Dear Students,

We began the school year with a BANG! The first two days of school was dedicated to extended Advisory meetings where you participated in bonding and team building activities. Later on in September, students in ALL Grade Levels benefitted from their Grade Level Class Retreats and so far the feedback has been AMAZING!!!

Through these retreats you were given a chance to create meaningful connections with other students in your grade level as well as create a sense of belonging in your school community. You were also able to use this retreat time to relax and learn new skills without the pressure of competition, performance and grades. This experience was also geared to enhance your self-esteem, help you build a greater sense of self and self-confidence, as well as develop your willingness to try new things, and the tenacity and perseverance to push to your highest potential.

Your interaction with each other, be it through our small group discussions, board games, music, dance or adventure activities, was very admirable. You came out of your comfort zones and were able to seize and enjoy the moment. Please enjoy the highlights of the Retreats below and we sincerely hope that you continue to strengthen and deepen these relationships that you made with each other.

Tessa John Guerra

Upper School Counselor

Our Guest Presenter, Will Dowling, outlined a 3 Step Process that can guide students in making decisions that are right for them. Please see the images below and go through that 3 Step Process at your own pace and observe what changes within you as you go through this process.

Please see the image below with the 3 Step Process that Will spoke about!

Will Dowling went from a student at ASM to Cornell, NYC to Morgan Stanley Hedge Fund to PwC Real Estate Asset Manager to starting his own business.

We would like to thank him for being our Guest Presenter and setting a positive tone for our Grades 9 to 11 Retreat Days. He shared with students different thought experiments that would help them make solid decisions. He also took time off his busy schedule to spend the 3 days with students, inspiring and teaching them how to breathe effectively and meditate.

He would also like to acknowledge his teacher Peter Sonnberg who contributed to his personal and spiritual development as well as passed on some of these life lessons unto him.

Below you will see an example of one of the meditation groups led by Will.

The meditation that we did was incredibly relaxing. The breathing exercises were different than anything I had tried before and the theory behind each one was super interesting.

Alexandra Nolasco

Junior

The meditation session was an experience that surprised me, through the breathing techniques, as well as the way it made some people feel physically.

Javi Lopez

Junior

Below Grade Level Leader, Mr. Ronan Dempsey, addresses the Seniors at the retreat.

Here some students shared how they felt about the retreat!

🎤 I enjoyed it, I got to interact a lot with my classmates and meet new people.

~ Manuela Eguilior

Junior

🎤 I liked it and it was fun doing things with the people in my grade.

~ Cristina Mateo

Freshman

🎤 I think it was good to take a day off as a whole grade but it could’ve been more interactive for us teenagers since some of the activities were slightly unenthusiastic.

~ Simon Jasper

Junior

🎤 I actually really enjoyed it. I had salsa dancing and an outdoor activity. By far, dancing was the most fun. The teacher was really nice and energetic and I think everyone felt a great sense of community.

~ Lourdes Rivela Gómez

Sophomore

🎤 It was okay, I liked meditation.

~ Luis Delgado Fernandez

Freshman

🎤 I enjoyed it, my favorite thing was the dancing class.

~ Lucia Berges

Freshman

Coming back to school can be quite stressful, especially when it is a new school. Here students share how they felt as they came back to school and how their buddies assisted them!

As a new student, coming to ASM turned out really well for me. I had the chance to meet a lot of people here at this school. I got to meet my buddy, Ava Luers. She was very friendly and welcoming when I got to meet her. She was very welcoming because she answered all of my questions about this school and told me everything I wanted to know about ASM. If I was an ASM buddy, I would answer any questions that they have, and show them around the school.

Coming back at school in September went really well. It is nice to to meet new people, and to learn from different classes this year!

Coming back to school in September was intimidating -- I couldn't help but worry about the stress that was to come; yet, at the same time, I was curious to see how the year would play out and excited for the opportunities I would receive.

Exciting and stressful at the same time, starting the IB has been a big change!

Alfonso Kurtis de Alzaga

Junior

I am new and it was really good because I felt welcomed by everyone and they all accepted me nicely.

Cristina Mateo

Freshman

I emailed my buddy during the summer to get to know her and then when school started I helped her find her classes and get settled.

Sofia Urgell

Freshman

It was pretty nice. I enjoyed the first two days being more recreative, I think it helped ease the transition from summer to back to school.

Lourdes Rivela Gómez

Sophomore

It was not very hard as I knew most people at school and the first 2 days helped me settle in.

Simon Jasper

Junior

NOW IT'S YOUR TURN...take some time to acknowledge where you are rightnow, become aware of your feelings, your emotions, your state of mind and make a mental note of it. Also look at the video below to discover a new way that you can check in with yourself!

Schedule "CHECK-IN" time

I know that you have heard many times about the importance of creating your own personalized After School Schedule. You can find out more about how to do that in this linked previous Newsletter by scrolling down to the Study Skills section and clicking on the Google doc.

• Then proceed to making a copy of Tessa's After School Schedule and name the document as you see fit.

• You can then replace the name and information within this template schedule with your name and information.

• Also remember to schedule in Check-In time.

As you learned at the Retreat, Checking-In involves bringing your attention to your body and feel what is happening to you. Scan your body and observe what either changes or remains the same. That's an excellent way of getting to know yourself more and feel your instincts.

BENEFITS

Checking in with yourself means carving out time each day to ask yourself how you're doing. In this space, you can sort out your emotions, assess your physical and emotional needs, and make an intentional plan on how to address these needs moving forward.

In that way you are able to make solid decisions with CONFIDENCE!!!

Using a step-by-step decision-making process can help you make more deliberate, thoughtful decisions by organizing relevant information and defining alternatives. This approach increases the chances that you will choose the most satisfying alternative possible.

📝The Myth of Normal: Now Gabor Maté MD brings his perspective to the great untangling of common myths about what makes us sick, connects the dots between the maladies of individuals and the declining soundness of society — and offers a compassionate guide for health and healing. Co-written with his son Daniel Maté, The Myth of Normal is Maté’s most ambitious and urgent book yet.

📝My Grandmother's Hands: Therapist Resmaa Menakem examines the damage caused by racism in America from the perspective of trauma and body-centered psychology. The body is where our instincts reside and where we fight, flee, or freeze, and it endures the trauma inflicted by the ills that plague society. Menakem argues this destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies. Our collective agony doesn't just affect African Americans. White Americans suffer their own secondary trauma as well. So do blue Americans—our police.

📝The Drama of the Gifted Child: Why are many of the most successful people plagued by feelings of emptiness and alienation? This wise and profound book has provided millions of readers with an answer -- and has helped them to apply it to their own lives. The Drama of the Gifted Child helps us to reclaim our life by discovering our own crucial needs and our own truth.

Please reach out to Tessa at tessajohn@asmadrid.es or go to her office if you would like to go through any of the above titles.

ALL THE RETREAT SUPERVISORS:

Joanne Walker, Zachary Zeilik, Hunter McCallister, Cheryl Harbora, Katrina Dodds, Jacqueline Brick, Gaelle Delaunay, Delfina Ferrer, Eric Foinquinos, Sarah Overstreet, Darlene Oehlke, Meghan Perks, Alexander Lyvers, Eva Fernandez, Madeline Melnick, Timothy Eddy, Blanca Martin, Felim Bolster and Brian White who also led a Drama Activity.

ALL THE GRADE LEVEL LEADERS:

Camden Ducharme, Terrance Dillon, Susi Francey and Ronan Dempsey

1. Please go over all the past newsletters where you will find different study strategies under the sub-heading of Study Skills.
2. Then go over all the different professions explored under the sub-heading of Career Guidance.

Email: tessajohn@asmadrid.es
Website: asmadrid.org
Location: American School of Madrid, Calle América, Pozuelo de Alarcón, Spain
Phone: 34 917401902