Middle School
October 7, 2021
From the Middle School Principal's Desk
Dear Students and Parents,
It’s been absolutely amazing to have everyone back on campus! It’s finally starting to feel more like the Middle School we remember from before the pandemic. Students have been reconnecting with friends on opposite days, finally getting a chance to catch up, while others are forming new friendships. It’s been great!
As mentioned last week, to continue to access the ASD campus, students who are eligible to be vaccinated (12 years and older) must either provide us with evidence of having previously had COVID-19, proof of vaccination, or a negative result from either a rapid antigen test or PCR test (approved by the MoPH). ASD has been contacted by the Ministry and has been informed that schools will NOT be providing antigen (or PCR) tests. It is up to individual families to procure these tests (cost of QR50) each week.
We still have a number of Middle School students, aged 12 years old and older, who have not yet shared with us their record of vaccination (and run the risk of being denied access to campus after the Fall break). If you have had your vaccination, I urge you to share this information with us (Click HERE to submit). If you have been waiting to get your child vaccinated, now would be the time to do so.
Next week is a short week, with our Fall break beginning on October 12. Mr. Mitchell and I would like to wish everyone a relaxing and fun break. Please note that Sunday will be Day 2 and Monday will be day 3 in the MS. Next Sunday (October 17) when we all return will be Day 4.
Have a great week everyone!
Sincerely,
Rob Gohr
Middle School Principal
American School of Doha
Personal Safety Lessons in the Middle School
Part of our school’s mission includes a focus on the personal development of all our students, which is only possible when all students feel safe and secure. In an effort to better support our students, our school will be engaging in a research-based Child-Protection program, designed specifically for international school students.
This program will include age-appropriate information about personal safety as well as child maltreatment. These lessons are a core element of ASD’s plan to protect the rights and safety of each and every student in our community. Lessons will be led by our Middle School Designated Leads (Counselors) and will be taught during the weeks of October 18th-21st and November 22nd-28th 2021.
In each grade, the following key concepts and skills will be addressed:
1. IDENTIFY! - Students will learn how to identify safe and unsafe situations.
2. ACCESS! - Students will learn how to access support structures.
3. ACT! - Students will learn how to act to stay safe.
4. VALUE! - Students will learn how to value themselves and others.
Your child will receive a range of “Home Connection” activities to be completed with you following these lessons. Students are more likely to use and apply the information they have learned when they have multiple opportunities to practice and talk about it with parents and family. You play an essential role in helping your child know how to stay safe!
We will be having a Parent Information Session on Sunday, October 17th at 8:30 am (Zoom link). At this time, you will have the opportunity to learn more about the program, view the curriculum materials, and ask questions. For more information, please contact Tracy Murphy, Director of Student Support Services, at tracy.murphy@asd.edu.qa.
MS Parent Advisory Forum Meeting
Our Middle School will hold its monthly Parent Advisory Forum on Wednesday, October 20, from 8:00am-9:00am via Zoom (link HERE). Like all our PAF meetings, this is an open meeting for all MS parents interested in learning more about the middle school. Its primary purpose is to facilitate conversation between the school and home and to provide a forum for parents to provide feedback to the principals. If you have a “burning question” that you would like to ask about, be sure to submit it via this online PAF form and we will do our best to answer it during our next PAC meeting. This month we’ll take a look at and unpack recent MAP testing results for our school, as well as help better understand what this information means for our own children. We’ll also talk about how things have changed since we now have all students back on campus. Hope to see you there!
What's On MS
Sun, Oct 10
MS/HS Day 2
Mon, Oct 11
MS/HS Day 3
Tue, Oct 12 - Sat, Oct 16
FALL BREAK, No School for Students
Be sure to visit our What's On MS Teneen page, for more information on divisional ASD events. Updated every FRIDAY!
Save the Date
Oct 17: MS Personal Safety Session, 8:30am - 9:30am, via Zoom
Oct 20: Parent Advisory Forum
Oct 26: Parent Coffee with Counselors
Oct 27: End of quarter 1
Nov 3-4: Parent-Teacher-Student conferences
Check out our section on Teaching and Learning
AstroCon21
Date: October 8 & 9
Location: Al Thuraya Planetarium at Katara
Social media: @USEmbassyDoha, @YearsofCulture
The astronomy convention “AstroCon21” returns to the Al Thuraya Planetarium in the Katara Cultural Village October 8 and 9, 2021. It is the only convention in Qatar that focuses on astronomy and space discovery. AstroCon21 brings together international and local scientists and experts in this field creating a space of discourse and networking for specialists, academicians, students, and space enthusiasts.
AstroCon21 invites people of all ages to attend this fifth edition, which promises to be the best one yet. Each day will commence with a speech by a keynote speaker, followed by space and astronomy workshops. The audience will have the opportunity to participate in workshops as well as different interactive activities, among them, space-themed performances. AstroCon21 is organized by the Astronomy Club at Qatar University and the Astronomy branch of the Qatar University Alumni Association. It is held in strategic partnership with Al Thuraya Planetarium in Katara and is sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Qatar as a gold sponsor, and Qatar Youth Hostels as a tourism partner.
To register to the events, please visit: https://quastrocon.com/registration/
A message from Aquatics
Dear ASD Community,
My name is Amanda Allen and I wanted to introduce myself to the community as the Aquatics Director. I am very pleased to inform you that ASD's Aquatics facilities are now permitted to operate with full programming! You will notice in the upcoming weeks that you will find information from your child's Physical Education teacher regarding swimming embedded within the curriculum. In addition, we will also be communicating after school opportunities from the ASD Athletics Department in the near future. The entire ASD Aquatics team is very excited to welcome back students and support your child's continual progress within the Aquatics curriculum.
Kind Regards,
Amanda Allen
Aquatics Director
American School of Doha
A Message from Admissions
Dear Parents,
Is your son or daughter turning three or four years of age by August 31, 2022? Are you interested in applying for our Pre-K 3 or Pre-K 4 programs for the 2022-2023 academic year? If so, please complete our online application as soon as possible!
If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact the Office of Admissions at admissions@asd.edu.qa or by phone at +974 4459 1511.
We look forward to receiving your child’s application soon!
Sincerely,
Scott Barnwell
Director of Admissions
From our School Community
CAST is BACK and we need YOU! Are you a parent that would like to volunteer for CAST (Creative Arts Support Team)? Do you have a love for the Arts? Costuming? Front Of House? Design? Or Hospitality? Would you like to join a fun and creative team? If so, please fill in the google form or reach out to Jennifer Bendriss jbendriss@asd.edu.qa for information. We cannot wait to work with YOU!
Booster Club Parent Volunteers Needed!
The Booster Club consists of parent volunteers whose primary goal is to support the Athletics and Activities program across all the divisions at the American School of Doha. Booster Club's main goal is to promote the school spirit within the ASD community and beyond. Please let us know if you can spare any of your time to help our community and join us by filling out the form HERE. We have specific areas of need or you can just sign up to receive any of our community emails.
Booster Club Online Store
Our ASD Booster Store Online Catalog includes the store's most popular items so be ready to show your dragon spirit. The Booster Club provides positive support and assistance to the American School of Doha Athletics and Activities Program for all school divisions.
Shop Online by clicking on the link below; pick up your purchased items at school! The orders will be delivered on a weekly basis to each student and ASD staff.
Please fill out THIS form to purchase your items after you have explored the Catalog below!
Click HERE for the Booster Club catalog.
AMA welcomes back the ASD community and wishes you all a wonderful year ahead.
Please visit our page to see all the activities AMA is involved in.
If you would like to be added to the AMA registry to find out more about what we do, please join here
If you would like to contact us, have ideas to share or would like to volunteer on the committee please email ama@asd.edu.qa