The elementary school librarian has shared to all PTSA members with an update and a message of appreciation regarding the completion of the upper grades (G4-G6) library corner.
Students in grades 4, 5, and 6 started the new school year with a finished upper library. Books are now neatly organized into 5 different library carts - making it easy for students to find books they are interested in. There are a wide variety of fiction books, non-fiction books, comics/graphic novels, and more! The newest section of books is the "Jump On the Bandwagon" section. When a class wins the monthly contest by speaking English consistently they are able to select 5 English books they wish to purchase. These new books are then placed in the library for all students to enjoy.
4・5・6年生の生徒たちは、新しい学年のスタートを完成した上級生用の図書室とともに迎えました。現在、本は5つの図書カートにきちんと整理されており、生徒たちは興味のある本を簡単に見つけられるようになっています。図書室には小説やノンフィクション、コミックやグラフィックノベルなど、さまざまな種類の本が揃っています！
中でも新しく登場したのが「Jump On the Bandwagon（流行に乗ろう）」コーナーです。月間コンテストで、クラス全体が一貫して英語を話すことに成功すると、ご褒美としてそのクラスが購入したい英語の本を5冊選ぶことができます。その新しい本は図書室に追加され、全生徒が楽しめるようになります。
Students in the upper grades are now also able to check out books on the online library catalogue. Using a barcode scanner students are able to check out their books quickly.This online library system not only helps teachers keep track of how many books students have checked out but also what type of books they are interested in.
None of this would have been possible without the hard work and dedication of the PTSA. Over the last two years a variety of PTSA members have volunteered their time to come in and help Ms. Amanda with the library project. Volunteers helped sort books (discarding old or damaged books), scanned books into the online library catalogue, and labelled the books (so students can easily figure out where books belong). Students and staff are very grateful for the time and effort Ms. Amanda and the PTSA put into making this project a success. Multiple students have already said how much they enjoy the new library, how easy it is to find books they like, and how fun it is to check out new books.
There are so many benefits to reading; not only can it help students gain new knowledge but it can also improve their vocabulary and imagination, and can even reduce stress. It is our hope that students will continue to develop a love of reading and find books they enjoy. So while the library project is pretty much complete, moving forward books will continue to be added to the library so that students have something new to read.
On Wednesday, March 12, the graduation and promotion ceremony for the 2024 academic year was held.
3月12日（水）、2024年度の卒業・進級式が執り行われました。
To celebrate this milestone, PTSA presented commemorative gifts, celebratory flowers and delivered a congratulatory message.
PTSAからは、門出を祝して記念品と祝い花を贈呈するとともに、お祝いの言葉をお届けしました。
May the future of all graduates and advancing students be filled with hope and joy. We sincerely wish you continued growth and success in the years to come.
On Friday, February 7th, a PTSA-sponsored event show was held. This year, in line with the theme of the junior and senior high school science fair, a robotics show was hosted featuring Robot Ride Inc(https://www.skeletonics-us.com).
The event was a great success, featuring a dynamic robotics performance, an insightful talk by the developers about their experiences and future prospects, and even a hands-on session where a few selected students had the chance to operate the robots themselves.
After the show,senior high school students and teachers seated in the back eagerly gathered around the robots, asking questions and showing great interest.
On the day of the science fair for junior and senior high school students, a Science Day event was held for kinder and elementary students. K-G3 students experienced making slime, while G4-G6 students worked on building robots using kits. The teaching materials and supplies used were provided by the PTSA.
★ From the Sophia University student circle／上智大学学生サークルSRSGより御礼 ★
Dear Parents and Guardians,
We would like to share with you a message of gratitude from the representative of Sophia University’s student circle, SRSG, for your generous contributions to the Christmas Fiesta food bank and clothing donations.
Thank you very much for your generous donations of food and clothing to the Sophia University Refugee Support Circle, continuing from last year. We sincerely appreciate your warm support.
The donated items were distributed during one of our activities, the “Cafe,” held in January. We plan to share the details of this event on our Instagram account, so we would be delighted if you could take a look.
The uniform bazaar raised \94,250, the English book bazaar brought in \18,571, and the outdoor booths generated a total of \38,571. The proceeds will be donated and used to enhance students’ school life and activities.
We sincerely appreciate everyone’s support through the donation of uniforms and books in advance, as well as your purchases at the bazaars.
事前の制服や洋書のご寄付、そしてバザーでのご購入にご協力いただき、心より感謝申し上げます。
At the food bank, we were able to collect a large amount of donated food thanks to everyone’s cooperation. The collected food was delivered on the same day to the “Wada Kodomo Shokudou,” (Here are some highlights from the event. https://tokorozawa-navi.com/feature/123) operated by the NPO Tokorozawa Genki Juku, and to Sophia Refugee Support Group (Refugee Voices Japan), a refugee support circle at Sophia University, under the name of the Columbia International School PTSA.
Since the beginning of this school year, the PTSA board members have been working together with teachers to carefully review and arrange for reusable kit materials for the science event, which is part of the Science Fair and targeted at elementary students in G4 to G6. These kits were delivered in late November.
We are pleased to report that the inspection process has been completed, and preparations for donating the kits to the elementary school are now finished. The science event is scheduled to take place in February.
The PTSA supported the event in various ways, including providing pumpkins for lanterns used in each class, snacks for all students, and prizes for the costume contest and pumpkin contest. Additionally, PTSA members participated in organizing the elementary and kindergarten events, served as judges and presenters for the contests, and contributed to ensuring the event’s success and safety.
On October 10th, a Halloween event organized by the student council was held for middle and high school (G9-G12) students. The PTSA provided funding for snacks and other expenses.
Regarding the Organization of the Elementary Library Corner Continuing from the first semester, several PTSA board members and spot volunteers have been visiting the school every Friday to assist with book organization and registration under the supervision of Ms. Amanda, the library coordinator.
We are pleased to report that the Grades 1 to 3 corner has now been complete.
Below is a message from Elementary teachers to guardians and students.
以下は、エレメンタリーの先生から保護者・生徒へのメッセージです。
The lower elementary library for students in grades 1-3 is now finished! All of the 4,200 books available to students have been sorted into 5 different sections.
・The first section offers students a variety of leveled reader books and quick reads.
・The second section is full of non-fiction books that are sorted into categories such as "animals" and "weather".
・The third section is full of books by popular authors such as Mo Willems.
・The fourth section has picture books that are sorted alphabetically by author.
・Finally, the fifth section has a variety of chapter books, sorted by series or author.
Thanks to efforts of Ms. Amanda, various PTSA members, and some high school students these books have been labelled with stickers and uploaded to the online library catalogue. The stickers on the books help students know where books belong on the shelves and also what the book is about. For example, a non-fiction book about ocean animals will have a number 2 sticker on the book's cover (to show it is non-fiction) and an ocean themed sticker on the book's spine. The online library catalogue gives students the chance to check out and return books, just like they would at a public library. The system also gives teachers access to information about what books students' are currently reading, their reading progress, their favourite subjects, and also what books the system recommends they read next!
Now that the lower elementary library has been completed our efforts have moved on to the upper elementary library. So far 107 books have been added to the online catalogue but there's still lots to do. Our goal is to finish the upper elementary library by winter vacation so that students in grades 4-6 can have a new library for the new year!
The school Open day was held on Saturday, September 21st. This autumn, we once again welcomed many visitors to our school. After the principal's welcome speech, the visitors eagerly observed the school's atmosphere, facilities, and the students' learning during classroom visits.
On Thursday, July 4th, JAPANADA DAY (Japan+Canada day) was held under sunny skies.
As usual, the Kinder and elementary, junior and senior high school students were divided into groups for various activities.
The Kinder and elementary students participated in water fights and face painting on the field, while junior and senior high school students enjoyed performance events on the gym stage.
They enjoyed each event very much.
PTSA provided
① "Poutine", a traditional Canadian dish of french fries topped with gravy and cheese
②500 ml of bottled water
③Bandanas ,trophies and lots of water balloons for use at the junior and senior high school events"spirits cup and JAPANADA DAY".
For this event, PTSA board members mainly contributed in planning and preparing for this event, as well as helping the teachers run the event on the day.
PTSA役員は今年も企画から事前準備、当日のイベントの運営補助等多岐に渡って参加しました。
We hope everyone enjoyed the last event before the summer vacation.
PTSA will continue the efforts to provide better support for the students.
We sincerely appreciate the ongoing understanding and cooperation of all parents.
The Art Club held a small exhibition during the last week of this semester. Additionally, students who worked hard and produced high-quality works were recognized. PTSA provided the following prizes.
★ Prepare for update emergency preserved food／災害保存食の更新準備 ★
On Saturday, June 1, 2024, we prepared to distribute last year’s emergency food supplies to students as part of the annual update funded by PTSA membership fees.
We hope this will help that students become more aware of disaster preparedness and gain a better understanding of the importance of stocking and maintaining emergency food supplies.
The PTSA board members and volunteer members will continue supporting the elementary school's "library project" this school year.
PTSAでは、今年度も引き続き小学校の図書プロジェクトのサポートをしています。
Under the elementary teacher’s guidance, the members of "Library Project " participate three to four times a month;
・Assisting with tasks such as categorizing the books
・Data entry
・organizing the bookshelves
Event 2025-2026 
★ Library project report 3／図書プロジェクト活動記録 3 ★
