While it is just the start of the 4th quarter, the D2 students are entering the last week of classes before the exams start. I would say that when the started orientation in August 2019 they could never have predicted what the next two years would be like. For some this really have been their home as they have not been back since that August.
Looking back over the time, these students have had the opportunity to come together as a group. The odd circumstances of these times have provided them the opportunity to forge strong bonds that should last long beyond graduation. And as we all have learned, it is not hard to keep in touch digitally. So, to the D2 students enjoy the last week of classes, study hard, eat well, get plenty of sleep and good luck on the exams.
As you can see throughout the newsletter, there are a number of items of interest and many events coming this quarter. Parents please be on the lookout for invites to Zoom Coffee events at the start of May. For parents of students in P4 to M3 the MAP results will also be mailed out soon.
Bob Cofer – Head of Campus
Upcoming
UWCEA Moshi will be presenting ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ from the 9 – 10 June. The director and production team would like to invite willing and enthusiastic parents to take part in the following areas: Costumes, make up, hair, publicity, ticket sales, food and beverages on the evening. If you are interested in assisting, please meet with us in Karibu Hall at 1:30pm on Friday 23 April. Thank you in advance!
PYP Exhibition – date change
Due to the unforeseen national holidays in March, we have rescheduled the P6 Exhibition. The new dates are as follows:
25th May – daytime presentation to UWC students
26th May – evening presentation to wider community and parents
Ben’s Corner
I trust you all enjoyed a safe and restful break with family and friends and, like me, are looking forward to another fulfilling and dynamic quarter of learning at UWCEA. For our D2 students, the coming weeks have added significance. As we keep mentioning in Life Skills, be sure to give everything you can to ensure your results are a true reflection of your efforts, abilities and understanding. Do not procrastinate. Be strategic and focused. Take time for yourselves as, forgetting to, is counter productive. Listen to and look out for each other. Be mindful. At times, it will not be easy but make sure it is worth it and, as I have said to many of you, remember that this too shall pass.
Returning to our Values statements, this week, I approached the recently elected Co-Presidents of our restructured Student Government. I asked them to unpack the sixth statement from our UWC East Africa Guiding Statements, namely:
The ambition of students to demonstrate initiative and take on leadership roles.
“The school gives the students many opportunities to take on leadership roles. For example, CAS opportunities allow us to initiate ideas, lead activities or groups and make an impact in the community. In class as well, we are often encouraged to share our own opinions and ideas and these are always taken into consideration. We have the opportunity to communicate with teachers openly if we want to initiate an idea. It might not always happen but we have the chance to share our thoughts.
The way the Student Government is set up with different committees is working very well. Each committee has a Head and a Secretary role which rotates each month. This gives many people the experience of being a leader. Each committee takes on the opinions of all the students so that everyone has the chance to lead and initiate ideas even if they are not in a committee. The Student Government gives students a voice. We also have opportunities to work with our peers from Arusha Campus on OP Trips, IDU Trips and sports.”
AISA Awards 2021
We have many students across the school who live our values on a daily basis and, most of the time, this goes unnoticed and under the radar. We live and learn together by these values because we believe this is the right thing to do. However, sometimes it is very welcome when our initiatives and student leaders are acknowledged by outside organisations.
As many of you know, UWCEA is a member of the Association of International Schools in Africa (AISA). AISA is a school membership organization dedicated to transforming student learning by leading and supporting professional growth, good governance, strategic thinking and wellbeing of its entire community of schools. The ultimate goal being the transformation and improvement of student learning, celebrating educational excellence and innovation across Africa.
The association currently serves 79 member schools and, each year, these schools are invited to nominate students, individuals or groups, specific projects and initiatives for a number of awards. This year, we shared these awards with the teaching staff and invited people to suggest nominations. We then liaised with our counterparts on Arusha Campus to consider these suggestions and, together, nominated students or projects across a number of categories.
We are so pleased to share that we have heard back from AISA and our Moshi students have received two very prestigious awards.
Firstly, our Coral Reef Regeneration Project won Second Place in the 2021 AISA Outstanding Service Project Award. This award is for a service-learning project that may be run by an individual student or group of students whose project has a direct benefit to a community, as opposed to specific people or an individual. The award comes with $2,500USD for the Project and a special AISA plaque.
Secondly, Peter Makuei has been awarded the 2021 AISA Award for Excellence. This award is presented to a final year student who has embraced a world view which celebrates human unity and diversity, seeks to understand, appreciate and promote African cultures. The student demonstrates by example the concept of service to the human family and promotes a school environment that is characterized by a sense of hospitality and friendliness, collegiality and community. Again, this award comes with a special plaque.
Be the change you wish to see.
Ben Morley – Deputy Head of Campus
Diploma News
The D2 students are about to start the last week of their High School career. Classes are continuing until the morning of the 23rd April. Some subjects are completing the last few topics but, for the majority, they are revising. Teachers will be helping students revise in the best way for their subject. However, we understand students have different revision styles and so with the teacher’s permission they may use the time for independent study.
We have various events that they are helping plan.
Friday 23rd April – An assembly where they say goodbye to the D1 students followed by a pool party.
Friday 21st May – A celebration of the end of the exams with M5 and D1 students
Saturday 22nd May – Graduation. Parents have been sent an email about this and more details will follow. Due to Covid restrictions only 2 family members per student may attend.
They have also been having their final CAS interviews. The students present what they have done over the past 18 months in CAS and talk about what they have learned. These are very enjoyable to listen to and I am proud of how much the students have grown over the time.
For D1 students it has been business as usual. They have started their Internal Assessments in some subjects and the deadline schedule will be shared next week. They will have exams in the week beginning the 31st May and after the return of exam papers will be off timetable for work on Group 4 IAs and the TOK exhibition.
On Monday all students worked on a combined Art project. They were asked to recreate a small section of a picture on a larger scale. The full picture will be displayed outside my office.
Margaret Brunt – DP Coordinator
Secondary Student Government
Hello! UWC EA community,
The Student Government has been meeting up regularly and the committees have been communicating between each other and working hard to plan and execute events and activities for us students.
Please remember every member in the Student Government is a student and our purpose is to voice out the opinions of our peers. Thus if anytime, you have a plan and you would love to have it executed we are always there for you as we solely want to help our community to be active, healthy and happy.
Student Government is planning on multiple upcoming events for next year such as the inter-house Fashion Show, International Day and Mama Afrika.
On Friday, 23rd April we are holding a prom for M5-D2’s at El Rancho from 6:30-10pm to celebrate and congratulate D2’s completing school. You can purchase tickets at the front office.
On the 7th of May, we will be organising a UWC Got Talent, for students from PYP-DP to showcase their hidden talents.
During the April break members of our school community commemorated the Jewish Remembrance day for the Holocaust – Yom HaShoah
Soon, on Sunday 25th April our New Zealand and Australian members will be commemorating ANZAC day.
Please stay tuned for more information and additionally, if you want your national holiday/ memorial day to be commemorated please contact us!
Spring break presented itself with a wonderful opportunity for our students to have a very timely opportunity to re-charge, relax and refresh. With that being said, we had over 70 students return home and 85 remain on campus in some form. Whilst many of our D2’s were busy studying for their upcoming examinations, we had an array of activities organised on campus. These consisted of movie nights, karaoke, capture the flag, pool parties, BBQ and a movie day in Arusha! Many other students went camping with their Uja families and by the end of this week, we should have completed the quarantine processes for all of those that travelled afar.
This term, although intense and jam packed, presents itself with an opportunity to finish this school year on a high. Currently, we are exploring mentoring programmes with our Diploma students and MYP students, peer to peer tutoring and our Student Government is organising activities on set weekends for our younger primary students in Kimbilio.
Whilst we look at mitigating the wet season as best we can, utilising the dry days where possible for drying clothes and showing patience with the washing machines, we bring to light our UWC statement of belonging, acceptance and tolerance. Our additional focus is to continue creating a culture of care, empathy and contribution. The ideas that are coming through surrounding these themes are inspiring and I look forward to updating you on the array of activities and programmes that are planned for the weeks ahead.
Concerning the summer planning, next week I will be sharing a google document with all students soon so if you know your sons’ or daughters’ plans, please do send them through to me so I can begin coordinating this.
Finally, thank you to the many Uja families and parents who hosted our residential students over the break, and a special thank you must be made to Ms Samiah, Ms Linda, Mr Rogath, Mr Emmanuel and Ms Catherine who tirelessly looked after our students over the break. Their efforts did not go unnoticed, and our residential houses could not have stayed open without them. Thank you!
Simon Johnston – Head of Residential Life
MYP News
Welcome back to school. I hope everyone had a rest and is recharged and ready to finish out the year. There is always a lot going on here on our campus and this quarter is no different. We have IDU trips, sports days, celebrations and graduations. It is important to keep reading the newsletter and checking the calendar.
The M3’s will be going on their IDU trip in May. From May 5 to 7 they will be staying at the Cultural Arts Center with the students from our Arusha campus. Next week we will be sending home more information as well as a permission slip.
AS you know the rains have arrived and everything is beautifully green. But it also means that there is a lot of mud. Please have a chat with your student about trying to avoid the mud and also to clean their feet as much as possible. If they choose to wear boots they can always change into something else once on campus.
Stay safe and dry!
Jeanne Aman
From the Counselor
Planning Ahead
We hope you enjoyed a relaxing and rejuvenating break in whatever way you were able to spend the time. Since there is a lot of information in this first newsletter of the fourth quarter, we want to focus on a few key items this week, especially because one is very timely for students and families with questions about applying to international institutions.
On Saturday at 3:00AM EAT, and again at 5:00PM EAT, we invite you to participate in the College Board University Talks (Link to register: bit.ly/39EXfPh). Below is the information about this event, and why we think this will be extremely beneficial for M4-D2 students and families as you explore a world of options.
Participating International Universities are listed below. More will be added.
Bocconi University – Milan, Italy
Northeastern University – Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute – Troy, New York, USA
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology – Hong Kong
University of British Columbia – Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
University of Calgary – Calgary, Alberta, Canada
University of Sydney – Sydney, Australia
University of Wisconsin, Madison – Madison, Wisconsin, USA
Topics will include:
Exploring Various Higher Education Systems and Opportunities
Understanding the Role of Coursework
Decoding Admissions Testing
Mapping a University Search Plan
Building a University List
Writing a Personal Statement
Securing Letters of Recommendation
Exploring Financial Aid and Scholarships
Also, we have been invited to a major event taking place over two days with UWC Davis Scholar Partners and other top institutions in the US. Please take a look at this flyer and feel free to use the QR Codes or the bit.ly links to register for one of the two days:
In addition, virtual events will continue to be added to the Upcoming Visits List, so please be sure to sign up to attend one or two that interest you. Then talk with your child about what you learned and how this might apply to their post-secondary plans. In addition, if you are the parent of a student in M5-D2 and you do not have access to your child’s Maia Learning account, please email counselor_moshi@uwcea.org with your name, your child’s name, and your preferred email address in order to receive access.
Finally, although this final quarter will be full of excitement, it will also be a time when many will experience a rollercoaster of emotions. We welcome you to access resources that we have compiled in the COVID-19 Counselor Resources to support many of the mental health needs that will arise during this time.
Take care and Ramadan Mubarak,
UWCEA School Counseling Team
Sports Update
Welcome back to the last quarter of the year. I hope you had a refreshing break and are ready to finish the year on an active and positive note. Sportswise we will still be taking precautions to avoid any lock down or restrictions until our D2s have made it through there exams in May. After this we will be looking to organise a sports tournament with Arusha campus where we will go for the weekend and compete in several sports, I know Touch Rugby and Netball are on the schedule for this event.
Do not forget to support your team for the M1 to M4 inter house Basketball which will be held on Friday 23rd 2pm.
Tennis with Coach Charles Tennis with Coach Charles continues with him offering private and/or group lessons Wednesdays at 3:30pm to 4:30pm and Saturdays from 9.30am to 11.30am. Please contact Coach Charles at the courts at the above-mentioned times or call/message on 0710606766.
PYP Saturday Soccer Saturday Soccer with Mr T and several of our skilled M5, D1 & D2 students resumes this weekend. It kicks off at 9am and finishes at 10.30am just in time for the PYP swim squad to get their laps in.
Go Leopards Robin Marsh
Q4 Sports Schedule
Community Activities
Pilates – a new community activities for adults Hagit Goldberg will be starting Pilates for any members of the community who would like to take part on Thursdays from 7.45am to 8.45am. Pilates is a method that works on concentration, flexibility, core strength and balance.
Karate – a new community activities for students Next Tuesday for PYP and Thursday for MYP/DP we will be starting a paid activity for any students who would like to take part. We have a Karate expert in the Moshi community who is going to be offering lessons on Tuesdays for PYP students from 5.45pm to 7pm and Thursday for MYP/DP students from 5.45pm to 7pm. The cost for these lessons is TSH 20,000 per month or TSH 5,000 per session, which is a very reasonable cost for Karate lessons. Lessons will take place in K-hall.
Why should you try Karate? Karate can be practiced as an art or self-defence. Traditional karate places emphasis on self-development. Modern Japanese style training emphasizes the psychological elements incorporated into a proper kokoro (attitude) such as perseverance, fearlessness, virtue, and leadership skills. Sport karate places emphasis on exercise and competition. (Wikipedia)
Please email me by Tuesday 10am if you/your child would like to take part in the lessons so I can inform the instructor how many will attend.
PYP News
Welcome back to school. We hope you all had a restful Easter holiday. The 4th quarter has begun in earnest and we are looking forward to the events planned. Look out for events such as Book Week which is planned for the 24th to 28th of May. More information will be sent closer to that time but this is the time to start thinking about book character costumes and “Get Caught Reading” photographs.
Please note the change to the PYP Exhibition dates – this event will now take place during the day of May 25th for the UWC students and the evening of May 26th for the wider community.
Clubs will begin on Monday, 19th April. You should have already received the list of clubs your child has signed up for.
A gentle reminder that there is no supervision for children who do not have clubs as well as after 3pm when clubs finish. Children need to be under personal adult supervision during these times. They cannot be on their own.
Welcome back to school. This quarter, we will be looking at how we express ourselves. Our central idea is ‘visual arts are a tool to extend our ability to create and express ideas’.
Our lines of inquiry are as follows:
Illustrations
Visual art techniques
How everyone can express their ideas through the arts
We began the week reading two hilarious stories called ‘Pants’ by Giles Andreae and ‘Aliens love underpants’ by Claire Freedman. We decided to create some underwear for the aliens because they don’t have any in space. You can also see some aliens that the P1s designed.
Next week, we will read ‘Giraffes Can’t Dance’ by Giles Andreae. Apart from completing various literacy activities and illustrations that go with our story, we will be learning how to express ourselves through dance.
The rains have started so please remember to send in indoor shoes and an extra sweater or jacket that can stay in the bag in case it gets cold during the day.
Mboka Mwasongwe
P2/3 Class
Welcome back to a rainy quarter 4! It’s been a fun and active first week of school for the P2/3s. They’ve been thinking up multiplication strategies, skip counting, designing timelines, and pondering over the greatest debate of our time – faster transport vs environmental damage.
The students have used the pictures that were sent in to make beautiful timelines. Many a person has come by and gushed at how cute the P2/3 students were (and according to them, still are). You can come check out our timelines outside our class.
We’ve not only created timelines of our own lives, but also of how transportation has changed over time. One of the things we discussed was the environmental impact of introducing engines into transport to make it faster.
Next Friday, we’re going to have our long postponed High Tea. I request parents to please send in a snack for the entire class for this very momentous occasion. Students can dress to impress for high tea as well! Look out for an official high tea message.
Elisha Jaffer
P4 Class
It has been a full and muddy week in P4. The kids are thrilled about the unit topic of Endangered Animals and have brought a lot of knowledge to the class. We will soon be choosing specific animals for individual research.
We’ve been busy this week with fractions in math and with writing informational paragraphs. We will continue on with our Monday swimming in PE. All of the students are making such progress with their strokes. On Friday, we began a dual focus on Poetry and Handwriting that will continue on for the whole term. The kids really understood the meaning of ‘Put a Poem in your Pocket’ which speaks of how important it is to fill your mind with good things. We also enjoyed some step-by-step drawing of animals.
Kacey Buckley
P5 Class
It was a messy week in P5 as the children worked with shaving foam as part of an investigation into tectonic plate movement and also built toothpick structures and wobbled them on a plate of jelly to see if they could withstand an “earthquake.” They also carried out internet research on a famous earthquake and learned some new vocabulary (e.g. seismic waves, Ring of Fire.) Next week we will move onto learning about volcanoes, the following week, hurricanes and the week after the children will have free choice and will research their preferred natural hazard. In maths we spent 3 days working on factoring and 2 days making a fraction wall and playing fraction games. We will continue with fractions next week. Our language focus has been punctuating speech and next week the children will write stories including dialogue.
Deborah Mills
P6 Class
This week the P6 students have been continuing to work on their PYP exhibition. I am impressed with how they have been working independently on many aspects of it. Many of them have met with their mentors, some of them have already visited various organisations and interviewed them and they have finalised their surveys. Some surveys have already been sent out, so please kindly respond to them as it will be extremely helpful for them to collect more data. The class has been keeping Ms. Sarah up to date with everything they have achieved so far via zoom. I am happy with the progress they have made so far, as on top of all of the above, they have also been working on different creative choices such a writing a poem, story, song, etc., and doing really well with their Maths and English work. We have also changed their seating arrangement for this term as seen in the photo attached. This is more student-centered and allows for group work and discussions to flow more easily.