Arusha Campus News – 5 Mar 2022

Peaks Level 4 to Ngorongoro. Students trek down from Tanzania’s third highest peak, Loolmalasin (3682m) whilst overlooking the active volcano of Ol Doinyo Leng’ai in the background.

Level 5 Plains to Olduvai. Over the same weekend, another group of students hiked across the short grass plains of the Serengeti, finishing up with the narrow Ol Karien Gorge (above), home to hundreds of nesting vultures.

Last weekend I was away with the Level 5 Plains trip and as a result failed to send out a newsletter. In this week’s edition we have news about the exciting OP trips that went out, as well as stories about Book Week, Mother Tongue day and other exciting events.

Today, Arusha Campus was buzzing with competitors from all over the country competing in the Arusha Open Debate Competition. Shrishti (D2) has organised this special event and will give us an update next week. The last day of debating takes place tomorrow.

Also today was the NTSAA Netball Competition and remarkably, the final of the U19 category matched up the eternal rivals – Moshi Campus vs Arusha Campus The final score could not have been closer and it was a shame that there had to be a loser. Both sets of players were magnificent with Arusha just shading the contest by 17-15. Our U15 team almost emulated the feats of their older siblings but did not manage to qualify for their final.

Brief from me this week. Enjoy the read and best of luck to all community members playing in the Neil McCulloch Memorial fundraising golf day tomorrow.

Phil

Wednesday 9th March – MYP and DP Student-led conferences all day

Friday 11th March – Primary NTSAA Swim Gala 

Saturday 12th March –  Secondary NTSAA Swim Gala

Thursday 17th March – M3 Science Fair

Friday 18th March Swahili Day

Thursday 24th March – Festival of the Arts

Wednesday 30th March – PYP Student-led Conferences

Did we all enjoy a restful and rejuvenating long weekend break? My trip to Mahale to see the chimpanzees came at exactly the right time. What a privilege to see such amazing animals in such a beautiful setting – and to get away from email, the news, and social media for 5 whole days!

Value #2 – A feeling of belonging, acceptance, and tolerance
The week started with a secondary assembly. Ms. Jessica and the Young Women’s Empowerment group announced their art project to support equal access to education for girls. Please check your email for participation in this initiative.

Value #4 – An education in a global context that promotes an appreciation and understanding of multiple perspectives and interdependence of individuals, societies, and environments
On Tuesday, Mindy Willett spoke to P6 students, and a few select M1s from the Literature exhibition group last year. She spoke about her book series which explores the culture and language of remote northern Canadian communities. Students learned a little about Canada, the writing and publishing process, and the importance of representation in literature. Some great questions were asked! Mindy’s books have been donated to our school library.

Value #5 – Innovation over perfection within a supportive community where students are motivated to embrace personal challenge and reflection
Don’t forget to join us for our first Learning Showcase on Wednesday, March 9 when students in M1-M3 will share reflections on their learning so far this year. Parents will gather at 4:50 in the Performance Area for an assembly and then follow their children on a modified timetable to visit 7 of their classes. Be prepared parents, you may wish you had done some homework!

Value #7 – Opportunities to engage with the culture and nature of East Africa.
Book week began on Tuesday with primary students exploring books related to this value. A wonderful book nook was set up in front of the primary kitchen, doors were decorated, and then on Friday, 15 secondary students were pleased to read local stories at the Teddy Bear Picnic. The book character parade was a big hit at our early Share Time.

Value #10 – The happiness and well-being of our communityOn Friday afternoon, school finished early so that teachers and staff from Moshi and Arusha could meet in Usa River to discuss and celebrate the completion of the recent CIS/IB accreditation visit. The week of meetings and interviews was the culmination of over a year of self-study and reflection about our school. We can all be proud of the work done and the insights gained.Value #5 – Innovation over perfection within a supportive community where students are motivated to embrace personal challenge and reflection.

Don’t forget to join us for our first Learning Showcase on Wednesday, March 9 when students in M1-M3 will share reflections on their learning so far this year. Parents will gather at 4:50 in the Performance Area for an assembly and then follow their children on a modified timetable to visit 7 of their classes. Be prepared parents, you may wish you had done some homework!

Book week!
We have had an amazing week in PYP celebrating World Book Day through Book Week. Our theme this year has been our school value number 7 – Opportunities to engage with the culture and nature of East Africa.
The PYP classroom doors (see image above) have been decorated to show different stories from across the African Continent including The Crafty Chameleon, I am you, Giraffes Can’t Dance, Honey… Honey ….Lion and Tinga Tinga tales.
The Student Council and PYP story picnic was thoroughly enjoyable with more African themed stories.
Each student created their own book cover and blurb and some classes even wrote their own stories. A big THANK YOU to Miss Carmen and Mr Ali for organising everything.
Throughout book week we hope to encourage a love of reading that students will cherish forever.

Mother Tongue Day (see picture below)

It’s one of my favourite events of the academic year. Hearing all the different languages that we have on our campus reminds me of the incredible diversity of our students. The atmosphere around school was delightful and engaging. The diploma students had organised a variety of activities to engage the younger students including songs, games and art. With so many languages worldwide becoming extinct, celebrating our Mother Tongue Languages brings an awareness of other traditions and cultures. It helps our students to appreciate international mindedness and to respect all languages.

Thank you to all the students, teachers and parents involved who
helped make this so successful.

Amanda

Anisa and Chloe (above) learning how to build shelters in case they fancy a night in the woods. Here they are using clovehitches and square lashings to make an A-frame den at Forest School CCA.

Sahil, Juanita, and Martin’s choice of WW1 poet was Ivor Gurney

Through Approaches to Learning (ATL) in IB programs, students develop skills that have relevance across the curriculum that help them “learn how to learn”. ATL skills (Research, Social, Communication, Self-management, and Thinking) can be learned and taught, improved with practice, and developed incrementally. They provide a solid foundation for learning independently and with others.

Mr Hamid

The D2 Biology class are working hard with their review and prepping for exams. Each student is teaching the rest of the class a subtopic through a fun creative and interactive activity. We had discussions about how the brain remembers things best if it’s having fun and making creative connections! In this picture, Kim is reviewing DNA replication through a kahoot quiz which has fun animations and videos.

This week the P4/5 class came to the bio lab (above)  to learn more about the scientific method. The D2 biology class designed fun exploratory experiments to guide them through the steps from a practical perspective. In small groups they learnt about movement of water through celery, magnetism, mixing of colors, preservation of apples in different solutions and the solubility of different solutes and solvents with temperature. A great way to collaborate and have diploma students teach our younger students valuable science concepts.

Last week Miss Kate and her D1 Art students made the short journely to Lolkisale (above) to draw the telecommunications tower, with a view to designing an alternative tower that somehow looks more in place with the environment around it!

The successful Loolmalasin Summiteers at the top!

This past weekend D1 and M4 students from Moshi and Arusha embarked on one of the most phenomenal trips, we all have ever been on level 4 peaks in Ngorongoro. The region is beautiful in every meaning of the word showing wonderful plains, amazing mountain ridges, craters, and Volcanoes. A lot of us had the feeling of walking inside J.R.R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings world. The trip offered opportunities for all the students to show they now are ready for Kilimanjaro after plenty of hikes throughout the year. Showing that heat, fatigue, and kilometer after kilometer will not be able to break this group of dedicated youngsters. The trips allow us to come together away from phones and deadlines. The trip ended at a pool after a 12 km walk on the last day, when everybody was tired. Now many of us cannot wait for the level 5 hike on Kilimanjaro.

Marius, D1

Below, the Arusha Campus contingent pose beside the shimmering soda lake in Empakaai Crater

The Plains Level 5 trip was the first of its kind and took us to the short grass Serengeti plains in the middle of the wildebeest calving season. After a visit to the museum at Olduvai Gorge and a tour of the remarkable Shifting Sands, we hunkered down for our first night in the midst of a herd of several thousand wildebeest, The next day involved an 18km trek to Nasera Rock, a giant monolith that towers out of the plains. Day three took us another 16kms down the Angata Kiti valley walking past herds of zebra, wildebeest, gazelles and giraffe. The fourth day involved rock scrambling down the Ol Karien Gorge and leaping waterfalls until we reached the opening of the gorge and the clifftop nesting ledges of hundreds of Ruppell’s Vultures. On the final day we jumped back into the vehicles for a tour of the spectacular Ngorongoro Crater where we saw our fill of rhinos, elephants and lions. We asked each participant to list their favourite moments and here are their responses:

Too many to list. Diversity of walking (plains, wildlife, masaai culture, gorge), stunning campsites, students mixing with different ages across campuses. A glorious trip, extremely well researched and led. Thank you for all the work.

Everything was excellent – the route, the campsites, the views, the crater visit. I loved it all.

The best thing about the trip was that we were able to go down rock water slides

The people in the trip, the availability of time for leisure activities and the tea

The one special thing about plain level 5 was that i felt like Moshi and Arusha were really one big school.

All the beautiful views, the gorge, the animals we saw.

Our campsite at the foot of Nasera Rock (below)

In honor of Women’s History Month, we are launching a global art project of the people right here at our campus. We believe that ALL girls and young women should have the right to equal and high-quality education. Empowering girls enables all Tanzanian children to be positive change-makers, equipping them with the knowledge and confidence to carry Tanzania into an exciting and progressive future.

Here is how YOU and your family can be a part of this amazing project:

Fill out a brief “application”. Only one application per household is required–your spouses and kids can also participate! Please complete by 6 March. You may fill out your application by clicking on the oinfographic above or on this link https://forms.gle/tSmNt5FzCMV8H5DS9

After receiving your response, we’ll send a link to the release form. Each participant needs to sign a release form.
The week of March 7-11, we will take pictures of those who applied and signed the release form during lunch and after school.
*Pictures are of faces only. One only person per photo, no sunglasses or brands/logos.
The photos get sent to the organization, and we should get them back printed on large poster paper in two weeks. In the meantime, we’ll be collecting supplies: wheat flour, sugar, buckets, large pots, camping stoves, sponges, brooms.
As soon as we get the posters, we’ll set a date for the installation and invite the community to take part. The installation will take place after the April break.
At any time you can visit our webpage to see our progress. Check out what other schools around the world are doing as well!

Miss Jessica Holloway and the Women’s Empowerment Club

Order books by March 18th. Orders can be made online at 

https://world-schools.scholastic.co.uk/int-sch-moshi-arusha-campus/digital-book-club

You can also fill out the order form in the magazine that was sent home with your child, cash payments can be made with Grace in the accounting office.

Click on any month (below) to link to the live School calendar on our website