Moshi Campus News – 31 Jan 2016

Over the next two weeks our P4, P5, P6, M1 and M3 students will be participating in a range of online standardised tests. These tests are a way of informing the teachers of the students’ standard compared to students across the world, as many international schools participate in these tests. They are also an alternative indicator for teachers and parents on the level of each child in Mathematic, English writing and reading and, new this year for M3 only, Science. We take these tests annually and have found it very helpful to use this data in our teaching & learning. The results are analysed thoroughly for us and we look at patterns of improvement across the years. The results will not come out until late March and parents will be sent a softcopy of their child’s report. We do not teach to this test; it is meant to be a snapshot of their skills. However we do prepare the students so that they are ready and understand how to answer the types of questions presented. All the tests will take place online in our IT centre.

We are fortunate also to participate in the trials Feb 1-3, which allow the students a practice run.
The real ISA tests will take place between 8-16 Feb.

All parents are welcome to join us on Tuesday, 2nd February from 10:30am to 2:30pm in Karibu Hall, when our M5 students will be presenting their Personal Projects. A great deal of work has gone into these various projects and this is a great opportunity to see what they have achieved. The Personal Project is the culminating project of the Middle Years Programme and showcases the IB Learner Profile attributes within our students. These projects reflect our students’ diverse interests and passions. Please come and join us as they present their products and learning to the ISM community.

This week on Thursday and Friday, the P4 students from both campuses will be camping together in Marangu. We hope they have a productive and enjoyable time.

Primary Sports Weekend 2016 We are delighted to be hosting this year’s Primary Sports Weekend. Six schools are participating in the swim meet and football tournament. Three schools will arrive on Friday and will be staying in classrooms, the others will join us on the day, Saturday, February 6th.
Parents are very welcome to come along and support. The primary classes have been preparing a little dance for the opening ceremony, if your child can come along for this, the more the merrier!
Our own Moshi Campus teams, U9 and U12 have been training hard and we wish them all the best. They have all received a separate letter outlining their day.The programme is as follows: 08.00 Opening Ceremony Tennis Courts – Primary Students performing 08.30 U12 Swimming 09.00 U9 Football 13.00 U12 Football 13.30 U9 Swimming 17.00 Closing Ceremony
18.30 – 20.30 Karibu Hall Sock-Disco – Day students will need to buy tickets for this event which includes pizza and ice-cream. Available from the class teacher: 5000Tsh, socks required!
The Parents Association will be helping by running a refreshments stand throughout the day on Saturday from 8am. Please can you help the PA by providing some baked food or snacks that we could provide.

The amazing view above and the photos below are from last weekend’s Outdoor Pursuits trip to Ngorongoro and Lake Natron. Those who participated came back with their tales of how they thought this was their best OP trip ever. Clearly the trip wa a great success. Many thanks indeed to our OP Coordinator, Isaac Foya, for his hard work in setting this up and for leading this trip and so many others.
This coming weekend sees a trip to the South Pare mountains. The group will leave on Friday and return on Sunday.

Diploma Physics D2 This week we have been focusing on performance in the recent mock exams. Students have been carrying out an in depth analysis of their individual performance to identify areas of weakness and set targets for their revision study over the coming months. Once this is completed students will then receive the feedback on the first drafts of their IA projects and will use some class time to improve on their reports, before submitting the final drafts; this IA contributes 20% to their final Physics diploma grade. Once we have completed the IAs we will begin a revision programme of the entire syllabus in preparation for the final exams next quarter.
D1 We have recently completed the topic of waves and oscillations. Students have looked in detail at sound and light waves, and we have examined the properties of light and analysed its behaviour under different conditions, considering interference and diffraction and the uses and applications of LASER light. This week students sat an assessment to gauge their progress and assimilation of this wide ranging topic and the results are eagerly anticipated. We are now starting the new topic of Thermal Physics, we will be studying the concepts of heat and temperature and how and why things get hot and cold, including consideration of the many practical applications. Geoff Buck

This week, we were excited to welcome a very special Dutch music Duo, Nora and Rogier, who volunteered their time to work with some of our musicians, as well as give a concert for the entire primary. Nora and Rogier specialize in experimental music, so it was a great opportunity for the students to listen to and create something that they might not normally call “music”. We are so lucky to have had them visit and are grateful for the time they spent with us!
As the PYP and MYP students settle into Quarter 3 units, the Diploma music students are stepping up their studies in order to be fully prepared for the all of their deadlines which are approaching. They are currently beginning an intense unit of study on a specific piece of music, An American in Paris, by George Gershwin. They will be expected to understand this piece on many levels, from specific musical elements such as melodic and harmonic development and use of tone colors, to the historical and social context of the piece. This obviously takes a lot of time, listening and analyzing. As well, these students are preparing for their final opportunity to perform publicly and make recordings which will be a part of their Internal Assessment, which is a recorded portfolio of their performances. While it is a lot of work and a lot of stress, in the end, these young musicians are learning a lot about how to listen to, think about, discuss and perform a variety of music literature. Musically yours, Susan Kellerman ISM Music Teacher and Program Coordinator

Diploma students in ITGS have been very busy studying a number of new topics:
The D1 ITGS students are in the middle their unit on databases. Learning database software is new to most of the students. This has been a challenge as they are accustomed to at least having some knowledge of an IT topic before we begin to study it. The students have approached the challenge well by engaging in the software and learning the necessary practical skills. Using database software to create a solution for a real-world client is one of the options the students will have for their ITGS project. Students will begin work on this project over the long holidays.
The D2 ITGS students have reentered their normal timetable after completing their mock exams earlier in the week. The current topic of study is IT in government and politics. This topic includes the study of IT in campaigns and elections. Current events have given students many practical issues to discuss surrounding this topic.
The study of IT in politics and government will finish up the core topics in the ITGS syllabus. Students taking the higher level ITGS exam will continue to study the advance topics of IT systems in organisations, artificial intelligence and robotics, and home automation for the remainder of the quarter.

ISM Presentation in Dar es Salaam We shall once again be presenting on International School Moshi to prospective families in Dar es Salaam at 10am on Saturday, 13th February. If you know of any families who might consider enrolling their child in ISM next school year, please forward this invitation to them to join us at the Sea Cliff Hotel. If anyone would prefer an individual appointment with Keiron White, Head of Moshi Campus, Phil Bowen, Head of Arusha Campus, or Rosemary Bango, Head of Boarding, please let me know on and we can try to arrange this.

Our students have been invited to a production of Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew” on Friday 5th February 2016 at Braeburn’s Kisongo Amphitheatre. The show will start at 7pm but there will be a live band and snacks available from 6:30pm. The bus will leave from Moshi for Arusha at 4:00 pm and we expect to be back in campus by 10:30pm. Non-boarding students who intend to go on this trip should make separate arrangements of dropping and picking. The cost of transport and ticket is TSh 26,000. The Taming of the Shrew is a study text and would give the students an opportunity to extend their appreciation of live theatre; essential for their drama/theatre review. Besides it will broaden the students’ understanding of Shakespeare, especially the M3s who are currently studying Romeo and Juliet in English and drama. The themes explored may also be useful to students of Individuals and Societies and Literature. The play has been adapted to a modern audience and has experimented with music, dance and physical theatre.
The play is open to M3-D2 on a first come, first served basis. The trip will be chaperoned by two teachers. Mr Juma will issue permission slips to all students who are interested in the trip. There are only 20 seats on the bus. In case you have any questions, contact Mr George Juma through his email: .

We are delighted to announce the sale of our ISM Primary IB Learner Profile Tea Towel. These tea-towels were created by our own primary children. In early December each child drew their own face which was placed on the print, including some faces of the teachers.
The Tea towels cost TSh 10,000 each, or three for TSh 25,000. TSh 3000 from each tea towel sold will go towards a charity project to be voted by the Upper Primary classes in March.
The tea towels are available from reception or from Mrs Aris’ office.

The third week of the quarter has come to an end, and the D2 students are back to their normal routine after completing the mock examinations.
A number of activities had been planned for the weekend. On Friday evening a group of M5 to D2 students went for a musical concert in Moshi town. On Saturday morning, other boarders left for SCIS for a football and basketball tournament. On campus other activities were planned, including a movie and a disco.

We encourage our boarders to visit respective places of worship. On Friday we have a trip to a mosque in town, and on Sunday we have church trips to different places of worship. Thank you for the continued support in the development of your children.

Primary competition! In support of the DP CAS Sparkling Elephant project we are having a mammoth collection of used plastic bags. Students from all our primary classes are encouraged to bring in used plastic bags all of next week. On Friday 5 Feb we will do a count-up and the class with the most bags will win a prize! All bags should be handed to the class teacher.

  The ISM swim team is in Dar to take part in the Tallis Invitational Swimming Champonships. Photos above show them warming up before the event, and our relay team celebrating their gold first place.

Coach Charles is again running group tennis coaching for all ages at the school on Saturdays, beginning last Saturday 30th January. Lessons are run in blocks of four, at a cost of Tsh 60,000 for 4 lessons. Payment in full should be made either in advance at the school office or directly to Charles at the first lesson. If you have any questions or wish to arrange individual lessons then please contact Charles on 0757606766.
If you like to play tennis on Saturdays, please note that only the 3rd court will be available for use, as 2 will be occupied for these group lessons. As one court may be busy already, you may have to wait to play. Please limit playing time to 1 hour when others are waiting.

One-to-one meetings have started between the DPC and each incoming Aug 2016 D1 students and their parents. Given the expected enrolment of around 75 new D1s, we have started the process of arranging these important meetings to ensure each new DP student’s course selections matches his/her skills and career interests…and that parents are fully involved as collaborators in the DP education process from the start.
After a year of collaborative effort by our DP faculty, the IB DP self-study report will be submitted formally. This will be followed by a review of our documentation by the team of IB officials visiting the school this April.
D2 students held their first Graduation Planning meeting this week and elected Kemi, Bliss and Oputjo as the leadership team to coordinate the Friday May 20th Graduation Dinner as well as aspects of the Graduation on Saturday May 21st. A reminder to parents of D2 students to reserve on your calendar these Graduation Weekend dates.
The five D2s enrolled in online Pamoja Education (PE) Psychology will have their mock exams this week as Pamoja’s annual calendar is slightly different than ours.
Key upcoming deadlines for D2 students include: a) Most Language A and B mock orals and final orals – in February. b) Most Language A and B Literature written assignments – in February c) Final draft of Math HL/Math Studies SL/ Math SL coursework – Mon 8 Feb.
One is impressed to observe our DP classes in action as they include engaging, well-prepared lessons, and they demand critical thinking as well as content knowledge. Writing skill development; public speaking; and dynamic group work also characterize what happens. DP teachers display their experience and in-depth content knowledge daily. The pedagogy is first-rate. DP self-study work over the last year reconfirmed the belief that the quality of the program is outstanding. Interestingly, over a half dozen senior DP teachers – the IB DP self-study committee chairs – echoed this sentiment.
On the issue of the dedication of ISM Moshi IB DP teachers, a recent unsolicited break time conversation with a DP teacher colleague typified what students here experience in one way or another from all our teachers…the DP teacher relays how a certain student has been weak and should be performing better and mainly due to his own laziness. That teacher proactively has arranged/obliged the student to come by his class to undertake a weekly relevant activity that will help him improve. The teacher conveyed that the on-going support/pressure will yield (as it has in the past) better results which will also help the student develop better work habits.
Three great photos of DP collaboration in action are shown to the side: a) Fatema, Ricky, Eric attentively listen to a math tip from Clevance. b) Graduation Meeting and the elected leadership team c) Raft Race Design Planning meeting
As usual, feel free to email or call with any questions/concerns. Rick Fitzpatrick, DP Coordinator

Unit of inquiry This week we will finish thinking about how we change and grow as human beings and start inquiring into plants. The children will grow sunflowers and beans and keep a diary of how they change and grow under different conditions
Literacy Our writing this week will be involved with our retell of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. EC1s will sequence pictures of the story and orally retell the story. Older children who are ready to write will write simple sentences. The children will also record the process of planting their sunflower seeds and the changes that take place.
Letter Land Younger EC1 children will be reintroduced to the letter sounds through the letterland characters. This week we will concentrate on a and c made by Annie Apple and Clever Cat. Older EC2s will review letter sounds, concentrating on a,c, d and h. ECs will work on using high frequency words in their writing, spelling those tricky words correctly for example was, the, said, saw.
Numeracy Measurement is still a focus this week as children compare their height to the height of their friends. When the sunflowers start to grow they will also begin to chart their growth. The children will also experience measuring activities through a variety of construction toys.
Important notice On Saturday ISM are hosting an Inter-school primary swim/football event. At 8am there will be an opening ceremony. If you can bring your child to join this ceremony we would be grateful. We have been practising a dance and hope that all primary children will join us for this. After the dance you are welcome to stay and watch the swimming and football and support the primary teams.  

Information for Parents On Saturday, February 7th, we will be having Primary Sports Weekend at ISM. Many schools from Dar and Arusha will be attending. Most of the events are only for the older primary students, so the P1/2 children aren’t competing. However, they have asked all primary students to be part of the opening ceremony. If possible, please have your child to the pitch at 7:45 a.m. on Saturday. All of the primary children have been practicing a dance, and they will perform it at 8:00. Thank you for your support of this event.
Language focus for the week This week both groups of children will focus on reading comprehension. We will do this by focusing on following written directions. We will also continue to read in our groups and write every day.
Maths focus for the week Both of our groups will learn about weight measurement this week. We will measure with non standard units and with grams. The children will explore what can be measured and which different ways an item can be measured.
Unit of Inquiry We will continue our study of communities. We have an upcoming opportunity to visit a village. We will go on February 10th. Permission slip and more information is coming this week.
What to bring to school: A hat for playtime and a healthful snack.
Timetable: Monday: Wear PE clothes and shoes. Tuesday: Bring your library bag. Friday: Swimming

If you have some old plastic bags in your house, please bring them into class. We need to stuff our life-size Sparkling Elephant with plastic bags. The framework has already been constructed in a CAS club. The ISM Sparkling Elephant will be paraded in Moshi to raise awareness of poaching, i.e. that an average of 96 elephants are being killed each day. Similar Sparkling Elephants will be exhibited in cities in other parts of Tanzania and the world.
In PE we have been learning a dance for the opening ceremony of the ISM Primary Sports Weekend. Please could all P2/3 students come to the school tennis courts by 7.50am on Saturday 6th February, wearing green ISM T-shirts. Families are welcome to stay and watch the sporting events involving primary schools from across north Tanzania. Some students may also be asked to participate in football and swimming events (a separate letter has been sent home).
The students have been enjoying creating art this week. They have produced detailed pictures of different types of transport. Eventually they will all be put together to create a colourful display outside.
The children have been tuning in to the unit using thinking routines such as See, Think, Wonder and Zoom In. This helped them to think deeply and ask questions about photographs of different types of transport, e.g. dog sled, Indian elephant, piki piki etc.
New Unit: Transdisciplinary Theme: How we organise ourselves Central Idea: Transportation systems are directly related to the needs of a community. This week we will explore the different types of transport on campus.
Mathematics Focus: Measurement and distance. Constructing graphs using unit related data collected from home and school.
English Focus: Homophones (words which sound the same but have different spellings/meanings), e.g. pear/pair, sea/see and four/for.
What to bring to school every day: A hat, water bottle, a pair of indoor shoes and a healthy snack.
The Week Ahead: Monday: Homework will be set | swimming lesson Tuesday: Library session Thursday: PE lesson Friday: Homework due in | Some P2/3 students will MC the Primary Gathering | Schools will start to arrive in the afternoon for Sports Weekend Saturday: Primary Sports Weekend – please can all P2/3 students come to the tennis courts at 7.50am to take part in the Opening Ceremony. Some P2/3 students have received a letter, i.e. those taking part in swimming or football events. Wear green ISM T-shirts. Sunday: The final schools will leave, i.e. the end of Sports Weekend. Kate Schermbrucker – P2/3 Teacher and PYP Coordinator

Unit of Inquiry The students continue to inquire into different biomes. In the coming week they will be making connections between the weather in different biomes and features that enable living things to survive in them. This activity will also continue during their trip to Marangu where they will be studying ecosystems.
Math In the coming week the students will look at different personal inquiries about time e.g. how is time important to us, what are the different ways of telling time etc. In addition to this they will integrate data handling into their unit activities.
Language Arts Students will learn how to develop paragraphs for their informative writing and will use this skill to write about a chosen ecosystem. They will also practise spelling words with silent letters as well as unit related words.
Art Art in nature is our focus during our unit. The students will be collecting rocks and making rock pets out of them. They will paint them into colorful creatures.
Sports weekend All P4 students are required in school on Saturday, the 6th of Feb, by 7:50 a.m. They will be participating in the opening ceremony after which students who are not part of the sporting events can stay on and cheer the others or may leave for home. Kindly ensure your child is punctual as the item will start at 8:00 a.m. and will only takes a few minutes. They have been practising hard and would not want to miss it.
Sparkling Elephant Club As you may know this club takes action related to saving elephants. They need plastic bags for one of their projects therefore the primary students are going to compete in bringing plastic bags in this coming week. The winning class will be rewarded.

Information for Parents ISM will be hosting primary sports weekend this week. There are number of other schools in Tanzania that will be joining us for swimming and football competitions. On Saturday, 6 February, we will be having an Opening Ceremony. All of the primary PE classes have been practicing a special dance. We hope that all students will be able to join us for the dance, not just those participating in the events. Students should meet at 7:50 Saturday morning by the tennis court for the performance. More information will be sent home this week to students that are playing or swimming. P5 students will be taking the ISA trial tests this week on Monday and Tuesday.
Language focus for the week The students did a great job last week on writing algorithms and had a lot of fun trying to be as specific as possible in their directions! This week we will focus on making inferences while reading. This is where students use prior knowledge to help them make sense of what they are reading or seeing. We will also learn about how to read digital media, such as blogs and emails.
Maths focus for the week This week students will have an assessment on the fraction concepts that they have learned. They will share how their knowledge has changed and reflect on ways that they have increased their knowledge through the study. Our next focus will be on working with decimals.
Unit of Inquiry We will explore different types of digital media this week, including email, blogs, and podcasts. We look forward to have a guest speaker on Friday who works with technology and can share more with us about how he uses digital media for his work. Learning how to find information is a very important 21st century learning skill. We will discuss different types of searches and how to use keywords to get the best results.
What to bring to school: A hat for playtime and a healthful snack.
Timetable: Monday: PE (wear PE shoes and a house T shirt) Thursday: Swimming (bring swim kit) Friday: Library (bring books to return or renew)

Information for Parents Next week we will be doing our trial ISA testing on Monday morning at 10 am, following Tuesday at 11:35 am. Primary Sports Weekend is upon us and will take place on February 6th, for this event the students will be joining in together to do an opening ceremony dance. I have sent home your students information for participating in the sports weekend activities. We will be visiting the M5 Personal Project presentations on Tuesday, so that the students can have a better understanding of what is to come for their Exhibition Projects.
The students have been able to have a better understanding of the weather that surrounds them. In their writing journals, they have been piecing together their own weather discoveries or inquiries and they have done some investigating into finding out real weather experiences that people have been through. They are becoming more familiar and knowledgeable about measuring our weather. We are going to stick with the three types of measurement in our classroom which are using the thermometer, the rain gauge and the humidity meter. With these elements we have also learned about using a Pictograph to depict the weather. We had an eventful day on Thursday with the M1 class. Our class and Mr. Hagen’s class, collaborated on the units we are both learning about. Biomes, clouds, the food chain, a food web, dams, the atmosphere, elements of measurement and Blizzard Jonas were all topics of discussion as the P6s rotated and each group gave a quick speech about topics to share with each other.
English Language Focus We will be creating a Leaflet that will demonstrate the knowledge of different temperatures around the world. The students will be writing down and collecting information in IT this week to further their knowledge and create an informational leaflet.
Maths Probability has been very successful and I would like to keep the focus of outcomes with fractions. We have been doing some fraction work but this week we will work hard to further our understanding about how fractions work with weather and the real world.
Unit of Inquiry We have explored our “Wonder Box” and have created certain wonders about our weather unit as a whole. The students will continue to learn and inquire about what is to come about the weather and also reflect on what we have learned so far. We will discuss how weather can affect humans and animals.
Timetable: Monday: PE (wear shoes and an ISM T-shirt) Tuesday: Props for French Play Thursday: Swim costume/Books to return or renew from the library

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