Thank you to all students, parents and teachers who were a part of the TAS 2012 Summer Academy. It was a great success. We offered new courses, enrolled approximately 150 more students than ever before and provided an enriching environment. Feedback from students, parents and teachers indicate that we reached our goals of producing a meaningful learning experience for all students from KA to Grade 12.

In June 2012 we aim to build upon this momentum. We are planning to offer a number of new courses throughout the K - 12 program and hope that we are continuing to offer some meaningful learning opportunities for the TAS community.

The reading , writing and speaking classes for KA - Grade 5. In addition to the highly successful classes of Public Speaking and Communication class as well as the extended reading and writing classes for students in Grade 3 - 5.

We know from discussions with parents and school personal we would like to explore the possibility of employing an ESL support teacher for the reading and writing classes and also offering more options for students who are performing at the higher end of the learning spectrum, namely an extended mathematics course for students in Grades 3 - 5 to complement our successful extended reading and writing classes.

We are also exploring the possibility of running a robotics course this coming June which will complement the robotics program of the regular school year.

For the first time last year we offered MS Robotics, Practical Science and Preparation for Algebra I in the Middle School. The perennial favorite reading, writing and public speaking course was complemented by Expository Writing for rising Grade 8 students which allowed for the elder MS students to have more of a direct focus on the specific writing strategies and skills that are used in Grade 8 and beyond in the regular school year.

We are investigating the addition of some more mathematical courses for our MS students, most notably a pre-algebra preparation course which will complement the already existing Algebra I preparation course.

The summer academy will continue to offer summer courses that will allow students to move ahead in the regular school year in regards to Honors Physics, Chemistry and Biology which will allow the student to enroll in the AP equivalent course in the 2012-12 school year. We will also be offering similar mathematical courses in Geometry with Proof, Honors Geometry with Proof, Algebra II and Honors Algebra II. Expository writing will be offered once again, and this course has been proven to be a very successful preparation course for the writing demands of the Upper School. Essay Research, and AP History Preparation will also be running this year once again.

The 6 week summer internship will be also providing TAS students with a real life learning experience and hopefully provide individuals with an insight into a potential professional career. We will once again offer opportunities for students to learn about research to marketing, from teaching to hotel management and a lot of jobs in between.

We will run a college tour with all five of the TAS college counselors on the East Coast of the United States in July 2012. A maximum of 24 rising Grade 12 students will be led on a 7 day tour of colleges and universities who will be given a unique opportunity to visit campuses, admission officers and professors with our college counselors. Students who choose to take this wonderful opportunity will still be able to take other TAS summer courses and the Internship program in June and the first weeks of July.

For IB Diploma students we are also considering offering a US History summer course that will be fulfill the TAS US History graduation requirements as long as the students are fulfilling certain IB history requirements in the regular school year.

Assembly for all TAS juniors and sophomores to examine possible options and timeline for the Internship and Research Internship program for June 2012 will also occur. We aim to start and assign students much earlier this year to ensure adequate preparation for both students and the prospective businesses for the summer internship.

On January 30, 2012, we start to accept the applications of summer internships, which are offered to rising juniors and seniors.

Summer School Enrollment begins

Upper School Summer Students

Deadline for registration for Upper School Mathematics and Science courses

Deadline for registration for students completing a Summer Internship and Research Internship

Session 1 of Summer Academy commences

Internships and Research Internships commence

Session 2 of Summer Academy commences

Summer Academy Finishes

Internships and Research-Internships are completed

College Tour departs for East Coast of America (a 7 day tour)

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions please do not hesitate to contact me on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Yours faithfully

Shaun O'Rourke

Summer Academy Director

Taipei American School