is a phrase you commonly hear at any Woodstoc k spor ting event.
tment is now focused on the overall c haracter of a student TIGER g rading is the new way students are pr imar i y g raded in PE (50 per cent of g rade), with eac h letter representing its own word about a student’s c haracter
The T in TIGER stands for teamwork When we say teamwork, we are looking for students to not on y work well with their teammates, but if a teammate is str uggling, someone who helps their teammates to make them better overall Also, if a student is trying to help a peer while str uggling, will that student take the peer feedbac k positively or will they put up an act of knowing it all and not needing any help from classmates? Teamwork should be a lot wider spectr um than simp y noticing if students work well or not with other s
One common g round you’ll find between most students early on (Grades 5 to 7) is their ability to try and get away with fouls/breaking the r ules without self-calling them That is why the stands for integ r ity Do students call their own fouls and own up to their mistakes, or do they try and get away with it? When doing a pre-test with another par tner, do they try and c heat their results to make themselves look better? All questions we have our students ask themselves before taking par t in a game or spor t, so they know this is what integ r ity is and should be incor porated in their daily lives
The next letter E has been a question with the physical education world for decades, and that is how do you g rade a student’s effor t? E in tiger stands for effor t, and one solid way we know if a student is trying their hardest is their arr val/depar ture to and from PE If a student constantly shows up late after c hang ing and is the fir st one to leave class, then we know that student could not care less and does not want to be there In addition, their punctuality and thoroughness on eac h assignment is a g ive-away on their effor t Lastly, if 85 per cent of their class time is spent standing around dur ing games that clear y shows poor effor t. The final letter of TIGER is the R and that stands for respect This letter tr uly defines what TIGER is all about in the PE classroom Do students treat their teac her, peer s, equipment, and themselves positively and kindly? When competing in a game or matc h, is their spor tsmanship towards the other team a respectable behaviour? If another student has an opinion or question, will they listen to what is being said and not inter r upt or talk dur ing their peer ’ s contr bution to class? We want students trying their hardest in the most positive way possib e, without the negativity towards failure
With the G, that real y was not a c haracter word, but more instead a letter of preparation G stands for geared-up, meaning students come with appropr ate c hange of clothes, wr iting utensils for a test or worksheet, and any other object or piece of clothing they may need for class In a way though, even if the words themselves have no definitive resemblance with c haracter, the impor tance of being prepared in everyday life is definitely an impor tant c haracter istic to build with students
All of these TIGER words will hopefully help students g row into positive, lifelong enthusiasts for exercise. The more we can teac h students to value the impor tance of the complete student, instead of just focusing on skills attainted the better c hance these students will realise how fun and impor tant it is to stay in shape and stay active throughout their life Too many times as physical educator s, we see students tur ned off rom exercise because the stress of physical skill overcompensates for healthy knowledge of aiming towards a lifelong goal of being active Then when a student fails time and time again at that skill they cannot wait to be done with physical education classes and doing no exercise whatsoever Now, with the stress of TIGER and educating students with all aspects of physical education, students will be prepared to enter a world with knowledge, confidence, and intr insic motivation to stay active throughout their lifetime!
- Steve Luukkonen, Head of Physical Education
The standard of entr ies was as high as ever this year There were three categor ies for photog rapher s to enter their work - People, Place and Food - the latter category tying in with our sc hool-wide theme for the year “Thought for Food” Here are a selection of some of the best photos from this year’s competition.
Sapere Aude, a Latin phrase meaning "dare to discer n", was or ig inally used by Horace the Roman poet dur ing the time of Augustus. When the g raduating class of 2012 c hose this class name they c hanged the meaning slightly to mean “dare to be wise” A total of 89 students g raduated on the mor ning of June 2, 2012, and by 3pm that after noon they were gone Where are they now, what are they doing and are they successful and happy? We asked them for their memor ies of Woodstoc k, how prepared they were to leave and whether they built life-long relationships?
What role did Woodstoc k play in prepar ing you for life at college?
What do you miss about Woodstoc k the most?
Every
thing! The walk up to Char Dukan, advisor nights, r unning back for check-in on bazaar days, Rice Bowl, Doma's, my BEAUTIFUL dor m parents (Ms Sarah and Ms Ronita), the crazy monkeys on my window sill senior lounge, and
F rom n e x t se m este r the num be r o f f o re i g n lan g ua ges on o ffe r t o st ud e n ts at Wood st o c k
wi ll dou bl e f rom t wo t o f ou r
At the moment Frenc h and Hindi are the two languages students can ear n from Grade 7, but from the next academic year Spanish and Mandar in will als o be available Mandar in will be studied via online resources, while Spanish will be taught in the traditional classroom setting by Head o H gh Sc hool Tyler Stinc hcomb and a new lang uages teac her
Languages are a vitally mpor tant par t of the Woodstoc k academic curr iculum n this past semester we have ce ebrated Frenc h speaking w th a week of events for “La Francophonie”, including Frenc h ilms, presentations in assembly, and Frenc h-themed food We also ac knowledged the United Nations’ Inter national Mother Tongue Day in Febr uar y, whic h promotes awareness of linguistic and cultural diver sity The ir st-ever Woodstoc k Masterchef was also put on by Frenc h teac her Elsa Amy, whic h saw students cook and ser ve up delicious de icacies The sc hool also has active Spanish, Frenc h and Hindi clubs, whic h allow beg inner s to “test the water” of a par t cular language, to see if that is something they would ke to opt for n clas s
New Head of Languages Dane Latimer believes the new language options will be popular among students, and explained why language lear ning s so cr ucial “In th s inter national sc hool t’s mpor tant for our students to be able to have several languages at their disposal so they can flour ish in the inter national environments where many of them will end up Language ear ning also helps us apprec ate the diver s ty that exists n our world, and promotes together ness and unity of peoples through culture, tradition and ear ning the language tse l Language lear ning is als o a way of developing the brain in a different way using a different mindset and skills It also helps with other subjects, suc h as Eng ish g rammar
“I’m real y excited abou the new languages on offer and I think we’ll see a b g influx o students n o these new classes ”
as “after-sc hool activities”, has always been a par t of the Woodstoc k exper ience in one way or the other But as the prog ramme has g rown, so has the need for a more robust framework to facilitate the activities of a busy student body This is where I come in
The Dean of Enr ichment is a recently for malised role whic h complements the Dean of Residences and Academics As Dean of Enr ic hment, my job is to raise awareness as to what enr ic hment a Woodstoc k will entail and to organise the log istical details of how the prog ramme will work in the context of a c hild’s goal to ensure that every c hild who comes through ample and positive enr c hment exper iences to augment what they are lear ning in dor ms and in the classroom.
Beg inning next semester all PASSAGE activities will r un on a sc hedule muc h like our cur rent academic sc hedule These activities will take place as par t of the sc hool day, r unning from 4:30 – 6pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thur sdays and Fr idays, and from 2:35 – 6pm on Wednesdays Once a student has signed up for an enr ic hment activity, their attendance will be required and, based on their par ticipation, they will be awarded PASSAGE points for the activity on a pass or fail basis There will be major and minor activities offered – some meeting once a week and some meeting several times a week Every student will be required to par ticipate in enr ic hment activities at least
This semester, inspired by a request made by one of the nur sing staff at Landour Community Hospital (LCH), a knitting club was for med for senior sc hool students
Every month at LCH around 35 to 45 babies are bor n The major ity of them go home with nothing, and the new specialist obstetr ic gynaecolog ist wanted to see this c hange In the fir st month of the club, the knitter s - about 30 students plus a handful of staff member s - have knitted more than 70 hats
Ashlea Fidler and Darcey Wunker are cur rently ser ving as advisor s/teac her s for this g roup, g iving students a c hance to lear n more knitting tec hniques and to get help on per sonal projects they might have This has been an amazing oppor tunity for many of the students to meet new fr iends or acquaintances, take on the role of teac hing other s new skills and contr ibuting to the g reater Mussoor ie community While most students have been knitting hats, some have taken to knitting booties or other items to include in the going-home bags for the LCH babies
The word passage, of course, car r ies multiple layers of meaning. Examining only three uses of the word reveals how profound and appropr iate a choice it is: 1 There is the old use of the word, with reference to ships and seas, of taking passage on a jour ney When traveller s “took passage”, they bought a tic ket; they committed to embarking on what was often a long and arduous jour ney We demand similar commitment from students 2 We often speak of a passage in ter ms of a hallway or a tunnel This kind of passage may require that we enter a dark space in order to reemerge into light We demand that students tr ust that eac h enr ic hment exper ience – even the ones that require some darkness – will move them fur ther along a road leading towards light, or more accurate y, enlightenment 3 Perhaps most significantly, native traditions and cultures a round the world include r ites of passage that mark the moment of transition from c hildhood into adulthood The g irl becomes a woman The boy becomes a man These r ites univer sal y involve a c hallenge – the c hallenge of solitude, or deter mination, or bravery We demand that students face c halleng ing exper iences through whic h they g row increasing y confident that they are passing or have passed into adulthood.
two days a week and no more than five days a week It is not our goal to add more busy-ness to our already full sc hedule, but to help students make c hoices as to what specific interests they would like to pur sue in a focused manner There will be many options for students to pur sue and, with an organised sc hedule, no student should feel pulled in multiple directions Rather than encourag ing aimless dabbling this will be an oppor tunity for students to find what their interests are and to pur sue these interests in depth.
Our final and most impor tant goal is to provide students and teac her s the oppor tunity to reflect on what they have lear ned Teac her s of enr ic hment activities will be wr iting comments on student par ticipation and speaking to the g ifts and abilities of the students Students themselves will be g iven time to reflect upon their exper iences as they try different areas of discovery and work to explore their passions g ifting and goals
k Fashion Club The idea sprang from the need in the local community for clothing and appeals to Woodstoc k staff to help them.
“Almost every day someone in the community asks me if have shoes, soc ks, or sweater s to spare I sometimes see my older gar ments being put to interesting use by residents of Mussoor ie,” Sarah said.
The fashion club is just getting off the g round this semester It takes time to acquire the many skills involved in gar ment constr uction and even more in executing or g inal designs While waiting for donated supplies to roll in Sarah has focused on clothing as a for m of per sonal expression with the club “It is not just about looking good: clothing tells us about culture environment, history, ar t and social organisation In more traditional societies like India it is more about a way of expressing creativity through handicraft skills passed down for generations India is an ideal place to lear n about textiles, handicrafts and the subtle language of everyday dress ” Sarah’s plan is to make this an interest that can benefit the entire community very soon The ashion club students are already helping to photog raph Woodstoc k merc handise for sale in the sc hool The also plan to acquire clothing and other mater ials whic h will be re-worked for people in the community
A love of clothing, its design and preser ving its history and culture combined with Sarah s passion for helping the local community teac hes our students that one per son’s passion can reac h a whole community
Both productions were testament to the tremendous community spir it at Woodstoc k whic h saw people come together to offer their talents and assist in the stag ing of the show Staff, parents and students gave their time and energy to build the sets, ma costumes, find props, do the sound and lighting, work as stage manager s, g ive voice coac hing lessons, go on a “buzr un ” collect provisions from the bazaar, or play music in the sho These people behind the scenes deser ve as muc h credit as actor s who were in the limelight on stage Older students have been designing and building robots to
The sound of gunfire and cannon shot has long since passed in Luc know but the r uins of the Br itish Residenc y almost cr y out with those sounds as we feel the holes whic h still remain in the walls Grade 6’s annual tr ip to the area where the Indian War of Independence, or Upr ising, br ings bac k haunting memor ies as we walk through the g raveyard and read the inscr iptions. The fact that there are so many dates from 1857 and 1858 bear testament to the ferocity of the per iod.
Ruskin Bond, Mussoor ie’s renowned author, wrote Flight of Pigeons based on a supposed incident set at the ver y beg inning of the battle. Grade 6 use the book as the basis for a cross-curr icula jour ney bac k in time to the thoughts, feelings and possible incidents whic h occur red in and around this city The book, read dur ing the summer break and studied in depth when second semester beg ins, comes alive The c hurc h, whic h was a setting for Junoon, the amed story of the times and events, is visited and the drama sequences, wr itten at sc hool, are presented on the steps
Sound and its proper ties tie in with Science and are studied at the Imam Bara How can a matc h str uc k at the other end of the Great Hall be audible at suc h a distance? How can you listen to a wall and hear the whisper s of people you cannot see? What br illiant scientific theory is used as the basis for the defender s as they huddle behind their for tress walls and see, but cannot be seen, by the enemy as it enter s the gates? How can the str ucture of the maze so befuddle the enemy that they were not able to reac h the upper levels and take control?
The architecture of the city gates, with their r ich ar ray of symbols and craftsmanship, tower over the students as they travel to the Gumti River The colour s and intr icate designs of the sar is being woven in the villages show the pr ide of workmanship and the skills of ar t as a viable career
Maths timelines based on the dates of bir th, death and average ages will be created back in the classroom. The poignanc y of the tiny g raves with the ages of c hildren less than 12-months-old br ing instant mental images of the tragedy whic h occur red.
“Thought for food” is a natural as Lucknow is also f amous for Tunday kebabs. We met with Pankaj Bhadour ia (pictured above), India’s fir st Masterchef winner, who gave a free lesson in her cooking sc hool to 28 hung ry Grade Sixer s, on how to make idlis complete with, rather appropr iately, gunpowder spice
Cross-Cur r icula? Yes! Educational? Definitely! Memorable? Absolutely!
Do the students enjoy their exper iences? A Grade 8 student found me on the Fr iday before we left and asked if she could come, saying she’d car ry the bags because “it was the best excur sion I’ve ever been on It was awesome!”
From a teacher’s point of view, the reality of what we see and do and the fact we cover so many aspects of the curr icula, I couldn’t have said it better myself.
- Ian Whiteman, Grade 6 teacher and Junior School Cur r iculum Coordinator
Lucknow Poem
Luc know, the crowded city
A lot of things there aren’t pretty
We suffered from the sun’s glare
So hot as if our feet were bare
We str uggled to the old red c hurc h
While the heat star ted to emerge
Our eyes were a watery blur
But after a nap we ’ re ready for adventure
We dragged our selves to the cemetery
Felt pity for those bodies
Filled with KFC
Our stomac hs were full of glee
Amazed by ar tefacts in the Nawab’s place
All the treasures got a jealous gaze
Beaten by the LMG College in basketball
I couldn’t even g ve the ball a catc h
On the train we all had a nap
While stepping off “Mind the gap!”
Satisfied with juices and c hips
So here it is, the end of our tr ip
- Ruke O
When I went there, I didn’t know what to do, I saw the ball, way different than what I’m used to,
The cour t was good, had no problem with that, I was tired already, felt like lying on a super soft mat,
When the game star ted I knew I had to take the ball,
Dr ibbling up and down the cour t, trying not to fall,
Can’t descr ibe the feeling when I made the fir st shot, I wanted to celebrate but a voice in my head said “Don’t Stop”
I think I did really good in the fir st half,
That’s when I fell, had a good laugh, It felt awesome when came and sat, Felt even better when the people clapped, Had some water and a good rest, I knew I had to go out there and tr y my best, I went in there and caught up by eight points, It hur t when the g irl hit my elbow joints,
Through the Roomi Gate we go, Meet our guide to explore, We’re like Johnny Walker, keep on walking That’s what we do!
See the Great Big Mosque but it’s restr icted, Now we ’re confused, Doomed until we know
What it is the building on the r ight?
Now we see this c hunk of food
Lifted by air, how can it be? Tonnes lifted but kilos not! This is some tr c kery!
Around and round the guy takes us,
Straight to the top, hot g round.
Ah! Our feet are bur ning! They’ve tr ic ked us again with this water illusion!
From huge windows to secret passages, It is the perfect secur ity system!
Ambusher s come but through huge windows, Safety is just an ar row away!
Poor Ambusher s! They can’t see the soldier s!
The ar row comes from nowhere and hits them!
Now that I’m done Explor ing, Let’s go for snac ks and cooler s!
- Kr itin G
The game ended, we lost by a few, We then sat and drank Mountain Dew, “It’s fine” thought, “It’s OK ”
It felt good, as on the cour t I lay
- Tenzin C
The Gar r ison Church...
I say “Hello!”
And hear the ec ho (ec ho….-o….-o….)
The c hurc h is so HUGE!
And the marbles are smooth.
The br ic ks are so strong and thic k
With the windows b-r-o-k-e-n and s-h-a-t-t-e-r-e-d...
Inside the c hurc h it is calm and cool…. but outside, I need a swimming pool....
I can smell rotten fr uits (yikes!)
And hear the leaves whisper….(sssrrrrrrrr sssrrrrrr r)
The metals have all gone to r ust.
With every breath you inhale dust...
Cough-cough-cough…
My hair feels rough
This c hurc h is so ancient
I can never be this patient
I want a buc ket of ice
But in this heat it might just vanish!
- Khushi A
The lead senior dor m parents for this new ar rangement will be Yaman Shankardas for the senior g irls and Devan Landseidel for the senior boys
Devan believes the new system will be advantageous for the senior s in many ways
“At the moment our students are finding it a big adjustment when going to college after Woodstoc k, so we want to try and make this transition easier
“This will entail things like more oppor tunities to go shopping in the bazaar and to local cafes and ing redients will be available in the dor ms so the students can cook for themselves
“We hope the results of these new oppor tunities will be useful practical skills suc h as improved cooking skills, lear ning about food nutr ition and how to make a balanced meal, and how to manage finances ”
Yaman said the senior year is cr itical and offer s the oppor tunity to prepare students to adapt adequately for the “world outside”.
She said: “I believe this to be a safe environment where cur iosity, exploration and discovery will be steered under careful adult super vision Relationship-building and tr ust will be the basis to execute this initiative “At the end of it all think this will culminate in prepar ing our senior s to be responsible and respectful young adults ”
We want to ensure that our senior students are provided with the best possible oppor tunity to prepare for the c hallenges of life beyond Woodstoc k For many, this transition will entail the added c hallenges of life in a new countr y and a muc h larger community than that whic h they have exper ienced here
our junior sc hool boarding students will move down to Alter Ridge and Ridgewood – enabling them to be par t of a larger student community and to interact with other students on a dai y basis This is something they presently miss, and we believe this will make for a muc h better residential environment – for our older and our younger students alike We are also making ar rangements to ensure that there will be an appropr ate y high level of staffing for all concer ned
We are confident that this approac h is in the best interests of all our young people and will enable them to acquire competences in impor tant areas of life skill and per sonal capacity whic h will last their whole life
Woodstoc k’s par tner ship with the Institute of Education at the Univer sity of London sees us retur n to our founding vision as a sc hool and teac hing training college More impor tantly, this initiative creates a significant link with one of the world’s leading educational institutes –enabling us to offer Master’s deg rees in advanced educational practice as well as an inter national post-g raduate cer tificate in education This collaboration will enable Woodstoc k to recr uit, develop and retain high calibre teac her s.
We are excited by all that this venture promises – a venture made possible by generous funding from FWS and the Downs Master Teac her prog ramme Few things are more impor tant in a sc hool than the quality of staff and the relationships they cultivate with young people Dr Jonathan Long descr ibes Woodstoc k retur ning to its roots as a Teac her Training College: “I believe we will look bac k upon this as one of the most for mative and inspir ing oppor tunities whic h Woodstoc k has seized in recent year s!”
This quote shows how we are retur ning to our roots, and is from the book Woodstock Celebrates 150 year 1854-2004:
“As par t of its increasing emphasis on higher academic standards, Woodstoc k began to offer a ser ies of higher deg rees and became known not on y as a sc hool, but also as “the college” A Fir st Ar ts (FA) deg ree affiliated with Allahabad Univer sity was new y offered in 1901 The cour se was equivalent to the fir st two year s of college and it began at Woodstoc k with on y four students A Teac her Training College prog ramme established in 1907, accredited by the Uttar Pradesh education depar tment, was limited to eight students This prog ramme eventual y expanded
As Woodstoc k continues with its ongoing commitment for retention of staff through our 2020 Vision, newly refurbished housing is high on our list Features of the renovated housing and standardising of the houses for the community in the future include the following innovations:
The star ting point has been with teac her s, who have the pr imary role in the education of our young people We are delighted to have initiated a par tner ship with the Univer sity of London’s Institute of Education, a world leader in teac her development, whic h will see significant professional g rowth across the whole faculty dur ing the next two year s, with the added oppor tunity for teac her s and residence staff to gain credits towards inter national teac hing credentials and Master’s deg rees dur ing that per iod and in subsequent year s This initiative addresses two objectives: it will both encourage teac her retention, and improve the overall standard of practice in our classrooms The ac hievement of these objectives will in tur n have a huge impact on our students and the quality of a Woodstoc k education It will also create more coherence in what we do, leading to a common language for teac her s whic h will lead to common approac hes in curr iculum, assessment and methodolog ies
We are delighted that our par tner s at Fr iends of Woodstoc k Sc hool Nor th Amer ica recognising the value of this nvestment in staff, have ag reed to fund it over the fir st two year s Thanks are also due to the Downs Foundation, whic h is suppor ting the advanced deg ree element of the prog ramme through its Master Teac her s g rants
The initiative beg ins in Ju y this year with an initial professional development engagement with all teac her s to establish high ‐quality benc hmarks and clear expectations around pedagogy and classroom practice In the fir st year of this c ycle, all staff would be nvolved in two four‐day workshops r un by a visiting team from the Institute of Education at the beg inning of eac h semester In keeping with our 2020 Vision strateg ic goals, the fir st workshop will focus on the teac her as model lear ner These workshops would be followed up through the year by regular focus g roups (approximately 15 staff in eac h focus g roup) including guided reading and discussion facilitated by sc hool‐based mentor s and Institute of Education staff The cour se content for this major professional development initiative is being worked out in close consultation between Woodstoc k and the Institute of Education and based, par tially, on a recent audit carr ied out by the Institute In the second and subsequent year s, initial cour ses would be r un for new staff and a c ycle of additional themes would be developed for all other staff over a three-year per iod.
In response to a felt and expressed need, we are cur rent y piloting in-house training for administrative staff This involves a mix of half-day seminar s on a range of topics suggested by staff themselves, as well as a shor t set cour se for super visor s Those staff who are improving their computer skills will have the oppor tunity to sit for Microsoft cer tification in var ious Office prog rammes following the sc hool’s investment in becoming a cer tification centre Oppor tunities are also being offered for staff to pur sue professional training and additional deg ree-level cour ses as appropr ate to their work These development oppor tunities are being spread as wide y as possible
An initiative by newly appointed health centre coordinator Katie Beth Gill will see two nur ses from the US, with Master’s qualifications, visiting the sc hool next October to provide a week’s intensive training for the whole nur sing staff.
Woodstoc k Sc hool is a lear ning community In 2020 Vision, we c hose not to define “student outcomes” but instead to call them simp y “lear ning outcomes”; the implication and intention is that we are all lear ner s and our cur rent nvestments will enable that lear ning to take place in every par t of the community
- Pete Wildman, Director of
There is a renewed energy and vibranc y at Fr iends of Woodstoc k Sc hool (FWS) in Nor th Amer ica Following discussions in Januar y with Dr Eleanor Nic holson, president of the Woodstoc k Sc hool Board and Dr Jonathan Long, pr incipal, the Board of Director s of FWS has taken on additional responsibilities in fr iend raising and
