Tirana International School 12 December 2018 Important Dates December 12 - Holiday Concert 6:30 14 - Last Day Before Winter Break (1/2 day - dismissal at 11:30) 14 - Term II Tuition Payment Due 17(Dec)-4(Jan) - Winter Break January 7 - First day of school in 2019! 14-18 - Winter MAP testing Director's Desk Dear Parents, Students, and Friends of TIS, Another year has come and (almost) gone at TIS. Although there are so many wonderful areas of note in 2018, I would like to point out the way our community has come together to create a new vision for who we are as a school. Starting almost a year ago, we began the process of evaluating our performance as a school and deciding what we hope that every member of the community knows and believes. These thoughts came down to 4 main statements: We are a global community We believe everyone can succeed We create a supportive environment We demonstrate excellence by attitude and accomplishment These are the ABCD of TIS - the foundational aspects of our community that each person should believe. For me as an educator, it is important to point out that the "we" in each statement is not just for students or teachers, it is for everyone. It applies to the staff, students, teachers, administration, advisory board, and parents. We together make TIS an amazing place to learn and thrive. Let's take that same spirit into 2019. See you next year, Robert S. Jackson, Director MSA Accreditation We continue to prepare for our accreditation review in February and wanted to explain how the process works. During our visit, a team of 4 international school educators and administrators will visit the school for several days. However, before they arrive, the group will read our self study, a 175 page document that the entire community has compiled that analyzes and critiques the strengths and growth areas of TIS. If you took a survey over the last year, then your voice and ideas went into the report! Once the group arrives on campus, their goal is to determine if our report aligns with reality. They will tour the building, check our safety procedures, review our documentation and assess our overall viability as a school. One of the most important parts of the visit is for them to talk with students, staff, parents and other stakeholders to help get a clear picture of our school. Once that is completed the team will make recommendations on improvement as they take a critical eye on areas of growth. Their visit will be a highlight of the year and we can't wait to meet the team when they arrive! Holiday Concert Our annual Holiday concert "Ringing in the Holiday Season" will be held on December 12th at 6:30pm. Over 170 children will perform for you at this very festive event!! Each age group from 5s-13s in vocal music and violin will perform. Mark you calendars.... more details coming soon Parents, TIS is excited to announce our winter Saturday Sports Program. TIS will offer a six-week gymnastics and basketball program for our students from ages 5-13. Dates: January 12, 19, 26 February 2, 16 March 2 Gymnastics for ages 5-7 will run from 9:00 until 10:00 Gymnastics for ages 8-13 will run from 10:00 until 11:00 Basketball for ages 8-10 will run from 9:00 until 10:00 Basketball for ages 5-7 will run from 10:00 until 11:00 Basketball for ages 11-13 will run from 11:00 until 12:00 The cost for the gymnastics is 6000 Leke for the six-week session. Payment will be made directly to the coaches at the first session. The gymnastics training will be conducted by 3 coaches with extensive experience in the United States and Albania. There is no cost for the basketball program. Both programs are open to boys and girls. The schedule has been organized so that children may participate in both activities. Registration for the Saturday Sports program can be completed by filling out the Google form HERE The ancient civilization of Sumer In 11YO Cultural Studies, students have been studying the ancient civilization of Sumer. Students re-enacted a Sumerian marketplace. They chose occupations, researched those occupations, created posters to advertise their wares, and made tokens to represent their crafts or goods. They then had the chance to bargain and trade with other sellers. Some students really liked bargaining! Dewey See It? In the library class, ten-year-old students have been learning about Dewey Decimal Classification. This system is a numerical scheme for the arrangement of nonfiction books, and students have been practicing the 10 main subject groups. Libraries in more than 140 countries use the DDC to organize and provide access to their collections. 3D Paint Program In 6 year old technology class the students are experimenting with the Microsoft 3D paint program. The paint program helps with hand eye coordination and mouse skills. Looks like Ali is in the holiday spirit. Winter This week, the theme in the Dragonflies class is “Winter”. During morning centers, the children are reviewing letters with the help of gingerbread men, paintbrushes and sensory trays full of seasonal smells! Analyzing Satirical Text British Literature students have finished analyzing satirical texts of the 18th century, including Candide by Voltaire and an epic poem by Alexander Pope, and an essay by Mary Wollstonecraft. The inquiry learning method prompted us to apply the big questions from that time period to present days. After doing some additional research and critical thinking, students presented their views on the following philosophical and social questions: Can science tell us how to live? What can fix society’s problems? What is the role of women in public life? Conjugation of Verbs Spanish students learned how to conjugate regular -ar, -er and -ir verbs in Present Tense in all 6 forms in Spanish removing the infinitive ending (-ar, -er,-ir) and adding the ending that matches the subject using the color code per each group of verbs to simplify and better understanding the process. The conjugation of verbs never been so easy and colorful and all the students succeed. Wacky Wednesday The 9 Year Old Friendtastics showed loads of school spirit on Wacky Wednesday. It was another beautiful fantastic day in TIS. Game Day Review Students had the opportunity to review their third Unit in Mathematics through a ball throw obstacle course. It was a beautiful day to take a break from the classroom routine. |