The Comet

The Newsletter of K. International School Tokyo
Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010

In this issue...
Family Day…p. 2

MYP Community and Service…p. 6

Final College Update…p. 3

Staff 10!…p. 7

Habitat for Humanity Update…p. 4

Supporting Research Skills…p. 8

Farewell from Ms Cooke…p. 5

Nihongo Notes…p. 9

Teacher and Student Placements…p. 5

Sino-Japan Youth Conference…p. 9

Shreya’s Internship…p. 5

School Concert…p. 10

From the Head of School
Throughout this term I have had the pleasure of attending the Grade 5
PYP Exhibition; the Lower, Primary and Secondary Concerts; theSpring Welcome Party, Family Day, the final Habitat for Humanity
dance and of course today’s Secondary graduation ceremonies for the
students of the MYP and DP. All of these events in their own way
celebrate the unique nature of our programmes, our students and ourschool. Each and every one of them has been a joy to witness. The
students have used their growing skills to share their knowledge,
thoughts, reflections and experiences; their unique talents and abilities.
Throughout these occasions, there has been the opportunity to watch
our students demonstrate how they strive to be communicators, risktakers, thinkers and inquirers.
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate our students on theirwork this year. They have provided our staff with a rewarding andsatisfying year as we have watched them grow, develop and mature. I
encourage all families to look through their child’s portfolio and reportcard together when they arrive home on Monday and talk about thelearning experiences that have taken place and the goals students have
set themselves for the future.
Once again we are sad to have to farewell a number of teachers andstudents at the end of the term. Thank you to our teachers and students
for their significant contributions to the school and its development. On
a personal note, I would like to farewell all students, staff and parents
and wish you all the best in your continued journey as members of the
KIST community. I have enjoyed my time with the students here andhave been privileged to work with some truly inspirational teachers.
Farewell.
Finally, on behalf of the staff, I wish you a safe and enjoyable vacation.
Rest up for a fresh start at the beginning of school in August!
Anne Grahame
Head of School
KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life

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DATES TO REMEMBER

June 21:End of year reports issued
June 21 − 24:
No clubs or ESL this week
June 22:(G5) Graduation ceremony(Evening)
June 23:(L/P End of Spring Term
June 24:(S) End of Spring Term (Students
return home before lunch)
June 28 − July 9 /August 2 − 20:
Summer Programs 2010 at KIST
August 19:(K1) Parent Welcome Night
August 23:(L/P/S) Start of Autumn Term
August 31:(K2/K3/G1) Parent Welcome Night
September 1:(G2-G5) Parent Welcome Night
September 2:(G6-G12) Parent Welcome Night2“The Comet”

Family Day
Family Day provides an opportunity for all members of
the school community to interact through enjoyable
game activities and to communicate in an informal
setting. Held on Saturday, May 22, we were blessed
this year with a sunny and warm day which enabled
all the activities to be held outdoors on the main
playground and to utilize our fabulous artificial turf.
Some of the activities this year included: piñata, tugof war, musical chairs, quizzes, relays, ball games,
rope skipping and more. In addition, a number of
information sessions were held throughout the day tointroduce the Board of Directors, the Summer
Program, the Founders’ Awards and university
enrolments. A special thank you board was also set
up for visitors on the day to write messages to staff
leaving KIST this year.
Funds raised on the day from the sale of food anddrinks totaled 146,997 yen. This will be put towards theongoing Artificial Turf Fundraising Campaign.
We would like to thank all the staff and parents who
assisted with the organization and running of theactivities and booths as well as all the families who
attended and took part in the activities. We hope you
enjoyed the day.

Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010

Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010

“The Comet”

Family Day Feedback
Thank you to families that provided feedback about Family Day. Here is a selection of comments received.

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

We participated for the first time. Our child had fun.
Thank you all those who worked hard for the event!
Might benefit from some practice beforehand.
Great appreciation for everyone who put their effort
to provide an excellent day!
I would like to suggest a game for little children or
students’ siblings who are not in our school as they
were just watching.
The info session was useful, but I thought it would
be everyone sitting down for a presentation, so was
confused at first.
It was a wonderful Family Day on a beautiful day!
Not enough vegetarian food was available.
Price of food and drinks were reasonable.
Prefer it started earlier and end sooner.
The games for parent-child and “moms only” are agreat opportunity to connect with other families andenjoy the action.


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

I heard you used to make teams by house colour. I
think that is better because everybody cheers up
and watches the games.
It was OK, but I wanted to know 2 weeks or 3
weeks before the date about the time.
I think it is better to have one class versus the otherinstead of girls versus boys.
Festive and fun! Great!
Could tents be set up in the bus parking area forpeople to retreat from the sun and get out of theway?
Thanks for the flexibility in changing a game thatsome parents could not do.
Older students felt there were not enough activities
for them.
Activities could be a little more challenging.
Overall it was a great effort with opportunities totalk to staff and other parents.

Final College Update
All the results are in and KIST students once again performed magnificently this year inacquiring admission to very excellent schools. This is the fifth year of having Grade 12 at
KIST and in our short graduation existence; the list of schools that KIST students havebeen accepted to is very impressive. The list reflects two very important aspects: First,
our students are excellent, well prepared individuals that colleges and universities
worldwide seek out. Second, this list also underscores the value colleges anduniversities place on an IB education. Mrs Okude and Mr Wagner work tirelessly witheach student to ensure that the ‘right fit’ is acquired. The conversations with students,
parents and colleges and universities throughout the world support the KIST philosophy. Mrs Okude and Mr
Wagner spent all of Family Day speaking with students and parents across the grade spectrum in discussing
strategies and choices for post KIST education. Mrs Okude and Mr Wagner are readily available to discuss options
with KIST families: Mrs Okude: k_okude@kist.ed.jp; Mr Wagner: m_wagner@kist.ed.jp
KIST Class of 2010 (current G12) College Acceptance
USA
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY | STANFORD UNIVERSITY | UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA (WHARTON) |UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO | DUKE UNIVERSITY | DARTMOUTH COLLEGE | GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY| UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA | RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE | UNIVERSITY OF
MIAMI | NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY | ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY | PACIFIC
LUTHERAN UNIVERSITY | DRURY UNIVERSITY | PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY | UNIVERSITY OF
SAN FRANCISCO | THE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE
UNITED KINGDOMIMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON | KING’S COLLEGE LONDON | UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK | UNIVERSITY
OF SAINT ANDREWS | UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW | COLLEGE OF FINE ART AND DESIGN LONDON(CHELSEA)CANADA
UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA | UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIAJAPANINTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITYOTHER
GLION INSTITUTE (SWITZERLAND) | SAVANNAH COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN (HONG KONG CAMPUS)| UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG | CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

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Volume 13 | V
I sosl u e
m e7 1| 3J uI snseu2e031 0

Grade 4 and 5 Mini Athletics
On Friday, June 11, Grade 4 and 5 went off campus toparticipate in a mini athletics carnival as part of their PE
Athletics Collaborative Unit. The day was a great
success and enjoyed by all who attended, especiallythe students! Thanks to those parents who were able tojoin us to help cheer on the House teams. Each student
earned points for their House when they participated in
the events which included high jump, long jump, tennis
ball throwing, rope ring toss and relays. Students also
earned bonus points for cheering on their peers anddisplaying team spirit. After tallying all
points, Yellow team came in at firstplace with Red, Blue and Green all
following close behind. We look forward
to a rematch next year.
CONGRATULATIONS EVERYONE!
Emma Homerlein and the PE team!

Habitat for Humanity Update
Dear Parents, Staff, Students and Greater School Community,
Team KIST Habitat for Humanity would like to express their warmest gratitude for the unwavering support of timeand donations you all have contributed. You have jointly made possible that a functional safe home can be provided
for a family living in rural poverty in northern Bali, Indonesia.
The purpose of the year long fundraising campaign is to support the team costs toward participation in one of theworld’s renowned humanitarian tasks. K. International School Tokyo has established a tradition of student service
learning in humanitarian aid, in conjunction with the internationally respected Habitat for Humanity organization.
The funds the KIST community has contributed will allow the school team to assist building a modest, yet stable
home, for a family living in severe poverty. This is accomplished because you contributed funds towards thepurchase of raw materials, and the team’s travel to a rural location to assist local professional builders, alongside thefamily members who will occupy the home. Past excursions by school teams have proven a humbling experience,
realizing the privilege of living in a sustainable dwelling with modern infrastructure and conveniences.
This collaborative project engages the fundamental ‘Learner Profile’ philosophy of the International Baccalaureate
Organization curriculum by fostering principled, caring, reflective, communicative, knowledgeable and risk-taking
learners. These attributes represent part of the goal of our school curriculum in developing students into life-longlearners with an internationally respectful and compassionate attitude. Once again thank you for your donations.
To learn more about the project, please feel free to inquire through team members during any of the school functions
about their understanding or experience. Also, you can get detailed information on the work Habitat for Humanity
does from their website: http://www.habitatjp.org/index_e.php
Daryl Bates
CAS Coordinator
Team KIST 2010—FactsTeam KIST will visit Indonesia from June 20 through 29.
This year’s team consists of twelve students from Grade 11: Faye, Jessica, Hikaru, William, Matthew, Maung
Pyay Phyo, Aki, Tahlia, Dingyun, Jeff, Junichi and Ralang. KIST teachers, Mr D. Bates and Ms Hudson, willaccompany the students.
We wish Team KIST 2010 all the best in Indonesia!

Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010

“The Comet”

Farewell to KIST
As you are aware, I will be returning to Australia at theend of this school year. I would like to take thisopportunity to thank all of the students, staff and parents
for four wonderful years at KIST. As many of you know,
I began at KIST as a K3 teacher back in 2006. It has
been a wonderful journey from there to where we arenow. I look back at the positive changes anddevelopments that have taken place and feel proud that
our ongoing team work and collaboration has helped get
us where we are today. As a school we continue, as we
will always do, to work on various areas ofdevelopment. I feel confident that with the current
returning and incoming staff that the KIST community
will continue to grow and develop in line with the visionof our school founders.
Recently, I re-read an article that I wrote for the June
Newsletter in 2008. In reflecting on what was then myfirst year as Lower School Principal, I commented that
one of the most enjoyable aspects of my job was getting
to know a wide range of students, teachers and families
throughout the school, from K1s all the way through toYear 12s. This has continued to be incredibly rewarding.
These connections have helped me feel a part of the
KIST community which, in the absence of my own
family, has made my time in Japan one that I will fondly
remember.
As you know, IB philosophy strongly advocates for lifelong learning; knowing that we still have much to learn
and being open to what and who can help us is the signof life-long learner. I have always been a strong
advocate of first-hand practical experiences as essential
to our learning journey. So, in true ‘practice what you
preach’ style, my return to Australia will include a firsthand, practical learning journey of my own. On July 8, I

Teacher and Student
Placements for 2010
As always, teacher and student placements forthe new school year will be announced on the firstday back in August. We have currently madetentative placements for teachers; however, there
are often changes that take place during thesummer vacation and therefore we will not be
notifying families until this is confirmed. Teachers
are currently working on class allocations forstudents. Classes will be re-grouped from thisyear’s classes to create new classes for the newgrade level. Class allocations will take into
consideration a balance of gender, ESL,
nationality, learning styles and needs, social
dynamics and student/teacher relations. Teachers
do their best to create a class that will function
together as a cohesive group whilst meeting bothindividual and group needs. You will be notified ofyour child’s new class and teacher on the first day
back in August.

fly to China where I will
begin a 3-month bicycle
journey from Chengdu to
Bangkok. I will ride
through four countries,
encounter monsoon
season at its best andcross my fingers that life
has equipped me with theskills necessary to deal
with the many wonderful and challenging experiencesthat will come my way. Clearly, cycle touring is not foreveryone and some days, I waver between thinking I’m
a spirited adventurer or just plain crazy! However, I
hope that this story might inspire you to create
experiences for both you and your children that will add
just a little bit of spice to your learning journey.
As always, I leave you with a quote. This one comesfrom an unknown Internet source. It’s no less profoundthan my previously used favorite quotes, but
approaches reflecting on life from a slightly different
angle, something we all need to remember to do
occasionally.
“Life is not a journey to the grave with intentions ofarriving safely in a pretty well-preserved body, butrather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totallyworn out and loudly proclaiming…WOW! What a ride!”Thank you everyone, for everything!
Take care.
Amanda Cooke
Lower School Principal

Shreya’s Internship
Shreya (G11) has been accepted intoa special internship program for
distinguished high school students at
KMD (Graduate School of Keio Media
Design, Keio University) in Hiyoshi,
Yokohama.
Shreya will do her internship from
June 21 through July 23 under theguidance of Professor Masahiko
Inami, a specialist in Interactive Technology and Robotics
and a former researcher at MIT Media Lab. One of his
major inventions was used for the invisible man technology
in a James Bond movie. An exhibition of his works is being
held at the Miraikan in Aomi, Koto-ku, through Monday,
June 14. For information, please check:www.miraikan.jst.go.jp.
This is a very exciting opportunity for Shreya and we wish
her all the best with her internship this summer.

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MYP Community and Service
Karlee’s remarkable service experience in Thailand
A few weeks ago I went to Thailand with my mother for three
weeks. For the first part of out trip, we did some volunteer work forthe less fortunate. We went to Rayong first to work for Habitat for
Humanity, to build a small house for a family of six in a Muslim
community about 20 minutes drive from the city. At the building
site, I was able to learn how to mix cement, lay bricks straight, andfill in a floor for a house. Then, we went to Pattaya by local bus tovisit the Pattaya Orphanage. On our first day volunteering there,
we donated some Japanese snacks, and a teddy bear because weweren’t sure exactly what to bring. On another day of our visits there, I sponsored a lunch for approximately 180‘residents’ at the orphanage. I have been working afterschool by tutoring a student, and so the money I used tosponsor the lunch was money that I saved from my job. I was able to buy a healthy nutritious meal for the childrenof the orphanage.
At the orphanage I was able to hold and play with the children, and show them love. Because there are so many
babies to one adult there, not every baby can be held or shown love, so we were able to help out with that problem.
I suggest if you are ever in Pattaya, Thailand, you should go andvisit the children at the home. I have put the website below so you
can look easily. If you allow the staff at the orphanage to do so,they will put up photos on their website of your visit and post thedate you came. It is under ‘Update news’ and then ‘News 2010’. I
have photos from the day the lunch was held.
In all, volunteering in Thailand was an amazing experience, and I
would definitely go again.
http://www.thepattayaorphanage.org
Karlee (G9B)

G7A Photoshop Technology Task

By Prakhar
By Rina

By Haruki

By JeetBy Keerti

By Hyun Jin

Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010

“The Comet”

Staff 10!
In this month’s Staff 10!, we arepleased to present Grade 1
teacher, Erin Hoover, who isfrom Canada. She has been at
KIST since 2009. She will take on
the role of Lower School
Coordinator in August and will
also be responsible foroverseeing the music program in
the PYP.

Ms Hoover on stage at
the School Concert.

 Tell us something interesting about yourhometown.
Caledonia is a small town in Southern Ontario that is
set on either side of the Grand River. The Grand Riveris the largest river within Ontario and makes myhometown a very beautiful, fun place to live!
 What is your favorite place in the world?
This is a really difficult question to answer! I’ve travelled
to many countries and special places in the past andeach one offers something unique and wonderful. A
quiet beach with a tree to sit under and beautiful water
to swim in comes pretty close to being my favorite
place.
 Who would you like to meet if you had the chance
and why?
There are many people I would like to meet if I had theopportunity! At this time, I think I would choose to meet
Sir Edmund Hillary, not just because he showed suchamazing courage and commitment, being the first
person to climb Mount Everest, but because of
everything that he has done since then. Instead ofsoaking up the glory and living a life of ease, he has
worked hard for the children in Pakistan by building
many schools and providing the boys and girls that livein small villages an opportunity to be educated. I could
learn more by having a conversation with aninspirational person like Sir Edmund, than years ofstudying could ever teach me.
 Do you have any special skills or talents?
I love listening to and performing various genres ofmusic. I play the guitar and the trombone.
 Please share a little known fact about yourself.
My favorite color is blue, I would like to have a pet pig
one day and I am part of a band called the ‘Can Cans’.
 What is your most prized possession?
This is also a difficult question to answer! I think I would
have to say my collection of small percussion
instruments I have collected over the years from thevarious places and cultures I visited.
 What words would you use to describe yourself?
Energetic, positive and open-minded. When I asked myfriends about this, they said that I had to add cheerfuland fun.
 If you could live your life again, would you doanything differently?
I am quite happy with the way I have lived my life so
far. I try and be someone who makes things happen
and not someone who just watches, waiting for life topass me by. I don’t want to reach the end and wonder“what happened?!?” but instead think “wow, what a
blast.” Is there anything you are trying to learn/improveabout yourself at the moment?
I consider myself a lifelong learner in all aspects of mylife. I hope if I pay attention I will learn something new
everyday!
 Do you have any special message for your fans?
Two quotes to ponder…
“The greatest gift we can give ourselves in life is asense of our own ridiculousness.” Anon
“Those who go through life knowing exactly where they
are going, never get the chance to end up somewhere
else.” AnonFree Dress Day Updates
On May 18, we had a very successful
Free Dress Day. Proceeds from theevent have been donated to theKasumisou Foundation in support of the
Rural Assistance Program which
promotes green farming and a welldrilling initiative in the Prey Veng
Province, Cambodia. A total of 85,222
yen was raised. That is enough to fund at least four
new water wells. Thank you for your support!
Greg Brunton
Primary School Principal
The first free dress day for 2010-2011 will be held on
Tuesday, September 28. Proceeds from the day will begiven to the SRC. We have decided that the theme forthe day will be rainbow.
The rainbow represents the beauty and wonder ofdiverse elements coming together. What more
appropriate symbol for an international school? In fact,
this will be the theme for the next free dress day,organized by the SRC. We encourage you to theme
your clothes according to a particular colour of therainbow on free dress day. On this day, the whole
school will come together for a memorable photograph:a giant school rainbow because we support diversity,
not discrimination.
Student Representative Council

Thank You
Thank you to the Suzuki family (Koko
G1B) for providing a Thank You Lunch
for Lower School staff on Wednesday,June 9. The food was wonderful andthe staff really appreciated it. There was so much great
food that many staff from across the school were able
to enjoy it. Thanks Maki for organizing this for us.
Amanda Cooke on behalf of Lower School Staff

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Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010

“The Comet”

Resources Supporting Research Skills in Units of Inquiry
in the MYP and DP
The IB Learner Profile Inquirer
attribute describes students who
acquire ‘the skills necessary to
conduct inquiry and research andshow independence in learning’.
One of the key aspects of
independence in terms of inquiry is
the skill of accessing a variety ofresources. During units of inquiry
students access a range ofresources including small classsets of texts as well as core
individually owned texts. There isanother vital resource that wewould like to promote in all of ourunits of inquiry next year.
As we move into the summer
break I would like to remind all of
the secondary parents about oneof our school’s most extensive
sources of information, an online
resource called Questia School.
Using the Questia School
database of books and articles isvery different from the all too
common technique of typing acouple of key words into Google
and heading straight to Wikipedia
for some quick cut and paste. In
terms of the latter approach it isthe equivalent of walking into a
multi-million dollar fully stocked
library the size of Tokyo Dome andmerely sitting in front of the firstchildren’s encyclopedia that you
see and finishing your search
there.
We would like to specifically target
the development of research skills
across our MYP and DP
programmes in 2010/2011 and the
independent accessing ofresources is an important part ofthis specific skill set. To make surethat you are able to assist yourchild accessing the Questia
resource the summer holiday will
provide the perfect opportunity. All
students from Grade 6 to Grade 12
have log in details and a password.
Grade 5 students moving into the
MYP next year will be provided
with one before the end of theyear. Please ask them to take you
through the process and you canalso go to this page (http://
www.questiaschool.com/search)and view the demonstration video.
You can then log in with your childto explore.
You can see an example of asearch below in the screen shot of
an in text search. As you can see
in the image, apart from the sheer
number of resources available asearch function allows you to
pinpoint specific terms very easily.

In a search for ‘environmental
pollution’ which showed 20,000
results of books, journal articles,
magazine articles, newspaper
articles and encyclopedia articles, I
was able to search inside aselected item for ‘organic matter’.
The word is then highlighted andyou can skim the text to findspecific references to this term.
This is a skill that highly proficient
readers use and this function
allows students to pushthemselves in terms of the level oftext that they are able to access. In
simple terms, they do not need towade through dense texts looking
for specific terms. As a reader I
can scroll through the text andwhen I came to this paragraph I
would know that it is time to readmore closely if I was interested in
the role of organic matter inenvironmental pollution, forexample.
Knowing how to use this invaluable
resource is an excellent way tosupport your child’s learning.
Damian Rentoule
Deputy Head of School/Curriculum
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9

Nihongo Notes and International Children
It’s almost summer vacation, for some families it can mean more exposure to Japanese, toothers it can mean a lot less. For families going overseas during the summer break, it canmean little to no exposure to the language which can lead to forgetting what has beenlearned during the school year.
So, what are some ways to keep up Japanese if you aren’t in Japan? The Japan Foundation has an excellent
website for beginner to high intermediate learners of Japanese, called Erin’s Challenge: I Can Speak Japanese(www.erin.ne.jp). It has video clips, practice drills, games, mini culture lessons and best of all it’s FREE! I haveused the site with students from Grades 2 to 11 and there really is something for everyone. Oh, if you look closely,
you may find me in a few different places since I helped out in some of the sections.
What are some other, non-technological ways to keep up Japanese? Encourage your child to write a diary inJapanese which he or she can bring to school next year. Another way to keep up Japanese is to have a goal suchas learning a certain number of kanji or new vocabulary, or reading a number of Japanese manga. It really only
takes a few minutes a day to keep from forgetting and it will really pay off when the school year begins. Just
remember it is vacation and keep it simple and fun!
I’ve been reading more about international children and highly recommend the following books which are allavailable at www.amazon.com:
The Multilingual Mind by Tracey Tokuhama-Espinosa (2003)
Raising Global Nomads by Robin Pascoe (2006)
and my favorite, Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds by David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken(revised 2009 edition)
Speaking of going overseas, my husband who is a teacher trainer for Japanese language teachers, has beentransferred to Germany for two years and we will accompany him. My children and I will get real life exposure totrilingualism, mother tongue maintenance, and the challenges of learning a totally new language. German grammar
is so hard (a good thing about Japanese - no gender, no complicated verb tenses). We have had a wonderful three
years at KIST and hope to meet many of you again in a few years.
Stacey Isomura
ESL and Japanese Teacher

Sino-Japan Youth
Conference
Taisei (G8A) has been selected as oneof 20 junior and senior high school
students to represent Japan at the Sino
-Japan Youth Conference to be held inHong Kong and China from August 3 to
9.
As part of the selection process, Taisei
had to submit two essays - one in Japanese about thepotentiality of youth; the other in English about the
future relationship between China and Japan. He also
had to submit a report about the special features of his
hometown. In his report, he focused on the Yatsuhigata
tideland area in Funabashi. According to Taisei’s
parents, he has always had a keen interest inconservation and environmental issues and therefore
incorporated this into his plan to attract more visitors to
the area. For the final selection stage, he took part in aninterview with conference administration staff.
We would like to congratulate Taisei on this wonderfulachievement and wish him all the best at the conferencein August.

Building/Carpentry Skills
NeededThis request appeared in the
newsletters for February and May.
Unfortunately, as we have received
no response, the sandpit has not yet
become a reality. We ask for yoursupport in helping us to provide a safe andenjoyable play environment for our young
students.
We are looking for 1 or 2 parents who have building/carpentry skills that could help with the building of asandpit for our main playground area. This would
involve the purchase of materials (school funded) and a
day or so to put it together. You would work together
with Amanda and Greg to design the sandpit. Our
young primary students are in desperate need of aplace to dig and create, this being an important part oftheir social, physical and academic development. We
have worked hard to help the children resist digging up
our gardens, with the promise of a sandpit tocome...please help us make this a reality. Pleasecontact Amanda Cooke at a_cooke@kist.ed.jp if you
think you can give some time to this project.

10“The Comet”

School Concert
According to many of those who attended, the School
Concert held on Saturday, June 5, was one of thebest yet at KIST. From the Lower School Concert in
the morning with class performances and cutecostumes, to the Primary Concert in the afternoon
featuring songs, dances and instrumental
performances, and finally to the Secondary Concert
in the evening with rock bands, dances, vocal
ensembles, instrumental performances and a play, allareas of the school were represented through a wide
variety of musical and dramatic stage performances.
With plans for the introduction of IB Music in the
Diploma Program next year, the Performing Arts at
KIST are alive and flourishing and the annual concert
provides an opportunity to showcase the amazing
talent we have at the school.

Volume 13 | Issue 7 | June 2010