This Coming Week at BIFS: United in Our Diversity, Thriving in Our Individuality

BIFS NEWSLETTER
United in our Diversity, Thriving in our Individuality
Contents
ISSUE 49, April 8, 2016
(Click to jump straight to the article home icon brings you back to Contents)
This Coming Week at BIFS
1. Tue, Apr 12: MHS Three-Way Conferences/ES-PD

2. Wed, Apr 13: BIFS Parent Workshop/PTA Meeting
3. Thu, Apr 14: BIFS Spring Open House
Whole School
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
In search of Belongingness
BIFS Parent Workshop April 13
PTA News
Share your Cuisine in "International Recipe Book!
BIFS Open House April 14
PTA International Day 2016 May 7
PE Uniform Shop
ABRSM Practical Exams May 17, 18
Assistance with a Research Targeted at Korean Parents
IT Services - Apple Computer Discounts
BIFS Family Member ID Card Registration
Cafeteria Menu: April 11-15
Elementary School
1.
2.
3.
4.
April 12 Half Day, No Electives

Professional Development
Upcoming Elementary Events
Author and Storyteller Visits in May
Middle School and High School
1. MHS Parent Teacher Conferences April 12

2. Understanding MYP Reports Roadmaps for Success
3. Human Ingenuity Exhibition April 12
For Your Diary

BIFS Annual Calendar 2015-16 & 2016-17
School & Community Links
www.bifskorea.org | enquiries@bifskorea.org | T. 82 51 742 3332
Busan International Foreign School
BIFS NEWSLETTER
Whole School
In search of Belongingness
Welcome back to school! We hope that you and your family had a wonderful spring break filled with rest,
recreation and special memories.
One of the hallmarks of the BIFS educational experience is our desire for each of our students to experience a
sense of belonging in our school community and in the broader global community. We call this developing
sense of belongingbelongingness.
Why is belongingness so important? Belongingness is defined as the human emotional need to be an accepted
member of a group. Whether it is family, friends, co-workers, a sports team, or as a member of a school
community, humans tend to have an 'inherent' desire to belong and be an important part of something greater
than themselves. This implies a relationship that is greater than simple acquaintance or familiarity. The need to
belong is the need to give, and receive attention to, and from, others. Abraham Maslow suggested that the
need to belong was a major source of human motivation. As the span of relationships expands from childhood
into adolescence, a sense of peer group membership develops and this is where BIFS is able to significantly
contribute to your students development. In a school, such as at BIFS, a sense of belonging to a social group
(such as classes, teams, and performance and service groups) enhances each students learning. Feeling a sense
of belonging at school is associated with greater interest in and more enjoyment of school thus leading to
greater achievement. The sense of connection within a classroom is critical to student learning. When students
feel they are being valued, accepted, included and encouraged by others in the classroom setting they soar.
They perceive themselves to be an important part of the setting and activity of the class, as each student is at
BIFS. Furthermore, these experiences translate onto successful university and career experiences for our
students.
It is important for each of our students to have these experiences and develop the skills of belongingness. We
cherish and value our students and seek to ensure that they feel connected to our school community and the
world. It is so important that it is part of our mission at BIFS!
Kevin Baker
Head of School
BIFS NEWSLETTER
BIFS Parent Workshop April 13

Please come to our next BIFS Parent Workshop on Wednesday, April 13! We will be sharing an overview of our
Visual Arts Programs (PYP through to DP).
Place: ES Hall (B5.5)
Time: 9-10 AM
Immediately following the BIFS Parent Workshop, the PTA will hold their meeting in the same location. Please
join the BIFS admin team for a meaningful conversation!
PTA News
What a great start to 2016 we've had! Our PTA meetings have been well attended and our Hot
Topics have proved to be really popular. Our next PTA meeting date will be on Wednesday 13
April. Kit Whitney, the school Counselor, will lead a discussion about Internet safety.
Our next major event is International Day where we will be having the World
Wheel of Fortune. At the wheel you can win a gift basket. We are asking
members of our school community to donate these gift baskets with the
theme of their home country or an international theme. Think of what kind of
goodies you could put in the basket you donate. Here's an example from last
year. You can sign up here:
www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0945A8AC2BA5FE3-world
PTA President
Joy Priedeman
Share Your Cuisine in "International Recipe Book!

The members of the National Honors Society (NHS) are creating an International Recipe Book as a contribution
to BIFS's annual, International Day. The book will consist of recipes of authentic dishes, beverages, and desserts
that represent the diverse cultures in our school community. It would be greatly appreciated if parents could
provide the NHS with a recipe of their home country so that the recipes can be shared with all students and
parents for them to try out themselves!
Please send all recipes to Jina Choi (S_jchoi@bifskorea.org) or Mr. Brown (bbrown@bifskorea.org) by
April 15.
Friday,
**Recipes should include the dish name, country, ingredients, steps, additional notes (optional) and of course,
the name of the contributor of the recipe!
BIFS NEWSLETTER
BIFS Open House April 14

We are holding our second Spring Open House on Thursday, April 14 from 9:30am to 11:30am. Please spread
the news and invite your friends to the event!
BIFS NEWSLETTER
PTA International Day 2016 May 7
BIFS NEWSLETTER
PE Uniform Shop
We did some SPRING CLEANING in the PE Uniform Shop over Spring Break!! ALL COLD WEATHER CLOTHING
HAS BEEN REPRICED for CLEAR OUT!!!
Polar Fleece Vests, Fleece Tops, Fleece Pants,

Tracksuit Jackets and Tracksuit Pants
NOW 10,000 won each
BIFS Bears Gray and White Hoodies
(sizes limited)
NOW 20,000 won each
BIFS Beanies
NOW 6,000 won each

BIFS blankets
NOW 35,000 won each

All sales are final. No refunds will be given.
THE PE UNIFORM SHOP is open Monday through Thursday! Please check the calendar on the BIFS website for
actual shop hours each week. Note: Shop hours are determined by the availability of our volunteers!
All general information regarding PE Uniforms can be found under the life at BIFS tab
on the BIFS website!
LOOKING FOR A VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY AT SCHOOL? Sign up NOW for next school year and spend a
day or two getting your feet wet (training) in May!! Our volunteers are generally scheduled 8:30-12 or 12-3:30
twice each month (but we are flexible)!! We wont turn anyone away! Volunteers in the PE Uniform Shop have a
regular schedule so it is easy to plan around. For more information about volunteering in the PE Uniform Shop,
contact Dee Baker at dbaker@bifskorea.org.
BIFS NEWSLETTER
ABRSM Practical Exams May 17, 18

ABRSM Practical Exams will be held here at school on Tuesday May 17 and Wednesday May 18 in C5.5.
Assistance with a Research Targeted at Korean Parents

A Masters student in International Education at the University of Bath in the UK is currently conducting a smallscale research project with the aim of ascertaining why Korean families and/or international families comprising
one foreign and one South Korean parent might send their children to international schools within South Korea
as opposed to state institutions in the country or international schools abroad. Please rest assured that any
information disclosed in the survey will be used only for the purpose of the research, and the findings will be
available to BIFS.
If you would like to help with the research, please fill in the questionnaire:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Bzy8gxN964pdp1Kh7SoUnMYfKwAUIS0VmKBzJLkJfSw/viewform
IT Services - Apple Computer Discounts

IT Services has negotiated a range of discounted prices and trade-in deals on Apple
products for staff and students at BIFS, from our Apple equipment vendor, ComIT.
Savings are typically around 12% for MacBook laptops and iMacs, 11% on Mac Minis, 8% on iPad Airs, and 6%
on iPad Minis.
To view a list of available products and order, please visit the following web addresses:
http://bit.ly/itservices-apple-list
http://bit.ly/itservices-order-form
http://bit.ly/itservices-order-kr (Korean)
http://bit.ly/itservices-apple-tradein (Trade-in prices)
If you have any questions, please email mmoriarty@bifskorea.org.
BIFS Family Member ID Card Registration

We would like to ask for your cooperation in registering BIFS Family Member ID Cards. Please register your
cards with the security office at the front gate when visiting BIFS, and dont forget to register your attendance by
placing your card at the card reader when you enter and exit. This is for security purposes and to help us
account for all visitors in case of fire or other evacuation. Thank you in advance for your support and
understanding.
BIFS NEWSLETTER
Cafeteria Menu: April 11-15
Lunch Menu
Sandwich Bar
We serve brunch buffet or international buffet every 3rd Thursday of a month.

BIFS NEWSLETTER
Elementary School
April 12 Half Day, No Electives
Next Tuesday, the elementary students will attend a half-day of school and be dismissed at noon. No electives
will be held on this day. Students who ride the school buses will depart at approximately 12:15 from school.
There will be no lunch service on the half day, so please send extra snacks for your child to eat during the ride
home.
Professional Development
Ms. Kathy Son and Ms. Carol Lesser are off to Thailand to attend a workshop titled, Excellence in Early Years.

Date/Time
Event
Details
Apr 8, 2:35-3:15
Elementary Assembly
Short presentations and performances to celebrate

children's learning in select electives
Apr 12
Field Trip
Grade 2 trip to Haeundae Market & Beach
Apr 12, 12:00
Half Day
Noon dismissal for ES Professional Development. (MHS

has conferences on this day - ES had their conferences in
January.)
Apr 15, 2:35-3:15
Elementary Assembly
Grade 5 will share the actions they created as part of their

Exhibition unit
Apr 19
Field Trip
LE (KG to Grade 2) Field Trip to Kidzania
Apr 19, 2:30-3:30
Grade 5 to Middle School Parent Parent informational meeting for parents of current Grade
Evening
5 students who will be attending Grade 6 next year.
Apr 20, 9:00-10:00
ES/ELC Parent Coffee
Play-based learning - How does play strengthen

childrens learning?
Apr 22, 2:35-3:15
Elementary Assembly
PYP Exhibition Showcase: Grade 5 will present an

opportunity for ES students and staff to visit their
exhibition booths and learn about their chosen local issue,
research and action.
Continued on the next page
10
BIFS NEWSLETTER

Date/Time
Event
Details
Apr 26, 5:00-7:00
Grade 5 Exhibition
Apr 28, all day
Interhouse Track and Field Event Grades 3-5 will attend the BIFS Track and Field event at
Sajik Stadium
Apr 29, 2:35-3:15
Elementary Assembly
Art Exhibition of Grade 3 student artwork connected to

their Unit of Inquiry
May 3
Student Led Conferences
Families join their children during a portion of the day as

the children share learning from their homeroom and
specialist classes. A schedule will be sent home soon.
May 5
No School
Childrens Day
May 6, 2:35-3:15
Elementary Assembly
Visiting author/illustrator Yangsook Choi will present

during the assembly
Anne Sweet
Elementary School Principal
Please join us to see the incredible local issues, research,

and actions our Grade 5 students have engaged in during
their Exhibition unit
Leda Cedo
PYP Coordinator
11
BIFS NEWSLETTER
Author and Storyteller Visits in May

BIFS elementary library is very pleased to have both an author and storyteller
visiting us in May.
Yangsook Choi, author and illustrator of several multicultural childrens books,
will visit us for the elementary assembly on Friday, May 6.
Yangsook grew up in Korea but now divides her time between New York and
Seoul. Ms. Choi has won numerous awards for her books.
Her most popular book, The Name Jar, is available for
purchase from The Book Depository and local
bookshops such as Kyobo. If you would like to purchase
one of her books before May 6, there may be an
opportunity for her to sign it for you when she visits us.
You can find out more about Yangsook Choi from her
website: http://www.yangsookchoi.com/
Monday and Tuesday, May 9 & 10 we will be hosting an

international storyteller during our elementary library times.
Australian-based storyteller, author and musician, Morgan
Schatz Blackrose will inspire us with multicultural stories, songs,
music and rhymes.
For more information, please
http://www.schatzblackrose.com/
visit
her
website
at
Sue Toms
Head of Libraries
12
BIFS NEWSLETTER
Middle School and High School

MHS Parent Teacher Conferences April 12
Based on the parent feedback from our last set of conferences, we will be having conferences again with a
similar format. On April 8th grade 6 through 11 students will receive their report cards for the third quarter. On
April 12th, we will be having Student/Parent/Teacher Conferences during the school day from 1:00pm - 8:00pm.
Students will not have classes in the afternoon, but are expected to come to school and attend conferences with
their parents.
Grade 12 Students
All grade 12 students will receive their third quarter report cards on April 22nd. This is the last report card of the
year for Diploma Students. Students who are taking BIFS courses (non-IBDP) will receive their final report card
(fourth quarter) following their exams in May. It is important that grade 12 students and parents attend
conferences as teachers will provide important guidance for upcoming exams.
Teachers will be grouped in departments and stationed around the gymnasium. Conferences will be 10 minutes
in length. Please schedule your teacher visits around predetermined dinner breaks. If a parent is unable to
attend the conferences a face-to-face, Skype or telephone conversation may be requested.
Time
Afternoon Conference Sessions
1:00
Conferences begin
Teachers will break as necessary
5:15 - 6:00
Dinner Break
Science, Individuals and Societies,

Language and Literature, Art
6:00-6:45
Dinner Break
Mathematics, Physical Education, Design,

Music, Language Acquisition, and other staff
8:00
Conferences finished
Nate Swenson
Middle School Principal
Jamie Robb
High School Principal
13
BIFS NEWSLETTER
Understanding MYP Reports - Roadmaps for Success

With MYP reports coming out this week, its a good time to review how these mid-term reports can help your
child move forward in his or her learning and how MYP scores are determined.
An analogy of a roadmap is often used to describe the MYP assessment system. The subject area criteria
represent the destination for different grades by the end of the year and the mid-term and Semester One
reports are You Are Here indicators along the way. Extending the analogy, this means that the journey isnt
over and students have time to make adjustments in their learning to reach their destination. For this reason, it
is really important for you to review your childs report with him or her and, if possible, come to the parentstudent-conferences on April 12 to discuss the reports with the relevant teachers to set goals for the end of the
year.
At the end of the year, a final 1-7 MYP score will be determined based on a best-fit approach. The final score is
therefore NOT an average of all the scores but an analysis of the trend. The teachers will analyze the different
scores for each criteria, notice the trend and investigate any outliers, data that does not fit in with the pattern. In
the end, the four different criteria scores for each subject will be added and a final score of 1-7 will be assigned
based on a conversion table published by the IB.
The key message to get across to all students is that learning is an ongoing process. For some students, the
reports will confirm that they are on the right path and going strong. For other students, the reports can act as
a notification that they need to make some adjustments in their learning. The MYP Coordinator, administrators
and homeroom and subject teachers are all here to help students get to where they want to go.
Jenny Montague
MYP Coordinator
14
BIFS NEWSLETTER
Human Ingenuity Exhibition - April 12

The grade 7 Individuals and Societies (I&S) classes are nearing the end of our unit on Human Ingenuity. The final
project for this unit is an exhibition of Human Ingenuity and Creativity displayed through the work students have
completed this year in both I&S and their other subjects. The students would like to present this work to you and
all grade 7 families at our Human Ingenuity Exhibition, which will take place on Tuesday, April 12th from 1:002:00pm in the corridors on the 2nd floor of the middle/high school building.
Tuesday is a half day of school in order to accommodate parent-teacher conferences. School ends at 12:00pm
and conferences begin at 1:00pm. The plan is to have all grade 7 students stay after school that Tuesday to put
finishing touches on their displays followed by a pizza party for lunch. We will open the event to all parents at
1:00pm with a few brief remarks from Mr. Jensen and Mr. Johnson in room C2.7. The students will then display
and actively explain/discuss their work for approximately an hour. The event will wrap up around 2:00pm so that
parents can proceed over to the gymnasium for parent-teacher conferences.
We would very much like for all grade 7 students to participate in the Human Ingenuity Exhibition, but we
realize that it may not be possible for you and your family to attend. If you are not able to attend, we would ask
that you look into arranging other means of transportation for your child so that they may participate. If no
other means are available, then please let us know, and we will see if we can help in some way.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email us and we will get back to you as soon as
possible.
What: Grade 7 Human Ingenuity Exhibition
When: Tuesday, April 12 from 1:00-2:00pm
Where: C2.7 (floor 2 of the middle/high school building near the cafeteria)
The BIFS MYP Individuals and Societies Teachers
Adam Jensen ajensen@bifskorea.org
Brent Johnson bjohnson@bifskorea.org
Human Ingenuity Exhibition 2015

15
BIFS NEWSLETTER
For Your Diary

May 2016
April 2016
MHS Mid Semester Reports Distributed
2nd-20th
IBDP Exams
ES Assembly
3rd
ES Student-Led Conferences
CPR/First Aid Training
5th
Children's day - No School
Extended Essay Camp
6th
SKAC ES BBall @ DIS (Gr 4/5)
Visiting Author ES Assembly (Yangsook

Choi)
MHS Student Led conference/ES-PD
7th
PTA International Day
Noon Dismissal
9th-10th
ES Visiting Storytellers
Grade2 Field trip to Haeundae Market
10th
ELC Student-Led Conferences
Human Ingenuity Exhibition
11th
SKAC MS Boys BBall @ BIFS
13th-15th
TAIMUN
SKAC MS Girls BBall @ BFS
13th
BIFS Parent Workshop
BIFS Parent Workshop
PTA Meeting
PTA Meeting
14th
2nd Spring Open House
12th-13th
Grade 4 Camp
15th
ES Assembly
12th
BIFS Information Evening @ Marine City
HS Assembly
13th
HS Assembly
16th
SKAC HS Futsal @ BIFS
14th
KISAC MS Blue BBall @ BISC & DCSL
18th-May 20th
Map Testing
16th-20th
Grade 11 Final Exams
19th
LE Field Trip to Kidzania (KG to Grade2)
17th-18th
ABRSM Practical Exams
MS Parent Evening (Current G5)
18th
ES Parent Coffee
20th
ES Parent Coffee
19th
BIFS Information Evening @ UNIST
22nd
ES - Exhibition Assembly (for students)
20th-22nd
KISAC MS Red Bball @ KIS Jeju
22nd-23rd
KISAC HS Soccer (RED)
20th
ES Cross Cultural Day
23rd
KISAC Blue Grade 6 & 7 BBall @ DCSL
21st
Global Gathering
SKAC MS BBall (Divisional) @ ISK
23rd
Life After BIFS Event - Grade 12
26th
Grade 5 Exhibition (for parents)
25th
MHS Parent Coffee
27th
MHS Parent Coffee
27th
G12 Graduation
28th
Interhouse Track and Field @ Sajick

Stadium
8th
9th
12th
BIFS NEWSLETTER
18
BIFS NEWSLETTER
School & Community Links
Please contact Miyoung Kim if you wish to inquire about

promoting your company in the BIFS Newsletter.
miyoungkim@bifskorea.org | 051-742-3332 (#114)

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BIFS NEWSLETTER

United in our Diversity, Thriving in our Individuality

ISSUE 49, April 8, 2016