Category: Newsflash

Principal’s Corner

by Mr. Andrew Powell, EY-12 Principal

This morning our virtual production Fireworks, Dream and Believe premiered and was viewed by the entire school. As the title suggests our production encourages us to dream big, trust yourself and realize your dreams. This is incredibly important at the best of times but even more pertinent as we emerge from the challenges of the past few years.

 The students involved in the production spanned our elementary, middle, and high schools and provided the community with a taste of their talents as they danced and sang with a sense of purpose and togetherness, despite recording all of their parts individually.

 At CIS we intentionally strive to inspire and one of the qualities that we look to model and value is creativity. While often referred to in the context of the arts, creativity is defined by the ability to produce or use original or unusual ideas. Over the course of the pandemic and our return to face-to-face classes there has certainly been a great deal of creative ideas, approaches, and solutions at play. Our virtual production was one example of this.

 Prospective families are increasingly looking to CIS for its creative culture. Our Virtual Arts programmes are in demand by students who are looking to nurture their creative talents. This is not only providing our students with opportunities to learn and experiment with new techniques and skills but is resulting in their heightened visibility to prospective universities.

 The nature of our program encourages student agency and consequently is open to creative possibilities. Our Grade 5 students are finalizing their work on some very promising projects while our Grade 10s have submitted their Personal Project products. The scope to explore their own personal interests has resulted in a diverse range of high-quality expressions which have ranged from writing and enacting an authentic criminal law trial, developing 1980s inspired video games, honing technical art skills through tonal portraits, and fusing Filipino traditional foods for the western palate. These and the many other exceptional projects will make for a great exhibition next month.

 While our faculty work hard to inspire, we have such an incredible group of students that they also serve to motivate our teachers. They provide them with a vivid image of future possibilities which leads to a dynamic approach to lesson planning and unit development, enhancing the overall school experience.

Upcoming events of note

• May 2-3: Regular school days (holidays on our original calendar, but now makeup days due to typhoon Odette)

• May 5: PYPx (exhibition) Showcase (virtual)

• May 9-13: CIS IB Art Exhibition (virtual)

• May 18: Whole School Celebration of Learning: ES Parent conferences, MYP Personal Project Showcase, DP TOK Showcase (virtual)

• May 24:  Parent Coffee Meeting 9-10 am run by the CIS PTA (virtual)

• May 27:  CIS Virtual Graduation (premiers at 5 pm)

Please refer to the CIS Event Calendar (http://cis.edu.ph/school-calendar/) for the complete calendar of school events.

Grades 2/3 Music

by Ms. Natasha Arnsby, Music Teacher

Grade 2 students have been learning to play either a keyboard instrument or glockenspiel. They have had a chance to learn some well known tunes. They had agency to work at the performance level of their choosing. Some students played beginner versions of these favourite melodies, and some added chords or left hand counter melodies. This is what they have had to say about their musical adventure.

Grade 3 students have been learning to play the recorder. Through this they have been mastering woodwind playing techniques, such as correct embouchure, breathing properly and tonguing. They have also had a chance to improve their fine motor skills when covering the holes precisely. Students have put their note reading knowledge into action, made beautiful music and had lots of fun along their journey. This is what they have had to say about their musical adventure.

TEDX

by Mr. Jonathan Denton, MYP Coordinator

This coming May 14, 2022 from 4-6pm, CIS will be having its first-ever TEDx event. with the theme of “Rediscover, Reconnect, Reignite” the team hopes to provide a virtual space for ideas, interaction, and inspiration.  We hope this event provides opportunities for people in our community to reconnect with new and familiar faces, producing fruitful conversations and relationships. Ultimately, we hope that the sharing of different perspectives and experiences during this pandemic will rediscover and reignite our desire to learn and create.

This event will feature speakers from all around Cebu and our very own CIS alumni. Slots to watch the event are open for everyone— CIS student or not! If you would like to reserve a slot please answer this short survey tinyurl.com/TEDxCebuInternationalSchool or email TEDxyouthcebuis@gmail.com with your name and zoom email address.

Grades 6 & 7 Design Class

by Ron de Villa, MYP Design Teacher

The G6& 7 Design classes are exploring digital advertisements and graphic designing through the use of various hardware and software that enable them to produce printed and filmed ads for products that they have developed in the current unit.

Graphic designers draw inspiration in many different ways. From real-life experiences to how they view the world around them. Because kids see the world in an innovative and colorful way, there is no doubt that they can be graphic designers, too!

Some people hear the words “graphic design” and think of it as something very intimidating; however, our students have proven in this unit that graphic design is not daunting, but rather can be fun and strategic, and it can be a newfound hobby and even a future career.

We started the unit through a logo design challenge wherein the students were given keywords of a new company and they had to create a logo out of these.  

Here are sample works they created:

Being a graphic designer helps students to communicate their message through their creativity and in time, as they master the skills, they would be able to effectively bring other people’ ideas to life.

Through this unit, the students had to manage their time well as deadlines were set for every part of the process and meeting them was as important as being able to effectively communicate and show their creativity. Furthermore, students learned how to pay attention to details and notice even the smallest details, this was done through consistent feedback from peers as well as teachers.

The Grade 7 students were later on tasked to create designs for the next flagship products of their companies. Through digital and analog sketches, rough designs for various products were done. To come up with these, they of course had to undergo a lot of research and took a lot of inspiration from existing products. Here are some samples:

Based on these products, the Grade 6 were then tasked to create 15-second commercials. The process involved a series of graphic sketches for storyboards before the filming had to commence. Like graphic artists, filmed ad specialists will have to go through different creative stages before they shoot. The Grade 6 students delivered really good output as part of their formatives and we could see how much effort and knowledge they have even prior to creating this short advertisements.

Here are some screenshots of these 15-second ads.

At these age levels, the creativity is just flowing and with students given the right amount of freedom to explore what they want to express and how they want to express, there is so much that they can produce and there’s just so much that they are more than capable of. That’s why I love teaching Design.

Grades 11 & 12  Biology

by Ms. Rebecca Devadoss, Biology Teacher

Grade 11 
Students are experimenting on one factor that is affecting the rooting of a stem cutting. Stem-cuttings are short lengths of stem that are used to clone plants artificially. If roots develop from the stem, the cutting can become an independent new plant and it is a clone of the parent plant. Clones have identical genetic information.

In groups, students have set up their experiments. Data would be collected in three weeks time which will be processed, analyzed and arrive at scientifically supported conclusions. As the grade 11 students are on the verge of stepping into their Internal Assessment tasks, this investigation would serve as a mock IA.

Grade 12
With the return of students in face to face classes, students were able to prepare and view specimens through a microscope. They took photos of their field of view and shared it with their peers who were online.

On the final day of their DP journey, students prepared and presented to the class the various career options that are related to Biology.

They also had some fun in the process!

PHE G8, G9 & G10 Dragon’s Badminton Cup 2022 PHE Summative

by Bryan, Jandra, Mahati, Maki  G10- PHE Online Class
Aadya, Grace, Ryota, Wilson G8- PHE Online Class

Hello everyone! As the school transitioned to face-to-face classes this quarter, we have been working really hard to meet the requirements for our PHE 8, 9, and 10 Badminton online unit. We’ve been practicing as a team, learning the concepts, applying the skills and techniques, and familiarizing ourselves with the rules of Badminton. This week the classes will engage themselves in an action-packed summative through an actual sports tournament dubbed the Dragon’s Badminton Cup. 

For grades 8 and 9, the tournament will start on April 25, going until May 5. For grade 10, the tournament will start from April 26 to May 6, and the champions of grades 8 and 9 will compete against the champions of grade 10, the date of which will be decided after all the games are done. Nine teams are playing for Grade 8 and 9, and eight teams for Grade 10. The tournament format used was a single round-robin; all teams will play against each other before the semi-finals and championship. We looked through a variety of different ways to arrange a tournament before coming to the final plan we created. We learned a lot, and learned from every mistake or misstep we made with the help of our teachers. 

As online class students, it is important for us to be active during PHE class, but for this unit, we were able to contribute by being the prime organizers and movers of the tournament. We were able to work together, meet online, develop and create a successful tournament by planning heavily and working together to make the schedule, rules, and team composition. We discussed every part of the tournament and got feedback to see the flaws that might arise and to be always ready to address every issue that will come out.

To explain further how we were able to connect the online class unit and face-to-face class, here’s the feedback from each online class student. 

Many things were taught to me during the unit, including how tournaments are held, the types of tournaments, matchmaking, groupings, as well as the badminton rules. With that said, we, the online class students (since we couldn’t play badminton at home), were able to be organizers in designing a tournament for PHE grades 8, 9, and 10 for the face to face class. As a part of the organizer, it was challenging, interesting, and a good experience to be able to design a tournament. Hoping that players will have fun and that everything will go as planned.  – Ron, G10

The people online have learned a lot on how to plan a tournament and the specific details that come into play when being the tournament directors and planners. Especially working together as the only online students of grade 10, we were able to help each other in the areas we weren’t confident in and work as a team. I would say we have learned a lot of new things and had a lot of speed bumps on the way trying to figure out solutions to the problems we faced. But in the end we gained a lot of perspective as the people behind it all who plan and make it possible to have a tournament. This time it was up to us, the students online, to create this big event and turn it into reality, unlike what we are used to when the teachers would plan everything for us and create the schedule, teams, rules, and the overall system of the tournament. This was a big learning experience and opportunity for us to have and we will always remember what we did for the PHE class of Grade 8,9,10 in 2022. – Jandra, G10

I would definitely say that I have learned numerous things during this unit. In our class, we discussed the different rules of tournaments, for this specific unit we are focusing on badminton. It was really interesting since we got to learn more deeply about this topic. I used to play badminton and I usually do not mind really strict rules of badminton but this time, I really got the chance to learn the specific elements and rules of badminton. Since we cannot play with others who are in face to face, Maki, Jandra, Mahati and I are organizing the tournament. This opportunity was definitely something special, and the thought that we are actually organizing a badminton tournament is a rare chance. We worked as a team by communicating with each other, especially when creating the different rules, schedules, and matchmaking of the game. This part would definitely be hard without good communication and team work so I believe that this part was the most crucial part of this unit. – Bryan, G10

I think a lot of us learned many things from this unit; arranging a tournament throughout the course of the unit was very interesting to do, because we usually only played in those tournaments, not build them up. We learned a lot about organization and planning things out, and had to act a little like authority figures because we were planning things out; all the online students had to be the people players in the tournament could look to when they have questions. I liked this unit because we learned by doing, and what we did directly affected the outcome of our work no matter what.  – Mahati, G10

Creating the tournament was a very interesting learning experience for me. I learned the different kinds of matchmaking in badminton, learned how to use my creative thinking skills to create a poster that would provide information about the tournament. I worked with my classmates to create a fun tournament for students. I learned the rules of badminton and the importance of rules in a tournament. I learned different badminton skills and terminology too. – Aadya, G8

I was able to improve and work on my organization and teamwork skills. I was able to work with my online classmates; planning out, discussing and analyzing the rules and the different aspects of this tournament. It was fun to create and explore ideas with my classmates. Creating the poster was probably the part I enjoyed the most, due to my classmates all working together and brainstorming different ideas. We were able to learn the importance of rules, and along with that we learned some badminton techniques/stretches. – Grace, G8

I learned that there are many things to prepare. set date, Rules and communicate to people attending the tournament. I see and know how difficult it is to organize everything. – Ryota, G8

 I think this is a great opportunity for me to develop my creating and organizing skills. Though I’m new in CIS, I found it very interesting to work with my classmate as a team. I finally had a chance to learn how a badminton championship works and the formal badminton rules. Making a poster is full of challenges, and I have no experience before. I understood the importance of teamwork and had great fun through this challenge. By the way, thanks for giving me the opportunity. – Wilson, G8

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor Corner

Question of the Week:

As a Grade 11 student in the IB Diploma programme, will I need to take SATs to apply for college next year?

It depends.  If you are applying to a university in Canada, UK, Europe and Asia, you will not need to present SAT scores since an IB Diploma is recognized by universities in these parts of the globe. If you are applying to the USA, you will need to check if the university is SAT optional (they do not require SATs).  Most universities in the US have remained test-optional.  They have changed their eligibility requirements and have opted not to require SAT or ACT scores.  

If applying to the USA, you need to check the website of the university you are interested in if they have the SAT score requirement.  For more information, you may set an appointment with the College Counselor.  You may email  Ms. Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph to set an appointment or visit the office. 

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

Links to Register
Masterclass 2
(Apr 30, May 2 & 3)
Masterclass 3
(May 7, 9 & 10)

EVENT

Glion Institute of Higher Education (Switzerland)
Masterclass 2:  Event Management: Creating a Memorable Experience
Masterclass 3:  The Art of Leadership and Multicultural Team Management

May 12
Thursday
LINK to register or use the QR code in the poster

Art & Design Universities in Canada (ADUC):learn more about the international student experience of those who study art, design and media in a specialized Canadian institution.
Participating universities:  Emily Carr University, Alberta University of the Arts, Ontario College of Art & Design and Nova Scotia College of Art & Design

May 17
3:00PM CDT
LINK to register

Engaging Distinctive Universities: a collaborative, engaging virtual event hosted by Emory University, Rice University, the University of Michigan and the University of Washington. Join this session to help you decide which college is the best fit for you.

SAT Update

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

Admin News

by Dr. Gwyn Underwood, Superintendent

It was great to see many of our Grade 12 students walking around with big smiles on campus yesterday. Why, you may ask? Because after two challenging years, yesterday was their last day of official classes! We will officially recognize their achievements in their official graduation ceremony on May 27, so for now, let’s offer a well-earned congratulations!

As we approach the end of the school year, we are all faced with various levels of pending change. Students and teachers are finishing up their school year and some families are preparing to leave, so there are upcoming changes to face. During this time of change, research has suggested that it is beneficial to consciously consider how transitions can affect us, and our families. The following is an adaptation of an article I have shared before but will do so again as it is directly applicable to consider at this time of the year.

Building your transition RAFT! 

David Pollock and Ruth Van Reken1 outline the transition process as a normal process that uses the following associated feelings:

It is helpful to consider emotions involved during transitions, so as to understand and be ready to deal with any stress these emotions may cause. Failure to cope with these will result in an unhappy transition and poor re-engagement in your new environment. For students, this will certainly affect their social and academic achievements.

Dr. Pollock2 also developed the acronym and visual image “RAFT” to help explain pre-departure processes needed for successful transitions. Here is a summary for your reference:

 Reconciliation – Begin building your raft by asking yourself if you have any relationships that need mending. Is there any unfinished business between you and someone you are in a relationship with? This is the time to give and receive forgiveness. Bitterness and regret stemming from lack of closure and resolution inhibit good grief and adjustment to a new location.

Affirmation – This is the time to thank the people who have been involved in your life. Affirm the relationships you have made and what they have meant to you. Take the time to tell people what you have learned from them and how grateful you are for them. Try to leave as little unsaid as possible when you leave a place.

Farewells – Say good-byes to people, places, pets, and possessions that have mattered to you. Take lots of pictures. Take the time to say culturally appropriate good-byes. Some cultures require a lengthy departure process. Particularly difficult farewells are the ones that are generally rushed or put off, so plan ahead and give the farewell due attention.

Think destination – Think and dream about where you are going and what it will be like. Be very honest about the expectations you have for the people and situations that you are going to. Be honest with yourself about how you feel about this transition. Think ahead to what scares you or excites you about where you are going. Research the realities of your destination. If at all possible, put concrete plans in place.

As we move into our last 2 weeks, please take time to build a RAFT for your transition, and go out of your way to help your friends build theirs. Consider how change may impact the feelings of all of our students whether they are leaving or not, as the process will help them face new situations as they move into a new grade, and as some of their friends and teachers leave. 

*References & Credits:

• Third Culture Kids: The experience of growing up among worlds by David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken
• Adapted from: http://theirrationalseason.blogspot.com/2008/04/raft.html
• Raft Photo: Joshua Earle on Unsplash.com

Upcoming events of note

Grade 12 Farewell

Elementary: Physical & Health Education

by Mr. Jaydil Hermias, PHE Teacher

Grade 9: Math

by Ms. Maria Victoria Bacus, MYP/DP Math Teacher

Exploration allows us to discover the unknown

The Theorem of Pythagoras

Grade 9 Mathematics students are currently learning about the world of Trigonometry, as the name might suggest is all about triangles. In this unit, students will explore mathematical relationships which will allow people to calculate what they can’t measure.

To explore the rule discovered by the Greek mathematician, Pythagoras, students completed an investigation regarding the relationships between the sides of the triangles.

Here are some students’ answers shared on the Padlet:

Figure 1 (Investigation) – Pythagoras’ Theorem

Figure 2 (Problem-Solving) – Taco Truck by Desmos

In this particular Desmos activity, students encounter situations that they may experience in real life- taking a shortcut to save time. They then utilized the Pythagorean theorem as a tool to solve problems involving diagonal distances. They reviewed their prior knowledge on speed, rearranging formulas and manipulating equations, to determine the best path to a taco truck from a spot on the beach.

Here are some students’ work on their Desmos activity:

Here are some students’ Main Takeaway:  (shared on mentimeter.com)

Grade 11: IB Psychology

by Mr. Michael Stewart, Psychology Teacher

As part of our Unit on the Cognitive Approach to Psychology, Grade 11 IB Psychology students have been learning about and researching cognitive biases. Cognitive biases are predictable, systematic errors in judgment that arise from the way our minds process and organize information – we are all susceptible to them, regardless of background, age, education level, and so forth. To find out more about cognitive biases, please check out these short documentaries created by the students:

Alumni News

Alya Laplana from the Class of 2020 was recently featured in the ANC (ABS-CBN News Channel) morning news to talk about Habilin, an organization with the goal of creating an education revolution in the Philippines.

We are proud of our graduates for going out and making a change in the world!

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor Corner

The Digital SAT

Last Saturday, April 16th, CIS participated in a pilot test study for the Digital SAT.

Here are some FAQ’s about the Digital SAT taken from the College Board website. 

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE
April 25-26
April 30, May 2-3
May 7, 9, 10

Glion Institute of Higher Education (Switzerland)
Masterclass 1: Discover the New World of Luxury (Link to register)
Masterclass 2:  Event Management: Creating a Memorable Experience (Link to register)
Masterclass 3:  The Art of Leadership and Multicultural Team Management (Link to register)

Admissions Office

SAT Update

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

Principal’s Corner

by Mr. Andrew Powell, EY-12 Principal

This week in our Newsflash you’ll note reference to the way our Grade 5 students are exploring their passions as they work towards their PYP Exhibition along with an advertisement for our upcoming MYP Personal Project Showcase in May. Both initiatives provide students with the opportunity to initiate a self-directed study as part of the culmination of their work in the PYP and MYP. The work our teachers do to scaffold our students through this process is integral to their success and I would like to highlight how fortunate we are to have two exceptional educators in Mrs. Underwood and Mr. Denton leading our students through these projects. We also have a large proportion of our staff acting as mentors for our students and I would like to highlight the benefits that this approach provides.

 Mentoring in the sense of these projects provides our students with access to additional support and perspectives. Typically, students are matched with a mentor based on the mentor’s personal and professional interests, and how they may align with the topic or exploration that a student is interested in. The mentors meet regularly with the students over a sustained period of time in order to provide advice, direction, expertise and inspiration.

 While all of our mentors are teachers at CIS and therefore experienced educators, project-specific training has been provided to them in order to maximise their effectiveness. In the case of the PYP Exhibition our teachers have been provided with professional development on how to be an effective mentor and the lead teacher scaffolds their work with students with clear expectations for each session. 

In addition to supporting our students’ development of skills and knowledge, mentoring in this sense provides students with positive role models. Sustained engagement provides a strengthened sense of identity, communication skills and interpersonal relationships. It helps to develop confidence and raise aspirations.

 Here are a few thoughts on the mentoring process from our Grade 5 students:

 “My mentor has been very helpful as I explore how nature walks can help with mental health. She can help me research quickly and find resources that I can read and include in persuasive writing.”

 “She is really good at taking all of the messy ideas that I have in my head and consolidating them into a clear idea and line of inquiry.”

 “It’s great to work with someone that’s not my regular teacher because I get to know about other perspectives and have someone else to look up to and ask questions.”

 Providing mentors to our students is an important initiative that helps to individualize our students’ educational experiences. It helps to further develop our sense of community and I know that from a mentor’s perspective, it is a rewarding experience.

Upcoming events of note

• April 11-15 Mid-semester Break (Easter/Holy week)
• April 18: School make up day (Day B)
• April 26:  Parent Coffee Meeting 9-10 am ← Save the date!

Please refer to the CIS Event Calendar (http://cis.edu.ph/school-calendar/) for the complete calendar of school events.

Grade 5 PYP Exhibition: Mid-Journey Update

Mrs. Aimee Underwood, Grade 5 Homeroom Teacher

The highlight of Grade 5 each year is the PYP Exhibition (PYPx), which unites students, teachers, and other members of the learning community in a culminating, collaborative learning experience.

Over the past few weeks, our Grade 5 students have been busy exploring their passions and connecting them to local and global issues through the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG). Their passions and issues are as diverse as the students themselves, ranging from fast fashion to green architecture, inequality in coding to child refugees, invasive species to music therapy, and more!

Through the process of their inquiry, the students are deepening their knowledge and understanding, sharpening their ATL skills, and challenging themselves to consider how they can demonstrate their IB Learner Profile attributes to “help create a better and more peaceful world” (IB Mission Statement).

Below are some surveys that the Grade 5s will be grateful for if you can help fill out, so that they can collect more primary data for their research:

• Mental Health and Well-Being (Anna): https://forms.gle/jAe7fYnheKWLjEbMA
• Fast Fashion and Consumer Behavior (Aubrey): https://forms.gle/sPEi1SpkZre91zox6
• Tanks and Military Technology (Sam): https://forms.gle/iNvhrGazsrfqbe9i9
• Jaguars (Dave): https://forms.gle/G9J1BPqev3srYYzV9
• Deforestation (Riku): https://forms.gle/cajq7TY1QqeWYjnj8

As we head into the last half of the PYPx journey after the break, we look forward to seeing how the students will take action and publicly share their learning with the wider community. Stay tuned

Language Acquisition Classes

by Mr. Antonio Melgar, Language Acquisition Teacher

MYP Spanish – Grade 6/7

Grades 6 and 7 students discovered how to talk about  food around the world, the food pyramid, classifying the foods into categories,  and how to mention the most famous dishes. Also, they are learning how to explain the process of preparing a simple dish in Spanish and discussing what is healthy and what is not.

Grade 8 and 9

This term we focused on discussing how  globalization is a process that affects us all in diverse ways. We talked about famous people from our countries, and how they became global,  and how a language can be global, and how accents and idioms make a culture richer and more international. Also, how by using or consuming products from other regions of the world we enhance our knowledge and discuss  how our small actions can help make our planet sustainable. And applying past tense is a great tool to talk about it!

Grade 10

This term we focused on the environment and how our actions can lead to either preserving or damaging it. As this is a multilevel class, students also discussed global warming and its implications, idioms and colloquial expressions as a way to convey meaning across cultures and how food is something that unites us. 

Personal Project

MYP Personal Project

SEL Tips

Dragon’s Print

After 2 whole years of learning remotely, our return to normality is nearing. Despite us being comfortable in our own humble abodes, face-to-face (F2F) classes have begun, meaning that we students who are able to return to campus will have to adapt. Read about a few days in the life of a Grade 11 Student getting used to full F2F days at http://dragonsprint.cis.edu.ph/.

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

April 9
Saturday
1:00PM
Link to Register

EVENT

Ritsumeikan University (Japan) : Ask us! : Why choose Ritsumeikan & What undergraduate programs are offered

April 13
4:30 – 5:30pm
Link to register

New Zealand University webinars: (in cooperation with Beacon Academy in Manila) 

April 21
Thursday
7:00 – 9:00pm
Link to register

April 23, 25 & 26
Link to register
(pick the schedule/time zone that is works for you)

Glion Institute of Higher Education (Switzerland)
Masterclass 1: Discover the New World of Luxury

SAT Update

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

Admin News

by Dr. Gwyn Underwood, Superintendent

It has been another extremely busy week as we moved from our successful two-week half-day on-campus transition schedule to our full-day new normal regular schedule. Despite a number of adjustments needed to address the various issues arising from two years being off-campus, overall things went smoothly, which is a huge credit to everyone in so many ways – from students, parents, and family, to teachers, staff, and fellow administrators. Thank you all for your individual contributions to the CIS community!

Constant pressure is tiring at the best of times and can be overwhelming at others. Over the past two years, we have been living through societal changes on multiple fronts, and we know change can be a major source of stress. As we were planning our return to campus, one of our objectives was to seek a quick return to learning routines that will enable us to create a safe learning environment that can also be a haven for our students from the various unsettling global changes we are experiencing at this time, such as climate change, war, the social media and big tech revolution, and so on. Our “anchor” through all this are our guiding statements. Two, in particular, are relevant to this topic:

• Core Belief #1: Learning is a joyful, creative, and open-ended exploration.
  ⇒ Instead of worrying too much, let us recall the joy of learning, and seek ways to nurture our students, and our own, creativity and open-ended exploration.
• Core Belief #6: As an IB World School, the Learner Profile Attributes and Approaches to Learning are embedded in all that we think, say, and do.
  ⇒ Focusing on positive LP attributes such as being caring and open-minded, and consciously seeking ways to develop our approaches to learning (ATL) skills will enable us to better cope with the challenges of life, and help to build our resilience.

Speaking of resilience, it is reassuring to read that “a growing body of research illustrates that academic buoyancy and resilience support students’ healthy acceptance of and response to challenges in and out of school.” Anderson et. al* notes that “resilient learners have meaningful goals, manage their emotions when they experience setbacks, and accept what they can and cannot control in the learning experience. Academic resilience is built on individual characteristics—composure, confidence, coordination, commitment, and control. Those processes develop through strong relationships in school and explicit instruction, messaging, and modeling across learning environments.”

Let’s all work on developing relationships and academic characteristics, modeling positive behavior and accepting what we can and cannot control in our learning experiences, both in and outside of school. Hang in there for another week everyone, be resilient, and you will have time over our mid-semester (Easter) break to rest! 

*Academic buoyancy and resilience for diverse students around the world by Anderson, RC, Beach, PT, Jacovidis, JN and Chadwick, KL. 2020. International Baccalaureate Organization.

Upcoming events of note

• April 1: MHS Quarter 3 reports published
• April 4-8: STEM week
• April 11-15 Mid-semester Break (Easter/Holy week)
• April 26:  Parent Coffee Meeting 9-10 am ← Save the date!

Please refer to the CIS Event Calendar (http://cis.edu.ph/school-calendar/) for the complete calendar of school events.

College Acceptances Update

Early Years 

by Ms. Aimee Valenzona, EY Teacher and Ms. Freya Abella, EY Teacher Aide

As we are about to end the month of March, the Early Years have started with our new unit on How the World Works. We began our unit by making use of our learning environment as our provocation to encourage student inquiry in the classroom. We started off by turning off all our lights in the classroom leaving it as dark as possible as our students came to class early in the morning. Guess what happened next? 

Our EY explorers demonstrated our early morning routine by getting their names as they come in class, removing their shoes, sanitizing, and placing their bags in their cubby holes. This routine will further develop their self-management skills as they practice and learn to show independence as they perform these daily routines. Upon entering the classroom, they noticed something different. They observed and started asking questions. Here are few of their observations/questions:

As you read through their responses and observations, you will notice how they made connections with their previous experiences at home and during the recent typhoon in Cebu last December. Being able to observe and easily connect with the world around them enables our young learners to expand their thinking and feel valued in relating learning to themselves and the real world. As we continued with this week’s engagements, students made use of their senses  as they shared their observations and made an inquiry about light and the sun which led us to take note of their prior knowledge and ideas. As we continue to move forward, we will discover and learn more about how light and shadows enable us to interact with the world around us. 

As we transition to our full-day New Normal schedule, we will continue to develop our number sense by making use of math concepts such as more and less and try to explain our thinking as we solve simple problems by using counters or objects. In literacy, we are in the process of working towards finishing some of our students’  book covers while the rest will still start and/or continue with their books. Any idea what’s missing in our book covers? 

Grade 8: Science

by Christine Enrile, Science Teacher

In Quarter 3, the students explored the concepts and applications of Chemistry in society. Their summative assessment challenged them to use their understanding and skills to be able to design an eco-house which incorporated the theme of sustainability in the design and use of materials.  The decision on using certain materials for their eco-house was anchored on their understanding of the changes in matter, both beneficial and harmful. In addition, developing a room layout involved integrating their knowledge and understanding of globally – accepted conservation practices in eco-house designs. Using their critical thinking and creativity,  the students designed a house considering the efficient use of materials, space, and energy. These are their outputs and reflections.

Grade 10: Music – Protest Song Composition

by Ms. Marie Briones, Music Teacher

The G10 wrapped up their unit on Protest Music last week with a presentation of their very own protest song composition. They were asked to compose lyrics on a simple single melody line around an issue/problem/cause of their choice such as political, social, socio-economic, etc. 

Here are some of what they have to say about the whole process of composing a protest song, from their challenges and trials to triumphs of how they overcame them, from what they are most proud of about their composition to how they think they could improve it.

“What I like most about my composition/process of composing is the creation of my lyrics. I thought that I wouldn’t be able to make a good piece, but I realized that as long as I stick to the formula and have an idea of what sounds good to me, I would be able to create something good for what amounts to an amateur’s attempt at composing. Overall, I am proud of my protest song because I was able to give meaning to the lyrics…”- Zeke 

Zeke – The Crisis.pdf    Zeke – The Crisis.mp3

“Listening to the melody every time I finished a measure was really fun. I thought that music was just for entertainment but I realized that every music needs to have a message. Every time, music tells it directly and indirectly, just like the music we made. ”- Dennis

Dennis Composition.pdf    Dennis Music.mp3

“Composing a protest song, I believe, is really being creative in the process though it also involves music theory. What I liked most about the process of composing is learning how to create a song which is the first time I have ever done. It was really fun creating the melody, the chord progression and the notes of the keys, fixing the notes/ lyrics to make it better, putting emphasis on the musical metaphors, and exploring Musescore application.” – Ron Michael 

Ron Michael – Others.pdf       Ron Michael – Others.wav

“The melody that I composed sounds really good compared to the number of times I tried composing. What I like most about my composition/process of composing is that we are able to think of so many outcomes and possibilities of how that music will come out. Composing is basically your own idea and knowledge put into one piece so your piece is mostly based on your creativity and imagination.” –Bryan 

Bryan – Our Life.pdf          Bryan – Our Life.mp3

Admissions News

Dragon’s Print

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

April 9
Saturday
1:00PM
Link to Register

EVENT

Ritsumeikan University (Japan) : Ask us! : Why choose Ritsumeikan & What undergraduate programs are offered

April 7 & 8
Book a Slot
(BST – British Summer Time is 7 hours later than PH time)

University of Oxford (UK): Webinar Series for Parents/Guardians: These are designed to provide parents of potential Oxford applicants with all the information they need, as well as give them a chance to ask us any questions they may have.

April 4, 5, 6 and 13
4:30 – 5:30pm
Link to register

New Zealand University webinars: (in cooperation with Beacon Academy in Manila) – please refer to the schedule below:

Participating universities:  University of Otago, University of Waikato, Victoria University of Wellington, Lincoln University, The University of Auckland, Massey University, University of Canterbury, Auckland University of Technology

UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO LIST OF PROGRAMS  AVAILABLE:  CLICK HERE
UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO LIST OF PROGRAMS  AVAILABLE:  CLICK HERE

Principal’s Corner

Mr. Andrew Powell, EY – Grade 12 Principal

As we head into the second week of our hybrid learning (blending on-line and face-to-face learning) with concurrent students (having some students in class face-to-face while others join remotely), I thought it appropriate to cover some of the aspects of the ways in which our program is being delivered. These methods were also the focus of our teachers’ professional development sessions this afternoon and continue to be part of our commitment to leading the region in innovative school practices.

It is fair to say that as educators we are mapping new instructional landscapes. As there is limited formal research on concurrent learning practices in schools, we are looking at the experiences of our colleagues around the world and adapting practices to suit our circumstances. These can vary from grade level to grade level depending upon the developmental level of our students, number of students present on campus and the nature of the desired learning outcomes. The quality of our educators at CIS also means that we have teachers that are truly leading the way with the nature of their practice.

The opportunity for students to (re)-connect with each other has certainly been a highlight for those students that have been able to be on campus. It has been wonderful to watch students socialize with each other, work collaboratively in group situations and in the case of our younger students, explore the campus and have fun with physical and creative play. For many of our newer students, it is their first opportunity to sit down with their peers and get to know one another without a computer screen. I know that many of our parents have also appreciated the opportunity to meet each other and have a little time to themselves during the day.

While it’s wonderful to celebrate “life on campus” our teachers are also encouraged to be mindful of those working from home and ways in which they can ensure equity of access to the hybrid experience. The need for routines that incorporate welcoming our students are critical to relationship-building and relationship-maintenance. These instances are often built into the beginning of class while purposefully concluding activities, and student feedback at the end of classes helps teachers to understand what is working and what can be modified. Students, whether situated at home or on campus are entitled to individual help from their teachers and we want our community of learners to take advantage of this.

We have known for a long time that traditional, teacher-led whole class instruction is not the most effective way to engage our students day after day. This is even more so during concurrent learning. As I have walked through various classrooms over the past week, I have seen some innovative approaches. These have included but are certainly not limited to:

Station-rotation: in which the teacher organizes a series of learning engagements (stations) for students to rotate through. These will include a teacher-led station as well as individual or small group activities for students that are both on campus and online. In the elementary school there will often be an additional teacher present at stations to support student learning.

Two station rotation: A modified version of the station-rotation, the teacher begins with a welcoming activity and sets expectations for the class before working intensely with one group of students while the others work in groups or independently before switching so that the teacher may support the remaining students.

Flipped classroom: This model was already being employed by several teachers before the pandemic and involves providing students with short lectures or explanations prior to class so that during synchronous class times the teacher can work on answering questions, work through problems while being provided with real-time feedback or have students work in small groups to apply knowledge to various scenarios.

Menu model: This approach involves teachers providing students with learning engagements that they may complete at their own pace. It allows a high degree of differentiation as well as student choice, which increases engagement. It also enables the teacher to individually monitor and meet with students to provide explicit feedback and shape further task engagement.

In highlighting some of the approaches that we are taking at CIS to support our students’ concurrent learning on and off campus, I’d like to draw on the thoughts of one of our current seniors.

“School is an experience; it’s about creating connections that last a lifetime. It’s about making friends. It’s also about meeting different kinds of people and adjusting the way in which you work with them. School is our first step towards adapting to the world and sets up a foundation for life.”

I’m glad that we have the opportunity to be back on campus and trust that our efforts will be appreciated and help our students to be well placed to contribute to a better world.

Grade 4 Class

by Mr. Sten Coppin, Grade 4 Teacher

Grade 4 decided to celebrate the transition to face-to-face learning by learning about haiku poetry and writing our own poems. Haiku poems have a strict code to follow, they are always 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables. These poems do not have rhymes and sometimes have a surprising or funny last line. Our students who are still learning remotely also contributed, writing about how school is going in general for them. Now it’s time for you to brush up your knowledge about syllables and enjoy our grade 4 writer’s hand-written poetry, enjoy!

DP Art Exhibition

by Mr. Jessie Saclo, DP Art Teacher

The Exhibition is the internal assessment component of the Diploma Programme Visual Arts course which students at SL and HL complete by the end of their senior year. Students submit for assessment a selection of resolved artworks that show evidence of their technical accomplishment. The selected pieces demonstrate the exploration, experimentation, and application of materials, ideas, and practices that students utilized to realize and communicate their artistic intentions.

During the Exhibition, students showcase the skills, techniques, and art styles they have explored and developed to produce independent work through a variety of media and art-making forms. Each resolved artwork is supported by an exhibition text which is a brief outline of the work’s original intentions, and any reference sources that have influenced the individual piece. In addition to the exhibition text, students draft a curatorial rationale, a written description of why specific artworks have been chosen and presented in a particular format. It further explains the challenges, influences, triumphs, innovations, issues that have impacted the selection and presentation of the artworks, and the context of how the body of work presented connects and communicates with the viewer.

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Upcoming Virtual Events and FAIRS: (students & parents are welcome)

SAT Update

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

The Optional SAT Essay and Subject Tests have been discontinued.

IT Reminders

Admin News

by Dr. Gwyn Underwood, Superintendent

CIS Students make their long-awaited return back to campus!

After two years of remote learning, it is difficult to describe in words the range of feelings I have had, and have observed from others, from our students being back on campus as we commenced our transition this week following health and safety protocols aligned to those of the IATF/CebuCity-EOS. While there were lingering concerns with safety from some, or how to cope with hybrid learning from others, overall I have observed a sense of relief, happiness, and excitement from students, faculty/staff, and parents. These feelings reflect our belief here at CIS that, while there are aspects of remote learning that have provided various benefits, the opportunity to interact with each other in person still holds a significantly high value to most, as it allows us to communicate and interact with each other with more depth and satisfaction. Everything went relatively smoothly, and we look forward to consolidating our new protocols in the coming week of transition!

Statement on the armed conflict in Ukraine: CIS calls for respect and peace

As the world watches with shock and horror at the Putin regime’s unprovoked and overwhelmingly condemned violent invasion of Ukraine, Cebu International School stands in solidarity with colleagues, friends, students, and communities in Ukraine, as well as those in neighboring countries, including Russia itself, who fear for themselves, their families, their country, and their futures.

The values inherent to Cebu International School are described in the IB Learner Profile Attributes, and infuse all elements of the school program, and therefore, the culture and ethos of the school. The importance of these attributes to the CIS community is clearly communicated in our core beliefs, which state, “as an IB World School, the Learner Profile Attributes and Approaches to Learning are embedded in all that we think, say and do.”

CIS also believes in the ideals of international mindedness. We are committed to actively working towards building a community that can learn together in a diverse, equitable, inclusive, and just environment. 

Accordingly, we uphold the responsibility of all people to value and respect the:

• collective needs and rights of each community 
• needs and rights of all individuals to feel safe, protected, and valued, to have a voice and express an opinion, and to have the opportunity to thrive in all aspects of life. 

As an international community representing 24 different nations, when conflict occurs we encourage respectful open dialogue that seeks first to understand, and then to think critically to come up with peaceful win-win solutions. The principles outlined above that we hold dear are being violently violated in Ukraine, so we feel the need to reiterate that:

CIS stands against the violent use of force by any individual or country to unilaterally impose their will on other people or independent states. CIS stands for the Learner Profile Attributes that reflect the democratic values that underpin the values evident in the so-called free world. In short, CIS is for respect and peace.

Related Resources

Support Ukraine via Pechersk School International (PSI)
PSI is an international school based in Kyiv, Ukraine. Their website contains a selection of resources and support options (including Art for Peace in Ukraine).

How to talk to kids about the conflict
The following sites offer suggestions about how to talk to your child about events in Ukraine:

• How to Talk to Kids About Ukraine (New York times)
• Ukraine: 5 Ways To Talk To Children About Conflict (Save the Children)
• A School Staff Guide for Supporting Students Impacted by the Crisis in Ukraine (from SeaChange Mentoring – this guide has been developed for teachers, but may be of use to parents as well)

Grade 3 Class

by Ms. Katrina del Mar, Grade 3 Teacher

Ahoy Mateys! Our adventure into our fifth Unit of Inquiry, Where We Are In Place And Time, started this week. We began by unpacking a mystery box. The items included a map, five ships and a journal. Who can possibly own this box?

The Grade 3s believe this box is owned by an explorer. They explained that an explorer uses a map and a ship to discover the unknown. Explorers keep track of everything in their journal while they are at sea.

Taking charge of their own ships, the Grade 3 Captains sailed their ships to our new unit. Like explorers, they wrote down their very first entry in their Captain’s Log.

We invite you to write your very own journal. Think about your day. What were the best moments? What were the hardest ones? What did you do to get through them? Who made your day special?

Grade 7: Individuals & Societies

by Ms. Joy Pierra, Individuals & Societies Teacher

Research and analysis are essential aspects of Individuals and Societies. These aim to develop the students’ inquiry and investigating skills. One of the tasks that the students need to complete in I&S class is the research action plan. The research action plan template is designed in a way that students meet the objectives of the subject which are reflected in the MYP I&S learning criteria, particularly focusing on criterion B. 

The I&S 7 class completed a research action plan for the topic, “The Impact of American Civil War on the Americans and the world.” Students chose an area to be the focus of their investigation; political, economic, social, and the impact on slaves.

Here are some of the Grade 7 students’ thoughts about completing a research action plan.

Here are the different sections of a research action plan and their their corresponding learning criteria.

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

March 24
Thursday
4:00pm
Link to register

EVENT

Do Facts Mean Truth?
In a world overwhelmed by misinformation and falsehood, does knowing the facts always present truth and reality? This talk will introduce students to fact-checking through some fun examples and point out that our own biases play a part in our understanding of truth and reality. (Webinar by Hong Kong Baptist University, with a short presentation about admissions at the end of the webinar)

March 25 & 26
1:00 – 7:00PM

Study Abroad Virtual Fair

March 29
Tuesday
6:00PM PHT
Link to register

Scholarship Opportunities in Canada: Studying abroad can be an expensive undertaking. Hence, schools in Canada offer scholarships to international students in order to attract more students.

If you are interested in learning more about Scholarship Opportunities for international students in Canada, we invite you to attend this webinar.

SAT UPDATE 

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

Dragon’s Print

During the past few months, the seniors have been busy as they devoted time to preparing for their IB mock-exams, a series of tests that cover their DP subjects. It is designed like the final IB exams with similar questions and aims to prepare students for the final stretch of the IB program. Read more about their packed week of mocks at https://dragonsprint.cis.edu.ph/

Finance News

Principal’s Corner

by Mr. Andrew Powell, EY-G12 Principal

As we prepare for a significant transition returning to campus next week, I thought it timely to underscore the importance of the ways in which we will prepare for our community to continue to thrive while navigating the upcoming change.

While many of our students will be excited about the prospect of a return to campus, we are mindful that some will benefit from ongoing encouragement and the space to talk and seek reassurance. Throughout the pandemic we have encouraged our students to grow, be adaptive and develop their resilience. This continues. We look forward to greeting our students with a smile and continue to stress the importance of empathy, relationships, and social-emotional development. Our teachers are committed to providing a welcoming, safe, and supportive learning environment.

Our students have been craving personal connection. Having a connected community is important for our wellbeing. It will be important that our teachers and students tend to their personal and virtual relationships in a way that cultivates a sense of a shared experience. We want all of our learners to feel valued through the way in which they interact with each other so that they feel secure and appropriately adjusted to a new but familiar learning environment. Our teachers are cognizant that this transition comes with a degree of uncertainty and will look to empower students through their connections with each other.

As a school we continue to seek creative ways to engage our community and reimagine education. The next phase of our teaching and learning involves a hybrid experience in which students at school and at home will be engaged concurrently in their learning journeys. We view this as a time of excitement and new possibilities. We have proudly embraced innovation within the school and continue to be driven by the latest research on High Impact Teaching Strategies. Our teachers are passionate about ensuring that all students succeed.

We’ve learned that a thriving school community is anchored by a commitment to ongoing learning and constant reflection. This is a process that involves all stakeholders. We look forward to working with you over the coming weeks and continue to be committed to cultivating a valuable school experience for our students.

Kinder/Grade 1 Class

by Ms. Tara Bersabal-Alagao, Kinder/Grade 1 Teacher

Homes
For the past five weeks, the Kinder and Grade 1 students have been inquiring about homes. First, we looked into the different kinds of houses around the world and learned that there are different types of houses. Some examples are apartments, mobile homes, cabins, houseboats and farmhouses. We shared what our perfect house would look like if we were to build a house. We learned about opinion writing. Opinion is what you think or how you feel about something. We learned the different parts of opinion writing using the OREO organizer. Then, we turned the picture of our perfect house into writing. We chose what color we would like to have for our perfect house and gave our opinion and explained the reason why we chose that color.

In this unit, we also learned about the different factors that we need to consider when making decisions in building and designing a house. We pretended to be architects and helped different families in deciding the house that would fit their needs. Some of the things that we need to consider are the climate, geography, available resources and culture. 

Through stories and discussions, the Kinder and Grade 1 students have learned the reasons why people need a home. They also discovered the difference between a house and home. A house is a building but a home is a place where we live with our family and where we feel safe, comfortable and happy.

Grade 9: Design

by Ms. Gerri Ancajas Jumao-as, Design Teacher

The Grade 9 Design class are currently busy exploring techniques and developing skills related to textile through a series of formative exercises.  

Repairing a tear exercise:  This exercise involves mending of cuts or tears in clothes.  

Here are some students’ works.

I sewed on  the towel. I used a striking color for the thread. I think it would be better if my sewing was a little more precise and consistent. – Yeseul

I think my ending needs a bit more practice, it was ok but I need to look for more techniques on that. Other than that I think I did pretty well; maybe I could make the stitches a little closer to each other but other than these two I’m not sure on how I can improve. – Noam

I think my sewing wasn’t that bad, especially that it was my first time doing it. I think I need to really practice and improve my sewing. I also think that I need help from other people who actually know how to sew also and ask for some tips. Overall I think it was ok since it was my first time sewing and repairing a tear. – Aaryan

I used the stitch called “Blanket Stitch”. I found it easy to do;  it was not really complicated because I used this stitch mostly when mending rips or small holes. Most of the stitches weren’t really visible from the outside, which was the goal of the work. Thus, I think I did a decent job on this one. – Annika

Patching a hole exercise:  This exercise involves using a patch of cloth to repair a clothing that has a hole in it, in order to protect it from further damage or to decorate clothing.  

Here are some students’ works.

Despite the fact that the whip stitch is easy to do, it was a bit challenging for me to use this method in joining the patch and the cloth. To improve, I should press the fabric and the seams properly as I sew to prevent the cloth from scrunching together, and paying close attention while doing so in order to make the stitches as straight as possible. – Fiana

I am pretty happy with what I did although, the piece of fabric I placed over the hole could have been a little bit tighter for it to not protrude so much. Next time I will make sure to stretch it out beforehand to create a better looking result. – Adam

During this task, I improved my precision and patience skills. This assignment challenged me to be extremely exact and patient. There’s a considerable deal of both. In order to get great results, I needed to establish a balance between these two abilities. – Roland

I think I did well with the sewing — not my best work but it was good enough as an amateur rookie in this field of work. Though I feel that way, I do think I could’ve done a better job in achieving the task this first time. In retrospect, I feel I struggled in certain parts of doing the stitch which I think could’ve been quickly overcome (but it seemed I couldn’t then). – Gabrielle

Adding buttons exercise:  This exercise involves sewing buttons to clothes as a fastener or decoration.  

Here are some students’ works. 

I think I did well on my sewing activity, the button was secure, and did not come off. I will improve my sewing skills by finding a more quick way to locate the holes where my needle is supposed to go through. – Elijah

I think my sewing was kind of good. I think I do need some improvement on how I handle the needle and I also need more practice to get used to sewing. Though this is the first time I put on a button, I did relatively well. Some parts of my stitches were also a little bit loose and that’s one thing I could improve. – Aaryan

Overall I believe my performance for this task was pretty decent. To improve I want to not crease my fabric and do it more accurately so that there is space in between the button and the fabric because if the fabric is too close to the button the person will not be able to move the button. – Sengo

I think overall I could’ve done a better job even if the product was functional and overall because it is pretty tidy. I think that some of the strategies to make improvements are to go even slower to really make sure I did every step well because the process is more important than the final product and the product is just what comes out of a well thought and well executed process. – Miguel

Weaving exercise: This exercise involves two sets of yarns or threads that are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth.  

Here are some students’ works.

I think that I did ok for my first time, definitely need some improvement but overall for me I think it’s ok. – Sengo

Middle & High School Drama

by Ms. Stefanny Hermias, Drama Teacher

Grade 6 and 7 Movement: Pantomime

In our Unit 1, Grade 6 and 7 students are introduced to the concept of movement being an effective use of communication. Students physically created objects, and portrayed scenes through pantomimic technique. Students explored the basic principles of pantomime and used exaggerated movement to evoke emotion. Students also used deliberate and motivated movement to explore thoughts and feelings, which will prepare them to create a physical life for a character. In their summative assessment, they recorded a video of themselves  pantomiming  activities based on trending issues, such as: Covid 19/pandemic, typhoon Odette, remote learning etc. Here are some summative video responses from the Grade 6/7 Drama Da Vinci class.

Please click each student’s name to watch their ‘pantomime’ video.

Spoken Word Poetry
During our ACL (Adverse Circumstance Learning) program, Grade 6 and 7 Drama students explored the world of “Poetry”. Students had the opportunity to watch several videos on spoken poetry which included some performances from last year’s students in Drama. They have been provided with ready-made poetry materials that they could use for their individual pre-assessment tasks.

Please click here to watch some video snippets of the Grade 6/7 poetry  pre-assessment performances. 

Student reflections: 
I learned that I could speak fast, I usually speak slow so I didn’t really know I could speak fast without getting my tongue twisted. One thing that got in the way of my progress was that I would often procrastinate on practicing and recording during the week. This was because I didn’t want to record a video and talk out loud. But as the week was ending and the number of assignments decreased, I finally got around to practicing and recording a video. A big challenge I faced was taking notes about the poem, since this was my first time doing this I wasn’t exactly sure what to do. However, I was able to write down what I thought would fit and be relevant to the poem. I find spoken word poetry fun. I enjoyed decrypting the meaning behind my chosen poem, although I wasn’t sure what to do at first. I wasn’t that avid about shooting a video though, this is due to the fact that I usually work at night since that’s morning time in Cebu. If I were to re-do the spoken poetry again I would have tried to plan out my movements, since they were mostly random and only made a little sense when tied to the poem. Nino V. 

I think when doing this project I could do better but I think I had a hard time memorizing because my tongue got twisted in a way. Another thing is that I was able to speak loudly and I was able to memorize most of it, especially the last part. I liked the poem Iread. It really satisfied me.It was fun too in a way! Arianna P. 

Throughout this project, I’ve learned more about how poetry can help people realize their own portions of life, and how it evolves and develops with that realization. Another factor could be the simplicity in which I was able to articulate the section of the statement and position the emotions throughout the performance. Trying to find distinct emotions to communicate within the different lines that would correlate to the mood it conveyed was a problem that occurred during the performance process. The most difficult parts were trying to incorporate hand gestures and facial expressions as I was mostly focused on the emotions and how the poem was presented within words and feelings, but not so much on the hand gestures and facial expressions, which made it difficult to fully represent the poem with full on emotional responses. I thoroughly enjoyed reading through the poem and experiencing the rush of sensations I felt when I first read the lines, reliving those emotions while understanding the passage and the poem’s significance and depth. Despite the fact that it was required, I despised the way I had to present.To emphasize the performance and give it more passion, I’d add more facial expressions and hand motions. M S. 

Grade 8 & 9 Drama

Unit 1: Monologues

Grade 8 and 9 students started their elective class in Drama  this second semester. During our ACL program in January, students were able to demonstrate their ability to memorize and improve their character development skills by performing a monologue. They were provided with 15 ready- made monologue materials to choose from for their pre- assessment tasks.

As we  resumed our regular remote learning, we explored the types of monologue and its features as well as ways on how to write a monologue.  In our formative assessments, students were introduced to a monologue which came from the Big Bad Wolf in the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. After reading and performing the monologue, they then had the opportunity to write their own monologue for a character in a story and delivered it in class. You may find some of the recorded videos of “The Wolf’s Woes” Grade 8/9 own version monologue below. 

Currently, Grade 8/9 Drama students are in the process of their summative assessments. One of the  tasks is for them  to be able to select one character from a published play or movie and find a 3-5 minute monologue that best represents that character. Stay tuned for their upcoming monologue performances that will be showcased soon. 

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Question of the Week:

Upcoming Virtual Events and FAIRS: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

March 17
Thursday
7:30PM Eastern time
Link to register

Investing in Your Future:  The Return on College
This interactive Q&A will:

• Explain the nuances of college ROI (Return on Investment) as well as its limitations
• Explore key findings of the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce report which ranked 4,500 colleges and universities by ROI
• Discuss how the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard can help families make fiscally responsible decisions

March 24
Thursday
4:00pm
Link to register

Do Facts Mean Truth?
In a world overwhelmed by misinformation and falsehood, does knowing the facts always present truth and reality? This talk will introduce students to fact-checking through some fun examples and point out that our own biases play a part in our understanding of truth and reality. (Webinar by Hong Kong Baptist University, with a short presentation about admissions at the end of the webinar)

March 25 & 26
1:00 – 7:00PM

Study Abroad Virtual Fair

SAT Update

The SAT exam for March 12, 2022 will push through.

For safety requirements and guidelines, please refer to https://go.cis.edu.ph/SAT-guidelines

Dragon’s Print

As students, we all know that the feeling of academic stress is inevitable. Even if you are a stellar student, it is extremely difficult to stay stress-free, especially as you progress through higher grade levels. Read more about academic stress and mental health concerns at https://dragonsprint.cis.edu.ph/

Admin News

by Dr. Gwyn Underwood, Superintendent

The Covid-19 pandemic forced the closure of our on-campus classes on March 16, 2020. As we approach our two-year anniversary of remote learning, we look forward to the final phase of our return very much! In summary, our return to campus has followed three phases:

Phase 1: Family bubble exercise opportunities using school facilities (under the conditions of the Executive Orders governing exercising during specific alert levels) – Commenced May 2021.

Phase 2: On-campus SEL Activities trial (under approval from Cebu City Education HUB/EOC) – Commenced October 2021.

Phase 3: Return to on-campus face-to-face (F2F) classes – (under approval from Cebu City/DepEd/EOC) – Projected to commence mid-March 2022 – we hope to have a date for you within the week!

It is now time for CIS community members to give thought to what it will be like when we return to campus.

Our team has been working hard to make the transition as smooth as possible, but there will be areas that will require your attention. These will be both practical issues (such as arranging to pop into school to get uniforms for students who may have outgrown theirs and arranging transport), and psychological issues (such as preparing students being emotionally for being around others for a whole day and to how learning might be different with on-campus safety guidelines and doing hybrid learning).

We are aware many of our community members will have some anxiety over our return. This is normal, so in order to help students, parents, families, and teachers with this transition, here are some of the steps we are taking:

• We will be providing multiple opportunities for you to learn about the changes and expectations as we come onto campus, and ask questions.
  • These will include providing written/visual information – such as the Dragon’s Reignite Return to Campus Plan already distributed that outlines the health & safety and procedural guidelines for our safe return. (This is confidential to the CIS Community thus no link is provided here – please access it from the link in the Info Brief from the Superintendent emailed on Feb. 21.)
  • We plan to produce a few homemade videos to help you visualize what it will be like to be back on campus!
• Student orientation sessions will be provided on the first two days back on campus.
• Virtual meetings will also be offered for information and Q&A sessions. Parents will also be provided the opportunity to attend a parent orientation on campus!
• Our first two weeks will be a transition phase with a reduced schedule to facilitate us all getting used to being back on campus.

Our objective for this long-awaited event is to do our best to ensure the continuity of learning over the transition period back onto campus. More details will be forthcoming over the next couple of weeks leading up to the return date. Have a wonderful weekend dreaming about it!

Upcoming events of note

March 15 (Tue), 7-8pm: CIS Corporation Regular Meeting (for CIS Corporation members only)
Mid-March (exact date TBC): Return to Campus Orientation and Transition days
March 25 (Fri): HAD 3 (AM)/Faculty PD (PM); No classes in PM
April 4-8: STEM week (rescheduled so as not to conflict with our return to campus transition week)

Please refer to the CIS Event Calendar for the complete calendar of school events.

Early Years Class

by Ms. Aimee Valenzona, EY Teacher and Ms. Freya Abella, EY Class Assistant

A week ago, our EY explorers shared about the kind of sounds they prefer hearing. During our synchronous calls, we gathered their ideas and noticed how important it is for us to appreciate sounds and how music is connected to our emotions. We observed that soft sounds are pleasant and not all loud sounds are unpleasant. Most of the students prefer to listen to loud sounds during the day and soft sounds during the night. We noticed a few important points our students shared during our discussion. According to them, Music calms them down and it makes them feel happy and relaxed. There are two types of music, soft and loud music. They find music nice to the ears while noise hurts the ears. These are some of the ideas we gathered from our students. 

This week, the Early Years explored even deeper into our unit and tried a simple experiment to find out how sounds are produced by creating our own musical instruments. They were given the option to choose what musical instrument they would like to make. Then, they prepared the materials and started making their chosen musical instrument during our synchronous call. They learned about how sounds are produced by playing their musical instruments and by singing the song about Vibration. We continued with another experiment and made a telephone string to find out how sounds travel. We learned that our voice vibrates the air inside the cup and transfers to the bottom of the cup, then passes the sound waves to the string and to the other cup which allows us to hear. Our EY Explorers explored how these are done by using their telephone strings with their family members. 

In Literacy, our EY writers have started the beginning part of their book by identifying the characters and the setting of their stories. They started with simple drawings and shared how their stories began. As we move along, we will continue with our books and start thinking about what happens next in our stories. The process of creating their books can help develop their thinking, writing and communication skills. 

We are looking forward to finishing and sharing our books with our families and friends! For now, can you guess what happens next in our stories?

Beginning part of our stories:

Elementary: Language Acquisition – English

by Ms. Evangeline Belono-ac and Ms. Claudette Colinares, LA Teachers

In Language Acquisition-English classes, students engage in numerous learning activities to develop the four language domains- listening, speaking, reading, and writing. They explore words related to their units of inquiry to build their vocabulary, improve their comprehension, and to support them in accessing the curriculum. 

Speaking and Listening
Oral language skills are essential to a student’s language and literacy development. Speaking and listening skills need to be taught and practiced.  Students are more likely to master their speaking and listening skills when they are actively engaged in learning them.  Therefore, to enhance the students’ speaking and listening skills, they are provided opportunities to practice using the language orally such as sharing their experiences, participating in discussions, performing dialogues, doing oral presentations, and playing games. 

Building Vocabulary
Vocabulary development is vital in learning a language.  It is not only key to reading comprehension but also important in developing oral communication skills.  The more words a child knows, the better he or she will understand the text and express himself or herself orally.  To expand their vocabulary, students explore words related to their units of inquiry.  They learn their meaning, spelling, and usage. They engage in varied activities to review and master the words such as Word Search, Crossword puzzles, unscrambling letters, and playing games like 4Pics-1Word, Pictionary, Drawize, Scattergories, charades, etc.

Reading
Reading is an important part of language learning because it helps students develop other related skills such as grammar, vocabulary, and writing.  It allows students to see grammatically correct sentences in context and this can serve as their model for their own writing.  While reading, students learn new words.  In class, students read fiction and nonfiction books related to their units of inquiry to improve their accuracy, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.  Reading materials are utilized as mentor texts or as springboards to writing activities and to support the reading skills developed in their literacy class.

Writing
Writing is another integral element in learning a language.  It provides students with the avenue to learn all the rules of their language and how they can better organize their ideas more coherently using the language. Writing practice helps students think and speak in the language they are learning. As they continue practicing, they are able to quickly form new thoughts in that language. The practice eventually leads to proficiency in the language because they have developed a deeper understanding of it.  Students learn grammatical rules and structures and apply these skills and knowledge in their writing. Following the writing process, they produce various texts based on the writing genre focus of their homeroom literacy class.

Model United Nations 2022 (BEIMUN)

by Ms. Emily Cornet, IBDP Coordinator

During the second half of February each year, students from CIS have typically travelled to China to participate in the prestigious BEIMUN Conference, hosted by the International School of Beijing.  For the second year in a row, this conference took place in an online setting, with over 400 students from 39 different schools joining Microsoft Team to have committee meetings, breakout sessions, and debates. The Conference spanned four days, with an additional prep day the week before.

Our team of seven students from CIS were spread across committees participating in discussions surrounding vaccine passports, protecting human rights of people with different sexual orientations and gender identities, declining birthrates and aging populations, anthropocene extinction, and the conflict between Russsia and Ukraine.  Students prepared resolutions and amendments in teams with students from other schools, as well as voiced the opinions of their assigned countries through parliamentary debate and questions.

One student described their experience as “​​There were definitely many situations that involved us feeling confident and unsure, especially when writing our resolutions. Due to this bit of uncertainty and drive to finish before the committee session, I felt that this was the main highlight of the conference. I was able to learn from the other delegates and hear the great ideas they had in their own resolutions, and finally work together to merge them. During this session, we talked about the reduction of carbon emissions, renewable energy, business compliance with environmental laws, and awareness. Additionally, we planned on defending and focusing on some clauses in our speeches as the delegate of China facilitated the discussion, and I am glad that the resolution passed.”

Another student said, “Although I didn’t talk as much, I had a good experience because this was my main first MUN where I did thorough research on my topic, due to interest, and it also feels sad knowing that this might be my last BEIMUN.”

Congratulations on a great job done over the February 24-27 weekend to our CIS BEIMUN Team: Akeisha M (11), Hayun W (11), Jun J (11), Jooha C (11), Thomas K (11), Seohyun P (10) and Selly P (11).

Assessment Should Never be a Mystery

by Mr. Jon Denton, MYP/PYP Coordinator

Imagine an assessment where you are given the answer scheme ahead of time. Where you know how you have done before the teacher even looks at your work. No need to imagine. This is the reality of assessment in the MYP.

MYP achievement levels are defined by a set of descriptors that paint a clear and transparent picture of a student’s current level of understanding within that subject. Achievement levels are earnt by students when they demonstrate the qualities that are defined by the descriptors. Furthermore, these levels are standardised in a manner that a student receiving an achievement level of “four” at CIS would receive the same level of achievement from every teacher in any MYP school throughout the world. 

How achievement levels are determined
Each subject is assessed against four learning criteria that have been defined by the IB. Criterion A deals with subject specific knowledge and understanding, Criterion B with research and exploration, Criterion C with communicating understanding, and Criterion D with critical thinking and applying understanding to real world scenarios.

Each criteria is broken down further into stands that deal with specific skills. For example in the Personal Project Criterion A Strand one asks students to state a learning goal for the project and explain how a personal interest led to that goal. Note how each level has been defined. The terms in bold are command terms, and they distinguish the difference between the levels. 

To determine a student’s achievement level we start with the first descriptor and ask ourselves, does this describe the student’s performance – have they stated their learning goal? If the student work exceeds the expectations of the first descriptor, we determine whether it is described by the second descriptor – the student outlined the connection between their personal interest and that goal.  This practice continues until we arrive at a descriptor that does not describe the student work; the work will then be described by the previous descriptor. 

To help students succeed the teacher will provide examples of what each level could look like, as has been done below.

Please note the skill that is being developed is to give a detailed account of a process that includes the reasons and causes. The example clearly shows the difference between outlining, describing and explaining. This skill of being able to explain rather than outline is transferable to all subjects. Whenever they see the term “explain” in an assessment they will know what is expected in the answer. This constructionist approach will enable students to be successful in all their subjects.

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

March 5
Saturday 
4:30PM
Register HERE

EVENT

Do you want the chance to meet with over 60 universities worldwide?  If you do, please join the Webifair tomorrow.

CIS is a co-host high school. There will be a 20min. Session on “How Colleges Evaluate Applications”. At the event, there will be a workshop on “AROUND THE WORLD IN 30 MINS – HOW TO MAKE STUDY ABROAD AFFORDABLE” where students can hear about how to make international education affordable in 8 different countries and a career fair with 60 universities around the world whom they can meet individually (including Canada, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, U.K, the U.S).

March 9, 2022
6:00PM PHT
Register here

Rice University (USA)
Information Session for International Students

March 25 & 26
1:00 – 7:00PM

Study Abroad Virtual Fair

SAT Update

The SAT exam for March 12, 2022 will push through.

For safety requirements and guidelines, please refer to https://go.cis.edu.ph/SAT-guidelines

Corp. Notice

Principal’s Corner

by Mr. Andrew Powell, EY-G12 Principal

A lot of attention has been placed on the way in which we have responded to the various challenges in our lives over the past few months. As a school, we’ve partnered with our families to support our students’ social and emotional wellbeing while also doing our best to support the wider community through our service initiatives. We’ve also continued with our academic programmes despite the obstacles placed in front of us. This has helped to further develop key attitudes and dispositions which are at the heart of our school mission and core beliefs. If I could choose one word to describe our response over the past few months it would be “passionately”.

Passion comes from one’s purpose. It provides drive and enables us to give our best, no matter the circumstances. Passion provides us with the potential to make an impact on society. It leads to innovation and above all, provides us with hope. 

As a school we provide our students with ample opportunities to develop their passions. We intentionally provide a breadth of subject choice and extra-curricular activities to inspire our students’ hearts, minds and their creativity. We do our best to provide choice, stimulate curiosity, all the while providing students the confidence to see that they can make the world a better place. This also enables us to truly live the IB philosophy of the programs that we offer.

Through the IB programs our students are also provided with a variety of projects and opportunities in which they can engage their passions. In the coming months our Grade 5 students will consider ways that they may best “share the planet” as part of their PYP Exhibition, our Grade 10 students are midway through their extended exploration into a personal project while the Grade 11s and 12s are at different stages of their extended essays. This is a self-driven exploration into a topic of choice in which students are expected to engage in academic research in order to produce a university level paper. 

We work hard at fostering an environment that not only produces ideas but also develops character in our students. We know that the experiences our students have at CIS hold them in good stead for the future. Our hope is that they utilize the passion that we have instilled in them to make positive contributions to our ever changing world.

There will be formal opportunities over the coming months to share in our students’ passionate endeavors. Next week it will be our Grade 12 students, as we launch the Grade 12 Extended Essay Cafe. Specific details may be found the article below authored by Ms. Gerri Ancajas Jumao-as and Mr. Jessie Saclo.

Editor’s Note:

• An Info Brief with an update on our return to campus plans will be sent home on Monday.
• There will be no Newsflash edition next week as it is a 3-day week. The next edition will be out on March 4, 2021.

College Acceptances Class of 2022

Elementary: Philippine Language and Culture Classes

Early Years

by Ms. Bebelin Tubilan, PLC EY Teacher

How are we different from each other? What are our differences and similarities? Our traits and characteristics? For our Early Years Unit Who We Are, we inquired about ourselves and the people around us. We kicked off the unit by talking about the community helpers who work in the community for its overall well-being. Like them, people inspire others by being good role models or influential people. Influential means someone vital, strong, who makes a big difference in the lives of others. We talked about Manny Pacquiao and his significant contributions to the sport of boxing. Then, we spoke about Remy Presas, the father of modern Arnis. We learned about Arnis, the Philippines’ national martial arts. 

We talked about the different stances of Arnis: the grip or hawak, the salute or pugay, the ready or handa, the forward stance or pasulong, and the backward stance or paatras. The grip or hawak is how we hold our batons or sticks, the salute or pugay shows respect to our opponent, the ready or handa signs we’re ready to battle, the forward or pasulong is how you attack your opponent, and backward or paatras is what you use to protect yourself from your opponent. We also tried playing Arnis with one of our family members, and we need to hit certain spots to get points. The ulo or head, the stomach or tiyan, and our knees or tuhod. 

We will dive deeper and inquire more about the other influential people from the Philippines and some Filipino words in the coming weeks.

Grades 2 and 3

by Ms. Ann Codoy, PLC Elem Teacher

Grade 2 and 3 continued to explore the unit “Where We Are in Place and Time” and focused on Philippine geography. We recently discussed the common calamities in the country and how calamities affect the landforms, water forms, and people. We also talked about how people can cause or contribute to the severity of natural disasters.

 Moreover, we also shared our ideas on the advantages and disadvantages of living in particular land and water forms. 

In connection to their awareness of how calamities affect land and water forms and the people, the Grade 3s have made slogans to encourage people to protect and preserve the natural resources in the Philippines and our planet itself. 

Grades 4 and 5

by Ms. Freshal Abcede, PLC Elem Teacher

Grades 4 and 5 students have been expanding their knowledge and understanding of Philippine culture and how the country functions globally. In our unit “Where We Are in Place and Time,” we began to identify the four cardinal directions (north, east, south, west) to help us locate the different countries on the map and looked into the various landforms and the bodies of water. The students shared the advantages and disadvantages of an archipelagic state which led us to the inquiry into the everyday livelihoods and resources in the country.

Understanding the words export vs import helped the students connect to our unit further. We learned that the Philippines, specifically in Mindanao, is one of the leading exporters of bananas globally. The students got to discover how they prepared the bananas before the exportation. 

To further understand how the Philippines functions globally, the students will have the chance to inquire on their own about other resources exported from and imported into the country, and recognize the opportunities and challenges of its geographical location as we end our unit.

Grade 12: Extended Essay Cafe

by Mr. Jessie Saclo and Ms. Gerri Ancajas Jumao-as, Research Skills Teachers

Every Diploma Programme student at CIS embarks on writing the Extended Essay. Students develop a research question, engage in academic research, and write a 4000-word piece. The topic and subject are entirely student choice. Students work closely with a supervisor whose role is to help students develop ideas and processes in completing the essay. The work culminates in the first semester of grade 12. The entire Extended Essay process takes most students 12+ months to complete.

Each year during the EE Cafe, our seniors present their Extended Essay process detailing the experiences, challenges, and successes they have encountered along the way.

Please visit the website to watch and listen to the grade 12 students share an overview of their EE experience which will include their topic and the conclusions they have reached from their research.

Support our seniors and appreciate the hard work they endured these past two years!

Congratulations, seniors!

You can access the videos through this website and here is the link – EE Cafe Presentations

Grade 9: Physics Class

by Ms. Rhea Labajo, MYP Physics Teacher

During Remote Learning Grade 9 students’ discussion focuses on describing what wave motion meant as illustrated by vibrations in ropes, springs and by experiments using water waves. They were able to give the relationship of frequency, wavelength, amplitude and recall and solve problems related to the wave equation. They distinguish between transverse and longitudinal waves and give suitable examples. Properties of waves were also discussed such as reflection at a plane surface, refraction due to change of speed and diffraction produced by wide and narrow gaps.

The Grade 9 students were also asked to define and explore the topics to understand vocabularies, formulas and applications of the concepts and follow a step-by-step procedure to solve problems related to it. Students were asked about their reflection in each topic to assess their understanding. 

For them to apply the concepts learned, they were asked to investigate how the speed changes in different depths of water by executing the procedures, observing the ripple across their chosen material using stopwatch, varying the depths of water, calculating the waves across and plotting the graph of their results.

These are some of their output, reflections, and questions during the weeks. Photos and time-lapse were also attached during the investigation.

Sample results of the investigation

Graph of the investigation

How does the speed of water change in different depths of water? The deeper the water, the faster the waves travel, and the swallower the water, the slower the waves travel.

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

February  23 and March 9

EVENT

University of the Creative Arts (UK) Spring Webinar Series:
If you are into creative careers, here are some events for you!
Feb. 23 at 8:00pm: Fashion & Textiles – Register here
Mar. 9 at 9:00pm:  Graphic Design – Register here

February 22
Tuesday
9:00PM PHT
Link to register

American University of Health Sciences (USA)
If you are interested in a health science program, check out this webinar.

February 22
Tuesday
11:00PM PHT
Link to register

NABA, Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti (Italy)
Live Webinar: DESIGN YOUR FUTURE: 10 Tips for a Good Portfolio –Giorgio Laboratore will share the best tips to make a good portfolio, teaching students how to properly introduce themselves and underline the best of them to outstand the crowd.

February 24
Thursday
9:00pm PHT
Link to join

Info Session on the EU Business School: On the Way to Geneva! – learn about the Swiss education & lifestyle from a CIS alumnus who is studying in Switzerland.

Feb. 24
Thursday
4:30PM PHT
Link to join

If you are into sport, fitness or wellness, our next episode of the Alumni Chat on Careers may be of interest to you! Join us!

SAT Update

The SAT on March 12, 2022 will push through.  All test-takers are advised to bring their vaccination card along with their admission ticket and school ID/passport.  If a test-taker is not fully vaccinated (at least 2 doses), a Covid negative PCR test result is required.  The sample should have been collected at least 48 hours prior to the test date.  The College Board and CIS as the test center is requiring all test-takers to wear a mask at all times.  Test-takers without the requirements will not be admitted to the test center.  

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

The Optional SAT Essay and Subject Tests have been discontinued.

Service Learning in action at CIS

by Mr. Ace Pierra, Service Learning Coordinator & Grade 11 Students

“Learning includes contributing to the world through service learning and sustainable environmental stewardship.” – CIS Core Belief #5

As outlined in last week’s Newsflash (Feb 4, 2022), the CIS Service Learning Program is designed to provide our students and the wider community opportunities to learn from each other through service actions. CIS believes that our students should make the most of the opportunities they are presented to learn from their experiences and the experiences of others as they face adversity and the many challenging issues that are present in our society today.

Here are some highlights of this year’s service learning projects. 

Homes of Hope Fundraiser

by Sabi, G11 Student

Homes of Hope aims to help rebuild the homes of typhoon Odette victims. Donations are used to buy walling and roofing materials as well as the corresponding nails and screws needed. Each preselected beneficiary receives ₱10,000 worth of materials. As of Feb 5, we had distributed 20 homes to Barangay Busay and 20 homes in Barangay Ibo Mactan. On Feb 12, we will be distributing 30 homes to Punta Engaño Mactan and shortly after, we will be distributing 40 homes to Baranga Inawayan’s garbage dumpsite. This brings us to a total of 110 Homes.

Sewpports

The Sewpports are a team of students that aim to help the community at Brgy. Umapad by giving them a livelihood through sewing. This community has been affected by both the pandemic and typhoon Odette, but the community leaders are very motivated to help themselves and work, and the Sewpports want to support that! We aim to help them source raise funds and source fabric and sewing materials, so that they can create their rags and face masks to sell.

Drop Your Share

Drop Your Share is a school-based service project that takes care of the CIS Week Without Walls yearly beneficiaries and communities affected by the lockdown, barangay fires, and typhoon Odette. There are 5 boxes currently placed in the CIS campus lobby, with each box contain a specific category for the donations (box 1: hygiene-related items; box 2: educational materials; box 3: recreational toys; box 4: food and consumables; box 5: pre-loved clothes). The project calls for collective support within the Cebu International School community to extend a helping hand by donating new or spare items specified, in support of the multiple communities that have long been the beneficiaries of CIS.

If you want to be part of our cause, please don’t hesitate to contact us and Drop Your Share! Reach us through this email: dys21cis@gmail.com, or our social media pages in Facebook and Instagram @dropyourshare. 

Paknaan Hospital and Daycare

At the Paknaan community, there is a Hospital and Daycare there called CIM-CMSS. CIS has been supporting this community for a couple of years already every Week Without Walls. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this hasn’t been possible for the previous 2 years. It’s been very difficult to contact the doctors there, with the typhoon exacerbating the struggle. We still hope to provide help to the frontline workers and kids there, and we don’t want to give up on not doing something for them on this year’s WWWs, so we have planned to create videos that could possibly provide a sense of security during these trying times. We want to create an educational video for the kids about health and safety, especially including information about taking precautions for a typhoon. We also want to make a thank you video for the hospital workers there to show our support.

As for the donations, we will be collaborating with the Drop your Share team for some COVID essentials (masks, etc.) to be directed to the Paknaan community. Our team will also bring in our own donations. We hope to keep providing them with more donations once we are able to contact them and further note what they are in need of. 

World Vision

World Vision is an advocacy and relief organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by addressing the causes of societal issues. Founded in 1957, World Vision in the Philippines is a nationally recognized organization that has a proven track record of child-focused, community development programs. For the past few months, World Vision has been planning to commit as a collaborator with CIS in its event, Week Without Walls. The CIS team (Athena, Camille, Chae, and Chesca) have been constantly communicating with the World Vision heads in order to create a project that would align with World Vision’s current projects and one that can be co-branded by CIS. Due to typhoon Odette, the team has decided to focus on areas in the North of Cebu affected by the typhoon. Along with this, they have also drafted plans on how to involve students in Service Learning for the WWW. The team has been able to work flexibly and manage to collaborate with World Vision in creating sustainable projects that align themselves with the core values of the organization and CAS itself.

Islands Relief Effort

Google Earth: Link

Set Forth Philippines Typhoon Odette Relief Operations

by Renoa, G11 

Set Forth Philippines is an educational initiative that aims to provide the rural poor children with materials and activities that will augment their learning. When Typhoon Odette (Rai) hit, we realized that there was a greater emergency at hand that needed more attention. That being said, we focused our resources on relief operations for those affected by the typhoon. We recognize that there is no way for us to provide these children with proper education if we do not address their most basic needs first. With the help of generous donations, we were able to raise Php 1,113, 232. We were able to distribute 1,600 relief packs, 76 housing materials to fully rebuild damaged homes, and 500 slippers to the children who lost most of their belongings. 

Manila Student Film Festival

by Mr. Andrew Powell, EY-G12 Principal & Stefanny Hermias, MYP Drama Teacher

The Manila Student Film Festival is held annually and celebrates the creativity of young filmmakers in the Philippines and this year we had two students reach the finals of the event.

Congratulations to M and Marianne for their impressive efforts, as well as our Drama and Visual Arts teachers who have served to inspire all of our aspiring filmmakers.

Elementary Art

by Ms. Thea Raagas, Elementary Art Teacher

Early Years

In the Early Years, we began our unit on Basic Drawing. Our first learning engagement was to try and draw a human figure by drawing a stickman.

We started off by drawing a circle for the head, a horizontal line for the torso, and a vertical line too, then we added diagonal lines for the arms, and lines for the legs and feet!

It was great during our last Art Class to see everyone holding their own pencil, and very focused on their drawings during our class. It was also great to see how supported the students were by their nannies as well as by their mothers during our class, with their nannies bringing them the materials when they were needed, and assisting them in the actual drawing process as well.

I am excited to see how our class develops in the coming week as we explore how to draw Animals, Landscapes and Seascapes in the days to come!

Kinder/Grade 1

We started UNIT 4 two weeks ago, by looking at, cutting and collecting Shapes. Today we looked at the  Art of Henri Matisse and we listened to a read-aloud called, “Henri’s Scissors by Jeannette Winter”. This story showed us how Matisse journeyed from being a painter to a collage artist, and it is connected to our goal of creating a Paper Collage in the coming weeks to connect to the Homeroom Unit about Homes. The KG1s have already cut shapes, and need to continue cutting their shapes. In the weeks to come, we are planning to create a composition using cut-out shapes of our Favorite Room.

Grade 2 / Grade 3

In Grade 2 and Grade 3, we are collaborating with the PLC unit in which the students looked at, drew and discussed the different Landforms. In Art, two weeks ago, we tried sketching a Landform, which was a mountain scene, while trying to draw objects that are in the background, middle ground and foreground. We asked ourselves, “If the object is nearer, do we draw it bigger or smaller?” and in this way, we practiced Scaling and Proportion. Today, the task was to try drawing a Waterform. We are learning about Scale and Proportion, and preparing to connect to the Homeroom unit about the Solar System. We hope to be able to create a 3-d Model of the Solar System using home-made clay, and applying those skills that we learned about Scale and Proportion in the weeks to come! We plan to show the different sizes and distances of the planets in the Solar System. In order to prepare ourselves for this, next week we will be sketching our Solar Systems that show proper Scale and Proportion.

Grade 4 / Grade 5

Grade 4 and 5 artists have been looking at Pointillism, a technique of neo-impressionist painting that uses tiny dots with pure color, which become blended in the viewer’s eye. It was developed by Georges Seurat with the aim of producing a greater degree of luminosity and brilliance of color.

We’ve started with black and white, not doing color just yet, with a simple Tonal Values Scale, and Ball exercise, which they have shaded with the stippling technique (shading with dots), instead of the regular shading style.

Here are some photos of their recent artwork, by Grade 4 and Grade 5.

Grade 6: Individuals & Societies

by Ms. Joy Pierra, Individuals & Societies Teacher

The Individuals and Societies 6 class has been exploring the unit, “The Light Bulb Goes Off.” This unit focuses on the use of sustainable resources to produce energy like solar, wind, hydropower, geothermal, and biomass. The class also looked into the opportunities and challenges associated with the use of these resources. By the end of the unit, students are expected to submit a  proposal of their sustainable approaches to energy usage in their local communities.

Here are some of the activities that the class completed during our Adverse Circumstances Learning (ACL). 

The Boon and Bane of building Hydropower Plant
(The building of Itaipu Dam, at the border of Brazil and Paraguay)

The Boon and Bane of using Solar Power
(Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates)

College/Careers Counselor Corner

by Ms. Jenny Basa, College/Careers Counselor

Update of the Week!

If you are into sport, fitness or wellness, our next episode for the Alumni Chat on Careers may be of interest to you. Watch this space,  the schedule will be confirmed soon.

Upcoming Virtual Events and Fairs: (students & parents are welcome)

DATE

February 12, Saturday, 2:30PM

Link to register

EVENT

National University of Singapore College (NUSC) : a partnership between the University Scholars Programme (USP) and Yale-NUS College.  Learn about NUSC through this information session.

DATE

February 11, 23 and March 9

EVENT

University of the Creative Arts (UK) Spring Webinar Series:
If you are into creative careers, here are some events for you!
Feb. 11  at 4:00pm: Jewellery & Silversmithing – Register here
Feb. 23 at 8:00pm: Fashion & Textiles – Register here
Mar. 9 at 9:00pm:  Graphic Design – Register here

February 22
Tuesday
9:00PM PHT
Link to register

American University of Health Sciences (USA)
If you are interested in a health science program, check out this webinar.

February 22
Tuesday
11:00PM PHT
Link to register

NABA, Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti (Italy)
Live Webinar: DESIGN YOUR FUTURE: 10 Tips for a Good Portfolio –Giorgio Laboratore will share the best tips to make a good portfolio, teaching students how to properly introduce themselves and underline the best of them to outstand the crowd.

February 24
Thursday
9:00pm PHT
Link to join

Info Session on the EU Business School: On the Way to Geneva! – learn about the Swiss education & lifestyle from a CIS alumnus who is studying in Switzerland.

SAT Update

If you are planning to take the SATs in March, this is a gentle reminder that the deadline for registration is coming up.

To register for the SAT, you may click on this link.  If you need assistance or have any questions, please feel free to email Ms. Jenny Basa at jbasa@cis.edu.ph.

SEL Tip