IGBIS Newsletter, Issue 292

Hello IGBIS Community,

We have had a number of COVID cases within our community this past week in students, parents and other family members, so please be extra vigilant with your Sunday RTK testing and consider testing all family members in the house. Although we continue to follow all SOP’s, Sunday testing is a way for us to help prevent transmission and keep everyone as healthy as possible. Please take extra care in following the testing protocol so they are as accurate as possible. 

Getting Back To Who We’ve Always Been

When I chose to join IGBIS, it was because I believed that my values as an educator aligned with where the school was and where it hoped to go. Joining the school amidst EMCO’s and SOP’s made it tough to really get to know the “real IGBIS”, the one that I had heard so much about from everyone I spoke with prior to joining. This past week at the Secondary Assembly though, that belief became reality as it was THRILLING to see the “old IGBIS” shine through as we celebrated student leadership, philosophical and political debate, service and action through the recycling club and Walk the World, live music, interactive games and a lot of laughter. 

It was incredible for those who have been with the school since before COVID to see that we’re getting back to who we are and that our DNA is still intact. We might be a little rusty, but this place is still the same underneath it all. For students and staff who joined in the past 18 months, however, this might have been the best glimpse into what IGBIS actually stands for as a school rooted in community, inclusion, inquiry, action and more. The assembly talked about the purposes of school, the environment, refugees, school spirit, the ethics of war and even about a play where nothing happens—twice!—in “Waiting for Godot”…that’s a lot to get through in a week let alone an 80-minute period. Congratulations to the Secondary students and staff who made it all happen and to Idriss for winning a heated rock, paper, scissors battle with me from across the theatre!

Speaking of proud, walking past Grade 3T this week led me to sharing these pictures of the art and writing that stemmed from the Art For Peace in Ukraine initiative that can be found here (password is “PeaceForUkraine”). There is a fine line to be struck between talking to young people about the atrocities of war so that they understand the importance of peace, and not having them feel that the world is a scary place; kudos to Ms Nikki for finding that line. I was so proud to see the work the students produced that doesn’t choose a right and wrong side, but instead chooses peace over violence, caring over conflict. 

Wow, was it ever an easy week to be a proud Head of School!

Jason

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I managed to find a significant amount of time this week popping into classes. I have to say these are the highlights of my week.

I visited a Grade 5 music class with Mr Alex, it was great to see the creativity and engagement of the grade 5’s as they were creating scripts, storylines and atmospheric music to accompany the action. There was so much happening! I can’t wait to see where all this experimentation will lead, hmmm I wonder if it is connected to the PYP Exhibition.

I love to learn and will take any opportunity I can to put that in action. I have to say I learned a lot in Ms Ada’s Bahasa Malaysia class this week. The students were eager to share and draw upon their previous classes to decipher the pronouns that were being taught. As a novice BM student, I learned about ‘saya’, ‘kami’, ‘mereka’ and ‘dia’. I know I have a long way to go, as I am just beginning- maybe I need to drop into Ms Ada’s lessons more often. 

The Grade 1’s were engaged in reading activities when I dropped by. Some students were learning in small groups with Ms Sally and Mrs Ngatai and others had independent tasks they were focusing on. One of the groups was proud to share their learning with me as they were retelling the story they had heard, through sequencing the pictures. When I asked them if they could tell me the story, they used the pictures and retold a very detailed story, all the while with a big smile on their face.

This week we had a very small turnout at Mr Nigel’s Workshop Wednesday: Literacy around us: re-engaging your children in a constantly changing world. He will be leading another workshop next Wednesday, 16th March at 10 am. Supporting students: “An Introduction to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages” It would be great if many of you could attend. I am sure you will gain greater insight into this subject and maybe appreciate the challenges that people in our community face when English is not their first language.

Finally, please remember to help your child take their antigen test this Sunday and then upload it before 8 pm. The email and Toddle announcement has already been sent out with the link to the google form. Thank you, it is much appreciated that we can work together to keep our community safe.

Dates for Your Diaries

• 16^th March: Workshop Wednesday (Online) 10 am: Supporting students: “An Introduction to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages”
• 17^th March: Building community through house spirit activities: Dress in Green.

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IGBIS is now a part of the Global Schools Program. The Global Schools Program is an initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network in support of UNESCO’s Global Action Program on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).

​Through research and advocacy, Global Schools develops the tools, resources and programs to support education systems around the world in shaping a more resilient and sustainable world. The vision of the program is to create a world where every primary and secondary school student is being equipped with the knowledge, values, and skills necessary for effectively responding to the greatest challenges of this century and shaping a sustainable and prosperous world for all.

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SS-Assembly-LIVE-Newsletter

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CALLING ALL PYP, MYP, DP and CP STUDENTS, TEACHERS AND ALUMNI VOCALISTS!!

Do you want to join IB students, teachers and alumni from around the world and be part of the world’s largest IB virtual choir that will send a message of peace through music? Mr. Harold Molina is the IB DP Coordinator at Yorkin School in Costa Rica and he is leading this incredible project with the help of his students. To participate and view previous songs by the choir, sign up here. Let’s Give Peace a Chance.

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Last year we introduced the Walk the World challenge, encouraging you to put your walking boots on and get moving! All Houses were represented but it was Ignis who stomped to victory with 572km, completing 12 out of the 16 challenges. 

We are bringing the challenge back this year, however with a different meaning. Whilst our aim is to get moving, we want us all to think about the people who have to walk these distances on a regular basis. Whether it is to walk to a well for water, walk up and down mountains just to get to school, or walking as a refugee to escape a war-torn area, there are tens of thousands of people around the world who have no choice but to walk for hours on end for their safety and survival and that’s why we are dedicating this month’s House challenge to refugees around the world.

As you walk, we want you to think about why we are doing this challenge, put yourselves in others’ shoes and reflect upon the experiences they have to go through, day in and day out. If this challenge inspires you then as Mr McBride mentioned in the assembly, please reach out to Miss Spracklan, Ms Parratt or Mr MacDonald with any ideas you have to make this an even bigger more meaningful project.

Every time you take a walk/jog/run, simply record your distance and submit the evidence. Every km moved helps your House in travelling the world! You will need evidence to support your submissions, a screengrab from a fitness/tracking app or a photo of a pedometer/sports watch will be sufficient. (Photos of yourselves are great too but sadly not evidence of how far you have actually moved!). Only the whole km’s completed can be counted, so if you walked 7.92km then you can only submit 7km as your distance. The full information can be found on the House splash page, please check here for more details.

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Pre-Order Menu (14 – 18 March 2022)

Click HERE to pre-order.

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