Both Ian and Lindsey have new teaching responsibilities for Semester 2. This might mean one of the another are unavailable to immediately help with an issue. 

If you have a technology issue that is not urgent, email tifs@isyedu.org. 

If you have an urgent technology issue, the best thing to do is send a Google Hangout message to Lindsey, Ian, and Anshu. That way you have 3 chances that someone is available when you need them. 

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Here are a curated list of helpful links for students and families as we begin the year. These videos can be helpful as you share information with them. 

• Overview of Apps used in the ES (Video Link) (Slides Link)
• Sign in to your Chrome Web Browser (Video Link)
• Download Chrome (Website Link)
• Download Chrome on iPad (Video Link)
• Sign in with Google to Seesaw (Video Link)
• Seesaw Parent Login (Video Link)
• How to get into Kids A-Z (Video Link)
• Freckle Login (Video Link)

This will be organized under the umbrella of ISY Definition of Compassion: The will and understanding to respect and value the identity, culture, perspective, and experience of others in acting to make a positive difference to their lives.

Jake Bailey will be our key-note speaker. Jake is an accidental inspirational speaker by virtue of this speech that he made at his high school graduation ceremony very shortly after being diagnosed with cancer. The speech went viral and now he devotes his time helping people understand how we can most successfully overcome the challenges and adversity we will all inevitably face in life. He has a particular interest in developing resilience and mental well-being in young people. 

An ISY student panel comprised of members of the Diverse Identities Alliance (DIA) student group will provide us with LGBTQ+ awareness training. This panel has already presented this material to our leadership team and to our Board of Trustees. Their presentation is both insightful and practical. 

We have 3 workshops from Cathy Berger Kaye and her associates. Cathy has worked with us in the past and is very supportive of our school and its compassionate Mission and Vision. The workshop titles and presenters are listed below along with a summary of the workshop. Here are the presenters’ bios.

1. Amplifying Compassion and Service: how digital storytelling can equip learners to create meaningful impact through service learning. 

Shei Ascencio & LeeAnne Lavender

In the past 18 months, we have had the opportunity to explore new and innovative approaches for teaching and learning in virtual spaces. We have needed to develop reserves of compassion: for ourselves as we navigate new and unknown experiences, and for others as we figure out how to engage in meaningful service experiences online. For service learning and global citizenship educators, this has offered new perspectives and possibilities for youth to engage with indirect service, advocacy and research – digital storytelling has surfaced in many contexts as the platform and vehicle for purposeful engagement. In this workshop, we will focus on practical and concrete strategies for successful service learning and digital storytelling in a virtual or hybrid environment. You will come away with a toolkit to increase student agency in creating meaningful and intentional service learning experiences. 

2. The Danger of a Single Narrative: A lens for authentic connections

Christopher Dadefumi (Chris)

As human beings, we are meaning-making organisms. To survive, to be successful, and to thrive we continually make meaning of the world around us so we may know how to negotiate our way. What we observe, together with the stories we are told and shown over and over, help us solidify that meaning.  However, what happens when a single narrative about a culture or a community and its rituals, practices, behavior, and circumstances come to be accepted as truth? What happens when this is applied as truth about a people – their capabilities, potential or limitations? We begin with looking at ourselves, because understanding what single narratives, assumptions and biases we hold is the foundational work we get to do in service of building more equitable partnerships with communities that are not our own. 

3. Documentar—A Time Capsule of Now

Cathy Berger Kaye

We are still emerging from a transformative and unique time, in many ways unanticipated and unprecedented. As part of all that transpired, as educators we continually aim to care for all aspects of our youth and community, including their wellbeing. To this end, documentar was created amid the pandemic, as a method, a process, and a global platform for youth to express their inner life in this moment. Together we continue to capture what the world looks like through their eyes. With photos, art, poetry, spoken word, video, and narrative, we have learned in countless ways how youth experienced quarantine and isolation, social and racial injustice, environmental challenges, and have emerged to take action with an authentic desire to impact change. Experience documentar – and know how we can care, connect, and hold the stories and experiences of others. An invitation to be present and creative, and to capture the moment!

We have decided to hold our own ISY teacher workshops for a separate event to be held later in the year. This event will be organized around our ISY Inclusive Practices.