It is hard to believe it, but it is June already and we are nearly at the end of the school year. That is not to say that we are really winding down as you can see below but rather at the last part of what has been a full year.
Please join us this next week for one of the MYP drama productions and you are invited as well to the end of year assembly on Monday the 10th at 7:45am. For those that would like a more philosophical conversation, the D1 students will have their Theory of Knowledge Exhibition on Tuesday the 11th. Times for this will be shared soon.
Online we have a number of items this week and next. For incoming D1 we have Zooms this week and for incoming MYP they will be the following week. For parents of D1 students see the end of the newsletter for some information about university information Zooms over the two weeks.
Bob Cofer
Upcoming
The MYP Productions this week from M3 and M4
Ben’s Corner
Thursday’s Gathering of Gratitude was the highlight of my week. We introduced this event in my first year and it has become a much-appreciated annual occasion. It is an opportunity for us all to think about the people who work so hard to have a positive impact on our daily lives at UWCEA…and to let them know we are grateful. Gratitude is defined as the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness. The Primary students creatively expressed their heartfelt thanks to our cleaners, kitchen staff, gardeners, drivers, askaris, fundis, the nurse, people who ran clubs for them, EAs, teachers and, of course, each other. As always, it was such a heartwarming and joyful occasion. Kudos to Ms. Jamie and Mr. Swai for making this year’s event such a musical celebration too.
My mum always used to tell me ‘if you have an attitude of gratitude, the more you will have to be thankful for,’ and she was right. At times, we understandably become consumed by our own trials and tribulations, pending deadlines and commitments, our current workload or upcoming events.
However, I challenge all of us to foster and promote an “attitude of gratitude.” For us all to try and focus on the positives, what we have and what is going well, rather than allow ourselves to be dragged down into a negative space, focusing on what we do not have, what is lacking or what is missing. We have an awful lot to be thankful for. The display boards created by the Primary students showcasing the many faces on campus who help us, highlight we have many people to be grateful for as well. The boards are now standing proudly on the breezeway, so, be sure to consider these faces and say “asante” the next time you meet them on campus. They deserve it.
Ben Morley
PYP News
Thank you to everyone who attended the PYP Gathering of Gratitude on Thursday. We had a wonderful turnout. The performances were lovely – a big thank you to Ms. Jamie and Mr. Emmanuel Swai for putting so much effort into the event. The children enjoyed themselves a lot and it was also an important reminder to them of how many people work hard at the school (and at home) to support them.
Ms. Kacey and Mr. Emmanuel took the P3 class camping at Simba Farm and a great time was had by all. In the coming week we have our move up day on Thursday. We will start with the P6 moving up ceremony at 7:40am in Rafiki – please come and wish our oldest class good luck as they get ready to transition to MYP. After the ceremony the EC – P5 classes will spend 45 minutes with the teacher in the year above to ask questions and learn about some routines and events in the coming school year.
We are fast approaching the end of the year. After school clubs will end on Thursday, 6th June. The last Saturday football session will take place on Saturday, 8th June. Thank you to everyone, parents, secondary school students, teachers, EAs and community members who offered a club this year and provided the children with such an enjoyable and varied after school programme.
Dates for your diary:
Thursday 6th P6 move up ceremony and move up day, Last day of afterschool clubs
Saturday 8th Last Saturday football session
Monday 10th Whole school assembly 7:45am in Karibu Hall, P4/5 field trip
Tuesday 11th P6 Student Led Conferences
Wednesday 12th 7:40am Short farewell gathering for leaving children, Fun sports day – children should wear house shirts
Friday 14th Last day of classes
Deborah Mills
MYP News
I must say it has been awfully quiet on campus without the M5 students. But, nevertheless and as always, there is not a dull moment in our MYP division. As we reach the final two weeks of school, it really is incredible how fast this year has passed. From global milestones to local triumphs, we reflect and realize how much we have witnessed from our MYP students to bring people together, celebrate diversity, and promote change not only through academics. We’ve seen how each member’s unique perspective and disposition has enhanced MYP on our campus. By embracing creativity and adaptability, we’ve overcome obstacles and emerged stronger as a team (students, teachers and parents). We’ve demonstrated what it means to be open-minded, reflective, communicative, and knowledgeable. Our collaborative efforts have sharpened our social skills, and without doubt the academic rigor and the “tight deadlines” have improved our students’ self-management abilities.
So, here’s to reflecting on our achievements, we respectfully acknowledge that our journey is far from over. Together, we will continue to grow, inspire, and achieve continuously reflecting the dynamic environment in which we learn and thrive together. Remember, together is always good!
M4 End of Year Assessment: As highlighted in the MYP document “From Principles into Practice”, assessments are designed to support and enhance student learning by providing meaningful feedback. They help you reflect on your learning, understand your strengths, and identify areas for improvement. Engaging with assessments is an essential part of the educational process, as it helps in developing critical thinking and self-management skills that are valuable beyond the classroom.
This week, M4 students will sit for end of year assessments in Math, Sciences, English, I&S, French and Swahili. This is part of our best practices to help the students get used to timed assessments that are more cumulative and more targeted towards knowledge and understanding. These assessments are summative assessments and will be reported as part of their end of year reports.
Week of Giving Back As we know, the MYP programme places great emphasis on service as action, where students engage in community projects to make a positive impact. At UWC East Africa, we value citizenship, belonging, and responsibility. Through service, students develop critical thinking, creativity, and leadership skills, connecting theoretical concepts to real-world applications. It has been a tradition at our school to foster the mindset of giving back to the community that gives us. In the final week of school, our students will come together to support the community, showcasing how small actions can lead to significant change. Each class (M1-M4) will collaborate to complete various projects on and off campus as a reminder that we each have “a shared responsibility and a collective duty of care for ourselves, each other and the environment.”
Details to follow this week.
MYP Dates to Remember:
June 3rd to 7th – End of Year Assessments for M4
June 3rd – ‘Twelve Angry Jurors‘, performed by the M4 Monday Group
June 4th – ‘Twelve Angry Jurors‘, performed by the M4 Tuesday Group
June 6th – ‘Three Suitors: One Husband‘, performed by the M3 Class
June 6th – P6 to M1 Move Up Day
June 10th to 13th – M1-M4 Week of Giving Back
June 14th – Last day of Classes
Farah Fawaz
Residential Life
Dear UWCEA Community,
The past week on campus has been very quiet with D2s and M5s gone and D1s in their final exams.
With exams done, today is a perfect opportunity to join the Wellbeing Committee in the afternoon, 4:00 to 6:00 pm, for a Sip and Yoga session, relax, and enjoy the view of Kili from the pitch.
As we get closer to the end of the school year, the preparations for departures are slowly starting as well. Please do not forget to fill out the departures form by June 7th.
Finally, on Monday, we will start preparations for next year with a series of residential workshops, orientation planning, and end the week with the Language Idol and Wellness Day planned by the Activities and Wellbeing Committees.
Best, Adnan Mackovic
Diploma News
The D1 students have finished their first DP exams. The brief conversations I had with them suggested the exams have gone well but there are things that students could do to improve. The improvements are the reason we do these exams. Students realizing how they can study better or how they can use their time more wisely is important. Getting used to the instructions is helpful – many D2 students can quote them now. Knowing how to behave in the exam room and how to read a seating plan are skills they need.
The papers are now being marked and we aim to return them next week. The exams are on material from the full year and thus the grades for the exams are given separately on the report card and not included in the semester grade.
Next week is not an easy one. The collaborative science project takes place on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. This is a chance for students to work with their peers from other sciences to bust myths. One group last year looked at the telephone made with cups and string. They wondered does the material used matters? Apparently, it does.
There will also be the second CAS interviews, this is chance to reflect on what they have done and what they need to do. Hopefully they have been able to keep their records up to date. Students will also need to submit their TOK exhibition draft commentary in preparation for the actual exhibition the following week.
Some D2 students are still around but there have been some tearful goodbyes this week. They have all been sent the details of how to access their results which come out on the 6th July at 12:30 pm GMT (3:30 pm EAT).
Margaret Brunt
Sports Update
Leopards on the Move!
Congratulations to the U11 touch rugby team for a great showing last weekend. They traveled to Kennedy House for a NTSAA tournament. In very high spirts they returned back to campus with a 3rd place victory. Nice play everyone!
Today the U13 mixed Netball team are traveling to Kennedy House for another NTSAA tournament. Good luck and play hard.
Coach Pickell
EC/P1 Class
Thank you to all who came to the Gathering of Gratitude. The children worked hard to make the thank you cards for you. They shared with us about all that you do to help them and each one had something to say. In their own words, to mention a few, thank you for taking care of them, for giving them yummy snacks, for buying them toys, and for letting them have playdates.
We worked on creating stories this week. ECs have completed theirs. Some P1s are still working on adding colour to their illustrations and they will work on adding sentences to them this coming week. Some stories are very intricate. We will share them with you when they are complete.
This coming week, we will have a move-up day when P1s will spend some time in the P2 class with Ms. Kacey. They are very excited about this move. EC2s are also excited to move to P1 where they will be ‘doing harder work’. Please be ready with questions for them on that day.
Mboka Mwasongwe
P2/3 Class
It was wonderful to have so many parents at the Gratitude Gathering! The children were excited to share their songs and their drawings about the Clubs and Sports we’ve loved this year.
The highlight of the week for P3 was, of course, our camping trip to Simba Farms! We had sunny weather and a wonderful time. We had learned a few camping songs beforehand and they were well sung around the campfire!
I’m told that P2 had a very productive time under the care of Ms. Lydia, Ms. Catherine and Ms. Zitha. With only two weeks left to go, it feels like there is still much to do! We will be doing lots of math and spelling review and more fun writing. The focus for Economics will be the idea of supply and demand as well as information about imports and exports. Feel free to chat about these things at home or as you shop. We will also have our Class Shop next week. Information will come home in Monday’s Home Learning pack.
Kacey Buckley
P4/5 Class
The P4/5 children sang a splendid rendition of “Diamonds” in the Gathering of Gratitude on Thursday. Later that morning Ms. Heloise visited the class to share her expertise as an interior designer. The children looked at a computer programme, Sketch Up, that allows a virtual scale model of a room to be created. One of the rooms that Ms. Heloise has worked on is the Teachers’ Lounge so we went for a visit to see how reality compared to the vision and were very impressed.
On Friday, Mr. Banke visited the class to talk about the building materials used by his construction company. We were lucky enough to be able to visit one of his construction sites on campus (one of the residential houses is being extended) and could see the materials that were being used. In the classroom, the children have been painting their clay coil pots.
Please can you send in a box that we can use to pack up the clay so that it can be safely transported home. A large teabag box would be about the right size but I can work with anything – cereal boxes can be cut down to size.
Advance notice that we are planning a trip to Ms. Marissa’s cob house on Monday, 10th June and on that evening we hope to have a sleepover in the classroom to celebrate the end of the school year. The children have 2 permission slips in their bags. Please can you send them back to school next week. Next week, we will work on finishing off our various projects and complete end of semester assessments to hand on to next year’s teacher.
Deborah Mills
P6 Class
Danke, Ashânale, Salamat, Merci, and Arigatō. These are just some of the many ways we can say thank you. This week, we are especially grateful for the many people who help us at UWCEA. The Gathering of Gratitude provided a wonderful opportunity for us to express our thanks.
During the Gathering, P6 students thanked our School Drivers, Maintenance Staff, Finance and Development Teams, Front Office Staff, and our Leadership Team. We are also grateful for the wonderful P6 parents and residential parents for their care and love. Additionally, the P6 students did a fantastic job of MC’ing the Gathering and sang a beautiful song called “Fly, Fly Away,” accompanied on the piano by Zhiyi from D1 and supported by Ms. Jamie.
Next week brings more excitement, as P6 will meet with M1 students to discuss the expectations and routines of the MYP. This will help them prepare for their transition. We are also looking forward to celebrating the P6 Moving Up Ceremony on Thursday, June 6, 2024. After the ceremony, P6 will spend the day as honorary M1 students, giving them a glimpse of what next year will be like.
Natasha Berri
From the Counselors
Last week, we kicked off the first of a series of virtual evening events where students are welcome to come and hear from UWC Scholar Partner institution admissions specialists as they provide valuable insights about the holistic admissions process and their institutions. Representatives from Davidson and Middlebury Colleges shared fifteen strategies for writing the Common App essay and supplemental essays (where necessary) that will stand out in a crowded applicant pool. It was wonderful to see so many students from both campuses engaged in the session and asking excellent questions of our presenters. The learning fun continues next week with two sessions taking place, and then a final session on the last Tuesday of school.
See more information about this series below, and stay tuned to find out about other events by reviewing…
Upcoming College and University Events
*NEW* May/June: 7:30-8:30 PM EAT Admissions Talk Tuesdays (Different topics each Tuesday). Join us for a special session with a Davis UWC Scholar Partner Admissions specialist as they share information about the application process.
1 June: 7:45-10:00 AM EAT SAT test on Moshi campus (see information about other upcoming tests by visiting https://www.uwcea.org/tests)
3 & 4 June: 7:30-8:30 PM EAT Admissions Talk Tuesdays (see poster below for topics). Join us for these special sessions with Davis UWC Scholar Partner Admissions specialists as they share information about the US application process.
15 June: 4:45-6:00 PM EAT 15 on the 15th continues with a “Hot Admissions Topic” and a virtual fair with 13 Davis UWC Scholar Partners & 2 UWC “friends”
**Many more events (and resources) are on the UWCEA Careers website, as well as individual institution websites/social media**
