This week, we held a coffee morning for parents on Transitioning to a New Country. You can access the presentation with resources on here.

As families prepare to move on to new destinations, we recognize the mix of excitement and emotion that comes with such a big transition. Saying goodbye to friends, routines, and a familiar school can be hard on both students and parents. Our counseling team is here to offer support, resources, and space to reflect as you get ready for your next adventure. Please don’t hesitate to reach out - we're here to help make the transition as smooth and positive as possible.

Embracing change can be challenging yet rewarding. Here are a few tips to help ease the transition for both you and your children:

• Open Communication: Encourage your children to express their feelings about the move. Share your own feelings to foster a supportive environment.
• Explore Together: Take time to discover your new surroundings. Visiting local parks, museums, and cultural sites can make the new place feel more familiar.
• Establish Routines: Maintaining daily routines can provide a sense of stability amidst the change. Try to keep mealtimes, bedtime, and family activities consistent.
• Connect with Others: Seek out local community groups or expat networks. Building connections can provide valuable support and friendship.
• Embrace New Experiences: Encourage your children to try new activities, whether it’s sports, arts, or local traditions. This will help them adapt and feel more at home.

Remember, transitioning takes time. Celebrate small milestones and be patient with yourselves as you adjust to this new chapter. Together, you'll create lasting memories in your new home!

Another highlight of Earth Day was our evening Community Bat Walk led by Mr Matty, Grade 2 teacher. Mr Matty shared his passion and expertise for bats and took all interested people on a walk around campus looking for bats. It was such a nice ending to make Earth Day even more special.

In PS we celebrated Earth Day to raise awareness about our planet and our shared responsibility to take care of it.

It was absolutely wonderful to see students and staff come to school wearing blue and green to represent planet Earth and spread school spirit across campus. The morning started with interesting conversations about Earth Day in school; students reflected on how we can all make a difference by making small changes to help our planet.

During break times, our Student Council and Agents of Change students led some fun activities for all students who wanted to join in.

Students moved and grooved in an Earth Day Freeze Dance, striking poses like trees and waterfalls when the music stopped. They played Nature Says, following nature-themed actions like buzzing like bees and growing like flowers. In Eco-Charades, learners acted out Earth-friendly actions such as recycling and planting trees, while others guessed what they were doing. A round of ‘Pass the Plant’ let kids share their love for nature and ways to protect the planet. The day ended with a lively Recycle Relay, where teams raced to sort waste into the correct bins. Led by our amazing Agents of Change, Earth Day was all about caring for our planet in playful and meaningful ways.

​Have you ever wondered what teachers are doing behind the scenes while also teaching every day? Here are some things that teachers spend time doing:

• Collaborative Planning: Throughout the week teachers are planning engaging learning activities for the students.  They work alongside the SSTs, Integrationists, and as a grade level team.  Teachers are working on building a transdisciplinary approach and having students build connections across the disciplines. Teaching teams also have a collaborative planning session with the PYP Coordinator.

• Retreats: Prior to a new unit beginning, teachers come together with myself to discuss the elements of the upcoming units.  Teachers use feedback collected by previous students and teachers and current student input to guide the new unit.  Within these planning retreats teachers use the AERO standards, PYP scope and Sequence to determine the learning outcomes for the unit.  These learning outcomes are also the ones that will be reflected through our reporting.

 

• Data informed instruction: Teachers are continuously collecting formative data that is used to create groups and inform instruction.  Teachers use this to reteach instruction, extend instruction, and work towards meeting all the students' needs.

I hope that this gave you a little insight to all that teachers are doing to prepare for each day.  

This week is Digital Citizenship Week.  Here are some excellent resources for parents to promote Digital Citizenship Week at home and help to engage your children in discussions around digital citizenship.:

1. Common Sense Education: Offers a wealth of materials, including lesson plans, videos, and articles focused on digital citizenship topics, such as online safety and responsible tech use.
2. Digital Citizenship Curriculum from ISTE: Provides resources and guidelines to help parents understand how to support their children in developing digital citizenship skills.
3. Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI): Offers tips, tools, and resources for parents to help guide their children in safe online practices.
4. CyberWise: Provides resources aimed at empowering parents to teach their children about safe and responsible internet use.

These resources can help you engage in meaningful conversations with your children about responsible technology use and online behavior.  Today during advisory, students filled out a survey on our cell phone policy implemented at the beginning of this year.  While we still periodically have issues on campus with cell phone use,  generally, students have been compliant with the policy and many have commented on how ‘freeing’ it has been not having to deal with anxiety of their mobile device at school.  Teachers and parents visiting campus have commented recently on how nice it has been seeing kids interacting with each other throughout the day rather than their device.  Thank you for your ongoing support in implementing this important policy in our school.

​One of our big goals for this school year will be to develop a Culture of Kindness in Primary School, one that is built around our School Charter, which focuses on three words: Happy, Respected, Safe.

One of the first steps in creating this culture  is to understand that in order to be kind to others, one has to be kind to oneself first. In order for students to deepen their understanding of how to foster our own wellbeing, Ms Heather, our Primary School Counselor, and I have planned to lead wellbeing assemblies for our students throughout the school year.

We started these assemblies this week with our Grade 4 and 5 students, focusing on personal wellbeing strategies to look after ourselves in order to be able to give back to others. After some thoughtful discussions, students engaged in different mindfulness activities to practice some of the strategies they discussed. Mindful Body Scanning, Yoga, Mindful Reading and Mindful Drawing were stations that kept our students engaged.

​And look at what I stepped on when walking through campus today: What a beautiful surprise to see this on one of our walkways.

The focus of AISM is always focused on achieving our mission to pursue excellence by empowering learners to achieve mastery of self, advance their communities, and flourish in an ever-changing world while living out our core values to: Celebrate Humanity, Cultivate Grit, Inspire Curiosity, and Embody Integrity. The spirit of our mission and core values are intertwined with our new strategic priorities:

• AISM will implement educational practices and technologies that challenge and enable all students to fulfill their academic potential.
• AISM will integrate effective social-emotional learning and support to enhance student and staff well-being.
• AISM will cultivate opportunities for students to collaborate with diverse communities in Mozambique to create positive outcomes.

In short, our priorities are to ensure that we have school programs that are CHALLENGING, CARING, and CONNECTED! I look forward to using this space to share details about the steps we are taking to support our strategic priorities.