The omet

The New sletter of K. International School Tokyo
Volume 21 | Issue 2 | December 2017

In this issue...
02...School Calendar 2018–19

12...Grade 1s Reflecting on Change

03…Academic Scholarships

17...Learning in the MYP

04, 05...K.20 Celebration

18, 19...MUN Scrimmage

07...Anti-Bullying Assembly

21...Processing Our Waste

10...K1 Buddy Reading Time

22...Grade 7 Camp Reflections

11...Celebrating Diversity in K2A

25...KPASS Drama Festivals

From the Head of School

DATES TO REMEMBER

Dear KIST Community,
It is hard to believe that a year has gone by since our IB and CIS visit this time
last year. Our newly attained CIS accreditation status has gained us
recognition as a respected and established international school delivering
quality educational programming. As such, we are now able to become
members of network organizations that are of support to us in further
developing our school.
One such organization is the East Asia Regional Council of Schools(EARCOS), a group of 158 member schools in East Asia. EARCOS’s mission
is to inspire adult and student learning through its leadership and service andto foster intercultural understanding, global citizenship and exceptional
educational practices within its learning community. EARCOS has a history of
supporting schools in our region for over 50 years. We hosted a visit by the
Executive Director of EARCOS, Dr Dick Krajczar, in October and KIST is proud
to have been accepted to this supportive community of like-minded schools. In
November, we also hosted a representative team from the Japan Council ofInternational Schools (JCIS) as part of our application to join theirorganization of 27 international schools that work together to promote, supportand sustain quality English medium schools serving the international
community in Japan through an educational framework which is international inboth style and substance. We will hear back from JCIS about our application
after their next Board meeting in the Spring of 2018. Memberships such asthese provide our staff with networking and professional development
opportunities that benefit teaching and learning at KIST and they also further
promote our school as a leader in international education.
I hope that you enjoyed the K.20 Celebration that took the place of KISTival
this year. It was wonderful to celebrate this milestone in KIST’s history, to catch
up with parents, alumni and others who have supported KIST’s developmentfrom a school with one full-time student to the top performing IB DP school inJapan with graduates gaining acceptance to the world’s leading universities.
Although this year’s festival was structured to give our parents ‘a break’, thesupport of those parents who contributed regardless was appreciated hugely.
Thank you! Thank you also to all of the students and parents for working so
hard to make the event a success for all! Hopefully we can continue the staff
cultural performances in coming years – perhaps a staff and parent Bollywood
dance???

December 2017
8 (G1-G12) Clubs program ends /(K3-G5) LEAP classes end
8 (K1-K3) After care not available
on this day
11-13 (G9-G11) Semester 1
examinations
13 (G6-G12) SRC dance
14 (W) Winter celebration
rehearsals
15 (W) Winter celebration
15 (K1-G3) After care not available
on this day
16-Jan 7 Winter vacation
18-19 Office open

January 2018
8 Staff development day (Noschool for students)
8 2018-2019 enrollment
applications close
9 School resumes for all students
9-16 (G12) Semester 1 DP mockexaminations
12 (G4-G5) Mathematics diagnostic
testing
19 (G6-G10) Mathematics
diagnostic testing (*Morning)
19 (S) End of Semester 1 (Half day
for students
22 Semester 2 commences
22* (K3-G5) Semester 2 LEAP
classes begin this week (*New date)Continued on next page

KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for LifePYP | MYP | DP2

V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17“ T h e Co m e t ”

Continued from previous page

December marks the start of the exam season at KIST
with Secondary School semester exams taking place
before the break and the first round of Grade 12 DP
mock exams taking place the first week back to school
in January. It is a very busy time for our Grade 12s as
they finish off their courses, follow through with their
university applications, and prepare for the upcoming
final assessments of the DP. Good luck with yourstudies Grade 12s – we are all cheering for you!
Parents, teachers, students and other supporters –Thank you everyone for all that you have done tosupport KIST during 2017. Please enjoy the upcoming
winter concerts and I wish our whole community awonderful end to 2017. I look forward to welcoming
everyone back to school on January 9, 2018.

From the Board President
As the year draws to a close, I hope everyone ishappy and healthy.
Thanks to the help and support of the families ofcurrent KIST students, alumni and their families,
and other supporters of our school in thecommunity, our K.20 Celebration held on October
28 was a great success. I would like to express mysincere thanks to all those who attended this event.
I would also like to thank our staff and current
students for taking time out of their busy schedules
and giving their all to prepare for the event and toassist on the day.

Happy holidays everyone!
Jeffrey Jones
Head of School

School Calendar 2018-19
To assist families planning overseas
trips, the dates of school vacation
periods for students and otherimportant dates for the 2018-2019
school year are listed below.
Families are asked to makearrangements accordingly to ensurethat students are back in Tokyo ready to start school
after each vacation period on the correct date.
The complete calendar will be distributed in June.
 First day of school for students:

Unfortunately, due to my own duties on the day, I
wasn’t able to see much of the day’s festivities, but
I was deeply moved by the performances in thegym. Through the performances, I felt that all
barriers were broken down, and the whole KIST
community was able to come together as one.
Elementary staff, secondary staff, office staff andstudents all worked together to put on an
entertaining show, and, together with the parents
and guests watching, I really felt as if everyone
was a part of our KIST family.
Even now, the feeling of unity and pride lingers in
my heart, and I have come to feel that KIST is aplace where everyone can belong. It is my wish
that this warm, familiar atmosphere continues togrow in the future.
Also at K.20, we were finally able to present a
construction plan for our new school buildings. Thisis a major project for KIST, and we are currently
seeking donations to help cover construction costs.
We ask for any help that you can give us in making
this project a reality.

August 20, 2018
 KISTival:
October 27, 2018
 Autumn vacation:
October 28 – November 4, 2018
 Winter vacation:
December 15, 2018 – January 6, 2019
 Spring vacation:
March 23 – 31, 2019 Golden Week vacation
April 27 – May 6, 2019
 Last day of school for students:
June 12, 2019

I hope that everyone stays warm as the weather
grows colder, and I wish you all a wonderfulholiday season and a Happy New Year!
Yoshishige Komaki
Board President

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Academic Scholarships
The KIST University Support Scholarships recognize hardworking students who achieve high scores in their
final year of the DP and are awarded to students who attain 40 points or higher. In this year’s round of awards, arecord total of 13 graduates from the “Class of 2017” have received scholarships. Congratulations to you all! We
look forward to hearing of your successes in your studies in the coming years.

KIST University Support Scholarships

Silver Awards

Akira

HardikRithwik

Bronze Awards

Aika

Amartya

Arjun

Hana

HiroyaMirabelle

Nina

SophiaTakumiThayalan3

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K.20 Celebration
To commemorate KIST’s 20th anniversary thisyear, we held a special event—K.20 Celebration—
instead of the regular school festival in order tothank our school community, past and present, fortheir support over the years and to look toward theschool’s future as it continues to change and grow.
We were delighted to be able to celebrate K.20 withso many people from our KIST community,
including a much larger number of alumni and theirfamilies and former staff than usual.
This event differed from our usual festival in that parents were relieved of theirusual booth duties, and we were very glad to hear from many parents that they
were able to enjoy the festivities at their leisure. Next year, our school festival will
return to its normal format.
In conjunction with K.20, we also began our second donation drive to raise funds tobuild our new gymnasium, planned to begin construction in June 2019. In order toreach our donation goal, we ask seeking the support and cooperation from families.
This year’s income and expenditure information from K.20 is as follows. Proceedsfrom this year’s K.20 Celebration will be put towards the new gymnasium fund.
K.20 income and expenditure report:
Total revenue:
Total expenditure:
Total funds raised by TASSEL, HFH:
Profits:¥5,729,761¥2,922,233¥296,185¥2,511,343

In helping to make K.20 a success, we received support and assistance from a wide
variety of people. We would like to express our gratitude and thanks to everyone,
and particularly to the following: G7&G3 Minoura family: Thank you for providing a space to park our schoolbuses on the day of the event free of charge. Without this space to park the buses, we would nothave been able to hold K.20, so we are very grateful!
 G6 Li family: Thank you for your large monetary donation towards the planning and operation of
K.20.
 K1 Takeuchi family: Thank you for your large donation of Hokkaido goods and prizes for the games.
 K1 Suzuki family: Thank you for donating all the drinks sold at the drinks booth.
 Thank you to the following companies for your donations of prizes to the grand raffle (listed in noparticular order; some names may be abbreviated): Yurindo; Tobu-Top Tours; Itoen; AC Milan
Academy Tokyo Office; Prologis; Kajima Corporation; MHS Planners, Architects and Engineers;
Heiwa Real Estate; Kajima Tatemono; Sumitomo Fudosan Tatemono Service; Bank of TokyoMitsubishi UFJ; Tokyo Tomin Bank; Mizuho Bank; Resona Bank; Roppongi Hills Club; Portman’s;
Sekiya-rika; Glass Lab; Rikashitsu; Tokyo Central; Print-boueki; SunTechnical; Tanakahifuku; Asahi
AC; Aoki Judicial Scrivener; Ichigaya Kaikei; ing Partners; Tocollo; Total Driver Service; Nissay
Transport; Hasegawa Sports Facilities; Nippac; Suzumori Shokai; Nack Planning; Wakuwaku
Moving Service; Muranaka Corporation; Oedo Estate Agents; Ishii Insurance Office; Hikari Home;
Brigela...
 Thank you also to the many families who donated funds and prizes for the raffle (listed in noparticular order):G1B Terao family, G4&K3 Toda family, K2 Itoyanagi family, G3 Kobayashi family, K3 Hayashi
family, K2 Ogawa family, K1 Sakashita family, G12&G6 Pisor family, G11&G7 Yang family, K3 Kim
family, K1&G3 Ota family, G1&G5 Hiramoto family, G6 Suzuki family, G5&G7 Tsukamoto family,
K2&G1 Lyu family, G5 Wu family, G3 Sugiura family, K3&G3 Ogawa family, G1 Ono family, K3
Takada family, G2 Abe family, G3 Matsudaira family, G7 Matsunami family, K2&G1 Shirai family, G7
Gaba family, K3 Usui family, G10 Molligoda family, G2 Raj family, Moriguchi Family, Sato family...
Also, thank you to all the G11 and G12 students, alumni and parents who volunteered to help with thestaff-run booths.
Parents and students who wish to give feedback on K.20 or have ideas for next year’s festival, we would
love to hear your thoughts! Please send all comments to sayoko.naito@kist.ed.jp.
If you would like to receive an additional copy of the 20th anniversary commemorative booklet previously
distributed to all families, please contact the office.

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V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17“ T h e Co m e t ”

Elementary School NewsPYP News
Where we are in place and time…

appreciation
noun ap·pre·ci·a·tion \ ə-ˌ prē-shē-ˈā-shən,-ˌpri- also -ˌprē-sē- \—the feeling you have when you are grateful
Although I strongly believe in showing appreciation andthanks all year round, it seems every year around thistime, as the year comes to a close, I become
increasingly reflective and thankful for everything wehave. I recently read a statistic that one in every ninepeople worldwide live on less than two dollars a day.
What they live on per day is less than what many of us
pay for our morning cup of coffee.
For many worldwide, the end of the year is celebrated
with various festivities. Many in our school community
will possibly be hopping on trains and planes to meetwith relatives, to spend time on sunny beaches, or to
enjoy hot springs and snowy ski slopes. I feel very
fortunate for the quality of life we are afforded and theopportunities and education we are able to provide forour children. At this time of year, while we celebrate
and enjoy the fruits of our labor, I believe we should all
express thanks and appreciate everything that wehave. Over the holidays, while you all enjoy this welldeserved break, please take the time with your families
and children and reflect on and appreciate everything
we are fortunate to have.
I wish you all a safe, restful, and enjoyable wintervacation!
Happy holiday to all!
Kevin Yoshihara
Elementary School Principal

Every day in the elementary, your child comes to schooland studies a variety of subjects. The most importantelement in terms of the Primary Years Programme isthe ‘unit of inquiry’. This aspect of the curriculum is
crucial to the learning that the lessons support. Within
the units, one finds the five “essential elements”
consisting of Knowledge, Concepts, Skills, Attitudes
and Action. Through these. the bulk of the knowledge
your child acquires is transferred and constructed.
Lessons are planned to contain varying material thathas wide appeal and stimulating for young minds. Units
are planned collaboratively and contain issues that aretransdisciplinary in their scope. They are not only
“timeless” but in some cases quite “timely”.
As we slide towards the end of the year and inevitably
into the holiday season, one transdisciplinary theme
that lends itself to the season is “Where we are in place
and time”. It fits well due to the themes that are
frequently explored during students’ class discoveries.
Themes of heritage, lineage, heirlooms, personal andfamily histories, folklore, homes, journeys, relationships
between the inter connectedness of individuals andcivilizations, all tie in well with the seasons’ themes offamily, giving, sharing, togetherness and remembrance.
The end of year seems to demand that we sit back andreflect on the year’s achievements and challenges aswell as the love and warmth that we share amongst
friends and family. We often choose this time of year to
make decisions about how we move forward with ourlives and ways to better our relationships, not only with
our friends and relatives, but also with ourselves.
Introspection and self-assessing can bring new
knowledge of the world and those who move through it.
Possibly making new connections and understandingsof how our world moves through time and our place
within this movement.
Regardless of your personal interpretation of theholidays and what you choose to celebrate, please takesome time to discuss where your family comes from,
where you see it going, and what your child believes
about their personal histories. Share a bit of the old as
you weave new hopes, new memories, and traditions to
be passed down through the years to come. And
remember, “Where we are in place and time.”
Happy holiday!
Clay M. Bradley
PYP Coordinator /Elementary School
Vice Principal

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V o l u me 2 1 | I s s u e 2 | De c e m b e r 2 0 1 7

Anti-Bullying Assembly
If you have recently visited our elementary building,you might have noticed the big black poster withbeautiful wings. It is made out of a lot of little paperfeathers with our students’ comments about their gifts
and talents, to celebrate our uniqueness. Ms Cat
prepared all the wings and decorated a poster so thateven the younger students can understand the conceptof this celebration visually. Why don’t you stand in the middle of theposter and take a photo, you’ll look like you’ve got wings!
Presently, there is much national concern about bullying and how toprevent it. As part of our work to develop all students’ social, emotionaland behavioural skills, we held a special focus time when we all
thought about how to make sure that no one gets bullied in our school.
The theme for this year’s anti-bullying week was “All Different, All
Equal”. The idea was to help students celebrate what makes them,and others unique, and help them understand why it’s important thatevery student feels included in school, and are able to be themselves
without fear of bullying.
Using the SEAL programme during the community circle time, ourstudents developed the skills, knowledge, understanding andconfidence to recognise and act when they see or experience bullying.
To share and enjoy all the work the students have done, we held aspecial celebration assembly on December 5. K2A students explained
their gifts and talents, in order to celebrate the differences between
them, which was followed by a play by volunteers from G3. At the endof the performance, all the G3s sang a song called “Everyone isDifferent”, with our music teacher Mr Collins. The actors and actresses
spent a lot of time remembering their lines and performed excellently.
Well done!! Not only did the students act, but someof the elementary staff did too. Ms Watanabe, Mr
Sullivan and Mr Norwood kindly volunteered. Welldone staff and thank you for your support!!
Kana Furnival
Student Care Coordinator (Elementary)View a video of
the Assembly here!

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Early Childhood News

V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17

Controlling Anger

Language games
Now we are heading in to the winter holiday.
This is normally a time when we sit around with
our family members. To make this happen, the majority offamilies in our school community must travel. While you arewaiting at the airport, on the airplane, or in the train, why not try
some of the literacy word games that we used to play when wewere young? The number of children spending time on electronic
devices is growing rapidly each year with all different kinds ofgames and game consoles available now. I am not opposed tochildren using these devices, however, studies show that young
learners learn language most through interacting with others.

I Spy………………………………………………...…...
Do you remember playing this game with your parents whiledriving?
“I spy with my little eye, I see something round and red…”

Yellow Car………………………………………………
Or this game? When you spot a yellow car you receive 5 points,
a red car is 1 point and a blue car is 2 points. This could also be
a math game.

Alphabet Game……………………………………..….
If your child is confident with the order of the alphabet, and has awell-developed vocabulary, playing this game is another fun one
to do. You decide a topic or theme first – such as food items,
things to bring to a picnic, etc. – then take turns coming up with aword for the chosen theme that starts with ‘a’. The next person
must come up with a word that starts with ‘b’, but must also
remember the previous ‘a’ word. For example:
Person 1: I am eating apples.
Person 2: I am eating apples and bananas.
Person 3: I am eating apples, bananas and carrots.
Person 1: I am eating apples, bananas, carrots and doughnuts.

Are you feeling angry? Does it feel like you
have a hot boiling volcano inside you and it’s
about to erupt? If so, try these strategies fromour K3 experts. During Community Circle, wehave been exploring different levels of anger
and how to cope with them!

“ Sing a happy song!
Yuka (K3B)“ Count to 15!
Ramya (K3A)“ You can speak really nice words.
Soren, Anne, Yuri (K3A)“ Draw something with friends.
Kina (K3B)“ Take ten deep breaths.
Nina (K3A)

This needs to be alphabetical order, and you need to remember
all the previous words that were used. Depending on the topic,
you can change the phrase, too. (I am eating…, I am bringing…,
I am doing/playing/singing…). The possibilities are endless!

Shiritori……………………………………………….....
This is a famous language game in Japan in which you use thelast sound of one word to come up with another word. It goes,‘shiritori,’ ‘risu,’ ‘suika’… This is a good game to build Japanese
vocabulary. It could also work with English sounds, too, such as‘egg,’ ‘glass,’ ‘snake’…. (for those who have note yet learned
about the split diagraph, the last sound for ‘snake’ is the phonetic‘k’, so ‘kick’ could work). Or you can simplify it and ask your childto find words that start with the same sound, like ‘snake,’ ‘snack,’‘snail’...
Please have an enjoyable Winter Holiday!!
Eri Ozawa
Early Childhood Coordinator (K1-K3) / K1B Teacher“ Think happy thoughts.
Soo Hyun (K3B)
We hope you feel better!
Christie Chung and Kay Shinada
K3 Teachers

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V o l u me 2 1 | I s s u e 2 | De c e m b e r 2 0 1 7

K1 Classes and Parents’ Support
During our unit, Who We Are, our central idea focused on ‘We support one another in a community which enables
us to learn’. Parents of both classes were very supportive when they volunteered and shared how they help people
in many ways. Thank you to all the parents who participated.
Claire Yoneyama
K1A Teacher
Mei’s dad shared his job as a
Secondary teacher and abasketball coach at KIST. He
shared how he teaches the bigger
students. He showed books big
students read and compared themto picture books in K1. He alsotaught us a song called ‘I’m So
Happy’; the students love singing
the song every day.

Aoi’s dad shared his job as apolice officer. He talked about threeimportant things police officers do
to help people:
1. Keep everyone safe
2. Help people who are in trouble
3. Arrest bad people

Tae Woo’s dad shared his job as adoctor and how he helps people
get better when they get sick. He
showed us items such as astethoscope, different types of
injections and a special device tolocate the veins in a person’s bodyto prevent repetitive injection pains.

Oliver’s dad shared his job as theSecondary Principal at KIST andhow he helps the secondary
students and their parents in many
ways. He showed us many photosof his big students. The K1 class
had to find Mr Mark in the photos. It
was really hard to find him as someof his students were even taller
than him.

Masayuki’s mom came andshared how she helps people asan ophthalmologist. She showed
us how to use an eye chart tomeasure visual acuity. She also
discussed the importance of
keeping our eyes healthy:
1. Watch TV, use computers anddigital games for short periods.
2. Eat a lot of green leafy
vegetables such as broccoli,
pumpkin, spinach, etc. Eat abalanced diet; soup,
vegetables, rice, meat andfish.

Toya’s dad shared his job as apharmacist. He showed what
pharmacists do and things foundinside a pharmacy. He brought two
cream-type mixtures and mixed
them together. The cream is used
for dry skin.

Raian’s dad showed us how
restaurant staff work to help
people. We went to their restaurantand saw the kitchens. The K1
students were treated to fruit anddrinks.

Masayuki’s dad came to share his
job as a dentist. He showed us thedifference between child’s teeth andadult’s teeth. He mentioned that achild has 20 teeth overall, whereas
an adult has 28. He also showed us
how a child’s tooth is replaced by a
new adult tooth when it has fallenout. He also reminded us to brushour teeth regularly to prevent
cavities.

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V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17

K1 Buddy Reading TimeAs you may know, in the Elementary School at KIST, we have an activity
called ‘buddy reading time’ (Please refer to The Comet, Volume 20, Issue 2)
which provides a great learning opportunity for all students involved. Here aresome comments from K1 and G5 students and teachers about buddy
reading. As you see from the comments from both teachers and children, thisonce-a-week learning opportunity contributes to not only helping the young
ones learn, but also in supporting older students to take action as IB learners.
How many IB learner profile attributes or attitudes can you see represented
through this buddy reading system?

Teachers
Being their K1 buddies brings out the best in the G5s. It teaches
them to be gentle, caring and patient. It also puts a big smile on
their faces. (Mr Matt, G5A)
Having our G5s work with the K1s is such a valuable learning
experience. While supporting their K1 friends, the G5s develop theircommunication skills as well as become more responsible and caring. It
is a wonderful example of serving the community, and a great way toprepare them for the DP. (Mr Scott, G5B)
The K1s are so glad to have the G5 buddies as they are very helpful
with assisting their partners during activities and also building theirconfidence and communication skills. The K1s always look forward toplaying and reading books with their buddies. As many of the G5s visit
during snack and lunch times, K1 are now able to call many G5s bytheir names. (Ms Claire, K1A)
Buddy reading helps the K1s build a special bond with their G5partners. The G5s really take care of their small friends to makesure they succeed in their learning. They even come to greet the K1s inthe morning when they line up, making sure there are no morning tears.
(Ms Eri, K1B)

G5 students
I feel when we teach K1 to read, paint, glue, cut and find shapes, wehelp them learn. (Haruka, G5A)
When it turned to G5 reading buddies, it was my favorite lesson.
They are always smiling and giving me ideas. We can also see themgrow up each year like their parents. (Nao, G5A)
In buddy reading time, I think that I want to teach them and makethem more and more knowledgeable. (Noa, G5A)
Reading buddies helps the younger kids to read and it also helps
me. Every morning when I meet my reading buddy, I feel energetic
and fresh. (Prakariti, G5A)
I really like the buddy time because the K1s are very cute and it is
fun to help them learn with fun activities. I think we get to know
something about handling little kids and that skill can be useful later.
(Aadya, G5B)
I really like buddy time because Leon is so adorable and others are
too. And I love teaching them literacy and math. And if we need totake care of little kids, we can be ready for it. (Sophia, G5B)
I really love the buddy time because it is very fun to play with themand teach them. I really enjoy taking care of them and I think they
are all super adorable. (Feiru, G5B)

K1 students
Happy, because my buddy
helping me. (Tae Woo, K1A)
Excited, my buddy read abook. (Sena, K1A)
I excited because help
drawing pictures. (Alisa Z.,
K1A)
Grade 5 come here, I
excited. (Teppei, K1A)
I like G5A Sumire, Haruka
and Sam. (Yuyu, K1B)
Yujin and Cherry angry,
afternoon snack. [I feel angry
that Yujin and Cherry don’t come during
afternoon snack.] (Hayoung, K1B)

Because Sumire and Shota
G5A coming, I feel Sumire
Shota coming excited. (Fiona,
K1B)

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Celebrating Diversity in K2A
A diverse classroom is one in which everyone is acceptingof all people, regardless of their race, culture or religion.
Diversity is important because the world is changing everyday. We must learn to accept and get along with people of
all cultures, races and religions to become productive
citizens of the world.
In this spirit, and to align with Anti-Bullying Week, K2A
students have been talking about their differences as partof their community circle activities. Students explored whatmakes them unique through class discussions, which
helped every child feel included not only within their classenvironment, but part of the school community too.
They built on these discussions to create their own artworkin which they are the ‘masterpiece’. Their artwork wasthen decorated with what the individual student was proudof about themselves, and the other students collaborated
to add their input about what they liked about their friends
to their artworks.
The whole class enjoyed presenting their ideas during the
Elementary Assembly.
Catherine Wells
K2A Teacher“ T h e Co m et ”

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V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17“ T h e Co m e t ”

Grade 1s Reflecting on Change
G1s interview the school founders for unit of inquiry
For our second unit, ‘Where we are in place and time’,
Grade One has been reflecting on different kinds ofchange over time. We thought about how different
things and people change over time, and why they
have changed. Over the course of the unit, the Grade
Ones have considered how many different things havechanged and why – telephones, cars, even Mickey
Mouse! As the unit progressed, the Grades Onesconsidered how they had changed. For our summative
assessment task, the Grade Ones interviewed ateacher about the changes in their life and presented
this information to their classmates in a timeline.
The students also began to consider how the school
had changed. With this year being the twentiethanniversary celebration at KIST, it was a perfect time toreflect on how our school has changed in relation to theunit! The Grade Ones were very excited to welcome
thefounders of
KIST, Mr
and Mrs
Komaki, tohear about
how theschool hadchangedand ask
their veryown
wonderquestions.

It was very
interestingfor thestudents tohear howthe school
has grown
from a small
number of students and teachers to over six hundred
students! The students heard how the buildings hadchanged, and the expected changes for the future,
which related to our previous discussions in Unit ofInquiry of past, present and future. The students also
found the evolution of the school’s philosophy
particularly interesting. The school founders told us
about how they had originally founded KIST as a place
where students could feel cared for and safe, and later
realised that it was also important for their students tostudy hard and learn as much as they could. Hearing
about the changes in people, buildings and educational
philosophy in the context of the Unit of Inquiry was very
meaningful for our students and teachers.
It was wonderful to have this discussion with the schoolfounders. We hope our current Grade One students willremember how KIST has changed, and how it willcontinue to change, as they grow over their years at
KIST!
Jennifer Campbell andWilhelm Merchel
G1 Teachers

New Face

A New Elementary InternSince the last issue of The Comet, we havewelcomed a new staff member, Lina
Shigemitsu, as an ELS instructor for the
Elementary Grade 3 classes.

Hello, my name is Pavitra Segar!
Over the past couple of weeks, I have
had the opportunity to work alongside
the teachers in Grade 3 and 4 as partof my internship progamme throughTaylor’s University, Malaysia. The
students and teachers here at KIST
have a great outlook on education that
I’m so excited to be a part of. I havecome to love the idea of inquiry-basedlearning. The KIST community has been very welcoming
which has made my time here an unforgettable experience
thus far! Coming to Tokyo was a huge step outside my
comfort zone but since being here, it has proven to be thebest decision I have made. Between the people, culture,
food and everything else, I don’t want to leave! I am
definitely excited to become a teacher in the near future,
although I still have a lot to learn to get there.

On behalf of the school community, we wish you
all the best in your new role and hope that you
enjoy your time with us.

Lina Shigemitsu
ELS Instructor (G3)

Please welcome Ms Segar to our school community!

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Elementary ELS‘Inquiry is Universal’ board:
Thank you to families
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
As reported in the September issue of The
Comet, ELS staff have started a
vocabulary display called “Inquiry is
Universal” just outside the elementary
school office. It has taken off with abang – your children are loving it, andare gaining from it in myriad ways. Thisis thanks to you. Staff and students
would like to show our appreciation for
all your help in discussing Unit ofInquiry at home, letting your children
teach you the difficult English words weare learning, and teaching us how to say
and write those words in our otherlanguages, too. Your enthusiasm andguidance at home in your home languages
has an immeasurable impact at school. It
fosters our students’ self-esteem,
language growth and cognitive
development. To show you what a huge
impact your time and effort is creating,here are some photos, and some words
from our elementary students. Please
continue to help us with each new unit.
With deep gratitude,
Elementary staff and students

The ‘Inquiry is Universal’ board inNovember: The display has alreadychanged about 3 times this year,
thanks to your help at home with each
unit we have done so far in 2017-18.

What do you like about the ‘Inquiry is
Universal’ board?
I like the thing that people who speak the same language as us
can learn that word in their home language too, by looking at
the Inquiry is Universal board. (Aadya, G5B)
I like that even though you don’t know the meaning of a word, it
tells/translates to different languages so that other students orparents can understand the word. (Dawon, G5A)
It shows our unit of inquiry words in our own languages and isvery creative. (Feiru, G5B)
I like the way it tells a lot of languages of that word so thatmakes the school an INQUIRER! (Fumika, G5A)

How do you find out how to say and write theunit words in your home languages?
I usually ask my mom so I can do it in my own words but also
when my mom doesn’t know, I search it in the internet.”(Fumika, G5A)
I think sometimes ask our parents or look in websites. Mostly
research skills.” (Haruka N, G5B)
I inquire! I search the word on dictionaries or internet…”(Dawon, G5A)

How does it help you learn?
I get to learn more vocabularies. This can also help me tounderstand the unit itself. (Dawon, G5A)
It helps me learn words that we are studying in my homelanguage. (Aadya, G5B)
It helps me learn that you can research more into cultures andunderstand that words have languages. (Haruka N, G5B)
It helped me learn different languages for our inquiry and thething is interesting so it helps me learn it quickly. (Donna, G5B)
It helped me learn different languages such as Chinese,
Korean, Scots English, Tamil, Italian, Tagalog, Hindi and more.
(Miki, G5A)
I get to learn a lot from our UNIT! (Fumika, G5A)

K3’s unit is Who we are: Our choices
and actions can affect our
relationships. Here is one of the key
words they have been discussing at
school and at home – “feelings”.

Kazuhiro (G5A) adds the word “mangibangbayan” – Tagalog for “migrate” – to the G5
display for the unit Where we are in place andtime: Human migration comes from and leads
to challenges and opportunities.

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LEAP News2018 is almost here, whichof course means that thesecond annual LEAP
application dates are almost upon us.
There has been one slight change to thecalendar, in that LEAP classes for Semester
2 will begin one week later than planned, on
Monday, January 22,, 2018. The last day of
LEAP has also been pushed back to Friday,
May 25, 2018, which will be a nice transition to Family Day on Saturday, May 26.
E-mails will be sent out after the winter break regarding LEAP recommendations.
LEAP applications for Semester 2 will not open until school resumes in January
2018. All families will be notified via E-Communications when applications areopen.
If you haven’t seen it yet, please come and check out the LEAP display in front of
the Elementary office, where LEAP instructors have been – and will be – putting
up pictures, information and even student-made activities.
For more information on the LEAP program and the classes offered, please visit
the LEAP homepage, which can be found on the KIST website under the‘Support’ tab.
If you have any further questions, please feel free tocontact the LEAP Coordinator, Amber Guarente, at
leap@kist.ed.jp.
LEAP TeamCA News
From this semester, we, the CA Service
Committee, have set one day every monthas “Bellmark Day”. Through this activity, we
collect Bellmarks and trade them forequipment for the school. We ask for yourcooperation in assisting us with this task.

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15

KIPS News
Relationships with our local community
As we are living in a modern society, the nature of our
local communities has changed so much. Individual
families are more isolated in the community now than in
the past. A recent revision of kindergarten procedures
promotes the creation of stronger ties with the local
community.
In order to develop a closer relationship with ourneighboring community, we are fortunate to have astoryteller visit us to perform short story presentations.
The storyteller is a volunteer who loves children andenjoys watching them grow and develop. She visits us
each month and the children always love listening to her
stories. The storyteller’s visits are part of a service
arranged through Fukagawa library. The visits provide
an opportunity to be a part of our local community andhelp us build stronger ties with our neighbors.
Moreover, one of our parents offered to teach judo to
KIPS students in the near future. We are also planning
to arrange a Japanese traditional play by Shirayuri University students. These are our upcoming plans forJapanese class that will allow children to have Japanese cultural experiences through professional performances.
Exploring a variety of hands-on cultural experiences will benefit children in developing abilities that will enable themto adjust themselves to various environments as the nature of our communities continues to change.
Yuuki Tanabe
Support Staff

Monitoring children’s health and wellbeing
Nice to meet you! My name is Minami Nose, and I joined KIPS this August as thenurse. After my experience working as a midwife in the maternity ward of a
hospital, I wanted to learn about children’s growth and development in a hands-on
environment, so I’m looking forward to working at KIPS!
One of my main responsibilities as the nurse is checking the children’s physicalcondition. Because I check each child every morning, the children have learned tohelp me out by lifting their shirts up to show me their stomachs. I’m also
responsible for keeping the rooms at the proper temperature and humidity level,
and while the children are napping, I make sure to disinfect all of the toys, furniture,and other items at KIPS that the children often touch in order to prevent the spreadof infections and illnesses between students during group activities. Additionally, I
consult with the staff responsible for preparing the school lunches regarding theingredients and menu options in order to create each month’s lunch menu,
carefully checking for allergens, which I color-code before posting the menus on
Moodle. I am dedicated to putting the children’s health and safety first at all times.
In order to be able to notice even the smallest changes and irregularities, I actively
join in the children’s daily classes and activities, and I prioritize the constantsharing of information with the teachers through clear and open communication.
When I think about the fact that only a few short years ago, these children had only
just come into the world, I’m amazed by the fact that now they are not only
standing on their own feet, but also interacting with the adults and other children
around them, growing more and more each day. As the students grow and mature
one step at a time, I’ll do my best to help and take care of them in my role as nurse.
Minami Nose
Nurse

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MYP News
Parent workshops explore learning in the
MYP
Since September, KIST has hosted two workshops aimed atparents of MYP students. The workshops, conducted in
English with Japanese translation, allowed parents to take ahands-on approach to some of the issues connected tolearning in the MYP.

New parents working together to explore MYP assessment.

The first session was aimed at parents who are new to KIST or new to the MYP here
at the school. This group spent time considering two topics: how assessment isconducted in the MYP, and how student progress is communicated to parents throughsemester reports. The new parents examined how teachers approach assessing
student success. They had a session with Mr Cowe in which he highlighted the mainfeatures of the MYP report cards.
The second workshop featured the parents of Grade 10
students. Parents worked through the main expectationsof the Personal Project, the culminating activity for Grade
10 students. The parents got to meet with students whocompleted the project successfully last year, and wereable to gain insights into the steps students can take tocomplete the project at a high level of performance.
Meng Ting (G11A) shares her
Personal Project work with
G10 parents.

These parent workshops were good experiences. Many
families attended. Parents had a chance to meet and talkto other families and talk about the MYP approach tolearning. They also had a chance to see more deeply into the work of their children
and how this work helps prepare them for the future.
Rob White
MYP Coordinator

SERVICEIt is wonderful to see our G6Green Comets out to pick up
litter in front of our school.

THANK YOU!
6A: Yusei, Kian, Homare,Muskaan, Caley Aki and Selin
6B: Nikol and Shaunak
for making our community abetter place for all!

Parents are introduced to the
Personal Project’s requirements
by Kevin (G11B).

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Learning in the MYP
Key concepts provide connection acrossthe curriculum
Each Friday afternoon, secondary students use thelast class of the day to stop and reflect. These
reflections often touch on elements of their learningthat don’t fit comfortably in their regular subject
classes.
During the first semester, students in Grade 6 to 8
have had a chance to explore Key Concepts in the
MYP. These are the big, enduring ideas thattie learning together across a wide variety ofsubjects in the MYP. Each of the eight MYP
subject groups have identified ideas that are
essential to developing expertise in theirareas of inquiry.
The advisory session on the Key Concepts
helped to show students how these big ideas
help to build bridges that can connect one
subject to another. Ultimately, the MYP’sconcept-based learning shows students thatthe content of theirindividual subjects ismade moremeaningful. Theinteraction between
course content, skill
development andconcepts provides a 3dimensional model oflearning.

The MYP Key Concepts and their places within the subject groups.

G6s show their understanding of the
MYP Key Concepts.

G6s discuss the links that they see
among the 8 MYP subjects.

Rob White
MYP CoordinatorG8s use hexagons to show theirunderstanding. Gold hexagons
show the 16 Key Concepts; blue
hexagons have the 8 MYP subjects.

This group of G8 boys foundthat many Key Concepts clearly
form much of the work in their
Individuals and Societies class.

Eleina (G8B) created icons
to represent some of the
MYP Key Concepts.

REMINDER
MATHS DIAGNOSTICTESTINGGRADES 4-5...

January 12, 2018
GRADES 6-10...

January 19, 2018

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V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17

MUN Scrimmage
High school level
Yet another stimulating MUN
Scrimmage was hosted by KIST on
the 18th of November. On this wet
autumn day, KIST had the privilege
of interacting with students from The
British School in Tokyo, St. Mary’s
International School, Tamagawa
Academy, Yokohama International
School and Senzoku Gakuen, with
the number of delegates totaling
122, exceeding last year’s sum.
Over the course of only a few hours,delegates discussed, argued andattempted to create resolutions fortwo debatable issues. One was“Forestalling the acquisition of
nuclear weapons by rogue statesand sub-national groups,” and theother was “Promoting international
cooperation and technology-sharing
toward the goal of a permanentcolony on Mars.” Many students did
an outstanding job keeping in theirdesignated role and reflecting theircountry’s stance on the topics which
promotes eye-opening debates.
Prior to the debates, delegates got
an opportunity to ask our guest
speaker, Ms Momoyo Ise, about her
experiences working at the United
Nations. Ms Ise was the appointed
the first Executive Director of theUnited Nations University, located inTokyo. She then served as Directorof the Office of Human Resources at
the UN and also served as the
Executive Director of the Asian
Women’s Fund.
This annual KIST MUN Scrimmage
was a first-time conference
experience for many students andactive debate seemed to bechallenging. However, it was evident
that those students were absorbing
and learning a lot from socializing
with students from other international
schools and debating the world’s
current issues through the distinct
style of MUN.

Continued on next page

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Continued from previous page

Middle school level
The second KIST Model United Nations Scrimmage for the middle
school level was held on Saturday, November 18, 2017 along with thehigh school level scrimmage. Students from five schools including
KIST, were divided into two rooms, one chaired by Ms Evelyn and theother by two Senzoku Gakuen students. The debate topic was asfollows: ‘How does climate change impact coastlines and humanhealth’.
The KIST MUN club members in this section represented thecountries of Germany, China, Fiji and Japan. The event started with
an opening ceremony featuring a guest speaker, Ms Momoyo Ise, arespected elderly woman who had worked at the United Nations
previously. Next, students had a session of lobbying or un-moderated
caucusing, in which we interacted informally and worked on
resolutions. This went on until the lunch break after which we went
into debate about the various
resolutions being brought up. The
resolutions were modified by theGeneral Assembly, and then voted on.
The closing ceremony brought the day
to an end.
The Scrimmage was a great successthis year as well. The students wereable to develop their skills, and at thesame time, have fun on the day. We
thank Ms Evelyn for supporting us in
the preparations during clubs. We
hope to see the other delegates again
next year!

It was a great learning experience for me, though this was my second scrimmage. I was placed with threeof my fellow club members in the General Assembly chaired by the Senzoku Gakuen students. Their styleof MUN was quite different and far more formal than was practiced in club time. One had to put forward a motionthat was seconded and voted on just for a lunch break! I was representing Germany along with one of myfriends. I have to admit, we weren’t completely prepared! One lesson I have definitely
learned is to not procrastinate and leave all my research till the last day!
Mehak (G8A)

M

UN was a great experience. It is one of those things you will never forget. One great thing about the
Scrimmage is that you get to talk to and communicate with people you have never met before. You get
an opportunity to make new friends from many different schools. MUN is not only fun, but it can also help
improve your many skills. Through the process, you learn how to research, write and debate properly. It helps
you to broaden your thoughts and explore many different opinions and ideas. Overall,
Saanvi (G7B)
MUN is a worthwhile experience.

T

his year was my first MUN experience for me. At first, I was worried whether I can manage with all the
research and win the debates. But when I actually attended the KIST MUN Scrimmage, it turned out that
it wasn’t about ‘winning’ the debate over other schools or other countries. When I spoke in front of the otherdelegates with my partner, I was improving my communication and public speaking skills. And even though it was
my first time, my partner and many others helped me a lot! It was a truly amazing
Hanna (G8B)
experience!

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V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17Music Excursion to Suntory Hall
As part of G6B and G7B’s musicunits, on November 8, we went toSuntory Hall to hear the Boston
Symphony Orchestra. It was very
interesting to hear the conductor
introducing each piece to be
performed and to see many
instruments on the stage. Here aresome comments from the students
that were made after the concert.

The conductor made sure thateveryone was doing their part
correctly, guiding them throughhis wonderful conducting.”

The change in dynamics wasreally clear and very good. The
orchestra performed the loud partstrongly and the quiet part softly.”

Makiko Duran
MYP Music Teacher
The performance was beautiful,
especially the piece with the fluteand harp. The sound of the harp
was very pretty and relaxing.”

From Rio to Tokyo
My name is Lígia and I am in Grade 10 at KIST. I am
Brazilian from Rio de Janeiro and my father has come towork in Japan. As my sister and I do not speak Japanese,
my mother searched for international schools in Japan
with a good reputation so that we could continue ourstudies in English.
After passing through interviews and tests, KIST granted
me a Future Horizons Scholarship that gave me theopportunity to come to Japan and have the chance toimprove my studies.
In January, I studied in London also at an international
school, and I could see the difference between this type ofschool and the Brazilian schools.

Ligia relaxing by Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, Rio de Janeiro

At KIST, I found the curriculum much more focused and with a lot of work. I like the teachers´ good will to help me
and also the after-school clubs at KIST. I am anxious for next year, in which I am going to be able to choose my DP
subjects.
I am grateful to KIST, Mr and Ms Komaki and Mr Jones for giving me this opportunity, welcoming me to KIST andhelping me to achieve my future goals.
Ligia (G10A)

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Processing Our Waste
On Monday, November 6, 2017,
the G12 ESS and Geography
students visited the Ariake
Incineration Plant. The Plant
serves to reduce the volume ofwaste generated by burning thewaste it collects from households, so as toprolong the use of existing landfill disposalsites. In the process of incineration, it utilizes
the heat energy produced to generate
electric power and supply steam and hot
water to the Tokyo Waterfront City andneighbouring public facilities.
During the visit to the Plant, KIST students
listened to a presentation about the processof incineration and the effectiveness of theplant in reducing waste generation. We went
on a tour around the plant facilities and wereparticularly fascinated by the giant ‘Waste
Crane’ which picked up tonnes of rubbish
and transported it to the ‘Waste Hopper’ forburning at 800 degree Celsius. The Plant
workers also kindly answered our queries
throughout the visit and all students felt it
was a truly rewarding learning experience.

Aska from G12A says:O

ur visit to the incineration plantgave me an opportunity toreflect upon something I usually do
not consider. Learning about what
happens beyond us throwing trash
away in the bin, in which we perform
almost habitually, is what I feel is an
important responsibility to fulfil as a
global citizen. I am very thankful foreveryone at the plant and respect
those who work in an environment,
which is not the most desirable, forthe community’s good.

Elina’s Winning Design
Congratulations to Elina (G7A), this year’s Artscape logo
competition winner!
Elina’s design was judged to be the best from the collection ofdesigns submitted by international school students.
Artscape is an annual art exhibition for international students from Grades 5
through 12 in the Kanto region. The next show will be held in February 2018 andElina’s design will be used on all promotional materials for the event.
Well done, Elina!

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Grade 7 Camp Reflections
On November 16 and 17, our KIST 7th graders took atrip to Shizuoka. Please enjoy their thoughts on thismemorable experience!

Sri (G7A)

M

y time at Grade 7 camp was amazing!! We all stayed at the
YMCA lodge near the base of Mt. Fuji. We did many activities
there, such as cutting down trees and visited a farm.
In the forest we were divided into five groups. There each group
had a chance to carry logs, cut down trees, cut the timber into logs
and carry the logs to one place. We also said a prayer to one treethat our group chose, hoping that it would one day, become 3
meters in diameter. It was a once in a lifetime experience for all of
us and we had great fun. Most of us were glad that we had bathtime after the activity because we were all tired and sweaty. Then
we had a good dinner and worked on making our promotional video
for the NPO.
Our rooms in the lodge were very cozy, and we all had a goodnight’s sleep. Some of our rooms even had a second floor. The
next morning, after admiring the beautiful sunrise over Mt. Fuji thatloomed over us, we ate breakfast. After that we went to Makaino
farm which was unexpectedly close to the lodge. There we all had
free time for an hour and a half. Most of us wandered around thefarm’s fields and admired some of the animals whereas the rest of
us made crafts like candles, cheese, etc. Then came the yummy
part… Barbeque style lunch!! We all had great fun cooking themeat or eating udon and it was all very delicious. After being
satisfied with our lunch, we started our long journey back to school,
where we reached about 5:30 p.m.
This camp has been a great exposure for all of us and it was also agreat opportunity for us to get to know each other better anddevelop our teamwork skills. We all greatly thank the teachers andstaff who organized this fun and entertaining event for us.

T

Jessie (G7B)

he G7 camp was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It was fun yettiring. We didn’t just work on our school work, but also had fun withfriends.

C

Shin (G7B)

utting trees was a rare experience. So I think I was lucky to have achance to do it. I also learned a lot from the NPO presenters before
the tree cutting.

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The Benefits of Walking the Extra Mile
Some wise advice from Dr Michelle at Chelsea International Education
Why stop at one mile when you can walk two? In the educational realm, this refers to two groupsof people: those who will do what they need to do to get by and those who will go above andbeyond to stand out. Within which group do you fit?
Before you take another step ahead in your education, consider these benefits of walking the extra mile:






In a swarm of thousands of other students applying to a university, your efforts to go
above and beyond will make you stand out.
You will present yourself as a confident go-getter with goals – which can potentially open
you up to new opportunities.
Those who take the initiative to go the extra mile will stand out by setting the bar higher
for future students.
Rewards often come to those who excel above the rest. Not only do you reap the
personal benefits of succeeding, but you may also receive recognition or reward fromteachers, administration (or even a manager or supervisor if in the workplace).
There aren’t many things that feel better than just feeling good about yourself. Here youcan enjoy the feeling of accomplishment, fulfillment, and achievement. Go on and pat
yourself on the back.

Perhaps the best benefit of all is knowing that when you exhibit the desire to go above and beyond what is
expected, a better quality of work is usually reflected. And, if truth be told, most people would prefer quality overquantity.

Refuse to be ordinary. Choose to be extraordinary!

Staff Professional Development at KIST

Our KIST calendar had September 16 labelled as a Staff Development Day. For
KIST staff, this day was an opportunity for our teacher leaders to share bestpractices with other staff.
A total of 14 staff members contributed by presenting workshop sessions on topics such as:












Action research planning and report writing
Supporting socio-emotional development in the Elementary and Middle School context
Tracking independent reading
Designing Secondary School assessments
From reading to analysis
Design thinking in the classroom
How technology can improve teaching and learning
Action in the PYP
Self-assessment tools
Integrating ELS into Secondary School classrooms

Thank you to all who made this a fantastic learning opportunity!

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Athletics Update
Our volleyball season came to an end at the ISTAA
volleyball tournament held here at KIST on November 18.
Both KIST COMETS U-18 volleyball teams fought well during thetournament but ultimately lost close semi-final matches. Here are somephotographs of the boys’ and girls’ teams. Many of the photos arecourtesy of Yuuki (G11A).

Soccer Success
KIST Comets Elementary soccer clubtake second place
All around the world there is a glue that holds
people together, and that is the love of soccer! This year at
KIST, I have been privileged to work with this wonderfulgroup of students.
This club cycle has brought many excellent changes to oursoccer club. We now use a four-color team system, inwhich each team has a captain who leads their own team.
These captains have opportunities to coach, manage
different weekly responsibilities, and be great role models
for their peers to look up to.
We are also fortunate to have two sixth grade volunteers
who act as our assistant coaches. They have been pivotal
in helping to plan and coordinate fun and engaging clubsessions each week. In addition, one of our assistantcoaches, Daiki (G6B), helped lead our fifth
graders to taking second place at the recent
ISTAA tournament at The British School inTokyo! I am proud to celebrate the Comets
great success this year!
Axel Norwood
Coach

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V o l u me 2 1 | I s s u e 2 | De c e m b e r 2 0 1 7

Middle School… High School…….....…

KPASS Drama Festivals
KIST Secondary students were active participantsin the KPASS Drama Festivals this fall. On
Saturday, September 23, twelve high school
students traveled to Yokohama International School to attend the
KPASS High School Drama Festival. In this annual event,students are split into inter-school groups to produce and present a
short dramatic performance led by professional directors and actors.
The pace can be quite frantic as the work of brainstorming,planning, writing, blocking, rehearsing and, finally, performing are allaccomplished in less than six hours.
This year’s attendees included Thilo (G9B), Michiko (G9B), Ishaan (G9B),
Riju (G9B), Kiho (G9B) Caterina (G9B), Michiru (G10A), Hinako (G10A),
Emiri (G11B), Chae Hyun (G11B), Ryu (G11A) and Igor (G11B).
Performances varied broadly, but all addressed the year’s theme: ‘Lost’.
There were excellent examples of both more plot-driven and more abstract
work, and several highly memorable sketches incorporating audience
immersion, dance and puppetry.
Subsequently, on Monday, November 13, middle school students traveled to
the National Youth Olympic Memorial for the KPASS Middle School Drama
Festival, hosted again this year by the British School in Tokyo. Like the highschool festival, attendees were invited from a number of international schools
throughout the Kanto region for an intense, one-day workshop. In a few shorthours, mixed groups of students from varied schools worked with an instructor
to prepare and perform a 5-minute dramatic presentation. This year, Aki (G6A),
Rintaro (G6B), Haku (G7A), Ketan (G7B), Tia (G7B) and Lilike (G8A)
represented KIST at the event.
To great effect, the majority of this year’s performances on the theme‘Freedom’ took a negative or dark view of the term, often portraying how
oppressive the lack of liberty can be. Most performances also incorporated
music and movement.
For both middle and high school students, the tradition of strong KIST participation in the regional drama
festivals continued this year.
Steven Otis
Secondary Subject Area Coordinator—English

Explanation Day 2017
On Saturday, October 14, we held our annual Explanation Day
for prospective families. This year, we welcomed a record of 270
families throughout the day. Visitors listened to explanations
about the school and the curriculum, and also participated intours of the school’s facilities.
Families of current KIST students who are interested in enrollingother siblings are reminded that the application deadline for April
or August entry is January 8, 2018. Applications will also be
accepted after this date; however, it is possible that some classes may be full.
For more details on the application process, please check our Admissions Handbook at the link below:
http://www.kist.ed.jp/node/41
Craig Larsen
Director of Admissions and Personnel

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2018 KIST HFH TEAMFUNDRAISER UPDATESFUNDRAISING AT K.20
WHAT IS HABITAT FOR HUMANITY?
Habitat for Humanity (HFH) is an organization
which helps support housing activities for poor
individuals who are unable to provide housing
for themselves due to financial reasons or lossof shelter.

HOW DOES IT WORK?
Members of the 2018 KIST HFH Team will go
to Vietnam in June 2018 to build a house forthe people in need. In order to make thishappen, we organise various fundraising
activities throughout the year to cover part ofthe participation costs.

On October 28, 2017, the 2018 KIST HFH Team
organised 3 booths at KIST’s 20th anniversary event,the “K.20 Celebration”. The booths included sponge
toss, super ball and yo-yo fishing. In the sponge toss,
we had several teachers who volunteered to support
the cause through being a participant of this booth.
This booth was significantly successful as it enabledinteraction between student and teachers. The superball booth was extremely popular amongst the
younger children as they were able to receive thesuper balls. All three booths supported not only HFH
but also the KIST community as a whole as itincreased the number of activities in the event andincreased interaction between the members of theschool community. This event accomplished a total of¥202,250.

FUNDRAISING AT EXPLANATION DAY
On October 14, 2017, a few members of the 2018
KIST HFH Team contributed in selling tea andcoffee during the explanation day. This benefited
those attending the explanation day as they wereable to purchase refreshments during the course of
the event. This event resulted in a total of ¥39,369
profit.

FUNDRAISING AT AC MILAN ACADEMY CHARITY
SOCCER EVENT
The image above was a picture taken during the AC Milan
Academy charity soccer event. On November 19, 2017, the AC
Milan Academy kindly organised a charity soccer event for the2018 KIST HFH Team. We are grateful to AC Milan, as they not
only gave us the opportunity to fundraise but also enabledindividuals of all age groups to enhance their soccer skills andexperience through the “AC Milan
method”. The 2018 KIST HFH Team
contributed to this event by selling coffee,
managing the registration and holding akick target booth. We raised a total of¥106,147. A similar event will be held
again in Spring 2018 and we look forward
to seeing you all there!

Written by Krisha (G11A)

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Spotlight on Clubs
Glee Club (Elementary)
Did you know that singing is scientifically proven to be good for your mind andbody? Research shows that singing has physical, as well as psychological healthbenefits. Being an aerobic activity, it increases oxygen in the blood stream andhelps keep your heart healthy. It strengthens your immune system, improves
posture, helps with sleep, improves mental alertness, lowers stress levels(through the release of “feel good” chemicals called endorphins), and is an antidepressant too, even if you are singing alone.
There are many social benefits to singing in a group! It helps you build
communication skills. Choral singers are constantly working together to sing
together, and even strive to take breaths together. We are part of a tight team!
Studies show that choral singers have a higher satisfaction towards life as itbuilds your circle of friends, boosts your confidence, expands your ability tocommunicate amongst a community, and teaches you to appreciate life. The best
part of singing is that you can do it no matter how young or old you are!
We currently have 17 students from various grades in the Glee club to sing,dance to various songs, and have fun. We usually start with warm-ups that will
help us loosen our throats and prepare our bodies (physically and mentally). Thenthe students usually sing/dance to a song either they or I have chosen…over andover again! This is an extremely satisfying process…practicing as we enjoy theprocess and progress. Time passes incredibly fast when we are practicing that it
seems like there is never enough time to practice to our heart’s content. Recently
we have been practicing songs that we will sing during the Winter concert. We
have spent a lot of time and thought preparing for the performance and we hope
you will enjoy it. Hurrah to the courageous, skilled singers of the elementary!
Aya Kurosaki
Club Supervisor

Students’ Orchestra Club (Secondary)Since the beginning of this school year, our orchestra has
been actively involved in the school community, including
participation in the K.20 Celebration in October. We have
many talented students, and some of them have
performed solo pieces at a number of school events.
In late November, we were invited to attend the Triphony
Hall in Kinshicho and saw the New Japan Philharmonic inaction. Their first performance was by a Russian pianist,
who played Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. We all
knew the opening melody and were all thinking: “who willbe the first orchestra member to play a concerto with ourorchestra?”I would like to thank you all for your generous support.
We have received donations of musical instruments fromthe KIST community, including violins, a viola, a cello, aclarinet, a flute and a trumpet. From fundraising events
such as the Free Dress Day, the Bell Mark Day and the
AC Milan soccer event, we were able to raise funds thatwill go towards the purchase of additional instruments.
We appreciate your continued support and are still
accepting any musical instrument donations. Pleasecontact Mrs Duran for further information.
Makiko DuranOrchestra Conductor“ T h e Co m et ”

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Library News
This school year has been an exciting timefor Ms Erika and myself, Mr Tim, in the LMC
as we design and implement many exciting newfeatures to help students with their studies.

Destiny Discover – NEW
for Elementary andSecondary students
An all new search engine for KIST
libraries. Designed to be a onestop-shop for all KIST physicalresources, digital resources andonline subscriptions.
Visit the KIST website now for the link to explore thesegreat new features. You will need to sign in with your
KIST e-mail and password to enjoy all the features.
You can visit Destiny Discover via the KIST website or
this link: http://bit.ly/2mYQG4k
You may also use the Destiny Discover Apps for
iPhone, e-reader, Android or tablet to browse, holdbooks, or create collections. Only use school approved
laptops while at school though please!

LMC main area – NEW fiction layout
In response to feedback from our end-of-year survey,
input from the English department, and invaluable help
from the Library Elves, students are now better able tofind great books in the LMC than ever before.
 EXPANDED – Graphic Novels section
 NEW – Translated Fiction section. Books fromJapanese authors such as Shusaku Endo, Masashi
Kishimoto and Haruki Murakami.
 NEW – World Fiction. Fiction stories set around theworld, particularly useful for G9s.
 NEW – Classic Novels sections. From authors such
as Jane Austen, D.H. Lawrence and Ernest
Hemmingway.
 IMPROVED – Series are labeled. Easily find otherbooks by authors such as David Walliams, Marissa
Meyer and J.K. Rowling.
 NEW – Genre icons. Appearing steadily, these icons
help students to make independent book choices.

LMC room two –NEW resources
Redesigned with ourolder Secondary
students in mind,
LMC room two – the entire back wall isstudents can now
now student resources
access these great
resources:
 NEW – Extended Essay level recommended fiction
 NEW – Young Adult Fiction has its own dedicatedsection Study guides – previously in various sections in the
LMC, now in one location with more soon.

NEW – Collections
All the new LMC Fiction
sections can be browsed
online via Destiny
Discover Collections.
View the recommended
reading Collection for
Grades 6 and 7, forexample. Look at theStudents use Destiny Discover on
cover, read theone of the 3 new search terminals.
description, and if you like
it put it on hold so that you can simply collect it from the
LMC.
Collections include: Classic Novels (90+)
 Extended Essay Recommended Texts (20+)
 Grade 6 and 7 Recommended Reading (50+)
 Japanese Works in English (40+)

Destiny Discover homepage
Continued on next page

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Continued from previous page

Refreshed – Non-fiction Literacy section

DEAR

The LMC Library team must again thank the English
department for their time and enthusiasm in helping us
to re-arrange the Literacy section of the LMC sostudents are better able to find books to help them with
their studies.

For 20 minutes eachweek throughout
November, allstudents and staff
Drop Everything And
Read. If you would
like to see the books
our Elementary andSecondary students
and staff werereading, I highly
recommend watching
the short videos madeeach week for KISTv
on the KIST Libraries
Blog:

NEW Dedicated sections for:
 Poetry Drama and Plays Shakespeare Short Stories
If you have any questions on how to use any of theabove online resources please do e-mail myself or the
library team.

DEAR 2017

Mr Tim reads All Quiet on the Western
Front by Erich Remarque for DEAR;
one of many texts recommended forExtended Essay students.

Thank you.

http://bit.ly/2z5ShXj

Mr Timtimothy.smith@kist.ed.jp
library@kist.ed.jp

DEAR book character parade

Library elves
Have youever
thought ofborrowingbooks in the
LMC but
you can’t decide
which book is goodand interesting? Are
you having a hardtime locating books
Library Elf, Junyung (G7A)
that you want to read? organizing the Japanese non-fiction.
Well no need to worry
because our Library Elves are here to help you! You
can always approach them anytime, any day!
Their duties are:
 Helping the Librarian and Library Assistant organize
books.
 Recommend books to their fellow students andclassmates.
 Help the LMC become a better resource center forthe students.
Ms Erika

Library Elves busy creating book displays.

Thank you so much for participating in our annual Drop
Everything And Read (DEAR) program. Everyone from
K1 students to Mr and Mrs Komaki joined in ourcelebration of reading culture at KIST. The book
character parade—the culmination of the DEAR
program—was held on Friday, December 1 and was a
big hit. Our students really went all out with theircostumes this year! Thank you for your enthusiasm.
Here are a few photos from that event.
Ms Leslie

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Staff 10!
In this month’s Staff
10!, we are pleased
to present Reina
Sekiguchi who
joined us in April
2013 as the
Administrative
Ms Sekiguchi reading a book at theAssistant for thebeach in Siargao, Phillipines.
Elementary School,
working closely with Mr Yoshihara and Mr Bradley.
1) Tell us something interesting about yourhometown.
I was born and raised in Setagaya, Tokyo. It is a quiet
residential area that has lots of beautiful parks andgood restaurants – two things that I LOVE! I also spenta big chunk of my life in Melbourne, Australia, so I
consider it as my second home. Melbourne has been
voted as the most livable city in the world for theseventh time this year!
2) What is your favorite place in the world?
It would be Siargao in the Philippines. It is located in
the southeastern part of the archipelago, and hasamazing white sand beaches that you would see inpostcards. There are also lots of uninhibited islands
around Siargao, and you can hop between them by aboat. It is amazing to see places that have hardly been
touched by people. These places make me feel
responsible for taking care of this planet.
3) Who would you like to meet if you had thechance and why?
My grandfather that I never got to meet. My motheroften tells me how he went beyond his regularresponsibility as a GP, and visited underprivileged
families to provide medical support. He even left somemoney under his patients’ pillows…! I am reminded of
the importance of humility and altruism whenever I
think of him.
4) Do you have any special skills or talents?
I am double-jointed so my legs can bend quiet easily
at strange angles. Thanks to this, I always came first in
hurdle races!!
5) Please share a little known fact about yourself.
I grew up with so many animals in the house. At one
point, we had about 15 pets including a giant tortoise(he was around 80 cm!), snakes, an alligator, a flying
squirrel and a parrot! To think of it, this may be thereason why I love animals and nature so much!
6) What is your most prized possession?
My family and friends. They are irreplaceable.

“Some of myclose friends arepeople that I met
at KIST!”

7) Which IB learner profile attribute do you mostclosely identify with and why?
Probably ‘caring’. I genuinely enjoy taking care ofpeople and making them happy 8) If you could live your life again, would you doanything differently?
Although I can think of things I could have done better,
I would not change anything because it is importantthat I accept my flaws and forgive myself for mymistakes. Besides, I’ve met so many amazing people
along the way!
9) Is there anything you are trying to learn/improveabout yourself at the moment?
I am studying to become an awesome teacher! 10) Do you have any special message for yourfans?
Don’t take things too seriously! And remember toappreciate every moment given to you because you
will never get it back.

Office Updates
Winter accessories
As the weather gets colder, it’s time to get your woolly
hats, gloves, scarves, neck warmers and other wintergear out of the wardrobe.
During winter, all accessories worn to school must be
plain black with no stripes, patterns or brands visible. If
your child is currently wearing items that are not black,please ensure that these are replaced. The following
winter items are available to purchase from the school
reception.

Knitted hat ¥500

Scarf ¥500

Gloves ¥206

School fee payments
The payment date for the 3rd installment of school
fees for 2017-2018 is December 15. Please ensurethat you make your payment by this date if you havenot already done so.

School lunch orders
The closing date for changes or cancellations toschool lunch orders from January 2018 is December
15. For all changes or cancellations, the School
Lunch Order Form must be submitted to the office bythis date. Requests to change or cancel school
lunch orders will not be accepted after the closing
date.
The form is available from the school website at:
http://www.kist.ed.jp/files/pdf/enrolment/School%
20Lunch%20Order%20Form.pdf

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OPINION—To Kill a Mockingbird or Heal a Bluejay
English Paper 2 in Contemporary Political Context
Every year, in preparation for the Paper 2
Language and Literature exam, I teach Grade
12 students about the culture of violence
portrayed in To Kill a Mockingbird, the classic
novel about racism and intolerance in the
United States. And every year, there arenews headlines that illustrate how thatpugilistic culture persists—and often seems tohave worsened since the novel’s publicationin 1960. On his recent Asian diplomacy tour,
US President Trump was quoted as saying
the shooting at a church in Texas, in whichmore than two dozen were murdered, was nota “guns situation.” I both agree and disagree.
The massive proliferation of and easy accessto guns are obvious differences between the
US and the dozens of other similar nations
with no gun violence to speak of, including,notably, Japan. But there are also othercountries with guns that don’t have thesefrequent massacres. Here I partially agreewith the president’s statement—not in spirit,
but in a stricter, more literal sense. Guns havebeen a part of the culture of the United Statessince the nation’s founding; weekly mass
shootings have not been. It is dangerous toscapegoat mental health for these attacks—asymptom of a cultural disease. Rather, as theGrade 12 Literature in Cultural Context studyof Mockingbird has shown me, humanbehavior is most substantially a product of
enculturation and circumstance. Put simply,
the sickness of violence may be a cultural
affliction, not a strictly psychological,
individual one. Teaching Language andLiterature has led me to this position.
To seek to identify and control those withhomicidal intent is a fool’s errand if we cannot
find ways to address the circumstances which
create mental illness of this sort. Society
creates murderers, and society must be
accountable when we do so. That there
seems to be an endless string of hopeless,desperate men, angry at the world and intent
on asserting their worth in a blitz of cruelviolence suggests a society which champions
power and ego at the expense of loving, selfsacrificing relationships and meaningful,fulfilling pursuits. In this, guns symbolize an
American ego comprised of lonely souls
willing to fight and die in pursuit of their own
greatness. This is certainly not the only
American identity, but it is the cancerous one
which confronts the world again and again,
and which seems only to spread each time
we vow to track down the perpetrators anddestroy them. To what extent the UnitedStates holds a unique claim to thisignominious distinction remains a topic ofresearch and debate. It seems clear that
there is a tragic symmetry between the acts ofterrorist violence which have rocked many
parts of the globe in recent decades andthese individual rampages within theAmerican populace. On a global scale, thesobering truth remains the same: The
perpetrators are our own sons, brothers,
husbands and neighbors. They are actors in
the human drama, the pages of which are
written with our actions, our traditions, ourinstitutions, our myths. As a citizen of theworld, I too am accountable for this violence. I

must address it in my actions, with my words,
and with my ballot. I must work to heal thedisease of ego amongst us which too quickly
resorts to violence when confronted withuncertainty, ambiguity, threat, or despair.
In a recent Paper 2 practice test, current
Grade 12 student Sara S. argued that “in ‘To
Kill a Mockingbird,’ Harper Lee attempts toredeem the [American] South from its
reputation among other states as racist andintolerant, a stigma which resulted from thedefeat of the Southern Confederacy in the
Civil War.” This is an excellent point. But, asSara later notes, “acts of violence such as thekilling of [the mad dog] Tim Johnson and thedeath of Bob Ewell are celebrated.” In fact,
Mockingbird resolves the overwhelming
majority of its conflicts violently: shooting Tim
Johnson, settling childhood battles with fists,
decapitating the flowers in the cruel old racist
Mrs Dubose’s yard, shooting Tom Robinson
seventeen times in the back, and ultimately,
stabbing that great evil-doer Ewell to death.
While the heroic protagonist Atticus Finch inmany ways symbolizes and promotes the kindof dialogue, compromise, and personal
restraint that make real community possible,
he is just as prone to dismissiveness in theway he speaks of villains like Ewell—no good“trash” that must be removed, through force
when necessary (as he does metaphoricallyin shooting the mad dog between the eyes).
While the American South of the 1930s may
seem rather geographically and historically
remote, our Grade 12 students quickly learn
that the pressures and problems societies
must bear are consistent across the ages.
The second Paper 2 work studied is theancient Greek tragedy, Antigone, which tells
the story of two individuals forced to wrestle
with impulses torn between self-interest andthe common good. The questions regarding
how we see ourselves as members of acultural collective lie at the heart of the unit—
and can inform our thinking about theviolence which threatens our security in a very
real sense.
It is no mere coincidence that mass shootings
and terrorist attacks most often occur inplaces of great social significance: schools,
churches, shopping malls, cultural gatherings.
Mass shootings and terrorist attacks are actsof both suicide and policide—that is, a desire
to destroy the self, and in so doing, also
destroy or punish the polis, the ancient Greek
term for civic institutions which represent ourcommunity. In this act of policide, thedesperate soul is for a brief period
empowered to speak to and censure millions,even if the message they deliver is mere
bitterness, rage, and despair. It often seems
that these hopeless people have so little
value for human life because their own lives
feel so terribly worthless—and they place thisblame not on the random strangers theymurder, but on the symbolic institutions they
perceive have failed to bring meaning or
significance to their own lives. They register adesperate, though clearly selfish complaint:society didn’t serve me.

With this feeling ofdespair, guns andbombs are merely
the terribly
convenient andcatastrophic fuelwhich multiplies
exponentially thedanger of thistoxic convergence.
Limiting access toweapons of war is a noble and just pursuit;punishing those who kill is necessary anddisincentivizing to those who would thinklightly of violent solutions. Yet neither has thepower to build community, to bring meaning,
to soothe the raging ego which will not stop
until it has destroyed itself or everyone else in
the process.
In To Kill a Mockingbird, the final mortal
struggle plays out between two men who both
fit the profile of many of the world’scontemporary mass murderers: social
outcasts with little prospect of a better life.
The difference is that Bob Ewell based all his
sense of meaning in his need for respect andstatus; Boo Radley, having no traditional pathto gain respect or status, instead derived
meaning from his budding friendship with the
Finch children. That he fought and killed toprotect them is noble; that Bob would kill toprotect his own pride is vile. Thus, the line
between heroism and villainy is drawn
distinctly from the presence or absence of
meaningful relationships.
We find violent stories in the news each day.
These are the world’s contemporary
tragedies, played out before our eyes. That
we remain largely removed from the violenceis perhaps most a function of privilege, notimmunity. As the 1995 Aum Shinrikyo attacks
on our own local subway lines attest, the cultof ego does not require the traditional
weapons of war to reap deadly
consequences. Fortunately, as a KIST
community, we have the tools to build a moreconnected, compassionate global community:
justice, compassion, compromise.
Atticus Finch, in the lines for which the novel
is titled, famously states: “Shoot all the blue
jays you want, if you can hit ‘em, butremember, it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” In a
culture with no guns, the statement surely
changes, but a problem remains. Harper
Lee’s novel failed to predict our political
moment, one in which the blue jays—those
we perceive as villains, sociopaths,
terrorists—are in fact busy shooting us. To
build a world in which the shooting might
finally cease, let’s start by valuing ourinterconnectedness over our individual
desires, writing a story in which the world’s
violent egos find comfort and healing incommunity instead of the bitter oblivion ofdeath.
Steven Otis
Secondary Subject Area Coordinator—
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Parent Resources
Do You Use Podcasts?
Rather than YouTube and other video-based media, does your family regularly listen to podcasts? In an
article by Stephanie Hayes from the The Atlantic, she writes about some recent findings related to
podcast influence on learning and creativity:
The absence of images in podcasts seems to be a source of their creative potential. Withoutvisuals, listeners are required to fill the gaps—and when these listeners are children, the results
can be powerful. Numerous studies have found that children between the ages of seven and 13
respond more creatively to radio stories than to stories shown on television. Audio stories prompt
kids to draw more novel pictures, think up more unique questions, and solve problems in a more
imaginative way than TV tales.”To get you and your family started with podcasts, check out these two great podcasts for kids:
 Tumble – a science podcast for kids Brains on! – a podcast for kids & curious adults
Happy learning!

Did you know…


The Common Sense media survey in the
US found that ‘almost half of kids eight years
old and under have their own mobile device(this includes all types of mobile electronics
including smartphones)’
 Another recent study from the US showedthat handheld screen time was linked withspeech delays in young children.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Our KIST CA will host a showing of

Screenagers
at KIST on April 13, 2018
Award-winning SCREENAGERS probes into the vulnerable corners of family life,
including the director's own, and depicts messy struggles, over social media, video
games, academics and internet addiction. Visit www.screenagersmovie.com for
more information about this movie and how it can support your family.

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Goi Peace Foundation
Essay contest winners
Neda (from Bosnia – 3rd from the right) and Neha(from India – 4th from the right), winners of the2017 Goi Peace Foundation Essay Competition,
visited KIST on November 28 with their teachers,
foundation representatives, and the MinisterCounsellor of the Embassy of Bosnia andHerzegovina with his wife. Neda and Neha joined
our students and learned more about international
schooling in Japan.
We look forward to KIST students participating inthis contest from 2018! Maybe we will have somefuture winners!

Autumn Colors
With the end of the year almost uponus, we leave you with these colorful
images of Autumn as seen around the
KIST campus at the end of November.

Photos courtesy of Mr Larsen and Mr Bradley.

V ol u me 21 | I s s ue 2 | Dec em b er 20 17