01 - Copenhagen International School
01 - Copenhagen International School
01 - Copenhagen International School
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
All parents are invited to attend the Whole <strong>School</strong><br />
Assembly on Friday, 18 December at 11:00 am in the<br />
Gymnasium.<br />
Following the Assembly, all students will be dismissed at<br />
12:00 pm.<br />
We wish you a very happy holiday break!<br />
Sharing at the PYP 4<br />
Open House on<br />
25 November<br />
Inside this issue . . .<br />
please click below to go<br />
directly to each page.<br />
Letter from the Director<br />
Primary <strong>School</strong> News<br />
Inside the PYP<br />
Secondary <strong>School</strong> News<br />
Weekend with the MYP<br />
The Diploma Programme<br />
Operation Dagsværk<br />
Small World Projects<br />
Development News<br />
<strong>School</strong> Board<br />
Greening CIS<br />
PTA<br />
Athletics Programme<br />
Community News<br />
otionsdag a Smashing Success<br />
eam Peru is proud to announce that the participants of the Motionsdag Sponored<br />
Walk raised over 45,000 Dkk! This is phenomenal.<br />
he funds will pay for the entire cost of running Mamma Cocha for six months. We<br />
ould like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all who helped us achieve this amazng<br />
goal.<br />
Pam Winthrop<br />
Development Director<br />
+45 39 46 33 03<br />
pamwinthrop@cisdk.dk
! profound and sustained.” East Asian " "<br />
" Regional Council for Overseas <strong>School</strong>s<br />
" “You represent the next generation of! ! !<br />
! environmental speakers who are not telling<br />
! us about the problems any more, but rather<br />
! the solutions” J.P. Morgan<br />
Peter Wellby<br />
Director<br />
Climate Conference<br />
We are very fortunate to have outstanding speakers<br />
coming to our school for our CIS COP 15 events.<br />
Please make sure you register early by clicking here,<br />
as space is limited and we shall fill vacant spaces by<br />
opening our conference to the wider public, if it is<br />
not filled by those in our community. I highlight below<br />
three of the seven events arranged at CIS.<br />
John Liu will be showing his film ‘Hope in a<br />
Changing Climate’ in the PAC on Monday, 7 December<br />
at 17.00 hrs. John is an eminent keynote<br />
speaker at international conferences. His thesis is that<br />
the eradication of poverty and the rehabilitation of<br />
ecosystems are inextricably linked. In rehabilitating<br />
ecosystems we not only ensure the survival of our<br />
species but also ’address the massive historic crimes<br />
that enriched some, but left billions of people in abject<br />
poverty.’ John believes that the headline solutions<br />
being proposed for COP 15 will achieve little more<br />
than Calpol: alleviating the symptoms but leaving<br />
the fundamental causes of the problem intact.<br />
‘The Age of Stupid’ , starring Oscar-nominated Peter<br />
Posthelthwaite and produced by an Oscar-winner,<br />
will be screened in the PAC on Tuesday 8 December<br />
at 17.00 hrs. This film has been shown in 23 countries<br />
and has a trailer featuring students from CIS. The<br />
BBC will be showing the film during COP 15. At its<br />
premiere in Australia it was shown simultaneously in<br />
over 40 cinemas. Its UK opening week enjoyed the<br />
highest screen average, beating even ‘Slumdog Millionaire.’<br />
It has been described as ‘essential viewing<br />
for anyone who cares about the future of our planet.’<br />
‘Ghost Forest Project’ Angela Palmer will be talking<br />
about her most ambitious art installation, at 16.00 hrs<br />
in the PAC on Wednesday, 9 December. She has used<br />
ten tree stumps, which she selected onsite from a<br />
rainforest in Ghana, as a metaphor for climate<br />
change: the missing trunks symbolise the lungs<br />
chopped from the world by deforestation.<br />
The stumps have been exhibited in London in Trafalgar<br />
Square for the last week and are now being<br />
shipped to <strong>Copenhagen</strong> where they will be displayed<br />
in Thorvaldsens Plads next to Parliament.<br />
These speakers would energise the walking dead.<br />
Now it looks as if the politicians may again have lost<br />
sight of the significance of their failure to be decisive<br />
and courageous, it is more important than ever that<br />
grass-roots movements put irresistible pressure on<br />
them to act. I look forward to seeing you there.<br />
He has directed 14 films for the BBC, Discovery and<br />
National Geographic channels.<br />
" “John Liu's message of Earth's Hope at the<br />
! recent Global Issues Network Conference in<br />
! Beijing empowered international students and !<br />
! educators from around the world to take<br />
! imme!diate action. The impact has been
Heikki Soini<br />
Primary <strong>School</strong> Principal<br />
Inquiry based Learning<br />
As a PYP school we believe that<br />
all children arrive to any learning<br />
situation with valuable knowledge<br />
and skills from previous experiences,<br />
which will further enrich<br />
the learning environment.<br />
This means that children at CIS<br />
who come from all over the world<br />
will each have a slightly different<br />
entry point to our PYP curriculum,<br />
often seasoned with different<br />
educational, linguistic and cultural<br />
backgrounds. How does a<br />
school plan and implement effective<br />
teaching for such a diverse<br />
and global community?<br />
Inquiry or inquiry based learning<br />
is often connected with or used as<br />
a synonym to characterize teaching<br />
by investigation, research or<br />
discovery. In the IB PYP inquiry is<br />
the leading pedagogical approach<br />
which has been given a rather distinct<br />
form and function. The process<br />
is seen as a cycle which is very<br />
similar to Kolb’s cycle of experimental<br />
learning. At the very beginning<br />
of the process learning is<br />
anchored to the prior knowledge<br />
and experiences of the child. This<br />
means shifting the focus from<br />
knowledge in the books and curriculum<br />
to knowledge within the<br />
child. By acknowledging where<br />
the children are with their understanding,<br />
knowledge and skills<br />
we can ensure developmentally<br />
appropriate content and phases in<br />
order to engage them with an optimal<br />
learning experience, either<br />
as independent or dependent<br />
learners.<br />
The following stage of inquiry is<br />
often called the invitation phase<br />
(Kathy Short). Children are given<br />
plenty of opportunities to explore<br />
and engage with challenging,<br />
meaningful and significant material<br />
collated by the teachers. The<br />
level of children’s prior knowledge,<br />
the programme of inquiry<br />
and the curriculum expectations<br />
determine the breadth and depth<br />
of the resources used. This phase<br />
leads into the most significant<br />
part of the inquiry: student initiated<br />
questions, provocations and<br />
wonderings. Usually, these will be<br />
recorded and refined in collaboration<br />
with teacher and peers. This<br />
is a design of study where the<br />
child is in the driver’s seat while<br />
the curriculum expectations are<br />
met.<br />
It is truly fascinating to observe<br />
the enthusiasm and time both the<br />
children and teachers are spending<br />
on the project at this stage.<br />
Parents will find their children<br />
describing what is going on in the<br />
classroom with excitement, asking<br />
questions, using internet and<br />
other sources to find answers to<br />
their questions. Children collect,<br />
sort and present data in different<br />
ways. They may be keeping a<br />
journal, developing a power point<br />
presentation, working on a dramatic<br />
play or designing a piece of<br />
art, a poster or a brochure to<br />
demonstrate their understanding<br />
of the concepts. The open-ended<br />
nature of the inquiry guided by<br />
the teacher allows the children to<br />
reach their fullest potential in understanding<br />
the big ideas, deveoping<br />
life-long learning skills<br />
and acquiring significant knowledge.<br />
Inquiry is not only limited to the<br />
units of inquiry which combine<br />
several subject areas and demonstrate<br />
interconnectedness of the<br />
scientific disciplines. Inquiry<br />
based learning happens also during<br />
a single subject lesson e.g.<br />
language, mathematics or PE.<br />
These are often shorter than the<br />
more holistic units and may focus<br />
on important subject based concepts<br />
like proofreading in language,<br />
commutative law in<br />
mathematics or problem solving<br />
through passing a ball in an invasion<br />
game introduced in the PE.<br />
Again students are given an opportunity<br />
to explore the authentic<br />
world of an author, a mathematician<br />
or a sportsman which will<br />
lead to the development of enduring<br />
understandings.<br />
The end of the first term has provided<br />
parents with many opportunities<br />
to observe student inquiry<br />
at the primary school. During<br />
Open Houses parents could<br />
see student questions published<br />
in the classroom, reflective writing<br />
in a unit diary or presentations<br />
of conceptual understanding<br />
in art work. Parents can see how<br />
their children have responded to,<br />
and reflected upon their performance<br />
regarding a specified expectation<br />
by observing the work and<br />
comments presented in the portfolio.<br />
However, the most important<br />
measure of inquiry based<br />
learning can be seen through the<br />
level of ownership children demonstrate<br />
towards their work. I<br />
must say that I can see that every<br />
day and I am impressed!<br />
Thank you to all the parents for<br />
your continued support and I<br />
wish you all happy holidays and<br />
all the best for the year 2<strong>01</strong>0!
Samantha Fern<br />
Deputy Principal of Primary and<br />
PYP Coordinator<br />
What has been happening<br />
in Primary?<br />
As is always the case in any inquiry<br />
cycle in the PYP here at CIS<br />
there comes a time for sharing<br />
discoveries and presenting learning.<br />
Nothing has been truer in the<br />
last month in the Primary <strong>School</strong>.<br />
Each and every child took home<br />
their portfolios for the second<br />
time this term, continuing the<br />
process of showcasing and discussing<br />
their progress with one of<br />
their favourite audiences, their<br />
parents. Feedback took the form<br />
of letters of encouragement to the<br />
children as well as questions and<br />
clarification of future goals, all of<br />
which help with student reflection<br />
and inspire renewed motivation.<br />
Another part of sharing our learning<br />
with the community is the<br />
‘Open House” where parents are<br />
invited in to school to view firsthand<br />
the results of their child’s<br />
learning at the end of a Unit of<br />
Inquiry.<br />
We had the PYP 4 who demonstrated<br />
their literary, artistic, dramatic<br />
and musical learning as a<br />
culmination of their Fantasmagorical<br />
unit. The children loved this<br />
unit and were excited throughout.<br />
They began with a dress up day<br />
of fantasy characters and ended<br />
with a summative expression of a<br />
fantasy or emotion through the<br />
arts. Videos of the puppet shows,<br />
YouTube clips, skits, poems and<br />
stories were made available to<br />
parents during the open house<br />
event, along with the presentations<br />
produced in collaboration<br />
with their arts teachers.<br />
The PYP 5 students shared discoveries<br />
about different forms of<br />
energy, focussing on questions<br />
and experiments as they gave<br />
parents a tour of their scientific<br />
process.<br />
The PYP 1 classes explored different<br />
homes during their second<br />
unit, inviting parents to give<br />
feedback on their creative designs<br />
and understandings.<br />
The PYP 3 class went on a journey<br />
to discover the structure and history<br />
of different cities, particularly<br />
<strong>Copenhagen</strong>, along with a<br />
comparison of a city in their origin<br />
country. They asked parents<br />
to help them in evaluating their<br />
creative brochures. It is significant<br />
to note that a natural link<br />
occurred during this unit when<br />
the primary students were invited<br />
to view the ‘eco city’ designs<br />
produced by MYP 3 and<br />
were encouraged to analyse the<br />
structures against relevant social<br />
concerns.<br />
The Kindergarten classes, as<br />
part of their age appropriate<br />
focus on discovery through<br />
‘play’ were involved in a variety<br />
of ‘game experiences’ and<br />
invited parents to participate in<br />
their learning. They taught parents<br />
games such as Marbles,<br />
Hopscotch, Sorte Per, Dominoes<br />
and Checkers and the children all<br />
agreed “It was great to be a<br />
teacher for the afternoon!”<br />
At the end of November the upper<br />
primary classes, under the<br />
guidance of their music teacher,<br />
created a concert. It was an ‘extravaganza’<br />
of musical talent and<br />
worth the hard work of all concerned.<br />
Similarly, the Jack and the Beanstalk<br />
pantomime produced by the<br />
primary drama club will undoubtedly<br />
be worth every ‘penny<br />
/ bean / giggle / pie in the face’<br />
invested!<br />
Worthy of note is the composting<br />
of organic materials quietly initiated<br />
by PYP 2 as part of their Reduce,<br />
Reuse, Recycle unit. Their<br />
investigations into the ‘greening’<br />
practises found in local businesses,<br />
alongside CIS efforts to<br />
minimise our carbon footprint<br />
and actively become a Green<br />
<strong>School</strong>, as well as the introduction<br />
of two solar powered computers<br />
through the Greenies club speak<br />
strongly of the commitment to<br />
sustainability in our community.<br />
Dates to Remember<br />
December<br />
5 Holiday Fair<br />
11 St. Lucia Assembly<br />
18 Whole <strong>School</strong> Assembly, 11:00<br />
Students Dismissed, 12:00<br />
January<br />
11 <strong>School</strong> re-opens<br />
21 PYP for newcomers , 18:00<br />
28 PYP round table discussion,<br />
13:00
such as wikis, podcasting, blogging, … for improving<br />
teaching and learning. There will also be a session on<br />
designing webpages so that teachers can start to use<br />
the website to communicate with their students. A<br />
session on the ethics and safety of internet use will<br />
provide us with further details to enhance our own<br />
internet use policy. We are in the midst of a discussion<br />
within school about the use of laptops and increasingly<br />
believe that all Secondary <strong>School</strong> students<br />
should have their own or access to a laptop for<br />
lessons. This is an ongoing discussion and we will<br />
give you more details next semester.<br />
Simon Watson<br />
Secondary <strong>School</strong> Principal<br />
Enjoy the vacation, and I hope to see you again in the<br />
New Year, refreshed and ready for the challenges of<br />
Semester 2.<br />
Already the first semester is almost complete, with<br />
only a few weeks remaining until the vacation. For<br />
MYP 4 to DP 2 students, their focus during December<br />
will be the semester examinations, culminating in DP<br />
2 with mock examinations. We have restructured the<br />
week before examinations for MYP 4 & 5, in order to<br />
utilize this time better. We have broken the week<br />
down into larger blocks of time for each subject so<br />
that students do not have to skip from algebra-topoetry-and<br />
back again in the same day.<br />
When preparing for examinations it is important that<br />
students plan their revision. Working in a comfortable<br />
room without distraction with scheduled breaks<br />
will help most people. Switching off MSN, mobile<br />
phones and YouTube would certainly help me concentrate,<br />
but I am told that I am too old to understand<br />
the complexities of how the young mind works. Making<br />
a list of questions to ask teachers is essential to<br />
overcome obstacles in understanding. All examination<br />
results will be available after the vacation and<br />
Semester 1 reports will be ready by the end of January.<br />
<strong>School</strong> starts again for the students on Monday 11<br />
January 2<strong>01</strong>0. However, teachers return to school on<br />
Thursday 7 January and have two days of Professional<br />
Development, led by Alan November<br />
http://novemberlearning.com/. Alan November is a<br />
much sought after consultant and recognized<br />
throughout the world for his ability to inspire and<br />
support teachers in their use of technology. The focus<br />
of the two days will be how to best use web 2.0 tools,<br />
Dates to Remember<br />
December<br />
2-4 MYP 1 & 2 Lübeck Trip<br />
3-4 DP Study Days - No <strong>School</strong><br />
5 PTA Holiday Fair<br />
7 PTA Meeting<br />
8 Language B Information<br />
Meeting , 9:30-10:40, PAC<br />
7-10 CIS Climate Conference<br />
7-17 DP 2 Mock Exams<br />
11-17 MYP 4 & 5 Exams<br />
14-17 DP 1 Exams<br />
18 Whole <strong>School</strong> Assembly, 11:00, Gym<br />
Students Dismissed, 12:00<br />
January<br />
11 <strong>School</strong> re-opens<br />
18 PTA Meeting<br />
22 NECIS U12/U14 friendly game<br />
with Hamburg<br />
22 NECIS Varsity Basketball<br />
friendly game at Sigtuna
Darren Davies<br />
Deputy Principal MYP<br />
Weekend with the MYP<br />
Still awake at the MYP 5 Lock-In<br />
As usual I awoke somewhat disorientated;<br />
this time however was<br />
different. Reaching and turning<br />
off the alarm on my phone I found<br />
myself on the sofa in the staff<br />
room. It was 07:00 Saturday morning<br />
and I was in school. In fact I<br />
hadn’t left, as the previous night<br />
two colleagues and I had chaperoned<br />
the MYP 5 lock-in and judging<br />
by the various states of consciousness<br />
I witnessed entering<br />
the Atrium I had made a good<br />
decision going to sleep at 04:30.<br />
As one group helped clear the assorted<br />
pizza boxes and empty<br />
chips bags they proudly proclaimed<br />
they had now<br />
been awake for twentyfour<br />
hours! Their rush<br />
of triumph was shortlived<br />
though as the<br />
morning light poured<br />
scorn upon them, revealing<br />
their drawn<br />
faces and bedraggled<br />
attire. At which point<br />
Lena arrived, ever present<br />
and ever cheerful,<br />
carrying bags of bacon,<br />
sausage and eggs.<br />
Thirty minutes later we were sitting<br />
down to a hearty breakfast<br />
and ready to take on the world<br />
once more. Fortunate, as it was<br />
about then that Ms. Wykes arrived.<br />
I’d promised to take pictures<br />
of Craft Day and to write<br />
about it for the newsletter, or<br />
more to the point Ms. Wykes was<br />
going to tell me what to write. So<br />
we said farewell to MYP 5 and<br />
began welcoming the students<br />
from MYP 1 - DP 2 who were<br />
ready to get crafty! Seventy-five<br />
she would tell me later in the day,<br />
that’s a record, make sure you<br />
write that down now won’t you. I<br />
did.<br />
Up on the D-floor the students<br />
went to work, in the Tech room<br />
there was one group making<br />
wooden stars that were going to<br />
be candleholders, another making<br />
Christmas wreaths from horse<br />
chestnuts Ms. Wykes had been<br />
collecting throughout the autumn,<br />
and another painting and gluing<br />
spangly sequins to clay figures. In<br />
the Middle <strong>School</strong> science lab<br />
there was a group making fabric<br />
hearts filled with lavender seeds<br />
and another threading beads onto<br />
invisible wire. In the Art room<br />
they were making cards and the<br />
like, and on the landing area a<br />
large group had been put to work<br />
making lanterns, a Dutch craft<br />
from Holland Ms. Wykes informed<br />
me, forty of which had<br />
been ordered by the school as table<br />
decorations for the Staff<br />
Christmas party. And so it continued,<br />
until 15:00 at which point<br />
all manner of arts and craft creations<br />
were ready to be sold at the<br />
Winter Fair with all proceeds going<br />
to Team Peru.<br />
I didn’t make it to 15:00, instead,at<br />
lunchtime I had retired to my sofa<br />
at home and was reflecting on<br />
how many of the Diploma students<br />
had been present, remembering<br />
that this was their second<br />
Saturday doing this, the first<br />
when they had learnt the various<br />
crafts that they then had taught<br />
the younger students this day. I<br />
had asked them why they would<br />
do this, when after a grueling<br />
week at school surely all they<br />
would want to do was spend their<br />
weekend doing their homework!?<br />
Not funny I was informed. They<br />
did it to hang out with their<br />
friends, they said, they did it because<br />
they never get a chance to<br />
do this kind of thing in school,<br />
and of course they did it because<br />
they get their precious CAS hours.<br />
On reflection however I think they<br />
did it for much the same reasons I<br />
had for chaperoning the lock-in,<br />
because it was fun, because sometimes<br />
you get more out than you<br />
put in, and you can’t put a price<br />
on that, be it hour or dollar! And<br />
as such we’d do it again, gladly.
Shandana Mufti, Class of 2<strong>01</strong>1<br />
A Student’s View of the Diploma<br />
Programme<br />
Somewhere between June and August of this, I<br />
stopped being an MYP student and became a DP<br />
(Diploma Programme) student. Personal Project<br />
would be replaced with Extended Essay (apparently,<br />
the IB is a big fan of alliteration), and tutorials<br />
were now free periods.<br />
One of the first things done by returning students<br />
like myself the night before the new school year was<br />
to access our schedules and compare the times at<br />
which we and our friends started, resulting in several<br />
proclamations of hate upon the discovery that the<br />
day you start at 8 am, your friend does not have to<br />
come in until 11 am.<br />
This “hate” was forgotten the first day back at school.<br />
We all stood outside the Atrium, clustered in groups<br />
of friends while curiously eyeing the new people. To<br />
clarify, there were two categories of new students.<br />
There were the Rygaards people, who had transferred<br />
from Rygaards to CIS. Then there were the new-new<br />
people, the ones who had just moved to Denmark or<br />
who had no previous contact with each other. Today,<br />
we’ve all settled into various groups of friends featuring<br />
a mix of people from the old, the Rygaards-new,<br />
and the new-new.<br />
The most daunting aspect of the DP is the independence.<br />
If you can’t pull yourself together and work,<br />
chances are that you’re not going to be wearing a hat<br />
with a tassel after two years. However, the independence<br />
is also one of the best things about the DP. We’re<br />
not told what to do every step of the way; as long as<br />
we get there (without plagiarism), that’s what counts.<br />
Teachers have finally backed off and given us some<br />
breathing space, which is startling after the constant<br />
reminders of assignments throughout the MYP.<br />
Nothing could have prepared us for the workload<br />
that would be thrust upon us from the week we retuned<br />
from the DP Retreat onwards. Tests, quizzes,<br />
presentations, essays, commentaries; by the end of<br />
the year, I expect we’ll all have mastered and perfected<br />
the art of surviving all-nighters, then rushing<br />
to school for an 8 o’clock lesson and arriving with just<br />
seconds to spare.<br />
A lot has happened since August this year. We’ve<br />
been introduced to Theory of Knowledge, a class we<br />
have yet to understand. By January 2<strong>01</strong>0, two people<br />
will have left our grade. We’ve gotten to know the<br />
people with whom we’ll be graduating in less than<br />
two years. Most importantly, we’ve made it this far<br />
without burning out, so we’re quite unstoppable at<br />
this point – as long as none of us build up immunity<br />
to caffeine. In the words of Queen, “We Are The<br />
Champions” – so far.
Again this year DP students<br />
joined tens of thousands Danish<br />
high school students in collecting<br />
funds for youth projects in developing<br />
countries. This year Operation<br />
Dagsværk is supporting a<br />
Zimbabwean non-governmental<br />
organisation dedicated to giving<br />
schooling options to the many<br />
disenfranchised youth suffering<br />
in the aftermath of political violence<br />
(see link in next mail). Operation<br />
Dagsværk expects to raise<br />
6,300,000 DKK which will go a<br />
long way towards changing the<br />
lives of many young people in<br />
Zimbabwe.<br />
CIS students did a myriad of jobs<br />
in homes, such as raking leaves<br />
and cleaning attics, and at<br />
parents’ companies. A large<br />
group worked at school doing<br />
odd jobs in the office or outside.<br />
The administrative coordinators<br />
and janitors really put them to<br />
work.<br />
Another large group chose to<br />
work for DSB and CIS students<br />
were so expert at cleaning at Nørreport<br />
station that they were<br />
“promoted” to work at <strong>Copenhagen</strong><br />
Central. You can see from the<br />
photos that they seemed to enjoy<br />
it. DSB let them keep the high<br />
fashion hats and jackets.
S<br />
SMA LL W O RLD<br />
PR O J E C TS<br />
Small World Projects (SWP) was established this year<br />
to provide MYP 1-3 students with a meaningful<br />
Community and Service opportunity. We’ve begun<br />
work on a series of projects designed to positively<br />
engage students with the world around them and<br />
people in their community. Through participating in<br />
these projects, students will have a chance to take a<br />
close look at what is going on around us, and then<br />
ask the question ‘what can we do?’<br />
We will select projects that provide us with positive<br />
learning experiences and good opportunities for<br />
service.<br />
Projects scheduled for this school year include:<br />
• UN World Food Programme awareness week.<br />
• Inviting disadvantaged groups into school for<br />
activities.<br />
• Collaborating on climate projects with students<br />
from around the world.<br />
• Supporting Doctors without Borders.<br />
• Assisting Team Peru<br />
• Various other awareness campaigns.<br />
SWP is a chance for students to get their voices<br />
heard, to develop their own opinions on important<br />
issues and to make and act on their own decisions.<br />
Participants will be presented with problems that<br />
need to be solved by utilizing their skills in new and<br />
different situations. Most importantly, opportunities<br />
will arise for students to learn about themselves and<br />
how they relate to others from the service and learning<br />
they experience.<br />
The aims and goals of SWP:<br />
• To use technology to collaborate effectively with<br />
other students from around the world on the same<br />
or similar projects.<br />
• To present our findings or campaigns in creative<br />
and unique ways<br />
• To involve the whole CIS community in what we<br />
are doing.<br />
• To develop a sense of others.<br />
• To become global citizens.<br />
Our first project fell during the last week of November<br />
when we hosted a UN World Food Programme<br />
awareness week, with information and interactive<br />
activities for the community. The World Food Programme<br />
is the world’s largest humanitarian organization<br />
reaching nearly 90 million people every year<br />
with life saving supplies after conflict, disaster or<br />
drought. We wanted to bring you their amazing<br />
story, and the story of the people they help.<br />
Small World Projects meets on Thursdays after school<br />
15:00 – 16:00. Students earn Community and Service<br />
for all the time they commit to SWP.<br />
We will specialize in awareness campaigns, choosing<br />
a cause or issue that deserves publicity, attention or<br />
help. We will investigate and research it using a variety<br />
of different methods, work to create an alternative<br />
or solution and then decide upon an appropriate<br />
way of presenting our information and discoveries.
Pam Winthrop<br />
Development Director<br />
Reflections on Staff<br />
Professional<br />
Development<br />
As I write, appeals for the The<br />
Fund for Excellence are being<br />
posted and we have received the<br />
first two gifts from parents. This<br />
is wonderful; thank you!<br />
Teachers are at the heart of CIS<br />
and every day they show their<br />
commitment to understanding<br />
and changing our world by investing<br />
in their students.<br />
Supporting our teachers through<br />
immediate and collaborative<br />
training is the most concrete way<br />
of ensuring excellence, which is<br />
why this year 100% of the gifts<br />
given to The Fund for Excellence<br />
will be used to provide training<br />
through conferences, by bringing<br />
speakers to CIS and by enhancing<br />
skill building for our faculty.<br />
Participating in The Fund for Excellence<br />
is a great way to have an<br />
immediate impact on the education<br />
our current students receive,<br />
as all monies raised will be used<br />
during this academic year.<br />
Recently, faculty who have received<br />
Professional Development<br />
this year were asked, What new<br />
things will you try in your classroom<br />
after having received Professional<br />
Development?<br />
Here is a sample of their answers:<br />
“Incorporate the SmartBoard<br />
more effectively in my lessons.”<br />
DP Teacher<br />
“We spent five hours discussing<br />
the profile of the 21 st -Century<br />
learner. I have now understood<br />
what major changes are needed<br />
in our attitudes and practices.<br />
Fantastic!” Administrator<br />
“To include more threedimensional<br />
studies/sculpture.”<br />
DP Teacher<br />
“I attended the workshop 2G Action<br />
in the PYP this October. The<br />
workshop originated from the IB<br />
mission statement. The main focus<br />
was that when learning takes<br />
place during a unit of inquiry,<br />
you change for the better and<br />
don’t accept the world as it is and<br />
you should have the passion to<br />
take action to change things for a<br />
better world.<br />
Some of the things you as a<br />
teacher can do:<br />
• Model Action yourself, I have<br />
tried it at CIS and it has made<br />
functioning smoother;<br />
• Teachers can be more proactive<br />
during a unit of inquiry in facilitating<br />
Action by the students;<br />
• Celebrate Action taken by students<br />
at assemblies and at the<br />
Action Board in the classroom;<br />
• Inform parents about it as<br />
some action could be taken<br />
outside the school and " "<br />
they could report it back;<br />
• Action is one of the most<br />
effective summative assessments;<br />
• I am giving a short workshop<br />
to PYP faculty to make<br />
it more inclusive in the<br />
Primary <strong>School</strong>.” PYP Teacher<br />
“I recently attended a conference<br />
on differentiation in the classroom<br />
for English as an Additional<br />
Language, resource, and<br />
gifted students in all subject areas.<br />
I attended sessions that focused<br />
on using strategies to reinforce<br />
vocabulary and concept development<br />
and critical and creative<br />
thinking. These strategies are<br />
not new to me but by working<br />
through them again in yet another<br />
context and connecting<br />
them to the books and articles I<br />
am reading, it becomes easier to<br />
make them a part of my daily<br />
classroom teaching. In addition to<br />
school PD, I do school visits at<br />
the request of the IB regional office<br />
in Geneva, am a member of<br />
the Association of Supervision<br />
and Curriculum Development<br />
and constantly buy new professional<br />
books (at my own expense,<br />
of course).” PYP Teacher<br />
Not only do CIS teachers appreciate<br />
their Professional Development<br />
opportunities, funds devoted<br />
to Professional Development<br />
really do improve the education<br />
our children receive.<br />
Please support The Fund for Excellence<br />
by clicking here. All gifts,<br />
big or small, will benefit and sustain<br />
CIS.
Piero Marotta<br />
Buildings and Facilities Committee Chair<br />
<strong>School</strong> Board member<br />
Buildings & Facilities<br />
Committee<br />
The building and facilities for<br />
schools are a vital factor in giving<br />
the students and faculty the best<br />
possible framework for their studies<br />
and teaching. The buildings<br />
that CIS use are a mix of a main<br />
building that is more than 100<br />
years old, a section built during<br />
the Second World War and the<br />
new additions, i.e. the primary<br />
school and the gym added in the<br />
last 12 years.<br />
The Building & Facilities Committee<br />
is comprised of Board members,<br />
field experts and members of<br />
the administration who meet<br />
regularly to plan and follow up on<br />
all the actions necessary to implement<br />
the physical objectives of<br />
the school’s Strategic Plan.<br />
Below are a few highlights of<br />
what has been done during the<br />
last year:<br />
Maintenance Plan<br />
Before summer the Building &<br />
Facilities Committee prepared a<br />
comprehensive Maintenance Plan<br />
for the school, covering a time<br />
span of ten years. It is extremely<br />
important to take care of our most<br />
valuable physical asset and the<br />
ten year Maintenance Plan will<br />
ensure that the facilities we are<br />
using will be healthy and functional,<br />
minimizing the risk of unexpected<br />
failures or costly repairs.<br />
In order to plan effectively the<br />
maintenance activities, CIS has<br />
acquired a software package that<br />
can be used to plan and schedule<br />
regular maintenance as well as<br />
keep track of what is being done<br />
during the year. This will help the<br />
service staff to identify problems<br />
areas in the buildings and conduct<br />
preventative maintenance in an<br />
even more structured way.<br />
Indoor Climate<br />
As part of general maintenance<br />
CIS commissioned a Danish engineering<br />
and consulting company<br />
to review the indoor climate of<br />
our buildings and facilities. The<br />
general conclusion is that the<br />
buildings are fine and improvement<br />
projects have been initiated.<br />
Security Wall<br />
The security wall along Hellerupvej<br />
has been completed thanks<br />
to a generous grant from the US<br />
State Department. The last test of<br />
the automatic gates are taking<br />
place providing higher levels of<br />
security and give parents and<br />
students more flexible access to<br />
the school grounds.<br />
Roof of Main Building<br />
The black tiled roof on the old<br />
Main Building is more than 100<br />
years old and needs renewal work<br />
as soon as practically possible. In<br />
the meantime, a “barrier” has<br />
been put up along the roof by the<br />
gutter to catch any tile that might<br />
come loose while CIS works to<br />
develop the specifications for the<br />
renovation. As the windows and<br />
the façade of the Main Building<br />
are also in a very poor condition<br />
this is also planned to be renewed.<br />
The plan is to install “intelligent<br />
windows” that measure the CO2<br />
and oxygen levels in the rooms<br />
and open and shut the windows<br />
as required. This will address the<br />
issue of ventilation identified in<br />
the indoor climate survey done<br />
earlier in the year without having<br />
to install an energy consuming<br />
mechanical ventilation system.<br />
These renovations will be a very<br />
costly undertaking and the school<br />
will be seeking donations and<br />
gifts-in-kind to help with the project.<br />
Providing more space and facilities<br />
A key concern of the Board and<br />
administration is the lack of space.<br />
The current economic crisis has<br />
caused us to be cautious with our<br />
resources and extremely careful<br />
with planning for expansion. The<br />
Building & Facilities Committee<br />
will continue to support the Board<br />
and the administration in mitigating<br />
the issue of the space and in<br />
looking into all of the opportunities<br />
to accommodate our space<br />
requirements.
Greening CIS<br />
December is a pivotal month for Go on Green,<br />
and for the global climate community, as COP15<br />
will be held at the Bella Center in <strong>Copenhagen</strong> 7-18<br />
December. COP15 is the 15 th conference of the parties<br />
(COP) held as part of the United Nation’s Framework<br />
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). For 2<br />
weeks the world will watch as global leaders carve<br />
out the rules for climate change, right here in <strong>Copenhagen</strong>!<br />
Although COP15 is only open to governments, UN<br />
observer organizations, and the press, there are ways<br />
to be involved. To find out more about COP15, and to<br />
access links to events in <strong>Copenhagen</strong> during the conference,<br />
please visit the Links and Facts area on the<br />
Greening tab of the school web site.<br />
To support the global climate community and COP15,<br />
CIS will hold a Climate Conference the evenings of 7-<br />
10 December. Whereas the focus of many COP15<br />
events in <strong>Copenhagen</strong> will be the official negotiations<br />
at the Bella Center, the focus of the CIS Climate Conference<br />
will be to highlight climate change in fun and<br />
creative ways that are accessible to our school community.<br />
The CIS Climate Conference events will<br />
range from film screenings, to a climate change game<br />
show, to seminars. Please visit the CIS Climate Conference<br />
area on the Greening tab of the school web<br />
site to read more about the conference schedule, and<br />
to register. Please register now, as space is limited!<br />
PYP 2 students recently conducted a<br />
Waste Audit at local businesses. Here, students<br />
inspect Super Brugsen’s recycling<br />
procedures.<br />
The Greenies, under the guidance of Mr. Simon Watkin,<br />
have been busy developing the questions for the<br />
climate change game show that will be held on the 2 nd<br />
day of the CIS Climate Conference. Go on Green has<br />
made significant progress toward the goal of obtaining<br />
a Green Flag. And stay tuned for a very exciting<br />
event for Earth Day 2<strong>01</strong>0!<br />
We hope to see you at the CIS Climate Conference 7-<br />
10 December! Go on Green!<br />
Fun fact: Why did we form the number 350 for the<br />
all-school photo in October? Because 350 parts per<br />
million (ppm) is the acceptable upper-limit of C0 2 in<br />
the atmosphere. CIS shares the worldwide commitment<br />
to reach the goal of 350 ppm.<br />
Beyond COP15, Go on Green has many exciting upcoming<br />
events. Roots & Shoots is still preparing for<br />
their Trashion Show on 28-29 January. If you can<br />
help, please contact Ms. Faye McAuley<br />
(fayemcauley@cisdk.dk).
Ra Chel Moran and Kerry Carswell<br />
PTA Co-Presidents<br />
TA News<br />
ovember was a very eventful<br />
onth for the PTA. We started the<br />
onth off with a successful SuerBest<br />
grocery store outing.<br />
hank you to our Newcomers<br />
ommittee for organizing this<br />
opular event, and to Rasmus at<br />
uperBest for the wonderful<br />
oody bags everyone came away<br />
ith.<br />
ver 150 foxy mamas and cool<br />
ats came out to strut their stuff at<br />
he 70’s Disco Party. Thanks again<br />
o Peter and Marlene Lundy for<br />
etting us turn their home into a<br />
rue disco stage. The Pure Gold<br />
ancers entertained us twice<br />
uring the night. Who knew CIS<br />
arents could boogie like that?!<br />
The Book Fair was held on the<br />
17th and 18th of November.<br />
A big thanks to the Book Fair<br />
Committee for putting together a<br />
fantastic collection of books.<br />
Smiles were seen on the faces of<br />
parents and students as they<br />
spotted their old favorites, and<br />
discovered new ones. Students<br />
enjoyed the cozy book nook<br />
where they relaxed and looked at<br />
their new purchases. All proceeds<br />
from the Book Fair will benefit the<br />
CIS Library.<br />
We look forward to the Holiday<br />
Fair on Saturday, 5 December<br />
from 13:00 to 16:00 in the Atrium.<br />
All are welcome to join us for a<br />
day of holiday cheer! Come enjoy<br />
crafts for the kids, home baked<br />
goodies, a Holiday café, magical<br />
gingerbread houses, holiday<br />
shopping and perhaps a visit from<br />
Santa! There is something for everyone!<br />
The PTA thanks you for your support<br />
and we hope to see you at the<br />
PTA meetings on 7 December and<br />
18 January. Happy Holidays!<br />
PTA Meeting Dates<br />
7 December<br />
18 January<br />
1 February<br />
8 March<br />
19 April<br />
10 May<br />
7 June<br />
STILL AVAILABLE<br />
Boys and girls vintage CIS<br />
logo t-shirts.<br />
Sizes from 5 years old - 11<br />
years old. Available in navy<br />
blue, pink, and white.<br />
50 Dkk each.<br />
Please contact Jill Millnor<br />
(jillmillnor@yahoo.com) if<br />
you are interested.
Important Basketball and Swimming Dates:<br />
• U 12 and U14 Hamburg Friendly Games at CIS, 22-<br />
23 January<br />
• JV and Varsity Herlufsholm Games at Herlurfsholm<br />
(This is tentative) – 23 January<br />
Robert Reynolds<br />
Athletics Director<br />
Coaches<br />
U12 Girls – Toni Heisterberg<br />
U14 Girls – Daniel Haines<br />
U12 Boys – Martin Jensen<br />
U14 Boys – Thomas Orr<br />
Junior Varsity Girls – Pete Butler<br />
Varsity Girls – Lina Bluteau<br />
Practice Schedule<br />
U12 Girls<br />
Mondays, 17:30-19:00<br />
Wednesdays, 16:00-17:30<br />
A Heartfelt Thanks to<br />
All!<br />
We first want to express our<br />
heartfelt thanks to the athletes, coaches and parents<br />
for all of their commitment to the NECIS soccer and<br />
volleyball seasons. After intense training and the<br />
building of team spirit, we all felt disappointed with<br />
the unexpected turn of events that led to the cancellation<br />
of our participation in the tournaments. This single<br />
event reminds us of how connected we are to the<br />
world and the inherent responsibility to others that<br />
exists in every decision we make. The Athletics Department<br />
wants to thank Peter Wellby for his leadership<br />
in this difficult time! With the past now behind,<br />
we are looking forward to the upcoming seasons with<br />
basketball already underway.<br />
Basketball Season has begun!<br />
We have begun the tryout phase for the basketball<br />
season and have been impressed with the turnout! 26<br />
boys were suited up and ready to play for the U14<br />
Boys team on the first day of practice. Additionally,<br />
we are pleased to welcome Mike Kearse, who plays<br />
for SISU’s Men’s Elite team, to our lineup of coaches.<br />
His basketball expertise and professional demeanor<br />
will be invaluable to the development of our U12 and<br />
U14 teams. Please be attentive to the information provided<br />
here and mail me with any further queries.<br />
Junior Varsity Boys – Max Andersen<br />
Varsity Boys – Jawad Nazi<br />
!<br />
U14 Girls<br />
Mondays, 17:30-19:00<br />
Wednesdays, 16:00-17:30<br />
U12 Boys<br />
Mondays, 16:00-17:30<br />
Wednesdays, 17:30-19:00<br />
U14 Boys<br />
Mondays, 16:00-17:30<br />
Wednesdays, 17:30-19:00<br />
JV Girls<br />
Tuesdays, 16:00-17:30<br />
Fridays, 16:00-18:00<br />
Varsity Girls<br />
Tuesdays, 16:00-17:30<br />
Fridays, 16:00-18:00<br />
JV Boys<br />
Tuesdays, 17:30-19:00<br />
Thursdays, 16:00-18:00<br />
Varsity Boys<br />
Tuesdays, 17:30-19:00<br />
Sundays, 13:00-15:00
Looking for Volunteers<br />
Math and German LAP volunteers needed<br />
I am looking for a math and a German LAP volunteer. If you are<br />
interested, please contact Cindie Juul-Larsen, cjl@cisdk.dk, tel. 39<br />
46 33 92 / 31 72 55 50<br />
Also in general if you are interested in helping out as a LAP volunteer,<br />
please send me your resume and we will arrange for a<br />
time to meet.<br />
Cartoon by Camilla Siig, Class of 2<strong>01</strong>2