N E W S L E T T E R - St. Mary`s International School

N
E
W
S
L
E
T
T
E
R
1-6-19 Seta, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 158-8668
(03) 3709-3411
www.smis.ac.jp
“A School with a Heart”
Quarterly Highlights!
Issue No. 2 - Second Quarter 2013
In This Newsletter Issue
Message from the Headmaster!
SMA President!
Page 1
Page 2
ES Counselor!
St. Mary’s Athletics!
Page 6
Page 6-7
HS Principal!
MS Principal!
Page 2-3
Page 3
Swim Team!
Development Office!
Page 7-8
Page 8
ES Principal!
ES Librarian!
Page 3
Page 4
St. Mary’s Association Committees!
Bingo Donors!
Page 9-10
Page 10-11
MS/HS Librarian!
Learning Support Services!
Page 4-5
Page 5
From Our Advertisers!
Dates to Watch!
Page 12-16
Page 17
Message from the Headmaster
Sunday, November 24, brought beautiful
autumn weather to St. Mary’s, with blue skies,
and radiant sunshine. After a year of planning
— with Mr. Tom Molina in Tokyo, and Mr.
Armando Tailes in Shizuoka — Shizuoka
Seiko Gakuin students ranging in age from 13
to 17 years arrived in three, large, school buses
at St. Mary’s for a day of friendly sports
competition in basketball, soccer and tennis.
About 100 Seiko Gakuin students visited, with
about an equal number of St. Mary’s middle
and high school students in attendance. What
was thought to be a day of sports was in fact
one of discovery and celebration of the
common roots that brought the two schools
together: The Brothers of Christian
Instruction. Shizuoka Seiko Gakuin is the
newest of the four Brothers’ schools in Japan,
while St. Mary’s is the oldest. There are two
other Brothers’ schools in Japan: Yokohama
Seiko Gakuin, and Sayuri Kindergarten, also
in Yokohama.
Second Quarter 2013
One might imagine that with all the
competitive drive concentrated on the field,
tennis and basketball courts, there would be
an emphasis on winning. Far from this, there
was a calm atmosphere that could be summed
up as ‘Brother-ly.’
The Brothers’ schools are alive and well. The
mutual understanding of our roots
contributed to the positive and cooperative
atmosphere. No one knew what the outcome
would be at this first-of-its-kind event, but
there was significant participation from
parents (who volunteered to run the
concessions booth), students, teachers and
coaches to make sure it was a success: Kazuya
Ogino and Mackenzie Lee gave speeches in
English and Japanese; Mr. Ichikawa, with the
St. Mary’s Athletic Club and the legion of
student ambassadors, helped to welcome all;
Mr. Clarkson and varsity basketball; Mr. Chan
and the MS soccer and basketball teams; Mr.
Twohig with JV soccer; Mr. Van Den Bossche
and MS soccer and varsity soccer; Mr. Willis
with MS basketball; Mr. Langholz; all were
cheerleaders and encouraged participants;
and Br. Deo, representing the Brothers and
reminding us why we are here.
Another reason why we are here is to help
others. While we celebrate the existence,
founding and continuation of the Brothers’
schools, we are also reminded of those who
need our support around the world. The
Christmas season is one of giving and helping
others. Please do help the St. Mary’s
community as they focus their attention on
helping the victims of the recent super
typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
During this holiday season, may God watch
over you and your loved ones, and on behalf
of the school, may you have time to celebrate
family and the sanctity of the birth of Jesus.
-Saburo Kagei, Headmaster
1
S
T
.
M
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
E
T
T
E
R
Student and teacher participants from Shizuoka Seiko Gakuin and St. Mary’s International School
From the St. Mary’s Association
The first quarter flew by with many exciting
activities organized by the St. Mary’s
Association. Our first large fundraising
event of the year, Lightning Bingo Night on
October 18th, was a tremendous success due
to the capable hands of our Bingo Chair,
Rika Atobe, and Co-Chair, Mamee Kaneko.
Thank you to all of our donors, committee
chairs, food booth chairs, boosters and
volunteers for the terrific support.
The day started with the Pancake Breakfast
at 7 a.m. and continued with the Bingo Bake
Sale running throughout the day. These two
events leading up to Bingo Night were also
a great success! Thank you to Lia Kumar
and Keiko Fukazawa, Room Parent
Coordinators, the volunteers at the breakfast
and at the bake sale, and for all the families
who donated the wonderful goodies that the
students enjoy. Mrs. Kumar and Mrs.
Fukazawa were also on hand to support Mr.
Langholz’s evening event, the MS Father’s
Night, on Nov. 19. Thank you to Mr.
Langholz, the MS principal, and to all
participants at the event. I hope we can have
more of these types of meetings in the
future.
In line with the St. Mary’s Association’s goal
of continuing to integrate with our
community, Japanese Speakers’ Support
Group Chair Keiko Ikeda and Co-Chair Risa
Osawa have put together an English
conversation class for interested parents,
together with invaluable support from Br.
Michel. The JSSG has also coordinated a
series of school tours led by Ms. Wayne, to
help our Japanese speaking families
understand better the workings of St.
Mary’s. On Nov. 27, the JSSG also organized
a parenting workshop open to all parents
who speak Japanese, lead by Ms. Mizutani,
a trained child counselor. A heartfelt thank
2
you to Mrs. Ikeda, Mrs. Osawa, Br. Michel,
Ms. Wayne, Ms. Mizutani and to all who
attended these events.
Hospitality Chair Aya Iwamoto and CoChair Therese Adachi joined with the Seisen
Hospitality team to organize another fun
social outing to Yokohama’s Chinatown on
Oct. 29. Forty-one happy parents enjoyed a
great day of food, shopping and friendship.
Thank you to Mrs. Iwamato and Mrs.
Adachi for planning a great day.
In the days ahead, we will launch the
Carnival Poster Campaign once again this
year for MS and HS students interested in
designing this year’s Carnival poster, with
Mr. Sirkka’s full support. The St. Mary’s
Association thanks him for his invaluable
time and dedication! Please stay tuned for
more information regarding submissions
and deadlines.
Have safe and wonderful Christmas
Holidays!
-Caterina Tanaka, President, St. Mary’s
Association
Focus on the Student Experience
at the High School
At the high school level, we are focusing on
the student experience and providing a
variety of extracurricular opportunities for
students. Following is an overview of some
the most recent activities as well a preview
of upcoming activities.
SAT/ACT
On Nov. 8, for the first time, St. Mary’s
offered a free ACT and SAT practice test to
any interested high school student.
Representatives from ESM College, a test
preparation company, proctored the exams.
Students will receive their scores along with
Also, this Saturday, Dec. 7, please join us for an analysis about how they can improve
the annual Christmas Craft Fair in the MPR. their scores very soon. In February, we hope
The JSSG have scheduled the fair around the to do this again.
ES Christmas Concert in the afternoon, and
the MS/HS Instrumental Christmas Concert Movie Night
in the evening. This year, the Christmas
On Thursday, Nov. 21, the Student Council
Craft Fair will run from 11 a.m. to 12:50
sponsored a movie night, and 148 high
p.m., from 2 to 3:30 p.m., and from 5 to 6:50 school students from St. Mary’s, Seisen and
p.m., with children’s activities, food,
ISSH attended. The event was very
beverages, and crafts for sale.
successful and the feedback from students
was very positive. Look for upcoming
Lastly, SMA Treasurer Tomoko Ajeesh and
communication from the Student Council
Assistant Treasurer Shinobu Harada
recently sent out the St. Mary’s Association
about future events including a high school
Treasurer’s Report to St. Mary’s families via dance planned for second semester.
the Families Mailing List. Please take a
Christmas Concerts
moment to look over the report to see how
This year the St. Mary’s MS/HS
the funds we raise through your generous
donations and volunteer time are allocated. Instrumental Christmas Concert will take
place on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 7 p.m. in the
gymnasium. The St. Mary’s/Seisen MS/HS
The St. Mary’s Association sincerely thanks
Choral Christmas Concert will take place on
all St. Mary’s families for your support that
Sunday, Dec. 8, at 7 p.m. in the gymnasium.
enables us to achieve our goals.
Second Quarter 2013
S
T
.
M
(continued from page 2)
The St. Mary’s/Seisen MS/HS Choral
Christmas Concert will take place on Sunday,
Dec. 8, at 7 p.m. in the gymnasium. Please
plan to join us for these two events that will
showcase the musical talents of our students!
Basketball
JV Basketball Jamboree
The JV Titans hosted a three-team jamboree
with Saint Maur and ASIJ. In the first game, St
Mary's took on Saint Maur, who held pace
through much of three quarters, but the uptempo pace by the Titans proved too much.
The Titans were victorious against Saint Maur.
The second match-up with ASIJ turned into a
back-and-forth battle, with both sides trading
leads. It came down to the final minutes to
decide the game. St Mary's pulled within one
with less than a minute to go. ASIJ was able to
hit their free throws down the stretch, and the
Titans lost in a nail-biter, 52-57.
Hong Kong International School Holiday
Basketball Tournament
St. Mary’s Basketball Team traveled to the
44th Annual Holiday Basketball Tournament
in Hong Kong on Nov. 28-30. They competed
with other schools from Japan, Taiwan,
Singapore and Thailand.
Season Opener at Home
The Titans will have the first home game on
Friday, Dec. 6, against ASIJ! The JV game will
tip off at 5:30 and the varsity will follow at 7
p.m. Please make plans to come out and
support the Titans.
Swimming
The St. Mary’s Swim Team took eight
swimmers to compete at the prestigious Tokyo
Swimming Center Invitational Nov. 21-22 in
Sugamo. For more details about this meet and
and others, please see the extensive coverage
in ‘Swim Team Highlights’ in this newsletter.
The swim team’s next meet will be on Sunday,
Dec. 8, at the Tokyo South Club
Championships in Tatsumi.
Soccer
JV Season Kickoff
The JV soccer season kicked off with a friendly
match against ASIJ JV on Saturday, Nov. 23.
According to the coach, the weather was
positively tropical! The final result was 1-1.
Moanalua HS Thanksgiving Soccer Classic
The St. Mary’s Varsity Soccer Team traveled to
the Moanalua High School Thanksgiving
Soccer Classic on Nov. 27-30 to compete
against schools from Hawaii. Soccer season
will resume in January 2014.
Second Quarter 2013
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
Wrestling
Wrestling season opens with a meet at CAJ on
Dec. 7 at 9 a.m.! Please support the Titans!
Please check the St. Mary’s website for a full
calendar of events that have been designed to
enhance the student experience.
-Bonetta Ramsey, High School Principal
Middle School: a Spirit of Giving
It has been a very busy beginning of the year
at the St. Mary’s International Middle School.
Thanks to all of you who helped support the
boys during the Tohoku Walk-a-thon. Our
boys, along with the students at Seisen
International School, raised ¥1.4 million for
the Asahigaoka Orphanage in Tohoku. We
hope to have the director of Asahigaoka travel
to Tokyo so that we can present him with a
check for this amount as a way to further send
the message to our students about the
importance of being kind to others. The sixth
grade teachers and students have been doing
additional fundraisers for this orphanage
under the direction of their teachers Mr.
Dixon, Mr. Van Den Bossche and Mrs. Striegl,
and for their efforts you can be proud.
Mr. Nicholson and Mr. Blair are organizing
holiday fundraisers for charity. Mr. Nicholson
gathers gifts and has students deliver them
personally to St. Joseph's orphanage in Tokyo,
providing another way for our students to
learn about the excitement of giving to others.
Mr. Blair is doing an annual foreign coin
exchange to help support the school-wide
holiday fundraiser that will support the relief
efforts in the Philippines. If you would like to
support either of these charity initiatives, I am
sure that Mr. Nicholson or Mr. Blair would be
very pleased to hear from you.
Especially with the ongoing problems of the
Tohoku tsunami and nuclear disaster and the
destruction in the Philippines, it is good to
think about the needs of others, particularly as
we head into the holiday season. The school’s
mission distinguishes St. Mary’s as a school
that moves beyond learning for the sake of
individuals making a difference in the world
and about “Making a Difference Every Day”
in the lives of those with whom we interact.
E
T
T
E
R
Elementary School Shares Their
Blessings With Others
Christmas is in the air, and the hallways
around school are looking quite festive as we
prepare for the holiday season. A truly great
way to prepare even more for the holiday
season is to attend our Elementary School
Christmas Concert, which is scheduled for
Saturday, Dec. 7, from 1 to 2 p.m. The boys
and their teachers have been working very
hard to get everything ready for the concert,
and I believe they have a wonderful show in
store for you. Please come out and get into the
Christmas spirit listening to music of the
season performed by our choirs and band. We
hope to see everyone there!
This year we are again participating in quite a
few charity events to help those less fortunate
than ourselves. In addition to our usual
sponsorship of the Brothers’ school in the
Philippines, we are also collecting money in
the Sharing Box to send to those who suffered
greatly due to the recent typhoon in the
Philippines. We thank you in advance for your
kind donations to this cause.
On top of all this, we are also inviting our
elementary students to participate in the Gifts
for the Children of Tohoku project whereby they
can bring in gifts of colored pencils, crayon
sets, pencil cases, drawing paper and the like
to be distributed as Christmas gifts to the
young people of the Tohoku area. These are all
great ways to show our boys the importance
of giving and thinking of others, and I want to
thank you for the excellent example you give
them by your generosity. Christmas is a time
of giving and this spirit is alive and well at St.
Mary’s. Thank you for caring!
Please accept our heartfelt best wishes to you
and yours for a blessed Christmas season and
a healthy, happy and prosperous New Year.
We have all been blessed in so many ways,
and at this time of year it is a beautiful sight to
see so many sharing those blessings with
others. Thank you for all you do for your son
and our school, and have a wonderful holiday
season. Merry Christmas!
-Michael DiMuzio, Elementary School
Principal
Best wishes to each of you for a wonderful
holiday season. May the spirit of Christmas
stick with you all throughout the New Year.
-James Langholz, Middle School Principal
3
S
T
.
M
Celebrate Reading in the ES
Library!
Reading Celebration Day
On Oct. 11, we held our 4th annual Reading
Celebration Day, to celebrate our spectacular
St. Mary’s readers and their summer reading
record of 780,704 pages read. It was truly an
inspirational day, starting out in the school’s
first floor atrium with our students, teachers,
administrators and many others reading
quietly for about 10 minutes. It was fun to see
and hear everyone reading, both to
themselves and the younger readers
confidently reading out loud.
We received many fantastic and interesting
photos from our young readers over the
summer for our Reading ‘Round the World
Family Photo Contest. The ES Library also
held a bookmark contest and a door
decorating contest. We have many talented
artists at St. Mary’s, and as far as we are
concerned, everyone was a winner.
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
Congratulations to our bookmark contest
winners: Yushi in RPJ for RP; Wujin in 2N for
1st and 2nd Grade; Bill in 5W for 3rd, 4th and
5th Grade.
Please take a look at our winning bookmarks
and see who made the finals for each category.
Congratulations also go out to our winning
door displays: 1R for RP and 1st Grade; 2N for
2nd and 3rd Grade; 5W for 4th and 5th Grade.
See the winning door displays here.
We thank all the parents for supporting your
sons’ reading and for taking the time to read
together as a family throughout the summer
and the school year.
4
T
T
E
R
November 7 our RP to 3rd grade classes got
to hear New Zealand author and musician,
Mark Sommerset, talk about the books he
wrote, and his wife, Rowan Sommerset,
illustrated. He truly inspired many of our
boys to dream large.
our three internal competitions, culminating
with the two highest scoring teams joining
forces to compete in the All-Japan Sakura
Book Bowl competition, which will be held in
March 2014. We wish all our teams the best of
luck as they read, read, read Sakura Medal
Books! Keep tabs on your favorite team’s score
here.
Reading Programs
Currently all of our Elementary School
students are involved in either the St. Mary’s
Book Award Program or the Sakura Medal
Reading Program.
As we move into this holiday season,
remember to take time out from your busy
schedules to read together as a family. Just a
few minutes a day can really make a
difference toward your son’s academic
achievements and can foster a love of reading
that will help them reach their potential, not to
mention all the great holiday memories you
will make.
Mark Sommerset at St. Mary’s
The St. Mary’s Book Award (SMBA), a
children’s choice award, is an important part
of our library program. All students in RP to
grade 3 hear the five short-listed titles during
their library classes and vote for their favorite
title at the end of the program. They are
encouraged to evaluate the books for both the
story’s content and the illustrations.
This year’s short-listed books are: Neville by
Norton Juster, Chickens Can’t See in the Dark
by Kristina Litten, A Bus Called Heaven by
Bob Graham, Mister Whistler by Margaret
Mahy, and Oliver by Birgitta Sif. Voting will
take place right before Christmas break.
Stop by the ES Library to see the fabulous
photos of our Family Photo Contest Winners:
Ryuichi in RPM; Ryunosuke in 1T; Robin in
2H; Min Thwe in 3C; Kensei in 4L; Oh in 5W.
E
Books are flying off the shelves as students in
grades 4 to 5 embark on their six-month
journey into the world of the SMA sponsored
Sakura Medal Reading Program. This exciting
reading program, which was dreamed up by a
group of teacher-librarians from international
schools throughout Japan in 2005, is a big part
of the international school library programs in
Japan.
Currently, only 4th and 5th grade students are
reading from the Sakura Medal list. Starting in
January, the 2nd and 3rd grade classes will
join in. As many of you are aware, we require
that each student read at least five books and
write in their Sakura Medal reading log which
is kept in the library. The more they read, the
more votes they can submit. Students receive
one vote for every five books read. It’s
fantastic to see so much reading going on. For
more information about this exciting reading
program, please check out our website.
Happy Reading and Merry Christmas!
-Tammy Hays, ES Librarian
2014 Sakura Medal Nominated
Books Available in MS/HS
Library
High school and middle school students
eagerly look forward to the month of
November as the start of the reading period
for the Sakura Medal Award’s short-listed
books. They will not be disappointed with the
2014 lists — the selection in all four categories
we participate in is outstanding! You can see
the lists up on our website and at the official
Sakura Medal site.
We have multiple copies of each title on hand,
but it is hard to keep up with the heavy
demand in some of the more popular titles, so
for the time being we are restricting Sakura
Medal books check-out to one book at a time.
We do plan, however, to lift this restriction
before the Christmas holidays, so that the boys
can take home some extra good books to read
over the break.
Thank you to the SMA for your generous
support to keep this exciting program going.
St. Mary’s has 60 students from the 4th and
5th grades who are participating in the Sakura
Medal Book Bowl, which is similar to the
Brain Bowl. We have 12 teams competing in
Second Quarter 2013
S
T
.
M
(continued from page 4)
Seek the Unknown @ Your Library was the
selected theme for this year’s Teen Read Week.
In the Teen Read Week 2013 Middle School
Short Story Competition, Sean I.’s “The
unknown forest,” Shabab I.’s “The unknown
bird of the city,” and Nikita R.’s, “Searching
for the unknown” took first honors in 6V, 6S
and 6D, respectively. The winners received a
first-place certificate and a copy of Catching
Fire, book 2 of the ever-popular Hunger Games
trilogy. Congratulations go out also to Naoki
M., Seigo D. and Nishi G. for second place,
and Shibabrata G., Kota U. and Cameron F. for
third place awards. Honorable mentions were
given to John P., Surya S., Joey Y., Aaryan B.,
Dhairya G., Julian G., David K., Hyun R.,
Aaron W., and Leon Y.
All the boys seemed pleased to receive their
certificates, books, pens, pencils and
bookmarks, and other small treats as a thank
you from the library for their participation.
Many thanks to the middle school teachers,
Mr. Dixon, Mrs. Striegl and Mr. Van Den
Bossche, for submitting their students’
writings to the Teen Read Week competition.
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
E
R
How to Praise Our Kids
Now that report cards have been sent out (or
checked on PowerSchool), and the first ParentTeacher Conference of the year has come and
gone, it’s time again to take stock. We think
about successes to celebrate and achievements
to be proud of — both big and small. It also
gives us reason to pause and to ask: How do
we show our approval to our children?
Elizabeth Gunderson, who did a longitudinal
study on toddlers, said, “The kind of praise
focused on effort is called ‘process praise’ and
sends the message that effort and actions are
the sources of success. It leads children to
believe they can improve their performance
through hard work.”
Praise is the word that comes to mind when
we talk about approval, and praising has very
deep cultural roots. Research on praise shows
that Western and non-Western parents have
their own culturally-embedded way of
expressing approval to their children. And
they can be markedly different.
Studies done in the UK show that parents
with South Asian backgrounds use praise with
caution; and studies on Chinese American
parents indicate that they are also reluctant to
use praise. (Approval is shown in other,
nonverbal ways.)
With Christmas approaching, we have
gathered some attractive materials related to
this joyful holiday, including recipe books,
home decorations, crafts, novels, mysteries,
short stories, poems and other Christmas
miscellanea. You can preview the Christmas
books as a resource list in our Destiny catalog,
if you like, and then come into the library to
check the books out.
Not so, it seems. A benchmark study by
Mueller and Dweck in 1998 demonstrated that
this type of praise — focusing on a child’s
innate intelligence (especially after
accomplishing a task with success) — has
negative effects on motivation and on later
academic success. According to Dweck,
“When we praise children for their
intelligence, we tell them that this is the name
of the game: look smart, don’t risk making
mistakes.”
Second Quarter 2013
T
recipe for response to failure,” according to
Dweck.
On the other hand, American parents tend to
habitually praise their children “early and
often”. It seems to also be the widely accepted
norm, and until recently, an unquestioned
practice, to praise children for their innate
intelligence. “You’re so smart,” is a statement
so frequently dispensed by well-meaning
parents in the US, often without thought. It
was believed that praising children for their
intelligence boosted self-confidence. The
prevailing notion was “to arm” them for any
and all sorts of academic challenges out there.
-Anna Fernicola, MS/HS Librarian
T
From the Learning Support
Coordinator
To mark the 50th anniversary of the
assassination of John F. Kennedy, 35th
President of the United States of America, the
Library has set up a special exhibit of
Kennedy materials in the collection. You may
see them as a public resource list in the
Destiny catalog or you may stop by the
Library to check them out. New books just
published to mark this tragic event in US
history have recently been ordered and should
arrive shortly, so please be sure to check the
Destiny catalog for further updates in the
collection.
Wherever you spend your holidays, the
Library Staff wishes you and your family a
peaceful and restful break and all the best for
the New Year 2014. Happy Holidays!
E
On the other hand, children given frequent
praise that focused on innate ability (called
‘person praise’) tended to choose problems in
which they knew they would be successful
and avoided those that would be more
difficult. The focus became their “performance
status and were less motivated about learning
and the learning process”, according to
Mojdeh Bayat. Children tended to focus on
“image-maintenance” rather than on learning.
Therefore, regardless of its deep cultural roots,
there seems to be a right way to praise kids. If
we remember to always praise our children
for their effort, describing specific behavior,
rather than their innate intelligence, we would
have done the right thing for them.
-Mitos Molina, ES Learning Support
Coordinator
However, children praised for their effort
(“You worked really hard!”) became
motivated to try harder in general. They were
also interested in more challenging problems
that increased their own learning. In addition,
they wanted to learn strategies to solve these
problems. “Emphasizing effort gives a child a
variable that he can control. They come to see
themselves as in control of their success.
Emphasizing natural intelligence takes it out
of the child’s control, and it provides no good
5
S
T
.
M
Elementary School Counselor’s
Corner
How to Improve Your Child’s Academics,
Behavior and Attitude
This is the second time that I’ve had this
article put in the newsletter, because I think
it’s so important. I’ve even done a classroom
lesson in the 4th and 5th grade classrooms
with the boys about the importance of sleep.
From those classes, about 50% of those boys
aren’t getting enough sleep. Check out this
recent article from CNN.
This title sounds like I have a “miracle cure”.
Well, not exactly, but I do have a possible
solution to some common problems. Recently.
I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Mark
Rosekind, Ph.D., speak at the annual Kanto
Plains Counselor meeting. This article will
provide a brief summary of what I learned.
Dr. Rosekind is sleep specialist. He is
internationally recognized and has worked
with NASA, major commercial airlines. and
recently, with athletes at the Beijing Olympics.
He has degrees from Stanford, Yale and Brown
universities, and has received numerous
awards.
Dr. Rosekind began his talk by reminding us
that sleep is as important and vital as food,
water and exercise. However, it is the area that
often gets neglected. Everyone knows that the
society we now live in has many demands.
Our children have homework, extracurricular
activities, time with friends, etc. Often these
demands disrupt their sleep, which then
accumulates into what Dr. Rosekind refers to
as a “sleep debt”. This then leads to the child’s
circadian clock being disrupted. In a nutshell,
the circadian clock is our internal biological
timing machine. It controls the 24-hour cycle
of sleepiness and alertness. (This is what gets
disturbed when we are jet-lagged.) There are
certain times of the day where we naturally
become more alert or sleepier. These times
differ for adults and adolescents, but without
enough sleep the periods become more
intense, meaning instead of just feeling a little
less energetic during “lull times”, children will
become extremely sleepy, and during “alert
times” they will be less optimal.
This disruption impairs and degrades almost
every aspect of the child’s brain. Some figures
include: memory impairment down 20%,
mood disruption 100%, vigilance 75%,
reaction time down 25%, communication
down 30%, lethargy and apathy increase 50%,
and attitude problems go up 500%. All these
measures reflect on vital qualities for learning
in school. When I speak with a student who is
struggling with academics or having
6
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
emotional or behavioral problems, one of the
first questions I ask is how much sleep they
are getting.
Sometimes issues such as family stress or
attention problems get misattributed as the
“core problem” when often it’s really that the
child is not getting enough sleep. Studies
show that 25-50% of children who were
diagnosed with ADHD were actually
misdiagnosed and were really suffering from
the effects of sleep deprivation. Many of the
symptoms exhibited are exactly the same for
ADHD and for lack of sufficient sleep. Beyond
those factors, growth hormones get released in
children during sleep, and this can also be
affected without proper amounts of sleep.
Although sleep needs are genetically
determined, generalizations can be made
requiring the amount of sleep needed. Adults
need at least eight hours, but some require
more. (Both Einstein and Edison were 10-hour
sleepers.). Teenagers up through early 20’s
require between nine and 10 hours of sleep
(middle school age closer to 10 hours and high
school around nine hours). Elementary school
age children RP-3rd grade need 11-12 hours,
while 4th-6th grade (or sometimes even 7th
grade) need 10-11. An individual’s sleep
should not be determined by the time he/she
wakes up, but instead by how many hours are
needed to “keep you at your peak”
throughout the day without caffeine. Also, if
the alarm clock is waking you up, you do
need to sleep more. Another important note is
that children can actually “rev up” and
become more active in the evening due to
sleep deprivation. I know that seems crazy:
when we adults are tired we can barely move.
So don’t let your overly active son fool you.
Napping can be a way to catch up, but only if
it’s under 45 minutes. Any longer once again
throws off a person’s circadian rhythms.
So, what can you do to ensure that your
children get enough sleep? Start with a regular
bedtime routine. These routines cue the body
into getting ready for a good night’s sleep. It
can be taking a bath, brushing teeth, reading,
putting on pajamas (whatever works in your
house as long as it’s consistent). Also, if it
involves reading, make sure that the content
isn’t too exciting or over-stimulating. Keep
computers, cell phones, etc., out of the
bedroom. Don’t go to bed hungry or thirsty.
Avoid doing work in bed. Besides having a
regular bedtime, even more important is
having a consistent wake-up time. Beyond
this, make sleep as important as food. Talk to
your children and teach them the importance
of sleep throughout their childhood and into
adulthood.
E
T
T
E
R
As Dr. Rosekind said, in our society not
sleeping enough and instead working long
hours or cramming for all-nighters often
carries a “badge of courage”, but in reality, it
does far more harm than good. Some of the
world’s biggest disasters, from Chernobyl to
the Exxon Valdez accident (the third mate at
the helm had been awake for 30 hours) to
NASA’s space shuttle disaster (where senior
managers had been awake 20-30 hours when
making decisions about the Challenger) came
from sleep-deprived individuals.
Teach your children now about the
importance of sleep, help them to get their
required amount of sleep, and get yourself a
good-night’s sleep as well.
-Julie Gordon, ES/MS Counselor
St. Mary’s Athletics
The fall sports season ended in early
November with the Varsity tennis team
returning from Okinawa with a runner-up
finish at the Far East Tennis Tournament.
Likewise, the cross country team travelled to
Mt. Fuji for the Far East Cross Country Finals,
where the team ended up in 4th place. The
Junior Varsity tennis team romped through an
undefeated season and captured the Kanto JV
Tennis Tournament. In the middle school, the
soccer team lost in a penalty shootout to ASIJ
to finish in second place in the Kanto Finals.
Fall sports continued to be popular at the
elementary school level with a large turnout
for the different activities. Among the more
popular activity was the Grade 2 Intramurals,
which was offered for the first time this year.
Fall Sports Season Results
HS Cross Country
Kanto League/Tournament: 3rd place
Asia Pacific Invitational Guam: 6th place
Far East Tournament: 4th place
Most Valuable Player: James Parker
Most Dedicated: Taiki Mochizuki
Most Improved: Tatsuya Ishizuka
Coach’s Award: Taishi Misumi
Kanto League All-Star: James Parker
Far East All-Stars: James Parker and Thomas
Richter
Second Quarter 2013
S
T
.
M
(continued from page 6)
MS Cross Country
Kanto League/Tournament: 4th place
Most Valuable Player: Eugene DeCosse
Most Improved: Sathish Kannan Karthikeyan
Coach’s Award: Nicholas Popov
Varsity Tennis
Kanto League: 2nd place
Kanto Tournament: 2nd place
Far East Tournament: 2nd place
Most Valuable Player: Kent Shikama
Most Dedicated: Jeremy Auvaro
Most Improved: Lane Woody
Coach’s Award: Juan Borga
Kanto League All-Stars: Kent Shikama, Juan
Borga, Jeremy Auvaro, Mackenzie Lee
Far East Finalist: Kent Shikama
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
Middle School:
MS Basketball 8 — Coach Willis
MS Basketball 6&7 — Coach Chan
MS Wrestling — Coach Harlow
Swimming — Coach Moodie
High School:
Varsity Basketball — Coach Clarkson
JV Basketball — Coach Thiesen
Varsity Soccer — Coach Van Den Bossche
JV Soccer — Coach Twohig
HS Wrestling — Coach Yagui
Swimming — Coach Moodie
For those interested in following Titans sports,
games schedule and results are available from
the SMTitans twitter account.
Let’s go, Titans!
Junior Varsity Tennis
Kanto Tournament: 1st place
Most Valuable Player: Justin Min
Most Improved: Tyler Chang
Coach’s Award: Shuby Peshin
Kanto Singles Champion: Justin Min
Kanto Doubles Champion: League All-Stars:
Josh Byland and Fei Cheng
-Tom Molina, Athletic Director
Swim Team Highlights
MS Soccer A
Kanto Tournament: 2nd place
Most Valuable Player: Jack MacLennon
Most Improved: Yuki Aoyama
Coach’s Award: Daigo Nagaoka
MS Soccer B
Most Valuable Player: Yusuke Iwata
Most Improved: Kenta Misaki
Coach’s Award: Hosei Kijima
Varsity Tennis at the Far East-Winter Sports Season
For the winter season, a complete list of sports
activities and their respective coaches is found
below. For any questions or inquiries, please
feel free to contact the coaches.
Elementary School:
Grade 2 Activities — Coaches Hagenson and
Tierney
Judo — Mr. Dixon
Ball Hockey — Coach Nicholson
Mind Sports — Coaches Klein and Craney
Swimming — Coach Moodie
Second Quarter 2013
Tokyo Swimming Center Invitational Swim Meet
at Sugamo
The St. Mary’s Swim Team took eight
swimmers to compete at the Tokyo Swimming
Center Invitational in Sugamo. The “Tosui
Shotai” has a long tradition starting from 1968
and provides an opportunity for many of
Japan’s top swimmers to come together and
compete at the midway point of the season.
The TSC has produced numerous elite
swimmers over the years, but it is best known
as the home of Athens and Beijing Olympic
gold medalist Kosuke Kitajima. The
Invitational was held in the Olympic 50-meter
long-course format. In all, 198 clubs from 27
prefectures throughout Japan competed.
Swimmers swam prelims in the morning to
qualify for the afternoon finals. The Bucs
achieved performances good enough for the
competitive Top 9 finals. Our swimmers were
stoked to have the opportunity to speak and
take a photo with the Japanese National Head
Coach, Norimasa Hirai.
E
T
T
E
R
besting his prelim swim by 1.71 seconds.
Eighth grader Takashi Kanazawa also made it
to the finals in the same race and finished in
eighth place overall. After a clerical error in
the morning prelims of the 100 Breaststroke,
Joshua B. was bumped to the final heat and
had to swim in the same race as the present
world record holder in the 200 Breaststroke,
Masahiro Yamaguchi (Toyo University).
Undaunted and composed, Joshua advanced
to the evening finals and swam a strong race,
placing fifth (1:09.50), just 37 minutes after his
100 Freestyle final. Junior Shane Brett and
Freshman Stefano A’De Lima also made it to
the finals on Day 1, finishing ninth overall in
the 15-16 boys 100 Butterfly and 100
Backstroke, respectively.
OnDay 2, Shane Brett started the Bucs out
well, advancing from the prelims of the 200
Freestyle. Joshua Brown snuck in on the
nineth spot in the prelims of the 200
Breaststroke. Shane came back in his second
race of the day with a strong 2:13.38 swim in
the 200 Individual Medley. His time was an
exact tie with Ryo Uno (Mitsubishi Yowa) for
the last spot int the finals. Meet rules dictate
that a lottery will be held in case of a tie, and
Shane won the draw to qualify for his second
final of the night. In the finals, Joshua moved
up to fifth place overall with a stellar 2:30.07 in
the 200 Breast.
Shane took seventh in both of his finals: 200
Free (1:59.90) and 200 Individual Medley
(2:13.75).
The final day for the Bucs saw Joshua bust out
of the blocks for a double event win. Joshua
dominated the field in the boys 13-14 50
Freestyle with a 25.38 swim — .56 seconds
ahead of the second place finisher. Kazuki
Martin and Takashi Kanazawa both narrowly
missed the finals of the 50 Free, by just .13
and .33 seconds, respectively. Joshua backed
up his 50 Free win with a stunning victory as
the dark horse from lane 8 in the 50
Breaststroke (31.15), electrifying his cheering
teammates and the crowd.
On the first day of the meet, the Bucs had
three swimmers make it to the finals.
Freshman Joshua Brown made it to the finals
in both races he contested. Brown captured
first place in the boys 13-14 100 Free (55.42),
7
S
T
.
M
(continued from page 7)
Tokyo-To Kirokukai Swim Meet at Tatsumi
Fifty-eight Buccaneer swimmers competed in
the Nov. 16-17 Tokyo Fall Kirokukai Swim
Meet at Tatsumi. In all, 3,290 swimmers from
131 teams participated in the annual event.
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
Yutaro Sahara!
100 Ind. Medley! 9th place
!
50 meter Back! 13th place
Naoki Nomura!
100 Ind. Medley! 11th place
Takashi Kanazawa!
100 Free!
16th place
Natsuki Uchino! 100 Ind. Medley! 12th place
The training is paying off as Bucs continue to
produce US Swimming All-Star time
standards. AAAA times were put in by Shane
Brett, Joshua Brown and Naoki Nomura.
Triple A times came from Nicolas Flint, Kazuki
Martin, Junu Moon, Yutaro Sahara, Takashi
Kanazawa, and Kaitlin Rossman. AA times
were turned by Stefano A’De Lima, Riki
Motoyama, Coco Yamamoto, Kota Uchino, Yu
Kunita, Laszlo Wenk, and Aisa Takahara.
A pumped up squad of Middle Schoolers just
missed setting new Open + Area records in
both the 400 Freestyle and Medley Relays. The
quartet of Joshua Brown, Takashi Kanazawa,
Yutaro Sahara and Naoki Nomura is well
positioned to best the Nationals time later in
the season. Their Free Relay time of 3:46.42 is
just 2.53 seconds away and the 4:09.65 Medley
Relay swim is 5.1 seconds out.
Shane Brett, Nicolas Flint, Junu Moon and
Kazuki Martin took fifth place overall with
stellar swims in the 400 Free Relay. They were
just 4.3 seconds of the Nationals mark.
Shunichi Ichimura teamed with Junu, Shane,
and Nic to finish eighth in the 400 Medley
Relay.
Swimmers finishing in the top 16 were:
Joshua Brown!
50 Free!
2nd place
!
100 Free!
2nd place
!
100 Breast!
9th place
!
50 Breast!
3rd place
Nicolas Flint!
100 Ind. Medley! 14th place
Junu Moon!
50 Back!
7th place
Kazuki Martin!
50 Free!
13th place
8
T
T
E
R
grabbed the girls’ Second High Point with 35
points.
13-14: Ninth grader Joshua Brown scored the
only perfect 54 points of the meet to dominate
his division. Yutaro Sahara and Takashi
Kanazawa finished in a tie for the Second
High Point with 44 points each. Naoki
Nomura garnered the third place trophy.
Seisen ninth grader Kaitlin Rossman collected
52 points to capture the girls to honors.
11-12: Sixth grader Naoki Martin scored 1
point more than Kota Uchino to take the third
place High Point for 11-12 Boys.
9-10: Fifth grader Jun Asano finished with five
individual wins and a total of 51 points for the
overall High Point. Fourth grader Ryan
Fenwick took the Second High point with 45.5
points. Aisa Takahara finished third overall in
the girls division.
It’s still early in the season, and the Bucs have
already begun to make new records. Joshua
Brown was on fire, setting a new Open + Area
record in the Boys 13-14 50 Breaststroke with a
swift 30.08 effort. Freshman Kaitlin Rossman
established a new Open + Area mark in the
13-14 Girls 50 Breaststroke, throwing down a
35.71 swim. Kaitlin also broke the Area record
in the 100 Breaststroke with a 1:17.27 swim.
Joshua popped three Age Group National
qualifying times with a 53.28 in the 100
Freestyle along with his 30.08 in the 50
Breaststroke. Josh had already qualified in the
50 Free and bested the Nationals cut again
with a 24.44 effort. Kazuki Martin was just .19
seconds off the 15-16 cut with his 24.23 swim.
E
Buccaneer Invitational Swim Meet
The annual Buccaneer Invitational has a
tradition going back nearly 35 years and
allows swimmers the opportunity to race in a
championship format early in the season. This
past weekend was no exception — Buc
swimmers produced 14 US Swimming AAAA
times, 23 AAA standards, 31 AA, and 34 A
results.
The Bucs played host to 14 teams throughout
the Kanto Plains in the two-day meet. There
was plenty of excitement, with over 1,300
individual entries and 77 relays. The Bucs do
not count themselves in the team trophy race,
but amassed 1,494.5 points over the two days
of competition. Setagaya-ku’s Kibogaoka
Swim Team took first place with 617.50 points,
followed by Komaba Toritsu High School
(457), and the third spot went to the Mishuku
Sakura Swim Team (423).
High Point trophies are awarded to the first,
second and third place finishers in each age
group based on six events over two days.
15-18: This age group was easily the most
competitive at the meet as close finishes and
unexpected results were the norm. Junior
Shane Brett took the first place overall with 48
points over two days. Senior Nicolas Flint tied
with Komaba’s Kyosuke Itabashi for Second
High Point award. Freshman Stefano A’De
Lima was just 1 point away from the Third
High Point. Sophomore Coco Yamamoto
8-Under: Third grader Roland Bridgman had a
breakout meet, netting 45 points for top
honors. The High Point race often comes
down to balance in all disciplines, and a
strong individual medley favors young
competitors. Second grader Kenji Nomura
showed versatility, taking the third place
overall. Lisa Purcell and Natsuki Uchino tied
with 50 points each for the girls 8-Under top
spot.
From the Development Office
Everyone at St. Mary’s is eager to join this
year in “making a difference every day”,
whether it be in academics, in the fine arts, in
athletics or in volunteer work.
As Mr. Kagei, our headmaster, mentioned in
the Annual Giving Letter sent to you recently,
we count on you, our St. Mary’s families, to
help make a difference through your
generosity. Any contribution, whether big or
small, from each one of you will help to
ensure that St. Mary’s remains the special
place for your sons’ education it has always
been.
Our online credit card donation site makes it
easy to give. Please visit the following link:
https://alum.smis.ac.jp/Giving/
CardDonation.aspx
(Online donations are in Japanese yen only,
and are tax-deductible in Japan.)
If you have any questions, please contact the
Development Office at 3709-3411 or e-mail
[email protected]. Thank you.
Second Quarter 2013
S
T
.
M
Update From the St. Mary’s
Association Committees
From the Bingo Committee
An enormous thank you to all of the St.
Mary’s community for the hard work, long
hours and welcoming smiles you put into
making the 2013 Lightning Bingo such an
amazing success.
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
E
T
T
E
R
From the Hospitality Committee
Over 40 parents from St. Mary's and Seisen
did not let the wet weather dampen their
spirits when they headed off to Chinatown,
Yokohama, on Oct. 29 for another SMA
Hospitality outing. After sampling a variety of
dim sum for lunch and exploring the variety
of shops on the main road and on the side
streets, many smiling faces boarded the bus
for the journey home. Thank you, as always,
to our bus driver, Mr. Saito, for getting us
there and back in safety and comfort. Thank
you also to all of those who joined us.
Japanese. Ms. Wayne graciously took on the
role of guide for these special school tours.
The parents were impressed with all of St.
Mary’s facilities, and in particular the science
labs, art studios, music rooms, libraries and
pool. Afterwards, there was a Q&A session on
curriculum, school activities, security and
other topics. Thank you to Rika Atobe, Noriko
Behr and Caterina Tanaka for their language
assistance and time during the school tours.
-Aya Iwamoto and Therese Adachi,
SMA Hospitality Chair and Co-Chair
From the St. Mary’s Association Treasurer
A big thank you to all of the volunteers who
helped in the treasury room during Lightning
Bingo night! We had a great team who worked
together smoothly, so we could close the
treasury room on time.
-Keiko Ikeda & Risa Osawa, Japanese
Speaking Support Group (JSSG)
Our gratitude and recognition to the
following, in no particular order:
Special thanks to: Mrs. Nozomi Erdos, Mrs.
Kiyomi Kunida, Mrs. Miki Okamoto-Repeta,
Mrs. Hiroko Sahara and Mrs. Yasuko
Takahashi
The parents, alumni, patrons and friends of St.
Mary’s for their generous donations, making
our extravagant line-up of Bingo prizes and
stage set-up possible.
-Tomoko Ajeesh and Shinobu Harada,
St. Mary’s Association Treasury
From the International Ball Committee
The annual St. Mary’s International Ball will
be held on Saturday, March 15, 2014. The
elegant and glamorous event is an evening of
dining, dancing and entertainment for
parents, alumni and friends of St. Mary’s. In
order to make it a sparkling success, we seek
your help in three ways.
The Bingo subcommittees, SMA board
members and volunteer parents, for their
professional approach and wonderful support.
The Room Parent Coordinators, Food Court
booth chairs and booth workers for serving a
wonderful range of delicious food and drinks,
and welcoming all attendees with their
infectious smiles from early in the morning
until the end of the evening.
The St. Mary’s teachers for supporting
volunteer parents, running the games,
organizing our boys with set-up and clean-up
duties and providing after-school care for
children.
The maintenance, cleaning and kitchen staff,
security guards and bus drivers for the
behind-the-scenes work that most people
don’t see.
The accounting and administrative staff for
their generous support during this busy time.
And last, but certainly not least, thanks to our
wonderful sons who served as Boosters in setup and clean-up, helped with crowd control,
waved flags, assisted on stage, selling extra
bingo cards and other items. No wonder we
are so proud of them.
-Mamee Kaneko Heo and Rika AtobeYoshioka, Bingo Chair and Co-Chair
Second Quarter 2013
1.
From the Japanese Speakers’ Support Group
English Conversation Class for Non-Native
English Speakers
The Japanese Speakers Support Group
recently organized a new English conversation
class for non-native English speaking parents
with the help of Br. Michel as the instructor,
and received twice the number of applicants
than the course could accommodate. When
asked about the objective of the classes, Br.
Michel responded, “This is going to be a
mixed class with many different levels, all in
the same room. It will also be a group effort to
facilitate the learning of English. My main
goal is to have the mothers feel comfortable
with using the English language in daily
situations, especially around the school.” So
far Br. Michel has participants discussing a
variety of great topics in English such as
culture, religion, education and more!
School Tours in Japanese
The JSSG organized four in-depth, 100-minute
school tours for Japanese speaking parents,
with bilingual parents interpreting in
2.
3.
Donate items for the evening’s raffle, such
as jewelry, air tickets, hotel vouchers,
accessories and such. Cash donation are
also appreciated.
Sponsor an ad in the St. Mary’s
International Ball program. Ads come in
various sizes to suit every advertising
budget.
Donate alcoholic beverages, such as red
and white wines, champagne, whiskey,
bourbon or beer, for the evening’s cocktail
reception and dinner.
Not only will your donation contribute
towards a successful evening, but all proceeds
will benefit student programs at St. Mary’s
International School.
For further information on program ad rates,
donating items, or if you have any questions
or comments, please contact us via e-mail at
[email protected]. Thank you
very much.
-Yumi Shigetake & Ruriko Kojima,
International Ball Chair & Co-Chair
9
S
T
.
M
From the St. Mary’s Association
Donations Committee
We are delighted to report that Lightning
Bingo was a huge success. The excitement in
the crowd of at least 1,000 people was
palpable as they played to win!
This success was made possible by many
people’s support and the generous
contributions from kind donors. To show our
appreciation, we have listed below the names
of our generous donors, in alphabetical order.
The funds raised from this event are used to
provide financial support to directly benefit St.
Mary’s student field trips, transportation for
athletic and fine art program events, the
libraries’ Sakura Medal Award program, and
the publication of the Mind’s I journal, just to
name a few. The St. Mary’s Association’s
mission is to assist in providing an enhanced
educational experience for all students, and
your involvement both financially and
through volunteering makes this possible.
Thank you very much for all of your support.
-Miho Nagano and Noriko Behr
Donations Chair and Co-Chair
E-mail: [email protected]
10
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
Lightning Bingo could not have happened
without your kind, generous, and heartfelt
donations. Thank you, everyone!
A Cut Abov e
AJINOMOTO GENERAL FOODS, INC.
AKASAKA DENTAL HILLS OFFICE
Always inc.
Armani Exchange
Bale Jesse Co.
Barbacoa Grill Aoyama
Beauté absolue
BREEZBAY HOTEL co., ltd.
BRILLIAGE
Build-A-Bear Workshop
Burton
CAFE COMPANY INC.
Cezars Kitchen
Coleman Japan Co., Ltd.
Daido Co., Ltd.
Dale Carnegie Training Japan
DEVI GRUOP INDIAN RESTAURANT
Discover Japan
Disney
Dogwood Plaza
Domino's Pizza Japan, Inc.
Dr. Kaku's Office
Dr. Wakaba Inc.
Elio Locanda Italiana
ELLEVI Ltd.
FRIJOLES K.K.
Funroots Co., Ltd.
GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL &
JUKU
Heinz Japan Ltd.
HoneyBaked Ham Co.
Itsumo Tuna
KCJ GROUP INC. KidZania Tokyo
Keiki Intercultural Preschool
KRH STUDIOS
MAX BRENNER CHOCOLATE BAR
Miele Japan Corp.
Mori Building Co., Ltd.
Nepalese Restaurant KHUMBILA
Nivea-Kao Co., Ltd.
Porter Classic Co., Ltd.
QUIKSILVER JAPAN Co., Ltd.
R Supply
Reel Creative Films
Ristorante Italiano ANTONIO'S
San_en_an
SENBADO CO., LTD
Seta Modern Golf
Tableaux / Legato
TAKE FIVE CO.
The Foreign Buyers' Club
The Gotoh Museum
Tokyo American Club
Tokyo Summerland
Vieni
Warner Entertainment Japan Inc.
Wendy’s Japan L.L.C.
Mrs. Hiromi Abe
Mr. and Mrs. Tadaki and Eriko Araya
L
E
T
T
E
R
Mr. Ichiro Asano
Atobe Family
Mrs. Kanak Bhandari
Dr. Karl Che
Dr. Ceancheng Chen
Mrs. Miho Dixon
Mrs. Misayo Fujii
Mr. Unryu Haku
Hanamura Family
Mrs. Shinobu Harada
Mr. and Mrs. Mitsuo and Mari Harito
Mrs. Mamee Heo
Ikeda Family
Mrs. Mineko Inoue
Ito Family
Ms. Keiko Kamata
Mr. Tomohiro Kamisaku
Kan Family
Mr. and Mrs. Juheung and Suhee Kang
Mrs. Rita Katashiba
Mr. and Mrs. Duil and Eun-Jeong Kim
Mrs. Hiromi Kim
Mr. and Mrs. Shinta Kiyonaga
Mrs. Vandana Mahajan
Mrs. Hiroe Makiyama
Mrs. Mar Martinez
Mr. and Mrs. Mataitoga
Mr. Taro Matsuo
Mrs. Yoko Morikuni
Mr. Yoshiaki Murakami
Nakatsuji Family
Mr. Seijiro Nozaki
Mrs. Kiyono O'Flaherty
Ms. Yuko Ono
Oohara Family
Mrs. Yuka Rogers
Mrs. Mikiko Ro
Mr. and Mrs. Tatsuya and Toshie Saito
Schmidt Family
Dr. and Mrs. Peter and Ai Shane
Mrs. Miyuki Shimizu
Mr. and Mrs. Ivan and Mutsumi Smallwood
Mr. Tom Stanley
Mrs. Jennifer Yamamoto
G3 Parents
5W Parents
RP, ES, and MS Parents
…and all the Friends of St. Mary's who
anonymously and generously supported us.
Thank you!
Second Quarter 2013
A
D
V
E
R
T
I
S
I
N
G
S
E
C
T
I
O
N
November, 2013
Monthly Newsletter
Dear Parents,
We are now approaching the end of the first quarter of the academic year and we are very
pleased to report that all students are working hard and performing well in class. We are now looking
forward to a busy and productive second quarter. Due to this month’s assessment tests, we will not be
sending home the blue student folders. The folders will be sent home at the end of November with a detailed
report of your child’s progress so far. We would also like to urge all children who have not yet returned their
folders to so as soon as possible.
As November will be spent taking and reviewing tests, no lesson plans will be prepared for students
this month.
If you are planning to take a short vacation or want your child to be absent from class, please let us
know as soon as possible. We require one week’s notice if you would like your child to attend a make-up
lesson. Thank you for your cooperation.
Important Announcements
First Assessment Test: We would like to inform you that from November 18th – 22nd we will be
holding our first evaluation tests. These tests will be graded and sent home in your child’s blue folder.
Speaking Tests: During the week Nov 11th – Nov 15th, all elementary and middle school students will be
required to take a 10 – 15 minute speaking test. Students will be tested on various spoken skills such as
pronunciation, fluency, substance, and vocabulary. This test will not be graded but parents will be provided
with a detailed report.
Quarterly reports: At the end of this month, after all tests have been completed and corrected, we will
send home a detailed student report in your child’s blue folder. This will include an assessment of your
child’s recent behavior and their academic performance.
Parent Teacher Conference:
We will also be holding parent teacher conferences from November
25th – 29th, from 2.00pm – 3.30pm. These conferences are an excellent opportunity for you to have an indepth discussion with your child’s teacher and to voice any concerns you may have. We would appreciate if
you could fill in the forms in order to let us know whether you are able to attend a conference or not.
If you have any concerns or questions regarding your child’s studies, please feel free to contact us
here at the juku.
Sincerely,
All the staff at Global International Juku.
ADVERTISEMENT SECTION
St. Mary’s has no direct relationship with services or events in this section of the newsletter.
Please contact advertisers directly for more information.
ADVERTISEMENT SECTION
St. Mary’s has no direct relationship with services or events in this section of the newsletter.
Please contact advertisers directly for more information.
ADVERTISEMENT SECTION
St. Mary’s has no direct relationship with services or events in this section of the newsletter.
Please contact advertisers directly for more information.
DISCOVER
JAPAN
Nanbo Kokusai Mura - our Lodge
Family Bicycle Adventures
Nanbo DIscovery Camp for Children
Mr. Green’s Ski/Board Camps
Ski/Board Adventures for the Family
and much more!
FOR INFORMATION - Contact us at [email protected] or CALL 090 7716 0102
Organizing and leading outdoor adventures for Japan’s international community for over 30 years.
Join us as we celebrate 30 SEASONS on the
slopes of Shiga Kogen - since 1985
Mr. Green’s Ski/Board Camps
December 17 - 20 January 7 - 10
For elementary, middle school and higher
(parents may also join).
Mr. Green’s
Community Ski/Board Trips
for the Family
Feb. 8 - 11 / Feb. 19 (evening) - 22
Since 1985 - Our 30th Anniversary
5th Annual
Chikura Music Festival
Sunday, April 20, 2014
11:30 - 17:00
Nanbo Kokusai Mura
Our two Winter Camps in Shiga Kogen allow beginners and
above to ski and snowboard in a safe, relaxed environment
with our professional instructors in English. Daily ski and
board lessons begin just outside the lodge. There will be
videos, journal time, bingo, games, sledding and more. We
will also stop to visit the “onsen” monkeys at Jigokudani.
Our trips take us to Shiga Kogen in Nagano, home of the 1998
Winter Olympics. This is the 30th season of our Family Trip.
Great snow, great skiing and boarding, possibly good weather,
but definitely great company. Ski or board from the door of
the lodge high on the mountain. Ask any of the thousands of
participants why this is such an adventure. Contact me for
more information and our registration form. Come along as
we celebrate 30 years of incredible adventure at Shiga Kogen.
Blues, Rock, Jazz and More - Live music all a4ernoon with
local bands and from Tokyo! Plenty to eat and do. 100%
of proceeds go to help the rebuilding effort following the
Higashi Nihon Daishinsai. Hamburgers, hot dogs, Thai
and Myanmar food, beer, juice and more for sale! Games
for the children! No admission charge! Donations
accepted! Please join us!
NANBO DISCOVERY CAMP
me
this ti
t
a
e
l
hedu
ive sc
24
tentat
y 20 -
Jul
y 31
7 - Jul
2
y
l
7
u
J
ugust
A
3
t
Augus t 10 - 14
Augus
1
t 17 - 2
Augus
OUR 16th SEASON
since 1999
Nanbo Discovery Camp is an English language, residential
summer camp for elementary and middle school students. Our
campers enjoy an incredible adventure of discovery, hiking,
swimming, snorkeling, cycling, sports, science, cooking, cra4s
and much more. A strong emphasis on personal growth,
positive development and, of course, fun. Five-day/four night
sessions in July and August. Please contact us for more
information.
Please go to our Photo Gallery to see images of our
activities. Learn more about Discover Japan at
http://discoverjapan.zenfolio.com/nanbo
Contact us at [email protected]
Over thirty years of experience help to make our
camps and trips safe, educational and fun for all.
ADVERTISEMENT SECTION
St. Mary’s has no direct relationship with services or events in this section of the newsletter.
Please contact advertisers directly for more information.
ADVERTISEMENT SECTION
St. Mary’s has no direct relationship with services or events in this section of the newsletter.
Please contact advertisers directly for more information.
S
T
.
M
A
R
Y
’
S
N
E
W
S
L
E
T
T
E
R
Dates to Watch
December 9!
St. Mary’s Day
December 13-January 3!
Christmas Holidays
January 22!
Professional Development Day — No School
February 11!
!
Student-Led & Parent-Teacher Conferences
— No Classes
February 20-21!
Winter Holidays
St. Mary International
School Newsletter
The St. Mary’s International School publishes this
newsletter five times a year, and distributes it by email
to all families registered with @SMISFamilies, and posts
it on the school website.
For advertising opportunities, please e-mail Josie
Schmidt, Newsletter Editor,
[email protected].
Second Quarter 2013
17