Welcome Back
January 14, 2022
Welcome to 2022 everyone! I wish you all the very best for a prosperous and peaceful year.
2022 is off to a good start here at ISY. It was such a lift to have our returning teachers arrive in Yangon last Saturday. They will soon be out of quarantine and be back at school to prepare rooms and get everything ready for your children when we are able to welcome them back on campus. I would say that they are easily just as excited as your children!
As I shared earlier in the week, I am very happy to have Ms. Sandy Sheppard return to us. Many of you will remember Ms. Sheppard as our Elementary School Principal in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. Ms. Sheppard and I will be co-principals of the Elementary School for the remainder of the school year.
As I also shared earlier in the week, due to some health complications I am unable to return to Yangon to finish the school year in-person. I will continue to work from New Zealand to provide uninterrupted leadership and teach online classes as I have been this year. Ms. Sheppard will be able to provide important in-person leadership for our community and will also be teaching some in-person classes. We are very fortunate to have a school leader of Ms. Sheppard’s expertise and experience to help us finish this school year strongly.
On Monday, you will receive an email outlining how Semester 2 will work for your child(ren)’s grade level along with some general information about how we will manage a transition to in-person learning.
COUNSELOR’S CORNER with Ms. Patty:
Reflection as we move forward with new challenges
As we draw close to the end of the semester, it is important to reflect and take inventory of what we have achieved and what we wish to further accomplish. In the coming weeks, ISY hopes to begin in-person learning again. As we prepare for this possibility, it is necessary to review and reflect with our children on what they have learned and accomplished through online learning. Reflecting requires a minimum of 3 important steps: Reflecting, Analyzing and Taking Action.
Take Notice & Describe: With your child reflect on their learning this past school year, perhaps throughout their online experience. What activities did they enjoy? How did they feel throughout the experience? Did their emotions change? What skills did they acquire?
Analyze: Think through their experiences. What actions did they take? How can the skills they acquired help them in future situations? What assumptions, beliefs or values were made?
Take Action: Create a plan. How can your child use these experiences in their future learning journey? How can acquired skills benefit other areas of learning? What have they learned from the emotional experience and can it support them for future challenges?
Reflection helps your child develop critical thinking skills. It provides a space for celebrating accomplishments while considering challenges and experiences. In reflecting, students can find moments of gratitude while defining future actions which to aspire to as they move forward.
Warmly, Ms. Patty
Ms. Patty is available to support all ISY families. If you have any questions or concerns please contact me at escounselor@isyedu.org.
Patty Amundson-Geisel
Pre-K to Grade 6 Counselor
It’s great to be back!
It is wonderful to be back in Yangon. I have spent the last 18 months back in New Zealand setting up a home there and spending time with my daughter.
I am happy to now be back to support the school as we work towards resuming in-person learning; it is an exciting time. I look forward to working with Mr Simpson as co-principal and to seeing you all soon.
Ms. Sandy Sheppard
Internet Issues
Offline Learning Activities
Every Friday, your child’s homeroom teacher will email you a PDF of offline learning activities that your child will be able to do if they lose access to the internet.
Please only use these plans if your child is unable to access the internet. If you have the internet, your child will be able to attend online classes as usual.
To make sure the offline learning activities stay connected to what is happening in class, our teachers will review and, if necessary, update the offline learning activities each week. Please download the PDF document attached to the email as soon as you receive it on Friday. The email will also have a link to this instructional video:
Elementary Update September 20
This week on Wednesday I visited the ISY Nay Pyi Taw campus where there are lots of fabulous things happening.
At ISY we continue enjoying our learning.
Elementary School Blog- Sept 13
It seemed that the rain this week purposely chose to come down at break and dismissal times. The rain never hampers our fun here at ISY though and in between the rain we had lots of creative fun outdoors this week (see pictures below).
Elementary School Blog – Sept 6
Dear Parents, It has been another fantastic week at ISY. We have really settled into the school year and we look forward to sharing with you all the wonderful things that are happening in our classrooms over the coming weeks.
Elementary School Blog – August 30
Thank you for the great turn out at the Back to School event this week. We appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedules to join us. A good home and school connection is so important for student learning.
Elementary School Blog – August 23
Dear all,
This has been a wonderful first full week at ISY. The students have settled into their classrooms an are enjoying school life. In particular the new playground is proving to be very popular.
Elementary School Blog – August 16
Welcome back everyone to the new school year. It is wonderful to have your children back with us at school, we missed them. This blog will be sent out each Friday and will contain important information and dates, as well as reminders. I hope you take the opportunity to read it each week.
The International School Yangon
20 Shwe Taungyar Street
Bahan Township
Yangon, Myanmar
+95 (0) 9 880 441 040