The Dragon's Tale

2021-2022 Issue #15 February 21, 2022

Dear KAS Community,
親愛的KAS家人您好:

Monday February 28 will be Peace Memorial Day—a national holiday. Sadly, it memorializes a terrible tragedy here in Taiwan in 1947 that began in violence. Today we are watching the invasion of Ukraine, and we remember the violence and death that came from ‘military solutions’ in Syria, Myanmar, Ethiopia and so many other places recently. Our school’s mission includes ethical global citizenship, and it is even more relevant, more needed in the world today. Let us not just pray for peace, but let us dedicate ourselves to building relationships of respect, and working for peace and peaceful solutions.
2 月 28 日星期一是和平紀念日，同時也是國定假日。 令人難過的是，它卻是在紀念1947 年發生在台灣的一場始於暴力的可怕悲劇。 現今我們正看著烏克蘭被入侵，我們還記得近期在敘利亞、緬甸、衣索比亞和許多其他地方的「軍事行動」所帶來的暴力和傷亡。 高雄美國學校的使命包括道德的全球公民，它在當今世界顯得更加相關，更需要。 讓我們不僅為和平祈禱，而且讓我們致力於建立相互尊重的關係，並為和平與和平解決方案而努力。

This week we had our WASC special visit to follow up on our progress on our action plans after the March 2020 accreditation visit. Thank you to the many teachers, parents, students and board members who met with the WASC team that is assessing our progress. A special shout-out to Sara Brodhead, our Curriculum/IB Programmes Director. Sara prepared all of the documentation for the WASC team, and brought everyone together to meet them. We will share the highlights of their report with the school community when we receive the visiting team’s feedback.
本週，我們進行了 WASC 的特別訪問，以跟進我們在 2020 年 3 月認證訪問後對於行動計劃方面的進展。 感謝所有參與 WASC 團隊會面的老師、家長、學生和董事會成員。 特別向我們的課程/IB 主任 Sara Brodhead 致敬。 Sara 為 WASC 團隊準備了所有的文檔，並召集大家一起見面。 待我們收到訪問團隊的回饋報告時，我們將會和學校社群分享他們報告的重點。

As you know, one high school student went home ten days ago for a 2-week quarantine due to close contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19. Since that day, our student has tested negative two times (including a PCR test on Thursday). This means there is no need for concern in our community, as it is clear that our student was not contagious while on campus. I also want to remind everyone of the importance of students and teachers wearing masks properly at all times on campus, and a friendly reminder about frequent hand washing or sanitizing. Parents are welcome on campus for required meetings, following protocols for signing in, checking temperatures and scanning the health authority’s QR Code.

如您所知，一位高中學生在十天前因和確診者密切接觸被匡列而離校接受隔離。從那天起，該學生已經兩次檢驗結果皆呈現陰性（包含星期四做的一次PCR）。這也意味著我們不需要擔心KAS社群的安全，學生在校園內不具傳染性。我也想提醒大家關於學生和老師在校園內整天都需佩戴口罩的重要性，並且經常洗手或消毒。如是必要性的會議，我們也歡迎家長到學校，入校請遵循量測體溫，掃描實名制簡訊的QR Code。

Enjoy the 3-day weekend, and we’ll see your learners on Tuesday, March 1. Swimming will begin for some of our learners and that’s a positive sign!

請好好享受三天連假，我們三月一日星期二見。部分學生也將開始上游泳課，這是一個好跡象！

In peace and solidarity,

Mr. Laney, Head of School

Ms. Clark, High School Principal

Mr. Payne, Middle School Principal

Mr. Coyle, Elementary School Principal

Summer Programs @KAS

The school is preparing to offer a variety of summer programs for students from PK-12 and more information will be sent directly to parents as details become available.

學校正在準備提供一連串的暑期課程給PK~12年級的學生，更多資訊將會隨後寄送給您。

For students entering PK-Grade 8, our 3-week Summer Dragon Camp will offer games, creative and academic activities, and sports (including swimming) and a weekly field trip in or near the city. Families will be able to sign up for one, two or all three weeks.

針對PK~5年級的學生，我們為期三週的Dragon暑期營將會提供遊戲、創意和具學術性質的活動、體育活動（包含游泳）、並且每週一次市內戶外教學。可以選擇要參加一週、二週或三週。

KAS students currently in grades 5–7 can also join an intensive writing workshop that will prepare them for stronger academic achievement next year. Parents are cordially invited to learn more about Firm Foundation’s Middle School Writing Program that will be offered at KAS this summer. Please attend the information session via Zoom on Saturday, March 5th, 10:00-10:45 AM if interested.

目前正就讀5~7年級的學生可以參加一個密集的寫作課程，讓學生可以在學業上獲得更佳的成就。誠摯邀請家長來了解更多參加關於Firm Foundation所提供的中學寫作課程。有興趣的家長請在3月5日星期六早上10點～10點45分參加透過Zoom舉行的線上說明會。

High School students have a variety of options for the summer, including internships through our Future Leader Program, assisting at one of our summer camps for elementary students, working on extended essays, or taking one or more classes with the Global Online Academy. The school will be sharing more information soon with high school students and parents about the GOA, and the opportunities that our students have because KAS has a summer membership with them.

高中生在暑假有很多選擇；包括透過未來領袖計畫的暑期實習機會，協助我們的小學生夏令營之一，撰寫延伸論文，或參加全球線上學院的一門或多門課程。學校將很快與高中生和家長分享有關 GOA 的更多資訊，以及我們的學生所擁有的機會，因為 KAS 擁有該學院的夏季會員資格。

Dear Parents,

親愛的家長您好：

Thank you again for supporting our second early release Wednesday this school year! It was a productive afternoon for teachers fulfilling our school wide goals and curricular programs. Elementary School teachers and teaching assistants all participated in a child protection training (middle and high school teachers will complete the same training in March). MYP teachers in the middle and high schools met with our MYP Personal Project supervisor, Ms. Terea Marcum, to learn about how to evaluate this year’s tenth graders projects. Meanwhile DP teachers met together to discuss the upcoming 12th Grade Mock Exam week (March 7-11). In the last hour of our collaboration time all middle and high school teachers met together to better understand the impact of positive relationships between educators and students at KAS.

再次感謝您支持我們本學年第二次的週三提早放學。對於實現我們學校廣泛目標和課程計劃的教師來說，這是一個富有成效的下午。小學教師和助教都參加了兒童保護培訓（國高中教師將在3月份完成相同的培訓）。 中學和高中的MYP老師與我們的MYP個人專題負責老師Terea Marcum會面，了解如何評估今年十年級學生的個人專題項目。 與此同時，DP 老師們聚在一起討論即將到來的 12 年級模擬考考試週（3 月 7 日至 11 日）。 在我們合作的最後一個小時，所有國高中教師齊聚一堂，以便能更加了解 KAS 教育工作者和學生之間正向關係的影響。

Ms. Clark and I will host a drop in session (not a formal meeting) on Tuesday, March 1st between 12:00pm and 1:00pm for parents of grade 12 students to ask their questions about the IB mock exam week - Google Meet. We will have a translator available as well. You may also email myself or Ms. Clark with any questions you have.
Ms. Clark 和我本人將在 3 月 1 日（星期二）中午 12:00 到 1:00 之間舉行一場Google Meet臨時會議（非正式會議）。 對 IB 模擬考試週有任何疑問的12年級家長可以借此機會發問。線上也會提供翻譯服務。若有任何疑問也可以利用電子郵件和我本人或Ms. Clark聯絡。

Sara Brodhead

Curriculum and IB Programs Coordinator

Dear All,

親愛的KAS 家人您好：

I would like to share an update from the boy's volleyball team. We recently qualified for competition in the southern regional tournament for public schools in Taiwan. Unfortunately, we lost all our games. It was a great experience for the students to compete at a higher level than they’ve experienced before. As the volleyball coach, I am so proud of them to be able to attend the tournament.
我們的高中男子排球隊在2月22-24號參加台灣高中乙組排球聯賽-複賽，雖然結果不如預期，也提早結束這個高中乙組聯賽的賽季。但這次的比賽經驗將帶給球員們一個難忘的經驗，同時本人也很驕傲本校男子排球隊可以參與更高層級的排球賽事。

The upcoming season is HS Boys Volleyball, Girls Soccer, and MS Basketball. The High School season will start on March 1st, and tryout date will be March 1st- March 4th.The tryout criteria are based on fitness tests, athletic ability, position, and overall performance to determine the roster. MS Basketball will start on March 14th, and the basketball sign up form will be sent out to students through email on Monday, February 28th.

即將到來的課後運動項目有高中男子排球、女子足球和中學籃球。高中的賽季將於3月1日開始， 選拔日期是3月1日~4日。選拔測驗將會以體能測驗、運動能力、位置、整體表現來作為入選名單的基準。中學的籃球賽季將於3月14日開始，報名表將於2月28日星期一透過email方式寄給學生。

Thank you so much for your support.
感謝您的支持。

Regards,

Ms. Stella

Interim Athletic Director 代理體育主任

Teenagers often go through difficult times and it is hard for them to articulate how they are feeling. This causes them to feel anxious, stressed or depressed. It’s best to provide non-judgemental comfort, support and companionship and dog therapy does just that! On February 9 we were able to provide therapeutic services to our Middle School students by the Dog Therapy Team from PATA (Professional Animal-Assisted Therapy Association of Taiwan).

青少年時期對孩子而言很不容易，他們常常很難表達自己的感受。這使他們感到焦慮、壓力或沮喪。最好提供他們足夠的支持和陪伴而不是批判他們，而動物療法就是這樣做的！ 2 月 9 日當天我們請到了 PATA（台灣專業動物輔助治療協會）的狗治療團隊為我們的中學生提供療癒服務。

The team comes with a licensed therapist, a handler and a therapy dog. Lessons are planned for our students to interact with the well-trained and certificated dog. Feelings of happiness, joy and calm filled our MS students. With the positive feedback from the participants, we hope to provide more dog therapy in the upcoming months at KAS!

當天包含一位有證照的治療師、一位訓練員和一隻治療犬到場。整場課程讓我們的學生與訓練有素且經過認證的狗狗互動。幸福、快樂和平靜的感覺充滿在我們MS學生當中。由於學生們的反應良好，我們希望接下來的幾個月能在 KAS 提供更多的狗狗治療活動！

Future Leaders Program 未來領袖計畫

The FLP Team has been meeting with returning partners to work on possible adjustments for internships to still be authentic and valuable, but non-public-facing. We hope to start the spring 2022 term in March depending on pandemic restrictions. Students who have already applied and been accepted (or are waiting for an interview with Weiwuying) will be contacted soon following updates from the CDC and Kaohsiung City Government.

未來領袖計畫團隊近期與合作的企業討論微調實習計畫的方案，為了以學生安全為最重要的考量，但同時也希望讓所有實習生能得到最有價值的指導與職場經驗。我們會密切關注指揮中心，高雄市政府，及教育部的規範，這幾天會通知這學期已被錄取的學生。期望三月可以放心、守法地重啟未來領袖計畫的所有實習方案。

We are also starting communication with new internship organizations for the upcoming summer 2022 and fall 2022 terms, so stay tuned for updates later in the semester!

我們近期也與新的企業開始討論暑期及秋季的合作，期待在學期結束前與大家介紹新的實習選項！

Service Learning: PAR Team 服務學習：PAR 計畫

High school students above the age of 15 can sign up for a Participatory Action Research (PAR) program throughout March and April. We will take 15 students who sign up before the deadline (Monday). PAR Team members will experience elements of academia, externship, and volunteerism as we research and reflect together in March, experience a day assisting social workers at the Nanzih Child Development Center during spring break, and come back to plan a culminating event for students of the center together. I have sent an email detailing this opportunity to students in grades 9 through 12 and posted more information on my KAS blog. I am overjoyed about the amount of interest students and faculty have shown for this service project, and excited to work with students to make this program meaningful and comprehensive!

十五歲以上的高中生可以報名參加三月到四月的參與式 (Participatory) 行動 (Action) 研究 (Research) PAR 計畫。我們會選十五位在截止日（星期一）前報名的學生。PAR 團隊成員將透過三月的研究與反思，在楠梓區的博正兒童發展中心當一天的志工，及四月一起計畫適合兒發中心的孩子們的活動探索學術，職場，及服務性質的各項體驗。我星期一用 email 傳了計劃主旨給九到十二年級的學生，也在我的 KAS 部落格附上詳細的活動資訊。我很開心已有許多學生及教職員表達對 PAR 計畫的興趣，更期待與學生合作，一起讓這次的服務學習更有意義！

Tina Wu
Future Leaders Program & Service Learning Coordinator

Seniors are receiving offers of admission to excellent schools all over the world to a wide variety of programs including journalism, engineering, aviation, art and architecture, business, design, kinesiology, computer science, social sciences and more! Congratulations to all our students who have received offers, with many more to come between now and April 1.

12年級生們正接收到來自世界各地優秀大學的錄取通知，包括新聞、工程、航空、藝術和建築、商業、設計、運動機能學、計算機科學、社會科學等等！恭喜所有收到錄取通知的學生們，從現在到 4 月 1 日還有更多錄取消息會傳來。

Admission decisions are usually made by a university updating the status to a student’s application portal, and occasionally by email. It’s important to understand different admission results and how and when to respond. Students may be accepted, offered conditional admission, deferred, denied, or waitlisted. For most other North American universities, you will receive a decision by April 1, and the date to accept an offer is usually National Declaration Day, May 1. After this date, your offer of admission may be released and given to another candidate.

錄取通知通常由大學端更新到學生的申請網站帳號，偶爾會由Email發出。了解不同的錄取結果以及如何或何時回覆非常重要。學生可能會被錄取、有條件錄取、延期、拒絕或列入候補名單。大多數北美大學會在 4 月 1 日之前通知，接受錄取通知書的日期通常是 5 月 1 日 National Declaration Day。在此日期之後，您的錄取通知可能會被釋出或提供機會給其它申請人。

After you have been accepted and decided upon a university, you will need to notify the other universities via your student portal or however they have instructed you in the offer letter. You will be required to pay a deposit as a sign of commitment. Double-depositing, where you accept admission and pay a deposit at two schools is not allowed.

在您被錄取並決定選擇一所大學後，您需要通過您的大學申請網站通知其他大學，或大學會在錄取通知中說明。您將需要支付押金作為承諾，且同時支付兩所大學押金是不被允許的。

For Juniors, we are continuing to meet individually with each student to discuss college plans and strategy. In March, advisory lessons will focus on understanding admissions plans and using data to support decision-making, teacher recommendations, and hearing from our seniors about advice on applying to college. Counselors are also planning for future workshops on personal essay writing, financial aid, and applications by country. Thank you for trusting us with your child’s college applications!

我們將繼續與每個11年級學生單獨面談，討論大學規劃。 3 月時，申請諮商將會偏重於了解錄取型式和利用數據來幫忙大學申請規劃、教師推薦函以及聽取學長姐有關申請大學的建議。大學輔導計劃在未來按照申請國家/地區個別舉辦有關個人論文寫作、經濟援助和申請的研討會。感謝您在孩子的大學申請過程中給予我們信任！

Students are assigned college counselors alphabetically based on their last name:

學生的大學輔導是根據姓氏的字母排序：

字母A-L Cerise Roth-Vinson, crothvinson@kas.tw
字母M-Z Lori Dietrich, ldietrich@kas.tw

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