Moshi Campus News – 10 Nov 2013

Only 3 weeks left until the annual ISM Sports Weekend. This year, we will be hosting teams from: ALMIS, Orkeeswa, IST, HOPAC, ISM Arusha, Braeburn, St. Constantine’s, Morogoro, Capstone CS, DIS, St. Jude’s, and Aga Khan. Lots more details to come. If you can help us out on that weekend, in any capacity, please email Marika().
This Week in Sports: Tuesday November 12th 4:30pm – Junior Girls Soccer Team vs. Karanga 5:15pm – Senior Girls Soccer Team vs. Karanga

On Tuesday, 12th November many of our D2 studens will be taking their first IB Diploma written exams as they sit for the Swahili B exam which is only examined in November.

On Saturday, 16th November, ISM is a test center for the paper-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).

UN Day occurred during the school holiday, therefore we will be celebrating in the assembly on Monday, 18th November. This is an annual event where students come to school in their National Costume or, if this is not possible, then national colours. Parents are very welcome to this assembly where the primary will sing a UN song.

The Parents Association will be holding two Annual General Meetings this year – one in Moshi and one in Arusha. Please reserve the date of the Moshi meeting to be held at 6pm on Thursday, 21st November. More details will be published shortly.

On Saturday, 23rd November at 10am, the Director, Bob Horton, will be presenting at the SeaCliff Hotel in Dar es Salaam to parents or families who may be interested in learning more about ISM. If you know of families in Dar who may wish to enrol their children in 2014, please encourage them to attend this presentation.

After some delay, we nave now received permission to go ahead with the extension to Kiongozi boarding house (MYP girls). Work is expected to start tomorrow and will be finished in late January or early February. We are building four new self-contained rooms on the north side of Kiongozi boarding house to accommodate eight students. When this is completed, we anticipate moving the girls currently living in Kipawa House to Kiongozi. We apologise to the current Kiongozi girls for the small disruption that this building work may cause.

Meanwhile, work on the basketball and netball courts is continuing well and the new surface will be ready in time for our Sports Weekend at the end of this month.

We were delighted to have a fleeting visit from this group of international runners who are running around the world to raise awareness and promote peace. A group of 14 runners ran into school on a wet Wednesday afternoon last week. Full of good cheer they were welcomed by our Moshi Students and led with the Peace torch to the P5/6 classroom – P5/6 have been working hard on their Peace & Conflict unit.Many Primary students gave up their playtime, along with some secondary students, to hear about this venture and answer questions about what peace really means. The big message was that it starts with me, and as each student got a chance to hold the torch and pass it on, a torch that has travelled around the world and been held by Kofi Annan and Nelson Mandela himself, there was a sense of being part of history. The Peace Run team left to go on to Arusha to the schools there, following which the team will attempt Kilimanjaro and then carry on around the world.

We still have a number of ISM polo shirts available from reception. The price of these has now been reduced to only TSh 8000/-, the same price as the ISM T-shirts.

Also available for sale in reception are ISM swimming caps (10,000/-) and ISM 8Gb USB flash drives (16,000/-).

The last Outdoor Pursuits trips for this quarter will be the Mawenzi Hut trip on Kilimanjaro from Thursday to Sunday, 21st to 24th November.




Pictures taken from this weekend’s trip on the Rongai route

Our new internet access system is now operational with one or two hiccups that still need to be resolved. All M5 and diploma students who wish to register have done so and now have free internet access on their own devices (laptops, tablets, phones). This week we will also be registering M1 to M4 students for free internet access. Boarders already have permission for this (or otherwise) as parents have agreed to their child having unsupervised internet access on the Parental Consent Form. If you are the parent of a boarder and you wish to change this permission, please contact Keiron White on . If you child is a day student in M1-M4, you will need to complete the internet access form available from our website and sign it as a parent. Please remember that we cannot monitor or supervise your child’s use of the internet at all if they are granted access on their own device.
Students are expected to abide by the school’s Technology Use Policy at all times.
We will not grant unsupervised internet access to primary children at this time.

Julia Mchawala, a qualified speech pathologist (therapist), based in Arusha is offering her services to any student who needs speech therapy. She travels to Moshi every 2 weeks on a Wednesday. Her fees are 60,000/- for the initial consultation and assessment and then 30,000/- for a 30 minute session or 60,000/- for an hour session.This includes follow up exercises for the student to carry out at home. Please contact her directly on 0764868489, email or contact Debbie Garbett – email , who will be happy to set up the session for you.

MYP classes are in full swing again this quarter and students are enthusiastic about their new units. Mr Fitzpatrick has provided this update with his class: In M4 History, students presented to their peers their amazing findings from the lengthy Oldest Living Relative oral history interview that they conducted during the recent October holiday. Fascinating lessons have been learned from the recorded conversations each student had with either their grandmother, grandfather or grand-uncle, etc. All agreed that it provided them with a wonderful glimpse of life from the perspective of their oldest living relative. Next week a summative assessment will occur where they will analyze and critically review the information they gathered in the interview. This forms a critical part of the M4 History curriculum source analysis process. Well done. M4 History students! For your information – French, Hindi, Swahili, Afrikaans, Russian, English, Gujarati are some of the languages in which our linguistically talented students conducted their interviews with their relatives! We have such great diversity within our pool of languages at ISM – real internationalism!
Throughout this quarter, I’ll aim to provide similar insights into other MYP classes so that you get a glimpse into what’s happening in your child’s class. If you have any queries regarding your son/daughter’s program of study please don’t hesitate to contact me. Mark Dombkins MYP Coordinator

Next week is a registration deadline for the class of 2015 students so the DP Coordinator will meet with them to confirm all of their classes/levels for their May 2014 exams. Similarly, students will evaluate themselves and analyze where their own learning gaps exist as they look at their final exams due to start in less than six months.
Slipping behind in DP work can be very difficult. Again this year we have noticed that D1 and D2 students who have left early or returned late from holidays or taken family trips during school time have paid a heavy price in terms of stress and lower grades. Understand that parents do a great dis-service to their children’s education when they opt to pull them out. Avoid this at all costs. Every day of DP lessons counts and our DP teachers invest considerable time and energy in each day.
Given the October 2013 first quarter academic results, a handful of D1 students have opted to make some course level changes that are expected to assist them learning more and in getting higher grades. This is normal and a super move to avoid continuing in a Higher-level course that may not match a student’s skill set. Parents would do a great service by assisting D1 students to ensure that they are correctly situated in terms of course levels. Recall also that a total from the end of D1 exams of 24 points (and 12 points on higher levels) will be required for D1 students to progress to D2 at the end of this academic year.
DP parents are reminded to imminently make plans for the Friday December 20th end-of-quarter-two parent-teacher meeting. Plan to be on campus from 9:00 am to midday so you can take advantage of the school assembly before the P/T meeting.
Six and a half months from now will be the D2 class of 2014 graduation weekend with the main event – the graduation on Saturday May 24th. Traditionally on the Friday, parents of D2 students help with the flowers and decorations of the Karibu Hall. Mindful of planning for this major event, I need a team of 7-8 D2 parents to take on the role of the “Karibu Hall D2 Class of 2014 graduation team” to work on that Friday. Who is willing to help with this team effort? A short note to me at to indicate your interest would be ideal. Thank you. (This message is being repeated as few responses have been received to date).
On the international education front, this article from the Economist examines a highly debated topic in US schools these days – www.economist.com/news/united-states/21589427-states-are-starting-test-teachers-your-marks.
Regarding what we can do as parents to better assist our children on their road to success – take a look at this piece – https://anniemurphypaul.com/2013/09/the-key-to-smarter-kids-talking-the-right-way.
You may enjoy glancing at IB World school statistics at www.ibo.org/facts/schoolstats/.
We emphasize repeatedly the importance of academic honesty to our DP students as it is a major issue in today’s world of higher education and beyond which these articles from different parts of the globe highlight
www.nytimes.com/2013/11/05/us/politics/senator-rand-paul-faces-new-charges-of-plagiarism.html
and
www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/plagiarism-the-word-that-cant-be-uttered-20130913-2tpha.html.
Feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns. Sincerely, Rick Fitzpatrick Diploma Programme Coordinator

Unit of Inquiry The unit got off to a great start last week when we made popcorn and used all our senses in the process. It was great fun from feeling the corn at the beginning, listening to it whirl around in the machine, watching and listening to it pop out as well as smelling, feeling and tasting it at the end. The children are now tuned into the five senses and ready to explore further. This week there will be lots of photos and pictures out on display for discussion about what senses are being used.
We will focus on the sense of sight this week so please think about all the beautiful things you see this weekend and prepare your child to talk about something they love to look at. We will look closely at our eyes and learn the names of the different parts of the eye as well as try to draw them. We will also go on a walk round the campus to look at our beautiful environment. Remember that the central Idea of this unit is ‘We use our senses to explore and discover the world around us.’ Please help your child over the coming week to discover new things about their world using their sense of sight. It is important that the children make connections between what they do at school with what they do at home in their everyday life!
Literacy Last week we read the book ‘Mr Gumpy’s Outing’ and there is still some work to do on our class book of this story as well as finish acting out the story with some small groups. Our next book focus will be ‘Brown bear, brown bear what do you see?’ This story will help us retell the experience of our walk round the campus and we’ll make a power point story. There are many experiments we can use to discover new things with our eyes and either this week or next we will;

• Make marshmallows to watch the changes that occur during the cooking process
• Experiment with colour mixing to discover what colours we can make
• Make ice and explore what happens as it melts (this will also involve their sense of touch as they explore hot and cold)
• Use our exploratory mirror with different objects to look at
• Have magnifying glasses and small mirrors out for inquiry
• Make treasure bottles with glitter and sequins

Information for Parents Thank you for your support watching our class assembly. The children did a great job speaking in front of a large audience.
Indoor Shoes – It has been raining recently. To avoid a muddy classroom, it is helpful if children have a pair of shoes to wear indoors. They can be kept in a box in the classroom.
Unit of Inquiry – Seeds and Plants Central Idea: There are certain conditions that are necessary for plants to grow. We will write up the experiment using cress seeds to find out what plants need to grow. The children will complete their summative assessment tasks showing what they have learnt during this unit. We will wrap up the unit this week.
Art We will read a story about the life of Van Gogh. We will paint some sunflowers. We will also create some leaf rubbings.
Language focus for the week Write a recount of your weekend. Some children will be encouraged to use the language of time. (First, Next, Then, After that, The next day…) Write a simple experiment to find out what plants need to grow. Retell a simple story sequencing events in the right order. Handwriting: Patterns, own name, numerals and Ladder letters. (l i j u y t ) Rhyming words Phonics: Group 1 – Introduce words ending in ss, ll, ff and zz. Group 2 – Continue to learn about words with the spelling patterns igh as in night, y as in cry and ie as in tie.
Maths focus for the week Mental skills will include counting forwards and back to 20 and beyond. Recall addition facts of 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11. Count in 2s, 5s and 10s. Fast recall of doubles. All children will work on calculations and learn about addition. They will recognise addition can be done in any order. They will write number sentences using + and = signs. Group 1 Learn the ways of making 6 and 7. Find a total by counting on when 1 group is hidden. Also 4+2=6 and 2+4=6 Group 2 Add multiples of 10 to 2 digit numbers, (34+20=54). Add 11 to numbers by adding 10 then adding 1. Fast recall of number bonds of 9, 10, 11 and 20. Add 3 numbers.
What to bring to school: Everyday: A hat for playtime, a healthy snack, water bottle and reading folder.
Timetable: Monday

New reading books and a homework pack will be issued.

PE (wear trainers and a house T shirt) Tuesday

Swimming (swimming costume, towel, flip flops/crocs, swim aids such as floaters if necessary. Goggles and sun cream are optional.) Thursday

Library (Bring library books in your special library bag to return and then choose new ones)

New class reading books will be issued. Friday

Spelling Test

Having a unit focused on Friendship gave us many opportunities to reflect on our relationships and to make connections to characters from books but we are looking forward to beginning our new unit in the week ahead! Our unit is called Imagination. Our central idea is: Through play we express our feelings and ideas and come to new understandings. The Lines of Inquiry are:

• Communicating through play
• Imaginative use of materials
• The role of toys in play

Two weeks of Term 2 finished already and only 6 weeks until the Christmas break! Congratulations to Theo, Emily, Doris, Thomson and Joshua who have been selected to represent ISM at the Inter-Schools Athletics Meeting in Arusha on Saturday. We wish them all the best of luck and I am sure they will make us proud.
This is what our learning in class will look like this week: UOI Unit 2 – How the World Works – “Up ‘n Moving”. Central Idea – There are a variety of energy sources which cause objects to move in a variety of ways. Lines of inquiry – Forces and energy         What energy can do         How we use energy         The Scientific Procedure We will look at what energy is, some of the sources of energy and what energy can do. Much of this will be done through discussion related to DVDs that we will watch, stories that we will listen to and books that we will read. We will also prepare and present our summative assessment task for this unit which will be based around experiments that demonstrate the forces that we have been learning about.
Maths – Miss Jann’s Group Will be assessed on their understanding and knowledge of 2D and 3D shapes. Symmetry will be our next Maths topic and we will also engage in some revision of Maths covered to date. Miss Debbie’s Group Will explore 3D shapes and learn the correct geometrical terminology associated with these shapes.
Language – Procedural writing/instructions – how to make a sandwich or play Snakes and Ladders. Writing up experiments according to the Scientific Procedure. Adjectives – what they are and how to use them to enhance our writing. We will finish descriptive “senses poems” about sports Day. Spelling – group 1 – words with the suffix -less or -ness e.g. useless, darkness, group 2 words containing ch as in school, echo, group 3 the oa (middle) and ow (end) long o sound e.g. boat, know.
REMINDERS Every day: School t-shirts, hats, zip bags (reading book, reading log, spelling book). Too often these are getting left at home!!! A healthy snack. Collection – Please send any plastic bottle tops (any colour) to school for an art project that I have in mind. I am also collecting polystyrene trays (e.g. the ones that some meats and veges come on) and will welcome any donations of these items. Thank you! Monday: Homework handed out – Maths, language, spelling and reading. I am finding that not everyone is completing or handing in homework and with many students, more effort could be made with spelling. Wednesday: P.E. – wear suitable attire – house/school T-shirts, shorts and trainers. Thursday: Library. Please remember library bags and any books that are due back for return/renewal. Friday: Homework due in Spelling test Swimming – remember towel, costume, goggles (if you use them), sun screen.
Looking forward to another great week together, Miss Jann

The beginning of last week saw a guest speaker / teacher in the shape of Mr. Fitzpatrick continue our focus on role plays involving Peace and Conflict. The end of the week saw the culmination of the Unit with the summative task. UOI – ‘Moving On’ Central Idea: Migration has a wide range of effects on those who migrate and the indigenous populations they encounter. We will begin the new unit with a pre assessment and some activities that will encourage the children to empathise with those forced to migrate. After that we will pursue our first line of inquiry – What is migration?
Reading and Writing We will focus on some grammar work at sentence level and may endeavour to act out the 24 plays written last week as we also commence the new Unit and new language genres. The language genres that will occupy us during this next unit will be diary writing and newspaper report writing.
Maths We will continue our practice of long multiplication, slowly introduce decimals and then begin to tackle word problems. We will continue to recite times tables using our team games against the clock.
P.E. – is on Wednesday and Thursday. Thursday will once again be swimming. I wish to strongly reiterate that PE (swimming) is part of your child’s curriculum, just like Maths and Language. Can I remind you that children must bring a letter to excuse participation in PE? Can I also suggest that if your child has influenza or some other virus which you feel prevents them from swimming then they should also not be attending school? We have a classroom housing 24 children and it is unfair to expect healthy students to share it with those afflicted with strong viruses.
Library – is on Monday. Please remind the children to bring back books for exchange/renewal.

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