AISM News Letter No 2/5/2009 3^rd July 2009

Principal’s Comment

Dear Parents,

All of our staff have been busy over the last four weeks with the comprehensive outcomes based Semester One school reports and Digital Portfolios. The reports have been released over the last few days or will be posted at the beginning of the holidays if you have not picked them up from the school office. Parent Teacher Nights provide an opportunity for you to follow-up on your child’s progress with your child’s teachers and these sessions have been organized during the second week of Term 3.

H1N1 influenza information still preoccupies both the media and our school emails home to parents. You should have received information via email from the School Nurse, Mrs. Denise McFarlane, and myself at the end of last week. We have made preparations over the last month to increase the hygiene levels in the school and to decrease the risk of spreading any viral infections through an education campaign and cleaning and sanitation every two hours. Each Head of School will be sending out the guidelines for continued learning in the eventuality of any school closure related to H1N1 outbreak, particularly if it would prevent our school opening as scheduled at the beginning of next term.

There is no need for a high level of anxiety or alarm about the H1N1 influenza however it is important to remember to be vigilant with your hygiene when you are in crowded places such as cinemas, shopping malls, bars and restaurants and if travelling overseas to Australia or other ‘hot spots’ around the world during the holiday break. You should think about travelling with hand sanitizer and masks in case someone near you has persistent coughing or sneezing. Do not send your child back to school if they are unwell with any symptoms of any illness. Remember this is good health practice and will help our community stay fit and well.

The Triangular Swim Meet on Sunday, 21^st June, was a great success. It was the first time it has been hosted at AISM and our parent swim squad manager, Mrs. Kerrie Maconaghie, and her team, along with Coach, Desmond Ong, and school co-ordinator, Gary Agg, are to congratulated for their professional organization and smooth running of the event. The wonderful bar-b-que celebration at the end of the day was very much appreciated by competitors and supporters. The Barracudas performed very well with a number of places and most students achieving their person best on the day.

The Middle School and Senior School Athletics Carnival did not fare so well with the weather and ‘lost’ buses that held up the schedule. All of the track events were finished on the day whilst the remaining field events were completed over this week. Congratulations to Mr. Phil Wilkins, staff and students for a successful meet and your resilience and flexibility in coping with all of the challenges.

Our Senior School Production, “Do we ever see Grace?”, by Noel Greig, was performed last night by a talented and committed group of senior students who have elected production as their ECA choice. This very moving and demanding drama deals with ‘circus of life’ and the tightrope that we walk in our daily lives. Under the expert direction of Mr. Jon Suffolk, assisted by Mr. Patrick Tyr-Egge, the students have produced a thought provoking performance that reflects on the society in which live. The students are to be congratulated for their performance and theatre skills.

The gymnasium renovation will start during the three week holiday break and will continue into the first six weeks of term 3. There will be disruption to using this facility at the beginning of term 3 however part of the gym will able to be used during the renovation. We are looking forward to the new change rooms, fitness room and air-conditioning in the latter part of the term.

Debbie Argus was fondly known to AISM staff and parents as Debbie ‘Wombat’ after her company name of Wombat Trading. She sadly passed away on 14 June 2009 after a battle with cancer that was only discovered after a road accident in New Zealand. Her Aussie ‘can do’ attitude, pioneering spirit and support will not be forgotten by all of the AISM community who were here in the foundation days of the school. As the school grew and her company matured she continued to support our community with a variety of sports equipment, trophies and sportswear. Her bubbly personality, generous nature and pragmatic attitude will be sadly missed.

We will look forward to seeing the students return on Wednesday 29^th July for the beginning of second semester. Have a happy, safe and relaxing holiday break.

Anne-Maree Armstrong, Principal

Assistant Principal’s Comment

Today the school began the first stage of a campaign to improve the attitude of our students towards road safety. Our guest at today’s launch was Dato’ Michelle Yeoh. She is the Global Ambassador for the Make Roads Safe Campaign. This is an initiative of the Commission for Global Road Safety; an organisation which aims to make road safety part of a programme of sustainable development. As a result of the Commission’s work the first ever Global Ministerial Meeting on Road Safety was adopted by the UN General Assembly and will take place later this year.

It was exciting for us to have Michelle Yeoh visit us and assist us with our campaign. It is particularly pleasing as the visit came through our school community as she is related to our school.

We are starting the campaign in late term 2 and will continue it thorough term 3. Already the Mr. Syme has had the Middle School involved with a seat belt safety poster competition and the results of this will be on display in the last week of term. Part of our launch at assembly today was a short report on the posters from Jack Castell-Burns and Richard Kalukal of 7G.

The idea of the campaign came from discussions between the parents and the school over the poor compliance of some of our students with wearing seat belts on the school buses. This discussion extended to the general issue of students who are picked up by car and who do not wear seat belts, despite the recent changes in Malaysian law. As a result of this discussion we felt that a campaign in the school to change the culture about seat belt use would be a worthwhile activity. The idea of a campaign was to have a more consistent approach to seat belt safety over a lengthy period without making it so dominant that students became tired of it and stopped paying any attention.

Since we began to investigate how this campaign would work we have become aware that we needed a wider approach than just a focus on seat belts, we needed to look at road safety in general. In particular we have had a preliminary meeting with the Ministry of Transport whose Road Safety Division is very enthusiastic about working with the school. They have told us that we are the first international school to contact them and ask to use their resources and expertise. We hope to work with them a great deal in the future.

Wayne Wagner, Assistant Principal

News from Senior School

Last week, we had our Athletics Carnival.  A big thank you to Phil Wilkins for an excellent day.  It ran like clockwork.  A big thank you too, to all the staff and parents who helped coordinate the events under the steamy Malaysian sun.  Also, to the House Coordinators who were on duty all day in the stands; Chris Thorpe, Ray Pollock, Barry Haines and James Unsworth.  We were rained out but the students kept us entertained with an hilarious dance-off, with Rafter house winning the day in this department.  In no small part, I think, to the funky moves and enthusiasm from the Rafter staff, Stacey Neilson and Julia West.  It was a big fortnight for Performing Arts in the Senior School.  We had a visit from the Golden Grove High School from Adelaide showcasing their latest stage spectacular.  Thank you Jon Suffolk for arranging this event.  On Thursday 2^nd July, we had the Senior School Production.  Another big thank you to Jon Suffolk and also to Patrick Tyr-Egge for their hard work and dedication to getting the show together.  It takes hours of work outside of regular school hours top direct and produce a drama production.  Well done to the students who demonstrated persistence and passion in their rehearsals and thank you too, to the staff who supported the event.  Our parent/teacher interviews are taking place on Thursday 6^th August, in week 2 next term.  I look forward to seeing you then.  I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable break.

Emma Oliver, Head of Senior School

News from Middle School

The end of first semester gives the opportunity to reflect on a very busy six months. In the last fortnight alone, the students participated in their annual Athletics Carnival and our thanks go to Mr Wilkins for his great organization, and the parent helpers for the running of the carnival. The students deserve special mention for their patience and impromptu dancing while waiting out the rain. They behaved very well.

The road safety poster competition has had mixed success. Although I have received a few entries, I have decided to extend the competition into the beginning of Term Three. This gives the students an opportunity during the holidays (if they have nothing to do) to work on a poster that can really drive a message home to the community. Remember the community language aspect of the competition because I have not received any posters yet in Malay, Chinese or Tamil.

Please make sure you read all the information on H1N1 that has been sent home. As many of us will be travelling in these holidays it is important that we all do the right thing and follow the instructions so that we do not put someone else’s health at risk.

Another reminder about the Parent/Teacher Interview forms that went home last week. All the interviews should have been finalized by today. The interviews will take place during the second week of next term, which is when I will return to school, as I will be on study leave for the first week.

Have a happy holiday everyone. To the teaching staff, thank you all for a great semester’s work and to the students, I hope you enjoy your time to recharge the batteries ready for Semester Two.

Peter Syme, Head of Middle School

News from Junior School

It is always sad when we have to farewell a teacher from the school and it is particularly sad when that teacher has had such a positive impact upon nearly every child in the Junior School. And so it is we farewell Miss Anne our Performing Arts teacher. The Performing Arts teacher is a new position in the Junior School this year and Miss Anne has done a fantastic job with developing the position and constructing a learning programme that has be very engaging for the students and has had a tremendous focus on students performing. We will miss her very much and we wish her all the best on her next adventure. We have appointed a new Performing Arts teacher and Mrs. Susan Bal-Short will be joining us during the holiday break.

This week you should have already received a notice regarding Parent Teacher Interviews scheduled for the 6^th of August. Please return these forms as soon as possible to ensure a favorable timeslot for the interview. We offer times based on a first return basis.

Earlier in the week I sent home a notice regarding the potential for the school to be closed due to H1N1. Students will be bringing home their class workbooks and I would like to stress that these books are not for holiday work, they are only coming home in case the school is closed at the beginning of next term.

During a longer break like this there is always the potential for our younger students to regress a little with their reading and it is therefore quite important for them to continue reading on a daily basis with a parent or an older adult. I know we all get in holiday mode, but it is really beneficial for children to keep up with their reading.

As we are at the end of semester it is inevitable that we have a number of students leaving us and so it is we wish them and their families the best of luck with their move. I hope all of you have a restful holiday break.

Damian Baynes, Head of Junior School

News from Senior School Curriculum Coordinator

On Wednesday August 5^th, lesson 3, the Senior School Assembly will be an Academic Awards Assembly. You will be notified via email and by letter over the holiday period if your son / daughter is receiving an Award.

The Year 12 Trial HSC Examinations will occur in Week 4 & 5 next term during school hours. A more detailed timetable will be given to students early next term.

I would like to take this opportunity to remind all our Senior students that some of the holiday period should be used for finishing assignments and revision in preparation for final examinations.

I hope you all have a safe and relaxing holiday.

Fiona Sayner, Senior School Curriculum Coordinator

News from Middle School Curriculum Coordinator

Junior School Athletic Carnival

Our annual Junior School Athletic Carnival was held on Friday 12 June. This is a fun day of competition, with all students participating in individual events; sprinting, throwing and jumping and team events; tunnel ball, egg and spoon, ball passing and relays. In addition, the Pre school and Kindergarten students completed a showcase of their athletic work in the gym.

It was a great day made extra special thanks to the Parents Association Bake sale and the wonderful support show by the students’ families. A big thank you to Mr Quin for organizing the event, the staff for starting races, judging and recording and service master for helping set up the event. Thanks also to the parents who assisted on the day.

Individual winners were:

7 Years Girls

Champion Elia Kat SAUVAGE

Runner Up Irish Breen RAFTER

7 Years Boys  

Champion Macauley Robertson SAUVAGE

Runner Up Wesley McBride FREEMAN

8 Years Girls

Champion Jessica Kamps SAUVAGE

Runner Up Kiana Baynes FREEMAN

8 Years Boys

Champions Isa Kasim THORPE

Jeremy Bartley FREEMAN

Runner Up Adam Ahamad SAUVAGE

9 Years Girls  

Champion Yasmin Nasharuddin RAFTER

Runner Up Kimberly Kam THORPE  

9 Years Boys    

Champion Cory O’Regan RAFTER

Runners Up Christian Bartley FREEMAN

Bailey Richardson FREEMAN

10 Years Girls   

Champion Estee Lee SAUVAGE

Runners Up Ain Azuddin RAFTER

Chloe Robertson THORPE

Sophie Rotax FREEMAN

10 Years Boys

Champion Jason Kamps SAUVAGE

Runner Up Shaun Chew RAFTER

Overall Shield

1^st Sauvage 500 points         

2^nd Rafter 422 points          

3^rd Thorpe 355 points     

4^th Freeman 351 points

UNSW Competitions

Earlier this year, a large number of students from Grades 3 -12 took part in the UNSW IT and Science competitions. The final 2 competitions in English and Mathematics will be held in early Term 3. Please check the dates given below:

Week 1 Friday 31^st July

English Test (held in the Auditorium)

Grades 3/4/5 periods 1 and 2

Grades 6/7/8 periods 5 and 6

Grades 9/10/11/12 periods 3 and 4

Week 2 Tuesday 4^th August

Mathematics Test (held in the Auditorium)

Grades 4/5/6 periods 1 and 2

Grades 7/8 periods 5 and 6

Grades 9/10/11/12 periods 3 and 4

Good luck to all students. The results should be available late in Term 3.

PE and Outside Sport (Hat and Drink Bottle)

I would like to remind all parents and students of the school requirement that all students wear a hat and carry a drink bottle with them to both PE and outside sport. Both items are considered a part of the PE uniform. Wearing a hat in the hot Malaysian sun is both sensible and smart, and drinking water during the day is essential for avoiding dehydration and ensuring that you are able to maintain good focus and concentration during the day.

Start term 3 off by wearing a hat and carrying a drink bottle. This will show your teachers that you are taking responsibility for your own well being, that you are serious about your studies and that you want to be a high achiever in Semester 2.

WEAR A HAT and CARRY A DRINK BOTTLE

Gary Agg, Middle School Curriculum Coordinator and PE Teacher

Library and Information Resource Centre News

This term the library has continued to be a very dynamic and productive learning area. Library related activities have included The Great KL Novel Knockout, International Day Book Fair and Cloudbreak’s poetry and theatre workshops. Numerous quality books, audio books and DVD’s have been sourced locally and overseas. The Smartboard has proved very popular with staff and students. During junior library sessions the students thoroughly enjoy using it to explore book and author quizzes. Middle and Senior School teachers have been using the Smartboard as a teaching tool in various subject areas.

Library Helpers

I would like to thank Mrs Jane Wong our dedicated book covering person. Also thank you to Mrs Michelle McQuinn for assistance with book processing and displays.

Donations

Many thanks to the Herdon family and Michael O’Connell, 6W for all the quality books. Don’t forget to visit a book shop or library wherever you may be during the holidays.

Denise Miller, Librarian

Senior School Award Winners

Positive Referrals

10G Isabella Head-Gray

10G Nur Diyanah Abdul Rahiman

10G Brendan Clark

10G Alana Miller-Foote

10G Tim Read

9G Adrian Lam

Silver Award

10G Nur Diyanah Abdul Rahiman

Stacey Neilsen, Senior School Welfare Representative, English and HSIE Teacher

Middle School Award Winners

The following awards have been achieved this term in 8W:

Head of School

Farmehr Farhour

Gold Awards

Farmehr Farhour, Park Hee Yoon, Stephanie Woon, Tee Xun Han

Silver Awards

Kevin Lee, Joshua Tan, Tee Xun Han, Emily Wong

Positive Referral

Alisha Azuddin, Dylan Chan, Mark de Vries, Josh Edmondston, Yuri Kawahara, Alex Medley, Emily Wong

Barry Haines, Year 8W Teacher

Junior School Award Winners

Congratulations to all these Junior School children for receiving awards over the last two weeks (Weeks 9 and 10).

Positive Referrals

2W Nicholas Garner, James Lambert

3G Syafiq Ibrahim

4G Naufal Shahrir

Silver Awards

KW Sam Colbey

2W Luke Grover, Leo Langridge and Adam Ahamad

3G Joshua Firth, Harry Catterall, Bailey Richardson, Harry Parkins

3W Samantha Kalukal

4G Jessica Miller, Kane Dyer, Maddy Quarm

4W Liam Baker, Christian Bartley, Zulaikha Badlisyah

Gold Awards

KW Fatni Ainul Ahmad  Faris

1W Taasia Thong, Sarmad Al- Atabi, Aiden Schiede, Isabella Borostyan

2G Aoi Kanda, Bazimah PG. HJ Ahmad, Balqis Badlisyah.

2W Valentyn Santhara

4G Kyra Lee

Head of School Awards

2G Tamika Baynes

3G Zi Xuen Lee

4W Dominique Abela, Chloe Robertson, Sophie Rotax

I-Nah Baynes, Junior School Welfare Representative

Saturday Swimming Lessons

There are limited vacancies in the Saturday Swimming lessons at the school pool on Saturdays next term.  To inquire for detail, please ring the instructor, Jovial Chan on 0123616773.

Saufi Kasim

Sports News

Netball

The Senior Girls Netball played its first game for this year with a friendly against the experienced parents of AISM. For many of the squad it was their first real competition game and a taste of what is regarded as the biggest girls sport in Australia. This experience was invaluable to their continued development in the game and many of the comments from both teams were “Let’s make it a more regular fixture”. The girls have been looking at skills, rules and developing various areas of the game and this enabled them to take this learning on to the court. It was no surprise that all enjoyed the opportunity to come together for this game, however, many mums were carrying very stiff and sore muscles the next day. Thanks to the parents for a fine display of vintage netball and encouragement to the girls and thanks to the girls for their continued commitment to teamwork and learning of the game.

Soccer

Last Saturday our U12 and U14 Boys Soccer teams played some friendly’s against one of the new schools in KL, Tenby International School. Initially the day had been set up as a three way gala day with Tenby, Sri Chempaka International School and ourselves. Unfortunately, the Swine Flu finally had an impact on our community as Chempaka had to close its doors for quarantine. However, the games with Tenby went ahead and the boys had a great hit out. In the first game, the U12’s, AISM were a much stronger and disciplined team, with a 6 – 1 score line the final result. The U14’s game was a great game with the scores locked at 1 – 1 with 10 minutes remaining, however, our boys started to tire after a long day of athletics the day before and a number of the younger boys also having played the 12’s game. The final minutes saw us let in 3 late goals to go down 4 – 1. It was a great morning of soccer and a great opportunity for the boys to further develop their skills.

AGE	GIRLS CHAMPION	BOYS CHAMPION
11+ Under Runner-Up	Tiarnii Richardson Aishah Kenton	Josh ORegan Jonathan Gronkjaer
12 Years Runner-Up	Melanie Schofield Kristina Key	Lennard Low Keenan Jensen
13 Years Runner-Up	Carrie Meyjes Kaiting Yap	Richard Kalukal Ian Lai
14 Years Runner-Up	Estelle Tan Hay Li Tan	Johan Ariff Johan Zolkefli
15 Years Runner-Up	Izzah Ibrahim Alana Miller-Foote	Bahlebonke Nkosi Farmehr Farhour
16 Years Runner-Up	Marisa Musa Charmaine McGregor	Osama Khan Samuel Letham/ Cameron Dean
17+ Runner-Up	Grace Castle-Burns Kate McQuinn/ Paige Casey	Ibrahim Bajwa/ Patrick Kortum Hazim Ferdaus

Senior and Middle School Athletics Carnival

A couple of lost buses, some heavy rain and a wet track might spell disaster for any carnival, but certainly not an AISM carnival, as students continued to have fun and enjoyment with dance offs during the deluge and fine performances on the track and field when the rain broke. Competition started with some hard fought 1500’s displaying all ages together in an open event. Then the premier event, the 100 metre sprint, great times and close finishes came in waves, as heat after heat exploded down the track. Meanwhile, field events were underway with records being broken as javelins, discus and shots were hurled, in many interesting ways, with eager eyes looking on to see who had thrown the furthest. As we continued through the events runners were preparing for the 200’s when the heavens opened and down came the rain. It was then that the fun began as the houses banded together to compete on a makeshift dance floor for bragging rights. As soon as the rain stopped it was back to the track (unfortunately field events were cancelled for the day), 200’s, 400’s and relays were completed with some serious competition in the relays being a highlight of the day.

This did not spell the end of the carnival as the field events have continued during each day of this week. Even though we were back at school the competition has been fierce and house spirit still prevails.

A very big thank you must be given to all the staff for their officiating and supervising and the wonderful group of parents who helped with recording and manning the stopwatches at the busy end of the track.

House Trophy

1^st Rafter 1303

2^nd Thorpe 1159

3^rd Sauvage 1158

4^th Freeman 1061

Phil Wilkins, Sports Coordinator

Performing Arts News

Term 2 has come to a close and it has been a very productive and creative one for many of our students. The highlights have the Junior and Middle School Music Afternoons, International Day and the Senior School Production. These events have all showcased the work of our students are doing in their classrooms or during their ECA activities. I would like to thank the Performing Arts Staff for all their hard work on these events and look forward to even more opportunities for our students in the Performing Arts next semester.

Last night the Senior School Production was staged in the Auditorium. The students had been working on the performance since the beginning of Term 1 and engaged the large audience in the circus ring with a thought provoking production of “Do We Ever See Grace?” The students enjoyed the production and particularly the challenge of using the ‘in the round’ performance space and the transformational acting style where most of them played many parts. I would like to personally congratulate all the cast and crew for their fantastic efforts. I would also like to thank Mr. Patrick Tyr-Egge for co-directing the production, Ms. Julia West , Mr Harman Harison bin Mazlan and the ECA Media Club students for the publicity and the many other staff members who assisted with costumes, make-up and general support of the production, particularly with the extended rehearsals this week. It was definitely well worth the effort.

Finally, I would like to farewell Ms. Anne-Maree McWatters. Her contribution to developing the position of the Junior School Performing Arts Specialist, her amazing work with the students and her friendship throughout the Semester will surely be missed.

I hope all the members of the AISM community have a safe and happy holiday.

Jon Suffolk, Performing Arts Coordinator

Junior School Spelling Bee

Recently a Spelling Bee was held for Junior School. Congratulations to all participants in this event:

From Year 1:

Taasia, Alson, Marc, Marcus, Akhilan, Alexander

From Year 2:

Joshua, Ariana, Ji Min, Adrian, Ahmed, Balqis

From Year 3:

Jessica, Daniel, Vasundara, Rhiannon, Ellis, Yasmin

From Year 4:

Estee, Ashiyka, Zulaikha, Jessie, Ben, Ryan

The winners were:

Year 1 1^st place : Akhilan

2^nd place : Alson

3^rd place : Alexander

Year 2 1^st place : Ariana

2^nd place : Joshua

3^rd place : Ahmed

Year 3 1^st place : Rhiannon

2^nd place : Jessica

3^rd place : Yasmin

Year 4 1^st place : Estee

2^nd place : Zulaikha

3^rd place : Asyikka

Well done everyone!!!

Leah Mather & Barb Morris

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In the last edition of this Newsletter, you would have read a stirring article about the AISM Team's participation in the World Scholar's Cup. At the end of the article, a number of thank-you's were bestowed, however there was one glaring omission. The whole team would like to acknowledge and thank Ms Angela Barnes for her help with our participation in the World Scholar's Cup. Ms Barnes gave up her weekend and embraced the task at hand wholeheartedly and for this we are truly thankful!

James Unsworth

Website Updates

The Newsletter will be posted on the school website this evening, depending on the weather. We are currently updating the website, but recent events are still being posted.

Lesley Lee, Development Officer

“WE WISH YOU ALL HAVE A SAFE HOLIDAY”

AISM Alumni

Last Friday we were pleased to have some special visitors to the Middle / Senior Sports Day. Hariz, Jono and Jian are on Term break from their Uni courses and they arrived just about the same time as the storm did. Jono was very happy to take on his familiar role of DJ as he supported the impromptu dance event and we managed to glean some information from Jian about what he is doing this year. Jian was another of the more colourful students from a colourful year, his comments are somewhat attention-grabbing.

1. Which University are you now studying in?

Victoria University

2. Which Course? How long is the course?

Bachelor of Psychology and Bachelor of Business (double degree)

3. Was this your first choice?

No

4. Were you made offers by any other Universities, and for which courses?

Yes, Latrobe University-International Business, Monash- Psychology, RMIT- Marketing (all of which were given as irregular offers due to complications in applying. So all you Yr12's better pay really close attention to your applications)

5. Why did you choose this particular University and Course?

I wanted to do a double degree and this was the only university that allowed me to do so with my grades l-o-l, others only offered me single degrees. I chose this course because I thought the courses would complement each other. I thought having a business degree alone was pretty common, so by doing a psychology course on top of it, I’m hoping to gain an edge in the future. Psychology can also be applied in many fields in business such as marketing and management. So it seemed like a logical choice.

6. What do you feel AISM contributed to your success in achieving your results and enabling your entry into University?

Oh come on Mrs Lee!!! 8 yrs I’ve been in AISM. How can you not expect me to poke fun at this question? Haha. I can definitely say that all the teachers in AISM who have taught me throughout those 8 years has definitely contributed to my success (which is open for interpretation haha). I hold you all responsible for how I turned out l-o-l.

7. Where do you see yourself in five years?

As a successful businessman!

Lesley Lee, Development Officer