The Dragon's Tale
The Biweekly Newsletter of the Kaohsiung American School
2019-2020, Issue #8: November 25th
Dear KAS Families,
親愛的家長您好:
During these Thanksgiving Holidays, we take time to reflect and share gratitude for the members of the school community who make KAS such a special place to learn.
感恩節到了,我們想花點時間來反思以及對於所有讓KAS成為一個很特別的學校的人表達感謝。
First and foremost, thank you to our students! KAS students are bright, talented, hard working, kind, open-minded, creative, and so many other excellent things. Students are the entire reason for Kaohsiung American School, and our community is so fortunate to serve such a wonderful group of young people. Thank you to our parents and families as well. It is your partnership and support that enables the school to provide a rigorous American education right here in Taiwan. KAS parents care deeply for their children and want the best for them, and we feel that every day with the helpful involvement you bring to the school and to education. It’s truly a team effort, and we thank you for all you do to support.
首先,感謝我們的學生!KAS的學生是很聰明、富有才能、努力不懈、親切、胸襟開闊、富有創造力,以及許多其他的優點。學生就是高雄美國學校的重心,在KAS這個大家庭的每一份子都很幸運能為這群優秀的年輕學子服務。也謝謝學生家長以及家人們。因為有您的合作與支持,學校才能在此提供如此縝密的美式教育。KAS的家長對於孩子深切的關心以及望子成龍望女成鳳的心情,我們每天都能感受到您對本校以及教育的熱情參與。這就是所謂的團隊精神,我們感謝您所做的一切。
Thank you to our faculty and staff for their care, skill, and dedication to serving our students. We have some of the best faculty and staff in the world, and we see their results and impact every day as our programs grow stronger and stronger. The research is clear - the most important in-school factor for student success is the teacher, and we are fortunate to have such a great team here at KAS working tirelessly for students.
感謝學校所有教職員,他們給予學生的關心、教導和奉獻。我們擁有世上最好的教職員,隨著我們的課程越來越強大縝密,我們每天都能看到所帶來的成果和影響。研究清楚顯示,在一個學校中最重要促使學生成功的因素是老師。我們很幸運擁有一個這麼棒的團隊在高雄美國學校為學生不辭辛勞地付出。
Thank you to our Board of Directors for their vision, leadership, and support. Our Board members volunteer countless hours of their personal time to serve our school without pay. KAS is known in the EARCOS region for having a caring, engaged, and visionary Board, and we are so thankful for all they do. Because of the efforts of our Board of Directors over the years we have been able to grow into the world-class school that we are today, and we are preparing for an even brighter future.
感謝董事會成員,他們的遠見、領導力、以及支持。我們的董事會成員都是自願且無償地提供無數的個人時間來為學校服務。高雄美國學校在EARCOS(東亞國際學校理事會)中是以擁有關懷、敬業以及有遠見的董事會而聞名的,我們非常感謝董事會為我們所做的一切。由於董事會多年的努力,我們得以成長蛻變為世界一流的學校,並準備迎向更光明的未來。
Thank you to our PTA for providing such energy, excitement, and goodwill to our community. This week we enjoyed a delicious Thanksgiving lunch courtesy of our PTA, and this is just one of many, many examples of how they strengthen the partnership of school and families. This partnership is essential to the education of our students. The PTA’s contributions to school culture are among the reasons that students excitedly run into school every day, and we are lucky to have such kind support!
感謝家長會為我們這個大家庭帶來了活力、歡樂以及友好。我們在這週享受了家長會提供的美味感恩節大餐,而這也只是家長會如何鞏固學校和家庭之間關係的眾多例子之一。這對學生的教育來說是非常重要的。家長會對於學校的貢獻也是學生每天期盼來上學的原因,我們很幸運能得到如此的支持。
We hope that every member of the KAS family enjoys this Thanksgiving holiday, and that you get to spend time with friends and family. We look forward to seeing you again this coming Monday!
我們希望KAS大家庭中的每一位家人都能盡情享受感恩節佳期,並與您的家人和朋友團聚。我們期待下週一再與您相見。
Kind regards,
Dr. Ploeger, Superintendent 總校長
Ms. Rock, High School Principal 高中校長
Mr. Payne, Middle School Principal 國中校長
Mr. Coyle, Elementary School Principal 小學校長
Alumni corner 校友天地
Meet David Hung (2014)
When David first graduated from KAS in 2014, he moved to the U.S. and enrolled in the University of California, Berkeley where he graduated with a B.S. in Molecular Environmental Biology in 2017. In between breaks applying to graduate school and studying for the GRE, David took a few minutes to offer our current students some advice for the future.
David畢業於2014年,隨即轉往美國加州柏克萊大學就讀,並於2017年獲取分子環境生物學學位。在申請研究所及準備研究生入學考試的空檔,David花了幾分鐘給予我們現在的學生一些未來的建議。
"Declare for that IB Diploma!", shares David. As an International Baccalaureate DP student at KAS, David took some of the most rigorous classes offered. He credits the IB Diploma program with providing him pre-collegiate experience that immensely helped his transition to a competitive university environment. He also benefited from the 'advanced standing' that the IB Diploma offered him, sharing that he earned "plenty of course credits that allowed me to graduate a semester earlier than most undergraduates." David also recommends DP students "be creative...and don't be afraid to go interdisciplinary with your IB Extended Essay or IA topic."
David分享說,”修取IB文憑!“作爲一個KAS裡修取國際大學預科文憑的學生,David修了些最嚴格的課程。他讚揚IB課程提供他上大學前的經驗,極大地幫助他過渡到競爭激烈的大學環境。他也受益於IB文憑中的高級課程分數,“我獲得了大量的課程學分,使得我比大多數的本科生,早了一個學期畢業。“David也建議預科文憑的學生,“能有創造力的。。。不要害怕跨學科學習你的延伸論文或IA主題。“
For younger students, David says KAS really helped with learning the important skill of time management. "I was required to organize and prioritize, which in turn gave me experience in college," says David, who credits his time at KAS for preparing him well for future academic demands.
對於較年輕的學生,KAS確實有助學習時間管理的這個重要技能。他說,“我被要求組織能力和確定優先次序,這給予我大學學習的經驗。”他感謝在KAS的時間裡,為將來的學術需求做了充分的準備。
David shared that his favorite memory of KAS was visiting a butterfly farm during elementary school when he was a G1 student. "That trip and overall experience gave me the passion for entomology and a foundation for natural sciences that I eventually chose to study in college." Thank you David for continuing to support KAS and pave the way for future KAS Dragons!
David分享說,小學一年級時參觀蝴蝶園的戶外教學是他在KAS裡最喜歡的回憶。“這次的戶外教學和經歷讓我對昆蟲學充滿熱情,並且對於我在大學裡最終選擇了自然科學奠定了基礎。”
感謝David一直支持著KAS並傳承於未來的龍兒們!
Follow our Alumni Corner in the KAS Dragon Tales newsletter. Do you have an update or story to share? Contact us at alumni@kas.tw.
關注KAS週報裡的校友天地。想與我們分享你的近況或是故事嗎?
請與校友會聯絡alumni@kas.tw.IB Bits
Ms Deborah Haines IB/AP Coordinator IB/AP 召集人
On February 12th, KAS grade 10 students will present their Personal Projects. All parents and friends are welcome to attend. Personal Projects are completed by MYP 10th graders at all IB MYP schools. These projects show off students’ abilities to research, organize, and present a project on a topic of their choice. Projects range from building musical instruments and airplanes, to researching fashion and makeup in different cultures and time periods, to understanding the benefit of playing sports, and many others. Project papers are sent to IB to evaluate. Students will receive their scores next August.
我們的10年級學生將於2/12發表他們的個人專題。歡迎家長和朋友們都能夠出席。在所有的IB MYP學校的10年級學生都會完成他們的個人專題。個人專題展示了學生的研究、組織和展示自己所選擇主題的能力。專題的項目從建造樂器、飛機、研究不同文化和時期的時尚和化妝、了解運動得到的益處等等。專題報告將會由IB來評估,學生將在八月獲得他們的成績。
KAS IB Diploma 11th grade students will be finalizing their topics and research questions for their Extended Essays. An important part of the IB Diploma curriculum, these year-long research projects can be in a subject field of the student’s choice and will contribute to their final IB point total. Most importantly, students who have gone through the IB Diploma program often comment on the university preparation this project provides. Students can analyze literature, conduct scientific experiments, prepare a business case study, among many other options. Since much of the work is done outside of class, students need to create and adhere to a timeline; procrastination on this topic can lead to stress and poor outcomes.
修取IB文憑的11年級學生將決定他們延伸論文的主題和研究的項目。這是IB文憑課程中重要的一部分,在這為期一年的研究項目可以是學生選擇的學科範圍,並在最後計入IB總積分中。最重要的是,大多數通過IB國際大學預科文憑的學生都會給予這個課程所提供的大學前準備作出評論。學生可以分析文學、進行科學實驗、準備商業案例研究,以及其他更多的選擇。由於大部分的工作需要在課餘時間完成,學生必須制定並遵守時間表。拖延將會導致壓力和不良的成果。
College Corner
Greg Bishop College Counselor 大學輔導老師
Jill Newman College Counselor 大學輔導老師
Summer Planning...Already!!
暑期規劃...開始了!!
It seems year after year, families must plan earlier and earlier for upcoming courses and adventures. This is no exception. Already, we have received a number of programs which you will see listed here with the link to find out more information. They are from several different countries and are from several different areas of interest. I hope students can enroll based on the fact that it will be an exciting experience for them as well as a great learning experience, not because it might make them look good when they apply to university! Even though these can be valuable experiences, many colleges view them as being “too easy”. They would prefer students to follow something they are really interested in individually; something they have been consistently involved in or something that they can create which will leave the community a better place.
年復一年,各家為孩子的暑期活動規劃時間似乎愈來愈提前了。我們不例外的也已經收到許多資訊,列表在此 here 連結可看到更多內容,分別來自不同國家或領域,我希望孩子們都可以根據自己的興趣報名,除了留下美好的經驗之外更能達到有效率的學習,不是只為了申請大學時申請表的好看,就算這些是很有價值的經歷,大學也有可能覺得"太容易",他們更想看到學生們做自己真正感興趣的活動,那些讓他們有動力持續下去,或是能激發他們的創造力,真正達到幫助社會的成果。
Just a reminder…..University of California applications are due TODAY, Nov 30.
貼心提醒......加州各大學於11月30日申請截止。
We Are KAS
KAS strives to be one of the finest American International Schools in the World. KAS challenges students to achieve academic excellence and prepares them to be balanced individuals, independent learners, and global citizens.
Kaohsiung American School (KAS) is a private, non-profit, co-educational Pre K – 12 institution offering an American, college preparatory program leading to a US high school diploma and the opportunity for an IB Diploma.
KAS is located in the northern area of Kaohsiung city, the second largest city in Taiwan with 1.5 million inhabitants. Kaohsiung American School was established in 1989 as an elementary school serving the needs of local and expatriate families with children.
Email: admissions@kas.tw
Website: www.kas.tw
Location: 813, Taiwan, 高雄市左營區翠華路889號
Phone: 07-586-3300
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KaohsiungAmericanSchool/
Twitter: @kaohsiungas