Absence   

    If a student is absent, parents are asked to contact the school and report that absence. Simply ring the school and you will be directed to the absence phone system. You should then give the name of the student and their tutor teacher.

Attendance

    School hours are 08:35 to 15:00. If a student is late, they must sign in at the Student Office.

    School times are as follows: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

08:35 - 09:35  Period 1

09:35 - 10:35  Period 2

10:35 - 10:50  Tutor Time

10:50 - 11:10  Interval

11:10 - 12:05  Period 3

12:05 - 13:00  Period 4

13:00 - 13.45  Lunch

13:45 - 14:05  School-wide reading

14:05 - 15:00  Period 5

Wednesday Only

09:00 - 09:55  Period 1

09:55 - 10:50  Period 2

Rest of the times are the same as for the other days.

Cellphones

    The current cell phone policy is that, although permitted at school, they must not be used or turned on during class time.

    Glacier Bay is one of the most famous parks in America, located in the state of Alaska. This park in the southeastern part of the state covers more than 1 million hectares of Alaskan wilderness. It includes mountains, glaciers (冰川), bays, and even rainforests. Glacier Bay supports hundreds of kinds of animals, including many species of birds, fish, bears, whales and sea lions.

    As its name suggests, much of Glacier Bay National Park is covered by glaciers. A glacier is a large area of ice that moves slowly down a slope (斜坡) or valley, or over a wide area of land. Glaciers cover more than 5,000 square kilometers of the park.

    Glacial ice has shaped the land over the last seven million years. The glaciers found in the park today are what remains from an ice advance known as the Little Ice Age. That period began about 4,000 years ago.

    During the Little Ice Age, the cold weather caused the ice to grow and advance. That situation continued until about 1,700s, when the climate began to warm. The higher temperatures caused the ice to start melting. That melting led the huge glacier to separate into more than 1,000 different glaciers.

    The extremely tall and jagged (参差不齐的) mountains seen in Glacier Bay National Park were formed by the ice advancing and then melting over time. The melting of the ice also created water that filled in and created the many fjords (峡湾) within the park. Fjords are narrow parts of the ocean that sit between cliffs or mountains.

    The huge amount of water from the melted ice killed off many kinds of plants. Vegetation returned to the area over the next 200 years. The regrowth in plants also brought back many animals to the land. This return of life to Glacier Bay is why it is sometimes called “a land reborn” by people.

    Our news is constantly filled with the reality of death and dying. And each of us, if we live long enough, experiences the loss of persons we loved. Children ages eight through ten were asked what they thought about death,and these are some of their answers:

    “When you die,God takes care of you like your mother did. When you were alive,only God doesn't yell at you all the time.''(Beth,9)

    “When you die,they bury you in the ground and your soul goes to heaven,but your body can't go to heaven because it's too crowded there already.” (Jimmy, 8)

    “Only the good people go to heaven. The other people go where it's hot all the time like in Florida. ” (Judy,9)

    “Doctors help you so you won't die until you pay their bills.”(Stephanie,9)

    I've observed that the loss of a loved one can be one of the most difficult things we humans can face. I've known friends of sick and dying people to sit by a bedside or in a hospital room for hours,even days, at a time. I've seen food in homes of people who are dying overflow from kitchen to dining room—food brought by comforting friends from church and con cerned neighbours. And I've observed friends just listen for as long as it takes.

    When U.S. Congressman Sam Rayburn (1882—1961) discovered that he was ill,he announced to the House of Representatives he was going home to Texas for medical tests. Some wondered why he did not stay in Washington where there were excellent medical facilities. His answer was a beautiful tribute (颂词) to friendship:"Bonham is a place where people know it when you're sick,and where they care when you die. ”

    No one wants to go through difficult times alone. So Rayburn traded the best of medical technology for the closeness of loving friends. He knew that good friends are good medicine. Often the best.

China is a land of bicycles. At least it was back in 1992 when I traveled the country. Back then everyone seemed to be riding a bicycle. Millions of them, all black. Cars were rare. Yet since my arrival in Beijing last year, I've found the opposite is true. There are millions of cars. However, people still use their bicycles to get around. For many, it's the easiest and cheapest way to travel today. Bicycles also come in different colors—silver, green, red, blue, yellow, whatever you want.

    It's fun watching people biking. They rush quickly through crossroads, move skillfully through traffic, and ride even on sidewalks(人行道). Bicycles allow people the freedom to move about that cars just can't provide.

    Eager to be part of this aspect of Chinese culture, I decided to buy a bicycle. Great weather accompanied (伴随) my great buy. I immediately jumped up on my bicycle seat and started home.

    My first ride home was orderly(守秩序的). To be safe, I stayed with a large group of bikers while cars on the streets came running swiftly out of nowhere at times. I didn't want to get hit. So I took the ride carefully.

    Crossing the streets was the biggest problem. It was a lot like crossing a major highway back in the United States. The streets here were wide, so crossing took time, skill and a little bit of luck.

    I finally made it home. The feeling on the bicycle was amazing. The air hitting my face and going through my hair was wonderful. I was sitting on top of the world as I passed by places and people. Biking made me feel alive.

    If you want to be a volunteer, you have to answer the following typical questions. Do you want to work with people, animals or machines? Do you want to work indoors or outdoors, directly serve people in need or serve people behind the scenes? Every year, thousands of people in the west offer volunteer service. Volunteering greatly strengthens the community because it helps the old, the young, the weak, the sick, and the disabled and the injured to solve problems.

    Volunteers usually help in many different ways. They may give people advice, offer friendship to the young, drive the elderly to church (if up to the driving age), advise kids against drugs, work as assistants in schools or nursing homes, raise funds, plant trees, help out in local libraries and do many other things. Volunteering can be a few hours a week or a few hours a month. Anybody who wants to serve people in need can become a volunteer.

    In fact, the art of volunteering is a process of both giving and receiving. Volunteering allows volunteers to meet new people, make new friends and mix with people from all walks of life. Volunteering is an excellent way to experiment and try out new techniques and skills, discover your individual talents and explore career choice. Being a volunteer will take you on a wonderful journey and help you learn more than what you can get from books.

    "You can use me as a last resort(选择), and if nobody else volunteers, then I will do it." This was an actual reply from a parent after I put out a request for volunteers for my kids' lacrosse(长曲棍球) club.

    I guess that there's probably some demanding work schedule, or social anxiety around stepping up to help for an unknown sport. She may just need a little persuading. So I try again and tug at the heartstrings. I mention the single parent with four kids running the show and I talk about the dad coaching a team that his kids aren't even on … At this point the unwilling parent speaks up, "Alright. Yes, I'll do it."

    I'm secretly relieved because I know there's real power in sharing volunteer responsibilities among many. The unwilling parent organizes the meal schedule, sends out emails, and collects money for end-of-season gifts. Somewhere along the way, the same parent ends up becoming an invaluable member of the team. The coach is able to focus on the kids while the other parents are relieved to be off the hook for another season. Handing out sliced oranges to bloodthirsty kids can be as exciting as watching your own kid score a goal.

    Still, most of us volunteers breathe a sigh of relief when the season comes to a close. That relief is coupled with a deep understanding of why the same people keep coming back for more: Connecting to the community(社区) as you freely give your time, money, skills, or services provides a real joy. Volunteering just feels so good.

    In that sense, I'm pretty sure volunteering is more of a selfish act than I'd freely like to admit. However, if others benefit in the process, and I get some reward too, does it really matter where my motivation lies?