The Crane, 9 March 2018

Items

  • Madame Butterfly
  • Homestays for Students from the Netherlands
  • Staffing update for 2018/2019
  • Late Arrivals and Early Dismissals
  • PTA News

1. Principal’s Message

Dear HIS Community

As you know, we have 10 Learner Profile attributes that form the basis of teaching and learning at HIS. ‘Balanced’ is one of these. With all of that wonderful technology that helps us out each day, there is the potential for us to lose some balance in our lives. We are wanting to encourage members of our school community to try out some technology-related challenges. We will be asking ourselves to think of some areas in our lives where we feel that the use of technology is interfering with our sense of balance. For example, sometimes gaming or social media may interfere with sleep patterns or the phone could be a distraction from family at dinner time. We will be thinking of some of these issues and be forming some personal challenges to address the imbalances. It would be a good conversation to have at home.

Also, we are looking for families to host some students from the Netherlands. Here is a message in Japanese from one of our kind hosts from last year, Takao Kamibeppu. Thank you. For some insights in English regarding the experience, please see the Crane video.

オランダ人生徒をホストして
上別府隆男
去年4月オランダ人男子生徒を2人受入れました。最初はどうなるか心配でしたが、食事と部屋を提供しただけで、あまり手はかかりませんでした。外から帰ってくると、時差ボケか疲れか、強い暖房を付けてすぐ眠りについていたのが記憶に残っています。2人とも日本の文化や伝統を知りたいという意識が強く、日本食をよく食べてくれたり、日本語に残るオランダ語を一緒に見つけたりして、こちらも結構勉強になりました。滞在中、2人は1945年以降の放射線の影響というテーマについていろいろと広島近辺で調べ、資料を探すのを手伝ったりしました。2人の日本語は挨拶程度でしたが、身振り手振りや片 言の英語でも意思疎通は結構できました。2人は1人がトルコ系、もう1人がフィリピン系で、多言語を話し、異文化適応力は高く、ヨーロッパで育つ若者に触れるいい機会となりました。

Kind regards

Damian Rentoule (Principal)

2. Crane Video

3. Madama Butterfly

Opera Madama Butterfly 「蝶々夫人」TICKETS will be available at the door. 当日券もありますので、多数のご来場お待ちしています。Hope to see many of your there.

4. Homestays for Students from the Netherlands

Once again this year, HIS will have six students from Comenius College in Rotterdam, the Netherlands visit us in early April 2018. We are in need of four more families to host!

We are one year into our partnership with Comenius College. Last school year, six Dutch students visited HIS along with their teachers to conduct independent research, join in classes and learn about life in Hiroshima. In September 2017, HIS sent nine students to the Rotterdam on a similar program. This partnership is based on an agreement that families from each community will host visiting students. Not only does this make the trip cost-effective for both schools, it provides students with an authentic experience while they are abroad.

We are currently looking for host families to host students April 5-12, 2018. Host families are responsible for providing lodging, meals, and transportation to and from HIS for the visiting students. Host families are encouraged to engage in cultural exchange activities with the students during non-school hours. Small trips around town, sharing traditional food and customs are welcome! If you are interested in hosting a student or have questions about the possible arrangements please contact Ms. Pechhold (jpechhold@hiroshima-is.ac.jp).

We especially encourage students in Grades 8-12 to host a student, especially if they traveled to the Netherlands this past year. If you are interested in going to the Netherlands next school year, this is an excellent way to make a friend in advance! When we return from spring break, we will have just four weeks before our Dutch students arrive!

If your child is currently in grade 8-11 and would like to consider visiting the Netherlands in September of 2018, there will be an information session during Parent Teacher Student Conferences on 21 March.

5. Staffing update for 2018/2019

We have four new staff members joining us next year.

  • Jon Savage is joining us as Secondary Vice Principal
  • Kathryne Imabayashi will take on the role of Primary Vice Principal
  • Marisa Villarreal will be teaching KG/Gr1
  • Justin Lancon will join us as a teaching assistant in the library role known as the Inquiry Support Instructor, supporting all classes through our library-based resources.
  • Matt Jungblut will join our Gr4/5 class as teaching assistant to work with Mr. B.
  • We are still looking for a teaching assistant for our EC3/4 class to work with Masayo-sensei.

Otherwise, you can expect everyone to be in similar roles as this year.

6. Reminder for students – late arrivals and early dismissals

Please be reminded of the procedures for students arriving at school late or early dismissal:
  • Late arrival: A parent should notify the office and homeroom teachers via email or phone about late arrival. Students should sign in upon arrival in the office so that their arrival can be noted and attendance updated.
  • Early dismissal: A parent should notify the office and homeroom teachers via email of the early dismissal. Students should check out in the office before leaving. Students may not leave school grounds early without notification from the parent. 
Please understand that these procedures are in place for the safety of our students and so that the school can accurately communicate students whereabouts with all staff. 

7. PTA News

(日本語は以下に)

From Playground renovation team

The PTA members are currently working to upgrade the school playground and build a garden. As the project requires additional manpower, we have enlisted roughly 10 student volunteers of the early childhood education department of the Hiroshima Medical Secretary & Early Childhood Education Technical College, who will be helping us on March 13, 14, and 15.

The volunteers are students in the fields of education and child care who have pledged to be responsible in their interaction and polite in their communication with HIS students. They are students of Ikumi (mother of Mimi in KG1) and will be working under her direction, so there should be no issues. However, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact us.
To thank the volunteers for their help, we are thinking of arranging lunch and snacks for them, and welcome any related contributions (whether Japanese or foreign) from parents.

14 Apr Festival

 poster-final ー.png

 Festival A4 infomation.pdf

Special thanks to Mrs.Kurokawa and the artist from G10

The flyers will be printed next week.

*We need more volunteers!

Even if you are busy, volunteer work can be done in a short time (only one or two hours is all you need).Thank you very much for people who have already signed up.

This is the current volunteer list for the International Festival. Please add your name to one of the blank spaces if you have not already done so. If you cannot do so, please contact the PTA via email. Thank you.

 volunteer list.ods

*There are some changes for the festival from previous years, please read the following and take note!

 Important information

*PTA-OFF(Bazaar)

We are writing to ask whether you might have more items for the upcoming Bazaar for the Festival. We need more While we have managed to collect a reasonable number of items for the Bazaar, we don’t quite consider this number enough. So if you could perhaps have an extra rummage at home, for anything you wouldn’t mind contributing to the school, we would appreciate it.

In choosing items, please don’t hesitate to ask if you are unsure about whether it might mach Bazaar items. Large or small, we are happy to consider.

Please note that for items that don’t necessarily match the Bazaar, we could also make use of any revenue generated at nearby recycle shops. Please also note that volunteers will decide sales prices.

Also, on 21st of March, for the parent-student-teacher meetings-feel free to leave Bazaar contents in the entrance hall box. If you can’t get them into the box, please leave items on the carpet area.

Thank you very much for your kind understanding and cooperation!

Next meeting

28 Mar 9-11 conference room

Up coming events and deadlines

*14  Apr  Festival

*27  May Kagura tour (the details will be announced later)

***Please feel free to ask any questions to PTA committee by email   pta@hiroshima-is.ac.jp

PTA ニュース

校庭リノベーションチームより

現在、PTA有志にて活動しております、プレイグランド及びガーデンの制作において、力仕事、人手を要していたところ、この度、13.14.15日に、広島医療秘書こども専門学校の保育学科の学生10名程が、ボランティアとして、手伝いをすることになりました。
なお、彼らは、教育、保育について学ぶ学生であり、こどもたちとの関わり方や、言葉遣いなど、節度をもってボランティアに携わることをお約束します。KG1のmimiの母、IKUMIの教える学生ですので、指導監督をいたしますので、万が一、なにかありましたら、ご連絡ください。
それに伴い、ボランティアの専門学校学生に、ランチ、スナックを提供したいと思います。どこの国のどんなものでも結構ですので、提供してくださる方は、ご連絡ください。
よろしくお願い致します。

Festival(4月14日)

 poster-final ー.png

 Festival A4 infomation.pdf

黒川先生とG10のアーティストに感謝!

チラシは来週印刷します。

*ボランティア募集中!!

今現在のボランティアの状況です。まだまだ足りません。

直接名前を入力していただいても構いません。また、入力できないかたはメールをください。

よろしくお願いいたします。

 volunteer list.ods

*去年のフェスティバルと変更点がありますので以下必ず目を通してください。

 重要事項

PTA-OFF(バザー)チームより

バザーに出す品物が集まり始めています。しかし、まだ不足しています。

ご家庭にある不用品を学校に持ってきてください。

☆コンディション等、悩むものもがありましたら、相談していただくかとりあえずお持ち頂いても良いです。こちらで判断させてもらいます。

※寄付してもらった物について

これからボランティアが作業をしていくのに、商品として使用できないと判断した場合は、処分をすることがあります。価格もボランティアで判断させてもらいます。しかし、粗末に扱うことはしませんので、ご理解をお願いします。

※最終的に売れ残ってもリサイクルショップに査定してもらい、無駄にならないようにします。

☆大型の物でも相談していただけたらと思います。

☆不要な紙袋や緩衝材(当日のレジで使用するため)もお持ちください

☆3月21日のカンファレンスにお越しの際にお持ちいただいた方は、玄関の段ボールにお願いします。入りきらない場合は、玄関のカーペットの部分の端から寄せて置いて頂けたらと思います。

ご協力をよろしくお願いします!

次回のミーティング

3月28日 9時から11時 カンファレンスルームにて

各イベントの締切など 

*14  Apr  Festival

*27 May 神楽ツアー(詳細は後日)

***どんな小さな質問でも構いませんのでご不明な点等ございましたらどうぞお気軽にPTAへメールをください pta@hiroshima-is.ac.jp (日本語は渡辺か山城がお答えします)

8. Japanese Outline