From the Head of School

Here at MEF International School we very much welcome the positive input and involvement of our parent community at our school. We are partners in providing the best possible education for our students. We strongly encourage you to take advantage of the opportunities to get involved in the school and contribute to our community.

Every year the Parent Teacher Association hosts a "Meet the Teacher" event. You may have already met many of your child's teachers - but this event is a wonderful opportunity to meet informally over a drink and some nibbles. Please come along - September 19th, 18:30 - 20:00 at Neşebada which is located next to Aşşk Cafe in Kuruçeşme.

We need your support! We are forming our Parent Teacher Association for the 2018-2019 academic year and we need parents to join and support all the fun and supportive activities that the PTA conduct for our community. Please come along to our PTA General Assembly Meeting on 25th September at 15:45 in the Big Conference Hall for our voting in of the PTA!

Figen Sonmez

From the Secondary School Principal

Classes gained momentum this week, as students became increasingly acclimated to teacher routines and expectations. Teachers, too, became better acquainted with students.

Some of our students have set goals for themselves this year. Regardless, we encourage you to set goals with your child by reflecting on life to identify goals; by choosing goals that are challenging; by reminding them to put forth great effort; by having them be persistent; and by visualizing success. If your child has tangible goals and builds a routine, you can expect marked developments in the areas that goals are centered and improved confidence.

Moving into next week, classes, of course, will continue to gain pace.

I wish you a wonderful weekend!

Malcolm Ringo

Digital Citizenship Training

Students in grades 4 and 5 in primary and students who are in grades 6-8 in secondary have been getting training on "Digital Citizenship" in homeroom classes, ICT and P.S.E. lessons. The lessons are about "Respect and Protect Ourselves", "Respect and Protect Others", "Respect and Protect Learning Environment" and "Honor Intellectual Property". ICT lessons by Ms. Eda and Mr. Dasi and PSE lessons by Ms. Pelin and Ms. Kristi will also cover the topics of "Cyberbullying", "Digital Addiction", "Digital communication", "Digital footprint", "Online plagiarism", "Digital privacy", "Digital rights and responsibilities", "Digital search/research", "Image copyrights", "Internet safety", "Social Media" and "Stranger danger" during the year.

Our Secondary School Counselor Ms. Kristi has prepared Digital Citizenship training which includes an introduction and 4 short lessons (10-15 minutes each) to be covered over a period of a week. Each lesson includes an activity that students can complete at home.

After each lesson, the students will initial their understanding of and commitment to that section of the contract. They then bring it to you to sign as well. When the contract is returned with all of the sections initialed by student and you, they can have a “Digital Visitors Visa” to put in their “Digital Passport”. This first visa allows them to bring their device to school.

You can find brainstormed ideas in Grade 4 PSE lessons and the posters that students have been working on to promote Digital Citizenship awareness in the pictures above.