At the recent Sommerfest, a number of individuals were recognized for their contributions to the school. One of these was Gisela Pyka, whose son Martin will graduate this year, and thus she will end her formal association with the school. Gisela has been at GAIS since the very beginning and was one of the parents involved in the founding of the school in 1988. She has been Parent Rep, Board Member, Event Organizer and sent her three children (Martin, Eric and Andrea) through GAIS. Gisela was also the person who picked me up at the airport over seven years ago when I came to GAIS for the first time. Her positive attitude, enthusiasm for the school, and limitless energy played no small part in my decision to come to Menlo Park. In fact, countless parents over the years came to GAIS via Gisela's influence.  Board President, Jon Kessler, awarded Gisela a plaque in recognition of her service to the community and proclaimed that henceforth the school's science room will be called the Gisela Pyka Science Laboratory. We do expect to see Gisela's presence at GAIS events for many years to come.

One important part of eighth grade in the International Middle School (IMS) is the high school application process. The IMS Team supports all the parents in this challenging time. I have visited over 40 public and private high schools in the Bay Area, establishing good relationships with the principals and the admissions directors. At the beginning of grade eight, or earlier if possible, the parents and students meet with me on a regular basis, mapping out the different possibilities for high school. In addition, I recommend and personally present our students to the different admissions directors on site. The students have to organize a shadow day and the parents attend the info evenings. Once the private high schools list is narrowed down, the application process with all the paperwork-such as recommendations, report cards and school entrance tests-starts.

I would like to highlight that it's critical to plan enough time to prepare for the rigorous private high school entrance tests: Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE) and High School Placement Test (HSPT).

This year there were a total of 21 applications to 13 different distinguished private high schools, and all our students were admitted. After our students have been accepted, they have to take another test to place them appropriately. This year, two students have been placed in Math and Biology Honors classes. This is the second highest level in the high schools; usually eleventh graders are placed at this level. Lastly, our students who had to take the private high school entrance tests, and have been accepted, scored highly. In the ISEE, they achieved the 87th percentile in Math and 80.3th percentile in Language. In the HSPT they achieved an overall of 93.3th percentile, in Math 89th percentile and in Language 83th percentile.

I'm honored to have a 100% acceptance rate in the competitive environment of the Silicon Valley. Moreover, two students, Serena Grown-Haeberli and Alexander Beckert, received private high school awards for academic excellence. Typically, the private high school principal chooses the top ten applicants for these awards out of hundreds of applicants. The awards are based on different criteria, such as academic record, high test scores, recommendations and interview.

In addition, we received the results of the Stanford Achievement Test 10 (SAT10), which was conducted in May. The SAT10 gives us a comparison nationwide. Again, we improved our percentiles in Grade 8 and overall we scored in the 84th percentile. The individual test results will be mailed at the beginning of next week.

I commend all the teachers for their excellent work, the parents for their dedication, and the students for their endurance in this energy-sapping process.

 

If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had 15-18 people in his office at one time, all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn't want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer, or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher's job.  

~Donald D. Quinn 

Thank you to all our teachers for all your hard work, your caring attitudes and professional expertise. You are appreciated!

 

Follow the Child Summer Camp, run by Jay Levin, the Fifth grade English teacher, is a mobile camp for children between the ages of 6 and 12 who love to be outdoors. They go to a different exciting location each day.  Science based, Follow the Child Summer Camp runs between June 18th until August 17th, and is designed for active children that love to hike, draw, paint, write, explore, and learn. We pick-up in two locations in San Mateo and Palo Alto. If you would like to learn more about the camp please click here or email Jay Levin at followtchild@gmail.com.  

Surely you already know that soccer is the world's # 1 sport. And you must have heard how popular soccer is in Germany and how seriously it takes its soccer history and future. 

This summer from June 25th to July 13th, GASPA is offering 3 one week camps, for ages 8-12 and 13-17, during which we will combine soccer craziness and the German language to offer an intercultural exchange; the goal being to experience a cool sport in the German language and get to know contemporary Germany.

Become a better soccer player by learning from coaches from Germany, a world class soccer powerhouse! The Camp provides the opportunity for the participants to pass the DFB-McDonalds Fußballabzeichen (German Soccer Federation/DFB-McDonalds Soccer Insignia). 

The camp is open for beginners and pros in soccer and German language, for boys and girls.
Hauptsache: Fuβball verrückt!

For more information, please visit our website at www.gaspa-ca.org