The Comet

The Newsletter of K. International School Tokyo

Since 1997

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

In this issue...
Secondary Achievement Awards…p. 2

Moodle News…p. 7

IB Diploma Results…p. 2

ISA Testing…p. 7

Student Enrolments…p. 3

Counselor’s Corner…p. 9

Dress Expectations for Students…p. 3

College Admissions Season…p. 10

Global Young Leaders…p. 4

Sino-Japan Youth Conference…p. 11

Car Parking Reminder…p. 5

Welcome to New Staff…p. 13

From the Head of School“That’sudde s what learning inly uns. Yousometdhing y erstandyour lou undife, but in a erstood all
new w
Ralph
ay.”
Waldo
Emers
on

DATES TO REMEMBER

Greetings and welcome to the 2010-2011 school year!
I would like to extend another warm welcome to all of you, including those whoare new to the KIST community as well as to returning families. I wasespecially pleased to see so many of you at the Welcome Nights held recently,
and would like to again reiterate my eagerness to join with you in
Collaboration, Communication, and Community. This is sure to be an excitingyear!
As a brief introduction, I am originally from Houston, Texas and have beenin education for over 25 years, having served schools in the US, Japan,
Germany, the UK, and most recently in Cameroon, West Africa. Before
becoming an administrator, I taught science and special education and wasa school counselor. I hold a BS in elementary and special education, an
MEd in secondary education and administration, and a PhD in educational
leadership and policy. However, my greatest claim to fame are my two
daughters and new grandson who live in California. They will surely bevisiting me in Japan before too long.
This week, we kicked off the organizational meeting for several KIST
development committees. One of these is Community Connections, which, in
addition to creating varied venues for community involvement, will also initiatea KIST parent organization. If you are interested in participating on thiscommittee or in assisting with the parent organization, please contact me atn_shaw@kist.ed.jp. In addition, take note below of the coffee morningscheduled for Friday, September 24 at 9:00 a.m.
The motto at K. International is “Learning for Life.” As parents, I am surethat you too are aware of the vital role you play in supporting your child’s
learning. We are looking forward to a rewarding and productive year!
Warm regards,
Nanci Shaw, Ph.D.
Head of School

CASUAL COFFEE CORNER
Friday, September 24, 9:00 a.m.
Multipurpose Room

Please come and share your ideas withus about community involvement in theschool.

Please join us!
(Japanese translation will be provided.)

KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life

September 20:
School day
Board of Directors meeting
September 21:(S) College Information Night
September 23:
School day
September 28:(L/P/S) Free dress day
September 28 − 30:(G3/G5/G7/G9) ISA testing
September 29 − October 1:(G8) Camp
October 1:
PYP parent information session
October 4 − 5:
School photographs
October 7 − 8:
Staff development days (No schoolfor students)
October 9:
School Explanation Day
October 11:
School day
2011 enrolment applications open
Board of Directors meeting2

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Secondary Achievement Awards
2009-2010

Explanation Day 2010
For the 2011 - 2012 school year

Congratulations to the following students who received awards inJune for their achievements during the 2009-2010 school year.
(Classes shown in brackets are based on the 2009-2010 school
year.)KIST will hold an Explanation Day for parents
interested in enrolling children for the 2011 2012 school year.
Administration and teaching staff will beavailable to answer questions regarding
admissions procedures, the school
curriculum, progression to universities, andgeneral features of the school. Visitors will
also be able to view the school facilities.

Creativity, Action, Service– Shreya (G11)
Extended Essay– Carmina (G12)
Extended Essay Honorable Mention– Yuri (G12)– Disha (G12)Date:
October 9, 2010 (Saturday)
Session times:(1) English: 9:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
(2) Japanese: 1:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Contribution to the KIST Community– Matthew (G11)– Dingyun (G11)Tokyo Metropolitan Government Award for Special Services toCultural Activities– Carmina (G12)Tokyo Metropolitan Government Sports Award– Ryosuke (G10)– Pyay Phyo (G11)Reservations close:
October 8, 2010
Reservations essential!

www.kist.ed.jp

IB Diploma Results
During the summer vacation, the IB Diploma results were issued to thestudents of the “Class of 2010”. This year, a record number of students
successfully completed the requirements for the DP and were issued with
their Diplomas.
All candidates achieved individual successes in their IB Diploma with Aditya,
Disha and James achieving the highest overall scores. Three students, Yuri,
Joann and Sho, were also awarded a bilingual IB Diploma as they chose to
study two first languages as part of their Grade 11 and Grade 12 curriculum.
Parents who would like more general information on IB Diploma results
should go to http://www.ibo.org/diploma/assessment/results/. The IB
publishes a “Statistical Bulletin” summarizing the IB Diploma results, a linkto which is on this webpage. The “Statistical Bulletin” for the May 2010
Examination Session should be published in November.

Congratulations to all the students on their individual successes in the DP curriculum!
For more information about the IB Diploma at KIST, please contact the DP Coordinator,
Mark Cowe, at dp_co@kist.ed.jp.

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Student Enrolments
We have started the new school year with total enrolments of around 600. Although a numberof families left the school community in June to return to their home countries or move on toother countries, we were fortunate to gain around 90 new enrolments which has allowed us
to keep our total numbers more or less constant.
This year, there are 47 different nationalities represented in the student body as follows:
American, Australian, Bangladeshi, Bolivian, British, Canadian, Chinese, Danish, Dutch,
Egyptian, French, German, Indian, Indonesian, Iranian, Israeli, Italian, Ivorian, Japanese,
Korean, Malaysian, Mexican, Mongolian, Myanmar, Nepalese, New Zealander, Nicaraguan,
Norwegian, Pakistani, Panamanian, Peruvian, Filipino, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Senegalese,
Serbian, Singaporean, South African, Spanish, Sri Lankan, Swedish, Taiwanese, Thai,
Turkish, Ugandan, Ukrainian
And amongst our faculty, there are 13 nationalities represented as follows:
Australian, American, British, Canadian, El Salvadorian, German, Greek, Japanese, Kyrgyzs,
New Zealander, Malaysian, Filipino, Romanian
We are privileged to be surrounded by a truly international environment where we have theopportunity to learn about so many other cultures.
Craig Larsen
Director of Admissions and Personnel

Dress Expectations for Students
Some KIST students continuously “stretch” the limits
regarding dress expectations in spite of repeatedreminders, while others seem to absentmindedly“forget.” Nevertheless, the School Handbook is veryclear and detailed about the school dress code,
stipulating strict guidelines, to include the following: Neat and well-kept appearance.
 Correct, complete and properly fitted uniform.
 All black shoes, with no motifs or colored laces.
 Black socks.
 Hair tied back if touching collar.
Next week, the Area Principals will be addressing
each class to review the KIST dress expectations withstudents. As parents, you are also encouraged to
discuss the section of the School Handbook
pertaining to uniforms with your children, and toensure that they are dressed appropriately when theyleave for school. In general, the handbook states:
KIST has a strict dress code which all students must
follow at all times, including while traveling to andfrom school. The code, which covers uniforms,
clothing and general appearance, has been
established to encourage respect, responsibility
and safety amongst our students.
In general, Japanese society judges the quality of aschool by the way its students look and behave. In
recognition of this characteristic of our host country,
all students at KIST are required to wear the correctschool uniform and maintain a conservative
appearance with no extremes of fashion throughout

their enrolment. As a school, we believe that theschool uniform, when worn correctly, is an important
tool for promoting the image of the school in thecommunity. It also acts as a means for developing
school pride as well as a sense of belonging andcooperation between students. In addition, thewearing of uniforms takes the focus away fromfashion and allows students to concentrate on theiracademic responsibilities.
Please assist us in helping your children become
responsible and respectful citizens by following
the expectations set forth by the school. Thankyou very much!
KIST Administration Team3

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V o l u m e 1 4 | I s s u e V1o|l uSme ep t 1e 3m b
I sesru2e031 0“The Comet”

Global Young Leaders Conference
Kei and Ryosuke of Grade 12 attended the Global
Young Leaders Conference (GYLC) in the UnitedStates this summer. GYLC is a program which
selectively picks 300 students from schools in
different countries to meet and discuss global issues.
It is very much like Model United Nations, but on amuch greater scale. This program took place inWashington DC and New York City for 12 days during
the summer holiday.
First of all, this program provided us the opportunity togain leadership experience by participating in
educational simulations designed to challenge us andfurther develop our leadership skills. We visited many
places including: American University, the World Bank
Headquarters, United States Department of State andthe United Nations Headquarters to listen to speakers
and ask questions. This was really amazing because
we could actually listen to the people who work there
and ask questions of them. These speakers
challenged us to think critically and encouraged us toconsider the complexities of global issues. We believethat this awareness which we gained throughout the
program will help us understand our roles as leadersin addressing similar situations in the future.
Another great benefit to this program was that we had
an opportunity to explore and share ideas with many
students from different countries who wereintellectually curious, unique, interesting, and fun to
be with. This opportunity allowed us to gain andunderstanddifferent
perspectives
and ideas frommany countries.
Although it
seems all we
did was study,
actually there
was a great deal ofsightseeing and socializing as
well. For sightseeing, we went
to Ellis Island; the Statue of
Liberty; Times Square; Chinatown and Rockefeller
Center in New York City and Georgetown; theWashington Monument; the Lincoln Memorial; and theWorld War II, Vietnam and Korean War Memorials in
Washington DC.
Finally, this program has been an eye-opening
experience that will motivate us, not just in school, butalso in our careers. We, as alumni of the program,
think it was a life-changing experience. We had fun,learned a lot, and had valuable experiences. If you
have any further questions about our adventureplease talk to us or ask Mrs Okude or Mr Wagner in
the College Guidance Office.
Kei and Ryosuke (G12)(Assisted by Mr Wagner)

Library News
Greetings from the KIST reading and resource center. Since
returning to school, students have been busy using our books
and computers. After running two libraries over the last year,
we have made some changes. Chapter books have moved to
the Junior Library. Visitors to the Junior Library are asked totake their shoes off before entering to keep our nice and softcarpet clean so that students can sit on the floor.

New Library AssistantPlease welcome our new Library Assistant,
José Christian.
“Hi. I have recently joined the Library team at
KIST after being involved in the school’s
summer program. I am really enjoying my timein the school and getting to know all thestudents.”

Library use
Borrowing limits:
Grade
K1 and K2
K3 and G1
G2 – G5
G6 – G12
Parents

Maximum
2
3
4*
6*
4

Due

2 weeks

Opening hours:
Junior Library:Class times until
3:00 p.m.
Main Library:
8:15 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Out of class time usage for Elementary students
K3-G3 students and Junior Library users must be supervised
by a teacher or parents.

G4-G5 students must inform their classroom teacher andparents after school (Main Library only).

Main Library computer room
For educational purposes, students are able to use thecomputers outside class hours. Printing is also available
when the Library is open: B/W 10 yen/page, Color 25 yen/
page.

Volunteers
We are seeking volunteers to assist with shelving books as
indicated below; however, any support you are able toprovide with this would be appreciated:
Junior Library: From 9:00 on Mondays, Tuedays andThursdays for approximately 30 minutes.
Main Library: Any time on Wednesdays and Thursdays forapproximately 30 minutes.

DonationsThank you always for your book donations. There are
currently over 15 boxes waiting to be catalogued. Please
understand that it may be necessary to sell some of these at
the school festival. Before submitting books as donations,please contact the Library in advance.
If you have any questions regarding any aspect of the library,please contact me at s_yoshimoto@kist.ed.jp.
Satoko Yoshimoto
LibrarianVolume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Office Updates
Identity cards
All students in Grades 1 and above and all parents areissued with school ID cards. These must be brought toschool every time you visit and should be scanned at
the entrance gate as you enter and leave, even if thegate is opened by another person. Lost or damaged
cards should be reported to the office. A 2,000 yen
charge applies to replacement cards. We suggest thatyou keep your cards in a hard plastic case to avoid
damage to the internal memory chip. Cases may bepurchased at the reception counter.

School communication
As announced to the school community last school
year, all communication such as newsletters anddocuments distributed via the office are now being sent
electronically to your registered e-mail address. In thissystem, e-mails sent from the office contain either PDF
attachments or links to documents saved on the school
website. To view PDFs, you must have the latest
version of Adobe Reader installed on your computer.
To allow for any technical difficulties, a summary
message is also sent on Fridays in weeks when e-mails
are distributed. If there are any notices listed in thefollow-up relevant to your child’s grade that you have
not received, please contact the office.
If you wish to change your registered address, pleasesubmit a Change of Registered Details Form
(downloadable from the school website) to the office.
Only one address may be registered per family.

School calendar
The school calendar for 2010-2011 isavailable on the school website“Calendar” page and may be printed out
for your reference at home. A numberof changes to dates in Semester 2 havebeen made since the calendar was firstissued, so please be sure that you haveprinted the latest version dated August27, 2010. The changes are:February
17-18: (G10) MYP Personal Project Exhibition
22-24: IB PYP/MYP/DP evaluation visit

School photographs
As per the school calendar, school photographs will betaken on Monday, October 4 and Tuesday, October 5.
Please ensure that your child attends school on this day
as this will be the only chance to take official schoolgroup photographs for the year.
All students must wear the correct formal summer
uniform for school photographs, not the PE uniform.
Students who have PE scheduled on these days are
required to bring their PE uniform to school separately
and change into it before their PE class.

Students who do not wear the correct uniform or do notmeet dress code standards in terms of generalappearance (see the School Handbook) will not be
permitted to join school photographs.
Further information regarding the photograph schedule
will be distributed to all families soon.

Car Parking Reminder
All families dropping off and picking up
children by car are reminded to use apublic car park. It is illegal to park along
Kiyosubashi-dori Avenue, in the street
directly in front of the school entrance
gate, or the street near the Akafudado
supermarket. We continue to receive
complaints from local residents and businesses
regarding cars parked in the streets surrounding theschool in the mornings and afternoons. The police
department has directed us to remind families thatparking on public roads is illegal at all times including
situations where someone is present inside the car for
more than five minutes.
We ask you to assist us in maintaining a good
relationship with our neighbors by using a public carpark instead of parking on the streets.
Furthermore, for many years, through an informal
agreement, the local community has used the road infront of the main school entrance gate as a one-way
road to enable a smooth flow of traffic. Visitors to theschool are also asked to follow this procedure byturning off Kiyosubashi-dori Avenue next to the
Comfort Hotel and leaving the area via the street next
to the Akafudado supermarket.

Searching for Singers
KIST occasionally allows a recording company called
Star Fruits Entertainment to use our facilities to record
professional CDs. To date, over 75 of our students
have been singers for these recordings. The CDs are
sold commercially in music shops and on the iTunes
Music Store. Star Fruits is planning to record somesongs for a new CD during October. If you areinterested in your child being considered for this,please e-mail Mr Adams at t_adams@kist.ed.jp for
more information. The
commitment usually requires
approximately 3 hours after
school.
Trevor Adams
Secondary Music Teacher

56Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Elementary School NewsIt was wonderful to see so many families at our recent
Welcome Nights. The teachers put lots of time andeffort into preparing for the night in order to inform you
about how they will be helping your child. Hopefully you
have a better understanding of what to expect this year
from your child’s teacher.
Our top priority is ensuring that our students receive thebest education possible. To continue to improve ourcurriculum and increase student learning, we havebeen focusing our attention on making the best use of
instructional time and clarifying our educational
objectives so students develop in all academic andsocial areas. The best way families can help is bycommunicating with your child about what they are
doing and learning at school. Looking at yourclassroom’s website with your child on regular basis
may help stimulate the conversations.
This year in the Elementary School, Subject Area
Coordinators have been appointed to support our K1 to
Grade 5 programs within the areas of Literacy,
Mathematics, Science and Technology Integration.
Each of the Coordinators shares with us below a little
about themselves and information about some of theirplans for the year. We wish them all the best in their
new positions.
Greg Brunton
Elementary Principal

Literacy
Welcome! My name is Diana Hudson,
Literacy Coordinator for K1-G5, andclassroom teacher for K3A. I hail from
Melbourne, Australia and have beenworking at KIST for the past 3 years.
This is my sixth year in Japan. I am
really looking forward to sharing literacy
insights with you all and keeping you
abreast of what is happening across the Elementary
School. Some exciting events to look forward to thisyear are a Read-a-thon (reading
marathon), World Book Day (March
4) and Children’s Book Week (May2-8).
Diana Hudson
Elementary Literacy Coordinator

Mathematics
Hello everyone! My name is Kevin
Yoshihara. I am currently teaching
Grade 5B and this is my second year at
KIST. Previously I have taught in
Canada, Kuwait and Shanghai.
This year in mathematics, we havemade some positive changes to ourprogram. The first is the implementation of the online
program “Mathletics” in the Elementary School. I piloted

the program with my Grade 5 students last year and it
proved to be an amazing resource. This year we have
implemented it in Grades 1 through 4 as well. We arealso developing various tools to assess the students’mathematical skills and knowledge in order to inform
our planning here at KIST. I am
excited about this year and lookforward to working with theteachers and students to further
improve our mathematics
program!
Kevin Yoshihara
Elementary Mathematics Coordinator

Science
Hi Scienceholics (thatmeans people who LOVEscience)! My name is Ms
Lee and I am a teacher in
Grade 2B. This year I will
be running the Science
Club all three terms forstudents in Grade 1 andGrade 2. I am reallyexcited about Science
Club and look forward to
doing lots of cool experiments. We will look at thecolour spectrum, flying objects, water, bugs and muchmore. We will also learn how to record our science
experiments. I’ll see you at Science Club in the G2Bclassroom on Mondays at 3:30!
Cool science fact #1:
Cats use their whiskers to check
whether a space is too small forthem to fit through or not.
Susan Lee
Elementary Science Coordinator

Technology Integration
My name is Erwin Dumenden,
Grade 3B’s classroom teacher andthe Information andCommunication Technologies(ICT) Coordinator for the
Elementary School. I hail from
Melbourne, Australia and comefrom an Engineering backgroundhaving studied Civil Engineering.
In Australia, I have worked as aclassroom teacher in grades 5, 6
and 2; and later for the
Department of Education as a Mathematics, Scienceand Technology Integration consultant collaboratingwith half a dozen schools on developing theirmathematics and science programmes and improving
their technology integration.
(Continued next page)

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

My educational philosophy centers on my personal
mission and passion for…“continuous improvement
and innovation”, which means I’m always looking to
improve what I do no matter how good I think it iscurrently; there is always room for improvement. As the
PYP ICT Coordinator, I will endeavor to help students,
teachers, and parents grow and constantly looking for
new and innovative ways of providing our students witha better education.

Starting this month is the exciting new Computer andDigital Publishing Club where students will expand theirdigital design and publishing skills and create bright,
attractive and inspiring projects.
Internet Safety Education @ PYP
With the increasing integration of Information andCommunication
Technologies (ICT)both in PYP
classrooms and our students’ lives in general, we
recognize the need to develop safe and responsible
technology and internet users at school. Several upper
elementary classes are running Internet Safety
Education programs provided bywww.cybersmart.gov.au that are specifically designed
for elementary students with short animated lessons,interactive activities and engaging information thathighlights the benefits and dangers of being online(www.cybersmart.gov.au/cyberquoll). There is also avery informative parents section packed full of useful
guides, quizzes, checklists and downloadable
resources, giving you the tools to keep your child’s
technology and online experiences safe and positive(www.cybersmart.gov.au/en/Parents.aspx).
If you have any questions, queries or comments please
don’t hesitate to drop me an e-mail at
e_dumenden@kist.ed.jp.
Erwin Dumenden
Elementary Technology Integration Coordinator

Founders’ Awards
We are pleased to announce that
Matthew (G12) has been awarded a
Silver Founders’ Award for the 20102011 school year.
Matthew said of his selection: “I wasvery happy to hear that I received theaward. But I think the most important
thing is that it motivates me to do my best this year,too.”
We congratulate Matthew on his award and wish him
all the best for a successful year.

“The Comet”

7

Moodle News
KIST’s new online
learning system,
Moodle, is off to astrong start. On
average,approximately half of our students (and/or parents)
access the site every weekday. As more and moreteachers make their Moodle pages available, thisnumber will likely continue to rise.
All parents have been e-mailed their login informationfor each child enrolled at the school. For parents ofElementary School students, please be sure to log inand update the e-mail in the system to your own e-mail.
Instructions on how to do this were sent on August 27.
Secondary students should have already entered theirown e-mail address. Parents are encouraged to log in to
the system and keep apprised of class events, topics ofstudy, and assignments.
Please note that Moodle is a tool for teacher andstudent/teacher and parent communications regarding
what is going on in each student’s classes. Official
communications from the school office will continue tobe distributed via e-mail from KIST Contacts.
Please contact moodle@kist.ed.jp (or telephone theschool office) if you have any questions or difficulties
regarding the use of Moodle.
Christian Thompson
Education Technologies Integrator

ISA Testing
The International Schools Assessment (ISA) is designed
especially for students in international schools in Grades
3 to 10, and measures reading, writing and mathematics
skills. The ISA is based on internationally endorsed
reading and mathematical literacy frameworks of theOECD’s Programme for International Student
Assessment (PISA).
Previously, the ISA was administered to KIST students
during the month of March. However, this year, thedecision was made to change to the fall testing sessionin order for teachers to have a longer period before theend of the school year to address student performance.
The ISA testing dates this year will be September 2830, 2010 for students in Grades 3, 5, 7 and 9.
The ISA was developed by the Australian Council for
Educational Research (ACER), an independent researchand development organization, and is administeredannually in approximately 240 schools worldwide.
KIST Administration Team8

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Secondary School News
I would like tointroduce myself
one last time. My
name is Robin
Schneider, your
new Secondary
Principal. I havebeen in education
for the last 16 years where the last
8 have been in Korea at Korea
International School as the Middle
School Principal. Before Korea, I
worked at Nishimachi International
School in Tokyo as a mathteacher. It is very exciting to be amember of KIST and I’m looking
forward to working with all of thestudent and parents.
My educational approach is that a
student’s education is like a
triangle (being a former mathteacher). Each corner represents
the student, their family and theschool. If all three parties work
together will the common goal inmind of a balanced education, we,students, parents and KIST, canachieve anything.
So I ask for your help and support
in communicating with me andbeing involved in the school.
Please feel free to contact me at
r_schneider@kist.ed.jp.

Parent Welcome Night
It is hard to believe that KIST
Secondary is already a month into
school! I would like to thank all of
the parents that had a chance tomake it to the Parent Welcome
Night. For the parents that could
not make it, please feel free tocontact your teachers by e-mail at
anytime for information about yourchild’s progress or events
happening at school.

College Night
We have a very exciting nightplanned for all of the KIST parents
on September 21. We invite all of
the parents in the Secondary;however, the evening will befocused around the parents ofstudents in Grade 11 and 12. Mr
Wagner, Mr Cowe and Mrs Okude
will be discussing the college
process and making sure that theparents, students and KIST are on

the same page. The evening starts
at 6:00 and ends at 8:00. We lookforward to seeing you.

Teacher’s e-mailTo contact teachers by e-mail, use
their first initial, then underscore,then family name@kist.ed.jp. For
example, Mr John Smith would bej_smith@kist.ed.jp.

Clubs
We have over 30 different clubs in
the Secondary School this term.
Please take note that clubs thisyear run on Mondays,
Wednesdays and Fridays from3:30 – 4:30. A few sporting clubs
for the Under 18 teams will holdtheir practices at 4:30 – 5:30. Term
2 clubs will be coming in
December if you didn’t get achance to sign up for Term 1.

MoodleThe KIST teachers are using
Moodle to communicate with thestudents. Moodle is an excellent
way for you, the parent, to knowwhat your child is doing in all of
their subjects. For more
information about Moodle, pleasecontact Mr Christian Thompson,
our Education Technologies
Integrator atc_thompson@kist.ed.jp.

Grade level trips
KIST is trying to prepare thestudents for the real world and one
part of this is outdoor education
and relating the KIST curriculum tothe outside community. Therefore,
we are working on planning acamp or day trip for each MYP
grade. All of these are mandatory
as they are connected to thecurriculum and the teachers will bereferring to the trip to deepen thestudents understanding of theAreas of Interaction and content
curriculum.
Grade 8 Camp: Grade 8 will go to
Saitama Youth Center to connect
the Areas of Interaction to content
areas like PE, science, art, healthand English. This trip will occur on
September 29 – October 1. All
information has been sent home bye-mail and is on your child’s
Moodle page.
Grade 6 Camp: Grade 6 will begoing to Nikko again this year. The
trip is currently being planned andmore information will be coming
soon. All information will be sent
home by e-mail and will be placedon your child’s Moodle page.

ISA testingOnce again, Grade 7 and Grade 9
will be taking the ISA test to help
KIST’s curriculum and instruction
be in line with other schools in theworld. We have moved the testing
to September this year for betterusage of the data that we will
receive.
The test will be held on September
28 and 29 with September 30
being a makeup day for absent
students.

Drama Festival
KIST will be hosting the Middle
School Drama Festival forinternational schools in Tokyo. Thisbusy day will happen on November
3 when over 100 middle school
students will be performing andacting up a storm. This is the same
day as our Parent/Teacher/Student
interviews so please stop by andenjoy the DRAMA!
Robin Schneider
Secondary Principal

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Staff 10!

Counselor’s CornerIn this month’s Staff 10!, weare pleased to present
Secondary Art teacher,
Daryl Bates, who is from theUSA. He has been at KIST
since 2008. He is currently
the Subject Area
Coordinator: The Arts andthe CAS Coordinator.

How to help your teen survive Secondary
School Tell us somethinginteresting about yourhometown.
Riverside, California is home
Mr Bates participating into the parent navel orange
Habitat for Humanity intrees that were originallyIndonesia, June 2010.
brought over by Spanish
missionaries from Spain. These two trees which areover 100 years old still produce fruit, and are
responsible for the acres of orange groves that were athriving agricultural crop throughout southern California
for more than 100 years.
 What is your favorite place in the world?
Amsterdam, Netherlands is my favorite place for its
serenity and art (Rembrandt’s house is there).
 Who would you like to meet if you had the chance
and why?
I would like to meet Rembrandt van Rijn so I may
apprentice with him, then I would travel forward in time
to paint Guy DuBord’s Portrait while he simplifies his
opus work, “Society of the Spectacle”.
 Do you have any special skills or talents?
I make classical figure drawings and paintings from life
models, and life size realist portraits.
 Please share a little known fact about yourself.
I suffered a bankruptcy in 2002 by purchasing a 96 footocean-going historic tugboat in San Francisco,California that was to become an entertainment dinnergallery cruise around the San Francisco Bay. This iswhen I decided to go to graduate school and become ateacher.
 What is your most prized possession?
My body.
 What words would you use to describe yourself?
Self-conscious, original fake, casual, hippy, art-nerd,sneaker freak, second place.
 If you could live your life again, would you doanything differently?
Yes, I would have studied Spanish, being from
California, and majored in Critical Theory at UCLA
under the tutelage of Peter McLaren.
 Is there anything you are trying to learn/improveabout yourself at the moment?
Trying to learn the Japanese language; trying to
improve my health and painting ability.
 Do you have any special message for your fans?
I have fans? Be humble, problematize systems, bepatient, exercise passion, seek knowledge of self, andgo everywhere.

9

The secondary students in Grades 6 to 11 are using a
new organization system this year. All students are
required to have one large current unit binder which isorganized with one divider per subject. All students are
required to record assignments in their diary for eachsubject. If there is no homework for a subject, your teen
will write “none.”
The following list will help you to ensure your teen is
prepared for each school day:
1. Check your teen’s binder.
There should be no loose papers in their backpack.
All papers in the binder should be organized bysubject with the newest information on top.
2. Check your teen’s diary.
There should be an assignment recorded for eachsubject studied on that day.
A circled assignment with a teacher’s initials means
the assignment was not completed.
3. Have your teen study in a common area, like the
kitchen table.
Teens struggle to stay focused when nearcomputers and cell phones in a closed room, liketheir bedroom. Social networking sites are far too
tempting when open while working.
4. Have your teen pack their backpack at night
before they go to bed.
Check for the following items: diary, binder, USB
stick, ruler, pencil case, texts and novels.
5. Give your teen some downtime in the evening to
do something they enjoy.
Being balanced is essential to being healthy andperforming well in school the next day.
6. Have a set bedtime for your teen. Teens often
run on empty due to lack of sleep.
If your teen is staying up too late studying, he/she is
not using their time well. Contact the advisory
teacher is this is a persistent problem.
Once your teen is in a routine, you can do periodic
checks of the binder and diary. Some teens will needthis guidance daily for all of their secondary time.
Students diagnosed with ADD/ADHD and students who
struggle with staying organized need parental support
to establish and maintain these organizational
practices.
Thank you for your support.
Sharon Gibbons
Student Welfare Counselor
s_gibbons@kist.ed.jp

10Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

College Admissions Season
The college admissions season is infull swing! Although the school year
has just started, there have been
many opportunities for KIST
students to meet withrepresentatives from colleges anduniversities around the world. Thesemeetings are very important for all
the students, but particularly theGrade 12 students who will bemaking their college and university
applications within the next twomonths.
The application deadline for mostAmerican colleges and universities

is December 31, so most of thework must be accomplished before
Winter Break on December 17,
2010. The colleges and universities
in the UCAS (United Kingdom)
system have an application deadlineof January 15, 2011. All this meansthat parents and students must be
researching and discussing college
and university options over the next
few weeks.
To help in that regard, Mrs Keiko
Okude and Mr Michael J. Wagner,
the College Guidance Counselors,
will be hosting a College Information

Night onSeptember 21
from 6:00 p.m. to
8:00 p.m. Grade
12 students and parents are
expected to attend and all Grade 9
to 11 students and parents areencouraged to attend. Attached tothis newsletter is a listing of college
events that have occurred thus far
as well as a listing of events in thenear future. As always, if you haveany questions, you may contact Mrs
Okude (k_okude@kist.ed.jp) or Mr
Wagner (m_wagner@kist.ed.jp).

College presentations at KIST Colgate University, Skidmore College, Reed College, Northeastern, Colorado College, USA |Thursday, September 2 | 9:40 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
 NYU (New York University) Abu Dhabi, UAE | Monday, September 13 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
 Glion Institute of High Education, Switzerland | Friday, September 17 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
 ICU (International Christian University) Japan | Monday, September 27 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
 Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality, Switzerland | Thursday, September 30 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:40 p.m.
 University of Melbourne, Australia | Thursday, September 30 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
 UBC (the University of British Columbia), Canada | Monday, October 11 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
 PLU (Pacific Lutheran University), USA | Friday, October 15 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
 Binghamton University, USA | Monday, November 1 | 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

College Fair

 CIS College Fair at St. Mary’s International School | Thursday, September 9 | 1:30 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.
 UK College Fair by British Council at Grand Hall Shinagawa | Saturday, October 2 | 1:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
 UK, USA, Australian College Fair by beo at L Tower Shinjuku | Sunday, October 3 | 1:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
 Kanto Plains College Fair at ASIJ | Monday, October 25 | 2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Other important dates

 College Information Night at KIST | Tuesday, September 21 | 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
 PSAT for G10 and G11 | Saturday, October 16 | 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Free Dress Day
The first free dress day for 20102011 will be held on Tuesday,
September 28. There will be acharge of 200 yen per students.
Proceeds from the day will go to
the Secondary Student
Representative Council. The
theme will be RAINBOW.
The rainbow represents the beauty and wonder ofdiverse elements coming together. What more
appropriate symbol for an international school? Weencourage you to theme your clothes according to aparticular color of the rainbow on Free Dress Day. On
this day, the whole school will come together for amemorable photograph: a giant school rainbow
because we support diversity, not discrimination.
We would like to remind families that all Free Dress
Days are for the whole school. Separate notification
will not be distributed, so please make a note on yourcalendar. Further, we remind you that althoughstudents do not have to wear the school uniform on
these days, the clothes they wear must uphold theimage of the school. In addition, all students are
expected to follow the regular school dress code interms of general appearance. Please check the
School Handbook (available on the Admissions >>Documentation page of the school website) if you are
unsure of these expectations.

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Sino-Japan Youth Conference
I am Taisei from
Grade 9. During thesummer holiday
this year, I got an
opportunity to visit
Hong Kong andGuangdong
Province in China.
The purpose for visiting Hong
Kong and China was to participate
in the Sino-Japan Youth
Conference. At this conference, 45
junior high and high school
students from China, Hong Kongand Japan got together to discuss
the relationship between China
and Japan seriously.

issue, Yasukuni issue, strikes at
Japanese factories, Hansen’sdisease, differences of historicalevents in textbooks in schools in
China and Japan, world peace andanti-Japan activities issues etc.
Actually, I visited a factory owned
by a Japanese company in China
and heard opinions from
employees, had a group
discussion with other participants
about the differences of historicalevents in textbooks in schools in
China and Japan, and had an
opportunity to discuss with aperson who has an emotion of antiJapan.

In order to participate in thisconference, we needed to pass thetest for essays in Japanese andEnglish and also the interview. I
believed that I could pass this test
because I had many chances towrite essays in class under the IB
educational program. So, I was
selected by the Sino-Japan Youth
Conference Committee as one of
15 teenagers who represented
Japan. After I was chosen as amember of the conference, I and
14 other boys and girls from Japan
went to Hong Kong where theconference was held.

The most impressive thing during
the conference for me was that wevisited a village for ex-patients ofHansen’s disease. In the past, theChinese government had agovernmental policy to send
Hansen’s disease patients to an
isolated village. At this moment,
there are no Hansen’s disease
patients and people with theaftereffects of Hansen’s disease
are currently living in the village.
Though they spend painful days
without their family and brothers,
JIA, a Japanese NGO, started tostay at the village from several
years ago for the purpose ofencouraging the people living
there. Since then, many villages
where JIA had some activity
became more active and people inthe villages had smiles on theirfaces. Many volunteers from allover the world were living together
with the villagers when we visitedthe village. I was impressed verymuch for having this opportunitythat people can cooperate andsupport each other though the

At the Sino-Japan Youth
Conference, we stayed at thedormitory of Lo Po Chun United
World College for a week anddiscussed with each other about
the future relationship between two
Asian countries. We focused our
discussion on the history, culture
and other problems happening in
China now. We had several
experiences, learned anddiscussed mainly about the Tibet

nationality is different.
Most of the committee members of
the Sino-Japan Youth Conference
were graduates of United World
College. They are still studying atuniversity all over the world andparticipating in several volunteer
activities and trying to learn about
the world. They are very frank andcan communicate easily to consult
with difficult issues. I met withmany wonderful people throughthis conference and saw several
things with my own eyes andlearned the actual situation of theworld. This conference reallychanged my way of thinking and I
have a feeling to go abroad andtackle several issues which wehave to solve.
Even though the conference isover, all the participants areworking towards their next stage tochange the world. Some of theparticipants from China decided toparticipate in JIA activities, some ofthe participants from Hong Kongare trying to make acorrespondence program between
China and Japan, and some of theparticipants from Hiroshima inJapan talked to me that they went
to the United Nation’s office andwant to participate in aninternational conference for world
peace. All the participants of thisconference, including me, are now
moving to try to change the world
with their friends. I really feel that I
want KIST students to participate
in this kind of opportunity as
volunteers outside the school.
Taisei (Grade 9B)

11

12

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

Important School Sport Dates
We are very excited about the upcoming autumn term of school sport at KIST. The clubs are now
underway and have been training hard for the ISTAA season ahead. Below is a list of thevolleyball and cross country fixtures for the autumn term. We have several more possible fixturesand if confirmed will be added in future newsletters. Letters regarding the sporting clubs havebeen sent home.

Volleyball
Date

Age level

Opponent

Sep. 21 (Tuesday)

U/18 Boys/Girls

Canadian International School

KIST

Sep. 22 (Wednesday)

U/14 Boys/Girls

Tokyo International School

TIS

Sep. 27 (Monday)

U/18 Girls

International Secondary SchoolISS

U/14 Boys/Girls

Canadian International School

KIST

U/18 Girls

American School in Japan

ASIJ

Oct. 5 (Tuesday)

U/18 Girls

Canadian International School

Canadian IS

Oct. 8, 9 (Saturday, Sunday)

U/18 Girls

Tournament

Yokohama IS / St Maur IS

Oct. 12 (Tuesday)

U/14 Boys/Girls

Canadian International School

Canadian IS

Oct. 14 (Thursday)

U/18 Girls

International Secondary School

KIST

Oct. 19 (Tuesday)

U/18 Girls

Columbia International School

KIST

Nov. 2 (Tuesday)

U/18 & U/14 Girls

Nishimachi International School

Nishimachi IS

Nov. 9 (Tuesday)

U/18 & U/14 Boys Nishimachi International School

KIST

To be announced

U/14 Boys/Girls &End of season tournament
U/18 Boys/GirlsTo be announced

Sep. 28 (Tuesday)

Venue

Cross Country
November 5 (Friday): KIST Inter-House Cross Country Day
November 19 (Friday): ISTAA Inter-School Cross Country Meet
Please be aware that these dates are subject to change.
Will Spring
Sports/PE Coordinator

School Festival
The School Festival returns again this year with a brand new name KISTival! The festival is the most important fundraising event during
the school year and will be held, rain or shine, on Saturday, October
23. This year, proceeds from the festival will be put towards improving
IT facilities across the school. For this reason, we ask for the supportof the entire school community in ensuring the success of the festival.
All visitors including teachers, parents and students (yes, Secondary students, too!) are encouraged to wear a
costume on the day to add to the festive atmosphere.
The festival is open to members of the public. A small entry fee of 100 yen is charged at the entrance gate to cover
the cost of garbage disposal on the day.
Further information about the festival will be distributed to all families over the coming weeks.

Volume 14 | Issue 1 | September 2010

“The Comet”

13

Welcome to New Staff
Faculty……………
Other staff……………

Nanci Shaw, Ph.D.
n_shaw@kist.ed.jp
Head of School

Robin Schneiderr_schneider@kist.ed.jp
Secondary Principal

Phillip Carlop_carlo@kist.ed.jp
Language Support

Shane Harriss_harris@kist.ed.jp
Mathematics

Masumi Horim_hori@kist.ed.jp
Japanese Language

Kaai Izumi
k_izumi@kist.ed.jp
G1B

Christina Kayiafa-Smithc_kayiafasmith@kist.ed.jp
G4B

Maksat Kondo
m_kondo@kist.ed.jp
Japanese Language

Stephen Marsons_marson@kist.ed.jp
English/Humanities

Stephen Rothkopf
s_rothkopf@kist.ed.jp
Humanities/Psychology

Florin Secosan
f_secosan@kist.ed.jp
Physics/Mathematics

Atsuko Yamashitaa_yamashita@kist.ed.jp
Japanese Language

José Christianj_christian@kist.ed.jp
Library Assistant

Amanda Forrest
a_forrest@kist.ed.jp
K2A Teacher’s Assistant

Ann-Marie Leone
a_leone@kist.ed.jp
K2B Teacher’s AssistantYukari Nakajima
y_nakajima@kist.ed.jp
K1B Teacher’s Assistant

Rachel Rosellor_rosello@kist.ed.jp
K3 Teacher’s AssistantGulnoza Sabirova
g_sabirova@kist.ed.jp
K1A Teacher’s Assistant

We wish you all the best for a great year!