Moshi Campus News – 31 Oct 2020

Yesterday was our annual Halloween festivities.  This is an opportunity for those interested in joining in to have fun and show their creative side. First off let me give a special thank you to Christine and her magnificent team, Alastair and his students and the PYP team for making the day and night possible.

On the Primary side we had parents and students (thank you MYP students) that set up car “trunks” so our PYP students were able to have a trick-or-treat experience.  This has grown into some elaborate trunks and creative games for everyone’s enjoyment.

In Secondary this tradition now has community volunteers and a growing number of students involved in haunted scenes on campus and other properties. I would hazard to guess that we had as many as 40 students involved in the acting this year. Once again, the creativity was on full display as it seemed everyone was trying to one up each other on ideas and new ways to scare their fellow classmates and others.

In the next few weeks we have a few more events as you can see below and an update from the Kilimanjaro OP trip.

Bob Cofer – Head of Campus

Please remember that the Welcome Picnic is this Friday the 6th at 4-6pm for those that signed up. Food and fun will be provided but we ask families to please bring either a side dish or dessert.

Please email adiele@me.com if you have any questions.

The Moshi Campus PTA AGM will be on Wednesday 11th November at 6pm.  More information will be coming out in the next newsletter regarding the location.

The last day of classes is on December 11th and in January, classes resume on the 11th.  We ask that with this holiday you plan accordingly and if you are traveling outside of the country please plan on an isolation time before school classes start.  For residential students we ask they return by January 5/6th so that they have isolation time in the houses before we start class.

Parents of residential students – A form will be coming out shortly to start collecting travel information so we can plan transport to and from the airport etc.  The earlier we get this information, the easier it is for us to plan.

It has been an unusual week on campus this week. On Tuesday a group of students came back from the summit of Kilimanjaro -congratulations to all who made it. Even if you didn’t the preparation was still an amazing experience.

We had no classes on Wednesday and Thursday but for most students it was not a holiday. For D2 it was a chance to catch up on Internal Assessments and Extended Essays. For most of them by next week all drafts will have been handed in. The quality for many is good and so the work for the final will not be as much. For D1 it was also time to catch up on work. Teachers spent their time finalising the D2 reports which will be issued on Monday.

On Friday we had the Hallowe’en celebrations. Some DP students helped with the trunk or treat for primary. Others acted out scenarios to scare students and some participated. Hopefully everyone enjoyed themselves.

Margaret Brunt – DP Coordinator

We have been working on the Ujafamily groupings and these should be sorted this week. We will be sending some guidelines to both families and Ujafamiles soon.

If you are able to support us by being an Ujafamily but were unable to fill in the form please contact Marieke (marieke@zwets.com),  Maria (mariachauhan2017@gmail.com) or me.

Margaret Brunt

Last week saw the dedicated mountain hikers reach their peak.  Seventeen Moshi D1 & D2 students took the challenge to attempt to complete the Level 5 Mt Hike by reaching Uhuru Peak, the summit of Kilimanjaro.  The trip ran very smoothly considering the incredible challenge it is. Fifteen of the Moshi Campus students managed to reach the summit successfully. Some responses from students include “It was horrible,” “It was awesome,” “It was the hardest thing I have ever done,” and “I didn’t think I would be able to finish it”. While a bit contradictory, the fact they found it’s so challenging and did it anyway is exactly what we want from our OP program. We have lower level trips to help students find interests outside of school, see some of the wonderful scenery and nature Tanzania has to offer and to build independence and perseverance.  We have the higher level trips to teach students how to work through adversity, how to support each other and collaborate to achieve a goal, to better themselves, to stamp their intentions to be the very best they can be regardless of the challenges put in front of them.  Other comments which came from the trip were “It was hard but great” and “I am so proud of myself”. This is UWCEA OP.

Robin Marsh

On Sunday 25th October we had the Norwegian and Netherlands Cultural Evenings. As usual we started with food from the countries. We had meatballs and mashed potato with sausages in it. Afterwards we moved to Rafiki to hear fascinating presentations about the countries with videos and music.

Tomorrow some students will celebrate Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) a Mexican tradition. An altar will be set up where people can place photos or memories of their loved ones.

On the 8th November we will have presentations from Latin America.

Facing Fears

With Halloween and ‘El Día de los Muertos’ festivities happening throughout the weekend, we thought it would be a good opportunity to address the topic of facing your fears. This has been a time of great uncertainty for many around the world, and  mental health has been impacted in a variety of ways. Some people have become more fearful based on the information they are being inundated with, and it leaves them unsure how to deal with aspects of their lives that were once so routine.

Feeling fear is not necessarily a negative experience, and in small doses can provide a healthy level of self-awareness that can help to keep you safe. The key is to identify the fears that impact you, and determine the root cause of why you find yourself feeling scared in certain situations. Sometimes there have been events or relationships we have not properly dealt with that continue to create a space for those fears to creep back into our lives. Once you can identify the reason the fear grips you (when you’re not in the middle of a fear inducing event), then you can begin to employ appropriate coping strategies to deal with those fears so that they don’t inhibit you from fully embracing life.

False Evidence Appearing Real (F.E.A.R.) can create a slew of problems in our lives, beyond the haunted houses that we visit for an annual scream fest. Once the frightful festivities have ended, if you would like to explore healthy ways to deal with fear for yourself and/or your child, feel free to review the article on this link for ideas on how to face your fears and enjoy life.

On the university side of things, this is an extremely busy weekend with students (and parents) finalizing applications to institutions with a 1 or 2 November deadline. The Early round is for those who are truly committed to the institutions they are applying to at this point in the process. A key way to ensure you know which institution you want to seriously consider applying to, is to gather information well in advance of application deadlines. This is why students and families continue to be encouraged to review the list of upcoming virtual visits so that you can do your research and explore the vast array of international options that exist. Once again this coming week, we will virtually host institutions from around the world, and invite you to participate in as many possible.

Next week you can spend time in Canada, Japan, and the United States with the slate of visits/presentations scheduled next week. On Sunday, 8 November, there will be a huge fair for institutions in the Netherlands, which is becoming an ideal international location for students around the world. Don’t miss your chance to learn more, and see what else is coming your way on this link. No need to fret or fear, there is plenty of information available here!

Asante sana na wekiendi njema,

UWCEA School Counseling Team

Halloween was a great success, thank you to everyone involved.  Seeing all the parents and students dressed up and laughing was the best treat of all. The “Trunk or Treating” was a lot of fun and the kids had plenty of candy to keep them “fired up” for the rest of the evening.  As I worked in my office later that night,  I could hear the laughter and screams from the older children as they toured our haunted classrooms. It was a very nice day indeed.

Over the weekend you will see I have sent the student MAP test results.  If you need any help reading the information please reach out, I will gladly help you filter through the information.

The next few weeks will go by faster than we can even imagine so please support and encourage your students to keep an eye on their studies as we approach the end of term.

Next week some MYP students will be given an invitation to attend “MYP Success Skills Club.”  Here we will be discussing ways to improve their study habits, goal setting and organizational skills in addition to providing support for their academics. It will be Monday and Thursday directly after school.  Our first session will be on Thursday November 5 in room 14.

Jeanne Aman – MYP Coordinator

Next week we will be holding the Athletics day for PYP on Tuesday the 3rd November and MYP/DP Wednesday the 4th November. PYP and MYP will be showcasing the skills they have been working on in their PE athletics unit in quarter 1.  Please come along to support our students.

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 this Saturday with Mr T and several of our skilled M5, D1 & D2 students helping to run the club.  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

Our modified sports weekend is only a few weeks away.  We will be running it a little different this year as we will only have UWECA Arusha and Moshi competing, however, we will be increasing the categories for great student participation, allowing our younger students to take part in a tournament this semester.  We will have U11, U13, U15 and Open categories.

Many thanks to everyone who worked hard to ensure the children had a great afternoon on Friday. Please note that Tuesday is PYP athletics day. The children should wear their house shirts if they have one (not to worry if they don’t) sunscreen and a sun hat. All children should bring a water bottle. Parents are welcome to attend. We would love a few adult volunteers to help with the timing and scoring for this event. If you are able to help please email Robin Marsh on robinmarsh@uwcea.org.  Athletics day will begin on the pitch at 8:00am. On Friday 6th November EC/P1 will be presenting in the primary gathering. We look forward to seeing you there. Please wear a face mask inside Rafiki Hall.

Mboka Mwasongwe & Deborah Mills – PYP Coordinators

Thank you to everyone who decorated a trunk for PYP Halloween. We had 15 trunks in total – the largest number since I joined the school in 2016. There were trunks by  PYP parents,  MYP and Diploma families,  MYP students, the Student Voice and Kiongozi dorm. On behalf of the primary school children I would like to thank you for your generosity. Your time and creativity were very much appreciated. Just a note for next year – the number of secondary students visiting the haunted houses (Kishari and Brandsma residence) is now so high that the logistics are becoming quite complicated. For this reason, next year the P5 and P6 students will not be able to attend the secondary school haunted houses – they will have to wait until they are in M1!

Deborah Mills

This week, we met Muffin and Cupcake, two charming cats. We had a chance to enter a chicken coop and hold little baby chicks. The children were so excited and happy. Thank you Mrs. Morley for giving us the opportunity to meet your animals. We had a wonderful time with them. Cupcake has become a class favourite!

On Friday, we took a long walk to the horse stables. We had a chance to look at the horses, what they eat/drink and where they live. We then walked all the way to Ms. Marsden’s house and met her pets. Thank you for allowing us to do so.

Next week, we are hoping to meet a few more pets including some rabbits.

Also this coming week, we will be working on our primary gathering presentation. In the course of the week, we will send more information home about what we will be working on and how you can help us. It will be the first presentation for most of the children and they will need a lot of encouragement. Please lock in the date and come and join us at 7:30am on Friday the 6th of November.

Mboka Mwasongwe

Every week should have a weekend in the middle of it! Many of the P2/3 students will disagree with that, but I know I’ll have the support of the teachers!

This week’s been full of energy and art. The students in P2/3 have been brainstorming where they’ve lived and thinking of the attractive attributes of those places in order to create an advertisement for a country or city. The students have been using Canva during IT and experimenting with brochures and posters through digital design.

We’ve drawn pictures using shapes, and this will further be explored next week by creating collage-like pictures with shapes. I must say, all of us had a rather fun time creating our Halloween art. We had some seriously cool cats, and pumpkins that ended up having a rather interesting array of facial emotions!

A reminder that next Tuesday is Athletics Day, students will be required to come to school in their house T-shirts. Please send in a full water bottle, a cap/hat and running shoes for that day.

Elisha Jaffer

Though it was a short week, P4 fit in plenty of work. Students have been doing a lot of creative writing and the practice is evident in their details and storylines. We continued with our science investigations and we will jump into experiments in the week ahead. The photos are from our “Cracker Lab” Investigation that involved describing objects by properties such as texture, shape, color, odor, etc.

I will be with the class for the whole week and will be in communication with parents by email about the plans for the following week. You are all welcome to join in with the fun of Sports Day on Tuesday. Please make sure your children have a good breakfast and come to school with a hat and water bottle on Tuesday. (This advice applies well to every day but is especially helpful for Sports Day!)

Kacey Buckley

It was such a short but busy week! Our main focus was working with an atlas to consider the difference between political and geographical maps. Map skills will come in useful when the children consider the migration journeys of themselves, family members and famous people. In maths we thought about quarter, half and full turns as 90, 180 and 360 degree turns. We  made some decorations for the breezeway for the PYP costume parade – the photo shows our splendid spiders. Please note that next Tuesday is the PYP athletics day. The children will need to wear a house shirt and sunscreen. They should be sure to bring a named hat and a reusable water bottle on that day.

Deborah Mills

This week we had fun looking silly in front of others while on our seed walk. We all wore one shoe and one sock to go around the different areas of the school to collect seeds on our feet. Then when we returned, we put soil inside the sock and watered them. Now, we are waiting for plants to grow. The class also started an experiment where a seed will have to find its way to light. They used cardboard boxes to create a maze to see how plants will search for light to undergo photosynthesis.

Next week we will have Sports Day on Tuesday. Everyone is reminded to bring a water bottle, remember their hats, and dress in sports attire. On Monday, we will learn about Day of the Dead, so if they would like they can bring in a picture of a loved one, including pets, who have passed away.

Sarah Brummel