algebra. In Physics C Mechanics, we study things such as objects in motion and rotational dynamics.

I really liked the experience interacting with teachers and my fellow students at SAS. Collaborating and the teamwork experience were nothing short of fantastic.

What was your favorite SAS robotics moment?

Our coaches Mrs. Meredith White and Mr. Barton Millar let us work autonomously and build our own leadership and teamwork skills. We were making an underwater robot for the MATE competition. The task was to build a robot with thrusters that could move around in water reasonably fast. It would be unlike regular robots that move on two powered wheels; underwater robots require controls on both sides, thrusters going up and down so they can ascend and descend, and a lot of motor controllers.

Our team was thinking of embedding those motor controllers inside the robot, which was a unique design. We couldn’t use our off-the-shelf controllers, because as soon as they went into water, they’d explode. So I picked up the task of making our own underwater motor

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controllers, came up with the circuit design, a way to waterproof it, and a 3D-printed case.

We didn’t have a circuit board machine, so we took a prototyping board—a generic board which you can modify and use to create the circuit you need—and came up with a compact design, using fullstack engineering from the bottom up. I tested it and came up with a streamlined plan to make it. We had two teams and each team needed about 12 boards, so our whole gang would go to Sim Lim Square and pick out parts, doing the shopping and making them ourselves.

Tell us about your Sim Lim shopping.

If you’re in engineering, you need to know your parts are reliable and know what you’re looking for.

It requires a lot of intuition and knowledge. There’s a lot of trial and error. We’d get a list of parts, go to Sim Lim, look around for a source that looked decent and not too shady which sold parts at a reasonable price.

In Singapore, parts are overpriced.

It’s frustrating because you have to do the searching yourself. Living in the US now, I can order parts online very cheap.

Still, haggling was fun. If a shop says one part costs $4, and another shop prices it at $10, there’s something wrong with the $10 shop.

What are your impressions of the SAS robotics team now?

I see a lot of good talent and new faces, which is great. The new programming team students are solid.

I actually saw a few of my designs that students ported into something

ALUMNI

more useful, fleshed out, making them easier to use. For our underwater robotics control system, I built a way to control the robot from a laptop with a joystick. I wrote that code hastily because I couldn’t find the correct supporting libraries.

I used a language called Processing, which, in hindsight, I probably shouldn’t have. The programming team now has created a better version, so I’m happy about that.

Tell us about your work at Concurrent Computer Corporation and the IEEE hardware team.

I took a semester off from Georgia Tech and worked at Concurrent as part of the Georgia Tech cooperational education program.

You get a paid role at a company related to your major in two or three semesters, not just one, and learn the ins and outs of that field with hands-on work. Simultaneously, while learning the technical aspects, you get experience in the workforce and learn the soft skills and nontechnical aspects of working.

That was a highly educational experience.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is a professional society for electrical engineers, computer engineers, and computer scientists in industry and academia. Our Georgia Tech IEEE student branch is the largest student branch in the US, and we work in multiple subteams.

How about Aquabots?

Aquabots is part of a Vertically Integrated Projects program at Georgia Tech. We aim to build a pencil-shaped robot that goes into the Antarctic Ocean by drilling a hole 20 centimetres in diameter through the ice. The robot will have a three-jointed arm that can stick

out and grab things such as water samples, and also a claw that drills through ice and can take a whole chunk of ice with anemone growing on it to preserve the anemone’s roots.

What’s it like to study at Georgia Tech and live in Atlanta? Do you see yourself working in Atlanta when you graduate?

Georgia Tech is competitive, educational, yet homey. There are many more students than at SAS, but you’ll still find people. There are lots of eccentric clubs, and lots of very smart people whom I have had the pleasure of talking to.

There are lots of companies across the country that I’d like to work for.

I don’t want to fix myself to Atlanta or the East Coast. I’m not that picky about how big a company is, but I just want to work on something that really impacts humanity. I want my product to be used everywhere and make life better for everyone.

What’s your advice for high school students who want to study engineering?

Sometimes you have to go above and beyond what the curriculum requires you to do. You can do something more in-depth, much more than what the textbook says, and escape your comfort zone.

Explore things you thought you couldn’t understand but really want to learn. Don’t get hung up on getting good grades. You sometimes have to do things that really matter and stand out, things that people who might want to hire or admit you may see.

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BEYOND THE BOOSTER BOOTH AND BEHIND THE SCENES

By Heide Angell Booster Club Parliamentarian

When your son or daughter moves into high school, you also transition as a parent. From being focused on your own child’s classroom, you are suddenly introduced to the Booster Club, sports, and events.

The club’s members, also known as the Boosters, make high school experiences more enjoyable for participants and supporters alike.

As a freshman parent, I was asked to join the Booster Club and immediately the image of moms selling football tickets or hot dogs came to mind. I did not have any kids participating in sports, so I wondered how I was going to fit into this new way of volunteering.

The good news for me, and many others like me, was the opportunity that the Boosters afforded me to get involved and support a school activity that my daughter is passionate about. For me that is the visual and performing arts.

The visual and performing arts committee of the Booster Club is responsible for supporting art exhibitions as well as the promotion and performances of drama, dance, theater, and music productions. In 2015-16, the

Booster Club hosted receptions and provided refreshments at more than 16 events. The receptions are to celebrate a job well done for everyone involved from the artists, performers on the stage to the technical and support staff, and of course the proud parents and faculty.

If you have been on campus, I am sure you have seen the amazing posters of artwork from current and past students displayed throughout the high school. The Booster Club over the years has funded these impressive examples of the diverse and high quality artwork that have been created at SAS. Each semester, all art students display the best of their work in an exhibition.

Receptions on the opening days enable the students and their families and friends to gather and celebrate their achievements.

In the Riady Performing Arts Center, music, dance, and theater students amaze and delight the audience with their talents and skills. The theme of each production is extended into the foyer with flowers, decorations, and even

food specially selected for each performance. The visual and performing arts committee leaders Monica Devereux and Tonya Ford collaborate with the ushers under the guidance of theater director Paula Silverman to ensure a fun, coordinated reception. We bid fond farewell to Mrs. Silverman and express gratitude for her years of dedication and extensive hours producing professionally orchestrated productions.

Please come and learn what the Booster Club has to offer. You might spark an old interest or discover a new passion, and be part of your student’s high school experience at SAS. Attend the Booster Club welcome coffee in September 2016, introduce yourself to any Booster parent, and we can help you find your niche while making new friends.

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BOOSTER club

40

PTA

THE FRIENDLIEST FACES AT SAS

By Mina Ohuchi Bregman PTA Vice-President

Notices for “informances,” portfolio presentations, high school prom, middle school dances, play day and pizza parties will flood our inboxes.

These SAS traditions herald the end of the school year. Many of us will use our summer holidays to reconnect with family and friends back home, or travel with the newer friends we’ve made through the SAS community.

Wherever my family has lived, I believe in volunteering.

Volunteering for the SAS ParentTeacher Association (PTA) when we moved here four years ago was also an attempt to make good friends.

Thanks to PTA volunteer activities, I was quickly exposed to likeminded parents, and some of those connections have yielded what I hope will be lifelong friendships.

Parents and teachers clearly contribute greatly to the SAS community. But my involvement through the PTA has also made me aware and appreciate the school’s phenomenal facilities staff.

Had I not worked intimately with the facilities team on County Fair, International Fair, Food Fest, and

other PTA events over the past four years, I might have continued passing the friendly staff in blue shirts who are constantly working on the campus, setting things up, tearing things down, repairing and building, without giving them more than a tentative greeting.

Most of the facilities team leaders have been at SAS for over 10 years, and manage multiple teams of contracted workers to carry out regular upkeep, ensure the smooth running of many campus events, and prepare activity tables and basketball hoops daily in time for recess. Our PTA’s requests for the facilities teams can be intense and time-consuming for them, but I have never been greeted with anything short of a smile and willingness to get the job done. I have jokingly asked how it is that they remain so cheerful and so effective in what they do, and they’ve told me how each team leader works with his close knit group who know and trust one another, and operate as a unit.

They love their jobs.

Our feeling of community and connection starts with them at

SAS. I understand this more every year. Seeing the genuine care and concern of our friends in facilities, their interest in what is happening at the school, what events the PTA is working on, and what the children are doing creates a unique web of connection without which the school would not function smoothly.

It is one of the special intangibles which create the unique learning space of SAS. This summer, as we all move off campus, facilities will be gearing up for their busiest season yet. They will be repainting the footsteps in the elementary school to ensure that students beginning the new school year will have a sure path to follow to their new classrooms.

They will be overseeing renovations across campus. They will be performing their annual rituals of repainting walls after a year of tough use from our kids, washing carpets, power jet-washing the grounds, and preparing the space to start afresh, once again. I will notice these works and look forward to greeting the facilities teams with appreciation for the part they play as the keepers of our school.

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#SASEDU

Want to see your Instagram photos, tweets, or Facebook posts end up here in Crossroads?

Start using #sasedu in everything you post about the school!

@SAmericanSchool: #IASAS #SASedu

@SASAlumni: 60 years of alumni! #sasedu #sas60

@ms.ramani: Happy birthday SAS! We loved dancing the night away in celebration of you! #SASedu #SG #60th

@sarahinsg: Teachers at our faculty/ staff 60th fest. #sasedu #sas60

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@alstonstephanus: SAS High School Dance Showcase 2016, celebrating 30 years of Dance and 60th Anniversary of the Singapore American School!

@pgreensoup: #SASedu #60years

@RoseBava81: #sasedu #sasmotorskills_ balance #SAmericanSchool #SASMotorSkills_motor

@kellystuart12: Enjoying my high school reunion! #sas #singapore #classof1975 #leslieisthebestlie #sasedu #sas60 #sasumni

@PeterGCuthbert: What a night for Miles to score his first goal! His team played well winning 3 and tying 1. Gran and Papa on hand as superfans! #sasedu #soccer

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Highly free yet highly organized spaces that create contexts for learning and investigating in different ways

Defined spaces to create social encounters and exchanges

CAPTIVATING CLASSROOMS In the Reggio Emilia inspired approach used by our fabulous preschool teachers, the environment also takes on the role of teacher. Last year the preschool environment received a major upgrade as walls came down, exploratory spaces were created, and nature was brought indoors.

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Warm earth tones to soften and create a sense of home

Natural and recycled materials for sustainability and creative endeavors

Flexible spaces for ongoing projects

By Sandhya Bala and Clara Fong Communications Interns

Match each SAS teacher to a fun fact about them! Turn the page over for answers when you’re done to see if you were correct.

No cheating!

E. I used to be a human tissue “harvester” from the very recently deceased.

1

When I was younger I use to play piano and own a white poodle named Teddy.

s B e i n g es s i r h

n er

Clara Fong is a junior at Singapore American School and a member of the SAS Communications and Alumni Relations Work Study Program.

Clara enjoys reading about current events, eating home-cooked food, and practicing fencing in her free time.

ry G 3.Ga ray

a.

5.C

Sandy Bala is a junior at Singapore American School and a member of the SAS Communications and Alumni Relations Work Study Program. Sandy enjoys photography, writing and travelling to new places.

l

NAME THAT TEACHER!

ed Bildfe J. ar l

f.

After university, I moved to Namibia as a Peace Corps volunteer. I lived with a family in a small village, and had no running water or electricity. On my way to school each morning, I got to see giraffes and even elephants!

.7 Ian Coppell

G. Before I became a teacher I was a radio announcer at an National Public Radio station in Maryland.

10.B

5.D

9.G

4.E

8.F

3.A

7.H

2.J

6.C

1.I

ANSWERS

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B. 2

C.

y

I am afraid of birds.

Koltuts k J. eff

I learned how to drive on the Autobahn in Germany when I was 16.

l

n Gaskel .4 Joh

e c c a Cl a r R. eb

k

6

D. My family’s entire shipment was stolen before we even made it to Singapore.

J.

rs

I ran an indoor 60 meter race against sprinter Ben Johnson in 1982. Ben Johnson won, and we all know why . . .

cca Watt e b e Re

9.

H.

I am a huge Calgary Flames fan.

I drove 2,000 kilometers to volunteer at the largest no-kill dog shelter in the world to bring in the new year of 2013.

y C ol o r k c i a .V

do

i.

10

s

ah Farr .8 Sar i

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NOTABLE MENTIONS

1

SAS HOSTS NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLING AUTHOR

Developmental molecular biologist Dr. John J. Medina visited SAS to share his insights on the productivity of the brain and how brain sciences might influence the way parents teach children. An affiliate professor of bioengineering at the University of Washington School of Medicine, Dr. Medina has had a lifelong fascination with the way the brain reacts to and organizes information.

Dr. Medina’s New York Times bestselling book Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School is considered the standard handbook of understanding and improving the brain, and he is also the author of Brain Rules for Baby: How to Raise a Smart and Happy Child from Zero to Five. Dr. Medina’s work with brain science and his Brain Rules books enlightened the SAS community about our children’s developing brains, the effects of healthy and unhealthy stimulation on learning, as well as the impact of socialization and stress.

2

ACADEMIC VISITORS-IN-RESIDENCE CARIN BERGER AND CHRIS BARTON TEACH ELEMENTARY STUDENTS The Parent-Teacher Association sponsored our visiting illustrator-in-residence Carin Berger and our visiting author-in-residence Chris Barton. Carin Berger held focused mini-lessons in K-5 art classrooms about the creative picture book process, revision, and collage, and Chris Barton visited second to fifth grade classrooms and kindergarten and first grade group rooms for writer’s workshops and presentations where he discussed the creation of historical fiction picture books and writing strategies.

3

SAS SHINES AT MATHCOUNTS COMPETITION SAS students competed at the Southeast Asia MathCounts Tournament at International School Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Our school’s team came in fifth out of 22 teams representing schools from all over Southeast Asia. Individually, sixth grader Ryan L. placed seventh and eighth grader Aiden S. placed twelfth out of 88 competitors.

Congratulations to team members Adya C., Aiden S., Brian K., Diana Y., Elizabeth F., Jessie H., Ryan L., Sally N., Theo L., and Yoon K.

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4

MIDDLE SCHOOLERS WIN CHAMPIONSHIP IN FIRST LEGO LEAGUE ROBOTICS COMPETITION

Sixth and eighth graders Alan C., Caitlyn H., Delaney N., Dhruv N., Kavin K., Shiori H., Shreya J., and Yoon K. participated in the FIRST LEGO League Robotics Competition. Their Techno Waffle Frisbees team came in champions in the Innovation Solution category.

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5

SAS STUDENT DELEGATES ATTEND GLOBAL ISSUES NETWORK CONFERENCE

The East Asia Regional Council of Schools High School Global Issues Network Conference was hosted by Bali Island School. SAS students presented at workshops on rainforest conservation, the digital divide, peacekeeping, and climate change.

Kudos to our SAS delegates Aimee Jung, Annie Kim, Anuradha Lal, Chloe Shin-Gay, Faisal Sami Ali Halabeya, Jayhyun Chang, Keshav Jagannath, Julia Dawn Walker, Karthik Vempati, Madeline Smith, Micaela Tam, Roopal Kondepudi, and Sunita Srivatsan, and Tanvi Dutta Gupta.

6

STUDENTS MUSICIANS BRING THE MOVIES TO LIFE

Middle and high school band students performed popular movie and musical soundtracks in concert. Jurassic Park, Star Wars, Les Miserables, and more delighted listeners who enjoyed seeing their favorite movies brought to life. Shout out to Darth Vader for guest conducting.

Special thanks to the SAS Foundation for their support of the trip this year by contributing to the cost of registration fees, airfares and accommodations for our students and advisors.

7

AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE STUDENTS CONDUCT FIELD SURVEY IN TIOMAN

AP Environmental Science students travelled to Pulau Tioman, Malaysia for ecological field surveys in tropical rainforests, coral reefs, and mangroves. Ecological investigations in our tropical region provide unique experiences for environmental science students.

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MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS QUALIFY FOR NATIONAL HISTORY DAY FINALS

Several SAS National History Day (NHD) student projects qualified for the NHD finals in the South Asia competition in Jakarta. Middle school students participated remotely. The following first and second place projects from SAS qualified for the NHD finals in Washington DC this June.

Junior Individual Documentary First Place Meera P. Japonaism: The Exchange of Art between Japan and France Junior Individual Website First Place Sarim A. Potsdam: An Exchange Between Nations Junior Group Documentary First Place and special Award for outstanding use of primary resources Lauren L., Jenny P., Joy J. Jewish European Immigrants to America: A Critical Exchange in US History Junior Group Documentary Second Place Jack W., Sawnjana R. Music during the Holocaust: Encountering Hope within the Horror Junior Group Exhibit First Place Callie E., Tara A., Mehek J., Trinity Y. The Apollo-Soyuz Mission: Launching a Unified Exchange Junior Group Exhibit Second Place Chloe B., Evelyn Z., Christine Y. The White Rajahs: Exploring the Unification of Contrasting Cultures Special thanks also go to students whose projects did not make it past the Jakarta round. While they are not continuing with the competition, they have learned skills, lessons, and strategies that will serve them for a lifetime.

9

STUDENTS AWAKEN THE FORCE AT MIDDLE SCHOOL STRINGS CONCERT

Middle school students channeled the force as they used lightsaber bows to play the classic John Williams anthems from the Star Wars series. Middle school grade eight tech student Alan C. programmed, wired, and tested Arduino boxes, and high school intern Hae Won Lee helped develop the prototype work, collaborating to create lightsaber effects with LED strips in the auditorium.

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NTU MARINE GEOCHEMIST DR. NATHALIE GOODKIN SPEAKS AT SAS

On March 14, 2016, Nanyang Technological University marine geochemist Dr. Nathalie Goodkin spoke on Uncovering Earth's Climate as part of the Global Issues Network Bringing The Outside In Speaker Series. Dr. Goodkin is an expert in the physical science behind climate change and is an SAS parent.

11

YALE ALLEY CATS TRAIN AND ENTERTAIN

The Yale Alley Cats, a male a cappella group from Yale University, conducted workshops with the SAS Singers and the Chanterie, and also entertained students during a fun lunch concert. Thanks to the generous support of donors to the SAS Foundation.

12

SAS PARTICIPATES IN AMIS HIGH SCHOOL HONOR BAND AND ORCHESTRA FESTIVAL

13

ROBOTICS STUDENTS HEAD DOWN UNDER FOR FIRST ROBOTICS COMPETITION

Students participated in the Association for Music in International Schools High School Honor Band and Orchestra Festival at The American School of Doha, Qatar.

At the FIRST Robotics Australia Regional Competition held on March 18 and 19, 2016 at the Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre, our high school robotics team One Degree North ranked 21st out of 43 teams at the end of qualifying rounds. Thanks to Mr. Bart Millar, Mrs. Meredith White and robotics alumni for their support.

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14

HIGH SCHOOL WRITERS WIN SCHOLASTIC ART AND WRITING COMPETITION

SAS students Nicole Weinrauch, Natalie Weinrauch, and Ansh Prasad won national medals in the Scholastic Art and Writing competition. Their works were among 2,400 medalists chosen from among 18,000 Gold Key-winning works of art and writing which were in turn chosen from among nearly 320,000 submissions.

16

AP ART STUDENTS SUBMIT OVER 1,000 WORKS

Visual art students presented their artwork at the AP Art Show and then submitted 1,106 2D and 280 3D pieces for AP judging.

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15

STUDENTS FEATURED AS PANELISTS IN ALL IN! YOUNG WRITERS FESTIVAL 2016

High schoolers Clara Fong, Jamie Uy, Justine De Jesus, Ingrid Liu, Seo Young Lee, and Vincent Tantra were featured on Getting Your Work Out There: Panel of Young Writers, Artists & Translators at the All In! Young Writers Festival 2016, organized by the National Book Development Council of Singapore.

17

THE FASTEST APES IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Elementary students took part in the Awesome Ape rock climbing event finals. This timed 15-meter traverse climb saw the fastest 15 boys and fastest 15 girls from grades three to five showing off their skills!

Kudos to third grade girls Isabelle F., Mia M., Akari I., and Jae Eun K., third grade boys Shaan M., Grant C., and Jack W., fourth grade girls Kiana F., Siena Z., and Beatrice S., fourth grade boys Oscar L., Cylas D., and Nate B., fifth grade girls Sola C., Alicia N., and Nicole W., and fifth grade boys Yuzo L., Samuel B., and Takumi H.

Photo from Patricia Makatsaria

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18

TELLURIDE MOUNTAIN FILM FESTIVAL COMES TO SAS

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The SAS community enjoyed Telluride Mountain Film Festival screenings on April 18 and 19 in the Khoo Teck Puat Library’s iTheater.

Thanks to festival director Henry Lystad for bringing us films about issues that matter such as science, culture, adventure, ethics, sport, and sustainability, cultures worth exploring, environments worth preserving, adventures worth pursuing, and conversations worth sustaining in the longest-running US film festival.

IASAS SOFTBALLERS WIN MEDALS Our girls’ softball team took home the silver and our boys’ varsity softball team won the bronze in Bangkok.

BADMINTON TEAMS GRAB SILVER AT IASAS Our boys’ and girls’ badminton teams both won IASAS silver medals.

21

BOYS’ AND GIRLS’ TRACK AND FIELD TEAMS CAPTURE GOLD AT IASAS Our boys’ and girls’ track and field teams both won IASAS golds in Taipei.

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22 24

BOYS’ AND GIRLS’ GOLF TEAMS WIN BRONZE AT IASAS Our IASAS golf boys’ and girls’ teams both took home bronze medals from Jakarta.

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23

SAS DOMINATES INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS TAEKWONDO CHAMPIONSHIP

Students participated in the 2016 International Schools Taekwondo Championships organized by the Singapore Taekwondo Federation on April 11, 2016 at the Toa Payoh Sports Complex. SAS once again won first place with the overall highest composite score measuring the number of medals won.

Congratulations to Adam W., Anthony V., Aedan P., Agastya S., Ananya B., Arushi B., Axel R., Brandon Z., Christopher J., Cyrus E., Dalton B., Dan Ru L., Debora P., Edward C., Ella Y., Ethan C., Felicia J., Gabriella L., Joseph L., Kabir D., Laura C., Lorenzo A., Mira N., Phoebe S., Rachel Ha Yoon L., Rachel Sasi Karn L., Ramsey S., Raunak D., Reagan W., Sophia S., Sutreeya M., Tae Wook K., Tahnee B., Torsai K., Vayun M., Vikram S., Vincenzo T., and team.

HIGH SCHOOL SERVICE COUNCIL CELEBRATES VOLUNTEERS On May 19, 2016 in the Khoo Teck Puat Library, the high school service council celebrated service by students and faculty this year. Thank you for all you have done for local and overseas communities in need!

SIXTH GRADER WINS SILVER AT SINGAPORE GYMNASTICS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 2016

25 Sixth grader Sarasa N. won a silver medal in the free hand category at the Singapore Gymnastics National Championship 2016 for rhythmic gymnastics. She also participated in the rope competition.

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26 27

SAS PARTICIPATES IN AMIS MIDDLE SCHOOL HONOR MIXED CHOIR FESTIVAL

MIDDLE SCHOOLER BECOMES THREE-TIME BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU CHAMPION

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Middle schoolers participated in the Association for Music in International Schools Middle School Honor Mixed Choir Festival at The International School of Amsterdam from April 6-10, 2016.

They had the privilege of learning from guest conductor Paige Short and accompanist Luke Zaccaro.

28 Kinaree Adkins won her third Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world championship at the Abu Dhabi World Youth JiuJitsu Championship 2016 on Sunday, April 17.

STUDENTS COMPETE IN SAS POETRY OUT LOUD COMPETITION

The high school English department and the ParentTeacher Association hosted SAS’s Poetry Out Loud competition. Among 25 contestants who recited poems, Sheyna Cruz, Saif Kureishi, and Teagan Mountcastle won honorable mentions, Jahvon Coney won third prize (a $100 Kinokuniya voucher), Jiwon Kim won second prize (a $200.00 Kinokuniya voucher), and Lara Van Vuuren won first prize (an iPad Mini).

THE EYE WINS PRESTIGIOUS NSPA ONLINE PACEMAKER AWARD

SAS’s student news website The Eye won the prestigious National Scholastic Press Association Online Pacemaker Award. Entries were judged by teams of professionals based on these criteria: coverage and content, quality of writing and reporting, leadership, design, photography, and graphics. Congratulations to our student journalists.

31

SAS EDUCATORS FEATURED IN NEW PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES BOOK

Global Perspectives: Professional Learning Communities in International Schools (Solution Tree Press) launches this summer. Edited

by Dr. Timothy Stuart, its other SAS contributors include Treena Casey, Joshua Curnett, Darin Fahrney, David Hoss, Chip Kimball, Vicki Rogers, and Jennifer Sparrow.

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WORD ON THE STREET What was your favorite part of the school year?

By Sandhya Bala and Clara Fong Communications Interns Sandy Bala is a junior at Singapore American School and a member of the SAS Communications and Alumni Relations Work Study Program. Sandy enjoys photography, writing and travelling to new places.

Clara Fong is a junior at Singapore American School and a member of the SAS Communications and Alumni Relations Work Study Program.

Clara enjoys reading about current events, eating home-cooked food, and practicing fencing in her free time.

PAKHI G. 11TH GRADE

LUCA G. PRE-K

After the AP exams when we can have fun and relax in class.

Playing during play time in class.

JOHN C. 12TH GRADE

IASAS. Even though we lost, our whole team got really close and bonded.

GUY R. 3RD GRADE

Science labs with Mr. Kimzey because he is a fun teacher!

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TEAGAN M. 9TH GRADE

ARIA F. PRE-K

MORGAN P. 3RD GRADE

Interim because it's a good way to make new friends and get to know people from outside of your grade level.

Reading books in class!

Once my friends and I were playing on the swings but one of us fell off and were laughing the whole rest of the day.

MACY D. 8TH GRADE

SUPARNA S. 11TH GRADE

SAMI S. 7TH GRADE

CWW because I could connect with my friends and people in my homebase.

Planning my friends’ promposals.

Dance club and dance class with Ms. R!

40 WOODLANDS STREET 41 SINGAPORE 738547 PHONE: (65) 6363 3403 WEB: WWW.SAS.EDU.SG QUESTIONS? EMAIL US AT COMMUNICATIONS@SAS.EDU.SG CPE Registration Number: 196400340R Registration Period: 22 June 2011 to 21 June 2017 Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)