Monday, February 13, 2012
IN THIS ISSUE: HIS Niseko Happenings, Sickness and Substitutes, Executive Board Nominating Committee Announcement, A Thank You for First-Aid and CPR/AED Training, From the PE Office Desk, Sports News, AN APPEAL FOR RICE (Week 2) -- Rice for Watari-cho, HIS Choir Performance, WASC Progress, HIS Think Tank, Elementary Variety/Talent Show, and the Lost and Found Table.
HIS Niseko Happenings
We have now completed three weeks of classes since our official opening on January 23rd. If you check out the HIS Niseko photo gallery on our website (see the last section on the sidebar) you can see photos of some of the learning experiences over these couple of weeks.
Last week we held our ‘Back-to-School Afternoon’ for parents. Following the example of the Sapporo event last September, this was a student led experience with each student explaining and sharing their classroom routines and learning with their parents. It was great to have many parents participating and supporting their child(ren)’s learning.
On a different note, Ms. Senzai attended the First Aid training course held at HIS on Thursday, the 9th and Mr. Gambino attended the CPR training on February 10th. These are both important skill areas to keep updated and we appreciate having these training opportunities made available to us at the Sapporo school. Mr. Sim is in the middle of planning a ski program to support our PE learning that will take place in the coming weeks before Spring Break. In addition, the Summer Learning Program is already in the planning process.
Check out the HIS Niseko section of the website (http://his.ac.jp/nis_index.html) to stay in touch with happenings at the Niseko School.....and stop by if you are in the area.
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Sickness
When classes are scheduled to have special events, such as the skating lessons in elementary this past week, we ask that you only send your child to school if they can participate in that event. Classroom teachers are not available to stay back at school with your child so please understand that your child must go along with the class. If you feel your child should not attend since they are recovering from illness please keep them at home. On that note, students who have a fever should not attend school until they have fully recovered. Thank you for your understanding with this.
Substitutes
We are in need of more substitutes at HIS so if you are interested in substitute teaching please contact Dan Reynolds at dreynolds@his.ac.jp.
-- Dan Reynolds, Principal
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Nomination Committee Announcement on Board and Board of Councilors Membership
The Nominating Committee will be meeting soon to consider new members for the Executive Board and the Board of Councilors. The committee welcomes suggestions from the HIS community. The recommendations (names) should be sent by e-mail to Robert Johnson bjohnson35@mac.com by February 13, 2012.
-- the Nominating Committee
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A Thank You for First Aid and CPR/AED Training
A thanks to the US Embassy and US Consulate in Sapporo for sponsoring First Aid and CPR/AED
training at HIS. It was so positive to see so many teachers and Sapporo community members taking advantage of the opportunity to learn about how to respond to medical emergencies.
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From the PE Office Desk
Morning Exercise
The morning exercise has been cancelled for this week. It will resume again on the 21st of February.
Skate Week
The elementary students went to Makomanai Arena last week on the 7th, 8th, 9th and the 10th of February for their ice skating class. It is amazing how fast the students improved their skills. A big thank you goes to the teachers, three junior high students and two parents who were the instructors. Mr. Teiji Midorikawa and Mr. Bob Johnston volunteered to help our students as instructors. Three of our Junior High students, Andrea Odermatt (Grade 9), Hugh Kawamura (Grade 9) and Jonah Reynolds (Grade 8) are a big part of our program, sharing their skills and knowledge with elementary students. Many mothers came to help the students off ice. It is great that many people are involved in this program. There will be two more sessions this week, Wednesday the 15th and Thursday the 16th. Please remember to send your child fully prepared for the cold with hats, gloves and snow suits.
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Sports News
Attention in basketball now turns to the very enthusiastic team of middle school girls as they prepare for their upcoming tournament in Kobe. This Thursday they will have an away game with Nishioka JH. They have 2 fundraising drives to look out for. On Tuesday they will be selling special Valentines Day treats from the school kitchen. They will also begin seeking sponsors for an upcoming goal a thon where they tru to score as many goals as they can in one minute. Please support the girls in their efforts. Go Huskys!
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AN APPEAL FOR RICE (Week 2) -- Rice for Watari-cho
Through members of the HIS Community, HIS learned that a local church in the tsunami-devastated community of Watari-cho, Miyagi Prefecture is making an appeal for rice to feed families that remain under or unemployed in the temporary housing community that was built after the 3/11 disaster of last year. Like many communities in the area, Watari-cho has become a forgotten place. One local church began distributing rice in 2L PET bottles and discovered how needy people where. An appeal was sent out to Hokkaido and the information was passed on to HIS. Contact was made with local organizers through the HIS community and we confirmed the need and how distribution is accomplished. If you wish to participate in this opportunity to help you, please follow the below instructions:
| 1. Select a properly dried 2L PET bottle (tea or water bottles only please -- other bottles leave a taste) |
| 2. Fill the 2L PET Bottle with Rice -- Make sure that it is filled to the very top so that everyone receives an equal amount |
| 3. Write your name on the bottle and "Hokkaido International School" on it with a felt marker |
| 4. Send the bottle to HIS through your child or deliver it to the HIS office |
The rice will be distributed once there is an equal amount of rice-filled PET bottles for each of the 85 households that make up the Watari-cho emergency shelter community. These bottles will be given -- without preference -- to each household. Relief work is not tied to any other work and we will receive a report and photos of the distribution.
HIS will be collecting these bottles until February 25. Please join with us to make a difference.
We invite the HIS Community to keep in touch with us through our website and through announcements on the Husky Express. Please contact me at the school e-mail at anytime if you have questions.
If you wish to help with shipping costs, please include ¥300 with each of the PET bottles of rice you send.
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HIS Choir Performance
March 13 is the HIS Choir Performance at Kitara. This year will be a special year of focus on just the choir and will differ from other performances at the hall. It will, however, be a wonderful event and tickets are already on sale!! We look forward to seeing you there.
Music classes are reestablishing an instrumental program and will be incorporating instruments into future performances. We look forward to seeing the results in following years!!
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WASC Progress
Teachers will spend this Wednesday morning reading through drafts of the WASC Report for our accreditation visit, which will occur in April. A great deal of work has gone into the report and I would like to thank all those from the HIS community who have been a part of the process.
-- Barry Ratzliff, Head of School
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HIS Think Tank
Administration completed plan for an HIS Community Think Tank. The plan is an attempt to better involve the entire HIS community it forward-thinking ideas that could improve HIS as a learning community. The first Think Tank will be scheduled in March. The time will be announced in a separate letter and in next weeks’ HEX.
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Elementary Variety/Talent Show
The HIS Elementary Variety Show is scheduled for February 24 at 1:30 pm in the MPR. This is a once yearly event that is absolutely fantastic to attend. Make sure to mark it on your calendar so that you can be there to support your child and other elementary students as they demonstrate their talents for us.
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Lost and Found Table
Lost and found items will be displayed on tables at the entrance for the next two weeks (Tuesday February 14 - February 24). Please make sure to to pick up your items. On Friday 24th, after the Variety Show, items will be given away. Any remaining clothing will be donated or disposed of.
