Issue 5- SY 2019-20 6 September 2019

Upcoming

Events

◼ SCN Welcome Back Picnic

Head’s Corner

◼ High School SGA ◼ From the Busi-

ness Office

Doctor’s Den ◼ Healthy choices

Counselors’ Cove

◼ University Visits ◼ Mindfulness in the

DP

Sports & ASAs ◼ Sports ◼ Service Learning

Classifieds Section

◼ For rent ◼ Household help ◼ Want to be in the

movies

Spotlighting new Teachers

◼ Ms Nathalie Lempereur Lee

Student Voice

◼ High School SGA Committee

Tech News

◼ Migrate to Google Apps

The SCN ◼ Welcome Back

Picnic

◼ SCN Open Meeting

Canteen & Coffee Shop ◼ Latest Canteen

Menus

IB

Happenings ◼ PYP Happenings

◼ MYP Happenings

◼ DP Happenings ◼ Library news

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SY 2019-20

7 September SCN Welcome Back Picnic

*7 September Duke of Edinburgh Orienteering Lesson

This date has been changed. New date will be announced soon

11 September MYP Parent Workshop “Assessment in the MYP” SMPR

7:45 am

12 September SCN Open Meeting 7:45 am

13 September POYA DAY—SCHOOL HOLIDAY

17 September PYP Parent Workshop—PMPR 7:45 am

20 September Founders Day Assembly—GYM 7:45 am

20-22 September ISTA TaPS (Theatre trip) - Kuala Lumpur

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Head’s Corner Dear Families,

Secondary Sports Day was a wonderful day! All of our students were involved in activities that got them out of the classroom, moving around, and strengthening their friendships and cooperation skills. Involvement in sports, games and fun, helps lessen the monotony of the day, get the creative juices flowing, reduces anxiety and stresses in a child's life. For OSC students, it is a great way to relax, get to know new students, build up friendships and important relationships with teachers. Thank you to our amaz-ing teachers who engaged tirelessly in our annual sports day.

Don't forget to join our SCN Community Picnic this Saturday! Rain or shine, we will have a great time together! I look forward to seeing you at OSC on Saturday at 3:00 pm - check out the SCN page in this newsletter for more information.

I am excited to be this year's High School Student Government Association Advisor! I am delighted to work with our high school students on their leadership skills, student voice and engagement. Student leader-ship is very important - it develops from learner agency. There is a continuum of student voice that we nur-ture at OSC. It starts encouraging expression, then understanding and applying their own learning profile, and participating in decision making. As educators we help students to partner in the design of their own learning, develop activism, and identify problems and generate solutions, which then promotes leadership and a sense of responsibility. Congratulations to the following students who I will truly enjoy working closely with as we explore their Continuum of Voice throughout the year in their respective leadership roles as High School Student Government Officers:

President: Sheruni Pilapitiya

Vice President: Sanya Pasricha

Secretary: Munira Dawoodbhoy

Treasurer: Thalal Fazal

Spirit Coordinators: Chloe Grandbois & Anya Bhatia Aarora

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Standardized Academic Testing at the Overseas School of Colombo MAP (Measures of Academic

Progress)

September 2019

Dear Parents:

t t t t t a t a

a Progress®) testing for this academic year. Our annual testing periods run in September

and April. MAP tests are used to determine your child’s instructional level and to measure academ-

ic growth throughout the school year, as well as from year to year, in the areas of Reading and

Mathematics. Your child will take each test on a computer, during a scheduled time period in the

morning.

Once we complete the testing period and compile the results, parents will be emailed individual stu-

dent results in PDF format.

MAP tests focus on every child’s individual growth and achievement. Partnering to help all kids

learn, parents and teachers can have a profound positive effect on the lives of our children. In order

to support your child please help to ensure that they get a good night’s rest and breakfast before

their testing days. In addition, please reinforce that this is a measure of their best effort and not an

assessment for their math and language class. We encourage focus and determination without

stress or anxiety.

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Primary

Period Monday 09 Sept Orange

Tuesday 10 Sept Green

Wed Times

Wednesday 11 Sept Blue

Thursday 12 Sept Red

Friday 13 Sept

1

7:35

Reading Grade 2

Reading Grade 5

1

7:40

Math Grade 3

Math Grade 2

2

9:50

Reading Grade 3

Reading Grade 4

2

9:30

Math Grade 5

Math Grade 4

Poya Day

FEE PAYMENTS

Please note that when payments are made directly to banks or online, ensure that you indicate the student number, name and grade, and a reference as to what the payment is for eg. School fees/SAISA etc. Often we are unable to reconcile pay-ments when there is no reference.

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Counselors’ Cove

Mindfulness in the DP

DP2 students have been learning stress-reduction through the practice of mindfulness since the be-ginning the DP in August 2018. We try to start each class with the mindfulness technique of sitting: breathing deeply & paying attention to our breath, noticing any sounds in or outside the room, notic-ing any tensions when we scan our bodies, and anchoring our thoughts in the present moment. Mindfulness is connected to the concept of neuroplasticity:

the ability of the brain to change continuously throughout an individual's life: changes in brain structure and organisation as we experience, learn, and adapt. “Neuroplasticity is

the 'muscle building' part of the brain; the things we do often we become stronger at, and what we don’t use fades away. That is the physical basis of why making a thought or action over and over again increases its pow-er. Over time, it becomes automatic; a part of us. We literally become what we think and do.”

1 With mindfully

sitting, we try to focus on neutral to positive thoughts to increase the power of neutral to positive connections in our brain. Purposefully & repetitively filling our brains with positive affirmations about ourselves will strengthen those types of neural connections and hopefully weaken any negative neural connections, like negative self-talk, in our brains. See these websites for more information

about mindfulness and neuroplasticity1.

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University Visits

Topic University Date Location RSVP

University of Melbourne

Information Evening

University of Melbourne, Australia

by Maeve Wood

& Dinushi Abeykoon

Friday, 6th of September

17.30hrs – 20.30hrs

Taj Samudra Hotel, Longdon & Gregory

Rooms

Click here to register

Understanding the UCAS application pro-

cess and prepare for UCAT exams and MMIs

University of Aberdeen,

Scotland

Tuesday, 10th of

September

12.00noon – 13.00hrs

OSC

Student Centre (Parents anytime; Stu-

dents at lunch)

N/A

Studying in Australia & the University Applica-

tion Process

University of Queensland, AUS

by Corinne Francken

& University of Melbourne, AUS

by Maeve Wood

Wednesday,

11th of September

7.30am – 8.30am

OSC SMPR (DP 2 students:

CAS/ADV; Parents anytime b/t

7.30 – 8.30am)

N/A

Applying to the US

Fordham University, NYC, USA

By Sanjeewa Karunaratne

Thursday, 12th of September

12.00 Noon –

13.00hrs

Student Centre (Students at Lunch

Time; Parents anytime)

N/A

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PYP Happenings Grade 1 learners flying their kites!

Grade 1 learners revisited shapes this week. Grade 1 read a book on kites as it is the kite season in Sri

Lanka. Then, the learners observed the shape of a kite and recorded their observations in their math books.

Learners were encouraged to use mathematical language for their explanations. Later, they created their

own kite story book by using their imagination.

MYP Happenings

MYP 1 and 2 Students studying Mandarin with Ms. Huang are exposed to an aspect of Chinese culture eve-ry 7 days, this week they practiced Chinese calligraphy (shūfǎ). You can see them (below) working on basic strokes, their Chinese names and a panda illustration.

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DP Happenings

Last week DP1 students enjoyed their time together at Borderlands, Kithulgala. The first day was spent in and around the Kelani river with a trip down a side canyon and a rafting session down the main river. The water level can dictate what can and can’t be done on this trip, but we were luck that it was not too high and not too low. Students rose to the challenge of descending the canyon by jumping, sliding and monkey-walking down the river. A few students were asked to take leadership roles in this activity and it was great to see them, and all students support each other as they negoti-ated the various natural obstacles.

After a short hike up-stream to the rafting departure point and a safety briefing, teams of 6 students and teacher chaperones were in rafts and heading down the Kelani river, navigating up to category 3 rapids. This was very exciting for all and even more exciting for a luck few who rode a rapid out-side of their raft! Teamwork ensured that these few were quickly reunited with their craft as we con-tinued down to Borderlands by river.

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The morning of Day 2 focused on TOK (Theory of Knowledge) and the Belilena Cave in the hills above Kithulgala. Once at the cave, the short hike up to our destibnation was mapped by students in various creative ways, with landmarks such as waterfalls and leeches included. In the adjacent cave, students were introduced to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave where prisoners try to make sense of their surroundings through shadows alone. Both of these activities explored how we acquire knowledge in different ways, a focus of the TOK course.

The afternoon was spent abseiling down a waterfall! Abseiling is challenging but add a waterfall and we have something very memorable. Students enjoyed the opportunity to step outside of their com-fort zone, supported by each other and the activity leaders, as they made their way down 30m of slippery rock. Many faces were locked in concentration as they descended, water pummeling their helmets, but it was ‘smiles all round’ after completing the challenge!

On the morning of Day 3, students broke into smaller groups to visit members of the Kithulgala com-munity. Their goal was to interview residents about their life, changes they have seen, challenges, and hopes for the future. This oral history activity helps students to understand a little more about the people living in this area. This activity mirrors what is an essential part of successful Service Learning projects. The previous evening, students were introduced to successful interview tech-niques including translating for an audience.

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We also had the opportunity to check on the progress of the Broadlands Dam Project that will eventually provide a further 35MW of power to the national grid. Physics students will continue ex-ploring hydro power in Sri Lanka as part of their course of study with a field trip in January.

CAS (creativity, activity and service) tied the whole experience together very nicely with students reflecting on their experiences through this lens. I would like to thank all the chaperones for their help with the trip: Dr. Leigh, Ms. Jackson, Mr. Lockwood, Ms. Chandler and Ms. O’Sullivan, along with the staff of Borderlands who were as accommodating and professional as ever.

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The Mythical Month of September

This September, we are celebrating Traditional Literature with a

special focus on fairy tales, myths, and legends.

What to look for:

Weekly Quizzes on Traditional Literature:

The first quiz was on fairy tales. The winner will take home a book

voucher from Makeen Books.

Early Morning Breakfast Club in the Library:

For those who want to find a quiet space to catch the world of magical adventure before class.

Searching for answers to a quiz

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Spotlighting: Nathalie Lempereur Lee

Could you tell us about yourself?

I was born in the South West of France but Singapore is my second home as my husband is Singaporean and I have lived there for 15 years all together. I have a son who is studying at OSC in Grade 9.

What do you do at OSC?

I am teaching PYP French

What other schools have you taught in?

I have taught in three different international IB schools before OSC, all located in Singapore.

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Who are you when you are not a teacher?

My husband and I used to own a Japanese restaurant in France for 5 years so I have learned to enjoy doing hands-on things such as waitressing, cleaning and feeding people!

If you could have dinner with one historical figure from the past, or a current figure of socie-ty, who would it be and why?

It would be the English writer Ian McEwan as I am obsessed with his novels at the moment.

What is your favourite Sri Lankan food?

I have yet to discover my favourite Sri Lankan food but I love all the fruits, vegetables and seafood here.

What is your best experience in Sri Lanka so far?

The warm smile of Sri Lankans

What do you think is most important in life?

To me, the most important thing in life is to learn how to enjoy your own company and to be

emotionally self-reliant so you can be at peace with yourself and have more time to extend

your generosity to others.

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Sports News

Who do we Play? (part 2)

In addition to belonging to SAISA, OSC is also a member of The International Schools of Sri Lanka (TISSL). Founded in 1987 and renamed in 2013, TISSL has 25 member schools, some with as many as 5000 stu-dents. TISSL has a full calendar of scholastic events throughout the year. Age groups run from January – De-cember, which is different to our SAISA categories, so your son/daughter will be in different age groups de-pending on their birth date (and whether it is semester 1 or 2)

TISSL Age Categories:

Until December From January 2020

U10 born 2010 or later (2011)

U12 born 2008 or 2009 (2009/10)

U14 born 2006 or 2007 (2007/08)

U16 born 2004 or 2005 (2005/06)

U20 born 2000 to 2003 (2001- 2004)

OSC usually enter athletes into the following events during the year:

◼ Inter International Schools Swimming Championships (IISSC) held in November (9th & 10th)

◼ International Schools Athletics Championships (ISAC) held in February (14-16)

Others we consider when they fall in with our seasons:

◼ U17 basketball

◼ U20 Football (Soccer)

◼ U16 Football (Soccer)

Students are required to have a TISSL Identity Card to participate in these activities. Please pick an applica-

tion up from the PE office. We will need the following from you…

◼ Completed application form

◼ Copy of your passport picture page

◼ 3 passport sized photos

◼ 500 LKR

SAISA Season 1 News

Last Friday our season one athletes participated in their first competitive situations of the season.

Swimming

The swimmers were up against the clock and their own teammates in the pool to record their first times of the

season. All gave their best and have their fins crossed to be included in the 30 selected to represent the

Geckos at SAISA swimming to be held in Kathmandu in October.

Volleyball

Both teams started slowly losing the first two sets. After the nerves had settled the girls came back strongly to

win the third with some accurate consistent passing. In the fourth set, the coaches experimented with some

different positions and combinations which was a challenge to some. They eventually lost the game 3-1 but

the coaches and players learned a lot about their play. The boys also improved their passing, getting the ball

to the setter and hitting on a more consistent basis winning them the third & forth sets. The Fifth set was an

exciting affair with the opposition just edging it out to win 3-2. This is the first time both teams have looked so

strong this early in the season. Things are looking promising.

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After last week’s games and a week of training the volleyball coaches have chosen their squads of 10 to trav-

el to the SAISA tournaments. Please look out for more details from me regarding the trips next week.

Training next week

Next Friday is a Poya day leaving most of us with a long weekend. Volleyball teams will practice on Thursday

afternoon after Service from 4.00 – 6.00pm (no practice on Friday). Mr. Janaka will be here as usual from

8.30 -10.30 am on Saturday morning for those who are still in Colombo.

Swimmers, Mr. Shaki will be around on Friday & Saturday from 8.00 am – 12.00 pm or pop in any time be-

tween 10.00 am & 4.00 pm and there will be workouts on the whiteboard at the end of the pool.

Secondary Sports Day This week saw the Secondary School come together for their annual Sports Day event. Students participated in dodgeball, tee ball, ultimate end ball, volleyball and house tug o’ war. Each point, goal, and run scored were added to the house totals to determine a winner. The day began with a performance of the house cheer and consisted of fun, laughter, sportsmanship and good old fashion competition. The School Community Net-work (SCN) provided sustenance in the form of healthy fruit to keep spirits and energy levels up and teachers helped to organize and officiate the activities. After four and a half hours of intense competition, Blue House finished as 2019 Sports Day Champions, closely followed by Yellow, Red and Green and in second, third and fourth respectively.

CONGRATULATIONS TO BLUE HOUSE

The rain held off and a fun day was had by all. Thank you to all for your energy and support.

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Upcoming Events

Fri 6 Sep Boys & Girls Volleyball vs Kottawa Dharmpala College 3.00 pm start

Sat 21 Sep Swim Meet with British School Colombo 8.45 am Start

Fri 27 Sep Swim meet with Colombo International School 3.15 pm start

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We have just completed our second week of Service Learning activities. Our groups have gotten off to a great start with many initiatives, drives, fundraisers and awareness raising activities in the works. We were excited to welcome some of our visiting school groups on campus this week for the first time since March! Temple School, Gecko Inc, Checkmates, and RCCI all welcomed their groups back and had great sessions with our visitors. Hope for Kids was able to visit the Maha-ragama Cancer Hospital and work with the children in the ward, as well as deliver some re-cently donated toys.

Keep your eyes peeled for upcoming Service group events! Care for Paws will be collecting much needed food for Adopt-A-Dog, a local animal shelter. ReefKeepers is selling their 100% cotton t-shirts at the Welcome Back Picnic to raise awareness about their group's efforts to reduce plastic usage in and around OSC. Finally, Housing and Habitat are already planning the upcoming Home Run 5K, coming in November. Great work, Geckos!

Lindsay O'Sullivan - Service Learning Coordinator

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From the School Doctor

Healthy Choices The Grade 2 students have been learning to make healthy choices this week. It will be great for all of us to remind our selves of making healthy choices. So I will share with you what we have been discussing in Gr. 2

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Get Medication when you are ill

Wash your hands regularly

Have a shower daily

Have regular vision and hearing tests done

Have all the age appropriate vaccines

Have a regular dental check-up

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Congratulations to the following students who I will truly enjoy working closely with as we explore their Continuum of Voice throughout the year in their respective leadership roles as High School Student Government Officers:

President: Sheruni Pilapitiya

Vice President: Sanya Pasricha

Secretary: Munira Dawoodbhoy

Treasurer: Thalal Fazal

Spirit Coordinators: Chloe Grandbois & Anya Bhatia Aarora

The student government put forth 3 new names for the Friday Newsletter. Next week we will unveil the winner. And the winning SGA will get a pizza party from Dr Kleiss. Staaaaayyyy tuned!

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Last week we hosted our first mid-week STEAM challenge

called the String Lifter. Attached are some of the pictures

from the event - a big shout out to MJ ( our tech & design

teacher ) for organizing this and flexing our primary grades

team-building and problem-solving skills.

Link to pictures

Dear OSC Community, this is a friendly reminder to let you know that we will not be providing Microsoft office suite to students anymore. Instead, we are encouraging you to adapt & migrate to Google Apps for Education.

Why?

• To embrace the cloud

• To make learning a more collaborative experience

• To stop worrying about file backups and losing your files

1.What if i have a bunch of word docs, how do I move forward with google docs?

Here is how to move all your documents into google drive

2.What if i want to edit google docs while i am offline?

• Install the Google Docs Offline extension.

• In Drive, click Settings Settings.

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• In the Offline section, check the Create, open, and edit your recent Google files while offline box

• Click Done.

• Right-click a file and turn on Available offline.

To learn how to access files offline from your desktop or mobile, see Access stored Drive files without the Internet.

Here is an office suite and google apps comparison and migration help sheet

3. Can i still get Microsoft office?

You can, unfortunately, you will have to purchase your own copy. Here is a link to the Microsoft store, al-ternatively you can use the free open-source office suite called LibreOffice.

4. What if i have an Apple Mac?

Then you are in luck, apart from buying Microsoft Office for Mac and Libreoffice you can download and install Apple's free office suite called iWork.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments. Is all this increasing your anxiety lev-els? don't worry and just let us help you with a 1:1 session.

Link to find time with me

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School Community Network (SCN) Upcoming Events

We hope to see everyone this Saturday on the

OSC Football Pitch for the picnic.

Just a few reminders for those joining us:

1. Bring your own picnic with blanket, chairs, and your favourite snacks.

There will not be vendors this year but there will be popcorn, popsi-

cles and other goodies for purchase. Mt. Lavinia will have a few

menu options and beverages as well. Bring small cash if you wish to

make purchases.

2. Bring your swim gear for the pool and fun water games.

3. OSC and the Welcome Back Picnic are going green. Please bring reus-

able water and food containers to reduce waste.

CONTACT US:

Email: page.mariana@gmail.com

Facebook: OSC School Community Network

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School Community Network (SCN)

Upcoming Events

Thursday, 12 September 7:45 @ PMPR

SCN Open Meeting Join SCN at our open meeting to find out what we have accomplished thus far,

discuss our upcoming events, and elect our executive board.

CONTACT US:

SCN Chair: Email: page.mariana@gmail.com

Facebook: OSC School Community Network

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Brand: Trek

Size: small. Good for 6 - 12 year old, depending on height.

Condition is good, a few years old but rarely used. Cost Rs.50,000 new, sell for Rs.25,000 (negotiable).

Any questions, please call Matthew Jackson 0775587768

HOUSE ON RENT/LEASEIN BATTARAMULLA- PELAWATTE

4 bedrooms (AC) with attached toilets, office/consultation room, pantry with wet kitchen, double garage, maids quarters, solar hot water, swimming pool and a roof top with a breathtaking view.

Located in a highly residential area, 1 minute walk from OSMOS (www.osmosfitness.com), 800 meters away from the Overseas School.

Ideal for a professional or an expatriate.

Contact: 076 2666625

HOUSEHOLD HELP REQUIRED

Family of 4 look for a full time helper. To help cook, clean, iron, and do laundry. Ideally they can speak Eng-lish and good with kids. Please call 0701672825 if you know someone interested. Thank you.

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WANT TO BE IN THE MOVIES?

CASTING CALL…

…for a prestigious film of an acclaimed Sri Lankan novel, by an Oscar-nominated director. Filming will take place in Colombo in October and November 2019*. They are looking for actors in the fol-lowing age categories:

Category 1: 7 - 11 years of age - to play relatives and playmates of the main character, who is 8 years old.

Category 2: 17 - 20 years of age - to play schoolmates and supporting characters to the lead char-acter during the phase when he is 17 years old.

Details required:

1) Candidate’s name, age, height, eye colour and hair colour. 2) TWO clear head shots (chest and above - one with a normal face and one smiling). 3) Bullet point list of acting experience which can include plays in school and out, and any film/

TV experience they may have. 4) Contact details of child/teen AND parents’ (phone number and email addresses).

PLEASE email the above requirements to Mr. Prasad Pereira at prasadjohnpereira@gmail.com

Or for further information you call him on 071 220 9757

*Please note, if an OSC student were successful in their audition, school would need to look at their age and their time commitment to see if it were reasonable to continue. Parents – we are sure you would wish to do the same. :)