International School Het Rijnlands Lyceum Oegstgeest—Information

International School Het Rijnlands Lyceum
Oegstgeest—Information for new families
School Year 2015-16
You´re coming to Rijnlands ….
we look forward to meeting you!
Dear Students, Parents and Guardians,
On behalf of our staff and pupils welcome to the 2015-16 academic
year of the International School Het Rijnlands Lyceum Oegstgeest
(ISRLO), this will be our 32nd year of offering international education.
We hope your son(s) and/or daughter(s) will have a fantastic time at
our school.
Whether you have been able to visit the school before, or have had to
do the entire application process from abroad, you will probably still
have many questions about the school, how it functions, what to do
when, how to communicate with the school, who to speak to for what,
etc.
This newsletter is aimed at answering a few of the most frequently
asked questions we have experienced although it is by no means
exhaustive.
Moving school is an important transition to get right, not just for the
students but also for you as parents. I wish you a smooth transition
and we look forward to welcoming you on Monday 24th August at
10:30 at our Opening Ceremony.
Let us know if we can assist you further.
Best regards,
Mathijs Hekkelman
Head International School
Educational Programmes
The international school consists of two sections offering the
International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (IBMYP) and the
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). Students in the
age range of 11-16 years study in the Middle Years Programme in years
1-5, these classes are called “MP1- MP5”; and students aged 16 - 19
study in the Diploma Programme, these classes are called DP1 and
DP2.
International School Management
The management of the International School comprises the following
people:
Mr. Mathijs Hekkelman, Head of International School (office N124)
[email protected]
Mr. Jonathan Symmons, DP Team leader (office N125)
[email protected]
Ms. Leonore Kromhout, MYP Team Leader (office N125)
[email protected]
The school administrator is Cheryl Embleton. Cheryl is the point of
contact for general queries from students and parents. She is also
responsible for student admission administration, finance, Managebac,
school events and public relations matters.
Mrs Embleton’s office is situated in the North Wing (N108).
Office availability from 08.15 – 13.15.
Contact: 071-5193555 and [email protected]
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Year calendar
The school year has four terms of nine or ten weeks each. During the teaching
term students will take at least one test per subject. A test schedule is made for
the final week of each term; mid-term tests take place during subject lessons.
School holidays 2015-16
For your own agenda’s, attached is a printable school holiday calendar—one
year in one view style. At the end of this newsletter are the important dates
and events until Christmas.
Daily timetable
The daily time table is the following:
period 1 08.30-09.45
period 2 09.50-11.05
break 1
11.05-11.30
period 3 11.30-12.45
break 2
12.45-13.15
period 4 13.15-14.30
period 5 14.35-15.50
period 6 15.55-17.10
The students are permitted 5 minutes walking time between classes.
Schedules
Schedules for students, teachers and classes can be seen online on the school
website (www.isrlo.nl) using the student identification log-in. Students can also
check their own schedule using the computers at the central reception.
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Managebac
The main school information portal is called ManageBac.
ManageBac is the leading online learning platform for IB world schools.
ManageBac enables efficient curriculum planning, assessment and
reporting, while eliminating paperwork and enhancing communication to
parents and students.
ManageBac is a web-based application that is hosted by servers. All you
need is an internet connection and a modern web browser with
JavaScript enabled. We would recommend using Google Chrome for the
best experience, but Safari 5, Internet Explorer 9 or Firefox 12 all work
fine on Macs & PCs.
During the first week, you will receive a welcome email from Managebac
with a hyperlink for you to create a password and explore the portal. It
is also possible to download the MB app onto most smart phones.
During the information evenings we will provide information and
guidance on the use of Managebac
Lockers
Lockers are available for all students, the tutor will inform the students
when they can collect an electronic locker pass during the first week.
The charge for a locker is €25 per year, this will be invoiced during the
first term.
Bring your own device (BYOD)
As the school moves ever-closer to a paperless environment, students
are encouraged to use their own laptops/Ipads/tablets in class for note
taking, assignments, project work and research. As you have seen,
Managebac will be a major part of students life, it is essential that every
student has access to a computer. Please note that the school accepts
no responsibility for loss or damage to devices, this is entirely the
responsibility of the student; our suggestion is that they use their lockers
for safe storage when they are not being used.
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ID cards
During the first week the official photographer will take photographs of students
for their school pass. Students will be handed passes as soon as they are
ready by their tutor. This ID card is an essential part of Rijnlands’ life and should
be brought to school everyday.
Refreshments/snacks at school
The school has two canteens located within the school for the students to
purchase filled rolls and other savoury items during the break times. Vending
machines are located throughout the school where students can purchase a
variety of hot and cold drinks.
Opening of the school year
All students are required at school on Monday 24 August 2015 for the opening
ceremony —earlier if you need to collect your books earlier ie: MP1 students.
Student ambassadors will be available at the entrance of school to assist new
students in finding their way—look out for them, they’ll be wearing name badges
and a huge smile; they are always happy to be back at school!
The opening ceremony begins at 10.30 promptly, parents are encouraged to
attend so they can meet their son/daughter’s tutor and the international school
team. The ceremony usually takes an hour and the students will join their tutor
afterwards for a short time. Students are free by 1pm and free to leave.
During the first week there will be plenty of opportunity to get to know other
students with activities and class events. Full details will be available via
Managebac and from the tutors.
Change of details form
Tutors will hand out a change of detail form to all students on their first day,
please would you kindly ensure that your son or daughter has your new home
address, email address (we need this for Managebac, otherwise you will not
receive your welcome hyperlink), home telephone and your mobile numbers
ready to fill out for our student database. Any subsequent changes can be
made by parents in Managebac.
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Stationery requirements
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A personal agenda
A scientific calculator – see information specific to the math
department below.
A Compass – for drawing circles
A Student World Atlas – Collins Student World Atlas: this can be
purchased from Amazon, Bol.com or a good bookshop.
Notebooks – lined A4 or A5 books for Geography, History and
Science and squared for Mathematics – this can be of any design.
A4 binder and suitable lined paper for the size of the folder –
including at least 3 sub-dividers
A memory (USB) stick labelled with the students name - +/- 10gb.
General items - Ruler, scissors, pencils, multi-coloured pencils,
erasers, highlighters and writing pens or ink pens.
Important information about calculators
MYP1-4
A scientific calculator: It doesn’t have to be a top of the range model, but it
should be a scientific version with the following functions: square roots, cube
roots, trigonometry etc.
MYP5
In MP5, we recommend the use of a Graphics Display Calculator (GDC). For
students who are intending to do the Diploma Programme after their final
MYP year, for the Diploma Programme (DP) a GDC is compulsory and from
school year 2012-2013 onwards the GDC that we will be using and is used
in our textbooks is the Texas Instruments TI Nspire CX.
DP
In the Diploma Programme, a Graphics Display Calculator is compulsory.
The calculator that we will be using is the Texas Instruments TI Nspire CX.
The text books that we use in the Diploma Programme Mathematics courses
are also using this calculator.
***Take care: Don’t buy the TI Nspire CAS, as this is not permitted in
the Diploma Programme
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Academic textbooks
A schedule for the collection of academic textbooks at the beginning of the new
year is as follows:
Monday 24 August—in the back gym
MP1—9:00-10:30
MP5 —11:00-13:00
MP3 - 13:30-14:30
Tuesday 25 August—in the back gym, except DP1
MP2—9:00-10:30
MP4– 11:00-13:30
DP1– 13:00-15:00—in the OLC
Students will require at least one large (and strong) backpack for their
books—please do NOT under estimate the need for several strong bags!
All text and workbooks are issued free of charge; however, please kindly ensure
that the book fund deposit has been paid—this deposit will be returned to you at
the end of your time at Rijnlands providing books have not been lost or
damaged.
Students in the Diploma programme may receive, depending on their subject
packages books which teachers have deemed that they should write or annotate
in; where this is the case, it will be made clear what books are to be purchased
and an invoice sent from the finance department.
Lesson free days for students—Organisation days
Throughout the academic year we hold organisation or lesson-free days. During
2015-16 they are as follows:
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Tuesday 10 November
Tuesday 26 January
Tuesday 12 April
from Monday 4 July—Thursday 7 July.
On these dates students are not required to come into school. However, staff
will be hard at work conducting report meetings, curriculum planning,
professional development etc.
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Parent Council
The parent council have representatives across all of the tutor classes and
meet bi-monthly with Mathijs Hekkelman, head of the international school.
This group of parents organises activities for parents and students during
within the school year of a more social content, ie: information evenings,
quiz nights etc.
In addition these parents have a wealth of local knowledge, sporting clubs
and activities and of course they are parents who have experienced the
transition into the Rijnlands community.
Look out for information from them during the first few weeks. We will be
looking for new members.
Questions?
If you have any questions in the meantime, you can email Cheryl; her details
are on the second page, she is in school until Friday 10 July and then from
Wednesday 19 August when the international team return to prepare for the
school re-opening.
And finally……
At the beginning of the school year information boards will be located in the
reception area with the first weeks’ programme of activities, class information
and sign-up sheets, please ensure that you take sometime on the first day to
familiarise yourself with these. The Parent Council will be available with tea,
coffee and an encouraging smile before the opening ceremony and to
answer any questions or quell and fears you may have.
Enjoy your Summer! We look forward to meeting you all at the opening
ceremony and hope that you will quickly feel at home within our international
community.
International team
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DATES FOR YOUR DIARY—2015-2016
September 2015
Monday 24 August—back to school—Opening Ceremony at 10:30
Monday 24 August—book fund collection MP1, MP3, MP5
Tuesday 25 August —book fund collection MP2, MP4, DP1
Thursday 27 August —Ice cream social—all international students
Friday 28 August—All classes team building and activities day
Monday 31 August—MP1-MP3 Parent evening and Managbac information
Wednesday 2 September—DP1 Parent evening and Managbac information
Tuesday 8 September—DP2 Managebac information evening
Thursday 10 September—MP4+5 Parent evening and Managbac and E-assessment
information evening
Friday 11 September—Diploma Ceremony for the students of Class 2015
Thursday 24 September—DP1 core curriculum information evening
October 2015
Thursday 15 October - Poetry Evening
Monday 19—Friday 23 October—Autumn holiday
November 2015
3—9 November—Test week 1
Tuesday 10 November—lesson free day—no students in school
Thursday 19 November—DP1 careers information evening
Thursday 26 November—10 minute parents evening
December 2015
Thursday 17 December—50 minute timetable and Horsepower action day, students are
released early
Friday 18 December—Students hand in money raised for Horsepower action
Monday 21 December— Monday 4 January 2016—Christmas Holiday
For the most up to date information, please see our website: www.isrlo.nl
To report a student absent from school; [email protected]
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