It was during a university tour in Newcastle, UK, that my youngest daughter excitedly said to me, “Mom, this is the one! This is the program I want to study.”

After 6 university tours and what felt like an endless number of kilometers driving around the UK, she had made the decision that best suited her dreams and aspirations. She wanted to work in a creative field, utilizing the skills she’d developed during her IB Middle Years Programme and IB Diploma Programme years and she felt strongly it was in advertising.

The level of confidence she displayed in her decision surprised me. This was not my normal 17-year-old who rarely remembered to take out the garbage or moaned when asked to take the family dog on a walk. No, this excited teenager was piecing together what would become the next 4 years of her life. I realized then what the last 5 years as an International Baccalaureate (IB) student had nurtured; a student who knew herself as a learner and knew what she wanted from her university experience.

She completed her degree in advertising and then went on to complete a Master’s degree in digital marketing. I owe a debt of gratitude to the IB World School she attended and the teachers who supported her along the way.

As an IB educator and an IB parent, I’ve experienced firsthand what an IB education can offer a student and their family. This year, EARJ will officially begin its candidacy in the Primary Years Programme (PYP). In the coming years, a Middle Years Programme candidacy will follow to align with the existing Diploma Programmes offered on both campuses. The development of an EARJ roadmap to become an authorized 3-programme IB World School started some time ago and has not wavered in its strategic intent to have EARJ offer:

“an internationally recognized curriculum that is philosophically consistent, vertically aligned, academically rigorous, and which provides high quality learning pathways for students to pursue their passions and access the best possible university opportunities”.

This strategic intent will strengthen the school’s focus on students and how best to create learning experiences that encourage them to think critically and challenge assumptions in a globally changing world. As an American international school, it will encourage students to think about and through local and global contexts. Language will be enhanced as IB programmes develop multilingual students.

Teaching and learning in an IB World School prepare students for their future. When my daughter toured university campuses and listened to various program descriptions, she knew herself well enough to know that she preferred a program that was case-study based, heavy on conversation and debate, and focused on projects. She wanted to be an active learner, questioning the status quo, and working with innovative thinkers.

Much of what she was looking for, she experienced with her fellow IB classmates. That is why I think she had such a strong reaction when we toured her final university. It fit her best as a learner and how she wanted to spend her time learning. To have that understanding of self at a young age is because IB programmes instill a belief that students are the holder of their own learning. It starts with our very young learners in the PYP and progresses through the other IB programmes.  According to all IB programmes, teaching is:

• Based on inquiry. A strong emphasis is placed on students finding their own information and constructing their own understandings.

• Focused on conceptual understanding. Concepts are explored in order to both deepen disciplinary understanding and to help students make connections and transfer learning to new contexts.

• Developed in local and global contexts. Teaching uses real-life contexts and examples, and students are encouraged to process new information by connecting it to their own experiences and to the world around them.

• Focused on effective teamwork and collaboration. This includes promoting teamwork and collaboration between students but also refers to the collaborative relationship between teachers and students.

• Designed to remove barriers to learning. Teaching is inclusive and values diversity. It affirms students’ identities and aims to create learning opportunities that enable every student to develop and pursue appropriate personal goals.

• Informed by assessment. Assessment plays a crucial role in supporting, as well as measuring, learning. This approach also recognizes the crucial role of providing students with effective feedback.

I am proud to be part of EARJ’s PYP candidacy. There will be work to do, but as I experience the EARJ spirit and observe a strong commitment to student learning, I believe the PYP will deepen what is already a strong foundation in learning, in addition to strengthening our internationally-minded community. Let’s go on this IB journey together!

For more information on the International Baccalaureate programmes, visit: www.ibo.org

Doreen J. Garrigan
Gávea Lower School Principal

Keeping a positive mental mindset is key to facing the uncertainty of these bizarre times we are living. This mentality has the potential to help us get through negative days and will serve as a great tool for our future in life.

In my eyes, this year I was blessed with the opportunity to spend more time with my loved ones than ever before. Throughout this time I was also fortunate enough to take part in certain webinars and conferences. One workshop session in particular impacted me the most, “Rise above with Rudy”.

Have you ever watched the movie Rudy? If you haven’t, it’s a must. Rudy is a 1993 American biographical sports film and it is about the life of Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger, who harbored the dream of playing football at the University of Notre Dame despite significant obstacles.

Just to give you a little bit of context, Rudy comes from a family of nine siblings in which his dad worked three jobs to put food on the table. Rudy had dyslexia, lacked the academic eligibility, money, stature, and talent to play football in Notre Dame. His chances of making his dream true were completely unrealistic, yet significant people along his life engraved a positive mindset in him which convinced him to fight for it.

Rudy Ruettiger dictated the workshop himself, and listening to all the challenges he faced to get into his dream school was truly amazing and inspiring. Here are some of the key lessons I learnt from him that day:

1. It’s all about love and respect. Rudy’s High School coach always saw the positive in him, his strengths, and not his weaknesses. The lesson here is that we need to show a lot of love because we all learn better when there is love. Just like Rudy’s coach and his best friend, which inspired him to push himself and never quit on his dream. Our children need to surround themselves with good friends, good thoughts, and develop positive relationships with adults in their family and school.

2. Don’t steal people’s joy! Be around people that want you to win, that gives you hope. When our children/students cannot produce like other students, let’s empower them. Let’s help them be better, be more positive. If we steal our kid’s joy, they will not be positive and they won’t learn. When our children are excited about something, let’s help them embrace it.

3. Preparation is the key to anything. Our children need to dream like they are an “All American”. They need good mentors and good people that will help them through the day, through their struggles, and through challenging and complicated times. Nothing is impossible with a positive attitude and the right push.

Towards the end of the session, I raised my hand to ask Rudy for advice on how we should be facing Covid-19, with the canceling of all sports seasons and the huge impact that this will cause on our student-athletes’ lives.

Rudy claimed that our Mental Attitude is the key. We need to develop a mental attitude that will keep us going. Regardless if there is a season or not, as an athlete you do not quit working out, nor doing the little things everyday to become better. You need to keep going because there will come a moment in which you will come back, and you must be ready for that day. Sitting around dreaming about things happening won’t make them real until you get up and get to work.

This is the moment to develop a Positive Mental Attitude in our school so that when the day comes, we will be ready to thrive.

Are you ready for that day?

Claudia Araya
Director of Athletics and Activities

Starting the year in Distance Learning has been a challenge our entire community is rising to meet together. It has been a joy to see how our students have connected with teachers and friends again. Their smiles are contagious and their energy is high!

Many parents wrote to us about this social connection in the first week of school, sharing their enthusiasm (and relief!) at how happy their children are to see their friends again.

Naturally, parents worry about how they can keep kids connected during isolation, and build their social and emotional skills while dealing with the fears of too much screen time and months of not interacting with peers in person.  While distance learning is not equal to in-person socialization, it does bring social opportunities, especially for kids who have felt lonely or disconnected over the school break.

But many parents are asking us, “What more can we do to support our kids socially and emotionally at home?”. Here are a few recommended tips to support your children at home:

Tip #1: Try (Virtual) Teamwork or Play

Supervised online playdates, game nights, and social events using technology platforms can get kids collaborating together and playing online.

Tip #2: Daily Check-Ins

Checking in with daily conversations,  journaling, or writing to name feelings and talk about what kids like about the specific people they miss is one way to connect offline.

Tip #3: Validate Your Child’s Feelings

Acknowledging children’s’ feelings with statements such as, ‘I know this must be hard for you,’ helps children feel seen, heard and understood.

Tip #4: Add an Activity

Helping your child research or explore a new hobby, passion, or idea to learn online outside of schoolwork can generate excitement for new interests.

Tip #5: Get Kids to Talk!

Guiding children to talk about how they are feeling and helping to name and identify emotions gives a sense of control and teaches children they are capable of managing their emotions.

Tip #6: Foster Independence

Help your child gain confidence in their growing independence, encouraging them to come up with strategies for combating social isolation together. Praise your child’s newly developed abilities in distance learning and connecting with peers.

While social isolation is a challenge for everyone, children are remarkably adaptable and resilient. Together, parents and school community members need to be vigilant in observing the expected behavioral changes and difficulties children might be having during this time.

Finding intentional ways to support children to build their core social and emotional skills at home is possible at home with parents, siblings, pets, or new ways of connecting with peers online.  Making time for these experiences is a fantastic way of supporting students’ social and emotional development, in partnership with what we are doing at EARJ in terms of community, connection, and confidence this year.

Interested in reading more?

Common Sense Media: Online Playdates and More

Coronavirus Isolation: How to Help Children Feel a Little Less Lonely

Expert Advice: Keeping kids social at home during lockdown

Kirstin White
Barra Lower School Principal