Elementary School News 

10 FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) for the 2010-11 School Year

When do elementary ASAs begin?
Elementary ASAs will begin on Tuesday, September 28. Due to the rains and allowing Elementary teachers to complete their early assessment of the students in their class, we start all Elem ASAs at the same date and time. The Athletic & Activities office needs time to solicit ASA information from the staff, create the data base and booklet for the ASA program.

How do I know what I can register my child for?
During the second week of September, all elementary students will receive an ICS ASA booklet that will have all the ASAs available to all students at ICS. Parents will also receive a pdf copy of the booklet and registration codes in their email that will include all the information on “how to register” their child.

When can I register for the elementary ASAs?
Parents will be able to register their children on Wednesday, September 15 @ 2:30 pm using the on-line registration system. Their will be a link to the on-line registration system on the ICS home page

What are the times of the Elem ASAs?
Elementary ASAs will start after the regular school day at 3:40 PM and run until 4:30 PM. Parents and drivers are to pick up the students in the school parking lot area at 4:30–4:35 PM. Students that are not picked up at this time will be taken to room 15 (Mr. Pabalate’s class) and wait until a parent or drive signs them out.

Are there any cost related to Elem ASAs?
All ASAs at ICS are free of charge to our parents and students. The only exception to this will be if an activity requires you to purchase person items, such as a Tae Kwon Do uniform.

Will there be the same number of activities as last year?
Unfortunately for Season 1, there will be fewer activities than we were able offer during 2009-10. Due to our school’s population growth, a lot of the free space that was available to the program last year has now become classrooms and office space. We will do our best to keep some of the most popular activities but we need to ask families to be patient as
we work through our school’s growing pains.

Will there be ASAs for the early childhood students?
ICS will offer ASAs for kindergarten students during Seasons 2 and 3. We ask parents to arrange play dates for their children at the early childhood level to encourage fostering friendships, free and creative play.

What became of the ICS Elementary ASA survey that was sent out at the end of the 2009-10 school year?
The Athletic & Activities Office received some great parent feedback that was shared with the administration. We have used some of the suggestions to make adjustments to our registration system and to add a few more athletic offerings as well as balance out the ASAs. Due to various constraints not all suggestions could be considered for the upcoming season. Thank you for understanding.

What are some of the ASAs that have been offered in the past?
Amharic Language (Beginners), Play Time Fun (KG), Adugna Dance Class (2-3), Art Club, Lego Club (1), Ballet (1-4), Board Games (1-2), Masinko Class (1-5), Soccer (1), Brownies* (2-3), Gymnastics (1-5), Kid’s Yoga (1-2), Word Games (4-5), Beading Club (4-5), Computer Fun (2-3), Tae Kwon Do (2-5), After School Art, Soccer (2-3), Leadership Council, Amharic for Non Native Speakers, Basketball Fun (1-3), Girl Scouts* (4-5), Clay Creations (4-5), Soccer (4-5), Adugna Dance Class (4-5), Basketball (4-5), Girls Lacrosse (4-MS), Guitar Class (4-5), Arts & Crafts (3-5), Chess Club (5-MS), Amharic Language (Intermediate), Improv Club (4-5), French Games, ICS Video Club (5), Teach the Recorder (4), Scrabble Babble (4-5)

What is the contact information for the ASA office?
If you have any questions regarding elementary ASAs that were not answered, please do not hesitate to contact our office: 011-371-1544 x 243.

The grade 5 and 6 students will be involved in a "Step Up to Middle School" day this Tuesday 8 June 2010. Please note that this is a rescheduled date. Both grade 5 and 6 students need to wear comfortable clothing as Mr. Derek will be doing some interactive team-building activities in the morning. The grade 5 students will learn about lockers, the grade 6 curriculum and other topics. This is a great opportunity for the students to meet new friends at the "Step Up to Middle School" event.

Joining ICS From Other Climates

Danielle Simpson – Elementary Classroom Teacher
Danielle comes to us from the American International School of Kuwait where she was the KG/ELL teacher. Prior to working in Kuwait, she worked at the American International School of Johannesburg, where she taught grade 5. Danielle holds a BA degree from Boston University, an M.Ed. from National University and is currently completed her Ed.D. in Instructional and Curriculum Leadership from North Central University.

Donald Tingley – Secondary School Guidance Counselor
Don joins us from the Overseas School of Colombo in Sri Lanka, where he worked as the High School and College Counselor. Before Sri Lanka, Don worked at Vientiane International School in Laos PDR for seven years. Don holds a B.Ed. from the University of New Brunswick, and an M.Ed. from Lehigh University. Don will bring his wife Michele, who will be working in our early childhood, and two middle school children.

Jenna Pabalate – Middle and High School Learning Support Teacher
Jenna is joining us from San Diego, California, after working as an educational specialist. She has spent time in San Diego collaborating with teacher teams to assist in implementing differentiated instruction to meet students’ needs. Jenna comes to ICS with two teaching credentials earned in California, and an MA and BA from California State University San Marcos.

Joshua Pabalate – Elementary Classroom Teacher
Joshua is also joining us from San Diego, California, where he is currently working as a mathematics teacher at Sweetwater Union High School District. Joshua has over nine years of teaching experience working with middle and high school students. He holds an MA from Biola University and a BA from Humboldt State University in California. Joshua also holds a credential from the state of California.

Amanda Manger – Elementary Classroom Teacher
Amanda comes to us from Portland, Oregon where she is currently teaching at the Rainbow Preschool. She joins ICS with over 12 years of early childhood education experience. Amanda holds an M.S.Ed. from Bank Street College in New York, and graduated from Dartmouth College with a BA in Psychological and Brain Science.

Jeremy Manger – Elementary Classroom Teacher
Jeremy comes to ICS with over six years of early childhood and special education experience. He is also from Portland, Oregon, where he currently works at Meriwether Lewis Elementary School. Jeremy has also spent time in Brooklyn, New York, working as a grade 2 teacher and a special education kindergarten teacher. He holds an M.S.Ed. from Bank Street College in New York, and a BA from Colgate University.

Tyelise Dorsey – Elementary Classroom Teacher
Tyelise joins us from Palos Verdes Peninsula, California, where she is teaching Spanish at the Chadwick School. She comes to ICS with over 15 years of teaching experience in Los Angeles and Dallas, Texas. Tyelise has extensive coursework completed in Costa Rica, and the University of Texas. She holds an MA in Spanish Language and Literature from the University Of Notre Dame, as well as a BA from the same university.

Eamonn Walsh – Middle School Science Teacher
Eamonn come to ICS from Lake George, New York, where he is currently teaching science at Hudson Falls Middle School. He earned a New York State Teacher Certification in biology, and holds an M.S. in Secondary Education for SUNY at Albany, and a BS from SUNY at Geneseo.

Elizabeth Fracchia – Middle School Science and Math Teacher
Elizabeth is also coming from Lake George, New York. She is currently working as middle school science teacher in Glens Falls, New York, where she has taught for five years. Elizabeth has earned an MS in Science Education from Montana State University, and a BS of Science in Earth Science Education from SUNY at Plattsburgh.

Robert Lucky – High School Social Studies and English Teacher
Robert comes to ICS from Hangzhou International School where he is currently teaching high school geography and history. He has extensive overseas experience having worked in Thailand, Bahrain, and the US. Robert has also spent time as an ESL instructor, and an editor and publisher of The Asian Foodbookery. He holds an MA from the University of Washington, and a BA from Dartmouth College. Robert is currently working on his MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Texas.

Lisa Black - Elementary Music Teacher
Lisa joins us from Hangzhou International School where she is currently the lower school music teacher. She has over 19 years of teaching music to children. Her experience includes teaching in Thailand, Bahrain and the US. Lisa holds an MA from the University of Washington, and a BA from UCLA.

Aida Bekele – High School / IB French Teacher
Aida is returning to ICS after a year teaching at the American International School of Mozambique. Many may remember Aida as a successful soccer coach at ICS, taking the 2008-09 girls soccer team to ISSEA. She holds a MA in Education from the College of New Jersey, as well as a BA from Davidson College. Aida is an Addis Ababa native and attended the Lyceé Guebre Mariam.

Additions to the Admin Team for August 2010
Deron Marvin – Middle School Principal
Deron Marvin has been appointed Middle School Principal for ICS, starting August 2010. Mr. Marvin is currently serving as the Dean of Students and is teaching Business & Management in the high school. He has been a Middle School Coordinator in two schools prior to coming to ICS. He has worked in India, China and the US, and has experience in international education, corporate e-learning, and facilities management.

Mark Del Vecchio – High School Principal
Mark taught history and coached at ICS from 2005 to 2007. He is coming back to us from the Oakley School, in Oakley, UT, where he has served as Academic Dean for three years. Mark has also completed an MA in Educational Leadership during that time, with a concentration in educational technology.

Further Announcements in August
Locally hired and part time staff will be added in the coming weeks and months. In August we will be ready to announce the names and assignments of the locally hired teachers and part time faculty who will be joining us, as well as other changes to teacher assignments.

The French Day, held every year in May, is taking place this year on May 25 (changed due to IB exams). French Day is a great event at the Elementary school. Prior to that day, all of the elementary French students worked diligently on preparing dialogues and mini-sketches with the skills they learned throughout the year. Then, they memorized and acted out their skits. Each sequence is filmed and edited. The performance of each student is outstanding and contribute a lot to the success of the event. The DVD is presented in two consecutive shows for different groups: grades 2 and 3 at 12:45 PM, then grades 4 and 5 at 1:50 PM. Don't miss it!