Volume 11| Issue 2 |February 2009

NEWS@KIST

THE NEWSLETTER OF K. INTERNATIONALSCHOOL TOKYO

Learning for LifeIn This Issue...
Supporting Your Child at home with the PYP

Fundraising at KIST— Photos of the new

Bolivian Dance Group— Invitation to Participate

construction!
School Festival 2008 Report
KIST Head Lice Campaign
KIST Tutor ProgramSecondary School NewsStudent Safety

A Letter From the Principal’s DeskMoreisucces mportant thsful isancant.
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DATES TO REMEMBER

Welcome Back to the Winter Term! I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of
our families a very happy and prosperous New Year!

Term 2January 28th
New Years Celebration

The school term has started with many exciting events at K. International. On Wednesday January 28th, 2009, we were fortunate to be able to celebrate the New Year in true
Japanese style with our annual Rice Pounding and Sumo Wrestling.

February 11th :School day

I am sure that all of the students would agree that due to the huge number of Sumo
Wrestlers that joined us from the ―Kise Stable‖ , this was a very exciting day. On behalfof the school community, I would like to thank them for their support and great sense offestive spirit. Their efforts and time made this a really enjoyable event. I would also liketo take this opportunity to thank the parents who came along to make mochi and assist
with the preparations for the day. We appreciate your support!
This term our students have had the opportunity to participate in a range of basketball
tournaments offered through the Japanese league and through competitions with otherinternational schools. There are many matches still to occur however, I would like totake this opportunity to congratulate our students and coaches on the great work that has
been done thus far. Earlier in January, our secondary teams participated in the interschool tournament in Yokohama, both the boys and girls teams played really well andprovided stiff competition for the teams they played. The girls team were successful inmaking it to the grand-final and played a tough match to the end. They were titled theRunners-Up for the second year in a row! Congratulations girls!
We look forward to hearing the results of the upcoming tournaments.
Kind regards,
Sasha Marshall
School Principal

February 24th :MYP Parent session
March 20th :Student-led conferences (K/P/S)
March 25th :End of Winter Term
No clubs or ESL
March 26th — 28th :Staff PD
March 26th — April 5th :Holiday for students
Term 3
April 6th :Spring term starts (S)April 7th :Spring term starts (K/P)

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News @ KIST

Volume 11 Issue 2

School Arrival Time and Student Safety
As you will already be aware, the construction of our new building has required some changes to our outdoor play space andthe parking space of our school buses. In order to make this space work best for all students and to keep our students safe,
we require your support with morning arrival time. The morning time between 8:00-8:30am is our busiest time on the playground, with both primary and secondary students on the playground together. This is also the time when our 3 schoolbuses arrive. In order to help reduce the number of students on the playground at this time and keep our students safe, wewould like to ask that all families attempt to adjust their school arrival time to after 8:20. By 8:20 all of our buses have arrived at school and students will be able to enter the site in a much safer manner. In order to keep students away from thebus parking area, we also request that all families and students enter the school by following the path around near the secondary building. You may notice additional fencing to protect students from the bus parking area. Walking around the pathwill also help our students to observe the purpose of this fence.
We hope that this will help to reduce the safety concerns in the mornings and we thank you for your support on this matter.

Am a nd a Coo k e
Low er Sch ool P rin ci p al

Community Support Required
We are looking for support from one or more of our school families in assisting another school family. We have a student
in K3 who needs to attend after school ESL classes this term. This student is usually collected from school by a local day
care centre where he spends his afternoons while his parents are working. Unfortunately, the day care centre is unable tocollect him at 3 pm instead of the usual 2 pm. Therefore, we are looking for a family who may be able to help out by collecting this student following ESL class and dropping him off at the day care centre. The day care centre is a short drive away inMonzen Nakacho. If you are able to help out with this please contact Amanda Cooke eceprimary@kist.ed.jp.

An n e G r ah am e
Upp er S eco nd ar y P r i nci pa lSecondary School News
Welcome back to school for 2009! With the start of a new year it is often a good time to reflect on how the previous year
has gone and what you would like to change for the year ahead. It is interesting how we choose to do this at this point intime rather than as an ongoing exercise. Building in time to reflect on our work, our actions, our beliefs and our values,
helps us grow as people. As adults I believe it is important that we model this to the children in our care so that they become reflective in and of itself and not only at the start of a new year.
I would like to congratulate the secondary student body on the variety of activities they are engaged in, in addition to theirstudies. We have students preparing for Habitat for Humanity, participating in sporting clubs and travelling to various competitions and the Lego League. Many thanks to their teachers for making these co-curricula activities possible.
I would like to remind parents about the school uniform requirements . We value students being principled in their approach to following the rules set down by the school, but also realize they need to be guided by the adults in their life toattain this. Support from home to ensure that students have the correct uniform items and wear them correctly is a necessary part of your partnership with the school.
Finally, I look forward to a productive and joyful Winter Term for all of our students.

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Volume 11 Issue 2

P aul L angt r ee
PY P Coo rd in ato r

Supporting Your Child @ HomeI am often asked how parents can support the Primary Years Programme at home. Further to what
I have included in PYP Parent Overviews, here are additional suggestions which you can follow.
Make the Learner Profile part of your life. Try to make natural connections between the PYP Profile traits and what is happening in your life.
To do this:Display the Learner Profile in your home and use the language with your child.
Use the language of the Learner Profile in your Mother Tongue. Work with your child to translate the Learner Profile into
the language you speak in your home. This will give your child a deeper understanding of the Learner Profile and what thewords actually mean. Use the words in your native language to help your child make broader and more meaningful connections between home and school. When you are finished your translation, email it to the school so we can share it with otherfamilies.
Model the appropriate behaviors. Children see how we act and emulate it. If we expect children to act a certain way, they
have to see adults acting that way too.
Read the KIST PYP Parent Overviews. These overviews are sent out throughout the year and contain information about future units of inquiry as well as ideas for supporting your child at home.
Maintain regular contact with the school and your child’s teachers. Be sure to read all school newsletters when they comehome and look for opportunities to connect with your child’s learning. Attend curriculum information sessions at school andstudent conferences.
Encourage your child to ask questions and help him/her find the answers. Wonder with your child and show him / her someof the things you wonder about the world and how you go about finding answers.
Support your child’s first language. Provide books, videos and songs in your child’s first language. Read with your child anddiscuss the different ways that you use language.
Volunteer! If you have the time, approach your child’s teacher about the possibility of volunteering in the school; in the library, in the classroom or perhaps as a special guest presenting some aspect of your work, culture or interest area.
Encourage internationalism . Show your child that people can relate to others through the similarities of their cultures. We
also learn from each other through understanding and respecting our differences.
Encourage your child to take ACTION. Encourage your child to understand that the way they act really does influence theway others feel. They can make a difference in the lives of others.
Paul Langtree
PYP Coordinator
Da mi an R ento ul e
Vi c e P ri nc ip al

Bolivian Dance Group
Dear Secondary Families,
There is an opportunity for interested students to take part in the Ueno Summer
Festival on July 18th as part of a traditional Bolivian dance group. Mrs Inoue, oneof our parents, has kindly offered to coordinate this activity for which we are very
grateful.
Participation in the group would involve a commitment to a series of danceclasses for approximately one month before the festival as well as the purchase of
the traditional costumes. You can see an example of the dance at http://
jp.youtube.com/watch?v=l7Fdv1GbJCw&feature=related. Male and female dancers participate with male dancers wearing trousers and female dancers wearing
either a skirt or trousers as part of the costume.
The cost of participating would involve up to 20,000 yen for the costume which would be shipped from Bolivia as well as thecost of a series of dance lessons, the price of which will be negotiated and we expect that this would be approximately 1000
yen per lesson.
This is a great opportunity for students who are interested in dance and as it occurs during our Summer Break participants
will have ample time to practice.
If you are interested in participating please contact Mr. Rentoule at v.principal@kist.ed.jp by Monday February 16th .

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News @ KIST

Volume 11 Issue 2

School Redevelopment Project Fundraising Campaign
Fundraising Campaign:
We are pleased to announce
that the total money raised so
far for the fundraising campaign is ¥8,162,445. This
money has been raised
through donations, theSchool Festival pamphlet and
30% of the School Festival
profits. We would like tothank everyone for their support with the raising of thismoney and for the generous
donations made to date.

If you have visited the school recently and have managed to see the construction taking place through the clear sections of the protective barrier, you will have noticed that work on the underground footings for the new West Building is almost complete. Over the next few weeks, we expect to see the main frame of the actual building taking shape.
The building is currently on schedule for completion by the start of the 2009 – 2010 school year.
As outlined during the Parent Welcome Nights held at the beginning of the autumn term, we are conducting a major
fundraising campaign through which we aim to raise 20% of the total construction costs through donations from theschool and wider communities. Detailed information on the campaign will be distributed very soon.
We ask for the cooperation of all families in contributing to the campaign.

School Festival 2008 Report
For the first time in the school’s history, our School Festival, held last October, was attended by a record 3000 visitors. Revenue raised from the festival was also at a record level. This was despite a change to the management of thefestival and the limited time available for preparation. We would like to express our sincere thanks to all those involved for helping to make the day such a wonderful success.
Profits raised (3,041,484 yen) )have been allocated as follows:
Sales details
30% (912,445 yen) has been put towards the School RedevelEntry tickets
310,000
opment Project Fundraising Campaign; 20% to the library;
Raffle1,353,900
K. original goods
44,02020% for IT-related purchases; 10% to the art department;
Habitat for Humanity booth
87,875
10% to the music department; and 10% to the PE departMini Basketball & Softball Club booths
72,870ment. In addition, revenue raised through the Habitat forGames booth536,475
Humanity booth’s haunted mansion and T-shirt sales (87,875
Nail art & Face painting booth
48,488yen), as well as the Mini Basketball and Softball Club booths
Bazaar
230,210(72,870 yen) will be used by each group respectively.
Food court
1,869,495
Advertising
School redevelopment advertising
Donations
Miscellaneous sales
Total sales

450,000
2,050,000
175,000
88,7287,317,061 yen

Balance
Revenue
Expenses
School redevelopment advertising
Profit7,317,061
2,225,577
2,050,000
3,041,484 yen

Furthermore, total festival advertising revenue received fromadvertisers who contributed advertisements of 50,000 yen or
more was allocated as a donation to the School Redevelopment Project (2,050,000 yen).
The 2009 festival will be held on Saturday, October 24. We
ask for the cooperation of all students, parents and staff inworking together by contributing an equal amount of timeand effort to the preparation and running of the festival inorder to make it an even greater success than 2008.

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Volume 11 Issue 2

KI ST Ad mi ni st rat ion

Head Lice Campaign
Dear Parents,
Based on some helpful suggestions and feedback from parents, we are hoping to take a more proactive approach towards theissues of head lice. Although head lice are not a significant problem at our school, it is important that as we grow in population, we build in measures to ensure that we manage this and try our best to eradicate it for the comfort of our students. It is
important to recognize that head lice, whilst problematic for a short period of time, are unfortunately a regular part of school
life, and are not linked to a lack of hygiene or cleanliness on the individual’s part.
As of this term, we plan to introduce a number of measures to support families with ensuring that the possibility of their children catching head lice is reduced. These measures are outlined below as part of our Head Lice Campaign.
 We will promote Head Lice Check Weekends as part of our regular practice. During these times, all families of childrenof all ages, will be asked to check their children’s hair on a particular weekend. The theory behind this is that if all families check on the same weekend and eradicate any lice detected, we are able to stop the cycle that develops with head lice.
 During each term we will have a school based head lice check—during this check school staff will check the hair of children and send notes home to families where head lice have been detected. Students will be asked to stay away fromschool until the lice have all been removed.
The first of our Head Lice Check Weekends will be the weekend of the 28th February/1st March. Please support us by participating in this weekend with your family.
We hope to conduct the first of the school based Head Lice Checks in the coming weeks, just after the upcoming March /April break!
In order for this ―Head Lice Campaign‖ to have any success, it is important that we have the support of all families with these
initiatives. This is a shared problem that will take the efforts of our entire school community to improve. We look forward toworking with you on this matter.

Ca rm in a M an ce non
G r ad e 11 , T uto r P ro g ra m Coo rd in at o r

KIST Tutor Program
Last year, a tutor program in which secondary students tutored students in thelower grades was established and has continued on through the first term of thisyear.
This service is catered to help busy parents, or non-English speaking parents who
have children that need assistance in homework and understanding class material. It
also provides a chance for students in the younger grades to interact with students
from the secondary school. This is done after school for an hour.
The program is now accepting applicants for both tutees and tutors. Tutees can bein any grade.
If you would like to sign up, please email: kist.tutors@gmail.com, specifying yourchild’s name, grade, weakest subject (for tutees), preferred day for tutoring, andcontact information. Please feel free to use this email address also to make inquiries
concerning this program. Since secondary students will be tutoring for Service at
KIST/CAS, this program is free of charge.
It is wonderful to see tutors, students, and even parents enthusiastic about theirweekly tutor meetings. I hope for your continued support this school year!