The Weekly Bulletin of

Stonehill International School Volume 5, Issue 45

18 November 2016

FEATURED STORIES

Festive Fever

The festival of Diwali was celebrated with great fanfare in Stonehill. On a crisp and warm October afternoon, students, parents and teachers put up a sparkling and enjoyable programme, enthralling the audience.

IMPORTANT DATES: NOVEMBER

23rd MYP ARTS SHOWCASE 24th – 28th BIS PHUKET SOCCER TOURNAMENT

24th PYP PARENT WORKSHOP (8:00 – 9:00am) DAY 28th SCHOOL CLOSED FOR STAFF PD DAY

CONTENTS 01/ FEATURED STORIES 05/ WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS 08/ PRIMARY NEWS 11/ SECONDARY NEWS 15/ BOARDING NEWS 17/ PTA NEWS

HIGHLIGHTS Festive Fever Stonehill Runners Participate in the 2016 Bangalore Terry Fox Run P5 Space Exploration Secondary Student Council Dance Cancelled D2s meet P3s

THE TIGER

Primary & Secondary students enjoy the mela in ethnic Indian wear.

The inauguration began with the traditional lighting of the lamp by the Head of School, Dr. Sortland, and the Secondary Principal, Mr. Mehrotra. This was accompanied by a divine rendition of a sloka by Ms. Tara, and followed by a Ganesh Vandana performance by Srija of D2.

Traditional lighting of the lamp by Dr. Sortland & Mr. Mehrotra, Performances by Srija & Ms. Tara, Ms.

Preethi talks of the significance of Diwali & MCs for the programme – Mayank & Anvit.

What followed thereafter was a melange of entertainment, foot tapping dance by the PYP students, a heart-warming Garba dance by the parent body, and beautifully choreographed dances showcasing the east and south of India by the MYP students.

Primary students in their drama and dance performances.

Stonehill parents do a Garba performance.

A short drama depicting the themes and ideas of Diwali by the M5 students, and the trademark fashion show by the Diploma students, showed that the spirit of Diwali permeated the very fabric of our school.

A drama performance by M4 – M5 students.

The fashion show by D2 students.

The fashion showcase by M5 and D1 students

The grand finale was the teachers’ dance with a foot tapping, peppy, and lively medley of Punjabi numbers. It was a day to cherish multiculturalism at Stonehill!

The teachers dance performance.

Ms. Preethi Menon DP & MYP Language A Teacher

WHOLE SCHOOL NEWS

Stonehill Runners Participate in the 2016 Bangalore Terry Fox Run

Stonehill runners on their way to the event

Terry Fox, a Canadian teenager, was diagnosed with bone cancer and was forced to have his right leg amputated 15 centimetres above the knee in 1977. While in hospital, Terry was so overcome by the suffering of other cancer patients, many of whom were young children, that he decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research. He would call his journey the Marathon of Hope. He ran close to 42 kilometres (26 miles) a day through Canada's Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Ontario. However, on September 1st, after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 miles), Terry was forced to stop running outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario because cancer had appeared in his lungs. An entire nation was stunned and saddened. Terry passed away on June 28th, 1981 at the age of 22. The heroic Canadian was gone, but his legacy was just beginning.

To date, over $650 million has been raised worldwide for cancer research in Terry's name through the annual Terry Fox Run. (Information taken from http://www.terryfox.org)

On Wednesday, 16th November, some of our Stonehill Runners participated in the Bangalore Terry Fox Run to help raise funds for the Terry Fox Foundation. The 5 kilometre run started at the Canadian school, taking participants on a route that weaved through countryside and along the Yelahanka Lake. The Consul General of Canada spoke at the opening ceremony and cut the ribbon to begin the 2016 run. The Stonehill Runners had a very enjoyable morning participating in the event.

Having a rest after the race.

Simon McCloskey Primary Principal

Mr Francois (the winner of the event) with Patrick, the youngest member of the Stonehill Running Club, after

completing the 5K run.

Mr. McCloskey at the finish line.

PRIMARY NEWS

A Growing Garden is a Happy Garden

Great gardening has been happening in our Stonehill PYP Garden recently. In our after school activity programme we have planted potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, coriander, mint, lavender, beans and more. Here are a few photos of our PYP gardeners in action.

Ms. Deborah Tellis P6 Class Teacher

P5 Space Exploration

P5 students have been exploring our solar system as part of the Where We Are In Place And Time unit of inquiry. There has been lots of excitement as students pose and answer questions about the discoveries humans have made beyond Earth. By investigating past and current explorations, students are gaining an understanding of the discoveries and new opportunities for humankind.

Students have used questions and research skills to become experts on the planets in our solar system. Through their investigations they have come to know the features, composition, size, and order of the planets. They applied this understanding to make models of the solar system. Combing their new knowledge of the solar system and technology skills, P5 students will “visit” a planet of their choosing. They have learned about the conditions and determined the necessary equipment to visit that planet. Some students have discovered they will need rocket boosters because the planet is gaseous and they cannot walk there. Others will need night vision goggles or a torch on Neptune because it is so far from the sun it doesn’t get very much light. To share their newfound understandings and knowledge, P5 will create a video of their planet exploration using a Green Screen application on the iPad.

Exploring the solar system has been an incredible and exciting journey in P5! Ms. Kelly Esiyok & Ms. Veena Nambiar P5 Class Teachers

School Transport Reminders

Please remember to address all correspondence for transport to transport@stonehill.in. If there are any changes to transport requirements, please communicate them before 1:00 pm. To help avoid confusion that may put children at risk, please do not request ad hoc changes to bus routes and if private transport has been arranged please make sure you contact transport@stonehill.in. If you are changing your usual routine or collecting your child early, please be sure to come to the Primary Office to inform us and collect a gate pass. We would also be very grateful if you could remind drivers to adhere to the school speed limit when driving on campus. Please keep to these arrangements to help us make sure that your children are safe and secure. Your assistance is appreciated.

Earring Request

If children are wearing earrings to school, please make sure that they are ear studs. Children may not wear decorative earrings that loop or hang as they pose a health and safety risk during playtimes and PE lessons.

Primary Dates for Your Diary • Thursday 24th November - Football Squad travel to Phuket for Soccer 7s Tournament • Monday 28th November - Staff IB PYP Training (School closed) • Monday 5th to Wednesday 7th December - P8 Residential Field Trip • Wednesday 7th December - Early Years Winter Production • Thursday 8th December - P4-P8 Invitational Cricket Tournament • Friday 16th December - Winter Music Concert Best regards, Simon McCloskey Primary Principal

SECONDARY NEWS

Student Council Dance Cancelled

The Student Council organised dance on Saturday, 19th November has been cancelled due to lack of numbers. All money collected will be refunded, and details will be communicated in a separate email. We regret the inconvenience.

ISACI Girls and Boys teams.

ISACI Competition

The ISACI Boys Football team and Girls Basketball team left yesterday to take part in the ISACI Round II tournament at the International School of Hyderabad this weekend. We wish them all the best for their matches! Thank you to Mr. Shepherd, Mr. Gostelow, Ms. Tilton and Anthony for chaperoning the teams.

MYP Arts Showcase The MYP Arts Showcase will be held on Wednesday, 23rd November from 12:30pm to 3:00pm. A wonderful sampling of work from M1- M5 students will be on show from the Visual Art, Drama, Music, and Design courses. You are cordially invited to this Creative Arts Showcase.

Important Transport Information Please remember to address all correspondence for transport to transport@stonehill.in If there are any changes to transport requirements, please communicate them before 1:00 pm. To help avoid confusion that may put children at risk, please do not request ad hoc changes to bus routes and if private transport has been arranged, please make sure you contact transport@stonehill.in

If you are changing your usual routine or collecting your child early, please be sure to come to the Secondary Office to inform us and collect a gate pass. We would also be very grateful if you could remind drivers to adhere to the school speed limit when driving on campus. Please keep to these arrangements to help us make sure that your children are safe and secure. Your assistance is appreciated.

School Closed for Staff PD – Monday, November 28th The Secondary staff Professional Development day will be held on Monday, 28th November. There will be no school for students on that day. Kind regards, Narendra Mehrotra Secondary Principal

D2s Meet P3s

D2 and P3 students.

In November, D2 French B students worked on "How important it is to know about culture when studying a language", and P3's current unit of inquiry focuses on celebrations - that seemed like a perfect match! Therefore, after the P3 visit to the Secondary School for Halloween, the D2 French B students met with all the P3 students and presented celebrations from across the world.

Anna talks about Oktoberfest.

Laura talks of the Swabian-Allemannic Carnival.

Eva explains what Thanksgiving is.

Lukas shares information on the Roskilde Music Festival.

Harish talking about the Lantern Festival.

Zara talks about Halloween.

At the end of the "lesson", the P3 students voted for their favourite presentation. Thanksgiving won! However, some students could not pick just one, so they voted for all festivals as their favourite!

P3 students vote for their favourites!

Mme. Viart |Ms. Katie Delly, Ms. Moushmi Gupta |Ms. Shireen David, Ms. Ruhi Chauhan D2 French B Teacher | P3 Class Teachers | P3 Teaching Assistants

Shriya gleefully explains what Holi is.

Vikram talks of the American Independence Day.

M3 Individuals and Societies Students Make Documentaries About Migration

As part of their unit called Populations in Transition, M3 students produced short documentary films about rural-to-urban migration in India. The purpose of the films was to educate the public about the reasons why migrants move from the countryside to cities like Bangalore. As part of their investigations, students conducted interviews with members of the Stonehill support staff, including people in housing keeping, security and the cafeteria. Some students interviewed their drivers or nannies. Producing documentary films is an excellent educational activity because students must use a variety of modalities when producing them. First of all, they must develop their interviewing skills, which involve writing probing and open-ended questions. They also need to learn how to interact with others in an empathetic yet professional manner. Writing a voice over script is another skill they develop in the process of producing a documentary film. They found out that these scripts are developed in the same way an essay is developed, including topic sentences, evidence and analysis. Students also learned the power of evocative images and video footage to illustrate their ideas. Probably the most important outcome of this project was for our students to get to know more about the people who work in our school and the forces of change in India and the world. M3 students enjoyed the challenge of making these films, although many found it to be extremely time consuming. Nevertheless, most agreed that making short documentaries was worth the effort because of the outcomes of the project. Please check out our students’ work on the MYP blog (http://mypstonehill.blogspot.in) to learn more about rural-to-urban migration! Mr. Mark Lombardo HoD Individuals and Societies

BOARDING Keeping Boarding students busy is an important consideration in residential care. Providing boarders with physical activities and social interaction is vital to promoting, and supporting, student wellbeing. A recreation programme is one of a number of keys to developing a well-balanced lifestyle along with good study skills, organisational skills, sleep patterns and nutrition. A happy, well, and physically extended student is likely to perform better academically. Reducing boredom is essential to preventing unwanted behaviour. Engaged and involved students generally stay on task and exhibit a positive outlook.

Boarders engaged in an intense game of tug-of-war!.

However, it must be noted that no boarding school, or parent for that matter, can hope to keep children occupied 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is therefore vital that young people also learn how to deal with down time in a positive and useful manner. Catching up on rest, quiet and reflective reading, individual exercise, tidying a room or reorganising schoolwork, listening to music, mediation, washing and ironing clothing etc. are essential to create order in their lives. Like most boarding schools across the world, Stonehill has a weekend recreation activity programme, as well as activities that operate after school during the weekday that are available for all students. The Stonehill Weekend Recreation Programme for boarding is a collaborative one that is developed and organised by students, boarding staff and the Events Manager. Like other boarding schools, our programme is dependent on budget, number of students, availability of transport and staffing and so on. The challenge always, is to cater for the range of ages, interests, cost and time/ travel/ safety and commitment/ participation.

Boarders engage in weekend recreational activities.

On campus activities include swimming, gym, tennis, football, badminton, table tennis, basketball, as well as special activities like kite flying, obstacle course, and running events. Stonehill’s extensive and sprawling campus provides places to relax, exercise and socialise. The recreation spaces in boarding provide a place to “chill out” and watch television, or play foosball. Boarding students have full access to the personal gym, which is on the ground floor of Amity House. Off campus events can include shopping, movies, bowling, eating out, cultural excursions, and special events including international cricket/football. Stonehill is so lucky to have the Embassy International Riding School adjacent to our school grounds where interested students can take lessons to learn how to ride seriously or recreationally. Providers of activities at cost are utilised like the “Riddle Room” which consists of rooms where students need to find a way out by working together – safe and fun! Boarders also are expected to participate in Stonehill’s extra-curricular programme after school on weekdays, which includes a wide range of activities including sport, dance and technology. Also available to Boarding students, and convenient for training, is participation in the ISACI sporting teams that represent Stonehill against interstate and overseas schools. Stonehill’s Boarding Recreation Programme has great flexibility and openness for ideas. For all activities a risk assessment is carried out. There are so many options for students to keep them busy and to provide a healthy outlet for stress and physical fitness.

As Boarding is relatively new at Stonehill, our recreation programme is in its infancy, and developing. The weekends for Boarding consist of Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday, but of course, the Boarding weekend has a structure that allows for a sound mix of study, activities, organisational time, preparation and relaxation. One can tell a lot about individual students by how they use/manage time on weekends. It is a teaching and learning point that is so valuable for life skills. Important Dates for Boarding: 16th December – 8th January – Winter Break

Boarding closes from 4:00pm Friday, 16th December and reopens from 4:00pm Sunday ,8th January.

Best regards, John Bussenschutt Head of Boarding

PTA NEWS

And the Results are in…

The Diwali Mela was a smashing success, all parties agree! Thank you to all who attended and volunteered to make such a great day. The feedback from all the vendors was extremely positive and many of the food vendors completely sold out of products.

Various vendors at the PTA Diwali Mela.

Who can forget the fantastic performances by the students and especially the parents?

Stonehill parents performing a beautiful Garba dance.

Wow, what a show!

It takes the entire community to make an event like this successful, and this clearly showed the strength of Stonehill’s community.

PTA President, Pamela, thanks the PTA events teams for the Diwali Mela – Jill & Wai.

Have a great weekend! Best regards, PTA Communications

Stonehill International School

Tarahunise Post Jala Hobli Contacting the School: Bangalore North 562157 India Admissions Ms. Rishika Ganapathy T + 91 8043418300 Primary School Ms. Nijika Bhardwaj + 91 8043418318 Secondary School Ms. Saathi Vinay M + 91 9008307684 Transport Mr. Rahul. I E info@stonehill.in Head Nurse Ms Charlette Macdonald