by Doris Prendas | Nov 30, 2016
Reflective
Being reflective is about thinking and considering before speaking and active. It is when you take different perspectives into consideration before deciding on the correct course of action.
Balanced and Reflective
We all appreciate the importance of a balanced life because it helps us enjoy life to the fullest and allows both children and adults to fulfill their duties and exercise their rights. Therefore, it is essential that we reflect and recognize what changes are necessary so that we may achieve emotional, physical and spiritual balance in life.
Reflective Students
While the school years comes to an end, Futuro Verde students reflect on the civil and humanistic values that play a key role during our December celebrations and remind us to share and think of those in need.
During these festivities we have the opportunity to reflect and include each and every person in our lives in order to coexist in harmony without focussing on our differences.
by Noelia | Nov 30, 2016
We arrived to the end of this year 2016, which happened very fast, like a blink of an eye, but it was full of new knowledge, adventures, expeditions, friendships and cultural union.
Next year it’s just around the corner and promises to bring much more but before a reminder of the upcoming important dates of what is left of this year:
December 2nd: Last day of enrollment priority for current Futuro Verde’s students
December 3rd: First Annual Christmas Bazaar (9 am to 5 pm). Artesanal market, music, food, games, prizes, and much more!
December 14th: Last day of classes. Departure at noon.
December 15th: Parent / Teacher Conferences III (from 8 am to 3 pm) where you will receive a final report on your child’s progress for the 2016 school year.
December 16th: Parent / Teacher Conferences III (from 8 am to 3 pm) where you will receive a final report on your child’s progress for the 2016 school year
December 17th: Graduation Ceremony for Prepa, 6th grade, 9th grade and 11th grade graduates.
by Stuart Millar, IB coordinator | Nov 30, 2016
Reflective: We thoughtfully consider the world and our own ideas and experience. We work to understand our strengths and weaknesses in order to support our learning and personal development.
Every month I write something for the school newsletter. Every month a new attribute from the values and learner profile at Futuro Verde. Writing my newsletter article could easily become a habit. It would be easy to stick to a formula and churn out two hundred words or so about the attribute of the month. After 10 months my work would be done but would the tenth be any better or different to the first?
One can do the same thing over and over, but without a process of reflection there is no progress and improvement. ‘Practice makes perfect’ and ‘live and learn’ are common expressions, but only work if we build in a process of reflection. Sometimes that reflective process is a conscious process, but sometimes it happens without us knowing, almost instinctively. Asking ourselves questions is a valuable way to be reflective. Every month I ask myself if my past articles have been: Too long? Too short? Too complicated? Too basic? Too boring? Relevant to people’s lives and experiences? Thought provoking? I don’t always have answers to give myself. Sometimes we need to do more than just reflect on our own experience. We need feedback to understand our own strengths and weaknesses. I continue to question myself but also invite others to give constructive feedback and contribute to my development and my future articles.
by Noelia | Oct 28, 2016
In Futuro Verde we are always looking for new ways to attract donations to support our growing student population while minimizing the impact on our community’s finances. The Barba Challenge, for example, received a large percentage of donations from people outside of our community. We also are constantly looking for other institutions that are willing to support us through the donations of necessary material donations like the donation from Copernicus in the previous years, the Microscopes brought to us by Hautlieu School in Jersey, United Kingdom that visited us this October, and the educational materials donated by the International School de Nido de Aguilas in Santiago, Chile that are currently in route.
Another easy way that we can all give, are the three services AmazonSmile, Giving Assistant and We-Care.com. Through AmazonSmiles you can make your normal Amazon purchases with the difference that a percentage of the purchase will go to our school. This has no negative impact on the shopper. Giving Assistant and We-Care.com work slightly different. Once inside the websites you will find coupons that you can use to purchase things from a variety of companies. Again a percentage of the proceeds will go to Futuro Verde.
To use any of these you must go to the following website: http://www.futuro-verde.org/get-involved/give-now/ At the end of the page you will find a link to each of the three services. It is important that you always enter through these links as they are associated to our institution. They do not change so you can bookmark them for future use.
Please share this with whomever you know! The percentages are small but if we get a lot of people to consistently use them, the impact could be huge. Remember there is strength in numbers!
by Lural Ramirez | Oct 28, 2016
Living here on the peninsula, we all know how fortunate we are to have Futuro Verde as a high-quality educational solution for our children. But, did you know that Futuro Verde’s reputation as an innovative two-way immersion school is growing internationally as well?
During the second week of November, Futuro Verde’s special programs coordinator, Stuart Millar, and former Futuro Verde teacher and retired University Professor and Researcher, Eileen Waldschmidt, will join me, Futuro Verde’s director, in leading a presentation at the prestigious La Cosecha conference in the United States. Our presentation will target interested universities and researchers, encouraging them to come to Futuro Verde and study our educational program while encouraging qualified pre-service teachers to choose Futuro Verde for their practicum schooling requirements.
But, how will these opportunities benefit your child? In so many ways! For example:
- Futuro Verde’s collaboration with university researchers and experts in the field of bilingual and international education gives us immediate feedback and access to high-quality professional growth opportunities for FV administration and staff.
- On-going inclusion of diverse student teachers, in complement to our highly qualified FV staff, allows for more opportunities for small group instruction and learning enrichment.
You can also become a part of Futuro Verde’s development as a flagship school in the world of bilingual education by signing up now to attend our 3rd annual Conference on Bilingual, Holistic and Sustainable Education, to be held on June 29th and 30th, 2017 at the Futuro Verde campus. We are thrilled to be welcoming, as a keynote speaker to our conference, Dr. Kathy Escamilla, one of the most prolific and respected researchers in the field of bilingual education. Join the movement and become an informed advocate for the high-quality learning environment Futuro Verde provides!
by David Brookshire, MPH/ School Counselor & Special Education Case Manager | Oct 28, 2016
November is often the time of year when, as we reflect, we take notice of what we have and express gratitude. This tradition is celebrated in the United States with the Thanksgiving holiday and is often part of the holiday season around the world as the harvest has been reaped and the year comes to an end. Often, we spend extra time with family and appreciate the people we have in our lives. Whatever the tradition, we can all benefit from the practice of expressing gratitude and appreciation. In fact, regardless of the season, research shows that this practice can be advantageous year round.
Of course other people in our lives feel good when we express gratitude to them but there are some excellent selfish benefits worth exploring as well. In his article, The Science of Happiness: Why complaining is literally killing you, Steven Parton explains how focusing on the positive aspects of your life can literally rewire your brain. We know from neuroscience that “neurons that fire together, wire together (Parton 2015).” In other words, the more particular connections are made in the brain, the more strength those connections have and the more likely it is that those same connections will be made again with more ease. As someone practices expressing gratitude and the more those connections are regularly made in the brain, it seems likely that they will generally have a positive outlook on life. The happier someone is, the more likely they will see opportunities as opposed to barriers as the inevitable challenges of life present themselves. Furthermore, the release of the stress hormone, cortisol, will decrease and allow for a better quality of life with less stress related health problems. Because we have a choice on where we put our focus, by choosing to regularly practice gratitude, we can increase our sense of well-being and level of satisfaction.
This is true in the school setting as well as illustrated in the Journal of School Psychology. Froh et al. (2008) demonstrated that “Counting blessings” in early adolescence can have positive impact on well-being and personal satisfaction. By simply making a daily list of 10 positive aspects of their lives, taking note of what they were thankful for, the adolescents in this study expressed higher levels of satisfaction in the school setting and life in general. They also responded more gratefully to help in school and where generally in a better mood than their counterparts (Froh et al. 2008). Similar findings have also been demonstrated with adults. So regardless of life’s setbacks, by choosing to be grateful for the positive aspects, people can mindfully have some control of their own experience and enjoy a sense of well-being. This is a valuable tool to teach our children and practice ourselves because there is so much to be grateful for!
References
Parton, Steven (2015). The Science of Happiness: Why complaining is literally killing you. Curious Apes. Available at: http://www.curiousapes.com/the-science-of-happiness-why-complaining-is-literally-killing-you/
Froh et al. (2008). Counting blessings in early adolescents: An experimental study of gratitude and subjective well-being. Journal of School Psychology 46 (2008) 213–233. Available at: http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/images/application_uploads/Froh-CountingBlessingsinAdolescents.pdf
