Six Graded Singers Attend AMIS in Dusseldorf, Germany

The Graded School’s Experience in the International World  

The 2014 AMIS International Honor Choir Festival

Before traveling to the AMIS festival, previous festival participants kept telling us that AMIS is an amazing opportunity, and that they’d never experienced anything as wonderful as singing in a choir with singers who share your passion for music. Of course, we believed them, but it was only when I heard the pure, strong, beautiful music being made by what looked like an ordinary group of teenage girls, that I really realized the importance of the AMIS program.

Preparing for the auditions was very time consuming, but when we started singing with the choir in Germany we realized that it was all worth it. Ms. Mussete was supporting and helping us throughout the whole experience, giving us the opportunity to be there in the first place. If it weren’t for the incredible choir program and teacher, we wouldn't have experienced such a life changing festival. We were very well prepared for our performance and three of us even earned solos.

Another important aspect of the festival was making friends. We met new people from all over the world that we could relate to. The two members that had gone last year still kept in touch with the friends they made at the festival and this year was no different.

    All of the AMIS music festivals are extremely competitive and this year around 500 auditions were sent. There was a record of 205 alto voice auditions this year and 4 of our students were accepted as altos. In order to be accepted it is not enough to just be good at singing, you have to be a truly dedicated music student. It was such accomplishment to have 6 students accepted into the Women’s Honor Choir this year since it is such a highly selective festival. Not only that, but three of the students were chosen for solos (53 girls auditioned in total) and 2 other girls were part of a soli.

Overall, this trip has not only enriched our musical and cultural knowledge, but it has created an unbreakable bond between 7 very different people. This trip was a life changing experience through which we have been able to grow so close.  I think we can safely say, this experience is one we’ll never forget, and it is all part of the Graded Experience.

What type of film can you create in 72 hours?

A talented team of Graded students (everyone under 17) embarked on a journey to create the best short film in 72 hours. Shot in São Paulo, Brazil, the students were able to achieve a fantastic result in Mio Gioiello, Mia Figlia, a National Film Challenge 2013 entry.

Starring Mendel Steinbruch, Luiza Mizrahi, and Rafael Wurzmann, Lorenzo (retired gangster) is faced with the most terrible situation: his precious daughter is kidnapped. Join the adventure to see how this confusion turns out!

This was the only entry in the competition from Brazil and there were very few teenagers who competed. We'll learn how the team did in the coming weeks.

Mio Gioiello, Mia Figlia (My Jewel, My Daughter) from Pedro Salles Leite on Vimeo.

Libby Stephens, Expert on Third Culture Kids Visits Graded (October 21 - 23)

Third Culture Kids

"A third culture kid is a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside their parents’ culture. The TCK frequently builds relationships to all the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture may be assimilated into the TCK’s life experience, the sense of belonging is in relationship to others of similar background."

-Pollock & Van Reken

Libby Stephens will visit Graded on October 21 - 23 to work with parents, students, teachers and administrators. Ms. Stephens will meet with MS students during their Monday assembly and high school students on Tuesday. She'll also be meeting with individual classes throughout her three day visit. 

Faculty members will have the opportunity to meet with her after school on Monday after school. 

For parents, she will conduct two workshops on Monday morning and Tuesday evening. These meetings are for parents of students in all grade levels.

Monday, October 21 - 8:30 - 10:30 in the Black Box Theater

Tuesday, October 22 - 1930 - 2100 in the Auditorium.

We will be sharing more information prior to her visit but this short video will provide you with some basic information on Third Culture Kids.

Third Culture Kids - The Three Cultures from Libby Stephens on Vimeo.

The Art of Recitation

As seen on Talonline, Post by Victor Lee

Reciting poetry is an art, requiring concentration, knowledge of the sound and rhythm of language, good memory, eloquence, flair, and passion. Yesterday, at the Fifth Annual Poetry Recitation held by the English department, 10 finalists from the whole high school recited poems they had chosen this semester and performed first in class recitations, then in the semifinal round before making it to the final round. This year, the judges were Andre Dias, Fernão Mesquita, and Colleen Broderick. The event was a huge success: the performers dazzled the audience, and while we waited for the judges' decision the tongue twisters were hilarious--and we will never forget Luiz's talent! Here are the ten finalists and their poems, the three winners, and finally, the People's Choice Award, which we are announcing here.

Finalists

Isa Hernandez: "Regret" by Charlotte Bronte

Luisa Kim: "Freedom" by Charles Bukowski

Mike Thomas: "Lot's Wife" by Wislawa Szymborska

Melanie De La Paz: "Dandelion" by Julie Lechevsky

Maria Clara Otani: "Lady Lazarus" by Sylvia Plath

Mariana Lepecki: "What Work Is" by Philip Levine

Pooja Singhi: "Chicago" by Carl Sandburg

Brenda Osta: "The Applicant" by Sylvia Plath

Jackie Gomes: "Testimonial" by Rita Dove

Elena Jaramillo: "Hands" by Siv Cedering

Winners

First place: Luisa Kim

Second place: Mariana Lepecki

Third place: Maria Clara Otani

And now the People's Choice Award winner: 

Congratulations to... Mariana Lepecki!

Congratulations to all students, who put so much effort into their poems, and the English teachers, who organized this amazing event.

The triad of judges:

Colleen Broderick, Andre Dias, and Fernão Mesquita

Photos by Till Lagemann and Fernanda Fiszner

Graded Singers Perform in Orlando

Graded Upper School Choir just returned from a every successful participation in the Orlando Choral Fest, in Orlando, Florida, US. Our Vocal Ensemble received a huge trophy for being an "excellent group," as well as receiving a "gold" status. Kids worked very hard for this accomplishment and had lots of fun!

We could not be any prouder! Go Graded Singers!

Tackling Stress at Graded: HS PTA Coffee April 17th

If you're interested in learning more about our plans to partner with Challenge Success to study our culture then we hope that you will attend the April 17th HS PTA Coffee.

Challenge Success is a not-for-profit organization out of the Stanford University School of Education. Through a Graded Fund grant the middle and high schools will be surveying all students in the coming weeks. The organization is "Challenging this definition of success that starts with grades, GPA, and test scores..." and they assist community members with changing attitudes and behaviors that create unhealthy environments. The survey asks students about

• student engagement;
• teacher support and care; 
• academic integrity; 
• academic worry;
• parent goals and expectations; 
• homework and extra-curriculars; 
• health and well-being.

We are flipping the meeting and ask that parents who attend Wednesday's coffee preview the following videos. This will provide you with information on some of the Challenge Success ideas.

In this short video, Denise Pope, Co-Founder of Challenge Success discusses the mission of the organization. One of her key quotes is, "Reflect on a broader definition of success."



Denise Pope speaking to parents about homework, sleep, stress, extracurricular activities.


Challenge Success: Student Interviews on:

• Late start and collaboration days
• Block Scheduling
• Dialogue Nights and the Culture of Stress

The Class of 2013: Graduation will be here before you know it.

COUNTDOWN CLOCKS

As you can see there your high school career is coming to an end in a very short amount of time. Enjoy the the coming days and think carefully about the legacy that the Class of 2013 will leave here at Graded. Your class has set the bar high for others in many ways. As leaders, you have been valuable contributors to our community services, activities and athletics groups/teams. One huge change in our culture has been the high percentage of you that are completing all three diplomas. The Class of 2013 has established an attitude that the IB diploma is attainable for the majority.

We had our second meeting on Friday to prepare for the Class of 2013 Graduation Ceremony. Below is the presentation from the meeting.  A couple of things to keep in mind:

1. Completed ticket lists may be turned in to Adelaide after 8:00 am on Monday, April 8. As we mentioned, the tickets are assigned based on order that the sheets are turned in. Also, please note that the "Standing" tickets are for individuals to watch a live feed of the ceremony in the Black Box. There will be seats for them to sit in.
2. Take note of the IB exam dates and times and make sure that you are on time. Also note our policy on study time during the IB exam period.
3. Graduation rehearsal dates and times will be announced soon and the rehearsals are mandatory.
4. Nominations for the Rob Neeleman Award are due by April 29. Send them to Mr. Peterson (blair.peterson@graded.br)
5. We will meet again before the end of April to continue the march to graduation.

Please feel free to e-mail Adelaide Garcia (adelaide.garcia@graded.br) if you have questions.

Photos from Fashion for Community

Science and Social Studies Curricular Programs

The deadline to register for courses for next year is March 15th and there are still many high school students who have finalized their choices. Last week we shared information on the changes to our math program and this week we have information on our science and social studies departments.

9th and 10th graders next year will take Integrated Science I or II which will open up options for them in 11th and 12th grades. We are pleased to be able to offer IB Chemistry SL next year. We will be looking at other options for the years to come. The integrated science is a blend of biology, chemistry and physics that will run throughout the two year period. Graded has teamed up with Educhange to develop these new courses. The future is looking bright for Graded students in the area of science.

While nothing will change for 9th and 10th graders next year in the area of social studies, 11th and 12th graders will be able to choose from Brazilian Social Studies, IB Psychology SL/HL, IB Economics SL/HL and IB History SL/HL. The department will be working next year to redesign the 9th and 10th grade courses and we'll be looking at other elective options for grades 11 and 12. Next year is the first year that Graded students will be able to use the IB Brazilian Social Studies as their group 3 course for the diploma. Another example of greater choice for our students.

Fashion for Community Event

In less than two weeks Graded will see the return of our fashion show with the goal of raising money to build homes for the less privileged. This event is also a chance to support your classmates, as several of them will be featured as models. The event will take place at Shopping JK Iguatemi on Saturday, March 9, from 5-7 p.m., and tickets are only R$50. Please see Anais Ioschpe (Grade 11), Matt Dias (G11), or Rafa Goldlust (G10) for more information. We look forward to seeing you there!

Graded's Choice for the AASSA Global Citizen Award

Each year the Association of American Schools in South America (AASSA) awards the Global Citizen Award to a student or school organization. For the second year in a row Graded's nominee is the FALA program. The selection committee felt that FALA has made "exemplary contributions" which have led to a positive local change and the experience has changed the lives of all of the participants. The overall winner receives up to USD$1,000 from TieCare International.  Congratulations to all who are involved in the FALA program!

Victor Lee worked with a team to create the video below and note that the music was written by Caio Mello.

Welcome to the High School

Yesterday, Ms. Andrade and I met with 8th grade parents to talk about the high school program and courses for next year. The 8th graders will be selecting courses during the next three weeks as they make the transition to high school. Below is the presentation from that meeting.

The Key to Understanding Your Teenager: The Adolescent Brain

This month's PTA Coffee will feature 

Adriana Fóz, a specialist in neuro-psychology as well as an educator and writer, will lecture on the neuroscience of the adolescent brain. 

Wednesday, February 27

Auditorium

8:30am - 10:00am

She will discuss the uniqueness of the adolescent brain and how it relates to teenage behavior and learning. Participants will gain insight into the pathway to the adolescent brain, by explaining the impact of earlier childhood experience on its development. Finally, Ms. Fóz will offer constructive tips for parenting your teenager.

This lecture will be in Portuguese with simultaneous English translation.

Below is a recent clip of Ms. Fóz from the Congresso Internacional de Neuropsicologia que ocorreu em novembro de 2011. XI Congresso Brasileiro de Neuropsicollogia

The Road to College Presentation

There was a full house last night at the Road to College presentation that was given by Cory Miller and Todd Daniel. This is such an exciting time for the juniors and their parents. The presentation from last night is below.

Feb 20 Junior Parent Meeting by Blair Peterson

Executive Summary

Throughout the course of the year a group of Graded faculty have been leading the school in a comprehensive evaluation of the work we do.  In April a group of school leaders will arrive on campus to formally evaluate the school.  This evaluation will end with Graded being accredited to continue providing the U.S. diploma to its graduates.  The accreditation process has allowed our school to review all facets of our school and upon the completion of the process we will have a K-12 school improvement plan to make the Graded Experience even better.

A central part of the accreditation process is the Executive Summary.  The ES is a narrative that must capture the essence of the school in 6000 characters (including spaces).  That's around two pages.  How does one capture all that is Graded in two pages?  It is a difficult task, but a team of writers has completed three drafts of the document.  The first draft was reviewed and commented on by the Learning Leadership Team.  The second by the entire Graded faculty.  Draft Three can be found below.  We need to hear the voice of our high school.  The link is set so only the Graded Community can access the document.  Please let me know if you have problems.

We ask that you read the document and RESPOND TO THIS BLOG POST TO comment on what is done well, what needs to be added and what can be removed.  You will notice that the document is broken into four sections, each with a prompt (blue font) that describes the content to be included in that section.  Under each prompt is the Graded response.  When the four sections are combined the character count is 6451.  We are almost 500 spaces over the limit right now and cuts will have to be made.  That is for another day.  For now, please contribute to this process by sharing your thoughts on the work done so far.  You have until  Friday, February 8 to respond.  The next step in the process will be to get feedback from the students in the other divisions and Graded parents.  Our goal is to have the ES completed by February 28.

I thank you in advance for your help with this important process.

Bair

The Executive Summary highlights key aspects of Graded's program. Completed for External Review.

The Executive Summary (ES) provides the school an opportunity to describe in narrative form its vision as well as strengths and challenges within the context of continuous improvement. Use the links below to navigate the Executive Summary and respond to the various questions. The responses should be brief, descriptive, and appropriate for the specific section. It is recommended that the responses are written offline and then transferred into the sections below.

Description of the School: Describe the school's size, community/communities, location, and changes it has experienced in the last three years. Include demographic information about the students, staff, and community at large. What unique features and challenges are associated with the community/communities the school serves?

Graded School is a private day school that serves both the international community and host-country nationals in São Paulo, Brazil. The school currently enrolls 1224 students from 35 countries. Forty-two percent of the students are Brazilian and just over 30% are from North America.  Of the remaining population, 11% come from Asia, 9% from Latin America and 6% from Europe.  Over the past decade enrollment has increased 11% bringing the school to capacity.

The faculty consists of 142 teachers, counselors and administrators, roughly half of those being Brazilian.  Though the second half of the faculty consists mostly of citizens of the United States (40%), Graded has a number of professionals from Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the U.K. Over half of the faculty holds a Master’s degree or PhD.

To serve the diverse population, Graded offers the Brazilian, American and IB diplomas in order to prepare students for entrance into the best universities in Brazil, the U.S. and the world.  The expectations of all constituents are high and how best to balance the needs of the various constituents is a consistent challenge for the institution.   

School’s Purpose: Provide the school's purpose statement and ancillary content such as mission, vision, values, and/or beliefs. Describe how the school embodies its purpose through its program offerings and expectations for students.

Graded’s mission reads, Graded is an American school that serves an international community of learners by inspiring individual excellence in a collaborative setting, fostering intercultural competence and empowering students to become engaged, ethical citizens in a dynamic world. The school meets its mission of developing individual excellence through its rigorous and varied academic program that incorporates numerous classes dedicated to the arts and technology and culminates with the opportunity to earn three diplomas upon graduation.   


A wide array of extracurricular and community service activities further empower students to grow towards excellence through collaboration with peers and faculty. Recent examples are the Global Issues Network and Innovate 2013 conferences hosted at Graded as well as activities like MUN and HACIA Democracy that send students to locations in Brazil and across the world to engage and work with their peers from varied cultures.


Community service programs such as Ilha do Cardoso, FALA, and Sister School further demonstrate the school’s commitment to developing “engaged, ethical citizens” by working with local and regional communities to address the issues they face.  

Notable Achievements Areas of Improvement: Describe the school's notable achievements and areas of improvement in the last three years. Additionally, describe areas for improvement that the school is striving to achieve in the next three years.

The central focus over the past three years has been to ensure excellence in the instruction and assessment practices at Graded.  A formal process of teacher evaluation has been implemented based around the Professional Growth and Supervision Plan that measures teacher performance against four domains: Instruction, Assessment, Professionalism and Learning Environment.  


Teachers set yearly goals based on the Assessment Continuum that was developed by the Professional Learning Advisory Council.  A five-year curriculum review process is underway aimed at reviewing the curriculum to ensure it is in line with best practices.  In addition, standards for content and skills have been agreed upon and the work in all grades is now measured against those standards.  Finally, new grade descriptors have been adopted that align the expectations of student mastery across the school.  


This work has increased teacher effectiveness and further integrated the Brazilian, American and IB diploma programs.  All have thrived.  Enrollment in the IB program is at record highs, the Brazilian Studies program has been recognized as a “model for Brazilian schools and professional education” and the American curriculum is sound in scope and sequence throughout the school.       


Graded has addressed the limitations of its infrastructure by performing a thorough review of facility needs and will soon begin a construction project that will allow Graded to continue to provide a world-class education. To fund the project a capital campaign has begun to raise the money needed to break ground. A separate fund - the Graded Fund – has also been created to raise money on a yearly basis to support enrichment and school improvement.  

Graded is harnessing the power of technology to improve student learning.  This is the first year the upper school is a 1 to 1 laptop environment and students in first grade are piloting a project using the Ipad as a tool for learning literacy.   In addition, standards for IT use have been developed to provide clear expectations for behavior in a connected school.  

The faculty weekly dedicates itself to continuous personal growth through a formalized system of Professional Learning Communities. This effort has enhanced student learning, created a culture of collaboration, and provided a constant source of professional development.

Finally, over the past year the Graded community examined the school’s mission and a faculty committee and the board of directors then used the feedback to revise the mission to more accurately reflect the school’s purpose.

A great strength of Graded is the extent to which students and teachers are empowered to create new initiatives.  The corresponding weakness is that new activities and events are added yearly leading to a frenetic, at times unhealthy, pace.  Another area for improvement is to formalize a process that systematically reviews the mission and values of the institution and includes a broad array of stakeholders.  The school also needs to strengthen the structures that will ensure the recent curriculum work is maintained through the personnel changes inherent in an international school. While the overall activities program is strong, there is no intramural or fitness program in the higher grades to encourage lifelong fitness.  
 

Additional Information: Provide any additional information you would like to share with the public and community that were not prompted in the previous sections.

Graded is proud of its long history and core values that represent a blending of Brazilian and American cultures.  The celebration of these two core components of Graded School, along with the other cultures that form the multinational community at Graded, is a constant source of inspiration and pride.


The faculty, staff and students are proud to be a part of Graded and feel they can challenge themselves in a supportive environment.  This environment fosters a culture of constant improvement in which students and adults are encouraged to lead, to innovate, to follow their passions in service of the common good and to daily strive to make the school, the community and the world a better place.  This is the Graded Experience and it is profound.  

Yale MUN Trip: Update #2

Before getting down to work at the conference the MUN team enjoyed New York and the Yale campus. The highlights included?

• Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Tour of Columbia University
• Broadway Show Wicked
• Tour of Ground Zero and the new Freedom Tower
• Dinner at a Nicaraguan Restaurant
• Yale Days - Introduction to life at Yale

Update from the Yale MUN Students

Our Yale Model United Nations (MUN) group is spending the first half of their trip visiting New York City. So far they've been ice skating in Central Park, shopping on 5th Avenue, watching the New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets play, and toured the UN. Today they were scheduled to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, tour Columbia University or the Paley Media Center and watch the Broadway show Wicked. 

Sounds like a fantastic lead up to the actual conference that begins at the end of the week.

Graded Students and Animal Protection

The Graded Animal Alliance (GAA) visited visit the AILA animal shelter last weekend. The shelter has approximately 400 dogs and 250 cats and the group visits periodically. Aside from volunteering at the shelter the group takes on specific projects. The next small project includes donating an apparatus that will allow a dog who is missing his hind legs to move about more easily. This is one more example of how our students spend time volunteering on the weekends.

The Inside Out Project in Video

Check out the video that shows the Photography students displaying their exhibit.

"I can change the world."
"I will change the world."

GIN and Graded's Mission

While our Graded's new mission was presented to the community this week we realize that the mission matches well with much of the work that our teachers and students have been doing. The new mission statement gives us an anchor that focuses our efforts. 

Below is the opening video for the GIN Conference and this is a wonderful example of a collaborative project that fosters "intercultural competence and empowering students to become engaged, ethical citizens in a dynamic world." After the hummingbird story you'll see the creative stop motion animation video that was created by a Graded student (with help from our community).

Graded Mission Statement
Graded is an American school that serves an international community of learners by inspiring individual excellence in a collaborative setting, fostering intercultural competence and empowering students to become engaged, ethical citizens in a dynamic world.