Week Ahead: Mar. 27-31
The PTA International Day was a smashing success! Truly thousands attended, ate probably 40,000 portions of food, played games, created art, performed, and had a great time learning more about the different cultures that make up the SSIS family. Please give a huge thanks to the parents and teachers in our PTA who put forth such amazing efforts to make the day incredible.
Just a reminder that I will be out this week visiting Korea International School. Phil will be admin in charge during the week. If you need me quickly, the best way to get me is WhatsApp (my VN number). Though I will be checking email, I will only be doing that at night.
Here is what’s up next week:
Monday, Mar. 27
- Day 6: GHEF
- 1:30-3:00 Admin Mtg (Phil attends)
- 3:00 Grades/Comments Due (use Q3 bin); verification reports printed at 3:45ish
Tuesday, Mar. 28
- Day 7: DABC
- 3:00 Return verification reports to Thao (email or hard copy)
Wednesday, Mar. 29
- Day 8: HEFG (official end of Q3)
- 9:45-10:45 SST Mtg
- 1:05-1:40 G7 PE Dance Performance, Auditorium,
- 3:15-4:30 CTP Proctor / Administration Training (bring computer)
Thursday, Mar. 30
- Special Schedule
- 1:30-3:00 Admin Mtg (Phil attends)
- 4-8pm Student Led Conferences
Friday, Mar. 31
- 8-1:00 Student Led Conferences
- 3:00 Report Cards available and emailed to parents
Upcoming (on the radar)
- April 5 – Service Learning Fair, slightly altered scheduled (Lunch, 4th Block, Advisory)
- April 10 – Author Visit, Minh Lê; grade level assemblies planned (see below)
- April 11, 12, 19, 20 – CTP Testing
- April 14 – MS Talent Show (time to be determined)
- May 1-3 – International Labor Day, VN Kings Day, VN Reunification Days observed
- May 4-8 – Dan Kerr visits SSIS
SLCs:
This is the final week! It’s all about putting all the pieces together. Thanks to your hard work wearing your teacher hat (getting the artifacts linked, the bullet points written), wearing your advisor hat this week should be fairly straightforward. Each student should practice their SLC at least 2 times this week to another student. This is to help prepare them for speaking in front of their parents. This is one of the most important parts of the process – we want to set each student up for success! You might find this SLC Practice Checklist helpful in leading students through the practice. This is the SLC Agenda document which also might be helpful for your students. We will provide all advisors with all SLC materials (agenda, compliments/goal sheet, comment sheets) on Thursday.
On the day of conferences, please set up at least 3 presentation stations in your room (or assigned location). Think about ambiance – you might want quiet music playing, take a look around your room – does it showcase what you want to be showcased?
Pro-Tips:
- Organize the materials provided for you (SLC agenda, parent question sheet, compliments/goal sheet, student Q3 comment report) so you are ready to go for each conference.
- It’s really important to follow the agenda. ONLY hand out Q3 comment reports once the student has completed sharing their artifacts. Do not hand them out early as it truly shifts the tone of the conference from student led to one about grades and teacher perspectives.
- Photos can be action shots or posed. Both are awesome! SLC photo folder
MARCH 30 SPECIAL SCHEDULE:
After consulting with grade level team, here is the schedule we have created for Mar. 30. It helps us keep classes on the same pacing as well as gives time for important tasks and SLC practice. Thank you to all who made location adjustments to make this possible. We will have the CTP browser installation details to you as soon as possible.
MS Schedule for March 30, 2023
| Time | Block |
| 8:00 – 8:40 am | Advisory – SLC Practice (40 minutes) |
| 8:45-9:15 | Block F (30 minutes) |
| 9:15-9:30 | Break (15 minutes) |
| 9:30-10:00 | Block G (30 minutes) |
| 10:05-10:35 | Block H (30 minutes) |
| 10:40 – 11:10 | Block A (30 minutes) |
| 11:15 – 11:45 | Block B (30 minutes) |
| 11:50 – 12:20 | Block C (30 minutes) |
| 12:20 – 1:00 | Lunch |
| 1:05 – 1:35 | Block D (30 minutes) |
| 1:40 – 2:10 | Block E (30 minutes) |
| 2:15-3:00 | Advisory – CTP Browser Installation and Practice Test (45 minutes) |
CTP Proctor / Administration Training Wednesday:
On Wednesday, you will have CTP training provided by David Chadwell, Daniel Mendes, and my (by video). You will learn how to administer the actual test, how to help students load the test browser, student test prep, and all about the logistics on the testing days. You will deliver the first part of this instruction on Thursday during the 2:15-3:00 time spot. We will review all of this on Wednesday. Please reach out early and often for questions about CTP. Here are some key documents that we will be using.
- MS CTP Testing Plan
- MS CTP Testing Groups
- Students who are crossed out in your group will be with EAL/LS for extended time administration
- CTP Practice Experience for Students (delivered March 30)
- Includes slidedeck presentation with video
SERVICE LEARNING FAIR, APRIL 5, WEDNESDAY SCHEDULE:
On April 5 we will have a slightly altered schedule to support the Service Learning Fair.
Author Visit, April 10 (repeat post):
We are so excited to have the opportunity to have author Minh Lê visit SSIS. On April 10, we will have grade level assemblies (still working out which block for each grade) where Mr. Lê will share his work, career, and life story with our students.
Minh Lê is the author of the picture books Lift (Eisner Award nominee) and Drawn Together (winner of the 2019 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature) illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat, Let Me Finish! (named an NPR Best Book of 2016) illustrated by Isabel Roxas, and The Perfect Seat illustrated by Gus Gordon (all published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers). He also wrote Green Lantern: Legacy, a middle grade graphic novel (illustrated by Andie Tong) for DC Comics. In addition to writing books, he serves on the Board of We Need Diverse Books, is on the faculty of the Hamline MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults, and has written for a variety of publications, including the New York Times, The Horn Book, NPR, and HuffPost.
Apr. 10 (Monday): Author visit; grade level assemblies
- 1st block (G) Grade 7
- 2nd block (H) Grade 6
- 3rd block (E) Grade 8
About The Author
