M1
MYP Community & Service - The International School of Azerbaijan
MYP Community & Service - The International School of Azerbaijan
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Welcome<br />
to<br />
<strong>M1</strong><br />
2011-2012<br />
1
‘The distance is nothing. It is the first step that is<br />
important.<br />
This booklet has been created to help you in your transition to the MYP program here at<br />
TISA. It contains important information to help you have a successful year in <strong>M1</strong>. It will<br />
help to answer many of the questions you might have about life in <strong>M1</strong>.<br />
Dear Parents and Students:<br />
There will be some changes this year. You will have more<br />
freedom and responsibility as you move up to TISA 3 and 4.<br />
It may be a big adjustment but there are many people<br />
including teachers, the principal, the counselor and other<br />
students who will help you as you make the transition to<br />
Middle School. You will have the opportunity to participate<br />
in new and exciting after school activities, Community and<br />
Service projects, discos and dances, Student Government<br />
events and lots of great sporting activities. It is going to be a<br />
great year.<br />
The Middle Years Programme (MYP) is a great way to grow and learn in<br />
<strong>M1</strong><br />
And some of it will be familiar to you. Just as you did in the PYP:<br />
you’ll study a range of different subjects in interesting ways<br />
you’ll show your understanding through a wide range of methods; not<br />
just tests!<br />
you’ll see the fascinating connections between your subjects<br />
you’ll make connections with the real world<br />
you’ll continue to grow into a global citizen – someone who cares about<br />
our world and its inhabitants<br />
you’ll be prepared for the world beyond school and you’ll have the<br />
skills for success in your future<br />
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Some of the areas in Middle School that may be new to you are:<br />
Homeroom:<br />
Each day you will meet in your homeroom so your teacher can take attendance<br />
and to go over any important notices for the day<br />
Tuesday mornings you will have a homeroom period to discuss issues that affect<br />
you as a student, different aspects of the MYP, and learn ways to be a successful<br />
student. On Tuesday, you will have an extra period finishing school at 3:30<br />
instead of 2:50. (See the timetable at the back of this booklet).<br />
Lunch and Break Times<br />
Lunch and break times are an opportunity to catch up with your friends, prepare for<br />
class or have some relaxing time.<br />
o Break time is from 10:00 – 10:20. During this time you are free to use the<br />
computers in the SRA (Student Resource Area in TISA 3), hang out by the lockers,<br />
go to the library, lunch hall, or outside. All food and drink must be consumed<br />
outside or in the lunch hall.<br />
o Lunch is from 11:50 – 12:35. You can eat your lunch in the lunch hall or outside.<br />
We expect you to tidy up after yourself. You are responsible for returning plates<br />
and utensils to the lunch hall and making sure all rubbish is put away<br />
After School<br />
o After school, students are expected to be supervised in<br />
an after school activity, in the library using school<br />
resources, or leave the school.<br />
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LET’S GET ORGANIZED!!<br />
In <strong>M1</strong> one of the most important skills to help you is<br />
ORGANIZATION! Hopefully the information in this booklet and<br />
the tips it provides will help you to get started on your journey<br />
to being an organized student!<br />
The secrets of success in <strong>M1</strong>...<br />
Never be afraid or embarrassed to ask questions. If you<br />
don’t understand something, chances are you aren’t the only one.<br />
There is nothing wrong with making mistakes. It is how we learn.<br />
Do your homework!<br />
Take the responsibility to get caught up when you miss a class. Find out from<br />
another classmate or the teacher what you have missed and complete it.<br />
Come prepared to learn. This means that you should be on time, bring all of the<br />
required equipment for the course and have a positive attitude.<br />
Come in for extra help as soon as you get lost. Do not wait until the day before a<br />
test, it might be too late!<br />
Put time and effort into everything you do. Don’t hand anything in that isn’t your<br />
best work.<br />
Use time management skills. Do not wait until the night before an assignment to<br />
complete it.<br />
Hang in there! Your hard work will pay off!<br />
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What Supplies Will I Need?<br />
During break times you will have the chance to go to your locker and collect the<br />
books you need. Please remember to leave your backpacks and bags in your locker or in<br />
the racks beside your locker and take only the books and equipment you need to your<br />
class. MP3 players and mobile phones should be left locked in your locker.<br />
The following equipment should be brought to every class:<br />
Equipment Checklist<br />
o Writing utensils: For each class you will need a pencil, eraser, red pens, blue or<br />
black pens, and, highlighter. Having a pencil case will make staying organized<br />
much easier.<br />
o Diary<br />
o Textbooks<br />
o Binders and Folders: Your subject teachers will provide you with a binder or<br />
folder. It is your responsibility to keep these binders and folders organized with<br />
your work.<br />
o Notebooks: You will also receive a notebook from your teacher.<br />
o Change of clothes (PE): you will require a TISA PE shirt and a change of clothes<br />
for all PE lessons. Bring a towel if you want to shower.<br />
Homework Diary – The essential tool to staying organized<br />
Take it to each class!<br />
Keep it on your bag and fill it in for every class.<br />
Your organizer should be a reflection of you. Keep it neat.<br />
Fill in the timetable on the back to help remember which classes you have each day.<br />
Once a week both your parents and your homeroom teacher will sign your<br />
homework diary to ensure you are using it properly. Have it filled in and get it<br />
signed regularly.<br />
Important information to include in your diary in each lesson:<br />
o Subject<br />
o Due Date<br />
o Details about the assignment<br />
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What About Homework?<br />
Homework Tips<br />
Homework is an important component of school as it helps you to practice and<br />
review your lessons at home. You will be much more successful if you put in a consistent<br />
effort to complete homework on a daily basis. In <strong>M1</strong>, you will have a different amount<br />
of homework each night. You should expect that for each class you will be assigned one<br />
hour of homework per week. This could total 1- 1 ½ hours on homework each night.<br />
The subject and amount will vary depending on the day of the week, but it is still<br />
important to be consistent. Be sure to plan ahead for bigger projects and assignments<br />
by completing them a little at a time. It is important to complete each homework<br />
assignment, as it will be checked and is part of your assessment for <strong>M1</strong>.<br />
The most important things to remember when it comes to homework in <strong>M1</strong> are:<br />
o Let your teacher know if you are spending more than 1½ hours of homework per<br />
night. Your teacher cannot help you with your homework load if they are<br />
unaware of the problem.<br />
o Time management skills are crucial in <strong>M1</strong>. Doing small amounts of large projects<br />
each night will be much less stressful than waiting until the night before the due<br />
date to complete it.<br />
o Set aside one hour for homework every night. If you have no homework to<br />
complete, use it to read a novel or the newspaper. This will help your reading<br />
skills and keep you up to date with what is going on in the world – important<br />
skills for an international school student.<br />
o If you don’t understand the homework, ask the teacher. Together all homework<br />
problems can be solved.<br />
o Use the Significant Assignment notices on the TISA webpage (www.tisa.az) to<br />
help you organize your time.<br />
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Extra Help<br />
Before a little problem becomes a big problem, come in and ask for help! All of your<br />
teachers are available for help. Just ask for assistance and set up a time to get it!<br />
What if I am away from School?<br />
You can collect your missed work when you return to school or you can send<br />
someone to your homeroom to collect it. Remember: it is your job to catch up on work<br />
that you miss!<br />
How am I expected to behave in <strong>M1</strong>?<br />
Classroom expectations vary slightly from teacher to teacher but the overall<br />
expectations are the same as in primary. All students are expected to be respectful of<br />
the school environment, their teachers, and peers. You will be called upon to answer<br />
questions. Please raise your hand if you want to give an answer or have a question. You<br />
are also expected to help keep the classroom neat and tidy by putting everything away<br />
after you use it.<br />
Lockers<br />
o You will be assigned your own locker in <strong>M1</strong>. Your locker is where you will keep all<br />
of your books, your lunch and anything else it is not necessary to carry to class.<br />
o You will be given a key for your locker at the beginning of the year. It is a VERY<br />
good idea to have a copy of your locker key made so that you have a spare. Your<br />
homeroom teacher can keep this copy for you in the classroom in case you<br />
forget your original at home.<br />
o Be sure to keep your locker tidy and clean.<br />
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MYP Community & Service<br />
What is Community and Service and how does it apply to me?<br />
At TISA we believe students should develop a personal value system that guides their<br />
own lives as thoughtful and active members of local and global communities. The MYP<br />
Community and Service programme at TISA aims to develop:<br />
Awareness and understanding of the needs of different communities and our<br />
community in particular.<br />
Reflection on the ethical implications of activity or inactivity within the<br />
community, using personal strengths to enhance communities.<br />
Involvement through service in terms of being an active contributor—including<br />
showing willingness and the skills to respond to the needs of others and coming<br />
up with solutions to actively resolve issues within communities.<br />
You homeroom teacher will go through specific details of the MYP Community & Service<br />
programme and what it is all about when the school year begins. <strong>M1</strong> students are<br />
required to participate in the community & service programme at TISA and a variety of<br />
activities will be made available for them. In terms of a minimum number of required<br />
hours, our <strong>M1</strong> Community & Service programme has no such requirement. The<br />
emphasis is upon ‘making a difference in our community’ - not counting hours.<br />
Some examples of Community and Service projects from the 2010-2011 school year are:<br />
Working with Jabrayil School in the REACH OUT program<br />
Volunteering at TISA sports activities<br />
Visiting children at Ishegli Ev Street kids Center<br />
Outreach at the United Nations High Commission for Refugees<br />
Raising money for Smile Train<br />
You can find out more about our Community and Service program and what activities<br />
the students participated in this year by logging into<br />
http://tisacommunityservice.wetpaint.com/.<br />
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After School Activities<br />
After school activities are offered once at the beginning of each term.<br />
Activities on offer change each term. There are many to choose from; art,<br />
sports, community and service based activities, drama, and music. Some of<br />
the activities on offer will allow you to claim Community and Service hours.<br />
Important People<br />
Here is a list of teachers and other staff that are important to <strong>M1</strong>’s. We have included<br />
their email addresses too so that you and your family can contact them if you have any<br />
questions or concerns.<br />
Staff Member Role Email Address<br />
Lesley Peacock Principal ssprincipal@tisa.az<br />
Nadine Mains Pastoral Coordinator <strong>M1</strong>-2/ MYP myp@tisa.az<br />
Coordinator<br />
Nicola Dixon Community and Service<br />
dixon_nicola@tisa.az<br />
Coordinator<br />
Sue Ogilvie <strong>M1</strong>A Homeroom Teacher Ogilvie_sue@tisa.az<br />
Dilber Kuliyeva <strong>M1</strong>A Homeroom Teacher Kuliyeva_Dilber@tisa.az<br />
Sean Tangey <strong>M1</strong>B Homeroom Teacher Tangey_sean@tisa.az<br />
Basilia Mudzudzu <strong>M1</strong>B Homeroom Teacher Mudzudzu_basilia@tisa.az<br />
Anne Kennedy <strong>M1</strong>C Homeroom Teacher Kennedy_anne@tisa.az<br />
Ellen Childs <strong>M1</strong>C Homeroom Teacher Childs_ellen@tisa.az<br />
Cheryl Travers Counselor Travers_cheryl@tisa.az<br />
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Notes about <strong>M1</strong><br />
10
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My Timetable<br />
This is a copy of your timetable. You can fill it in with the classes you will be taking and even colour code it if you want.<br />
Time Periods Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday<br />
8:25-8:30 Homeroom Homeroom<br />
Homeroom Homeroom Homeroom<br />
Homeroom<br />
8:30-9:15 1<br />
9:15-10:00 2<br />
10:00-10:20 Recess Recess Recess Recess Recess Recess<br />
10:20-11:05 3<br />
11:05-11:50 4<br />
11:50-12:35 Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch<br />
12:35-13:20 5<br />
13:20-14:05 6<br />
14:05-14:50 7<br />
14:50-15:30 8<br />
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