Arusha Campus News – 20 Mar 2021

Her Excellency President Samia Suluhu Hassan

UWC East Africa was shocked and saddened by the news earlier this week about the tragic passing away of President John Pombe Magufuli. As we reiterate our messages of condolence to his own family and his family of Tanzania, we also lend our wholehearted support to President Samia Suluhu Hassan. We recognise her call for unity and acknowledge that this is a time for togetherness, peace and a time to set aside differences. These are the intrinsic values of UWC and we look forward to continuing to support our Government and President Hassan in this philosophy. Mungu awabariki Presidents Magufuli and Hassan.

Gabriella and Christine fly the Tanzanian flag with pride as they hike the Ngrongoro highlands this week.

The tragic news this week has cast a shadow over everything at Arusha Campus. The flag at half mast is a persistent reminder to our collective loss and the minutes of silence seem a hopelessly inadequate expression of grief. As a management team we deliberated long and hard about whether to publish a newsletter this week but I think the inspirational words of Mama Samia spurred us into looking forwards and together exactly as the late Presdinet would have wished.

In spite of the sorrow I hope you can enjoy the newsletter and find courage in the young, energetic and inspiring people that appear in the images within it.

Sincerely

Phil

Having spent the last 6 days on-line learning it is a good time to remember good screen time habits. Keeping our children balanced and positive is vital to their physical and mental health. Organising a range of activities that children can complete in their own time can be beneficial. However children do need social interaction with others to develop communication skills.

The IB encourages all students to be BALANCED Students should understand the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional balance to achieve personal well-being for themselves and others. IB students are active participants in a wide range of aspects of campus life, as well as focusing on their academic development.

https://www.ibo.org/globalassets/publications/recognition/learnerprofile-en.pdf

The Health Matters website states that
For preteens and teenagers, excessive use of screens late at night will affect their sleep, and keeping screens out of the bedroom is advised. Too much time spent on social media as well as lack of sleep can affect behavior and cognitive performance in school and interfere with learning. It has also been shown that excessive screen time and sleep deprivation are linked to obesity, which in turn can affect self-esteem and lead to social isolation and more screen time.

https://healthmatters.nyp.org/what-does-too-much-screen-time-do-to-childrens-brains

Amanda

The main Reception at Arusha Campus (as well as 4 other rooms) has been bathed in a curious violet glow this week!

As we strive to make our school environment healthier for all, we received an incredibly kind donation from Aveo Engineering and Arusha Medivac this week. Aveo Engineering https://www.aveoengineering.com/veolite-sanitizing-lights-earn-faa-approval/

are the manufacturers of the latest aircraft interior sanitizing products. They make a UV light known as Veolite™ and this new line provides a superior method of sanitizing aircraft interiors by using specific ultraviolet (UV) light wavelengths to destroy viruses, germs, molds, and other pathogens with over 99% efficacy.

These UV lights destroy the DNA of pathogens in under 3 seconds, and yet are harmless to humans. We have decided to operate these lights at night in the Reception, Library and Nurses Room amongst others and switch them off during the day.

Thank you Jack at Arusha Medivac and to his partners at Aveo Engineering for thinking of us.

This trip was definitely one of my favourites. This trip was very different from previous OP trips that I have done. we walked through some very picturesque scenery that made the walks that much more enjoyable. This OP trip started out in the cold of the Ngorongoro crater, We then walked to Empakai Crater where we set up camp That evening we walked down into the crater (see picture below) and stood on the Lakeshore. The next morning we set off to Acacia campsite which was a very pleasant hike because the roads were easy and nice to walk on. Waking up to a beautiful sunrise we set off for our last day of hiking which was by far the most beautiful walk because we got to see Lake Natron the whole time and a beautiful view of Oldonyo Lengai (see above). When walking we were lucky enough to see wildlife such as zebras and wildebeest. This OP trip allowed me to make new friends from both Moshi and Arusha campus. I enjoyed this trip very much although there was a lot of sun it was a lot of fun. As we drove home on the last day we saw three cheetahs walking in a dry riverbed.

Gaby Bowen, M4

This week M1 students joined their counterparts on our Moshi campus to visit Lake Eyasi. This trip was part of their interdisciplinary unit between Design and I&S.

“The M1 IDU trip took place to Tanzania’s 6th largest lake, Lake Eyasi. It is a total area is 1,050 km². Lake Eyasi is surrounded by many mountains and valleys. Our camp was walking distance from the Lake. The camp was surrounded by a forest, dry bushes and acacia trees with thorns. The campsite was called Hatzabe camp.” – Sayan

“We left for this trip on the 16th March going to Lake Eyasi. When we got to the camp it was a dry and dusty area with lots of palm trees. There was a prepping station and a place where we would put our cooked food. On the first day we visited the Datoga tribe and we saw how they lived, where they lived and how they got money. The men of the Datoga tribe are metalsmiths and made jewellery and spear heads. We also visited the Hadzabe tribe and went hunting with them. We didn’t get to swim because the pond where we were staying was flooded by Lake Eyasi which is west of Lake Manyara. These waters have chlorine and bleach in them, so they are dangerous to swim in.” – Eleanor

“The trip was linked to our learning because we had designed our own clothing for the tribes. On the trip, we learnt how some tribes have survived for such a long time. For example, by communicating and hunting to survive.” – Jonathan

“On our trip, we learned about the Hadzabe tribe and how they live a hunter gatherer lifestyle. We also learned about the Datoga tribe and how they live in a permanent area and how they make their own jewellery to trade. My favourite part of the trip was hunting with the Hazabe because we got some natural honey and we saw how they hunt every day. The best memory on this trip was learning about the Hadzabe lifestyle because they are the only people in the world that only use natural resources.” – Ibrahim

“I learned how to use a bow and arrow correctly, how to climb high rocks and trees and how to hunt. I also learned how to melt iron. I learned how the tribes build their houses.” – Ian

“I learned that even though the tribes live out in the wild they still make use of their surroundings to survive. For example, the Hadzabe use the honey that is found in the trees the eat and the larva that is inside of the honeycomb for snacks. The other types of animals they get when hunting become their dinner, and if the men fail in hunting the women would go and look for fruit to eat.” – Malaika

This week in P2/3 the class have been asking lots of everyday questions about food. And one of the questions which led to a bout of class inquiry was ‘How do we make bread?” The image above captures the class finding out!

As you read through the article, try to guess the woman being described

From a developing African country, she dismantled all stereotypes associated with her gender and rose to be one of the most prominent women to ever live, securing a spot in the books of history. After completing her studies at Harvard and Massachusetts’ Institute of Technology, she worked her way to become the first female  finance minister of her country. Under her jurisdiction, her low middle income country saw its economy grow by 6% per year. Not only did she foster the development of her economy, she emancipated women in her country, freeing them from the shackles that impeded their development. This certainly did not gratify her detractors. They tried to scare her off even to the point of kidnapping her own mother but it was a little bit too late for them. She had put herself on a trajectory set to bring revolutionary changes and  challenging the status quo. For her, this was a stepping stone for her to greater heights. She moved to be an economist at the World Bank and more recently she was elected Director-General of the World Trade Organisation being the first female and African to hold the position.

Kudos to you all, who guessed Ngozi Okonjo Iwela. She is the woman we decided to Spotlight today. We believe all her achievements are praise-worthy and empower the young women in the school as we commemorate International Women’s Day that was on Monday, 8 March.

Here is one of her famous quotes to motivate you?
“When I became finance minister, they called me Okonjo-Wahala – or ‘Trouble Woman.’ It means ‘I give you hell.’ But I don’t care what names they call me. I’m a fighter; I’m very focused on what I’m doing, and relentless in what I want to achieve, almost to a fault. If you get in my way, you get kicked.”

By Emmahous Kebede and Atkins Dube

UWC East Africa Journalism Club

Next week we hope to host the M5 Personal Projects Exhibition – a brief message from Mahirah in M5 ‘The sercculent gardens will be auctioned during the personal project exhibition, it will be a silent auction whereby you can put the amount of bidding with your names and contact number. The highest bidder will be contacted.  – Mahirah Mustafa

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