Secondary News

Upcoming Parent Information Sessions:
We host three to six Parent Information Sessions each month to support our parents in understanding what their children are learning and how to support them at home.  If you have ideas about Parent Information Sessions that you or others would like to attend, please let our Assistant Principal, Dr. Sheila Seiler, know by writing to her at sseiler@aislusaka.org.
Have a great weekend!

Grade 10 Transition

Next week, on February 4 and 5, our Grade 10’s will participate in two-day retreat to help them transition into Grade 11.  Our High School Counselor Ms. Julie Baldry and DP Coordinator Monica Murphy will be running most of the activities.  Some important topics that will be covered include the following:
     - The three paths to graduation: Full IB Diploma, IB Courses, and AISL High School - Diploma;
     - Assessment in the DP;
     - Choosing the right DP subjects for university entrance;
     - Subject and core requirements
One of the main objectives of the retreat is for Grade 10 students to begin making their course selections, so they’ll be given the opportunity to visit a range of DP classes to get a sense of what they’re like.  
A parent session will also be held on Wednesday February 3 providing a synopsis of the information from the retreat. Following the retreat, Julie and Monica will begin meeting with each Grade 10 student and their parents/guardians to select subjects and provide individualized guidance. 

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FAQS for the Class of 2021

Our Diploma Programme Coordinator, Monica Murphy, has created a Frequently Asked Questions page to provide guidance for students and families around the May 2021 examination session.  It will be updated as the IB provides more information.  You can submit questions through this form.
Image credit: Yellow Pencil Graduation Class Notebooks

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Teaching in the MYP

In a regular classroom at AISL you will see social skills embedded in the Approaches To Teaching (ATT) which are basically just good pedagogical approaches that include students

• working in groups 
• taking on roles in classroom discussion 
• assessing themselves 
• being supported in conflict situations 
• being assessed in groups  
• getting teacher feedback on how their group collaborated 
• discussing texts and ideas and coming up with a shared understanding  
• reflecting on their behaviour in class or in a group 
• considering alternative viewpoints  
• making decisions

An example of this was Grade 7 exploring Amanda Gorman’s inauguration poem. Students watched Amanda Gorman on YouTube. Individually they watched it again, read through the poem, and annotated the poem (the teacher had modeled this for them). They used a thinking routine to make connections, explore concepts, challenge ideas and reflect on any changed thinking. This individual time allowed students to write down ideas so that they were prepared for group work. Each group collaborated to answer three questions and put their ideas on a slide to present back to the whole class. The teacher visited each group to support. Students came back together as a class for groups to present their ideas on the questions. After some further insights and discussion, students finally reflected on the ATL skills that they practiced during class: 
Communication: Read critically and for comprehension 
Social: Manage and resolve conflict and work collaboratively in teams 
Thinking: Make unexpected or unusual connections between objects and/or ideas
Research: Compare, contrast and draw connections between resources

G12 Personal and Social Education

As teachers and students begin a new semester in an academic year full of many uncertainties, we can all reflect on our experiences of 2020 and realize that academics are certainly not the most important part of our lives. The relationships we form with others, our physical and mental health, our beliefs and our values - all of these contribute to our well-being and sense of self. AISL's Personal and Social Education (PSE) curriculum aims to complement our academic program with lessons on a variety of important topics, including, for our older students, sessions on sexual education. These sessions are led by Advisors, Counselors, or subject teachers, as appropriate.

Honoring the diversity of our community, we provide parents with the date and topics in advance. Because of scheduling disruptions due to COVID-19, this year we are grouping similar topics together for a combined total of six Grade 12 PSE lessons, as follows:

1. Love, Marriage, and Lifetime Commitments (led by Advisor Florence Bouillot) - F-Block January 27, G-block January 28
​2. Reproductive and Sexual Anatomy (Biology teacher Bob Stewart, co-taught by Biology students) - Both blocks February 19
3.  Human Sexual Response and Sexual Dysfunction (Counselor Julie Baldry) - F-block February 23, G-block February 25
4. Sexuality, Media, and the Arts (Advisors Florence Bouillot and Monica Murphy) - F-block March 5, G-block March 16
5. Personal and Shared Sexual Behavior; Abstinence; Sex and Religion (Counselor Julie Baldry) - Both blocks March 22
6. Sexuality and Society; Gender Roles & Diversity (Counselor Julie Baldry) - F-block April 1, G-block March 30

All parents can review the lesson topics in more detail in the PSE Parent Handbook. If any parents would prefer that their child not attend a PSE lesson, they are welcome to email attendance@aislusaka.org to exempt their child from attending. Whether or not your child is attending a PSE lesson, we do encourage all families to discuss these important issues with your children at home.

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Social and Emotional Health

Addressing social stigma associated with COVID-19 with Ms. Driekie Smith.
OUR WORDS MATTER!
Some Do’s and Don’ts to consider when talking about this disease to minimize stigmatization:
   - DO talk about the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
   - Don’t attach locations or ethnicity to the disease (The official name for the disease was deliberately chosen to avoid stigmatisation - the “co” stands for Corona, “vi” for virus and “d” for disease, 19 is because the disease emerged in 2019.
    - DO talk about “people who have COVID-19”, “people who are being treated for COVID-19”, “people who are recovering from COVID-19” or “people who died after contracting COVID19”
   - Don’t refer to people with the disease as “COVID-19 cases” or “victims”
   - DO talk about people “acquiring” or “contracting” COVID-19.
   - Don’t talk about people “transmitting COVID-19” “infecting others” or “spreading the virus” as it implies intentional transmission and assigns blame.
   - DO speak accurately about the risk from COVID-19, based on scientific data and latest official health advice.
   - Don’t repeat or share unconfirmed rumours, and avoid using hyperbolic language designed to generate fear like “plague”, “apocalypse” etc. 
   - DO talk positively and emphasise the effectiveness of prevention and treatment measures.
    - Don’t emphasise or dwell on the negative, or messages of threat. We need to work together to help keep those who are most vulnerable safe. 
   - DO emphasise the effectiveness of adopting protective measures to prevent acquiring the new coronavirus, as well as early screening, testing and treatment.
Do your part:

• Show empathy towards those affected
• Promote facts not fear
• Correct misconceptions
• Promote the importance of prevention
• Amplify the voices and stories of those who recovered

https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/covid19-stigma-guide.pdf?sfvrsn=226180f4_2

Communications

We know that this can be a time filled with uncertainties, so please understand that our highest priority is the health and well-being of your children.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at rodum@aislusaka.org and sseiler@aislusaka.org.
Kind regards,
Dr. Rick Odum, Secondary Principal
Dr. Sheila Seiler, Secondary Assistant Principal