In preparation for Earth Hour arts & crafts, we are collecting used aluminum/tin cans and small glass jars for candle holder creations. Please note:
Thanks for bringing any donations to the Library or PYP Design Room (John Rinker’s Room) before March 27.
Thanks in advance!
Michelle
The Accidental Theatre Company returns with their spring production – Tom Stoppard’s ‘The Real Inspector Hound’. For two nights only, this acclaimed company has kindly agreed to present their latest show – an intriguing country house murder mystery / inquiry into the very nature of existence and truth – in special review for the enjoyment of a limited audience before they go out on tour*. Critics from local and national press will be in attendance.
The two shows will be presented in the Black Box at 7pm on the evenings of Wednesday, 1st April and Thursday, 2nd April. Tickets are available from all regular outlets (Centre lobby) and are FREE!
* Catch the show while you can before it goes out on tour: Shanghai, Beijing, Ulan Baator, Irkutsk, Novosibirsk, Murmansk, Spitzbergen and Reykjavik – schedule TBA (dependent on hitch-hiking opportunities and conditions of spring pack ice).
Early reviews have this to say:
It has scale. It has colour… Large as it is, it is a small masterpiece.
Moon, Second Rate Daily Times
It has a beginning, a middle, and I have no doubt it will have an end. For that, let us give thanks…
Birdboot, First Rate Entertainment Periodical
There are moments, and I would not begrudge it this, when the play, if we can call it that, and I think that on balance we can, aligns itself uncompromisingly on the side of life. Je suis, it seems to be saying, ergo sum.
Moon, Second Rate Daily Times
Sartre meets Shakespeare, Beckett meets Beckham, Joyce meets E.L.James in fifty shades of mauve.
Andrew Kay (NIS Promotions & Props Co.Ltd.)
Without pace, point, focus, interest, drama, wit or originality…
IB Educational Supplement
Some of the cast seem to have given up acting altogether…
Purple Duck
This week the Language Acquisition post will look at how to support students after the lesson.
Provide non native speakers with summary notes of the main points of the lesson.
Lost: iPhone 4, a pair of blue Nike runners
Found: 2 cell phones, 6 watches, a Macbook charger, a gold bracelet
Please see Mrs Tyoschin
I want to send a big thank you to my fellow teachers, I really appreciate your help in making Friday’s MYP Tech Challenge a success and a really big shout out to Robin for his organisation of all the materials and the setup.
If you have any feedback on how to improve activities, set-up, clean-up, scoring, etc. please talk with or send a message to Robin Marsh and/or Russel Fleming.
We are pleased to announce another MYP/DP production is coming your way. ‘Grimm Tales’ (adapted by Carol Ann Duffy) will be performed on 1st and 2nd June 2015.
We are holding auditions on the following days:
Monday 30th March
Tuesday 31st March
Lunchtime (1st half) in the Black Box.
If you are a student from grades 6-11 interested in performing in this show please sign-up and collect an audition extract from Ms Philip or Mr Brown.
Look forward to seeing you!
Graphic organisers can be used to develop Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency.
In order to have a smooth start to the MYP tech challenge please arrive to the Design Centre, 7-10 minutes early so you beat the crowd of students and your teacher leader can give any instructions necessary. Enjoy the afternoon.
Thanks to all that came out to the Pi Day Auction last Friday. There was an enthusiastic crowd of students and staff bidding to win the delicious baked goods. A total of 1500RMB was raised. The money raised will be split evenly between the Amy Yang Fund & the Pfrang Organisation, 750RMB to each.
See you next year for more Pi day fun!
Congratulations to Xuanwu, winners of the Inter House Trivia Challenge yesterday. Wutaishan came in 2nd whilst, the overall leaders, Taiping came in 3rd. This closes the gap a bit for the House Shield but Taiping still well out in front. Current points are:
Taiping 675
Wutaishan 605
Xuanwu 560
Breaking News: MYP/DP Book Week Assembly this Friday at 8am sharp! in the PAC
Our prestigious visiting author, Mr. Ed Vere, will be speaking with us on Friday morning…
Now listen….We went to great lengths to hand-pick this literary professional… just for you, arranged (and paid) for him to fly (literally) across the world…just for you, created an entire schedule to get the most out of his visit in your Arts blocks… just for you, coordinated with your block one teachers to allow this assembly to run until 9:00… just for you, brought in a book fair… just for you, took untold numbers of “shelfies,” wrote “spine poems,” and heard the story “Bananas!” at least two dozen times (just for you)…. The least you can do is be on-time come Friday morning, right?
See you then!
What if you are an ACAMIS swimmer? No worries! Ed Vere will stop the assembly at 8:40…just for you… and excuse the team. Please wait until he lets you go (don’t go by your phone, watch, or “spidey-senses.” Thanks.
It is important to develop Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency. This means that non native need to engage in demanding tasks. These need to be made accessible by providing the necessary support. Once students are comfortable with these kinds of activities, they can be gradually exposed to tasks that are both cognitively-demanding and context-reduced.
Last year we announced our move to Office 365 and the transition away from iWorks. Within the IT department we’ve been working on setting up accounts and are announcing that everyone can log into Office 365 using your regular password and your email address without “staff”. For example, instead of signing on as Brianlockwood@staff.nanjing-school.com, I would use Brianlockwood@nanjing-school.com.
Why move to 365
We are doing this because of Apple’s poor backward compatibility support and their lack of online collaboration. Apple has minimal online collaboration features in iCloud, which only offers an individual level. They also do not provide support using our school email accounts, and we hope to have an integrated system.
Known Issues
Please note we are discovering issues, especially while trying to transfer files from iWorks. We know Pages files are difficult to import. We’ve found that most issues happen with documents containing tables. In most cases creating the file from scratch has been the best solution.
Our Goal
Next year our goal is to use Office as our core tool. All computers for the 2015-16 year will have Office software. Apple’s iWorks software will remain on your computers, allowing sufficient time to transition your documents. Beyond 2016, iWorks will not be part of the school’s software image.
Office Transition Time Line
Tasks can range in difficulty along one continuum from cognitively undemanding to cognitively demanding; and along another continuum from context-embedded to context-reduced. A context-embedded task is one in which the student has access to a range of additional visual and oral cues; for example a one with illustrations of what is being talked about. A context-reduced task is one such as listening to a lecture or reading dense text, where there are no other sources of help than the language itself. A task which is both cognitively demanding and context- reduced, is likely to be the most difficult for students.