Our News

The Preschool curriculum lays on a specific workbook designed by ASV with four engaging lessons that can be completed alongside each one of the four weeks.

This week, children in PreKinder 1 have learned more about oceans and animals that live in them. “We sang songs and played games related to this topic,” Ms. Aysel says. In Ms. Reyes’s class (Kinder), children worked on this same lesson and used the materials to “continue working on reading and writing, to recognize vowels according to the pattern and learn some syllable games”, this teacher describes.  While Kinder explored the sea, educators in PreKinder 2 highlighted the value ​​of the project 80 Days Around the World:  “We have visited different continents and countries. This week we traveled to Egypt and South Africa. The children have learned their flags, their typical food, an animal and a traditional dance ”, Ms. Celia shares.

The Summer Program experience is not limited to language acquisition. Teachers work on social skills and connect them with communicative situations. Ms. Reyes (Kinder) sees “more autonomy in conflict resolution and higher capacities to manage feelings and empathy towards classmates”. Ms. Aysel remarks on “how children have learned to express their feelings with words and take turns when playing”

The space party

A special event for Preschool groups this week was the Space Party. The activity took place on three different days: Wednesday for Nursery and PreKinder 1; Thursday for PreKinder 2 and Friday for Kinder. An initial performance described the composition of the solar system and the position of our planet. Then kids had to go through four stations with games using rings, balls, and frisbees.

ASV students in grades 9, 10, and 11 are invited to join the summer program as classroom volunteers. Each student is integrated into a group and collaborates with the teacher and with the teaching assistant in a wide variety of settings: classroom activities, park and pool supervision, dining hall, transitions, and much more. Their role is also valued by students as they are an additional reference to interact in English and who contribute to a positive atmosphere for learning.

Most of the student volunteers finished their stay on Wednesday, July 14. The Summer Program leadership team wants to thank them for this work and wishes them a happy summer!

The ASV Summer Program is aligned with the Positive Learning framework. There are several factors contributing to an optimal learning environment and the four most important are included in the word CARE: Come Prepared, Act responsibly, Respect Others y Speak English. Educators provide feedback, primarily positive, verbally or by giving CARE tickets.

Each week, those classes earning the highest number of CARE tickets in each division receive recognition. Congratulations to our CARE winners on July 9 and 16: Ms. Maria’s class and Ms. Vanesa’s class in Elementary School and Mr. Oran’s class and Ms. Abigail’s class in the Teens Program.

The program for Elementary students of primary (6 – 11 years old) is focused on providing an English immersion experience through a variety of creative activities and teamwork.  

Ms. Vanesa’s class (Grade 1) recently finished a unit on the classic tale ‘Three Little Pigs. “This and other stories help students to strengthen comprehension skills,” Ms. Vanesa says. Songs and rhymes support vocabulary acquisition and, additionally, “children have fun with them”.

Ms. Jennifer’s group has been working on a writing project set on an island where there are many species of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals. “Each student has been working on writing journal entries to create their own story regarding their journey and discovery of the secret behind the missing scientists,” Ms. Jennifer describes. The journal is complemented by a detailed map and a supply list for the expedition. “In order to help our writing come alive, we are utilizing adjectives connected to the five senses,” she mentioned. 

The ASV Focus on Communications Skills

Higher grade levels focus on communication skills. Ms. María’s class had oral presentations on professions and jobs. Art periods were used to make origami, mandalas, and clay accessories. A similar experience can be seen in Mr. Jorge’s class:  slowly but firmly, students are more comfortable when using English to talk to their classmates and teachers. “What started as some words in English mixed with Spanish has morphed into full sentences,” Mr. Jorge remarked. 

An additional example is Mr. George’s class: this group worked all week long on a big show that included comedy, music, and magic. By preparing for this event, “students have reinforced their oral communication skills, vocabulary, and everything related to a live show,” Mr. George described. Each team had to design a poster describing a part of the show and created flashcards with all the vocabulary learned.

This type of project connects with one of the features of the ASV Learning Profile: Communicators.

We are very excited about having started the ASV Summer Program 2021 with more than 450 students enrolled in the specific sections of Preschool, Elementary School, Teens program, and the ASV Tech Camp.  Most of these students will stay four weeks following an immersion course aimed to boost their English level by using the ASV method. 50 people -the leadership team, teachers, teaching assistants, and the ASV office- will support your child to reach this goal.

First Days at ASV…

The first days at the Summer Program are an exciting time for most of our students. We are pretty sure that once they got home, they eagerly talked about the arrival, their classmates, what they did with the teacher, and what they learned. And this is the approach of the Summer Program learning plan: the first two days, July 1 and 2, have been focused on welcoming students and making them feel comfortable through descriptive drawings, collaborative posters, and a round of self-introduction chats. Additionally, all students received the handbooks and their personal items: the cap and the water bottle. 

On Thursday morning, Elementary and secondary classes had a campus walk to get familiar with common areas and learn and practice the expectations in places such as the dining hall, the swimming pool, or the atrium. 

A Look at diverse activities in Preschool, Elementary, Teens Program, and Tech Camp

What makes the ASV Summer Program a successful English camp year after year? “ASV offers its own learning method, aligned with the ASV experience during the regular academic year: the program is focused on communication skills, students use English everyday, learning takes place having fun and our teachers actively give positive feedback,” Ms. Felicitas Berazay, Summer Program coordinator, describes. 

“The program has a remarkable loyalty rate: families come back year after year,” she adds. “We work hard to offer a consistent high-quality experience in English.” This language is also used during sports and other complementary activities and children learn in a relaxed and enjoyable setting.

The enrollment process is open and a number of classes are already completed in Preschool and Elementary. On May 11, 2021, the school is organizing the last virtual orientation.