Category: Weekly News

“That’s the thing about December: it goes by you in a flash. If you just close your eyes, it’s gone. And it’s like you were never there.” — Donal Ryan This week we congratulate 2nd grade for a fantastic music concert. As Melanie shared at the concert; they danced, sang, played instruments and created the production. Congratulations to Leon and the entire music department as well as the entire second grade team. It’s hard to believe that it is already December. In a flash it was here and in a flash it will be gone. It is three short weeks until...

“The master schedule is to a school what grading policies are to teachers andclassrooms. It reveals the true beliefs, attitudes, values, and priorities of the school. Theschool’s master schedule is like looking at an MRI of the inner workings of a school. It is the window to the soul of the school” “The Master Schedule: A Culture Indicator,” Before getting into this weeks message, we want to send a huge congratulations to the 5th grader students and everyone who worked with them to pull off what is undoubtedly the best 5th grade concert ever. The collaboration, work, flexibility and value...

 “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.” – Benjamin Franklin Last week was such a gift. In so many schools around the world, power standards, learning targets, formative assessments, summative assessments and rubrics are handed to teachers who are told to just use it. We had the gift of involving every faculty member in these rich conversations throughout the whole week. You created and decided for yourselves. You grappled with what standards really meant and how best to really assess them. Your conversations were student centered and student driven. This week...

   Sometimes you are so busy you forget to appreciate what you have. Dinesh Karthik As I reflected on the last week, this quote was impactful to mer. As educators we get so caught up with our students, our work and our mission that we forget to take a moment to sit back and appreciate what we have. I feel so fortunate to work with such amazing professionals across all three divisions at a school like SSIS. We collectively, not only work at one of the premier schools in HCMC and Vietnam, collectively we are the reason for that. We...

 “This is your Monday morning reminder that you can handle whatever this week throws at you.”  — Anonymous We are in the thick of it now. Academic learning is happening at full steam. With that added cognitive load we are putting on our students, we are now teaching and guiding them to work through hard work and what that means. All students react differently to these high expectations. Some adjust well and others struggle a bit. As you see a need for support with those students who are struggling, please remember to reach out for support. The sooner we can provide...

 “I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught.” — Winston Churchill — Winston Churchill This week many of us will be in the Adaptive Schools training. How you approach this week will be critical to your learning and growth. It is easy to think of all the work that has to be done. There is always work to be done. Please be present in the moment and know that your classes, your students and their learning will continue. What I love about SSIS is the level and capacity of our people to make sure we continue teaching...

Before anything else, preparation is the key to success. -Alexander Graham Bell We are so well prepared for this second quarter. The SuperUnit planning process for unit 2 as well as the reflection from unit 1 allowed all of you to prepare for an even more successful second quarter. The time we spend together can at times feel forced, or unnecessary or frustrating, but it is time well spent if you can push through the roadblocks in order to prepare, so that our students have the best possible learning experiences. As we begin this second quarter in earnest it will...

There is virtue in work and there is virtue in rest. Use both and overlook neither. -Alan cohen It was so great to enter our Fall break on such a positive note from PTC’s. Parents were so appreciative and happy with the progress their students are making. We hope you had a chance to rest and disconnect from all the hard work you did the first quarter. Consider Thursday and Friday a soft opening to the 2nd quarter. Take time to reestablish classroom procedures, routines, and relationships so that Monday you can hit the ground running. Enjoy the rest of...

Parent Teacher conferences should not be a time for new concerns. Rather it should be a celebration of the learning and growth students have made. -Annonymous Parent teacher conference week is among the most important weeks of the year. It is our opportunity to connect with every single parent and celebrate all the hard work our students and you have accomplished. Please take time to reflect on the incredible academic, social, emotional and behavioral accomplishments you have all seen from our students. It truly is remarkable how much has been accomplished in 9 weeks. Weekly Focus: Our focus this week...

“To Achieve great things, two things are needed: A plan and not quite enough time.” -Leonard Bernstein Over the next week and a half all grade levels will have a substantial amount of time during the day to plan for their grade levels upcoming super unit #2. This gift of time may not be enough to get it all done, but it will give each of you a plan to execute so the next unit can be as successful as the first. I was talking to a teacher this week who said they need a deadline, and actually impose self...