Arusha Campus News – 26 Jan 18

I am lucky to be able to fraternise with teachers and students from other schools on almost a daily basis and this allows me to contrast the way we do things against the ways other schools do things. Very often I am inspired by these experiences and gain new ideas for implementation here on Arusha Campus. Invariably however I come away with the satisfaction that we are achieving what we set out to achieve – to stimulate inquirers and independent thinkers and to create inspirational leaders. The artwork above was invented by a P4/5 child whilst the expedition captured in the photo (right) shows Level 1 Outdoor Pursuiters negotiating the slopes of Kilimanjaro. In the same week we have played basketball and football against our friends from Braeburn whilst our older students reflect on their week in Nairobi where they met peers from all around the continent to share experiences of service learning.

As Darren reminds us below, the school that we see before us is a very different institution from the one that we attended a generation ago. The age of student-led inquiry is very much upon us, and something to celebrate, as we endeavour to prepare the problem-solvers of tomorrow for the challenges ahead. 

Phil

Dear Parents,

As we complete another week of Semester Two and I sit down to write this, the thought that strikes me is “I don’t know”: not “I don’t know what to write”, but “I don’t know how to put across everything that we fit into a week”.

From EC to D2 each week is so full of magic, amazing activities, learning and WOW! This week we have had the P4/5 Forces and Motion Science Showcase with the students demonstrating their learning through amazing experiments and demonstrations; sharetime this week was full with entertainment, with P1, P2 and P6 all sharing their learning and talents on stage. These very public demonstrations are amazing and represent only a small part of the fantastic learning around the school: as I visit classrooms I see phenomenal work being done every day.

This all demonstrates how education has changed: we are no longer in a system where teachers are givers of knowledge; teachers are now tasked with teaching students how to find answers. It is ok to say “I don’t know” and our role is to cultivate an excitement in not knowing, so that students develop the skills to work individually or together to find solutions. In this way we can be secure in the knowledge that the next generation can move out into the world and solve the issues and problems they will encounter. To highlight this, M1 will set off next week on their own journey of discovery and problem solving with their Interdisciplinary Unit (IDU) trip to Lake Eyasi (Wednesday to Friday). We wish them well and hope the “I don’t know” moments turn into “ah ha” moments.

I wish you all a great weekend and remember to embrace every “I don’t know” moment with questions and, hopefully, successful solutions,

Darren

P6 Arusha and P6 Moshi got together this week for an Exhibition Retreat Camp – out of ISMAC campus.The aim of the camp was to begin the process of exhibition by working in collaboration with different people in different ways. We had team building games, talks on plagiarism, action and discussions on the exhibition. The students also had a pool party and movie night. The whole goup are pictured above, with pics of our activities below.

The news season of sport is now firmly underay and our teams were in action this week.

U15 Football vs St Jude’s
Boys Lost 3-1
Girls Tied 1-1

U19 Boys Basketball vs St Jude’s
Won 34-33

U19 Boys Basketball vs Braeburn
Lost 61-8

Primary Swim Gala – Results still pending

The M1 class are off on their IDU trip to Lake Eyasi (Wednesday 31st January-Friday 2nd February) together with the M1s from Moshi. Here we will meet with the Datoga and Hadzabe tribes to learn how these tribes have adapted to their environment and how they respond to every day needs by being inventive with  the materials and resources that they find around them.

A report about the trip will appear in next week’s newsletter.

Hi everyone!
My name is Rabail and I am the new UWC Volunteer at ISM. I’m from Pakistan and attended UWC Red Cross Nordic (Norway) before going to Northwestern University in the US to study film and business. UWC was an amazing experience and has played a big part in making me who I am today. I have stayed involved with it by running UWC short courses and helping with national selections. I’ve had a great time at ISM so far and I’m looking forward to getting more involved and helping with anything I can. I’ll mostly be working on after school activities and would love to help initiate and develop activities you want to do. Please feel free to ask me any questions you may have, or just come chat with me about anything you want. You can find me around campus or email me and we’ll find a time to talk. Looking forward to getting to know all of you.
rabailhabib@ed.ismoshi.com

EC met with their buddies to explore different activities using their senses.  The P3 students helped to record their observations. The different learning stations included: jelly bean tasting, listening to musical instruments, painting with smelly paint (cinnamon, strawberry and ginger), feeling a variety of slimes, playing with playdough and moon sand, and using magnifying glasses to observe pictures and objects. A lot of fun was had by all!

Last weekend, ten ISMAC students completed the Level 1 OP trip to Mandara Huts in Kilimanjaro National Park. The weather was fantastic and there was a great view of Kilimanjaro from the road on the way to Moshi. Congratulation to all students for successfully completing their Level 1: they showed great spirits and team work while hiking up to the huts. They also enjoyed the opportunity to hike to Maundi crater (2775m) in order to watch the sun rise over Lake Chala and Kenya.
M1 students who completed this trip are now able to sign-up for the Level 1 B trip while M2 and M3 students are now able to sign-up for the Level 2 trip directly.
Please find below dates and cost of OP trips for the rest of the semester:

Quarter 3 is the busiest quarter of the year for M5 students as they complete their Personal Project and ePortfolios in Design, Physical and Health Education, French, Music, Drama and Visual Arts. They are reminded that the Personal Project Report draft is to be submitted to their supervisor on Monday 29th January.

As part of our experiential learning programme, M5s will undertake a one-week work experience from May 21-25 after their MYP on-screen examinations. Although this event is in four months, we advise students and parents to start thinking now about possible institutions and/or organizations that they would be interested in for their work experience. The choice should be based on the student’s interests and career goals. More information about work experience will be sent later on this quarter.

M5 students are reminded that the first draft of their Personal Project Report is due on the 29th of January. It is important that students check in with their supervisor and use the checklist provided in their Personal Project guide (page 16) in order to ensure they have included all necessary elements in their report. Please see below the upcoming deadlines to complete the PP journey:

29 January – First draft of the report due
26 February – Final report with appendices due
20 March – Exhibition on campus

We wish all the best to our M5 students and welcome parents and guardians to attend the Personal Project Exhibition on March 20.

At the end of Q2, M5 students focused on preparation for the May 2018 on-screen exams. They completed a two-hour on-screen exam in English, Maths, Sciences, I&S and Interdisciplinary learning in order to familiarize themselves with the format and content of on-screen examinations as well as with the IT tools required. Another set of on-screen examination will take place early in Q4 before the final exams in May.

This Quarter, M5s are focusing on their Personal Project as well as ePortfolios in Design, PHE, French, Music, Drama and Visual Arts. These willl be assessed throughout Quarter 3 and sent to the IB for external evaluation early in Q4. All assessment dates are posted on ManageBac.

The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) is an examinations board and registered charity based in London, UK, which provides examinations in music at centres around the world.

ABRSM exam dates are being confirmed for “Spring” 2018. The most urgent deadline is registration for Theory exams in March. Registration for these must happen by Friday, January 12. The May or June Practical exams will have a later registration deadline. Please contact: davidaloysngasi@gmail.com for any information concerning the registration process.