director@ans.edu.ni / www.ans.edu.ni

October 15^th, 2008

The American Nicaraguan School

= Parents please check the Elementary School webpage,

www.ans.edu.ni. You’ll find information about events, dates, pictures, etc.

= Parents and students should come by and check the Lost

& Found cabinet to identify lost items. This cabinet is located outside the Elementary Office.

= For security reasons, gate #4 is the only access point dur-

ing instructional hours (7:05 am to 1:50 pm). All visitors (parents, drivers, maids, etc.) should enter and exit through this gate and proceed directly to the Elementary Office.  Also if a student is going to be picked up early, an exit permit must first be obtained from the Elementary Office.

= The school is responsible for its students between 6:45

am and 2:15 pm, Monday through Friday. Students who stay for tutoring or extra-curricular activities will be under the supervision of teachers or coaches for not more than 20 minutes after the end of the session. Students who do not participate in after-school activities must leave school promptly at the end of the school day.

= Earth Science students and parents are invited to

visit professor Perezalonso’s Earth Science webpage (http://sites.google.com/a/ans.edu.ni/earthscience/) where you will find useful resources for the class and links to interesting sites.

= This week, Latin American History students ex-

plored the meaning of “culture” by exploring the customs, traditions, and other traits in their own cultures. We had a wonderful festival with Italian pizza, German sausage, Korean kimpap and bulgogi, Taiwanese dumplings, French baguettes and crepes, Salvadorian pupusas and semita, Spanish paella and flamenco music, American hamburgers, Cuban snacks, and lots of Nicaraguan goodies like cajeta, rosquillas, quesillo, and nacatamales. Thanks to all the participants for making the festival a huge success! 

= An e-mail went out last week regarding enforce-

ment of uniform regulations at ANS. Please review the e-mail as well as the Parent-Student Handbook section on uniforms with your child. Students arriving to school out of uniform will be sent home and the absence will be designated as unexcused. 

= Today, all 10^th and 11^th grade students took the

PSAT. This is an important practice test for the SAT, which is one of the main college entrance exams in the United States. PSAT score reports will be available to parents early in the second semester.  

= This week, 2 High School teachers, Patricia Ruiz

and Barbara Terrell, are attending the Annual Tri-Association Conference. They will be participating in a number of training sessions focused on student learning. Once back at ANS, these teachers will share their learning with their colleagues during the staff development days. 

= The pick-up rate for first quarter report cards was

as follows: 9^th = 75%; 10^th = 80%; 11^th = 70%; 12^th = 75%.

= Congratulations to the boys’ varsity basketball team that

participated in the AASCA Tournament in San Pedro Sula last week. This is a young disciplined team that has a bright future. Keep it up guys! Chen Po Fan (12^th grade) won 3 medals as member of the All Star Team, one of the most valuable players of the Tournament and one of the leading scorers. Maximiliano Astruc (10^th grade) was also appointed to the All Star Team.

= The V Elementary Swimming Festival held last week in

our pool was a complete success. A total of 125 students, grades K4 to 5, participated in the event. Both students and parents enjoyed a fantastic afternoon in which every student won a beautiful medal of participation. See the records of the competition as well as pictures in our webpage.

= Twenty members of our swimming team Las Pirañas par-

ticipated last Sunday at Casa España in Copa Hispanidad contest winning First Place after obtaining 6 gold, 5 silver, and 4 bronze medals among 7 clubs and 119 competitors. Many congratulations to athletes and parents!

= Please check the bi-monthly athletic bulletin, TIGER

NEWS, for August & September 2008 that has been posted in our webpage. Statistics, pictures, and more…

= Tenth and eleventh grade students completed the

PSAT exam today. This opportunity is provided to ANS students as a practice for the SAT, a college entrance exam.

= After receiving the Quarter 1 report cards and

meeting with teachers, parents are welcome to meet with counselors to explore strategies to support their child’s academic progress.

FALL FESTIVAL

The Fall Festival will be held on Friday, October 31. All those parents and clubs that would like to help and participate, please contact Vilma Rizo at 882-1475 or Carmencita Teran at 851-4446. More information will be given through the bulletins.

Access to Quarter 2 grades will be available through PowerSchool on Monday, October 20, for all parents and students. Please log in through the ANS webpage or directly at http://powerschool.ans.edu.ni:5555/public. Access is denied to students that have not returned the signature page of the Parent-Student Handbook or have pending financial obligations. Any questions or assistance with username/password, please contact the corresponding office (Elementary, MS, or HS).

READAK COURSE

ANS Grade 5-12 Parents: If interested in this course, please remember to complete the Readak registration form and return it to the appropriate school office as soon as possible. The course will now begin on October 25 and 27 and will last 3 weeks. Don’t forget to choose 2 class options from the schedule list. The Readak teacher will now join us on October 22 to be available to parents, meet with students and faculty, confirm the schedule of classes, and generally become familiar with our school community.