Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
VIS Quarterly Magazine
Citation preview
“
Dragon Tales The Vientiane International School Monthly Magazine January - March 2013 | Issue 12
If you change the prospects of an adolescent girl on a big enough scale, you will transform societies. The Secondary Student Council support local students in our sister school through the Girl Effect project, page 29
Director‟s Notes
page 1
Primary News
page 2
Secondary News
page 8
Sports News
page 26
Personal Project
pages 10-11
Taking Action Through Service, page 25
Grade 4 communicate through Art, page 5
”
Innovation Transforms Our World Grade 5 prepare for the Exhibition, p. 3
Celebrating Language 1
La Jour Francophonie p .7
Celebrating Language 2
Mother Tongue Students share their learning, p.14-15
The Courage Of Their Convictions Secondary Students voice their opinions at MUN,
p. 20-21
Áskorun hrífur nemendur og un-
dirbýr þá fyrir lífið framundan.
ความทาทาย แรงบนดาลใจ และการเตรยมพรอมส าหรบผใฝรทใครคน ควาในวถแหงชวต
Paghahamon, Pagpupukaw, at Paghahan-
da sa mga Mag-aaral para sa Buhay
Mencabar, Menginspirasi dan Me-
nyediakan Pembelajaran Sepanjang
Hayat
uitdagend, inspirerend, en voorberei-
dend tot een levenlang leren
चनौती को सामना गनन उतपरररत गद (ररणा ददद ) जीवन जजउन कऱाससकन सिकषाथॉऱाइ तयार पानI
Utmanande, inspirerande och
förbereder lärande för livet
的使命是为学者们 提供一个具有挑战性，激励性及终身学习的
优异环境
VIS MISSION STATEMENT
Can’t see your language? Please send in your translations to
Utfordrende, inspirerende og en
forberedelse til resten av livet
ທາທາຊ, ນບນານໃຈ ແລະ ກະກຽມ ນກຮຽນເຂາສ ຉວຌວຈງ
Stawianie wyzwań, inspirowanie i przygotowywanie uczniow do życia
Herausforderung, Inspriration und
Vorbereitung fuer ein lebenslanges
Lernen
Director’s Notes Dear VIS Community,
I write this introduction as the quarter is coming to an end and we are about to
mark the end of the Lao year and celebrate Pii Mai Lao. Times like this always generate
reflection on what has been achieved and some form of planning for the future. It is
therefore very appropriate that we have the Dragon Tales available to look back over a
very busy three months.
I have been very inspired by our students when they have taken the lead in
projects and action around our community. The achievements of these young people really
does give one confidence in the future of our planet. The thought that has gone into the
artistic and academic projects such as Exhibition, Personal Project, Language Days, Arts
and MUN Exchanges, Extended Essays and Field Trips shows a high degree of commitment
to learning.
Our school has achieved a great deal more during the past months as well. Our
community work has been a highlight with our school being the focus of regular and special
events. I am very proud that our sister school relationship continues to grow and our P&F
are fully supportive of this relationship. We expect to be reporting great things in our next
Dragon Tales about work completed on that school. We have made several very significant
contributions of books to local authorities and organizations which will make a real
difference to children. And we continue to provide leadership in the sporting area with our
support for the leagues.
I am also very pleased with the development of our new facilities at the front of
the school. Seeing our swimming pools and fitness centre buildings emerge has been very
exciting. I am very pleased that we will have such great new facilities to offer to our
students next year. Next year will also see the beginning of Chinese language as an
alternative Language B choice in primary grades. We continue to explore ways to
provide broad and engaging and relevant courses for our international community.
Thank you for your great support over the past three months. Enjoy reading the
stories of our terrific students and staff. Sa Bai Dee Pii Mai.
Best wishes,
Page 1
Primary News
Page 2
Primary Reflection by Jon Davidson,
PRIMARY PRINCIPAL
In this edition of Dragon‟s Tales Ms. Alison
talks about the Exhibition information evening we
held last month. Since then the students and teachers
have been hard at work pinning down the focus for
each group‟s Exhibition. The issues that have been
selected are as diverse as “Innovation in house design
can impact the environment” to “Water security
depends on natural and human-made factors.” Each
group is now deeply involved in the inquiry cycle.
Many have “tuned in” by taking field trips to
places of interest for their particular group. For
instance groups have been interviewing personnel at
UNICEF and the COPE center, whilst others have
been looking at town planning around the city.
The groups may well now be moving on to
the “sorting out” stage, which is taking their
information and synthesizing it, evaluating it and
making sense of all the sources they have utilized.
In order to take on the Exhibition the
students have been closely supported by a dedicated
group of mentors who have been guiding, organizing,
cajoling and refocusing their groups efforts towards
that April 30th deadline. This is when everyone is
invited to come along and view the outcome of all
this hard effort. We will be displaying the student‟s
work in the “black box”, over in the new Secondary
School Arts building so please come along and help
celebrate the 2013 Grade 5 Exhibition.
Primary News
Page 3
IBPYP Exhibition Information Session by Ms Alison Francis
PYP COORDINATOR
On Thursday 14th February, the Grade 5
students and their parents attended an information
session about the PYP Exhibition. The purpose of this
session was to help develop our understanding of the
PYP Exhibition.
The presentation was focused using some of the PYP
concepts our students use in the programme to
develop their understandings.
Form – What is the PYP Exhibition?
Causation – Why do we do the Exhibition?
Function – How does it work?
Perspective - How would you describe your
experience when participating in the PYP Exhibition?
Connection - How is it connected to the other IB
programmes?
We were very pleased with the attendance
and enthusiasm the students and parents
demonstrated during this session! Some feedback we
have received is:
It was very interactive, child-focused and informative.
I could get to know the range of Exhibition themes,
hear the experiences of Grade 6 students and understand
how excited and nervous about the exhibition the Grade 5
students are.
I am able to know the process, action and responsibility
of my child in this exhibition.
It made it much clearer – more concrete – because it
linked the concepts with actual questions.
A very special thank to you to the following
Grade 6 students who came as guest speakers to share
their perspective and reflection from last year‟s
Exhibition:
Dragon Douangsavanh
Joji Namura
Leonie Fischer
Some important dates to add to your calendar:
April 29th – Exhibition preparation/set-up
April 30th – Presentation of the VIS
Exhibition
Innovation Innovation Innovation Transforms Transforms Transforms Our WorldOur WorldOur World
Creativity
Page 4
.The Primary School students have
been creating in many different ways
over the past weeks and one
opportunity they have to do this is
during their visual arts lessons. Grade
3 have been looking at how
“interpreting artifacts provides insights
i n t o p e o p l e ’ s h i s t o r i e s ” .
Taking images and symbols from their
own lives they produced their own
artifacts. The bowls that resulted
from this inquiry are displayed in the
corridor next to the Grade 3
classrooms.
Page 5
At the same time, Grade 4
have been inquiring into
Central Idea “Throughout
history, people have interacted
with each other and
communicated using arts.”
They have been finding out
how people communicate
through arts by making their
own masks that portray an
emotion.
When you are next in school
why not look at the display
and see if you can interpret
their masks?
IBPYP Field Trips
Page 6
GRADE 3 INVESTIGATE
STRUCTURES
Field trips are a marvelous way of bringing a Unit of
Inquiry to life. Grade 3 have recently been looking at
how “Many factors influence the design and building
of structures.” So that they could put this central
idea into context they traveled into Vientiane and
looked at different structures. They visited vehicle
and foot bridges, a fountain, Patuxay Park and a
water tower. They took the opportunity to consider
what shapes occurred in the structures, the purpose
of each structure and the materials used in their
construction.
Of course field trips can be taken even closer to
home. A quick walk over to the new swimming pool
can be an enriching experience and the class then
had the chance to talk to our very own construction
expert, Mr. Greg. He could tell the Grade 3 all about
the factors he had to take into account when
commissioning the building of our new fitness centre
and pool area. They discovered the main purpose of
the structure is to build a safe learning environment
for students. Being safe around water and having
hours of fun is a laudable vision for what our school
should provide. Grade 3 can hardly wait to dive in.
Languages
Page 7
FRANCOPHONIE DAY
by Mr Jon Davidson
PRIMARY PRINCIPAL
Travelling in the car the other week with my daughter, who is in
our Primary Preparation class, we were talking to her about the games
she plays with our neighbours. We asked her what the Lao word for
“pink” was. After a moment‟s thought she said “I don‟t know, but I know
what it is in French”.
As a confirmed monoglot I am deeply impressed with the ability
that young children have to pick up new languages. The International Baccalaureate‟s Primary Years Programme
requires us to provide an additional language and the students in our school are certainly given wonderful
opportunities to learn them. They are also encouraged to appreciate the culture that interplays with these
languages.
On Wednesday 20th March the French department put on a wonderful demonstration of how
communication and culture are linked. The Francophonie day was much appreciated by all those who took part.
The range of activities was truly impressive and gave us an insight into French in all its forms and the rich
cultural heritage that goes along with this beautiful language.
What could be more French?
What do you think
about
Francophonie day?
"They need more cheese that
smells good " Koen
"First I didn't like cheese but
after tasting some of them, I
realized that French cheese is
really tasty ! " Yuri
“I enjoyed doing the research
on Senegal and I was happy
when people were watching
my video" Konstantin
“I liked playing "ballon
prisonnier" and
"l'épervier" with middle
school students”. JT
“I enjoyed looking at the
posters.” Kim
"I loved helping grade1
students and seeing them
learning" Louis
Le petit déjèuner de pique -nique
Les élèves jouent un jeu français
Secondary News
Page 8
Secondary Reflection by Kim Green,
SECONDARY PRINCIPAL
At VIS our teachers have been working alongside
our learners to facilitate and guide their process of
learning and to provide many opportunities for our
students to celebrate their learning with the community.
Therefore, over the last quarter, we have celebrated our
students‟ learning outcomes in various forms from the
Personal Project Exhibition, to Mother Tongue
celebrations, Francophonie Day celebrations, the DP Art
Exhibition, the Vientiane Schools Sports Leagues, MRISA
tournaments, the MRISA Cultural Exchange and MUN,
Three Way Conferences and through the recent careers
assembly.
This edition of Dragon Tales aims to share with
you the wide variety of learning our students are
engaging with, how they are extending their learning into
the community through service and the extent that their
approaches to learning (ATL ) attitudes and skills are
enabling them to achieve their goals.
Our teachers have also continued their learning
this quarter with VIS being represented at the IB
Regional Conference and a team being trained and
prepared for the upcoming changes in the IB MYP
framework. Other learning opportunities have also
occurred through in-school inquiry facilitators that
worked with all of the secondary teams to explore how
inquiry-based learning can be further developed in the
classroom, a primary colleague who helped us
understand a learning and teaching strategy called
„Philosophy for Children‟ and the re-establishment of ESL
in the Mainstream workshops for teachers. When our
VIS teachers attend learning opportunities they are
inspired by their colleagues in other IB schools and their
colleagues here at VIS. The secondary school at VIS is
well respected within the region and there are many
practices that are in place that other schools are inspired
by.
As we continue to move
forward and maintain our focus
on continuous improvement I
am constantly excited to see our
school‟s mission alive.
In preparation for life our Grade 10 learners have had
the opportunity to undertake work experience within
the community this quarter and have also begun to
consider courses for the IB Diploma programme. We
are offering a wide range of subject choices within the
diploma and are excited by the introduction of new
taught courses for next year such as Sports, Exercise
and Heath Science, Business and Management in
addition to an English Literature option that will
provide an alternative to the current English Language
and Literature course for some learners.
A culture of excellence in student achievement
can be recognized and celebrated in many different
forms. Our role as parents and educators is to continue
to foster the culture of excellence among our students
across all areas of school life; personal, social, physical
and academic. Through service activities and our strong
Co-curricular programme our learners have taken
opportunities to demonstrate excellence in connection
with the curriculum and in connection with our
community. Enjoy reading about some of the learning
adventures in the secondary school.
Page 9
A strong emphasis within the MYP is placed on
learning that extends beyond the intellectual to include
not only socially responsible attitudes but also
thoughtful and appropriate action, often initiated by the
student as a result of the learning process. There are
many examples of how MYP students take action at
VIS, some of which have been demonstrated
throughout the past few months.
A number of Community and Service initiatives
have been developed and consolidated during this time.
The action component of the MYP can involve service
to fellow students and to the wider community, which
is reflected at VIS in the variety of service initiatives
that our MYP students regularly engage in. These
activities take place both inside and outside the school
and meet an authentic need to become meaningful
service, where students work with people rather than
for them.
Grade 10 students have recently demonstrated
their ability to take action through the process they
have undertaken in their Personal Project. The project
encourages students to make connections with their
learning inside and outside the classroom by using
knowledge, understandings and skills across subjects to
create products or solutions and it challenges students
to apply skills and knowledge in unfamiliar situations.
This action culminates with students presenting
evidence of their learning journey through the Personal
Project Exhibition, which took place at VIS on Monday
25th March. More details about the exhibition can be
found on the next pages.
These are just some examples of the many ways in
which students in the MYP take action, many more
examples are on display every day throughout the
school.
Grade 10 students demonstrate the action they undertook
in the Personal Project by presenting to PYP and MYP
students in the lead up to the exhibition.
MYP In Action by Jonathan Smedes
MYP COORDINATOR
Personal Project Exhibition
Page 10
The Personal Project is a significant student-directed
inquiry produced over an extended period during year
five (Grade 10) of the IBMYP. The exhibition is a
celebration of the 8 month journey that the students
have been on whilst undertaking the project and it is an
opportunity for all members of the VIS community to
formally congratulate the Grade 10 students.
VIS students in Grade 10 had the opportunity to
present their projects to the school community at
Personal Project Exhibition, which took place on
Monday 25th February 2013. Utilizing the space
afforded by new black box theatre, the day began with
the Grade 10 students presenting their projects to
students in both Primary and Secondary at VIS. Later in
the evening, the students formally presented their
projects to the wider school community. This year 33
high quality projects were presented in the exhibition,
almost double the number from the previous year, with
all students happy, proud and a little bit relieved to
have finally completed their project. Congratulations
to all students who completed the Personal Project in
2013!
Jonathan Smedes
IBMYP Coordinator
“Through the “Through the
Personal Project, I Personal Project, I
was able to was able to
improve my improve my
communication communication
skills” skills” Samuel Vitikainen
Page 10
Page 11
“Thanks to the “Thanks to the
personal project, I personal project, I
have become more have become more
of a riskof a risk--taker as I taker as I
had to make had to make
connections to the connections to the
people during the people during the
exhibition” exhibition” Wana
Shamsudin
“It was nice sharing “It was nice sharing
9 months of my 9 months of my
work at the work at the
exhibition” exhibition”
Rupina Baek
“It has brought me “It has brought me
worthy experiences worthy experiences
that connects me that connects me
more to what I am more to what I am
interested in” interested in”
Jaiaree Corwin
Language B English
Page 12
Connections to systems
by Tan Huynh
LANGUAGE B TEACHER
The 6th graders were learning about the agriculture system.
We were studying how each individual part of the system
connects and works together to produce the food we eat.
We went to a farmer outside of Vientiane to learn about
farming. The students helped the farmer put down the
husk of rice to better absorb water.
The students went back to school to apply
what they learned about farming to create
their own mung seed farm.
The following week, we visited an organic
fish farm on the Mekong. Each small fishing
“house” can hold up to 600 fish.
Our last visit was to Xao Ban yogurt company.
We wanted to learn how a processor turns the
crops and animal products from farms into the
food we eat.
1
2
3 4
Page 13
Connections to service
by Mme. Julia Lachet
LANGUAGE COORDINATOR
Mesdames et Messieurs, Le cours de Français langue maternelle a dédié quelques
heures de cours à la création d’un
projet en lien avec le Lycée Français Hoffet. Ce projet a pour but de créer un panneau qui sera affiché dans cet établissement. Ce panneau décrit les actions qui ont déjà été prises à VIS par les élèves du groupe extra-scolaire et comment chacun peut les aider à résoudre les inégalités que subissent les filles au Laos. French Mother Tongue Grade 9 students created posters in French to invite the students of Ecole Hoffet to participate in the Girl Effect Community and Service activity. This is a great example of connections that can be made between subjects (interdisciplinary connections) and also to the real world. Bon travail les enfants!
Languages
Page 14
Mother Tongue Languages Day: a celebration of
language and cultural
diversities by Mme. Julia Lachet
CURRICULUM COORDINATOR FOR LANGUAGES
Last February 21, for the first time, VIS
celebrated the Mother Tongue languages. The theme of
the day was about sharing and understanding our
cultural diversities. Twelve Mother Tongue languages
taught at VIS were represented; Chinese, Dutch,
Filipino, French, German, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean,
Norwegian, Spanish, Thai and Vietnamese.
Together, students from Prep to grade 12 and
their Mother Tongue teachers presented a show where
they shared with the school community various aspects
of their cultures through dance, music, songs, poetry,
etc. They also organized workshops for the whole school to participate in. During these workshops students
taught the basics of their Mother Tongue languages, dance, songs, history and other particular traits of their
languages and cultures. Moreover, there were opportunities for degustation of food from different countries.
The response from the school community was very positive; the children clearly enjoyed participating in
the activities and the Mother Tongue students took great pride in sharing parts of their cultural identity. It was a
delight to witness the glow of confidence emanating from the Mother Tongue students as they performed
throughout the day.
This day reminded us about the importance of maintaining Mother Tongue languages. Encouraging
Mother Tongue languages at school is leading children to shape and affirm their identity.
VIS would like to thank the Mother Tongue teachers, parents and colleagues for their support.
We are looking forward to celebrating our Mother Tongue languages next year again.
Japanese Mother Tongue
Spanish Mother Tongue Thai Mother
Tongue
今日は
(konnichiwa)
¡Hola!
สวสด (sà-wàt-dee)
Page 15
Chinese Mother Tongue
German Mother Tongue
Norwegian Mother Tongue
Korean Mother Tongue
Vietnamese Mother
Tongue
Filipino Mother Tongue
你好 (nǐ hǎo)
Guten
안녕하세요
(annyeonghaseyo)
Hei !
Mabuhay!
Á-lô!
Selamat !
French Mother
Tongue
Bonjour!
Hallo!
IBDP News
Page 16
Real World Connections
in Design Technology by Ryan Evans
SECONDARY TEACHER
Functionality is Designed
Awareness and understanding: appreciation of the
responsibility of designers for the uses of their
products
Reflection on how sometimes the use dictates the
form, sometimes the form is adopted through
habit, not design.
Taking action to think creatively.
Stop motion (also known as stop frame) is an
animation technique to make a physically
manipulated object appear to move on its own. The
object is moved in small increments between
individually photographed frames, creating the
illusion of movement when the series of frames is
played as a continuous sequence.
Dolls with movable joints or clay figures are often
used in stop motion for their ease of repositioning.
Stop motion animation using plasticine is called clay
animation or "clay-mation". Not all stop motion
requires figures or models; many stop motion films
can involve using humans, household appliances and
other things for comedic effect. Stop motion using
objects is sometimes referred to as object
animation. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
STOP MOTION Film
By Sariny and Thip
(Grade 8)
Click here to watch ...
Stop motion
STOP MOTION Film
By Hamzi, Sam and Alex
(Grade 8)
Click here to watch ...
IBDP In ACTION
Page 17
The extended essay is the Diploma
Programme‟s culminating project. It is an independent,
self-directed in-depth study of a topic of interest
within a chosen subject. Emphasis is placed on the
research process in order for students to develop
their capacity to analyse, synthesize and evaluate
knowledge.
VIS grade 11 students started the year long
extended essay process in December 2012. They have
selected subjects and topics of interest. Students are
beginning the research phase of the extended essay.
Students are doing preparatory reading of scholarly
articles and books that will help them determine the
significance of topic and formulate an arguable
research question. March in grade 11is a significant
time period for the extended essay as students are
expected to formulate well-focused, arguable research
questions under the direction of supervisors.
After formulating research questions, students
access and read information from a wide variety of
academic sources: scholarly journals, books,
databases, and primary source documents when
appropriate. It is essential that students avoid Internet
search engines as their sole access point for locating
information. Students have been encouraged to use
VIS Library online resources and contact experts in
our community as appropriate. Your assistance in
supporting our students is greatly appreciated.
Grade 12 students all finished their extended
essay process in February. The students completed
essays in the following subjects: English, Economics,
Geography, History, World Religions, Chemistry,
Visual Arts, Dance and World Studies.
Congratulations to grade 12 for successfully navigating
the process of the extended essay. Students have
further developed attributes of the IB Learner Profile
which supports engagement in learning beyond the IB
programmes.
The extended essay concludes with exiting
interviews between the student and her or his
supervisor. Thank you to VIS teachers who
supported students through this process.
http://www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk
The Extended Essay In the IB Continuum by Todd Richer
DP COORDINATOR
www.ibo.org/
Field Trips
Page 18
Geography Field
Trip By Claire Butler-Walker
SECONDARY TEACHER
The Grade 11 Geography students
are inquiring into freshwater processes as
part of their studies. The Geography class
teamed up with BORDA-SEA, a NGO here
in Vientiane, and gathered data to respond
to the two fieldwork questions: How does
water quality change in the That Luang
wetland waterway, with distance from
the CBD? How does stream channel
shape change within the That Luang
wetland river profile?
The group headed out equipped
with an array of measuring apparatus, including testing kits sponsored by
BORDA. The students were able to measure turbidity, oxygen levels,
temperature, velocity and stream channel shape. The highlights were getting to
put our knowledge into action in our local environment and being able to get a
little bit dirty, or in Brian‟s case a lot dirty,
while learning. Our preliminary analysis has
led us to conclude that water quality
improves the further away from the CBD the
stream is and that the channel shape changes
from deep V to a shallower, wider stream
with distance downstream.
A special thank you to Tobias
Moeller from BORDA-SEA, for working with
us and providing information and test kits.
Thank you, Mr Todd for giving up his time to
come on the field trip and encouraging us.
Thank you to Ms Kim, for being
our guest speaker on fluvial
processes prior to the field trip.
Thank you to Mr Santi and Mr
Bee, our superstar drivers.
Analysing samples
Measuring the
temperature of
the water
Theory of Knowledge
Page 19
By Kim Green
SECONDARY PRINCIPAL
The Grade 12 students completed their final Theory of
Knowledge presentations. These presentations required
them to develop a Knowledge Issue from a real life situation.
The presentation required the students to make connections
to ToK concepts, different ways of knowing and draw on a
range of examples from different areas of knowledge.
All of the presentations were completed to a very high
standard and reflected the planning and forethought that the
students had put into the preparation.
Rica’s TOK
Presentation
Click here to watch ...
Arnold’s TOK
Presentation
Click here to watch ...
http://www.tokresource.org/
Andrew Brown (2006) Blue War (detail). Oil on canvas.
www.ibo.org/
Model United Nations
Page 20
United Nations International School MUN
By Claire Butler-Walker
SECONDARY TEACHER
The Vientiane International School Model
United Nations team were honoured to be invited to
the 5th Annual United Nations International School,
Hanoi Invitational Model United Nations. VIS took a
team of twelve students to the event; the team
consisted of a mix of experienced MUNers and
newbies. The theme for this year‟s conference was the
„rapprochement of cultures‟ and the delegates engaged
with themes and issues that connected to this. The
team represented three countries, Laos, United
States of America and Ukraine. We were very
lucky to be awarded a place on the Security
Council as the delegate
of the USA, as this is
a prestigious post for
any MUN.
All of the
delegates gained new
skills and confidence,
with many delegates
submitting and passing
resolutions. There
was lively and fruitful
debate and on day three,
all delegates were extremely
sad that the event was drawing to a
close. All of the delegates made new friends and are
excited about their next opportunity with MUN.
As coach of the team, I am very proud of the
delegates‟ confidence and willingness to participate that
I encountered when visiting all of the assemblies. The
opening speeches and speeches during the assemblies
were eloquent and thought provoking. The passion that
many of the delegates displayed during the conference
was inspiring, especially to see the confidence with
which the passion was communicated. A special
mention must go to Terry Kwag and Aseem Kumar,
both newbies, who spoke at the Plenary Session. These
two gentlemen gave impromptu speeches in front of an
assembly of over 200 delegates, and Aseem spoke
several times in this forum.
A special thank you to Mr Lucas Clarkson for
volunteering his time to help the delegates before and
during the event, especially providing insight to the
delegates of the USA. Also, thank you to the parents
and families who hosted our team while we were away
and the families of the delegates in supporting their
children in this experience.
A very special mention to Arnold Adji - This
conference was
Arnold‟s last as a
member of VIS, he has
been a committed and
passionate person
whose confidence in
unfamiliar situations
has remained
unshaken. To Arnold,
from the MUN team
and coaches both past
and present, we hope
that you will continue
with MUN at
University and that you
continue to pass
resolutions that make a
difference and speak up against issues that are troubling
the world.
To the honourable delegates, thank you for
your contribution to another successful and exciting
MUN. You should all should be extremely pleased
with yourselves. I would certainly vote for all of you as
best-dressed and most passionate delegates!
Page 21
THE MUN TEAM
Billy Chamnongphanij, Delegate of USA,
Human Rights Council
Aseem Kumar, Delegate of USA,
General Assembly 1
Joey Keophonexay, Delegate of USA,
General Assembly 2
Anthony Goffin, Delegate of USA,
General Assembly 3
James Moon, Delegate of Laos,
General Assembly 3
Tony Mongkhoune, Delegate of Laos,
General Assembly 2
Arnold Adji, Delegate of Laos,
Human Rights Council
Terry Kwag, Delegate of Ukraine,
General Assembly 1
Beautrice Soo, Delegate of Ukraine,
General Assembly 2
Danny Park, Delegate of Ukraine,
Human Rights Council
Wesley Wan, Delegate of Laos,
General Assembly 1
Rupina Baek, Delegate of USA,
Security Council
MUN Coaches: Claire Butler-Walker and
Lucas Clarkson.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Top: Arnold gives his opening speech
Middle: Billy, Arnold and Rupina
Bottom: The VIS team
MRISA Cultural Exchange
Page 22
MRISA CX 2012 came and went
so fast, it was a blur of new friendships,
experiences and lots of laughter and fun. As a
VIS group of 15 students we had met four
times before the trip to plan, prepare and
practice our opening performance around
the central idea of „Motion.‟ We were asked
to represent Laos in 2012 between the
times of 6am – 9am in three minutes!
The other International School groups
were taking other timings of the 24
hour clock for their performances and
we were all going to come together
connected in an opening ceremony
displaying a day in SE ASIA! It was a
welcome challenge and after the
Christmas break it was time for MRISA
CX! Were we ready to rock?
Yes we were, and then some! The students
were also excited for the awesome specialist
and creative workshops that were going to
be offered this year. Not to mention the
amazing performances from other schools.
There was so much to do, see and
experience, MRISA CX 2012-2013 guaranteed an artistic overload. It was
fantastic. Students were inspired by teachers and peers and were asked to make
sure to inspire someone else during the three days in return.
One of the strongest messages throughout the Arts Festival was for
students not to be afraid to take risks. Scott Adams once said,
“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing
which ones to keep.” So they made plenty of mistakes, created lots of
art, met new friends along the way and had fun participating in everything
available at MRISA CX 2012-2013.
Some other highlights were playing basketball in some of our chill time
together as a group and having the Sunday afternoon to relax at the
shopping mall before flying home was very much welcomed by students!
A huge thank you to Miss Merrilee Mills who helped facilitate our
performance and trip. But the largest thanks go to the students who
were a credit to themselves and to our VIS community.
Check out the website www.mrisacx2013.cu.cc to see videos,
text and images of the various performances and workshops
over the cultural exchange. I hope to see you on the next
cultural exchange, don’t miss out!
"I would recommend MRISA CX to anyone who is willing to
engage and participate. My favourite workshop was "Art In
Motion", the best thing about it was to show me how I could
apply this technique back into my work in the classroom. I
practiced techniques of drawing and painting and used new
materials such as enamel which I worked into my finished
canvas. The trip was fun, the teamwork, our performance; but
also what I got out of the experience for myself."
Mitsuki Mori Grade 8
by Miss Nicky Shaw
SECONDARY TEACHER
Honor Roll
Page 23
Honor Roll is awarded for Academics and
Diligence each semester .
Academic Honor Roll recognises students who
have received four 6's (or three 6‟s in Grade 11-12),
no other grade below a 3 along with and their
approaches to learning are all within the grade level
expectation bands.
Honor Roll for diligence recognises students who
have demonstrated excellent and
very good approaches to learning across all subject
areas. This is indicated by the majority
of the approaches to learning criteria being in the top
level of the grade level expectation bands.
Congratulations to the following students on their
academic achievements over semester one and
congratulations to our learners who have been
recognized for being consistently diligent with their
learning.
Academic Honor Rolls
S1 Grade
Nya Gnaegi 7S
Jung-won (Michelle) Nam 7S
Bethan Henderson 7S
Antonia Lang 7S
Laura Berdaga 9J
Jungmin (Danny) Park 9J
Laura Berdaga 9J
Anthony Goffin 9J
Aseem Kumar 9M
Wesley Wan 9M
Alisha Mudbhary 10R
Santisouk (Joey) Keophonexay 10M
Sengthida (Rosy) Lathanavong 10M
Rupina Baek 10M
Rebekah Marsh 10M
Youbeen (Rachael) Oh 8J
Souknilanh (Anakin) Chantharath 8J
Monica Fennema 8J
Lisa Grages 8J
Antonia Fischer 8J
Souphaphone (Jennifer) Banyadith 8A
Josiah Marsh 8A
Hannah Boyes 6C
Hannah Muziol 6C
Isabella Chapman 6C
Maria Fennema 6L
Jimin (Anna) Park 6L
Leonie Fischer 6L
Linh Nguyen 6L
Dalita Xaysoulivong 11GN
Dieu (Huong) Do Le 11GN
Nga Linh Tran 11GN
Kevin Nam 11GN
Cassian Herbon 12JP
Blake Gardiner 12JP
Oda Karlsen 12JP
Diligence Honor Roll
S1 Grade
Noni Flint 7S
Ken Fortin 7S
Daria Laroy 7S
Sophia Vergara-Pinheiro 9M
Lauren Williams 10R
Beatrice Soo 10R
Valentina Thammavong 10R
Alice Everard 10M
Eaknarong (Tony) Mongkhoune 10M
Emmanuel (EJ) Barte 10R
Soya Kanemaru 10M
Mitsuki Mori 8J
Jisung Baek 8J
Adeeba Bajwa 8A
Kanchita Rattanaprateepthong 6C
Vivie Chamberlain 6L
Praneer Shrestha 7D
Daniel Bobocel 7D
Saehyun (Stella) Park 7D
Daniel Vitikainen 7D
Ki Han Kim 7D
Samuel Vitikainen 10R
Seung Yup (Terry) Kwag 10R
Anna Miehlau 11GN
Effie (Darren) Low 11GN
Ju Hui Lee 11GN
Jonas Grimm 12JP
SISTER SCHOOL
DENTAL PROGRAMME
By Amy Ki
GRADE 11 STUDENT
On the 18th of December a group of
VIS girls were given the opportunity to visit our
Sister School as the VIS Nurse Miss Moe Moe
had organised for the children at the Sister
School to get a dental check-up and our job was
to go there and pass out little goodie dental
bags and spend time with the students. We
were first introduced to this Community and
Service activity from two teachers during class, we thought it would be a great idea and decided to join. Some
of the girls who joined hadn‟t been to the School before and were interested in visiting the Sister School as we
often associated with them through many Community and Service activities as well as a student based charity
called The Girl Effect that raises and donates money to the School to help pay for students school fee‟s . One
afternoon after school we helped Miss Moe Moe fill individual bags with items such as tooth brushes, soaps, toys
and biscuits, we were making the bags for Prep to Grade 5 so each bag contained different items for each grade.
Filling the bags didn‟t take very long as we had many
willing helpers. Then at 1:15pm on Tuesday afternoon we
travelled to the Sister School, we were welcomed and
greeted by the teachers and student‟s faces were full of
smiles. We started by playing games with the students,
afterwards we gathered in a room and sang songs and
listened to the students sing to us and thanked us for
coming. The visit was concluded with cake for the
students and enjoying each other‟s company and
distributing the bags to the students who were delighted
to receive their dental bag. We were all happy that we
got the opportunity to experience this and help out at
the school and I feel we all came away with a feeling of
fulfilment for helping out with the Sister School.
Service
Page 24
Page 25
Po Nowan Village Kindergarten & Elementary School Construction Project Completed
By Kim Green
SECONDARY PRINCIPAL Whist on the Grade 7 SALSA trip the students contributed to
the Po Nowan Village Kindergarten & Elementary School
Construction Project. Over the 5 days that they were away
they
carried sand up from the river bucket by bucket. This sand
helped to reduce the costs of the construction as it could
be used to make the cement for the building
mixed cement to be used in the bricking of the walls of the
school,
helped to lay the up the brick walls of the school
excavated the land in front of the school to create a flat
open space for the students.
On the 1 March Grahame from Buffalo Tours, who helped to
organise our time in the Seaung River each year, sent us notification that the project has now been completed
and that the opening ceremony was held on the 17 December.
We are proud as Grade 7 students to have been able to contribute to the village of Po Nowan and pleased to
see the students with new facilities for their learning.
Sports News
Page 26
SECONDARY PLACES
1st Nagas
2nd Gibbons
3rd Geckos
4th Catfish
PRIMARY PLACES
1st Gibbons
2nd Catfish
3rd Nagas
4th Geckos
Page 27
SWIM MEET
By Rick Reece
PARENT
Twenty-seven VIS students, known as the
Mekong River Dolphins, competed in a swimming
competition against swimmers from Hoffet and the
Vientiane Sharks on Sunday at a 25 meter pool in Dong
Palaep Village. The VIS swimmers range in age from 1st
to 8th grades and swam with enthusiasm and skill. While
many of the VIS students took away honors from the
competition, standouts like Vivie Chamberlain, Maria
Fennema, Ritchie Oh, Matthew Fennema and Ritco Oh
won at least 2 gold medals each.
The swimmers and their families would like to
express appreciation for the organizers of the event,
especially coaches Simon Vaslet and Soulamphone
Keudla who give their time and energy each week to
build skill and confidence. With the opening of the new
VIS swimming and fitness complex only months away, the
future of the VIS swimming program is bright!
Student Council News
Page 28
Valentine’s Dance by Lisa Grages
GRADE 8 STUDENT
The bass speakers drummed. Pop and dance music
flooded the entire dimly lit room. White and pink
balloons bounced up and down in different corners. The
simulated smoke and the neon-colored lights flashing
around added to the atmosphere of the spacious room,
also known as the “Black box”. The Valentine‟s Dance.
The boys and especially the girls have anticipated the
Dance which was held at VIS in a time period of 7 to 10
in the evening on Friday the 15th of February, right after
the actual Valentine‟s Day. When the Dance started, the
first few couples arrived, semi-formally dressed and a few
others came too who were either still waiting for their
dates or bringing their group of friends along. More and
more people came afterwards, some from other schools
too. The dance was, as hoped for, a success and most
people seemed to be having a great time and enjoying the
night. Many were dancing away on the dance floor whilst
others took a break outside of the room, talking with
their friends and drinking a can of soft drink.
Improvements have been suggested to the committee
organizing the Dance, the VIS Secondary Student Council
in general, but there were mainly positive feedbacks from
parents and teachers and even students. A big thanks to
all the people who attended the dance, the Student
Council and last but not least the parents and teachers
who have volunteered to stay and watch over the
students. Without all of you, the Dance wouldn‟t have
been successful at all.
Youth Educating Youth Saturday School
This semester the Youth Educating Youth Saturday
School increased in size to include 28 secondary
students. The students involved meet on
Wednesday and Friday afternoons from 4-5.00pm to
plan lessons in preparation for teaching
every second Saturday.
All of the lessons created by the students are
driven by key concepts and enable the 50
BSST students to engage in learning
experiences on the VIS campus.
The lessons help the BSST students
develop skills in English language,
music, visual art, physical
education and have fun with
their learning.
The VIS students have developed skills of lesson
planning, behavior management and are consistently
surprised at the abilities of the learners at BSST and
their eagerness to participate.
Page 29
On the 2nd March the Student Council awarded ten scholarships to
students from Ban Saphanthong Primary School.
“If you change the prospects of an adolescent girl on a big enough
scale, you will transform societies.”
Mark Lowcock, DfID permanent secretary
The Girl Effect believes that when a girl knows her own potential,
she becomes a catalyst for change. Hence they raised funds to support
girls in Laos gain and maintain access to education. Go to http://
www.girleffect.org/why-girls/ to find out more about the importance of
this community and service group at VIS. As a result of the commitment
from the student initiated and student led community and service activity
The Girl Effect awarded these students with scholarships to Ban
Saphanthong Tai School.
The Lighting Up the Future campaign is a Student Council
initiative to remove all of your gift giving dilemmas whilst helping the
students from Ban Saphanthong Tai Primary School. By choosing a gift
from the Lighting Up the Future catalogue you can make your friends,
loved ones or colleagues smile and help change the lives of children,
families and a community in Laos.
Scholarships for BSST Students By Kim Green
SECONDARY PRINCIPAL
Counsellor’s News
CAREER TASTING
by Lauren Williams
GRADE 10 STUDENT
During the last lessons of the day grade
nine and ten were involved in career
tasting. We spent an afternoon
talking to professionals of various
careers and learnt a little about
what they do. We talked to
professionals about their
backgrounds, challenges, likes
and dislikes of their jobs. We used
this to help us get an idea about what
we want to choose for our work
experience.
The most interesting jobs for me were the veterinarian and the physical therapist. The veterinarian was
interesting because he talked about how he had to study different animals and their illnesses. He said that he
sometimes treated animals himself in many different locations. He has traveled to many countries to help treat
diseases that can sometimes affect people.
The physical therapist had lots of information
to offer us. She explained the type of studies
you have to take to become a therapist and
most of the things that they are involved in
working with different injuries. She showed us
images of muscles and bones of the human
body and showed how they treat someone with
an injury.
This experience probably helped most of us to
think about the areas or jobs we are interested
in for the future. We also get to be involved in
a work experience with some of the
professionals.
I enjoyed meeting with the
different kinds of people and
learning about how they got
to where they are now.
Page 30
Community News
Page 31
Fun FairFun Fair JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT FUN
FAIR COULDN’T GET ANY
BETTER! By Rachael Phiasanaxay
PARENT
Like most people, the topic of fun fair starts early on in my
household. For my children it is the highlight of Semester 2!
So when on Saturday 23 March, the VIS Community came
together to enjoy a few hours of organised fun, food and
games, my children were not disappointed!
The Parents and Friends Fun Fair Committee once again
provided us with a great family day out! This dedicated
group of parents and all of the parent and student
volunteers who helped out on the day put a great deal of
effort and thought into the games and layout of the event,
which was very impressive this year!
I‟m sure that the community will join me in saying
thank you to everyone who made this day so much fun!
Board News
Page 32
Diving in at the Deep End!
by Greg Smith
DIRECTOR
The first quarter of the year has been a busy
time for the Board of Trustees. The usual work has
been underway with the school administration and
Trustees working together to formulate the Budget,
and at the same time we have commenced the new
building project for the Swimming Pool and Fitness
Centre, and we said farewell to two very valuable
members.
David Boyes was at the front of the work on
the Development Committee and the Finance
Committee. His drive, professional knowledge and
commitment helped the school to develop the two
major building projects of the past three years. He
should always be remembered for his great work in
preparing for the swimming pool and the photo below
shows David at his final Board meeting in December,
celebrating his work on the Pool project by standing in
a paddling pool.
Lucy O‟Connor left in March after a great
contribution to the school over many years. Lucy, in
her family‟s second stay in Vientiane, was Vice
Chair and gave particular support to
the development of policy for the school. She leaves
the Board Policy File in a much better place and has
helped to clarify many of the processes for the school.
The preparation of the 2013-14 school budget
is well underway. This process takes many months and
involve three meetings with the community to gain
feedback. The March Board meeting is where the fees
for the following school year are decided based on all
available information. The aim of the Board is to
create a balanced budget which provides the services
required and maintains reasonable fees.
The Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre is the
major development project for the year. The project
will see a 25 metre pool with 8 lanes and a 12 x 12
metre non-swimmers pool constructed. The buildings
will include large fitness training areas, a new PE staff
office, classrooms and first aid area. The Board will
soon be seeking the views of the community on what
access, if any, should be
available to families outside
of school hours.
Thank you
to e
veryone
who cont
ributed
to this
edition
of Drago
n Tales.
If you
would li
ke to su
bmit
an arti
cle for
the next
issue plea
se make
sure you
do so b
y Wednes
day 29 M
ay.
If
you are
a student
or a memb
er of
the
teaching
staff p
lease su
bmit you
r articl
e to
Mr Jon (
Primary)
or Ms K
im (Seco
ndary).
Other memb
ers of
staff or
members
of the
communit
y should
submit
their arti
cles to
Ms Racha
el.
