Dear Elementary Parents,

“There is always one moment in childhood when
the door opens and lets the future in.”
- Deepak K. Chopra

I know that each of us hopes that the ‘moment’ will come for all of our children this school year. I would like to encourage all families, both new and returning, to work together with the teachers, staff, and administrators in order to make our hopes a reality. Working together, we can create the conditions that will open doors!

This year we will work together to open doors in four areas: academic, social-emotional, physical fitness and the arts. We will work together to open academic doors for our children by reading aloud, teaching reading and writing strategies, and focusing on establishing high expectations in science, math, and social studies. We will also work together to open social-emotional doors for our children by furthering the work we began with the elementary leadership counsel and incorporating the principles of social-emotional learning into our middle school. Finally, we will work together to open the doors of physical fitness and the arts by addressing the need to teach our children to pursue healthy balanced lives and continuing the work we began in our music, drama, and art classes. I invite you to volunteer, if you have spare time, and join us in this undertaking!

New elementary and middle school staff for the 2008-09 school year are Yodit Hizekiel (Elementary Substitute), Nadine Kidane (KG), Mark Carter (Grade 1), Leslie Fahr (Grade 2), Sienna Burns (Grade 3), Tom Poeschl (MS Science), Leo LeFort (MS Art), Caroline Mraz (MS French) and Alice Brown (MS Math). There are also several new teachers assistants: Elizabeth Tesfaye, Meron Kifle Girma, Bereket Melaku, Fikerselam Demissie, and Dagne Woldie. Each of them brings to the ICS community a unique set of abilities and talents, and we are excited to work with them.

If you are interested in applying to ICS for the elementary school with children entering PreK to grade 5, please visit the ICS Admissions page.

For more information about the elementary school, you can download the following:

•  Elementary School Profile (484 KB)

•  Elementary Parent/Student Handbook (608 KB)

All these files are in PDF format and can be viewed or printed. Click to download Adobe Reader if required.

Hubert Gordon
Pk-8 Principal

 

ICS Elementary Administrative and Faculty Staff

Administration
   
Stephen Plisinski Director
Hubert Gordon PK-8 Principal
Barbara Parker Director for Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
Wondwossen G/Egeziabher Business Manager
Jessica Fortin Registrar and Alumni Coordinator

Faculty

  
Aafke Zoutewelle PKA
Alexandra Mirkowski Elementary School Computer
Bess Long Grade 5
Brett McLeod Kindergarten
Carli Lowe PKBL
David Gibson Grade 3
Derek Ferreira Elementary School Counselor
Douglas Glenn Librarian
Elisabeth Lefort Elementary French
Ethiopia G/Yesus Elementary School Physical Education
Fikir Tena Grade 1
Jane English Grade 2
Jane Pyecha PKBP
Kate Vicknair Grade 4
Kathy Szajnfeld Elementary School Music
Leulseged Assefa IT Technician
Leslie Fahr Grade 2
Loretta Dick Grade 4
Mark Carter Grade 1
Michael Ali Elementary School Long-Term Substitute
Milena Kidane Elementary School Art
Nadine Kidane Kindergarten
Elementary School Resource
Renate Tejiwe School Nurse
Sienna Burns Grade 3
Sitara Engelbrecht-Larkin Grade 5
Susan Myers Elementary School EAL
Yared Deneke Network Manager
Yodit Hizekiel Elementary School Long-Term Substitute

Teacher Assistants

  
Alemayehu Fanta Grade 3
Azeb Estifanos PKBP
Bereket Melaku Grade 4
Binyam Girma Grade 2
Birknesh Mamo Grade 1
Charu Mesvani Kindergarten
Dagne Woldie Library Assistant
Elizabeth Tesfaye Grade 4
Fikereselam Demissie PKA
Martha Yigezu Grade 2
Meron Kifle Girma Grade 1
Raguel Lisanework Art
Selamawit Mezegebe Kindergarten
Tesfaye Kifle Grade 5
Yared Bekele Grade 3
Yeshiemebet Tadesse Grade 5
Zelalem Gizaw Physical Education

Curriculum at ICS

The International Community School of Addis Ababa, accredited in the United States, develops the talents and intellects of a multicultural student body using learner-centered, holistic instructional methods, empowering each student to contribute in an evolving world.

To accomplish our Mission of empowering each student to contribute in an evolving world, ICS has adopted standards and benchmarks in all curricular areas. These standards and benchmarks guide the teacher's planning, assessment, and materials selection. The standards have been selected from a variety of sources. Some are from American professional organizations, such as the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) or the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Others were developed by international teachers, such as our social studies standards which reflect a more international perspective than those developed from a particular national perspective.

Each teacher designs a curriculum map to ensure that the instructional activities and their assessments align with the standards and benchmarks. The curriculum maps are revised and refined yearly.

One of the objectives of the strategic plan at ICS is to monitor and assess individual student learning. The curriculum at ICS is dynamic and able to be adjusted to meet the needs of individual students. Teachers meet frequently in grade level or subject area teams and in committees comprised of teachers from Kindergarten through Grade 12 to evaluate, articulate, and refine the instruction delivered to the students at ICS.

Standards and Benchmarks

ICS uses a standards-based approach for guiding instruction and for assessing students' progress. ICS teachers use a variety of means of assessing students in all areas of the curriculum. In 2004 ICS teachers began the process of identifying standards to guide their teaching. Multiple assessments, including direct observation of a child, are used to determine the progress a child has made toward a standard. The evaluation reflects where the child is at that point in time, not an average of his/her work over the course of the trimester. Mastering any skill takes time. ICS defines mastery as demonstrating consistent application of the skill in a variety of contexts. Therefore succeeding on one test or in one assignment does not constitute mastery. Teachers design multiple opportunities for students to apply a skill. Over time teachers will evaluate if a student is meeting or exceeding the standard (rated a 3 on the report card) , progressing toward the standard (rated a 2 on the standard ) , or an area of concern (rated a 1 on the report card).

In grades Kindergarten, First and Second grades, teachers have set end of trimester expectations since students at those grade levels develop and acquire skills so rapidly. In grades Three through Five, teachers use end-of-grade-level expectations since the skills become more complex and take longer to develop. If a student has a 2 on the report card, this is not an area of concern. This indicates that the child is practicing a skill, but has not yet demonstrated consistent proficiency in a variety of settings.

The Reading and Writing Continuum was developed about 15 years ago in Washington State by Bonnie Campbell Hill. Since then this continuum has been used both in the United States and internationally. At ICS all elementary students have a folder with this continuum printed on it. Teachers refer to these indicators to evaluate a student's development in reading and writing. Students normally do not complete all the indicators in one column before completing indicators in another column. Usually a student will demonstrate mastery in at least 2 different columns. Teachers use these reading and writing standards to help them determine if a student is meeting or exceeding the standard.

In addition ICS elementary teachers have developed guidelines for end-of-the-year expectations in all content areas. This chart allows parents to be better informed about the standards at ICS and how they are used.

French
Language Arts
Library
Math
Music
Physical Education
Science
Social Studies

Librarybrar

The ICS library plays a central role in the life of the school. It provides academic support, study facilities, and a welcoming environment for students, parents, and staff.

The library is open Monday through Friday from 7:15AM-5:00PM. Personalized service is provided by Mr. Douglas Glenn, the PK-12 librarian and Mr. Dagne Woldie, the library assistant.

The library contains nearly 24,000 books and subscribes to 60 periodicals. It also contains 16 computers with internet access.

Elementary students can check out books for one week and secondary students for two. The number of books a student can have at any given time depends on the grade level- first graders can borrow one book, second graders two, etc. Parents and other community members can borrow materials for two weeks, but there is no limit as to number.

Teachers can sign up for class visits for the library and library computer lab. Otherwise, the lab is open to all until 4:30 PM.

In order to maintain an optimal study environment, library users are asked to keep their voices low, use the computers for academic purposes only, and refrain from bringing cell phones, MP3 players, and food and drink (except water) into the library.