29Dec 2016 by Damian Rentoule

Life at HIS: How does the IB impact learners?

Principal's Blog
[caption id="attachment_807" align="alignleft" width="300"] Our students - making a difference in the world.[/caption] The question of choice for parents in an educational context is centered on the question of how we want our children to relate to the wider world. I have two children who passed through three of the IB programs and I would like to relate an experience which was my very first exposure to the possibilities inherent in an IB education. I was teaching in Brunei Darussalam at a public secondary school and my daughters attended the International School of Brunei (ISB) which had the IB’s Primary Years Program (PYP). My younger daughter, four-years-old at the time, was in Kindergarten. Time came for a student-led-conference and I attended like the dutiful father I was hoping to be.…
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17Dec 2016 by Damian Rentoule

The Crane 16 December 2016

The Crane
1. Principal's Message Dear HIS Families Congratulations to everyone involved in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. It was a great performance and you can see some of the lead-up in this week's video. Special thanks to Takako Tokunaga, Jason Underwood and Jackie Ikegami who worked tirelessly behind the scenes with the students. In the photos below, you may even be able to spot a couple of our wonderful HIS graduates who returned to the stage. Finally, we farewell Sina (G4) and the Heineck family. It has been great having you as part of our HIS community and we all hope you enjoy your next grand adventure. Enjoy the weekend. Regards Damian Rentoule (Principal)      2. The Crane Video 3. Hiroshima Association for UNICEF Thank you to Kazumi Takata from Hiroshima Association for UNICEF…
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09Dec 2016 by Damian Rentoule

Life at HIS: Using the language of you’re learning

Principal's Blog
When we come to school, we only have a very limited time to interact in the language of our learning. At HIS, the language of instruction is English, except for our Japanese language classes. At school, we need to use the language of instruction - an important choice for language learners (which is everyone). In our units of inquiry, we are all learning through language. For example, if we are learning about optical art, we use English to develop our understandings of this type of art form, including its specific academic language such as the related vocabulary. English is also used to demonstrate our understanding in assessment tasks. For this reason, we need to use English in the classroom during the learning process. If we don't, academic language proficiency will not…
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09Dec 2016 by Damian Rentoule

Community Event – Hiroshima Shogyo Kouto High School – Commerce Fair 10/11 December, 2016

Community Events
Hiroshima Shogyo Kouto High School - Commerce Fair 10/11 December, 2016 Hiroshima Shogyo Kouto High School has invited HIS to their Commerce Fair. They are looking for non-Japanese speakers to provide some 'authentic' experiences selling goods in a more international setting. I met with the Principal last week and we talked about some ongoing connections between the schools that we would like to foster. They have a very strong club program and there may be a possibility that our HIS students could access some competitive training and games in our local community through this connection. We will invite their students to our HIS Festival and hope to build a strong relationship over the next few years. Sunday 11 December at 10:00am (Meet at Genkan) Hiroshima Shogyo Kouto High School, 6-7-11 Funairiminami, Naka-ku, Hiroshima…
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02Dec 2016 by Damian Rentoule

The Crane 2 December 2016

The Crane
1. Principal's Message Dear HIS Families We were very fortunate this week to receive a visit from our new friends at Concordia College, Adelaide who have crossed the sea to bring their music to an array of audiences in Japan. You will see some images in this week's video. Thank you very much for a great show, where our students were introduced to a variety of instruments and inspired by the dedication of the performers. I would also like to thank the Tomita Family who graciously donated a range of items to HIS, including a bank of lockers, which our students will be able to use, as well as a large set of pipe-chairs and fold up tables, so we will no longer need to hire extras for large school events. Thank…
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02Dec 2016 by Damian Rentoule

Life at HIS: What’s my Lexile level?

Principal's Blog
Last week, I introduced the idea of a Lexile measure, which is the level of difficulty of a written text. A Lexile level for a student refers the level of difficulty they are ready for. Remember that this was the critical part in matching reader to text. If you would like to find out your child's Lexile level for yourself,  there is a great site called www.readtheory.org, which provides an excellent visual for tracking Lexile measures over time. If your child is in Secondary (MYP), they will have a log-in to the site already and will be able to share their scores with you. If you have an upper-primary child, you can sign up as a teacher and make a class for them. There is a pre-test and they can keep doing the exercises,  which…
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25Nov 2016 by Damian Rentoule

The Crane 25 November 2016

The Crane
1. Principal's Message  校長からのメッセージ Dear HIS Families I hope you enjoyed the week. We were very proud of our HIS student tour-guides who showed visiting families around our school during the Open Campus on Wednesday. We received many comments on how confidently they presented and the level of detail that they were able to provide during the tour, providing a unique perspective into school life at HIS. Click here for the Life at HIS blog post - it's about 'reading'. Enjoy your weekend. Regards Damian Rentoule (Principal) 2. The Crane Video  (Translated) 3. Art Exhibition: Heiwa Kodomo Ten (Peace art exhibition)  へいわこども展 Heiwa Kodomo Ten is a collaborative art exhibition with Korean school, Jogakuin Girls' JH/SH, Sakuragaoka SH and HIS. It started last year and we will be once again participating…
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25Nov 2016 by Damian Rentoule

Life at HIS: Matching Reader to Text

Principal's Blog
Despite popular belief, schools are not magical places, particularly when it comes to learning in an additional language. However, from what I have seen in schools over the years, I am convinced that consistent reading at an appropriately challenging level may just well be a little bit of magic. Language development doesn't just happen - there needs to be consistent action and some of this needs to be happening at home.  At HIS, our students learn language, but they also learn through language and learn about language.  This is a lot of work and requires time and dedication from both the student and the family. The partnership between the school and the family is vital for language development as it will never be possible to just send a child to school and have them learn whatever…
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