“The fact that children can make beautiful music is less significant than
the fact that music can make beautiful children.” – Cherly Lavender
Professional Development Days next week, September 19 and 20
No school for students!
Green School classes have been busy this week with preparations for World Bamboo Day coming up next Wednesday. Grade 5 walked to Sibang Kaja to meet the head of the village while Grade 4 enjoyed tasting papayas, chocolate, and sugar cane from right here at the school. Beautiful bird costumes from cardboard are being built by Grade 3 and the sounds of music float up into the Heart School from all corners of the the campus. Read on for some important health and safety updates, a new ice cream at the Warung and get ready to say yahoo for bamboo!
In this issue:
Green School News
- Please Fill Out Green School’s Accreditation Survey
- No School for Professional Development Thursday and Friday
- Sacred Scoops Ice Cream Gamelan Fundraiser
- First Fire Drill of the Year Goes Smoothly
- Road Closed on the Bamboo Village Side of Bridge
- Health & Safety Update
Upcoming Events
- Register Now for the GS Educator Course
- World Bamboo Day
- Parent Information and Educational offerings
- Global Issues Network Conference
Ongoing Events
- Bamboo Gallery Monthly Photo Competition
- Grade 5 Yoga
- Green School Tours Open For Community Participation
- Green Stone videos
- Green School Family Snapshot
Media & Links
Also in the Green School Community
Green School News
Please Fill Out Green School’s Accreditation Survey
Dear Green School Parents,
As you are aware the School is in the process of going through its accreditation process with the Council of International Schools, the largest international accreditation body in the world. This is a very important step for us as we continue to grow and develop as a school in our own, unique way.
As part of this, and arguably the most important step, we need to get feedback from all of you. This is your chance to provide input into all aspects of the School. With this information we will then respond in our improvements process as we move towards accreditation for the end of 2014. But we need everyone to respond and we need to hear from you! We also like to hear from both parents in each family if applicable.
The deadline for all surveys to be completed is THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 26TH but we would greatly appreciate your prompt attention to this. The survey only takes 10 minutes so please try to click now and get it done.
To also help assist we will have a computer or Ipad at the Welcome Desk with Yani each day so you can take the survey if you have troubles with internet access.
Click here to take part in this very important work.
Please go to the website www.endicottresearchcenter.net
On that page you will see:
HERE TO TAKE A SURVEY? PLEASE ENTER YOUR SURVEY CODE HERE
Enter the following survey code: CNP2015310 and click GO.
Thank you very much for your support in doing this.
We really look forward to hearing from all of you.
Christopher Thompson
Director and General Manager
No School/ PD days Thursday and Friday
This coming Thursday and Friday are non-school days for students (mark your calendars) but teachers will be at school engaged in a two day professional development course. This year we have partnered with Antioch Center for School Renewal (http://www.antiochne.edu/acsr/) to provide our teachers with some great professional development opportunities. On Thursday and Friday teachers will begin the first 2 days of a 5-day course called The Critical Skills Workshop (http://www.antiochne.edu/acsr/criticalskills/classroom/). The rest of the course will be completed during our February professional development time (February 20, 21, 24). Next weekend GS teachers, as well as other educators from around Bali, and any others interested, are invited to attend several other noteworthy trainings—see below for more details.
Workshop: Systems and Education for Sustainability (EFS)
Saturday, September 21, from 9am-5pm
The purpose of Systems and EFS is to deepen understanding about how systems work and how to apply this understanding to application within schools; to discover what makes systems unsustainable, and how to shift them into more sustainable patterns. Through small group interaction, hands-on and minds-on work we will build a strong foundation for systems thinking and how to apply it to educate for sustainability. With this experience, participants will be better able to lead to build strong, and sustainable, learning communities.
Workshop: Connecting Curriculum and Community
Sunday, Sept 22, from 9am-4pm
The purpose of Connecting Curriculum and Community is to engage in intentionally weaving sustainability, citizenship, and service into learning. Participants will investigate the ins and outs of forging partnerships between community organizations and schools. A primary focus will be designing projects that meet a community need while achieving curriculum goals. Participants will work individually and in groups to improve skills and understanding for using place and community as a context for learning.
Instructor: Paul Bocko
Paul Bocko is a Critical Skills Master Teacher and School Coach with the Antioch Center for School Renewal in Keene, New Hampshire, USA. He teaches and advises in Antioch University New England’s Educating for Sustainability program. He also serves as a Curriculum and Professional Development Specialist for the Collaborative for Educational Services in Northampton, Massachusetts, USA.
These workshops are a great opportunity to engage in meaningful professional development here in Bali. Each workshop is $75 per day ($15 per day for local Indonesian teachers and community members) and includes lunch. Please contact Pak Andy to reserve a spot. andys@greenschool.org
Sacred Scoops Ice Cream Gamelan Fundraiser
Green School is offering Sacred Scoops on campus. Sacred Scoops is a raw vegan ice cream company providing Bali with the healthiest ice cream on the market. They are using locally farmed ingredients for their delicious coconut-based ice cream, which is sweetened with low glycemic coconut sugar and fruits. Other than being incredibly tasty, Sacred Scoops is integrating the latest conscious technology into their production. This technology includes the use of the 528-hertz love frequency, crystal essences, blessings from healers, and sacred geometry in every batch. Proceeds from Ice Cream sales will go towards buying Green School it’s own Gamelan, so every scoop is good for you and good for the school!
First Fire Drill of the Year Goes Smoothly
There has been much excitement for the Health & Safety team this week as preparations for a campus wide emergency drill got underway. Yesterday’s cool, cloudy morning provided the perfect backdrop to the first practice run of the year. It went off with great success, with the entire campus, students from Grade 1 – Grade 12, all staff, and visitors evacuated to the playing field from all areas of the campus in well under 7 minutes from the sounding of the first alert.
The Early Years students and teaching team were expertly assisted out of their buildings to their specially assigned mustering area near the Early Years classrooms by our Green School Security Team and Learning Specialist teachers.
A big round of applause goes out to all members of the community who were on campus during
the drill for the orderly and neat fashion in which the drill proceeded and a special mention for
Ibu Nina and the members of the security team for their support. We will continue these practice
drills throughout the year to further refine our evacuation skills. Our motto: You can never be over prepared.
Road Closed on the Bamboo Village Side of Bridge
Currently there is road construction near Green School’s Ayung River crossing, happening on the Sibang Kaja side of the bridge. Until further notice, people will have to park up at Bamboo Village & walk down to the bridge if they wish to get to Green School from that side of the river.
Health & Safety Update
Head Lice – Not Nice
As some of you may know, our pupils in the Early Years have recently been learning a bit about head lice in class. They’ve been learning that they are really very common (most of us will get them at some point) and that it doesn’t mean we are dirty or don’t keep our hair clean. It would seem that their new found knowledge is being put to the test, as there have been a few cases of head lice recently identified in school.
Of course, it’s nothing to be alarmed about, but it is a nuisance, so we’d just like to introduce you to a simple three step routine to follow for detecting, treating and removing them. If all members of the community maintain regular head checks at home, this will help to prevent head lice returning to school repeatedly. We’d like to encourage everyone associated with the school to start their own head lice detection routine using the simple process outlined below:
Basic Head Louse Control Recommendations
1) DETECTION:
Once a week, perhaps on a Sunday evening after a bath, use a grey detection comb or a good light to hunt for head lice. IF you find a live one…don’t panic! It’s no big deal.
2) TREATMENT:
Live lice must be removed or killed.
Mechanically removing head lice can be accomplished using a special, fine-toothed comb which requires no use of pesticides. This method is can be made easier after the application of ordinary hair conditioner. Comb through the hair with a nit comb over the entire head, wiping the comb on a tissue with each pass. Using this method, you can easily see if there are lice present. Continue combing until you no longer find lice in the comb, then shampoo and condition as normal. Various creams and shampoos which contain pesticides are available over the counter for treatment of head lice. These treatments are not always effective and may cause reactions in some children. No known scientific reports exist as to their efficacy.
3) REMOVAL
Eggs (nits) of head lice must be removed from the child’s hair.
This step is the most crucial. There are no known products available over-the-counter which kill head lice eggs. Eggs must be removed using a fine-toothed nit comb, tweezers or fingernails. Pay special attention to areas behind the ears and at the nape of the neck. If this step is not done, it is recommended that you follow step 2 above every three days for 2 weeks to break the reproductive cycle and prevent re-infestation.
Your child’s bedding, clothes, and towels must be washed in warm soapy water and dried in a dryer on the “high heat” cycle or dried in the sun for 6 hours.
This step must be completed on the same day as above steps. Although head lice live only on humans, this step will kill any lice or eggs which may have recently fallen off your child’s head.
Here, at Green School, routine screenings are done by the school nurse to check for head lice.
- If they are detected on your child, the nurse will inform you via email.
- We ask that you treat your child before sending them back to school using the information above. Though we may remove a nit or two, we do not do chemical treatments here at school. Many salons in Bali offer a head cleaning service to remove nits and lice. It is important to follow up at home with the recommendations above for complete eradication as removal of head lice without the proper follow through in the home is ineffective.
- In addition, you should inspect the entire family for head lice as your child may have spread it to other members.
- Upon return to school, your child will be inspected by the school nurse to determine that the head lice infestation no longer exists. This means that your child must be free of all lice and viable nits (eggs). If they are found to have lice or nits again, we will contact you to request that they be sent home for further treatment, until the infestation is clear, before being allowed to return to class in order to prevent the spread of lice.
- SPECIAL NOTE: Due to the nature of our Early Years Program, any child found to have head lice will be sent home immediately to prevent the spread of lice through the classroom. As children in these classes nap or rest daily on cushions and pillows after lunch, head lice are easily spread to others in the classroom. We will maintain a zero tolerance policy regarding infestations in the Early Years and any child returning to class the following day are requested to go to the First Aid Clinic for a check before entering class.
Because there has been an outbreak of head lice in school, we suggest that you check your child’s head as soon as possible. We also suggest that you continue checking on a weekly basis. This will help to prevent head lice returning repeatedly.
For more complete information please feel free to contact the school nurse. You may obtain further information from the following sites: National Pediculosis Association at http://www.headlice.org, http://www.killnits.com or www.headlice.co.uk.
Let’s help get rid of head lice in our school together!
Thank you for your cooperation.
Sherry Dean
Upcoming Events
Register Now for the GS Educator Course
This September, we will be running our 2nd Green School Educator Course, which will be specifically tailored for Early Years and Primary School teachers and administrators from around the world. Participants will spend 3 days learning about the Green School pedagogy while staying overnight in our Green Camp accommodations. The course will be led by Green School teachers, providing our participants with an enriching educational experience. Through this engaging, experiential course, participants will not only learn about the theory of our pedagogy but also experience it in practice. Each participant will leave with an understanding of our Early Years and Primary School programs as well as with their own toolbox of innovative teaching strategies to bring home.
Dates: September 27 – 29, 2013
Location: Green School, Bali
Cost: $497 – Price includes the workshop materials, meals and accommodation
Please note: We will be offering 5 scholarships to Indonesian teachers.
For more information about the course and to register, please visit; www.greenschool.org/greeneducator
World Bamboo Day
Come one come all! Help us celebrate World Bamboo Day, Wednesday, Sept 18th!
Q: What’s the scariest plant in the world?
A: Bam-booooooooh!!!!
Nowhere in the world is bamboo as appreciated or as celebrated as here at Greenschool! But did you know there’s much more going on with this precious natural resource than meets the eye!?! Besides making it possible for Greenschool to have the most inspiring and all around amazing natural buildings a school could ask for, bamboo also offers our teachers, students and broader community a plethora of opportunities to further engage and enhance our learning.
Please join us on the afternoon of September 18th as we celebrate World Bamboo Day with a very special assembly (start time 2:15) . In addition to a special guest presentation by Pak Eka from P.T. bamboo, we’ll also be taking a closer look at some of the innovative & creative ways our students and teachers are able to integrate bamboo into our classrooms and our lessons. There’s even rumors floating around of a “bamboo gameshow” as well as a bamboo inspired musical performance or two! Looking forward to seeing you on this very special day!
World Bamboo Day Committee
Here is a video about last years World Bamboo Day festivities:
Parent Information and Educational offerings
Sept 18: World Bamboo Day–don’t forget to submit photos this week to JanJan (Janaina). Check the google doc for more info!
Sept 19/20: NO SCHOOL, Professional Development days: Critical Skills Workshop (presenter Paul Bocko from Antioch Center for School Renewal)
Sept 20: Soulshine Volunteer meeting has been moved to 1pm at Friday Sept 27.
Sept 25th: Campus Herb Walk–Come learn about the flora and fauna of the GS campus with local expert Sumade. Walk begins at 9am in the Heart of School.
Sept 27: Board Annual Report Presentation to GS community outlining the coming year and beyond. 3:30
Sept 27-29: Green School Educator course- see below in the newsletter for more info
Sept. 27 – Soulshine Volunteer meeting–now meeting at 1 pm on Friday at the warung. Calling all interested peeps to gather together and plan the Soulshine Festival–an amazing 2 day event that is a benefit for Bumi Sehat and Green School’s scholarship fund!
October:
1st: Communicating with Children, a workshop with Steve Spitalny. Discover the real needs of the young child through the perspective of the development of self awareness. This will give you a basis for finding better practices for truly connecting with your children. The workshop will include tips on resolving conflicts and ways to get beyond threats and bribes to get the children to do what you want. Early childhood consultant and author Steve Spitalny has been a kindergarten teacher at the Santa Cruz (California) Waldorf School for 24 years. Since the mid-1990′s, he has given workshops, lectures and courses on many themes for various institutions and groups including Rudolf Steiner College and is on the faculty of WISC (Waldorf Institute of Southern California). Steve’s mixed-age kindergarten group includes children from 3-years-old until they are ready for first grade. Steve is a former Board member of WECAN (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America) as well as former editor of Gateways, the bi-annual newsletter of WECAN. His many articles have been published in Gateways, and various other publications. Steve is a husband, parent and grandparent, as well as an active storyteller and musician. This workshop will run from 9am-noon on October 1 and there is a small fee: $20 per person, or $30 per couple. Please email me (andys@greenshcool.org) to reserve a spot.
Oct 4: High School Night of the Arts
Oct 9th: Ecophilia: How do we instill a love of nature in our children? This workshop will be facilitated by Pak Matt, Pak Noan, and Ibu Andrea. 9-10am, location to be determined–stay tuned.
Oct 10: Bamboo tour. Come learn all about bamboo and bamboo architecture at PT Bamboo. We’ll start at 3:30 and end around 5pm. This is a great opportunity to learn all about the bamboo you are surrounded by every day here at school. Please RSVP to Andy for this one!
Oct 12: Campout with kids with Dr Arne Rubinstein 4pm on the field. Reservations at www.doctorarne.com
Global Issues Network Conference
Dear Parents of Middle and Secondary Students,
Canggu Community School, Bali International School and The Green School are proud to be hosting the Global Issues Network Conference on the 5th and 6th of October.
The cost per child is 350.000 IDR. This covers all transport and food at the conference, a gift bag, and barbeque at a special musical Saturday evening event.
A number of local students, from Balinese partner schools will be attending as well as students from Jodie O’Shea Orphanage and YKIP.
This will be an exciting conference full of guest speakers and practical experiences with the theme “Motivation is the Key”.
Students are given the chance to learn, to create, and to work together in groups that will seek understanding of the challenges that face their world. They will form teams to work on practical approaches that can offer solutions to some of the major challenges that can be shared with a larger community when they return to their schools.
The student-led media team will be sending updates with the weekly newsletters leading up to the conference and we look forward to inviting you to find out more about the event, and to participate in our fundraising raffle soon.
Your child can register here: sign up sheet. Payment of the fee is to be made to the school office by September 20th.
Check out the conference Web site and like us on Facebook.
Questions: infoginbali@gmail.com or glenn@greenschool.org
Bamboo Gallery Monthly Photo Competition
This month saw the launch of the Bamboo Gallery monthly Photography competition. To kick things off, staff and High school students were asked to submit a photo that emphasised “Negative Space”. Some brilliant entries were received and the competition was tough – literally one vote separated our two joint winners and our two runner-ups!.
So it is with great pleasure that I announce this months winners…
In first place we have joint winners with
Number 22 (submitted by Ibu Desak) and
Number 3 (submitted by Ibu JanJan)
Very close behind in the counting were two student entries with the same amount of votes. These belong to:
Year 9 student Taj (entry 24) and
Year 11 student India (entry 19)
Congratulations to our winners and all our photographers this month.
We will have these works printed and put on display in the Bamboo Gallery. They can also be viewed online at www.bamboogallery.org
Next months competition is “Silhouette”. The competition opens on the 1st of October… so get ready to start clicking :-). More information to come or check the bamboo gallery website for more information.
Kind regards-
Ibu Jen
Grade 5 Yoga
As part of their thematic on Geometry grade 5 have been participating in a Monday morning yoga class.
While doing basic yoga poses, they have focused on making shapes with their own bodies including squares, triangles, circles and arches. As well in pairs or groups making shapes from triangles to hexagons.
While building Strength, Flexibility and Balance these sessions have also contributed to a practical understanding of some concepts in Geometry, to do with angles and supportive structures.
One of the class parents Sana, a yoga practitioner herself, has been very helpful in assisting the students in their poses.
Every class finishes with some relaxation and a reflection for the students to take back to class for the week.
Green School Tours Open For Community Participation
Thanks to our tours & so many in the Green School community, we have been able to build amazing support for the Indonesian Scholarship Fund over the years. We want to invite everyone who is interested in helping us grow our tour program to join our newly forming community Tour Think Tank . . . aka “T3” : )
* To sign up, please email info@greencampbali.com and simply type “T3” in the subject line, Thanks!
Green Stone videos
Green Stone is a unique project our graduating seniors take part in that gives them a chance to ask the question “What have I always wanted to do?” Green Stone is an opportunity to turn seniors dreams into action & help better prepare them for life on Earth! Click below to watch these inspiring presentations from the graduating class of 2013.
http://www.greenschool.org/green-stone-students/
Green School Family Snapshot
Adam and Rose arrived only a month ago from Berry, Australia, which is 2 hours south of Sydney. Just 8 weeks ago Rose and her dad, Adam, went on a week away together to Cairns and Rose talked all week about being fed up with school, and was telling her dad, “Dad, I just want to go to Bali.” Adam told her that that was never going to happen. At the end of the week, when they walked into their door at the end of the week Rose’s mom Ruth immediately told them that she had found an amazing school for Rose… on Bali! Rose and her Dad had never mentioned this conversation with her mom so they decided it must be a sign, and after spending a night poring over the Green School website she was more determined to make this dream come true. One month later Adam and Rose were here. Ruth and Rose’s sister, Lily, will be coming over later in the year. Rose plays piano and her Dad says she has an amazing voice. The Balinese people are Roses favorite part of Bali and both Adam and Rose cite freedom as a big part of what they are appreciating here. Adam is loving the free thinking, open minds and heightened experiences that they have already encountered here. Adam is a vegan chef and the creator of the current #1 best selling i-tunes food app, called ifeelgood. Check it out at: http://ifeelgood.com.au/
Mulan film available
Hi everyone, Toby King here. I’ve made a film of the middle and primary school performance of Mulan, and it’s available now. It’s a 66 minute film and a great way to remember this amazing night of Green School performing arts.
It’s only AUD $10 (about Rp 100,000), and I’m giving 10% of all proceeds to the scholarship fund, and the rest will go towards my filmmaking passion. Just click on this link and it will take you to the Australian online shop where you can buy the access to watch and/or download. I really hope you enjoy the film, and thanks so much for your support.
http://shop.crystalcastle.com.au/mulan/
Architectural Digest
Bamboo has made it’s debut in Architectural Digest! Elora Hardy and Ibuku are named one of 10 innovators breaking new ground in 2013. The article will be in the October issue, in newsstands later this month and on the website now.
Our own weekly news
To submit your own news updates for inclusion, please send it to communications@greenschool.org by 12 noon each Wednesday.We cannot always guarantee inclusion and we may have to delay for a week at times.
Visit the Green School Website: http://www.greenschool.org
Visit the Green School Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/greenschool