Dear parents,
Welcome back to school! With the recent Mid-Autumn Festival break and the Golden Week holiday, it feels like it has been some time since we have had a full week of school! I hope that you and your family were able to enjoy some precious moments together!
Now that we are into October, we have a ten-week chunk for teaching and learning before we approach Christmas. There are so many wonderful things to look forward to throughout this time! In today’s email, I will highlight some of our upcoming activities and events.
Upcoming events
At XLIS, we emphasize the importance of collaboration between home and school. Events such as the International Day of Peace are just one way we create opportunities to work together with our families. In October, we have more opportunities to bring our parents, teachers, and students together to create a collaborative culture to support student learning:
October 14th – Parent Workshop for P2 – P6 parents – Mandarin Language Acquisition: Supporting Your Child’s Journey, a Parent Guide to Learning at Home (led by Ms. Sally and Ms. Annie)
October 16th – First student Progress Reports go home
October 21st – Parent-Teacher Conferences (no school for students this day)
October 26th – October 30th – Literacy and Culture Week
Parent-Teacher Conferences
On October 16th, your child will receive a Progress Report to summarize how he or she has been doing so far this year on their first Unit of Inquiry (UOI) and in their Approaches to Learning (ATL) development. After the reports are issued, we will host Parent-Teacher Conferences on October 21st. This is a non-school day for students, as teachers will meet with families to discuss their child’s progress. A schedule will be sent to you later this week. The sessions with teachers will last for 15 minutes, so it is best to come prepared with some questions for your child’s teacher to ensure you can finish in time. If you are unavailable to join, please contact your homeroom teacher promptly to schedule a time for when it is convenient for you. This is an important time for you and the teacher to discuss your child’s learning.
Literacy and Culture Week
Although it is closer to the end of the month, I would like to give you advance notice about our upcoming Literacy and Culture Week. In the primary division, our goal is to promote and develop a love of reading that will benefit our students for a lifetime. Some of the highlights will include: a school-wide book fair located in front of the library, a storyteller named Jake Evans, buddy reading across grade levels, the book character parade, and various activities in different classes. The Literacy and Culture Week is also a time to explore and celebrate the stories that come from around the world and within our XLIS community, giving our students the opportunity to learn more about where their peers and teachers come from. More information will be shared by homeroom teachers that is specific to your child’s year level, but I encourage you to start talking to your child about their favourite book characters and to plan who they would like to be on Friday, October 30th!
P.S. This is not a Halloween celebration, so please try to think of a book character!
There are many DIY examples of making character costumes online, such as:
DOG MAN:
DIARY of a WIMPY KID:
It’s a great way to celebrate reading together!
Thank you for your continued support and partnership in your child’s learning experiences at XLIS!
Sincerely,
Marly Song
Primary Principal
Email: marly.song@xalis.com
WeChat: principal_marly
