October:
04 Unit 1 reports will be available on line today 04 Grade 5 Residential Trip begins - return on October 07 11 Public Holiday - school is closed 14 3 Way Conferences - no school for students. Please watch out for information regarding making a booking and organisation for that day. 28 School is closed for the Diwali break. School resumes on November 07. ![]() Why am I blogging about reading? Our focus in the Primary Division this year is on the Language Scope and Sequence for PYP, in particular the strand of reading and writing. The love for reading is born in the home. At school we can build on this but I am a firm believer that the home is where reading, and a love of reading in all its forms, modeled by parents and grandparents, is where children first catch the ‘reading bug.’ The National Academy of Education, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, set up the Commission on Reading. The primary findings in their report was that, “The single most important activity for building knowledge required for eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children.” Reading with your child should be a joyful experience. The author Emilie Buchwald sums it up nicely: “Children are made readers on the laps of their parents” My advice for you is simple:
Some tips:
Above all enjoy this time with your child. Dear Parents of OIS Students in Grades 3, 5, 7, and 9:
This message is to inform you that next week (Wednesday and Thursday, September 28 & 29), OIS will once again administer the International Schools Assessment (ISA) to students in the above-mentioned grades. According to the developer of the assessment, “the ISA is a set of tests used by international schools and schools with an international focus to monitor student performance over time and to confirm that their internal assessments are aligned with international expectations of performance.” It is not a competitive or comparative test. The results provide data that will allow us to monitor our educational program to ensure that it is in line with international standards. Students in Grades 3, 5, 7, and 9 will take the assessment in homeroom groups over the course of Wednesday and Thursday morning. There are 4 parts: mathematical literacy, reading, narrative writing, and expository writing. Each part takes 45 minutes to an hour to complete. We are pleased to note that, for the last few years, our students have scored above the mean results for each portion of the assessment. In addition, the rate at which each grade-level group’s scores have improved has outpaced that of their peers in similar schools. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Best wishes, Steve Augeri Deputy Head of School ![]() Please note the events which are coming up in September and in October. September: 27 08:00 Grade 3 residential trip information meeting for parents. 28 ISA testing for Grade 3 and Grade 5 only - please read the note about this on my blog. 29 ISA testing for Grade 3 and Grade 5 only - please read the note about this on my blog. October: 04 Unit 1 reports will be available on line today 04 Grade 5 Residential Trip begins - return on October 07 11 Public Holiday - school is closed 14 3 Way Conferences - no school for students. Please watch out for information regarding making a booking and organisation for that day. 28 School is closed for the Diwali break. School resumes on November 07. ![]() Welcome to my blog. The purpose of this blog is for me to communicate my thinking, the upcoming events, and to give you a window into my days as the Head of Primary at OIS. Do pop back from time to time to see what is new. September
02 Attended the Grade 4 Coffee Morning with the Head of School Pedagogical Leadership Team meeting - this team is comprised of the Head of Primary, the Deputy Head of Primary/PYP Coordinator and the Deputy PYP coordinator. We meet to advise and discuss on curriculum and pastoral matters. 06 Attended the Grade 5 Coffee Morning with the Head of School Visited classes across the primary school Facilitated the Faculty Meeting 07 The Senior Leadership Team meets twice a cycle and our role is more around big picture thinking. Visit to Grade 5C class who wrote a persuasive letter to me arguing why the students should be able to take the lift between floors during school. 08 The Student Support Meeting - This meeting centres around the students who are identified as benefiting from support for their learning. We meet to talk about the interventions we can provide to support each child's needs. 13 Today I started meeting with the teachers about their individual goals for the year. I met with the Tech Integration Team to talk about the initiatives they have planned for the year. 14 I enjoyed my time visiting the Grade 1 classes for the culmination of their learning about different cultures. It was great to see so many parents attend this morning with their children Attended a meeting with the Head of Early Years 16 The Grade Level Leaders meet to talk over the progress we are making on our primary division goals for this year. |
Mr Tony
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