Tirana International School April 4, 2018 Important Dates April 5 - Coffee Break with Era - 8:00 am 4-6 - AP Mock Exams 12-15 - MS Soccer in Sarajevo 14 - School Wide Planning Event 21 - TIS Charity Gala 26-29 - MS Knowledge Bowl in Skopje 30 - May 4 - Spring Break - No School May 7-18 - AP Testing (good luck students!) 11 - International Night 21-31 - Student MAP Testing 25-26 - Balkan Art Festival
Director's Desk Dear Parents and Friends of TIS, The next few weeks are packed with activity, and we hope that each family will be able to participate. First, let me remind you all to put April 14 on your calendars. This important date is our School Planning Day, during which we review data about the school and strategically plan for the next 7 years. Join us for a community breakfast in the cafeteria at 9:00 and stay as long as you are able. In just one month we will have our annual International Night. Last year we were represented by nearly all of our 30 countries and it was certainly a night to remember. This is a wonderful opportunity for you to set up a table and share your home culture with the community. We began the evening with the parade of flags and then celebrated our diverse cultures throughout the night. Eva will be sending out information next week about how to sign up for a table. Looking Forward, Robert S. Jackson, Director In-Depth Study in American Literature American Literature students have chosen excellent books for their novel study unit. Titles include The Picture of Dorian Gray, Their Eyes Were Watching God, East of Eden, The Grapes of Wrath, A Thousand Splendid Suns, To Kill a Mockingbird, and short stories by Edgar Alan Poe. "The ending of East of Eden is the most powerful I've read in a while." - Rea "Edgar Alan Poe's stories are terrific! I love them." - Eliana "I've learned so much about life! I feel like I've experienced a lot without actually experiencing it." - Dimitrije (about The Picture of Dorian Gray) TAIS Choir Festival Congratulations to the 10yo music class for hosting and performing in the 2nd Annual TAIS Choir Festival. We had over 85 students here at TIS for 8 hour of preparation, singing and fun throughout the day and they presented an excellent concert last Thursday. 10yo you were model representatives of TIS. Thank you for all your hard work. Congratulations also to the 9yo who sang at the concert. This is the link to the concert available on Google drive. Teaching is 100% Learning It is tremendously thrilling to see how Elementary Intensive English students who are still developing their English are helping their peers. In interacting with one another, these students take pride in explaining words and concepts, while at the same time deepening their own understanding of key concepts by teaching them to someone else. Poetry The 12/13 YO Literature/Writing class is studying poetry. Taking inspiration from mentor poems we read and analyze in Literature class, students compose original poetry in Writing class. We have been having fun supporting each other in reciting original poetry in friendly class poetry slams. Calmness by Sam Calmness is a white lily, in the middle of nowhere, letting its odour inside my nose, Calmness is the sweetness of honey slowly spreading upon my tongue, Calmness is resting my head upon the ageing, winter sun, Calmness is a sea, lost in the rhythmic percussion of waves on sand, Calmness is a distant, faded chirping of a family of birds. Matter in Science The 6 year old class is studying Matter in Science. We have had different stations that experimented with items that would "sink" and "float". We created boats out of aluminum foil and will see which boat can float with the most pennies as its cargo. We also experimented with substances that would dissolve or not dissolve in water. We found that salt, dish soap, and baking soda would dissolve. We found that clay, cotton, oil, and sand would not dissolve. Water Quality The middle school health classes are exploring environmental health. 12 and 13 year olds have been learning about problems with water quality. They are investigating Tirana's water supply and testing samples from different sources. They have found that all sources were free of nitrate, phosphate and lead. While tap water had no bacteria present, samples from the Artificial Lake and Lana River showed evidence of contamination. Grandparents Visit The Bumblebee class had special guests visiting from America, grandparents! They stopped by to read us a great book about a little girl who lost her stuffed bunny in New York City. We loved the book and the special guests! DEAR Time! It's DEAR Time! The 9 year olds enjoy a much deserved break after a long week of work preparing for Student-Led Conferences. They DROP EVERYTHING AND READ! Vocabulary The 5 y.o class learned about the food in Spanish. After learning the new vocabulary matching the words in Spanish with the pictures they draw themselves in 3 different colours to classified the food in 3 categories: in Red for the food they don't like "no me gusta", in orange for the food they like "me gusta" and in green for the food they love "me encanta". In the end of the unit they practiced the vocabulary in role play by buying and selling (with fake money) different kinds of food. Easter in French Last week Elementary French students enjoyed talking about Easter in French. They learned about how to say Happy Easter, Easter egg, Easter bunny, Easter egg hunt. At the end they really enjoyed making a colorful poster about Easter. Grammar Concept The Albanian Language students are working very hard to apply the grammar concepts learned in class. They are doing an awesome work! Summer Camp 2018 The TIS Summer Camp 2018 will be a fantastic place where your child will enjoy the fun and educational activity program , which will focus on a weekly theme and followed by a weekly field trip outside the campus. This is a great environment to learn , develop social skills and most important have fun during the hot summer days. TIS Summer camp will be offered to students 2-11 years old, stating at 9:00 am- 3:00 pm and healthy lunch included .For more information regarding the program and registration please visit our activities website |