From the Director

Dear Members of the AISL Community,
 
I hope that this week’s Leopard’s Tale finds you healthy and well. 
 
We are now in our second full week of distance learning. By now, I hope that you and your children are beginning to settle into a routine that includes schoolwork, exercise, and new opportunities for quality family time. Parents, please do not feel like you have to step in and act as a teacher. The best way you can support our distance learning program is to provide a time and place where your child can access the internet, provide moral support, and encourage your child to regularly engage with his/her teachers through our online platforms. Their feedback and support will be the key to your child’s learning. Also, we fully realize that parents, students, and teachers are all going to make this transition at different speeds and that is perfectly fine.
 
Many thanks to those who submitted responses to last week’s feedback survey. We will use this data to better calibrate the pace and expectations of our distance learning program with the varied needs of the community. If you have additional feedback, questions, comments, or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the principals or me. We are committed to continuing to offer high quality teaching and learning through these unprecedented times.
 
Health and wellness are going to be critical areas of focus for all members of our community in the weeks and months ahead. Please make sure that you are carving out time to take care of yourself. This may be a great time to add a little more exercise into your routine, spend a bit more time thinking about what you are eating, and perhaps even adding a wellness practice to your day such as meditation or yoga. Most importantly perhaps, find some time in the day when you can disconnect from the news feeds, social media, and work emails. We cannot deny the stress that this historic moment is creating for all of us - but perhaps we can use this time as an opportunity to find better ways to manage that stress.
 
Speaking of health and wellness, I am excited to announce the launch of our Distance ASA Program! Each week, our Activities team will be releasing links to short videos that feature our coaches offering drills and exercises that will help our students sharpen their ASA skills. You can see the first installments later in this newsletter. Thank you to the Activities Department for coordinating this project. Also, many thanks to Tony Pappa for filming and editing these videos. Tony is from Conceptually Speaking Designs. He came to the school to create some promotional videos for us, but then found himself stuck here as COVID-19 limited air travel and closed borders. So while in Zambia for an unexpected length of time, he volunteered to create this video series for us! Please join me in thanking Tony Pappa for his generosity!
 
Thank you all so much for your patience, flexibility, and support as we navigate these tumultuous times together. Let us continue to look for ways to support each other.  I have always been proud to be a part of such a strong community and I am confident that, together, we will be able to weather this storm.
 
Stay healthy and safe,
 
Russ