The Crane 28 October 2016

The Crane
Dear HIS Families As we get ready to come together as a community for Bonfire Night, an appropriate Learner Profile attribute for this week would be 'balanced'. Why would we want students to be at school in the evening when they could be home studying? In some ways, this attribute is the one that really tests a school's belief in its mission and we need to ask if our day to day life at home and in school really reflects that of a balanced learner. Here is the definition: Balanced バランスのとれた人 They understand the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional balance to achieve personal well-being for themselves and others. 私たちは、自分自身や他の人々の幸福にとって、私たちの生を 構成する知性、身体、心のバランスをとることが大切だと理解 しています。また、私たちが他の人々や、私たちが住むこの世 界と相互に依存していることを認識しています。 That idea about well-being is extremely important and will remain so to each of us for the…
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The Crane 21 October 2016

The Crane
Dear HIS Families This week, I'd like to introduce another of the IB Learner Profile attributes, Communicators. Language is central to what we do here at HIS. The IB programs at HIS focus on the development of deep conceptual  understandings. We use language to help us develop these understandings and also to communicate these understandings in both English and Japanese. We also encourage the continued development of each student's Mother Tongue, for this same purpose. The development of both communicative and academic language is extremely important. Communicators コミュニケーションができる人 They understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in more than one language and in a variety of modes of communication. They work effectively and willingly in collaboration with others. 私たちは、複数の言語やさまざまな方法を用いて、自信をもっ て創造的に自分自身を表現します。他の人々や他の集団のもの の見方に注意深く耳を傾け、効果的に協力し合います。 We want to develop truely multilingual learners, not…
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The Crane 7 October 2016

The Crane
Dear HIS Families Welcome to the October break. This week, I wanted to introduce the Learner Profile attribute, 'caring' and also reinforce the idea that the Learner Profile is not just about students. In an IB school, adults and children are all considered to be learners and this has important implications for adult behaviour in the school community. We are the role models that students look to to see how the world should work. For example, we want our children to grow up with empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. We also want them to act to make a positive difference in the lives of others, as we see in the description below. Caring 思いやりのある人 They show empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and…
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The Crane 30 September 2016

The Crane, Uncategorized
Dear HIS Families I hope you have all had a great week. I have three notes for you this week in my message. In search of a Treasurer for the Board of Directors (BOD): We are also seeking a Treasurer for our BOD. This is an extremely important role in our school as the BOD manages school finances and plans strategically for the future of HIS. As a school community, we rely heavily on the goodwill of these volunteers from both the BOD and the BOT who devote their time for the benefit of us all.  The Treasurer has a key role and we would love to hear from anyone who would be interested in a nomination for this position. PTA representative to the Board of Trustees (BOT): The process to…
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The Crane 23 September 2016

The Crane
Dear HIS Families I hope you all had  a great week. We were fortunate that Tuesday's typhoon continued on its way and didn't end up swinging toward us here in Hiroshima. It was a short week, but you can see some images in this week's video. Following on from last week when I asked you all which of the IB Learner Profile attributes (■IB learner profile/IBの学習者像) would be most important to your family, I would like to focus on Inquirer today. I also asked if there was one that you would be willing to do without for your child and this is also a vital question to keep in mind when considering what type of education you want for your family. All three IB programs develop Inquirers. In an IB context an inquirer:…
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The Crane 16 September 2016

The Crane
Dear HIS Families I hope you all have a great long weekend. Thank you to all of the PTA members who came in this week to organise the storage spaces. It was a big job and the area is looking great thanks to your hard work. As an IB school, the Learner Profile guides our thinking when developing students' experiences. The Learner Profile is a list of ten attributes that we foster and develop in all of the IB programs; attributes that represent the lifelong learner that will thrive in the 21st Century. Over the next few issues of The Crane, I would like to explore a few of these attributes. You can find the descriptions here: ■IB learner profile/IBの学習者像 My first questions to you as parents would be, which attributes would be…
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PTA News 13 September 2016

The Crane
News from the PTA (13 September 2016) (日本語は以下にあります) After School Cooking Club The Cooking Club is back!  It will run from Monday, September 26 for ten weeks.  We are seeking Parent/Guardian Volunteers for each week. You can sign up for 1 lesson or more! (as many as you want) You can make anything you choose, as long as it can be prepared after school between 3:30 – 5:00 (1 hour and 30 minutes) Class size is 10 students, aged G2 and up Volunteers buy the ingredients and bring to school.  The Club will then reimburse your receipts. If you have a child G2 and up, they can attend your session without signing up for the Club. The sign-up sheet will go home with students today.  Clean up of PTA Storage…
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The Crane, 9 September 2016

The Crane
Dear HIS Families We have had another busy week week at HIS and I hope you are hearing from your children all about what they are learning, and more importantly, how they are learning. You may be able to get a few ideas for conversation starters from this week's video. You will notice a different format for The Crane this week. We are trying a blog format, which we hope will be easily accessible on different devices. You will also be able to find The Crane on the HIS website under the News tab. Thank you very much to Mr Nigel Barker for organizing this most welcome format change. Enjoy your weekend. Regards Damian Rentoule Principal Upcoming Koto Concert for Nanoka and Lilico  Congratulations to Nanako (G9) who has been awarded the…
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