Arusha Campus News – 8 Mar 2026

The winners of the 6 Hour Run Team event was Team 230 (above) which were Aveer, Ethan, Sam, Tom and Ben. Congratulations boys!

Mon 5th to Fri 13th Mar – M5 Mock Exams

Fri 13th Mar – Primary Inter Schools’ Swimming Gala at Arusha Campus

Fri 13th Mar – 8 to 11am MYP Learning Showcase (M1-M4)

Fri 13th Mar – DP Student-led conferences

Sat 14th Mar – Secondary Inter Schools’ Swimming Gala at Arusha Campus

Tue 17th Mar – U9 and U11 Cricket Festival at Kennedy House

Wed 18th Mar – 5pm Festival of the Arts at Arusha Campus

Fri 20th to Sun 22nd Mar – International Schools Theatre Association Festival at Arusha Campus

Fri 20th to Tue 24th Mar – OP Plains Challenger Serengeti

Wed 25th Mar – Primary Student-led Conferences

Where are they now? Do you recognise these beach goers who met up in Dubai recently? From left, Miss Angela (our former Head of Inclusion), former student Kayla and Ms Cassandra (our former University Counselor). Great to see you ladies and sending all our love from Arusha!

Very many congratulations to the Advancement Team who organised a hugely successful 6 Hour Run event on the Arusha Campus. There were winners on the day, in addition to the teams mentioned elsewhwere in the newsletter there were wins for Elizabeth (D2) who ran the furthest in the ladies category. A whopping 13 loops of our 1.8km course. In the football, the Staff Orkeeswa Team were worthy champions and in the volleyball our champs were our very own UWC East Africa Arusha Campus students! We cant wait to the second instalment of this new event which will take place next year at the same time.

Mr Dennis supervised and played in the volleyball tournament but he could have been forgiven for being very tired indeed. Only the previous evening, he organised the Arusha’s Got Talent night which was a great success!

We are very lucky to have such decisted teachers who give up hours of their evenings and weekends to organise such fun events. Dennis, Caroline and Sol last weekend, and Miss Caitrin, Coach Kevin and Mr Frank will have all hands on deck as they co-ordinate the two big swimming galas at the end of this coming week on Friday and Saturday.

Have a restful Sunday evening.

Phil

P5 (above) had a fantastic trip to the New Dunia Designs and thoroughly enjoyed the tour and learning about reducing, reusing, recycling, refuseing, rethinking, repairing and repurposing.

1. Reduce (Use Less)
This is the most important “R” because it stops waste before it even starts.
Hydration: Carry a reusable water bottle instead of buying single-use plastic ones.
Paper Power: Draw or write on both sides of every piece of paper to save trees.
Shopping: Bring your own canvas bags to the grocery store so you don’t need plastic ones.

2. Reuse (Use Again)
Instead of throwing things away, find a new way to use them or give them to someone else.
Donations: Give clothes that don’t fit and toys you no longer play with to charities or friends.
Upcycling: Turn old glass jars into pencil holders or storage for art supplies.
Creative Crafts: Use toilet paper rolls, egg cartons, or cereal boxes for art projects.
Repurposing: Old bath towels can be cut up into cleaning rags, and old tires can even become garden swings.

3. Recycle (Make New)
When you can’t reduce or reuse something, recycling turns it into a brand-new product.
Sort Your Trash: Learn which bin is for paper, plastic, glass, and aluminum.
Know the Symbols: Look for the recycling sign (three arrows in a triangle) on packaging.
Composting: Put food scraps like apple cores and banana peels into a compost bin to help plants grow instead of sending them to a landfill.

4. “Refuse”
Say No to Straws: When ordering a drink, you can say, “No straw, please!” to avoid using plastic that often can’t be recycled.
Skip the Plastic Bag: If you’re only buying one or two items, you can refuse the plastic bag and just carry them in your hands or a backpack.
Pass on Freebies: Sometimes people give away free plastic toys, stickers, or “goodie bag” items that you know you won’t use. It’s okay to politely refuse them so they don’t become instant trash.
Avoid Over-Packaging: If a toy comes in a giant box with lots of extra plastic wrap, you can ask a grown-up to look for a version with less packaging next time.

5. Rethink (The Brain Power R)
This is about changing how you think about “stuff” before you even buy it.
Need vs. Want: Ask yourself, “Do I really need this new toy, or do I just want it because I saw it on TV?”.
Check the Planet: Think about how an item was made. Did it come from a tree? Is it wrapped in too much plastic?.
Borrow or Share: Before buying something you might only use once, see if you can borrow it from a friend or the library instead.

6. Repair (The Fix-It R)
Instead of throwing away something that’s broken, try to fix it so it works like new again.
Toy Doctor: If a doll’s arm pops off or a toy car loses a wheel, use glue or a screwdriver to fix it instead of asking for a new one.
Mending Clothes: If your favorite shirt has a small hole, you can learn to sew a cool patch over it.
Book Rescue: Use clear tape to fix ripped pages in your favorite storybooks.

7. Repurpose (The Creative R)
This is similar to “Reuse,” but it means turning something into a totally different thing. This is often called upcycling.
Shoebox Organizers: Turn old shoeboxes into a “treasure chest” or a home for your art supplies.
Bottle Garden: Cut the side out of a plastic soda bottle, fill it with dirt, and use it as a hanging planter for flowers.
T-Shirt Rags: When an old shirt is too stained or torn to wear, cut it into squares to use as cleaning rags for chores.

Miss Amanda, Head of PYP

P5s incredible art pieces made from plastic are pictured below

P5 (above) had an amazing time on their camp at Arusha Giraffe Center. They hiked the near by crater, played in the river learning about the water table, walked with giraffes, walked to see examples of erosion and how to stop erosion and played!

Images above and below from our UWC East Africa mother tongue day

Mother Tongue Day is celebrated annually on 21st February. It was first thought up by UNESCO to commemorate the 1952 Language Movement in Bangladesh where many students sacrificed their lives to protest against being prohibited to use their own language which was Bengali. We celebrate the day by listening to different ‘acts’ perform or teach us in their own language. 

Ethan and Mali (above) beam as they survey the school campus from the top of the Rhino Tower!

The PYP Climbing CCA with Mr Jonny is exceedinlgly popular for good reason.

A fantastic time at the PYP Fun Swim Gala. The sun came out so we could enjoy ourselves. See the action captured in the montage above.

Linnea, Tommy, Finn and Martin (seated) present our project on coral reefs at AISA GISS 2026

What’s been the most impactful experience of your life? For us, right now, the answer may well be AISA GISS 2026.

AISA GISS is a student-centred conference, held each year in a different African International school. This year, eleven students from M4 and M5 attended the conference in Lusaka, which focussed on triple well-being: Earth care, people care, self-care.

We designed and delivered two workshops for other students – one was about our school project restoring the coral reefs off Pangani and the other was about attitudes to disability in Tanzania and how we can all contribute to challenging stereotypes. Before we left for Lusake, the thought of presenting to unknown students was quite scary. But once we were there, and we got to know new people, it turned out to be a really enjoyable experience.

Other highlights were meeting new students from all over Africa, and discussing our commitment to Service with our peers. We heard about so many ways people our age are making a real difference in their communities and we came back inspired to do the same. We visited NGO’s all around Lusaka to see how people are facing problems and finding solutions. We heard from guest speakers who are achieving great things, and learned that they all started small, often without a clear idea of what they wanted to achieve. They learned as they went, and small ideas grew into meaningful action.

This is what we bring back from AISA-GISS: we can achieve things that seem scary at first; we can connect with people from so many different countries and cultures in a meaningful way; we can start small and grow into something we can’t even imagine right now.

Watch this space for the changes we will make!

As part of the 6 Hour Run prizes, the organisers offered a prize of an all expenses paid pizza night for the Boma (Student Residential  House) which performed the most number of kilometres in the 6 hour period. The winners? B-A-O-B-A-B! Here is the team pictured above at the end of the gruelling marathon!

We have decided to postpone our International Festival to Friday 24 April. While we were very much looking forward to celebrating the rich cultural diversity within our school community, we received too few sign-ups for the original date. We also felt it would be more inclusive to hold the event after Ramadan has concluded.
We sincerely hope that those who have already registered will still be available and enthusiastic about hosting a booth on the new date, helping us make this year’s festival as successful as previous editions. We also warmly encourage more members of our community to sign up and share their culture, traditions and cuisine with our students, families and staff.

We look forward to celebrating together on 24 April!

Please sign up via

 https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd-SvUbHvbAAFamyXPEuT0sh4v3HC27GchDL_jgzymM9yorAA/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=113150540878587115393

Ingenuity at its best! D2 students (above) designed board games to help review their class texts.

Ms. Jessica’s D2 Language and Literature Class: After a stressful few weeks of mock exams and final IA submissions, students in Ms. Jessica’s D2 Language and Literature class decided to make learning fun again! In small groups, students planned and created a series of board games to help review the required course texts. After going in depth with The Handmaid’s Tale, A Doll’s House, and The God of Small Things to prepare for mocks, this was a fun way to review the content, make new connections, and share fresh insight and interpretation. Of course, we had to spend time playing them! The students’ impressive creativity was on full display, and it was a nice change of pace to see them laughing, having fun, and engaging in a meaningful way!

A beautiful view of our Arusha Campus which was taken last weekend (above)

As we move into the second half of the quarter, it is hard to believe just how much has already been accomplished in such a short time. It has certainly been a rollercoaster start for our DP students!
Our D2 cohort has been navigating one of the busiest periods of the programme. In the past few weeks alone they have completed mock examinations, submitted final Internal Assessments, wrapped up course content, and balanced big decisions for what they want to do next year. It is an intense season, but the finish line is now in sight. With only the last half of Q3 and two weeks remaining in Q4, graduation preparations are well underway, bringing a mix of excitement, pride, and a touch of nostalgia as we realise how close this milestone is.

Meanwhile, our D1 students are beginning to feel the pace quicken as they delve deeper into their subjects and start tackling major components such as their Internal Assessments and the Extended Essay. A highlight of the quarter was the Biology and ESS field trip to the slopes of Mount Meru, where students traded classrooms for forest and practised real data collection in a spectacular setting. Experiences like these remind us how powerful learning beyond the classroom can be.

This quarter has also brought moments of reflection for our whole community. We were grateful to come together for a memorial to honour Catalina. The words shared by her friends and teachers were deeply moving, and the compassion shown by our students for one another was truly inspiring. In difficult times, the strength, empathy, and unity of this community remind us why it is such a special place to learn and grow.

As we look ahead to the final weeks of the quarter, we encourage all students to continue seeking support, staying connected, and looking out for one another. There is still much to achieve, but also many small moments to appreciate — the friendships, the achievements, and the unique experiences that make our school community so vibrant.

Miss Jessica Peterson, Head of Diploma

Pictured above are our UWC East Africa ‘clowns’ – from left Athena, Rida, Lili, Lucia, Hadi, Ilia, and Muba.

Arusha’s Got Talent – Feb 27th

Friday night seemed to be the place to be as there was standing-room only in the Performing Arts building as an eager audience looked on to watch and listen to the entertaining acts during the latest installment of Arusha’s Got Talent.  Several AGT traditions were featured and continued to solidify why they have become traditions in the first place.  Hostess Ayinza (D2), kept a tradition going where the hostess displays her ‘talent’ by cartwheeling across the stage.  She did not disappoint!  The Sendzations siblings and Mr. Khalid also kept their well-loved traditions going by performing heartfelt songs, People Like You and Stuck on You.

A relatively new tradition seems to be taking hold as a troupe of Diploma students performed a clown act where poor Lili kept getting dropped by Lucia (on purpose, of course).  There was a wide variety of talent at this AGT, with a shadow dance by Israt (D1), a swooning vocal performance by Sipho (D2), a lovely piano solo by Ella (M4), and a surprise monologue by Mr. Ronald.

A highlight for many was an Airband act where a few D2 ladies donned wild wigs and leather jackets and rocked out to a medley of Queen and Michael Jackson hits.  It took teachers in the audience a minute to recognize them behind their makeup and guitar-slamming personas.

True to its name, Arusha’s Got Talent is open to other schools and Braeburn responded in energetic fashion by treating the crowd to a 10-piece rock band.  ‘We want more!’ was the response of the crowd and so the musicians adeptly performed an encore act from last fall’s Bonfire Night.  In addition, local Braeburn standout, Cai Lems, shined again with a solo performance of a Celine Dion hit.

The audience even got an improv act when Ritha (P4) sang a few versions of the ‘ABCs’ in between sets and got the Braeburn pianist and drummer to accompany her.

The Arusha community was left feeling a little tighter after the evening finished as appreciation was shown by parents, Rhino students, Moshi students, and Braeburn students towards all of the acts.  Well done, brave performers!

The only question left unanswered is whether or not Parth (D1), who will be the next host for AGT, can master the art of cartwheeling.  Start practicing now, Parth!

Mr Dennis, DP Music

Imn the image below are our Air Band comprised of Zora, Louisa, Amal, Nancy, Talia, Dove

Our annual Career Symposium will take place on Thursday, March 19 from 8 – 10:45 am. Students in M5-D2 will have the opportunity to discover careers you never knew existed, connect with professionals who’ve been in your shoes, and get real-world advice on turning your passions into a future. The Career Symposium isn’t just about listening—it’s about exploring, asking questions, and finding the path that’s right for you.

Mr Kendis, University and Careers Counselor