Weekly Update November 9 – 16

Jacob and I hope to see everyone at Friday’s Night HS Block Party.  There will be lots of Vietnamese Street food, beverages and conversations.  Please stop by for even a few minutes if you can.  Jacob’s place is just this side of the Rainbow/Star Bridge (Crescent walking bridge) .

Be sure to read the information below about the upcoming tripod surveys.

Lastly, have a great city-wide PD Day on Friday, June 16, 2018.

Tim

Friday, November 9th
Day 5 – CDAB

Monday, November 12th
Day 6 – GHE Adv F

Tuesday, November 13th
Day 7 DABC

Wednesday, November 14th
Day 8 HEFG

Thursday, November 15th
Day 9 ABCD

Friday, November 16th
Saigon PD Day

On the Horizon

• Tim Chute and David Tan will be away from November 14 – 16, 2018 with the IBDP Geography Y2 students.
• Music Concert, November 15, 6pm (Auditorium)
• Saigon International Teachers PD Day, November 16 (Secondary at American International School, Nha Be)
• HS Lock-in, November 23-24
• SSIS Holiday Staff Party, December 1 (Sheraton)

Staff Action Needed

Tripod Surveys: We will be giving student surveys starting November 12-23 designating 1 block per day for the survey.  Each teacher will have at least 3 of their blocks take the survey for them.  So some days you will be giving the survey and some you will not.  Here is the list of  HS blocks/courses that will be surveyed.  For more information about the Tripod Survey and the data you will receive, please read through the  Teacher Toolkit for Tripod.  Here is the actual block schedule for the surveys:

• Nov 12- G
• Nov 13- D
• Nov 14- H
• Nov 15- A
• Nov 16- PD Day
• Nov 20- E
• Nov 21- B
• Nov 22- F
• Nov 23- C

Assessments During Last Two Weeks of Semester 1 (November 30 – December 14)

Grades 11 and 12
AP/IBDP HL hour days are designated as assessment day (last block of the day). Both SL/and HL students will need to attend these “assessment” blocks.  No other major assessments are allowed during the morning blocks. This was reviewed by the HS Leadership and agreed upon by all the Departments. AP classes are the only classes allowed to give homework.
November 30th.  Block E
December 3rd.    Block D
December 4th.    Block H
December 5th.    Block A
December 7th.    Block B
December 10th.   Block F
December  11th.  Block C
December 12th.  Block G

Grade 9 and 10
Please use the shared assessment calendar to assign assessments dates.  No more than 2 high-stress assessments per day rule.

Be sure to read the AP/IB Info, Matrix and Counseling Tabs of the Dragon’s Lair.  They may not always have new content, but contain critical information for you.

Sunshine HS Block Party– The third annual Sunshine HS Block Party is almost here on November 9.  In addition to amazing food and beverages we will have a distinct opportunity to connect with one another’s families and listen to some great bands (Metaforester and Scott Berry and Thomas Galvez).  The party is at Jacob’s House, 01 My Giang 1B at the end of canal street and is right near the Crescent Bridge and park along the river.  We will be starting at 4 and going until 9pm.  Stop by for as long as you can, but the bands will likely be playing between 5 and 7pm.  Please park your bikes and motorcycles on the sidewalk across from the house by the vacant lot.  Special thanks in advance to Ms. Ha and Ms. Huyen for their logistical support of the event and Sunshine Committee members: Amy, Cassie, Evan, and William.

MS Do It Yourself Water Fountain– If you make it down to the MS building you will likely see a water dispenser like the one below.  As a school, we are eliminating single use plastic water bottles and there is still a need for water for students that forget their reusable water bottles.

The DIY water fountain consists of a piece of tubing, 2 hose clamps and a spigot.  It is intended to be used as a “drinking fountain” for students who do not have a water bottle.  The tubing has a yellow/gold color because it was soaked in ginger water for 3 days to remove the plastic taste.  

Backing Up Data:  From David Perkin
Backing up your data is critical. Your computer, USB and external hard drives will fail.   The only way to protect yourself against valuable data loss is through regular backups.

HS Teacher Professional Development

Please follow these directions when you are requesting and booking Professional Development. Please note that Ms Huyen, the HS Secretary, does not make any PD arrangements for teachers.

Step 1: Request for PD leave through the portal if you will be absent from school (click here to access).

Step 2: For registration, please set a time with Ms. Hanh, purchaser (hle@ssis.edu.vn) in Business Office or David Chadwell (dchadwell@ssis.edu.vn), Curriculum Director, to complete registration or email either with full and accurate required registration information  within 7 working days.  If a group is registering, then information for all will need to be gathered first before registration.

Step 3: For flight & accommodation arrangements please set a time with Ms. Hanh, purchaser (hle@ssis.edu.vn) in Business Office, to complete or email her with full preferred travel information.

Step 4: For advance/reimbursement payment, please see Ms. Anh, accountant (avu@ssis.edu.vn) in Business Office. The reimbursement documents should include the following:
– Payment request form (click here to download) with your signature (no need to get your division head’s signature)
– Copy of your approved request for PD funding (the attachment).
– Official receipt(s).

Step 5: To check visa/passport validity before leaving Vietnam for PD, please contact Mr. Duy (dpham@ssis.edu.vn) in HR office.

Step 6: PAPER COPY of a request for a substitute teacher needs to go to Huyen (this is NOT the same as the HR portal which needs to be filled out).

If you have question, please let relevant person in charge know or contact Mr. Huy in the HR Office