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Clifford International School
A progressive cross-cultural teaching and learning environment that empowers students to be critical thinkers, contributing citizens, and life-long learners.
What's been happening at CIS...
2017-18
Spirit Week!
April 23 – 27th is our annual Spirit Week! Students will participate in a variety of activities throughout the week, and have the opportunity to dress up in some crazy and wild costumes to promote community and school spirit! Be creative!
The list of events for Spirit Week will be:
Monday- Denim Day (Now is the time to bust our your jeans, denim shirts, denim jackets, denim hats… anything denim you’ve got!)
Tuesday- (Elementary)Character Day (Dress up like your favorite movie, book, tv or game character! The more creative the better!)
(Secondary) Historical Character Day (Dress up like your favorite person from any time period! )
Wednesday- (Elementary)Twin Day (Grab 1 or more friends and dress the same!)
(Secondary) Brains vs. Dropouts
Thursday- Back to the Future Day (Students dress up like their future selves, and the adults get to revert back to their childhood days! Who will YOU be?)
Friday- Class Theme (Each class will come up with their own theme! Stay tuned to get more information from your homeroom teacher!)
Thanks to all of the parents who came out to learn more about the programs and opportunities that Clifford International School has to offer! Please contact us at cliffordschoolinternational@gmail.com if you have any other questions!
UPDATED!!
Calendar of Programs
Want to know more about the programs that we offer, and descriptions about all of our High School classes? Take a closer look!
Art Week!
Clifford International School is proud to present its very first Art Week from April 16 - 20. Throughout the week there will be various activities and art-related opportunities. Lunch time art projects, guest speakers, drop-and-draw and door decorating are just a couple of things that will be going on throughout the week!
The finale is the Art Show that will be taking place on April 20th from 6:00pm - 9:00pm. This year, we have expanded to include art from Grades 1 - 12. Families and friends are encouraged to come out and see what incredible effort and talent Clifford students have put forth! Fun activities, amazing displays and even snacks are available. The art show will be located on floors 5 and 6. Hope to see you there!
Battle of the Books took place on Tuesday, March 13th at NCPA. Battle of the Books is a reading and trivia competition. There is a middle school level competition and a high school level competition. CIS had four teams compete this year (two teams in middle school and two teams in high school). One of the middle school teams (“Bougars”) came in first place in the middle school competition! One of the high school teams (“The Winning Team”) also came in first place in the high school competition! Congratulations to the Battle of the Books teams; way to positively represent CIS!
Beijing Harvard Model UN
From March 15th to March 18th thirteen students accompanied by two teachers traveled to Beijing to participate in the ninth annual Harvard Model United Nations (HMUN). At HMUN, CIS students joined students from across Asia and Europe to gain insight into the workings of the United Nations and the dynamics of international relations by assuming the roles of UN representatives and members of other international bodies and national cabinets. They debated issues that confront world leaders and drafted resolutions in response to these global issues while developing their ability to work with others who are equally motivated and passionate.
This year was exceptionally successful for CIS students and they were rewarded numerous awards from their efforts; Brian Chu and Dexter Dykeman received Verbal Commendation for their work in the Security Council, Jennifer You received an Honorable Mention for her work in the High-Level Meeting on Military Aid, and Christina Jung and Jean-Mari Hattingh were awarded Outstanding Delegate for their work in the Paris Peace Conference of 1919!
Outside of their efforts at HMUN students were able to experience historical sites in Beijing, including a guided tour of The Summer Palace.
January Exam Schedule Changes
Due to unforeseen circumstances, our Secondary Exam Schedule is required to change.
Review week will now be January 9-12, and Exams will be January 16-19.
The new semester will now be beginning on January 22nd.
Fringe Festival!
Clifford International School’s 3rd annual Fringe Festival took place on Thursday, November 30th. The grade 6-12 festival, which celebrates the performing arts and all its creative forms, was a huge success!
Students and teachers alike spent all morning watching as many performances as they possibly could. Thanks to the Fringe Committee, the many talented performers, and student volunteers it was an exciting, fun, and highly entertaining event for all!
Pink Shirt Day
November 15th was Clifford International School's annual Pink Shirt Day! This is a day when students and teachers come together to show their support for a bully-free school. All over the school were posters and poems created by our students that spoke of the importance of being kind to one-another.
Students wore pink shirts, which were designed specially by our very own students, to symbolize our belief in a friendly and respectful school.
At the assembly, students showed off their creativity with poems, drawings, videos and skits demonstrating ways to be kind and to put an end to bullying.
We are very proud of the students at Clifford International School for taking the pledge to never stand for bullying and to do everything they can to create a peaceful and safe school!
Secondary Science Fair
Clifford International School held its second annual secondary Science Fair on Thursday, October 26th, 2017. The science fair allows students to apply the scientific method and complete independent research on a topic of their choosing.
Students chose topics that were either important to them or interested them and then displayed what they had learned.
Students organized all their information into a neat package which included a written report and an attractive display board. When judges came to look at the projects, students were expected to share their knowledge in a verbal presentation.
2017 Open House
Saturday, September 16th parents joined us at school for our annual Open House to learn more about their children's classes and school community. Teachers provided insight into their curricula and teaching expectations, and extra curricular activities were outlined so parents could see what other alternative learning opportunities students have.
It's a great way to start off our year with parents and teachers working together to provide all students at Clifford International with a cohesive education experience.
2016-2017
Technology Survey
Beginning in September of 2017, Clifford International School will be wifi enabled. This means that teachers, students, and guests to the school will be able to access the internet using personalized passwords from anywhere in the school. Teachers and administrators are very excited about this, because we will be able to use a variety of web-based tools and resources in our classrooms.
To help us reach our goal of providing the best 21st century education to our students, we will be implementing a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy for Grades 6-12. This means:
- Students will bring and use their own smart phone, tablet, or laptop in their classes
- Teachers will require students to download applications or programs as required
- Students will develop their technology skills using the devices that they are most familiar with
As part of the process of developing our policy, we want to know your opinion about the changes in our school. Please take 5 minutes to fill in this simple survey. Students will be doing the survey at school in their classes, although if for some reason are not able to, can do it on any device at home.
To access the survey, scan the QR code below with any electronic device connected to the internet. You can also find the survey on the school wechat under the heading ‘New’ –> ‘Survey’
Middle School Museum
For the 4th consecutive year,the middle years social studies program put on its museum fair for parents, staff, and students. This year we had many exciting research projects based on the materials covered in class such as global warming, ancient Egyptian medicine, and Canada’s involvement in the world wars. After weeks of research, students got to present their findings to the school on April 27th. The day was a success and the middle years program thanks everyone who attended and to all of the students who worked so hard during this busy time of year.
Clifford International School- Calendar of Programs 2017-18
Course Selection Parent Presentations 2017-18
Parents! Just a reminder about the meetings at school this week about course selection for high school next year:
-May 3 at 4:30 all parents of Grade 10 and 11 students are invited to join us in the international theatre to talk about goal planning, courses available next year, and more info on our International University Prep Centre!
-Thursday May 4, any parents of students in Grade 8 are invited to learn about the transition from Middle School to High School, particularly about which courses they will be taking next year.
Hope to see you there!!
Grad Bake sale!
There will be a giant food sale on Tuesday to raise money for the 2017 graduation. Please come down to the 1st floor at lunch to buy some delicious treats. We’ve got many great options for lunch, dessert and drinks. Buy your lunch with us and support the Grads of 2017. See you there!
Go Cougars!
Congratulations to both the boys and girls soccer teams who did well at their tournament over the weekend. The boys placed first, and the girls received third place AND the sportsmanship award. Way to represent!!
CCMUN 2017
CCMUN 2017 which was co-hosted by both CIS and HBIC was a huge success over the weekend! Clifford had 34 students representing various countries from around the world. Many of our students won awards for 'Outstanding Delegate', 'Best Delegate', 'Honorable Mention'! Congratulations to all those who won awards, and everyone who attended! Stay tuned for all the upcoming events for MUN next year!
Sing Up
The Elementary Choir will be participating in our.annual Sing Up on May 9th and 10th. Sing Up is a choir festival featuring the school choirs from Clifford, AISG, Utahloy and BSG. The concert will be at 6:00pm, Wednesday, May 10 at "The Fountains" 广州市白云区均禾街平沙村丽城路小康街3-5号
Secondary Science Fair!
Clifford International School is having their 1st annual Science Fair for secondary students on Friday, April 21st, 2017. Parents and family are encouraged to attend and show their support of this event. Parents are invited to view our student projects on Friday, April 21st between 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM. Please come and show your support.
Waterloo Math Competition
The results from the March 1 math competition are in! Students participated in 3 different age groups of the contest; the Pascal, Cayley, and Fermat.
Some highlights from the contest are:
Fermat: David Li, Victoria Zhang, Jessica Liu
Harvard Model United Nations Conference- Beijing, China
30 students and 3 teachers went to Beijing at the end of March to take place in a MUN conference put on by Harvard University. Schools and students from all around the world attended, and it was an incredible opportunity for our school to partake in. Student attended meetings for 4 days, passing motions, participating in un-moderated caucus, and taking on real world problems and creating real possible solutions. All Clifford students did an amazing job, and made our school proud. Next weekend, CIS partners up with another Guangzhou school to host its own MUN conference. We can't wait!
Secondary Talent Show!
Wow, do Clifford students have an abundance of creativity and ability! Middle School and High School students got their chance to strut their stuff and compete for a grand prize. Students sang, acted, made the audience die with laughter, and played multiple instruments at one time! Great job everyone!
Jumbo!
10 amazing, world-changing Clifford International School students traveled to Arusha, Tanzania from March 30th to April 8th to volunteer with the program Me to We. We all had a fantastic time and learned a lot about ourselves and important global issues such as water scarcity, gender roles, access to education and poverty. We also learned some Swahili, how to be a Masai warrior, and enjoyed an amazing safari where we spotted lions, elephants, impalas, giraffes and more. While in our host village, we worked on a much needed new school room by finishing the outer walls and painting. The parents, teachers and students of the village school welcomed us with gratitude and joy and we all had a lot of fun playing with the children each day. We also assisted two local ‘Mommas’ by carrying their daily supply of water – a trek of about 2 kms - and completed the ‘smearing’ of one of their homes – a task that must be done every three months to maintain protection from the weather. The students worked hard and had a lot of fun. It was a truly amazing experience. Stay tuned for announcements about next year’s travel/volunteer opportunity!
This year’s participants:
Grade 12: Sebastian Garzon, David Su, Lancelot Lu, Leo Lu, Lucas Chen
Grade 11: Tiffany Shih
Grade 10: Sean Gu, Angel Li, Xavier Ma and Fazina
Teachers: Mr. Adam Hildebrandt and Ms. Christy Willett
Special thanks to Ms. Donna Adu for her assistance and to Dr. Zhang and principal Ray Schneider for their support!
Spirit Week!
Secondary students, Spirit Week is coming up soon from April 24-28!
The theme days are as follows:
- Monday- Crazy Hair and Brand Names
- Tuesday- Food Day
- Wednesday- Music Style
- Thursday- Class Color
- Friday- your homeroom class picked theme!
Any special activities will begin at 11:30am, except Friday which is at 1:35 pm.
Can't wait to unleash all the school spirit that Clifford students have to offer! Go Clifford!
Come out and see what wonderful and talented student artists we have at our school. Friday April 28th (2:00-4:00pm for students and teachers, or 6:00-8:30pm for friends and family!)
Look at awesome art, play some fun art games, or purchase snacks and drinks!
Students of CIS: Show your best art and you could win: the Best Artwork in your Grade Award, the Most Interesting Artwork in your Grade Award, or the Most Artistic Progress in your Grade Award.
Elementary Sports Day
Coming up Friday, April 7th is the Elementary Sports Day! Taking place from 1:00-4:10, students will be participating in various events that they have been practicing in class. Parents are welcome to come cheer on and support their children. Please meet us out on the field at 1:00. Even if parents are around, students need to stay with their class, and make sure they are participating in all events. Please be aware that there is no seating available at events, and to be prepared for sun, or bugs! Students are encouraged to bring sports shoes, hats, sunscreen, bugspray and water bottles with them for the afternoon. See you there!
Shakespeared!
Congratulations to the Grade 12's who spoiled us this week with their amazing rendition of Shakespeare's Hamlet! It was enjoyed by all who attended!
March into Reading!
It's that time of year again, March into Reading(March 27-31)! The elementary program has a lot of exciting things happening next week! Here's what is going on:
- Starting this weekend(March 26!), students need to read in English at home. Parents will sign a reading log for students indicating how long the student read each day. At the end of the week, the class with the most minutes will have a special surprise!
- Guest readers will be invited into our classrooms to read each day. If you would like to come read to your child's class, make sure you let the teacher know, and they will help you arrange a day and time to come by.
- Grades 3-5 will be taking turns throughout the week walking to the international kindergarten to meet up with a little buddy and practice reading!
- Some fun lunch-time activities will be available for students to join in ONE super special literacy based game! This year, we've got awesome activities like Book Bingo, a Book Scavenger Hunt, and Book Jeopardy! It's going to be AWESOME!
- On March 31, it is Book Character Day. Students are encouraged to dress up like one of their favorite characters from a book! We have had some extremely creative costumes in the past! Can't wait to see what's up for this year!
- And last but not least... everyone's favorite, The Book Fair!! Friday, March 31st students will have a chance to buy books that they can bring home. If you would like your child to purchase anything, please send them with money on FRIDAY ONLY.
Congratulations to our Battle of the Books teams who did an amazing job last week in their competition! CIS placed 3rd with our Middle School team, and both 2nd and 3rd with our high school teams!
March 3rd was the Elementary School's annual Science Fair! Students and parents had a blast going around to all the Gr 1-5 classrooms checking out experiments and demonstrations that students had been learning about while studying the Design Process and the Scientific Inquiry Process! The Secondary program has their first Science Fair coming up on April 21st! See you there!
Students from Grades 10-12 are departing early Thursday morning to head to Beijing for the Harvard Model UN conference. Good luck to everyone going!
Coming up on March 25th are our second round of Parent Teacher Conferences. If your child's teacher wishes to see you, the school will be contacting you this week. If you are unable to make it on the 25th, please arrange another time directly with the teacher when it is convenient to come in. Conferences are from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm. Please make sure to arrive a bit early as we have a tight schedule! Translators both in Chinese and Korean are available. See you then!
10 students in Secondary along with Ms. Willett and Mr. Hildebrandt are leaving on March 29th to go to Arusha, Tanzania for 10 days. They will be visiting a village to learn about their culture and day to day lives. Students will learn about local crafts with members of the community and learning to hunt with traditional Masaai warriors! They will also be assisting in the development of a new school, as well as partaking in some fun activities such going on a safari!
ALERT MESSAGE
Outside scammers have been misrepresenting Clifford School by offering fake contracts to Western teachers. These scammers are also asking applicants to pay a deposit upfront in USD.
Please be on the alert for this scam.
The scammers have already been reported to the police. Applicants are encouraged to email the address below with any inquiries.
WeChat: CISCougars
cliffordschoolinternational@gmail.com