PLS Newsletter - July 21st, 2022
(1) 2022 PLS Sister School Convention and Owners’ & Managers’ Meeting
The 2022 PLS Sister School Convention took place on Sunday, June 19, held for the first time as a hybrid event. We welcomed more than 80 participants from 24 sister schools as both in-person and online participants.
Based on this year’s theme — Back to Basics — PLS Group chairperson Masumi Ormandy gave the keynote speech, focussing on what is important in education and what it means to nurture people. This was followed by a presentation by Hayato Watanabe, Director of Yamate Kindergarten.
Miwako Andrews, representative of Adventure English, gave a presentation on "PLS Sister School Business Chat," a proposal to help sister school members directly connect with each other. In the afternoon, videos of early childhood classes (ages 0-4) were shown to share teaching ideas, and a variety of topics were discussed in group sessions.
We would like to thank all participants for their attendance, and for their cooperation in preparing presentations, videos and materials for the day.
A trial of the PLS Sister School Business Chat, proposed by Miwako Andrews, is being planned for representatives and managers of sister schools. Details will be announced at a future date.
Attendees at the venue, with some online attendees on-screen.
We apologise that not all online participants are visible.
A sample of attendees’ comments
「Listening to Masumi’s speech, I was reminded that I work in the field of ‘nurturing people.’ The stories about other sister schools adapting to modern times (e.g. online advertising rather than flyers) also made me reflect and consider whether I could accept change flexibly.」
「I was profoundly moved by Principal Watanabe of Yamate Kindergarten’s story. I almost cried because it overlapped with my own experience of nurturing people. He mentioned that he had become softer with age. I thought that this comes from the various experiences one has as one gets older, learning through reflection. Life is a constant learning experience.」
「‘Growing up together — as friends, as parents, as teachers — we have a lot to learn from children. Let’s not crush their potential.’ These words by Masumi Ormandy left me inspired. I felt that I wanted to teach classes where students are left wanting to learn more.」
「We were pleased that some participants were able to attend at the venue and that we are gradually returning to in-person events. We hope that the training seminars will soon be able to return to in-person as well.」
「It was a great opportunity to watch a number of class videos, which provided both ideas and inspiration. I’m glad that Corona-related discussions are gradually decreasing, and we’re able to talk more about getting classes back to the way they used to be.」
「It was great in that the convention also addressed all three things that I had wanted to hear about and see (theory & background of teaching children, class videos, and discussion).」
Thank you to everyone who offered comments and suggestions. We are working to reflect your feedback in planning future events.
Contact: PLS Head Office
(2) Notice of summer business closure
Our offices will be closed for the summer holidays as below:
August
Monday 8 Closed
Tuesday 9 Closed
Wednesday 10 Closed
Thursday 11 Closed (national holiday)
Friday 12 Closed
Saturday 13 Closed
Sunday 14 Closed
Monday 15 Open from 10 a.m.
Shipping of teaching materials
Orders received by 1 p.m. on Friday, August 5 will be shipped that day.
Shipping will resume for orders placed after that on Monday, August 15.
If you are unable to receive packages during the summer holidays, please indicate your desired delivery date on the order form.
(3) Notice of price increase for gold star stickers
The price of gold star stickers, used on students’ homework sheets, will be revised as of this announcement due to a price increase from our supplier.
Current price: ¥79 per sheet
Price after revision: ¥89 per sheet
A combination of various factors, such as the weak yen and fossil fuel price rises, is resulting in an increase in the price of basic materials. Unfortunately, there is a chance that this will continue to affect prices of our teaching materials and other supplies.
We will do our best to avoid price changes in the middle of the fiscal year. Thank you for your understanding.
Updated order forms with the new prices reflected are available on the sister school website.
Contact: Teaching Materials Dept.