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Week Sixteen- January 6th 2023
Kim Conlin
Head of Primary
Dear PYP Parents,
It was such a great feeling to see students return to campus on Monday and to hear their stories about their winter vacations. I wish to extend a very happy new year to all families. Welcome to any new families joining GIS and welcome back to all our returning families. I wish you all much happiness and success in 2023.
Semester 1 will be coming to a close at the end of this month at which time, you will receive a semester 1 academic report and will have an opportunity to sign up for a personalized teacher conference regarding your child's progress.
Extra Curricular Activities (ECAs) will be open for internal sign ups today and they will begin next week. Please have a discussion with your child on their interests and sign up early to avoid disappointment.
Please remember to take advantage of the various opportunities to get involved. It is essential that you read this newsletter weekly along with the class pages to remain informed of announcements and updates. Parent workshops are arranged every second Wednesday by the school and grade level coffee mornings are organized by GISPA . Please check out the GIS Parent Association Facebook page to remain informed of parent meet ups.
Newsletter at a Glance
Newsletter at a Glance
In this edition you will find:
Announcements / Reminders / Upcoming dates
Arabic Language Day
Peek Into Learning: Upper Primary
Primary Pages - link to Grade and Class pages
PYP reminders and resources
Absence Procedure
Whole School Calendar
Upcoming Dates
Upcoming Dates
January 6th- sign up for Internal ECA's (Term 2)
Jan 6th - Pre-Loved Uniform Sale
Week of Jan 9th- External ESM ECA's begin and squad trials
Week of Jan 9th- School Photos (specific schedules are shared by homeroom teachers on class pages)
Week of Jan 16th- Internal ECA's begin and squad sessions
Jan 17th - ConnectEd - Assessment in the PYP
Announcements and Reminders:
Announcements and Reminders:
If you have questions about ECAs please contact our ECA Coordinator Mr. Barry Mchugh at: b.mchugh_gis@gemsedu.com
Arabic Language Day
Arabic Language Day
UN Arabic Language Day is observed annually on December 18 because "the day in 1973 when the General Assembly approved Arabic as an official UN language"
We celebrated Arabic Language Day with students on 5 of January. The community enjoyed Arabic music and calligraphy during drop off followed by a variety of outdoor Arabic Language engaging activities throughout the day with students. All students enjoyed practicing their Arabic proficiency as a whole grade group and valued the importance of the language to this region and the world.
Peek Into Learning: Upper Primary
Peek Into Learning: Upper Primary
Happy New Year, GIS families, and welcome back to 2023. This week the students were excited to see one another and their teachers, share what they did over winter break, and jump back into learning.
Grades 2-3 met with Ms. Kim G, one of our PYP counselors, to talk about Zones of Regulation. This program teaches a variety of social-emotional skills to children, starting with early emotional skills and advancing to self-regulation and navigating social situations. Here are some skills taught covered in The Zones of Regulation:
Identifying your emotions by categorizing feelings into four zones.
Self-regulation: Achieving the preferred state of alertness (zone) for a situation. This is all about regulating your body and emotional regulation.
Identifying triggers: Learning what makes you "tick" and why.
Coping strategies: Various techniques and strategies that help achieve emotional regulation and manage strong emotions.
Size of the problem: Introduces the idea that the size of your reaction should match the size of your problem, how to identify the size of your problem, and strategies for problem-solving.
Expected behavior vs. unexpected behavior: This also covers perspective-taking and how your behavior affects the thoughts and feelings of the people around you.
Grades 4 and 5 were treated to an assembly from 4A, Mr. Ethan's class. Their assembly showcased learning from grade 4's second unit of inquiry. Though this unit wrapped up before winter break, it was memorable for the kids as they did a phenomenal job of explaining various natural disasters and how they result in problems requiring scientific solutions. Students explored three lines of inquiry throughout this unit: Earth's natural processes, connections between processes and locations, and scientific solutions. Here is a video highlighting some of the fantastic thinking from 4A.
to check your child's class page
to check your child's class page
Primary Class Pages
Primary Class Pages
Check out for weekly class updates
Curriculum Overview Site
Curriculum Overview Site
Information for new/starting families
Information for new/starting families
Overview of communication platforms (PYP)
Overview of communication platforms (PYP)
GIS Primary Handbook 2022_23.docx.pdfPrimary Handbook 2022-2023
Primary Handbook 2022-2023
Drop off and Pick up
Drop off and Pick up
Parents PK-G1 drop/pick up in classroom (through gate 4,6,8)
Grade 2-5 drop/pick up either gate 4 or gate 8
Late/Tardy: any student arriving after the national anthem must get a late slip at front reception/gate 4
My child will be absent
My child will be absent
Email your child's homeroom teacher before 8am so that he / she can mark their absence as excused.
Complete an absence form for an absence of more than 2 days and submit to PYP office or homeroom teacher on the child's first day back.
Absence for more than 3 days requires prior approval if planned or a doctors clearance for illness related leave (in some cases a medical certificate is requested )
My child will leave during the school day (exceptional/unavoidable cases only)
My child will leave during the school day (exceptional/unavoidable cases only)
Email the gis_primaryleaverequest@gemsedu.com and your child's homeroom teacher 24 hours in advance to ensure your child and their leave slip are prepared in advance.
At the time of collection, please come to the Primary Reception at Gate 4.
Keeping our community safe with Covid-19 Protocols: if your child is a close contact or receives a positive test result please inform: gis_medicalalert@gemsedu.com
Key Contacts
Key Contacts
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