“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember, I do and I understand.” - Confucius.
Although Green School is off until Tuesday, a little holiday does not mean Green School’s community is any less busy! Our faculty has been in training on differentiation with Pak Paul from Antioch University. As well, this week we welcome two remarkable ladies to our team: Ibu Ika, the President of Kul-Kul Foundation, and Ibu Panca, our new Admissions Manager. Go girl power!
In Green School’s green and growing outdoor classroom, we had our High School students out in the garden tending to new and interesting vegetables, while our Geckos made Balinese offerings called Canang for the full-moon ceremony that we honoured at the school. Adding more exciting news, we are oh so happy to announce the arrival of 3 Javan Kingfisher chicks on campus in The Begawan Breeding and Conservation Station. We hope that with the arrival of these kingfisher babies, we can enhance the biodiversity of avian life for Green School’s surrounding ecosystem. The picture above is Grade 4 students helping Pak Henry to build sheds for the swines of Green School last Tuesday.
In this issue:
Green School News
- Parent Information and Events Calendar
- From the Head of School
- Introducing Ibu Ika, President of Kul-Kul Foundation
- Welcome Ibu Panca, Admissions Manager
- From the Green School Library
- Introducing ‘Class Hats’ Program
Upcoming Events
Ongoing Events
Media & Links
Also in the Green School Community
- Green School Family Snapshot
- Green School Uses Less Paper
- Mosquito Repellent Refill Special Offer
- 7-Day Cleanse Course Special Package for Health is Wealth Month
- Living Food Lab ‘Raw Food Introduction’ Class
- Submitting Newsletter Items
Green School News
Parent Information and Events Calendar
February
Feb 27 : Parent Meeting with Principal, Head of School & General Manager, 08.30am in the Mepantigan
March
March 8 : Saraswati ‐ required attendance for staff & students
March 10 : No School, Saraswati Day
March 15 : GS Family Day – Hike Mount Batur
March 27 : Green Ogoh-ogoh Parade
March 28 : No School, Parent‐teacher conference
March 29‐April 6: Mid‐semester break
March 31 : Nyepi – Balinese “Day of Silence”
April
April 11 : GS Family Days – Beach Weekend to Bukit
April 18 : Good Friday
April 25 : Parents Morning
Parent Reminders:
International Snack of the Week is back, next week we’ll have Canada to serve their delish munchers, read more here.
Make sure to check our Lost and Found for missing hats, water bottles, etc..
An important link to our school calendars: http://www.greenschool.org/calendar/.
From the Head of School
Navigating a course is a tacky business that bears a good beating. I suspect I have captured your attention. Our minds register with a definition: tacky resonates with us as ‘messy’. Bearing a beating doesn’t require any explanation. What does the Head of the School mean by saying it is messy? What does he mean by stating it requires a good beating!? Heartless hound!! We jump to conclusions.
But there is always another way of interpreting things. In this use of ‘tacky’ I am referring to tack – how a sailing ship purposefully changes course when navigating into the wind to achieve its bearing. This action is termed ‘beating to windward’. A sailing ship cannot sail directly into a wind. The closest angle most sailing boats can achieve is around 35-45 degrees. To move toward a bearing directly upwind, a boat shifts its course deliberately. Tacking is not just determined on the constancy of the headwind, it is also determined by the space available.
I use this nautical analogy to open our minds to different definitions and interpretations. Metaphors allow us to consider things in a different light. This metaphor can be connected to learning and leading. When trying to attain a goal, tacking is important – these shifts in direction are not mistakes – they are considered, intentional and purposeful changes in course in order to arrive at a desired destination. Sometimes it looks as if you are heading away from your goal. And time can be lost the more times you change direction. Tacking relies on deckhands working together. Sometimes we have to make quick decisions and change course – especially as the wind shifts. But, if we are on the boat, we must trust the navigation and have faith in the skipper, who has studied the charts, mapped his progress and needs to take command of the changes necessary to arrive at an intended destination. This is pertinent for students, who have to tackle challenges when learning, when starting at a new school, when explaining a viewpoint.
The ‘process’ is important when striving for success. If we want to promote successful learning – we must impart proficient strategies. It is the strategies we apply that make us ‘smart’. For example, I often ask students a simple maths sum: What is 109 + 23? The learners often come up with the correct answer – but that is not what interests me. I want to know the strategy – how they arrived at the answer – what was their ‘tack’. Most minds will add 3 to 9 (making 12) and then add 20 to 100 (120) and then add these two together (132). Now consider if this is the most proficient strategy – is this the ‘smartest’ way of doing this calculation?
I show a better, a “beating”, strategy: Make 109 become 110 (+1). Add 110 + 23 (133). Subtract 1 (132). Easier and smarter. A better way of ‘tacking’ toward a solution. It works with 9 numbers and 8 numbers (just take off 2).
My goal in coming to Green School is to grow and nurture this school as a place of quality learning – I realise all too well the amazing achievements that underpin our current practice and the processes involved. And, with humility, I know that when we use the term ‘quality’ it is very open to individual interpretation. But I believe from my experience there are areas in which Green School can become more proficient, work smarter, so our children, our students, and our staff, can all benefit. I am committed to this course and cause. To this end, Green School needs to have defined its navigation charts. We need to map our direction and stay on a true bearing. Our compass must always point toward best learning and best teaching.
We are looking at our calendar carefully. The calendar is like a navigation chart: it maps out a term and a full academic year. Changes are needed. There is good logic behind my actions. Currently, our calendar is not consistent and has many interruptions.
Current Green School Calendar
Term 1 : Tuesday 20 Aug. – Thursday 17 Oct. (8.0 weeks or 40 student days)
Break : 1 week + 1 day
Term 2 : Monday 28 Oct. – Friday 13 Dec. (6.6 weeks or 33 student days)
Break : 3 weeks
Term 3 : Tuesday 7 January – Thursday 27 March (10.4 weeks or 52 student days)
Break : 1 week + 1 day
Term 4 : Monday 7 April – Friday 20 June (9.8 weeks or 49 student days)
Break : 8 weeks
Total Student Days = 174
The new calendar will be defined differently, ensuring consistency in the term blocks and student days. Ideally, our terms should be ten weeks long – this will be phased in over the next two years. One controlling element of the calendar is the Christian festival of Christmas. We need to work back from this date and that pulls us into a week earlier for August.
New Green School Calendar
Term One : Tuesday 12 Aug. – Friday 10 Oct. [8.4 weeks – two festival days, 42 days]
* new students come in on Monday 11 August.
Break : 1 week
Term Two : Monday 20 Oct. – Wednesday 17 Dec. [8.4 weeks – two festival days, 42 days]
Break : 3 weeks
Term Three : Tuesday 13 Jan. – Friday 20 March [10.2 weeks – two festival days, 51 days]
* new students come in on Monday 12 January
Break : 2 weeks
Term Four : Monday 6 April – Friday 12 June [10.0 weeks – three festival days, 50 days]
Break : 7 weeks.
Total Student Days = 185
The phase-in of our new calendar may cause some travel issues for families with regard to international flights – I do understand how tickets are booked early – so some concessions will be offered if applied for.
The new calendar format is based on sound logic. It is much more than just mapping out teaching weeks. The new calendar will organize our programs and make what we do more consistent. There will be layered throughout the calendar key threads. Key areas will be:
This newsletter will not allow all my thoughts to be clearly expressed, but I shall be discussing this in more detail at next week’s parent meeting on Thursday.
Principal and Parents’ Meeting – next Thursday
The agenda for this meeting will be to outline what has been happening at Green School, to outline what is to happen, to celebrate the Health is Wealth initiative, to discuss the parent survey progress, to outline the calendar and the Head will detail more ideas on our strategic intent. It is also to listen to our community. A further meeting with Grade Ambassadors will follow.
Parting Thanks to Ibu Sharon – our Primary Visual Arts Teacher
It is with thanks and best wishes we farewell Ibu Sharon, our Primary Visual Arts teacher. Sharon is returning to the USA after short notice for personal reasons. We wish her well and look forward to staying in touch. In her place, Ibu Jen (High School Visual Arts teacher) has volunteered to step into the role. She will be supported by Ibu Sara in developing an artists in residence program. We also have other capable Visual Arts teachers who can support us in the interim, too. We have advertised for a new position as of this week.
Parent Survey – Your feedback, please
As I am now six weeks old, I would love to get thoughts and ideas from current parents. To this end I have developed a parent survey. It is online and will take about fifteen minutes to complete. I would love to get everyone’s thoughts – as these will help me as we plan strategically the coming years. The survey link is – https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VR6LDTM
Another survey will be presented to our students – and past students – in coming weeks.
Have a great weekend,
John
Introducing Ibu Ika, President of Kul-Kul Foundation
Ni Putu Tirka Widanti, also known as Ibu Ika, is the founder of Kul-Kul Foundation back in 2007. She is now leading the role as President of Yayasan Kul-Kul where her main responsibility will be to ensure that the vision and mission of the School is preserved and is in-line with the provisions of the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia.
Ibu Ika’s professional experiences in education, community service and public administration are extensive. From producing research papers, lecturing at a number of universities in Indonesia, to chairing the Public Administration Post Graduate Program of University of Ngurah Rai in Denpasar; she is now the chairman for Administration Science Post Graduate Program of Ngurah Rai University.
She holds a doctoral degree in Public Administration from Universitas Tujuh Belas Agustus, Surabaya and two post-graduate degrees including MBA from Warranborough University in UK and Magister Management from Artha Bodhi Iswara in Surabaya.
In books, academic articles, local and national newspaper, Ibu Ika has produced many literary works largely related to the empowerment of women, the importance of education, Balinese cultural values, and tourism. During her free time, this remarkable lady enjoys hiking, practicing Balinese dance and doing research on just about anything!
Welcome Ibu Panca, Admissions Manager
We are exceedingly happy to announce Ibu Panca has commenced as Admissions Manager at Green School this week.
Originally from South Sumatra, Ibu Panca moved to Yogyakarta in 2000 to attend university. For the past two years she has been working at the International School of Yogyakarta as their Office Manager. There she gained valuable experience whilst managing all of the school’s office operations and administration; as well as facilitating communication between faculty and parents. Ibu Panca has had extensive professional experience over the past decade working in the fields of education and non-profit orgnisations across Indonesia. She comes well-equipped to step into her position in Admissions at Green School.
Among her interests, Ibu Panca cites learning languages (she’s already matched up with two partners in the Race to 300!), caring for abandoned animals, and staying fit through yoga and swimming.
Ibu Panca loves Bali and has spent many holiday periods here. She is especially enthusiastic about Green School’s vision and is excited about this opportunity to grow and learn as a member of our vibrant community.
You’ll find Ibu Panca in the Admissions office behind the Mepantigan mudpit. Please drop by to introduce yourself if you haven’t met her already, and welcome her warmly to our wonderful Green School community.
From the Green School Library
Thank you for your generous book donations to Green School Library, we now have over 20,000 books in our library. Because of your donations, the students, teachers, staff, and parents are able to loan out several books to take home and enjoy. It is really satisfying seeing the excitement on faces as they find new books. We received a total of 30 books from last month’s book donors:
| Alula Grace Alderson | Student | 7 books – Fiction |
| Daniel Ericco | Author | 2 books – Fiction |
| Isabelle E. Segadelli | Student | 6 books – Fiction 3 books – Non Fiction |
| Sacha B. Tamblyn | Student | 12 books – Fiction |
We would love to accept more books to our library and we welcome your donation. Thank you for thinking of the Green School Library! Click here to see book donors from last year.
Love,
Ibu Ayu Rosita
Introducing ‘Class Hats’ Program
Warmest Greetings from the First Aid Clinic,
Some of you may remember the note a few weeks ago from the school nurse’s office reminding you of our ‘No hat, No play’ policy. Many children continue to forget or lose their hats, and since learning at Green School often takes place outside of the classroom, it is important to protect the health and safety of the children from the dangers of sunburn and heat exhaustion by requiring hats when outside for sport or green studies (see our Handbook for Families at http://www.greenschool.org/community/handbook-for-families/, page 15).
This week, we are launching our ‘Class Hats’ program in support of the ‘No Hat, No Play’ rule in cooperation with the Primary Art department after the donation of 100 traditional Balinese farmers’ hats to Green School. This allows us to provide each Early Years and Primary classroom with spare hats to protect those who have forgotten to bring their own.
To fully engage the students in our ‘No Hat, No Play’ culture, Ibu Sharon and the team in our Primary Visual Arts department have agreed to work with students in grades 1-5, encouraging them to use their greenest imaginations to decorate their Class Hats with creative artwork, making them an expression of each individual class. Hats off to Sharon and the art department for their support of this initiative!
Upcoming Events
Round 2 of the International Snack of the Week is ON!
Photo Credit: www.canadacitizenblog.com
When Green School parent, Insook Park initiated the International Snack of the Week Program last semester, her goal was to raise funds to support the Green Warung and encourage our families to share recipes from around the world for trial taste and ultimately, trial sale. Insook wanted to give everyone the opportunity to contribute healthy options from their respective cultures, both for fun and for the longer term purpose of broadening the food offerings for sale on campus.
The initiative was a wild success! Seven of Green School’s 38 nationalities were represented and collectively they raised 11,513,100 Rupiah for improvements to the Green Warung. These funds will be used to purchase a brand new display refrigerator to protect and display the food on sale at the Green Warung, coming soon. Your hard work has paid off. Well done, Green School parents!
But let’s not allow the new fridge put a freeze on this initiative! Green School still has 31 nationalities that deserve the chance to represent their country’s culinary delights and, the Green Warung is still in need of funding for further improvements. The remainder of the funds and additional funds raised will go towards planned purchases, which include a new freezer for smoothies and new, high quality blenders. In order to purchase these items we hope to raise at least as much as we did in the first semester. Please help ensure we reach our goal!
If you haven’t yet participated, Insook or Emma Titley will be contacting some of the remaining countries in the coming weeks to start round two of this initiative. If you don’t see your country on the list and would like to participate, please contact them directly: insookster@gmail.com and emma.titley@greenschool.org
Team Canada, you are up first!
We have invited all of Green School’s Canadian families to serve their delicious delicacies on Friday, Feb 28th at 3:15-4:15. Come and join the festivity!
Additional Upcoming Nationalities:
South Africa UK
Sweden + Norway + Denmark Germany + Switzerland
Spain +Columbia+ Argentina Japan+ Singapore + Malaysia
India Italy
Ongoing Events
Weekly Sports Update
BSSA Basketball:
Well done to all our teams for a great effort in Week 3 of the round robin games!
Matches for Wednesday 5 March (no games on Wednesday 26 Feb):
9/10s v AIS 1 and 2 at Green School (games start 2.30pm)
All other teams have no games this week. The last round of games will be in Week 5- Wednesday 12 March.
Parents please inform coaches if you’ll be collecting your child from the match venue. A child automatically goes back to Green School with the coach on the bemo if a parent does not inform the coach of a pick up. Please make sure the kids have green and white sports kit and proper shoes, and bring water bottles with them.
Soccer clinic and Community soccer:
Mondays and Thursdays for juniors and Fridays for Seniors:
3.15-4.30pm on the field
Ultimate Frisbee:
Tuesdays 3.30-4.30pm on the field
PE/Sport Kit and proper shoes reminder:
PE Kit, appropriate footwear (closed toe trainers or running shoes), hats and sunblock (for outdoor lessons) are compulsory for all PE lessons. Our PE kits represent the four houses at Green School: Fire (orange), Earth (maroon), Water (blue) and Air (yellow).
Our Sports Kit is green and white and is worn when a student represents the school in the BSSA after school games. It can also be worn for PE classes. All kits can be purchased from Ibu Novi in the HOS 2nd floor.
Media and Links
Green School and Soulshine Festival featured in France 2 TV Channel
French national television channel, France 2, featured Green School, Soulshine Festival and one of Green School’s parent in their documentary series “Un Oeil sur la planète”, Special Indonésie (“Eye On the Planet”, Special Indonesia Episode) last Monday, February 17.
Here is the link to watch the video online, click on the third video titled “Le trésor de Bali”: http://oeil-sur-la-planete.france2.fr/?page=emissions&id_rubrique=130#reportages.
Also in Green School Community
Green School Family Snapshot
Green School interviews Sanna and Garry, parents of Axel, Ashtanga Yoga instructor, and sustainable tourism consultant.
Q. What brings you to Bali and Green School?
A. When we lived in Singapore we made frequent trips to Ubud to attend yoga retreats and workshops. The trips became more frequent and longer. It was always so easy to decide to come here but ever so much more difficult and painful to leave! We always had this sense of ‘we could just stay here forever if only there was a school for Axel.’ One day, I was having breakfast in Bali Buda and got chatting to someone and came out with that line. He replied, “Well you know they are building a new exciting international school called Green School – you should really check it out.” We did and we loved it, but we didn’t have the courage at that stage to jump ship on two successful careers, a conventional lifestyle and our beloved Singapore.
Quite a few years on, Sanna started to study Asian Classics/Buddhist studies. The messages that seemed to really permeate were a) Life is short and there’s no guarantees, b) less is so much more!, c) help others and be happy, d) do what you really care about and make sure it makes a difference, e) be the change that you want to see in the world (just like Gandhi). All these great yet simple and obvious teachings made so much sense and we realized that we needed to completely reinvent ourselves. So we quit our jobs, sold our stuff, stored the rest and came here with our yoga mats and other carefully selected essentials stuffed into three suitcases.
Q. So did your dream become reality?
A. Big time! Axel loves his new school, Sanna is teaching ashtanga yoga at Radiantly Alive (Green School parents get 50% discount at Radiantly Alive) and I am working on a voluntary basis with sustainable tourism strategies for Burma/Myanmar to try and improve the quality of life in local communities and to ensure that tourism becomes a part of the solution and not a part of the problem.
We also agreed as a family to sign up to a form of voluntary simplicity – in short, no more endless buying! Previously we were drowning in ‘stuff.’ So that means that we now only buy things that we really truly need, or things that need to be replaced; and we try to make things before we even think about buying anything new. We are so proud of Axel who has become the most brilliant inventor in bamboo, old wood and other recycled materials – especially inner tubes from motorbikes! Green School has also really helped to bring out his creative talents.
Q. Where are you from?
A. That seems to be a difficult one to answer for many Green School families! Axel was born in Stockholm but moved with us to Frankfurt, Berlin, Singapore, Lyon and Bali. We are professional gypsies and have lived in seven different countries over the past 20 years. Garry is originally from England; Sanna, from Finland and Axel calls himself Finnish although he has never lived there. Our latest family additions are two rescue cats and a puppy – they are currently trying to figure out whether they like each other or not. ‘Home’ is now sometime Bali, Stockholm and Helsinki.
Green School Uses Less Paper
Hi Green People!
It has been 3 months since Green School started using recycled paper, and so far we have spent 75 reams of paper. This means that we use 60% less than we usually spent on ordinary white paper. Congratulations and our sincere THANK YOU to all of you who truly care about our trees, orang utan and our forest!
Let’s keep this good will and use less paper whenever we can!
Let’s save more ORANG UTAN and TREES!
Best,
Nita
Mosquito Repellent Refill Special Offer
Rainy season is upon us, that means it’s mosquito season too! Bring your empty spray bottles (any bottle will do) and get a Nadis Herbal Natural Mosquito Repellent refill at Green School Shop for special price:
60 ml refill for 15,000 Rupiah
80 ml refill for 20,000 Rupiah
100 ml refill for 27,000 Rupiah
You can also buy a new 60ml purse-size Nadis Herbal Mosquito Repellent for 35,000 Rupiah. Nadis Herbal is all natural, made in Bali and smells good.
7-Day Cleanse Course Special Package for Health is Wealth Month
In conjunction with the Health is Wealth month, You!Healing is offering an exclusive package for Green School families, teachers and staff of ‘Two for the Price of One’ 7-Day Cleanse Course on 6th-13th March.
The package will help you improve your digestion, reduce stress, have deeper sleep, healthier eating habits, weight loss, heightened clarity and improved stamina. Everything you will be provided, including cleansing supplements, energy boosters, a complete e-book and guided meditations.
Join Anne Hockett and her team for a week of fun and experience a proven process and a clear outcome that might just change your life forever!
For more information contact Anne Hockett at annehockett@me.com
Living Food Lab ‘Raw Food Introduction’ Class
Living Food Lab is offering Green School families an introduction class to learn about Asian/Italian Fusion raw food this Saturday, February 22 from 9:30 – 1:30 at Green School.
You will learn the art of living food preparation to revitalize your body, clear your mind and give your energy level a boost. Utilizing organic plant foods, discover how to combine fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds into richly nutritious, deeply satisfying snacks and meals. Eating a raw food diet helps strengthen your immune system, balance your pH level, aids digestion and hydration, and can assist you in maintaining the appropriate weight for your body without deprivation. Eating more living foods enhances your overall sense of aliveness and wellbeing. The class fee is $50 US which includes hands-on preparation, a delicious meal and an ebook for home use
Asian / Italian Menu:
Green Smoothie Zucchini Lasagna
Red Vinaigrette Dressing Island Spice
Spinach Cashew Ricotta Sesame Drizzle
Italian Tomato Sauce Daikon Stacks
Dried Fruit Torte Sunflower Pate
For more information please contact maxaarens@hotmail.com.
Submitting Newsletter Items
We welcome you to submit your own news updates for our weekly newsletter. To submit, send your news update to communications@greenschool.org by 12 noon each Wednesday. Please follow the instructions below to make it easier for us to publish your news:
1. Please add “NEWSLETTER” in the title of your email.
2. Please write a concise (2 to 6 paragraphs, more or less) blurb describing your news.
3. Please attach a photo that illustrates or accompanies your news.
* We are open to publishing projects connected with Green School, however please be sure to include “Green School” in your title and or the paragraphs below.
** We cannot always guarantee that we will publish your submission and when we do, we may need to edit it a bit before publishing & sometime may need a week or two before we include your article.
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